"And now it's time for quiz time, Maxy! The question is: What rank does Northfind hold among the best towns to live in? Do you like it here? All those answers will be revealed in our next broadcast—and remember to submit your responses on our website at—"
Finally. I was starting to feel suffocated in that car.
It's already night, and I just arrived to this forgotten town.
Now I just need to find that dungeon.
Since it hasn't been sighted, it's probably hidden in one of the caves around here.
I turned onto a dirt road and parked the car between some trees.
I don't want anyone—or anything—stealing it.
Now for the dungeon… where could it be?
All I see are collapsed buildings, a half-broken school, and a few rotted trees scattered around.
Yeah… nothing useful.
I need to focus.
There should be some mana flowing through the air.
I stopped walking and closed my eyes.
The breeze was nice.
This kind of silence is oddly calm.
I dispersed my mana through the town, searching for something that felt off—but nothing jumped out.
With my eyes closed, the world shifted—everything coated in black, outlined in faint, flickering blue lines.
Sigh. Nothing useful.
Guess I'll just walk until I bump into a cave or a building I can actually enter.
Buildings, buildings, and more buildings… is there anything else around here?
I suppose it makes sense.
When the breakout happened back then, some hunters stayed behind to buy time.
But not everyone got lucky.
"I'm starting to think Cristian just tricked me to get her—"
I felt it. Mana.
I guess I'm close.
I need to focus and move before I lose the trail.
*****
Just as I thought—a large cave.
Honestly, not surprised.
Now I just need to find the portal and get this over with.
As I ran into the cave, I started to hear voices.
Weird… did someone else already find this place?
Doesn't matter.
I'll deal with them and enter the dungeon.
Better if there aren't any witnesses.
I slowed down and focused, sharpening my senses toward the voices.
"Alright, are we ready to enter?"
I slipped behind a rock and leaned in to see who was there.
Just my luck.
"I'm ready, Hero. Let's go."
"Alright everyone, let's review the plan one more time before we enter."
Judging by their robes… Temple.
Two… four… five of them.
Sigh.
They're the heroes.
Even if I've never seen them before, the amount of mana they radiate says enough.
No wonder I couldn't pick up on the dungeon's signal—
Their mana is so overwhelming it drowns out the portal's trace entirely.
I can't back down now.
I'll enter with them. I just need to make sure I don't get caught.
"Alright, here's the plan. Since Brian is from the Destruction Temple, he'll be on the front lines with me. Chloe and Alice will stay back to assist with support boosts. And Jeff—you're our eyes. Since you're solo, stick close to the girls so you can stay protected."
Hmm… Chloe and that other boy wear the same robes—must be from the Abundance Temple.
Brian and Alice have red, so they're from Destruction.
And the man with the glasses… that must be Jeff with the corruption temple.
"Alright Jeff, scan the dungeon and tell us what you see."
Jeff stepped forward and started… reading? Not sure exactly what he's doing.
"The dungeon is called The Last Dragon's Cradle. I'm assuming it's SS+ rank."
They all nodded and stepped into the portal—first the two heroes, then the girls.
Right before it closed, I let out a bit of my mana to keep it open.
I moved as silently as possible and slipped through—
—but as soon as I entered, I knew I had a problem.
The first thing I saw was a massive camp surrounded by sand.
A desert.
And then...
"Who are you, and why were you listening to us?"
Just my luck.
They sensed my mana as they entered, and now I'm staring down the edge of a green blade.
And of course, it's Brian—Hero of the Destruction Temple.
And I don't even have a mask.
Great. Just great.
What do I say? My mind wasn't ready for this.
"So, you're not talking, huh?"
"N-no, I was jus-"
A fireball slammed into me from the side and sent me flying.
Seems the girls aren't very patient.
"Alice, you didn't have to do that."
It burns like hell.
They weren't lying—Destruction Temple fire magic hits hard.
Cough… cough…
Before I can even get a full breath, another fireball comes flying at me.
I can't analyze their mana right now—too fast, to see the pattern.
But judging by the size, it's a smaller spell. I can block most of it with my own mana.
"Alice, that's enough. We don't want to kill him… not yet."
…That doesn't sound too good.
Not yet?
Yeah, I need to get out of this.
"William, grab him from behind and make sure he can't move."
William?
That's… my name.
But he's not calling me.
...Don't tell me.
"Alright. Alice, keep an eye on him while I get close."
And of course—just my luck—the hero's name is William too.
As William—the hero—gets closer, I'm still face-down in the sand.
If I move more spells would hit me and honestly I dont want to move.
He climbs on top, pulls my arms behind me, and ties them with rope.
"Nice and done."
He helps me to my feet. For a second I thought, maybe they'll show a little Compassion.
Nope.
Brian charges in and slams his foot into my stomach.
"Cough—That… hurt… cough jackass."
"Who are you, and why were you spying on us?"
His green blade is at my neck now. Just inches—enough to cut the skin. I can feel the blood start to drip.
"Run his pockets, William."
Can we not?
I'm William, not him.
Hero-William starts patting me down, checking every pocket. Eventually, he finds my hunter license.
"William… F-rank. Recently added."
"Hah! William—he's got your name and he's an F-rank. That's just sad."
