“Why are you here?”
Fortunately, he didn’t seem to have heard.
I subtly let out a sigh of relief and told him that the dungeon’s terrain had changed.
When I also mentioned there was a trap, Ban Eun-hyeol’s expression instantly hardened.
He looked at it.
It was a dark path that seemed to hold nothing, but he appeared to be on guard, thinking something might pop out.
“Did you see anything coming here?”
“The first thing I saw was you.”
“What are the others doing?”
“They’re probably doing fine on their own.”
It was an answer brimming with trust in his friends.
While it might seem indifferent, Ban Eun-hyeol’s voice held conviction that they would be okay.
Indeed, it seemed unlikely that Yeon Ha-yeon or the Four Heavenly Kings would be helplessly defeated by monsters here…
‘Still, considering the battle earlier…’
Didn’t they struggle a bit, perhaps because the number of undead was overwhelmingly large?
So, with each person separated to search different paths, it was impossible not to feel uneasy.
Perhaps my unease showed on my face, as Ban Eun-hyeol suddenly placed a hand on my head.
Then, he stylishly quirked one corner of his mouth and said,
“Worried? I was most worried about you.”
[Shall I go now?]
My ears burned because of Shahin, who inconsiderately chimed in.
It was a relief Ban Eun-hyeol didn’t hear Shahin’s words.
I quickly grabbed Ban Eun-hyeol’s wrist and removed his hand from my head.
Then, I walked quickly, looking only straight ahead, and said,
“I’ll protect myself.”
Behind me, I heard Ban Eun-hyeol let out a chuckle as he immediately followed.
How long had I walked forward, ignoring that laugh?
The end of the long cave slowly began to appear.
“Isn’t that where we were before?”
“It looks similar, but I don’t think it’s the same place.”
It was a place that resembled yet differed from where we had landed right after getting caught in the sudden gate.
The high ceiling and spacious area were the first things that caught my eye.
No matter where it was, the thought that we might face a boss monster if we exited there made my steps quicken.
“Oh? Dana! Eun-hyeol!”
Just then, a welcome voice was heard.
As soon as we came out of the cave’s junction, all of our friends, excluding us, were gathered in one place.
Behind them, countless shimmering treasures of gold and silver were piled up.
Seeing that, I knew immediately what kind of boss monster inhabited this dungeon.
“Hey, that…”
“I guess we’ll have to take on the dragon.”
Ban Eun-hyeol seemed to be thinking the same thing, his voice trailing off.
I spoke in a low voice, scanning the area where a dragon might be.
However, there was gold and treasure, but no dragon to guard it.
“Where’s the boss monster?”
I wondered if our friends had already defeated it, then immediately corrected myself.
If they had killed the boss monster, the gate would have already closed, and we’d be outside.
That meant our friends hadn’t found the dragon yet either.
As expected, Han Ji-bin shook his head and shrugged.
“There are jewels, but no owner. We just got here ourselves and were looking for it.”
[Master, there’s something here?!]
Perhaps because it was a dragon, Shahin, who was familiar with this space, pointed beyond the pile of gold and treasure.
I immediately ran toward it.
That’s when Shahin’s body, which had been fluttering in the air with small wings, suddenly grew enormous.
“Kwoooarr-!”
Behind the gold and treasure was a large pit, big enough for a dragon to comfortably nest.
As soon as I got close, the dragon rose, which caused Bishap to transform into her true form.
“Heretic! Over here!”
As the gigantic red dragon appeared and Bishap returned to her true form, Ban Eun-hyeol, who had kicked off the ground and leapt, urgently shouted.
But Yeon Ha-yeon was faster than Ban Eun-hyeol.
Yeon Ha-yeon, who was closer to me, first wrapped an arm around my waist as if snatching me, moving us away from the dragon.
The dragon, upon seeing us, roared and immediately unleashed its breath.
True to a red dragon, hot flames spewed from its mouth.
We hastily activated our shields to block the dragon’s breath.
Shahin, in her true form, fiercely attacked, biting at the dragon’s neck.
The dragon shifted its gaze, seemingly deciding that eliminating Shahin was a higher priority than us.
We seized that opportunity to immediately unleash an onslaught of attacks on the dragon.
With a mix of doubt and hope that it would work, I used the Dark Shackles skill.
[Skill ‘Dark Shackles’ is activated.]
The struggling dragon’s movements were briefly restrained.
Yeon Ha-yeon and the Four Heavenly Kings paused when the same phenomenon occurred again, then immediately began more aggressive attacks.
Yeon Ha-yeon quickly leapt onto the gold and treasure, then plunged a dagger into the dragon’s tough scales.
She seemed to be attempting to use Sword Explosion.
If it worked, it could definitely inflict a fatal wound on the dragon’s body.
But the dragon’s scales were incredibly tough.
The dagger didn’t penetrate immediately.
After repeatedly striking it, the tip of the dagger barely managed to pierce the dragon’s scales.
“Yeon Ha-yeon!”
Ji Gang-han, seeing the dragon’s movements slowly beginning to loosen, quickly used a skill.
Yeon Ha-yeon, surrounded by wind spirits, seemed to fly through the air toward us.
