Chapter 519

Chapter 526: The Unfathomable Thoughts of a Girl (Please Subscribe!)

The surroundings were tranquil and profound, with a babbling stream flowing past their feet. Through the azure crystals scattered all around, the unique atmosphere of the Dungeon permeated the entire environment.

If one could calm down and carefully appreciate it, it would undoubtedly be an experience of breathtaking beauty.

However, the vast majority of people could not possibly do that.

Because this was the Dungeon.

A man-eating labyrinth where countless Adventurers rested eternally.

It was absolutely not as beautiful and harmless as the outside world appeared to be.

Everywhere here was teeming with monsters that could kill.

Even beneath the seemingly serene surface of the water.

Izay moved skillfully through Water Riddle City, searching for his destination.

Just as he had anticipated.

In less than an hour, he covered the distance that ordinary Adventurers would need more than a day to traverse.

Izay was now looking for the entrance to “Secrets.”

Water Riddle City could be considered a large floor entirely connected by the Great Azure Waterfall.

Among them, the “Secrets” where the heretics lived was only one.

Its location was on the twenty-seventh level.

But the entrance to “Secrets” wasn’t exclusive to the twenty-seventh level.

As long as one was very familiar with the terrain of Water Riddle City, the entrance to “Secrets” could be found near the twenty-fifth level.

Using the waterways, one could directly reach below the twenty-seventh level.

Because he had been here so many times before, Izay didn’t spend much time and easily found the entrance at the twenty-fifth level.

It was a pool of clear blue spring water.

In terms of size, about five meters in length, width, and depth, it could be called a pond. The transparent and pure water allowed one to see inside clearly.

In Water Riddle City, where there were waterways and small lakes everywhere, this little pond was utterly inconspicuous.

But after careful confirmation of the surroundings, Izay was certain that this was one of the entrances to “Secrets.”

Without hesitation, he leaped into the water.

A few minutes later, Izay surfaced from another tranquil lake.

An area completely different from the previous azure cave, resembling a stalactite cave, came into view.

The tone was predominantly white rock, with moss growing on the ceiling and walls still glowing faintly.

After stepping out of the spring, a cacophony of sounds immediately rushed into Izay’s ears.

“—Izay!!”

At the same time, a tiny figure, like a bird in eager anticipation, hurled itself towards him.

Mary wasted no time giving Izay a full bear hug, her rosy cheeks pressing against his as her arms wrapped around him tightly.

Their long-awaited reunion did nothing to make Mary feel any less familiar with Izay.

Rather, this simple mermaid girl had never even recognized the emotion of unfamiliarity.

Perhaps accustomed to waiting, she felt only joy at this reunion.

After all, due to her species, Mary often remained alone guarding the Secrets of the twenty-seventh level in Water Riddle City…

Izay supported Mary’s body so she wouldn’t fall, his expression tinged with helplessness.

His plan to use magic to quickly evaporate the moisture on his clothes failed… feeling damp all over, something felt slightly awkward.

And not far away… Fels’ attitude was similar.

Although the sage said nothing, just silently swaying his hood toward them,

Izay somehow felt like he’d said everything.

“Is this… the ‘romantic love story’ between humans and our kind!?”

“Hmm~! It’s strange—! I want to take another look!! (covering face)”

“Whoaooooh—!”

At this moment, the gathered heretics also joined in the commotion, their eyes shining brightly as they excitedly shouted.

Among them, Lei, the songbird race member, was frantically trying to calm everyone down.

Compared to the others, Lei was relatively calm.

With the vast “sky” of Water Riddle City, winged races (monsters) were not uncommon here.

Plus, due to her considerable strength, she was one of those who frequently visited Mary.

Over time, she became quite used to the interaction between Mary and Izay.

Amidst the chatter of other companions, Mary finally remembered that there were others around, and perhaps she had acted too shamelessly…

Even though mermaids are pure-hearted, they still have a sense of modesty.

A strange warmth rose within her heart.

Feeling her cheeks gradually heat up, the girl’s redness crept up to her earlobes, her little heart pounding, her lips slightly parted as she breathed warm breaths.

“I-Izay… can you let me down?”

Her tail splashed twice without touching the water, Mary shrank her head and whispered softly.

“Hm.”

Nodding lightly.

Izay stepped back two paces to the edge of the spring earlier, placing Mary gently in the water.

The mermaid girl splashed into the spring with a “plop,” sinking into it as if fleeing, trying to escape the teasing gazes of her companions.

It took quite a while for a little head to re-emerge from the spring.

Only half a face peeked out for covert observation.

Izay couldn’t help but smile wryly at this.

She was the one who rushed over just moments ago.

And now, the one hiding out of shyness was also her.

Girls’ thoughts truly are unfathomable.

At this point, Izay finally summoned his magic, drying his clothes, then looked at Fels who had been watching the show all along.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?”

“…Welcome?”

After a brief silence, Fels extended his black hand armor, giving a reply that left one speechless.

Izay shook his head irritably, “You know that’s not what I mean.”

Saying this, he glanced at the heretics present.

Most of the heretics gathered here were born in the middle to lower levels, relatively powerful ones.

There were roughly ten people.

Most were like Mary, having Ability Values ranging from Level 3 to Level 4, making them the backbone of the heretics’ fighting force.

The only one with Level 5 power was Lei, the songbird. She was one of the founding members of the “heretics,” one of the earliest people Fels met.

Besides Lei, Laura, and Fei, the three winged races who frequently visited Water Riddle City, Izay didn’t recognize anyone else.

Although these heretics might have heard about him from their companions,

This was undoubtedly their first actual meeting.

Upon hearing this, Fels understood and stopped teasing, instead taking on the role of a “matchmaker” and began introducing both sides.

Through his guidance, and the friendly attitudes displayed by Mary and Lei, the heretics meeting Izay for the first time initially dispelled their vigilance and began to feel a bit of strange emotion.

They hadn’t expected that among humans, there would be someone who could accept their existence.

Roughly similar thoughts filled their minds.

Long ago, Fels had once said: Perhaps one day humans would no longer reject intelligent monsters, and they could all live on the surface.

But over the years, all the heretics had merely taken this as consoling words.

Since most of them possessed intelligence equal to or greater than humans,

A little empathy would reveal how much of a stretch that statement was.

Whether Deities or mortals,

Those who shared the same thoughts as Uranus and Fels were ultimately as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, probably not even reaching double digits across all of Orario.

How could they dare to fantasize about such a life?

However, after so many years, another human who acknowledged their existence appeared.