The Slumbering Dungeon Guard
……!
Ferrofero's face drained of all color the moment he saw the message.
"Dungeon Guard? What's that?"
The others could see the message too.
The Dungeon Guard. An intangible entity that managed everything in the dungeon. Han Ji-woo, who knew little about it, felt no particular reaction. He could only guess it was something serious from Ferrofero's response.
Wait! I... I currently possess the Creator's authority!
The Dungeon Guard had been created by the Creator as well. So Ferrofero quickly improvised.
Put it back to sleep!
The fact that only one eye had opened meant it hadn't fully awakened from its slumber! It would still be groggy, unable to grasp the situation properly.
It'd be safest to kill the Dungeon Guard outright!
But he couldn't predict what might happen to the dungeon if he did. In the worst case, if the dungeon collapsed, even the Hidden Space might be affected. He couldn't guarantee Lucy's safety then.
So Ferrofero used the Creator's power to put the Dungeon Guard back to sleep. For as long as possible.
The Dungeon Guard's one eyelid closes again.
The Dungeon Guard falls into a deep sleep.
"Hooah! Th-that was dangerous!"
"What's a Dungeon Guard?"
At Han Ji-woo's question, Ferrofero gave the shortest possible explanation.
"It's the true manager of this dungeon! I'm just filling in for the Dungeon Guard!"
Those words brought back the mutterings Ferrofero had panicked over earlier.
"This can't be happening. The moment Princess was born, the Bryunak Continent was destroyed. The Dungeon Guard promised to revive our dead princess if I fulfilled the manager's role without fail. That's why I've been doing this grueling job all this time... but how is the princess here?"
In the end, Ferrofero was from the same continent as Pao.
So Lucy was the princess of the cat tribe that this guy served.
Judging by the circumstances, Ferrofero was likely one of the few cat tribe survivors after the Bryunak Continent's destruction. He believed Lucy had died then too. But somehow, she had been sealed inside a stone wall in the Hidden Space, and Han Ji-woo had found her. Unaware of this, Ferrofero had been acting as the Dungeon Guard's proxy to revive her.
Ferrofero continued.
"The Dungeon Guard said it would revive the princess if I defended the dungeon from the heroes' invasions 100 times. But..."
His gaze, filled with sorrow and joy, fixed on Lucy.
"Now there's no need. I'll support the 27th heroes in every way possible so they can reach the dungeon's lowest floor and hunt the boss monster!"
Once the dungeon was cleared, the 27th heroes and Han Ji-woo could return to Earth. Lucy, now his pet, could probably go with them. He didn't know what would happen to him, but as long as he could save the princess, he didn't care.
-00:00:17
Time was running critically short now. They had to leave the Hidden Space before the Creator's authority vanished.
"Princess. And Master Han Ji-woo. It's time to say goodbye. I'll now invoke a power I can only use at this moment, so you can better serve the princess, Master."
Ferrofero snapped his fingers. Snap!
A brilliant light burst forth, enveloping everything, and a system message appeared.
By the Creator's grace, the Hidden Space's firewall is strengthened. Other beings will now have much greater difficulty finding the Hidden Space.
However, remember that just as before, the firewall weakens each time one of the Hidden Space's outer walls crumbles.
"Every time Master Han Ji-woo shared something from the dungeon, the Hidden Space's location was exposed. But that won't happen anymore. It'll be safe even until another outer wall crumbles! Even if the Dungeon Guard wakes up! Now, I really must go!"
With only seconds left before the Creator's authority expired, Ferrofero's words tumbled out faster and faster. He gazed at Lucy with a desperate expression, then snapped his fingers one last time.
Snap!
From the moment of his birth until now, the cat tribe royal knight who had worried only for the princess's safety vanished like that.
"Huuuuuuh."
Back in his own room, Ferrofero spent a long time calming his heart.
She's alive! The princess is alive!
It was truly moving. The world had ended the moment the princess was born. From his perspective, it was natural to assume she had died then too. He'd witnessed with his own eyes how everything around him disintegrated into particles amid a blinding white light.
And the surviving lifeforms received this message.
You have been selected by the 'Creator' and assigned as a fixture composing the dungeon.
The recipients were assigned to fight the dungeon heroes or spend their lives in the barren Dungeon Prison. Ferrofero took on the role of proxy for the Dungeon Guard. He considered it better than most other survivors.
