Chapter 117
Chapter 117
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 117
Chapter Title: Aranbalon Kingdom's National Treasure (2)
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Sneaking along.
Matching the cautious movements of my team members as they scanned their surroundings.
That's what I was doing, walking slowly.
"Uh, over there?"
"Team leader! Look at the floor."
"The floor is moving!"
I stopped in my tracks.
And blinked.
What?
The floor is moving?
I hadn't felt anything like that.
As if responding to my surprised reaction, Kapu stepped forward.
"Hoon, to be precise, the pattern on the floor moved. Exactly in sync with your movements."
"The pattern?"
"Yeah, can you try moving once more?"
"That should be easy enough."
Step, step.
I took a couple more steps.
A strange sensation washed over me.
It felt like I was standing still while the entire team moved around me?
'Ah.'
I instinctively looked down.
Everyone had their eyes wide open, staring at my feet.
'It's real.'
Kapu was right.
The pattern etched into the floor was moving, centered perfectly on me.
I had no idea how something 'etched' could move like that.
"What's the reason for this?"
"Right? It seems like we need to uncover the secret of this pattern to make any progress."
"......"
Everyone stroked their chins, deep in thought.
We were definitely being cautious.
We weren't rushing ahead recklessly; we held our ground.
'The air is heavy.'
The atmosphere felt oppressive.
A thick pressure bore down on our entire bodies.
Actually, it had been like this since we entered.
As if some enormous presence was watching us?
Goosebumps prickled my skin.
"Something feels creepy."
"Yeah. My spine's tingling. It's chilly."
Ignoring the few anxious team members, I continued assessing our surroundings.
I tried to stay calm.
After all, I was the team leader.
'First things first.'
The pattern was circular.
And it only spanned about a 10-meter radius.
A bit cramped for all ten of us?
"Team leader!"
That's when Mio Hana's voice rang out.
"Yes?"
"Look over there!"
She pointed into the empty air.
At the end of where she pointed.
Boom!
A soldier radiating immense pressure stood holding a crossbow.
It looked like it was made of bones, just like my skeletons.
But since it was frozen in place, maybe it was just decorative?
"A soldier?"
"There's one over there too!"
"I found one, Hoon!"
One by one.
The team members started spotting the soldiers.
It was dim, so they were hard to see at first.
But once you found one, the others weren't difficult to locate.
Every soldier wielded a crossbow.
And at their waists hung scabbards with ordinary-length swords.
'Soldiers, huh.'
Since this was the trial of the Aranbalon Kingdom, were these kingdom soldiers? That's what I was thinking when.
[Ding!]
[You have discovered the soldiers guarding the treasures of the 'Ancient Aranbalon Kingdom'!]
[Adventurers! Be careful!]
[The kingdom's soldiers are said to be extremely ferocious and powerful!]
[Sneak past them and find the 'national treasure'!]
"Hmm?"
"Soldiers guarding treasure?"
"Those things move?"
The team murmured as they read the messages.
"But they're not moving?"
James stepped forward.
"And even if they do, they're just soldiers, right? Not generals. Not fancy medieval knights. Just regular grunts. I'll check it out myself."
He clenched his fist.
And stepped outside the pattern.
Flinch!
In that instant, my Taiqing Heart Technique activated.
Hum!
The energy within my body rang an alarm in my mind.
Danger.
This was real danger.
"Wait!"
Whoosh!
I instinctively swung the spear in my grip.
The energy infused with the essence of fire struck something with a tang! sound.
"Hup!"
A heavy impact tore through my muscles.
It was dull.
Like being hit by a massive hammer?
I widened my eyes.
What had clearly been shot at me was a bolt from an Aranbalon Kingdom soldier.
'What kind of crossbow is this fast and heavy-hitting?'
Swoosh! Swish swish!
The soldiers from all directions began firing their crossbows.
"Sun! Eldrin!"
I immediately summoned my skeletons.
"My lord!"
"Yes, Master."
I first called out my elite absolutes to deflect the immediate threats.
"Bone Guard!"
Creak? Thud!
I summoned shield bearers and quickly surrounded the team members.
But.
"Urk!"
"Argh! My thigh! My thigh!"
Even in that brief moment.
The already-fired bolts had inflicted critical wounds on the team members.
"Wh-what is this?"
"Ugh!"
"This can't be real! How are we supposed to block these?"
The team members cried out in shock.
I was stunned too.
I'd thought my level had risen quite a bit, but to feel this level of pressure? Did that even make sense?
"James!"
"Huh? What?"
That idiot!
He was still standing there outside the pattern, dazed.
If attacks poured in the moment you stepped out, shouldn't you hurry back in?
"What are you doing? Get back in here!"
"Ah, got it!"
James, who had stepped out so heroically, quickly threw himself back into the pattern.
And then.
They stopped.
The barrage of crossbow fire halted abruptly.
The terrifying sound of bolts vanished in an instant.
The hall fell into a quiet silence, as if nothing had happened.
"......"
Everyone was speechless.
They swallowed hard.
"Huff, huff! Heave!"
"Hic, heave!"
"Urgh."
Only ragged breaths and faint groans filled the air.
I let out a sigh.
'As I thought.'
We couldn't go outside the pattern.
To safely find the treasure, the theme's challenge was that we all had to 'stick together.'
