Chapter 93

Chapter 93

“Listen to your teacher and don’t fight with your friends.”

“Bro, what am I, a kid?”

“Anyone can see you’re a kid. So go to school properly. Don’t fall asleep during class.”

“More nagging! Mom and Dad never say anything to me.”

“That’s because they’re not family.”

“Pee, even though he’s a guy, he treats me better than my own brother!”

“This little brat?”

“Tongue out!”

Doyoung stuck out his tongue and dashed into the main gate as if escaping.

Spinning his indoor shoe bag around, Do-young spotted a friend. Overjoyed, he burst into laughter, chatting away before disappearing into the school building.

‘Little brat.’

Dojae slipped out of the school with a faint smile.

Then he headed straight for the dungeon.

‘Jung Hoon-hyun… He gets things done fast, and I like that.’

Yesterday, while leaving the shop and heading out to eat with Ji-yoon, Do-jae had told Jung Hoon-hyun to gather up every dungeon possible.

He also gave him Choi Woo-seok’s phone number, mentioning he wanted all future transactions to go through Choi Woo-seok’s shop.

Jung Hoon-hyun promptly found several dungeons and reported them to Do-jae.

Jung Hoon-hyun’s efficiency was astonishing—he had completed the dungeon handover in less than an hour after being contacted.

Coincidentally, one dungeon was on the way to his younger brother’s school. He scheduled the raid to coincide with school hours so he could see his brother, who was still at Eunhee’s house.

“Where did you come from?”

Upon arriving at the dungeon entrance, an association employee appeared and blocked their way.

Upon stating they were from the Guardian Guild, the staff member stepped aside without further ado.

“Haaam… Good luck.”

The staff member yawned lazily, gave a nod, and then disappeared.

By the rules, the staff member shouldn’t have sent Dojae into the dungeon alone.

There was a rule prohibiting solo entry into dungeons, which is why the guild sent someone to verify.

But Dojae, who had dealt with brokers many times, knew that employee had likely received a suitable sum from Jeong Hoon-hyun.

‘Since it’s the first deal, I should bring him something of good quality.’

Dojae entered the dungeon.

It was a field-type dungeon called ‘Deer Bear’s Forest’.

Deer Bear was a Grade 7 beast-type monster, a bear with large, tall horns.

It was extremely ferocious; upon smelling a human, it would charge at incredible speed, gore them with its horns, and then lap up the flowing blood.

Sure enough, the beasts that caught the scent of the treasure began charging toward us, knocking down trees in their path.

“Gyaaah!”

“Gyaaah!”

But Dojae stood his ground, not even flinching.

Instead, from the vast sub-space that opened behind him, golems began walking out.

Clank- clank-.

“Gyaaah!”

The Dear Bears roared powerfully and slammed into the black stone golem.

Crash-.

“Gyaaaah…”

The deer bear let out a cry, seemingly flustered.

Dojae’s black stone golem wasn’t pushed back at all; it was holding onto the deer bear’s horns and holding its ground.

“Finish them off quickly and come back.”

At Dojae’s command, the black stone golem lifted the Dear Bear into the air and flipped it over its shoulder.

Thud!

Following this, a total of 105 golems emerged from the sub-space and scattered throughout the forest. This included the four golems turned black by Gelahan’s mana, the 100 golems obtained from Elatra’s temple, and one of the four golems that had survived the battle with Rishun.

***

– Deer Bear Hide x52

– Deer Bear Horn x52

…….

In an instant, the deer bear’s spoils piled up inside the sub-space.

Deer Bear Hide is a type of leather that readily accepts cold-resistant magic. When made into coats, it’s popular among Awakened individuals and also sells well to non-Awakened.

The horns are equally popular, used for furniture and decorative items.

Above all, the better the condition, the higher the price. Needless to say, the items in Dojae’s sub-space are top-tier.

‘Looks like things are wrapping up.’

Dojae closed the book he was reading and rose from the flat tree stump.

The rate at which Dear Bear’s loot was coming in slowed dramatically.

This meant there weren’t many monsters left in the field.

With 105 Stone Golems combing the area like this, the campaign would be completed soon.

‘I wonder if Ji-yoon has gotten a bit more used to the sword.’

Youngjin’s group had another dungeon run scheduled for today.

If it were Ji-yoon, she’d probably be itching to try using the sword faster and had undoubtedly followed Young-jin.

‘If Ji-yoon had been a stronger Awakened One, she could have drawn out the sword’s skills…’

Dojae recalled seeing the information on ‘Judgment Cape’ through the golem’s eyes.

Judgment Cape possessed a special skill called ‘Punishment’.

It was an attack skill that consumed 1000 mana to strike lightning, a skill perfectly suited to the weapon’s name.

However, it was nothing but disappointing for Ji-yoon, whose mana was only around 500.

‘Come to think of it, this thing is really something…’

Dojae brought up the Black Scale’s information once more and read it with satisfaction.

[Equipment Information]

Name: Black Scale

Classification: Sword

Description: A sword said to contain the soul of a bloodthirsty demon. An ancient dragon sealed the Demon King within a sword forged from its own bones and scales. Since then, the Black Scale manifests the Demon King’s power more strongly the more blood it absorbs. The manifestation rate increases based on the type and amount of blood absorbed.

Effects: Attack Power +500(+a) / Durability +0(+a) / All Stats +0(+a)

Skill: Bloodsucking Lv. Max / Manifestation Lv. 1

‘Its base attack power is no joke, but it’s a sword that grows stronger over time.’

It definitely felt like it grew stronger the more monsters I sliced with the Black Scales.

