The atmosphere was filled with tension.
Max and Emily sat in silence, both deep in realization. Their thoughts churned with frustration and helplessness, yet across the large dining table, their fathers continued eating calmly, as if nothing in the world could disturb them.
Their steady movements felt strange and almost unreal compared to the storm inside the two younger ones.
"You don’t have to worry about these things," Black finally said, his tone calm. "Max, and Emily, you two. Focus on getting stronger. Develop your skills. When the right time arrives, you will shine."
Max lifted his head, confusion filling his eyes. He still could not understand how his father could be this calm after everything that happened. He opened his mouth to speak, but Emily leaned forward slightly and spoke first.
"Uncle, I don’t understand," she said, her voice trembling with frustration. "How can you and Father remain so calm? Do you not feel anger? Do you not feel anything at all?"
Crimson let out a short, quiet chuckle. He was amused by her asking a question they were finally ready to understand.
"It’s not that we don’t feel anything," Crimson answered. "We are simply waiting for the right moment."
Max frowned. "What does that mean?"
Black and Crimson exchanged a look, as if silently deciding how much to reveal. After a moment, both of them nodded.
"You both know that months ago, four dungeons appeared around that dormant volcano near our bases?" Crimson asked.
Max and Emily nodded.
The news was not a secret. Four concentrated points of mana had appeared on the detection devices, each representing a Legendary rank (S) dungeon.
Two of them broke within a few days, causing monsters to swarm out and turning the area into a constant danger zone.
Because of that, their people could not properly enter the remaining dungeons to clear them.
Crimson continued speaking, his voice firm but calm.
"But it was not four. It was five."
Max and Emily blinked in shock.
They clearly remembered checking the readings. Four mana signatures. Not five. If another dungeon existed, the detector should have registered it.
"The fifth dungeon is inside the volcano itself," Black said, his eyes serious. "Its rank is Mythical (SS)."
He let the weight of that sink in before continuing.
"One Mythical dungeon, surrounded by four Legendary dungeons. This is the world’s first Penta Dungeon. These five dungeons are not separate. They are connected. They influence each other, forming one complete system."
Crimson rested his arms on the table and leaned slightly forward.
"We believe that if we manage to clear it, the reward might be enough to push both of us into Saint rank. Once we reach that rank, there will be nothing to fear. Not even the Black Market."
Hearing this, Max’s crushed spirit recovered a little. But doubt still lingered in his mind.
"But how did you know there was a dungeon inside the volcano?" Max asked. "Even the detection device could not locate it. And what about the Black Market? They have spies everywhere. I would say there are even spies in our organizations. Are you saying they missed something this big?"
Black smiled slightly, not mocking but approving, as if Max had finally asked the right question.
"You are thinking properly now."
"It is simple. When we created our base near the volcano, it was completely dormant. Although magma existed deep inside, it was not enough to make the volcano active. But after the appearance of the dungeons, everything changed. The volcano began to wake, and the speed at which it became active was unnaturally fast."
Black continued speaking slowly, as if choosing every word with care.
"That is why Crimson and I personally investigated the volcano. We followed the rising heat deeper underground, and at the bottom of the volcano, we discovered the hidden dungeon. The mana being released by that dungeon is constantly getting absorbed by the volcano, feeding its activity. But because the mana is being swallowed by the magma and heat, the dungeon remains invisible to normal detection."
"The volcano is getting mutated into something different, that’s why we believe there is something special in the dungeon, otherwise many incidents like this have happened in the past, but nothing like this."
Crimson lightly tapped the table with his fingers.
"The Black Market does not know anything about the condition of the volcano, and we have not shared this information with anyone. This is why you can rest assured that nothing will go wrong."
Black leaned back with a tired expression.
"We planned to obtain treasures from the Black Market Auction, including the final item of the event, then quietly disappear and raid the dungeon. Getting those items would have increased the probability of clearing the dungeon. But now that the Black Market has been robbed by someone, their entire organization has become restless and suspicious. We have no choice but to delay our expedition."
He looked at Max and Emily.
