As the man collapsed groaning in pain, an incredible amount of blood spilled out onto the floor; enough to make one wonder just where it had all come from. His body went into convulsions as he neared death.

Having determined that it was a fatal wound, Climb maintained his stance and remained cautious as he retreated to a corner of the room. Behind him, he heard Brain run up the stairs leading to the second floor.

Having confirmed that the only things in the interior were ordinary furniture, Climb ran for the next room.

A minute later.

Having searched around each of their respective floors and confirming that there were no more enemies, Climb and Brain met up at the entrance.

“I searched the first floor and saw no signs of other people.”

“Same with the second floor. The fact that there aren’t even any beds here probably means that this isn’t where they sleep… Like I thought, there’s a secret passage and they live on the other side.”

“About that secret passage, did you manage to find it? I doubt that it would be on the second floor.”

“No, I couldn’t find anything like that. Like you said, it’s probably the first floor.”

Climb and Brain looked at one another and searched the interior.

Climb didn’t have any thief skills and could not find anything by simply searching the area. If they could take their time and had fine powder like flour with them, they could have scattered them over the area and blown on it. The powder would have fallen into the cracks of the secret entrance and made it easier to find. However, they had neither the flour nor the time to spare. Climb took out a magic item from his pouch.

It was a set of small hand bells given to him by Gagaran of Blue Rose.

『Even if it’s dangerous to go adventuring without a thief, there’ll be times when you won’t have a choice. When that happens, this’ll make a world of difference. 』

That was what she said when she gave him this item. Climb compared the pictures drawn on the side of the three bells and picked out the one he wanted.

The name of the magic item that he had taken out was ‘Bell of Detect Secret Doors’.

He could feel Brain looking at him curiously as he shook it once. A refreshing tone rang out, a sound that only the user could hear.

In response, a pale light gathered at a section of the floor. The light flickered repeatedly, indicating the location of the secret door.

“Hoh, that’s a convenient item. All of mine are only for strengthening myself and things useful in battle.”

“But is that not obvious for a warrior?”

“A warrior huh…”

Having memorized that spot, Climb separated from Brain who was wearing a bitter smile and circled around the first floor once. The magical effects of this item had a time limit. It was necessary to investigate as many places as possible before the time was up. Although he did a lap around the floor, aside from the first, there were no other areas that reacted to the magic.

Their next course of action was to infiltrate through this door. However, Climb narrowed his eyes and stared at the secret entrance. He then breathed a sigh and again, took out the set of three handbells.

The one he chose this time had a different picture than the one before it. And like before, he shook it.

A sound that was similar yet different from the other rang out.

‘Bell of Remove Trap.’

Be cautious of your surroundings. As a warrior, Climb had neither the ability to detect traps nor a way to handle them should he fall into one. If they had a magic caster, then even if he were to get hit with a paralyzing poison, he could be treated. However, there were only two warriors here. Among martial arts, ones that nullified poisons did exist. However, Climb had not learned them and didn’t have an antidote with him either. He had to assume that he would be doomed if he fell into one.

That was why he had to use an item with a limited number of uses per day without hesitation.

A heavy click sounded from the secret door.

Climb stuck his sword between the edges of the door and forced it open.

The bent side of the wooden floor sprang up and fell to the other side. A crossbow had been set inside the secret entrance. Light reflected oddly off of the tip of its quarrel.

Climb changed his position and stared at the crossbow.

The tip was covered in some viscous liquid. The odds were ten to one that it was poison. If they had tried to open it carelessly, it would have fired the quarrel dipped in poison.

With a small breath of relief, he looked for a way to get rid of the crossbow. Unfortunately, it was set quite firm and it did not seem like he would be able to disarm it without tools.

Having given up, Climb peered into what was through the secret door.

A steep set of stairs led downwards and he could not see anything beyond it due to the angle. Both the stairs and areas around it were packed with stones, making it seem very sturdy.

“So, what’re you going to do? Are you going to wait here?”

“It’s a bit difficult for me to fight indoors. If possible, I would like to go and find a place that’s wide and easy to fight in and attack their position there.

“Considering a 1v1 situation, you’d have a higher chance of winning if you waited at the top of the stairs. But if there’s a battle, there’s a chance that I would be too far ahead to hear it… And since reinforcements might come running, we should definitely forget about that idea. Then let’s go together.”

“Yes. I leave myself in your care.”

“I’ll lead the way. Follow a bit further behind me.”

“Understood. And although the item that I used a moment ago to clear the trap can be used three times per day, it can’t be used consecutively and need a thirty minute interval between uses. We can’t rely on the item.”

“Got it. I’ll advance with the utmost caution. And if you detect something then give me a shout.”

After saying that, Brain moved to the front and walked down the stairs. Just in case, he advanced one step at a time while prodding the ground in front of him with his katana. Climb followed him from behind.

At the bottom of the stairway, the ground and even the walls were lined with hard rocks. A few meters ahead, they saw a wooden door with its edges reinforced with steel.

Although it was difficult to imagine that they would place a trap at the level of the crossbow in the passage with the emergency exit, it was common for heavily armed warriors to be incapacitated by a single floor trap. That had to be avoided at all costs.