Chapter 245: The Path to the Heart (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 245: The Path to the Heart (2)
We advanced, our nerves stretched taut.
At last, through the hazy darkness, the first enemies revealed themselves.
“…What the, they’re just Kraken Juniors?”
Kim Tae-yang’s voice was drained of excitement, being the first to face them.
But these weren’t ordinary Kraken Juniors.
Unlike the ones we had fought countless times outside, their skin was red, and their mana concentration was far denser.
If the ones outside were B+-rank, these felt like they were A to A+-rank.
They were formidable enough to make even a B-rank—no, an A-rank Hunter—quite tense.
“This is nothing… huh!?”
Splat!
“Hmm… they’re quite tough. Satisfying to cut.”
Slice—
But this party was an exception.
The creatures that appeared so menacingly couldn’t withstand a single blow from Kim Tae-yang’s fists or Namgung Hyeok’s sword, bursting apart or being sliced to pieces.
This was what it meant to be S-rank.
An asymmetrical power capable of cleanly sweeping away most difficulties with sheer force.
Recently, S-rank Hunters had been appearing more frequently, and the gap within the same rank had widened to the point where there was talk of needing a new classification, but their value hadn't faded in the slightest.
It started with two, but soon there were twenty.
The deeper we went, the more monsters blocked our path.
Yet, the party’s advance didn’t slow by a single step.
“Ah, seriously…! Why do these weaklings…! Swarm…! Together!”
“Hmm, the thrill of the fight is starting to wear off.”
Kim Tae-yang’s fists, his entire body a weapon, and Namgung Hyeok’s blade, which had earned him the name Sword Demon.
And above all…
「Flame Hydra.」
Nine serpent heads made of crimson flame writhed, and with a single flicker, at least ten Kraken Juniors were turned to charcoal, filling the air with a burnt smell.
“Hah…”
Flame magic, by its very nature, is weighted toward destructive power.
To wield flames—which are usually focused on incinerating or blasting a certain radius—with such delicacy… Han Ju-hee was probably the only one in the world who could do it.
Ah, except for me, of course.
“Tsk, I was all tensed up since we’re inside a Kraken, but this is nothing special.”
“Hoh… they say such remarks tend to be a jinx. I suppose something dangerous will appear soon.”
“…How do you know about that, Namgung-hyung?”
“I read it on an internet blog. A white, round character made various expressions while explaining the kinds of things you should never say out loud in a dungeon.”
“Seriously, of all the things to browse on the internet…”
They were so relaxed that the two vanguards were chatting amongst themselves.
Meanwhile, the path grew deeper and wider, and finally, new monsters appeared.
A giant crab, its body easily two or three times the size of a grown man.
Parasites, like tentacles twice the thickness of a man’s arm, squirming out from the flesh walls.
And a swarm of mosquitoes, each measuring a staggering 70 to 80 centimeters from beak to body.
All of them were high-risk monsters, likely A to A+-rank.
“Damn, they’re ugly.”
“I don’t think I’ll be able to eat crab for a while…”
Even with the wider variety, they couldn’t stop the advance of S-rank Hunters.
However, the tentacles… no, the parasites, would sometimes burst out from the flesh walls and aim directly for Ju-yeon.
Of course, I burned or sliced away every one of those insolent things.
The thought of that hideous thing touching Ju-yeon’s body… Hmm, I don’t know why, but it made me angry.
Very angry.
Perhaps it was a prejudice or aversion to tentacle-like creatures that no man could stomach.
After we eliminated a good number of monsters, we detected an abnormality in the flesh wall.
Drip!
“Why is that coming out again?”
“I don’t think we applied any significant impact during the fight.”
As they scowled, a barrier generated by Han Ju-yeon enveloped us.
Sizzzle…!
The acidic fluid dripped down with a loud hiss.
Seeing this, Han Ju-hee narrowed her eyes slightly and offered a plausible hypothesis.
“It could be because we killed too many monsters, another one of its defense mechanisms.”
“So you’re saying the Kraken sensed a crisis and started secreting the acid again.”
