Chapter 526 – Monopolizing Resources.

The group of adventurers huddled together, staring at some jagged rocks. They were looking over a large map that represented this area, one of their members was scribbling on it, filling out the blanks as they went along. There were five in total, a balanced party with years of experience exploring dangerous ruins and forgotten realms. Their leader, a burly man in heavy armor, frowned as he ran his gauntleted hand across the rough stone.

“This is strange… Are you sure we made a wrong turn? I could swear that this is where the entrance should be…”

Behind him, a robed man with sharp eyes and a calculating demeanor stepped forward. The adventurer group stood where the entrance to the next dungeon floor should have been, their expressions ranging from curiosity to frustration.

“It is strange indeed, leader.”

“I know that already! You don’t need to repeat yourself!”

The man, who looked like a mage, shrugged. Like everyone else, he had expected to find the exit to the next floor by now. Time was running out, with more and more adventuring teams diving into the dungeon. They knew a boss chamber had to be nearby. Securing the first clear would earn them bonus loot, and they were determined to get it before the guild claimed it.

“Don’t you have any magic to check? What if it’s hidden by an illusion?”

“Sure… give me a moment. I can check again, but I doubt it’ll change anything.”

“Just do it.”

The robed man, a mage seemingly specializing in sensory and detection spells, sighed and stepped forward. He adjusted his runic staff before casting a spell. His chants were rather quick making whatever he was saying incomprehensible to anyone here. A wave of shimmering energy radiated outward, washing over the jagged rocks and the surrounding area. The rest of the party waited in silence but instead of answers they only could hear the mage sigh.

“Nothing. No magical signatures, no distortions, no hidden runes. It’s just… rocks.”

The leader growled in frustration, his gauntleted fist slamming against the nearby stone wall.

“Damn it! Where could it be? We almost searched through this entire damn floor, we never had problems with the upper ones.”

“Calm down leader, let’s just go to the areas we haven’t checked yet, we’ll find that entrance eventually.”

The mage attempted to calm the adventurer leader. It was true – there was something strange about this place. He was almost certain there was a hidden exit somewhere, but he wasn’t sure how to uncover it. If this continued, they would have to leave and procure specialized tools for detecting enchantments. It seemed likely that finding the entrance to the next floor would require dispelling some kind of magical barrier.

“Don’t fret over it!”

Another member of the group called out from the back, an archer who had already scoured the area without discovering any enchantments or hidden entrances. Both the mage and the tracker of the team had found no signs of anything unusual. While they respected their leader’s instincts – his sixth sense for these things was often uncanny – they also knew he wasn’t infallible.

Frustration flickered across the leader’s face as he glared at his party members, who didn’t seem to be taking him seriously. In a sudden burst of anger, he picked up a rock from the ground and hurled it at the rocky wall he suspected might be hiding a secret entrance. The stone arced through the air before colliding with the wall, shattering on impact. A bit of rubble tumbled down, but it revealed nothing – just more hard and unremarkable rock behind it.

“Fine… let’s just go. We’ll retrace our steps and check everything again. There has to be an entrance somewhere.”

The group of five finally began walking, their footsteps fading into distant echoes. Behind them, the wall the adventurer leader had thrown a rock at began to shimmer. A figure stepped through, holding the same rock – completely intact. The rubble on the ground vanished, revealing itself to have been nothing more than an illusory projection.

*****

“Well, that was close… Luckily, everything is working as it should.”

Roland stepped forward, revealing the staircase that led to the floor with the five elemental temples. He had just finished exploring the first temple and had set up an illusory wall to deter any intruders. Watching the party arrive and interact with his creation gave him valuable insight into the limitations of his setup.

“It would be better if I could create hard constructs. While this fools their minds, if someone trips or stumbles, they’ll just fall through the wall…”

Thanks to his multiple run-ins with the Abyssal Cult, Roland knew a thing or two about illusions. While this was nothing compared to the monoliths he had encountered before, it was more than enough to affect Tier 3 class holders and keep this place hidden. Even without a physical wall, if someone threw a rock at it, their minds would be compelled to perceive the rock bouncing back.

However, the illusion wasn’t foolproof. The more people examined it, the easier it became to see through. If someone hadn’t witnessed the rock appearing to bounce off the wall, their minds wouldn’t register the illusion’s consistency. And if anyone in a party raised doubts about the wall, the deception could quickly unravel.

Fortunately, the device he had hidden inside one of the walls had a wide range of influence. There was also only one spot to view this unsuspecting wall, making it easier to fool larger groups. The chances of someone seeing through the illusion were slim – and for now, that would have to be enough.

“Woof!”

“Yeah, you can talk now, they are gone.”

“Wooo!”

Agni leapt down the staircase, sniffing the air eagerly. Roland chuckled as his canine companion wagged his tail with unrestrained enthusiasm, darting around the now-empty corridor. Agni had been restless during the encounter, but thanks to the concealment device, their presence had remained hidden.

After giving Agni a quick scratch behind the ears, Roland approached the wall where his hastily assembled device was embedded. From his spatial storage, he retrieved his portable furnace – an item that finally had a chance to shine. One of his skills allowed him to control forge flames, making it particularly useful in situations like this.

The device itself was a patchwork of interconnected cubes, tangled wires, and battery units. It was crude but functional. He just needed to attach a few additional batteries to ensure it would last until he returned to this location.