A Quick Dungeon Raid
Fafnir headed toward the dungeon with his party in tow.
“It seems we won’t be able to call everyone in.”
Fafnir’s observation drew nods of agreement from the others.
“It’s convenient that the skeletons are here, though.”
Sihyun pouted, lips sticking out.
“But sister, if we summon all of them in this narrow passage, we’ll actually be at a disadvantage in battle.”
“I know that much!”
Leaving the sisters behind, Fafnir dove straight into analyzing the terrain first.
‘My maximum number of summons right now is around thirty, but in passages barely six meters wide, calling them all at once is inefficient and risks endangering the party.’
Fafnir clapped after finishing his thoughts.
“Calling?”
“You called, Master.”
Penelope and Bell stepped forward, followed by the elite skeletons numbered 1 through 5.
“Wait, if I summon them, they’ll just clutter the battlefield, right?”
Fafnir waved a finger at Sihyun’s question.
“Then my summons will be far more useful than yours.”
“What? You’ve already said everything?”
“Just watch and see.”
Fafnir’s gesture prompted Skeleton 1 to step forward.
“1.”
“Click.”
“Scout ahead.”
“Click?”
A wave of confusion rippled across the skeleton’s face.
Fafnir let out a quiet chuckle.
‘My skeleton mastery has grown, so even a basic skeleton now possesses emotions.’
Fafnir pursued efficiency in games.
Most people who lived for that preferred logic over emotion when planning.
It was a fixed idea.
“Listen, Skeleton 1. Your orders are clear. Take point, observe the entire field, and report back. If things turn dangerous, retreat. If you can’t escape, fight until you shatter.”
“Click…… click……”
Skeleton 1 clicked its teeth in clear displeasure.
Fafnir rested a hand on the skeleton’s skull and smiled.
“What? If you shatter, I’ll restore you perfectly.”
“Click…… click……”
“He seems a bit scarier than usual, doesn’t he?”
“That’s how he was originally…….”
The sisters whispered to one another without Fafnir hearing.
Of course, he heard every word.
Skeleton 1 trembled as it squeezed into the narrow passage.
Fafnir sat in meditation.
“Shared vision.”
A click echoed as Skeleton 1’s viewpoint activated.
Moments later, it returned.
“I haven’t mapped the entire path, but I’ve observed the monster patterns to a degree.”
“……! Already?”
“Click…… click. (M-Master.)”
“You’ve done well, Skeleton 1.”
Fafnir stroked the skeleton’s skull.
“Then all patterns should be identified. Let’s advance.”
“What? It ended with just one run?”
“I couldn’t map every pattern, but I grasped the general outlines. Skeleton 1 is far more capable than expected.”
The sisters could scarcely believe it.
They had been traveling with Fafnir for some time now.
Yet mapping monster patterns and scouting dungeon layouts was no easy task.
Even large guilds overflowing with capital and manpower spent considerable time on it.
“Still, there might be unknown variables……”
“Oh, no need to worry about that.”
Fafnir pulled out a sheet and jotted down a rough overview.
“Tiny patterns or unknown variables can be handled through improvisation anyway. What matters is the core patterns of the golem and the dangerous sections. If we know those, we’re set.”
Fafnir’s explanation was brief, yet it cut straight to the heart of everything.
“What? We’re just going to clear the dungeon like this?”
Skepticism flashed across her face.
Fafnir either didn’t notice or simply demanded what he needed.
“All right, information obtained. Now tattoo the summons.”
“Understood.”
Siyeon’s needle glided over the skeletons.
Each application triggered an effect.
New School: Lego Tattoo (Hidden)
Grade: Unique
Category: Active
MP Cost: 120
Duration: 2 hours
Weapon penetration +36, penetration damage +13%, physical attack power +65, special dye bonuses, skill level 3.
‘Insane effects. This is the kind of performance that usually appears in the later chapters of novels?’
Tattoos normally taught predefined skill books.
Players could create their own, but those often lacked power.
“Did you design this yourself?”
“Ah, I feel embarrassed……”
Siyeon smiled bashfully.
