Chapter 22
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Rift—1-7 (2)
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Rift, 1-7.
The belly of a giant magical beast. But at first glance, it resembled some massive natural cave.
The walls were rough, jagged rock, and the floor squelched with every step.
On top of that, a fishy, nauseating stench hung in the air.
Without knowing it was the innards of a giant magical beast, anyone might have mistaken it for just a gloomy, dark cave.
I shone the lantern light around in the darkness, checking on the team members who had followed me in.
"Everyone okay?"
Leo Miller and Jeon Minjun nodded stiffly, their faces tense.
Sophia wrinkled her nose as she scanned the surroundings.
"This smell... It's so gross, makes me wanna puke."
"Get used to it. Like I said earlier, I'll take point up front. Leo, cover right behind me. Jeon Minjun, get ready to support from there. Sophia, watch the rear."
No one had any objections to my orders. The awkward, discontent atmosphere lingered, but they seemed to grasp their roles and reluctantly formed up. I took the lead, moving forward cautiously.
We hadn't gone far into the cave when shapes started wriggling into view far ahead.
A few slimes matching the color of the slimy walls, and a couple of goblins wielding small daggers. Low-level monsters, just as expected.
"Incoming! Front goblins, slimes approaching from the sides!"
I shouted and thrust out my hand. Condensing cold air in my palm, I fired sharp ice shards. One flew straight, piercing a goblin's gut. Meanwhile, a slime charged in from the side. With my mana limited, I couldn't handle them all alone.
"Urk!"
Leo Miller thrust out his shield to block it, while Jeon Minjun fumbled from behind, chanting a spell to cast a protective barrier on Leo.
"Get lost, you pathetic slime!"
Leo shoved the squelching slime back with his shield, and I followed up immediately with a second ice shard to finish it off. Sophia quickly dispatched the remaining enemies approaching from behind with her dagger. Our coordination wasn't half bad.
Sophia shook the slime off her dagger and grumbled curtly.
"Tch, just a bunch of weaklings."
"We're still at the entrance. Don't let your guard down."
We pressed on.
After a few more similar skirmishes and navigating a narrow, dark passage, our view opened up into a small cavern.
In the center was a small pond emitting a faint blue glow, and sparkling crystals were embedded here and there in the surrounding cave walls.
"Whoa...! Mana stone vein!"
Leo Miller let out an exclamation. Jeon Minjun's eyes gleamed behind his glasses as he said excitedly,
"Look! That amount will boost our evaluation scores big time!"
Even Sophia seemed to momentarily forget her usual prickliness, eyeing the crystals in the wall intently.
All three were completely fixated on the loot right in front of them. They probably saw it as a golden opportunity to rack up points.
But I couldn't bring myself to be happy about it.
'...Those aren't mana stones; they're just gallstones.'
Sure, they looked like mana stones on the surface.
But this rift—1-7—was the stomach of a giant magical beast.
In other words, those shiny crystals weren't mana condensates; they were hardened lumps formed inside this beast's body. And that blue pond...
'Probably some kind of gastric juice.'
"What're you doing, Kang Ihyeon? Hurry up and mine them! Time's ticking!"
"Yeah, farming safely like this makes scoring way easier, right?"
Sophia pointed to the largest crystal embedded in the wall, urging me on. Leo drew his massive greatsword with enthusiasm, and Jeon Minjun was already opening his backpack to pull out mining tools.
'What a mess.'
I let out a deep internal sigh.
Those gallstones and gastric juices caused no harm on initial contact. But from the moment of contact, invisible debuffs began stacking on the body.
That was the most crucial rule to follow in the 1-7 rift.
'Just because it looks shiny doesn't mean you grab it.'
Even in the low-difficulty sections up to layer 3, this was used for the straggler exam for a reason.
Get blinded by the loot points, and the accumulating debuffs would make it impossible to take down the layer 3 mid-boss easily.
Unlike typical parties, without a dedicated looter, it was even more fatal for us.
'I want to tell them, but...'
Imparting game knowledge that hadn't been revealed yet carried too much risk.
I wasn't confident I could convince them anyway.
