Night 00:16.
Cass looked at the gender-ambiguous NPC and recalled the definition of an NPC that the teacher had explained in class.
NPCs are the interpreters of Dungeon Civilization.
They guide explorers to experience a corner of the Dungeon’s past civilization, and as explorers accompany them through this reenactment, they are rewarded with items and experience points, or perhaps access to important Hidden Areas, either during or after the process.
The whole process from start to finish is called a “Dungeon Task.”
The biggest feature of NPCs is the “!” mark above their heads.
“Siloque, wake up, the NPC has appeared.”
Siloque didn’t react, remaining in a refined state of sleep.
Cass was about to reach out and shake Siloque but then stopped.
If he woke him up now, he’d really lose the chance for a kiss.
No way!
“Siloque, wake up, the final goal of our adventure has appeared!”
Cass gritted his teeth and shook Siloque hard.
This exploration was to obtain a weapon—he couldn’t waste the opportunity for personal desires.
Next time.
There would definitely be another chance to spend the night alone with Siloque!
“Ah, oh… let me sleep 5 more minutes…”
“Don’t! The NPC turned around—he might be leaving!”
If he let him go, who knew how long he’d have to wait again.
Cass had grown somewhat used to the wandering Specters, but he didn’t want to spend another night with them.
According to the information Siloque provided, for this Dungeon Task, he only needed to go down to the Hidden Area and retrieve the sword.
Siloque was inside the Barrier, so there shouldn’t be any danger…
It would take at most 10 minutes from descent to return.
Cass made up his mind, left Siloque’s side, stepped out of the Barrier, and greeted the NPC walking ahead:
“Hi…hello.”
Uwahhhhh—so scary, these Specters keep passing through my body!!
Cass gripped his sword handle tightly, trying to calm himself and stop his trembling legs.
“……….”
The short NPC stopped and turned to Cass with a stiff movement.
Beneath the hood was darkness, with only two eyes faintly glowing.
“Um…excuse me, is this the residence of the Exile Rebellion against the goddess, the Embodiment of Final Will, the Great God Hertanid?”
After this string of lines, the symbol above the NPC’s head changed from “!” to the “?” indicating the task was in progress.
At that moment, his ring trembled, and Cass glanced at it.
–Dungeon Task detected. Explorers, please proceed with caution—
That’s right.
“Correct. Do you wish to join the Banana Cult? If you join, Hertanid will grant you various Blessings for dealing with special situations.”
The contrast between the blood-stained white robe and the NPC’s sinister appearance was stark, but the voice was a clear, female tone.
Speaking of which, Myut also mentioned the name “Izabilis,” the deity worshiped by the Evil Demon Society.
What was the connection to their “Hertanid”?
Or rather, neither of these gods were ever mentioned in Cass’s textbooks.
Where did Siloque get his knowledge?
“No, I want to offer a sacrifice.”
“Is that so? That’s a pity.”
The NPC let out a disappointed sigh.
“Oh, oh…”
This was Cass’s first time interacting with an intelligent lifeform from Dungeon Civilization.
He knew the other would reset to “!” after the task, but still felt amazed at their similarity to humans.
The NPC raised a large, goblet-shaped vessel.
Reluctantly, Cass took some liver offal from his ring and placed it in the cup.
The initial invitation to join was a trap.
If you agreed to join, the NPC would assimilate you on the spot.
You’d become identical in appearance and form to the NPC, lose your sense of self, and serve as a Banana Cultist, devoting your life to Hertanid.
That’s what Siloque’s information said.
It made Cass worried that all Dungeon Tasks might be so troublesome and dangerous, yet completing them was a part of his studies.
Afterward, the NPC muttered a prayer and nodded at Cass in thanks:
“Thank you for your support. Hertanid will watch over you forever.”
Uh, no thanks.
Just imagining an unfamiliar entity watching you all day felt like being stalked by a lunatic.
After the NPC finished speaking, they resumed walking.
After replenishing the last set of candles, they dragged their feet and left the chapel.
As the cultist’s footsteps faded, Cass turned to check on Siloque, who was still asleep.
Rumble—-
A mechanism activated, and as the statue slid backward with falling debris, a path leading underground was revealed.
