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After sorting out the loot, we walked to the other end of the passage and came before a descending spiral staircase leading all the way to the underground.

OMG, are you sure this is a Magic Tower and not an Underground Ruin? Why did they build it underground, what about the atmospheric pressure?

“Do you think we should go back to town to replenish our stocks first?”
“With no Return Scroll nor a Teleportation Point, how?”
“But… we only have 150 HP Potions left… Just now, we spent at least 100 potions.”
“Me too, I only have a bit more than 100 MP Potions left. However, there’s no need to worry. Once we get that whatever Holy Sword, the gold coins from the treasure chest there should be enough to cover our potion expenses and psychological damages.”
“The village chief doesn’t look that rich though. What will we do if there’s only the Holy Sword there?”
“Well, with all the materials dropped by the Boar King, wouldn’t it be more than enough even if we simply sell it to a random black market?”
“……Makes sense…”

While glaring at Nangong, Muqing bared her fangs like a fierce hound.
Well, a very cute hound at that.

“Will this lead us straight to the final boss’ room?”
“Maybe.”
“Are there no mobs and what not to let us grind some EXP?”
“Maybe it’s those kinds of bosses? The kind that appears in The World Online 2.¹”
“No, just no!”

Just when we were about to step onto the flight of stairs, a loud sound came from behind us.

……Is it a second Boar King……?

My body froze on the spot after I turned around to check the situation.

A huge lump of round boulder was currently rolling towards us and gaining speed.

What… the heck is this?!

“W-W-W-What is that thing?!”
“I don’t know things that I don’t know even if you ask me!”
“Its durability is too high… even with our combined power, we won’t be able to break it!”
“Then what do we do? Run straight down the stairs?”
“You think you can run faster than that in a downwards spiral?”
“Then what are we supposed to do!”

I was also a little panicked, neither rock bullet, lightning touch, nor fireball would be of any use here. And I also didn’t have any defensive magic, the only one was that Rune Barrier I learned earlier, but it needed twelve frigging sets of First Class Runes to activate.

To this date, I still haven’t encountered anything resembling runes.

Don’t panic Mushuo! You are an intelligent Mage! Your brain works better than those two who’s a thief and hired thug! You must quickly think of a way out!

…That’s it!

“Ομαλή σκιά καθρέφτη, που αντανακλά το σχήμα του σώματός μου, λιώνει στην πόρτα του κόσμου της σκιάς!”

Beginner Spell, Low-Level Shadow Projection!

The shadows on the ground suddenly rose and dragged us into a pitch-black two-dimensional plane.

The shadow world is a weird place. The manifestation of the world I am currently in is a two-dimensional plane. That is to say, the creatures in it all exist in a two-dimensional form. However, this is the norm for the creatures who live in this world.

Well, the explanation is complicated, there’s no need to get into the details. All we need to know is the effect of this spell; it can pull three party members into the shadow and invalidate all the physical attacks.

As such, the three of us are currently within that two-dimensional shadow.

“Waaaaaaah, so dark, help!”
“Stop shouting! And stay still! Don’t blame me if you get ejected from the shadow plane!”
“Just bear with it for a moment, Muqing… Uwaa! Don’t wrap around me! And… stop… strangling… can’t… breathe…!”
“Somebody heeeeeeelp! Please let me outtttt!”

Because it was a two-dimensional plane, light won’t be able to pass through.

Soon after, a Suffocate sign appeared in Nangong’s character info.

After the boulder had rolled past us, I canceled the spell and got us out from the shadow.

I got out at a ninety-degree angle and touched down without creating a single splash.

After straightening my messy robe, I turned my head to look at the boulder that’s rolling down the spiral staircase and heaved a sigh of relief.

But I instantly facepalmed when I turned back to gaze upon the other two.

“…If you keep that up, Nangong will really die.”
“Huh? ……Uwaaa?!”

Sensing that her posture was strange, Muqing released Nangong and jumped down immediately. Then she hugged herself and shouted at the latter.

“Y-You didn’t do anything strange right?!”
“I almost got strangled to death by you! There’s no chance for me to do anything!”
“T-T-Then… does that mean you at least thought about doing it? You perverted Ranger!”
“No! I swear!”
“I don’t care! Don’t-care-don’t-care-don’t-care! I will definitely cut you up when we get back to the surface!”

I ignored the two and walked down the spiral staircase by myself.

The stairs weren’t actually that long, but what baffled us the most was that the boulder was gone.

It’s totally gone! Did it just disappear in thin air or what?

I raised my head to check out the spiral staircase, then switched my attention to the three doors in front of me.

Is this a bonus round?² Or is there going to be a boss behind each of those doors?

“Boss room?” Nangong asked. As expected, great minds think alike.
“Boss room my a̲s̲s̲! This is obviously a bonus round,” Muqing retorted. And what do you know, she shared the same thought as me.

“I still think… that looks like a boss room.”
“No, it’s definitely a bonus round!”
“Boss room!”
“Bonus!”
“That’s enough, you two! Wouldn’t the answer be clear if we just open the door to check it out?”

While reprimanding the two, I pushed the door open.

After passing through the door, I discovered that those three doors are linked to the same frigging wall! What’s the point of building three doors in the first place, Oh Great Village Chief!!³

Rather than that, I was more concerned about the stuff beyond the door.

It’s a… library?

“Hey guys, come over here and… Huh? Where did they go?”

I turned around to call them, but they disappeared without a trace.

The party window was still floating on the left side of my vision though…

Did I encounter the supernatural?

Or could it be that behind each of these doors was a solo quest? Or maybe it only allowed one person to enter at a time?

Turning back to face the library, I took a resolute step into the depths.

The inside of the room was glittering like it was a starry sky from another world.

1. Silva: I don’t get the reference, but here it says:
   The World Online 2 throws you and your friends straight into the arena with some of the biggest and baddest bosses around.
2. 关底翻牌: This term really gave us a lot of headaches, everyone keeps giving different opinions. From the end is nigh to turning the tables, to bonus rounds in RPG.

   After the long debate, we’ve settled for this definition:
   It is a game mechanism in many moba games, where after players cleared a level, they will be given a chance to flip 3-5 hidden cards. The cards contain rare skins, heroes, and other things. Typical example would be overwatch, league of legends, or honour of king.

3. Silva: She’s being sarcastic here if you don’t get it.