Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Reader's Fourth Museum Event Recommendation: Robot Dinosaur
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Having safely collected even the letter, we made our way out of the hidden dungeon.
A shame, but after that, we couldn't find any more good artifacts.
Well, if everything behind locked doors was an item, it'd be way too overpowered.
'Still, I got the boss item, so maybe I can live with it.'
An item that boosts the wearer's strength by a whopping 8.
It was worth all the hardship just for this.
Too bad I have no idea what to do with the 'Cursed Eye of the Dead.'
But it's probably not some ordinary item either.
'Anyway, compared to the early game, I've definitely gotten stronger.'
Traits:
Skills:
'Kuh~ Yeah, this is it!'
Looking at the status window laid out like this fills me with a fresh sense of pride.
My strength stat, now at a solid 20.
The growing list of traits and skills.
And above all, coins exceeding 8,000 already.
'Really reaping the benefits of that lottery win last time.'
Not quite on the level of Yoo-ri, the protagonist.
But at this point, no one should treat me like some extra.
"Lee Ji-hoon."
"Yeah?"
"You look happy about something."
"Oh, well, some good stuff happened in the museum."
"To think you'd say that after seeing that. Impressive."
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Footsteps shaking the building echoed from behind us.
At the same time, a long shadow loomed over our heads.
"Ti Raaaaaaaaaa~~!!"
Wow, living long enough to hear a robot T-Rex go 'Tira~' like that.
What the hell is wrong with this damn novel?
'The author really just writes whatever he feels like, huh.'
But setting aside the bizarre roar, the dinosaur's presence was terrifying.
Not just its ferocious appearance.
Its massive size alone was overwhelmingly intimidating.
-Crash! Shatter!
Artifacts that would've cost millions in the old world.
Shattered to pieces with a single stomp from the T-Rex.
"Well, dinosaurs do fit a museum. Should I be grateful it's not firing AI missiles?"
"That's not the problem right now!"
Yoo Hye-na shouted from atop the deer robot beside me.
The machine's dynamic movements stirred something in a guy's heart.
'Who knew the museum had a future tech ride booth. Should've come more often if I'd known.'
The 'Best Driver' effect apparently worked on robots too.
Definitely a cheat job.
"Running forever like this won't cut it, that's for sure."
"But we don't have a way to take down that thing."
"Yoo-ri, what about your sword?"
Yoo-ri shook her head with a serious expression.
"If I could use my full power, maybe. But not in my current state."
"Yeah, and that dino doesn't look like it'll just stand there and take it."
A stationary enemy, I could whack away at it endlessly.
But no way the dinosaur's staying put.
Meanwhile, one swipe from that giant tail would be fatal for us.
'Was I supposed to use Sword of Four Directions here originally?'
Maybe the original strategy got erased because of me.
Honestly, doesn't seem like we can win with any standard method.
"It's not like there's no way, though..."
"Wh-what? Why are you looking at me?"
Yoo Hye-na asked back in an uneasy voice.
I glanced at the deer robot she was riding and said,
"You're already controlling that robot you're on. So maybe you can control that dinosaur robot too?"
"Ho."
Yoo-ri let out a light sound of admiration.
Even to a reincarnator, it sounded plausible.
Plus, it's got style.
Riding and piloting a dinosaur robot? Come on.
"Hmm, I'd love to help if I can, but..."
But Yoo Hye-na actually looked anxious.
"My ability only works when I'm 'riding' something."
"Then that one...?"
"Yeah, for a T-Rex, I'd need to climb onto its head."
"Ugh, that might be tricky then."
The T-Rex was big enough to fill the vast museum hall.
We're dodging around now, but that's our limit.
No room for low-physical Yoo Hye-na to climb up to its head.
"...If it's just stopping it for a moment, I can handle that."
That's when Yoo-ri spoke up after a brief pause.
"I'll pin it down somehow. Hye-na climbs up in the gap. Sound good?"
"No, even then, how do we get up there-"
My eyes drifted to the baseball bat mid-sentence.
Wait, maybe it could work.
"How about this?"
I slowly explained the plan.
Not much of a plan, really.
"Eek."
Yoo Hye-na's face went pale as she listened.
No joke—it really meant risking her life.
"Of course, if it seems too reckless, then maybe..."
"N-no!"
Yoo Hye-na cut me off urgently.
"I want to help you guys too. And only I can do this. Let me!"
"Alright, don't worry. If things go wrong, I'll block it with my life."
Honestly, no clue if it'll actually work.
But it's not like we have other options.
"Then let's go."
Yoo Hye-na and Yoo-ri nodded at me in unison.
On that signal, we whipped around toward it.
Yoo-ri swung her sword wide, clashing head-on with the robot dinosaur.
-Boom!!
"Nngh!"
Even Yoo-ri couldn't defy the mass and got pushed back.
