Chapter 106 – Third Floor

James had explored the forest and, true to Andrew’s words, there was no portal to the next floor. This floor was smaller than the previous one, and most of its space was taken up by the city, leaving few places to search. James could only sigh as he strolled around the headquarters, waiting for Andrew to return with good news. He stared off into the distance, wondering how he might sneak inside if Andrew didn’t come back.

His worries proved unfounded when Andrew appeared a few hours later.

“Took your time, huh, Andrew?”

“Boss, the sewers were a maze. I didn’t think it would be that complicated. Moreover, Boss Andrew had never actually visited the sewers,” Sanders explained.

“You’re going to guide me through a path you’ve never traveled?” James raised an eyebrow, suddenly feeling that this whole shenanigan might be dangerous.

“I’ve never smuggled anyone here before, James.” Andrew shrugged. “And we have to be careful. This dungeon is a bit different from what I remember.”

“Got it.” James nodded. “So, what’s the plan?”

“The path connecting the tower and the outside is on the west wall. We’ll put you in a box and carry you to the sewers. Once inside, you’ll wait there until I make arrangements with the knights,” Andrew explained.

“You haven’t talked to them?” James frowned deeper.

“I have, but their answer was ambiguous. I need confirmation first. Ah, by the way, they’ve sworn to kill you on sight, so even if we manage to smuggle you in, you must stay out of sight at all times. Don’t let them see you.”

“Got it.”

“Once we reach the third floor, I suppose we could scout the boss monster there.”

“Scout?”

“If we can kill it, we will, Boss James. Boss Andrew doesn’t want to sacrifice anyone here, so he’s being cautious,” Sanders said.

“Alright. This is the box, right?” James pointed toward a coffin that Hain had brought.

“Yes. Hop in, boss—your weapons too.”

The group then carried the coffin to the sewer. James felt nauseous as it swayed with every step. Thanks to his cyborg body, Hain could lift the coffin on his own, but to James, each step felt like being on a boat in a raging storm.

“Alright, we’re here,” Andrew said, opening the coffin.

“Ugh… that was nasty. How long do I have to stay inside this coffin until we reach the third floor?”

“A lot longer. But the road is flatter there, so it should rock less,” Andrew answered.

“Yes, yes. You may leave. I’ll stay.”

“Alright. Be careful, okay? There are monsters here,” Andrew said. His words snapped James’ attention.

“Monsters? Inside the city?”

“Yes. Some rats. Ah, but we also found a Knight of Pestilence.”

“He should be the only one. Even the third-floor boss only had four. Just like the Knights of Mystis, there should be a limited number of them,” Andrew said.

Andrew left with Hain, leaving James, Kouki, and Sanders behind. While waiting, James ate a piece of dried jerky Sanders offered him.

“Did you buy this from the shop?”

“No. We bought it at a store on this floor. Thanks to the gold bar from that cave, you can buy pretty much anything—coffins, ropes, bags. Unfortunately, they’re not registered by the system, so we can’t bring them back to Earth.”

After what felt like ages, Andrew returned.

“Alright! Everything is settled. The necklace sealed the deal. James, get inside the casket and don’t show yourself. The coffin needs to be nailed shut and covered with cloth. Under no circumstances should you look outside, nor can the outside see even a part of your body.”

“...Say, Andrew. I trust you, but I don’t trust these knights. Is there any chance they’ll lie and ambush us?”

“It’s never happened to me before, and I believe they won’t do that. These knights have rules. They have beliefs. That’s what made me trust them in the first place. They swore an oath to their gods. If they betray their promise, the gods might take their blessings away.”

“...Alright. But I’m holding my weapons, okay?”

“Of course.”

After securing James inside the box, Andrew climbed up from the sewer to the tower.

“Halt! We need to check your luggage,” a knight approached him.

“Ask Knight Dimitri. We have permission to cross the portal without being checked. Or do knights here go back on their word?”

“Tch. Only this time, alright? This unknown box will not return to its previous floor no matter what.” The knight stepped aside, letting Andrew and the others pass.

Andrew sighed. He had plans to return for the coronation, and he would no doubt be fighting monsters then. But such things could wait. First things first—clear the dungeon at least until the fifth-floor boss monster.

Beyond the entrance lay a long spiraling staircase. At the peak, past the stairs, was the hall where the portal stood. It glowed blue, signaling they would arrive on the next floor. Andrew and his team passed through the portal without a hitch. The sight that greeted them left Andrew stunned.

“What the hell? What the hell happened?!” Andrew’s eyes widened as he gazed into the distance. The tower—supposed to be in ruins, with the star reduced to a mere ball of metal—still glowed brightly. He had been counting on looting the remnants of the star city, but that plan was in shambles now that the city still stood.

