Chapter 54: 54 Dungeon Investigation 03.

The group descended the stairs, a glimmering warm light from the fireball casting soft shadows in the straight path. They walked under high ceilings, each wall lined with polished surfaces. It was smooth enough Silvia instinctively brushed her finger against it.

Jin’s eyes were forward, knitting slightly as he saw a murky miasma that was a bit thicker than the previous floor. The things wriggling around the atmosphere before it darted away like an eel disappeared from his vision.

’What was that!?’. His brows twitched together as he steadied his breath and focused on creating images of spells to prepare in case something ambushed them.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the same structure as earlier: a rocky cave with vast space buried deep underground.

The tiny sun began to ascent to the ceilings. Its warm light spread, purifying the gloomy atmosphere that enveloped the place. But different than earlier, the place seemed twice as massive, for the sun had become a dot above.

Jin, Ryan, and Marina jerked their heads to the side, looking at a creature with green skin approaching them. There were five of them, each holding wooden clubs, and their yellowish eyes flared in resentment.

“Leave it to me”.

“Wait!?”.

Before Jin could unleash the spell in his mind, Silvia’s shout echoed within the space, dispersing the mana that swirls around Jin’s right palm.

All eyes turned to the girl as she bit her lips and tightened her face in a frown. Her fingers curled together, clenching her outfit. Words got stuck in her throat, but her azure eyes glazed over the parties, trying to convey something.

Ryan and Marina muted, their gaze softened while maintaining their wariness toward the surroundings by perking their senses to the limit.

“U-Um, may I…”.

“Go ahead; I will stand right behind you.”

Silvia’s eyes blinked, disbelief written all over her face. She glanced at Jin, who stepped aside, giving her a clear path to approach the goblins, who seemed cautious.

Her hand touched her breastplate, trying to feel the pounding heart that rang in her ears. Silvia closed her eyes, her hand clenched tightly on the sword.

In a blink, her eyes snapped open. Inside, those azure eyes lit a burning amber.

’Huff’. Silvia exhaled sharply, suppressing her tense body.

With a single stomp, her body shot forward like an arrow. Her eyes are sharp, and she observed the creatures getting closer.

*Gyaak!

The goblins’ lips spread into a grin. They spread to the side, creating a line to trap Silvia in a net.

Goblins are dumb, but they are not fools to not know the state of their enemies. With one look at their eyes, the goblin could pretty much guess what was transpiring between those Human thoughts.

Fear, hesitation, and corruption are the most delicious emotions they could feast on humans. They chose this method to trap the enemies because she was a woman.

With a heated crotch and droll that dripped from its elongated mouth, the goblins raised their club simultaneously, intending to crush their enemy limbs.

Silvia’s eyes flashed as she stomped hard and stopped in her advance, letting the five goblins hit nothing but air with a dull ’thud’.

Slowly, as the danger and alarm kept ringing in her brain, her talent started to shine. Thanks to her years of effort in swinging a wooden sword, her body began to move on its own.

She stepped forward, and with one clean stroke, a silver line sliced through the air sideways, followed by a ’thud’ from the goblin’s head falling off.

*Gyak! The other four goblins stood stiffened, their eyes swollen, seeing one of its comrades fall.

The dripping blue blood that stuck to her sword, jolted her to reality. In front of her, she witnessed the body of the goblin ’poofed’ out, turning into smoke while leaving a grey mana stone reflected into her azure clear eyes.

*Gyaak!

Terrifying howls from the other monsters prompted Silvia to grit her teeth, forcing her mind to adapt to the situation she was in.

Silvia stepped back using her footwork and swung her sword sideways to end one from her right in one clean motion.

Meanwhile, the three on the right dashed at her with a crumpled face, turning their hideous face worse.

Silvia switched her stance and held the sword with a single hand. She lowered her stance, and the sword pointed at the same level as her chest.

*Gyaak!

Inhaled deeply, seeing the goblin enter her sword range, Silvia’s hand thrust like a spear, obliterating the goblin’s head one by one. Blood scattered as the three goblins fell and turned into smoke.

“Huff!? Ha, ha,”. Silvia exhaled straight, adjusting her breathing, which turned erratic with her first kill.

Her gaze was vacant, and she stared at the floor with the proof of her fight. The tips of her fingers turned cold, and she unconsciously loosened her grip on the sword.

But before the sword slipped away from her grasp, Silvia awoke from her daze and tightly clenched the hilt.

“…So, this is a fight with life on the line”. Silvia nodded off before crouching down and collecting the five mana stones she earned.

She stared at the grey, tiny stone the size of her thumbs. These rough unpolished stones were obtained in exchange for one’s life.

