Kyle's eyes narrowed as he caught sight of a faint light deep in the water. Without hesitation, he dove down, feeling the pressure of the depths surrounding him.
A few bubbles escaped from his mouth, but ever since reaching the (S)-Rank, he could breathe underwater without much discomfort. Well, except for a ticklish sensation in his nose and throat.
He descended deeper and deeper, gliding through the water like a nimble creature. The world beneath the surface held a mysterious allure, and after a while, his eyes widened slightly as he saw a bright, glowing curtain.
Kyle paused in front of the curtain, which seemed vast, almost like a dome, extending in all directions.
Soon, Alec appeared beside him. The blue-haired man opened his mouth, perhaps to speak, but all that came out were bubbles.
Kyle resisted the urge to facepalm and instead rolled his eyes.
'Just speak in my head. Why are you so eager to drink water that isn't even clean?'
Alec blinked and let out a chuckle, but it got drowned in the water.
'Now, what's this thing? Don't tell me we need to destroy it or something. Also, I'm surprised your prediction was right. How the hell did you sense it?'
Kyle's lips curled into a faint smile. He so badly wanted to whisper in Alec's ear that he has a pseudo-divine skill, just to see his reaction. But with so many people around, he decided to hold back.
Shrugging his shoulders, he reached out to touch the bright curtain. To his surprise, his hand passed right through it.
"Huh?"
Kyle blinked, and before Alec could ask anything, he entered into the curtain.
He gasped when thick mana entered his mouth and nose, causing him to quickly raise his arm before his face. He was about to glance back at the curtain, realizing that the space he appeared in had no water. But before he could, his eyes were drawn to the brightness ahead of him.
Kyle paused and released a shuddering breath. The space in front of him was wide, stretching deep underground. He couldn't see an end. But what shocked him were the countless glowing weeds brimming with mana in the midst of the darkness. Not only that but the land was filled with natural mana stones, some big enough to be called boulders.
'This is worth a fortune!'
Kyle's eyes brightened with excitement as he eagerly rubbed his hands together.
'I feel like I've become the richest person on this planet!'
However, his expression quickly fell when Alec also entered the curtain behind him, groaning about the sticky substance. But Alec's complaint was cut short when he laid eyes on the incredible sight in front of him.
He clamped his mouth shut and stared at Kyle with shock.
Carcel, Regius, Jian, and Sinon soon followed, their eyes widening with shock as they took in the scene.
Jian couldn't help but laugh as he patted Kyle on the shoulder.
"Haha, a treasure? This is more than a treasure, it's a whole treasury!"
Kyle raised his brow with a smirk.
"Now, now, I know you're grateful. Just make sure to share the next treasure you find with me, okay?"
Jian nodded solemnly. Of course, a tiny treasure would be nothing in front of the sight he's seeing. Blissfully unaware, no matter how many people were with Kyle, he would be the one taking the most. After all, he had mind space. And not just any normal mind space, but one big enough to hold a whole city easily.
After them, many other people followed behind and entered one by one. Aliza and Liam were bewildered. The duo glanced at each other with astonishment.
The crowd stayed quiet, waiting for someone to take the first step forward. Jian chuckled and rubbed his hands.
"So, let's bet on who can get the most."
Kyle agreed instantly.
"Nice, I like that."
All of them rolled up their sleeves and dove toward the weeds and mana stones, but the numbers were overwhelming. They knew it would take a lot of time to gather everything, but nobody complained because picking up treasures was everyone's favorite task, not to mention the treasures that were lying right in front of their eyes.
As they got busy, Anlee also stepped into the curtain. The old man groaned and muttered a curse, thinking how foolish he would be to follow the kids. But he froze when he saw what lay before him. At first, he stood still, too shocked to react, but then he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"I'm rich!"
"Ahem... I mean, this place is a real treasure trove!"
He glanced at the youngsters collecting the mana stones and glowing weeds, then looked at the curtain with a panicked expression. Immediately, he raised his voice.
