The throne room, looked quite different from what it was the previous night... Probably because the frozen corpses were now gone.

Adrian calmly looked towards the throne where the king sat, that same amused smile from last night still rested on his face.

As though he hadn’t attempted to kill him just hours ago.

Behind Adrian stood Lucian, Noelle, and Aqua.

Renelle stood beside him silently, her icy blue eyes fixed on the king without the slightest change in expression.

But Adrian could feel the faint cold spreading from her mana.

She truly wanted to kill him, unfortunately, he wasn’t their problem.

"Welcome," the king finally spoke, his voice echoing throughout the hall, "I heard our honored guests have finally decided to challenge the black sea."

Lucian stepped forward since he was recognized as the leader of the group, "We have reason to believe that’s where the exit lies."

The king’s smile widened faintly afterward.

"And this must be Lady Renelle’s famous butler," his gaze shifted toward Adrian again, "quite the interesting man."

Adrian smiled politely, "You flatter me."

Lucian glanced between the two briefly noting that something felt... strange.

For some reason, it didn’t feel like this was their first meeting.

But before he could dwell on that thought too deeply, the king suddenly stood from his throne.

"I must thank you all," he said while slowly walking down the stairs, "hope has returned to this kingdom for the first time in years."

Renelle’s eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, still, she chose to say nothing.

"It’s our duty as spirit mages to help those weaker than us," Lucian spoke up, "so there’s no need for thanks."

Noelle nodded in agreement, after all, according to them, it was a given to use what you had to help others.

The king chuckled softly at that response.

"Well then," he said, "when do you plan to depart?"

"Tomorrow morning," Renelle answered coldly before anyone else could speak.

"I see," the king nodded before adding before he sat up straight, "since this expedition is in servitude to my kingdom, I’d like to offer my help."

Before the group could say anything, the large doors of the throne room suddenly creaked open once again.

In walked a man with a black robe, pale skin, and long black hair. His demeanor was calm, almost carefree, but the moment he stepped in, most immediately felt how dangerous he was.

"Oh?" The one who just walked in suddenly stopped mid-step and looked toward Adrian with surprise, "It’s you."

"What a coincidence," the smile on his face widened slightly afterward as he turned towards Renelle, "I see you’ve found the one you were searching for."

Adrian simply stared at him silently for a few seconds before responding, "Marion."

He wasn’t surprised, after all, he already knew that Marion had met the King and they personally knew each other.

The king, meanwhile, looked mildly annoyed by Marion’s sudden interruption but still spoke up, "This is the man I wished to introduce."

Lucian frowned slightly.

"You know him?" he asked while looking toward Adrian.

"We crossed paths in the ruins outside the forest," Adrian answered calmly.

"A rude way to describe our encounter," Marion sighed dramatically, "we shared breakfast and even braved the dangers of the world beyond the walls together."

"...." The group looked at this with a blank expression for a while before Lucian turned towards the king and said, "We appreciate the help, but Lady Renelle and her butler will be going into the dark sea where the corrupted mana is the highest, so I’m not sure it’s wise to send him with them."

"Don’t worry about me," Marion answered with a smile, "although not fully, I can resist the corruption far better than most."

"This is Marion," the king said, "one of the few who entered this dungeon with us, and the only one who has survived outside the walls the longest, I believe he should be of help."

"Can he be trusted?" Aqua asked bluntly and Marion answered before the king could.

"Absolutely not."

"..."

"But," he added with a grin, "I currently have no reason to sabotage you either."

"That doesn’t make me feel better," Darius muttered from the back.

"I have been searching for a way out of this hellhole the longest," Marion said again, "so I’m not just going to throw away the only possible way out."

Lucian let out a quiet sigh after his words.

At this point, refusing Marion’s help would likely just create unnecessary problems.

Especially when they were about to enter the black sea.

Still, his instincts screamed at him that bringing this man along was a terrible idea.

"So?" Marion tilted his head slightly while looking toward Adrian again, "what do you think?"

Adrian remained silent for a few moments.

Truthfully,

He didn’t trust Marion.

But then again, he might prove useful within the black sea, even if that usefulness eventually amounted to becoming bait.

After a brief moment of silence, Adrian finally smiled politely.

"If my lady permits it," he answered calmly, "then I have no objections."

Renelle glanced toward him immediately, she could already roughly guess what he was thinking.

And unfortunately for Marion, it probably wasn’t anything good.

Still, after a few seconds, she nodded.

"Fine."

Marion’s grin widened noticeably afterward, "wonderful."

The king, meanwhile, looked visibly pleased by the outcome.

"Then it’s settled," he announced, "Marion will accompany Lady Renelle and her butler into the black sea."

Lucian nodded, though he still felt uneasy about Marion accompanying the two. For some reason, he felt as if something would definitely go wrong

Still, he said, "We’ll leave to start our preparations now."

The king smiled afterward and slowly leaned back on his throne.

"Then I pray for your success."

A blatant lie, but at least, it was also a convincing one.

Marion suddenly stretched lazily afterward before turning toward the exit.

"Well then," he spoke while waving a hand casually, "I’ll also prepare a few things before tomorrow."