episode_0027

Trap.

It was a trap.

They were deliberately led into this large room.

To surround them with monsters and prevent them from leaving the room.

“Kkkeeee, eeeee!”

“Kkir, rrrrk! Kkirrk!”

“Kkeeee, eeeee, kke!”

“Kkrrrr, rrrk.”

Countless monsters are rushing in like a flood.

Sawtooth ants.

White orb spiders.

Poison dart lizards.

Blue clawed frogs, and so on.

They are all converging towards both the exit on the opposite side and the entrance.

They weren’t powerful monsters, but their numbers were significant.

And to be surrounded from both sides like this, it was definitely someone’s doing.

The most likely culprit was undoubtedly the boss of this dungeon.

The insane sorceress, Kate.

He knew that the game and reality were different, but he never expected it to come to this.

But something was off.

Could Kate control normal monsters?

Was there something Jinhyuk didn’t know? Or did he forget some setting?

“Erina! Clear a path with a big spell! Sangcheol, Jeongnam, wait for that and then charge in! Baeksan, you’re the keeper in the center! Jinhyuk, don’t lose sight of Yuseolhyun and follow them closely!”

Hanseo quickly commanded his team members.

The monsters may have rushed in large numbers, but they weren’t powerful enough to threaten their lives. If they calmly dealt with them, they could easily take them down.

But the most important thing now was not defeating the monsters.

It was escaping from this room.

There wasn’t much time left before the forced random teleport trap would activate.

Could they break through and escape from the many monsters in just a few minutes? Hanseo pondered, but even he was skeptical.

But they couldn’t just stand still with their hands tied.

Hanseo shouted loudly, “Erina, now! Shoot towards the exit!”

For Erina, whose specialty was support magic, using powerful elemental magic wasn’t efficient, but it was necessary to clear a path.

“Magic Boost! Dragon Lightning!”

Erina, who was reciting the spell, shouted the activation command.

At that moment, a blue lightning bolt in the shape of a dragon surged through the clustered monsters.

“Kkeeee, eeeek?!”

“Kkrrrrrk?! Kkrrl!?”

Ten monsters crumbled and burned like toast in an oven.

Smoke rose from their bodies.

“Whew, whew… drained of magic…”

Erina breathed heavily.

It was the most powerful magic she could use at the moment.

Due to the significant consumption of stamina and magic power, she felt weak.

“Han, Hanseo! We only have… whew, whew, 2 minutes left…! We have to break through somehow!”

“Gah! It’s not as easy as it sounds…!”

Thanks to Erina, a path was somewhat cleared, but there were still too many monsters blocking the way.

Damn it, Hanseo cursed in his mind.

There are over fifty monsters surrounding them.

How are we supposed to break through in just 2 minutes!

“For fuck’s sake! Should we just push through recklessly once?”

It might be possible if they took a risk, but there was a high chance that Jinhyuk and Yuseolhyun would be left behind.

Especially since Yuseolhyun was the third daughter of the Gaon Nuri Clan, it was crucial to avoid any accidents.

That’s why he had formed the team with this level of power…

“Ah, damn it! Time is almost up…!”

“Hah.”

At Erina’s exclamation, Hanseo only furrowed his brow.

“What should we do?”

Even if we are scattered due to the random teleportation trap, each team member has enough experience, skills, and abilities to survive on their own.

Moreover, we have attached location tracking devices to each other so that we can find each other even if we are separated, so we will somehow be able to meet.

But those kids…

“Yuseolhyun, Lee Jinhyuk! Even if the location changes, stay hidden in that spot! We will come find you soon, so don’t do anything unnecessary, got it…?!”

Before Hansuwoo could finish his sentence,

“Uh, ugh?!”

“Wait!”

“Eek!”

With the sound of the random teleportation magic circle activating, a bright white flash engulfed us.

Among the sun-like bright particles of light scattered around.

Lee Jinhyuk thought.

Was it just carelessness?

Or was there an unknown setting?

A variable between the game and reality?

Well, what could it be?

The reason is not clear, but one thing is certain in this situation, Lee Jinhyuk can’t do anything.

If Lee Jinhyuk was as strong as the other team members, could he have dealt with this variable?

If Lee Jinhyuk didn’t have the burden of himself, he might have cleared the way and escaped.

But Lee Jinhyuk was weak.

Very much so.

***

“Uh, ugh.”

A strong flash stole Lee Jinhyuk’s sight.

His vision was blurry, making it hard to see clearly.

