Chapter 57: Entering the Royal Dungeon

"Are all these people going to enter?" Chris asked Kelvin.

"Yes. Only the royal and noble families of our country are allowed to enter, along with some very talented youngsters who have signed a contract with our country. Also, only those below Level 60 can enter the dungeon. Uncle Derek can’t enter because his level is higher, but his son will follow us inside. Luckily, his son is Level 57, just below the threshold, so we should be safe inside."

Chris nodded. Having a level cap for entry was normal for every dungeon. Royal dungeons, on the other hand, usually had much higher level caps, allowing stronger people to enter. But unexpectedly, It seemed that this one only allowed people up to Level 60.

As for Level 57 keeping him safe? He didn’t care about that at all. He was most likely stronger than that Level 57 soldier.

"Why is that? I’ve heard that when a royal dungeon appears, royal families usually hold an auction to sell some entry passes to other countries and make a profit," he asked.

"You might not know about this, but there will be a tournament in less than two years in every country. Shortly after that, an international tournament will be held, where the strongest members of each country’s younger generation will compete," Kelvin explained.

"I’ve heard about that, but what does that have to do with this?" He felt confused.

"It’s normal that you don’t know yet. While nobody knows what rewards will be given to the winners of that international competition, we can say with certainty that they will be something great. Not only will the winner be greatly rewarded, but their country will also receive huge rewards," Kelvin added.

"So right now, each country is acting in its own best interest. Every royal dungeon that appears will be kept completely private and reserved for their talented youngsters, giving them a greater chance of winning the tournament," Kelvin patiently explained.

"Ohh, so that’s how it is." He nodded. It made sense. "And the contracts you mentioned? They’re contracts stating that they must fight for your country in the tournament, right?"

"Yes." Kelvin nodded.

"Then what about me? I wasn’t given any contract to sign."

"Oh, you don’t need to worry about that. The entry spots were gifted to Aelonen and his protector as a sign of goodwill towards the elven tribe."

"So that’s how it is."

"Everyone, please stay quiet for a moment. We have an announcement to make."

Suddenly, a burly old man in full golden armor stood in front of the portal, looking at the crowd. Wherever he passed, the soldiers around him saluted.

The old man continued. "As most of you already know, I’m General Howard."

Everyone nodded respectfully.

Howard nodded in satisfaction. "Before you enter the dungeon, there are a few rules to keep in mind." He raised one finger. "First, everyone must have an entrance badge to enter."

Everyone nodded.

He raised another finger. "Second, you enter at your own risk. If anyone loses their life inside, the Royal Family and the government of Narta won’t be held responsible."

Everyone nodded again.

He raised another finger. "Third, it is forbidden to attack or rob one another inside. Anyone caught breaking this rule will be severely punished upon exiting. But... I’m sure you’re all already aware that there will be some who break this rule. And if there are no witnesses or proof that you’ve been killed, the killer will go unpunished. So, once again, I remind you all to be extremely careful."

Some people displayed worried expressions as they looked at those around them, but they still nodded.

Howard nodded before raising his fourth finger. "And finally, anything you take from the dungeon belongs entirely to you. The country won’t ask you to hand over anything. This decision has been made with our youth in mind, in the hope that you will all gain something that helps you grow stronger inside."

"WOHOO!" "YES!" "AMAZING!"

Everyone’s eyes widened in amazement as they started cheering. In the past, countries had always asked for a large percentage of the rewards, but now it seemed they would be able to keep everything, which greatly boosted their morale.

Once he finished explaining the rules, Howard nodded in satisfaction. "Without any further ado, please line up and get your tokens ready for inspection." With that, he turned around and left.

What followed was an hour-long inspection of the people and their tokens, after which a large group stood directly in front of the portal.

At the front stood Kelvin, Lilith, and Damien with their respective parties. Altogether, there appeared to be around twenty people. As members of the royal family, they were naturally given special privileges and allowed to enter the portal first.

The others stood behind them, all eagerly waiting for their turn.

*BEEP!* *BEEP!* *BEEP!*

A siren suddenly sounded.

"That’s our signal. Let’s enter!" Kelvin said, and together, they all stepped through the portal.

A familiar sensation of space warping enveloped Chris for a moment before he opened his eyes again.

In front of him was a field of vibrant flowers surrounded by a forest.

He looked around but couldn’t see anyone nearby.

’Strange, where did everyone go?’

After thinking for a moment, he shook his head. This was even better. He could just go and act on his own.

A big smile appeared on his face as he pulled out the beast pouch and extended his hand.

"Let’s go, Azreon."

*ROOAR!*

A streak of light flew out of the pouch and into the air. In an instant, Azreon appeared.

The dragon spread his wings and flew into the air, performing a few loops. He seemed he had been bored inside the pouch and was happy to be free.

"Ugh... Finally, you took him out. It was starting to get cramped in here." Chris heard Aria’s voice in his head.

She was still inside the pouch, but it seemed she could talk to him even from within.

