All Eyes on the Crimson Moon
What caught everyone's eyes was the moon.
The crescent moon, the dungeon's mascot of sorts. The problem was that it was blazing a blood-red, completely unlike moments before.
"Why is that...?"
As everyone stared in a daze, Taejeong recalled the final line from the documents Park Se-ah had brought him.
[Taboos of the Crescent Plains]
• Do not touch the crystal in the Moon Temple.
• If the moon turns red, run without looking back.
They touched it.
Taejeong was pondering this while gazing at the moon when Woo Kyung-ho came rushing over and shouted at the group.
"Everyone, form up! The moon's changed. We need to get out now."
At his command, the hunters sprang to their feet with disciplined precision, instantly reforming ranks. What was remarkable was that no one objected to the order to retreat—not even a murmur. This was a stark contrast to their stubborn pride back in the forest, where they'd clung desperately to the quest.
"Alright. Everyone ready? No breaks—we head straight back through the fores—"
Woo Kyung-ho couldn't finish his urgent order to depart. The ground ahead collapsed with a thunderous roar, and a horde of monsters with glowing crimson eyes burst forth.
And these were monsters the hunters had never seen before.
"What is that? A spider?"
"Grasshopper or something?"
"Looks like a snake?"
The hunters' reactions varied wildly. It was no wonder—the swarm included so many diverse types that distinguishing them was nearly impossible. Taejeong alone spotted at least five kinds. Most evoked insects, but their sizes were enormous, big enough to swallow a person whole.
A few charged straight at the formation.
"Block them!"
Chaeng-!
Kang! Kang!
Team 2 rushed forward, unleashing skills against the three monsters coming from the right. But unlike before, their blades couldn't sever the beasts' necks in one stroke. Despite their numerical advantage, they struggled to land fatal blows. A few from Team 1 joined in, finally taking the creatures down.
Woo Kyung-ho's face hardened further as he watched.
As expected. These aren't for us.
He'd never experienced it firsthand, but he knew exactly what happened when the moon changed—thanks to all the money he'd sunk into theory classes at the academy. Still, he hadn't anticipated this because the odds of it happening were minuscule. Only a madman would violate such a taboo.
So how had this come about?
The answer wasn't far away.
"Those lunatics actually did it..."
There had been two parties in the dungeon. With Woo Kyung-ho's team here, the culprits were obviously the other one.
Blue Lion. No one else would pull off something this insane.
"What now?"
Woo Kyung-ho had no clue how to navigate this crisis. Theory said retreat, but their sole exit—the rear—was completely blocked by a massive oasis. That left breakthrough as the only option, but with their numbers, it was hopeless.
The silver lining: the monsters bursting from the ground were busy tearing into each other. Maybe they could exploit that to slip away.
Collecting his thoughts, Woo Kyung-ho issued orders to his team.
"Everyone, quietly move right. Once we're past the oasis, sprint full speed."
The party began creeping forward cautiously at his signal. But as expected, the monsters detected their movement and charged en masse.
"Oh, they're coming."
As a battalion-sized wave of monsters bore down, despair washed over the hunters' faces. They could barely handle one-on-one; facing numbers several times their own spelled doom. Death's shadow loomed.
That was when it happened.
Tatata-tang!
Tatang!
Tatata-tang!
A deafening barrage erupted, hundreds of beams slicing through the air. The lights streaked straight at the oncoming monsters, turning those hit into pincushions that collapsed from the front lines. The sheer firepower halted the horde just ten meters short—they couldn't advance a step.
What the hell? What magic is that? Who could...?
The hunters' gazes naturally turned toward the source. There stood Taejeong, gripping something in both hands. The beams emanated from him.
"What is that?"
"A gun?"
"How does a gun...?"
Most reactions were ones of shock. They'd never seen a gun before, let alone imagined one so devastating. And wasn't he just a rookie here for the bus?
But that was nothing compared to what came next.
Suddenly, two massive cannons materialized over his shoulders.
Boom!
The shells rocketed out with a thunderclap, slamming into the monster cluster. Dual explosions followed, unleashing a torrent of notification chimes that threatened to burst their eardrums.
[Experience gained...]
[Experience gained...]
[Experien...]
"What? How many did it kill?"
The endless alerts left them reeling, but soon they spotted a lone figure blasting forward at incredible speed.
Taejeong, of course.
