Chapter 21

Ancients.

This term referred to humanity, which, in the distant past, achieved great prosperity through a highly advanced magical civilization. However, since it was too long ago, not much was known about it.

There were only speculations about when this civilization came into being, how long it lasted, and what caused its downfall—no concrete facts.

It was a civilization as mysterious as a legend. Yet, it wasn’t just a legend, as artifacts and ruins had been excavated. Both artifacts and ruins demonstrated that they had indeed existed with a considerable level of civilization. Especially the artifacts, which contained a unique magical power different from today’s systems.

These artifacts were called the relics of the Ancients. And it was the magical power within these ancient artifacts that lured monsters and created natural dungeons.

‘The root cause, indeed.’

I thought this as I stood before the last room visible right in front of me. But such settings weren’t important right now. Defeating the boss monster that occupied the artifact and securing the spoils of victory was all that mattered.

“Wait.”

I raised my hand to stop Camian and Annette.

“It seems we’ve reached the end.”

“The end?”

Annette’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yes. I feel an unusual aura. It must be the aura of the artifact.”

Aura, my foot. I didn’t feel anything, but I naturally put on an act.

“I feel that aura too.”

Camian said. It seemed the protagonist felt the aura as well. After all, he was the strongest here.

Though I could outperform them because I had received a vitality buff and knew the weaknesses of the monsters we faced, my basic strength still didn’t match Camian’s. But Camian himself didn’t seem to think so.

Perhaps because I slaughtered monsters without tiring at such a fast pace, he believed I was more skilled than him.

‘Yes, that’s how it should be.’

I chuckled inwardly. An incompetent trash human who turned out to be hiding their true skills? I would inevitably become a concern for him. At least now, I would be firmly etched in the protagonist’s mind.

“Really? Then it must be certain. Let’s brace ourselves and go in.”

I refreshed their attention and gave them time to gather their thoughts because the creature ahead was no easy foe. Even though it was a lower dungeon, it was a creature that had subdued all other monsters here with its strength and had taken sole possession of the place with the artifact. It was not an easy opponent for us now.

“A boss, you mean?”

Annette asked for confirmation.

“Yes.”

“Understood.”

She sighed deeply and bit her lip, seemingly bracing herself mentally. Camian silently checked the state of his blade. Then he looked at me and said,

“Let’s go.”

“Indeed.”

I nodded and led the way. Of course, I knew exactly what was inside. A troll. A large monster with tough skin and tremendous regenerative abilities. It also had fearsome strength and enough intelligence to use simple tools. It was undeniably a threatening presence.

It was considered that at least ten well trained soldiers were needed to take on a single troll.

Of course, our combined strength was up to that level. We were still novices, but we were elites attending the top academy, weren’t we? But the problem was fatigue. Therefore, objectively speaking, our chances of winning were not over fifty percent.“A troll?”

“Tch, a troll…….”

That’s why Annette and Camian’s reactions upon discovering the troll were natural.

“KUOOOO!”

On the other hand, the troll, seeing the insolent intruders who had entered after a long time, raised its spirit. It must have judged them as delicious prey that could be easily slaughtered. Annette’s complexion turned pale.

“What should we do? I’ve never fought something like that before.”

Of course. Trolls aren’t monsters one commonly encounters.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a troll or whatever. Just kill it. That’s all there is to it.”

Camian, true to the protagonist’s form, uttered cool words. But I saw him frown when he discovered the troll. You rascal.

“What’s its weakness?”

Camian, having put on airs, shamelessly asked for the weakness outright.

It seems he was counting on me after all. I let out a chuckle.

“Hey, second place junior. You don’t know the troll’s weakness? Everyone knows that.”

“……I don’t.”

The moment he heard ‘second place,’ Camian’s eyebrows twitched noticeably. I knew why.

The term ‘second place’ was one of the words he least wanted to hear now. He had been second place at the time of admission, but since he hadn’t achieved any notable results since then, being called a second place entrant was almost like a complex to him.

