Chapter 66
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 66
Chapter Title: Zero-Sum Game (4)
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“Let’s hear it.”
I didn’t know about anything else, but I was curious why Min Sung-taek and Kang Hyun-seung’s attitudes had changed so drastically.
The two of them exchanged glances.
It was none other than Kang Hyun-seung who spoke first.
The two had met with Park Si-woo regarding the Kim Yoo-han incident and had joined this expedition as a condition of that meeting.
“Making the proposal to Guild Master Park was a choice, but… anyway.”
Among the other Hunters, it was known that I had caught Park Si-woo’s eye after the Mossman incident.
“It doesn’t make sense for Guild Master Park to be interested in a dungeon expedition like that. And that dungeon was strangely suspicious.”
The two had lost consciousness, so they hadn’t seen me fight Yoo Ji-han.
Because of that, they had guessed that a connection between Park Si-woo and me had existed even before the Mossman incident.
So far, so good.
But that couldn’t be the reason they followed me.
“Guild Master Park knows this dungeon better than anyone.”
Clearing an A-rank dungeon that had been failed four times with only three people was no easy feat.
The more a dungeon is failed, the higher its difficulty becomes.
Failing an A-rank dungeon four times meant its difficulty was practically on par with an S-rank dungeon.
This track record was why Park Si-woo had been in charge of the briefing within the Aria Guild.
“I don’t think Guild Master Park told us everything that day. The moment you started acting alone, I was sure of it.”
“Let’s say I got some information from Park Si-woo. I don’t see any reason why I should share it with you two.”
Sorry to say it, but my position had changed since the Ant Tunnel.
Old ties and all that were meaningless now.
—When the monster population increases beyond a certain point, there's one quest that inevitably appears.
—What quest is that?
—A monster raid. It’s a competition to see who can kill the most monsters.
The points at stake from the monster raid and the Zero-Sum Game amounted to hundreds of thousands.
“You know something, don’t you?”
“Haha.”
I gave a slight shrug and an awkward laugh.
“Twenty thousand points. That’s ten thousand after subtracting the game’s entry fee. I’ll do anything if you guarantee that much. Not a bad offer, is it?”
“Fine.”
Unlike the Raon Guild, less than half of the Aria Guild members had participated in the Zero-Sum Game.
The risk of losing 10,000 points was too great.
If they sided with me and walked away with 20,000 points—double their initial investment of 10,000—it was by no means a loss for them.
The Cockatrice’s farm was much larger than I had anticipated.
I calculated the outcomes of hiring the two versus not, and the former was a much better option.
I naturally extended my hand.
Min Sung-taek took it and shook it.
“What do we do now?”
“Scout.”
The Cockatrice’s farm was laid out in a formation surrounded by twelve large megaliths.
The area enclosed by these dolmen-like stones was the field of the A-rank dungeon.
Inside the megaliths were the farms.
The other Hunters would undoubtedly be looking for the farms.
‘Whether they’re in a normal state or not, they’ll try to predict what’s next by checking the farms’ condition.’
I could just hear about the state of the farms from Ju Seo-hye and the others.
“You want us to scout?”
“Yes, and do nothing else. Just report back. Oh, and while you’re at it, see if you can find any Hwagwang Rats.”
Hwagwang Rats were common monsters that appeared in the Cockatrice’s farm.
“Got it.”
Despite the baffling request, Min Sung-taek and Kang Hyun-seung, having promised to do as I said, silently accepted my proposal.
I asked Min Sung-taek to scout the north and Kang Hyun-seung to scout the west of the dungeon.
I also moved quickly to scout the remaining areas.
Parties hunting Hulker Dragons were roaming all over the place, seemingly more confident in their hunting abilities.
I recalled my phone conversation with Park Si-woo from the previous night.
—Let’s say someone turned the Cockatrice into a thought-form during the second expedition. How would you explain why the third expedition failed?
If a Hunter from the Raon Guild had turned the Cockatrice into a thought-form in the second dungeon attempt, the third expedition should have been in a dungeon without a boss.
A dungeon without a boss naturally has a much lower difficulty.
