Surprise! I've Transmigrated Again

Early the next morning, Adam and his companions set out for the Dungeon.

Arriving again at the snow plain, they found quite a few Snow Sprites still roaming the area. Despite the Winter Shōgun's defeat, other adventurers still didn't dare risk their lives here.

Despite the temptation of the unknown Dungeon, Adam firmly rejected Aqua's eager pleas to capture Snow Sprites for bounty, even though each was worth as much as ξ100,000.

As they continued forward, they gazed at the crescent-shaped mountain with its large hollowed-out hole. Even from a distance, they could see the base of the mountain shrouded in mist that extended nearly halfway up the mountainside.

Upon reaching the outskirts of the mist, everyone stopped.

Adam turned to the group behind him and said, "The mist doesn't look too thick, but for some reason it's blocking most adventurers. To prevent accidents, we need to stay close to each other and absolutely not get separated! Understood?"

"Yes, understood!" Darkness nodded.

But seeing her flushed face, Adam suspected she wasn't listening at all — just thinking about causing trouble once they got inside.

It seemed last night's lesson wasn't enough for her… Fine, he'd continue tonight.

Aqua, seeming to understand, asked, "So, we should hold hands, right?"

This wasn't a bad idea. Holding hands was the simplest way to avoid getting separated.

But Kazuma didn't think so.

He retorted, "Stupid Aqua, what if something happens while we're holding hands?"

"Indeed, I was thinking the same thing." Adam nodded, "This mist doesn't look dangerous, but we don't know what's hidden inside, so it's better to be careful."

With that, he used his 〔Perception〕 skill.

The outer mist could essentially be considered one of the Dungeon's traps. Normally, this kind of obstacle could be safely navigated using this type of skill, which is why 『Thief』 class adventurers had become standard for every party.

However, for some reason, 〔Perception〕 was ineffective against this mist. He couldn't detect anything at all!

"So, we just need to dispel this mist, right?" Aqua stated as if it were obvious.

Everyone stared at her, finding her clueless expression and erratic personality incomprehensible.

"Look, Aqua, do you even understand—"

"So, do you need me to dispel the mist?"

"...Huh?!" Kazuma was dumbfounded. He had been about to criticize Aqua out of habit but didn't expect her to say something so useful.

Not just him — everyone else was stunned too.

"Oh, the usually unreliable Aqua is finally going to be useful at this critical moment?" Megumin raised her staff, her tone somewhere between mockery and praise.

Regardless of her intention, they all hoped Aqua could solve the mist problem.

"What do you mean 'usually unreliable'?!" Aqua protested heatedly, "I'm the Goddess of Water, I'm very reliable! Even more reliable than Adam!"

Though she declared this boldly, no one took her seriously. This Goddess, despite her divine status, was nothing but trouble — everyone understood her true nature by now.

Adam approached her and asked directly, "Aqua, can you dispel this mist?"

"Mm, it shouldn't be a problem."

Aqua wasn't just a Goddess; she was also a high-ranking 『Arch-Priest』. Normally, even an ordinary priest couldn't handle this mist, but who could blame her for using the highest grade of divine power?

"Well then, I'm counting on you, Aqua."

"Mm, leave it to me!"

Aqua summoned her staff, which was merely pretty in appearance, then dramatically raised it as a dazzling magic circle appeared beneath her.

◈ Sacred Break Spell ◈

Whoosh—

A bright light burst from her staff and expanded outward, gradually dispersing the surrounding mist until it vanished completely, revealing the foot of the mountain... and the Dungeon entrance.

"Ohhh!!!"

Everyone exclaimed in amazement.

"Well done, Aqua!" Adam praised.

"Hmph." She responded with a tsundere snort.

"With Aqua's help, we've taken a solid step forward, so... let's hurry and explore! I can't wait!"

Darkness began sounding like a proper, dignified knight, but as she continued speaking, her excitement grew evident — her flushed face betraying her true thoughts.

She took the lead, with the others following behind. Upon reaching the mountain's base, they discovered a cave entrance in the center of the mountainside.

"This must be the Dungeon." Adam stared into the pitch-black entrance, wanting to peek inside but unable to see anything without light.

◈ Perception ◈

At times like this, this skill was his only reliable option.

As his perception gradually probed forward along the cave wall, the rest of the party waited in complete silence.

"This is..." Adam frowned slightly.

The cave before them contained a passage that wasn't particularly long, but it descended at a nearly right angle with a drop of about 15 meters.

More concerning was the stone forest trap at the landing spot below. If they rushed in carelessly, they would likely trigger it and could easily die.

Reckless adventurers would surely meet their end here.

◈ Ul Huma ⫸ Staircase ◈

To everyone's confusion, Adam cast an ice-attribute spell, creating a series of steps that formed a complete staircase to the bottom.

"Adam-senpai?"

"Ah, nothing serious — there's just a trap down there." Without elaborating further, Adam led the way down. Holding a bright orb of light, he announced to the group, "This is the real entrance to the Dungeon."

The mist above and the stone forest below were merely outer traps. The 15-meter-high door now before them was the true entrance.

"So we've reached the entrance... how do we get in?"

"Let me use Explosion Magic!"

"Are you an idiot? Using powerful magic in such a confined space would just bury us alive!"

"Mmm..."

Kazuma strongly rejected Megumin's suggestion, and Adam, though silent, shared the same thought.

"Violence is a last resort. Let's not be hasty — we need to look for clues."

Everyone began examining the entrance.

The door was unremarkable. It had no patterns, no reliefs, and no hints whatsoever. Besides its impressive 15-meter height, it was just an ordinary door.

After two hours of exploration, the exhausted group finally gave up.

"What's the deal with this door?!" Aqua, being the impatient person she was, quit first.

"This is so frustrating!" Megumin followed, equally irritated, "Let me blow it up with magic — come on, let me use Explosion Magic on it!"

Her eyes glowed red with excitement. Perhaps she had never blown up such a tall door before and was eager for the opportunity.

The rest of the group was growing tired as well.

"Sigh... This door probably has some special way to open it, but we haven't figured it out yet."

According to convention, doors usually had hints; otherwise, there would be no point in building this Dungeon.

But apart from himself and Kazuma, the rest of the party rarely used their brains.

Aqua, slumped against Adam, complained loudly, "Special opening method or whatever, it's not like we can just say 'Please open the door' or 'Open sesame' and it would open... wait, it's actually opening—?!!!"

✧✧✧

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