The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices

Chapter 88: Master of the Fake Dungeon (1)

The dungeon monsters keep offering sacrifices 088

EP.88 Master of the Fake Dungeon (1)

Dungeons are always bustling places.

Being a place where intruders could come at any time, it requires thorough preparation each time.

Thanks to this, the Manager, Celia, was working late into the night despite the hour.

All of this was for the sake of the great one she followed.

While focusing on her work, someone came to see Celia.

What brings you here this night, Miss Nariel?

An elf, Nariel. She had come to see Celia.

Her main task was managing the plant monsters in the third area.

Of course, it wasnt something Nariel did willingly.

I must save Isrin.

Isrin, Nariels friend. She was a talented magician and the only human friend who didnt discriminate against her for being an elf.

Isrin had been active as an adventurer for her own sake but got caught by Celia.

And the Celia in front of her was using Isrins life as leverage, threatening to devour her.

But all Nariel could do in this situation was to obediently follow Celias orders.

It was an unavoidable choice for the sake of her friend Isrins survival.

Suppressing her boiling anger, Nariel spoke to Celia.

We have an intruder. Theyre still quite far away

There hadnt been a direct intrusion into the dungeon.

However, the trees had said that some beings had intruded into the area far away.

Can you identify who they are?

Of course, Celia had also sensed the presence of the intruders.

But to know exactly who they were, she needed Nariels answer.

There are a total of twelve.

As an elf, she had the ability to communicate with plants.

While that might have been all for an ordinary elf, Nariels ability was much greater.

Given enough time, she could not only communicate with a single plant but also listen to the communication between plants.

Thanks to this, they were able to hear and become aware of the presence of intruders far away, through the communication between the plants.

Celia also highly valued Nariels ability and arranged for her to communicate with the plants near the dungeon.

T-the nearby trees said theres, theres a cat? And a black-skinned being similar to those monsters.

Closing her eyes at Nariels words, Celia let out a slight sigh.

Although Nariels ability was impressive, the transmission of communication from the plants was not instantaneous.

It meant that there was a time difference between the communication being heard and relayed.

Wouldnt it take quite some time for the stories of plants from distant places to reach here?

Indeed, the movements of the intruders continued to change.

Celia made a slightly pleased sound.

There hadnt been any sacrifices to offer to the master recently, so if they came on their own, it was a good thing.

Understood. Miss Nariel, you may rest for now.

Nariel nodded to Celia and went outside.

Celia opened her eyes. There was one thing that bothered her.

By the way, there havent been any reports from the scouting team?

They had expanded the range of the goblin scouting team.

Yet the goblin scouts hadnt noticed the presence of the intruders.

The reason Celia had remained silent even after noticing the intruders was that it was a test for the goblin scouts.

However, there had been no news from the goblin scouts so far, and instead, Nariel had come and reported the situation.

Its a shame. If Miss Nariel belonged to our dungeon, it would be really good.

But Celia also knew well. Nariels goal was to save her friend.

She was only showing loyalty to the dungeon to save her friend.

Well, lets think about that slowly

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The problem at hand wasnt that.

If she and Nariel werent here now, what would have happened? They would eventually discover the intruders at some point, but how quickly they discovered them would determine their response.

Thats why early detection was important.

It seems we need to reinforce the scouting team.

Of course, reinforcing the scouting team was a task for later. Right now, they needed to prepare for the current situation.

Celia muttered quietly and then turned her head.

Bring Sir Goblin Lord.

As Celia ordered, a skeleton knight nearby quickly sprang into action.

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In the dark forest, the melodies of cicadas slowly spread.

Moonlight seeped through the branches, casting a faint light in the dark forest.

By that dim light, the shadows of the trees grew deeper in the darkness.

Suddenly, an uninvited guest appeared in the quiet forest.

A small sound shattered the silence that had settled in the forest.

The cicadas, which had been singing loudly in the forest, suddenly stopped their cries.

The uninvited guest cautiously made their way through the forest, treading on the grasses on the ground.

The sound of the grass being trampled continued to spread.

The uninvited guest was not alone. It was a group. And they were all armed with simple weapons.

They had the appearance of hyenas heads. They were monsters called Gnoll.

Thats odd.

The leader of the group, who was at the front, stopped and quietly spoke.

Arent there too many goblins in this forest?

The leader of the Gnoll, Crimdor, expressed doubt.

Suddenly, from a certain moment, the number of goblins had increased.

Although they hadnt been discovered yet, the movement of the Gnoll had slowed down.

However, confronting the goblins would be the worst option.

Including the leader Crimdor, there were a total of eleven Gnoll.

In contrast, the number of goblins was too many to count.

Until the identity of those goblins was known, taking action first was out of the question.

Luckily, as they specialized in infiltration, they had managed to sneak here unnoticed.

Open the map.

As Crimdor ordered, a Gnoll behind him quickly unfolded the map.

It was too dark to see well, and lighting a fire here would only reveal their position to the enemy.

They examined the map as best they could using the moonlight.

The map depicted the terrain of the nearby forest in detail, based on which they were moving.

Then, a Gnoll who had unfolded the map opened his mouth.

Leader, something seems strange when looking at the map.

The Gnoll expressed one doubt to Crimdor, the leader.

Although goblins are goblins, as you can see on the map, the positions of the dungeons seem too arbitrary.

The Gnoll pointed to the map and explained.

There were a total of five dungeons on the map.

The problem was that the positions of the dungeons were very strange.

First, take a look at this dungeon. Its a dungeon with a succubus as its master.

A dungeon marked with an X in the center.

It was said to be a dungeon with a succubus as its master, according to rumors from the demon world. And that dungeon was their destination.

The dungeon marked in the center of the map was the target of their mission, 0Dungeon Investigation.