“That seems to be the most likely possibility for now. And…”
Her gaze, fixed on the ceiling, was tinged with a faint anxiety.
“Since a new trigger has been activated, it might not stop as easily as last time.”
She had a point.
Killing a lot of monsters meant we had come in deep.
The pressure or sense of crisis the Kraken felt must have doubled.
You could say we’d just pressed a much more sensitive panic button than before.
Perhaps we needed to change our perspective.
The question was no longer when the falling acid would stop.
“It’s not about it stopping. More of it might start falling.”
But how much more of it would rain down the deeper we went.
“Exactly. The more monsters we kill and the deeper we go, the greater the threat the Kraken will feel.”
Han Ju-hee nodded lightly in agreement.
Putting all this together, it meant we were now on a timer that hadn’t existed before.
The more acid rained down, the more damage the barrier would take.
And the burden on Ju-yeon, who was maintaining the barrier, would also increase.
So, what we had to do was…
“So… what, you’re saying we have to clear this dungeon while the barrier holds?”
For once, Kim Tae-yang hit the nail on the head.
Han Ju-hee issued a new command to the halted party.
“We’re picking up the pace from now on.”
The energy they had been delicately controlling to avoid damaging the walls instantly exploded, filling the surroundings.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The deeper we delved, the number of monsters surged, and the volume of falling acid increased.
Eventually, the number of monsters grew to nearly a hundred, but for the S-rank Hunters who had begun to unleash their full abilities, they weren’t a significant threat.
The problem, however, was the acid that was now starting to pour down like rain.
“How’s your mana?”
“Mm… if it keeps falling like this, I think an hour is my limit.”
Han Ju-yeon replied to Han Ju-hee’s question.
I was once again struck by how immense her mana pool was.
An hour in this acid rain.
It was certainly impressive, but unfortunately for us, it was an incredibly tight deadline.
“Why is this dungeon so damn long?”
“The body is huge, so the path seems to stretch on endlessly.”
It had already been three hours since we entered the dungeon and started moving.
In that time, we had relentlessly cut down monsters and traveled what felt like dozens of kilometers, yet the dungeon still showed no end.
At this point, I was starting to worry.
Could we clear the dungeon within the hour that Han Ju-yeon’s barrier would last?
Of course, we wouldn’t die the moment her barrier failed.
Though not on her level, Han Ju-hee could also use a shield.
The problem, however, was that maintaining the shield would consume an enormous amount of her mana, effectively neutralizing our party’s greatest offensive power.
“Let’s speed up even more.”
In the end, all we could do was push our pace to the absolute maximum.
We were now practically running, eliminating any monster that blocked our path as we forged ahead.
Ten minutes, twenty minutes…
Just as the pressure of time began to weigh heavily on us…
A massive hall emerged from the darkness ahead.
“This place is…”
It was a wide space where the surrounding flesh walls writhed unsettlingly.
There were no monsters in sight.
The acid falling from the ceiling also seemed to be… much less than on the path we had just traveled.
And finally.
“The path continues over there.”
“…There’s a path on that side, too.”
“Same here.”
The single, straight path had ended, and now we had choices.
A three-way fork in the road appeared before us.
Which of these was the path to the heart?
Usually, when a fork like this appears, a party’s course of action is divided into three main types.
If there’s a class skilled in scouting, they use their abilities to find the real path.
Explore each path one by one to find the real one.
Or, split the members to explore all three paths simultaneously.
We didn’t have anyone skilled in scouting, so the first option was out.
That left the second and third, and the answer was already as good as decided.
“…We’ll have to split up.”
Splitting up to explore all three paths at once.
We didn’t have much time left.
The amount of acid had decreased upon entering the hall, extending the duration of the barrier, but that only bought us another hour at best.
There was nowhere near enough time to explore all three paths together.
“Hunter Kim Tae-yang, Hunter Namgung Hyeok, and I will each scout one path. Ju-yeon and Hunter Kim Do-jin will remain in this hall and maintain the barrier.”
The three S-rank Hunters would each take a path, while we stayed behind.
