[Midas' Gloves]
Having engraved the Subspace Storage rune onto Midas' Gloves, I immediately raised my thumb and drew a circle in the air. A golden door materialized before me. Heart pounding with excitement, I swung it open, and a brilliant glow flooded my eyes.
"……Haha. Guess I never have to worry about money again."
The modest four-mat storeroom was overflowing with gold and silver coins piled so high they hid the floor, along with all sorts of miscellaneous junk.
◈ A personal pocket dimension accessible only by the enchanter.
◈ Capacity: Equivalent to a 4-mat storeroom.
◈ Items stored remain perfectly preserved.
Now that I had the rune, only I could open this storeroom. First things first, I stepped inside and rummaged for an item that could get me out of the dungeon.
"This the one?"
◈ Newspaper-sized green platforms used in dungeons.
◈ Activates on use to teleport the user to the upper floor.
After appraising the item, I grabbed it and stepped out, closing the storeroom door behind me.
"……Guess I should start by ripping out their hearts first?"
I muttered as I eyed the scattered corpses of the golden goblins around me.
"This oughta clinch Class A's victory."
I didn't fancy tearing into them barehanded, so I reached for the dagger one of the golden hobgoblins had been holding—
——A chilling sensation prickled from behind, and I leaped back just in time.
────!!
A ripping sound tore through the air as shards flew from something behind me. Slowly turning, I spotted an arrow embedded in the cavern wall.
Someone had just tried to take me out.
I pivoted toward the arrow's origin and found an unexpected figure standing there.
"……What the hell are you doing here?"
"Huh. Not a goblin after all? Sorry, sorry. Didn't think anyone else would be down here. Thought you were just another goblin."
Jeong Ui-hoon approached with a nasty smirk, bow in hand.
"That shot nearly blew my head off."
"Pfft, come on. The instructors would've recalled you before you actually died. Right?"
Even after nearly causing a disaster, the bastard shook it off with a casual wave and a grin.
"Seeing you here means the underground connects all the dungeons, huh?"
His playful vibe grated on me. I pulled Tommy from my cube and leveled it at him.
"Whoa, whoa~ You really gonna shoot? You know the instructors are watching, right?"
"Obviously. But if you're actually about to bite it, they'll recall you anyway, yeah?"
I squeezed the trigger, firing Al Capone's Tommy toward him.
"Kiyaaak───!!"
A bizarre shriek echoed from behind him. A goblin clinging to the ceiling—aimed at his back—tumbled down, blood streaming from its forehead.
"Scared ya?"
Payback for his cheap shot twisted his face into a scowl.
"……Fucking asshole. Did your family teach you to shoot first and ask questions never?"
He knew the instructors could only watch, not hear, so he went straight for the family jab.
"Dunno. But sneaking up for a headshot—ain't that your family's specialty?"
Who the hell did he think he was picking a fight with? I knew all about his police chief family's dirty laundry and weak spots.
And this punk had the gall to come at me?
"No idea how you got here, but turn around and fuck off. Everything lying around here? I killed 'em. Mine."
I raised the barrel of Tommy skyward as I spoke. From afar came the grinding of teeth.
"You found 'em first, so I should leave? What kinda logic is that?"
"Dungeon law, dumbass. Even a cop kid like you knows that, right?"
Dungeon law—made to prevent incidents inside dungeons. What I was claiming was basic knowledge for any hero or Awakener.
"Ownership of monster corpses inside a dungeon belongs to the hunter. Common sense, no?"
"……Ha. Wanna play by the book?"
That was the problem with him. He despised villains like they were a plague and worshipped justice, but once he labeled someone a villain, he'd pull any bullshit excuse or tactic to screw them over without remorse.
Great ally if you're on his side, total pain in the ass otherwise.
As heir to the Calione family, I was public enemy number one to him. No chance of friendship.
Unless certain conditions were met.
"……Quoting dungeon law at the academy?"
"Pissed? Call a lawyer. Oh, wait—your family hates those, huh."