But seeing his reaction, I decided to keep using that title in the future. Why?

Because people need to be stimulated in some way to strive harder.

And. Because it’s fun to tease the protagonist. I smirked inwardly and spoke.

“The troll’s weakness is simple. Just cut off its neck, and it’ll die right away.”

The words were very simple. But. If it meant beheading a vicious giant monster over 4 meters tall, that’s a different story. It’s like saying anyone can become rich if they win money at a casino. That’s why Camian’s reaction was incredulous.

“Is that all?”

“Yes.”

“Understood. Let’s try.”

With that, Camian looked up at the troll’s massive form. A height that he could barely reach even with a powerful leap. His eyes narrowed as if he couldn’t muster the courage easily.

“KUOOOOOO!”

In the meantime, the troll, having finished its threatening roar, charged to hunt its prey.

THUD THUD THUD THUD!

The troll’s movement, shaking the ground as it charged, was not slow at all. No, it was rather agile for its huge size.

“Step back.”

I pushed Annette, who had been momentarily stunned by the momentum, back with my hand.

Only then did she snap back to her senses and began to chant a spell from a safe distance. I turned my gaze to Camian.

“If you don’t do it right, your friend dies.”

“Don’t curse us.”

“That’s why I’m telling you to do it properly.”

“Of course.”

“Good. Don’t overlap. I’ll take the left, you take the right.”

“Alright. Who will finish it?”

“Who cares? Let’s play it by ear.”

Camian nodded as if he understood. At that moment, the troll was almost upon us.

“KROOO!”

A giant club, as if a thick tree had been carved out. The club tore through the air and fell.

“Oops.”

As if I had been waiting, I flew to the left to avoid it. The wind created by the club sent chills down my spine. Just grazing it would have been fatal.

KWANG!

The ground shattered where the club hit, and stones and dirt flew in all directions. Through the dusty view, I could see the troll’s towering legs.

“Then let’s see if I can scratch it.”

I executed the Imperial Style Number eight in succession, slashing at the troll’s legs.

SWISH SWISH!!

Each time the blade moved, flesh tore and blue blood splattered.

“HAAP!”

Soon, Camian was also hacking at the troll with all his might from the right.

SPLAT! THUMP!

Blood and flesh flew in all directions. Even for such a large creature, these were more than mere scratches. Chunks of flesh fell off, leaving tattered wounds visible.

“KRAAAA!”

The troll screamed in pain.

But.

The shredded wounds on the troll began to regenerate too quickly. The rising blood stopped, and new flesh sprouted in real time.

To that extent.

“Tch.”

Camian frowned and hacked at the troll’s leg even faster. I matched his rhythm, hacking at the opposite leg.

“Fire Arrow!”

In addition, the magic Annette cast flew in and scorched the troll’s chest black. It was a naturally flowing combined attack by the three of us.

However.

The troll’s monstrous regenerative ability mocked our attacks, quickly healing the wounds. We were the ones who ended up exhausted.

“Huff huff…….”

Camian’s breath grew rough as he attacked without a moment’s rest.

“Ah, this is tough.”

I also stopped my swordplay and caught my breath.

“Kraaaaah!”

As soon as the attack stopped, the initiative passed to the troll’s turn. Perhaps our attack had irritated it, as it began to rampage even more wildly.

“Kyaaak! Please, hit it from the front! I, I can’t do close combat!”

Annette screamed and busily ran around trying to escape.

“Huff huff.”

Camian, still breathing heavily, couldn’t regain his composure. I had some physical leeway due to the vitality injection, but those two seemed like they wouldn’t last long.

Vroooom!

I dodged the threatening troll’s attack and spoke to Camian.

“Do you see now? The same attack as before is ineffective.”

If we could use advanced techniques like sword energy, we might be able to completely sever an arm or leg, but at our current level, that was out of the question.

