...

When Izroth fell through the puddle, he descended into darkness.

Then, a few seconds later, Izroth emerged, standing upright in what could only be described as a waiting room.

The room was approximately ten meters in diameter and shaped like a perfect cube. Its surface was made of stone-like materials, with some wooden benches running along the walls where one could take a seat.

'Where is this place?'

Izroth opened his system interface to check his coordinates; however, it was marked as "???". Though he was not too surprised by the result considering their unusual mode of transportation.

'This area... If I'm not mistaken, we're in an isolated pocket of space. If so, it explains why my Energy Vision Sense cannot penetrate past our immediate surroundings. It's just as Sacred Blade predicted. This place is completely cut off from the outside world.'

Izroth closed out his system interface and walked over to join Sacred Blade and the others. At the moment, they were standing in front of a transparent wall that seemed to be a barrier meant to restrict their movements.

On the other side of the wall was a spacious area with a dark and gloomy atmosphere. But, there did not seem to be any monsters or people in the vicinity.

"We just got here, and we've already hit a wall," Niflheim said as he tapped his finger against the barrier, creating a ripple-like effect on its surface—like a pebble dropping into a still body of water.

"How is it?" Sacred Blade inquired as he looked over at Morrighan.

Morrighan closely examined the barrier in silence. But, after studying it for just a few seconds, she shook her head.

"This barrier lacks the basic building blocks of magic—it was not conjured with the use of mana. As a result, it is not possible to force our way through this pocket of isolated space utilizing a standard approach." Morrighan's charmingly pleasant voice sounded for the first time.

"Then, what should we do? It's not like we can give up and go back empty-handed." Colorful Nimbus said jokingly.

"Hm... If what the Phantom Queen says is true, there may be a way through the barrier without the use of force. The question is if there is a way, how do we go about discovering it? Though since we've just arrived, I believe we should refrain from moving about too much. This room may appear safe on the surface, but there's no telling what can happen at this point." Niflheim commented.

"I agree. If we get too careless just because there are no signs of danger, we may end up paying the price for it. For now, let's focus on finding a safe way to reach the other side of this barrier. After all, I'm sure that's where the crusade truly begins." Sacred Blade stated.

At the same time, Izroth took a moment to study the barrier himself. Even though his Energy Vision Sense was not functioning at its full potential due to some unknown interference, that did not mean it was entirely unusable.

'It's just as she said, whatever this thing is, it's not a magic barrier. If that's the case, I probably wouldn't be able to reach the other side even with my Space Defying Tread. As for forcing my way through... I'm afraid it's beyond my current capability.'

As Izroth studied the wall and the members of his party discussed their next course of action, a voice of unknown origins abruptly sounded from a few meters behind them.

"Well, what do we have here?" The voice echoed.

"?!" Hearing a voice that did not belong to any of them, everyone turned around and immediately prepared for battle!

Niflheim positioned himself at the front of the group as he drew his sword, and a shield materialized in his hand.

Soon, everyone followed suit and similarly brandished their weapons!

The only one who did not draw their weapon was Izroth. But, that was not to say that he was not also taken aback by this sudden new arrival.

Izroth's eyes landed on the person who revealed themselves out of thin air.

From their physique, they appeared to be a healthy male. But, their facial features were hidden by a blank white mask with a curved smile carved into it.

They wore a black suit with a tie, and their short hair was neatly combed back.

'I couldn't sense their presence. Even now, I still can't sense it.'

Since Izroth could not entirely rely on his Energy Vision Sense to gauge his surroundings, he had been on high alert from the moment he entered his new environment.

Very little could escape Izroth's monstrous senses; however, this person managed to sneak up on him without exposing the slightest hint of their presence! Not to mention, it was in a small room with nowhere to hide!

"Please, please, no weapons." The mysterious person said as they snapped their fingers.

A brief flash of light went off. Then, the next moment, everyone's weapons disappeared without a trace!

Everyone was startled by the sudden disappearance of their weapons. Those were all high-grade pieces of equipment that they painstakingly acquired. But now, they were gone just like that!

Their facial expressions darkened as their gazes locked onto the mysterious person who was behind their missing equipment.

"My, how scary you all are. But, do not fret. I shall return your weapons momentarily. It has been longer than I can remember since I have last had the pleasure of welcoming visitors. As my precious guests, please, do make yourselves comfortable. Ah, pardon my manners. Would you like some tea, perhaps?" The mysterious person spoke eloquently.

"Who are you? Return our equipment to us immediately." Colorful Nimbus said in a solemn tone.

"..." The mysterious person fell silent for a few seconds before releasing a sigh.

"I was looking forward to spending some quality time with my new guests. It's not every century I get to entertain visitors, you know? But, if it is answers that you desire—so be it. I shall return your weapons to you. However, I advise you to behave yourselves, or you may not see them returned so easily again." The mysterious person said as they snapped their fingers once more.

The equipment that disappeared earlier was returned to its rightful owners. And, although everyone did not trust the shady person in front of them, they had no choice but to comply with their requests until they figured out their purpose.

"First off, allow me to properly introduce myself." The mysterious person announced as they leaned forward slightly and bowed with an air of sophistication.

"I have no official name, but you may refer to me as 'Guide'. As it implies, I will be acting as your guide for the crusade you are about to face. While I will not be joining you personally on your venture, I have been tasked with explaining the rules of this crusade. Therefore, you can consider me to be an ally who is rooting for your success in every way possible." Guide explained unhurriedly.

Guide? So that's it! At the very least, it explained why they started off trapped in a room with no way out. That is if they were not somehow being deceived, and this was all not a part of a plan to get them to lower their guard.

However, they understood the chances that this "Guide" was telling the truth were reasonably high. After all, Guide had the power to disarm them with the snap of their fingers.

While they were not entirely powerless without their weapons, it would undoubtedly cut their power drastically, seeing as how many class-specific skills required certain weapons to be equipped.

"Of course, if you wish, you do have the option to begin the crusade without listening to the rules. I will not stop you." Guide stated.

When Guide finished speaking, Izroth and the rest of his party received an alert from the system.

〈System Alert: Would you like to begin your «Crusade»? [Ready: 0/6]〉

A thoughtful expression found its way onto Sacred Blade's face. He glanced over at Niflheim, who gave him a slight nod.

"Then, since it's your job to act as our guide, we'd like to hear the rules." Sacred Blade stated.

"An excellent choice," Guide responded.

"Allow me to begin by explaining to you how a crusade works. This particular crusade is divided into three separate stages. Clearing a stage is simple. You merely have to defeat any enemies that appear before you."

"Of course, each stage has an increasing level of difficulty that perfectly suits its challengers."

"However, I must caution you. Unlike the rankings you are used to, enemies in the crusade are divided into four classes—Minion Class, Guardian Class, World Class, and the strongest, Hero Class."

"After successfully clearing a stage, your group will be given the option to receive your respective prizes and be transported out of the crusade. Or, vote to move onto the next stage, where you have a chance of obtaining an even greater prize upon clearing it. But, all of you should weigh the choices you make very carefully. If you proceed to turn down your prize and fail to clear the following stage, you will walk away empty-handed." Guide explained.?