DanMachi: Why Am I Being Crowned the Lord of Cinder!

Chapter 186 186: A Brand-New Fog Gate?

"..."

"Why are there so many gravestones here?"

Encountering gravestones inside the Dungeon—wasn't something off about that?

If this were a safe floor, like the 18th Floor, then yes—adventurers might honor the wishes of the dead and bury them there.

But appearing on other floors… it was downright eerie.

More than that—

Tiona could even see primate skulls scattered across the ground. They didn't belong to monsters, because monsters dissipated after death.

Which meant—

Only one brutally cruel answer remained.

'Adventurers.'

But that thought was quickly rejected in her mind. Every abnormal phenomenon happening in the Dungeon—was related to Ron.

From the cracks in those cold, pale bones, one could see the traces left by the passage of time.

As if they had been dead for a very long time?

"Something's not right!"

Tiona could clearly feel that something was off, but she couldn't quite pinpoint what exactly. She just had the sense that the upcoming exploration—

Would absolutely not go as smoothly as it had so far!

"It does feel strange," the elf said. Being highly sensitive to aura, Lefiya already felt an oppressive pressure just by standing there.

Because of that, she decided to stop overthinking and turned her gaze toward Ron beside her.

"Ron, what do you think?"

"Same as you—just looking."

After encountering the Crystal Lizard, Ron had already sensed something was wrong with what lay ahead—let alone now, with those ancient, weathered gravestones lining both sides of the cave.

It felt very familiar.

Next, were they going to pass through a passage, reach a circular arena… and then face something with a spiral sword piercing its chest?

'The Ash Judge…'

Iudex Gundyr.

Could it be waiting for him here?

Faced with Lefiya's question, Ron didn't have a clear answer either. But judging from the Dungeon's usual behavior—could they really return smoothly?

Absolutely impossible.

If they wanted to leave this floor, they would at least have to deal with whatever came next.

He gently shook his head, his tone more serious than ever before: "Based on my past exploration experience, if we want to leave this floor…"

"We'll have to deal with whatever we encounter next!"

"Otherwise…"

"No matter what we do, we won't find a way back."

The good news:

Before choosing to explore deeper floors, they had replenished their energy in time. If they had arrived here exhausted, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

With that answer, Tiona didn't feel particularly tense. Strength was her foundation—but as the exploration went deeper, and as she kept learning more about Ron's secrets—

Honestly—

Compared to the eerie surroundings, this guy was clearly even more… ridiculous!

'So…'

'The Loki Familia is supposed to cooperate with this guy next?'

The ultimate goal of providing support during the expedition—Captain Finn had already told her and her sister. He saw a better future in Ron.

But after truly experiencing the malice of Soulslike elements—

Special monsters with combat techniques, ever-changing terrain, and possibly even stronger enemies waiting ahead—it wasn't entirely a bad thing.

At the very least, these mid-tier floors—which she usually passed through without exploring—had reignited Tiona's desire to explore.

Provided she teamed up with Ron.

A higher-difficulty Dungeon meant greater stat growth and achievements—exactly what the core members of the Familia needed.

The downside—

Was the infinitely escalating danger!

'Still…'

'They'd probably like it, right?'

Tiona lightly shook her head.

This wasn't something she needed to worry about. Maybe during this exploration, they might gain something unexpectedly valuable.

Following Ron as they continued forward, finally—they stopped at the end of the cave passage. Looking around, the other branching paths—

All converged here.

"You were right."

"No matter which tunnel we took, we'd have to deal with whatever's here."

As expected of a veteran.

Following Ron's line of sight, Tiona looked ahead—and the moment she saw the crumbling stone archway of what seemed to be a ruined palace, her pupils shrank.

It wasn't leaning against the cave walls.

It stood completely on its own,

right before them.

The gray mist covering it was so dense it was almost tangible—and as if sensing the arrival of adventurers, it flowed visibly before their eyes.

Encounter after encounter—

Tiona's once-normal worldview was gradually shattering under the impact of Soulslike elements. She frowned.

"What is that?"

"I don't really know how to explain it…"

"You just need to know that whatever is blocking our way out is behind that door. As for what kind of special monster it is…"

"I can't say for sure either."

A "Fog Gate."

A fog gate leading to an unknown place ahead.

But in the world of DanMachi, it felt as though it connected directly to a Soulslike world.

Ron had already encountered this on the 10th Floor.

Even the abilities "Shattering Crystal" and other magic—had been obtained from there, after defeating the Erdtree Burial Watchdog.

And now—he was encountering this again inside the Dungeon. Combined with the newly appearing Dark Souls III monsters, this development felt completely off.

'Let's hope it's not what I'm thinking…'

Ron gave a simple explanation.

As he walked toward the end of the cave passage, he found no other exits. What he needed to do next was very simple:

Go through the fog gate.

Fight.

After all, thanks to the unexpected gains from the Burial Watchdog encounter, he still held some anticipation for the upcoming boss battle.

After making preparations, Ron took the greatsword from his back, took a deep breath to steady himself, briefly explained things to Tiona and Lefiya—

Then decisively stepped forward.

"Let's go."

"What awaits us next… will be a never-before-seen Floor Boss!"

"..."

Facing a Floor Boss—

Lefiya's expression turned serious as well. Watching Ron step forward first, his figure gradually disappearing into the fog gate—

The scene was incredibly eerie…

It stood there on the ground, not attached to any cave wall—just a dense layer of mist forming a "door," yet it seemed to connect to another realm.

Swallowing Ron whole.

"It feels…"

"Kind of like an elven secret realm… is this the effect of magic?"

"..."

But—

Lefiya's words were completely lost on Tiona, who didn't understand magic at all and had zero aptitude for it.

She couldn't care less about that.

Just go in!

Having volunteered to protect Lefiya—Ron was included in that as well. More importantly, this guy clearly had experience, so following him should be safe.

The tan-skinned Amazoness stretched lazily.

And yet—

In her light brown eyes, filled with determination, one could clearly see a spark of seriousness—and anticipation for whatever lay beyond the fog gate…

That never-before-seen Floor Boss.

Tiona's smile carried a hint of excitement.

She couldn't let Lefiya and Ron think she was some weak adventurer.

"Yeah."

"Time to get serious. Don't fall behind, Lefiya!"

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