Chapter 11
Chapter 11
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Secret Dungeon (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
[Orb of Traits]
[An orb containing a special power.
Collect 10 and bring them to the Summoner's Shop Assistant, and something good might happen?]
The description was a bit too on the nose.
Anyone could tell it meant you’d get a trait if you collected ten of them.
It'd be nice if I could choose it myself...
In any case, it wasn't something I could use right away, so I put it in my inventory.
Looking at it now, the second guy seemed more generous... Ah! There was also the Blessed Scroll.
I’d already heard about the Blessed Scroll during the basic training, so I didn't bother checking its description.
Unlike regular scrolls, if a blessing triggered when attempting an enhancement with a Blessed Scroll, it would upgrade the item by two levels at once.
Of course, just like in other games, items could break from +7 onwards, so they recommended using it on a +6 item if you got one.
Well, I didn't have any weapon to enhance at the moment anyway.
“Hanna Pogani, the Knight of the Golden Flash.”
At my call, Hanna appeared in a flash of red light.
“Hyeon-ung! You've called for me again.”
Her bright, smiling face was charming, but my eyes were naturally drawn to...
Ahem, no.
I should act like a gentleman.
“Didn't I make a promise?”
“I believe you, Hyeon-ung, but I was just getting anxious... I'm sorry.”
“Sorry for what? It's good to see you again.”
“Me too. But where's Rina... Huh? Why is she walking separately?”
I looked ahead and saw her walking far in the distance.
I had no idea when she’d gotten so far.
“Ah, something came up...”
When I briefly explained the situation, she smiled bashfully.
“Oh my, Rina asked something like that?”
“Why? Do you think I'm lying?”
“Not at all. Of course, I believe you, Hyeon-ung.”
She had such a lovely way with words. I wished Rina would learn a thing or two from her.
“Honestly, she’s not a child.”
“Still, I’m a little happy.”
“Hmm?”
“It means you think of me as your number one priority.”
Hanna's smile was even brighter than before.
She seemed to be in a very good mood, but my actual number one was Bio.
Of course, I didn't bother correcting her.
There was no point in ruining the mood by being pedantic.
I had at least that much sense.
****
After the clash with the Four Stars Guild yesterday, I found a portal and went down to the 9th floor, but it seemed I’d have to give up on hunting here.
Not only was the Guild Alliance controlling it just like the other floors, but the environment itself was a maze, and it was far too crowded.
“Spot's taken.”
“This is our spot.”
“Taken.”
There were people everywhere, and they all eyed us with sharp suspicion if we so much as passed by.
The 8th floor had been completely empty, so I’d wondered if some great monster appeared on the 9th floor, and sure enough, my guess was right.
Last night, I shared some food with some people camping nearby and learned that the 9th floor was the only floor below the 10th where you could expect to find the popular Mimic-type monsters, which dropped not only money but also good items.
The floor boss was a monster called the King Mimic, and its rewards were said to be incredible, far beyond the level of the 9th floor.
It was tempting, but the floor boss and all the prime spots on the 9th floor were taken.
The spots where two or more Mimics spawned were exclusively for summoners belonging to the Guild Alliance.
The only spots available were those where a single Mimic appeared very rarely among other monsters, and you had to pay to buy the rights to hunt there.
I had plenty of money, so I thought about buying one, but they were already sold out.
Sold out already on the second day? Seriously, this wasn't some exclusive fishing hole.
It was a shame, but I decided to give up on the 9th floor and move on to the 10th.
“Mister, are you sure we're going the right way?”
“I think we're almost there. Oh... not this way either.”
The portal on the 9th floor should also be to the north, but because it was a maze, it was taking a lot more time.
It would be better if I had a map...
I’d asked the summoner who told me about the Mimics yesterday, just in case, but he said that for floors structured like this maze, the path changed every time the labyrinth opened.
Of course, the Guild Alliance, which had to claim and sell the spots, would create and sell maps upon entry, but only to their own guild members.
If you weren't a guild member, you had no choice but to rely on a compass.
