Chapter 162
Chapter 162
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 162
Chapter Title: Dungeon Survival
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Crack!
My sword embedded itself into the skeleton's pristine white skull. Even after losing its arms and legs, the skeleton had still been writhing, but now its movements came to a complete halt.
And then the skeleton's body crumbled into dust and vanished. That was proof it had been summoned by a Hunter. Normal skeletons don't disappear like this.
Let's see. 100 survival points for taking down the treasure skeleton.
You get 20 survival points per Hunter you eliminate.
Seven Hunters eliminated, that's an extra 140 survival points. Total of 240 survival points earned.
Still sitting at -722 survival points overall, though.
I shook my head, dismissing thoughts of survival points. No matter how I crunched the numbers, there was no way to win with them. No hope in sight.
Letting two get away stings a bit, but this is a solid performance.
Fights had probably broken out elsewhere too. I'd guess at least 15 or more Hunters were out by now.
I untied the bundle the skeleton had been carrying.
"Food is... three servings of shrimp fried rice. Let's eat it all now."
"All of it? Shouldn't we save one serving just in case?"
"Too cumbersome to carry, and it might spoil. Just eat it all. We'll get more rations at 6 anyway."
"What if something like yesterday happens again?"
"Running into Kang Seok-su was just bad luck. No other team can touch us with our skills."
Han Ha-rin nodded. We'd gauged the other Hunters' levels by knocking out seven of them. Even mana users struggled to counter our combined assaults effectively.
We ate the shrimp fried rice at a spot a safe distance away, eyeing the scrap of paper.
"This is the intel?"
"Something must be in L-4 sector."
I said it casually.
I knew what this intel really was.
L-4 was a decoy.
L is the consonant that looks like ㄴ. And ㄴ is the second consonant. Second letter of the alphabet is B. It pointed to B-4 sector.
I knew this because I'd hacked the info already.
They twisted it at a prank level. A normal Hunter would head to L-4, find nothing, and give up. Survival comes first. No time to calmly solve puzzles.
Unlike other intel, this one was uniquely obfuscated.
The treasure in B-4 is game-changing enough to upset the balance.
I planned to claim it.
That's key to executing my strategy. Can't just rush to B-4 or it'll raise suspicions. Need to hit L-4 first.
The annoying part? B-4 and L-4 were at opposite ends. The organizers clearly weren't handing it out easily.
"Let's check out L-4 first."
"The Gukcheon University Hunter team has arrived in L-4 sector and is poking around... But L sector is a desert. Nothing could be there."
Jo Seok-hu commented while watching the main screen. It showed Sung Yu-jin and Han Ha-rin wandering a barren desert of sand and cacti.
-Maybe it's hidden inside one of these cacti?
-......Could be.
"Ah~. They're destroying innocent cacti. As you can see, nothing inside!"
Jo Seok-hu laughed. He welcomed these moments too. Non-stop tension killed the broadcast vibe.
-...Sunbae. I thought about it, and maybe it's not L sector, but B sector.
-B sector?
-Hear me out. The organizers don't seem that nice.
"Haha. True, our director isn't the nicest. B-4 sector... What do you think of Sung Yu-jin's deduction, Baek Ji-eun-ssi?"
"Uh..., well...?"
"I recall Baek Ji-eun-ssi was involved in producing Dungeon Survival Reloaded. Don't you know what's in B-4?"
Baek Ji-eun was one of the association's leads on Dungeon Survival.
"I handled monsters..., not the hidden treasures."
Not a lie. Her ability 'Binding' restrained monsters before the dungeon started.
"B sector was the snowy tundra, right? Dangerous monsters in B-4?"
Baek Ji-eun smiled ambiguously.
"Hmm. That's a secret. Spoilers would ruin the fun for viewers."
"Just say it. Producers will edit anyway."
"You can't act, Jo Seok-hu-ssi. That's why I can't tell you."
"Haha. I do suck at acting. And that implies... something is in B-4?"
"Who knows."
Baek Ji-eun smiled with her eyes.
Soon after, the main screen switched.
Aqua Stone team with Kang Seok-su. As top contenders, they dominated screen time.
"Aqua Stone got boss monster location from their treasure skeleton. Found it. Viewers, that giant tree is D-rank boss Woodkeld. A tree that breathes fire."
Hong Su-won, watching the screen, spoke up.
"Woodkeld has high defense and HP, immense fire resistance. But low mobility, like a tortoise crawling. Exploit that, and it's an easy hunt."
Hong Su-won continued.
"D-rank boss is tough for a solo C-rank Hunter, but Aqua Stone under Kang Seok-su's commands should handle it fine."
