The Dungeon's Sole Conqueror (2)
Enormous crystal orbs were installed throughout the bustling square teeming with mermen. These orbs broadcasted the situations unfolding inside the dungeon in real time. They were currently showing the participants who had just entered the dungeon, looking around their surroundings.
"Come to think of it, I didn't even ask his name," murmured the mermaid princess standing among the mermen.
Sophia turned to her. "His name is Kang Naru. In his homeland's naming convention, the family name comes first. So his family name is Kang, and his given name is Naru."
"Ah, Kang Naru. Kang Naru... Naru..."
"If I may, could I ask for your name as his guardian?"
"My name is April. And yours?"
"Please call me Sophia."
"Alright, Sophia. Tell me about Kang Naru. Where is he from?"
Sophia had originally planned to hide in a quiet spot if Naru participated in the tournament, but with April suddenly becoming his guardian and the crystal orbs displaying the dungeon's interior, they had decided to watch his exploits from the square.
"We're from the Relitz Kingdom."
"That's close by."
"The border is nearby, but we live in the King's Capital, so it's a bit of a distance."
"Ah... so he lives in the capital. What does Kang Naru do?"
"He is a hero."
"A hero...?"
A smile graced April's face.
"What kind of coincidence is this? The first human I ever spoke to in my life turns out to be a hero. I'm so lucky. Ahh, so that's why. Because he's a hero, that mysterious aura of his drew me in. Of course."
"I don't feel anything special."
Sophia felt a twinge of pointless jealousy.
"I've never heard anyone say he emits a mysterious aura."
"Is that so? Hmm."
April's gaze shifted toward the crystal orb. Inside it, the participants were locked in fierce combat with the first pack of massive wolves they had encountered in the dungeon.
-Smash their heads in!
-Uwihihihihiyo! Kuhahaha! Die!
Strong-looking merman warriors bellowed monstrous cries as they charged ahead to clear the path, but Naru was nowhere to be seen. Then, as the orb panned to the rear, Naru appeared huddled among the weaker group. He wasn't bravely stepping up to take on the wolves; instead, he just watched from behind, darting forward with the others only when someone up front killed a wolf.
April's eyebrow twitched.
"Hm? Didn't you say he was a hero? Why's he just hiding?"
Sophia also tilted her head while staring at the orb.
"Beats me? That's not like him at all..."
The orb blatantly focused on Naru frequently. Perhaps because he was human, it seemed intent on showing how inferior humans were to mermen, contrasting the mermen fighting fiercely at the front with Naru idling in the back.
"See that! That's the level of humans! We're superior!"
The mermen laughed mockingly at Naru on the orb.
"Pathetic!"
"Ditch the human and push forward!"
"Good job! Valtokas!"
April laughed along with them.
"He seemed like such a cool, handsome guy, but surprisingly... Hmm, he'd look even cooler if he fought up front."
"H-he might not be feeling well!" Sophia protested.
"Maybe he hurt his back!"
"Why his back?"
"Because... Ah, never mind. Anyway, he might be sick or something."
As crowds in the square peered into the orbs with interest, eliminations began trickling in one by one. A flock of gargoyles. Moving statues. A chasm requiring jumps across spaced platforms. A giant serpent. Rolling boulders down a slope to dodge, and more. After passing all these, the initial two hundred participants had dwindled below a hundred.
Some survivors returned safely to the square via portals, while the unlucky ones had perished.
That guy. Why isn't he coming forward?
Aquina, who had bravely fought at the vanguard, kept her eyes on Naru throughout the battles. Seeing him not stepping up aggressively made her thoughts swirl.
Hmph, is he scouting me? Checking out me and my party's strength?
The real reason she had come here today was Naru. To defeat him.
That morning, she had long known he went adventuring every weekend; the issue was finding out where. So she had sent a spy to the Thunderfield Guild to secretly obtain his destination and followed him. To crush him and prove she was superior.
If you don't want to come forward, just stay back and watch quietly. Watch my shining figure. My prowess.