"First, those who are hurt, come here. Let's treat you."
Three people had been pierced by bolts.
Guide Kapu, the middle-aged man, and Cain.
I approached Cain first.
And gripped the bolt embedded in his thigh tightly.
"Urk, w-wait? What are you doing?"
"Bite down hard."
Rip!
I yanked the bolt out, tearing flesh along with it.
"Arrrgh!"
Cain screamed.
No hard feelings, but you have to pull these out in one go to minimize the pain.
These kinds of flesh wounds could be healed by Bone Heal anyway.
[Using 10 stamina.]
['Bone7' appears.]
I used the summoned Bone Heal to treat Cain.
The other two.
"Whew, you two should be glad you're lucky. Good thing I'm a healer."
Mio Hana, the hunter from Hiroshima, Japan, stepped up.
She emitted holy light from her hands and carefully treated them both.
'Oh.'
I was surprised watching her.
'A healer?'
Come to think of it, she had never revealed her unique ability before.
- My name is Mio Hana, a hunter from Hiroshima, Japan. Since the famous No. 1 King personally selected me, I'll do my utmost to help.
Even during introductions.
She had just glossed over it like that.
I understood.
In a team game, a healer is a precious asset.
But in a competitive setup, it's the most vulnerable role, hard to protect yourself.
She probably needed a certain level of trust before revealing it.
"Urk, why me of all people...?"
Cain grumbled with an aggrieved look while watching Mio Hana's delicate treatment.
"......"
But when I glared down at him, he clamped his mouth shut.
As if, oh, you knew?
'But what now?'
I turned my gaze back to the crossbow-wielding soldiers.
They were as monstrous as they appeared.
If things like that were unleashed in downtown Seoul, it would be instant hell.
"Hmm."
"Hey, but you know."
My grunt overlapped with someone's voice.
It was the space mage, Vladimir Rodigin.
He blinked at me.
"Why did those soldiers only attack us when that fighter James stepped out of the pattern?"
"......"
Huh?
Yeah, why?
"And look at James over there. He's totally fine, right? Like he didn't get hit at all."
"......"
I turned to look at James.
His shocked, dazed expression aside, his body was pristine.
Not a single injury or wound.
And as far as I knew.
Dodging all those bolts at James's level would have been impossible.
'What the fuck?'
In that moment, I realized.
If the first one to step outside the pattern had the advantage...?
If only the one outside the pattern was guaranteed survival...?
'I'd be screwed?'
The pattern moved centered on me.
So if everyone else left, I'd be the only one taking the soldiers' attacks.
Gulp!
As I swallowed hard.
Screech! Clunk!
From far away, a pure white light hole appeared along with the sound of a door opening.
[Ding!]
[Team members can now select one 'treasure' and escape the Giant Castle at any time.]
[Escaped team members pass Theme 2.]
'As expected.'
Fuck.
No wonder it had been so easy up until now.
Theme 2's question was simple.
'Pass together with your team leader?'
'Or abandon the team leader and pass alone?'
Theme 2.
Was a dogshit trial that toyed with human hearts.
* * *
"Heh heh, it's finally started."
In front of the hologram.
Delaila watched the screen with keen interest.
In her hand was a priest burger.
She was human too.
Shouldn't she eat while watching?
Beside her, Ryuka slurped on a cola.
"This should be fun. This is basically the main theme of the trial, isn't it?"
That was Ryuka's take on Theme 2.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it determined all the rankers here.
The remaining trials would be pushed forward by teams formed from those who united here.
And usually, they survived to the end as 'comrades.'
Like Seoul's Five Stars in Korea.
'And me.'
Ryuka bit his lip.
Back then, as team leader, he had been abandoned by all his team members.
In the end, he was the only survivor.
He stubbornly cleared the remaining themes alone and became a ranker.
That's why.
It was actually the most entertaining—and most terrifying—theme.
"How many from this team will pass, I wonder? Five? Six? My gut says six."
Nom nom.
Delaila said elegantly as she chewed her burger.
"I see four. Olivia and Cain over there will definitely run. Hmm, the rest... honestly, hard to say. Isn't the true heart of a person revealed in the face of fear?"
Ryuka stated his conviction.
He had experienced it firsthand.
At first, everyone puts on a facade.
They act like they'll prioritize the team leader.
But if one defects?
Hell begins.
The horrific soldiers' crossbows rain down endlessly.
Who would risk their life for loyalty there?
'Not many.'
The magic swordsman Ryuka shook his head.
He always felt this way.
Watching Theme 2 made him want to puke.
Bad memories turned into trauma, stirring his emotions.
"Heh heh, is that so? We'll see."
"Delaila...?"
Ryuka looked at Delaila, who smiled softly, and spoke.
"Do you think Ju Dong-hoon has earned that much trust as team leader?"
"Hmm, hard to say yet."
"Then why...?"
"Because he's been pulling off absurd upsets since Theme 1. Did you predict Ju Dong-hoon would devour the Poison Fog, Ryuka?"
"But this game won't have any upsets..."
"Why do you think that?"
"...Pardon?"
Ryuka tilted his head.
He kept making curious faces, but Delaila held her tongue.
She just chewed her burger.
"......"
Fine, whatever.
Just watch for now.
'Ju Dong-hoon.'
Was the kind of hunter who was entertaining just to observe.