Aurelia picked the door of the first test and opened it. She saw herself and saw how the nobles plotted against her. Hearing a voice that she did not want to hear, Lady Beatrice laughed in a mocking tone.
"I see you are still as naive as before. So, you are not dead—anyhow, you will soon be killed," she said, calling her men, brandishing poison blades, ready to strike if given the order.
Aurelia, still shocked, asked, "Beatrice, you died! I killed you with my own hands. So how is this possible? And how did you find me here?"
Beatrice, with a look of disdain, laughed like she had heard the funniest joke. She smiled, "Dear village bumpkin, there is something called money—it can get you anything. Well, since you ask, I shall tell you: it's because you are stupid. Who thinks hiding in a dungeon is a good place to lay low? Anyway, I came for your head. Since I didn't get it last time, I won't miss now."
Her minions, who were S‑Class mages, cast a binding spell to trap her while she stood shocked.
Aurelia's POV:I can't believe what I am seeing—Beatrice is dead, so how is she here? But I made up my mind. Since she is here, I will make sure to send her off for good.
My beast form unleashed out of control. I tried my best to retain consciousness, or else all would be doomed. Taking a gamble, the curse activated at five percent, releasing demonic aura.
My hands transformed into claws. Even though I was bound with S‑Class magic, I easily broke it with just one swipe of my claws. With a quick burst of speed, I struck her minions. A rain of crimson fell.
Turning my attention to Beatrice, I walked to her slowly, dragging the corpse of one of her minions to her feet. I smiled. "Any last words?"
Staring at me, Beatrice looked pale like she had seen a ghost. Her lips quivered in terror as she said, "Please, spare me and let me go. I swear in the name of the gods that I would not trouble you again," knotting at my feet until her forehead bled.
But remembering the loss I suffered due to her jealousy, I grabbed her neck, lifting her up. With a slash of my claw at her neck, life drained out of Beatrice's eyes, eventually becoming lifeless. But she turned to air.
The whole room changed, and I saw myself outside the door, confused. I checked my hands, expecting blood on them, but there was none, and my curse had never activated.
So was that a dream or an illusion that could be caused by Illurion? But why use my past for the test? What is the reason? I thought, waiting for a reply.
Tara came to me with a worried expression. "Sorry, my student, but you didn't pass the test. So, you could only keep the ticket—it is a consolation gift, so use it wisely. And for going out from the dungeon, due to the result of your test, the gods decided that you are not still ready to go into the world of man. Since you cannot control your temper, we don't want another rampage to happen. So, do you agree?"
I nodded my head in agreement. Anyway, I can use this ticket to see Casimir in the Underworld.
Finishing the conversation with Tara, I headed to the next door.
Opening it led to a portal, in which an old man with white clothes and an aura of ancient wisdom looked at me with a serious look.
"So, the gods gave you that ticket. Since it is so, then tell me where you want to go. Be quick, since I am not in a good mood today."
I shuddered, telling him, "I want to go to the Underworld."
He nodded, telling me to step forward and enter the black portal, which was giving a cold aura. I stepped in. I will face hell to see Casimir.
The scene changed to a place that seemed familiar, with Chiron there, waiting for me.
"You must pass for free since you are a guest of my king. I shall be your guide. So, where do you want to go?"
Since I didn't know anywhere, I tried my luck, asking him, "Do you know where Casimir lives?"
He nodded his head. "I don't know exactly where, but he's probably in another country, working his ass out to see you."
Part B
The scene shifted to Casimir. Truly, he was in another dungeon. As we watched him closely, he was fighting a lot of monsters, as the country he was currently in was having a dungeon break.
The monsters flooded out. Casimir was still fighting them until he was struck with a blow that made him think twice—his brain was stimulated.
The boss of the horde held his fiery thorn bat. He said, "You, adventurer, you are the only one who has come this far to see me. I am Exolus, the final boss of this dungeon. I see your party is not here. Are you that useless that your party deserted you?"
Casimir chipped in, "You know, for a dungeon boss, you have a running mouth. Anyway, I don't have time to chit-chat. I have a girl I love very much. I want to reunite with her."
Exolus used his powers to resurrect the beasts.
Casimir's POV:As I killed the beasts one after the other, they all seemed endless. The dungeon boss smiled menacingly.
Anytime I wanted to give up, I always saw her smiling at me, telling me she was always waiting for me. It fueled me. I got tired, but her smile kept me going.
I slashed and slashed until I couldn't lift the sword again. But seeing her innocent eyes—her in the sun on the beach, wearing a straw hat—made me keep slashing.
Eventually, I met the dungeon boss. He was impressed with me. I'd run out of energy. I barely stood up.
Yet when the dungeon boss approached me, I still mustered the courage to stand, barely clutching my sword.
The dungeon boss said to me, "I love your determination. I won't kill you. My story is ending, but yours is just beginning. Make sure you reunite with her."
Before he pressed his chest into my blade, killing himself, his last words were: "You're lucky, kid. You have a girl waiting for you. I wish I had that luck. Go and find her, no matter the cost."
The scene shifted to Aurelia. She was watching him from a TV display. Bilkin and his bro were busy eating popcorn, enjoying the show.
The goddesses were arguing among themselves. Some were so touched by his speech that they shed tears. Even Aurelia cried like never before.
In the end, it was all a show for them, while Illurion sat somewhere quiet in the dungeon, pondering the encounter and what he should do.
The scene shifted to Bilkin and his friends, who were fighting over the remote, while the God of Poverty was busy using a busted laptop to crash the stock markets.
A goddess just looked at him. She said, "Why do you like tormenting humans? As you know, their greatest fear isn't gods or monsters. Their greatest fear is being broke."
The God of Poverty answered, "I'm just doing my job. I don't know what to answer you. You got a problem? Meet the big dude that runs the show."
The scene ends with Casimir sitting in a plain grass field during the sunset. He clutched the ring as he said, "Don't worry, my love. I am coming."