Chapter 322: Missing

’Mana really is the best thing,’ Alex thought, feeling increasingly satisfied with its usefulness.

Emma, however, looked at him suspiciously. "Did you already know how to use this equipment? I mean, nobody remembers all these procedures after watching them just once."

Matthew also looked toward Alex curiously, apparently wondering the same thing. Before Alex could explain, however, Joseph spoke while helping Petra and the younger newcomer adjust their equipment.

"It’s probably his military training. They must have taught him how to use diving equipment as well," Joseph commented casually.

"Oh, right. That makes sense," Emma replied, nodding as though everything had suddenly become clear.

Alex sighed inwardly, wondering why everyone seemed so determined to believe he had received military training.

He wanted to explain that his memory had improved because of mana, but considering their obsession with his supposed background, he doubted they would believe him.

’Whatever. They can think what they want,’ Alex thought, deciding there was no point arguing about it.

Once everyone understood the procedures, they began changing into their diving suits. Alex found the tight-fitting material rather uncomfortable, especially since it made him feel unusually exposed, so he decided to wear some additional clothing over the suit.

While checking his equipment, Joseph suddenly noticed the manufacturer’s name printed on one of the components. "Wait, this equipment is from Aegis Dynamics? That’s surprising."

"What’s surprising about it?" Emma asked, looking toward him.

From the corner of his eye, Alex noticed Matthew stiffen slightly before continuing to adjust his oxygen cylinder.

Joseph glanced toward Matthew before explaining, " Aegis Dynamics was practically unknown a few years ago. Then it suddenly received a massive government contract to manufacture high-end equipment, but nothing ever came of it publicly."

He examined the manufacturer’s label again before continuing. "Nobody even knew whether the government filed a lawsuit against them. There were all kinds of rumors, with some people claiming it was a scheme by the government to steal the funds, while others believed the equipment had been delivered to some secret special service unit."

Everyone gradually turned toward Matthew, who immediately raised both hands upon noticing their expressions.

"There’s a CIA agent working with me in my city. He’s the one who gave me this equipment. You can ask Alex about him, since the guy even tried recruiting Alex into his team," Matthew explained.

Everyone turned toward Alex, who nodded in confirmation.

"There is a CIA special service agent in our city, or at least that’s what he claims to be. I haven’t actually verified his identity," Alex explained.

The group nodded and began preparing to dive, although Emma continued glancing at Matthew suspiciously.

Noticing this, Alex patted Matthew’s back reassuringly and smiled.

"Don’t worry about it. There’s no need to pay attention to their misunderstanding. I trust that you aren’t involved with any special service."

Matthew looked at Alex with a strange expression, apparently unsure how to respond. Eventually, he sighed and jumped into the water.

Mia and the two Netherclaw Prowlers followed without wearing any diving equipment, although Mia had assured everyone that they wouldn’t need it.

[You have entered the Sunken Vault Dungeon.]

Alex entered the water afterward and created several Fireballs, surrounding each with a Mana Sphere to protect them from the water.

Although the flames weren’t receiving oxygen, they continued burning because he was supplying them with Fire Element Mana.

’Do flames even need oxygen in this dimension? Could they burn using some other gas that doesn’t exist on Earth?’ Alex wondered.

Upon reaching the bottom, Samuel twisted the surrounding space while Daniel launched an Aura Slash toward the ground. The attack struck, causing strange patterns to glow beneath them before the floor opened with a hiss.

Water rushed into the opening, dragging everyone inside before they could react. They fell onto a solid surface and hurriedly stood up, noticing that the opening above them was already closing.

Alex looked around and froze upon seeing their surroundings.

"What the hell..." Emma muttered, staring in disbelief.

Alex turned toward Matthew, who had just stood up and was smiling. "So this is why instead of explaining the dungeon’s appearance, you said it would be better if we saw it ourselves."

Matthew nodded, confirming Alex’s guess.

Alex looked around, examining the Dungeon they had just entered.

A massive corridor stretched before them, although unlike the Titan Reef Crab and Badger Dungeons, its walls weren’t made of mud or stone. Instead, the entire structure appeared to be constructed from some kind of metal, and judging by the finishing, it was clearly artificial.

Several doors lined both sides of the corridor, although most had been smashed open. Vines and weeds had also begun growing across the walls, spreading through cracks and damaged sections of the structure.

’The Dungeon was called Sunken Vault, so I guess the name was quite literal. It must be an actual vault sank underground and a Dungeon formed inside it,’ Alex thought, finding the place increasingly interesting.

"Let’s be careful as we move. Monsters are obviously a problem, but if this place still has some functioning security equipment, it could be just as dangerous," Alex warned.

The others nodded, understanding that they had no idea what kind of technology the structure contained.

The group began advancing cautiously, checking the rooms behind the damaged doors as they passed. However, despite searching several of them, they found nothing particularly useful, nor did they encounter any monsters.

As they continued, the main corridor split into several smaller passages, making the structure considerably more complicated to navigate. Alex created several Mana Bullets and enclosed them within Mana Spheres, sending them through different passages to scout ahead and attract any nearby monsters.

However, even after searching for some time, he couldn’t detect anything unusual. There were no movements, attacks, or signs that any monsters had noticed his spells.

Alex frowned, finding the complete absence of enemies rather strange. Considering that this was supposed to be a Dungeon containing High Rank Species monsters, he had expected them to encounter resistance almost immediately.

"This is weird," Matthew muttered, apparently noticing the same thing. "When we came here yesterday, we encountered monsters long before reaching this area. There should’ve been even more of them today, considering we killed several and probably alerted the others."

..

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