The atmosphere in the dungeon was as chilly as ever. It was particularly so for Felix who couldn't help but feel extra wary. They were currently following a magic compass. This was a new item designed by the Freedom Union with the help of talented craftsmen and formation masters.
It wasn't actually new, it was just only recently released for the public. Felix had already used one before as well as seeing it being used. One could say he was one of the testers.
"Hold it" A lady said. This was an earthen mage who they were forced to bring along. She was B-class in strength which was also reassuring.
"There is a pitfall here" She told them but nobody was surprised.
They had faced many traps along the way as well. Were it not for Samuel's careful mapping with each expedition they might not have been able to get past both floors without injury. The traps were harder to deal with than the actual mobs.
"Thank you. Can you disarm it?" Felix thanked her and asked from the front. They were inside of a narrow hallway so there was no going around it.
"Yes" She said and the trap then triggered. It was much easier to trigger it and replace the floor than fall in by miscalculating the necessary strength to reinforce it.
They carried on facing regular skeletons and zombies every now and then. Based on the map they all received, they were halfway done with the third floor. Or so would be the case had that been their goal.
"We should be wary past this point as that white skeleton has been sighted to be in these zones previously." Felix told them. Some nodded and they proceeded forward without issue.
There were more pitfall traps along the way. Surprisingly enough though, their size was much smaller. Some could be skipped just by hopping around. Although confused as to why the party was thankful for it and continued on their way.
***
Ed who was waiting ahead for the adventurers couldn't help but mentally frown. His scouting plan had failed. He made the pitfalls of different sizes to determine the number of people but they were all triggered.
Unless the party of adventurers this time were stupid, the only explanation was that it was done on purpose.
'I'll just have to risk it' On the odd case that it was a large force he had intended to hide his troops for a future battle. For example, if they took the battle to the orc plains, he would defend against them there and when they inevitably return or retreat, he could ambush them with the strengthened skeletons.
But since he couldn't determine the party size he would simply risk it,
'I can consider this as an evaluation of the outside' Depending on the strength of the adventurers he would be able to perceive how big a threat he was for them. If the adventurers weren't very powerful they were either an advance party or the outside world took this dungeon as a joke.
As Ed had skimmed through some of the monster encyclopediae, he knew it likely wasn't the latter.
Ed was inside of a large room which was split apart by a tall earthen wall. Ed didn't bother to disguise it as he was sure the adventurers had made maps at this point. It was always a good idea to overestimate your enemies than to underestimate them and lose.
The sole point of this wall was to confuse them. If Ed planned to hide something he would surely disguise it right? In its current state, it just seemed as if he intended to block this route. But in reality...
Behind it stood his army of 48 strengthened skeletons and about 30 regular skeletons. He had taken the liberty to recruit some more but not enough to make the adventurers wary. It should be common knowledge at this point that there would be a lack of skeletons wherever Ed went.
From these types of small details alone, one could tell that Ed was being extremely attentive. He didn't want to lose any of his hard-earned progress. How often did the dungeon leave him alone for extended periods of time? Not often!
This meant that if he lost his current progress, there was no telling when he would regain it! Only if he upgraded the forge and storage would it be perhaps possible.
Soon, the final trap was triggered.
'They are here' This was another reason why Ed wasn't too bothered by the fact that they triggered all the traps. They were just announcing their location. Well, that final one was extra large for that purpose as well.
They were currently walking down the hallway that led to the split room. This room had four entrances. Except for the one they would be coming in to, and an 'escape' route he prepared, all were sealed.
'Pioneer, Prairie, Brutus, Iron, get ready' He transmitted them his intention to battle. They were each in charge of 11 skeletons essentially separating them into four groups. Not that this made any difference since they could only communicate through signs.
Ed heard the sound of footsteps. These footsteps were echoing in the sealed room until they eventually came to a stop.
"What is this?" He heard an adventurer say with both confusion and vigilance.
As Ed was quite close to the wall he crafted as well as the fact that it was somewhat thin, he was able to hear the sound of rustling paper.
"I expected this but based on the map this should be a large room" Spoke a young man who sounded vaguely familiar.
"We should just bust through" Said another.
Ed really wanted to agree with what that person had said at this moment but that would obviously be counterproductive.
"What if it's a trap?" A lady voiced.
Ed didn't turn anxious when he heard this. Were it a trap or not they would have no choice but to fall for it. Even the escape route was a trap he set. And if they retreated, giving that the preparations were simple, he could just set up in another room.
"But that's why we are here right?" Another young woman said.
After she said that nobody else said a thing. It was as if she was right in saying so. To Ed, this seemed somewhat preposterous. You are here for a trap?
'Unless... I'm the target' In that case things would make sense. Wherever the trap was is where he was. They likely came for his drop item.
'I didn't know I was so valuable' He mused. This was good for him since if weak adventurers came to challenge him for his drop he would be able to level up frequently.
"Let's move forward" The vaguely familiar young man said.
All along, the adventurers had stopped at the entrance. Only after hearing his words did the sound of footsteps continue.
This meant that Ed had to wait patiently until they came in. If they moved forward, however…
The ground rumbled slightly as the hallway behind the adventurers collapsed effectively sealing their return path. The adventurers who were expecting the trap weren't too alarmed but they were certainly alert.
'Forward!' Ed commanded as the wall of dirt in front of him toppled.
The adventurers weren't too far but the collapsing wall failed to injure any of them. In the first place that was clearly not the intention. That's because out of the settling dust, grey skeletons appeared. They had creepy sharp teeth and held a metallic sheen.
Four, in particular, stood out as they wore suits of armor. The one wearing black armor was intimidating as it held a morning star, a mace-like weapon. The rest used swords and their appearance was more lacking but none the less placed pressure on them.
Skeletons with armor were usually pretty strong! This was a stereotype that came from death knights. That's because in dungeons, only they spawned with armor. The possibility of them having simply worn them didn't strike them.
"Protect yourself!" That was all that Felix could yell at that time. That was because just by eyeballing their enemies, he was able to determine they were outnumbered. It was also due to his lacking experience.
"They might have higher numbers but don't panic! They are still skeletons in the end! We will handle the knights." The paladin, Buster, yelled. He was Mort's usual party leader and was much more experienced than Felix. When he said we, he obviously referred to the B-class adventurers.
Ed who was in the distance could only laugh internally. He was supposed to be the target so how were they forgetting about him?
"Argh! Aaa-" A C-class adventurer wearing leather armor yelled after a spike penetrated his body. The other scream that followed was cut short by Ed's next move.
The spike that protruded out of the ground to impale the man grew thorny and finished piercing him from the inside. The man was like a porcupine and his lifeless body was maintained on display. His organs had naturally been ruptured, it was a swift death.
In the settling dust, the adventurers could see their target, Ed, behind the creepy skeletons. He was clearly the culprit.
Ed had decided to wear some armor since the upcoming battle would surely be precarious. He even assimilated a weapon to receive strength and make sure the armor wouldn't hinder him. The armor was white with some golden patterns, coupled with his already pristine white bones, he seemed somewhat holy.
'I didn't expect to find such a weak party' He purposely transmitted to them. This was also his true thoughts. Hadn't all of his preparations gone to waste?
But these words soon dismissed any thoughts of holiness. The pressure they felt from those words alone made him seem sinister.. This was due to transmission's ability to pass intention. The adventurers could tell that Ed meant it!