"I'm going to the Rune Dungeon today. Do you want to go with me?"
The clanking sound of plates and spoons colliding stopped. Silence fell over the restaurant. Four pairs of eyes of various colors turned to me.
Iris, Claudia, Lize, and Erica all stared blankly at me. Suddenly, the bread in Lize's hand rolled down onto the table.
"...Rune Dungeon? What are you talking about all of a sudden, Delta?"
The first one to come to his senses was Lize. She didn't even notice that the bread she had dropped earlier had rolled all the way to Iris' plate.
"I went out for a bit this morning. That's when I decided."
"That's not what it means."
Haa, Lize sighed. Iris took up the conversation.
"Delta. This is not an empire, it's a holy country. Basically, the rune dungeon is—"
"I got permission a long time ago. From the Inquisitor himself."
"...."
Since he had received permission directly from the Inquisitor, there seemed to be nothing more to say. In terms of power, the Inquisitor and the Inquisitor were positions just below the Pope.
"Judging by your expression, it seems like you never thought we wouldn't follow you from the beginning. Right?"
"That's correct, Commander Claudia. You're quick-witted."
"Mr. Delta, is it your hobby to surprise us? You could have told us that in advance."
I answered with a smile. Erica saw my smile and shook her head with an expression like, "Oh my."
It was decided only 30 minutes ago, so I didn't have time to tell you in advance. When I came back here after talking to Selene, they were busy preparing a meal.
"Let me explain in more detail first."
Click, Iris put down her spoon. The rest of the knight commanders seemed to have lost all intention of continuing their meal.
It was just as I expected.
"Are you ready?"
Selene and her warrior nuns, who had arrived at the agreed upon meeting place early, welcomed the knight commanders. They were all well-armed.
The belt around his waist was lined with daggers, and the rapier in his hand was held with great force. The tight-fitting robe was even neater.
At first glance, his expression seemed as emotionless as usual, but on the other hand, he looked clearly tense.
But no one blamed him. The Inquisitor's face was even more stern than usual, and the Knight Commanders' every movement was very firm.
The only person acting normal here was Delta. As always, Delta was relaxed and fiddling with the weapon on his belt.
"You're still the same, Delta."
Iris, who saw that sight, spoke with a bitter smile. Although she couldn't show what kind of expression it was because of the helmet she was wearing over her head anyway.
"Me? Why me?"
"Everyone here is frozen, but you're the only one with a normal face."
"Well, that's true. You guys look stiffer than usual too."
"It was you, Delta, who said that the dungeon we're about to go to subjugate was a very dangerous place. If you can say that with your own mouth, then the danger must be beyond imagination. Aren't you nervous?"
This was the dungeon where, despite sending several punitive expeditions from the Holy Land, they ultimately failed to obtain the runes, and dozens of innocent knights and battle nuns were sacrificed.
It is said that because of its danger, it is a place that has been sealed off and guarded by knights on the special orders of the Inquisitor and the Heresy Inquisitor, but to be honest, I didn't really feel it until I came here.
Because the face of the person who said those words looked very calm.
"Uh… not really?"
Nothing has changed even now. Delta's words and actions were the same as they were this morning. Calm. That was the word that best described Delta at the moment.
Before they knew it, all eyes were focused on Iris and Delta.
"Why?"
"This is the place I told you to come. If the person who suggested we come here is nervous, what will happen to you who followed me?"
Delta smiled slightly as he said that. As soon as he saw the smile on her face, he felt the tension melt away. At least for Iris, it did.
It was that smile. The smile that made impossible things, things that everyone else thought were impossible, seem possible.
Iris steeled herself. Since she was saying that, all she had to do was trust Delta this time. Didn't she just hear the man's plan this morning?
Even if the plan itself is nothing short of crazy.
"I get it."
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Iris replied briefly and turned around. Her helmet was pointed to the side. Selene, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation between the two just a moment ago, straightened her posture.
"Are we heading in now?"
"Yes. I will give the order to depart immediately."
Selene gestured to the knights standing before the white halo. The knights stood briefly at attention and held the tips of their spears toward the halo.
The part that touched the tip of the spear began to come apart. Soon, the part that touched gradually became distorted and thinner, until a gap large enough for a person to fit through appeared.
The knight commanders were peeking through the space beyond. It wasn't for nothing that they had sealed off the surrounding space, as everything they could see was dyed black.
"The moon will look down on you."
The Divine Catalyst emitted light. A thick silver divine energy began to swirl around Selene herself, her battle nuns, the knight commanders, and Delta.
"Please be especially careful from now on. Near the dungeon—"
"Then should I go in first?"
"...yes?"
Before Selene could warn the Knight Commanders, Delta suddenly intervened and strode through the gap in the sacred barrier.
"Your Excellency! You must not enter without permission."
"It's okay, it'll be fine."
Chin, Claudia put a hand on his shoulder. In contrast to the extremely bewildered expressions of Selene and the battle nuns under her command, the knight commanders took on an attitude that suggested this would happen.
The reason was, of course, that he had heard of Delta's plan in advance. If he hadn't, he would have been even more confused than Selene.