“Stepping on Legos hurts down to the bone, right? My sister made me try it, and…… the effect was…….”
“Heh, yeah, Legos really sting.”
“What’s a Lego?”
Skeleton 2 tilted its head curiously.
Fafnir paused, then answered.
“A while ago you got punched by Kim Chul, right? Stepping on Legos hurts more than that.”
“Click click click…… click!”
Skeleton 2’s jaw joint dropped open wide.
“Click! (Getting a tattoo like that is terrifying!)”
“Click click. (Don’t worry, we’re getting stronger because of it.)”
“Click! Click! (Then it’s worth it!)”
Skeleton 1 patted Skeleton 2, who was shaking in fear.
In the meantime, Penelope and Bell received their tattoos as well.
“Barbaric combat style…… I suppose it does help in battle, but…….”
Penelope’s reluctant tone came from beside her.
Bell, still under the tattoo process, spoke up.
“Master, it’s not that I’m afraid, but please show me more favor.”
“What? Afraid?”
“You’re acting like getting one tattoo is terrifying.”
“T-Terrifying? I just…… don’t feel like it……”
“That’s what people call fear.”
Unlike the human Penelope.
As a homunculus, Bell held no prejudice against tattoos.
Fafnir cut them off before the argument escalated.
“Enough already. If you want to fight later, I’ll make a stage for you.”
“No, I’m sorry. I lost my composure for a moment.”
“As you command, Master.”
While they chatted, the tattooing finished.
“Then shall we proceed?”
The passage was dark and cramped. The party advanced carefully.
“Humans, huh.”
“Don’t get close. They might kidnap us and turn us into slaves.”
Dwarves were ignored from above and below.
Undeterred, Fafnir pushed forward with the quest.
“Ooooo……!”
A metallic, rocky arm smashed through the darkness.
“It’s here! Move as instructed!”
Skeleton troops scattered on Fafnir’s order.
The golem shrieked as spears stabbed it from both front and back.
“CROOOOOA!”
Even turning was impossible in the narrow tunnel; its bulk only snagged its feet.
“Blood Sword!”
Bell hadn’t been idle. A red sword materialized in her hand.
The golem twisted as she swung it.
Penelope joined moments later, and the golem crumbled into pieces.
“Eh……”
Sihyun, watching the whole thing, said with a twitchy expression.
“This is way too easy.”
“……A weakened specimen, probably.”
Carelessness was never allowed. Fafnir kept his guard up as they descended.
Yet by the time the third fight ended easily, even he had to admit.
“These guys are weaker than I thought.”
The skeleton troops had long since handled meteorite golems.
Ordinary stone golems were no match now.
“Click click! (Stab from behind!)”
“Click click! (On it!)”
It was like college graduates doing middle-school homework.
“I’ll join too! Hyraaaa!”
Sihyun charged in with a bizarre shriek.
The stone golems fell in seconds under the coordinated assault of Fafnir’s skeletons, Sihyun, and the subordinates.
“Too easy, it’s disappointing.”
Only after completing the quest did Fafnir realize the golem’s level was nearly 300.
“Surprisingly high.”
Without the meteorite version, it would have been far tougher.
Several lucky coincidences had made it easy this time; normally the dungeon collapse or failed attempt would have caused real trouble.
“Shall we head back?”
“Wait a moment.”
Fafnir handed out the pickaxes to everyone.
“Since the dwarves are settling here with good ore, let’s dig a bit.”
He swallowed hard and continued.
“And since we’re hungry, let’s eat too.”
***
After hunting and mining, Fafnir’s party emerged from the dungeon.
‘Mining efficiency wasn’t as good as I expected.’
Siyeon the blacksmith aside, the others got little yield.
The skeletons brought in more ore, but no high-grade items.
‘Still, we can fill our stomachs, that’s good.’
Fafnir returned to Grakson after dining on raw ore.
“You’re back so quickly. Your limit must have been reached soon. I didn’t tell the others, but I know a way to catch them more easily……”
Fafnir shook his head at Grakson’s words.