I thought I'd eventually find it if I just kept going, but I had been too optimistic.
When I hit a dead end, I had to backtrack, and once I turned around, every path looked the same. It wasn't easy.
Even if I scratched marks on the walls or floor, they would disappear after a few minutes.
I’d come down yesterday afternoon and had been walking for quite a while. They said the 9th floor wasn't even that large...
This place was too cruel for someone with no sense of direction.
As I was backtracking, Rina, who was following behind me, grabbed the hem of my clothes.
“What is it?”
“Mister, isn't that a Mimic?”
“What Mimic? I told you, all the spots with Mimics are taken.”
“Hyeon-ung, I think that's a Mimic,”
I thought they were joking, but when Hanna chimed in, I turned around. Sure enough, in the corner of the wall Rina was pointing at, there was a small, square object.
It was the same gray as its surroundings, and with so many similarly sized rocks on the ground, you wouldn't notice it unless you looked closely.
“That's a Mimic? Are there Mimics that small?”
“Mister, is this your first time seeing a Mimic?”
“No, I saw some on the way here.”
I had passed a few parties hunting Mimics on my way here.
They were so wary that I couldn't watch for long, but I got a general idea. None of them were this small.
Most of them were the size of an adult's torso, but the one Rina found was just slightly larger than my fist.
“Hyeon-ung, Mimics start out this size and get bigger when you touch them.”
Is that how it worked?
Anyway, I was curious, so this was perfect.
We hadn't run into anyone for about twenty minutes, so this Mimic must be ownerless.
“Hanna, is there anyone nearby?”
Still, just in case.
I didn't want to get into any trouble by killing it only to get caught.
“The walls are blocking the range a bit, but it seems there's no one within about 500 meters.”
Perfect.
I just had to take care of it quickly before anyone showed up.
I picked up a nearby stone and threw it at the Mimic.
*Thud—*
It hit with a dull sound, but contrary to Hanna's explanation, nothing happened.
“What? Isn't it just a rock?”
“Mimics only react when you touch them by hand.”
I was about to approach it, but Hanna stepped forward and blocked my path.
“Hyeon-ung, please stay here. I'll do it.”
“Huh? Why? I can just do it.”
“They'll bite your hand the moment you touch them. Inexperienced people often get bitten.”
“It's fine. You saw me take down two 8th-floor bosses at once yesterday.”
She was being a little overprotective.
“Hyeon-ung, you can't underestimate a Mimic! There have even been knights who lost a hand because they took them lightly.”
Hanna's expression was incredibly firm.
Fine, if she was going to put it that way. I nodded in agreement.
Hanna strode forward and took off the glove she was wearing, and then... huh?
The Mimic started to tremble and then grew larger.
“Hyeon-ung, this needs to be dealt with quickly. Shall I handle it?”
When on earth did she touch it?
Seeing the Mimic change size, she must have touched it, but I didn't see a thing.
It felt much faster than the Gold Lycanthrope's movements.
Of course, my stats were much lower now, but for it to be so fast I couldn't even follow it with my eyes...
It was a good thing I didn't step forward.
“Hyeon-ung?”
“Oh? Y-Yeah.”
As soon as I finished speaking, a golden flash erupted.
[Hanna Pogani, the Knight of the Golden Flash, has defeated the Gray Mimic.]
The notification window appeared almost simultaneously with the flash.
I’d heard that Mimics, regardless of their type, had weak attack power but incredibly high defense.
The parties I’d seen fighting Mimics on the way here were all making a huge racket, blasting them with magic and hammering them with weapons.
But with Hanna, there wasn't even the sound of a slash. I hadn't seen a thing.
“Should I collect the reward as well?”
She asked while holding a gleaming golden sword. Hanna was incredibly strong, too.
Of course, being a Hero-grade, I expected her to be above average, but I had seen the performance of the Mythic-grade Bio.
Just how strong was Bio, then...
“Hyeon-ung? If you don't say anything, I'll collect it.”
“No, wait! I'll get the reward.”
I quickly moved to Hanna's side.
