After healing the four members of the party, they decided to wait until they regained consciousness so they could explain in detail what had happened.
"What's your hypothesis about the monster?" Celica asked, directing her question to Arkhiel.
"It's probably a photosensitive hidden boss," he replied after a few seconds of thought.
"Photosensitive?" Lina repeated, curious.
"It means light hurts it," Arkhiel clarified.
"And why do you think it's a hidden boss?" Celica asked next.
Arkhiel cursed inwardly. He had mentioned the hidden boss without thinking. No one knew he had already defeated the dungeon's main boss, and he had no plans of revealing that. Lina would be furious—she constantly talked about being the one to defeat it.
"Well…" he searched for a quick answer. Hidden bosses don't appear unless the main boss has already been defeated. "Considering we're only halfway through the dungeon, it's unlikely the main boss would be this close."
"Are you suggesting it's already been defeated?" Celica pressed.
"It's just a hypothesis. After all, for an A-rank party to be taken down, the enemy must have the strength of a boss. And since the attack happened relatively close to the entrance, it could be a hidden boss."
"I see," Celica accepted the explanation.
"Why did you say we're halfway through the dungeon and then say it happened near the entrance?" Lina asked, raising her hand with an inquisitive look.
It might have seemed like a silly question, but it was curious that she noticed the contradiction in his words due to his slight nervousness. Since no one was supposed to have reached the end of the dungeon, he shouldn't be able to say for certain that they were halfway through.
"Simply because I'm not sure," he answered.
"I see, I see," Lina said, accepting the explanation without further questions.
Shortly after, Eldrick was the first to wake up. Noticing his wounds were healed, he thanked them solemnly.
"Tell us what happened," Celica demanded firmly.
Eldrick began recounting how their group had entered the dungeon with confidence, determined to go farther than on previous attempts. This time, they took the first path at the fork, driven by curiosity. However, what they found was not what they expected: the usual spiders were absent, which puzzled them, though it didn't make them turn back.
After a long journey, they encountered a completely white creature, eyeless, with prominent ears and nose, and moving on six legs. It stood out for its strength and agility and emitted high-frequency screeches that disoriented them.
Physical attacks were useless against the beast. Only Erina's fire magic, she being the party's mage, seemed to deal some damage, though the creature remained highly resistant. Moreover, using fire magic in such a confined space was dangerous; it would consume too much oxygen. Because of this, they decided to flee with everything they had. Barely, they made it out alive.
As the others began to regain consciousness, Eldrick summarized the events for them.
"Who's the illusionist mage?" Erina asked, noticing the bright white light illuminating them from above.
"I'm the one who conjured the light," Arkhiel replied, "but I'm not an illusionist mage."
"We're saved…" Darien, the swordsman, sighed in relief.
"I guess it's time to leave," Mirell, the stonegunner, murmured.
"Forget the gold coins, Eldrick. The deal's changed," Celica said with a smile.
"What do you mean by that?" Eldrick asked, confused, just like the rest of his party.
"What deal?" Darien chimed in, bewildered.
"I made a deal for us to be saved," Eldrick admitted.
"What did you do!?" Erina exclaimed, outraged.
"How many coins?" Mirell asked, clearly concerned.
"Ten gold coins," Celica answered without hesitation.
The group's expressions darkened. They were about to protest, but Eldrick asked the critical question.
"What exactly is the new deal?"
"You'll help us defeat the beast," Celica announced firmly.
Arkhiel, as a Shade Walker, knew he could handle the creature on his own. However, no one truly knew the extent of his strength, not even Celica or Lina, and he preferred to keep it that way. As a mage, he wasn't particularly powerful; just slightly above average.
"What!?"
"You want us to die!?"
"You're insane… there's no way we could defeat that thing in our current state," Eldrick said, trying to stay calm.
Arkhiel could see the despair etched into their faces. They were cornered. If they didn't accept the new deal, they would die anyway.
"We can't do this," Erina whispered. "We're barely conscious… and our resources are depleted."
"Do you think a rescue came for free?" Celica said, tilting her head mockingly. "This is the new price of survival."
"And if we refuse?" Darien asked, locking eyes with Celica.
"Then that thing will finish what it started," Celica replied without hesitation. "Maybe this time it won't be so generous."
"Why take the risk?" Eldrick insisted. "We managed to escape. We could go back, warn others, and prepare properly."
Celica sighed in frustration and crossed her arms.
"Go back? Warn others?" she repeated, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I don't have time for that nonsense."
Eldrick frowned.
"Nonsense?"
"Yes," she said, turning on her heel to look at all of them. "Do I look like the guild's errand girl? Or a babysitter for an incompetent and useless party? I'm not leaving this dungeon just to come back with reinforcements. We're finishing this now. The reward for killing that thing will be split evenly, half for my group, half for yours. If you can't keep up, then stay here. Of course, if you die, I'll consider your share a generous donation."
She didn't say it openly, but it was clear: Celica had already made up her mind. She planned to use the group as cannon fodder to claim all the loot the beast might drop. Arkhiel was fully aware of Celica's intentions.
"We're not useless!" Erina snapped, though her voice trembled.
"Then prove it," Celica replied, ending the discussion.
The group fell silent. Despite their injuries and exhaustion, they knew they had no other option. Their lives were hanging by a thread, and returning alone was suicide. If they wanted to live, they had to play Celica's game… even if it meant risking everything.
"We accept," Eldrick said at last.
"Eldrick!" Mirell protested, but he raised a hand to stop her.
"There's no alternative," he murmured. "We won't survive unless we cooperate."
Celica smiled, satisfied.