Dungeon Raiding Is Politics (2)
Of course, I could understand where they were coming from.
From the other guilds’ point of view, they’d already made quite a few concessions for the sake of our party.
To be honest, our party had the weakest specs here. We also had the least experience. Not only was this their first dungeon run, it was their first real hunt at all, and they knew that very well.
After giving up so much, if a kid like Kim Yeri suddenly stood out, I’d probably have said something too.
“Now, now. Let’s not talk like that. Let’s just enjoy ourselves, all right? Enjoy.”
“How are we supposed to enjoy dungeon exploration? Mr. Choi Younggi, this isn’t a joke. However many people are coming in, it’s only natural to be worried.”
“Well….”
“Even if the overall specs are high… sigh…. We didn’t come here for sightseeing. We need to keep in mind that danger can strike at any time.”
“We’ll work even harder.”
Even then, I could see Choi Younggi from Red Mercenary glancing our way.
He must have gotten an earful from Cha Heera.
I figured it’d be a good idea to say something back later, even if it was just lip service.
“Of course, it’s not that we don’t trust Red Mercenary….”
“Ahem… I think the mood’s gotten a little awkward. Why don’t I give you a quick briefing, just to loosen things up a bit?”
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
“As you’ve already heard, the dungeon we’re entering is a Rare-grade dungeon. The dungeon is called the Garden of Terror, and our guild’s analysis is that plant-type monsters will make up the bulk of what we find in there….”
I already knew all that.
He really did seem to be bringing it up just to change the mood.
Watching him do everything he could to keep the party’s atmosphere from souring as we walked along made it clear that Choi Younggi wasn’t a bad guy at heart.
“Hyung, doesn’t that guy look like a good person to you?”
“Yeah. That’s how he looks to me too.”
Even Park Deokgu was saying things like that.
I agreed.
It wasn’t just that he was kind; he seemed to have genuine leadership potential.
Having a tanker like that around would be reassuring.
He was calm, knew how to handle people, and was clearly competent. The way he read the mood and worked to keep conflict to a minimum made it obvious that Choi Younggi was a veteran.
He was the kind of tanker Park Deokgu ought to be aiming for.
We kept walking and talking, and before long we arrived at the dungeon.
Forcing our way through the dense thicket of thorn bushes was a bit irritating, but after a little more time on foot, I was finally able to see the entrance with my own eyes.
Why the hell is it so tiny?
The entrance pulsed with a strange mana.
It was so small only one or two people could fit through at once.
It actually made the Tutorial Dungeon look grander by comparison.
I never would have imagined the entrance would be something like this.
It was no wonder they hadn’t been able to find it for so long.
Choi Younggi gave a small nod, then continued at once.
“Then we’ll begin entering slowly. We’ll go in in this order: us first, then Black Swan, then Mage, then Blue. Since there’s a chance combat will start immediately, I’ll have us all prepare for battle as quickly as possible before we enter.”
“Yes.”
One by one, everyone bowed their waists and entered the dungeon, and I followed suit, gripping Jung Hayan’s arm as I stepped inside.
Something about the air felt different, and I shivered for a moment before the familiar message appeared.
[System: You have entered the Rare-grade dungeon Garden of Terror. Confirmed人数 [24/30].]
What came after that was a frantic voice.
“Make space! Space! Clear space, please!”
The rough welcome that greeted us the moment we entered left me a little dazed.
Maybe because of the mana unique to a Rare-grade dungeon, I could feel my breath catching in my throat.
Red Mercenary’s melee fighters were doing their best to block the monsters surging in from the front.
What came into view were grotesquely twisted plants.
Actually, giant monsters in the shape of plants would be a more accurate description.
They were about twice the size of a human, with bodies so massive that I had to look up at them.
Their bodies, made up of stems and roots, made it hard to understand how they moved at all, but that wasn’t the important thing right now.
I tapped Park Deokgu, who was staring blankly at one of them, and he seemed to come to his senses before darting forward at once.
“Deokgu.”
“Ah, a-alright.”
He didn’t look scared stiff.
He probably just hadn’t recovered from the suddenness of it all.
I could see his back as he charged ahead with that huge shield of his.
Of course, the other parties’ tankers were also stepping forward and pushing back the hulking monsters attacking us.
They were trying to create space so the swordsmen and spearmen could move.
“We’ll keep pushing them back. Please begin attacking slowly.”
“Ah!”
That was when Park Deokgu, who had boldly rushed out, suddenly lost his footing.
He failed to withstand the monster’s attack and lost his balance.
“Priest.”
“Yes.”
Sun Heeyoung, who didn’t look nearly as green as a first-timer should, began chanting toward Park Deokgu, while Kim Hyunsung also moved to support him.
Seeing one of the giant monsters charge straight at us in the opening Park Deokgu had left made my body shrink back instinctively.
Fuck.
Nothing was going to happen, probably, but the formation had broken.
I considered reciting the spell stored in my ring, but it felt too wasteful to use here, right at the dungeon’s entrance.
Kim Hyunsung leaping forward made it seem like things would be fine, but I still couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
That was when the monster that had been rushing toward us was sent crashing into the wall in an instant.
Choi Younggi, who had moved in without anyone noticing, shoved it aside.
