Vlad used his Echolocation skill and mapping skill again to observe the room for the final time. His vision widened and he was able to freely observe everything that was in his skill range. But he only focused on one room, in particular, the room they"re about to enter.
Almost everything inside the room was blackened and are only outlines in Vlad"s vision, but he can clearly guess what they are. The outlines of the furniture, weapons, and other treasures inside can easily be guessed, the only thing that Vlad was not able to properly guess was the figure of the only creature that was sitting in a throne-like seat.
( Finally, this is the goal... )
***
[ This is the boss"s room...? I can"t believe we"re able to reach this far with not even half a day... ] Alicia whispers to herself in amazement.
They had already gone down many holes and many stairs to reach this final floor. Now, they only need to push open the door that was in front of them. Everything that had happened felt very fast.
[ Let"s prepare ourselves...! ]
With those words said, they all nodded and made serious faces as they prepare their weapons. They all equipped themselves up, all except one, Vlad.
[ No, I"ll take care of this myself. ] he said as he turns his head towards them.
[ ... ]
[ Huh...? ]
[ Master...? ]
Every one of them lowered their guards and stared at Vlad with confused faces.
[ What do you mean, "I"ll take care of this"? We"ve already reached this far, let us fight with you! ]
[ You are all now exhausted. Caiden and my students won"t be able to fight with their full power. And Alicia, you have also already reached your limit, isn"t it? ]
That was right, in this world, "level ups" affects the body much as like getting exhausted in a fight or getting one"s mana depleted completely. They have fought and beaten many stronger enemies on their way here, they have clearly gained much experience their bodies can handle in such a short time. Even if they restore their mana and energy with potions, they still won"t be able to simply remove its effects, hence, they won"t be able to fight properly.
[ But that"s... but I"ve already recovered my mana! I"m still able to fight! ]
[ Didn"t you hear what I just said? You know your own body best, I"m sure you"re only forcing yourself to stand up. You won"t be able to fight like that. ]
[ ... ] with those words, she turned her head down and went quiet.
[ Then, are you saying you will do this your own? ] Caiden stepped forward and asked.
[ Isn"t that what I just said? ]
Caiden did not reply and only stared at him with an empty look. It was obvious that Vlad was serious, it was like what he had witness before, he was sure of his victory before he even sees his enemy.
[ Then, what are we supposed to do? ]
[ You can watch if you want. ] carefree, he said.
[ That"s... that"s the worst insult someone will be able to throw at us... Do you expect us to watch while you fight the strongest enemy alone? We"re heroes! Really! How are you still not able to realize that!? ] Alicia, like what she always does, had snapped and shouted at Vlad.
Just looking at the expression she has on her face, it was easy to see that she was desperate - desperate to prove herself to Vlad.
[ At least acknowledge us as one! Let us fight! ]
( ... )
[ Haah... Again, as I said, you won"t be able to fight properly, you"ll only hold me back. I can deal with this myself. ] with a sigh, Vlad replied to her.
[ At least we"ll try to! ] she again revolted.
[ Alicia! Stop. ] Caiden shouted, stopping her from saying any more than she did.
[ Like Vlad-san had said, we should let him take care of this. Do you realize the consequences of your actions? Alicia, you"re the reason those three slaves and I had almost die! At least try to avoid making the same mistake again, I thought you were the intellectual, yet you"re the one making unreasonable decisions! ] Caiden shouted and let out the anger he acc.u.mulated till now.
[ Let Vlad-san handle this. ]
[ We"re heroes, Caiden! ]
[ Are you really...? Did you ever save anyone on purpose? Did you ever fight for anyone other than yourself? Are you really one? The word "Hero" was just a t.i.tle given to us because we"re strong. It"s also not something you use to do and say unreasonable and stupid things. ]
[ Ththat"s! ]
[ Just let Vlad-san handle this. Fighting that last enemy is not the reason we came here, we came here to see just how powerful Vlad-san really is, and this is where we get the chance. ] he blatantly said with Vlad still listening.
[ You"re beeing too unreasonable, Alicia, it irritates me. ] he says to Alicia with eyes of annoyance.
[ Caiden... You"re acting really weird, did those slaves do something to you!? ] trying to remove the blame from her, she turns to the three slaves of Vlad.
[ [ Huh...? ] ] all of them could only exclaim in surprise. Only Vlad was able to stay calm.
[ Alicia! Are you really going to go there!? That"s just stupid! ] Caiden defended himself.
