Chapter 44

"Master, you sounded like a real jerk just now."

Having finished ordering, Ruen sat down and chided Woojin.

"My turn now? My name is Kim Chan. As you can see, I'm a level-49 mage, specializing in wind."

Kim Chan introduced himself before a table so laden with food that its legs threatened to wobble.

"Wind mages are hard to come by... A pleasure to meet you."

"It's a less popular choice than fire or ice, after all."

"Which means you must be quite talented for the Naian Clan to have offered to recruit you anyway."

"Haha, you're too kind."

At Gareth's praise, Kim Chan scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Nice to meet you."

Munching away, Ruen nodded to Kim Chan as she stuffed both cheeks with food like a hamster.

"Ack, ack—"

"Slow down."

Woojin patted her back and handed her some water.

"Letting you order was a mistake. Who's supposed to eat all this?"

"Whew... That's better. What else could I do? Who knows when I'll get another proper meal like this? You've been tormenting me for days without even letting me sleep... Haven't you?"

"Ahem..."

"Hmm."

"Hoho, you two seem very close."

Apparently taking Ruen's words entirely the wrong way, the others cleared their throats and looked away.

"Quit talking nonsense and eat."

"Mmph!"

Woojin stuffed some bread into her mouth.

"Anyway, where are the others?"

"What others?"

"I heard this was a raid dungeon. Don't we need more people?"

"There aren't any. This is everyone."

A moment of silence followed.

"A-are you insane?! You want to run a raid dungeon with just five people?"

"Ahem."

Kim Chan had leaped to his feet, but Gareth's throat-clearing brought him up short.

"I'm sorry."

"No need. It's a perfectly understandable reaction. Honestly, it is absurd."

"Right? It's absolutely absurd..."

"Of course, I'm going."

"...but let's hear him out first."

Kim Chan promptly sat back down.

"The Ulda Alliance really is something. That was a quick change of tune."

"Shut up."

Woojin chuckled at how completely Kim Chan was in Gareth's thrall.

"That leaves our last member."

"As you can see, I'm level 49, and I use a bow."

"Is that all?"

"Is there anything else to explain?"

"I'd appreciate it if you were a little more honest."

Woojin gazed steadily at Gareth.

"Your class. You're not an Archer, are you?"

"... What's that supposed to mean? How rude. Didn't you hear him? He said he uses a bow."

"Not everyone who uses a bow is an Archer."

"... What?"

"For starters, that crossbow. Back at the cabin, I believe you said it wasn't an ordinary one."

"You remember that?"

"I tend to pay attention to what people say."

Gareth studied Woojin for a moment, then nodded.

"Hmm. There's no particular reason I can't tell you. I was only trying to avoid any unnecessary hassle."

CLACK!

He picked up the enormous crossbow he had set on the floor and pulled a handle protruding from its side. The limbs extending to either side folded inward like an umbrella.

The folded crossbow had a rather unusual shape.

"... A gun?"

The others seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Woojin.

"That's right. My class is Beast Hunter. A hidden class for dwarf Archers."

"Wow...! A hidden class! Just what I'd expect from someone in the Ulda Alliance."

Kim Chan exclaimed, his eyes sparkling.

"Heh heh, enough flattery. It's not actually a very efficient class. Technology for handling gunpowder hasn't advanced very far yet, after all."

Unlike the popular [Red Tower], which researched magic, [Arcane], which researched mechanical and magical engineering, received little attention.

"That can't be helped. Mechanical and magical engineering unlock so late in the skill tree... I doubt many people have learned them yet."

"Exactly. It will take time."

He looked at Woojin.

"Not much to it, even if it is a hidden class, is there? Well? Disappointed after getting your hopes up?"

"Not particularly. Hidden class or not, I don't care as long as you pull your weight. I just wanted to know exactly who was in my party."

"Then how about telling us about yourself? Why you're so confident, I mean. Do you have a hidden class like me?"

"No. I'm an ordinary Warrior."

"Then how did you make it through the snowfields at level 40?"

"I just have a skill that's a little different from most people's."

SHING!

Sharp sparks flew as Woojin drew his sword.

"Hoho, don't tell me... A Rare skill?"

"Well, something like that."

From the moment he began recruiting party members, Woojin had been debating how much to reveal about himself.

'It'll be hard to sever Taikan's limbs without using Wielding Heaven.'

If he couldn't hide it, boldly displaying it was a better way to earn their trust.

"A Rare skill... No wonder you're confident. I've never heard of anyone getting a skill in the Dark Forest... Where on earth did you find it?"

"Surely you don't actually expect me to tell you. Not after you went to such lengths to hide your own class."

"Haha, quite right."

'As far as I know, none of the top rankers obtained a skill in the Dark Forest. Is he lucky, or is he just that good...?'

Gareth laughed sheepishly, but that single revelation had changed the way he looked at Woojin.

'Not bad.'

Sensing that their gazes now held more curiosity than suspicion, Woojin chuckled. He was looking forward to seeing how they would look at him once the dungeon was over.

"You've all read the quest details, right? We are going to the Ice Cave, but this isn't the raid entry quest they're recruiting for outside the trading post."

The raid quest's objective was simply to hunt monsters and clear the Ice Cave. Woojin's quest, however, was to rescue Charlson's son from inside it.

"We can go in with five because it isn't a clearance quest... But I think our current lineup is strong enough to aim for the first-clear achievement too."

GULP.

Everyone swallowed nervously at his words.

