“Seriously? Introducing someone like that is basically asking for a fight, right?”
While I was chatting with Azra, Joo-ah was busy ranting about her blind date.
“Wow, you really have a lot to say about a blind date you didn’t even go on.”
In the end, she turned him down because she didn’t like the guy, but she was laying into the matchmaker too.
Ha-yoon, who had been quietly listening to Joo-ah, chimed in.
“So, the guy is the son of a CEO who processes minerals from dungeons and has a decent face, but because he has a reputation for being trash, she rejected him, and now he’s pestering her, right?”
“Thanks for the summary. Spot on.”
“Still, you should at least meet him once…”
“Oh no, absolutely not. You can’t just fix people; being a bad person is a no-go.”
“You’re not exactly a saint either, you know. Birds of a feather flock together.”
“Noh Ha-yoon, do you want to die? Ugh, whatever. Where’s my knight in shining armor?”
“But I heard Yeon-hee has a boyfriend. There were rumors going around.”
“What?! Really?!”
Yeon-hee, who had been listening with interest, suddenly turned wide-eyed when the topic shifted to her.
Since Yeon-hee didn’t deny it, her companions were convinced she had a boyfriend and kept probing her.
“Ugh- ugh-”
She covered her mouth with her hands, opting for the ‘I refuse to talk’ approach, not realizing that this behavior only fueled more curiosity.
“She does! Who is he?!”
“What does he do? How old is he? Got a picture?”
“Clap, Clap, Clap!”
I suddenly made a loud signal to help the flustered Yeon-hee and announced our departure.
“What? It hasn’t even been ten minutes!!”
“Il-wol, you’re too much~”
Though they grumbled, my companions followed me without complaint.
As the beautiful hunters left, the other hunters nearby, who had their mouths agape, let out small sighs of disappointment.
Carefully guiding my companions just in case any others decided to follow, I thought to myself, ‘This is the place.’
“Shush! Shush!”
I had already informed Yeon-hee that we would be entering a hidden space after spending the night together, so upon seeing my signal, she motioned for her companions to hush.
Seeing my gesture, they nodded vigorously and cautiously followed.
Their faces were already lit up with blissful smiles.
The thrill from discovering the mana stone mine and the sorcerer’s potion still lingered.
‘I actually remember the location of a super-sized mana stone mine, but it’s way too hellish in terms of difficulty.’
One of the hardest dungeons I had ever been to in my past life was the ‘Black Wyvern’s Nest.’
The ground is basically boiling lava, and a high-grade ‘Floating Rune’ is essential, which means you’re starting off sacrificing a rune.
And within that place are heaps of high-purity mana stones, enough to rival a medium-sized guild’s annual income just by claiming ownership.
‘When can we go there? It’s not far, but it doesn’t feel close either.’
I brushed off my fleeting thoughts, dug about a meter into the wall, and turned the hidden handle.
Creeeeak—
“Ah…!”
“Shush—”
My companions were at a loss with every move I made, muffling their lips repeatedly.
The existence of hidden spaces in dungeons sounds like a rumor, but you rarely get to see one in person.
So their astonishment wouldn’t be lessened by having experienced something similar before.
‘I feel a little bad. I can only give this to Yeon-hee.’
This artifact can be worn by one person up to two pieces, but since there are only two pieces, I felt bad for not being able to meet their hopes.
Creeeeak— Bang!
The moment everyone entered, the door I opened shut tightly again.
The hidden space felt far different from the one I had experienced before.
Wherever the energy came from, the lighting was blindingly bright. The decor was exquisite, and there were beds that could accommodate ten people comfortably.
‘This doesn’t feel right at all…’
As soon as we stepped inside, it felt like we had entered a princess’s room in a medieval palace, and my excited companions began to look around eagerly.
“Look at this! Such a pretty bowl!”
‘It’s not like we can take any of this stuff, but it’s nice to look at—’
But already, Yeon-hee was holding a beautifully designed simple bowl.
‘…Wait? Why isn’t it turning to dust?’
Images of countless objects that had faded away over the years flashed through my mind.
‘Is this another anomaly? The location seemed the same, but it’s definitely not the same situation. If that’s the case, will the artifact also change?’
As I walked toward the small room where the artifact was located, my companions were having a blast trying on the countless dresses hanging on racks and laughing as they lay on an oddly shaped bed not typically seen in modern times.
Click—
I entered the small room decorated like a dress-up area and opened the drawers of what appeared to be a vanity.
Inside, I spotted a small dark-brown jewelry box.
Click—
Inside the box lay two beautifully glowing nails, similar to what I had seen in my past life.
‘Hmm— I thought this would change too.’
A strange mix of relief and disappointment washed over me as I closed the drawer.
‘What…? This spot wasn’t here before.’
I sensed another hidden space within this area, one I hadn’t recognized before.
Whether it was due to my heightened senses or an actual change in the space itself, I didn’t know. But this hidden area felt vastly different from the previous opulence.
‘This is all gray… Right, it felt like this last time I came here.’
And in the center stood a stone altar made of gray rock.
On top of it lay ten differently colored nails.
The artifact floated slightly above the altar, welcoming me.
‘What the heck, ten more? I’ve never hit this jackpot in Skeleton Life before!’