"Wait, all of you! Are you crazy? This place relies on the mana emitted from the weeds and mana stones. If you pick too many, the curtain will collapse and the water will rush in. Everything will be lost!"
A few of them stopped, but not many cared, just like Kyle and Jian. Alec heard his words and quickly intervened, stopping the people around him. They all instantly glared at Anlee with anger. After all, the old man had interrupted their joyous moment.
Nevertheless, nobody questioned his warning and reluctantly retreated. Alec rolled his eyes when he saw Jian and Kyle still engrossed. He glanced at Carcel, and the duo hurriedly dragged them toward Anlee.
Kyle stared at the old man. Inwardly, he somewhat knew the curtain would collapse. After all, it was built naturally. But no way he would admit it slipped his mind because he was too busy with his hands.
Anlee sighed and looked around the area. After a minute, he smiled in a way that a businessperson would when planning to profit from their customers.
"How about leaving this area to me? I'll talk to the King and he would send a lot of people to extract all of these precious herbs and mana stones. Don't worry, I'll make sure everyone gets their fair share after deducting the workers' payment."
Liam scoffed at his words. Being a caring professor, he would never let his students be deceived by an old man!
"Why should it be you? I can do the same. I'll contact the principal, and the Royal Academy will handle this place."
Soon, they got into an argument. Aliza rubbed her temples beside them. They were fighting, yet the one who discovered the place hadn't even spoken up.
She turned to talk to Kyle, but he was engrossed in conversation with Alec and Jian. After the trio finished, Jian stopped Anlee and Liam. He cleared his throat with a serious expression.
"I know it's a challenging task, which is why Kyle and I decided that both Sir Anlee and Sir Liam will take the responsibility."
The duo immediately agreed, more than willing to work.
Jian nodded solemnly.
"Alright, we'll catch up with you later. Please take care of this place for us."
After that, Jian entered the curtain to leave. Kyle also gave a nod to Liam and followed suit. Almost all the young ones went after them, though their eyes revealed some hesitation. But since they had already gained a lot of treasures in the secret realm, parting with a little wealth meant nothing to them.
Aliza watched their disappearing figures and glared at Liam.
"What the heck are you doing? We're supposed to stop them because they're heading towards the monster lords!"
Liam and Amlee blinked and glanced at each other. Liam eyes widened.
"Wait, did they deliberately leave us behind?"
Aliza cursed softly and attempted to pass through the curtain, but her eyes widened when she couldn't.
"What's going on?"
She looked at the two men next to her, and Anlee quickly reached out to touch the curtain. He felt a strange sensation in his hand and let out a deep breath.
"Did someone among them have expertise in arrays? I just sensed a low-rank array. It might be a simple one, but it's too tricky for us to force our way out, or the curtain will collapse."
Aliza's eyes widened.
"Does that mean we're stuck?"
Anlee shook his head.
"No, the array will fade away in a few minutes, but I'm afraid it might be too late by then."
...
As soon as Jian emerged from the water, he couldn't help but smile.
"I had no idea it would be this much fun to fool the elders."
He glanced at Kyle and instantly narrowed his eyes when he saw him holding a gorgeous lady in his arms.
'What the heck did I miss?...'
In the distance, dazed, Kyle locked eyes with a pair of amber eyes. A drop of water trickled down from his hair and gently landed on Yue's face.
He swore it was just instinctual. He thought she had slipped, which is why he grabbed her... but now he felt a weird sensation because their bodies were too close.
He carefully removed his hand from her waist and took a step back. Yue's pointy ears twitched, her neck flushed, but seeing Kyle's passive expression left her feeling a bit disheartened.
Kyle blinked and immediately apologized.
Yue gave him a quick nod and glanced at Lara and Mia. The girls had already grown a lot closer to their partners.
'Why does it feel like it's going to take us at least a hundred years just to get to the next stage?'
After spending time with him in the secret realm, she knew she liked him, but he was a little too dense to notice.
'Well, it's not bad. With his behavior, I don't have to worry about any other girl getting close to him.'