[ Ri-Right! Caiden is just a friend! We have master! Don"t say anything like that in front of master! ] Lumi shouted at her.
[ Un. ] Nina nodded.
[ Why you! You mere slaves! ] Alicia came walking towards Lumi, about to attack her - it was the usual response of a n.o.ble to a slave, but before she could reach her, Vlad interrupts.
[ Vlad-san...! ]
[ Alicisan, if you really want to fight, I will say this to you: even if you, Caiden, and these three fought with the boss of this dungeon, you won"t stand a chance, even if you regain your normal states. ]
[ But... how would you know!? ] she shouted with the face of desperation.
[ You know... I really thought you"re finally will be able to get over your hatred after I rescue you and after I help you fight with the enemies, but it seems that was not the case, you"re still that stupid girl that was far from the hero I imagined. ]
Those words stunned Alicia. He was still blunt as always, but he has never been this hurtful and direct before.
[ It seems no one will really be able to convince you. Do what you want, I won"t stop you if you want to be killed, just don"t hold me back, or I"ll kill you myself. ]
Everyone was shocked. Not because they"re scared, but because how he was able to say those words so casually.
[ Let"s stop this nonsense and continue. ] saying so, he left Lumi"s side and walked past Alicia.
[ ... ] Alicia, hugging her huge staff, looks at the back of the person she was supposed to prove herself to.
[ Why...? ]
***
With him in the front of the formation, he opened the door.
A dark black room immediately entered his sight. His night vision instantly activated and he was able to see clearly, but that was not the case with his companions...
[ Holy Light! ]
Instantly, the room was filled with light, leaving no shadow behind.
Vlad used the spell that can light up even the darkest corner of any room; a countermeasure for anything that might suddenly appear, attacking his companions while he fights the boss.
[ [ Woah! ] ] everyone gasps in amazement.
[ Really... What incredible magic... ] it was his first time seeing Vlad uses his magic. All the magic work, he had left it for his slaves and so he did not really use anything earlier. But now that he had seen it for himself, he was in amazement.
But that feeling immediately fades away as his eyes turn ahead.
[ Vlad-san... ] his expression turned serious and he immediately called for Vlad.
But without him saying it, Vlad already knows. He was already looking ahead and he had already seen its figure before they can even notice its presence.
There he saw a throne seat layered with gold and other kinds of minerals. And there sitting was the huge figure of what can only be described as a demon.
It was the dungeon boss.
Its face is hidden behind what seems to be a demon mask. It has two large horns and a total of four wings covered in black solid feathers. Its body was twice as large as Caiden"s and its weapon, a trident, was also twice as large as his axe. It was surely intimidating. Any normal person won"t have the guts to even enter its line of sight, but Vlad was not an ordinary person.
( It"s clearly not a Vampire... )
[ Haah... ]
( I"ve been in a lot of trouble and it was not even what I was expecting it to be... This is disappointing. )
[ Stay here. ] he says as he started to walk towards it.
[ [ Go-Goodluck, master! ] ] unlike the expression Caiden and Alicia were showing, Sarah and Lumi were smiling and are confident in the victory of their master.
Vlad did not turn to them and only continued to move forward. And as he does, he looks around the entirety of the room.
A throne room. It was definitely a throne room. A throne room that is flooded with treasures and thousands of gold coins from this world.
( Maybe with this I won"t need to trade with Carlsan again... ) with a smirk, he jests.
He continued to look around, and after he was finished, he looks ahead again.
[ Appraise. ]
Name: Unknown
Race: unknown
Level: 102
Job Cla.s.s: Dungeon Master/Fighter
Health: 12094
( Yep, they"re definitely going to get killed by this guy. )
[ Hmm... I can kill it if I want to... But maybe I should try some things to it first...? ] with his hand on his chin, Vlad mutters to himself.
[ Haah... It"s been three years, huh? It"s been lonely, this is definitely what I"m looking for... Hehe... This one"s pretty c.o.c.ky, too...! This would be good! ] suddenly, a deep excited voice was heard from the top of the throne.
[ ... ] Vlad turns his head to it, and...
[ Three years... If I remember correctly... That was the time the guild sent their last adventurers in this dungeon... ] he replied to the voice.
[ Adventurers? So that what those guys are called, huh? ]
[ Yes they are... ]
[ So, are you an adventurer, too? ]
[ That"s. Right...? ]
[ ... ]
[ ... ]
[ [ Huh!? ] ] they both exclaimed in surprise at the same time.