There might be monsters around, so he needed to quickly secure his sight, but he couldn’t focus due to the refreshing stench piercing his nostrils.

“Ugh, what is this smell…?”

A very disgusting and foul smell was emanating, causing a nauseating bile to rise from the depths of his stomach.

Resembling the smell of a long-stale tofu or a sewage treatment plant, Lee Jinhyuk wrinkled his nose and covered it.

“Ugh, disgusting, really.”

Lee Jinhyuk reluctantly opened his heavy eyelids and started to look around to assess the situation.

But the surroundings were pitch-black darkness, making it hard to have a clear view.

He had a lantern, but he couldn’t light it hastily as it might attract the attention of any potential monsters nearby.

“But it’s too dark…”

Feeling trapped alone in the unknown location in the darkness, an eerie sensation gripped his heart tightly.

But then.

“Ugh, ugh, ugh, this smell…”

Right next to him, Yuseolhyun’s voice was heard.

What, Yuseolhyun moved to the same place as me?

It could be considered a blessing in disguise amid the misfortune.

He thought he was alone and scared.

Lee Jinhyuk felt slightly relieved.

“Yuseolhyun? Are you okay?”

“Ugh, you, you’re here too… Ugh!”

Approaching her, he spoke.

Although it was dim, he could have a somewhat clear view when he got close to her.

Yuseolhyun was bent over, her pretty face contorted, repeatedly retching.

She seemed out of her mind due to the foul smell.

“Ugh, others, where are they?”

“I can’t see them. Looks like everyone got scattered.”

“The smell, it’s too strong… Ugh, what is this… smell…”

“Yuseolhyun, want to try detecting if there are any monsters nearby?”

“Phew, okay, I’ll try…”

As Yuseolhyun calmed herself and prepared to use her supernatural ability to check for the presence of monsters, a sudden flash lit up.

The glowing stones hanging from the ceiling emitted a bright light. Someone had lit a fire. Before he could even think about who it might be, Lee Jinhyuk saw strange things in his sight.

“Where is this?”

As the dim darkness gradually lifted, one could realize that glass flasks, beakers, test tubes, and pipettes were rolling around in disarray.

The ground was covered with an unknown slimy substance, and the decaying carcass of a monster, bone fragments, filth, and more were mixed in.

Eventually, Lee Jinhyuk came to a realization.

Where he was at the moment.

“Nice to meet you~.”

A young woman’s voice.

It rang in his ears.

Familiar yet unfamiliar.

In other words, a voice one might hear in a game.

“Another guest has come to visit~.”

Quickly, he turned his head towards the source of the voice.

Inhyung was crawling out from a distance.

Yes, crawling out, not walking out.

“Hehe. Seems like you’re having fun these days~?”

A human female body with a snake lower half.

A half-human, half-snake woman.

“Hello~?”

She reminded one of a lamia from mythology.

Gently brushing her bleached hair aside, the woman greeted him warmly. Her name was Kate Montstein.

She was the boss monster of this dungeon.

‘Why did I get transferred to this place of all places.’

“Lee Jinhyuk… Could that be…?”

Beside him, Yoo Seolhyun clenched her fists tightly and whispered quietly.

It seemed she had realized that the boss monster was in the form of a snake.

“Hehehe. Hello? Hello?”

“….”

Kate seemed to have a diminished intelligence.

She was like a child.

“Are you not going to greet me? That’s mean~.”

‘…Seems like her personality matches the setting.’

At first, he thought it was really fucked up, but Kate just smiled kindly(?).

It seemed she wasn’t planning to do anything right now, judging by the fact that she wasn’t emitting any hostility.

Of course, it was just a momentary play.

It was obvious that she would reveal her true nature soon.

“Are you mad at me?”

“Oh, sorry.”

Lee Jinhyuk pretended to accept her words.

Continuing to ignore her wouldn’t be good.

“….Lee Jinhyuk, this.”

In a very quiet voice, Yoo Seolhyun murmured and showed him the phone screen.

The screen displayed the locations of the other team members.

They seemed to be approaching this way, but the distance was quite far.

They would need to stall for time until the team arrived.

“I’ll chat with her to buy some time.”

“Got it for now.”

“What are you two whispering about so secretly? Exclude me~?”

Grumbling, Kate began to look displeased as they conversed quietly.

“Join in the fun with me, will you? Will you? Then let’s start playing now….”

“Wait a moment. I have something to ask before that.”

“Eung~? What is it?”

It’s a bit dangerous.

