The Northern Municipal Dam was a gargantuan concrete monolith, its looming spillway wall towering over a hundred meters above the gorge below. Holding back roughly seventy-five percent of the city's entire freshwater reservoir, it was the single most critical piece of infrastructure in the region.
By the time Team Arthur's bus rumbled up the perimeter road, the entire facility was on high alert. The dam had been placed under total lockdown, and most of the civilian workforce had already been evacuated. Heavy military trucks and armored police cruisers choked the access roads, their flashing red-and-blue lights cutting through the morning mist.
Armed personnel waved off any curious onlookers, enforcing a strict perimeter. Only authorized military units and certified Hunters were granted entry past the iron gates.
Miss Donna led Arthur and the rest of the squad off the bus. As soon as their boots hit the pavement, a high-ranking site official hurried over, his forehead slick with nervous sweat.
"Miss Donna! Thank goodness you're here," the official exhaled, letting out a heavy sigh of relief as he recognized her. "We were told a strike team was being deployed immediately. But... where is the rest of your squad?"
Miss Donna cast a cool, brief glance at the seven teenagers lined up behind her, then looked back at the man. "This is my squad."
The official froze. His jaw twitched, his eyes darting from Arthur's ill-fitting armor to the nervous faces of the freshman team. Nearby, several heavily armed soldiers exchanged incredulous, skeptical glances.
"You're... you're joking," the official stammered, swallowing hard. "We lodged an emergency request with the Hunter Association for high-tier contractors, and they sent us high school kids? There are over thirty registered Guilds in this city!"
"The Academy officially acquired the rights to this Gate for a tactical evaluation," Miss Donna replied smoothly, her tone leaving no room for argument. "It's a Green-tier rift, isn't it?"
"Yes, it's a Green Gate, but that doesn't mean you use a critical municipal asset as a classroom!" the official protested, wringing his hands. "If a rift break happens here—"
"These students are the elite future of this city," Miss Donna interrupted, her voice dropping into a razor-sharp, authoritative register that instantly shut him up. "They have to start somewhere. They can handle a Green Gate. Now, open the breach doors and clear our path."
The official hesitated, his gaze lingering nervously on the high schoolers lined up behind her.
"So, do we have a problem, Mr...?" Miss Donna paused, her eyes dropping down to read the silver name tag pinned to the man's high-visibility vest. "...Mr. Smith?"
Smith opened his mouth to protest again, but under Miss Donna's cold, unyielding glare, his resolve crumbled. He let out a defeated sigh and shook his head. "No... no problem, ma'am."
"Good," Miss Donna said, her tone crisp and businesslike. "Now, where is the Gate located?"
Smith reluctantly raised a trembling finger, pointing straight up into the air.
"It's up there," he said, his voice grim. "Right in the center of the upper catwalk on top of the dam wall."
Arthur tilted his head back, following the line of Smith's finger all the way to the crest of the colossal concrete structure. From their vantage point at the base, the sheer scale of the wall dominated the sky, obscuring whatever was sitting on top.
A whole damn dimensional rift opened on the edge of a hundred-meter drop? Arthur thought, a cold grin touching his lips. Talk about high stakes.
"How do we get up there?" Miss Donna asked.
"Industrial service lift," Smith grunted, casting one last doubtful, lingering look at the squad, his eyes pausing with particular skepticism on Arthur's oversized vest. "Follow me. And try not to touch anything on the way up."
As they walked through the fortress, soldiers turned their heads one after another. Their gazes lingered on Arthur, filled with doubt, curiosity, and barely concealed disdain.
"Even the unawakened soldiers know Arthur's a fraud," Christoffer muttered to Alexa.
"If he's a fraud," Alexa replied without looking at him, "then how did he beat your boss?"
Christoffer frowned.
"Sidwig isn't my boss. We're equals. Why does everyone keep saying he's my boss?"
"If you say so."
Her eyes drifted toward Arthur, and a faint smile tugged at her lips.
"Everyone's going to want him soon..."
Christoffer glanced at his cousin.
"What was that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing," Alexa answered innocently.
The group stepped into a massive military lift. With a deep metallic rumble, it climbed the enormous wall, carrying all nine of them alongside Mr. Smith.
When the doors slid open, a powerful wave of mana washed over them.
Towering above the battlements was the dungeon gate.
