Dungeon Predator

Kang Oh swung downwards with his demon sword.

However, the red-eyed berserk mummy turned its body, avoiding his attack.

'As I thought.'

Even with Berserk active, the mummies didn't block Kang Oh's attacks or even attempt to counterattack.

This was due to the combat data they had on Kang Oh.

They had information on Kang Oh's power, so they weren't quick to defend or counterattack.

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter."

Kang Oh was much stronger than a mummy. Not only that, Gluttony would be active for another 7 minutes.

Therefore, he planned on completely overpowering the mummies.

Plus, he wasn't alone.

Eder and Grano were fighting the mummies too. 

Thump!

One of the berserk mummies began to wobble around from a strike from Eder's mace. 

Right then, Kang Oh used Slash on the same mummy Eder had struck. 

Thump!

The mummy, now sporting a clear wound, was pushed back and was met with a surge of whirling water much like a hot spring. 

Whoosh!

Grano had finished casting his spell.

"Huahp!"

Kang Oh finished it off. Once he slashed at its wound, shards of red light spilled out. 

[You have defeated a member of Beskamen I's guard.]

[Gluttony is active.]

[Stats have been stolen.]

[Physical +1]

'I'm always happy to steal some more stats.'

The more one had, the better; this applied to two things in particular.

One was money and the other was stats.

Kang Oh's eyes gleamed.

He was planning on killing as many mummies as possible before Gluttony wore off.

To do so, he would need to take out the berserk mummies first, since they wouldn't revive themselves again.

"Eder, Mr. Grano. Let's take down the berserk mummies first one by one," Kang Oh yelled.

"I understand."

"Ok."

Grano and Eder simultaneously replied.

"And... I'll land the finishing blow!"

Kang Oh, Eder, and Grano went off to defeat the berserk mummies.

They were all completely in sync.

Grano swept away the mummies with AoE magic whilst Eder tanked, and Kang Oh would land the finishing blow. 

[You have defeated a member of Beskamen I's guard.]

[Gluttony is active.]

[Stats have been stolen.]

[Mental +1]

Kang Oh continuously attacked the mummies and managed to steal stats six times.

However, he couldn't steal anymore than that since Gluttony was over.

Still, Kang Oh's party had managed to cut the mummies down to thirteen.

"Let's keep pushing!" Kang Oh encouraged his allies.

Kang Oh was gradually getting sick of mummies.

It was about time to finish them all off.

* * *

Thud.

The mummy's body fell to the floor like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

"Done."

Eder put down his mace and caught his breath.

"Good job everyone."

Grano grinned.

Kang Oh tied his demon sword to his back and approached Amil's corpse.

There were two shimmering items around him.

Kang Oh picked up the bronze key.

[Bronze Key]

The bronze key that Beskamen I's guard captain, Amil, kept.

"Hoh."

Kang Oh tightly gripped the key.

'Is this to key to the room containing Beskamen I's remains and coffin? I smell money in the air.'

Kang Oh had no interest in the king's remains or his coffin. However, he was interested in the treasure that was buried with him.

He moved on to the next item.

It was the turban that Amil had worn. There was a white feather tucked inside.

[Loyalty Filled Beskamen Turban]

It is shaped like a turban and was worn by the Beskamen Kingdom's noblemen. 

Its base material is silk, but it does not easily burn or degrade due to the special processing it went through.

The feather tucked inside is a symbol of the wearer's everlasting loyalty towards their king.

+ Resurrect the Dead: When you lose all of your HP, you come back to life as a mummy. Duration: 5 minutes. Can only be used once per day.

+ Desert's Necessity: The wearer gains a strong resistance to fire. They can easily withstand the intense heat of the desert.

Rank: AA

Abilities: Defense +50, Magic Resistance +80, Physical +15, Mental +30, Magic +10

Minimum Requirements: Level 100

"Hmm."

Kang Oh looked disappointed.

It was highly ranked, but he wasn't impressed by its effects or abilities.

"It would've been nicer to get the scimitar instead."

Kang Oh wanted Amil to drop his blazing scimitar.

But it wouldn't drop it just because he wanted it to.

At that moment, Grano approached him.

"Did it drop something good?" Grano asked.

"This and this."

Kang Oh extended both hands; one holding the bronze key and the other holding the turban.

Grano seemed interested in the turban.

"Oh, this is..."

Grano rubbed the turban with his hand.

"What is it? Is it expensive?" Kang Oh asked in anticipation.

"I heard that the Beskamen Kingdom used a special technique to create silk that was incredibly resistant to heat. The technique has been lost, though it seems like this turban was created using that technique," Grano said.

"So is it expensive?" Kang Oh asked once more.

"It depends, I suppose. What I do know is that it'd be extremely helpful to the desert folk."

Grano smiled.

"Hmm. Then what do I need to do to sell this at a high price?"

Do the desert folk have an auction house of their own?

"I'm not sure. Would you mind if I took this turban?" Grano asked.

"You want it?"

"Yes. I'd like to use this to try making a heat resistant silk."

"Hmm."

Kang Oh briefly thought it over.

Grano could ask for 30% of the loot.

However, the turban wasn't exactly worth 30%.

The turban possessed a special resurrection ability and was also an AA-rank hat.

"I let you have Gureko's ring, didn't I?" Grano said.

Nothing in the world was free. Unfortunately, that seemed to apply to heaven as well.

It was always give and take.

Grano had let him have the ring before, so now it was his turn to let him have this one.

"I understand."

Kang Oh passed the turban to Grano.

"Thank you."

Grano stored the turban into his subspace.

'I can still hit the jackpot.'

Kang Oh fiddled with the bronze key.

Treasure was waiting for him.

"Let's start looking for a place to use this."

Kang Oh moved; Grano and Eder followed suit, and began to search the mummy's room.