But its movement definitely halted.
Yoo-ri immediately kicked off again, charging at the T-Rex.
Her back looked utterly reliable.
In that meantime, I shoved the baseball bat under the deer robot's belly.
"D-do you think this'll really work?"
"It does in movies."
"Which movie?"
"Indian Bollywood."
"......"
The plan I'd come up with was simple, really.
Swing the baseball bat with the deer robot on it to launch it into the air.
With my boosted strength and Soul Strike, it was doable.
"Hye-na, you trust me, right?"
At my words, Yoo Hye-na made a strange face for a second.
Then nodded vigorously.
"Yeah, I trust you!"
-Thwack!
I gripped the bat tight at my waist.
And swung with all my might.
"Hraaaah...!"
Yoo Hye-na on the deer robot rocketed into the sky like a water rocket.
She braced her feet firmly,
Then bounced straight toward the T-Rex.
-Thud!
"Ugh!"
As expected, no safe landing.
She slammed into its head.
But she managed to grab on with her hands.
Struggled up and finally sat atop its head.
"TiRaaaaaaaaaa~~!!"
The thing fighting Yoo-ri noticed her.
Violently shook its head.
But Yoo Hye-na clung tight, gripping its head.
And—
"Heel! Sit!"
The moment Yoo Hye-na yelled that,
The T-Rex meekly stopped and sat down.
As if its rampage had been a lie.
"Whew! Hye-na really is amazing."
Yoo-ri muttered as she sheathed her sword.
At the same time, messages popped up.
And with that, we'd conquered the museum dungeon.
"Waaah! Tira, bye-bye! Don't get hurt, stay healthy!"
Unfortunately, we couldn't take the 'Metal Tyrannosaurus' with us.
Its size aside,
It's a monster bound to the museum.
Probably like the white tiger from the 'Beast's Labyrinth'.
'Either way, sucks to leave it behind.'
Paired with Yoo Hye-na's Best Driver ability,
It would've been an insanely cheat weapon.
Well, that'd make the difficulty too easy.
The novel's balance probably wouldn't allow it.
"Still, we cleared the quest too."
Out of the dungeon as well.
We immediately summoned the Mad Hatter.
"Oh noooo!!! My letter!"
The moment he arrived, the Mad Hatter pulled a sad face.
His letter was torn in half, so fair enough.
"Uuum, the condition was not to open it arbitrarily, right?"
"We didn't tear it. We're victims too."
Yoo-ri replied firmly.
"Proof: no quest failure message."
"Sigh, true... If the failure condition was met, I'd have gotten a notification too."
Looks like NPC quests aren't personal,
But managed by something beyond the system.
Probably why Han So-young got dragged off suddenly.
'Still way too much I don't know about this world.'
Thanks to Comment Search and Yoo-ri, I know more than most,
But as a side character in the novel, there's a limit.
"Hmm, a bit ambiguous, but nothing to be done. You did bring the letter safely."
The Mad Hatter snapped his fingers.
A clear vial appeared in Yoo-ri's hand.
That little bottle's worth more than all the coins I've scraped together.
Honestly, the economic sense here still hasn't sunk in.
"Then, Lee Ji-hoon, this—"
"Ah, sorry. Mind if Hye-na and I talk privately with the Mad Hatter for a sec?"
"Huh, why?"
Yoo Hye-na adorably tilted her head.
Yoo-ri, on the other hand, nodded knowingly.
"Hmm? Ah, I see. Well, you're a man in your prime."
"......Uh? No, it's not—"
"Ahem! Ahem! It's fine. No need to explain. Happened in my past life too. We'll head over there."
No idea what she imagined, but she took it the wrong way.
Yoo-ri dragged Yoo Hye-na off to the back for real.
No chance for me to clarify.
The Mad Hatter gave a wry smile at the sight.
"Haha... Don't take it too hard. When guys and girls survive the apocalypse together, these things—"
"So, who was that letter for?"
I cut off the Mad Hatter and asked.
He gave another wry smile.
"Haha... Playful one, aren't you? You read it. It's to Alice, the one I'm pining for. Can't tell you who she is, though."
"Actually, I read the first letters of each sentence."
The Mad Hatter's face froze.
"I've read webnovels for over 10 years. Authors love hiding Easter eggs like this, no matter the reason."
Probably disguised it while pretending to woo her.
The letter's real message.
"'Who is the protagonist of this novel?'"
I stared straight at the Mad Hatter.
"You said it yourself. You guys can't intervene in events due to restrictions. At first, I thought it was about the quest. Wrong."
And asked.
"It meant you can't interfere in the story without permission. Or maybe it's not time for you to act yet, even if you're curious."
Just like me.
To the characters in this novel.
"How far into this novel do you know?"
Someone's probably scrolling their phone, watching.
Our world (the novel).