#21 Tail Catching in the Dungeon (2)
#21 Tail Catching in the Dungeon (2)
"In the name of the Father and the Son!"
The monk, Park Yo-han, drove an uppercut into the lower jaw of a leaping frog. Screeching, the frog toppled onto its back, thrashing as it fought to right itself.
"In the name of the Holy Spirit!"
Without a moment's hesitation, the shaven-headed monk stomped down on the frog, and the creature — bloated like a balloon — burst like a water balloon.
"Amen—!"
Amid the spray of viscera and blood, a bloodied hand traced the sign of the cross with solemn grandeur. Watching this holy spectacle, I thought to myself...
'This guy is genuinely insane.'
...and left it at that.
He'd seemed normal enough when I infiltrated the temple, but of course he turned out to be a lunatic. The shaven-headed monk nodded with an expression of deep satisfaction, but I couldn't fathom the sentiment at all.
'I want absolutely nothing to do with him.'
What on earth was so satisfying about that? I'd hoped the presence I detected was Gu Ma-jun, but unfortunately it was Park Yo-han. I couldn't help balking at the insanity of beating monsters to death while making the sign of the cross, but that was one thing and this was another. I mean, don't they say you'll be struck by divine punishment if you waste food?
[Consumed Blue Mane Leaping Frog. Experience Points and Satiety increased.]
Hwoooork—!
'One more of those and I'll level up.'
I had roughly 3000 Experience Points left to go. Considering I'd roamed around this much without spotting Gu Ma-jun...
'Did he actually slip out?'
Maybe he'd gotten lucky with a teleport to the outskirts and made it out fast? That would require an absurd amount of luck, though.
'Wait, so does that mean it's a bust?'
I could sense several presences besides Park Yo-han. Nine times out of ten, more monks or paladins from the Temple.
'No good answer here.'
Either way, I still hadn't found the scent or presence I'd pegged as Gu Ma-jun. Whether the bastard had pulled some trick or was simply that unlucky... Still, didn't they say the more urgent the task, the longer the way around?
'I need to grow while I'm hunting him.'
I had to get stronger here inside the dungeon. Not just in levels — in skills, too.
'...Could I escape if I were C-rank?'
I didn't know. What I knew for certain was that at D-rank, escape was impossible.
***
"Whoa~ Single forest type? Fucking jackpot. The Representative Clan must be real dumb-asses, huh? They just handed this over for free?"
"Keep it down. You want to spawn adds?"
Hong Yuri pouted at the team leader's scolding.
"Ugh. Gu Jin-ha, you tight-assed bastard."
"We're not here to mess around. The tracking?"
Hong Yuri shot him a displeased glare and scanned the ground.
"Nothing yet. I need at least some footprints before I can chase anything."
"So we need to move first."
"We splitting up? Doesn't look that dangerous anyway."
Strictly speaking, the dungeon's difficulty was on the higher side. The numbers that brushed against my Mana Detection weren't trivial. It was just that the people who'd entered were far too strong for the dungeon's level.
"Team Leader of Team 2. How would you like to proceed?"
They deferred to Geohan first, since he outranked them in seniority and position, but Geohan simply yawned as if he couldn't care less.
"Hey. You guys fine without me?"
"Why? What are you planning to do?"
"I'll search on my own. We're not just looking for Alpha (Jirisan Warg), right?"
One of the conditions for entering the dungeon was rescuing anyone who'd been caught up in it. Not an absolute requirement — just the perfectly reasonable condition that if they found anyone, they were to protect them. Moving all together wasn't a good choice anyway. Considering Alpha (Jirisan Warg)'s mobility, splitting up made sense.
Even in the worst-case scenario, Geohan alone could clear the dungeon and have strength to spare, so there was no issue.
"Understood. Be careful not to get lost."
"What am I, a kid?"
"......"
"Wow, look at these assholes. Suddenly everyone's got their mouths shut."
Grumbling, Geohan faded into the distance. The four who remained decided their next move.
"So we let that muscle-head do whatever he wants. What about the rest of us? How are we doing this?"
"Pairs would be better. I'm not entirely incapable of tracking either."
As the leader of Search Team 3, she did possess Mana Detection. She'd also picked up a decent amount of tracking craft, even if it hadn't manifested as a skill. Not that it could compare to Hong Yuri's Magic Eye.
"Teams?"
"You and Woo-taek. Me and Seong-hun."
"O~kay. No complaints from you two?"
The Team 2 hunter called Seong-hun looked like he'd been hoping for this, and Woo-taek nodded with a slightly glum expression.
"Yeah. Well... understood."
"Oh-ho? Not even trying to manage your expression? I'll give you three seconds. Three. Two..."