[Forgotten Ancient Kingdom’s Nail Cuff]
– The stunning beauty ‘Adrienne,’ who chose a powerful figure over the man she was promised to, soon regretted her choice. As time passed, her regret and longing swelled. Her dark emotions fused over the years to grant powerful abilities to the nail cuff.
– An artifact that can only be worn by human women.
– Magic Power +100
– Wisdom +50
‘Oh? An additional description that wasn’t there before? Adrienne…’
The story sounded familiar.
‘Isn’t she the one who betrayed Natalan Jackman?’
In Nargul’s dungeon, the hidden dungeon harboring the skeleton knight ‘Natalan Jackman.’
The name of the woman who left him in such a state was unmistakable, and the story fit perfectly.
But right after I finished reading the tale, the earring floating inside the helmet vibrated intensely.
And bursting into the room was Yeon-hee.
“Il-wol? What’s going on?”
Hers also flashed with light from the earring she was wearing, just like mine.
‘This is… the artifact we found in the skeleton knight’s hidden dungeon.’
– The will of the artifact resonates.
– The hidden function of ‘Forgotten Ancient Kingdom’s Nail Cuff’ is awakening.
‘…Was there an Easter egg like this?!’
I had no idea that artifacts could produce synergy when they met.
[Forgotten Ancient Kingdom’s Nail Cuff+]
– An artifact that can only be worn by human women.
– Magic Power +100
– Wisdom +50
– Special Ability +50
The changed nail cuff now had a ridiculous extra option of +50 to special abilities. Since two can be worn, that’s an increase of 100.
I wondered if I could somehow wear the nail cuff on my finger, but the same message kept popping up saying I didn’t meet the requirements. Only women could wear it…
‘I should at least try wearing it in my disguised state.’
For now, I stashed two of them in the spatial pocket. That left ten remaining.
‘If it doesn’t apply even in disguise, I can just sell it.’
Just as I was pondering that, an additional message popped up.
[Forgotten Ancient Kingdom’s Magic-Infused Droplet+]
– Magic Power +550
– Special Ability: Instantly moves a partner to the safest location they can think of. The partner becomes [Invincible] for an hour. The partner remains [Statue] for a day.
– Number of special ability uses: 5
– The special ability requires both of us to be within a certain range to take effect.
– The intent of the one who wore it first takes priority.
‘Oooh?! The earring’s performance?!’
The magic boost from the earring artifact shot up by an incredible 300 points.
The resonance of the artifacts unlocking hidden functions didn’t seem limited to just one side.
Because of that, my magic power soared to 1689.
Yeon-hee and I exchanged looks, unable to hide our astonishment. It seemed like she had experienced the same phenomenon.
After calming our excitement for a moment and organizing our thoughts.
We had acquired a total of twelve artifacts.
The peculiar position of being an accessory worn on the nails meant it could only be worn by human women, and up to two could be used at once.
Even if Yeon-hee and I each took two, there were still eight artifacts remaining.
The first thought that came to mind was to sell the artifacts and pay off the debt I owed Jo Gi-man.
Selling all eight would cover my debts and leave me with a nice sum left over.
However, if I acted too soon, I would draw Jo Gi-man’s suspicions upon myself.
I couldn’t help but run into Jo Gi-man, who would be desperately trying to figure out what had happened so soon, and frankly, we didn’t have the strength to deal with him at the moment.
Yeon-su wouldn’t sacrifice herself to help us, nor could she protect us from monsters. What if I lent her the artifacts instead?
‘I would provide her with ample rewards, but… I need to think about that more.’
“Yeon-hee, can I come in?”
“Wow— this place has a whole different vibe.”
“Is this a hidden space within a hidden space!? Amazing!”
My companions began to step in one by one as I was lost in thought.
‘Hmm… Is there really a need to hide?’
In that fleeting moment, I pondered many things and eventually shook my head slightly.
‘Just think of it as lending them for a while.’
The companions who had come up close wore innocent smiles, but their gazes were glued to the softly glowing artifacts.
Whoever witnessed an object floating and emitting light would inevitably be captivated.
After all, they had previously had a magic power boost of 300 from the ‘Ancient Sorcerer’s Potion’ and couldn’t help but gulp at the thought of a new artifact.
I had exactly enough to give two each to four of them, and I was convinced we had to keep them along for the ride as time went on.
Yeon-hee wore an awkward smile, looking flustered about what to do. Without hesitation, I retrieved four copies of the pledge from the spatial pocket.
“Huh? What’s this?”
“I didn’t see the artifacts! I swear!”
I don’t know what she was thinking when she said that, but I sat Yeon-hee down on a nearby shoulder and woke up Ran, who was dozing off on her shoulder, to relay my intentions.
Listening to me, Yeon-hee seemed to think my reasoning was reasonable and nodded.
“This artifact… it doesn’t seem like something I can just give away…”
Yeon-hee conveyed my words to the others in a more polished fashion.
The gist was that while we’d be lending the artifacts, we wouldn’t be transferring ownership.
We made it clear we could reclaim them at any time if requested, and that the timeline would be within a year.
In other words, it was a significant favor to lend them for easier dungeon exploration over the next year.
The one-year timeframe felt short because with the current pace, two years seemed too long to me.
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