Hearing that entry to the dungeon was on a first-come, first-served basis, the students formed a long line at the entrance, all clamoring to get in first.

After observing a few quick-witted teams manage to get inside early, I casually left the entrance with Ethan. I hadn’t expected we’d be able to enter the dungeon on the first day of the Geology Exploration class anyway.

“At this rate, the line won’t die down for at least two days. Let’s secure a place to stay first, Lord Ethan.”

“Yes, Lilith.”

Entering a dungeon in this city required thorough preparation. Even aside from the return necklace the academy provided, we had to gather various items to last the two days inside the dungeon.

A rough map of the dungeon, which shifted its layout every time someone entered, was essential, as was recent information about what monsters had appeared. We also needed to restock preserved food for three days, and recharge the magical light tool just before heading inside.

Without these basic preparations, rushing into the dungeon would only result in... well, what we were seeing now.

“Ahhhh! Ahhh! It’s hot!!”

“Kyaaa! S-Someone, save me…!”

Barely five minutes after entering, we could hear the screams of a man and woman echoing from inside the dungeon.

They had likely rushed in without properly scouting the entrance and triggered one of the trap rooms near the front.

Judging by their screams, they must have been caught in a fire chamber. Poor souls.

“They got in first, and they didn’t even last five minutes. The next group can enter.”

“......”

Seeing that the dungeon wasn’t to be taken lightly, the next party hesitated, discussing whether they should go in right away or prepare a bit more. As they debated, a party of two large men pushed through and headed for the entrance.

“As students of the academy, how can you all be so scared! I, the eldest son of the Marquis of Auguste, will enter first!”

“Lord Karaham, please lower your voice. You’ll attract monsters, especially inside the dungeon.”

“Haha! Don’t worry, Lord Gwyn!”

“I’ve told you before, I’m not a noble.”

Karaham, the most common-sounding noble, and Gwyn, the most noble-sounding commoner.

It was an unusual combination, one I had never seen in the original story.

After all, at this point in the original, Karaham was supposed to be preparing to overthrow the empire in collusion with demons to avenge his sister Lizzy.

He should have been on a leave of absence from the academy, so I had expected him to tackle the dungeon solo. Seeing him buddy up with Gwyn was quite unexpected.

‘Well, Lizzy is now the treasurer of the Seraphina student council, and Gwyn is the vice president. I guess it makes sense.’

For some reason, they seemed to have found common ground and decided to team up for this exploration.

Normally, entering a dungeon unprepared would lead to death within a few hours, but something told me this duo would somehow scrape through.

Aside from them, the Hero’s party stood out as well.

“Alright, let’s prepare for the dungeon and meet back here. Cerista, gather as much holy water as you can from the church. Seraphina, get enough food and water for eight people for a week.”

“Yes, Hero!”

“Understood.”

“Natalie, can you handle the weapons? Sharpen your sword, Thomas’s spear, and Luke’s dagger. Thomas, prepare camping gear for eight people. We’ll need about three tents.”

“Got it, Hero!”

“Three tents, right?”

“Yeah. And Agnes, buy as many fully-charged magical light tools as you can. If possible, also get some emergency magic scrolls. Luke, collect the latest monster information from the dungeons.”

“Understood.”

“…So, what are you going to do?”

“I have something else to prepare. I’ll let you know when we meet back here at the dungeon.”

It seemed Gethmojoshegikgat’s Hero party was also preparing to enter the dungeon.

The large dungeon they were aiming for was so challenging that no other group would dare attempt it. They’d likely finish their preparations and enter by this evening.

In the original story, I would have joined that party, taking the place of Thomas or Luke, but now my place was at Ethan’s side, so that was no longer relevant.

“Hero, what should I do?”

“Uh, Selena... well...”

“......”

“If it looks like another party is about to enter before us…”

“Should I stop them? With arrows?”

“No, no! Don’t do that... Um...”

“......”

“…Just stay here and wait quietly until we’re ready to go in, alright?”

“...Am I useless?”

“No, no, no! You’re our strongest member, so I want you to save your strength for the dungeon...”

…He’s really trying hard.

Still, Gethmojoshegikgat looked like he was starting to grow into his role as the leader of the Hero party. Glancing at them, Ethan and I made our way toward the dungeon city.

Most of what the Hero had just mentioned were things Ethan and I also needed to prepare, so with only two of us, we had to move even faster.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

After securing a place to stay, Ethan and I divided up the tasks for preparing to enter the dungeon.

Ethan would handle weapon maintenance and camping gear, while I would gather magical tools and a map of the dungeon.

There was no need to gather information, thanks to my knowledge from my past life, and we agreed to buy the food and holy water on the morning of the day we entered the dungeon, as it would be fresher.

“What if the line is still long after three days, Lilith?”

“Then we’ll have to enter on the following day. But with thorough preparation, we should be able to clear the dungeon in a single day, so there’s no need to worry, Lord Ethan.”

“Well, if that happens, it just means I get to spend another day with you at the inn.”

“…Yes, that’s right.”

Honestly, spending another day at the inn wasn’t a bad thing for me. It would just be an extra day to relax with Ethan, and it felt like a nice little extension of our time together.

The fact that it might delay the day I’d give Ethan his promised reward didn’t bother me at all.

“In that case, I’ll go get the magical tools and the dungeon map. Don’t forget your tasks, Lord Ethan.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything.”

To prepare efficiently, Ethan and I parted ways for a while.

After splitting up at the entrance to the inn, the first place I headed was the adventurers’ guild in this 'Dungeon City.'

‘Mapmaker Max appears at the adventurers’ guild on the first day, and then moves to the information guild on the second day.’

I had to buy a map from Max on the first day at the adventurers’ guild. If I waited until the second day, when he moved to the information guild, the price would no longer be negotiable.

The information guild knew that the academy students were in the city for their exploration class, and they’d be looking to make a hefty profit by selling maps and information at inflated prices.

Especially since the noble students from the academy were willing to pay a hefty sum for reliable information, this was a golden opportunity for the information guild.

‘But to avoid overpricing, they sell the maps a little cheaper on the first day at the adventurers’ guild to draw attention.’

Once word spread that the maps were accurate, the prices would soar afterward, making it a worthwhile investment for the information guild.

Of course, you could also buy maps from general stores in the dungeon city. They were much cheaper than what Max sold. But those maps were from nearly 100 years ago and practically useless.

The general store maps didn’t account for the expansions and discoveries made over the past century, meaning you couldn’t find hidden rewards or safe resting spots.

As soon as I entered the adventurers’ guild, I saw mostly adventurers who made their living off the dungeons in this city. Among them, I spotted a few academy students, the smarter ones, who had come to gather information rather than rushing into the dungeon.

Since I wasn’t here to gather information, I headed straight toward a small table in the corner, where a man in shabby clothes was sitting alone.

Mapmaker Max. He was the person I absolutely needed to meet if I wanted to pass the Geology Exploration class without complications.

And of course, if I needed to meet him for the dungeon conquest, that meant...

“Excuse me, I’d like to buy a dungeon map.”

“Could you sell me the map of the largest dungeon?”

...That Gethmojoshegikgat, reading my strategy guide, would inevitably be here to meet him as well.