Before the teleportation array activated, Erich had actually been looking forward to it. He hadn't experienced many teleportations in his life, and those had mostly been inside the Abyss. This was his first time seeing a proper, official teleportation array in the outside world.
But the moment the teleportation began, Erich instantly regretted it.
It was an entirely irresistible force that twisted and wrung him like a rag. Pressure squeezed him from all sides, completely destroying his sense of direction. He couldn't tell if he was rising or falling; all reference points were stripped away, leaving only a chaotic, crushing pressure. The contents of his stomach churned violently, rising to his throat several times, but he clenched his teeth and forced them back down.
In comparison, the triggered teleportation on the black dagger could almost be described as gentle. This teleportation array treated him like a piece of clothing tossed into a washing machine, spinning him around countless times before finally spitting him out.
After an unknown amount of time, Erich's feet finally touched solid ground again. He staggered forward a couple of steps, barely managing to stay upright through sheer willpower. His stomach was still churning, but he ultimately held it in.
Someone beside him, however, did not.
Lilith was on her knees, hands propping herself up, her entire body curled like a shrimp as she threw up violently.
Grace was already crouching beside her, one hand expertly patting her back while the other gently wiped the sweat from her forehead. Her movements were smooth and practiced, suggesting she had done this countless times before.
“You throw up every single time we teleport,” Grace said, her voice laced with worry. “You really didn't need to come down with us this time. You could have just stayed at home or at school.”
After throwing up her fill and retching a few more times, Lilith finally caught her breath. She wiped her mouth with her sleeve, lifted her pale little face, and squeezed out a strained smile. “I wanted to help you guys too, Mom.”
Grace sighed and popped something into her mouth. Lilith sucked on it for a moment, and her complexion gradually began to improve.
Over the past two days of traveling together, Erich had learned about the dynamics of this family. Grace and Marcus were husband and wife, married for over twenty years. Grace was a proper healing mage trained by the sect of the Earth Mother, while Marcus was a retired soldier. The two had met during a subjugation mission in their youth and subsequently formed the Gray Fang adventuring party, which had now been running for over a decade.
Lilith was their daughter, who had inherited her mother's magical talent. As for her vibrant pink hair, Marcus's mother had pink hair, which had skipped a generation and passed down to her granddaughter.
As for Nasha, Erich had heard Grace mention in passing that they had found her while adventuring in a dungeon. The young girl had been huddled alone in a corner, covered in wounds and barely able to speak coherently. After they brought her out, she had stayed with them ever since. Though the four of them were nominally an adventuring party, they were essentially a family. Nasha usually seemed cold and distant to outsiders, but she would show a rare, gentle side whenever she was around Grace.
Marcus was a minor noble with a small fief. His family didn't possess any powerful inherited spells, so Lilith had been sent to a nearby small-scale magic academy. According to Lilith's own boasting, she was considered one of the top students at her school, which was why she had been allowed to take a leave of absence to join her family for practical training in the dungeon.
However, Lilith wasn't entirely boasting. Her magical talent was indeed impressive. Being able to proficiently cast second-tier magic at her age would have been enough to pass the second-year graduation exam even at Morningstar Academy, likely placing her near the top.
While this young magic genius was still recovering in her mother's embrace, Erich's body had already recovered for the most part. He began to scan his surroundings, and what he saw left him speechless with shock.
Even though they were clearly underground, looking up revealed no rocky cavern ceiling. Instead, a layer of glowing gray moss covered their entire field of view, completely blanketing the vault above.
The moss emitted a hazy gray light. It wasn't blindingly bright, but it was enough to illuminate the space to near-daylight levels, making it impossible to feel like they were deep underground.
Erich stared up with a craned neck for quite a while before finally convincing himself that it was indeed real moss, and not some magical sky construct.
The soil beneath his feet was moderately firm, and the area was densely forested with thick-trunked trees and lush, heavy canopies, looking no different from a forest on the surface. In the distance, the faint outlines of structures could be seen scattered throughout the woods. Occasional bird-like creatures darted across the sky, their cries sharp and brief, while an even more distant beast's roar echoed—a low, muffled rumble rolling out from the depths of the forest like thunder.
This was hardly a dungeon; it was practically an entire forest stuffed underground.
As Erich stood there dazed, Nasha quietly approached his side.
“I was amazed for a long time when I first saw it too,” she said. “To think such a vast forest could be hidden so deep underground.”
This was probably the longest sentence Erich had ever heard her speak since meeting her. Nasha was usually incredibly quiet, rarely opening her mouth except to give alerts or scout. Today was a rare exception.
“What's the deal with those buildings?” Erich asked, pointing toward the faint silhouettes in the distance to keep the conversation going.
Nasha directed her gaze toward those distant shapes. “Those are snakefolk structures. They possess intelligence. Although they are more savage, they aren't that different from humans. They have their own language, beliefs, daily habits, and of course, they build houses.”
She paused, then added, “So, we must be careful.”
Erich nodded. Nasha had already withdrawn her gaze, reverting to her usual quiet self as if her brief talkativeness just now had been nothing but an illusion.
Over on the other side, Lilith had mostly recovered. She stood up from Grace's embrace and patted the dirt off her clothes. Though her hair was a bit messy, some color had returned to her face, and her spirits were clearly much better.
Marcus strapped his shield tightly to his arm once more, glanced back at everyone, and then looked toward the depths of the forest—their destination. “Let's move. We shouldn't linger near the teleportation array for too long.”
Nasha gave a quiet acknowledgment and led the way into the forest, slipping under the shadows of the trees like a ghost. Marcus followed closely behind, keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings, while Grace and Lilith walked in the middle, ready to cast magic at a moment's notice.
Erich brought up the rear, keeping his hand resting on his sword hilt. This was his designated position agreed upon with the team, responsible for watching out for anything that might try to sneak up on them from behind.
The forest was darker than the open area outside, with the gray light from above filtering down through the canopy in flickering patches. A thick layer of fallen leaves blanketed the ground, and the air grew damp, carrying a hint of decay.
Behind them, the teleportation array vanished completely from sight.
Rate on N.U.