"We'll disband here, eliminate Alpha (Jirisan Warg) as quickly as possible, and regroup. Let's make sure we're outside the dungeon before sundown."
And so, Daybreak's Dawn split into three groups and began hunting for Alpha (Jirisan Warg)'s tail.
***
They say predators come swarming at the scent of blood. You know the saying — sharks homing in on blood in the water. But having experienced it firsthand, I can tell you it's beyond anything I imagined. I honestly hadn't even considered it.
'The food is delivering itself to me?'
An unexpected windfall.
Park Yo-han was covered in blood too, but I had no idea what happened to him. With his stats, he'd probably manage on his own. No point worrying about that shaven-headed monk for nothing. I used Observation on the incoming creatures.
[Parrot-beaked Armored Hyena]
[Body Length 1.66M] [Height 79.4cm] [Weight 91kg]
[STR 187] [AGI 141] [VIT 265]
Gaptorang (甲土狼).
Since "to-rang" meant hyena, you could think of it as an armored hyena.
'Looks delicious.'
In my eyes, they already looked like cooked dishes. Four of them. A decent number, but I'd long since passed the point where they could give me trouble.
'Can't use Ember.'
It was a shame I couldn't use a skill I'd only just acquired, but there was no telling what would happen if I used it in a place like this. Regrettable as it was, Ember was sealed for now.
'Guess I'll do this the simple way.'
I used Charge on the lead Armored Hyena — rammed straight into it. But the armor wasn't just for show; the thing was tough, and it didn't budge easily.
'Because our weight's similar?'
Being behind on Strength and Vitality probably factored in too.
Still, the creature screamed. Because Evil Devouring ate away at the point of contact. The startled Armored Hyenas lunged at me. I took a step back and opened the distance. Unable to arrest their momentum, they crashed into each other.
"Kyiing—!"
Heads clashed against heads, and they staggered.
'Morons.'
I ignored the ones that had collided and focused on the first one.
The Armored Hyena that had suffered Evil Devouring had its shoulder flesh laid bare, and I was freshly reminded of just how powerful a skill Evil Devouring really was.
'Looking forward to the next tier.'
I'd already been satisfied with Predation alone. What kind of skill would it become at C-rank?
'Not far off now.'
With the situation turning like this, the remaining Armored Hyenas couldn't recklessly attack either.
In the wild, showing your back is basically an invitation that says, "Eat me!" — so they didn't bolt outright, but they'd belatedly realized they'd picked the wrong opponent.
"Nging! Nging! Kyiing!"
They flipped onto their backs in a show of submission. Not that it mattered to me either way.
[Consumed Parrot-beaked Armored Hyena. Experience Points and Satiety increased.]
[Experience Points at maximum. Lv.7 → Lv.8]
The hyenas, horrified to see my body swell larger from the level-up, finally turned their backs and fled.
'Of all places, they're heading that way.'
Straight toward where the people were. No — actually, this worked out well.
I'd wanted to catch a glimpse of their fight, so I decided to watch for a bit.
***
"Ah, fuck! They're running like hell! Seriously!"
"Vice Team Leader."
"How far are they gonna bolt? Pissing me off."
With a single sweep of her hand, Hong Yuri wiped out the monsters in one go, seething. She had every reason to be aflame with fury, yet her astonishing mana control kept all of it reined in.
'Still breathtaking.'
It wasn't just the sheer volume of her mana — the level of technique in handling it was on another plane entirely. Refined skill befitting someone from the Squares.
"This bastard's clearly caught on anyway, so should we just run?"
They'd found traces, but instead of closing in, the distance was growing.
"If we run, will we catch him?"
"And if we don't?"
Watching her rage, Woo-taek sighed to himself. She wasn't ignorant of the realities. Somehow, both Eun-ha and Hong Yuri left him feeling like he was babysitting. Maybe he should've become a babysitter or a kindergarten teacher instead of a hunter.
Seemed like it might've been his true calling...
"We're getting adds."
"Doesn't matter, I'll kill them all anyway."
"The deal was we hand the byproducts over to the other side, wasn't it? I'd rather not touch them if we can help it."
"Fucking hell! Just wait till I catch that crazy Wolf bastard! I'm gonna fry him, roast him, burn him to a crisp!"
Her words were all fire, but the tracking continued. Woo-taek lifted his head and stared up at the sky.
'...Are we even going to catch him by the end of today?'
"Ack! Bugs! The bugs — what the hell!"
Once again, his worries only deepened.
***
"How dare you, fiend deserving of divine punishment!"
A paladin in a white helm, pressed down low, hefted a massive battle hammer. The three Armored Hyenas veered away the moment they saw them, but the holy knight gave chase regardless and brought the preposterously enormous hammer crashing down.
KABOOOM—!
