Zone 1 (2nd Turn, Try 3) 8: Absurd Luck and a Box of Terror
'Not liking this.'
We'd barely started the fight in 1-2, and our mentality was already this fucked. It wasn't like we had no way to recover, but no matter how I thought about it, this difficulty was insane. My head felt like it was going to explode.
[Shae and Kaya have equal speed.]
Shae: 5
Kaya: 2
[Shae's turn comes before Kaya's.]
'Kaya's still got shit luck.'
I didn't know what Kaya thought personally, but for the hero party as a whole, it didn't matter. Either way, next turn both of them would outspeed that fucking Terror Prophet anyway.
Shae activated Crusader's Tenacity to boost her speed by 1, and Kaya flushed red as she hit climax state, boosting her speed by 1 too. Both reached speed 5.
Turn order looped back to round 2—my turn.
'I know the Terror Prophet from back then isn't the same as this one we're facing now, but...'
I wanted to really show off the worth of my skill name.
Head Crush
Yujin deals 18 damage to Terror Prophet.
HP Remaining: 46/65
'Huh? 18 damage? On a regular hit?'
I was dumbfounded. Couldn't help but stare at my axe, dripping with blood.
In the meantime, since I'd told Zavek in advance to use his main damage skill next turn, Shae gritted her teeth and swung her claymore on her own.
Judgment of Justice
Shae deals 19 damage to Terror Prophet.
HP Remaining: 27/65
[Justice delivers stern judgment upon the Terror Prophet.]
[Terror Prophet afflicted with Stun (1 turn).]
[Terror Prophet cannot act next turn.]
[Judgment's Brand applied to Terror Prophet.]
[Heroes' hearts fill with courage witnessing the heroic strike.]
A shining critical hit followed. Then a cascade of combat messages.
Before I could even open my mouth to cheer or praise Shae—
As Shae returned to position after her attack, Kaya charged forward like a baton pass, and the flail swung at her with ferocious momentum.
"T-Terror...!"
"Shut up."
Thwack!
All According to God's Will
Kaya deals 27 damage to Terror Prophet.
HP Remaining: 0/65
[The thrill surging through the heroes' bodies momentarily lets them forget their fear.]
I blinked and rubbed my eyes, unable to comprehend what I'd just seen.
"...Huh?"
[Terror Prophet has been defeated.]
The corpse lay in one corner of the room, its head smashed beyond recognition. After confirming the death message, I realized what I was seeing was utterly real.
'An elite monster... one-turned? By three level 1s?'
Who could've predicted three max-damage crits in a row? Not us, not that bastard. After all the bullshit luck, it was like payback with absurd fortune.
Right up until we entered this room—no, even after that initial mentality hit—we'd been cursing our luck.
Haha.
The joy I'd stammered over from shock hit all at once.
"Kaya! Shae!"
"Captain...!"
"Captain!!"
I hugged each of them once. Their medium armor dug in annoyingly, but it couldn't block the joy surging from my heart.
"Just in case, let's search every corner."
"Yes!"
Shae and Kaya, still huffing excitedly from smashing the Terror Prophet's skull, scoured 1-2 like mice, but sadly, nothing turned up.
The Skull Necklace from the rewards was a dupe, which sucked, but after facing the elite in 1-2, our condition had actually improved—a bigger reward.
I'd braced for mentality in the -30s, worst case -50s.
'From luck-shit-fuck to luck-god-bless in seconds.'
Still, joy only this far. It wasn't called a luck-shit-fuck game by countless gamers for nothing. This much fortune meant the next fight could bring even worse misfortune.
Like when Shae randomly hit agony out of nowhere.
So no getting too high or low. Though one crit would make me forget that vow again...
Our steps through the passage from 1-2 felt lighter than before arriving.
Not that tension was gone—just confidence boosted that much.
Shae's nose twitched like she wanted to hum, but she held back, mindful of time and place.
Maybe that momentum helped. Midway, a trap popped but we dodged luckily, even netting minor mentality recovery.
With our unstoppable advance—like we could smash the boss skull too—we had to halt.
A fork.
Standing dead center, peering in, nothing visible. No scouting trigger.
