The Unbalanced Dungeon

The awkward early exit from the dungeon was throwing its balance out of whack. It was the kind of topic no hunter could ignore, so even Yeonhee—who usually avoided chatting with strangers—chimed in.

"If we think about it more broadly, it means a B-grade hunter could enter this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dungeon right now and it wouldn't be strange at all. The Association and the Management Bureau would try to manage it, of course, but if a high-rank hunter decided to force their way in, which civil servant could possibly stop them?"

"...You're right. That could happen. I'll just have to hope it doesn't while I'm still here."

"If the entry spectrum keeps widening like this, it'll become a perfect world for villains to run wild..."

......Villains, huh. Yeah, that makes sense. For those who get their kicks from trampling the weak however they please, nothing could be better.

Dungeon management personnel were already stretched thin, and people like me with stealth abilities were especially hard to keep out.

Things are going to get chaotic soon.

And that chaos would only accelerate the activities of those already living as villains—or those on the verge of becoming them.

I still need to hunt down the next villain, but right now, growing here is far more efficient. The biggest problem is that I don't even know exactly where those guys are. Hmm...

While I was considering putting in a request to Helen, Yeonhee was also lost in thought with a serious expression. After all, she had just heard that kind of story from Maeng Seong-yong yesterday. She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠glanced up at the sky anxiously, as if the dungeon might collapse at any moment.

The four-person party noticed how visibly uneasy Yeonhee looked and decided there was no need to make things more serious. They clapped their hands energetically and stood up.

"Alright, alright—it's only a possibility, after all. Let's just focus on what we need to do. Shall we get going?"

"Yes, yes!"

After leaving the safe zone, we spent nearly two hours slaughtering nothing but Frogfolk.

Do these guys only have one trait?

I must have killed over a hundred of them, yet Thievery still hadn't activated. That meant the paralysis and poison coating their bodies were naturally occurring. Just how brutal was this dungeon's environment?

I was clicking my tongue in disappointment at not gaining the expected trait when other monster species native to this dungeon finally appeared.

'Boggle' and 'Nixie Siren'.

"Clack clack!"

At my signal, our party came to a halt.

"Red Fang, fall back."

The four-person party had already experienced this yesterday, so they adopted a strategy of pulling back members with lower resistance stats while sending forward hunters with higher resistance to force the monsters to expend their skills.

Should I take a hit too?

Bubble bubble—

The hulking Blue Fang and I stepped forward. The Boggles' signature skill erupted in a mass of foam that soon swallowed both of us whole.

Blue Fang, who had been hit with the debuff skill alongside me, clutched his head in pain, seemingly struggling under the stacked debuffs. I, however, felt no confusion or fear whatsoever. Instead, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠monsters that had used their skills on me were briefly stunned by the shock of having their abilities perfectly blocked and reflected.

Bubble rumble rumble…?!

Dozens of Boggles were stunned simultaneously, churning up massive amounts of foam across the swamp. Seizing the opening, Yeonhee and the summons launched a coordinated assault.

I began eliminating the monsters as well, careful not to interfere with Yeonhee's growth.

First, these Boggles.

Pop—!

The moment a Fireball struck, foam sprayed in all directions, revealing the small body hidden inside. Even though I hadn't touched it directly, the Boggle perished the instant its foam dispersed.

Oh?! So that was a skill too?

I had assumed the monsters' camouflage was a passive ability, so it was surprising to learn it was actually an active skill. Still, any protective coloration these dungeon monsters possessed would likely be used to enhance Stealth from now on. This was an unexpected windfall.

Among my traits—[100], Thievery, and the skill Stealth—Stealth was the one I loved most. Seeing it grow, even belatedly, filled me with genuine satisfaction.

Whatever it takes. As long as I can fool the eyes of that Chaos Residue.

Stats were steadily rising thanks to the Pioneer achievement. And it wasn't over yet.

Perception Impairment? What's this?

[Lesser Perception Impairment]

Scatters presence, making it harder for enemies to detect you.

......So that's a thing. No wonder those Boggles were so hard to spot.

I had assumed it was because of their bubble-like appearance, but carrying this trait explained why they were so difficult to notice.

Just as I finished reading the new trait description, a horrifying sound echoed from somewhere.

Ooooooooh—

Aaaaaah—

These tone-deaf things are seriously loud.

The Nixie Sirens were said to resemble mermaids with blowfish heads that had rolled around in mud for three days. Because of the seaweed-like growths on their bodies, they were even harder to detect than the Boggles with their perception-impairing trait. In short, they were monsters with superior camouflage compared to Boggles.

