The plane roared to life, vibrating intensely as its massive wheels met the ground, speeding along the runway. The scenery outside the window gradually sharpened into focus. Finally, the aircraft gently taxied to its designated parking spot. Magic City — they had arrived!
As the group once again felt solid ground beneath their feet, the stars, having replaced the warm sun at some unknown hour, now freely cast their brilliant light across the sky.
“Let’s go.” Cradling a sleeping Aya Jiu in his arms, Aya Tone let out a soft yawn. ‘A few hours of travel, a nap was just what I needed.’
A rumble. His stomach protested loudly. ‘Hmm… I’m well-rested, but my stomach certainly isn’t full. Of course, I hadn’t eaten dinner, so hunger was only natural. I wonder what delicious food Magic City has to offer? Ugh, the more I think about it, the hungrier I get…’
“Aya Tone,” Li Jia said, her expression grave as she handed him her phone with a message displayed. “Word about the S-rank Spatial Fruit has leaked from somewhere. Several nations have activated their hidden operatives. The Green Dragon Guild Master wants us to head over immediately.”
“…!?” The last vestiges of sleep vanished from Aya Tone’s eyes as he quickly scanned the message. Then, a hint of languor returned to his gaze. He had finished reading it, and while it seemed serious, it wasn’t quite as dire as it appeared. ‘Foreign countries activating long-dormant sleeper agents to sneak into an S-rank dungeon? It sounds grave, yes, but… Nation Z isn’t some minor country to be bullied by a few nobodies. They’re nothing more than a band of clowns. And while it’s true that fewer than a hundred S-rank experts are officially registered, let’s not forget our population of over a billion. Could such a vast populace truly produce so few? Rather than spies sneaking in… it’s more likely someone let them in. And that someone, without a doubt, would be the Green Dragon Guild Master. So…’
“No rush,” he declared. “First, we eat. Then, we get Aya Jiu and the others settled. The world can wait; a meal is paramount!”
“But the Guild Master said he needs us there now…” Li Jia fretted, her voice tinged with anxiety. ‘That Spatial Fruit was crucial for her future plans to keep Aya Tone in check! If anything happened to it… she’d absolutely break.’
“Don’t worry,” Aya Tone reassured her. “That item isn’t easy to get your hands on. Besides, think about it: why would the Green Dragon Guild Master send the message specifically to you?”
“Why?”
Aya Tone sighed, pressing a hand to his forehead. “Because he knows I’m with you.”
‘Come to think of it, he and that old man were quite familiar.’
‘During a ranked match, Fire Finch and he had accidentally gotten separated. She was unfamiliar with the area and happened to run into Ao Yu, who was having a spat with his daughter. That inexplicable glance between them, and the two old fathers seemed to have found kindred spirits. They transcended their age gap, regretting they hadn’t met sooner.’
‘By the time Fire Finch found him, the two were already deep in conversation, earnestly discussing life – specifically, how to raise daughters! They chatted with such gusto that they immediately swore an oath of brotherhood, despite being of different genders. After the ranked match, though, they didn’t keep in touch much, only occasionally sharing cute moments of their daughters with Ao Yu via phone. Ao Yu was incredibly envious. If he weren’t unable to leave Magic City for long periods, burdened with countless affairs, Aya Tone would have worried he’d suddenly rush over to claim his daughter. All in all, the old guy was quite proper, except for when he wasn’t.’
“Just ignore that message for now,” Aya Tone concluded, settling the matter and ending the discussion. “We’ll talk after dinner.”
****
Outside the Dragon Abyss dungeon.
Ao Yu glanced at his watch. Half an hour had passed, and they still hadn’t arrived. ‘That brat, he must have guessed I was bluffing.’
“Guild Master,” a man in a black robe said gravely, “if we let people in, won’t the higher-ups blame us?”
“You, you,” Ao Yu chided, patting the man’s shoulder. “Use your brain for once, instead of just thinking about fighting. If that item were so easy to harvest, do you think it would still be there now?”
“Furthermore…” His gaze turned grim as he looked at the teleportation array before them, easily three stories high. “Though this dungeon has been explored for years, it remains perilous. You know what I’m referring to.”
The man fell silent. He naturally understood what the Guild Master meant. S-rank dungeons carried a danger level that multiplied exponentially; the monsters they bred were one thing. The most terrifying aspect, however, was the environment within the dungeon itself! This Dragon Abyss, for instance, was formed by treacherous mountains and sheer cliffs; a single misstep could send one plummeting into a bottomless chasm. Moreover, at its heart lay a colossal rift, a natural abyss whose depths no one had ever measured. It was rumored that the long-sought dungeon core was likely hidden there.
Once, scholars, curious about the rift’s profundity, organized an expedition team. They entered alongside the Green Dragon Guild’s raiding party. According to records from that time, the team brought nearly ten thousand meters of rope, yet it still failed to reach the bottom. Explorers who ventured deeper described an absolute darkness below, punctuated by intermittent, low moans, like the cries of a dragon. It was precisely for this reason that it earned the name — Dragon Abyss.
The reason this was pertinent now was that the current spatial fluctuation had occurred beneath Dragon Abyss, in that untrodden place.
****
“Isn’t that just setting someone up for failure!?” After listening to Ao Yu’s explanation, Aya Tone was so incensed he nearly kicked him. ‘A depth of at least ten thousand meters? Was he trying to send her to the underworld? Should she bring bundles of “Heaven and Earth Banknotes” to hand out to the ox-headed demons and horse-faced devils, one bundle each, just to make things easier?’
‘This wasn’t a funny joke, especially not in the dead of night.’
“Am I really that kind of guy, little brother?” Ao Yu extended a hand, comfortably ruffling Aya Tone’s silver hair. ‘After all this time, the kid’s hair was still as satisfying to stroke as ever.’
“Don’t you use spatial magic?” Ao Yu continued. “The spatial fluctuations that ripple through the dungeon occasionally? You can use that power to reach the bottom directly.”
Aya Tone didn’t speak; his actions provided the answer. He took a small step forward, his other foot quickly following, and delivered a furious kick to Ao Yu’s calf. ‘His legs were short, but he did his best…’
“You bastard! Is that something you can just ‘borrow’ whenever you want? You dabble in spatial abilities yourself, so it’s fine to trick others, but why are you trying to trick yourself?” he fumed, gritting his teeth and glaring at Ao Yu.
‘Spatial magic, at its core, connected two points and then built a stable, high-speed tunnel between them. But “borrowing” unstable spatial fluctuations? That was akin to directly tearing space open, forcing both “doors” open at once. The doors might be open, but the path between them would no longer be stable; every step would be like treading on a blade’s edge. A single misstep could lead to spatial annihilation. Inside such a maelstrom, a human was no different from a piece of tissue paper—one foot in, and the other would be gone without a trace… Borrowing natural spatial fluctuations? This guy was treating him like an R-national, trying to get him killed!’
“Doesn’t your foot hurt?” Ao Yu chuckled, seemingly oblivious to Aya Tone’s complaints.
“It doesn’t hurt!” Aya Tone pouted, sniffing, and bravely braced his trembling calves. Tears welled in his eyes, but he held his head high, fiercely refusing to let them fall. ‘It hurt! It hurt so much! That kick had been more painful than hitting a steel plate. It was fractured, definitely a bone fracture, at least two broken bones!’