The Devourer's Wrath and the Power of Capitalism
"Really?" "You're not going to double-check?" Alcott and Crawford were dumbfounded. Of course, they knew the situation was urgent. Even so, to think he wouldn't show a bit more greed when they were right on the verge of resolving a legendary quest!
"Wait! There might be a basement..."
"Or a hidden room!"
"I already used a skill, and nothing showed up. Even if there is one, we can't afford to waste any more time looking for it. Move!" Tae-hyun barked.
"Tae-hyun! Lalgrgal just headed down to the basement!"
Tae-hyun flinched. The whisper had come from Lee Da-bi. The party members left outside weren't just twiddling their thumbs; they were actively relaying updates on the situation above!
"What? Wasn't he fighting Lee Se-yeon?"
"Well, technically he was beating up rankers from the Midas Guild, not Lee Se-yeon... but yes! Either way, I think he realized you're down there!"
Did I go a bit too wild? Tae-hyun thought. Considering he had practically roasted the place with lightning and ransacked the interior, it would actually be stranger if the boss hadn't noticed.
"Got it. We're pulling out now."
"Oh, and one more thing, Tae-hyun."
"?"
"If you have the spare capacity on your way out, could you scoop up some of that contaminated water too?"
Tae-hyun's eyes widened. Now that she mentioned it, he wondered, Why didn't I think of that?
"Towang-i. Drink up as much of that water as you can on the way out. Got it?"
"Karung..." Towang-i glared at Tae-hyun with the most disgusted expression a rabbit could possibly muster.
"Run!" Having finished their business, Tae-hyun's group bolted out of the sanctuary and dashed toward the exit. Right at that moment, the ceiling split open, and Lalgrgal crashed down.
Carbanog wonders why that guy is always so incredibly angry.
"I will kill you! Akisus! Avenger of Galgrgal!" the demon roared.
"Aren't you mistaking me for someone else?" Tae-hyun retorted, quickly putting some distance between them. Lalgrgal had appeared, but Tae-hyun and his group had already retreated toward the narrow passage. No matter how relentlessly Lalgrgal pursued them, a massive, bloated body like his would never fit through such a tight corridor—
Maw of Devourment
Everything in the vicinity is beginning to be sucked in!
"!!!!!"
It was a miniature black hole! With a gravitational pull resembling a cosmic singularity, the surrounding debris began to violently spiral into Lalgrgal's gaping, cavernous maw. He might have looked less intimidating than the muscular warrior Galgrgal, but Lalgrgal was a far more troublesome demon. He was a boss monster that crushed his opponents by outlasting them with absurd durability and magic resistance. If Tae-hyun hadn't caused such a ruckus down here, the two Midas Guild rankers upstairs would have surely met their demise.
"That's way better than my Self-Destruction!" Cain yelled.
"Is this really the time to be saying that?!" Alcott shrieked in utter disbelief. Their entire bodies were being dragged backward as if caught in a category-five hurricane, yet Cain was busy comparing the boss's skill to his own.
"But my Self-Destruction is my pride and joy..."
"Don't you feel even a shred of shame saying that skill name out loud?!"
"Aaaargh! Save me, Lord Akisus!"
One of the summoned demons lagging at the very back was suddenly sucked straight into Lalgrgal's mouth. The moment the demon crossed the threshold of the dark, swirling void of the Maw of Devourment, it vanished without even having the chance to scream.
I want that skill, Tae-hyun thought.
Carbanog frantically warns you to be careful! It screams that if you get sucked in there, not even the Avatar of Akisus will have any bones left to bury...
I know that, Tae-hyun thought grimly. He had to stop that skill. But how?
"Crawford!"
"I'm doing my best here!" Crawford roared back. He knew exactly why Tae-hyun was calling his name. As a mage, he possessed the highest ranged damage output in the party. Unfortunately, Lalgrgal was an absolute wall.
Damage has been drastically reduced.
Lalgrgal's Fire Resistance is too high!
"How can something that looks so ridiculous be this tanky?!" Crawford gritted his teeth, unleashing a barrage of fire spells. The ball-shaped, bloated Lalgrgal was starting to look genuinely terrifying.
Excessive MP consumption has severely slowed down your MP recovery rate.
Status: MP Drained
This is bad! Crawford fell into despair. Lalgrgal hadn't budged an inch, yet his own mana pool was already bone-dry. Because he had spammed spells too rapidly, he was now suffering from a severe recovery debuff. Was this the end?
