The Night of Slaughter
At first, everyone thought the goblins had attacked the woman. But that wasn't it.
A sharp beam of light shot toward where the woman's head had been just moments before. Losing its target, it flew off into the distance and clattered to the ground—a dagger.
The goblin had only tried to shove her out of the way from the sudden ambush and accidentally stabbed her in the abdomen.
As the commotion spread, the other goblins grabbed their weapons and stood up.
"Gremlin! Gremlin!"
"Gremlins are here!"
The goblins cried out with sharp kyaek! kyaek! warning calls. Just as they said, gremlins were approaching from all sides.
...I see.
Seol Ara grasped the situation.
The quest given to the people on Dungeon Floor 3 was this:
Night of Slaughter
📍 Objective: Once the sun sets, monsters drawn by the scent of blood will swarm. Survive until dawn.
🎁 Rewards: Entrance to Floor 4, full wound healing, food box
So it wasn't about killing the goblins. The key was surviving until dawn.
In other words, other monsters could show up too.
As everyone braced for battle, Ishihara Yui grabbed a nearby goblin by the scruff of its neck.
"You didn't tell us more were coming?!"
"I-I knew! But we were too busy eating. S-sorry! Sorry!"
"Tch!"
Yui slammed the goblin to the ground and scanned the surroundings.
About 40 gremlins were closing in. Unlike the goblins, these ones weren't starving—they were full of energy.
Gremlins didn't attack like goblins, throwing javelins to probe before charging en masse. They kept hurling projectiles from afar to wear people down, only rushing in once the target was exhausted.
That's why previous groups of heroes hunted goblins first, then endured a weary night facing off against the gremlins.
After all, holding out until dawn cleared the quest. The problem was the casualties—dozens died in the process every time.
No more losses. We can't afford any.
To reach the dungeon's depths, they had to minimize casualties on each floor. More survivors meant more diverse tactics, leading to unexpected achievements.
Achievement rewards were usually new skills—good ones or useless ones. But a strong skill boosted everyone's survival odds.
More heads meant better chances at powerful skills, raising survival rates.
No choice.
Mitchell Hoff judged coldly and shouted,
"Goblins, take the front against the gremlins!"
The goblins who'd sworn loyalty to the humans charged at the gremlins. Some would die, but it was unavoidable—they had to shield the humans with their lives.
Of course, Mitchell had no intention of using them purely as meat shields; more goblin survivors meant stronger allies.
"Everyone, attack the gremlins at your discretion!"
His second order was for the humans. The best move was striking while the gremlins were distracted by the goblins.
Those with ranged attack skills activated them immediately.
Wind Cutter!
Ice Spear!
Ki Blast!
While clashing with the goblins, the gremlins were sliced by razor winds, pierced by ice spears, and smashed by compressed air bullets.
But the damage wasn't lethal—just wounds of varying sizes, no one-shots.
Melee fighters hesitated, fearing the gremlins. Ranged dealers with splash or AoE skills held back to avoid friendly fire.
Even Mitchell's Fire Ball risked hitting allies too close to the enemy, so he waited for an opening.
After a few exchanges, the gremlins scattered and fled far away.
As the goblins pursued, Mitchell yelled,
"Don't chase—hold position!"
His call was wise; the gremlins might circle back to hit the humans while the goblins were away.
As the fight stalled, people tended to the wounded goblins from the gremlin clash.
A healer was in the group, but their mana was depleted from treating severe goblin-fight injuries earlier. Mana recovered slowly, so no goblin healing.
Fortunately, a Finn had brought a large first-aid kit, which had helped many times. It opened again.
The goblins got their wounds disinfected, packed with cotton and gauze, and bandaged.
Seol Ara treated one goblin and muttered,
"What's their weakness?"
The goblin shook its head.
"None. They're fast. Smart. Sharp eyes, ears ten times better than goblins'."
"...Ears? How good are goblin ears?"
"Better than humans'. Hear ants walking by."
"Aha."
That sparked an idea in Seol Ara's mind.
* * *
Crunch. Crunch.
Ferrofero bit his nails anxiously. His eyes were fixed on the crystal orb showing two clusters of three flower types and a field of flame flowers.
He didn't care how the 27th heroes fought the monsters.
Since seeing the message that Han Ji-woo's plants had been shared, nothing else mattered.
"Argh! What do I do about this Han Ji-woo guy?!"
Ferrofero tried probing for the Hidden Space again, but it was tough. The alien energy flickered only briefly during shares, hard to detect.
Finding it first had been luck.
"But Ferrofero won't give up. Next time I find it, that's when I kill Han Ji-woo!"
Resolved, he rummaged through his collection box, pulled something out, and nodded.
