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Chapter 282: From Advancing to Encounter

As they formed a line and proceeded deeper and deeper, Lapis noticed something strange.

“This cave doesn’t seem to change in dimensions no matter how far we go.”

If a cave was naturally formed, the deeper you went, the narrower it got. And even if this was not the case, there was bound to be a slight difference in size somewhere. However, the cave that they were walking through had remained almost the same dimensions from the entrance.

This meant that this was not a natural formation. However, when he put his face close to the wall of the cave, he could not believe that the rock surface there was dug by someone’s hand, as the wall had extremely natural irregularities. He wondered if it was a disguise to hide the fact that the cave had been artificially created.

“Did the orcs dig it?”

“If so, it would have been more distorted.”

An artificial cave that did not change in dimensions cannot be built without the skill and knowledge to keep digging in the exact same area. Even if the orcs had dug the mountainside to create a place for themselves to live, Lapis said that it would probably have to be a laborious job, and the shape of the cave would have to be distorted.

“Then whose hand did it…?”

“Well, that’s me, Me. Can you hear me?”

The male voice suddenly resounded so close to their ears that the group all stopped in their tracks and became alert.

But no one could be seen around except for themselves.

Loren wondered if it was some kind of telepathy communication like what was used by Shayna, but unlike Shayna’s voice that echoed in his mind, the voice he heard just now definitely sounded like a real voice that shook his eardrums. And it was the voice of an old man.

“Can they hear me, I wonder? If you can hear me, please answer.”

“Who is it?”

Loren asked shortly in reply to the voice that demanded a response.

It was natural for people to be wary when they could only hear the other person’s voice but could not see them, and it was impossible to know what information may be conveyed to the other person if they speak in long phrases. That was why Loren thought it would be better to keep it short and just implied that they heard the voice.

Loren was that cautious, but when the unseen owner of the voice heard his reply, his voice was tinged with joy.

“Oh, we’re connected at last. I see you’re in range of my voice, thank goodness.”

“Who the hell are you?”

The other members of the group remained silent, listening to the dialogue between Loren and the owner of the voice.

“What, you are such a bore! Did you break that annoying magic circle around here?”

The only other magic circle around here Loren could think of was the one of Lust, which he destroyed just a few minutes ago. He asked if that was what the voice talked about, and it happily said ‘yes’ repeatedly.

“That was the first time I felt to be in danger since I was born. If you have removed it, I must thank you. There is no danger beyond that point. You may proceed without worries.”

An adventurer who replied ‘Ah is that so’ after being told to not worry would not live long. However, Loren somehow felt that, judging from the tone of the voice he heard, it might be safe to trust what it was saying. But it was a baseless thought, and when he looked at his companions to see what to do, they all looked troubled and seemed to be thinking hard.

“It’s a trap, isn’t it?”

“I think it’s a trap.”

“Of course, it’s a trap.”

“No one would be stupid enough to believe it.”

The girls seemed to have uniformly decided that what the voice was saying was a trap.

Loren wondered if he was being too good-natured, but was relieved that he had not said anything about trusting the voice. He made a suggestion on what to do next.

“We have to keep going. And we have to keep an eye out for traps.”

In other words, let’s keep our guard up and continue to move forward. As Loren took a step forward, thinking that was all they could do, a voice with a tone of dismay reached his ears.

“Skeptics, aren’t you? I guess it can’t be helped.”

“Where are you talking to us from?”

It was a strange feeling, Loren thought, to have a conversation with someone you couldn’t see. Not that there were no similarities to conversing with Shayna, but Shayna could appear in Loren’s field of vision when she wanted to, and she was someone with whom it was possible to have a conversation without speaking aloud, which was different from the person talking to him at the moment.

“Sounds are sent directly to ears by vibration in the atmosphere. In other words, if my voice doesn’t reach others’ ears, you’re just preoccupied mumbling to yourself.”

“What a bad character!”

Loren was so surprised by the way the owner of the voice said it that he unintentionally raised his voice, but it seemed that the other person was really trying to make sure that no other members could hear him except for Loren. When he suddenly shouted out loud, everyone looked at him with surprised eyes.

Loren cleared his throat and decided to ignore the voice until they met its owner. But just then, he heard more words.

“I’m sorry. I think I went a little overboard with the prank.”

There was no joking tone in his apologetic words. The owner of the voice told Loren in a regretful voice that he would not make the same mistake again.

“You’re not going to say anything, are you? It can’t be helped. I can transmit my voice by making the air vibrate, and I can even change the tone of my voice, but still… If you don’t talk, I will have to mess with someone else.”

“What are you going to do?”

With a sense of foreboding Loren whispered in reply, and the owner of the voice whispered back something ridiculous.

“I’m going to whisper in the ears of everyone present here ‘I love you’ in your voice.”