Even though it was just an imitation of a real monster that roamed the outside world, the weight that pressed her consciousness was still the same.

Because this was her first time taking a life, the toll really put her mind on edge.

“Good job, Silvia. That was a good move”.

Jin’s voice shattered her fragile mind. She turned to the side and saw Jin’s figure standing before her, his lips parted in joy.

Silvia’s clouded heart dispersed like a mist, changing into a warm spring, blooming a single life of emotion she had forgotten for years.

“…Thank you”.

Unaware of herself, Jin’s eyes widened as he saw Silvia’s expression. Her smile bloomed gently like sunlight, chasing away the winter cold with warmth and quietly breathtaking.

Jin forgot to breathe. He stood there uprooted like a statue. not because of fear, but because he had never seen a smile like that from her.

Silvia genuinely shows her true self. Away from her responsibilities, not chained by her past or even herself. She was like a butterfly that sprouted from its cocoon.

“Jin, what’s the matter?”.

Her gentle voice broke Jin’s mind as he stared at her sharp, azure eyes so close to him that blood rushed to his cheek, painting it pink.

“Uhum, nothing; let’s go.” He fakes a cough, prompting the girl to tilt her head adorably.

The two return to Marina’s side, and they notice a slight change in the girl’s demeanor. She is more approachable, unlike the first time they met her.

“Lady Silvia, are you alright?” Marina approached the girl and gently murmured.

“Sorry for this.” Then she cupped the girl’s cheeks, checking for any visual injury.

“Fufu,” Silvia giggled, feeling the warmth envelope her like her mother’s embrace. “I’m fine, lady Marina.” She wanted to continue, but the word got stuck in her throat, so she dismissed it.

“Okay, let’s continue; Jin protects Lady Silvia.” Ryan began to issue his command, which was replied to by a firm nod from the other.

They resume the investigation, wandering inside the vast space. When they found stray goblins, Jin’s spell swiftly ended their appearance.

With a flick of his hand, Jin sent a deadly whistled cut through the air as a compressed blade passed into a goblin’s neck. Light began to disappear from its yellowish eyes as its head fell. ’That’s easy’.

The event continued more than six times with different groups. They came with two, three, or even dozens, yet a swirling sharp wind came and obliterated them, unaware of what had caused it.

Marina and Silvia were silent, with thousands of questions swirling in their minds. However, because of their situation, they rolled their tongues and made sure to pester the boy later.

After a few hours of walking with no development, Jin’s eyes twitched as he noticed the same movement of miasma that swiftly retreated into the darkness. His hand clenched tight on his Katana. ’Again!? What is that?’.

The same was true for Ryan and Marina, who felt the stifling air that choked them slowly bare its fang at them. Silvia gulped her saliva and tightly gripped her sword, noticing the tension in the group.

*Grrrr!

A threatening growl echoed in the surrounding darkness away from the light above. The sound of footsteps slowly closing in crept on their skins, making their hair stand on edge.

*Gyaak! *Grrrr!

Two voices collided as huge shadows jumped from the side of the group, aiming at Jin, who stood calmly, looking unaware of the situation.

However, it was their biggest mistake.

Jin shifted his position and lowered his stance, eyes gleaming in ferocious glint. He poured much mana from his body and the atmosphere, compressing it into the Katana blade.

[Black-Heaven Style Swordsmanship – Crescent Moon]

In a flash, a silver line cut through the air. A compressed invisible blade in the form of a half-moon traveled in a straight path, passing the looming shadows and the creature that sat on top of it.

It happened in a blink as Jin sheathed back his blade while the shadows still approached him with momentum.

“Jin!?”. Marina spread one of her hands and gathered mana to create a barrier.

’No, Jin’. Silvia grits her teeth, her right hand reaching out to his jacket and trying to pull him closer.

However, when the spell and hand that reached him moved, the shadows burst apart into black smoke, leaving only a baby-fist-sized green mana stone he caught in the hand.

“”Wha!?””. Marina and Silvia’s voices overlapped as they saw Jin casually tossing the mana stone into the storage.

“Everyone, get ready!”.

Ryan’s decisive command alerted the group toward the enemies that lurked around.

“Tch”. Marina clicked her tongue and sent the gathered mana into the tiny sun above. The fireball multiplied into dozens, clearing away the darkness in a hundredth-meter radius. “Those are!?”. Silvia’s eyes widened. Her fingertips froze as cold shivers ran through her skin.

In front of the group, dozens of goblins are straddling a huge wolf. Each holds a club and a small dagger while gripping the wolf’s back hair, surrounding the group.

“Goblin Rider”. Ryan’s calm and indifferent speech raised the tension in the group as their battle with new enemies began.

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