Ch.51The Large Dungeon Is Dangerous (4)

Everyone wore blank expressions at the man’s words.

Indeed, that was the only place they hadn’t properly explored.

However, it was also an unreasonable and cruel hypothesis.

‘We have to go down?’

‘Down that steep cliff?’

‘…In this blizzard?’

Though hunters possessed physical abilities beyond ordinary people, none had experienced anything like this before.

Similarly, while they had some equipment that might help, they only had the bare minimum—not nearly enough.

Who would have imagined they’d need to descend a cliff inside a dungeon?

The raid team’s hunters returned to base camp with gloomy expressions after completing their search.

That night, an urgent meeting began.

“The probability itself must be considered high.”

“If it’s not near the cliff, there’s nowhere else left to search…”

“The question becomes how to proceed with the exploration.”

The course of action was essentially decided. The only issue was the method.

“How many people can fight in mid-air?”

“Our party has one wind-element mage. However, flight is limited to two people maximum.”

“We have two people on our side who can fight while moving across rock faces.”

After taking stock, they seemed to have about seven people who could effectively fight in such conditions.

“Deploying personnel recklessly doesn’t seem wise.”

Given the terrain, bringing people with poor compatibility would only increase the risk.

In the end, the raid team decided to select members capable of fighting on the cliff to locate the boss room, then challenge it together with a follow-up team.

Kim Seungmin, who participated in the meeting, informed his party members of this and asked for their input.

“I haven’t mentioned this yet, but is anyone capable of fighting on a cliff?”

It was impossible for Choi Eunsol and Kwak Minji, and Song Hayeon didn’t have any suitable means for aerial combat yet.

While everyone was shaking their heads to indicate impossibility, only one person raised their hand without hesitation. It was Baek Eunha.

Since she rarely volunteered in such situations, everyone gave her questioning looks. Baek Eunha spoke hesitantly.

“…I, I want to finish quickly and go home.”

And so time passed, and the next day arrived.

#

‘…Being cold gets old after a day or two.’

To be honest, I was very dissatisfied right now.

Of course, I didn’t think we’d clear this quickly, but we’ve already been here for ten whole days.

Ten days is enough time to play dozens of games with time to spare. Naturally, I felt restless.

‘Mid-tier hunters aren’t much different either.’

Just as there’s the saying “bronze, silver, gold, platinum” in real life, from my perspective, these hunters weren’t much different from those ranked below them.

So I decided to step forward myself to find the boss room and speed up the clearing process.

It felt like volunteering for trouble, but this seemed better than quietly waiting and trusting others.

Among the eight people gathered, Choi Hanna from Kim Kyeongsik’s party, who had been exploring in the same direction as us, spoke to me.

“Oh, but isn’t Baek Eunha a necromancer? Can you fight in the air?”

“Ah, that. Um, somehow I’ll manage…”

Certainly, I couldn’t currently summon undead that could both fly and possess high combat power.

But I didn’t necessarily need to fly. In essence, wouldn’t it be enough just to climb the cliff well?

And I already had a locally-sourced premium guide capable of performing that task.

It was the Ice Troll we had fought yesterday.

Thud.

Thud thud!

[GROAR!]

When I pointed to the Ice Troll I had summoned from a corner of the forest, Choi Hanna recoiled in shock and moved away from me.

Indeed, it was already hideous to begin with, and becoming undead had made it even more grotesque.

I gestured to the Ice Troll standing like a statue before me and climbed onto its shoulder.

Thus began the exploration of the snowy cliff.

Whoosh!

Whisk!

“The wind is strong! Everyone maintain distance!”

“Are you checking the direction? It’ll be troublesome if we get it wrong later since visibility is poor!”

“This way is correct! I think we’ve already descended quite a bit!”

Though they said to maintain distance, due to my abilities, it was better for me to position myself a bit further back, so I stayed behind the group.

After some time had passed, strange cries began to echo through the blizzard.

Screech!

Screeeeech─!

“Something’s there!”

Along with a sharp wind sound, something quickly flashed past. It was essentially a signal for an attack.

Swoosh!

