49 Rouge et Noir

Later that morning, Ren went to the dungeon site where he was supposed to raid with three others. Knowing that he would have to share experience points and loot, Ren was already low spirited about the entire thing, maybe it was because he had not really done raids with teams much, but he was extra dull about it.

'I'll just do this as fast as possible and be done with it. I really hope my "teammates" won't hold me back.'

Once Ren got there, he spotted Fars standing amongst others as he seemed to be giving out orders. The entire place was busy with people moving around and all, 'did he even sleep?' Ren asked himself, looking at Fars that had a serious expression plastered on his face.

Fars caught sight of Ren as he approached and dismissed those he was talking to;

"Ren, you came "right" on time," it was clear that this wasn't meant as a compliment.

Ren only gave a little smile before enquiring about the others he was supposed to raid with. Fars pointed out that they had been at the dungeon site at least thirty minutes early, so Ren went ahead to introduce himself and give his greetings, 'after all, they are my seniors.'

There was a box, the type that held military supplies, placed to the side, or more accurately, a distance away from the dungeon entrance. There, Ren could see three other students with a slightly different uniform than his.

(So, unfortunately, I tend to have terrible memory so I can't remember if I've mentioned what the uniforms look like. If I have, please discard that and use this new description)

Ren's uniform, like all other first years was a blend of white and green, having green highlights at the side of the sleeves and diagonal lines along the sides of the trousers that don't go all the way to the waist. The diagonal lines started from the bottom of the trousers all the way to the thighs, spotting certain diagonal designs from point to point.

As for the uniform of the second and third year students, the green was switched with blue for the second year, and the third year spotted red for their extra colours.

'These guys get to flex, huh? They can even get capes if they want.' Ren thought to himself, looking at one of the seniors.

"You must be Ren. It's nice to meet you, I am Reiner, the support of the team. I am happy to make your acquaintance." Reiner said while barely relaxing his lips for a smile.

The sudden introduction caught Ren off guard a bit as he looked at the hand the blonde boy brought forward, "Likewise." Ren responded while shaking Reiner's hand.

Reiner had quite long blonde hair that went all the way to his lower back, it was truly something that could make even the pretty girls jealous. He was also a bit taller than Ren, and since he wore a sleeveless shirt that was pretty fitted, his well-developed lean muscular arms gave the notion that underneath his clothes was a very fine man who was dedicated to training his body diligently.

'But why would a healer need such peak body? Genes really did good on this guy, huh? Look at him, you could mistake him for an elf, he's almost as good looking as I am.'

Usurped from his thoughts, the one wearing a cape came from behind Reiner, "Man of the year, Ren, what's up? I'm Aug, nice to meetcha," Aug came in with a dap, bringing Ren in for a shoulder bump, totally unmatched, his energy was that much different from Reiner. Ren could already guess what class he was with the quiver… 'hanging from his waist? Has he been watching too much western?'

Weirdly enough, Ren didn't feel any hostility or ulterior motive from these guys, in fact, he felt quite welcomed in their midst, much different from what a normal interaction with a senior would have been.

'And who's the big guy at the back? That must be the third year, I wonder why he's with us, his level should be too high for this dungeon, normally.'

"Ren, first year, the damage dealer." Ren introduced himself, he didn't bother stretching out a hand because it seemed unnecessary. The vibe around this guy was very different and unwelcoming.

"Oh, you're that famous Ren," the third year said as he stood up. He was the only one sitting down on the create. Now that he was standing, Ren was sure that he too was most definitely a damage dealer, perhaps, the original damage dealer of the team.

'What's with this guy? Is his ancestry traced from a proud blood of titans? It's totally overkill!'

"Solomon. Vice head." He said. Just like his bodily proportions, his voice was just as deep and powerful, he really did fit the image of a giant amongst men.

Hearing Solomon call the vice head, Ren also turned, as did the rest. Ren stood at the front while the two second years followed, then Solomon. Compared to Solomon, they all looked small, after all, their heads were only up to his chest, not to mention his Spartan physique, the energy around him was very domineering and thick.

"Well, you two already know, so Ren, I'll introduce you to Solomon now. The reason why a third year like himself is in this level is because he has a very special class and it takes him longer to level up than normal since he needs more experience points. Of course, I believe you aren't the type to make quick assumptions of a person's strength…"

'I am the type.'

"…so I'll tell you now. The reason Solomon is here is not just because this is a low level dungeon, but because it is an unknown dungeon and requires the best to scout it. Of course, that is the same reason why I chose you all specifically, so don't go relying too much on one person." After Fars was done with the small, he entered the more important stuff.

Even though he said their job was to scout, what that really meant was that they were going o be the vanguard of this dungeon. They would clear it first and tackle all the unknown danger head on and provide information about all that transpired inside so that any potential risks can be avoided when others enter.

"Alright, everything is set. Enter once you're ready." Fars said to them before leaving them to themselves.

Solomon was naturally the leader, so he briefed them on their strategy and such, which was really easy since the academy thought a set of strategies, it was always easy for the students to apply it on the field by just calling the names and maybe tweaking them a bit. Unfortunately for Ren who had not been attending any classes, he had no idea what they were on about.

'Well, life is give and take, can't do everything now, can I.'

"This should be sounding a bit strange to you, Ren, since you most definitely haven't been thought these yet, so Aug will explain more while we move." Solomon said, putting Ren at ease.

'I have to say, it's not his size that worries me, it's the fact that he's a giant with good brains…'

Once they were done with all necessary preparations, the team of four headed into the dungeon with Solomon carrying along the create he was sitting on. Ren didn't really need any explanation as to why he did that since he already knew.

The create itself was an entire system that functioned to collect data about the surroundings. Once inside, all they needed to do was place it at a safe location and that was it. It also made it possible for them to use certain gadgets within the dungeon, like communication devices and such, it was a must bring in a scouting trip.

Seeing the people on his team, Ren could tell they were all strong, perhaps, stronger than the current him in stats but not necessarily in skills, so he wasn't very bothered about what kind of dungeon they would be raiding.

As they stepped through, the four of them came to a very unexpected place on the other side.

"Ahh great, the floor's wet and muddy, way to stain my style." Aug complained.

"This seems to be some kind of swampy forest. Be careful as we move through, and we'll use the trees as much as possible…" Before Solomon even said this, Aug was already on top a tree branch listening from there.

"…Our first objective is to find a place to place this, let's move." Solomon said.

. . .

While Ren was looking forward to an easy raid, a particular set of people were rather lost within a swampy forest.

"I think we've been here before already, Ray," Isaac said, wearing a serious and frustrated expression.

"Yeah, and I don't think that's all we have to worry about." Ray looked the same as he spoke, so did everyone else.