—It was probably because of the Lindworm. Well, I did mention it briefly during the meeting.
—Lindworm?
A Lindworm was a type of dragon similar to a Hulker Dragon, but far more ferocious.
—There are many streams and wells around the Cockatrice’s farm. Normally, the Hulker Dragons wouldn’t dare to inhabit those places.
Usually, Hulker Dragons operate on the outskirts, not near the Cockatrice's habitat.
When a dungeon raid fails, the increase in Hulker Dragons is typically confined to the outer regions, not the central area.
This dungeon had two predators.
The Cockatrice ate Hwagwang Rats, and the Lindworm ate Hulker Dragons.
And the Hwagwang Rats, in turn, ate the Hulker Dragons.
—One drawback is that Hwagwang Rats have a lower reproduction rate than Hulker Dragons. Assuming the population has increased, it’s a fight worth having from the Hulker Dragons’ perspective.
If not a single Hwagwang Rat could be found in the dungeon, it meant the Hulker Dragons had effectively taken over.
‘This is a chicken farm with no chickens.’
It was a strange dungeon, to be sure, but expecting a dungeon that had been failed three times to be in a normal state was pointless.
I quickly scanned the area around the megaliths.
As expected, after checking several of them, I didn't see a single Hwagwang Rat.
Lindworms primarily feed on Hulker Dragons.
The creature had no need to venture into the Cockatrice’s territory.
Now that the Cockatrice was gone and the Hulker Dragon population had surged, this entire region was a well-laid feast for the Lindworm.
During the meeting, Park Si-woo had repeatedly said that reducing the number of Hulker Dragons was the priority.
But he had told me something slightly different.
—There’s a limit to mindlessly killing them. Raid their home.
—Their home?
—Exactly. Haa, it’s rare to let things get this bad. But if there are no Hwagwang Rats, it’s highly likely the dragons have built a nest.
Hulker Dragons typically inhabit the valleys and scattered wells around the mountains.
Well aware of this fact, the two guilds were focusing their subjugation efforts on the valleys and wells.
—Water doesn’t always have to be above ground.
As dusk fell, I headed to the meeting spot where I was to meet the two men.
[The ‘Zero-Sum Game’ is currently in progress.]
[Rankings]
- Time Remaining: 2:43:12
- 1st Place: Han Jong-ho, 243 kills
- 2nd Place: Ju Seo-hye, 171 kills
- 3rd Place: Jeong Ho-il, 123 kills
…….
- 42nd Place: Kang Han-gyeol, 22 kills
Since I had only dealt with the Hulker Dragons that got in my way, my rank was much lower than I expected.
Min Sung-taek, who had also checked the rankings, spoke with an anxious voice.
“Haa, haa… I did as you asked. Are you sure this is going to work?”
“I told you I’d make sure you two get your share even if this fails. So, what did you find?”
The areas I had checked were all dead ends.
Min Sung-taek shook his head.
“Just as you said, there wasn’t a single Hwagwang Rat. But other than that, nothing special.”
“I see.”
I hadn’t found any Hwagwang Rats on my rounds either.
That left Kang Hyun-seung.
“Uh, well, actually… there was one strange place. It’s a bit far, though.”
“Good, let’s go right now.”
“Huh? What? Now?”
“Of course.”
It wasn’t like I enjoyed wandering around the dungeon while everyone else was hunting.
I grabbed the bag I had hidden in a tree.
The place Kang Hyun-seung mentioned was indeed quite a distance away.
I took a sip of the Chocoemon I’d brought from outside the dungeon and surveyed my surroundings.
“There were a lot of Hulker Dragons, even though there were no streams or wells nearby.”
The places I had asked Min Sung-taek and Kang Hyun-seung to scout were unsuitable for Hulker Dragons to inhabit.
Hiding in a tree and looking down, I crushed the empty Chocoemon carton in my hand.
“Bingo.”
If the Hunters were to systematically sweep the dungeon, it was only a matter of time before the nest was discovered.
However, most Hunters were currently fixated on the Zero-Sum Game, focusing their search on the valleys and wells.