But difficulty in detection only applied to those relying on sight. My senses clearly picked up the creatures swarming from all directions.

Wearing the Rune of Levitation, I strode across the swamp and casually blew off one of their heads.

[Penetration]

Swish—!

Definitely... thanks to Penetration, their tough hides aren't much of a burden anymore.

Feeling the newfound utility of my class-change abilities, I read the newly appeared message.

Hmm... This one doesn't fuse with Stealth.

It was literally a skill for perfectly assimilating with the surrounding swamp, but I doubted I'd have much use for it going forward.

Still, I might as well try it once.

Slurrrrp—

When I activated the ability, my arm immediately connected with the surrounding mud, creating the illusion that my senses extended into the sludge itself.

Ah... So it's not just changing my body to look like mud to deceive the eyes. It's also receiving information from the surrounding mud.

An unexpectedly remarkable function was hidden within, but it was still an ability I had no immediate use for.

Thanks to the Pioneer achievement, my stats continued to rise steadily even without leveling up.

This one's a decent hit.

The moment I obtained [Paralyzing Claws], an instinctive feeling told me as much.

[Savage Claws Lv.4]

When attacking with body parts, 65%(+15%) chance to inflict status ailments [Bleed] and [Paralysis].

Bleed: Reduces maximum health by 0.02% per second. Effect doubles during combat while bleeding.

Paralysis: Stiffens the body for 0.5 seconds.

Ooh? The probability went up by 15%.

Savage Claws was a trait that had been providing significant help in battle without me realizing it. It had already proven quite useful against the Chaos Residue, and with the probability greatly increased, it would be even more helpful in future fights.

Something about this feels off... Fighting so comfortably while growth is this steep.

My usual belief that growth comes only through hardship was starting to crumble. I had already been growing rapidly thanks to the cheat-like Thievery trait, but the sense of crisis had always intensified with each increase in dungeon rank. Now, in just a few days, things had reached this point—it was almost disorienting.

...This is problematic. I'm inside a dungeon, yet I don't feel any sense of danger at all!

"Huh? Why? Is something not working?"

Yeonhee asked worriedly, sensing my unease, but I could only tell her it was nothing.

Surely it won't end like this, right?

We had experienced an unusually large number of events inside this dungeon, so I wondered if something might happen before the boss fight.

*Thud—!*

Ah... No, this can't be happening.

But my expectations were spectacularly off the mark. Even after defeating the dungeon's boss—a variant Frogfolk standing a full seven meters tall—no variables or crises had occurred.

"Waaah—! Ilwol, we cleared this super fast! It's not even four o'clock yet, is it?"

"Clack clack clack..."

Considering our enhanced combat power, this was the expected result, yet it felt strangely difficult to accept.

"It really is different ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from yesterday. What time did we clear the boss yesterday?"

"We finished way past six. And we even lost a person."

"Those guys yesterday were trolls, but still, this much of a difference is..."

The four-person party nodded and smiled at Yeonhee, as if crediting her for the improvement.

We left the dungeon without hesitation the moment the boss fight ended.

"Good work, everyone."

"Yes, see you tomorrow."

Even the chatty four-person party became cool and efficient once the job was done. They pulled their hoods low and hurried off somewhere—probably related to their main occupation, I guessed.

Step—

We walked through the streets under bright daylight, wrapped in a strange mood.

"Feels a bit empty, doesn't it?"

"Clack clack!"

"Something about coming out of the dungeon while the sun's still up... It feels strangely exciting."

"......"

Still, as time passed, the awkward feeling gradually faded. I picked up Yeonhee and leaped into the sky, flying swiftly toward home.

"Hehe— W-we came home so early. It's still bright even after I showered. What should we do to play?"

The moment she arrived, Yeonhee showered and came out, then slowly approached me. Before I knew it, she was pressed right up against me, whispering into my ear.

......Is that a signal? Well, we did rest for a while.

When I raised one finger, Yeonhee immediately understood the meaning.

"One hour of Mimicry!"

"Clack clack!"

Yeonhee didn't bother hiding that she was waiting for my human form, yet she still seemed embarrassed by the desire hidden beneath that, fidgeting and twisting her body restlessly.

"No... It's not like I'm expecting anything special. I just want to talk with you, Ilwol. Just talk. You understand, right?"

"Clack clack."

Conversation through the body counts as conversation too.