Ch.81Midterm Exams, and Bluebeard’s Gift (3)

“W-What did you say?”

I couldn’t help but interject at Bluebeard’s insane statement.

“If you die in the dream, you die in reality. Probably… the cause of death would be heart failure.”

Bluebeard clicked his tongue as he spoke.

“No!! That’s complete nonsense!! Seriously!”

I immediately snapped back.

“Nonsense or not, did you really think you could undergo special training without any risk?”

Bluebeard replied.

“Ah… well, not exactly.”

I mumbled hesitantly.

“This is already special treatment I’m giving you. Be grateful.”

Bluebeard said with finality.

“Ah, fine…”

I clicked my tongue. True. Just being given training time was something.

With that, having received what we came for, Sasith and I left the Soul Room.

‘Being able to explore dungeons while sleeping…’

Honestly, it was a cheat-like ability. It meant I could use time that would normally be wasted for training.

Is it like lucid dreaming or something similar?

The moment I heard the term “lucid dreaming,” I couldn’t help but recall a group project from my college days.

There was a team member responsible for finalizing the PowerPoint and script. But even a day before the deadline, nothing had been uploaded to our group chat.

‘Hey. Is everything going okay?’

One of the team members immediately asked.

‘Oh. I’m a master of lucid dreaming, so I’ve already prepared the PowerPoint and script in my dreams. I just need to transfer it to reality.’

It was such an insane statement, but he was so serious that we just went along with it.

And on the day of the presentation, that team member completely ghosted us and took a leave of absence the next semester.

He became a legend in our department, known as “Inception Guy.”

‘Well, Bluebeard wouldn’t lie about something like this.’

Honestly, I was quite excited about having my own secret dungeon in my dreams. My heart was racing.

———-

After finishing our monster hunt, our club members went their separate ways and headed home.

As soon as I got home, I was practically dragged away by Umi, Eri, and Taiga.

“Hey… wouldn’t it be better to stop for today?”

I tried to persuade them.

“Nope. Don’t want to.”

Umi said with a refreshingly sweet smile. She clearly had no intention of listening.

“I… I get too anxious if I don’t make love with Shota every day. Okay? Try to understand me.”

Eri looked at me with eyes full of desire.

“Stop pretending. You like it too.”

Taiga laughed mischievously and roughly threw me onto the bed.

Right after that, I was thoroughly devoured by my girlfriends.

Well… I kind of expected it. Anyway, it seemed like I wouldn’t be falling asleep anytime soon.

It was around 4 AM when my girlfriends were finally satisfied.

They were all tangled together on the bed, sleeping with angelic expressions.

“Well… I guess I’ll try sleeping now.”

Bluebeard said I just needed to fall asleep. I closed my eyes immediately.

Being so exhausted, I fell asleep in about five minutes.

———

Some time later, I opened my eyes.

“Kuhak…!”

I immediately got up and looked around.

I was standing in an unfamiliar space.

Bluebeard was there.

“Ah. Looks like you succeeded. You’re quite late… but I suppose you had your personal circumstances.”

Bluebeard chuckled and waved his hand.

Fwaaaash-!!

After that, doors began to appear in the empty space.

A dungeon for those in their level 20s.

A dungeon for those in their level 30s.

A dungeon for those in their level 40s.

There were three doors like this. More upper-level dungeons would open up as my level increased.

“Enter the dungeon of your choice. Don’t forget that if you die here, you really die.”

Bluebeard summoned chairs and sat down.

“Well…”

Should I just close my eyes and tackle a high-level dungeon? Honestly, the rewards would probably be much better.

What should I do?

“I’ll take the level 20 dungeon, please.”

I said immediately.

“You… have quite the cowardly side to you.”

Bluebeard chuckled.

“Shut up!!! What if I die?!”

I shouted loudly. A tank who’s bad at solo hunting should always clear low-level quests first.

“Hmm. I was hoping to see you overwhelmed by the threat of death and making a pathetic escape in your underwear.”

Bluebeard said, sounding disappointed. This guy really has twisted tastes.

“LEVEL 20 DUNGEON!!!! THAT’S WHERE I’M GOING!!”

I immediately flung open the dungeon entrance.

Clunk-!!!

As I opened the door and entered, a mine-like place appeared.

“Welcome to the Kobold Mine.”

A fantasy-like landscape unfolded before me. It was an abandoned mine, a popular dungeon setting.

‘Average monster level: 20~25’

Right. This was appropriate considering my current level.

“Come forth!! Ungrateful Shield!!”

I immediately called for Pinocchio.

However, Pinocchio didn’t appear.

“Ah. Right.”

It was probably around 4 AM now. The Other Side had already disappeared. It was a time when I couldn’t use the power of Psychorobo.

