A Stealthy Pursuit

Gazen, Gadel's son, who had been receiving a scolding, tilted his head in confusion. "I feel like I've seen that guy somewhere before..."

"What? Who? Did you finally remember?"

"Hmm... I'm not really sure."

"...No more capsule for you from now on."

"Hey, that's not fair!"

"It is fair! I bought it with my own money! Even when your mother told me not to!"

Gazen jumped in frustration at Gadel's petty behavior. The person Gazen had recognized was actually Jeong Su-hyeok. Jeong Su-hyeok had once become famous for showing insane control during the tournament qualifiers! Because Gazen had watched that video, he was tilting his head in confusion. Where on earth did I see him?

"Anyway, with that kind of power, he's definitely a ranker."

"Then we're going back, right?"

The deeper they went into the Magic Tower Dungeon, the more dangerous it became. Knowing this, Gazen wanted to leave.

"No way. We can't just leave after coming all this way!"

"Why do you have to be so stubborn about this?"

"Quiet. We'll follow them a bit longer... and when the opportunity arises..."

"You're going to attack?! Isn't that way too reckless?!"

At a glance, Tae-hyun looked like a top-tier ranker who could easily rank among the best. Why such a high-level mage ranker had come to this Magic Tower Dungeon to party up with Baha ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and his son was a mystery, but... Is it because he's a ranker that he's confident in clearing the Magic Tower Dungeon? I'm so jealous... No, now is not the time to think about that. I have to stop him!

"No," Gadel said.

"?" Gazen tilted his head. "If you're not going to attack, what are you going to do? Surrender?"

"We're going to pretend to be friendly."

"...Huh?"

"We'll act like we also came to clear this dungeon and just happened to run into them!"

"...And then?"

"Then we join their party."

"Oh, and then you'll attack them when you see an opening?"

"No. Let's just do some party play together."

"...??" Confused, Gazen asked again, "Then, uh... what about revenge?"

"We'll get revenge later."

"Ah, right..."

Gadel made a highly realistic assessment. Some fools might look at a ranker and think, Heh, even they can be taken down in one shot if we ambush them ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠right, but Gadel didn't think that way. Rankers were those who had both the talent and the skill among people who did nothing but eat and play games all day. Expecting to defeat such monsters with a single ambush was absurd. That's just wishful thinking!

For now, they would play nice, and revenge could wait! If they could join a party led by a ranker—whoever he was—it was a massive opportunity in its own right. But seriously, who is that ranker? Gadel kept up with the Pan-On community boards quite a bit, but he had truly never seen a mage like Tae-hyun before.

Smashing through walls, Tae-hyun's party marched forward with absolute confidence. Tae-hyun cast spells from time to time. He needed to conserve his MP, but he had no choice. Using them as much as possible was the only way to ensure their safety.

"By the way, Deok-su, how deep are you planning to go?"

Normally, people who seriously attempted to clear the Magic Tower Dungeon (though such people were extremely rare) set a specific goal. Of course, the goal wasn't to clear the dungeon to the very end. The Magic Tower Dungeon was a place where such a feat was fundamentally impossible. Usually, the goal was along the lines of 'slaying a certain number of boss monsters'! Finding the rooms where the boss monsters resided, defeating them, and claiming the rewards—achieving just this target made for a highly successful raid.

Naturally, Tae-hyun had only one goal. "Until I get what I want."

He would search until an Authority dropped!

"I knew it...! That's how a real man does it!" Baha beamed with delight. Baher, on the other hand, watched with a weary expression. "I also plan to run this Magic Tower Dungeon until I get what I want! Bwahaha!"

It seemed Baha had also come here because there was a specific item he wanted from the Magic Tower Dungeon.

Ah, it's over. It was only natural for it to expire when the time was up. Looking at his restored Luck stat, Tae-hyun thought, Wait. Even if the item he wants drops, we'll have to roll the dice for it. Won't I end up winning it anyway?

Out of the goodness of his heart, Tae-hyun decided to show some generosity. After all, they were suffering through this dungeon together; it would be rather pitiful if the man left without getting a single item he wanted. Just like Gu Sung-wook, who had suffered tear-inducing hardships all for the sake of a single quest!

"In that case, if the item you want drops, would you like to just take it without rolling the dice?"

"We can't do that! We must stick to our initial agreement! Everything is decided by the dice! The dice!" Baha truly seemed obsessed with rolling dice. From start to finish, it was all about the dice! No matter what dropped, it had to be rolled for! Tae-hyun decided to oblige. Since the other party was practically begging for it!

"Ah, I see."

"Deok-su, from the way you're talking, it seems you got scared of my incredible dice luck earlier! Bwahaha!"

"..." Tae-hyun's gaze grew even warmer.

Tae-hyun was startled. There was currently no one behind them. This meant someone was tailing them while in stealth. The problem was that Tae-hyun possessed various detection skills and an absurdly high Luck stat. For the pursuer to remain undetected despite all that meant they possessed an incredibly high-level stealth skill! If so, they were definitely not an opponent to be taken lightly. Besides, Tae-hyun already had plenty of enemies. It wouldn't be surprising if a few assassins or thief players were stalking him.

