The Stone Golem Dungeon was a complete mess.
“It’s so dark, it’s hard to even walk?”
Small and large pebbles were scattered randomly on the floor. It seemed so many that one could easily trip. It was so dark that even the flashlight didn’t illuminate the path clearly.
“Maru, light up the surroundings.”
What was needed now was Maru’s Holy Power.
“Clink!”
Maru drew his Demonic Sword and began to emit Holy Power. Then, a soft glow began to infuse around the Demonic Sword, and a soft radiance enveloped the area.
‘What a strange combination.’
Maru’s abilities were always amazing.
‘Skeleton Paladin.’
The name itself was full of contradictions. A bizarre race where death-undead and holy power coexist. And now, it was illuminating the path by imbuing its Demonic Sword with Holy Power. Thanks to it, the dark dungeon became as bright as day.
“Good, much better.”
Maru’s presence greatly increased their walking speed. Normally, they should have advanced cautiously without letting their guard down, but they moved forward without hesitation. There was only one reason why this was possible.
“By now, Death Knight must be doing a good job, right?”
“Clack-clack!”
It was the existence of the Death Knight. They had dispatched the Death Knight before entering the dungeon. Although sent alone, there was no particular concern.
The Stone Golem Dungeon was ranked C. Even by El Dorado Continent standards, it was only a 3-star. On the other hand, the Death Knight was 5-star. No matter how many Stone Golems there were, the undead Death Knight could continue hunting without getting tired.
And my prediction was exactly right.
*Clang- Crack- Tap-*
Sharp metallic sounds echoed from afar, accompanied by the sound of crushing stone. It was definitely the aura of the Death Knight.
“Maru, let’s go quickly!”
While it was fine for the Death Knight to cause a commotion, it was not good for it to destroy the Dungeon Core. If the core was destroyed, the dungeon would automatically disappear. However, the guild’s objective in conquering dungeons was solely for profit. The monster corpses and Magic Stones obtained from dungeons were widely used in various fields such as equipment and potion crafting. Furthermore, since rare resources that could not be found on Earth might appear, it was better to leave the dungeons intact unless it was an emergency.
‘Speaking of which, is this the second time I’m encountering the Death Knight?’
When Azmo caused the Monster Wave, Maru and I had appeared wearing masks.
‘It caused quite a stir in the media for a while because of that.’
The Death Knight and Necros being sent flying by Maru’s attack became a hot topic. In my opinion, it was just bad acting, but people didn’t see it that way. The existence of the summoner (Maru) and the summoner (myself) who defeated the Death Knight and Arch Lich simultaneously was widely reported in the media. This was the second time I met the Death Knight since our first encounter. This time, we were in the position of conquering a dungeon together. As we quickened our pace, a giant cavern appeared.
“That’s the tomb of stones…”
A pile of stones stood imposquely in front of us. No, calling it a pile of stones was too small. It looked more like a small mountain made of stone. And on top of that.
“Death Knight!”
The Death Knight was fighting numerous Stone Golems.
“…”
The Death Knight also spotted me and bowed its head. Then, it began swinging the pickaxe it held in both hands at the Stone Golems.
*Crunch- Bang-*
With a single swing of the pickaxe, the golems made of stone shattered into pieces.
*Bang- Clang-!*
Simultaneously, the Maid Outfit attached to its back fluttered with each swing of the pickaxe.
“…”
You still have that? I was speechless at its unnatural appearance.
“…Still, it’s fighting well.”
Despite the Maid Outfit skirt fluttering, the Death Knight’s skills were top-notch. Looking at its pickaxe swings, I could understand why Celia gave it tasks. With each swing of the pickaxe, the Stone Golems collapsed and were pushed back.
“Huh…”
That was talent. Perhaps the Death Knight also liked pickaxes, as it was swinging it with all its might. Normally, if one didn’t want to do something, they wouldn’t put in much effort.
‘Is that a case where effort and talent meet?’
Today, I discovered the Death Knight’s talent. Originally, I wanted to minimize Maru’s intervention and let the Death Knight swing its pickaxe freely, but the Stone Golems weren’t stupid.
“Kuuuung!!”
Judging that they couldn’t handle the Death Knight, the Stone Golems turned their bodies towards Maru and me, their eyes glowing blue.
“Kuu!!”
And the charging Stone Golems. But their judgment was a complete miscalculation. Maru here was also 5-star, just like the Death Knight. With the Demonic Sword, it could even be considered more powerful.
“Maru, handle it.”
As soon as I spoke, Maru swung the Demonic Sword forward. Holy Power mixed with the demonic energy characteristic of the Demonic Sword split the Stone Golems in half.
“Oh.”
It was cleanly severed. If the Death Knight smashed the Stone Golems, Maru cleanly cut them.
“Kuu?”
The Stone Golems began to panic as they realized the situation was unfolding strangely. They avoided the Death Knight, only to encounter another formidable opponent here.
“Kuuu…”
Eventually, the Stone Golems lost their will to fight and raised their stone arms in surrender.
– You have conquered the dungeon ‘Tomb of Stones’.
– You can dispatch and appoint an administrator to the dungeon ‘Tomb of Stones’.
* * *
As the situation concluded, the Death Knight approached me. This was the first time we met face-to-face since our first encounter was with me wearing a mask. As if my worries of it not recognizing me were unfounded, the Death Knight knelt before me and bowed its head.
“…”
It remained in that posture without saying anything. The problem was.
“Why are they kneeling too?”
“Clink.”