More importantly, how was he supposed to get James up to the fourth floor? The portal was supposed to be inside a ruined city. If the city was intact, did that mean James would be trapped here? Would he need to spend another three favors to send him up?

“Leader, what do we do now?”

“Let’s get out of the city first. We can talk later,” Andrew said. He had planned to release James inside the ruins, but with knights casually manning the gates, the only choice was to leave James in the forest.

“Alright. That was worse than I had expected. I never want to go inside there again. I think I’m developing claustrophobia.” James stretched his body and looked around, taking in the sight.

“Andrew, do I need to get inside the coffin again while you transport me into that city?” James squinted as the light from the familiar tower blinded him.

“That city was supposed to be in ruins in my previous playthrough. I didn’t expect it to still be standing. I have no idea what happened,” Andrew said.

“We did a bit too well on the previous floor, huh?” Sanders muttered.

“But I’ve never heard of the previous floor affecting the next one,” James said. Thinking back, he had always cleared the dungeon in a single run, so there was no comparison.

“What do we do now?”

“I’ll go to the city. Meanwhile, James, you could sneak into the sewers or the forest. But don’t go into the city or alert the guards, alright?”

“No promises. If those knights spot me while I’m in the sewer, I’ll have to fight for my life.”

“Understood,” Andrew nodded.

Andrew had a backup plan in case something went wrong. There were pestilence artifacts here—a Heart of Pestilence. If he could pollute the water reservoir, the city would fall into ruin. But doing so would align him with the pestilence gods, and his conscience wouldn’t let him commit such a heinous act. He is the type to help civilian NPC even in games.

Still, he would do it if he had to. He then looked at James. James didn’t share the same reputation as Andrew and the others. Andrew wondered whether he could use James to exterminate the city’s residents.

“Hah… that would be the last of the last resorts,” Andrew said.

“What last resort, leader?”

“Destroying the city,” Andrew said.

“...Wow. That would be a sight,” Sanders said.

“How cruel.” Kaina pouted. “You can’t really be planning to kill all those people, right?”

“If we don’t, we will not progress. We can’t stay locked up here forever. We have a dungeon to clear. Otherwise, the nuclear reactor in the real world will blow up,” Andrew said as he recalled his past. He had to sell his comrade in this dungeon, sacrificing them so he could progress, only to be returned back to the real world without clearing it.

“Oh yeah, I forgot about that.” Sanders sighed. This dungeon raid was not a mere land grab. It was vital to the Earth as a whole.

After saying their goodbyes, James and Andrew separated. James could not go into the city. As Andrew had advised, James explored the forest while Andrew went to the city. This floor encompassed only the small city in one corner and the tower city in the other corner. James thought it left little to explore. However, when he found a cave, he changed his mind.

Before he entered the cave, an earthquake rattled his body. The ground erupted. The surrounding trees wavered. It didn’t stop; it got worse and worse.

“Andrew!” James’ thoughts reeled to his former boss who went to the city to search for a way to sneak him in. He left the cave and sprinted, trying to get a view toward the city. What he saw terrified him. Cracks appeared on the surface of its polished marble wall. People and knights on the wall began running for their lives.

The city crumbled. Its wall shattered as the ground quaked. The star that had been glowing all this time flickered before going off entirely. Then, cracks emerged along the tower. It crumbled; the top half of the tower struck the ground, raising a cloud of dust all over the city. James could only watch them all in silence.

The star had fallen, and the bright day had turned into night. Motes of light began appearing on the dungeon ceiling, mimicking that of a night sky.

James blinked as citizens began running toward the other city — the small city behind him. Knights were directing them, making sure they escaped in a straight line. Then, infected creatures began pouring out from the city.

Inside the city, Andrew was caught off guard by the earthquakes. But he was quick to act. In the previous dungeon, this earthquake had happened on the second floor. He did not know why it happened now. This destruction happened way before he reached the third floor in his previous playthrough. He and the other knights desperately fought back the infected creatures. Grenades and fire breath from Kouki’s dragon blared inside the city.

Rows of refugees swarmed out, only to be cut down by knights at the gate who had seen that they were infected.

“Andrew! The knights are slaughtering the citizens!” Kouki said.

“Tch! We must leave now. If we get infected, we will meet the same fate as them. Those knights will cut us down.”

“But there are still many citizens here! Are we going to leave them?” Kaina whined.

“This is just a dungeon. None of this is real — just something made by the system and its crazy games. Let’s leave. I don’t care about these NPCs!” Hain bolted out together with the rest of the crew. Andrew grunted as he left.

“Why was it different?” he muttered before leaving the fallen city.