Chapter 317: Deep in the Night (3)
“Oh, no.”
It feels all too real that the nonexistent Sky is right before me.
Finally reached the execution stage of the actual plan.
By then, looking up revealed a dark night without any stars on the upper layers of the dungeon.
A peculiar ceiling indeed.
Even with no light sources, the visibility was abnormally bright, and the grass covering the floor had turned into a dull color as if it were a black swamp.
“Damn that stupid idiot!”
That’s about when I returned to the spot remembered by the blanket item.
In the dungeon’s middle layer, a group of strong individuals, including some Blond Hunter, Esther, and Jeong Ha-seong, had gathered like a constellation.
The comrade who had tried to take hostage couldn’t withstand the onslaught from the same S-Class and had no choice but to choose a massive retreat.
“I told you not to come back empty-handed, but you brought back S-Class with you!”
How can a person have no sense of moderation? It’s infuriating; should I just kill him?
But blaming my comrades now wouldn’t change anything.
On the other hand, it turned out quite well.
After all, their goal was to kill some of Korea’s Awakened beforehand to ensure that whatever happened later wouldn’t fail.
So.
“Grrrr…!”
Jeong Ha-seong.
Especially thanks to Seo Esther’s collaboration, a comrade was emitting beast-like sounds.
The third Beast, in a desperate attempt to keep the unfortunate comrade from dying, quickly rolled up his sleeves.
“……”
Additionally, a relatively composed mid-sized figure.
In other words, the criminal who physically resembled a real Beast also had some purpose for this occupation.
Srrrng.
The leader figure, number two, also completed his combat preparations with his gear in place.
However, the beautiful straight spear he pulled out was something a modern hunter would definitely recognize.
Like waves crashing continuously, a tremendous power rippled from that spear.
‘…100% Epic grade or higher!’
That was the notification for the beginning of the conflict.
The leader-like Fake Beast plunged the spear into the dry ground, soon announcing his presence.
*
Kwung!
An Epic-grade spear was driven into the dungeon floor.
At that moment, the dried dungeon floor underwent an immediate transformation as if an earthquake had struck.
“Oh no.”
Damn it. Honestly, I didn’t plan to get so actively involved in this incident.
“I’ve checked several times, and the inside of the dungeon is indeed certain.”
I stepped back a bit, licking my dry lips.
Now that the public servant had safely fallen behind, I could focus on my own well-being.
“I hope this choice works out for the best.”
If I had to mention one thing I expected, it was that the long-haired earthling was the owner of [Seocher].
In truth, this side didn’t just push Seonwoo-yeon out of sheer altruism.
In a situation where I didn’t know where the Netherworld’s blanket had landed, the likelihood of the owner of the tracking magic finding the victim was high.
“I guess it’s because I was always surrounded by top tiers. It’s definitely rare for a Hunter with tracking skills to be around B-Class specs!”
The rescue of Seonwoo-yeon was something that I had to do anyway.
It was just that I had acted carelessly, interpreting [the Netherworld’s Blanket], causing things to escalate unnecessarily.
As the Awakened, wearing a bone mask, activated the skill while holding the nameless spear, something shot up into the sky.
That technique was one that emitted water molecules in a specific form at ultra-low temperatures.
In short, it was Ice Magic.
“Jeong Ha-seong, be careful!”
In mere seconds, the area was buried under a mountain of ice spikes.
However, I noticed something slightly unusual through this Beast’s strike.
‘Huh?’
The timing of the enemy’s magic completion was absurdly fast.
‘Why is the casting speed like that?’
By the way, this isn’t a compliment.
Normally, a sorcerer must put in a minimum level of ‘devotion’ when performing a spell.
That could be time or magic power.
Yet, in front of me, the Fake Beast’s completion speed was exceptionally fast compared to the effort invested, and moreover, from a Great Mage’s perspective, the result was quite unsatisfactory.
‘What the…?’
Swish.
As you can see.
