The Water Magician

At that time, approximately one thousand members of the Royal Central University research team had arrived at the end of the eleventh layer, in front of the stairs leading down to the twelfth layer.

Originally, the research team, led by Director Clive, believed that the cause of the great tsunami was the monsters that resided below the thirty-eighth layer.

They were in a hurry and had not conducted a thorough investigation of the eleventh layer.

However, they had discovered something that could not be ignored in front of these stairs.

"Indeed, this appears to connect to another space, doesn't it?"

"Yes. There is no doubt about that. However, to determine where exactly it leads, we need to investigate further..."

In response to Director Clive's inquiry, a researcher from the Department of Magic replied.

"Understood. This may be related to the occurrence of the great tsunami. For convenience, let's refer to it as a 'gate.' Please set up the equipment and thoroughly investigate this 'gate.'"

Following Director Clive's instructions, the equipment that had been transported was unloaded and set up.

What Clive named the "gate" was... a black entrance that had formed in the wall of the dungeon.

It was approximately five meters tall and four meters wide.

The entrance was black, and it was impossible to glimpse what lay inside.

Using several spells and magic tools, researchers from the Department of Magic confirmed that it connected to another space.

At least in the past, there were no records of such a thing existing in the Central Nations.

If that was the case, the likelihood that this "gate" was related to the great tsunami was exceedingly high.

Although it was different from the initial expectations of Director Clive and the research team from Central University, Clive was by no means incompetent.

He accepted that their assumptions were incorrect, and that this eleventh layer had some influence on the occurrence of the great tsunami.

At the center of it all, there was this "gate."

He had no qualms about accepting these facts.

(Although this was unexpected, it was worth hurrying. The fact that we can begin investigating this before other research teams is a significant advantage.)

While Director Clive was satisfied that they could lead the way, equipment was continually being brought in from behind, and researchers were flowing in.

The catastrophe struck suddenly.

And it happened for an absurd reason.

Director Clive caught the entire event out of the corner of his eye.

In their exhaustion, one of the porters carrying heavy equipment slipped.

As he tried to brace himself against the wall to avoid falling... that wall happened to be the "gate."

In words, it was just that simple.

Yet, despite being just that, the events that unfolded were intense.

In an instant, all the members of the Central University research team vanished from that spot.

All the humans in the eleventh layer disappeared.

And it was not just the eleventh layer; the people from the tenth layer also vanished in the same manner.

At that time, there was a research team from the red sword and the Royal Magic Guild in the tenth layer.

The academic research team on the great tsunami had been dispatched from three organizations.

The research team from the Royal Central University, led by Director Clive.

The research team from the Royal Magic Guild, headed by advisor Arthur.

And the research team from the Magical University, led by Chief Professor Christopher Bratt.

Compared to the former two, the research team from the Magical University had not acted quickly.

As of now, not a single member of the research team had even entered the dungeon.

However, many pieces of information regarding the great tsunami investigation had already gathered at Professor Christopher's desk.

He had already established a network of spies within both the Central University and the Royal Magic Guild research teams.

Initially, the most ambitious one among the research teams was Director Clive from the Central University.

Of course, this was to obtain the position of director of academia.