NOVEL NEXT Chapter 53
The hunters of the strategy team were plunged into silence, unable to utter a word for a while.
Only after some time did one of them manage to gather his thoughts and speak.
“No. So you’re saying there’s a dungeon within the dungeon right now?”
“…That’s the only conclusion I can reach.”
“Then we have to clear that to get out?”
It was something that didn’t make sense logically. Everyone understood it in their heads, but they couldn’t accept it.
“What about the remaining supplies?”
“…About four days’ worth. If that’s a large-sized dungeon or bigger, our chances of clearing it are exceedingly low.”
Nothing was looking good. At this moment, they couldn’t even analyze the dungeon’s class or size.
They were truly in a situation where they had to step into pitch-black darkness without any foresight.
“W-well, why don’t we just hold out here until the break time?”
If they sought safety, that was the logical approach. Typically, the break time for large dungeons is about a month after creation, which meant a break would occur within two weeks.
But even that seemed difficult now.
“Even if we conserve, our food won’t last. The environment here isn’t great, and supplies are scarce.”
“With another dungeon popping up, there’s no guarantee the break won’t go well.”
Realistically, there was no choice left.
Whatever it was, the strategy team had no option but to move forward.
“Damn it. This doesn’t add up.”
It was possible that the newly formed dungeon wasn’t that threatening.
Yet, in this situation and this flow, honestly, imagining that things would turn out well was hard.
“…After taking some time to regroup, we’ll have no choice but to enter.”
“Yeah, what’s the worst that could happen? As long as it’s not large, it should be manageable, right?”
In the end, a conclusion was reached.
The hunters of the strategy team, having replenished their stamina and supplies expended in the battle with the boss, gathered before the newly formed portal.
“Then, let’s get going.”
Hoping it would be a dungeon they could clear without too much difficulty, the hunters stepped into the portal with trembling hearts.
Whoooosh.
And immediately regretted it.
“…What the hell.”
Inside the dungeon, resembling ancient ruins, thick remnants of magical power wafted from all corners.
As I said, I had felt a sense of unease since discovering the cave with the boss room at the cliff.
And the moment I stepped into the newly formed dungeon through the portal at the boss room, I instantly realized the source of my unease.
‘…There’s a high-ranking undead.’
Amidst the thick magical presence, a sticky death energy lingered. There was no room for doubt. The owner of this dungeon was undoubtedly an incredibly powerful undead monster.
“D-did everyone feel that?”
“Dammit! This just feels off…”
“The concentration of magic is too dense. It’s even worse than the earlier boss room.”
Panic instantly filled the faces of the hunters.
It wasn’t surprising. I, too, had never felt such dense magic at a dungeon on Earth.
‘No matter how I think about it, this must be above B Rank.’
The party, visibly tense, cautiously began to navigate the corridor.
“…But looking at the magic concentration and internal structure, it doesn’t seem like a huge dungeon.”
That was a somewhat fortunate bit of news.
Even though it might be a higher-ranked dungeon than expected, if they could somehow find the boss room and clear it, survival was possible.
Moreover, the group leader, an A Rank Hunter named Yoon Byung-ho, was here.
No matter the enemy, clearing it shouldn’t be impossible.
“…Master, the air feels strange.”
Song Ha Yeon, sensing the odd atmosphere a bit late, whispered to me.
“There might be something quite dangerous.”
“Still, it shouldn’t be too much for you, right?”
Who knows? I still had the Book of Death to use, and soon the cooldown for the Mental Stabilization Ring would also finish, but right now, I couldn’t sustain my firepower for too long.
As I averted my gaze with a subtle expression, Song Ha Yeon continued cautiously, seemingly incredulous.
“…Is this place really that high-ranked?”
“Uh. I don’t know.”
When I waved my hand dismissively, Song Ha Yeon took a step back, looking hesitant.
Clunk.
Clunk.
Thud.
After advancing for a while, a signal from the front scouting party indicated they had spotted an enemy.
“Prepare for combat.”
Crash.
Boom.
Boom.
Creek.
What emerged was a gigantic skeleton producing loud bone-cracking sounds, the Skeleton Giant.
“What, what the hell. It’s a giant?”
“Oh! That means it’s a B Rank dungeon, right?”
Just as the party’s faces brightened at the sight, a terrifying monster emanating an overwhelming death energy appeared from behind.
Crack.
Crack.
Heeheehee!