BOOM!
“Support here!”
“Understood.”
“Phew….”
The whole area began to settle down almost immediately.
I’d expected there to be a certain gap in ability, but before any of us who arrived at the end could even do anything, the entrance was already being cleaned up.
Kim Hyunsung was still dealing solid damage in the middle of it all, but before Jung Hayan and I could even cast a spell, the monsters were already toppling over one by one.
I’d thought they had arrived here years before us, but the difference between their party and ours was definitely huge.
It wasn’t just a matter of raw specs.
It was a difference in experience, and a difference in teamwork.
I was careless.
Once the area had been mostly secured, Park Deokgu, who was being supported by Choi Younggi, looked completely dazed, as if he still hadn’t processed what had happened.
“You seem to have moved a bit too hastily.”
“W-well… th-thank you.”
“That happens often when you lack experience. It would probably be better to put a little more strength into your lower body.”
“R-right, I understand.”
Watching Choi Younggi pat Park Deokgu’s shoulder made gratitude bubble up in me for no real reason.
He was looking out for us.
“Then let’s all work together to clear the surrounding area.”
“Yes.”
He didn’t seem badly hurt, but Park Deokgu, trudging toward us, somehow looked a little miserable.
“S-sorry… I-I’m sorry, hyung. And… everyone….”
“There’s nothing to be sorry for, Deokgu. It’s all part of experience.”
“Still….”
“Hyunsung is right. Don’t get so down, Deokgu. Just work hard and think of it as learning by watching. You’ll do better next time.”
“Phew… all right.”
“Because you’ve got more weight, your attacks will feel heavier too. It’d be better to crouch your stance a bit and settle into the ground, like you’re sticking to it.”
“Ah.”
“It might take some time to get used to, but I’m sure you’ll manage.”
“That’s right, Deokgu.”
Because the guy who had been with us from the beginning to the end was looking so dejected, I couldn’t help paying attention.
Honestly, Park Deokgu’s talent was on roughly the same level as the other tankers over there.
He’d grown faster than most, but in the end, both his experience and his stats were still behind theirs.
Unlike the backline support types who could get by by blending in, he was a frontline fighter where every mistake showed, so he was probably under a lot of stress.
Comforting him came first.
He was an innocent sort, so it made sense that he’d be heavily influenced by the environment around him.
Taking care of his mental state was the most important thing, I thought, when a loud voice called from the front.
“Excuse me, Mr. Choi Younggi.”
“Yes? Did you have something to say, Ms. Yoo-ra?”
“The people who came from the Blue Guild, I mean. I think that tanker over there would be better placed in the rear….”
“Ah.”
“From what I can see, his physicality seems to be a little lacking… and a person like that in the front line is a bit risky, isn’t it? We’re still only at the entrance, but the deeper we go, the more dangerous it’ll be for him.”
It was Black Swan’s Jung Yoo-ra who’d brought it up.
Ha….
Park Deokgu, who had started glancing our way with obvious unease, came into view.
“That’s….”
“I understand that he doesn’t seem like someone who only just entered, but I still think he’s a little lacking for the front line. In both experience and specs.”
“He’ll probably adapt quickly. His endurance stat looks pretty good, and if something comes up, I’ll handle it like I did this time….”
“That’s the problem. If you, Younggi, go down, the formation itself becomes dangerous. Unlike Red Mercenary Guild, which has good endurance stats, our party’s endurance is low overall except for the tanker. While you’re out of position, who knows what kind of accident could happen? Surely you understand what it means for the main tanker to… leave his position?”
“But… even if that’s the case, there’s no need to tell me….”
“That’s why I’m making a suggestion. Mage Guild feels the same, don’t they?”
Choi Younggi wasn’t holding his tongue for no reason.
It wasn’t just because I was under Cha Heera’s protection, either. This expedition was, after all, an expedition made up of four parties coming together.
If it had been a party from a single guild, Choi Younggi might have been able to make the decision on his own, but in a case like Park Deokgu’s positioning, that was clearly our party’s own prerogative.
Even if the suggestion itself had merit, Jung Yoo-ra should have brought it to Kim Hyunsung, who was our party’s leader.
And not in front of everyone, either, but privately.
That kind of behavior did nothing but sow discord.
That bitch….
I’d had a vague sense of it even before entering the dungeon, but I think I was beginning to understand what that woman wanted.
A calculating strategist?
Her entire vibe was already giving off a strangely familiar scent.
She didn’t really seem to care about the dungeon raid’s safety; it felt more like she was trying to put us down and shore up her own standing.
That woman understood very well how important speaking power was in a group like this.
Her real goal was probably contribution points for the item distribution after the raid was over.
Our party, in the first place, hadn’t even been interested in the items we’d be splitting up after this dungeon.
We’d joined simply to get some experience under our belts, and yet she still acted like we were freeloaders leeching off everyone else’s hard work, which must have rubbed her the wrong way.
Of course, there was likely an ulterior motive behind her trying to increase her influence within the group, but the method itself was crass and petty.
Incitement. What people usually called politics.
I’d never imagined someone would be doing that sort of pointless bullshit here too.
You’re going to play politics?
My mouth began to itch for a fight.
That kind of politics and incitement was my specialty too.