Chapter 30
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Boss Room
-----------------------------------------------------------------
‘This is weird. Everything I learned was the complete opposite…….’
The instructor had clearly said it. Monsters inside the gate were about twice as strong as those outside. So don’t get cocky just because you took down a few goblins. You only truly feel a monster’s real power once you’re inside the dungeon.
‘Could it be that monsters from the otherworld, those in the dungeon, and Earth’s monsters are all different?’
The goblins he’d encountered at school had definitely been weaker than the ones he’d just fought.
Back then, they hadn’t even been high level, their weapons were shoddy, and he’d beaten them easily.
He could handle dozens of dungeon goblins without much trouble, but the otherworld goblins were so strong that a dozen of them had him running for his life.
‘Dungeon monsters are stronger than Earth’s, and otherworld ones are stronger still?’
If Earth goblins were a 1, then dungeon goblins were about 1.5 times stronger, and otherworld goblins were nearly twice as strong as those that crossed over to Earth.
If that was true, it wasn’t good news for him. It meant the enemies invading his Demon King’s Castle would be that much tougher.
‘It’s not confirmed yet.’
Wanting to learn more, he pressed onward. He didn’t need to worry about getting lost.
The path was straight, and the edges deviating from it were filled with pure darkness.
The instructor had called that area the boundary of the ‘Void.’
When someone asked what happened if you stepped into the Void’s boundary, the instructor’s answer was simple.
“I don’t know.”
His follow-up was enough to heighten the trainees’ alertness.
“No one who’s crossed that boundary has ever come back.”
Out of curiosity, he’d looked up related papers. There were various theories, but the most prominent was the Gate Wormhole Theory.
It posited that a wormhole was a passage transcending time and space, and gates might be a type of wormhole.
Wormholes could only transport to fixed coordinates, with no detours to other places.
That’s why they warned against crossing the Void’s boundary. Stray from the path, and you’d become lost in the universe.
‘Still, the path is pretty wide, so I won’t cross the boundary unless I try.’
The dark spaces flanking the path made the world feel like one massive cave. That was probably why they called it a ‘dungeon.’
Hunting goblins he encountered along the way, he traveled for about an hour until the path widened into a vast open space.
In the center of the clearing stood a pyramid the size of a five-story building, with a palm-sized stone floating in the air at its peak.
‘Could that be a Dungeon Crystal?’
Its shape and size were different from his. His was crystalline and human-sized, while this looked like a blunt rock, only palm-sized.
If he hadn’t sensed mana flowing from it, he wouldn’t have even considered it a Dungeon Crystal.
[It’s Goblin Essence. Still just a fragment, but it seems effective enough. Seeing how many goblins have gathered here.]
“Goblin Essence? What’s that?”
[Goblin Essence is literally the source of power for the goblin tribe. It transmits mana to surrounding goblins. That’s why so many gather where essence exists.]
“So Dungeon Crystals are actually monster essence?”
[Yes, that’s correct. I suggest collecting the Goblin Essence, Master. Completing it will save mana used to control goblins.]
In other words, with the Goblin Essence, he could summon as many goblins as he wanted, and the essence would handle all the mana cost.
The saved mana could then go toward summoning orcs or other monsters.
“……That’s huge.”
Right now, he only had four goblins, but later he might command dozens. Its value would skyrocket then.
Of course, he had to claim it first.
He quickly assessed the enemy forces.
On a chair right in front of the Dungeon Crystal (Essence) sat what looked like a Goblin Shaman, with ten Hobgoblins lined up below it.
At the base of the altar, goblins swarmed—easily two hundred, at least.
‘Is this the legendary boss room?’
Probably. He’d heard there was only one Dungeon Crystal per dungeon, no matter what.
Dungeon Crystals were the core maintaining the dungeon. In the past, destroying them granted massive experience and closed the gate.
These days, they left the crystal and just cleared the monsters. As long as the core remained, monsters respawned.
‘No wonder…… Dungeon Crystals are monster essence. Now, how do I break through?’
If the goblins patrolled, he could pick them off one by one, but these seemed rooted in place, as if guarding the crystal was their life’s purpose. Plus, the open space made assassination impossible.
‘Guess I have to face them all at once…….’
Two hundred goblins were bad enough, but the real threat was the ten Hobgoblins.
Even weakened, a Hobgoblin was a Hobgoblin—not an easy foe. And with their berserk buff, it’d offset much of the weakening.
He could win if he went all out, but he worried about taking heavy damage.
Hobgoblins were no goblins. Their strength was 18, weapon attack over 12—for a total around 30. Matching his current vitality stat.
One wrong hit from their jungle knives wouldn’t end in a bruise.
‘Too bad. Let’s head back for today.’
As he turned to leave, a group emerged from the opposite entrance. He hurriedly hid and watched.
“Battle formation!”
Over a dozen men in matching uniforms formed up orderly and began hunting the boss room goblins.
