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Ian was startled when the Key to Destiny began to hum and vibrate. He quickly pulled out the mithril dagger.

It was remarkable to him that as soon as he’d accepted the quest, his destined partner would appear to him. Or perhaps, the partner varied depending upon the quest chosen.

That’s not what’s important.

In fact, it didn't matter why the key suddenly moved.

What truly mattered was the location of his destined partner.

He tried to figure out where the Key to Destiny was pointing to.

The Mithril dagger continued to vibrate and align itself until it was pointing directly at the mural painting.

Ian looked down at the dagger and then at the mural again.

"It's just a mural?”

There was no destined partner in sight.

At that moment, the mana around him began to change suddenly.

The tranquil mana became frenzied and swarmed Ian briefly before withdrawing for another brief moment. It then drew back to him and repeated its movements.

It’s obvious something’s there.

Ian bobbed his head while he watched the mana’s display.

Something was definitely there. The Key to Destiny was not directing him to the wrong place.

Ian carefully put his hand on the part of the mural that the dagger was pointing to.

It had to mean something.

Boom!

As soon as Ian's hand made contact with the wall, the surrounding mana flocked to Ian in an instant with a loud burst as it rapidly absorbed into his body.

Ian parted his mouth, feeling all the mana in the dungeon enter his body until he felt like he would explode. His body seemed to be fluctuating with the mana absorption, expanding and then shrinking in rapid succession.

Ian tried to scream out in pain, but no sound came out.

All the mana in the dungeon vanished into Ian like it had been sucked into a void.

It coursed through Ian and into the wall from his hand, pouring out like rushing water.

Ian groaned, the sudden rush of mana into him pushing him close to the breaking point.

“Nngh…”

He scrunched his forehead as he tried to pull his hand away, but his hand would not budge, held in place by the wall until all the mana Ian had absorbed had transferred to the mural.

“Hph.”

Then, in an instant, it was gone. Ian staggered backward.

The walls began to shake.

“Haha.”

Ian let out an awkward laugh as he watched in awe. The stone wall began to move backward inch by inch.

Its movement affected the mural as well. The murals started to fade away and transform into a new mural.

Ian opened his mouth slightly and looked at it as if possessed.

“This… What is… this?”

It was difficult for Ian to immediately understand what he was seeing. However, after examining it slowly, he knew what it was.

"A world created from fire?"

The entire wall was covered in fire.

And that wasn’t the only change.

The mana that had been transferred to the wall began to move, making the mural come alive.

The flames blazed on, sending smaller and darker sparks through the painted forest and up into the mountain trees until they joined the surrounding fire.

Ian knew immediately what they were.

"The Spirits of Fire."

Dozens of fire spirits, each in different shapes, were romping around in the forest.

Buzz.

The sound of the dagger grew stronger.

Ian brought it closer to the mural.

“Huh?”

Then, it swiftly flew from his hand and embedded itself in the center of the mural.

Ian briefly wondered how the dagger could stick so easily into the stone wall, quickly dismissing the thought as unimportant.

The wall stirred again, and the burning world began to converge around the area where the dagger was embedded.

Ian stared at it blankly.

The sparks joined together to form a figure, a dragon born from fire.

The dragon's magnificence from the previous mural was amazing, but it couldn’t begin to compare to this flaming dragon.

“Fuu...”

Ian unconsciously exhaled from nervousness, trying to ease his tensing muscles.

He looked up to the head of the great dragon.

The dagger, embedded at the center of the dragon's forehead, was shaking continuously until it became completely burrowed into the wall.

The dagger eventually merged itself completely with the wall until it was no longer visible. At that moment, the dragon began to flare.

Then, the dragon disappeared, and the dungeon shook as though a great quake were rocking it. The stone wall in front of Ian split in half and was pushed sideways.

“Um…” Ian murmured.

Behind the stone wall, another hidden room appeared.

There was an altar built in the center of the room, and Ian moved to take a closer look at it.

His blood began to boil, increasing with every step he took.

The mana inside of him was leading him.

It was as though he had laid eyes on a gorgeous woman, and his eyes could not be pulled away.

His heart was pounding, and his eyes were drawn to the top of the altar.

Before him, was…

“An egg?”

An egg the size of a human head.