"I didn't want to use this item, but no choice. Just you wait!"
* * *
Soon, the gremlins returned in force.
Meanwhile, Seol Ara had shared her plan.
As the gremlins encircled them,
Megaphone!
"Kyaeeeeeeeek!"
Seol Ara unleashed her skill, amplifying her voice like a megaphone and screaming at full power.
The gremlins clutched their ears and collapsed.
Goblins could hear ants; gremlins' ears were ten times sharper. That's where she got the hint—and it worked perfectly.
Those in on the plan plugged their ears in advance.
Fire Ball!
Seizing the chaos, Mitchell fired.
Whiiiiiish—Boom!
Kerruk!
A gremlin took a direct hit from the blazing fireball, flying into the distance and rolling across the flame flower field.
Mitchell watched if it died or rose.
Then—
Boom!
BOOM! BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!
The ignited flame flowers exploded in a chain reaction, shooting up pillars of fire.
"I see. Fire-attribute flowers, huh."
The whole field was obliterated, but it didn't matter. Lower floors would have new ones. Studying flame flowers could be Mitchell's perfect weapon.
Meanwhile, other gremlins fell to goblins and humans. Regaining their senses, they tried scattering again.
Can't let them escape.
Seol Ara warned,
"Everyone, plug your ears!"
Humans and goblins did.
Megaphone!
"Kyaeeeeek!"
The fleeing gremlins staggered and fell again. Even with ears plugged, her allies struggled against the ringing but held on.
Then, achievement messages appeared.
Megaphone evolves toward Debuff & Attack path.
Megaphone → Lion's Roar
Confuses enemies within 1km radius: All stats -20%, defenseless for 1 min.
Strong-willed targets may resist or reduce effect. No mana cost; 2 uses/day, resets at midnight.
My skill upgraded!
Plus a vitality boost from the evolution, and the utility was insane. Enemy-only debuff dropping all stats 20% and leaving them defenseless for a minute.
Seol Ara used it right away.
Lion's Roar!
Rooooaaar!
A lion's roar echoed from the sky. The gremlins rolled their eyes back, convulsing. Some soiled themselves; others fainted from terror.
All eyes turned to Seol Ara amid the sudden power.
But only briefly.
"Take out the gremlins first!"
Mitchell snapped everyone back, and they charged to end the fight.
* * *
Dawn was breaking.
No more monsters after the gremlins. Each of the forty-odd survivors held gremlin daggers—spoils of war.
They got leather armor too, but it was too small, so they stored it in inventory for later.
The sun fully rose over the horizon.
Night of Slaughter Complete!
🎁 Rewards: Entrance to Floor 4, full wound healing, food box
Quest cleared, rewards received. Curiously, the goblins' wounds healed too. The food boxes even had extra energy bars for them.
"It's over! Hahaha!"
"Haaa... We survived. Somehow, again."
"Hic... Sniff."
Some cheered, some sighed in relief, some cried.
Stairs to Floor 4 appeared, but everyone was exhausted—too drained to descend.
58 survivors so far. Counting the dead sapped their spirits.
Seol Ara summoned barracks; they'd rest in shifts.
Fatigue dulled minds and moods—rest would refresh them.
She'd sleep later, guarding the entrance. Glancing around, she saw new sunflower, lavender, and salvia fields from the night. The toilet was now modern. Apple trees had grown to eleven.
All shared by Han Ji-woo.
Now she believed he was that Han Ji-woo. He could pull off miracles like this.
Where are you? ...I want to see you.
She whispered the uncertain wish in her heart.
* * *
Before dawn, Han Ji-woo woke.
He'd slept deeply for days here, plus higher vitality meant less fatigue. Even with less sleep, his mind was clear.
But his body felt heavy—not from tiredness.
Zzzz... Zzzz...
Pao's legs draped over his belly.
Snore... Snore...
Lucy curled on his chest, sleeping.
He gently moved Lucy aside, shoved Pao's feet off, and stepped out.
"Yawnnnnnaaah!"
Stretching hard, he splashed lake water on his face. Then filled an apple cup, drank, and checked the Dungeon Tree.
Last night, Lucy caught lenok trout; they ate more sashimi. He gave the pets sliced ones too. Buried scraps and apple peels by the tree—big growth boost.
"Fully grown in a week at most?"
Gazing at the dark sky, his 2.0 vision picked out twinkling stars clearly.
"Wonder if I can find constellations today."
Muttering, he connected stars.
"Oh!"
An ogre constellation aligned perfectly. Distant stars linked in thin lines, glowing brightly.
The light shot like an arrow, sinking into Han Ji-woo's body.