I'd probably just get snide remarks about how I knew undocumented info.
I made my decision quickly.
They weren't worth the trouble.
Better to force them to retire early and summon a clone body instead.
"I'll stand watch here. You guys mine."
At my words, all three sets of eyes snapped to me. Leo Miller asked incredulously,
"What? Stand watch? In this situation?"
"Hey, don't you care about personal scores? Forget scores—this mana stone's worth a fortune."
"Ha, what a joke. First guy I've seen turn down free points. What, showing off as leader or something?"
I kept my expression neutral as I replied.
"I don't need the points."
"......"
My firm words turned their faces icy in an instant.
"Oh, really?"
"Um, still... we should grab what we can..."
"So you're saying you don't need this crap 'cause you're that good? Hah. Can't argue with that."
She muttered through gritted teeth, then yelled at Leo and Jeon Minjun.
"Hey! What're you doing? Ignore that jerk and mine! We can take his share too!"
"Y-yeah!"
The three ignored me completely now, rushing to the wall and competing to pry out the crystals.
The dull sounds of rock breaking and their heavy breathing echoed through the cave.
Finally satisfied with their haul of "mana stones," they approached me, wiping sweat with smug looks.
"All done. Let's go."
Sophia spoke curtly, but her tone was much softer than before. Leo and Jeon Minjun seemed content with their haul too.
We exited the cavern and continued down the cave passage.
Soon, a wider space appeared with a gentle upward slope leading higher—like to the next layer.
That meant we'd entered layer 2.
'Total of 10 layers, right? Early rifts are usually tower-structured.'
The layer 2 cave walls were even slimier, and the fishy stench in the air grew thicker. Before long, more monsters appeared. This time, a few slime blobs and small shell-beetle-type beasts.
"Here they come again! Get ready!"
I shouted and condensed cold air once more.
Blue mana swirled over my gloves, forming sharp ice crystals.
Shwaaak—!
The first volley of ice spears pierced the slime blobs. Their liquid bodies froze solid in an instant, shattering with crisp cracks.
"Kieek!"
"Tch, rear—brace yourselves!"
Two shell-beetles burst from the ground, leaping over me toward Leo. Their sharp forelimbs glinted.
"Nngh...!"
Leo gritted his teeth and raised his shield, blocking the shell-beetles' attacks. Unlike the slimes, sharp scraping sounds rang out on the shield, and the impact pushed his body back slightly.
"Leo! I've got support incoming!"
"Thanks... Whoa!"
Jeon Minjun urgently aimed his staff at Leo, but a moment's lapse.
As Leo glanced at Jeon Minjun, the other shell-beetle lunged for his leg.
"Don't just stare ahead, idiot!"
Sophia circled around and plunged her dagger deep into the shell-beetle's side. It spewed green fluids and collapsed.
Meanwhile, I unleashed cold blasts at the remaining slimes and shell-beetle.
The freezing chill whitened the cave walls, and chunks of frozen monster remains littered the floor.
"Hoo... Not bad for layer 2. Pretty solid teamwork, leader."
Leo panted, wiping monster fluids from his shield.
"Look over there!"
Leo pointed to a corner of the wall and shouted. A broad patch of greenish moss grew along the damp surface, emitting its own faint green glow.
"Life Moss?!"
Jeon Minjun's voice rose in pitch.
"Whoa, damn! Jackpot! This stuff's super rare! Used for recovery potions!"
"Today's our lucky day. All this loot."
"......"
Even Sophia's lips quirked up slightly as she eyed the moss.
But moss parasitizing inside this beast's gut couldn't possibly be beneficial loot.
It would stack debuffs too.
'Like a bad running gag.'
Fight, then farm.
The same scenario repeating made me want to laugh.
But more concerning was my teammates' condition.
'They're definitely struggling more than before.'
Layer 2 monsters were a bit tougher than layer 1, but not enough to tax them this much. Especially Leo and Jeon Minjun—their movements were noticeably sluggish, breaths ragged.
The debuffs were clearly kicking in.
Finally, I couldn't take it and spoke up haltingly.
"...But isn't time getting tight?"
