The Dragon Heart Fragment
The ruins where a fragment of the Dragon Heart was sealed.
The entrance was already open, but the traces inside suggested someone had entered not long ago. Lim Dojun had rushed in after them.
Though his mind was urgent, his actions remained calm and measured.
“Dojun. In a place like this, acting hastily could lead to unknown dangers. You should always be careful……”
Casian, who had been about to warn the protagonist as an exploration specialist, trailed off when she saw Lim Dojun scanning the ruins with sharp, vigilant eyes.
Despite his hurried steps, he was meticulously checking every corner.
For Lim Dojun, this was only natural. The operations he had carried out during his military days were the kind where a single mistake could cost ten lives. Having completed every one of them successfully enough to earn the title of legend, he had no intention of acting recklessly.
“There are many signs that traps have been triggered.”
“This wasn’t a ruin. It was a dungeon. We need to be careful.”
“I’ll stay on full alert.”
Lim Dojun spoke while keeping his magic ready at a moment’s notice. His ice-attribute spells could be cast instantly without chanting. He was confident he could handle even sudden traps.
“……”
“……”
Yet the more they advanced, the more puzzled the group became.
“It’s too quiet.”
“Strange. Judging by the traces, there should have been chaos by now……”
Arrow marks and scorch marks covered the walls, floor, and even the ceiling. It meant extremely dangerous traps had once been active, yet nothing triggered as they passed through.
“Maybe they were single-use traps? The people ahead cleared them all.”
“I don’t know…… From the marks, they look like rechargeable, multi-use traps……”
Casian grew confused as reality contradicted her knowledge.
Since nothing happened, the group gradually picked up speed. Though they remained tense, they couldn’t afford to move slowly while in pursuit.
They traversed the dungeon without incident, almost as if taking a stroll, and soon encountered a mercenary party.
Reina, Volk, and Peter.
Lim Dojun was quite surprised to see the three-person party.
‘Why did they only get this far?’
Judging from the traces left near the dungeon entrance, they must have entered quite some time ago. Yet he had encountered them far sooner than expected.
Meanwhile, the mercenary party was equally startled by Lim Dojun’s group. Startled was an understatement—their wariness spiked to extreme levels.
‘This is bad…… Meeting other people inside a dungeon……’
‘And unlike us, they look completely fine……’
Encountering others inside a dungeon was almost always a bad omen. Limited treasures meant conflict was inevitable. Moreover, the mercenaries were injured and exhausted. They exchanged quick glances, unsure how to handle the situation, before Volk spoke quietly.
“Three mages. They look young, so they probably aren’t that strong. How about we strike first?”
“Volk, you crazy bastard. Don’t you see their robes? Look at the color and the patterns on the sleeves. They’re mages from the Blue Magic Tower!”
“I saw that too. But they’re still just three young mages. On our side, we have a seasoned warrior, a seasoned explorer, and a mercenary mage who’s been through hell. If we fight, who do you think wins?”
Volk’s words made sense. Combat wasn’t simply about raw power. The harmony of individual strengths and specialties mattered more—provided the overall skill levels were comparable.
“Obviously they’d win.”
“We’d be turned into corpses before we could do anything.”
At Reina and Peter’s retorts, Volk scratched his head.
“……Is that so?”
“Volk, you’ve never gone on a request with a major magic tower before, have you?”
“Of course not. How would I ever get the chance to work with people like that?”
“They say ignorance breeds courage. Mages from major towers operate on a completely different level. The three of us would be frozen solid in an instant.”
Peter had once encountered a mage from the Black Magic Tower. The grand magic that mage had wielded left him deeply shaken. He had prided himself on being able to do a little of everything, like weeds that grew anywhere, but that confidence shattered before true magic.
Reina added from the side.
“Besides, young mages from major towers are even more dangerous. They’re arrogant because they think they’re the best. The fact that they came this far with only mages means there’s at least one combat specialist among them. If we act recklessly, it’ll really be the end.”
They quickly reached an agreement. After sharing a glance, they shouted with all their might at the same time.
“We surrender!”
“Please help us! We have no interest in the dungeon’s treasures!”
“We’ll share everything we’ve learned about the traps!”
A mercenary who had survived this long knew exactly where to tread. Acting arrogant in a place like this would get them killed without a trace.
Watching them raise their hands so readily, Lim Dojun found it odd.
‘Are there proper traps from here onward?’
So far, they had only seen traces of traps having activated, yet the path itself had been completely smooth with no actual traps.
“Are you mercenaries?”
Lim Dojun stepped forward. He had been in the passage while the mercenary party stood in the stone chamber beyond. He crossed the threshold separating the two.
“Huh!? Wait a second! You can’t just go there!”
Reina shouted urgently. Above that spot, a Lightning spell would activate upon detecting an intruder. Lightning magic was so fast that even defensive artifacts barely managed to block it. Without preparation, it could be fatal.
“What?”
“?”
“??”
Yet when Lim Dojun approached without any issue, everyone stared in disbelief.