16% chance should've procced once by now. I clicked my tongue in disappointment.
"Captain. Which way?"
"Dunno. Wherever we go, we'll reach the boss, but the path differs. No recon, so no clue what's ahead."
"Can't we go and come back?"
"Once you enter a room, you know you can't leave. You could turn back before entering... but pointless without checking inside."
"...Pure luck and gut then."
Kaya sighed.
"I'll sit this out. You and Shae decide."
"Sis, we're in it together—speak your mind!"
"This is my mind. I'm... not great at gut feels. Whichever you pick, no complaints from me."
"Jeez."
Shae shook her head and looked at me.
"Kaya-sis is too meek. Both unknowns—no one's judging your pick. Right?"
"Yeah. But respect her if that's her take. I'm going right."
"Right it is!"
No scout, no info—left or right, didn't matter. Just pity for Kaya holding back even here.
'Dunno her exact age, but trauma built over years won't flip overnight. Time'll fix it.'
Glad Shae looked after Kaya. We took the right path.
Shhh—
Hiss—
[Fear creeps into the tiny cracks in the heroes' hearts.]
Shae: -3
Kaya: -4
Yujin: -3
'Can't ignore time in passages.'
This shitty feeling... hard to put into words. Different fundamentally from fear in abandoned buildings, haunted houses—mild now, so similar, but only 'similar.'
Deeper in, unimaginable horrors awaited.
'No. Don't sink in.'
Once noticed, thoughts looped. Why this fear? From where? Since when? How'd I get here? Are the two women scouting ahead unaffected? Is being here right? Will I lose my mind? Will my head get crushed, not the enemy's? Will my brains splatter their boots...
'Fuck! Stop! Stop! STOP!'
[Vicious darkness darkens the heroes' hearts.]
Shae: -3
Kaya: -4
Yujin: -4
I clenched my teeth. Fisted my hands. Advance safely, break through. First goal—chanted nonstop.
Treated all else as stray thoughts. To block them out.
Over 30 minutes since slaying the Terror Prophet in 1-2 toward 1-3. In The Long Terror, it'd take 15-30 seconds tops.
Yet no 1-3 door. Anxiety crept back.
'No. Forks in The Long Terror split shit path from shittier—dead ends without rooms don't exist. 1-3 might be dead end, but this passage isn't. Absolutely.'
But why no door? I fiddled with the torch idly in frustration.
[The heroes' small torch burns a bit brighter, like their hope.]
Brightness: 88
'You little shit.'
Our hope small? Aiming for dungeon complete no Seilroom party achieved. Fuck off.
Cursed some unknown fucker, but my grumbling felt like half-burnt trash.
In passages: minimal talk, stay alert. Only essentials or emergencies.
That's why silence between us.
"Captain."
"What."
"What do you wanna do after clearing the dungeon, Captain?"
"...Shae."
"This much is fine, right? You're too tense."
Not the quiet type, and with the dungeon vibe, silence bugged Shae.
She lowered her voice, but it echoed like a cave yell.
'Better answer quick than snap. No real trouble yet, and she hasn't faced true dungeon hardship post-1-2. Makes sense.'
"Quit monster-slaying, live normal. Eat what I want, go where I want, sleep when I want."
"Challenging the hardest for normalcy?"
"...Yeah. Kinda ended up this way."
"Hm."
No hero without backstory. Shae knew that much.
Her question eased her, shutting her up—but rippled my mind.
'Hardest challenge for normalcy...'
Forgotten 'Earth' home surfaced. Crappy average one-room, not too messy not too clean, dominated by one PC. Keyboard nearby: chicken, cola, pickled radish. 'Han Yujin' munching while playing The Long Terror.
That utterly 'normal' routine versus my current 'hardest ever' plunge.
Would comrades get it?
"Captain."
"...Yeah."
"Door in sight."
Reverie snapped. Bad. Zoning out outside rest spot. Why I hate chit-chat.
Didn't blame Shae—no accident from it.
Next time, warn her though.
I nodded at Shae. She opened 1-3's door without hesitation.
Creeeak—
[Entered Terror Chest Room.]
"Ugh, that's...!"
Wait, same pattern as last time? Nah, just feeling?