“Dana, are spirits immortal?”
Just then, Han Ji-bin asked with a worried tone.
He was referring to Shahin and the dragon, entangled in a fierce battle.
Shahin’s wing was burnt and dripping black blood, apparently having taken a direct hit from the breath.
“No, once they die, that’s it.”
Unfortunately, spirits weren’t immortal.
I often regretted that something brought back to life as a soul wasn’t immortal, but it was something I couldn’t change, so I accepted it.
If Shahin were to be hit by the breath again here, she might suffer a fatal injury to her soul and disappear.
I couldn’t afford to lose Shahin.
She was like family, having been with me since the previous world.
[Come back, Shahin.]
I boldly recalled Shahin.
The dragon, suddenly losing its target, naturally shifted its focus to us.
But I had no intention of waiting for the dragon to attack us.
[Skill ‘Dark Shackles’ is activated.]
Once again, darkness surged from beneath the dragon’s massive shadow, binding it.
I shouted for my friends to activate their shields, then immediately used the next skill.
[Skill ‘Black Cloud Rain’ is activated.]
Aside from the disadvantage of not being able to designate an area, this seemed to be the most effective way to melt the dragon’s tough scales.
Yeon Ha-yeon and the Four Heavenly Kings looked up at the dark cloud forming above us with puzzled eyes.
At that moment, black rain poured down from the dark cloud like a violent shower.
“Kwooaaah-!”
The dragon’s pained screams echoed through the cave.
With every drop of rain, the dragon’s skin slowly but surely melted away.
I watched, tense, unsure when the Dark Shackles would break again, when Yeon Ha-yeon approached me.
“You had a skill like this too? It’s really cool.”
Yeon Ha-yeon, genuinely impressed, gave a thumbs-up. In the midst of all this, she tried to recruit me into her guild.
“It seems like it’d have great synergy if used with my Sword Explosion, what do you think? How about joining our guild after all?”
“Go do your sales pitch somewhere else.”
Ban Eun-hyeol, looking dumbfounded at Yeon Ha-yeon’s cheerful shout, chimed in.
At that, Han Ji-bin and Eun Ba-da let out light laughs, and Ji Gang-han chuckled with a smile.
“At this rate, Dana should join the Blood Scent guild?!”
Just as Han Ji-bin exclaimed with a hint of laughter, the dragon’s scales, which had been steadily melting from the black rain, had eroded enough to reveal a tiny bit of its flesh underneath.
“Hah! Now!”
“Watch closely.”
Yeon Ha-yeon understood my short words perfectly and immediately kicked off the ground, springing forward.
With astonishing speed, she approached the dragon and plunged her dagger directly into its flesh.
The dagger properly pierced and embedded itself into the dragon’s flesh.
Yeon Ha-yeon inserted her arm deep and immediately used a skill.
Thud-thud-thud-
Sharp thorns erupted from between the scales, centered on the spot Yeon Ha-yeon had stabbed with her dagger.
It seemed the skill had erupted from the dagger, which had dug into the flesh.
Yeon Ha-yeon’s attack was successful.
However, the dragon, as if unwilling to disappear with just one skill, spewed crimson breath in all directions.
“Hey!”
Ban Eun-hyeol called the dragon like a dog, attracting its attention.
The dragon’s breath shot towards Ban Eun-hyeol, but he instead moved towards the dragon.
Blue flames enveloped and protected Ban Eun-hyeol, gradually expanding their reach.
The dragon’s crimson breath and Ban Eun-hyeol’s blue flames met head-on.
It was a battle of fire against fire.
At first, they seemed evenly matched, but the blue heat devoured the red breath, advancing forward.
Following that, attacks from Eun Ba-da, Ji Gang-han, and Han Ji-bin ensued.
The dragon’s ear-splitting roar gradually faded, and its struggles lessened.
The dragon’s massive body slowly tilted, then with a thump, it completely collapsed onto its side.
[A-rank dungeon boss ‘Red Dragon’ hunting successful!]
I remained tense even after seeing the completely limp dragon, but then the status window appeared before my eyes, announcing the end of the battle.
Only then did I, the Four Heavenly Kings, and Yeon Ha-yeon relax our bodies.
[Congratulations! You have met the conditions for Quest Lv. 5, and a skill will be randomly unlocked!]
[Unlocking…]
[Skill ‘Black Mist’ has been unlocked.]
I looked at the windows appearing one after another with satisfaction.
I had diligently explored gates right up until coming here, allowing me to unlock one more skill with this final one.
Black Mist was an offensive skill where a black mist enveloped the monster.
If Black Cloud Rain was a skill that melted the monster’s skin and attacked its outer parts, Black Mist was a skill that entered the monster’s body with every breath it took, damaging its insides.
As their insides rotted away, most monsters would simply writhe in pain, unable to even properly counterattack—it was a rather good skill.
Furthermore, Black Mist could obscure the monster’s vision, preventing them from noticing the presence of spirits.
With a joyful heart, I checked the unlocked skill and stepped forward to extract the greatest reward from this gate: the Red Dragon’s spirit.