Episode 13. The Hidden Dungeon
Raid failed...
No sooner had the despairing voice begun to echo in his mind than a massive boulder flying from behind the group caught Sindae’s eye.
“Uh…. T-.. Team Leader!”
“Everyone scatter!!!!”
Startled for only a moment by the massive energy emanating from the giant boulder, Collection Team 1, including Sindae, quickly began to dodge.
‘How on earth did this….’
Bak Hyeonsik, hurling his body aside, could not understand the current situation.
He had come to this Yuteru Dungeon countless times for collection, yet this was the first time he had ever heard of a raid failing.
‘And it’s an attack pattern I’ve never seen before….’
Among the golems here, there was no monster that attacked by throwing boulders.
Therefore, he could only think that some change had occurred in the dungeon and the attack team that had gone inside had been wiped out.
“How could this…”
After the single boulder attack ended, Bak Hyeonsik began searching for his team members amid the thick dust.
As the dust settled and the scene was revealed, goosebumps rose all over his body.
“Wh… what on earth is this….”
A hole gouged out as if a massive bomb had exploded.
It was a landscape impossible to believe was caused by a single thrown boulder.
Bak Hyeonsik lost his words for a moment as he stared at the hole. He had witnessed the attacks of 7-Star monsters in countless dungeons over the years, but a strike of this magnitude was something he had never seen before.
‘This isn’t 7-Star….’
At least 8-Star.
If so, it was an incident that warranted dispatching S-Rank Awakened.
“For now, we need to hurry and get out of here….”
Bak Hyeonsik knew well that rather than searching for his team members again, hurrying out to request reinforcements from the guild could save even one more life.
The moment he tried to run toward the dungeon entrance, desperate sounds began to reach his ears.
[Click.. click click..]
[Kurrrrrr.]
‘Si… since when…’
Monsters revealed as the dust settled.
All the monsters, including the 7-Star golems that inhabited this place, were surrounding him…
“Ah… no!”
Bak Hyeonsik began to struggle as he watched the approaching monsters.
***
“What on earth is this….”
Sindae, who had hidden his body behind a broken temple pillar.
He couldn’t calm his still-startled heart as he recalled the flying boulder.
‘Did a dungeon rampage phenomenon occur or something…’
The sudden raid failure was a situation that could only be attributed to a dungeon rampage phenomenon.
He looked around to check if there were any other monsters.
‘If I run into a 7-Star monster now, it’s over…’
The highest rank Sindae could hunt was 3-Star.
And even that was only possible thanks to the power of the Blue Slime meat and the Burning Sapling.
“What should I do now….”
Sindae began to wonder whether he should rendezvous with the other team members.
For a moment, the thought of escaping the dungeon first and requesting support crossed his mind, but he shook his head.
“Going to the dungeon entrance alone is suicide… Rather, it’s safer to establish a base and hide.”
A dungeon as large as Seoul City.
Moreover, Sindae was already located at a distance more than halfway from the entrance; it was impossible for him to cross to the entrance alone.
‘All I can do is pray that the other team members escape….’
If they succeeded in escaping, reinforcements would surely arrive soon.
“If not… I’ll have to endure here for at least three days….”
At the thought of having to endure three days with not only 7-Star monsters but also scarce food and water, Sindae unconsciously gripped the longsword he was holding tighter.
‘No… let’s think as positively as possible…’
Sindae shook his head vigorously to shake off negative thoughts, choosing to think positively that help would arrive within a day.
After confirming there were no monsters around, he rose from his spot again.
“For now, securing a different base is important…”
Since there was nowhere to take cover or hide behind the broken temple pillar, finding a new base was Sindae’s top priority.
‘I hope I find team members on the way…’
More than that, since Collection Team 1 consisted of veterans who had survived in dungeons countless times, he believed that finding them would be a great help.
“For now, let’s hurry and move.”
Sindae let out a sigh and quickly rose from his spot.
***
Sindae moved his steps as much as possible toward the dungeon entrance, thinking that people would likely head that way.
True to its name, the Yuteru Temple Dungeon, Sindae hid his body among the ruined temples around him as he moved, and whenever he discovered traces of Collection Team 1, his expression stiffened.
‘They moved hastily this time too…’
Footprints and items scattered around.
Having picked up two bottles of water, Sindae quickly left the spot where the team members’ traces had been.
‘The fact that they moved hastily means there are monsters nearby…’
Although Collection Team 1 was composed of average C-Rank Awakened, raiding monsters in a 7-Star dungeon was impossible.
Letting out a sigh and hurrying along, Sindae spotted three golems made of black stone ahead and sighed.
“So they’ve come this far…”
[Dark Stone Golem.]
When they had collected the corpse of one, Bak Hyeonsik had said that these creatures did not leave their habitat.
The fact that they had appeared where Sindae was showed that something had gone wrong in the dungeon.
“I’ll have to turn back here…”
Sindae decided to quickly hide inside a collapsed temple nearby and move from there.