Selene followed Delta, unable to shake off her trembling emotions, followed by the knight commanders, and lastly the battle nuns, heading inside the shield.
"...It's horrible."
Those were the first words Lize spoke as she entered. And they were words that everyone here agreed with.
The whole area was soaked in black liquid.
The grass and trees were not all dried up and twisted, but they were covered in an unidentified black liquid and had lost most of their original colors, so they were in a state that was no different from being dried up and twisted.
Even the sunlight shining down seemed a bit gloomy. Lize, feeling uneasy for no reason, ran her hand over her armor.
"Your Excellency, your name is Iris?"
Selene approached Iris, who was frowning and looking around. She turned her head. Selene was glancing at the back of Delta, who was walking in front of her.
"Yes. What's going on?"
"Do you have any idea what he is doing now?"
Delta was walking forward alone, mumbling numbers in a low voice. Anyone who didn't know the inside story would have been quite curious to see this.
Of course, Iris knew why Delta was acting that way. It was a fact that not only Iris but all the Knight Commanders knew.
This rune dungeon is something he can clear on his own, and he boasted that it would take less than 30 minutes at the most, so he added a condition that Delta was absolutely necessary.
You must be the first to enter the dungeon, and once you do, you must never talk to or disturb anyone, no matter what they do.
That was also the reason why Lize, who would normally be sticking close to Delta and chatting away, was so quiet. How could she dare do that when she had personally told him not to bother her?
"I don't know. But I think they all have their own ideas, so it would be best not to disturb them."
Iris shook her head, recalling what she had said to keep between them if possible. Selene stepped back quietly, as if she had guessed something.
But Iris was also curious. Delta had clearly said that timing was the most important.
I circulated mana throughout my body to heighten my hearing and eavesdropped on their muttering.
"66... 67... 68...."
Delta was counting numbers.
The numbers were going up one by one at a regular pace, so it seemed like he was probably keeping track of time. Then he would glance around for a moment, nod to himself, and then continue walking. This was a repetitive pattern.
In fact, Iris wasn't the only one curious. Numerous eyes followed her back.
"This is a place called the Abyss Dungeon. There is a rune at the bottom."
Because Delta's actions were so eye-catching, I quickly arrived at the Rune Dungeon while watching it intently. The blackness covering all directions had become much darker.
A huge pit stretched out right in front of me. As the name Abyss suggests, it was a pit of unimaginable depth. It seemed like it would take hundreds of people to surround it.
"...Are you sure you're not going down riding that?"
"Yes. You got it right."
Erica pointed to the bridge that spanned the area. No, it was questionable whether that could even be called a bridge in the first place.
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The floor looked extremely slippery, and there were no handrails, let alone any. It seemed like it would be more stable to make a wooden bridge by roughly piecing together planks.
At least the surface isn't shiny.
"Be careful. They are quite slippery. Never run, always walk."
"I don't think I would even think about that."
Erica frowned. The bridge was slightly tilted diagonally, pointing downwards. It was the only way down into the dungeon.
At the end of the bridge was a cavernous gap wide enough for one person to fit through, and these bridges were intricately intertwined to fill the hole below.
"Wow, if this is even slightly out of alignment, it'll slip right away."
Claudia put her foot on the bridge, stuck out her tongue, and stepped back. She had only put it on for a moment, but the sole was already slippery. Claudia rubbed the bottom of the Sabaton on the ground.
"Now, you can go down through here while killing the monsters until you reach the lowest level. I'm sure you know how to cross between the bridges."
"...I have to kill the demons too?"
In response to Lize's question, Selene quietly pointed downwards with her finger. About 30 meters below the bridge, undead armed with spears and shields were wandering around the bridge.
There was even a guy with a bow right nearby. Whether it was a spear or a bow, if you hit him wrong, you would definitely slip and fall endlessly to the ground.
"What you see is not everything. There are also monsters hiding in places that cannot be seen here because they are blocked by the bridge, and you have to go down to find their location."
"Can't you kill it with a ranged weapon?"
"I tried it before, but it disappeared as if it was evaporating somewhere the moment it passed a certain distance. I think it might be the power of the dungeon itself."
Erica closed her mouth as if she was speechless. In the end, it meant that the only way left was to go down those slippery bridges one by one and confront the monster directly.
"...That's really bad. I would believe it even if someone said they designed it with that in mind."
"I agree with you, Lize. This is why it's dangerous here, and...."
Iris's words suddenly stopped. Her silver eyes were focused on the bridge. To be exact, they were focused on the back of Delta walking across the bridge.
Delta walked nonchalantly across the bridge, then quickly jumped between them, jumping over three bridges in an instant and landing on the fourth. Then he stared down from there.
As if he was about to jump down there.
'Now that I think about it... ... .'
At this moment, all the knight commanders were thinking the same thing. The easiest and fastest way to clear the Rune Dungeon, as Delta had said.
Step 1. Jump down.
"Surely that jumping off wasn't a metaphor, but real."
"I'll go and come back!"
Before Claudia could even finish her shock, Delta threw herself under the bridge.