A sudden thought struck him. "Wait, Aria, how was I able to bring you inside? Isn’t your level higher than 60?"

"Yes, but my strength has been greatly reduced due to my injuries, allowing me to enter. I practically have a debuff that lowers my level considerably. Also, my fox form is special, so even without that, I would be able to ignore the restrictions while in that form."

He felt confused. "How does the first part work, then? Could strong adventurers intentionally injure themselves before entering the dungeon and then use a healing potion once they’re inside to regain their strength?"

"It’s not that simple. If they healed inside the dungeon, it would notice the increase in their strength and expel them. Besides, there is no reason for stronger people to enter the dungeon in the first place, as they wouldn’t get any stronger inside."

"Oh." He nodded, though he didn’t actually care much. Still, it was interesting.

He looked at Azreon with a smile.

"Let’s go, buddy. Let’s not waste this precious time."

Azreon dived down, allowing him to jump onto his back before ascending again.

Flying high into the sky, he activated his dragon vision and looked around.

’Wow, this is indeed different.’

He could see the forest extending endlessly around him, and he could even make out a few mountain peaks in the distance.

Looking down, he suddenly saw something that made his eyes widen. A group of beasts was moving through the forest. They looked exactly like ants, but they were much larger, roughly the size of wolves.

He prided himself on knowing beast species well, as he had spent years studying them. But he had never seen an ant so large.

[Armored Ant - B-Rank - Level 46.]

[Armored Ant - B-Rank - Level 46.]

[Armored Ant - B-Rank - Level 47.]

They were all relatively weak in his eyes, but he had never heard of armored ants before.

Still, he wouldn’t reject a free meal.

"Time to hunt, buddy." A big smile appeared on his face.

*ROOAR!*

Diving down towards the group of armored ants, Azreon opened his mouth and released a stream of crimson fire.

The flames instantly enveloped the ants before they could react.

The ants started screeching loudly as they were consumed by the dragon fire. Their bodies offered slight resistance before they began disintegrating into ash.

Chris raised an eyebrow. It seemed these ants’ bodies had great resistance and were able to withstand the fire for a brief moment. If they had been normal B-Rank beasts of that level, they wouldn’t even have been able to make a sound before being turned to ash.

However, the series of notifications made him stop thinking about it, and an even greater smile spread across his face.

[Received 110 XP.]

[Received 110 XP.]

[Received 120 XP.]

"Let’s look for some more, buddy."

*ROAR!*

...

Two hours later.

[Level increased.]

[Contracted beast’s level increased.]

A big smile spread across Chris’s face as he looked at the notifications.

He was getting closer to his next evolution, which filled him with extreme joy. For him, nothing was as thrilling as getting stronger.

Unexpectedly, the forest around him was completely packed with armored ants. Their sheer numbers were impossible to count.

Chris started thinking.

"If there are ants around, there must be a nest somewhere."

Just imagining a nest filled with similar ants made his heartbeat quicken.

He decided to stop hunting for a moment and follow some of them, hoping they would lead him to their nest.

...

A great distance away, in another part of the forest.

"HOW COULD I FORGET!? DAMN!" Aelonen slapped his forehead as he yelled.

"Ehm, my friend, I’m sure it’s fine. Chris shouldn’t have any problems on his own, considering his strength," Kelvin advised from the side.

"Eh? Who said I’m worried about him? I’m worried about myself! If he was here, there would be nothing to worry about at all!" Aelonen yelled back.

Kelvin shook his head. "There shouldn’t be any problems. See, Donald is here." He pointed at a man standing beside them in full armor. "He’s the one I was talking about, Uncle Derek’s son. He’s strong enough to keep us safe if there’s any danger."

"Sigh..." Aelonen sighed.

What frustrated him was that he had forgotten to give Chris a tracking device. In royal dungeons, it was normal for everyone to get separated upon entering, as the portal would teleport them to random locations. They would then use tracking devices to find one another.

They all had one. They had exchanged them while traveling, and since Chris had been alone in his room, Aelonen hadn’t wanted to disturb him. He had decided to give him the device later.

In the end, he had completely forgotten about it, and now they wouldn’t be able to find each other.

"Well, we don’t have any other options now. Let’s hope we meet him later." Aelonen shook his head as he pulled his sword out of the body of a giant spider.

"What even are these beasts? I’ve never seen such large spiders in my life. If big brother wes here, he would have surely known what we were dealing with." He felt frustrated as he wiped his sword, which was now covered in green slime.

"EWWW! That’s disgusting!" Kenna almost vomited from the side.

"S-Sister! Lower your voice." Denna was startled.

"It’s not just spiders. I saw some gigantic centipedes earlier while going through the forest. I think this dungeon is filled with gigantic insects," Max added from the side.

Melvin, standing beside him, nodded. "Yes, I’ve seen something similar."

"Well, now that we’re all together, and there’s no need to wait for big brother Chris, let’s just explore and try to hunt some more of these beasts," Kelvin suggested.

They all nodded before starting to walk through the forest.