“Ugh!”

“Frost Hawks! They’re Frost Hawks!”

“Moving to Formation 2! Intercept them!”

Frost Hawks—giant bird monsters covered in ice with a B4 rank.

They already possessed high mobility, and encountering them on such a cliff made them particularly troublesome opponents.

“Vacuum Slash!”

“Spin Cutter!”

Swoosh!

Crack!

Crunch!

Screech!

A chaotic situation unfolded before my eyes, with the groans of my companions and the screams of Frost Hawks echoing all around.

They seemed to be attacking in their own way, but it was clear they were struggling since none of them were accustomed to this type of combat.

“How many of these things are there?”

“They’re circling back around!”

Seeing the hunters’ obvious confusion, I sighed and gestured to the Ice Troll.

“Catch one,”

ROAR!

The Ice Troll, with me on its shoulder, suddenly leaped from the rock face and snatched a Frost Hawk.

[GROAR!]

Rip!

Crack!

Screech!

The Frost Hawk with completely shattered wings plummeted down the cliff, and the Ice Troll, maintaining its momentum, grabbed another one that was circling, broke its neck, and then secured itself back on the rock face with a loud noise.

Thud!

Crunch!

If one attack succeeded, the next would be simple.

“Undead Call.”

With my precisely activated necromancy, the two falling Frost Hawks emitted death energy throughout their bodies, straightened their wings, and flew back up into the sky.

[Screech!]

[Shriek!]

I had quickly dealt with two of them, but there were still many left. As if to prove this, someone’s scream came from another direction.

“Wh-what? Aaaagh!”

A man who had accidentally lost his grip on the rock face during combat began to fall. Feeling a headache coming on, I quickly scanned the surroundings and immediately took action.

“…Go catch him.”

ROAR!

At my command, the Ice Troll kicked off from the rock face and leaped toward the man. I detached myself from the Ice Troll, falling as I immediately cast a spell.

Whoosh.

“Breath of Decay.”

Hiss.

Screech!

As I cast the curse, as if it were a signal, the two undead Frost Hawks sharply charged forward and ended the enemy’s life.

Crack!

Crunch!

Whoosh.

“Undead Call.”

That made three. This number should be sufficient. I summoned the two Frost Hawks in relatively good condition to catch my falling body.

[Screech!]

[Screeech─!]

Thud!

The impact was considerable, but with my current specs, I could endure this much. Simultaneously, the Ice Troll successfully rescued the man and secured itself back on the rock face.

Perfect control.

This was a death-defying acrobatic feat that could only be achieved with bold decision-making and the skill to back it up.

‘So many people can’t even use half their specs properly, tsk.’

Anyway, with this, the tide had turned. I quickly helped the group, who had regained their momentum, eliminate the remaining enemies.

And so, the first battle on the cliff concluded.

“What’s the situation?”

“We have two with minor injuries. I don’t think they can continue fighting.”

“…Let’s send them back up for now.”

Though there were risks, the appearance of this many monsters suggested that the direction we were heading was correct.

Han Minjae, a B-rank hunter from Hanul Guild who had temporarily taken command, looked at me with a hint of admiration as he asked:

“How much longer can you maintain your summons?”

“…F-for a while longer.”

“Then I think we can proceed a bit further.”

To clear the dungeon, they absolutely needed to find the boss room.

Even if it was somewhat strenuous, it made sense to push forward now.

We continued our exploration through two more battles, and finally discovered a suspicious passage located in the middle of the cliff.

“This is…”

“It’s hard to see clearly, but it looks like a cave inside.”

“I have a feeling about this.”

The inside definitely had the appearance of a cave.

Icicles and stalactites formed throughout, and water pooled on the floor, making splashing sounds with every step.

“…Let’s go deeper.”

Splash.

Splash.

Thud.

After moving for some time, what appeared before our eyes was a massive door covered in thick ice.

“…This is definitely it, right?”

“Yes. I think we’ve found it.”

“Heh, fuck. Finally saying goodbye to this damn cold.”

The boss room of the B4-rank large dungeon had finally revealed itself.