As they drew closer, the mark on their chests came into view.
「A.K.」
They bore the All-Kill Guild’s signature ‘A.K.’ emblem.
“Hey! Frontline! Don’t push too far ahead! You’ll get isolated!”
“No rush! Thin out the goblins first, then Hobgoblins, Goblin Shaman in that order!”
The All-Kill Guild members, accustomed to this style of hunt, proceeded with machine-like precision.
They consisted of four frontline with swords and shields, four mid-line with spears, and two rear with bows pinning down the Goblin Shaman.
The frontline blocked goblin attacks while the mid-line thrust spears over their shoulders to skewer goblins.
Their teamwork was so flawless that dozens fell in the blink of an eye. Especially the one directing from mid-line—he seemed stronger than Cha In-hyeok.
Just as the hunt seemed to wrap up smoothly, the Goblin Shaman successfully cast berserk.
“Krarak!”
“Kikik!”
The sight of every goblin in the boss room berserking and charging was chilling.
Berserk goblins pressed on like zombies, impaled on spears or slashed by swords. The fight intensified.
‘Whew. Would’ve been trouble if I’d jumped in blind.’
He sighed inwardly in relief. The Goblin Shaman seemed to grow stronger with more minions.
‘I’ll remember this for raiding other goblin villages.’
He committed the hunters’ tactics to memory while hiding behind structures.
* * *
“Archers, get your shit together! Pin the shaman first! Now it’s berserked!”
“S-sorry.”
“Useless fucks…….”
Kim Jun-su, All-Kill Guild executive and leader of this raid, decapitated a Hobgoblin while thinking he’d chew them out later.
Berserk made it tougher, but it couldn’t beat him at level 2-star cap.
[Kim Jun-su. Lv 20. (4.8%)] [Mana 20/20]
[Strength 45, Agility 35, Vitality 43, Intelligence 15]
“Damn, barely a rat-shit’s worth.”
At his level, Hobgoblins gave less than 0.1% exp.
He’d entered this 1-star dungeon to train rookies; normally, he’d be with the guild master in a 2-star.
“Let’s at least grab the Goblin Shaman.”
As a 2-star monster, it gave decent exp.
Even after clearing from Hobgoblins to shaman, Kim Jun-su smacked his lips in disappointment. Total exp: barely 1%.
“Boss. Hunt’s done. Got all the mana crystals. Let’s head out.”
“Hey, let’s push a bit more. Clear up to that gate over there.”
“Huh? Isn’t that risky? Otherworld monsters could come through anytime.”
“Idiot. Forgot they weaken crossing into the dungeon? If they come, it’s a bonus. Quit yapping and pack up.”
Desperate for more exp, Kim Jun-su trekked another hour to the otherworld gate. There, he discovered it: a mountain of goblin corpses.
“What the hell…… Who did this?”
The Earth-side gate was under strict All-Kill Guild control. The boss room was intact too. Meaning the culprit came from the otherworld.
Wiping out a whole village including the shaman meant at least a 3-star monster, or multiples 2-stars. Either way, too much for their group.
The party was one 2-star leader and nine 1-stars. A single 3-star would slaughter them.
“No good. Let’s pull out.”
Sensing trouble, Kim Jun-su headed out and reported to Lee Chun-bae immediately.
Lee Chun-bae personally checked the gate after hearing it.
“So, possible 3-star monsters?”
“Yes. Or a horde of 2-stars.”
“Good. We’ll wait here for a bit.”
Lee Chun-bae’s expression wasn’t bad. No, he buzzed with strange anticipation.
Rare, but it happened: stronger otherworld monsters overran a dungeon, upgrading the gate to 2- or 3-star.
People called it hitting the lotto. No, better than lotto. A 3-billion-won 1-star gate becoming a 100- or 300-billion 2- or 3-star.
“Heh heh. My luck’s finally turning. Gate upgrade!”
As Lee Chun-bae waited in high spirits, the gate changed. Sparks danced on its surface as mana contracted and expanded.
At first, it seemed to grow. But over time, it shrank, mana waves weakening—the sign of a closing gate.
“What? What happened? Did you touch something inside?”
“N-no, nothing…… I saw the goblin corpses and came right out.”
“Then why’s the gate closing! Know how much this cost, you moron!?”
Having splurged on the gate only for it to close, Lee Chun-bae lost it.
“S-sorry!”
“Sorry my ass. Get in there.”
“Huh?”
“Find out what happened!”
“B-but the gate’s closing soon?”
“You ignoring me?”
Lee Chun-bae drew his sword.
“Eek!”
“Get in. Find who did this!”
But Kim Jun-su couldn’t step through. Entering now meant Void’s maw. Better odds begging Lee Chun-bae.
“Boss! My fault! Spare me!”
Kim Jun-su swallowed curses watching the shrinking gate.
‘Shit. What the hell’s going on?’