GBP Chapter 91 Missing
Chapter 91 Missing
While Morse was busy with his own things in the distance, the other members of the team in the instance were not having an easy time.
The team successfully overcame the rotten tree people and forest monsters, but they nearly lost their lives in the process.
The reason for this is Fred, who disrupted their state and weakened the team members.
Whoosh! Pfft!
"This is the last one."
With the final blow, the monster's head fell to the ground, and the team was finally able to catch their breath.
"Ha...you did a great job..." Captain Anya said between heavy breaths. Her clothes and armor were tattered, her body was covered in wounds, and some of her skin had even turned slightly black.
"Captain, are you alright?" Harry approached her, looking at her with concern. Without a doubt, Anya had taken the most damage in this battle; even though her shield had been discarded, she still used her own body as a shield.
"I'm fine...you don't need to worry."
"Are you really alright?"
"Yes. Thanks to Ethan, we were able to get out of trouble."
"Yes, I didn't expect him to be so strong. Indeed, the Hartley family lives up to its reputation."
The team was able to complete the raid quickly without any casualties, thanks to Ethan in the team.
Ethan was covered in blood, but it wasn't his; it was the blood of the monsters he had just slaughtered.
“Ethan, are you alright?” Emily asked, standing beside him. “You need to rest; you’re exhausted.”
“Ha…we have to find him…” However, Ethan’s gaze was not on her, but rather on the mist.
As the team caught their breath and tended to their wounds, the urgency of finding Morse weighed on their hearts. They knew time was of the essence.
Anya wiped the sweat from her brow, her eyes scanning her surroundings. "Ethan, we'll find him. But we need to regroup and make sure everyone can keep going."
Ethan nodded, though somewhat reluctantly. Despite his eagerness to find Morse, he understood the current situation.
Even if they have cleared the instance, there is still a possibility that other monsters may be lurking inside, and most importantly, Fred may have done something sabotage along the way.
He knew that acting on impulse alone would not solve the problem.
“I understand.” Ethan nodded and took out his spatial items. He took out a high-grade stamina potion and a healing potion and immediately swallowed them.
While the team rested and treated their wounds, Ethan was the first to regain his strength.
“I have to find him. We can’t waste any more time.” Time was of the essence for him; he didn’t want to waste any more. Ethan knew he wasn’t strong enough to fight the monsters roaming around them.
Furthermore, given Fred's actions, the monsters may have already begun to riot, which would make it even more difficult for Morse to resist.
"Sigh... alright... we're about done." Anya said, then stood up. Because her strength and level were higher than the others, and she was a tank class, she had a self-healing skill, so she could recover quickly.
“Let’s go, everyone…” She waved her hand, and the team members began searching for clues in the instance, trying to find Morse’s location.
They first searched the second phase but found no clues about Morse. Along the way, they killed many rampaging forest monsters, which was no longer a difficult task for them.
Then they arrived at the first stage, where there was no fog, but the rain continued to pour down.
Because the first phase covered a relatively large area, they decided to split up to search for clues.
As Ethan walked toward the entrance, he suddenly smelled a certain odor.
"This is...the smell of blood?"
He sensed something ominous. His prized intuition told him that something was amiss.
A rough, demonic aura permeated the air.
"Demonic energy."
He easily identified the source. The Hartley family was known for its martial prowess, but they were equally adept at eliminating those who sold their souls.
“Fred.”
The only person in this instance who can use demonic energy is that bastard he swore to kill.
"Could it be..."
As he approached the scene, he saw bloodstains all around. Ethan's ears perked up, his mind racing, flashing through every possible scenario. He couldn't shake the fear within him.
“Morse…no…” he murmured, his voice filled with sorrow.
He examined the scene closely, fear gripping his heart. He found Morse's blood scattered on the ground. "No, this can't be," he thought, his brain unable to accept the possibility. "Morse was talented, but he wasn't as strong as Fred. Did he die here?"
In his mind, although Morse was a talented hunter, he was still weak at the moment. He had personally experienced Morse's strength and knew that Morse was not powerful.
"what is this?"
As he walked a little further, he found a small piece of metal.
"bullet?"
It was a gun bullet. He wasn't an expert on bullets, but the bullet had some slight corrosion on it, as if it had been affected by some kind of energy.
He thought about it for a moment, but he couldn't understand where the bullet came from.
'This might be Fred's.'
He assumed it was Fred's because he didn't believe Morse had a gun. Guns with mana-enhanced bullets were expensive and difficult to manufacture, and Ethan knew Morse wasn't wealthy. He was an orphan; how could he possibly afford such an expensive weapon?
Just as he was about to continue walking, he suddenly felt the walkie-talkie vibrate.
"Ok?"
This is a simple device for communication within a replica. Because a replica is a space of a different dimension, it is impossible to use a smartwatch or mobile phone to transmit signals.
