The Medina Dungeon is not just one vault.

There are numerous cave-like dungeon entrances all over Mount Medina.

They are all lower-level dungeons, and they are collectively referred to as “Medina Dungeon” because the types of monsters that come out are similar.

Students enter one of these dungeons to defeat monsters and eventually defeat the boss monster in the deepest part of the dungeon, where there is a magic circle that leads back to the plains.

“Behind the room with the boss monster is the final room. Inside, there should be a magic circle that leads back to the plains. Do you understand?”

Before leaving, we gathered once again to review yesterday’s discussions.

“Yes.”

The students replied loudly. This specially designed teleportation magic requires a considerable amount of mana to install, but it works by simply activating the pre-entered spell.

The regular clearing of the Medina Dungeon served several purposes beyond the combat training of the Academy students.

Monsters are essentially magical creatures.

Long ago, demons descended into the human realm, and their descendants adapted to this environment and became monsters.

In addition, ordinary creatures can turn into monsters under the influence of magic.

Therefore, even if you clear a dungeon full of mana, monsters will reappear over time.

Dealing with the monsters in a low-level dungeon is manageable, but when the dungeon spans an entire mountain, the situation changes.

If left alone, it’s certain that the monsters will come down to areas where people live and cause damage.

After much deliberation, the Emperor ordered the Academy students to deal with this as part of their martial arts training.

It was also a way of showing the common people that the nobles were directly concerned about the citizens of the Empire.

“Safety is paramount. If there’s an accident, press the gem in the middle of the pendant to activate the shield, and the rescue team will come.”

Looking around, only the visibly nervous students clutched their pendants and listened carefully to the instructions.

Those who seemed older seemed relaxed, as if at a picnic.

“Well then, good luck.”

The long explanation came to an end. We followed our assigned teacher in groups to the dungeon entrance.

Our group also arrived at the entrance located halfway up the mountain. The teacher stepped back.

“Are you ready?”

Reedmore, standing in front of us, looked back and asked. I nodded.

“We’re going in.”

I took a deep breath and walked into the dark cave where no light penetrated.

* * *

“Sylph.”

Felicia called her spirit. A slender, fairy-like Lesser Wind Spirit appeared.

“Can you scout ahead?”

Sylph playfully circled Felicia and moved forward.

Reedmore stretched. His sword, stained with sticky green blood, swayed.

“This is my first time seeing spirits. Having them around makes things much easier.”

“We are quite extraordinary individuals.”

Felicia boasted proudly.

It had been about 30 minutes since we entered the dungeon, and surprisingly, we were progressing quite smoothly.

Even though there was no sunlight, the mana stones embedded in the walls emitted a bright light, making it easy to see.

Reedmore, with the most exceptional swordsmanship, took the lead, with Felicia right behind him, supporting him with her Wind Spirit.

Claude, with the weakest fighting skills, was placed in the middle, and I stood at the back, guarding.

Claude was silent as always. He seemed even more tense and cold than yesterday.

‘I don’t think it’s tension.’

I thought, looking at his slightly exposed profile.

The fight wouldn’t be difficult. Reedmore and Felicia had taken care of most of it before I even had a chance to step forward.

The monsters we’d encountered so far were nothing more than slightly larger spider-like creatures, swarms of insects resembling cockroaches, and some damp and strange tentacles covering parts of the walls.

Even I, who was a bit stiff at the beginning of the first battle, felt my body relax and my mind ease as time passed.

Claude was participating for the third time and didn’t seem tense at all.

As I pondered, Sylph returned. Felicia nodded in acknowledgement as she received the report.

She turned back to us and said, “The right path is blocked; we should go left. There are three slimes ahead.”

“Got it.”

Reedmore willingly took the lead again, with Felicia following close behind.

Claude had been checking behind us and met my eyes briefly. There was a slight flicker in his gaze.

Seizing the moment, I approached him. It was my first chance.

“Your Highness.”

“Khalia.”

Fortunately, he didn’t ignore me this time and answered me. My heart brightened.

The voices of Felicia and Reedmore, fighting vigorously in front, sounded faint.

