Chapter 22
Splash!
Jake and Jessica plunged straight into the river below.
Jessica quickly came to her senses and tried to swim toward the surface.
But the current was far too violent.
She struggled helplessly as the water dragged her away.
Only after a long time did she finally manage to break through the surface.
"Puha! I'm alive!"
Gasping desperately...
The first thing Jessica did was look for Jake.
"Puuuh!"
Jake surfaced shortly afterward.
The moment Jessica saw him...
"Jay, you goddamn son of a...!"
A stream of horrifying curses poured from her mouth.
"Just wait until we get out of here!"
"I'll keep your head underwater for ten years!"
Jessica was so furious that tears had gathered in her eyes.
Jake, however...
Said something completely unrelated.
"Forget that and start swimming."
"We might get swept away again."
"What?"
Only after hearing Jake's strange words did Jessica finally look around.
"Huh?"
"Where are we?"
They had clearly fallen from the cliff and plunged into the valley river.
Yet...
What surrounded them now was a dark cave.
"Come on."
Jake was already swimming farther inside.
Jessica stared blankly.
Then she hurriedly moved her arms and legs and followed him.
Fortunately...
They did not have to swim far.
The two soon climbed out of the water.
"Ugh..."
Jessica collapsed onto the cold cave floor.
"I'm exhausted."
"My heart feels like it's going to explode."
Jake lay nearby, breathing heavily.
"Wow."
"That was harder than I expected."
"What?!"
Jessica immediately exploded again.
"Harder than you expected?!"
"We nearly died!"
Jake lowered his head.
"I'm sorry."
"I couldn't explain it beforehand."
"Hmph!"
Jessica glared.
"You think I'm going to forgive you just because you apologized?"
Despite her words...
A large part of her anger had already faded.
There was an obvious result in front of her.
At the very least...
She wanted to hear the explanation.
"This cave leads to the dungeon."
Jake explained.
"The only path I knew involved jumping from that exact location."
"We could've tried swimming around and checking underwater one section at a time, but who knows how long that would've taken..."
"Then you should've told me before jumping."
Jake looked at her.
"If I'd told you, would you have jumped?"
"Absolutely not!"
"That's why I didn't tell you."
"Ugh!"
His reasoning was annoyingly sound.
Jessica's fist trembled.
Still...
Her curiosity eventually defeated her anger.
She forced herself to stand and examined the surroundings.
"There's really a passage going deeper inside."
Just as she said...
The water-filled cave continued farther inward.
"But what kind of lunatic puts an entrance somewhere like this?!"
"How was anyone supposed to find it?"
"The water level was probably lower in ancient times."
Jake answered.
"They probably traveled through here by boat."
It was only a guess.
But it sounded plausible.
Besides...
If the entrance had been easy to see, someone else would already have found it.
"But if it's hidden this well..."
Jessica frowned.
"You didn't need to worry so much about someone discovering it."
"You never know."
Jake shook his head.
"Someone could accidentally fall into the water."
Anything could happen.
Jessica grumbled that he worried too much.
Still...
She immediately began preparing.
Only faint light rising from beneath the water made it possible to see inside the cave.
Jessica removed the bag from her back.
Then she pulled out a stick and a piece of oil-soaked cloth.
They needed a torch if they were going to explore a cave.
Fortunately...
The contents of her waterproof leather bag were completely dry.
Jessica used a firestone to ignite the torch.
The burning flame illuminated the dark cave.
"All right."
She grinned.
"Shall we get started?"
Holding the newly made torch...
The two began exploring the dungeon.
The natural cave ended quickly.
Before walking even one hundred steps...
They reached a firmly closed iron door.
"This door is badly rusted."
Because it stood near the water...
The iron had suffered severe corrosion.
Jessica carefully examined it.
Then she sighed in relief.
"Thank goodness it rusted."
"The magic circles carved into the door are all ruined."
"If they were still intact, we'd have to go back and bring the mage."
Jake already knew the magic circles were broken.
So he merely nodded casually.
Then the two worked together to move the iron door.
Creeeeak.
"Put some more strength into it!"
Jessica groaned.
"Ugh. So now the rust is causing trouble."
"Ugh!"
They finally forced the ancient door open.
Dry air flowed out from behind it.
There was a faint smell of mold.
"Hundreds of years..."
Jessica spread her arms and sniffed dramatically.
"Maybe even air that's been trapped for more than a thousand years."
She was savoring the emotional moment of becoming the first person to enter a hidden dungeon.
"It doesn't smell that different from an old basement."
Jake's comment instantly ruined the mood.
Jessica's face twisted.
"Ugh..."
"Did you really have to say that?"
"You're annoying!"
"Let's leave it at that."
Jake looked deeper inside.
"Now it's time for you to show your real skills."
Jessica's eyes immediately lit up.
The reason Jake had hired her...
Was to get through this dungeon.
The adventurer who had accidentally reached this place in the future had been fairly skilled.
Even so...
He claimed he had nearly died dozens of times while crossing the dungeon.
Jake had heard that story several times through songs, ballads, and even directly from the adventurer himself after meeting him by chance.
That was why the first specialist Jake had searched for was a thief.
Beyond the door stretched a dungeon made from long underground stone chambers.
It resembled the hidden underground passage beneath the Imperial Palace.
"Then shall I begin?"
Jessica pulled various tools from the bag on her back.
Then she dropped to the floor and began crawling across the stone chamber.
Half a day later...
"My god!"
Jessica collapsed flat in front of the door blocking their path.
"All the magic and traps are still working!"
She groaned.
"I've never seen such a ridiculous dungeon."
"All this time has passed, but almost nothing is broken."
"Ugh..."
"I've never thought my skills were lacking before."
"This is depressing."
Her voice sounded completely discouraged.
Yet...
Her eyes were shining.
She looked like a cat that had just finished eating an entire feast.
"This is what you call lacking in skill?"
Jake looked back at the path they had traveled with genuine admiration.
Behind Jessica...
Countless traps and magical devices had been dismantled or destroyed.
Their inner structures were completely exposed.
And she had reached this point without triggering even one.
There had been floors that collapsed when stepped on.
Walls that magically detected people.
Passages that released smoke capable of putting anyone who inhaled it into an eternal sleep.