Maybe I should ask Kim Tae-hyun to use that rapid-fire magic skill from earlier... No, even that probably won't do much. If Crawford's specialized spells were being completely nullified, Tae-hyun's magic wouldn't fare any better.
But right at that moment, Lalgrgal's mouth suddenly exploded.
"Kuaaaaaaaaargh!"
"?!?!?"
"W-What did you do?"
"Oh. The bomb collars," Tae-hyun replied, his expression completely deadpan. Now that he thought about it, the summoned demons that had been devoured were all wearing explosive collars around their necks.
You have inflicted an irreparable wound on Lalgrgal!
Lalgrgal's Maw of Devourment has been canceled!
Lalgrgal is stumbling!
"Do I go in now?!" Cain asked, looking eagerly at Tae-hyun.
"Go in where?!" Alcott shrieked, absolutely horrified.
"No. There's no need to self-destruct! We're retreating!"
Although they had gotten lucky and dealt massive damage because the bomb exploded from the inside rather than the outside, Tae-hyun wasn't going to get greedy. The quest was what mattered right now! Slaying Lalgrgal was not their primary objective.
Judging by the system's reaction, we definitely secured the antidote!
If so, there was absolutely no reason to risk their lives in a fight here. Even Tae-hyun had found that devouring skill from earlier rather chilling. A broken, overpowered skill that simply swallowed you whole, completely ignoring evasion! He actually missed Galgrgal. Galgrgal might have been ridiculously strong, but at least he was a straightforward warrior type who didn't rely on such bizarre, specialized abilities.
"Kuaaaah! Kuaaaaaargh!"
Lalgrgal, having regained his senses, let out a deafening roar.
"He's back up!"
"Don't worry! He won't be able to use Maw of Devourment again anytime soon."
Having just tasted the explosive power of a bomb collar, Lalgrgal wouldn't dare use that skill again immediately. Tae-hyun's prediction was correct. Instead, Lalgrgal...
Crunch! Munch! Crunch!
"!!!"
"!!!!!"
He began to literally eat his way through the narrow passage, chewing up the solid rock to pursue them.
"H-He's insane!"
Underground Passage Integrity: Critical
The structural integrity of the tunnel is rapidly deteriorating. Probability of collapse is extremely high!
The completely crazed demon didn't care whether the underground tunnels collapsed or not; he thrashed his massive body wildly as he barreled after them. Cain was practically on the verge of tears as he scrambled forward. Even though it was just a virtual reality game, the sheer terror felt incredibly real.
"K-Kim Tae-hyun...!"
"Don't worry. I'll make him stop."
With those words, Tae-hyun kicked one of his summoned demons backward.
"?!?!?!?!?"
The kicked demon flew straight toward the pursuing Lalgrgal. Seeing the demon flying at him, Lalgrgal was about to swallow it whole... but stopped himself.
*Screeech!*
Lalgrgal, who had been charging like a runaway train, suddenly slammed on the brakes and began frantically backpedaling.
"See? I told you he'd stop," Tae-hyun said.
"...!!"
Your Infamy has increased significantly!
The party members waiting above were standing by, ready to make a quick escape the moment Tae-hyun emerged.
At least, they were—until Lee Se-yeon showed up.
"Aaaah! It's Lee Se-yeon!" Lee Da-bi shrieked in surprise.
"Whoa! It really is Lee Se-yeon!" Jeong Su-hyeok gasped, equally startled.
"..."
Yu Ji-soo silently notched an arrow and aimed her bow. Even though they knew each other personally, business was business, and the current situation looked incredibly dangerous!
"Look, I have no intention of fighting—" Lee Se-yeon began.
"Don't come any closer!" Yu Ji-soo warned.
"I'm not even holding anything in my hands—"
"You must be holding an invisible staff!"
"..."
Lee Se-yeon was completely speechless. Their guard was at an absolute one hundred percent!
"...If you don't listen to me, I'll wipe all of you out!" Lee Se-yeon threatened.
"P-Please, speak," Jeong Su-hyeok stammered, thoroughly intimidated.
Lee Se-yeon let out a deep sigh. Standing beside her, Kim Hyeon-ah whispered under her breath.
"Sis, let's just wipe them out."
"That's just venting..." Lee Se-yeon muttered. Taking out her frustration on Kim Tae-hyun's friends just because she was annoyed with him seemed petty.