With boosters engaged, he rocketed ahead, unleashing every weapon in his arsenal to sweep the monsters aside. Even without deploying his mech, each shot reduced them to rags. It was leagues beyond the struggles of same-level hunters.
The moon doesn't matter—this guy's a monster?
As Taejeong pitilessly crushed the beasts, the watching hunters could scarcely believe it. No matter how good his class, for one man to handle what an entire party couldn't? It defied common sense.
Lee Seong-ho spoke up proudly toward the stunned group.
"That's the hero of Recall."
"Hero of Recall?"
"You wouldn't know—he's incredible."
"But why take the bus...?"
Woo Kyung-ho looked baffled, so Shin Ji-su chimed in.
"Taejeong was originally giving us a ride on his bus. But there were no spots left, so we asked your brother."
"No, but you should've said something!"
"You were so confident, though. 'Just sit tight, I'll handle it.' Remember?"
"Even so..."
While they bantered briefly, the fight was already wrapping up. Roughly a thousand kills in a mere five minutes.
[You have defeated the Crimson Taras.]
Taejeong cleanly finished the last one and returned to the group, drawing intense stares. They seemed to await his words.
Awkwardly, Taejeong addressed them.
"I never meant to hide it from the start, but I didn't expect things to turn out like this... Sorry. I wanted to help sooner, but you were all doing so well—no openings."
Lee Seong-ho jumped to his defense.
"Pfft, sorry? Don't be ridiculous. We'd be dead without you. My legs are still shaking—am I even alive? Right, guys?"
The hunters nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I thought I was goner."
"That was badass."
"Mechanic's OP, huh? Thought it was some robot gimmick, but damn, what a class."
Contrary to Taejeong's fears, the praise poured endlessly. No one questioned why someone this strong had been slacking. Relieved, a short moment passed.
Taejeong turned to Woo Kyung-ho. "What now for us?"
"Ah, the quest."
"Yeah."
"Well... the moon changing means someone activated the temple crystal."
"Probably those guys from the forest, right?"
"Yes. Reaching the temple means the castle's close. They'll detour now that the moon's red, but they'll arrive soon."
"Catching up might be tough, then. But on the way back, they'll face the same crisis—why touch it?"
"The moon reverts in four hours."
"Got it. So for now..."
"Taejeong."
"Yes?"
"There's one way, but I'd need your help."
"Of course. What is it?"
With Taejeong's agreement, Woo Kyung-ho sketched on the ground.
"Paths to the count's castle split three ways: along the beach, straight through this desert, or over the mountains to the back gate. The fastest is the back gate, but it's home to the dungeon's strongest monsters. With the red moon, it's even tougher. But if we breakthrough fast, we might arrive first."
"Then let's do that. Head out now?"
"You sure? Could be stronger than before..."
"I'm good—plenty of margin. Trust me."
And so, they grasped hope instead of surrender.
Monsters blocked their path repeatedly, but none withstood Taejeong's overwhelming firepower. Even the notoriously hardest mountain route fell the same.
There was a reason: his skills derived from Sirius. Energy rounds forged from a god's mana had potent anti-demon properties. Under the red moon, monsters gained demonic attributes, amplifying damage from even basic attacks. That's why Taejeong dominated with standard weapons.
They summited swiftly and finally beheld their goal: the count's castle.
"Almost there. That's the count's castle—five klicks and... Ah."
Woo Kyung-ho's hopeful words turned to a sigh. Figures appeared in the clearing before the castle.
Blue Lion hunters, naturally.
"We ran nonstop, and they're already here...?"
The others crowded forward, peering at the plain below.
"Damn, snatched right under our noses."
"How far did they run?"
"After all this..."
Disappointment ran deep. Reaching here was a miracle, but losing to those bastards stung bitterly.
"Sorry, Taejeong. You'd have made it ages ago alone. Our fault—Gah!"
Woo Kyung-ho, apologizing, turned and yelped, tumbling back. A massive object loomed where he should have stood.
The others whirled, reactions similar.
"Wh-what!?"
"Gah! Scared me!"
"What the...?"
"Holy shit?"
The hunters gawked at the bizarre contraption.
Taejeong ignored them and called out.
"Hey, Gerard."
Yes, Master.
"How many shots to flatten them?"
Assuming they're the same level as these, one shot for total annihilation.
"No, not that."
Pardon?
"That. The castle."