The moment he entered one of the temples, he could feel saliva pooling in his salivary glands.
[There is meat nearby that Gluttony desires.]
[Consuming it will grant x2 rewards.]
‘Now?’
Hiding his body, Sindae looked around the temple.
He widened his eyes slightly at the fact that there was a monster inside the temple.
“Strange. The team leader said there were no monsters in the temples…”
All the monsters that appeared here were golems.
It was impossible for a golem’s massive body to fit inside a temple like this.
“Should I just check?”
Curious about what kind of monster it was, Sindae decided to consume it next time and moved his steps.
Moving according to his skill, he ended up standing before a statue in the center of the ruined temple.
“The reaction is coming from underneath this…”
The closer he got to the statue, the more saliva pooled.
When he brought his hand to the statue, surprisingly, the sight of the statue sliding away on its own caught his eye.
With the sound of stone moving, stairs leading underground appeared beneath the statue, and Sindae felt as if his breath had stopped in surprise.
“Good heavens, a hidden dungeon!?”
Hidden dungeons, which were dungeons within dungeons, were occasionally found in large dungeons boasting massive size, those of 5-Star and above.
If they had one thing in common, it was that most were lower rank than the original dungeon, and they were famous for occasionally yielding hidden rewards.
‘Should I go in….’
Wiping away the drool trickling down, Sindae began to worry.
No matter how much weaker it was than the original dungeon, this was a 7-Star dungeon, so his worries only deepened.
“For now, let’s just go in and see…”
Sindae took out some [Blue Slime] meat from his bag and ate it.
After consuming the meat, Sindae confirmed the message that his recovery had increased by 50%, then with his shield at the ready, began descending underground.
***
“What on earth is this….”
He was briefly surprised by the situation where torches hanging on the walls ignited on their own as he went deeper underground.
Sindae’s eyes widened at the endless spiral staircase.
“Amazing…”
Sindae was astonished that such a space existed beneath a ruined temple.
As he was descending the stairs, a [Goblin] caught his eye, tilting its head as it looked at him.
‘A goblin?’
It was a goblin 1.5 times larger than a typical one, with red skin instead of green.
Unable to believe a human had appeared here, the goblin stared blankly at him, and Sindae quickly charged at it.
‘I’ll take it down immediately.’
With his Agility exceeding 150, it was a situation where the goblin could hardly follow with its eyes.
Before it could scream in surprise, Sindae thrust his sword into the Red Goblin’s neck, and he could see it collapse immediately.
“If it’s just goblins, it’s fine….”
Curious about the monster’s rank, Sindae butchered the Red Goblin’s thigh meat and put it in his mouth.
His eyes widened at the message that appeared before him.
[You have consumed the meat Gluttony desires.]
[Strength increases by 4.]
‘A 2-Star monster?’
The meat Gluttony desired gave a x2 effect, increasing Strength by 4.
At having discovered a 2-Star monster in a 7-Star dungeon, Sindae let out a sigh of relief.
“But is this not the end?”
Although he had clearly consumed the Red Goblin, his salivary glands showed no signs of stopping, perplexing Sindae.
Deciding to obtain food while he was at it, he butchered the Red Goblin, put it in his bag, and continued down the stairs.
“Huh, what’s that?”
Sindae had finally reached the bottom of the stairs.
He could discover a picture of an unknown pattern drawn on the floor.
“It’s some kind of giant tree…”
Unknown symbols on the giant tree.
Scenes of various races, including humans, all showing postures of worship toward the tree, and even a giant of fire glaring at the tree as if to burn it.
Sindae thought he had seen the picture somewhere before as he looked at it and moved his steps.
He discovered the corpses of monsters strewn across the floor and his eyes widened.
“What is this?”
[Blue Wolf Pale.]
A 4-Star monster he had occasionally seen on raid broadcasts.
Approaching closer and looking, Sindae could tell that the monster had not been dead for long.
‘Wait, this isn’t all, is it?’
As if a war between races had taken place, around him were not only the corpses of Blue Wolf Pale but also the corpses of Red Goblins that had succeeded in hunting on the stairs above.
And surprisingly, the corpses of Ogres and Lycanthropes, which were 6-Star monsters, were strewn about.
“Where on earth is this place?”
While examining the corpses, Sindae discovered that some of them had died long ago, leaving only bones and magic stones.
In the massive cavern, there was only one passage.
The further one went toward it, the more numerous and varied the monster corpses became.
‘Could these be…’
Clearly, some being had slaughtered all these monsters.
Moreover, near the passage, the corpses of three 6-Star monsters were strewn about.
‘Whatever is in there, it’s at least 7-Star…’
Otherwise, it made no sense to kill 6-Star monsters in one fell swoop like this.
‘For now, get out of here….’
Sindae tried to hurry back.
He suddenly stopped as if something had come to mind.
“Wait, could this place be….”