Chapter 72
Chapter 72
Okay." She nodded for a moment. Before long, Rabbit was bashfully blushing as she gazed blankly up at Luke. 'Well, well, look at this girl.' Completely forgetting Dear was standing right there.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ After the brief incident. Luke explained during the dungeon run that he'd realized midway they were criminals.
"Ah, so those red vine tattoos are like criminal marks?"
"Yep."
"Whoa, they totally fooled us. People like us who don't know wouldn't have a clue what those tattoos mean and would keep falling for it."
"That's usually how it goes for low-tier folks. They were probably counting on that to recruit parties there."
"So oppa figured it out midway and kept waiting for an opening?"
"Something like that. Sorry I couldn't warn you ahead of time. I was worried they might be hiding something besides the paralyzing poison."
Of course, Scout had revealed every last detail. But no need to mention that.
"Well, can't be helped then. So what's your level anyway?"
"Let me see... 74 right now."
"What?! That's insanely high!"
"No way! During the carriage escort, our levels were about the same, and now?!"
Dear wasn't the only one shocked—Rabbit was too.
"A second-year gamer really is on another level."
"Nah, I just got lucky midway."
"Weird. Oppa, you were always unlucky before. Feels like your luck exploded once you started playing."
"Ahem!"
This girl. Hitting right where it hurts.
"Phew, anyway, glad it's over. I was in a bad mood because of those guys, but hearing oppa taught them a lesson makes me feel refreshed!"
"Yeah, me too."
"Ahahaha..."
At least the mood had lightened up nicely. All that remained was the boss room on the 4th floor of the Goblin Den. But with three of the party members being backstabbed by that trio, their combat strength was effectively halved. 'And two of them are in the low 40s, below the recommended level.' They could hardly count as full combat power. Maybe that's why.
"Oppa, you sure you're okay with this?"
Even Dear seemed a bit worried.
"Yeah, it'll take some time, but it's not like we can't clear it."
"Got it. Then we'll trust you, oppa!"
"... Aren't you agreeing a bit too quickly?"
"Ahem, that's my charm."
"Your charm, huh."
What is this. Luke chuckled and opened the boss room door.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
You have arrived at the boss room! The boss of Goblin Den B4 appears! LV. 70 Goblin Shaman appears! Multiple LV. 60 Goblin Warriors appear! As expected. Goblins had been the main enemies throughout the dungeon. And sure enough, the boss here was a goblin type too. 'Of all things, a shaman.' Ragged cloth draped over its head. A massive staff in one hand. Tiny motes of mana swirling around it. It was a Goblin Shaman—one of the trickier ones to deal with. And goblin warriors scattered all around it to boot. To reach the shaman, he'd have to cut through the guarding warriors first. 'Tch, guess I'll have to brace for a few spells while handling the warriors.' Dodging magic mid-melee with warriors wouldn't be easy.
"Kieeeek!"
The shaman spotted them and gestured this way, gathering mana. Single-target. AoE. Low-tier spells of all four elements. The Goblin Shaman could cast them all. It had Mute to interrupt spells, sure. But...
"Kiek!"
"Kieeeek!"
That only worked without the warriors around.
"Oppa, we'll help too!"
"Yeah, we can at least draw aggro and tank!"
"Poko!"
"No, it's fine. I can handle this solo."
Because. His actual level was pushing 100. 'Those 30 stat points from the hidden dungeon aren't just for show.' Luke calmly adjusted his stance, preparing to charge the goblin warriors. That was when.
"Poko!"
"Hey, buddy. You stay back too."
"Pokopoko!"
Poko, who'd been with the group, suddenly bounded up beside him.
"You'll get hurt. Go back to Mira and Haneul."
"Pokopoko!"
"Ugh, this guy."
He waved him off frantically, but Poko ignored it completely. Instead, he shook his head and glared straight ahead. Luke had no choice but to ask Dear and Rabbit behind him for help. To take Poko off his hands. But then.
"Pokoooooo-!"
Poko suddenly opened his mouth wide. At the same time, the mana gathering in the shaman's staff got sucked straight into Poko's maw.
"Huh?"
"Ki, kieeek?!"
It was sucking it in. Like a vacuum cleaner. Pulling in all the mana from the surrounding space into its mouth. A bewildering sight for both the Goblin Shaman and Luke. And it wasn't stopping after a few seconds—it kept absorbing.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
Poko has activated Mana Absorption! Absorbing all mana in the vicinity! Mana capacity exceeded! ... Substituting with Subspace Pouch storage! Mana absorption sustained until Subspace capacity limit! The Subspace Pouch inside its body. It was absorbing the mana straight into that. 'Holy shit, it's straight-up Kirby.' What kind of cheat ability is this?
"Kiek, kieek?!"
The shaman frantically whacked its staff, unable to cast. The warriors panicked alongside it. Poko kept slurping up mana nonstop.
"Ki... kieeeek!"
Finally noticing, the shaman pointed at Poko and sent the warriors charging. But it was too late. Slash!
"Who knew we could cheese the boss like this? Jackpot."
Worst Criminal in History. Luke was guarding the front.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Thud! The Goblin Shaman collapsed. In the end, the boss hadn't cast a single spell before all its warrior minions fell.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
You have met the clear conditions for Goblin Den B4! Boss monster Goblin Shaman eliminated! Clear condition: Defeat B4 boss 1/1 Rewards granted! Thanks to that, he'd cleared the boss room effortlessly, taking out the warriors without shaman interference.
"Po, Poko..."
Plop! Poko finally stopped absorbing and flopped onto his back. His belly was now ballooned out like a inflated ball.
"Whoa whoa, Poko! How'd you do that just now? Huh?"
"So cute, look at that puffed-up tummy."
"Po, pokoooo!"
Dear and Rabbit poked and stroked his belly curiously. Poko put up some resistance, but it was just futile flailing right now. Luke watched quietly, thinking. 'That's no simple mana drain.' Massive mana absorption. He'd never imagined it could repurpose its internal Subspace as storage. 'A Subspace Pouch that holds not just items, but mana too.' Divine Beast. Poko's value had just skyrocketed. 'Gotta pay more attention to Poko from now on.' With recent events piling up, he'd been neglecting him a bit. Time to find a safe way to carry Poko around. Luke decided that, then checked the drops from the shaman and warriors. 'These are duds.' The clear reward treasure chest was a dud too. 'Eh, wasn't expecting much.' Agas was infamous for its abysmal drop rates. And he wasn't exactly lucky with this stuff anyway.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
Event rewards granted! Please check your inventory for rewards! What he was actually looking forward to was the event reward from before entering the boss room. 'Heh heh heh, took a while, but...' The moment had finally arrived. Agas Land #1 reward. Time to claim it. Luke grinned slyly at the ribbon-wrapped box in his inventory.
Proceed downward? Selecting yes will move you to the B5 entrance! Selecting no will return you to the B4 entrance! YES/NO He was itching to head back to the entrance and check it out. 'No, exit the den first. Then properly sit down and open the box.' This was the last dungeon for today anyway. Party with Dear and Rabbit ended here too. 'Might as well check the new skill while I'm at it.' Just thinking about it got him excited. 'Alright then...' As party leader, Luke hit NO to head back to the B4 entrance first. But then. 'Hm?' Something caught his eye: an altar in the corner of the boss room. 'That...' The mysterious sculptures visible from B4 onward. This altar was one of them. Other players—and even he himself—must have seen it on prior visits. Unknown origin. Unknown meaning. Unknown purpose. The boss room altar, shrouded in mystery. But now, unfamiliar messages hovered above it.