No matter what happened today, she would conquer the dungeon. All the spoils would be offered to the queen.
Your Majesty, Kang Naru was there too, but he didn't draw much attention.
Imagining saying that in the audience chamber soon, Aquina swung her sword even more ferociously.
The participants advanced smoothly, tackling each room's challenges one by one. Then, in the next room, the situation abruptly changed, throwing everything into chaos.
"Everyone, dodge! They're suicide bombers!"
Skeletons with explosion magic embedded in their skulls came charging and detonating en masse. Over a thousand of them. Far beyond what the participants could handle. Even if they halted their movement with magic or knocked them down, the skeletons would fully disassemble, then their bones would reassemble, and they'd charge back with renewed vigor—from all directions.
The exit back to the previous room was already sealed. No retreat possible; they were trapped between a rock and a hard place.
"Crazy! They expect us to get through this?!"
"Uwaaaak!"
Boom! Boomboomboom! KABOOM!
The less than a hundred remaining participants rapidly dropped in number. Countless fled using return magic. Those who stayed and resisted were obliterated without a trace by the suicide blasts.
"Damn it! Don't screw with meee!"
Valtokas, the standout merman participant today, resisted fiercely but ultimately returned bloodied. He had endured explosions from fifteen skeletons.
Aquina's group was also in crisis. They had secured a corner, fending off the charging skeletons nonstop.
"Right side! Bind their legs with magic!"
"Shield's weakening—recast it!"
"Anyone got a good idea? Speak up! Hurry!"
Meanwhile, Naru stood alone at the far end of the room. Hundreds of skeletons were barreling toward him. No one left to fight for him.
He scratched his cheek with an awkward expression.
"Hm. Looks like the free ride's over. Was nice while it lasted."
He hadn't done much to get here, so his energy was overflowing.
Distance to the skeletons: 20 meters. Then 10. Soon 5. Right in his face.
"No choice, then."
Without hesitation, Naru activated his Isle.
Suppress
Flash! The air rippled, spreading outward.
"Looks like Valtokas will go the deepest in this tournament."
"He's got momentum."
In the square, crowds peered into the orbs everywhere.
"Most exploits too."
"Doesn't even look tired."
"Compared to that human in the back—what's he even doing? Pathetic."
"Hahaha! Exactly!"
The surviving ninety-odd participants were clearing the room without issue on the orbs. Then, shortly after...
"It's the Explosion Room!"
"Of all places, that one!"
The dungeon had countless paths; with luck, you could skip dangerous rooms, or with bad luck, hit them in sequence.
"This won't be easy."
"Even Lord Illar struggled there back in the day."
KABOOM! Skeletons began exploding on the orbs. Participants scattered in panic, dodging amid the blasts and screams filling the sealed room.
"Damn it! Another early dropout?!"
Portals opened across the square as voluntary dropouts emerged one by one.
"Ah! What a shame!"
"N-nearly died! Huff! Huff!"
"Thought we'd last long today!"
The number of dungeon participants plummeted rapidly until only Naru and Aquina's group remained. The square's crowds focused on them.
"Just humans left?"
"They'll die or bail soon too."
"That lone male human's still kicking?"
"Must be a pro at running away."
Flash! Then it happened. Naru's image on the orb turned serious unlike before as he cast a spell.
"The skeletons...?"
"Huh?"
"What...?"
The spectators blankly stared at the orb, dumbfounded. What magic had he used?
The suicide skeletons halted en masse. And astonishingly, they trembled in terror on their own. Not content with that, they began self-detonating in place.
KABOOM! Boom! BOOM!
An utterly unforeseen sight. Everyone gaped in shock, glancing at each other.
"Wh-what just happened!?"
"Did anyone see what that male did? I missed it. You?"
"Was he strong?"
"Hiding his power?"
The murmurs grew louder. April, standing beside Sophia, blinked in disbelief.
"What am I even seeing right now...?"
On the orb, the last remaining skeleton exploded with a pop.