"If we vanish at a time like this, the Black Market will immediately start questioning our movements. They will think we had something to do with the theft."
"I see..." Max finally spoke. His voice was quieter than before. The amount of information he received was far beyond anything he imagined. The idea that his father had kept something of this scale hidden made his heart race.
The possibility of a Special Mythical dungeon.
The possibility of becoming a Saint.
His excitement grew, but at the same time, a new feeling sprouted inside him. Even if his father became a Saint, Max did not want to remain someone who lived in the shadow of another person’s power.
He wanted to grow strong enough to stand beside him. Strong enough to rise on his own.
Emily leaned forward slightly, resting her elbows on the table.
"But I am really curious about the person who had the courage to steal from the Black Market and leave without getting caught. What type of person could do something like that?"
Crimson let out a low laugh.
"I, too, am curious. Someone who can steal from them and escape unharmed is not simple. I would like to meet that person someday, just to see what kind of existence he is."
None of them knew that the person they were speaking about was already walking toward the very location they desired so much.
The place known as the Penta Dungeon.
Or what remained of it.
The Tri Dungeon.
****
Yup, that’s the place...
Ash narrowed his eyes and adjusted the spyglass he had taken from the dragon’s treasury. Through the lens, the distant volcano rose like a sleeping giant, its peak hidden under drifting clouds and its base wrapped in layers of dense fog.
[A/N: Telescope - Spyglass]
"The Penta Dungeon..." he whispered.
He already knew what existed inside. The monsters were not simple creatures. Their ranks ranged from Legendary to Mythical, and even Saint-ranked beings existed deep within. Entering such a place with his current strength was equivalent to stepping into his own grave.
But Ash did not fear death. Fear had abandoned him a long time ago.
Let’s see, entering this dungeon with my power level is something I would never do, but I am still going to enter.....will it count as the Antithesis of one’s will..?
Ash was not confident, and the chances of something like this happening were less than 1%, but he hoped it would become true, because that way, he could also absorb the Rune of Time. And he will get another boost in his power.
Speaking of power...
**
[Attributes]
Strength – 450 -> 487
Agility – 450 -> 487
Vitality – 450 -> 487
Intelligence – 450 -> 487
Stamina – 450 -> 487
Charm – 450 -> 487
Mana – 450 -> 487 (X 2)
**
The increase in his stats was massive.
The Mythical and Saint rank mana cores he absorbed filled his body with dense mana, stretching every nerve and muscle. It felt as if liquid fire had flooded his veins, and each surge strengthened him further.
With every increase in mana, his other stats climbed as well, pushing him close to the boundary that separated Masters from Grandmasters.
An early Grandmaster usually had their stats around 501. Ash was nearly there.
But the process was really painful, it was as if someone was squeezing me dry...
He remembered every second of that agony, the sensation of his body being crushed and pulled apart. Yet pain was nothing compared to what he sought.
With a slow exhale, he closed the spyglass. The cool metal clicked shut, and he stored it away inside his Soul Vault. He stood balanced on the highest branch of the old tree, wind tugging at his cloak, the air filled with the scent of damp leaves and soil.
Ash jumped off the branch and began closing the distance to the volcano by walking.
The volcano still stood far away, an enormous silhouette rising from the jagged horizon, yet he forced himself to move slowly. He needed to pace every step, because near the dungeon were two criminal organizations with Mythical Rank powerhouses.
Walking into their territory without care would be reckless.
In the novel, Ray had fought against them. He was not alone back then, and even with help, it had been difficult.
People who reach Mythical Rank are never simple. Each one has survived too many battles to be taken lightly. Even both of them were not able to clear the dungeon till Ray appeared far in the future.
Ash continued forward. The earth felt uneven beneath his boots, a mix of loose gravel and brittle roots. Warm air drifted from the volcano’s direction, carrying a faint smell of sulfur.
He had barely walked a hundred steps when he froze...
His breath halted in his chest. The quiet around him deepened until he could hear only the sound of his own pulse.
Because in that moment, he felt it.....
His anchor broke.
***