Drawing the Sky Sword, I leaped onto a large megalith.
[The aura of the god Soter blesses you.]
Imbuing my blade with mana, I used Meteor Slash on the megalith.
A straight beam of light shattered the massive stone into pieces.
A torrent of water erupted from between the broken rocks.
“N-No way. Is that… groundwater?”
Kang Hyun-seung, who was watching, was stunned.
‘The wells and streams are most numerous near the Cockatrice’s habitat. It doesn’t make sense for the water-dependent Hulker Dragons to live on the outskirts. The answer, then, is simple.’
It meant that there was also enough water on the outskirts for the Hulker Dragons to thrive.
Of course, that water was undrinkable.
The water where Hulker Dragons lived was mostly highly toxic.
In an instant, the spot where the stone had stood transformed into a giant pool.
Hulker Dragons poured out ceaselessly from the gushing groundwater.
They looked like fish thrown onto the shore.
‘I think I get why Park Si-woo called them little worms.’
From a slight distance, the sight was truly grotesque.
“So we just have to kill all of these?”
“Even so, there are too many. Can we really deal with all of them in two hours…?”
I had caused quite a commotion.
It wouldn't take long for the others to hear about it.
—Seriously, when I saw that guy Choi Soo-hyun break the stone and the Hulker Dragons came pouring out, I just had to sigh.
Do you know what the best part about being a latecomer is?
You don’t have to repeat the same foolish mistakes the pioneers made.
I had brought two bags with me when I entered the dungeon.
Aside from the bag containing simple preserved foods, the other held a special item.
The person who had prepared this for me was Park Si-woo.
—Mana Grenades. They’re small, but their explosive power is on par with an anti-tank grenade.
After the appearance of dungeons, modern weaponry wasn't entirely useless.
Among them, weapons utilizing mana were gaining attention.
I pulled the pin, infused the grenade with mana, and hurled it.
*KABOOOOM!*
A tremendous explosion erupted, blowing the Hulker Dragons to bits.
“Hey, hey! What are you doing?”
“My god.”
Kang Hyun-seung and Min Sung-taek, who were watching, each exclaimed.
I grinned and threw another grenade at the Hulker Dragons.
“There’s still…”
*BOOM.*
“A lot left!”
With each explosion, Hulker Dragons died in droves.
***
A beam of light engulfed a Hulker Dragon.
The Raon Guild was funneling most of the kills to Han Jong-ho.
This game was disadvantageous for the Aria Guild from the start.
Ten minutes before the Zero-Sum Game ended.
‘The gap has widened.’
Han Jong-ho was thrilled at the thought of collecting the contribution points and seizing control of the dungeon.
*KABOOOOM!*
An explosion suddenly rang out.
“What was that?”
“I don’t know, sir. A huge explosion suddenly came from the west side of the dungeon…”
“Wait! The rankings are weird!”
“Rankings? What are you talking about?”
At one Hunter's words, everyone opened the ranking window for the ongoing game.
[Rankings]
- 7th Place: Kang Han-gyeol, 61 kills
*KABOOOOM!*
Another explosion came from the west.
- 4th Place: Kang Han-gyeol, 214 kills
With each explosion, Han-gyeol's kill count was closing the gap at an incredible speed.
The direction of the explosions was a place with neither valleys nor wells, completely unsuitable as a habitat for Hulker Dragons.
“What in the world is going on?”
*BOOM. KABOOM.*
Everyone’s jaws dropped at the successive explosions and the helplessly mounting pile of Hulker Dragon corpses.
The Hunters, finally snapping out of their daze, rushed toward the source of the explosions.
“This is…”
The area was a mess, torn apart by the groundwater that had surged from below and the explosions.
Countless corpses of Hulker Dragons, horrifically and brutally blown apart, were piled up in the mud.
“Oh, you’re here? Too bad. The game’s over.”
Kang Han-gyeol tossed his last remaining grenade behind him.
As the grenade detonated, a pillar of water shot up.
[The ‘Zero-Sum Game’ has ended.]
[Winner: Kang Han-gyeol]