"What nonsense are you talking about?" Cadmus asked as he glared at the Half-Elf who was panicking after receiving a Quest out of the blue.
Lux didn't know how to explain their current situation to the Draconic Kobold because he knew that no matter what he said, Cadmus wouldn't believe him. He just stared helplessly at the Quest information in front of him, while thinking about his next course of action.
—-
Survival Quest!
Difficulty Rating: A
< Dungeon Outbreak >
– The Grotto of the Forbidden Guardian has regular dungeon outbreaks to cull the spawned Monsters that have reached their maximum capacity.
– However, since the entrance of the Dungeon was sealed by a powerful spell to prevent the Monsters from emerging from the dungeon, the Monsters have nowhere to go. Because of this, they are forced into a maddened state where they would start killing each other in order to decrease their numbers.
But, if there are any intruders inside the Dungeon during this period of time, all the Monsters will focus their attention towards disposing of the invaders first, before they start killing each other.
(Quest Clear Conditions)
– Survive the Dungeon Outbreak for one hour.
(Quest Failing Conditions)
– Lux Von Kaizer dies or more than half of his party members die.
Failing this Quest will automatically expel the survivors out of the dungeon and prevent them from entering it again for the duration of two years.
(Rewards for Quest Completion)
100 Rank 2 Beast Cores
20 Rank 3 Beast Cores
2 Rank 4 Beast Core
Title: Outbreak Survivor
Bonus Reward: ???
Time before Dungeon Outbreak Begins: 18 minutes 38 seconds
—----
"Okay, listen to me," Lux said as he stared at Cadmus with a serious expression on his face. "You know that I cleared the Hidden Mission in the Stronghold of Norria, right?"
"Yes," Cadmus replied.
Lux took a deep breath as he prepared to spout some random bullsh*t in order to convince the Draconic Kobold, as well as his brethren to listen to believe his words.
"The truth is, I was able to clear it because I have a special ability," Lux stated with an expression that would put con artists to shame. "This is an ability that is exclusive only to a handful of Foreigners. Not many have this, and those who do are known to have an easier time in clearing dungeons. Do you guys understand what I'm trying to say?"
Cadmus reluctantly nodded his head, while the other Kobolds just exchanged glances with each other. Doubt was written on their faces. Clearly, they didn't believe what Lux was trying to tell them.
"Okay, so this ability activated right now, and gave me a warning that a Monster Outbreak would be happening soon," Lux said. "We need t–"
"What you're talking about is impossible," one of the Kobold Mages interjected Lux's speech. "The entrance of this dungeon is sealed, and can only be opened with the blood of an Elf. You barely meet this requirement, so unless your blood is used, the Monsters inside this dungeon can't esca–"
The Kobold Mage wasn't able to finish his explanation because he, too, realized that the possibility of the gate opening was quite high since they had Lux with them.
"If the monsters are able to capture you then they could leave the dungeon and escape to the surface!" one of the Kobold Shaman's exclaimed as he pointed at Lux. "Our brethren outside will be annihilated and overrun by these beasts! We must stop them at once!"
All the Kobolds now fully understood what could happen, but a few of them were still in doubt about whether Lux was telling the truth or not.
"Do you have any proof to back your claims?" one of the Kobold Raiders asked. "This is a serious matter, and if you're lying, we will make you understand what the meaning of pain is!"
Lux snorted as he headed towards the wall of the cavern they were staying at.
"I don't need to explain anything to you guys," Lux said as Eiko jumped off his head and used her digging ability to burrow to the ground. "Fifteen minutes from now, the Dungeon Outbreak will happen. All of you can die if you want, but I'm not planning on dying here."
Lux then turned around to look at the Kobolds who were glaring at him.
"I have promises I need to keep, and I won't allow myself to die inside a Dungeon I was forced to enter because I was threatened!" Lux glared back at the Kobolds, and glared more at Cadmus, who left him with no other choice, but to accept the quest that was forced into him.
Eiko tunneled deep underground, but the hole she made was only big enough for her to enter. She hurriedly dug back to the surface, in order to widen the hole, and allow her Papa to hide with her.
"You can do it, Eiko!"
"Pa!"
"Just a little more!"