"Ah! Kang Seok-su hurls an ice spear from his magic! Battle's on! Can Aqua Stone take down D-rank boss Woodkeld? Let's watch together!"
20 minutes.
Time to fell Woodkeld.
"20 minutes is excellent. 300 survival points from a boss kill... I'll boldly say it: victory goes to Aqua Stone."
Baek Ji-eun's eyebrow twitched. She composed herself and replied.
"It's only day two. Too early to call the winner, no?"
"Just stating facts."
"That confident? Wanna bet?"
"Bet what?"
Interest gleamed in Hong Su-won's eyes. He truly believed in Aqua Stone—no, Kang Seok-su. A bet was no issue.
"Loser donates 500 million won and kneels apologizing to viewers for ruining the commentary."
"......Ho. I like it. But add: loser apologizes to winner too, not just viewers?"
"Perfect. Win conditions: you on Aqua Stone winning. Me on any other team. Good?"
Seemed favorable to Baek Ji-eun—betting on many teams.
Hong Su-won nodded lightly.
"Fun bet. Cameras are rolling—no backing out later."
"Oh. That's what I wanted to say... Right back at you, Hong Su-won-ssi."
They smiled, but the air between them was icy as a blizzard.
"Hahaha. What an entertaining bet!"
Jo Seok-hu tried to smooth it over, but it wasn't easy.
Dungeon Survival, day two.
Han Ha-rin and I grabbed the 6 o'clock rations and spent time in a nearby rest area.
Our plan: skip monster hunts, preserve condition, then eliminate other Hunters en masse on day five.
No survival points meant rest areas were free game—12 or 24 hours, didn't matter. Our sex sessions there? Our little secret.
Dungeon Survival, day three afternoon.
Arrived at B-4 sector. Snowy tundra everywhere, blanketed white, visibility poor. Luck: clear skies, no snowfall.
"Sunbae. Your turn."
"Got it."
Han Ha-rin used gravity to sweep away piled snow. It floated up and flew far off. After repeats, an ice cave in the ground appeared.
"Sunbae. Here. Sealed with ice—can't get down. Break it."
Boom!
A gravity orb from Han Ha-rin's hand shattered the ice wall. We entered cautiously. Association staff with camera followed.
Han Ha-rin looked tense. Caves often hid traps or monsters.
But no traps or monsters. This is it.
I feigned a stiff expression alongside her. Too casual, and suspicions rise.
Crackle.
Lightning lit the dark cave as we advanced. It wasn't deep—reached the end in under a minute.
"Oh. Treasure chest. We nailed it."
"Wait! Don't approach rashly! Could be a trap!"
My body froze.
Mistake. Hunters always wary of treasure chests...
Low chance, but chests can be traps or mimics.
Hunters hear endlessly: don't let a treasure chest lower your guard.
Just a paper inside. Sigh.
Couldn't say that, so frustration hit.
I approached even more carefully, prodding the chest with my sword tip.
...Ugh. What am I doing.
Not enough—I channeled lightning through it.
"Sunbae. Just a box. No reaction to electricity, nothing odd."
"Yeah? Open carefully anyway."
"Okay."
Sliced the lock with my sword, pried it open.
Inside: single sheet of paper.
The sentence on the paper. I sheathed my sword and pulled out the tablet.
"Ooh. Jackpot!"
I grinned.
Now I had a legit reason for my actions.
"Sunbae. Looks like we need to tweak the schedule."
"Gukcheon University Hunter team! They've snagged the hidden real-time map treasure and are on the move! Hunting Hunters, not monsters! The others must be terrified!"
Jo Seok-hu said excitedly.
Sung Yu-jin and Han Ha-rin as natural ability users made for a spectacle. Especially Sung Yu-jin's lightning—dazzling every time.
"......Isn't that treasure a bit... too OP?"
Hong Su-won grumbled reluctantly.
Gukcheon team was rampaging. Now six staff trailed them, matching Aqua Stone.
Baek Ji-eun smiled at Hong Su-won.
"Great treasure, but they earned it the hard way. Only Gukcheon could pull this off. Others couldn't move like that."
"...Hmph. Still, they won't win. If things go smooth, it'll boil down to Aqua Stone. Gukcheon loses in a fight."
Aqua Stone hoarding points would win by outlasting. Defense focus, no need for risks. Even clashing favored them.
"Gukcheon knows that. I'm looking forward to their plan. Dungeon Survival Reloaded might not even last to the final day."
"......Aqua Stone takes it in the end."
"We'll see who wins."