The hero glares at me like it's my fault.
Then pushes me back into the ground—hard.
And for my bad luck there was a rock buried under the sand.
Perfect placement. Cracks my lip open on impact.
"Disgusting little thief."
I'm not a thief.
I'm the original William, dumbass.
"It's okay, Willy. Why don't we just keep him and feed him to the first monster we see?"
They pick me up again.
Now Jeff's the one behind me, pressing a small knife into my back—just enough pressure to remind me not to do anything stupid.
My lower lip still hurts. It's bleeding from when I hit that damn rock earlier.
"And who are you?"
I don't answer.
Not because I'm brave—because talking means moving my lip. And I'd rather not.
We keep walking across the desert.
The sky gets darker. As the hours pass.
Eventually, we reach a small cave and step inside.
It's empty—just some stone, wind, and cold silence.
The girls somehow manage to gather enough dry branches and dead wood to make a small fire.
"We've been walking all day and haven't found anything. Are you sure we're going the right way?"
Bryan again.
Impatient.
No surprise there—same attitude he had during the fight.
"Have some faith, Bryan. We're close. I think we just need to keep going straight. We'll find the cave with the dragons soon enough."
"And how do you know that?"
"It was in the main quest."
Right…
When a team enters a dungeon, one of the first members gets access to the mission objective.
Looks like theirs is to find some dragon cave.
Or The Last Dragon's Cradle—whatever it was called.
Now that I think about it… the hero. Willy? How do I even call him?
Doesn't matter. He's got a sword on his belt — mostly white, judging by the handle. A bit of the metal is showing.
"William, you stay awake for the next five hours with... the imposter. So we can sleep peacefully."
Sigh.
I'm pretty sure I'm older than the hero. Not that it matters.
I'm tired. Don't feel like talking.
My lip still hurts — I've been using mana to heal it, but most of my energy's been spent analyzing the mana in the rope. It's strong. Resistant. I can't destroy with only force.
The hero nodded silently and grabbed me, dragging me to the front of the cave.
Not great. Doubt he's taking me out here for a friendly chat.
He threw me again.
This time, there was no sand to soften the fall.
"You're a disgusting thief. I'm gonna show you what happens when you steal someone's identity."
He grabbed my head and slammed it into the ground.
It hurt like hell.
Nose bleeding. Lip split again.
But… not all of it's bad.
I finally managed to analyze the mana.
It's mostly made from the hero's own flow strange, but makes sense. Most people push mana left or right, or circle it around. But this one moves vertically, up and down like waves crashing inward. That's why I couldn't pin it down before.
...Right. I should probably be focusing on the now.
"Your existence is a sin. I'll make sure you die in this dungeon."
He drew his sword.
Just as I thought — white metal.
Then he stabbed me through the arm.
I'm bleeding.
The wound's too big. I can't stop it with mana.
I lost track of time.
He's been torturing me with that sword — playing with the same wound over and over again.
My jacket is completely soaked in blood, and the left sleeve is torn open from the blade.
Normally, I'd try to stay calm, but the pain's intense.
Every time I tried to scream, he grabbed my face and slammed it into the ground.
Somehow, I'm still conscious.
...Is that the sun?
I'm pretty sure the other hero — Bryan — told him to stay up for just five hours and then switch turns.
Guess this hero really hates me for having the same name.
Yawn
"William? Did you stay up all night? I told you to—"
Bryan stopped mid-sentence. He just backed away and said:
"We're leaving in five minutes. Make sure to carry him — we don't want him to die yet. We need bait for the dragons."
I'm not exactly dragon food.
I need to find the right moment to escape.
I can cut the rope with my sword, but if I do that now, I doubt the two of them will just stand by and watch me leave.
The hero just grabbed me and helped me stand up.
I'm all sticky from the blood — I don't even know how I'm still conscious after losing so much.
"...William Blackwell. What a joke."
…I don't even know why I said that.
But the hero didn't hesitate. He pushed me down and started choking me.
The only sound echoing in the cave was the rustle of my clothes and my feet kicking the air — just trying to stay conscious.
Honestly, at this point, I might actually die.
I don't know how I'm still awake, and... I don't... know if I can…
"That's enough, William. You're scaring the girls."
Bryan gave the hero a light pat on the shoulder and pointed at the girls.
They were clearly trembling — especially that girl, Chloe.
She was hiding completely behind Alice.
The hero quickly stood up, suddenly nervous.
"Chloe… this isn't— sigh he was mocking me and… I'm sorry."
Cough cough
That was close. For a moment, I really thought I was going to faint… probably die.
But it seems the hero has a soft spot for that girl — Chloe.
His hands are even trembling.
Sigh
"Let's just forget this. Jeff, help him get up. We still need bait for the dragons. Since we already have him, it'd be a shame to kill him just like that."
Jeff nodded silently and helped me to get on my feet.
The hero turned back to Chloe, trying to calm her down. So he really does have a soft spot for that girl… not surprising.
They walk so close together they might as well be holding hands.
What a joke.
But that's fine.
I think I might have a way out of this.
For now, I'll just keep playing dumb… and try to heal my wounds with mana. Even if I can't do much, it's better than nothing.