Chapter 170: Leaving The Dangerous Place, Dropping Off The Rescued Captives

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Riven was taken aback as he carefully read the new messages. His eyes widened for a moment as he considered what this opportunity could truly mean... His Dungeon was already massive, spanning three full floors, yet the System was offering him the chance to combine them?

No... more importantly, wasn’t he eventually planning to open the gates of his Dungeon to ordinary people? Should he really risk fusing the two dimensions together right now?

Or... maybe combining them did not necessarily mean the Spiritual Realm would become unavailable to others?

"Perhaps I could still limit where people are allowed to go afterward?" he wondered for a moment. "Whatever the case, controlling both a Spiritual Realm and a Dungeon separately might become far too taxing over time. Fusing them could also produce... something never seen before and further increase the overall rank of the Dungeon." He thought carefully about the long-term possibilities.

"Riven?" Kagehisa asked with mild concern. "What’s wrong?"

"Hm, I’ve received an offer to mix this Spiritual Realm with my Dungeon," Riven explained. "What do you all think?"

"You can actually do such a thing?!" Kagehisa gasped in surprise. "Huh... well, that would be incredible if it works."

"Are you sure that’s even safe though?" Hinata asked cautiously.

"What if we all get thrown around and torn to shreds the moment the two dimensions start merging?" Goki wondered aloud with a worried frown.

"I don’t think it would be that destructive," Ren said calmly. "Well, in the end it’s all up to master’s own decision."

Riven nodded thoughtfully. "For the time being let’s go finish our meal, and let’s see if Label can wake up properly. Afterward, I’ll decide what to do."

The group returned to what remained of the ruined castle. They shared a fulfilling meal together and then watched as Label finally woke up from her short nap, fully recovered and looking much better than before.

"So that’s what happened... we actually won..." she nodded slowly as the events were explained to her. "Well, that’s a huge relief but... Aaahhh! My life has changed so much already! I was so used to living quietly in my little home every single day... what is going to happen to me now?! I have a really hard time getting used to sudden changes like this!"

"Don’t worry," Riven said gently. "You can live in my house for now and then move into the Dungeon whenever you feel ready. Well... after this is all settled, I actually plan on going on a trip somewhere else. There are a couple of other Dungeons I want to visit soon."

"I see..." Label sighed and nodded in acceptance. "Um... thank you for everything, Riven... I-I mean it... ugh, I still need at least a week to rest and process everything that has happened though."

Riven chuckled lightly and gently patted her shoulders. "Me too... but what awaits us in the near future probably won’t give me that much time to rest... It’s hard, but we have to keep pushing forward however we can. Nonetheless, with everything we’ve done here, we’ve already changed the future a great deal... what comes next is still unknown, but I am truly glad I was able to find companions I can trust."

Kagehisa, Hinata, Goki, and Ren all felt slightly surprised by Riven’s honest words. A little embarrassed perhaps, and also a bit stunned at how drastically their own lives had changed over the last few days.

"Haha, I guess so," Kagehisa shrugged with a small smile. "With this victory, I bet the Yokai Guild has received a massive hit. Once Ryujin’s father learns what happened to his son, it’ll be pure hell on earth for them. But because we’re not currently in Japan, I think we’re relatively safe for now. Still, we should get out of this place quickly just to be sure."

Riven nodded in full agreement. After carefully evacuating every single survivor into the safety of his Dungeon, he quickly left the Spiritual Realm together with his allies and Noir. Then he compressed the entire Spiritual Realm into his own soul for safekeeping.

As they returned to the underground tunnels, they could already hear the distant sound of police officers walking around and investigating the area. The entire restaurant above them having been blown apart had clearly brought a great deal of unwanted attention and commotion.

"I guess this is a good place to drop them off," Riven said quietly. "I cannot keep the captives with me permanently anyway. Even if some of them might want to stay, I’m firmly against slavery. They should be free to make something of their own lives from now on."

Riven entered his Dungeon once more and greeted the large group of people he had rescued. They had all gathered inside the Undead King’s castle. There were roughly over sixty of them in total — a massive number of survivors.

He briefly explained that he was going to drop them off safely and that the police outside would take care of them from there. Most of them looked happy at the thought of finally returning to their families. Others still appeared sad, quietly admitting that they really had nowhere left to return to. He hid his identity by covering himself on a black cloak made of his shadow self.

"I know some of you don’t have anything or anyone to return to, but life itself is a precious gift you cannot afford to waste," Riven explained firmly to everyone present. "I am sure that you will be taken care of properly until you can find your own path again."

"Can’t we stay with you instead?"

"We don’t even know your real name..."

"I have nowhere to go. I can work for you!"

"Sorry, although this Dungeon belongs to me, I really have no way to pay and properly maintain so many people right now..." Riven sighed. "It would also become extremely troublesome to constantly move such a large group between the Dungeon and the outside world... this has to be our goodbye. Please take care of yourselves."

The Giants standing behind Riven nodded in silent agreement as the rescued people sighed in resignation. Some still begged him not to send them away, but Riven held firm and proceeded with the plan anyway. He simply did not have the time or resources to worry about or take permanent care of so many people. He had rescued them, healed their injuries, and given them a second chance — that was already more than enough.

At the end of the day they were not his long-term responsibility, as cruel and cold as that truth might sound. With so little time remaining before the pruning of the Earth, Riven could not afford to waste a single moment.

Noir helped him carry out the final step, emerging from the underground and opening a huge black portal that would safely deposit the survivors near the waiting police officers.

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