"Here!" Eder yelled.

Kang Oh and Grano approached Eder.

There were coffins leaning on the walls; of them, Amil's coffin had a keyhole at the bottom.

"I'm opening it."

Kang Oh placed the key inside; it was a perfect fit.

Creak.

Kang Oh turned the key and he heard the mechanism activate.

After that, the mummy's room, as well as the pyramid itself, began to shake.

"What's going on?" Eder yelled in shock.

Amil's coffin sank into the ground, revealing a stone gate that it had obscured from view.

However, the shaking never stopped. A piece of the ceiling crumbled as well.

"Uahk!" Eder cried.

"Why is this happening?" Kang Oh asked Grano.

"I'm not sure... Ah, wait a minute. There's something written here."

Grano pointed at the inscriptions written on the stone gate.

"Can you read it?"

"He whoever disrupts the king's rest shall be punished without fail," Grano said.

"We must have triggered a trap," Grano added. 

He furrowed his brow; it was quite the severe expression.

"A trap?"

"Yes. The key must've activated a mechanism which is bringing this entire place down," Grano said.

The ceiling continued to crumble.

Kang Oh attempted to push the stone gate as hard as he could. However, it didn't budge an inch.

"Damn it."

"What do we do now!?" Eder yelled as he covered his head with both hands.

"We obviously have to run!"

They didn't have the time to make another decision.

Kang Oh, Eder, and Grano dashed towards the exit.

Huge rocks fell from the ceiling.

"Uaahk!" Eder screamed as boulders continued to fall behind them like an avalanche.

"Shut up and run."

Kang Oh gritted his teeth.

To think they'd be put into a situation like this!

"Heok, heok."

Grano’s breathing was haggard as well.

Kang Oh's party was barely able to make it out before the passageway completely crumbled. 

Fortunately, they didn't see any Celtuses. Did they run too once they noticed that the dungeon was caving in?

Whatever the case, there was nothing stopping them from running.

Kang Oh, Eder and Grano ran as fast as they could.

How hectically had they run?

"I see the exit," Eder yelled.

"Don't look back and just run!"

Kang Oh ran mustering all the strength he had left.

"Heok, heok!"

Grano did the same.

Kang Oh's party quickly ascended the stairs and exited the dungeon.

Not long after they'd exited, Beskamen I's tomb had completely caved in.

Once it did, the shaking stopped.

Kang Oh sprawled out onto the floor.

"Damn it. This was planned."

Beskamen I's tomb had caved in, yet the rest of the dungeon was fine.

That didn't make any sense.

Unless it was set up that way from the very beginning.

"Haa, ha. This must be the method that Beskamen II devised so that no one would be able to pillage his father's tomb," Grano said as he caught his breath.

Hiding a tomb within a tomb was just a preliminary measure.

The real trap was caving in the tomb!

Now, no one would be able to lay their hands on Beskamen I's remains or his coffin.

It was like burning down a small house to get rid of bedbugs, or so it seemed, but nevertheless, Beskamen II's goal had been realized.

Since Kang Oh hadn't been able to loot the tomb and had come out empty-handed.

"My money!"

Kang Oh slammed his fist onto the floor in fury.

They'd found a hidden dungeon (the king's tomb), yet they'd managed to come back empty-handed!

Moreover, it was a dungeon that continuously spawned the gold bugs, Celtuses.

If they just explored the dungeon and killed every Celtus they saw, then it'd be such easy money!

Kang Oh felt like he'd go crazy.

"Hoo, at least we managed to get out unscathed."

Eder rolled over and patted his body.

Who cares about the money!?

His body was everything to him.

"Haa. Beskamen II, what a spiteful person. He should be reassessed by history. Hmm. Was that assassination case also..." Grano muttered.

Kang Oh kept squirming around whilst punching the floor. On the other hand, Eder kept patting his body while Grano seemed to be engrossed in thought and muttered.

If someone saw them, then they'd think of this movie title.

'Three Idiots'!

* * * 

Kang Oh's party returned to their base in the Hapdala Oasis.

"Haa, good job, body of mine."

Once they entered the yurt, Eder removed his equipment and laid on the floor.

"Tch."

Kang Oh's expression was still bitter and regretful.

"There's one hidden dungeon left. Plus, we still have the hidden oasis as well," Grano patted his shoulder and comforted him.

"You're right."

Kang Oh nodded his head.

'It's already water under the bridge. Let's just let it go.'

But they say that a fish that you lose seems bigger than it actually was. Unbeknownst to him, Kang Oh's face was still crinkled.

At that moment...

"Mr. Grano, are you in here?"

They heard a voice coming from outside the yurt.

"Please come in," Grano said.

It was the way of the natives of the Bariton Desert to allow others into their home.

So long as they weren't their enemies, it was considered incredibly rude to turn guests away without welcoming them into one's home.

A man came into the yurt.

It was an incredibly fat man. His skin was brown and they couldn't see his pupils as his eyes were so small.

He wore a turban and white clothes that were loose at the sleeves for better ventilation.

It was the clothing from a desert area north of the Bariton Desert. 

This was the first time Kang Oh, Eder, and Grano, who was native to this area, had seen him.

"Please take a seat."

Grano pointed at a sitting cushion; the man bowed his head and expressed his thanks.

"Why are you here?" Grano asked.

"Hello. My name is Modune."

The fat man's name was Modune.

"Which one of you is Mr. Grano?" he asked, looking over Kang Oh, Eder, and Grano.

"That's me. But what business do you have with me?"

"I heard you were the top expert on the Bariton Desert."

Modune briefly caught his breath and continued, "I'd like for you to help us find the hidden oasis."

Kang Oh, Eder, and Grano widened their eyes.

A competitor seeking the hidden oasis had appeared!