Trapped as an NPC in a Dating Sim - Chapter 99: Caught Off Guard!

Chapter 99: Caught Off Guard!

As a senior who had invited them out, he had to take responsibility for Soren and the girls.

But seeing the monsters clashing so close, he couldn’t just leave these monsters alone either.

After all, those behemoths could easily harm other students wandering through the forest.

Since he had encountered them mid-fight, he decided to take them down.

At the very least, he could recover some of his loss.

“You guys know the way to the camp, right? Go a little farther from here and circle around this location. Once you reach the camp, make sure to inform a Professor about what’s happening here.”

Owen spoke while showing them the safest route.

Due to the ongoing fight and the devastation surrounding them, they would have to travel a bit deeper into the forest.

But thanks to the aura of the behemoths, Soren and the others shouldn’t encounter any other monsters on their way.

“Okay! Take care, senior!”

Soren and the girls also knew the stakes and didn’t say much.

Rather, they quickly left the area, heading toward the route mentioned by Owen.

’Now what?’

While Soren walked with Aurelia, Elara, and Elise, his mind was running rapidly, his eyes scanning everywhere around.

’Is this just an accident or…?’

Soren really didn’t believe this was just an accident. Not after the incident yesterday.

Even with normal eyes, two monsters exceeding level 50 just near the camp didn’t make sense at all.

Not to mention the coincidence that they happened to encounter them fighting.

’But… didn’t Professor Lyra say everything was alright?’

Soren was thinking when, suddenly, he felt someone nudging at his clothes.

“Soren…”

It was Aurelia who seemed a bit concerned about him, apparently remembering the incident yesterday.

“Don’t worry, everything should be fine. We are quite close to the camp.”

Soren quickly assured her, maintaining high alert about his surroundings.

Then, together with Elara and Elise, he slowly circled the forest before heading back in the direction of the camp.

Throughout that time, they didn’t encounter any monsters, as Owen had predicted.

However, just as they were about to arrive, something happened that made them stop in their tracks.

*Sssszzz!*

Right in front of them, a massive snake coiled around a huge tree, easily double the size of the largest anaconda Soren had ever seen.

In its mouth was a bloody hare monster, likely one that had fled from its nest because of the ongoing fight.

The moment they arrived, it immediately turned its massive head toward them, its vertical reptilian eyes scanning them coldly.

—

[Monster: Venomcoil Serpent]

[Rank: D]

[Level: 35]

[HP: 4000/4000]

[Special Trait:

> Venomous Bite: Delivers highly toxic venom, causing continuous damage to bitten targets.]

—

The moment they saw the level of the monsters, everyone suddenly relaxed simultaneously, their tense bodies loosening all at once.

With all the high-level monsters roaming around, they thought this snake was also a high-level one.

Fortunately, it was just a level 35 snake.

There was nothing to worry about.

Thinking so, Elara suddenly turned to Soren and Aurelia.

“Let’s kill it swiftly before heading to the camp.”

She proposed, and after both of them nodded, she quickly drew her blade and flashed forward, moving with her twin sister in a beautiful, synchronized dance of steel.

*Hiss!*

Thus began their first fight together with the menacing snake monster on the outskirts of the WhiteLeaf Forest.

“Falling Petal Dance!”

“Pyro Lance!”

As Elara and Elise performed their beautiful, deadly dance, parrying every attack of the snake, Aurelia burned the deadly venom before it could even land.

After fighting the Bumblebee, although neither Aurelia nor Soren leveled up, that didn’t seem to be the case for the sisters, as they were visibly stronger than before.

In fact, they were so strong that after just a short fight, their blades flashed, slicing the serpent’s body directly in half.

Although there was help from Soren’s arrow and Aurelia’s fire, he had to admit that these twins were quite strong.

“Let’s collect the loot and return to the camp.”

Soren wasn’t in the mood to admire anyone, though, as for a while now, he had been feeling a bit restless.

He had this very bad feeling that something was about to happen. He just didn’t know what or where.

He didn’t even know if his feeling was correct.

“Hmm? What is this?”

Just as Soren urged the twin sisters and was about to head towards the camp, he heard a shout from Aurelia.

“Hey, Soren… do you know what this is? Why is it inside the monster’s body? I don’t think it’s its core.”

Aurelia’s voice carried a mix of curiosity and surprise as she stepped closer, holding up a smooth purple gem she had just extracted from the monster’s corpse.

Just as she said, it didn’t resemble a monster core at all.

It was far too large… and far too refined.

Not to mention the colour, deep, almost mesmerizing violet, with a faint sheen that made it look unnaturally pristine.

“Whatever it is… we can check it back at camp. Let’s move.”

Though he found it strange as well, Soren had no intention of discussing it here.

Without hesitation, he took the gem from Aurelia and attempted to store it in his inventory, until…

…it remained in his hand.

“Hm?”

A flicker of confusion crossed Soren’s face as he tried once again to store it, only to feel nothing.

The gem didn’t react at all, as if it simply refused to be stored.

This was the first time Soren had seen an item that couldn’t be stored inside the inventory.

Although he knew of such items from the game, they were very high ranking after all.

How could such a thing be found inside a level 35 monster?

Unnerved, Soren quickly used his artifact, ’Eye of Insight,’ to scan the gem in his hand, only to be totally surprised.

—

[Item: Voidgate Amethyst (Consumable)]

[Rank: A]

[Effect: Grants remote access to an Instant Dungeon. Upon exit, the user is returned to their original location. Cannot be stored in the inventory.]

[State: Active]

—

“What?”

Soren couldn’t help but yelp in extreme shock when suddenly the gem in his hand began to glow brightly.

“Hey! What’s that in your hand? Did you find some incredible treasure or…?”

Just then, Elise also noticed the radiant gem hovering over Soren’s palm.

Curious, she swooped forward, reaching as if to snatch it away, only to see the gem dissolve into pure violet light, engulfing her, Soren, and Aurelia in a swirling, otherworldly glow.

In an instant, Soren felt an invisible force, raw, overwhelming spatial power, tugging at him from nowhere.

The pull was stronger than anything he had ever felt, far more violent than when he had entered a dungeon portal.

Before he could even react or throw the gem, he was yanked into an unknown dimension, the world around him dissolving into a blur of violet light.

Simultaneously, Elise vanished alongside him, leaving nothing behind.

Aurelia, however, was nearly pulled in as well, until her necklace flared brightly, anchoring her and resisting the pull just in time.

When the light faded, only Aurelia and Elara remained in their place, totally confused and shocked.

“Soren…?”