Shocked by what was unfolding before them, it was Andrea who made the first move. With a pleasant bow and charming smile, her voice was laced with charisma and remorse as she apologized.

  “Andrea Fenimore, it is such a pleasure to meet you and for us to be in such a splendid garden. This here is Varkana, Nolan, and Lorien, respectively. And I am truly sorry for the uncouth behavior our companion has caused you.”

  Hearing her praise the garden, Evangeline smiled brightly, and her voice was filled with joy and pride as she replied to Andrea.

  “It is such welcome news to hear you say such about our garden, Ms. Fenimore. After all, is it not splendid work that father has done? It is my pride and joy to take care of it. And please, there is no need for you to apologize as such for your company's behavior.“

  “Thank you for such kind words, Madam Seraphim, and please, just Andrea is fine with me.”

  “Very well, Andrea. You may as well call me Evangeline. That goes for every one of you and for father’s other children. After all, father has many and will have more children. It would be quite troubling if you all addressed us by our family names.”

  Meanwhile, Andrea has been subtly gesturing to her party members to greet Evangeline and for Lorian to apologize. They got the message, waiting for the right moment, as Andrean signaled the moment.

  “Varkana, nice to meet you.”

  “Nolan, may blessings be upon you.”

  “Lorien, I humbly apologize for the behavior I have done.”

  They greeted her with a careful and respectful attitude. After all, it would do them no harm to say pleasantries to an unknown being. Evangeline returned a polite bow as she introduced herself.

  “Evangeline, it is a pleasure to meet our guests, and I accept your apology. It was the first time I had experienced something like this, and the feeling was less than pleasant, causing my reaction to be more than necessary. I do apologize for startling you. I give you my permission to see me, though not all.”

  Lorien was relieved that this being was not unreasonable. In his years of dungeon inspecting, it wasn’t like he hadn’t met intelligent-speaking dungeon monsters on high-level floors. However, there were all voices that tricked and hindered intelligence used in order to kill efficiently. This one, however, wasn't like anything he had encountered, especially this ‘father’ was more than unusual.

  “Thank you for your permission, excuse me.”

  Appraisal

  Lorien once again looked through the information appearing before him.

  ‘She is capable of thought and emotion, blocking out and selecting what to show. From the information she said, this' father' should be the dungeon core. Then just what is she?’

  Then Evangeline speaks in all their minds, stopping Lorien's thoughts.

  “Now, before any questions, I shall give a simple explanation this garden is for you and future guests to enjoy. You may pick, harvest, and reap whatever you see fit. Able to do whatever you desire with them.”

  Andrea skillfully interjects, asking a question.

  “And what would the price be for us to gain such delectable treats?”

  Then, a smile formed on Evangleine's wooden face, warm and embracing, yet somehow, Lorian's senses were catching something eerie.

  “The price is to enjoy. Savor it, devour it, hunger for it, eat till you can eat no more. That is the price. Of course, I must warn you that the further the sections are to the entrance, the more dangers will follow. In addition, each section reigns a lord, my brothers and sisters, who will do what they can to defend. Though I doubt any of this matters for such skilled individuals as your selves.”

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  Andrea gave a pleasant smile and a slight bow.

  “Thank you for your information.”

  “Of course, now for your rewards.”

  Soon, they all felt a strange mana brush over them lightly. They were tense but tried to relax, feeling no malice.

  Soon, something fell from the sky to each one of them. As they got closer, they eventually slowed down and finally floated in front of them. They were fruits, each different for the person. For Lorien, they were grapes, Andrea was a peach, Varkana was a pear, and Nolan was an apple. Each one of their favorite fruits respectively.

  Analyze

  Lorien didn’t get anything more out of it, it was simply a grape. One that was imbued with far more mana than he had ever encountered, but a grape nonetheless. He was wary about its danger but relented when he saw the others eating it already.

  He plucked one grape, putting it to his mouth as he chewed. Then, a burst of flavors and juice hit him. It was sweeter, tangy, and refreshing than any grape he had ever eaten. The skin was soft and unnoticeable while chewing without any seeds, it somehow had a cool and refreshing feel to it even though it wasn’t cold, with so much juice exploding once the grape burst.

  His heightened senses allowed him to enjoy and feel them more as he eventually swallowed. Seeing the reaction of the others, he guessed that it wasn’t just his only.

  A joyful laugh filled their heads.

  “I’m glad you all enjoyed it. Now, why not adventure and seek this garden now that you know what it holds? Oh, and another thing, more of a request, you see.”

  Then, something flew towards them, landing on Evangeline's arm. It was a bird, except it was made entirely out of a mango.

  “You may find them everywhere in this garden, they are the gardeners and my children. They will not be hostile unless provoked, so I ask you to leave them alone. Of course, I have no trouble if they desire to fight if respectfully challenged.”

  Then the bird flew away as her upper half figure started to merge with the pillar, reverting to its state before she spoke her last words.

  “And once again, thank you for coming to our garden, our most welcomed guests.”

  Soon, they sat down on one of the benches with a table in the middle. Lorian and Andrea both activated a device to isolate them from the dungeon and Evangelin from hearing, while Nolan created a barrier for extra measure.

  Lorian relaxed a little once inside but was still tense as Varkana was the first one to speak.

  “What in the gods was that!”

  Though he didn’t know if that helped with his troubled mind, sighing, he started to share what he had observed using Appraisal.

  “A tree, how is that a tree? Just because it is made out of wood, and how can there be a boss monster so soon?”

  Varkana asked Lorian, as he is the expert in dungeons, yet Lorian was only capable of answering one of them.

  “It is a tree. Look up.”

  They all looked up but couldn’t figure it out. Even Lorian had to use his skill to see it clearly.

  Piercing Eyes

  As the view from above became closer, he could see that what they were seeing wasn’t directly the sky but leaves and glowing fruits that looked like stars from below, as he explained to them.

  They all were surprised by the fact, but not as much as Lorien, as it defied everything he knew about dungeons.

  “Look, this dungeon is clearly intelligent, and the boss monster, too. I know I cannot use the dungeon knowledge I have to judge, but this is weird. If you know, intelligent dungeon monsters capable of speech are more like avatars of the dungeon core. They remember you when you meet the other higher floor boss monster in the same dungeon and speak and behave as if they are one. But this, she is speaking like she is separate from the core. She designates it as father.”

  He knew he was venting, he didn’t expect them to know any more than him, but he didn’t expect this to happen to him ever in his life. He was the representative of his country, but he didn’t want to do anything with this. He just wanted to retire and relax, not be thrown into something clearly above his pay grade.

  ‘Why did I have to be friends with the prince.’

  “She isn’t lying.”

  Then Varkana speaks up, and they all look toward her as she continues.

  “I don’t care about how dungeons are supposed to be, I care about what is and what is happening in front of me. And what I know is that she never lied to us.”

  Varkana, the Truth Seeker, rumored to be able to see through any lies and trickery. No illusion had worked on her. Though I didn’t think it would work on such beings.

  “So, I say we investigate this dungeon and try to complete the main quest and see that core.”

  Lorian thought he might be thinking too hard. Let the higher-ups do the thinking and figuring out. All he had to do was, as usual, investigate this dungeon and write a report about it later.

  “Sure, let’s do that.”

  Nolan followed after Lorian.

  “It is only natural that I investigate in order to comprehend The Systems' guidance.”

  Only Andrea was not about to join in.

  “Yeah, no. Look, you three go out and investigate as much as I’m staying here and doing my thing.”