“I’m going to kill you, you little…”

Loren muttered in a cold, low voice to the other person, who had used polite form only for the ‘I love you’ part. Lapis and Nim, who had good ears, seemed to hear his murmur. They looked at Loren with a puzzled look on their faces. Rather than startling them, Loren’s first priority was to stop the owner of the voice from pulling his prank. If he really did that, who knew what kind of chaos would ensue. Some would be overjoyed, some would be confused, and some might even get angry. If all of them were to approach him at once, Loren had no confidence that he would be able to control the situation.

“I will be thankful if you don’t do it.”

“It was just a small joke. But you seem to be afraid of the people around you.”

“I’m scared to death, so don’t do it.”

“You sound honest. All right, I swear I won’t do it.”

The voice did not seem to be able to tell what kind of people were around him, Loren thought. With a group of Elder, demon and Evil God, which just mentioning them together was ominous enough, that was a prank one would never think to pull off.

“But walking too slow… I’m bored out of my mind. Can’t I at least have a chat with you?”

“I understand. I won’t ignore you, so if there’s something you want to ask me, just say it.”

As only Loren could hear the voice, the sight of him muttering things might seem strange to the other members of the group. However, if it was to stop the mischief that the owner of the voice was talking about, Loren was prepared to take it in stride, even if it made him look like a bit of an oddball.

“I’ll ask then. Are you not friends with the creator of the magic circle?”

“I don’t know for sure who made it, but I have a guess, and they are not one of us.”

“I see. Well then, I feel a strangely potent wave of power from the area where you are. What is the reason for this?”

Loren looked at Lapis and other people around him. The first thing that came to his mind when he heard the term ‘potent wave of power’ was the power imbued to the map given to Lapis by the Ancient Dragon Emery. But if they were talking about potent power, then Dia the Elder, Lapis the demon, and Gula the Evil God, basically everyone except for himself and Nim would fit the description. Not knowing which of these the voice was referring to, as well as thinking that it was better to avoid giving an accurate answer, Loren decided not to answer.

“Wouldn’t it be better to see for yourself?”

“So, there is more than one candidate for that. That’s a bit frightening.”

Having his intentions seen through so easily, Loren was deeply impressed. A poor attempt at wordplay might instead make the other person distrustful, so Loren, reminding himself that he needed to think carefully about his answers, decided to ask some questions of his own.

“Are you the Ancient Dragon that is said to live in the vicinity?”

“Who told you that? I’ve been living in hiding for so long that only a few people know who I am.”

Loren could not imagine why an Ancient Dragon would live in hiding. There must be a good reason for such a powerful being to hide itself, but he thought it was better to answer the question than to think about it at the moment.

“We heard from an Ancient Dragon who lives elsewhere. Her name was Emery. Do you know her?”

“I can’t recall that name… Well, I guess her real name must be a different one. Our names are difficult for humans to hear or say.”

“It was a dragon living near the castle of the Great Demon King in the demon realm.”

There was silence for a while. Loren wondered if the dragon had become lost in his own memory when the voice came back, suddenly lively as if its owner had recalled something.

“Emery, in the demon realm… Oh oh oh, that one. I know her. I see… it’s not surprising that she knows where I live.”

“She didn’t want us to be attacked out of the blue, so she gave us something with her power in it. Perhaps that is the power you were talking about?”

“I see. I don’t remember how long it’s been since we last saw each other, and I suppose her worries were justified.”

How long ago was it that even an Ancient Dragon could not remember? The voice told Loren that it was probably so long ago that it was difficult for him, who only has a fixed lifespan, to even imagine.

“We’ll have to wait until we see each other to find out more. You’re about to arrive at my place of residence. There’s nothing to be afraid of, so come in slowly.”

Loren noticed that there was a dead end in the direction he was going, and there was no other path.

Gula was the first to approach the dead-end wall and began to examine it, holding up her hand.

“This one seems to be blocked by magic, too.”

“The guy at the end of the road called us here, so he must be able to open it, right?”

When Loren said this to Gula, implying that the Ancient Dragon should open the door for them, the dead-end wall, as if it had been waiting for him to say this, lost its shape as if it were melting, and the entrance that had been blocked is revealed.

“What a great power. Even my eyes could not catch any signs.”

Dia said in admiration as the group went through the open entrance and stepped inside.

On the other side of the entrance was a wide hall-like space, with soft white light pouring down from the ceiling, illuminating the entire space. Various gold and silver treasures were piled high along the walls, glittering and reflecting the light pouring down from the ceiling.

Loren and his companions were nearly blinded by the sight, but their eyes immediately fell on a dragon in the centre of the hall, and everyone’s faces lit up in surprise.

“I should say welcome, should I? I am the Ancient Dragon who lives here. My name is… you may call me Konin.”

The dragon’s mouth curved slightly into a smile as he introduced himself.