“No need. We caught them all.”
“What?”
“Here’s the proof.”
Fafnir showed Grakson ten golem cores.
Grakson examined them and gasped in amazement.
“Incredible. I never expected you to pull it off so fast! You’re clearly stronger than expected, and everyone will recognize you’re not the dwarves’ enemy.”
Experience had risen about 5%.
“With this, you’ll have the strength to face true threats.”
Grakson then poured cold water on his enthusiasm.
“True threats?”
“Stone golems are troublesome, but they won’t stop us from mining metal. The real enemies of our dwarves have always been elsewhere.”
Grakson pointed outside the village.
“Beyond the village, past the barrier, there’s a place called the Forest of Illusions. The dark trents there are our true enemy, threatening the dwarves.”
“But there’s a wall, isn’t there?”
“The problem isn’t the wall. Dwarves get pimples if we don’t hammer iron for a day. We need fuel to forge. We’ve been gathering wood from that forest. Forest monsters were no match for our warriors’ axes. But with dark mana and dark sorcerers joining forces, powerful dark trents now block the way. Our dead comrades rise again to attack us, and even our strong warriors can’t keep up.”
Fafnir understood the enemy tormenting the dwarves were dark sorcerers.
“After they took over the forest, we’ve been short on fuel. We use coal and fire mana stones, but they’re still insufficient. From that perspective, the trents really are our current enemy.”
Even without raging zombies, trents were difficult opponents for the dwarves.
“Just finishing the golem quest is enough, but taking out the trents will make us look like a friendly neighbor.”
“I see. We’ll handle the trents.”
Fafnir nodded.
“Instead, when you complete this, could you grant me one small favor?”
“What is it?”
“While working, I wanted to feel the metal a little. Alone, I couldn’t get the feel for it. Your hands seem skilled enough to handle metal freely. If possible, teach me the basics of mining.”
Flattery so perfect it was almost insulting.
“Oh……”
Grakson nodded enthusiastically.
“You’ve studied, that’s for sure. All right, it’s nothing special, but I’ll teach you gladly.”
New Quest: True Threat to Dwarves (Magic)
Reward: Dwarf Mining Skill (Rare)
Learning the mining technique would allow repeated metal extraction from anywhere.
The quality didn’t matter much since it was for food.
“Thank you. Then I’ll be going.”
“Here, this is a letter from me. Give it to the guards; they won’t suspect anything.”
“Thank you.”
Fafnir left the forge and headed straight for the city outskirts.
“Wait! You there!”
A young dwarf guard blocking the path called out.
“What’s suspicious? You came into the city and left after less than a day?”
The young dwarf scanned the party with suspicion.
“You’re spies, aren’t you? You scouted inside the city and now want to hand the outside information to foreign intruders?”
“Absolutely not. Here, verification.”
The young dwarf narrowed his eyes at the letter.
“I’ve read it, but it still feels suspicious.”
“What exactly?”
“How do we know you caught them? You could have bought them in a shop or received them from Crossfire.”
“Hey! Have you said everything?”
Sihyun was about to yell when Siyeon quickly stopped her sister.
Dwarves took pride in their dignity. There was no need to provoke them unnecessarily.
Yet Fafnir moved one step ahead.
“You’re talking nonsense.”
“Eh?”
“Eh?”
The dwarves, along with the Sihyun and Siyeon sisters, all stared in wide-eyed shock.
“Wait, hold on. Fafnir-nim, to the dwarves……”
Before she could finish, Fafnir acted.
“What the hell is this?! You little—”
The dwarf swung his axe in retaliation.
Fafnir’s speed was beyond imagination.
A knife was already at the dwarf’s throat.
The dwarf swung his axe to block, but Fafnir pulled his upper body forward and closed the distance.
Crunch. Fafnir opened his mouth and bit the axe blade.
“……”
The axe was torn free.
“Tasty. Must be because it’s dwarf-made.”
Fafnir squinted and shot the stunned dwarf a look.
“I’m not an NPC. Would I beg like a player?”