Even if I talked big, he knew I couldn't actually shoot him for real. His precious "justice" was on his side—what could he do?
"……Fucking prick."
He spat on the ground and turned to leave the way he'd come.
……Hold up. Perfect chance to bait him.
"Wait."
"……What now."
"Your clean surrender moved me. Thought I'd give you a shot. Wanna take it?"
"……Huh?"
He shot me a weird look, clueless to my angle.
"Can't take first place? Might as well grab something else. Like……this Subspace Storage I got right now."
"……A bet? Betting items?"
Subspace storage was Unique-tier for utility alone. No way he wouldn't covet it.
"What're you putting up?"
"Eh, just do me a small favor later."
"Small enough you can handle it yourself?"
"Finally catching on. Bet's simple: Guess which class wins. Deal?"
He eyed me suspiciously.
"You stand to lose way more than me. Why the hell would I take that shady bet?"
"Hmm……Rather see you lose your pride slinking away than watch you whine in defeat."
He smirked at that.
"That confident, huh?"
"Think what you want. So, in?"
I dangled the glove with its rune at him, jingling it temptingly.
Even you can't resist this. A secret vault just for you, right?
He stood there pondering……then nodded.
"Boss says Class C takes it."
"……Pretty sure of yourself."
Class C—home to Choi Yeon, granddaughter of Swordmaster Choi Seonho, who'd thrown down the gauntlet at me.
"I know your clubmates are strong. But the guy I know? He'd slice a goblin dungeon boss in one hit. So, Class C it is."
Solid logic. Choi Yeon trained under a swordmaster since childhood. She'd hold her own against upperclassmen or even active heroes—better than average, for sure.
Her blade would drop the boss in one swing, no doubt.
But that was all she had.
Dungeons were team efforts, not solo runs.
"I'll bet on Class A taking down the boss first."
"……After all that thinking, you're betting your own class? You admitted it—even your strong clubmates can't beat that monster Choi Yeon."
"If this were the arena, sure. But you know this is a dungeon, right?"
I flashed a smug grin, and he scowled like my words were beyond his grasp.
"……Weirdo. So we go up together or what?"
"Gotta. Other kids are probably hitting the boss room by now."
I tossed him a platform.
"Shall we head up and check?"
"Hah, obvious anyway."
I placed my platform on the ground and stepped on. Mana rose from it. Seeing me, he did the same.
"Bet Choi Yeon's got the boss's head by now."
"We'll see."
Really?
Mana enveloped me, the scenery shifting. The platform worked fine.
I hopped off and scanned around, expecting the hobgoblin boss from the game nearby. Looking for my classmates……
"……Oh."
……No need.
"This one's a big boy, huh?"
"Big deal—stab the belly and it flops. Just poke it right!"
The room brimmed with goblin corpses, bellies slit open. A hobgoblin shrieked through tears amid them.
Encircling it: my crew, drenched head to toe in goblin blood.
We'd reached the boss room proper, but……at the entrance, silhouettes—probably my classmates—blocked the way in with their bodies.
……What the actual fuck?
"The hell? Stealing? Sneaking in? No dungeon manners?!"
"We claimed this first! Wanna enter? Wait till we bag the boss!"
Exploiting the no-PvP rule, they body-blocked outsiders.
"Kekekeke—how many points for a hobgoblin core?"
"Yo, it won't respawn if it dies! Just beat it lightly."
"Don't sweat it, I'm holding back. Hey! Not calling? Summon more minions!"
-Kieeeek! Kieek! Kieeeek!!!
"Perfect timing—more incoming! Everyone ready!"
"Sweet, lure 'em! Crush cores soon as they pop out. Keep it stealthy."
They'd "subdued" the boss and turned it into a goblin respawn farm.
"Huh? Who's that popping out?"
"Eh? Isn't that Eugene?"
"Whoa? Boss?"
This madness was unfolding right in the boss room.
……Insane.
I told 'em to just kill the boss, and they set up a damn factory?