I went to a quiet corner, sat in a meditation pose and started replenishing my mana by absorbing from the atmosphere.
Thanks to the fact that mana density is much higher in the dungeon compared to the outer world, the recovery speed was significantly higher compared it is at home.
The room where we are in, is a part of the Boss area called the waiting room. A resting and gathering zone, right before the Boss encounter.
This is where you can meet the other adventurers who entered the dungeon at the Same time, if you're lucky. Basically, This is the junction of all the parallel Hallways.
"How weird..." Our beautiful mage mumbled, as she scanned the perimeter.
"Oh, it's weird, alright," The brave warrior rumbled, looking around as if looking for people "Given the sheer number of teams we saw entering the portal alongside us, there should be at least three or four parties in this room by now"
He looked at the Boss room Entrance "Even the Boss should already be occupied with a party but I sense no commotion or Battle. Everything is so..."
"It's empty" Vivi finished what Boran wanted to say. her voice dropping to a cautious whisper.
'Is that really weird ?' I thought, hearing their conversation.
When I was a player, the Resting Zone would always be empty, except for my own Party. The time when there was any other team was when it was part of the storyline.
There are two Doors or Portals at the two opposite sides standing face to face.
One door is the portal at the curved wall, from where we came and the other teams Will also come from there.
And the other one is a large entrance at the smooth wall but it has no mana swirling portal or a wooden door. It only has a semitransparent mana barrier.
The other side can be seen through the Barrier. And as expected, The Boss Room, a vast, dimly lit cavern that seemed to stretch into an infinite darkness. It was quiet. Too quiet.
According to the information that they have gathered, the boss of this Dungeon is supposed to be an ogre.
The mechanism of the boss room is also pretty straightforward.
When entering the Dungeon, A person can hold the soft, smooth, beautiful, warm hand of his crush using dungeon dive as an excuse. But that excuse can only work at the entrance, not here.
Because the dungeon system doesn't work like that in the Boss area. Here, there's no need to be touchy or holding hands.
The max number of people that can enter the room is five. It is not fixed and can vary from dungeon to dungeon.
What if a group of three entered the room and two more adventurers sneakily try to enter behind them while being tip-toed not making any sounds like Rats?
That's not possible. The dungeon judges by itself, who are members of the same team and who are not. Once all members are in, the entrance is locked. So, once the group of three enter, no one else can enter. The Door becomes One-way glass barrier. People can only come out and not go in.
Once My mana reserves were replenished I opened my eyes. So, I stood up and went up to them. my mana circuits humming with fresh energy. The fatigue of the hallway had been washed away by the high mana density of the Waiting Room.
"I am ready! Let's go!" I declared in full confidence and excitement.
"Are you ? Alright then!" The beautiful mage chirped, though her eyes still lingered on the empty room around us.
"Yeah! Then, kid! I'll Let you lead the way" Our Brute warrior suggested, his voice carrying a strange, neutral weight.
You're seriously telling a noob kid to go first? Some Bodyguard you are! Not that I'm complaining though.
But I kept my words inside, not saying it out loud. I just gripped my hilt, took a deep breath, and mentally prepared myself to step through the shimmering veil of mana.
"Fine" saying that, i stepped forward.
And with full confidence, i stepped my foot on the other side of the barrier.
The transition was seamless. As i entered I looked around. The boss room was not so different from the hallway area.
It was a cave-like area just like the hallway. The only difference being, the hallway was a pathway while this is a perfect dome like area with perhaps a radius of roughly 300 meters, with a ceiling so high the blue torches couldn't quite illuminate the jagged stalactites hanging like teeth from above.
While I was busy admiring the architecture of a real Dungeon boss room...
-THUD! THUD!
Behind me, there were some sounds, like someone strong Punching on a wall or something like that. I spun around to see what was happening and expecting to see Boran and Vivi right behind me.
"What's this sound you guys are--"
But what I saw was definitely not something that i was expecting. Not even after overthinking all the scenarios where things could go wrong.
***
The barrier which should have been almost transparent, it's color was now white. The other side could still be seen, but not as clear as before. Which can mean only one thing.
...It's locked ? But how ? Fuck!
-Thud! Thud!
Boran was hammering his fists against the other side, the vibrations seemed to rattle the very foundation of the cave, but the sound was swallowed by the mana. And Vivi kept her hand on the barrier, perhaps trying to figure out exactly what was going on.
Boran Said something but his sound couldn't cross the barrier.
So, I read his lips.
'Get out! Right now!'
Understanding his message and it's urgency, I stretched my hands towards the barrier and...
But my hand hit the mana layer. I couldn't pass through. It was truly locked, from both sides.
I slammed my hands against the surface, desperate to phase through, but it felt like hitting a mountain of solid diamond. My hands throbbed with the impact.
What the heck is going on ?! A power restriction? a malfunction ?
No, that's not the case. If it was, If there really is a power restriction, these two wouldn't even be able to enter this dungeon to begin with.
A malfunction in team recognition? No, Very unlikely. It does not explain my inability to go out. Normally, It's possible for adventurers to get out of boss room in the middle of a boss fight, Ditching the fight. That's the case for Most dungeons. There are exceptions but, according to our Information, this one is not one of those.
A number restriction or any other mechanism of the Dungeon ?
No, if it was, these two would know. They must've done full research on it.
I looked at Vivi. Her hand was pressed to the barrier, her eyes wide with a frantic, analytical glow. She wasn't acting.
I looked at Boran But the panic and worry on his face was real. No matter how much of an annoying bastard Boran is and no matter how much Vivi loves teasing me, putting me at risk like this is not something they would ever do.
This is not a staged incident. It's a real actual deadly crisis.