The Armored Hyena dodged by a hair's breadth, and the ground — flat and even just a moment ago — caved inward as if a bomb had gone off. Grass scattered and dirt flew as the paladin bellowed in fury.
"How dare you spurn divine punishment!"
Enraged, the paladin hurled something from within his robes. The elongated rod spun through the air dozens of times before slamming into the back of the Armored Hyena's skull.
"Kyiing!"
Lucky for the creature it had been struck by the handle. Had the flanged head connected, its skull would have shattered. The paladin watched the fleeing Armored Hyena with a look of regret and retrieved the fallen mace.
"We lost him."
"That was impressive work. But right now..."
"Mm. I know. Rescuing our brothers comes first."
Listening to the monk and paladin trade words, I tried using Spying — and felt a chill run through me.
[Seong Dae-woon (Human)]
[Height 184.5 cm] [Weight 98.8 kg]
[STR 365] [AGI 257] [VIT 288] [MP 196]
The paladin's brute strength was on par with Aranea. The problem was, he wasn't the only one — every single member of that party was just as strong.
'...Yeah, let's not get cocky.'
This had to be an elite force. Only six of them, but every one of them was a cut above.
'And Park Yo-han will be joining them soon enough.'
Once they secured all the survivors, the real dungeon assault would begin.
'At most, a day or two and they'll have found everyone.'
For now, I had the dungeon essentially to myself, but that wouldn't last. Once they were done, it would be a race. I needed to devour as much of this pie as I could before then.
'And Gu Ma-jun is still nowhere to be seen.'
To be honest, wasn't it safe to assume he'd already been rescued by now?
If the Temple had picked him up, they'd handle things from there — the thought had barely formed when I sensed another presence near Park Yo-han, the one I'd been keeping an eye on.
***
"Ohhh! Believer! There you are!"
Park Yo-han greeted Gu Ma-jun with a bright smile. He'd been worried after they got separated, but here he was, alive and well. Truly, was he not a First-Class Believer destined to be a brother of the Temple!
"Haaah... Mon... k-nim?"
He could barely hold himself upright — looked like mental exhaustion. On top of that, his entire body was caked in mud and grass.
'Hm... he's been clever enough to evade the monsters!'
The wisdom of man, compensating for insufficient strength. The fact that he didn't have a single wound suggested his cleverness had paid off. Park Yo-han draped Gu Ma-jun's arm over his own shoulder and helped him up.
"Worry not. The Lord watches over us. Just a little more strength, now!"
Park Yo-han's words rang inside Gu Ma-jun's skull like a bell. Gu Ma-jun forced himself to smile back through gritted teeth.
"Thank... you."
"All is the Lord's guidance! More importantly, are you unharmed?"
"I can... endure."
Contrary to his words, Gu Ma-jun knew he wasn't right.
As if he had forgotten something. But what had he forgotten? That alone, he simply could not recall.
"Ghhk—!"
"Hold on just a little longer, Believer! We'll be out of here soon!"
Despite Park Yo-han's encouraging words as he supported him, all Gu Ma-jun could do was clutch his head and bear the agony.
—For the last moments he would exist as Gu Ma-jun.
***
'Found him.'
The presence I'd picked up near Park Yo-han. Hard to catch a scent, but there was no way Park Yo-han of the Temple would keep a monster at his side.
"Grrr."
High probability it was Gu Ma-jun.
'Park Yo-han and Gu Ma-jun... No choice. When an opportunity comes, you take it.'
There was risk. But if I didn't do it now, when would I? I wasn't thrilled about fighting a lunatic, but when it's time, it's time.
'Neutralize Park Yo-han, and in the window that opens, kill Gu Ma-jun.'
Gu Ma-jun's regeneration was two times at most. No — after what he'd been through in the dungeon, he probably couldn't manage even that. Once you've decided, you don't hesitate.
"Skull Wolf! Believer! Get ahold of yourself! We must fight!"
Park Yo-han shook Gu Ma-jun, trying to rouse him, but Gu Ma-jun couldn't pull himself together. As if resigned, Park Yo-han laid him down against the base of a tree.
"If you want to kill the Believer, you'll have to go through me first! Filthy monster!"
The monk clenched his fists with a grim expression. Blood and filth smeared across them, his resolve hardened and resolute...
'Would've looked pretty cool if not for the bald head.'
The world was, regrettably, a superficial place. But that aside, Park Yo-han's fists were vicious.
'......!'
Every last one of his stats was pushing 300. And the monk's fists were laced with mana. The punches that came from that reinforced body were terrifyingly fast. Nothing like the boxers I'd seen on NewTube or TV.
"So the Believer had reason to struggle. A superior species? No — a special species, then!"
Special species — the label for a monster that possessed skills. I hadn't even used anything visibly skill-like, yet he was already convinced I had.
