The Summoner's Rebirth: Awaken, Milady

Chapter 146: Human Involvement

They steered off from the crowd a little bit. There were no sites that were completely secluded, so they had to make do with a covered spot behind the temporary emergency centre for the subjugation's precaution measures. It was filled with military people, and the noise was bustling. They whispered as they spoke to each other.

"Okay, this lace should be good enough... So, it's time for us to discuss this.. Is there an explanation as to why this dragon is suddenly here?" Aria sighed.

"This.. this isn't detected by the System. Big sister, I have a bad feeling about this thing. It reeks.. of anomalies. I don't like where this is going." Alena conveyed pure terror as she looked at the large dungeon. There was a chill that ran through her back, one that she couldn't shake off no matter how hard she tried.

"I also don't have a good feeling. The System shouldn't fail us this hard, even though it might try to play tricks. It's more like a guide to us rather than a trap. I don't know if that will change in the future, but.. if this dungeon was generated by the System, it should be detected. It's a high ranked one, so it should be substantial enough to be included in the warnings.

"Yes, I am aware. But I.. What if I tell you that this might not be something generated by the System? You guessed it, big sister. This gate could possibly be a result of human engineering." Alena said with a sour face.

"Humans.. made a gate? In South Korea out of all places too.. I find it pretty hard to believe, but I trust your judgement," Aria mumbled as she thought about the possibility. "Even though.. let's say, it is made by humans, what benefits would they get by doing this? Creating destruction.. aren't humans supposed to be united in facing this chaos? The world is rapidly changing, and you're saying that someone ou thtere had the leisure to research such a thing?" Aria questioned.

A dungeon gate was a bundle of high magical energy all concentrated into one portal that could allow entry into a separate dimension for a select time, depending on the monsters inside it. It connected two places that would have been the complete opposite and mashed them together.

To create this kind of thing, who could do it? To amass such a massive amount of power and create a literal rip in the spatial dimensions. That kind of thing, not even Aria would be able to crack down on. Was she currently being told that such a genius appeared just because the world's change triggered an unreasonable power inside of that person?

It was unfair if that was the case. Randomly getting history breaking powers without having to put much effort on it. Aria detested those kinds of cases, but at the same time, she couldn't blame them.

"I.. the gate shouldn't be created by a human, but the monsters inside it.. The one that was included in the prophecy, I think that one was manufactured to happen. The gate.. I think the gate is still from the System, only, this might get a bit tricky, but.. I seem to have witnessed a dungeon spawn here. There was a record of a dungeon being here a few months ago, but it was quickly eradicated because of the location it was in. Everybody quickly forgot about it since it was so trivial, but the System stores records of incidents from way back. That dungeon's location is the exact same as what we are going to face today," Alena cleared up her guess.

Aria frowned, as she found it to be hard to believe. How could a closed dungeon be revived once again? After thinking a couple times, she deduced that a glitch might have happened. A Hunter with malicious intents putting something that triggered the revival of this gate, and the appearance of the dragon.

By whom and how did this happen?

"Wait. The monsters inside it, if they were to be replaced, then isn't this the work of.. the person who told us that there was a dragon inside the dungeon? Perhaps it's not that they have the power to foresee what is inside the dungeon, but instead because they were the one to put the monster there in the first place?" Aria theorized.

"...You are talking about someone I know. The one who informed the Association about the existence of a baby dragon inside the dungeon, I have already found out about her identity after learning about the news. Her name is Stephanie Croft."

"Surnamed Croft. Alena, don't tell me, it's.. Another one of your siblings?" Aria raised a brow.

"Yes, big sister. And she is also the one who makes me even more convinced about this prediction that humans were the one who cultivated the dragon inside the dungeon. My older sister, Stephanie.. Is someone who would use underhanded and rotten tactics like that. Someone who wouldn't hesitate to cause mass destruction over people if it meant that she would benefit from it," Alena gritted her teeth as she recalled memories about said person inside her head.

"...Alright. That's all I need to know. Conspiracies and what not, that doesn't really matter to us right now. The subjugation is about to open. Since you got here, you must have applied for the entry too, right? It's not that I don't trust your power, but I want you to be careful. A dragon.. I know how to fight it, more or less. But the people we have today clearly won't listen to my instructions, so we have to make a riskier choice in taking this down." Aria instructed. She became more relaxed in showing off her knowledge to Alena. No longer did she have to constantly hide or cover up for her unexplainable origins, because the little girl truly did not ask for clarity whenever she did something surprising.

"I understand, big sister. I will listen to you." Alena replied, nodding as they both departed from the camp and started to reach the gates yet again. They reunited with Lichte, who looked at the two of them with curious eyes.

Reina was the first one to speak out.

"You.. and Aria. An interesting pair. Is this another one of your games? Trying to get a win over your sister? That's not too appealing, you know?"

"Reina, stop. I won't permit you to say anything more than that. It's not the time, remember?" Elgin stepped in. He was one of the few people who fully knew what went on with Reina's background. Thus, he also knew who the Crofts were and how much of an impact they brought.

Reina chuckled lowly as she obeyed the leader's orders. She then clapped, and several people instantly began to crowd behind her.

"Those people are..." Aria scanned over the various individuals behind Reina. In total, there were six unfamiliar faces.

"These are the exceptional members of Lichte. I believe that we should be able to last with this. We are not going to die in vain.. that is, if we do have to jump into death. Which we won't," Reina spoke coldly. "No matter what we need to do, all of us are going to survive this ordeal. Do you understand?! You all were recruited into Lichte not to be useless figurines, but valiant Hunters who can withstand the most extreme conditions and get out of it in piece! Losing an arm or a leg is trivial compared to your lives. Think about your precious treasures, and know that you have to come back. I will not forgive those who forsake their lives in this fight!" Reina yelled at the people she led.

In these cases, she truly was an exceptional leader. Elgin stood in the back, being the strategist and the one who could manage and keep these folks under control. Reina was the motivator, the one who actually went down to the field and raise everybody's fighting spirit up.

With the motivation that has been given, the six people became even more determined. Aria was then told that they weren't called here, but rather came out on their own accord due to the Association's all out calling. If it was up to Lichte, they would be sent back and forbidden from entering. Unfortunately, they were already drafted in the participation list by the time they were discovered.

The gate was then declared open not long after.

The bunch entered the dungeon with nervousness in their minds. Aria, however, was full on

This fight couldn't get to the point of stalling. If it was about who lasts the longest, then the dragon would certainly prevail over them. Thus, to prevent this from happening, she needed to let the correct conditions be met. First, she would determine the type of the dragon.

She followed behind the rowdy bunch with Alena beside her, entering the warping gate and watching as the huge draconic figure start to loom over her sight.