It stood nearly twenty feet tall, suspended in midair like a giant oval tear ripped into reality itself. Its emerald surface churned endlessly, swirling like liquid light mixed with storm clouds. Arcs of green energy crackled around its edges, distorting the air and making the surrounding space shimmer. Every few seconds, an eerie pulse rippled across its surface, sending a suffocating pressure over the wall. The sight alone was enough to make an ordinary person instinctively step back.
"This," Mr. Smith said solemnly, "is the dungeon gate."
He checked the timer displayed on his wrist communicator.
"The dungeon break will occur in two hours forty five minutes" He paused before announcing the remaining time. "I sincerely hope your team manages to clear it before then."
A heavy silence settled over the group as everyone's eyes returned to the ominous green portal.
"Thank you, Mr. Smith. We'll take it from here. If the students can't handle whatever's inside, I'll deal with it myself," Miss Donna said confidently.
She turned to Arthur.
"Let's move, Captain."
Without waiting for a response, she stepped through the Green Dungeon Gate.
Arthur took a deep breath and followed her. One by one, the remaining students entered behind him.
The moment Arthur crossed the threshold, the outside world disappeared.
A wave of cold air washed over him.
They found themselves inside an enormous underground cavern. The ceiling stretched so high that it vanished into darkness, while countless emerald crystals jutted from the walls and floor, bathing the cave in an eerie green glow. Thick vines crawled over ancient rock formations, and glowing moss carpeted the ground. Water dripped steadily from above, the sound echoing endlessly through the vast chamber.
Unlike the Yellow Dungeon from Arthur's trial, which had felt like an abandoned ruin, this place was alive. The mana here was dense enough to make every breath feel heavier, and a suffocating silence hung in the air, as if countless unseen eyes were watching from the darkness.
Miss Donna turned to face the students.
"All right. This is your first time inside a Green Dungeon, isn't it?"
Everyone nodded.
Her expression hardened.
"Stay alert at all times. Monsters don't announce themselves before attacking, and a single mistake can cost you your life."
She folded her arms behind her back.
"As Mr. Touchimani explained earlier, I'm only here as an observer. Unless your lives are in immediate danger, I won't interfere."
Her eyes settled on Arthur.
"The command is yours, Captain."
Arthur blinked in surprise and pointed at himself.
"Me?"
"Yes," Miss Donna replied without hesitation. "From this moment onward, you're responsible for your team's decisions. Decide how your classmates proceed. Lead them... and make sure everyone comes back alive."
Everyone's attention immediately shifted to Arthur. Christoffer's jaw clenched, clearly hating every second of having to stand at attention and take orders from the guy who had just humiliated his friend.
Arthur cleared his throat, stepping into the center of his team and assuming a calm, commanding posture.
"Alright, eyes on me," Arthur began, his voice surprisingly steady. "We all know the briefing specs for a Green Gate. It's an Iron-tier threat level, which means we'll be facing baseline subterranean monsters, mostly Gloom-Crawlers, Iron-hide Goblins, and Cave Scuttlers."
He paused, letting his sharp gaze sweep across his squad members to make sure they were actually listening.
"Individually? They're weak. But do not underestimate them," Arthur warned, his voice dropping into a serious register. "These things are pack hunters. They swarm in massive waves, and if you get cornered or surrounded, they can drag down and overwhelm even a mid-tier combat summon in seconds through sheer attrition."
He turned toward the industrial lift, pulling up the tactical overview on his wrist interface.
"We're splitting into three tight tactical cells," Arthur said, his tone authoritative as he laid out the formation. "Two groups of three and one group of two, assigned strictly according to our class ranks."
He gestured toward the frontline fighters first. "Alexa Vance, class rank eight. Marcus Flint, rank fifteen. Damon Cross, rank eleven, you three are our vanguard. You'll form the heavy defensive line."
He then pointed toward the rear line. "Kenneth Reed, rank twelve. Chloe Bennett, rank eighteen.You've got rear guard. Keep your eyes sharp, cover our flanks, and protect our support."
Arthur turned his attention toward the last remaining member of the team, a slow, razor-sharp smile spreading across his face.
"Which leaves Christoffer and me," Arthur said smoothly, his eyes locking onto the reluctant noble. "We're taking point."
Christoffer's eyes widened in sheer disbelief, his jaw tightening so hard a vein bulged in his temple. Being shoved to the front lines as the spearhead was bad enough, but having to take point alongside Arthur, under his direct command, was absolute agony.
"Let's move," Arthur commanded, stepping into the industrial lift. "Try to keep up, Vance."
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