'Not wrong, though.'
I was dodging with Perception and Intuition, after all.
"Grrr—"
Park Yo-han's fist split the air once more. Struck by mana and force near 300, I was sent flying into a tree, staggered as if it might snap — then collapsed.
"Grrk!"
Even with Pain Nullification, breathing was a struggle. A single blow carried overwhelming power. The only reason I hadn't blacked out was that I'd kept my eyes on his fist to the very end.
'Why?'
Why hadn't I dodged? Had it been too fast? No. I could have dodged it. —Then why?
'The skill he's got!'
Thinking back, Park Yo-han had snared me with mana when I'd tried to flee.
That was why I hadn't been able to run, why I'd been cornered. If the dungeonification hadn't happened, I'd have died right there. Yes. The mana had definitely grabbed my ankle. I remembered it clearly.
'But.'
No matter how high his mana was at 290 — I hadn't noticed a thing until that mana had my ankle in its grip?
'Is that even possible?'
Park Yo-han's AGI was 318. Very high. But I'd faced off against Aranea at 438. Was there any reason I shouldn't have seen Park Yo-han's fist coming?
'What the hell is it?'
I didn't know. Only one thing was clear — he had some kind of skill.
'Is it just raw speed?'
Was it the same type as Gu Ma-jun's Acceleration?
"You!"
Park Yo-han's fists flew without pause. The kicks mixed in between them were a headache. I couldn't find an opening to counter against an opponent who kept up an unrelenting chain of attacks.
'AGI 318, but it's not just 318!'
Add mana and technique on top of that, and fighting him was twice as troublesome. I'd thought beating Park Yo-han would just take time, not that it would be hard... I'd miscalculated.
'The one good thing is.'
His shoulder twitched. His left hand approached while his right hand squirmed. All of it was a feint. My Perception read every last one of his tricks. It was tough, but not unwinnable. And from Park Yo-han's perspective, on the other hand—
'He's reading every move I make.'
Not a single feint worked. Which meant the Wolf could see through all of his movements.
'That dynamic vision...!'
It was, in a word, beastly.
In truth, my Perception skill was simply piercing through all his feints, but from Park Yo-han's point of view, he had no choice but to see it that way. This monster could not be allowed to run loose. His urgency caused his movements to shift — bigger, more desperate.
"Grrrr."
He'd have been better off not using feints at all. Those small extra motions created gaps between each attack, and those gaps let me dodge even with my lower AGI.
'And now I've got it.'
His fist came straight at my face. I turned my head and bit down. Nothing was visible — but something was definitely there.
"......!"
It was mana, nothing else.
'I never imagined it could be used like this.'
His skill wasn't some grand thing that distorted space, nor was it Gu Ma-jun's Acceleration. It was a skill I already had myself.
'Stealth.'
I didn't know the grade or level, but that was what he was using.
'I've never even thought of using it in combat.'
Ambushes, sure. But this was a clever shift in thinking.
'Hiding mana with Stealth... that's possible?'
I hadn't failed to dodge. I'd dodged the fist just fine — but a lump of mana had struck me a second time. And I'd mistaken that for not having dodged at all.
I couldn't help but laugh.
"Grrrk—!"
Which meant that back when he'd first come to rescue Gu Ma-jun, he'd been moving mana around even while pretending to be worried.
'Ha. What is he, a magician?'
Misdirection. I'd thought it was a boar, but it was a snake. He tested the trick on me one more time, as if confirming his suspicion — and I proved it no longer worked.
"Hrmm!"
Stealth itself was something that didn't work on an alert opponent. With a little more focus, it was easily countered.
'Learned something useful.'
I could put this to use. And now it was time to end this fight. A magician whose tricks are exposed ought to exit the stage.
"...Hrmm."
And then, at last, Gu Ma-jun lifted his eyelids.
'Now that's a problem.'
His eyes were glowing gray.
'His mana's already dry?'
Hadn't there been time left before his regeneration ran out? No — that wasn't it. Looking at the wreck he'd become, the realization hit me late.
'He didn't avoid monsters. He kept running into them until he ended up like this!'
I'd misjudged.
His mana had been running on empty from the start.
What Gu Ma-jun had drunk wasn't something that granted regeneration at the cost of mana.
It was the opposite. His mana had been what was holding it back, keeping it from getting to that point. But a dam breaks in a flood. In the end, the endlessly regenerating flesh multiplied and multiplied, swelling beyond control...!
'It's too late. The mutation's complete!'
I wasn't the only one who noticed the change. Even in the middle of our standoff, Park Yo-han turned around — and stared at what had once been Gu Ma-jun with a face full of stunned disbelief.
[The Unfinished Product of Incidental Results] — it was, in fact, a substance that mutated its host into a chimera.