However, I didn’t feel that way when fighting skeletons. Ultimately, this sword only grew stronger when aimed at living targets.

Clank- clank-.

The stone golems began returning to Dojae.

Dojae checked the list in his sub-space once more.

– Giant Deer Bear Hide x1

– Giant Deer Bear Horn x1

– Giant Deer Bear Gallbladder x1

A new item had arrived.

The dungeon’s boss, the Giant Deer Bear, had been hunted down by the Stone Golems.

But there was one more item that stood out.

‘Gallbladder?’

Dojae couldn’t bring himself to take it out; he just stared at the word on the list.

Faced with this unfamiliar loot, he could only guess at its purpose.

‘Is it bear gall…?’

Anyway, Dojae decided to ask Choi Woo-seok about the Giant Deer Bear’s gallbladder and slowly began preparing to leave the dungeon.

It was almost noon. If they moved now, they’d likely arrive around the time Youngjin’s group finished their run.

Thinking it would be nice to have lunch together, Dojae headed for the dungeon exit.

But then.

[A new quest has opened.]

A message window appeared before Dojae’s eyes.

But that wasn’t all.

Simultaneously, a sharp tingling sensation pulsed through his temples.

Dojae immediately opened the quest window to check while starting to run.

[Quest]

Type: Sub

Content: An unrecognized entity covets what it should not possess. Eliminate that entity and restore things to their original state.

Restriction: Before clearing the dungeon

Reward: 1 Magic Stone

Failure: Dungeon Break

The quest and the tingling in my temples were speaking simultaneously.

A new Transcendence Stone had appeared, and he instinctively knew it was the dungeon Young-jin was currently tackling.

Because he had attached a golem to the end of Ji-yoon’s sword hilt, and he could feel that golem being destroyed.

‘Ji-yoon is in danger!’

***

Clank- clank-.

The Level 3 monster, the Headless Knight ‘Durahan’, approached, its thick heavy armor creaking.

“Ji-yoon! Quick, take the kids and…!”

Clang-!

Durahan swung his rusty longsword, and Young-jin blocked it hastily.

Ji-yoon, clutching her stinging hand, ran toward Park Kyung-min, Ha Tae-seong, and Gong So-eun.

“Noona, So-eun is…”

Park Kyung-min was holding Gong So-eun, who was coughing up blood.

She had been attacked by the Durahan that appeared inside the boss room, and the massive shock had ruptured her internal organs.

“You’re in serious condition too!”

Ji-yoon shouted in a grave voice.

Park Kyung-min’s condition was no better.

One arm hung limply, and a long wound ran from his chest to his shoulder.

“Taeseong, you…!”

Ha Tae-sung was in the worst condition.

His face was pale as he clutched his left arm tightly, but there was nothing below his elbow.

“Sister… the sword…”

Ha Tae-sung handed Ji-yoon her sword in a cracked voice.

Ji-yoon’s sword had been knocked away and thrown aside by Durahan. As she ran to retrieve the sword she cherished so dearly, she was attacked and her arm was severed.

“Damn it… What’s so important about a sword!”

Ji-yoon took the sword back.

But her heart ached terribly.

While the sword Dojae had given her was precious, Ha Taeseong’s life was more precious than that.

Ji-yoon clenched the ‘Cape of Judgment’ Ha Tae-seong had returned and said.

“Kyungmin, take the kids out! Yeongjin and I will cover the entrance somehow.”

“What? No! We’ll die!”

“I know. But two holding it off can last a little longer than one, right? And I’ll hold out just a bit before running away too. Heh heh.”

Ji-yoon soothed Park Kyung-min with hopeful words.

But the reality was hopeless.

Park Kyung-min opened the door, and within just five minutes, it had come to this.

And it was all caused by just one Durahan.

But what was even more terrifying was that the Durahan that appeared wasn’t alone.

“Hurry up and leave! You’re useless anyway!”

Ji-yoon glanced back at the two Durahan and the Death Knight with its blue, gleaming eyes.

If those things moved too, she didn’t know how many minutes, or even seconds, they could hold out.

If she just stood there watching now, she had to get the three of them out quickly. That was the only way they might have even a slight chance of survival.

“Guh… I’ll call for help the moment we get out!”

“Got it.”

Ji-yoon turned away from the three disappearing through the boss room door and headed toward Young-jin.

Even Yeongjin, a C-rank awakened being, was no match for Durahan.

Adding Ji-yoon to the mix wouldn’t change anything.

Whoosh-!

Clang!

But Ji-yoon couldn’t leave Young-jin alone.

“Hey! Why’d you come back?!”

Young-jin and Ji-yoon blocked Durahan’s sword together.

“How could I go alone! A person has loyalty, you know.”

Kugung-!

Clang-clang-clang-!

“You idiot! We’re about to die—what loyalty are you talking about?”

“Then why are you blocking him, Chief Young-jin? If you’d run away alone, you might have survived.”

“I don’t know! Me too! Oh… it’s coming!”

The remaining Durahan, which had been still, suddenly began to move.

Two of them couldn’t even handle one, and now three were approaching. True terror began to take root in both their hearts.

“Huff, huff. If only I’d stopped Kyung-min just a little sooner…”

“It’s done now. Manager Young-jin, let’s buy even one more second!”

“Right! We have to save the kids somehow, get them out!”

Young-jin and Ji-yoon clenched their teeth simultaneously.

A resolve that defied death.

Their minds burned with a fighting spirit not for survival, but for death. There was no room for regret.

Kaboom!

At that moment, the entrance to the boss room shattered, revealing a man.

A man clad in black stone armor.

It was Dojae.