“Good job, Hanna.”
“This was nothing.”
“Nothing? I couldn't even see you move. Now, could you go to the sanctuary for just a moment?”
“Huh? D-Did I make a mistake...? I'm sorry for getting carried away.”
She was fidgeting nervously. Did she not hear me yesterday?
“No, it'll just be for a moment. You know how I said yesterday that if a lucky person collects the reward from a Mimic, it gives a bigger reward?”
I’d shared quite a bit of food, and in return, they gave me a helpful tip to use if I ever hunted on the 9th floor.
“Oh? Then wouldn't it be better if I collected it? My luck is pretty good, too.”
It seemed she really disliked being unsummoned.
“In that case, what's your Luck stat?”
“Luck stat? How do you express luck as a number?”
It seemed companions couldn't check their status windows.
Then again, there was no function for me to check theirs either.
I thought about it for a moment but decided not to take the risk.
I had no way of knowing if the law of item drops applied to companions.
“Please. It'll really just be for a moment.”
“If it's a request from you, Hyeon-ung, I have no choice. You have to call me back quickly, okay?”
I told her I would, and Hanna disappeared.
As I was about to open my inventory, Rina approached.
“Mister, why did you send Hanna back to the sanctuary again...?”
“To increase my luck for collecting the reward.”
“If it's for luck, don't tell me you're calling that filthy demon again?”
Demon?
Ah, she must be talking about Radios.
“Nope.”
Radios did raise Luck by 12, but there might be other Hero-grade companions who could raise the Luck stat.
Of course, even if such a companion existed, they would all be second-best.
I took a familiar card out of my inventory.
“Mister, is that...”
I felt a little sorry for Radios and the other Hero-grade companions I hadn't even met yet, but they hadn't even crossed my mind from the start.
Because I had a Mythic-grade companion who would inflate all my stats by 100.
“That's right. It's Bio's summon card.”
“But didn't you say Bio-nim refuses to be summoned?”
“I found a way.”
If I just called his name without doing anything, I'd probably get the same notification as before, saying he refused the summon.
But yesterday, I learned something from Su-hyeok.
If you held a card and thought of a message for that companion, you could deliver it even without summoning them.
'Bio, can you hear me? It's not a dangerous situation, and I'm not asking for help in a fight. I'm not calling you to ask for my sword back, either. Just come out for a moment.'
Naturally, I heard no reply, but I called out with confidence.
“Bio Rein, the Master of the Forgotten Space.”
Bio appeared in a flash of white light with a sullen look on his face. His expression was not good.
He wasn't one to smile much to begin with, but his face was completely rigid.
“I'm not going to make you do anything, so just be here. It'll only take a second.”
I said, in case he decided to leave, but his expression remained stiff.
“I considered ignoring you since I already told you last time, but I came out because I felt I needed to make things perfectly clear.”
“Huh? No, just stay for a moment. I said I won't make you do anything.”
“Sorry, but I'm not into men.”
...?
“What are you talking about? I told you I'm not into men either.”
“It's not for a fight, it's not a dangerous situation, and you're not asking for your sword back. Doesn't that mean you called me because you missed me?”
I was so dumbfounded I was at a loss for words.
I'd heard from Rina and Hanna that he was popular in the sanctuary, but did he think the entire universe revolved around him?
He looked perfectly normal, but he had a terminal case of prince syndrome.
“I killed a Mimic, and they say you get better rewards if your stats are high when you collect them. That's why I called you. This much is fine, right?”
There was a lot more I wanted to say, but I held back.
He might just disappear out of embarrassment.
“Wow, I never knew you thought that way, Bio-nim. Is this your true self?”
But our little devil Rina had no intention of holding back.
“Ahem, what... what are you doing? I'll... I'll wait, so hurry up.”
He didn't even glance at Rina as he urged me on. So he did know how to be embarrassed.
I replied with an "alright" and placed my hand on the gray box that had appeared after killing the Mimic.
[You have acquired the Secret Dungeon: Passage Crystal to the Mimic's Tomb.]
A secret dungeon?