Ch.131Strike Declaration Is Dangerous (3)

Upon entering the dungeon, I immediately felt an intense magical energy enveloping my body unlike anything I’d experienced before.

My breathing naturally quickened, and even the texture of the air felt different, so concentrated was the power.

Yet my body quickly adapted to the sensation, as if returning to a familiar place.

The same was true for the other two people.

“This reminds me of when we entered those ancient ruins.”

“…Yeah. I was thinking the same thing.”

“B-both of you, stay further apart. Maintain at least 5 meters distance, I said.”

While it seemed like a casual reminiscence on the surface, it revealed that both of them were giving this dungeon quite a high evaluation.

After all, we had only discovered two ancient ruins in Thebes, and both boasted tremendous danger. If this place gave off a similar feeling, it suggested this dungeon was no ordinary place.

‘…Come to think of it, even S4-rank dungeons weren’t that shabby.’

The Basilisk I encountered in America, and Kelshpeed, the priest of the evil god I faced in Korea.

Both demonstrated formidable power that would have been difficult to handle without necromancy.

‘Of course, if I fought them now, I’d win easily even in a straight fight…’

But this place is a top-tier dungeon, two ranks higher than those S4-class dungeons.

Honestly, even I couldn’t yet guess what kind of opponents might appear here.

“…I’ve detected enemies. Two of them. Their aura is considerable.”

Astride, who had the keenest sense for detecting energy among us, alerted us to approaching monsters. Her detection was so quick that it took about three minutes before we actually encountered them.

Kieeek!

Grrrr!

A two-headed wolf and a flying creature whose entire face was covered with eyeballs.

After gauging their energy, I let out an exclamation of surprise from behind the other two.

“They’re stronger than I expected?”

“Yes, they do seem that way. I guess this really is a dangerous dungeon after all?”

“…I’ll handle this.”

Astride stepped forward and took a stance, placing her hand on her scabbard.

And then.

KWANG!

KWAGAGAK—!

In an instant, the ground exploded as if being torn apart, and Astride vanished.

What appeared before our eyes afterward were merely fragments of the monsters, completely cut into pieces.

‘…That’s brutal.’

The enemies were certainly strong.

They were probably capable of tearing apart something like the Red Worm I saw in America’s large dungeon.

However, even such monsters couldn’t offer any resistance before an overwhelmingly superior opponent.

“…Helena. Heal me.”

“Huh? Where are you hurt?”

“Here. Got scratched from their counterattack.”

What Astride showed was such a minute wound that you wouldn’t notice unless looking carefully.

And that wound simultaneously proved the level of the monsters.

A counterattack in that split-second strike—probably no hunter below A-rank could manage such a feat.

I mumbled to Astride after she finished being healed.

“N-next time, just incapacitate them instead of killing them.”

“…Are you planning to control them, teacher?”

“No, I want to gain experience points.”

At my honest answer, Astride looked blank for a moment before nodding.

“…Okay. I’ll do that.”

After that, our advance was unimpeded.

Whenever monsters appeared, Astride would instantly take care of them all, while I diligently collected experience points from behind.

We were all masters who had reached the pinnacle of our abilities.

There was no need to gain combat experience, nor was there any need to coordinate our movements.

That’s why we were able to reach the boss room in just an hour and a half after entering the dungeon.

“…N-nothing particularly special, huh.”

That was truly the case. The level of monsters was certainly high, but the impression up to this point was simply that of conquering a traditional dungeon.

I stopped Astride, who was approaching the boss room entrance without hesitation, and called out to Helena, who had just been freeloading until now.

“Th-this is perfect timing, let’s do a test.”

“Pardon? What kind of test…?”

I’d actually been curious about dungeons for a while.

But I hadn’t had the luxury of time, and I lacked the ability to handle any unforeseen incidents, so I’d given up on investigating.

“…But now, things are different.”

As luck would have it, an excellent experimental subject in the form of an S2-rank dungeon had appeared, and I had two powerful bodyguards by my side.

If I wanted to discover something, this was clearly an opportunity that wouldn’t come easily again.

“Here.”

I pointed at Helena with my finger and nodded.

When Helena tilted her head in confusion, I opened my mouth again to give instructions.

“I-investigate a bit.”

“Me?”

“Who else would do it?”

I couldn’t use my full power in the current situation, and this was Helena’s specialty anyway.

It would probably be much more efficient than me doing the legwork.

“Y-you can dig around freely if you find anything suspicious. No, actually, it’s better if you do dig around.”

“If you insist…”

Helena immediately fell into thought and began to draw out magical energy from her entire body.

Starting from the entrance of the boss room, she moved around the dungeon, gathering information through hundreds of complex magical formulas.

After some time had passed, suddenly the energy within the dungeon changed, and tremendous vibrations began to resonate.

KUGUNG.

KUGUGUGU!

It was such a startling phenomenon that Astride and I turned bewildered gazes toward Helena.

“…It broke.”

“W-what did you touch?”

“Huh? You said I could dig around freely…”

Even Helena, who had spoken those words, seemed surprised that it had caused such a commotion.

Thankfully, the shaking of the dungeon, which had been dropping dirt as if about to collapse, gradually subsided.

What was surprising was the scene revealed afterward.

‘This is…’

As if it had been hiding the traces of time until now, parts of the dungeon interior were completely weathered.

Moreover, the degree varied by specific areas. It was like spaces from different time periods had been forcibly stitched together.

There was an inexplicable sense of incongruity.

“I thought something seemed off, and this is what it was.”

“…Helena, did you notice something?”

“Huh? It’s obvious just by looking. This wasn’t originally a single structure. It’s just materials brought together from various places.”

That was certainly the case. If I were to explain the incongruity I detected, that would be exactly it.

And on top of this temporary space that had been created, an elaborate shell had been overlaid.

“The technique is difficult, but the completeness isn’t that high. Rather than being unable to do better, it’s more like they only made what was necessary… you understand what I mean, right?”

“I-I get it.”

This was extremely valuable information. Regardless of where this dungeon originated from, we had at least obtained a clue about its creator.

‘It seems like I’m starting to get a better picture…’

Anyway, we’d gotten everything we could from here. It would be unwise to waste any more time.

I nodded and called the two of them to move back to the front of the boss room.

In the midst of this, Astride suddenly frowned and stopped walking.

“…It’s dead.”

“Asti? What is?”

“Whatever was in there.”

What Astride pointed to was beyond the thick door that was beginning to appear at the edge of our vision.

In other words, the dungeon boss that had been holding out until just now had been killed.

The implication was simple.

‘The opponent has made a move.’

This was the first time. The first clear response from whoever might be behind the dungeon incidents.

It was reasonable to assume they had recognized our presence because we directly interfered with the dungeon.

Astride conveyed additional information to me and Helena, who had hardened our expressions.

“…New presence, stronger than before.”

Something that had killed the original dungeon boss was waiting for us.

But none of us were the type to be frightened by that.

Exchanging glances, we moved forward again and flung open the doors to the boss room.

Creeeeak.

KUGUGUGU.

The first thing that caught our eyes was a giant monster covered in blood, its limbs severed and scattered about.

And the being who seemed to have dealt with it was caressing their sword at the far end of the boss room.

“……”

The man was silent. Perhaps he was unable to speak.

However, his killing intent that pierced through flesh, and his appearance as he rose from his seat, gave away his intentions.

“…Looks like you want to fight. Am I right?”

In response to my words as I stepped forward, the man finally opened his heavy mouth as he dragged the tip of his sword along the floor.

Seureu-reung.

“Honyeon Byeokryeokdo.”

And with that, lightning struck before our eyes.