Her idea of fun was quite far from common sense.

It was a relief that he knew Kate’s character setting to some extent.

He needed to change the topic of conversation before she started whining about playing.

“By any chance, were there people who came in recently?”

“Ah, yes. I… I’ve trapped them over there, hehe. Planning to eat them later.”

Kate pointed deeper into the room with a chin gesture.

It seemed to be a place where captured humans were kept.

“Eat them, you say….”

“Eung? Why that reaction~?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

In the world setting, he already knew that she could even eat people, but hearing it directly was a bit shocking.

And this place was also a human experimentation lab where they captured and experimented on humans and monsters.

“Ah. By the way.”

“Eung eung.”

“Did you release the monsters to attack us?”

“Me? Hehe, no, not me, no.”

She flicks her fingers arrogantly, smiling.

“My children, how impressive, right?”

“Children?”

“Yes! The ones I made a long time ago~? Hmm? So, a very long time ago~ I made them. It’s sad that I can’t make them anymore.”

Is she talking about the experimental creatures created through synthesis magic before Kate lost her wisdom?

“Among the children, monsters? Were they monsters? Anyway, I can induce the movements of such creatures.”

The description of Kate’s experimental creatures was not detailed, and it wasn’t as weighty as to be memorized, so it seemed to have been forgotten in memory.

Could it be that among Kate’s experimental creatures, there exist synthetic beings with such settings?

It was a bit unexpected.

“Oh. But my children….”

Kate, who had bowed her head deeply, raised her head again and looked straight at Yoo Seol-hyun. The lips that had been grinning like a troublemaker now sank into a pout. A subtle and firm aura rose like a thorn.

“…You killed them, right? Wasn’t that what happened? You were hit by your sudden attack and roasted. I feel so sad.”

Muttering with a melancholic voice, she suddenly glared with a sinister look.

Her emotional fluctuations were quite significant, making it impossible to follow Kate’s emotional line. Well, how could one understand the emotional line of a monster freak.

It shouldn’t be assumed that a few conversations would make things clear, that Kate had been a crazy woman since her human days.

“Huh, it’s okay, it’s okay. Because.”

Suddenly, her chin split into four elongated branches, and from within, something like a tentacle or a tongue popped out.

A sticky liquid dripped from the tip of the tentacle.

It was a kind of paralyzing poison.

“For you.”

With a squelching sound, clusters of tentacles sprouted from Kate’s shoulder blades.

Tentacles that tore the skin and wriggled slimily caught the eye. They were covered in sticky liquid and blood. The wriggling like a living snake was truly disgusting.

Ugh. Yoo Seol-hyun frowned. It was bearable when seen in the game, but in reality, it looked even more disgusting.

Is this the visual of a female-oriented game boss?

“If you eat it, you’ll feel better, hehe! Maybe your mood will improve again?”

“Ugh.”

Due to the wide smile and the scattering of aura, Yoo Seol-hyun had to clench her lower lip for a moment, but she could withstand Kate’s aura by recalling the much stronger enemy she had defeated earlier.

According to what Yoo Seol-hyun had heard, the Black-Handed Long-Armed Ape was much stronger.

Although the appearance of that half-human, half-snake monster was more intense, there was no fear and terror gripping the heart like with the Black-Handed Long-Armed Ape.

Of course, it would be stronger than Yoo Seol-hyun and Yoo Seol-hyun.

“If you just let me catch you, I’ll eat you less painfully, okay? The insides of females are tender and delicious~.”

“You crazy woman.”

Unable to bear it any longer, Yoo Seol-hyun scowled and spat out a curse, tightly gripping the Great Monster Spear and assuming a combat stance.

“Get ready, Jin-hyuk. It’ll take some time for the other team members to arrive.”

Entering a combat stance, Yoo Seol-hyun focused on Kate without looking back.

“You’ve prepared a lot of things, right? I’ll try to tank as much as possible, so I’ll rely on you for support.”

“…Got it.”

As if resigned, Jin-hyuk took out various items from a large backpack.

These were items prepared for the boss battle in case of emergencies.

Pheromone bomb, fire attribute magic scroll, spray for Kate, nerve poison arrow, explosive talisman for attachment, high-frequency repellent, 100,000 lumen flashlight, scattered iron pieces, etc.

A build created by combining memories from the game and various information from reality.

With this, I should be able to fight quite well.

Probably.

***

Has it been about 15 minutes?

“Heuk, heuk, heuk….”

Yoo Seol-hyeon breathed heavily.