"But venting feels so good!"
Vengeance was sweet! Kim Hyeon-ah absolutely loved revenge. After all, how refreshing was it to get even? Had Tae-hyun heard her, he would have admired her philosophy, thinking, Now here's someone who gets it!
"It's pathetic, okay? I already acted pathetic enough earlier, and I don't want to look even worse. Besides, if I target the guild leader of Power Warrior, it'll look like I'm jealous..."
"Huh?"
"...No, never mind."
"??"
Lee Se-yeon quickly changed the subject. She figured a different angle would be much more effective in persuading Kim Hyeon-ah.
"Do you see her over there?"
"Yeah, I see her," Kim Hyeon-ah replied as Lee Se-yeon pointed toward Yu Ji-soo.
"She's the Chairman's granddaughter."
"...What?"
"She's the granddaughter of the Chairman of the Yuseong Group."
"Loy—"
"?"
"Loyalty, loyalty, absolute loyalty...?" Kim Hyeon-ah stammered, her face turning completely pale.
"S-Sis! If she was someone like that, you should have told me beforehand!"
"There was no reason to bring it up until now..."
"I didn't act like a total brat to her, did I?"
"No, you didn't. You only acted that way toward Kim Tae-hyun."
"Thank goodness."
Capitalism ruled even in Pandemonium! No matter how fearless Kim Hyeon-ah usually was, the granddaughter of her employer was someone she absolutely could not afford to offend.
"And she's not a bad person at all."
"How do you know that?! The moment she logs out of her capsule, she's definitely going to go straight to the Chairman, give him my name, and demand I be kicked off the team! I won't be able to stay with you anymore!"
"I'm telling you, she's not like that..." Lee Se-yeon sighed.
From her personal experience, Yu Ji-soo was an incredibly sweet girl. It was rare to find someone so kind and humble when they had the power to do whatever they wanted.
"Um, excuse me," Lee Se-yeon said, turning back to Tae-hyun's party.
Yu Ji-soo glared back warily. Kim Hyeon-ah, on the other hand, forced a bright, desperate smile as she stared at Yu Ji-soo.
Yu Ji-soo's guard went up even higher.
"W-Why is she looking at me like that?!" Yu Ji-soo thought.
"Your smile looks incredibly suspicious, that's why! Just wait here for a second," Lee Se-yeon muttered to her sister.
Kim Hyeon-ah slunk back, looking utterly dejected. I'm not really going to get fired, am I? Flashbacks of old news headlines like "Player Rejects Dinner with Chairman... Released for Insolence" began to haunt her mind.
Meanwhile, Lee Se-yeon delivered her message.
"Tell Kim Tae-hyun that if he wants to deal with Lalgrgal, he needs to come find me."
"...?"
"I-Is that all?" Jeong Su-hyeok asked.
"Yes, that's all."
"You're not going to kill us... or kill us, resurrect us as undead, kill us again, and then hunt us down to kill us some more?"
It was a bizarrely specific method of retaliation. Lee Se-yeon looked thoroughly exasperated.
"I would never do something like that... Wait. Who came up with those oddly specific scenarios?"
No matter how she thought about it, it was far too detailed. The only person capable of coming up with such a twisted idea was...
"..."
The party members kept their mouths shut, but Lee Se-yeon figured it out instantly. She didn't get angry, though. Instead, she smiled.
Terrifying!
She's so scary!
Seriously, she's terrifying!
It was a bright, radiant smile, yet the temperature around them felt like it had plummeted below freezing.
"And make sure to tell Kim Tae-hyun this as well."
"?"
"If he wants to team up with me to take down Lalgrgal, he'd better get down on his knees and beg."
With that final warning, Lee Se-yeon turned on her heel and walked away. The remaining party members let out a collective sigh of relief.
Patter, patter, patter—
"!"
Suddenly, Kim Hyeon-ah came sprinting back toward them, causing everyone to tense up. What now?
"Um... here, take these potions! They're really good for archers!"
"...Th-Thank you?" Yu Ji-soo stammered, completely bewildered as she accepted the potions.
"Please take these arrows too! They're pure silver arrows laced with a tiny bit of Orihalcon!"
"...?"
*Clatter!*
Kim Hyeon-ah dumped a massive bundle of items into Yu Ji-soo's arms, pumped her fist in the air, and declared:
"Fighting!"
"Fi... Fighting?"
"See you next time!"
"...???"
"What is wrong with that person?"