“So this is the Hidden Area Siloque mentioned…”
Looking inside, Cass saw that the walls were illuminated with bright yellow torches, and most importantly, there were no Specters.
He felt somewhat relieved.
He took one last look at Siloque inside the Barrier.
“I’ll be back soon.”
Cass whispered, and, recalling the information, entered the passage.
As Cass’s footsteps echoed into the corridor, Siloque—who had been pretending to sleep—opened his eyes.
He’d actually awakened the moment Cass called his name.
Siloque gathered his belongings, skillfully tied his long hair into a ponytail, and began stretching exercises.
He casually glanced at his ring.
Tsk, Myut survived.
No news bragging about the Evil Demon Society’s arrest.
Instead, there was a wanted notice for Myut, listing her abilities, skills, and interpersonal relationships in detail…
“Hey, this is a direct copy of the intel I released!”
Sigh, whatever.
For now, he could set this matter aside—the wanted notice was already out, so she wouldn’t be moving within Grana City.
In any case, as planned, Cass was proceeding alone to explore the labyrinth.
Like anti-inflammatory paired with darkroot, or sugar ginseng with bluebell.
“Wraithblade” is a weapon exclusive to Cass—the protagonist alone can use it.
It can freely transform, stretching like rubber or hardening like steel, automatically protects its wielder, and absorbs enemy health and magic.
Its only flaw might be that its design doesn’t suit most people’s aesthetics.
Anyway, Siloque personally loved this sword and had even crafted a 1:1 model by hand in his previous life.
As with most stories, obtaining an overpowered weapon requires a trial, a face-off with a magic sword, and so on—this part was left for Cass to handle.
Siloque first looked outside the chapel.
Bare-skinned minotaur monsters prowled nearby in groups, their rough breaths forming clouds of white vapor, and their eyes glowed deep blue—a sign of the Night Enhancement Buff—far more oppressive than during the day.
So escaping was out of the question.
Siloque glanced at the white Specters in the chapel.
With a “shuu-shuu” sound, they stopped floating one by one.
Landing on the floor, their legs could now stand without passing through the ground, and their color shifted from white to a trembling deep red.
This was their true form—Second-form Wraiths.
At that moment, their hollow eyes all turned toward Siloque.
“Wow, this feels just like presenting in front of the class back in elementary school.”
Siloque marveled, counting 31 such monsters in the not-too-large chapel.
He observed the space, drawing his broadsword.
The silver blade was double-edged and thin, but unfortunately not suited to savoring the sensation of cutting flesh.
These Specters would switch to enemy combat mode when the passage was opened—they were the guardians of the Wraithblade.
Each one would copy the highest-level character present, and there were 31 of them.
Siloque had no desire to play the cool, last-standing role.
That Hidden Area couldn’t be accessed with a teleportation crystal.
He wanted to go into the Hidden Area with Cass as well and didn’t want to fight these monsters.
But if both of them entered, the Specters would all follow.
In the game, these monsters would sneak up from behind, eventually filling the entire underground space with their physical forms.
Most crucially, these Specters would invade the treasure chamber—the room where the Wraithblade was kept—resulting in being surrounded by both underground monsters and Specters.
In short, someone had to stay and distract the Specters.
Looking on the bright side, the Specters dropped experience points—31 shares—and each one respawned upon death.
Wasn’t this basically unlimited refills?
“-!! Hah.”
His body shuddered.
Alright, facing so many monsters, Siloque was admittedly a bit nervous.
However, recalling the memories of Maple Court Garden—
That moment infinitely close to death—
It was as if his body filled with nitrogen, and Siloque took a deep breath, feeling much calmer.
These were merely copies of his own level.
“Multiplayer battles aren’t my style, but I have to go.
Compared to you, Maple Court Knights are much scarier.”
“Yuuuuuuu!!”
The Specters surged through the center of the chapel at terrifying speed, crossing the Barrier and swarming to close the gap with Siloque.
Siloque flashed his blade—a feint.
“Guh—!!”
He launched a flying kick at the first charging red Specter.
The strike landed on its ankle, knocking it down, causing those behind to stumble in succession.