To maintain the barriers for the three people scattering in different directions for as long as possible, she had to be in the center.
And I, of course, had to stay with Ju-yeon as her guard.
Han Ju-hee took a badge with a winged staff emblem from a small pouch and handed it to us.
It was a ‘D-Messenger,’ one of the Magic Tower’s inventions.
By infusing the badge with mana, you could record a ten-second voice message and transmit it to anyone wearing the same badge within a certain radius.
This little guy was one of the reasons the Magic Tower could command such an enormous budget every year.
Its advantage of being usable even inside dungeons made it a cash cow that sold like hotcakes.
As I was fastening the badge to my chest…
“Hunter Kim Do-jin.”
Han Ju-hee called my name.
“Contact me immediately if anything happens. I know your abilities are more impressive than I thought, but… don’t forget that we’re inside a Kraken.”
As she said this, her gaze was fixed on Ju-yeon.
Her concern for me probably didn’t even make up 10% of it; she was saying it because she was worried about her sister.
I smiled to reassure her.
“Don’t you worry. I’ll contact you right away if anything happens.”
“Hmph…”
For the briefest moment, a smile graced her lips in response to my answer.
The kind of faint, nostalgic smile that appears unconsciously when recalling a distant memory.
But it was fleeting.
“Alright. Let’s do a final check and depart immediately.”
Wiping the smile from her face, she issued the command with her usual cold expression.
A variety of buffs rained down on the S-rank Hunters who had finished their checks.
Thus fully prepared, the S-rank Hunters entered their respective paths.
Only Han Ju-yeon and I were left in the spacious hall.
“Do-jin, are you tired?”
I calmly shook my head at her words.
“I haven’t really done much of anything.”
The S-ranks had taken care of all the monsters, so there wasn’t much for me to do.
At most, I had incinerated the heads of a few parasites that popped out from time to time.
“What do you mean you haven’t done anything? Having you by my side was so reassuring, Do-jin.”
“I’m glad you felt that way, but…”
She slowly inched closer.
“Thank you. I’ll be sure to repay this favor, okay?”
“…You really don’t have to.”
“I will repay you, okay?”
It seemed the answer was already decided.
“Fine, then.”
Do whatever you want, you.
I was chatting with her when it happened.
A faint light emanated from the badge on my chest, and an urgent voice poured out.
『It’s me. I’ve run into a named monster. Its name is ‘First Heart’s Guardian’… Yikes!』
『Namgung Hyeok. Engaging the named monster ‘Second Heart’s Guardian’.』
『This is Han Ju-hee. I’ve encountered the named monster ‘Third Heart’s Guardian’ and am engaging in combat.』
And there were three of them.
At the same time, the hall where Ju-yeon and I were staying began to change.
Squelch!
Long chunks of flesh shot up from the center of the hall and began to merge.
Splurt!
Squelch!
The enormous mass of flesh made grotesque sounds as it clumped together, shrinking in size.
Soon, a shape began to emerge.
Thick, long legs, four pairs of constantly writhing arms, and hideous eyes flashing with a red glint.
And.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
From three hearts beating in its left, center, and right chest, immense mana surged forth.
The moment the creature took its complete form, a message window appeared before my eyes.
[Extreme hostility materializes.]
[Boss ‘Kraken’s Avatar’ has appeared!]
“Ah…”
“……”
Its mere existence scattered a violent aura in all directions.
It felt as if the Kraken’s entire massive body had been compressed into a form just over three meters tall.
The moment my eyes met its red glare…
I’m going to die.
A single phrase dominated my mind.
This was the second time. The second opponent to instill such mortal fear in me, who had never once thought of death amidst all the trials and tribulations.
With a trembling hand, I pushed mana into the badge.
“…A boss, ‘Kraken’s Avatar,’ has appeared in the hall. Estimated rank… S-rank or higher. Requesting quick rendezvous after you finish your battles.”
After finishing the transmission, I turned to Ju-yeon, who was clutching her wand with a trembling hand.
“Teacher, run.”
Get her to run, anywhere, just to put distance between her and that thing.
No other plan came to mind.