Intermittently, her chest throbbed.

Her clothes were torn in various places, making it difficult to find a safe spot.

Her blonde hair was disheveled, and her body seemed to have suffered a lot, with a bone almost exposed due to the injuries.

“Hoo, hoo….”

She used the spear as a cane to prevent herself from collapsing.

Her left arm didn’t move well, and her legs were trembling so much that she felt like she would fall at any moment, but she somehow managed to hold on.

If she collapsed now, she would die.

Therefore, Yoo Seol-hyeon clenched her lower lip tightly, trying to maintain her composure.

“Ugh, ugh, it hurts, it hurts!”

Kate screamed in pain.

Her body was also not in good condition.

Her bleached white hair had turned black due to the fire attribute scroll, and the tentacles on her back were mostly cut off, oozing only blood.

The human part of her body was poisoned and injured in various ways, and when she was sprayed with a strange spray, she coughed up blood.

Her clothes were torn beyond recognition, and she had arrows stuck in her shoulders, arms, and chest.

The lower part of her snake body also had many wounds from being pierced by the spear and the scattered iron pieces.

“Annoying weaklings! They keep bothering me with their weird tricks!”

Kate growled fiercely.

Those weaklings kept annoying Kate by using strange tricks on her weakened state.

It was frustrating to be constantly poked in painful places.

“Haa, haa, I might not be able to hold on anymore, Lee Jin-hyuk. What about the other team members?”

“We might have to wait for another 10 minutes.”

“I see… I can’t.”

Yoo Seol-hyeon, who had already used up most of her stamina, had no more strength to endure.

She was able to fight this far thanks to the items Lee Jin-hyuk had prepared and his leadership.

If Yoo Seol-hyeon had been alone, she would have died several times by now.

“Yoo Seol-hyeon.”

“Haa, haa, haa, what?”

“I need a moment to prepare. Just 1 minute, please hold on for 1 minute.”

“…1 minute?”

“After that, I’ll take care of it myself.”

Yoo Seol-hyeon looked puzzled, but as she was in her current state, she had no sharp retort, so she nodded slowly.

The way he had shown himself so far gave Yoo Seol-hyeon a sense of credibility.

“Alright, 1 minute, you mean?”

She thought she had already used all the available methods, but was there still a hidden card left?

Was Lee Jin-hyuk going to use some extraordinary method that Yoo Seol-hyeon didn’t know about, as he was a precognitive?

Let’s trust him once.

Lee Jin-hyuk.

“Why are you whispering so much?”

“Ugh!”

Clang!

He swung his tail like a whip.

As if struck by a large iron bar, her arm felt numb.

Yoo Seol-hyeon furrowed her brow and managed to push the tail to the side.

“Die, die!”

“Ugh!”

Kate relentlessly attacked.

Wielding the remaining tentacles, Yu Seolhyun continued to press on relentlessly.

Despite her best efforts to block, she couldn’t avoid getting hit on her shoulders, sides, thighs, and more.

Her mind grew hazy inside the massive cocoon, but in order to endure the one minute that Lee Jinhyuk had mentioned, she gritted her teeth for that sole purpose.

“Just one minute… just one minute…”

Enduring one minute without Lee Jinhyuk’s support in her current depleted state was a significant challenge, but nonetheless, Yu Seolhyun persevered.

Mentally repeating the one minute over and over again, enduring was all she could do at the moment.

“Just a little more, just a, a little more…”

Temporarily blocking the consecutive tentacle attacks, she gritted her teeth.

“Why… why did the attacks suddenly stop?”

Wasn’t Kate stopping her attacks and smiling faintly?

Anyway, now was the chance if there ever was one.

It seemed like one minute had already passed.

“I-Is this… enough, Lee Jinhyuk…?”

“Cough, cough.”

Yu Seolhyun glanced back discreetly, but no one was there.

Only Kate’s laughter pierced her ears.

Where… where is Lee Jinhyuk?

Is he hiding his body slightly?

“Hehe, hahaha, oh~ you guys are hilarious~.”

“Lee Jin…hyuk?”

“Heh, that guy ran away, leaving you behind.”

“What?”

Kate chuckled lightly.

Yu Seolhyun’s heart sank with a thud.

She wanted to deny the unbelievable words, but after scanning her surroundings, she couldn’t sense Lee Jinhyuk’s presence.

In other words…

Lee Jinhyuk wasn’t here.

No, could it be true?

“Ran… away? Lee Jinhyuk… ran away…?”

And left her alone?