The Blue Magic Tower mages and the mercenary party had temporarily joined forces. They cooperated fully to survive. Staying here would mean certain death, but with the mages’ help, their chances of escape increased, even if only slightly.
“Huh…… That’s strange. Why is it fine? This trap should have activated……”
They soon discovered the truth.
None of the traps inside the dungeon activated against Lim Dojun!
After seeing him remain unharmed, Volk stepped forward to test whether the traps had disappeared and nearly became a skewer before they could confirm it.
“Aaaagh! Dojun! Save me!”
Jo Difel also nearly suffered a trap’s wrath. Traps didn’t trigger when he stayed close to Lim Dojun, as if recognized as part of his group, but testing the exact distance had nearly cost him dearly.
After spending considerable time analyzing the situation, Lim Dojun roughly understood what was happening.
‘It’s not because of the dragon’s will.’
Most unusual events were usually caused by that, but this was different.
Lim Dojun looked inward. The knowledge he had gained from two dragon-related ancient ruins had already fully integrated into his body. That knowledge was now interacting with the dungeon.
‘The grand magic inside the dungeon and my own magic belong to the same system.’
A subtle grand magic, undetectable without prolonged focus even to Lim Dojun’s senses, had been cast throughout the dungeon. Recognizing Lim Dojun, who had learned dragon-style magic, as its rightful master, the magic refused to activate any traps against him.
After all, a dungeon was meant to block intruders, not its owner.
“Wow…… This information is actually really valuable……”
At some point, Casian had discovered ancient script densely covering the corridor walls and was now absorbed in studying it. The walls, floor, and ceiling were packed with text. For her, an exploration major, this place was a treasure vault.
Reina watched the Blue Magic Tower mage, who was displaying incredible concentration while deciphering the ancient language, and felt bewildered.
‘Isn’t she scared?’
She understood that the mage named Dojun had neutralized the dungeon with his absurd ability. But they were still inside a dangerous dungeon. How could she remain so nonchalant?
Unable to hold back, Reina asked.
“Um…… Mage-nim. Aren’t you surprised or scared?”
“No. Dojun is here.”
Blue Magic Tower mages were intelligent. Once they knew a fact, they didn’t question it further. Casian had explored several ruins with Lim Dojun and had even ridden a drake to get here. Naturally, she had come to realize, “Ah, there’s no need to worry needlessly when I’m with Dojun.”
That was why she could focus on her own task.
“Could you move aside? I need to interpret what’s written there.”
“Ah, yes.”
At Casian’s sharp look that clearly said she didn’t want to be disturbed, Reina quickly stepped aside.
The mercenary party couldn’t understand these mages at all. Were all major tower mages like this?
“Oh. Jo Difel. Come take a look at this.”
The text Casian was reading also contained useful information for Jo Difel.
“It seems like ancient research. It’s alchemy for humans who possess a Dragon’s Body.”
“Eh? Isn’t that basically chimera research?”
“I don’t know what purpose this alchemy served. But it should help you too, right?”
“Of course. Any alchemy-related knowledge is welcome, no matter how useless it seems.”
The more specialized knowledge one accumulated, the better. Accumulated knowledge would enrich the future.
The group advanced slowly through the dungeon interior. While everyone else was busy with their own tasks, Lim Dojun was no different.
He was now listening to the heartbeat within his chest.
Thump. Thump.
The closer they got to the dungeon’s center, the more the incomplete dragon-style magic resonated with the dungeon’s interior. Though multiple paths branched off, he instinctively knew which direction to take.
‘This should be it.’
Focused on the inner voice, Lim Dojun continued forward without noticing what the others were doing.
“Oh no. It’s a dead end.”
Reina spoke as she looked at the wall blocking their path, but Lim Dojun saw something different.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The heartbeat had grown much louder, confirming this was the correct path.
Lim Dojun placed his hand on the wall. With a puff of smoke, the wall vanished. It hadn’t been a dead end, but an elaborate illusion spell that had dispelled itself upon the rightful owner’s arrival.
Beyond it lay a vast hall filled with numerous stone statues. The statues depicted humans bowing and paying homage toward the center. In the middle stood a massive dragon statue with wings spread wide, roaring.
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
Upon seeing the statue, Lim Dojun couldn’t help but clutch his chest. More precisely, the area near the dragon statue’s chest. A red gem was embedded there. The moment he saw it, Lim Dojun felt his mind reel.
And at that moment—
“!”
A fragment of the Dragon Heart floated up and flew toward Lim Dojun, embedding itself in his chest.
Crack!
“Guh!?”
Skill ‘Dragon Heart Fragment (1/3)’ acquired.
You have taken a portion of the Dragon Heart into a human body.
You now possess fragments of the dragon’s will, body, and heart.
Great Achievement!
10 Achievement Points awarded.
Messages flooded his vision, but Lim Dojun had no mind to read them. His entire body felt as though it were being carved apart. Along with the pain, his whole body began rapidly freezing over.