A Dungeon Losing Its Balance.
For a hunter, this was a crucial topic not to be overlooked, and even Yeon-hee, who usually didn’t enjoy talking to strangers, chimed in.
“If we think a bit broader, it wouldn’t be weird if a B-rank hunter came in right away. Of course, the association or management office would keep an eye on things. But if a high-rank hunter decided to invade, who among the employees could stop them?”
“…Well, that’s true. I just hope that won’t happen while I’m around.”
“If the entry spectrum keeps widening like this, it’ll become a world where villains can run wild…”
‘…Villains, huh. That’s definitely true. For those who revel in trampling the weak, there’s hardly a better scenario.’
The dungeon management personnel had their limits, and it was tricky to stop stealth users like me from entering.
‘Soon, there’ll be chaos.’
This would undoubtedly trigger more activity from those living as villains or those who would become one.
‘I should still catch the next villain. But for now, leveling up here is much more efficient. Plus, I don’t even know where exactly they are. Hmm…’
While contemplating whether to request Helen for help, Yeon-hee wore a serious expression, clearly troubled. She had just heard similar concerns from Maeng Seong-yong yesterday. She looked up at the anxious sky as if the dungeon might collapse at any moment.
Seeing Yeon-hee visibly anxious, the four-member party figured it was unnecessary to grow more serious. They cheerfully started clapping and rose to their feet.
“Come on— it’s just a possibility, after all. Let’s focus on doing our jobs. Shall we head out?”
“Sure, right!”
Once we stepped outside the safe zone, we spent nearly two hours repeatedly taking down Frog Folk.
‘Do these guys have only one trait?’
We must have defeated over a hundred, yet the [Thievery] trait hadn’t activated at all.
If that was the case, then the paralysis and poison on their bodies must have been naturally occurring. Just how terrible was the dungeon environment? I was astounded.
Eventually, I grew disappointed that I couldn’t gain the expected traits. Just then, other types of monsters residing in this dungeon finally revealed themselves.
‘Bogle’ and ‘Nixie Siren.’
“Clap, Clap!”
At my signal, our party stood tall and froze.
“Maeng Seong-yong, fall back.”
Since the four-member party had some experience yesterday, the member with the lowest resistance moved back, while the hunter with the highest resistance stepped forward to draw the monsters’ skills.
‘Should I take a hit too?’
Boggle, boggle—
The giant Cheong-a and I stepped forward.
The unique skill of Bogle released a flurry of bubbles, engulfing our bodies.
– Trait [Calm] activates!
– Resistance far surpasses the enemy’s attack methods!
– Resisted [Bogle’s Hunting Method]!
Cheong-a, who had taken the debuff skill alongside me, seemed a bit overwhelmed as he clutched his head in pain.
However, I didn’t experience any confusion or fear.
In fact, the monsters that used their skills on us briefly fell into a stunned state from the rebound of having their attacks completely blocked.
– BOGGLE, RAR!!!!?!
Dozens of Bogle were simultaneously stunned, creating a massive bubble in the swamp.
Phew!
Puff—Borororo—
Seizing the opportunity, Yeon-hee and the summoned creatures launched an attack on the stunned monsters.
I also started defeating them without hindering Yeon-hee’s growth.
‘First, let’s take down this Bogle.’
Boom—!
When the Fireball made contact, bubbles burst everywhere, revealing the hidden small body of the Bogle.
It perished instantly as the bubbles scattered, even though I hadn’t laid a finger on it.
– Defeated ‘Bogle’!
– Randomly steals Bogle’s skills and traits!
– Obtained skill [Clumsy Object Assimilation]!
– [Stealth] merged with [Clumsy Object Assimilation], making [Stealth] even more discreet.
‘Oh?! So, this was a skill?’
I’d thought their camouflage was more of a passive ability, but it turned out to be an active skill.
Anyway, the similar abilities of the monsters in this dungeon likely would be used to enhance my [Stealth], which was an unexpected boon.
Trait [100], [Thievery] and skill [Stealth].
Out of all, Stealth was my favorite skill, so I was delighted that it had grown, even if belatedly.
‘Whatever it is, I’m happy. Residue of Chaos. If I can fool that guy’s eyes, what more could I want?’
– Achievement [Pioneer] activates.
– All attributes increase by 1.
‘Stat increases keep adding up too. Plus, it’s not over yet.’
– Acquired trait [Lower-level Cognitive Impairment]!
– Achievement [Pioneer] activates.
– All attributes increase by 1.
– Experience points increase.
‘Cognitive impairment? What could that be?’
[Lower-level Cognitive Impairment]
– Disperses presence, making it harder to spot by enemies.
‘…Such a trait exists. No wonder that Bogle was strangely hard to spot.’
I had assumed it was due to its bubble-like form, but with that trait, it indeed made sense why it was hard to notice.
Just as I finished reading the explanation of the newly acquired trait, a horrific noise echoed from somewhere.
– Oooooo——
– Aaaaahhh——
– Resisted [Siren’s Hum]!
‘These noisy creatures really can’t sing.’
Imagine a mermaid with a fish head rolling in mud for three days, and that’s what a Nixie Siren looks like.
They seemed to have something like algae growing on their bodies, making them even more challenging to spot than the Bogle, which had the trait of dispersing their presence.
