But... why were they killed? By whom? What was the motive? Were they robbed? Heh, how dedicated would a robber have to be to dump the bodies here... eh, but that’s possible... Or was it because of a conflict between the victims and the killer? What’s the benefit of killing them? Money? Revenge? Based on my analysis of the bodies, they died less than three hours ago. Fyar placed his hand on his chin and began to think about the reason they could have been killed here and the motive of the person who killed them.
Which means there’s a possibility the killer is still around here... How many perpetrators? One? Is he strong enough to kill four adventurers? Eh, wait. Our names were recorded before we entered the dungeon, right? If we leave with an incomplete party, it’s possible that will be questioned... He was poisoned... died in the dungeon... less than three hours ago... Zaefal said the requirement to enter a level ten dungeon or higher is to have a party of at least four people... the killer couldn’t have entered if he was alone.. which means... Fyar’s eyes sparkled as he arrived at a conclusion about who the potential killer of the four adventurers could be.
Zaefal, who was also theorizing, saw that Fyar seemed to have reached a conclusion and asked, "Do you have the same theory as me, Fyar?"
Fyar nodded. "Yes."
"Huh? What same theory? You two have just been standing there silently like idiots without saying anything, and now you’re saying you have the same theory?" Rasie narrowed her eyes, confused by what Zaefal meant.
Illya looked back and forth between Fyar and Zaefal. "I’m sorry, can you explain what you mean?"
Zaefal turned to Fyar and gestured with his chin.
Fyar nodded. "The four of them were killed by their own companion."
"B-by their own companion?!" Illya couldn’t hide her shock. How could someone be so cruel as to kill their own friend? Why? For what?
"What do you mean? Hey!" Rasie urged Fyar to explain how he came to that conclusion.
Zaefal gave a light cough and explained, "First, they were killed inside the dungeon. The requirement to enter the dungeon is to be in a party of at least four people. If he was alone, he wouldn’t have been able to get in." Zaefal paused for a moment, letting them process the information before continuing. "Second... why did he let the bodies be eaten by monsters? For his alibi. If he’s questioned by the guards, his reason will be that his friends were killed in a monster attack and he was the only one who survived."
"But-but why would he do something so cruel?" Illya asked.
Rasie turned to Zaefal and Fyar, waiting for their explanation and theory.
Zaefal was silent for a moment, trying to string together his words so as not to sound too terrifying for his companions.
Fyar was also silent, waiting for Zaefal’s theory on the killer’s motive while thinking of his own. I theorize it might be because of revenge... but were the victims bullying their companion? I think that’s unlikely... if the victim was being bullied, he wouldn’t have gone to the dungeon with them and would have left long ago... Paid to do it? That’s plausible, but... if so, the killer must be very patient to blend in first... Based on Zaefal’s story about leveling up nine times after killing a high-level demon... then there’s one possibility...
"Most likely... f-for an instant level-up..."
I knew it! Fyar had already suspected what Zaefal was going to say.
"Y-you’re insane..." Rasie whispered.
Illya’s eyes widened in shock at that, and a cold sweat began to run down her body. K-killing a person can give you an instant level-up?! I remember Zaefal telling us about his instant level-up after killing a high-level demon... But... i-it also applies to humans?!
Zaefal was not surprised by the shocked reactions from his two companions. He turned to Fyar, who was not surprised at all. "It seems you have the same conclusion, Fyar."
Fyar just sighed. "Yeah, something like that."
Zaefal then turned back to Illya and Rasie and continued, "Do you remember my instant level-up from killing the high-level demon? maybe that also applies to humans, not just demons."
Rasie bit her lip. "C-could this be the forbidden method that isn’t taught?! Now that I think about it, I also found it strange why the kingdom’s soldiers and criminals have such fast level progression... When I asked the soldiers or guardians, they just answered, ’Dungeons and killing monsters!’"
Zaefal nodded. "You’re right. That also answers why murderers who kill high-level adventurers are immediately executed by the kingdom when they’re caught. They don’t want a mass murder to occur."
"Then why don’t low-level or high-level criminals spread this method, Zaefal?" Illya asked, her eyes staring intently at Zaefal.
Fyar chuckled softly. "They probably don’t want other people to level up fast?"
Honestly, this is quite ridiculous. For some reason, it’s just so funny that the kingdom and criminals could be on the same page about gatekeeping information, Fyar thought.
Rasie was just silent, various things running through her head.
"However, with the bodies in front of us, there’s a possibility that it’s already been exposed," Zaefal continued. "It’s possible he’s not a criminal and just an ordinary adventurer... but after hearing about the method, he deliberately lured his companions to the dungeon and killed them."
"S-so cruel..." Illya murmured softly.
Fyar then asked, "Is the case of killing someone with a higher level that rare? Why are you all so shocked? There must be stories of adventurers killing high-level criminals, or maybe bounty hunters who told of this method?"
"The cases... you could say are quite rare... there aren’t that many people above level thirty... and of course, they’re not easy to kill... as for adventurers and bounty hunters, as far as I can remember, they never said anything," Zaefal said.
Silenced? Or do they just not want other people to know? Fyar theorized.
"Hahhh, enough, enough, stop this discussion! I’m sick of it," Rasie exclaimed. "Now, what should we do? Take these bodies first, or later after our journey?"
"Whoa, so cruel. what u meaaaan after journeyyy?, you have no conscience, Rasiee?" Fyar teased.
"Shut up, you damn purple hair!" Rasie snapped, trying to hit Fyar but was blocked by Illya.
Zaefal just shook his head and sighed. He then clapped his hands. "Alright, listen up. We’ll take these bodies outside first and report it to the guards. After that, we’ll return to the dungeon and continue our journey."
After that, they carried the bodies out of the dungeon. Upon seeing the four corpses, the two guards immediately glared at them. One of them asked, "What happened?"
Zaefal then recounted the chronology of how they found the bodies, and also their theory that they were killed by their own companion. The two guards nodded in understanding. One of them then looked at Zaefal with a sharp gaze. "Do you have a theory as to why he did it?"
Zaefal shook his head gently. "Unfortunately, I don’t know."
The guard continued to glare at Zaefal for a few seconds as if she didn’t believe his answer. She then showed them a record and said, "They arrived four hours ago... there were five of them when they entered. Are you sure you only found four?"
"Yes, we only found four, nothing else," Zaefal answered curtly.
"Then your theory is likely correct." The guard then whistled. Not long after, a carrier pigeon flew toward them and landed on the table. The guard in the all-pink outfit then took out a pen and paper and began to write. While writing, she looked at Zaefal and his party. "I will ask the association to send royal guardians here, or maybe a high-level adventurer who is in the city to execute the perpetrator. Do you still wish to explore the dungeon? There might be a rather fierce battle in there."
Zaefal turned to his companions to ask for their approval. Illya, Rasie, and Fyar all nodded in unison.
"What happens if you meet that adventurer?" Zaefal asked.
The guard holding the spear answered, "Kill him. You will receive seven thousand gold coins if you succeed, on the condition that you do not leak anything to the general public."
Zaefal nodded. "I understand."
As Fyar observed his surroundings, he saw a raven that seemed to be watching them. Is it just my imagination, or does that raven look strange? Fyar then dismissed the raven from his thoughts.