"If anyone wants out, speak up."

'The first clear...’

Those words were enough to set their hearts pounding.

Taking their silence as agreement, Woojin spoke in a low voice.

"We leave tonight at eight."

* * *

'Come to think of it, this is my first time hunting in a party.'

The thought suddenly occurred to Woojin.

His [Solitude] Trait was partly responsible, but his unusual circumstances were the greater reason he had never considered enjoying the game in friendly company.

"... Is something wrong?"

"Nothing. I've just never hunted with such a lively crowd before."

"Huh? Don't tell me you've never hunted in a party?"

"I haven't."

Peron stared at him in disbelief.

"Then we'd better decide how to split the loot before we go in."

"Split the loot?"

"Yes. In an ordinary hunting party, people usually give the drops to whoever has the right class for them, or auction them off and split the gold among everyone except the winning bidder."

"I see."

"But you're the quest holder, boss. If you wanted, you could keep all the dungeon rewards for yourself."

At this unexpected remark from Peron, Woojin turned his head slightly.

"Especially since you have the entry quest. You could even charge the participants gold, and no one could complain. Without you, we couldn't even get started."

"Forget it. We're trying to clear a raid dungeon with five people here. I don't care about petty cash."

"Still, these things need to be settled properly."

Woojin considered Peron's words for a moment, then looked at the other two.

"I agree with him. It's dangerous, but if we succeed, the rewards will be tremendous."

Achievements and titles.

Those were things money couldn't buy.

"Then how about this? I get first pick of one item dropped by the boss."

"By all means."

"Fine by me as well."

Perhaps because Gareth had agreed so readily, Kim Chan simply nodded without a word.

"The question is how we're going to get through that..."

Everyone looked down the hill.

[Hawk Eyes activates.]

Cross-shaped light shone in Ruen's eyes.

"Five by the entrance. Another fifteen beside them. I don't see any ogres."

[GRRRRR...]

Though the falling snow obscured their view, Ruen identified the monsters precisely.

"Twenty... Can we take them all?"

"We're not hunting them. We don't know what monsters we'll find inside the Ice Cave. We can't waste time here."

"Then what?"

"Peron. You'll have to pull them. Lure the ice trolls away from the cave entrance."

"Understood."

"There's no need to fight. Head into the forest, lose them with Stealth, then rejoin us."

"Yes."

At Woojin's command, Peron took off without a moment's hesitation.

"The survey team didn't have much useful information either. We'll figure out the dungeon as we explore. Kim Chan, conserve as much mana as you can."

"... All right."

"Don't be nervous. There's no dungeon that can't be cleared!"

Gareth exclaimed, clapping the tense Kim Chan on the shoulder.

"Right. Don't worry too much. As long as one of us is alive when the boss dies, we'll still get the rewards."

"... Is there no scenario where everyone survives?"

"Who knows? That depends on you."

Woojin took the round shield off his back and strapped it to his wrist. It was a Grade C shield he had bought at the Hundred Flowers Valley trading post for the hefty sum of eighty gold. Thanks to its weight-reduction enchantment, he could easily wield it with one arm.

"Stay close."

Shielding his face, he began pushing through the blizzard.

* * *

[You have entered the Ice Cave.]

"Whew..."

The cave was warmer than expected. After sprinting several meters at full speed, every breath he exhaled came out in a cloud of white.

[Trait: Adventurer activates.]

Along with the dungeon-entry notification, a faint light washed over Woojin's body and faded.

[Congratulations.]

[This dungeon has not yet been cleared.]

[Divine blessings descend upon you brave adventurers.]

[The blessing of Rashin, God of Light, descends upon you.]

▶ Health increases by 5%.

[The blessing of Haden, God of Darkness, descends upon you.]

▶ Attack increases by 5%.

[The blessing of Mha, God of Nothingness, descends upon you.]

▶ Speed increases by 5%.

[Dungeon Board activated.]

[Special rewards will be granted for the first clear.]

"Oh... We get these too?"

Kim Chan gazed in wonder at the multicolored motes of light falling over his head.

"Ruen."

"Yes."

She nodded to Woojin and quietly began summoning spirits.

WHOOOOSH!

The ice lining the Ice Cave melted, and lesser water spirits emerged from within it.

"Find us a path."

The two spirits nodded, then flew deeper into the cave together.

"You can summon more spirits now."

"Yes. My affinity with the water element went up, perhaps because we've been hunting in the snowfields."

Perhaps pleased that he had noticed, Ruen answered in a slightly excited voice.

THUD!

It happened then.

With a dull impact, Ruen clutched her temple and staggered.

"What's wrong?"

"... The spirits were destroyed."

"What about the monsters? How many are there?"

Ruen shook her head, looking bewildered by Woojin's question.

"There was... only one."

"One?"

At that moment—

THUD. THUD. THUD.

The ground shook as though an earthquake had struck, and something walked out from deeper inside the cave.

"Don't tell me..."

Woojin stared at the enormous monster before him.

A massive yeti covered in pitch-black fur was looking down at him with red eyes.

It was Taikan.

In an ordinary dungeon, they would have to clear out lesser monsters before fighting the boss. This place was different.

"... How convenient. Damn it."

A boss-only dungeon.

There were no lesser monsters. Defeating its single boss was all it took to clear it.

The absence of lesser monsters meant—

"Everyone, get out of the way!!!!"

—that the boss was powerful enough not to need them.

[ROOOOAAAR!!!]

Taikan's roar shook the cave.