Ranker's Return

“Brother, isn’t this dungeon easier than I thought? I have been worried due to the limited number of people,” Gang Junggu told Kim Seokjung as he looted items.

“It is the doing of my little brother. To be precise, it is that cute kid,” Kim Seokjung said with a smile. His gaze wasn’t on the items but on Tang-E.

“I want to gain one like him.”

“I think so as well. I should have at least one pet... I don’t want that much. I would just be satisfied with a cute animal.”

“Huhu... I agree.”

Soon after the looting, the two of them returned to Hyeonu.

“What is that fire magic? It is very powerful.”

“Rather than the skill, their weaknesses are divine power and fire. Brother, you will be more comfortable fighting him with divine power instead of hitting him directly.”

“How do you know that? This is the first time we’ve been here...” Gang Junggu’s question was natural. This was a place they had only discovered yesterday, and it was their first battle. In other words, Hyeonu had nowhere to obtain information from.

“This guy told me. He originally knew this type of monster. He even knows their master, the boss of the dungeon.” Hyeonu stroked Tang-E’s head. Tang-E was a lucky charm.

‘Although he speaks a bit roughly...’

Tang-E took his best posture and spoke like he didn’t know Hyeonu’s heart, “The owner of this place is clearly a vampire. From their own mouths, they say that they are nobles of the night, but they are vampires in the end.”

“Does that mean the boss monster here is a vampire?”

“Yes, I think it is either a baron or a viscount.”

“Hmm...” Kim Seokjung was locked in his thoughts. As far as he knew, no player had seen or hunted a vampire. How much power did a baron have? How powerful was a viscount? He knew nothing.

“Brother, why are you worrying so much? We have two monks, an excellent swordsman, magic, and buffs. The bear can also act as a tanker in the case of an emergency,” Hyeonu stated to the anxious Kim Seokjung.

The party would be enough if it were a vampire and not another boss. How much stronger than the five elements spider would he be? Moreover, they had increased in number. Hyeonu now had two more colleagues than before. The best thing was that black magic and divine magic had the best opposing natures.

“Don’t worry. We can beat him easily.”

Hyeonu talked big. Unfortunately, his big talk didn’t become reality.

***

Hyeonu’s sword energy cut the orc’s pale face. The orc’s face was cut diagonally and could no longer breathe.

[Roton’s orc slave has been killed.]

[Experience has been acquired.]

“Brother, I think this is the last one.” Hyeonu’s senses, which had been honed by hunting, were screaming out that there was a boss monster behind this wall.

“I think so as well. It is time for it to come out. We have been in the dungeon for over four hours.”

Hyeonu added to Gang Junggu’s words, “Right? I also feel that way.”

Tired of the continuous hunting, Tang-E was exploring the dungeon. Hunting was easy. Since throwing away their fists and using divine power, there were no orcs who survived more than three attacks from Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu. The moment the divine power touched the orcs’ body, they were burned, and there was a fragrant smell. Hyeonu finished them off while they were in agony. Hunting in this dungeon was no different from simple labor.

Just then, Tang-E found something. “Master dude, come quickly.”

Hyeonu left Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu to talk to Tang-E. “What is it?”

“Look at this.” Tang-E was pointing to a small hole. It was a small hole in the ground. Nothing could be seen.

“Do you see anything?” 

At this moment, Tang-E moved his paws, and a small ember moved through the hole.

“Eh? Isn’t that a troll?”

In the field of view created by the ember, there were trolls with pale skin, just like the orcs. The meaning of this was simple. This dungeon was a labyrinth. He didn’t know how many floors there were, but he had a strong feeling it wouldn’t just be one or two.

“I guess we have to hunt more before we can get out,” Hyeonu sighed. He was convinced that this would be a long hunt.

***

Hyeonu returned to Kim Seokjung and held out a hand. “I have discovered two things. One good and one bad. What would you like to hear first?” 

Hyeonu spoke so suddenly that Gang Junggu glanced at him with a puzzled expression. However, Hyeonu was wearing a mask, and his expression couldn’t be seen.

“Let’s start with the bad news. Wouldn’t it be better to hear the good news later? Otherwise, I will feel uncomfortable.”

“Then I will tell you something bad. The thing behind this wall isn’t the boss of this dungeon. It is called a keeper, I think? This is the first floor, so we can call it the 1st floor keeper.”

Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu’s expressions changed when they heard Hyeonu’s words. They seemed to have some speculation about the situation.

Gang Junggu opened his mouth and asked, “So this is a dungeon with multiple floors?”

“That’s right. From what I saw, there are trolls with pale skin on the second floor below us. It is probably a monster called the Roton’s troll slave.”

A multi-floor dungeon—unlike normal dungeons, they were dungeons with multiple floors. Different monsters appeared on different floors, and sometimes, even the structure changed. Apart from the boss monster that was the master of the dungeon, there were keepers who guarded every floor. Understandably, a multi-floor dungeon was more difficult than normal dungeons. It was like several dungeons put together, so it would obviously be more difficult.