In summary, they were a higher tier of camouflaged monsters than the Bogle.
But the difficulty of spotting them only applied to those who relied on sight; my senses allowed me to clearly perceive the presence of the monsters coming from all around.
While wearing the Rune of Levitation, I gracefully swiped off one of their heads amidst the swamp.
[Penetration]
Swoosh—!
‘Sure enough… because of Penetration, their tough hides weren’t as much of a burden.’
Feeling the utility of the ability obtained from job change once again, I started reading the new message that had popped up.
– Defeated ‘Nixie Siren’!
– Randomly steals Nixie Siren’s skills and traits!
– Obtained skill [Swampification]!
‘This… doesn’t combine with Stealth?’
It was a skill that perfectly concealed me in the surrounding swamp, but I wasn’t sure how useful it would be in the future.
‘Still, let’s give it a try.’
Swish—!
As I activated the ability, my arm seamlessly merged with the surrounding mud, leading to an illusion as if my senses were also connected to the mud around me.
‘Ah… this isn’t just about disguising my body as mud; I can receive information from the surrounding mud as well.’
Unexpectedly, there was an extraordinary feature hidden within, yet it was an ability I wouldn’t use immediately.
– Achievement [Pioneer] activates.
– All attributes increase by 1.
Thanks to the Pioneer achievement, my stats were steadily increasing even without leveling up.
– Acquired trait [Paralyzing Claw]!
– Achievement [Pioneer] activates.
– All attributes increase by 1.
– [Fierce Claws] fused with [Paralyzing Claw]. Level of [Fierce Claws] increases!
‘This might be a decent gain!’
As soon as I obtained [Paralyzing Claw], I instinctively felt it.
[Fierce Claws Lv.4]
– Attacks using body parts have a 65% (+15%) chance to cause statuses [Bleeding] and [Paralysis].
– Bleeding: Reduces maximum health by 0.02% every second. When fighting in a bleeding state, the effect doubles.
– Paralysis: Rigidifies the body for 0.5 seconds.
‘Oh? The probability jumped up by 15%?’
The [Fierce Claw] trait had been a significant help in combat without me realizing it, and I had had quite a bit of fun fighting the Residue of Chaos with it. Given that the probability had dramatically increased, it would be much more helpful when I fought again.
‘Something feels strange. I seem to be enjoying combat comfortably, and my growth is steep. It feels off.’
My usual principle that one grows as much as they struggle was starting to crumble.
While traits like [Thievery] had allowed for rapid growth, I had always felt a sense of urgency as the dungeon levels rose. Yet, in just a few days, I’d reached this state; it was puzzling.
‘…This is concerning. I’m in the dungeon, but I don’t feel in any danger at all!’
“Hmm? Why? What’s going wrong?”
Noticing my anxiety, Yeon-hee asked worriedly, but I could only say it was nothing.
‘There’s no way this ends just like this, right?’
We had experienced oddly too many events in this dungeon, so I speculated that there would be some occurrence before the boss battle.
*
Kuuuuuu—!
‘Uh… This shouldn’t be happening.’
But my expectations were dashed spectacularly.
Until the moment we defeated the dungeon’s boss, a variant of Frog Folk towering at seven meters, not a single variable or crisis had emerged.
“Wow—! Il-wol, did we take it down incredibly quickly? It doesn’t even feel like it’s four o’clock yet?”
“Clap, Clap, Clap…”
Considering the growth of our combat power, this made sense, but I oddly didn’t feel adapted to it.
“Clearly, it’s different from yesterday. What time did we clear the boss battle yesterday?”
“We finished well past six o’clock. Oddly enough, one less person was there.”
“Even though those guys were trolls yesterday, the difference is quite…”
The four-member party nodded at Yeon-hee as if to say it was thanks to her, smiling at her.
As soon as the boss battle ended, we swiftly exited the dungeon without regret.
“Good job!”
“See you tomorrow.”
After talking a lot in the dungeon, the four-member party coolly dispersed once the business was done.
They hurriedly pulled their hoods down deep and rushed somewhere, likely related to their main jobs.
Plodding—
We sauntered through the streets in the bright daylight, enveloped in a strange feeling.
“I do feel a bit empty. Don’t you?”
“Clap, Clap, Clap!”
“Something about emerging from the dungeon in broad daylight sends a weird thrill through me.”
“…….”
Yet, as time passed, the awkward feeling eased, and I scooped Yeon-hee up, leaping into the sky and swiftly flying home.
“Hehe— I came home so early. Even after washing up, it’s still bright. What should we do for fun?”
The moment Yeon-hee arrived, she bathed and slyly approached me, eventually sticking close and whispering in my ear.
‘……Is this a signal to do something? It’s been a long rest.’
When I raised a finger, Yeon-hee quickly grasped its meaning.
“Time until mimicry completion: one hour!”
“Clap, Clap, Clap!”
Yeon-hee didn’t hide her anticipation for my human form but seemed shy about the desires hidden behind it, twisting her body awkwardly.
“I’m not necessarily expecting something special. I just want to talk with Il-wol, you know, talk. You understand, right?”
“Clap, Clap, Clap.”
‘Physical conversation counts as conversation too.’
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
