The next day arrived much faster than anyone anticipated.
As the early morning sun was beginning to peek out in the sky, about fifty Knights and Mages stood before Adonis and Lucielle.
They were also graced by the presence of the members of the Royal Council.
This was the Rescue Unit that would be going to the depths of the Royal Dungeon to save their dying comrade.
Thankfully, Brutus wasn't dead yet.
However, he was dying. If they didn't hurry, his life could be forfeit.
"… And that's the end of the briefing. Any questions?" Lucielle asked the fifty who stood before her and the Hero.
However, none of the stern-faced ones had any questions.
"May I ask one?" A loud, feminine voice came from behind the two leaders.
Adonis and Lucielle swiftly turned back to see a bunch of teenagers standing resolute.
The one who asked the question was Trisha, and the people with her were all Otherworlders.
Belle, Justin, Clark, and Eric.
"Can we join your group?" Trisha smiled, her arms folded.
"Y-you guys…"
Adonis' eyes were widened in shock. He was pleasantly surprised, to say the least.
He didn't expect anyone to show up.
'And this lineup… it's great!' His thoughts beamed.
Belle was known as the best Mage in Alpha Class.
Justin, despite being very playful, had the [Assassin] Class—a B-Tier Class that exceeded the C-Tier [Thief] Class.
He had very useful Skills too.
Like his popular [Mimic] Skill, and also stuff like [Stealth], [Sleep], [Voice Mimic], and [Perception].
One might think he didn't have any attack Skills, but he actually did. His [Marionette Skill] was B-Tier, and mixing it with the rest of his other Skill, Justin was pretty unique in his build.
Clark was also a member of the Alpha Class, and his Skills made him seem more like a superhero than a warrior.
He had [Flight], [Super Strength], [Super Speed], [Icy Breath], [Heat Vision], etc.
His [Paladin] Class also made him pretty sturdy—the perfect tank.
Then there was Eric; the one with the most diverse sets of Magic-based Skills among all of them.
Even though he had the C-Tier Class of Mage, his Skills ranged from A-Tier abilities like [Grand Sound Magic], to B-Tiers like [Greater Corrosion], [Greater Explosion], and even a couple C-Tier stuff like [Blindness] and [False Pain].
He was a true Mage—a jack of all trades, though master of none.
If he had a better Class, there was a chance he could give Belle a run for her money.
It seemed like all the members of Alpha Class—with the exception of the two kidnapped ones—were present.
'And then, there's her…' Adonis looked at the girl who stood at their center, and probably the one who banded them together.
Trisha—The strongest Beta Student.
She had the [Swordsman] Class, but extreme Skill to make her stand out even to the Alpha Students.
'I think her Skills are [Greater Lightning Magic], [Combat Application], and [Danger Sense]…'
Her combination of those three Skills, in addition to her experience, made her very formidable.
'And they're all here to join us?' Adonis was overjoyed, and a sudden wave of relief washed over him.
'It seems I was wrong about some of them…' As he had this thought, the image of a certain boy flashed in his mind.
Rey.
'I guess he wasn't up to it. I can't blame him, though. He probably felt he wasn't strong eno—'
Before Adonis could complete his thoughts, his eyes caught the very boy he was thinking about among a group of casually dressed men.
He recognized the men as soldiers in disguise. Since they were searching for the Black Market—specifically where Alicia and Billy were being kept there—they had to blend in.
It was far more efficient than brandishing weapons and announcing themselves as soldiers of the Alliance.
'What is Rey doing with them, though?' Adonis thought to himself.
"Come on, Adonis. You won't give us an answer? That's harsh, man!"
Justin's voice woke Adonis from his dazed state, causing him to look right in front of him again.
"S-sure! We'd be really happy to have you join us!" He swiftly smiled.
"Lucielle, please excuse me for a moment. You can use this opportunity to quickly brief them."
"Alright."
As soon as he heard this, Adonis jogged to where the disguised soldiers stood.
It was clear that they would be departing to town very soon.
It didn't take him very long to reach their position, and thankfully Rey had already caught him running from a distance.
"Hey, Rey! What are you doing here?" He asked, expressing genuine surprise.
"I'm going to be joining the Investigation. I'll do my best to find clues with them."
Upon hearing those words, Adonis smiled slightly.
'He must have thought he was too weak to go to the Dungeon, so he decided to help out in another way…'
He felt nothing but respect for Rey.
'Even though you're weak, you do what you can…'
If that wasn't the definition of a true Hero, what was?
"Alright! I wish you good luck!" Adonis noded and widened his smile.
"Thanks! You too!"
They both chucked despite the fact that they were meant to be under a lot of pressure.
"I'll need it… thanks, Rey."
Rey nodded and returned the look of genuine camaraderie.
For a second, they both stood still… not saying a single word to each other.
That was when Adonis remembered that time was running out.
He turned to see Lucielle already done with the briefing, so he laughed awkwardly.
"I should probably get going now…"
"Yeah, you should."
The next thing Adonis did seemed to surprise Rey.
Stretching out a fist towards the boy before him, Adonis smiled and whispered.
"Please find them…"
Rey nodded and knocked his own fist on Adonis', creating their first ever fist numb.
"Don't lose." Rey responded.
They both weren't smiling any longer. Only expressions of resolve oozed from them.
As the Mages, Knights—disguised or not—and Otherworlders watched the two from their respective positions, the silence was deafening.
Until Adonis broke it.
"I won't."
They both parted ways after that—with Rey leaving the Castle Walls with his team, and Adonis returning to the group.
Neither of them could have guessed the horrors that were about to unfold.
The tragedy that would come.
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Thanks for reading!
The time has finally come for the Incident to begin unfolding.