***

Ian stared at the egg on the altar, confused.

Why’s there an egg out of nowhere…?

Ian thought as he reached out.

The instant he touched the egg, it stole all the mana that had surrounded him.

"Oh my god."

It felt like his energy had been sucked away. 

Ian shuddered and stepped back. 

A notification window popped up in front of him.

[Congratulations! You have successfully met your destined partner. Your destined one is overcome with joy.]

Ian turned and faced the egg, but the egg was stone still.

Ian furrowed his brow at hearing the egg was happy to meet him.

The windows kept popping up.

[Your destined partner wants to enter a contract at once. She's impatient at the prospect of you running away.]

[This may be your only chance to meet your destined one.]

[Will you sign the contract with your destined partner?]

Although the system didn't specify what the contract was, Ian didn’t think it really mattered.

His focus was completely on the egg in front of him. 

His entire being desired it. It insisted him to sign a contract with it.

Ian finally opened his dry lips.

"I’ll sign the contract."

[The contract has been completed.]

[Upon completion, your destined partner has entered the "room.”]

[You may summon her at any time.]

***

Ian saw the remaining squad 8 members fighting the last remaining orc as he stepped out of the dungeon.

“Um.”

Their eyes immediately focused on him as he spoke.

"Ian!"

Jamie approached him, calling his name in a welcoming manner.

She checked Ian's condition, confirming he was safe, and placed her hand on his shoulder.

“I thought you kicked the bucket.” Chris said, looking at him.

“And I told you there’s no way he would!”

Jamie greeted Ian with a smile that indicated she was glad he didn’t die.

However, Ian couldn’t understand what was going on.

Where were the villagers, and why were the other squad 8 members here when they should’ve been at the Green Orc Village?

His questions were answered immediately.

"I was still worried, though. You didn’t come out of the dungeon for almost three days, so...”

Ian's body jolted and froze at what she said.

Three days… What in the…?

To Ian, it had seemed mere hours.

All he did was eliminate the dark sorcerer and look around his laboratory.

Well, I did sign the contract... but I came out right away?

Ian left the dungeon shortly after seeing his destined partner turn into mana and scatter away.

After signing the contract, he went to find a subspace pouch in the dark sorcerer’s lab to pack only the valuable goods. 

But doing that took three days?

It didn’t make sense.

"What exactly happened? The portal was always there, but when we tried to go in, we were sent right back out. That’s why we couldn’t go inside and check.”

Everyone looked at Ian, also curious about the matter. Ian hesitated. 

He wasn’t sure how to explain. 

And obviously omit the parts I need to hide.

He thought as he parted his lips.

"The dark sorcerer appeared so... we fought. Then at some point, he exploded and dispersed.

"Hmm... Was it similar to the explosion we saw?”

"I think so."

"I see, you must've been wounded and couldn't move for three days."

"Yes. I was fortunate enough to survive thanks to the sorcerer’s potions."

Ian made up a plausible story, deciding not to tell them the whole truth.

Hamilton’s eyes lit up when Ian spoke of the potion.

He was relieved that Ian had come back alive, but he didn’t expect him to find an expensive potion.

Not only were they expensive, but carrying a potion around was like having an extra lifeline.

"What did you do with the potion?"

"Most of the potions shattered when the sorcerer exploded, so only half a bottle was left."

"…I see. I'm glad you made it back safely."

Hamilton nodded.

Ian glanced at the subspace pouch around his waist before he spoke again.

"What happened to the village?"

"It was difficult at first, but once the sorcerer disappeared, we were able to handle it without suffering too much damage.”

"That's good to hear."

"It is, but that's not the problem."

Hamilton let out a breath with a serious look on his face.

Ian tensed up a little at his expression and listened to what was about to be said.

"Was there some other issue?"

“Monster wave.” Hamilton abruptly replied.

Ian's face hardened at the response.

The day Ian had arrived at the Devil Platoon, Hamilton said there would definitely be a monster wave in a week.

He didn’t pay much attention to it because of the dark sorcerer, but now that he thought about it, the monster wave should have happened already.

"There must have been… a lot of damage."

“No.”

Hamilton shook his head.

Ian furrowed his brows.

If there wasn’t much damage, what was the problem?

"Then..."

"There was no monster wave."