“Shouldn’t you have told me that earlier?”

Camian spat out his complaint. Typical of a rookie to have so many unnecessary complaints. If I had raised the two protagonists, they would be able to steamroll through such a low level dungeon on their own.

“Normally, you learn that kind of thing with your body, you know. And I did tell you the weakness.”

“Kuk, so how do you expect me to strike that weakness?”

Camian’s expression was grim, as if he found the situation hopeless.

“Do you trust me?”

I asked with a smirk. No immediate answer came. It seemed instinctively repulsive for him to trust a person he had treated as trash until recently. But eventually, he opened his mouth and spoke.

“Trust or not, you and I are relying on each other on the battlefield right now.”

Oh, so the protagonist knows how to dodge well? I chuckled and said,

“Is that so? Then hang in there for now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just hang in there.”

Of course, I hadn’t rushed into the place with the boss monster without any thought. I had already thought of a way to change the tide of battle. I jumped back and pulled out the Marcus Bow instead. It was a named weapon that could cast a weakening curse. The troll, which resisted physical attacks from swords and magic with tremendous regenerative power.

But curses were different. The regenerative power was useless against curses.

Creak.

Pop!

I shot an arrow carelessly at any spot.

The target was wide, so there was no need to aim.

Thud!

An arrow lodged in the shoulder area. Of course, there was no physical impact in itself. However, the curse of weakening would surely erode the troll’s body. I dodged the troll’s attacks while waiting for the right moment. How much time had passed?

The troll’s movements began to slow down.The power of the foolish club had also weakened compared to the beginning.

“Krooo?”

The troll itself felt something was wrong and looked puzzled. But even knowing that, there was nothing it could do.

“Camian, now’s the time!”

I shouted to Camian as if to say, cut its throat right now.

However.

“Huff, huff……..”

……………Camian was completely spent.

My gaze turned to Annette.

“It’s impossible…… Absolutely impossible……”

Hey, hey, just look. I didn’t expect anything from you.

“No choice then.”

It seemed I had to play the role of the senior to the end.

“Hey, support me!”

I said to Camian.

No choice.

He was still a rookie lacking in jumping power. I gathered all my remaining strength and leaped toward Camian. Camian quickly caught on to what I was doing and bent his back.

“Taah!”

I stepped hard on Camian’s back and leaped up once more. Only then did I reach the troll’s head.

“Krooooo!”

But of course, the troll didn’t just stand there. Instead of attacking, it tried to protect its head with both hands.

Would it work? No, it was a close call as it was. In a split second. I revised my judgment.

“Eat this, you bastard!”

I threw my sword with all my might.

That was the decision I made.

Swoosh!

Thwack!

Before the giant hand could cover its head, the sword pierced the troll’s forehead first.

“Kraaaaaa!”

The troll let out a death scream.

Its massive body rapidly lost balance.

The giant fell backward like a collapsing mountain.

Boom!

Soon, the large body crashed to the ground.

“Hoo.”

I let out a sigh of relief. The split second0 decision had paid off. I said earlier that if its neck was severed, it would die, but in fact, the troll would die if its brain was damaged. Because the brain doesn’t regenerate. It died from a destroyed brain due to the forehead being pierced.

“Uwaaa, we, we survived!”

Annette sobbed.

“Huff huff…… we…… did it…….”

Camian looked at me with hot eyes and rough breath. Truly the expression of a real comrade.

But soon, realizing the expression he was making, he quickly turned his head and composed himself.

You, you rascal.

……………It’s embarrassing for me too, so don’t make that kind of face.

“Ahem Ahem. Well, it’s over now.”

Over? It’s not over. This is just the beginning, and thinking about having to care for these rookies made me feel daunted.

But still, It’s true that today’s work ended well.

“Everyone worked hard, and now let’s divide the spoils.”

Thus, the protagonist, the childhood friend, and the delinquent’s first dungeon raid came to a successful conclusion.