Candles flickered on the stone walls, and Farem could see the priest clutching a weapon: a gilded knife with the pattern of a serpent coiling around the blade. It was likely blessed with the [Holy Blade] enchantment, able to drive back the darkness Aria wielded. In the past, Farem had met many honourable paladins and priests who genuinely wanted to help the people. The Church worshipped the First Light, and since Farem was the Hero of Light, they were allies and friends. Once, he even worked with their priestesses to feed the poor families in the slums.

However, the Church declared itself against the Dark Lord. So far, the priest hadn’t spoken a word, but he was definitely watching them. Farem tightened his grip around the Longsword. If the priest so much as moved an inch toward his wife, he would intervene.

They had been walking for a while, but no monster had appeared. It made sense. A-Rank dungeons housed the smartest monsters. Right now, they were probably watching from the shadows, waiting for the perfect opportunity to catch them off guard.

Luckily, his beloved Aria was the Dark Lord. To hide in the shadows of all things would be their greatest mistake. But then, where were the monsters? Farem scratched his head, squinting at the path in front of and behind him. Then, he heard Aria silently cast [Abyssal Palace]. But he hadn’t fallen into its ocean. Ah, of course. She had tweaked the skill a little; Aria would feel every inch and movement within the dungeon, but nobody would fall in.

“So… just wondering,” said Borius, breaking the silence. “What Level are you guys?”

“[Stat],” Farem softly whispered. And a glowing panel jumped in front of him, excited to meet its user again after all these years.

Name: Farem Afari

Class: Hero of Light

Mana Power: 20,100/20,100

Level: 1050

ENDURANCE: 9,130

STRENGTH: 6,034

DEXTERITY: 5,196

MAGIC: 7,505
ARCANE: 14,985

Thankfully, a person’s [Stat] screen was only visible to themselves. “About Level 10,” Farem lied.

“Nice! And Maria?” Borius shifted his gaze toward Aria, who continued eyeing him and his hammer.

“[Stat]!” Aria commanded, and her dark screen obeyed, appearing before its master with digital grace.

Name: Aria Afari

Class: Dark Lord

Mana Power: 66,700/66,700

Level: 1050

ENDURANCE: 5,200

STRENGTH: 2,000

DEXTERITY: 4,506

MAGIC: 27,195
ARCANE: 3,985

“My Level’s also 10,” Aria said bluntly.

“Nice, nice, nice! Not too bad for E-Rankers!” Borius smiled jovially. “I remember my first day in the dungeons! Oh, man, it was rough! Our party was swarmed by an orc clan, but in the end, we conquered it successfully. Being a Tank Class sure is tough sometimes, but I know my friends can all depend on me. I’m Level 607 now, so stay close if you don’t wanna get hurt!”

Farem whistled, impressed. So Borius wasn’t a pushover. Level 607 would place Borius at the low tier of A-Rank.

The strongest, most gifted adventurer would cap at Level 800, making them eligible for S-Rank. Thus, they’d have to do the PAT—the Power Appraisal Test.

For A-Rank, one’d need to reach Level 600 and get approved by the Guildmaster.

Level 300 for B-Rank.

Level 100 for C-Rank.

Level 50 for D-Rank.

And Level 10 for E-Rank.

It would have been easy to tell the Lobster Guild his true Level and access the Info Board right away. But it would raise suspicion among the Guild. Lying low was better.

And perhaps, deep inside his heart, he just wanted to go adventuring with his wife.

“Say… What are your Classes?” Borius asked.

Farem glanced over to Aria, who shrugged and gave him a look that screamed: “Just make up anything!”

Farem nodded. “I’m a Swordsman Class. And Maria is a Mage Class.”

“Makes sense! May your blade be ever sharp, Swordsman Dumbrem!” Borius chuckled, pumping a fist on Farem’s knuckles, which Farem returned with slight hesitation.

Betrayal wasn’t uncommon in this world. Farem had been watching Borius for a while, but the friendly Tank hadn’t shown a shred of malice. If he were a real psycho, he would have stabbed them in the back right about now, since they were quite deep inside the dungeon. Within these suffocating stone walls, only candles lit the way to a giant labyrinth that offered no way out. Best to stay vigilant.

Just as they crossed a corner, Aria promptly pulled Farem back with a [Void Tendril], wrapping his arm as gently as she could. “Hey, isn’t it weird that we’ve seen no monsters anywhere?”

“It is. I’ve been searching every wall and door. No beast. No chest. Nothing,” he mumbled.

“Is this worth it?” Aria huffed. “I’ve only been to a few dungeons, but this is incredibly suspicious! We need to get ou—Wait.”

She turned to stare around the corner. Despite spreading her abyssal radar everywhere, she couldn’t pick up on the mana presence of one man.

“Where is the priest?” she growled.

Farem dashed in front of Aria, clutching the Longsword in a two-handed guard stance. “Eyes sharp, Ari—Maria. He was just here. Surely, he didn’t get far.”

“What’s up?” Borius ran back to the corner, both hands gripping his Iron Greathammer.

“The priest, Borius. How much do you know about him?” Aria hissed, raising her trident and crouching into an offensive stance.

“Isn’t that staff too big for you? I know a good staff shop—”

“WHO is the priest?” Aria cut him off with a glare.

“Him?” He raised a brow. “Well, he didn’t tell me his name, but he’s been a huge help in aiding me this past week! His healing is amazing. I’ve never seen such potent magic!”

“When and where did you see him?” Aria continued, her tendrils scanning the area within the shadowy cracks of bricks.

“I’ve only met him at the Guild since Monday,” Borius frowned. “What’s up with him?”

“He’s dangerous. A cunning beast…” Her eyes darted around the space. Still no priest.

“Calm yourself, love.” Farem put a hand on her shoulder. “I sense movement.”

“Yeah, twelve steps from us. Northeast. Rapidly approaching.”

“Alright! Stand back, guys!” Borius roared. “I got this—”

Something smashed through the walls. Shattered bricks and debris flew everywhere. Borius wheezed, his throat filled with dust. “Are you okay, Dumbrem?!” he yelled.

Farem stepped out of the grime-filled air, wiping some dirt off his rusted armour. “Oh, man, you look awful!” Borius said. “Be careful! Dungeon-raiding is serious business!”

Farem gagged out a piece of dirt. “Y-yeah, thanks.”

“There’s no shame in running if you can’t fight!” Borius smiled.

A large silhouette materialized through the fog of dust. Enraged, the Dark Lord charged, thrusting her trident at the ambushing foe. Only, her trident didn’t meet a malicious priest; she hit a Lightfang Crawler.

“WATCH OUT!” Farem yelled desperately.

The Crawler opened its jaws and shot Aria with a [Light Beam], taking out half of her face.