The problem is that this succubus dungeon is surrounded by four other dungeons.

The subordinate Gnoll continued to explain systematically.

Of course, the distance between each dungeon is considerable, but the four dungeons are positioned exactly north, south, east, and west of the succubus dungeon.

When connecting the dungeons, it resembled the shape of a cross.

Crimdor, the leader Gnoll, nodded in agreement with his subordinates explanation.

Thats definitely strange.

Until they received the map at the demon world, they hadnt noticed anything odd.

But after hearing the explanation, the positions of the dungeons felt arbitrary.

The succubus dungeon in the center, and the other four dungeons forming a cross shape around it.

Its as if someone deliberately placed the dungeons.

But Crimdor knew how absurd that thought was.

Dungeons naturally occurred. They werent objects that someone could create and adjust their positions at will.

So, the current positions were the result of coincidence.

Was there no previous map?

Crimdor asked his subordinate again.

Just the five dungeons marked on the current map alone covered quite a large territory.

It was unlikely that there would be only five dungeons in such a vast territory.

The previous map was lost by the audit team at the Association. The map we have now is the only one.

These guys from the Association arent efficient at all. Well, with so many departments, what can you expect?

Crimdor sighed, shaking his head.

The Demon world Merchant Association hadnt told them much when they assigned them the mission.

Investigate the succubus dungeon and its master.

That was just about it.

If necessary, they were allowed to use force.

With the Associations resources, they could have investigated the dungeons using the audit team, but they hadnt.

There was no doubt that the Association had reservations about those dungeons.

So, they entrusted it to us.

Crimdor and his group were monster mercenaries hired by the Association.

Even though it was a temporary contract, for now, they were no different from being under the Associations jurisdiction.

Following the orders of the Association was their job.

And this time, the mission given by the Demon world was to investigate the succubus dungeon.

But an obstacle had emerged.

It was the presence of goblins.

Silres, can you find out which faction the goblins belong to?

This time, Crimdor addressed another member.

The individual wasnt a Gnoll.

With dark skin and black hair, their overall tone was dark, making it hard to see them well on a night like this.

But there was one feature that identified her.

Her pointed ears.

There was only one being with dark skin and pointed ears.

A Dark Elf.

Silres, whom Crimdor called, was also a monster employed by the Association.

Just a moment. Im currently examining the spirits of the nearby trees

Silress hand was already placed on the tree.

Dark Elves, like elves, could communicate with plants, making it a suitable ability to identify the presence of nearby goblins.

Trees rooted themselves in one place for their entire lives.

At the same time, they observed their surroundings the most. So, they hoped to quickly find out the identity of the goblins.

But

Why?

Silres could only tilt her head.

I didnt make any mistake.

Despite trying to communicate with the trees, she continued to fail.

At first, she thought she had made a mistake.

But when she placed her hand on the tree again, there was no response.

Its not a failure.

The trees unilaterally rejected her communication.

Silres removed her hand from the tree.

Then, she stooped down and placed her hand on the grass below.

The result was the same.

I cant feel anything.

The plants rejected her touch.

But that wasnt all.

They all seemed to be afraid of something.

What could it be?

Silres had never felt plants exhibit fear before.

What could possibly be in this forest?

Silres was momentarily chilled to the bone.

However, regardless of her reaction, Crimdor raised his voice slightly.

Youre saying you cant feel anything?

It was important to know whether the goblins belonged to the dungeon or were just wandering in the forest.

If they were monsters belonging to the dungeon, Crimdor had nothing to worry about.

Even though it was temporary, he was currently under the jurisdiction of the Association.

Most dungeons had to defer to the Demon world Merchant Association.

However, if they were just wandering goblins, there was a potential risk.

Crimdor intended to give her another command, but Silres acted faster.

Ill leave from here.

!

At her declaration of departure, the Gnoll were surprised.

Why?

Crimdor shouted in frustration, realizing he had raised his voice unintentionally and quickly scanned the surroundings.

Fortunately, there were no goblins.

Crimdor tried to persuade Silres, but she didnt listen.

Before saying anything else, she turned around and walked away.

Soon, Silres disappeared.

Everyone simply watched the direction she had left.

What do we do, Captain?

One of the subordinates who had unfolded the map earlier spoke.

The Dark Elf had disappeared.

Even though there was only one, the difference in utilizing a Dark Elfs abilities was significant.

What should they do now?

Crimdor silently continued to scan the surroundings.

Huh?

After a moment, he noticed something had changed.

The goblins are gone?

Crimdor and his group cautiously moved around, scanning the surroundings.

After a few minutes of confirmation, they were certain.

The goblins have indeed disappeared.

The numerous goblins that had been guarding the forest had suddenly vanished.

Even when he closed his eyes quietly, he felt no signs of movement.

Though he didnt know why they had disappeared suddenly, one thing was certain, this was an opportunity.

Everyone, move quickly!

In Crimdors mind, the Dark Elf had long been erased.

Since the goblins were gone, there was no need for her.

That thought proved correct.

With the goblins gone, they quickly reached their destination.

Is this the place?

Crimdor discovered a cave that seemed to be the dungeon while examining the map.

He didnt sense any special aura.

Is this really a dungeon?

It seemed more like an ordinary cave than a dungeon.

Well, it doesnt matter anyway.

Crimdor sent his subordinates to infiltrate the dungeon first.

There was no need to be submissive.

Even if they were discovered, he was affiliated with the Demon world Merchant Association.

And in terms of their relationship with the Association, all dungeons were committed to full cooperation.

Once he revealed his affiliation with the Association, there was nothing the other party could do.

Theres no way I could go wrong.

With that thought in mind, Crimdor stepped into the dungeon.