"Pa!"
The baby slime was like a bulldozer that shoveled dirt, in and out of the hole that she was creating. After ten minutes of digging, and chugging a few bottles of Mana Potions, the hole Eiko created was now big and deep enough to allow Lux and the other Kobolds to enter.
However, it wasn't big enough to allow Cadmus to squeeze inside because of the Draconic Kobold's hulking figure.
The exhausted baby Slime then looked up at her Papa with a proud smile on her face. Lux didn't forget to praise Eiko to the high heavens before entering the hole that she had created.
The Half-Elf didn't bother inviting the Kobolds to follow him because he was sure that they would be able to sense the sudden changes that would happen in a few minutes.
'Once they realize that I was telling the truth, they will be more likely to listen to me in the future,' Lux thought as he settled down at the farthest corner of the hole Eiko had dug for him. 'I don't know what kind of Monster Outbreak is going to happen, but I'm sure that it is going to be a messy one.
Outside of the hole where Lux was hiding at, the Kobolds were discussing the Half-Elf's words.
"He might just be trying to trick us so that he can escape," one of the Kobold Raiders said. "He's a land-dweller. He isn't as sturdy as under-dwellers like us."
"That may be true, but I am more inclined to believe him," one of the Goblin Shamans commented. "He is the weakest among us, and if he tries to leave without our protection, he will just be food to the Monsters that wander around this labyrinth."
The Kobold Raider wasn't able to refute this fact, so he didn't say anything else and merely looked at the other Kobolds, asking for their opinions with his gaze.
"He said that the Dungeon Outbreak will be happening in a few minutes," the oldest among the Kobold Mages stated. "Let's just wait for a while to see if what he is saying is true or not. It won't be too late to punish him later if he was just making a fool of us."
"I agree."
"This makes sense."
"It doesn't hurt to have a second opinion."
The oldest Kobold Mage then glanced at Cadmus who was just listening to all of them talk.
"What do you think, Cadmus?" the Kobold Mage asked. "Do you think he is telling the truth?"
Cadmus shook his head.
"I don't know if he is telling the truth or not," Cadmus replied. "All I know is that we need him alive or else we won't be able to leave this Dungeon. The gate requires someone with Elven blood flowing in their veins to open and close it. Without him, all of us will be trapped here, forever unable to leave."
The Kobolds all simultaneously glanced into the hole where the Half-Elf was currently hiding.
"Understood. We just need to wai–" the oldest Kobold Mage froze as he, and every other Kobold around him, felt the vibrations coming off the ground.
As a race that spent most of their time mining underground, they were well aware what this vibration meant, especially since they had experienced stumbling upon the denizens of creatures that lived under the earth.
Usually, when Kobolds, gnomes, dwarves, and underground monsters met during one of their digging sessions, both sides would immediately start attacking the other without any questions asked.
This was a normal occurrence in Elysium, so the Kobolds were quite aware of the tremors that were slowly getting stronger. Cadmus' strong hearing had caught onto the sounds of hundreds of monsters crawling in their direction, which made the back of his spine tingle.
"Everyone go inside the hole!" Cadmus ordered. Do it now!"
The Kobolds hurriedly followed his command and squeezed themselves inside the hole that Eiko had created.
Soon, they met the Half-Elf who was seated in a small cavern that Eiko had specially made for him in the farthest side of the hole.
"Yo," Lux said with a smile. "Fancy meeting you guys here."
The Kobolds looked at him with flushed faces, feeling embarrassed, and didn't know how to react to the Half-Elf's greeting.
—-
Outside the hole…
The two Kobold Shamans chanted and cast a spell over Cadmus to make him shrink to the size of a normal Kobold Warrior, so that he could enter the hole alongside them.
After the spell had taken effect, the two Shamans hurriedly went inside the hole, with Cadmus following last.
Although his size had shrunk to that of a normal Kobold, his strength remained intact.
The Draconic Kobold summoned its sword as he faced the entrance of the hole with a determined gaze.
No matter what happened, he wouldn't allow any of the Monsters to make it past him. That was the only thing he could think of doing to prevent his comrades from being massacred, as well as to survive this Dungeon Outbreak that was now starting to fall upon their heads.