If that were a properly executed Ice Magic, it would have held up reasonably well.
But already, the tips of the ice spikes began to shatter on their own.
‘It doesn’t seem to be influenced by the item’s performance, and even considering the S-Class Hunter may be quicker than usual, something feels off…’
Quick casting speed.
Yet an unstable magic form.
The fact that this Beast’s magic was slightly faster than others is a notable feature for a real sorcerer.
So, what does this imply?
‘Ice attack is a disguise.’
Struggling to move my sluggish body, I was also judging the opponent’s abilities.
‘The skill just used doesn’t match the attribute of that primitive sorcerer. In that case, with its characteristics favoring speed battles, that Beast’s lineage is…’
However, since the battle was unfolding in real-time, maintaining focus continuously proved difficult.
The gigantic creature, resembling a wild beast, and the somewhat smaller Fake Beast were completely fixated on Korea’s top-ranked fighters.
So, I ran away even more to avoid the attacks, making sure not to get swept away by Jeong Ha-seong or the enemy.
At that moment.
A tall Beast that had retrieved the spear it had driven into the ground stared blankly at me.
-…….
Although the opponent was masked, I felt a chill run through me as our eyes met for just a moment.
‘Huh?’
Beside me, Korean Hunters were wildly pitching and stabbing their comrade.
In the midst of this, a predator that continued to stare only at a blond man of the same height as me.
‘Why me among all these Awakened?’
The opponent donned a massive bone mask and ragged leather clothing, giving me the chills like the number one energy wielder in that world had come alive.
But the thing is, I guessed that the awakening properties of this person were far from Brooklyn.
I cautiously observed…
‘After all, the greatest magic in this world is running away!’
As Esther dove in to subdue the respective Beast, I seized the opportunity to flee at top speed.
Destination: Near the depths of this dungeon.
Perhaps needing a resting place while hiding. Thankfully, they had cleared some minions from this zone.
‘Monsters and S-Class Hunters everywhere. What a market frenzy.’
I began moving my F-Class body to the corner of the second layer.
But then, something extraordinary happened in the battlefield where the S-Class monsters clashed.
“Ugh!”
“What the…!”
Among the fakes, the one whose physique was closest to Brooklyn.
In other words, the tall Beast had suddenly started relentlessly chasing a single Hunter.
This time, without relying on a weapon, the opponent suddenly pushed forward with their magic.
Chwaaaak.
As the mid-sized Beast swung its arm, changes occurred throughout the dungeon.
Filling the ground and walls with a tremendous mass of water, it turned it into a super-cooled state, incapacitating part of the area to keep the Awakened at bay.
‘This isn’t fair! What crime do I commit by being an alien!’
Crack crack.
The spear wielder advanced with remarkable force as the ground trembled beneath.
“Ah!”
Meanwhile, other Korean Hunters had all scattered to the opposite side of the ice wall.
The Fake Beast charged forward, wreaking havoc in a manner that ordinary non-Awakened beings would struggle to comprehend.
A wild boar trampling crops would seem to be delicate compared to those heavy footsteps.
And what’s worse in this situation was.
‘If the solid floor can be ground so lightly, down below, that Hunter will be in serious trouble!’
Having made my judgment, I swiftly took out my weapon.
The chosen equipment was [Surprise Box!].
However, as I instinctively guessed in my mind, this powerful being among the fakes was not someone I could stop with a mere trick.
Crack!
Clack!
Soon, two types of sounds echoed through the dungeon simultaneously.
The first was the crushing sound as the mid-sized Beast caught my neck and stepped down.
And next, incorporated into the crashing noise, was the sound of [Surprise Box!] opening.
The Beast flexed its calf muscles, forcefully pushing the captured prey back.
I timed it just right and opened the box when there was a suitable distance from my group, but the opponent naturally rebounded my incapacitating state and slammed me against the cave wall.
Bang!
‘Oh my.’
Running fearsomely with the captured prey, the Beast was strong enough to smash dungeon terrain.