The Stone Golems were also kneeling, following the Death Knight. Considering how many there were, even after the Death Knight had dispatched so many, dozens of golems remained. It was not possible to deal with those who had already surrendered. And another problem was the alarm message.
– You can dispatch and appoint an administrator to the dungeon ‘Tomb of Stones’.
The message stated that an administrator could be dispatched and appointed after conquering the Stone Golem Dungeon. However, it was a dungeon that I did not need. Even if I controlled the dungeon, it was already under the control of the Fire Bird Guild. Even if I appointed an administrator and developed the dungeon, it could be subjugated at any time.
‘Can’t I just take the Stone Golems?’
These Stone Golems were destined to be wiped out by the Fire Bird Guild hunters anyway. However, my 고민 (concerns/deliberations) were resolved by the next alarm.
– You can move monsters within the dungeon to the following dungeons.
[Evil God’s Nest]
– Chief Administrator: Celia (★★★★★★)
[Illusionary Temptation]
– Administrator: Azmo (★★★★)
[Nest of Corruption]
– Master: Necros (★★★★★)
[Red-Haired Tribe]
– Administrator: Skoll (★★★★)
[Sticky Puddle]
– Administrator: King Slime (★★★)
[Scraps of the Demonic Realm]
– Administrator: Skeleton Paladin (★★★)
[Village Covered in Mist]
– Administrator: ???
At the same time, my owned dungeons came to mind. It wasn’t bad. If I had to subjugate the Stone Golems anyway, it was better to put them in my own dungeons. At the same time, it would strengthen the dungeon forces, making it a good choice for me. Still, I wasn’t a cruel master, so I first asked the golems for their opinion.
“Do you guys want to go to another dungeon instead of here?”
“Kuu,kuu.”
Fortunately, the golems nodded and followed my words well. For them, starting anew in another dungeon was a better choice than staying here.
‘Stone Golems are no different from undead.’
They didn’t need to consume nutrients or rest separately. They could adapt to most environments quickly, so moving their affiliated dungeon was not a problem at all.
“Let’s see…”
First, I decided to dispatch only one golem to the dungeon where Celia was.
‘It’s already sufficient there, so just one…’
Perhaps it would be perfect for labor. After Celia’s dungeon, I sent 4 Stone Golems to Azmo’s dungeon.
‘Azmo said he was short-handed, right?’
After returning from El Dorado Continent, Azmo had created and was operating a dungeon company. Initially, Maru was sent to help, but now it seemed to be operating stably on its own.
‘I should check out Azmo’s dungeon soon too.’
So far, only Maru has visited, but as the owner, I needed to check it out myself. How exactly was the company being run? After finishing with Celia’s and Azmo’s dungeons, I skimmed through the other dungeons.
‘The rest are a bit uncertain…’
The Satellite Dungeon, managed by Necros, didn’t seem to need golems.
“Hmm.”
The dungeons managed by the Orc Skoll, King Slime, or Skeleton Paladin also had firm concepts, so they didn’t seem to need Stone Golems.
“Shall I put them here?”
The dungeon ‘Village Covered in Mist’, where the administrator was a question mark, caught my eye.
‘Come to think of it, I’ve never seen this place before?’
I didn’t know what kind of place it was, but the dungeon’s name itself was ‘Village Covered in Mist’. Wouldn’t it have a much larger area than other places? There would probably be enough space to place the golems.
‘It hasn’t caused any problems so far, right?’
It should be fine. I immediately started sending the Stone Golems to the ‘Village Covered in Mist’ dungeon.
– Changing Stone Golem (★★★) affiliation to ‘Village Covered in Mist’ dungeon.
After a while, the dungeon interior, which was full of golems, became empty. All that remained were the giant piles of stone and my monsters. I turned to the Death Knight.
“Death Knight, you worked hard.”
At my words, the Death Knight bowed its head. Despite its terrifying outward appearance, it had a kind heart.
‘And it’s diligent too.’
If I could, I wanted to give the hard-working Death Knight a gift, but I didn’t have anything suitable.
“I’ll give you something good when I get a good drop later.”
Celia’s dress was also obtained through drawing, so I promised to give the Death Knight something good later if I got it. With that, the Death Knight departed for its original dungeon after our brief meeting. With the departure of the Death Knight following the Stone Golems, the dungeon became empty. Everything that needed to be done here was finished. There was no need to stay any longer.
“Let’s go back too.”
It was time to leave the dungeon.
* * *
A sinister bell toll echoed as if in a loop. The bell, ringing from the top of the building standing tall in the center of the village, was eerie and chilling. As the bell tolled, the fog began to engulf the village simultaneously. Through the fog, the village’s appearance was faintly visible. Old buildings stood dilapidated and monstrous, while broken windows and creaking doors evoked a desolate sense of fear. A village shrouded in mist. Cutting through the tolling bell, all that could be heard were faint sighs and moans drifting through the fog. Something slithering through the mist came into view.
“Kirik, kiriric-”
It was by no means human. As it approached, a disgusting smell of decay wafted over.
“Kirik, kiriric!”
Its skin was already rotten black, and sores covered its face and body in layers. Every joint bent unnaturally as it walked. They were all people who had been turned into monsters by the curse of the fog. As they wandered the village as usual, they soon heard a deafening sound.
*Thump-!*
The sound of something falling echoed throughout the entire village.
“…Kick?”
Turning its head, it saw golems made of stone there.
“Kirik?”
“Kuu?”
The Stone Golems were unaffected even in the fog. Thus began an uneasy coexistence between the monsters and the Stone Golems.