But sending innocent humans into the meat grinder every time built a massive guilt in his heart. Still, he had no choice. The Dungeon Guard had promised: block the heroes' invasions 100 times, and it would revive the dead princess.
That's exactly it!
Because of that promise, Ferrofero had firmly believed the princess was dead.
Now it's over. The princess is alive! So...
Ferrofero turned his gaze to the crystal orb. In one day, the heroes had broken through to the 10th underground floor. But of the 35 who had descended to the 9th, only 20 remained. Fifteen had met their ends. The 9th and 10th floors were murderously difficult.
With comrades falling one by one, shadows darkened the heroes' faces. No one knew who might die on the 11th floor. They hesitated to take the stairs and set up camp instead.
Watching them through the crystal orb, Ferrofero vowed.
For this dungeon's clear, I'll help you all with everything I've got from now on!
He clenched his cotton-candy-like fist, steeling his resolve.
Seol Ara stared blankly at the stairs leading to the 11th underground floor.
"What're you thinking?"
The sudden voice belonged to Pierre. Without looking at him, she replied.
"Just curious. How many floors does this dungeon have?"
No information was given to those kidnapped into the dungeon. Not the lowest floor's number, nor the quests and dangers awaiting on each.
It made their hearts tire all the faster.
"Do you have a guess, Pierre?"
He was the smartest among the 27th heroes, so she felt he might know.
But Pierre just shook his head.
"No way to know."
"Not curious?"
"Nope."
"Why?"
"Wasting emotions on unanswerable questions just tires you out. No room or reason for that."
"Wise as always."
Seol Ara's face brightened after hearing him.
"Everyone doing well?"
But then, a voice that made the dungeon dwellers' brows furrow echoed through the space. Ferrofero.
"……."
"……."
"……."
Before, curses would fly the instant he appeared. Now, silence. Instead, their gazes toward the bipedal cheese-tabby cat burned with immeasurable fury.
"I wasn't expecting a welcome party, but this is too much."
Ferrofero grumbled, his face full of hurt. Of course, no one pitied him. No one even wanted to talk to him—except Seol Ara.
"What do you want?"
Not friendly, but she was speaking to him, which delighted Ferrofero.
"Great question! I've come to give you a quest!"
"Again?"
This sly cat only gave quests when he wanted something. Mostly fish, but last time it was to hurry to the lower floors, which had been awkward. Seol Ara eyed him sharply.
Meanwhile, Pierre, behind her, watched Ferrofero closely.
No info shows up, as expected.
His skill Monster Dictionary revealed info on all visibly identifiable monsters. But nothing on Ferrofero. Meaning he wasn't a monster. Just a bad guy, then—but he didn't feel entirely irredeemable. The occasional dumb moments made him seem inadequate as a dungeon manager.
As Pierre pondered his true nature, the conversation continued.
"The quest I have for you this time is this!"
Snap!
I Want Catnip!
📍 Goal: Pluck catnip growing somewhere in the mountains and bring it back.
🎁 Reward: 1,000 Dungeon Coins.
Sighs erupted among the dungeon dwellers upon seeing the quest. Some couldn't hold back and spat curses.
"You damn bastard! Do you even know how vast and dangerous this place is before throwing out a quest like that?"
"That's why he gave it, the devil."
In the chaos, Seol Ara opened her map window.
This place... it's too huge.
The 10th underground floor was a vast, rugged mountain range. Their quest there had been Monster Wave. They had to reach designated spots within the time limit to fend them off. Jagged rocks, sheer cliffs, narrow paths—it was hell just to move. They'd faced near-death several times rushing through.
Fortunately, no deaths there, but the Monster Waves were brutal. They always happened on cramped cliff edges, fighting frenzied monsters with the constant risk of falling. Over 10 waves in different spots, many died before reaching the 11th-floor entrance.
And now, find barely visible catnip while traversing this hellish range? Even without monsters, not easy.
As Seol Ara studied the map, Mitchell stepped up to calm everyone.
"Everyone, no need to get heated. As you know, Ferrofero's quests aren't mandatory. Ignore if you don't want."
"Oh, right!"
"Yeah. Last quest's reward was survival, impossible to ignore. But this is different."
"Exactly. A survival reward might mean death if ignored... though not certain, hard to risk lives on a gamble."
Consensus shifted to ignoring the quest. But two voices dissented.
"I think we should do the kitty's quest."
"We should. That quest."
Seol Ara and Pierre.