Riding on a headless ghost horse, wielding a sword in one hand and holding its own head in the other, the headless knight appeared.
Namely, the Dullahan, classified as an A5 Rank monster.
“Gulp.”
“D-Dullahan!”
“Oh shit…”
A female hunter who got a close look at that frightening figure began to hiccup, while the rest of the hunters grabbed their weapons, chuckling nervously.
They instinctively sensed their impending doom.
Heeheehee—!
Clop!
Clop!
Boom!
Screech!
“AAAH!”
In an instant, the charging Dullahan collided with the leading hunters.
One hunter collided with the horse and was slammed against the wall of the corridor, while someone’s arm flew through the air in the ensuing clash.
Seeing the frantic hunters, Yoon Byung-ho quickly stepped forward to confront the Dullahan.
“Everyone step back! I’ll handle this!”
Heeheehee!
Boom!
Bang!
Crash!
“Gaiam!”
Swoosh!
With a powerful skill, Yoon Byung-ho pushed the enemy back, and with support from the rear hunters, after a few exchanges, he barely managed to defeat the Dullahan.
As everyone gazed at Yoon Byung-ho with admiration, more Dullahans and a group of banshees appeared from the corridor.
Clatter.
Heeheehee!
“There are more enemies! Prepare for battle!”
Thus, the strategy team continued their struggle once more, desperately trying to ignore the anxiety welling up from deep within.
#
Fortunately, thanks to Yoon Byung-ho’s efforts, the battle ended in the strategy team’s victory.
However, the situation was far from good.
“Where’s Jong-hyuk?”
“…He’s already passed away.”
One death and three other injuries.
It was a shocking outcome, considering they had only fought twice.
“Right from the start, two Dullahans have shown up.”
“…Is this truly a legitimate A Rank dungeon?”
“What do we do? We can’t handle an A Rank with our current power!”
There’s Yoon Byung-ho, an A Rank Hunter, but he wasn’t invincible. Additionally, if it was the boss of an A Rank dungeon, it was clear that even Yoon Byung-ho would have trouble managing it.
‘…….’
I, too, was in a complicated thought process.
Killing a Dullahan shouldn’t be impossible, but we couldn’t afford to waste energy here.
Because the real enemies they needed to be cautious of in this dungeon weren’t just the Dullahans.
‘It’s well organized.’
Just from a moment of observing, it was clear. This dungeon was, quite literally, a fortress. And I suspected that its owner had probably already noticed our presence.
“So what exactly do you propose we do? Do you have any good ideas?”
“…We shouldn’t have entered in the first place. We made an irrevocable mistake.”
After the battle, the morale of the hunters was low.
A casualty had already occurred, and someone else would surely follow.
Most of them were already enveloped in despair, unable to take any action.
At that moment, Kim Seung-min, who had been silent, spoke up.
“It won’t change anything to blame someone.”
“……”
“Our best course of action now is to find the boss room as quickly as possible before our strength runs out and confront it.”
That was undoubtedly correct. As the hunters’ mood somewhat calmed, Kim Seung-min turned his gaze to Song Ha Yeon and me and spoke again.
“Can you raise the monster’s corpse?”
A sharp retort immediately arrived from someone, surely another Necromancer belonging to the Hanul Guild.
“Hah, what makes you so confident? Do you think you can control a high-ranking monster with your party’s skill level? Moreover, this place is already thick with death energy, making it difficult to properly use necromancy. I’ve already tried here.”
With that discouraging remark, I gestured for Song Ha Yeon. She approached the fallen Dullahan, murmuring an incantation.
“Undead Call.”
Whooosh.
Crackle.
Boom.
[Graahhh.]
Then, the Dullahan slowly rose to its feet unsteadily. The hunter who had voiced the opposition was rendered speechless, expression showing disbelief.
“T-That can’t be.”
It definitely emitted a much weaker aura than before, but the fact they had more available power was good news, prompting admiration from everyone.
“I didn’t think that would work…”
“Hah, what a celebrity makes a difference.”
Thanks to that, the atmosphere of the party seemed to lighten a bit.
And to us, a strange voice began to echo from somewhere.
Crackle.
[…How nice to see you.]
Looking in the direction of the sound, a small undead floated unexpectedly close, hovering in the air.
In that nonsensical situation, tension surged among the party.
[Let’s have a little chat.]
That entity invited us, not causing any harm.
The location was none other than the boss room of the dungeon.