‘If it wasn’t for this holy tree, my back would have been ground down to nothing by now.’
How many hundreds of meters had it ripped through?
The mid-sized Beast left me behind without saying a word.
Then it seemed that it was trying to incapacitate me.
‘Oh no!’
Indeed, a malicious magical energy was gathering in the Beast’s grasp.
I sent all my imagination into full gear. And I was trying to buy time in any way possible before a big incident unfolded.
“Hey, hold on a sec…!”
However, the Beast’s magic activation was far quicker than my words.
Perhaps that wasn’t even the problem right now.
‘Oh crap. This damn planet. Speaking of which, I don’t have a translator, so threats can’t even get through!’
The only weapon powerful enough to match up with an S-Class was about to be sealed!
The magic the Beast had completed felt somewhat familiar to an alien like me.
Since all the residents lived in water mixed with impurities, on a certain planet, it flaunted destructive power since ancient times and made the Alphauri acquire the property of non-conductivity over anything else.
Cziiiiip!
Electricity.
The mad criminal shocked a person with artificial lightning.
Furthermore, the opponent didn’t care if I took damage from the first attack or not and laid out a second trap that he had prepared beforehand.
Like an individual with an unclear origin, the additional artifact activated by the Beast was something I had never encountered domestically.
Crackle, crackle…
I felt like I had seen something similar in an Earth biology textbook.
As I recalled, it looked somewhat like a red basket mushroom, with a netted red line that enveloped my collapsed self.
‘If I touch it, the barrier will melt!’
It was easy to see.
This is a fixed trap designed to make it hard for the prey to escape. If the body touches it, it delivers enormous damage.
To classify it, it was also a type of magic derived from a barrier.
‘Oh, here we go.’
Sizzle sizzle sizzle.
I definitely shouldn’t push my luck.
Just in case, I gently brought my fingertips to the air’s red line; the moment they touched it, an ominous rumble erupted from the edge of the [Protection] barrier.
I quickly withdrew my outstretched hand.
But at this point, there was a very curious matter.
The Beast that had trapped me with its artifact suddenly stopped its frantic attacks.
‘Why?’
If you’ve caught your prey in such an effective cage, you should be pouring long-distance magic, right?
The opponent’s actions deviated from standard combat tactics – after all, before entering this place, I had forcibly used psychokinesis, and I lacked magical power at the moment – leaving me blinking in confusion.
Unlike the distorted space that rose to the sky far away, the cave paths were entangled as intricately as a human’s capillary.
The Beast, still donning a mask, glanced momentarily at the nearby plains where fighting sounds were audible before transitioning to a new action.
‘Huh?’
A telekinetic who looked an awful lot like a civilized person suddenly pulled out a device resembling a walkie-talkie from their side.
‘What the…’
The identity of that device was a universal translator from Pixie Corp.
Having taken that out out of the blue, what was the Beast about to do? It put the device’s earpiece on its ear…
Korean!
And just like that, a rather absurd sentence came out as its first line.
Hearing that, I momentarily wondered what sort of weirdo I was dealing with.
“I’ll just ask a quick question.”
However, of course, in most cases, human behavior has reasons behind it.
“It’ll only take a moment.”
In just a few seconds, the tall Beast revealed the underlying motivation hidden behind its strange actions.
Swish.
The figure, whose hands were entirely covered in gloves from fingertips to nails, brought one hand to its neck.
Then, with a gentle grip, the Beast peeled off its mask.
What reflected back was shocking.
Shining golden bobbed hair.
Fair skin.
Or a chiseled nose, et cetera.
“Oh… So, the question I was going to ask is…”
Beneath the beastly bone mask was a face that perfectly resembled Brooklyn Morgan.
“Have we ever met before by unmasking like this?”
The model-like woman opened her mouth and smiled.
However, the little issue is that Brooklyn Morgan was already dead.
After a lengthy, cautious observation, I finally remembered whose magical power was hidden in that phony.
That person and I had met before…