In the end, I really had to face the enemies with just my bare body. Well, I didn’t mind. Pinocchio was essentially just a shield and moral support anyway.

“Only designated weapons can be used in this dungeon.”

A dry voice echoed throughout the dungeon.

So I couldn’t rely on equipment advantages.

I wouldn’t be able to dominate with cheat weapons like Tomato.

Clunk-!

A sword jutted out from the mine wall. It was a slightly worn medieval fantasy-style sword. It seemed they were sticking to the concept even in this aspect.

I immediately picked up the sword. It was a perfectly normal sword with appropriate weight and length.

“Let’s do this.”

I looked into the darkness of the mine, sword in hand. Honestly, it was a bit nerve-wracking having to tackle this alone. But I had no choice.

“KYEEEEEEEEK!!!!!!!!!”

To suppress my fear, I charged forward with the sword while letting out a wild scream.

Deep inside the dark mine corridor, there were monsters.

“Chiruruk!! Chiruk!!”

They were rat-like creatures, enlarged. They were mining something with pickaxes.

Yes, they were Kobolds. Along with Goblins, they’re a race that shares the position of cannon fodder in fantasy works.

“Chirururururuk!!!”

The Kobolds immediately rushed toward me, wielding their pickaxes.

“Uryaaah!!!”

I immediately reached close quarters with one of the Kobolds in front, sword in hand.

Fwshaaaak-!!

With a single strike, the Kobold’s head was smashed.

Bwaaaak-!

I kicked the Kobold’s corpse while pulling out the sword that was stuck in its head.

Crash-!

The formation of other Kobolds was disrupted as they collided with the corpse. That created an opportunity.

“Heuuuup!!!!”

After that, I unleashed a horizontal slash that flew in a wide arc.

Fwshssssssak-!!!

I felt the definite sensation of flesh, muscle, and bone being torn by the blade.

With that, the Kobolds immediately tumbled to the ground.

“Uryacha!!!!”

One Kobold that had luckily survived tried to escape.

“A wound on the back is a swordsman’s shame!!!”

I immediately slashed the Kobold’s back with my sword. With the realistic feeling of the spine being severed, the Kobold’s corpse rolled on the ground.

Kobold blood and flesh were everywhere. It was unnecessarily realistic. This is a dream, there’s no need to make it this gory. Maybe it’s Bluebeard’s personal taste.

Anyway, I thoroughly explored the dungeon.

There were even treasure chests, as befitting a dungeon.

Clang-!!

I immediately smashed a treasure chest with my sword. This way, I could check if it was a mimic or not, as well as see the contents.

As the treasure chest opened, a shining jewel was absorbed into my body.

‘Gained 500 experience points’

I see. So the reward is experience points. Each Kobold gives about 100 experience points. I just received experience equivalent to five Kobolds.

“Ooooh…..”

Just opening one chest gave me experience points. It felt like getting something for free.

I decided to open every treasure chest I could find. With that motivation, I started to explore every corner of the dungeon.

After repeatedly slaying Kobolds and opening treasure chests, I finally reached the boss room.

“Chirururururuk!!!!”

A Kobold wearing iron armor all over its body jumped around, blocking my way. It held a heavy iron club in its hand. Its level was 25, the strongest among the creatures here.

“You’ve put on a lot of sturdy armor. Don’t do that.”

“Chiruk?”

“It makes you look weak.”

I said with a smile. I really wanted to say this line.

“Chirurururuk!!!”

The Kobold immediately charged at me, swinging its club.

“Huuuup….”

There was time before the Kobold reached me. I immediately regulated my breathing and focused my mind.

Pichiiing-!

Although it wasn’t perfect since it still took time to activate, I could clearly see the weakness in the armor. I could see at a glance how to cut through it.

Pat-!!!

I immediately closed the distance toward the Kobold.

Fwshaaaak-!!!

I slashed at the shoulder part of the Kobold’s armor with my sword.

The Kobold, seemingly confident in its armor, didn’t make any evasive maneuvers. That was its downfall.

Jjeojeojeojeak-!! Clang-!!

The sword penetrated the weak point of the armor, resulting in the Kobold’s entire armor shattering into pieces.

“Chiruruk?!”

The Kobold looked at its naked body in confusion. It seemed unable to believe that its armor had suddenly turned to dust.

“Die!!!!”

I immediately thrust my sword into the Kobold’s neck.

Fwshaaaak-!! Gigigigik-!!

After that, I swung my sword and beheaded the Kobold.

Ding-!!

Then, my status window vibrated.

‘Level: 21’

My level increased by 1 in one go.

“Kyaaathoooou!!!!!!”

I immediately let out a victory cry. The level that wouldn’t increase no matter what I did in the real world had just gone up here.

This dream dungeon seemed quite promising.