Was I exposed? But I changed my face. Did they follow Su-hyeok here? Tae-hyun cast a tense glance backward.

As soon as Tae-hyun ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cut him off, Heuk-heuk immediately complied. The atmosphere suggested that if he kept babbling, he would get beaten up!

Ah. Black Dragons certainly are that kind of dragon.

Although encountering a dragon in Pan-On was an extremely rare event, each dragon species had its own distinct reputation. The hot-headed and short-tempered Red Dragons! The honorable and upright Gold Dragons! And the wicked and despicable Black Dragons! There was a reason Heuk-heuk had contracted with Sadiq. Since Black Dragons excelled at ambushes and surprise attacks, it was only natural for them to possess an innate ability to detect stealth.

Sensing something slightly offensive in Tae-hyun's words, Heuk-heuk asked:

Since Tae-hyun had disguised himself as a mage, it wouldn't be strange if the pursuing assassins had also disguised themselves as mages to enter. After all, they had to gain entry to the Magic Tower...

I'd better stay on guard.

"Gasp. Why is he looking over here?"

"Didn't he notice us?"

"How could he? Do you think this stealth magic is just some basic invisibility spell? It's a spell, for goodness' sake!"

Spells with a god's name in them were typically incredibly powerful and difficult to obtain. In fact, Gadel had to complete a chain of eight consecutive quests just to acquire this spell. Though he had suffered immensely to get it, the effect was outstanding. A powerful stealth effect that even most rogues or assassins couldn't detect! It was the perfect skill for the petty and cowardly Gadel.

"He's looking forward again. He probably just turned his head randomly."

"If he's a ranker, he might have noticed..."

"Are you cursing me? I'm cutting your allowance."

"No, I'm just worried!"

"Even a ranker wouldn't notice! Do you think this is my first or second time using this? What was his name... there was a famous ranker. Even he couldn't detect this."

"Which famous ranker?"

"You know, the guy who became famous during the tournament recently."

"There's more than one or two people like that."

"Ah, I remember. The guy who threw a tantrum at the tournament saying he got backstabbed in Pan-On 1, only to get beaten up!"

"Ah! Do Dong-su!"

"Yeah! Him!"

The name came to mind instantly! Of course, it wasn't in a positive light. However, Gazen reacted with indifference upon hearing Do Dong-su's name.

"Do Dong-su is a bit..."

"Hey, what's wrong with Do Dong-su! He's still a ranker!"

"Tricking Do Dong-su doesn't really give me much confidence..."

Due to his performance in the tournament, Do Dong-su's skills were doubted even by ordinary players.

"You should have seen him in person. He was seriously terrifying. He went swish-swish and monsters and players alike just collapsed... but he couldn't even sense my stealth."

"..."

Gazen wore an expression of utter disbelief! Gadel felt frustrated, but he could understand. The difference between Do Dong-su's performance inside and outside the tournament was simply too vast!

Boom! While they were chatting, a loud noise echoed from up ahead.

"!?"

"Ah, they must be hunting."

"This is our chance! Let's go watch, and then we'll show ourselves at the right moment!"

His actions resembled those of an experienced PvP player, but his words were incredibly petty. Gazen opened his mouth to speak but stopped himself. He really didn't want his allowance cut!

"He didn't even dodge?!"

"Did he use a barrier? I didn't even see a barrier?!"

The green venom spewed by the monster was lethal. If hit, a low-Constitution mage would lose more than half of their HP. Naturally, mages would cast barriers in advance or place summons in front to block the damage. However, Tae-hyun didn't dodge, nor did he use any defensive skills. He simply took it head-on! To the other mages, it was an unbelievable sight. Just how high was his level?

"Go!"

Tae-hyun didn't charge in directly this time. He was concerned about the pests tailing him from behind. Instead, he sent forth the undead monsters under his command.

— Curse you! Curse you!

— I shall devour your flesh!

The wraith monsters howled savagely and violently as they lunged at the golem.

— Die, you annoying wraiths!

The golem swung its fists and spewed corrosive fluid, but the wraith monsters evaded with unbelievably swift movements.

"?!"

The mages were utterly dumbfounded. Normally, undead monsters summoned by a black mage never displayed such movements. When given an order, they would typically move sluggishly and clumsily on their own. That was the inherent weakness of the undead! To compensate for this, one had to either drastically increase their numbers or evolve them into high-tier undead monsters.

Yet, the wraith monsters Tae-hyun commanded were showing incredible movements despite appearing to be only intermediate-tier. It was so astonishing that Baha and Baher stopped casting their fire spells mid-cast, their mouths hanging open as they stared blankly.

"D-Dad. Up front! You need to cast!"

"Huh? Oh, right. But seriously, what level is he...?"

At least those two were in a better state. The other father-and-son duo tailing them from behind was experiencing an even greater shock.

"..."

"...L-Let's just go back, okay?"

They had guessed he was a ranker, but the more they watched, the more overwhelmingly powerful he seemed. What if we accidentally say the wrong thing and get wiped out? Fear suddenly gripped them. After all, their current situation was highly prone to being misunderstood!