Their eyes fixed on me again.
"Huh? What time?"
"We've already burned a ton mining those stones. Team 2 might snag the layer 3 boss first."
Despite my reasonable point, their gazes stayed glued to the moss.
"That's fair, but..."
"Yeah. That amount's gotta be worth a lot..."
"Wait, do we really have to rush?"
"What?"
Sophia tossed out the line.
This was a new twist.
"Like you said, we're already late from mining the stones, so grabbing more loot makes sense, right? We spent like thirty minutes on those. Even flooring it now, our odds of hitting the mid-boss first are lower anyway."
"R-right. And Team 2 has that top scorer from round one, yeah? Might be smarter to focus on farming than fighting..."
"Yeah, I think so too."
Her words perfectly echoed the other two's sentiments.
'Not entirely wrong, but...'
Frustrating.
This wasn't a test everyone could pass with that mindset.
Was I the problem, force-feeding myself frustration?
I didn't reply, just stared blankly at the cave ceiling dripping water.
This wasn't the threat I'd envisioned for the mock rift.
The conclusion was simple.
Arguing further would just waste time.
"...Fine, do what you want."
Time to retire them early—
If luck's on their side and they scrape by the score cutoff, they'll pass the straggler exam.
I gave up and just watched as they stuffed their bags full of moss.
After cramming in the moss, we set off again.
Layer 2 was definitely longer and more complex than layer 1.
Numerous branching passages, slimier ooze seeping from walls, and the air's stench so foul it hurt to breathe.
The most obvious change was my teammates' states. They looked visibly exhausted—heavy steps, ragged breaths, poor complexions.
"Haa... haa... Why's it so tough? 'Cause it's layer 2...?"
Leo panted, constantly wiping sweat from his brow.
"Th-the ambient mana feels... way heavier than layer 1. Body won't move right..."
"Damn, feels shitty. Like someone's choking me."
Jeon Minjun muttered, pale-faced. Sophia scowled irritably around us.
That was when it happened.
In the widening passage ahead, several slimes leaking green liquid slithered into view. Unlike normal slimes, the ground bubbled and corroded in their wake. Acid slimes.
"Slimes! Take 'em out!"
Leo reflexively shouted and raised his shield, but his body wasn't what it used to be. Even blocking one charging slime looked grueling.
Splatter!
The acid liquid hit the shield, sizzling as the metal surface melted.
"Agh! Th-this is acid! Everyone, careful!"
"Tch...! Annoying!"
Leo screamed and hastily retreated. Jeon Minjun panicked, trying to chant but his trembling hands ruined his focus.
Meanwhile, Sophia threw her dagger, but it started melting the moment it embedded in the slime's gooey body.
Tsk.
Total disaster. If this kept up, not a wipeout, but heavy injuries or at least unable to continue the eval.
I forcibly erected an ice wall to block the front and yelled,
"I'll hold 'em with the ice wall—fall back!"
"O-okay!"
"Damn it, please hold...!"
Leo and Jeon Minjun reflexively started retreating at my words.
Their faces were pale with fear from the melting shield and slime threat.
But Sophia hesitated. She didn't fall back right away, glancing between me and the slimes increasingly melting my ice wall.
Her eyes flickered with complex emotions.
"What're you doing! Sophia, retreat now!"
"Urk, of all the stupid situations...!"
Sophia spat a quiet curse, alternating looks between me and the monsters. For a brief, very brief moment, she seemed to waver.
"Sophia! Hurry up!"
Jeon Minjun's urgent voice echoed from afar.
"...Damn it all! Don't you dare die!"
Finally, Sophia gritted her teeth and turned away. Dull footsteps and heavy breathing faded into the distance.
Good. Now.
Confirming they were out of sight, I didn't hesitate any longer.
After hitting clone level 2, the second clone body prepared for this rift's unique environment.
[Clone─Miyazaki Rena]
⚡ Combat Power:32.1%
"Master, your orders."
[Combat power below threshold (50%). Unable to maintain clone's ego.]
[Switching to basic mechanical consciousness.]
A current hunter who frequently appeared on Messcom.
It was Miyazaki Rena.