Dungeon Raider System-Chapter 582: The haunted house

Bella had absolutely no clue about what did she sign up to and simply followed Miss Dragonfang to wherever she was taking her. It wasn't that she didn't know that cryptids inhabited the city, she just didn't care to hunt inside or outside city walls.

Money was meaningless to her and she had no sense of duty, what she had instead was a bad case of boredom which Uriel took advantage by making her an offer she couldn't refuse.

She didn't want to stay one more minute bored inside the Pegasus, but contrary to the rest of the company, the lights of Hollywood city didn't arouse her interest in the slightest. She had been to many different megacieties including Hollywood and after a while they all seemed the same.

Walls were built exactly the same and most skyscrappers were ugly rectangular boxes that went as high as the eye could see, even the commercial districts were similar since they offered the same products everywhere and the only difference was their availability and price.

"What did he offer you?" Miss Dragonfang asked right before stepping inside the alleged haunted house.

"Excuse me?" Bella had no clue about what was she talking about.

"You come from a wealthy family so I assume you're not here to make a few extra bucks, you can fly on your own and unlike your brother, cryptids can't harm you..."

"They can harm me, just not physically." Bella said loud enough for the rest of the party to hear. Even if there weren't any cryptids nearby, she didn't want her party to rely solely on her to do the fighting or use her as a meatshield.

"Whatever," Miss Dragonfang dismissively waved her hand, then continued. "What could someone like you possibly want as a reward for participating into this incursion?"

"Oh! Well, that's a secret." Bella tapped her lips a couple times with her index finger without making a sound due to her ever present air barrier.

"Come on, don't be like that. He'll tell us anyway." Miss Dragonfang lied.

"Fine, he offered me to join your company. He wants me to share the knowledge I have and wants me to take part in incursions."

"And you accepted?" Phlox asked with a dumbfounded look on her face.

"Of course not, but I was bored and he said participating in an incursion might be entertaining for me while also giving me experience against cryptids. I'm very good at fighting other people, but cryptids... they give me the creeps." Bella shuddered.

"I see, so if you end up liking incursions you'll join us." Miss Dragonfang nodded.

"How did you manage to survive up until now being so naive is the mystery I'd like answers to." Phlox shook her head.

"Your company can't afford to offer me an amount of money that would entice me without going bankrupt and I have nothing to gain by participating on incursions."

"That's too bad, I was hoping you would stay with us." Miss Dragonfang lamented having placed money on Bella becoming Uriel's girlfriend.

"Ow! That is so sweet, I'll tell you what, I'll think of something reasonable to ask him if I like this incursion." Bella smiled genuinely at Miss Dragonfang mistaking her shameless attempt at manipulating the odds in her favor for an honest attempt to become friends.

Being one of the few things that couldn't be bought with money, true friendship was a highly coveted luxury most people from wealthy families couldn't afford.

Money had always been a form of power, though contrary to most cases, it could be spent, lost or even stolen. Because of that, people who had it became distrustful and those who didn't have it were willing to go through great lengths to obtain it. Even something as devious as pretending to be someone's friend.

"It seems we made it, this place fits the description in the folder." Phlox informed while pointing at an old looking house in shambles. It may have seemed like a sign of poverty, but just the wood it was made of would have been worth a fortune inside city walls which prompted the rest of the party to wonder why no one bothered to scavenge it.

"Wow!" Miss Dragonfang gaped at the uncanny sight of the old looking building.

"That's a house, you may not be familiar with that kind of building since only rich people can afford them because contrary to skyscrappers, they take a lot of space for too few people."

"I know what a house is, I've been to the lost city many times!" Miss Dragonfang grumbled.

"Oh, the lost city," Bella nodded, then a question came up. "do you think our old city will become a lost city?"

"It already did, that's why they're not letting any hunters outside." Miss Dragonfang explained.

"How do you know?" Bella tilted her head.

"I used to be a lieutenant and that sort of thing has happened before. Whenever a city falls, all the nearby megacities open their borders for refugees. Since they don't bring their possessions along, they usually end up becoming slum dwellers which increases crime.

By preventing hunters from going on incursions they lower crime rates while also keep them from blindly following their greed to the fallen city." Miss Dragonfang explained and Phlox gave the finishing bit of information.

"The city may have fallen, but a lot of hunters decide to loot and scavenge what they can before cryptids nest inside while others keep defending the city despite it being lost already."

"That's sad." Bella's mood dropped to the ground and her expression shifted accordingly once she realized that she took part in kicking out some of the survivors out of the dungeon. Most of those who left were hybrids, she also didn't kill any of them and was only following orders, but that did little to ease her guilt.

"So, what now?" Phlox tapped her feet on the ground and Miss Dragonfang replied after making a mess of the sheets inside the folder that was given to her.

"Uhh, huh, here, it says that we should be on the lookout for ethereal cryptids that resemble people who actually existed. Their abilities are unclear, but are thought to be impervious to any sort of harm since they are already... dead." Miss Dragonfang read the last part after gulping down a lump of saliva that left her with a sore throat.

"Great, how do we kill them then?" Eager to be done with her mission and earn some extra cash, Phlox didn't want to waste any more time in front of the gate.

"We don't, it says here we are not supposed to face them and should just confirm whether or not they're present. In case we cannot run, Luna says we should sprinkle them with salt, holy water and say prayers on their behalf."

"Does anybody here know how to pray?" Phlox asked, but Bella, Miss Dragonfang and even the fourth member who remained silent the entire time shook their heads. Needless to say, the reason why the poor Connor remained silent was because how intimidated he felt in the presence of three women.

Phlox had a strong character and the built of a boxer, Miss Dragonfang was warm and funny, but everyone in the company knew of her unsettling and powerful trait. Last, Bella's beauty made her almost glisten in comparison to them and Connor didn't miss how she always kept her trait active.

"How did I get myself into this?" Connor muttered under his breath.

"Huh? Did you say something, maggot?" Bella turned her back on the metal fence gate to face Connor. Instead of a reply, Connor pointed his finger at the gate that silently opened by itself.

"Great! We don't have to break in!" Miss Dragonfang cheered as she stepped inside.

"It's the same to me." Bella proved her point by hovering above the fence in and out of the property a couple times.

"Ah! You're here! We've been expecting you, thank you so much for coming!" A man dressed like a butler waved his hand at them and Miss Dragonfang walked towards him without a hint of suspicion despite the fact that they didn't even announce their presence.

"Are you the man who posted this online?" Miss Dragonfang showed the desperate post describing the haunted house.

"Yes, please, come inside." The butler left the entrance door open, though as soon as the last party member crossed its threshold it closed on its own.

"No way!" Connor swiftly attempted to open the door, but he was left with the door knob on his hand.

"Don't worry about that, things like that happen all the time in here. I hope that sort of phenomena doesn't scare you, because it gets even worst at night." The butler left a bunch of keys in the counter and left without explaining anything.

"That guy isss weird..." Miiss Dragonfang hissed with a forked tongue as she tasted the air looking for clues, while Phlox looked at her smartphone confirming it still worked properly.

"What the hell, let's stay the night. What's the worst thing that can happen?" Phlox said, unsuspecting that by the same time the next day she would be wishing she never spoke those words.