This walkie-talkie communicates via a magical frequency.
"What's wrong?" Ethan asked.
"Come to the dungeon entrance now." Anya's voice came from the other end, her tone slightly urgent.
"why?"
"We need to talk."
"What happened?"
You'll find out then.
Upon hearing this, although he still wanted to search around some more, Ethan knew that he had now found all possible clues.
There was no sign of a body, and apart from bloodstains and some bullets, there was almost nothing. Finally, he put the bullets in his pocket and headed towards the entrance.
......
"Captain, what does this mean?"
At the entrance to the instance, the five members of the team stood together, looking at each other.
Anya pointed to the portal that would take them into the instance and began to say, "When we finish this instance, we should have already been teleported out of the instance, and the portal should have closed."
This was a fact known to all the hunters, and Anya was very familiar with it as well. She initially overlooked this due to the urgency of the situation, but after a while, she realized it and immediately rallied everyone.
“However, none of this has happened yet,” Harry added, looking at the instance portal as well.
“That’s right,” Anya continued, “This is beyond the norm.”
As she spoke, her expression grew more serious. "This means either this instance won't be closed, or..."
“Or something is preventing it from closing,” Ethan continued, his gaze still fixed on the portal. “You mean someone tampered with the portal?”
"Yes."
"That must be Fred."
“Yes, it must be him. He was probably trying to escape from the instance safely; that should have been his plan from the beginning.”
“I understand.” Ethan lowered his head and began to ponder. “Then, this also means that staying in the dungeon has become dangerous.”
"That's right. We can't predict what will happen inside the instance right now."
"..." Just as Anya said, everything made sense. The concepts of portals and instances remained a mystery to humanity, so Ethan could understand her decision, but at the same time, he was unwilling to accept this fact.
Because it meant abandoning Morse, and he couldn't accept that decision.
“I know you don’t want to leave him here, Ethan, you have to understand, we’ve searched everywhere and found nothing. Either he’s already gone, or…”
"Stop talking."
Ethan, unwilling to listen to what Anya was about to say, looked up at the portal.
“Okay…” Anya realized Ethan was refusing to accept this fact, so she turned to the other team members. “I’ve contacted the association, and they will send a team to investigate this issue soon. The person in charge said we need to stay here for the time being to ensure there’s no possibility of the portal being leaked.”
After saying this, everyone began to wait. Waiting for the investigation team to arrive felt like a long, agonizing wait, because they couldn't relax.
This exploration was crucial for Emily and her guild members, as it was vital to their guild's future. But for Ethan, his primary concern was Morse.
Buzz!
The distant roar of vehicles broke the tense atmosphere as the Hunter Association's team arrived at the scene.
"Azure Crown Guild?"
“Yes. I am Anya Guzman, and this is my identification.” After confirming the members’ identities, they immediately began working, analyzing the portal and its surrounding area.
Anya briefed the investigation team on their raid, Morse's disappearance, and Fred's alleged involvement. The investigators carefully examined the dungeon entrance, the portals, and their mechanisms, looking for signs of tampering.
Several hours passed, and the investigators finished their inspection and sighed. "The door has been deliberately tampered with. Someone wanted to keep it open," one of the investigators reported to Anya.
Anya nodded, her expression serious. "Is there any way to fix it?"
"No repair is needed. The magical seal used to keep the dungeon open will soon run out, and the dungeon will close automatically."
Hearing this, Ethan approached the investigator. "What would happen if someone were still inside?"
"If anyone is still inside, it's hard to predict what will happen. They'll either be forcibly teleported out of the instance or they'll be trapped inside."
"..."
Ethan clenched his fists, a surge of anger and helplessness washing over him.
"Also, you are not allowed to enter the instance now."
"why?"
"This instance is currently under investigation and will be subject to control in accordance with Article 9, Paragraph 3 of the Instance Law. No hunters other than those authorized by the Association may enter this instance."
"but......"
“I’m sorry, I cannot allow you to re-enter the instance,” the lead investigator reiterated firmly.
Ethan felt a wave of frustration and despair. "You don't understand, my friend is still inside, and we don't have much time left. If we don't act quickly, we might lose him."
“I understand how you feel, but accessing a tampered copy is against regulations and the law. It’s too dangerous, not only for you, but for everyone involved,” the investigator explained firmly.
Anya stepped forward, attempting to mediate. "Are we really out of options? Are there no exceptions to this situation?"
The investigator sighed, understanding the gravity of the situation. "I wish there were exceptions, but we can't make an exception in this case. We'll seal the copy as soon as possible and begin a thorough internal search."
Upon hearing these words, Ethan clenched his fists, his eyes fixed on the dungeon entrance.
In the end, Ethan had no choice but to accept reality.
Hopefully, the instance will be able to forcibly teleport Morse out.
And so, the team members were asked to leave the portal...