My Slime Wife: Training and Pampering Her Makes Me Stronger
Chapter 17: Leaving a Dungeon

Chapter 17: Leaving a Dungeon

The exit from the final floor was far less spectacular than Liam had expected.

After defeating the enormous dragon and having Lydia store all kinds of useful materials from the dungeon inside her body—magic crystals, goblin fangs, spears, and even several medicinal plants that Millie insisted were valuable—the group finally reached the end of the path.

Standing before them was a gigantic tree.

Its trunk was so wide that it would take ten people holding hands to wrap around it.

And at the center of that trunk...

There was a simple wooden door.

Liam stared at it for several seconds.

"...I wasn’t expecting this."

Amber smiled.

"What weren’t you expecting?"

"I always thought the exit to a dungeon would be... I don’t know... a tower or something."

He scratched the back of his neck.

"After all, everyone talks about going up or down floors."

Amber chuckled softly.

"That’s normal. I thought the same thing when I first awakened my abilities."

She placed a hand on the door.

"Dungeons are spaces separate from our world. Like small pocket dimensions. The tower you see from the outside is just a physical representation. You’re never actually inside that tower."

Liam looked back at the door.

"So..."

"We just walk through it?"

"Exactly."

Evan stepped forward and turned the doorknob.

The door slowly creaked open.

On the other side...

There was nothing.

Only darkness.

Not the darkness of an unlit room.

An absolute void.

Liam swallowed.

"That looks... kind of terrifying."

Evan smiled.

"You get used to it."

Then he gestured politely.

"Ladies first."

The two women they had rescued approached hesitantly.

One of them took a deep breath.

"Well..."

"I guess there’s no other choice."

She stepped forward and vanished into the darkness.

The second woman did exactly the same.

A moment later...

She disappeared as well.

Liam’s eyes widened.

Before he could say anything, a message appeared.

[Lydia: Did you see that?!]

[Lydia: They just disappeared!]

Liam smiled.

’I guess it’s our turn now.’

[Lydia: I hope we come out on the other side...]

’Me too.’

He took a deep breath.

Then stepped into the darkness.

◇◆◇

Everything happened in the blink of an eye.

The chill of the forest disappeared.

So did the scent of damp earth.

When Liam opened his eyes again...

He felt concrete beneath his shoes.

He heard engines.

Car horns.

People talking.

The city.

They had returned.

Towering before him stood an enormous black tower that seemed to pierce the night sky.

The very same tower that had emerged from the street only hours earlier.

Now it was completely surrounded by security barricades.

Dozens of police officers kept the crowd at a safe distance.

Beyond the barricades stood hundreds of people.

And countless cameras.

The flashes erupted the moment the group appeared.

Liam instinctively shielded his eyes.

"That’s... a lot of people..."

Reporters immediately began shouting over one another.

"Vice-Captain Amber!"

"How did the expedition go?!"

"Were you able to conquer the dungeon?!"

"Any casualties?!"

"What happened inside?!"

At that moment, Amber, Millie, Evan, and the rest of the surviving members of the Ace of Swords Guild emerged.

The cameras immediately shifted away from Liam.

All attention focused on Amber.

The vice-captain remained perfectly composed.

She raised one hand.

"This isn’t the time for interviews."

The reporters continued shouting questions.

Ignoring them, she took out her phone and dialed a number.

After several seconds, someone answered.

"Captain."

Her tone changed immediately.

"We have a problem."

Liam managed to overhear part of the conversation.

"We couldn’t clear the dungeon."

"..."

"No."

"..."

Several hunters nearby lowered their heads.

Amber continued.

"We never reached the final floor."

"We barely managed to defeat the sub-boss on the second-to-last level."

She briefly glanced toward Liam.

"...Thanks to the help of some exemplary future hunters."

Liam felt a little embarrassed.

Amber continued speaking.

"We’ll need reinforcements."

"..."

"Yes."

"I’ll wait here."

She ended the call and put away her phone.

Then she turned toward her team.

"Good work."

The hunters lifted their heads.

"You survived."

"And that’s already a victory."

Millie smiled tiredly.

Evan let out a relieved sigh.

Amber continued.

"Backup will arrive soon."

"Until then..."

"We’re done for today."

"You’re dismissed."

Some of the hunters practically collapsed onto the ground.

Others simply laughed.

They had survived.

That alone was enough.

Amber then walked straight toward Liam.

She held a small black business card between her fingers.

"This is for you."

Liam accepted it.

Written clearly across the front were the words:

Ace of Swords Guild

Below that were an address and a phone number.

Amber smiled.

"You’ve already done more than enough today."

"You don’t need to stay."

"You can go back to your normal lives."

"And when you decide to officially become hunters..."

She pointed at the card.

"Come to that address."

"I’m certain they’ll accept you."

Liam bowed his head slightly.

"Thank you very much."

Amber waved dismissively.

"No."

"We’re the ones who should be thanking you."

She glanced briefly at the little slime resting inside Liam’s bag.

"Take good care of her."

Then she turned around and began organizing her team once more.

A message immediately appeared before Liam.

[Lydia: That woman has an incredible presence.]

Liam smiled.

’She does.’

’But she also seems like a genuinely good person.’

[Lydia: I like her.]

He carefully slipped the business card into his wallet.

It felt more valuable than any identification card he owned.

Maybe...

It was the first step toward his new life.

A few moments later...

Another message appeared.

[Lydia: So.]

[Lydia: What do we do now?]

Liam fell into thought.

Then...

His stomach growled so loudly that even two nearby police officers turned to look.

"..."

He placed a hand over his stomach.

"...I’m hungry."

Lydia answered immediately.

[Lydia: Hahaha.]

[Lydia: Me too.]

"First..."

Liam said quietly.

"Let’s buy something for dinner."

"I think after everything that happened today..."

"We’ve earned it."

He took a few steps forward.

"And tomorrow..."

He looked at the bag where Lydia was resting.

"Tomorrow we’ll sell everything you collected."

[Lydia: Yes!]

[Lydia: We gathered so much stuff!]

[Lydia: We’re definitely going to get rich!]

Liam laughed softly.

"I don’t know about rich... But we should at least be able to pay a few bills."

He started walking toward the edge of the security perimeter.

The cameras were still focused on the hunters.

He assumed he’d slip away unnoticed.

He was wrong.

A reporter stepped directly into his path.

"Excuse me!"

"Could you tell us what it was like being rescued by the Ace of Swords Guild?"

Another reporter immediately shoved a microphone toward him.

"What was it like being inside a dungeon?!"

"Were you terrified?!"

"Did the hunters protect you the whole time?!"

Liam smiled awkwardly.

"No comment."

He tried to keep walking.

Another microphone blocked his way.

"Sir!"

"What do you think of Vice-Captain Amber’s performance?!"

Liam simply gave a polite nod.

"Excuse me."

He continued walking without stopping.

A new message appeared.

[Lydia: Hahaha.]

[Lydia: If only they knew we were the ones who saved them.]

Liam had to suppress a laugh.

’Let them believe whatever they want.’

’For now...’

’I’d rather nobody know who we are.’

[Lydia: Yeah.]

[Lydia: Though I have to admit... it’ll be hilarious to see their faces when they finally find out.]

Liam smiled as they finally left the security perimeter behind.

The enormous tower still illuminated the city in the distance.

The reporters continued surrounding the members of the Ace of Swords Guild.