“So what is the good thing? The multiple floors have already been revealed.”

“The good thing is naturally that the rewards we get will be better. The rewards of multi-floor dungeons are excellent. Ah! The experience is also great. We will have to hunt for a long time.”

Hyeonu smiled while Gang Junggu clenched his fists and trembled.

“Then let’s wrap it up. Shouldn’t we go down quickly?”

Kim Seokjung stepped toward the place where the floor keeper was believed to be located.

***

“Brother, I’ll be the main one this time. The two of you attack when there is a chance,” Hyeonu said while pulling out his half-sword. He had hunted since entering the dungeon, but Hyeonu had never fought hard. It was natural that his body was a bit itchy.

“I know, you have the desire to fight. I will stay back with my brother.”

“Thank you.”

Gang Junggu nodded at Hyeonu’s words. Obviously, Hyeonu had sacrificed a lot. Those who played as a front-line striker in virtual reality games had a clear desire to fight. Otherwise, it would be impossible to rampage among the giant monsters with a sword.

“Little brother, I understand your heart. This time it will be you. Then Kim Seokjung will have the next floor.”

“Brother, thank you!”

Hyeonu received the understanding of Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu and ran straight to the giant orc with pale skin. Tang-E cheered and buffed Hyeonu. “Master dude, have strength!”

[You have received Bear’s Momentum.]

[Physique has increased.]

[Strength has increased.]

[You have received the Forest’s Blessing.]

[Physique has increased.]

[Health will continue to recover.]

Hyeonu shook the broken single-edged sword at Tang-E’s words. It was a sign that he knew.

[Master of Combat is activated.]

[Your stats have increased.]

[The stat ‘fighting energy’ has caused your stats to rise.]

[The other party is stronger than you.]

[Your stats have increased.]

[Mindset of a Murderer has activated.]

[All stats have increased by 15%.]

Many of Hyeonu’s skills were activated.

‘Is this my first time trying it out against a boss?’

It was due to Crasul’s Curse that Hyeonu came out confidently.

[Curse of the Five Elements Spider]

[If the attack succeeds, randomly grants one of five curses to the target. Can be stacked up to five times (burning, freezing, petrification, binding, or bleeding).

Duration: 5 minutes.]

‘Anything is fine except for burns and bleeding.’

Freezing, petrification, and binding were all statuses that limited movement. Once that happened, the boss monster would be no different from a sandbag.

“Hap!” Hyeonu started off with Crescent Moon Cut. The sword energy flew through the air toward the sentinel orc.

“Chwik!” The mighty orc, the keeper of the 1st floor, swung his axe toward Hyeonu’s sword energy. A bomb exploded.

‘Bah. I knew this would happen and used Magic Power Explosion.’

Hyeonu was shrewd. Anticipating that the huge orc would stop it, Hyeonu used Magic Power Explosion along with Crescent Moon Cut. As a result, the body of the giant orc was covered with wounds left by the broken sword energy.

[Roton Dungeon 1’s Keeper is caught in the ‘frozen’ state.]

[Roton Dungeon 1’s Keeper is caught in the ‘bleeding’ state.]

[Roton Dungeon 1’s Keeper is caught in the ‘bleeding’ state.]

[Roton Dungeon 1’s Keeper I is caught in the ‘petrified’ state.]

[Roton Dungeon 1’s Keeper is caught in the ‘frozen’ state.]

Five messages rang out in succession. Hyeonu’s aim did its part. This was the first thing he was aiming for—to stack up the five element spider’s curses. There were two frozen and one petrified state. As a result, one arm and one leg of the sentinel orc were stiff and frozen.

‘Good!! I can see the end this time.’ Hyeonu used Blink and rushed toward the sentinel orc. He wanted to end it during the five minutes when the curses were maintained. Hyeonu scrambled around the sentinel orc who couldn’t move properly and released sword energy.

Blood sprayed from the orc’s body. It was impossible for the orc to escape from Hyeonu’s sharp attacks with one arm and one leg not playing their roles.

As time passed, the sentinel orc’s entire body became covered in wounds. There was no place without a wound. However, half of the body was still functioning, so fatal attacks were somehow prevented. Finally, all the abnormal statuses that hindered the sentinel orc’s movements were gone.

The sentinel orc yelled at Hyeonu like he was relieving his anger, “Kuack!”

However, Fear had no effect on Hyeonu.

[The influence of fighting energy means you will ignore the Fear of Roton Dungeon 1’s Keeper.]

The sentinel orc was even more furious when he realized that his Fear had done no damage to Hyeonu. The sentinel orc’s body became redder. Filling up with blood, the sentinel orc lost its paleness.

‘Berserk.’

“Kuaaah!” The sentinel orc raised his axe to repay the five minutes of humiliation. Just then, Hyeonu moved at an explosive pace using Blink and Bash and arrived in front of the sentinel orc, stabbing his single-edged sword into the sentinel orc’s neck. The sentinel orc couldn’t get revenge and died in vain.