“They’ll do the fighting up front.”

It seemed unnecessary for Claude and I to step forward. Thinking so, I concentrated on Claude.

Under the faint glow of the magical stones, his face looked a bit pale and troubled.

His gaze, silent until now, dropped below his face. A fleeting grimace crossed his face.

He hesitated, then spoke. “That…?”

“Yes?”

He nodded toward the backpack slung over my shoulder, given to me yesterday by Adrian.

“Is that from Father Adrian?”

“Yes, it is.”

“What’s in it?”

I didn’t answer right away. Claude didn’t rush and waited patiently as we walked.

“It’s a potion, blessed by him.”

After some thought, I answered honestly. I hadn’t hidden it from Reedmore and Felicia, but I didn’t want to hide it from Claude either.

His eyes widened, and he stopped. I instinctively stopped as well.

For the first time since arriving on the Aldev Plains, his voice carried emotion.

“He gave it to you separately? Why?”

“I don’t know either…”

Lost in thought, Claude’s expression shifted a few times, his eyebrows furrowing and then smoothing out. He returned to his blank expression and started walking again.

“Felicia! Head that way, catch them!”

“Got it!”

The two at the front, effortlessly pushing through slime and flying moth-like monsters of unknown identity, looked like they were on a picnic.

I walked silently for a moment, watching them. It was Claude who broke the silence.

“What did you talk to him about?”

He looked sideways but didn’t look at me. He didn’t even look in my direction.

“He just said that if I’m being treated unfairly, someone should show kindness… That’s what he said.”

“I see.”

His voice was cold as he tightened his grip on the bag strap. After hesitating, he commented, “You seem upset.”

“Yes.”

He replied dryly, lost in another thought.

“Is it because of me?”

“What?”

Claude stopped walking and looked at me, surprise in his eyes. He seemed a little nervous.

“No, why would you think that?”

He didn’t seem to be lying. Seeing him like this gave me courage, and my voice gained strength.

“You didn’t seem happy to be in the same group as me, and since we arrived here on the plains, you didn’t talk much and looked unhappy. I thought maybe you were upset with me.”

“It’s not because of you, Khalia.”

“I said I would run away, but if I were forced to be in the same group as you, I couldn’t. It seems you don’t want to spend time with me…”

“No, Khalia. It’s not like that at all.”

The voice I heard sounded somewhat petulant. When I realized that, my ears burned hot.

How foolish.

I cursed myself inwardly. Despite me, Claude remained calm.

“I must have caused a misunderstanding. I’m sorry. It’s not because of you.”

“Then why were you…”

He looked at the two in front of him. There was fear in his eyes. After a moment, he spoke.

“I… don’t like coming to Medina.”

“May I ask why?”

The reason for his sensitive reaction didn’t come easily. So I thought of the possibilities one after the other.

“The monsters here are very weak. I don’t think you would be afraid of them. And this is your third participation.”

“…”

“Could it be that you’re afraid of the fighting itself? Do you not like to see monsters and blood?”

I knew he wasn’t a fragile man, but it had been a long time since he wielded a sword.

I considered the possibility that he might have such tendencies.

“If that’s the case, maybe we should talk to Ridim and Felicia and slow down a bit.”

“That’s not it.”

He flatly denied it. His gaze, fixed on the corner where the two had disappeared, seemed distant.

“A dungeon deep in the mountains, far from the capital… A plain where many students and outsiders mix. Although weak, it’s a real training ground for fighting monsters.”

We went deeper into the heart of the cave.

Suddenly, I noticed that the once wide path, where four people could stand side by side, had narrowed to two people standing side by side.

“If they all come together,”

Claude grinned cynically.

“It’s ripe for an ‘accident of fire.’”

“Khalia! Your Highness!”

A loud voice came from ahead. I looked up suddenly.

Reedmore and Felicia, who had gone inside first, were running toward us.

“Run! Go back!”

Thud, thud, thud.

Heavy footsteps echoed from behind the darkened passage they had returned from.

Ridim gritted his teeth and shouted, “It’s an ogre!”