Chapter 46

BOOM! BOOM!

KABOOM!

The Essence Stones infused with Ruen's blood began to explode.

"Everyone, get back!!!"

At her shout, the others retreated. The stones, swollen like balloons, burst, and the poisonous cloud they released engulfed the enormous prey before them.

[Snow Demon Taikan has been poisoned by the Essence Stones.]

["GRAAAAAH!!!"]

Trapped in the poisonous cloud, Taikan screamed as though in agony.

'It's working.'

The creature panted heavily, its long tongue hanging out. But the harder it breathed, the more poison from the Essence Stones seeped into its body.

["Grrkh... Grrkh..."]

Its skin turned blue, and the veins all over its body began to turn purple.

'That's how it looked in the other world.'

Woojin's gaze sharpened at the sight. Just as he had suspected, they must have used Essence Stones to kill Taikan in the other world as well.

["I've never seen anything like this before, though. From what I know, Taikan's hide is supposed to be so tough that even a sword can't pierce it... Yet its skin is so thin."]

Woojin recalled what Irurin had said as she examined Taikan's taxidermied corpse in the other world.

'The poison from the Essence Stones weakened Taikan.'

He knew instinctively that he could not let this opportunity slip away. He shot forward, charging toward Taikan through the poisonous cloud.

"W-wait a moment!!"

"It's dangerous!!"

The others shouted in alarm at the sight, but he only picked up speed.

He held his breath, but the acrid poison invaded his body through every opening.

"Damn it!!"

Pain gripped his heart as though his pain settings had stopped working. He felt ready to collapse at any moment, but he planted his feet with all his strength and leaped.

'Not yet.'

His vision blurred, and his skin stung.

["Grrkh...?"]

Concealed within the poisonous mist, Woojin reached Taikan's feet.

At that moment, he tightly gripped the pendant beneath his clothes.

[Using Pilgrim’s Cross.]

▶ Purification activates.

A faint light enveloped him with the notification. His blurred vision cleared, and his labored breathing returned to normal. But the relief from pain lasted only a moment. The poisonous cloud had yet to dissipate, and it began invading his body once more.

"Hup."

It was only an instant, but it was enough. Drawing a breath, he adjusted his stance and his grip on the sword.

[Using Spirit Channeling.]

▶ Attack power increases to 1.5 times its normal value for 30 seconds.

As the ancient orc's spirit vanished, the muscles throughout his body began to swell.

[Using Power Strike.]

KABOOM!

Woojin turned his sword sideways and swung with all his strength. With a deafening crash, the blade embedded itself in Taikan's leg.

SPLURT!

When he pulled it out, red blood began spraying like a fountain from the gaping wound. Unlike before, when he had failed to leave so much as a scratch, the creature's poisoned skin sliced open all too easily.

["GRAAAAAH!!!"]

The creature screamed and clenched its fist.

[Taikan is enraged.]

"Shoot!!!"

At Woojin's shout, Gareth instinctively fired his crossbow.

THUNK! THUNK! THUNK-THUNK!

Bolts fired in rapid succession buried themselves in Taikan's arms and legs.

THUD!

Their force sent Taikan crashing into the wall.

Dragon Heaven, First Gate - Severance

CRACKLE!

Fierce lightning erupted from Woojin's blade.

"Hyaaaaah!!!"

He raised his sword overhead and brought it down with all his strength on the wound opened by [Power Strike].

CRUNCH!

With a sound like a great tree being felled, Taikan's leg was severed.

["GRAAAAAH!!!"]

The creature screamed as though in pain and began thrashing wildly.

WHOOSH!

At that moment, the flesh on the leg Woojin had cut began falling away in pieces, as though sliced by blades. Woojin hastily turned toward the sudden attack and saw Kim Chan.

"Don't worry. Using this much won't leave me short on mana."

Before Woojin could ask, Kim Chan answered as though he already knew the question and flicked his staff hand.

WHOOSH!

Wind rose around him once more, drawing in the poisonous cloud surrounding Taikan.

"Wind Cutter."

At his command, poison-laden blades of wind once again targeted Taikan's severed leg.

'I wondered how his magic was working... So that's how he attacked.'

Woojin could not help admiring Kim Chan's ingenuity.

Mages were rare not only because the incantations themselves were difficult, but also because controlling magic was no easy task. Even throwing a ball at a target was difficult; magic was harder still. Some spells struck their targets automatically, but higher-level magic demanded the mage's control.

For that reason, most mages had their hands full simply using spells in their completed form. Yet Kim Chan had directed the wind from beyond the poison's reach to create a Wind Cutter infused with the poisonous cloud.

'No wonder the Naian Clan wanted to recruit him.'

He was not merely an ambitious fellow eager to climb higher. He had the talent to match.

"Hmm."

Woojin looked Kim Chan over.

["ROOOOOAR!!!"]

It happened then. As though making one final, desperate effort, the one-legged Taikan planted both hands on the ground and launched itself upward.

"Watch out!!!"

Its massive body rose into the air and began descending toward Kim Chan's head.

"Ngh!!"

Kim Chan ran as fast as he could, but the shadow that had appeared overhead in an instant only grew larger.

"Duck!!!"

BANG!

A gunshot, utterly out of place in [Evil Tale], rang through the dungeon.

HISSS...

Smoke curled from the tip of the crossbow.

CRACK!

The leveled crossbow shattered into pieces.

["Grrkh...!"]

Taikan's head snapped backward, and its enormous body was hurled away in midair.

"All right. Let's see this through to the end."

Gareth discarded what remained of his crossbow—nothing but its grip—and drew the two axes at his waist.

["Grrkh... Grrkh..."]

Woojin gazed at Taikan lying on the ground.

'The Essence Stones' poison weakened its skin, but still... He put a hole through its head with a single shot.'

The power was tremendous. Whether that came solely from the hidden Hunter class or from the special crossbow he had wielded, Woojin could not tell. Either way, it was astonishing.

"E-eek!!!"

It happened then. The moment Taikan fell, Chason, who had been cowering in a corner of the room, began running toward the exit as though he had been waiting for his chance.

"Stop!!!"

The others shouted urgently, but he kept running blindly without so much as looking back.

"That monster's down!! We have to run now!!!"

Their faces twisted at the gnome's shout.

["GRAAAAAH!!!"]

Despite the hole through its head, Taikan sprang upright with a ferocious roar.

"...!!!"

Chason froze in shock at the sight.

"That idiot...!!"

Seeing him stop directly in front of Taikan, Gareth hurled himself forward.

"... Urgh!!"

Just before the monster's hand could crush Chason, Gareth shoved him aside by the narrowest margin.

"Aaaaagh!!"

Caught in the creature's hand, Gareth screamed in agony.

["Grrkh..."]

Taikan's lips twitched at the sight. The sharp teeth visible between them betrayed its fury.

SPLAT!

It tightened its grip, and Gareth's body burst.

[Party member 'Gareth' has died.]

[Time remaining for Divine Resurrection - 3 minutes]

[Afterward, automatic resurrection will occur at the shrine.]

"E-eek...!!"

His legs trembling violently, Chason collapsed where he stood.

'If he dies, the quest fails.'

"Tch...!!"

With no other choice, Woojin ran toward Taikan.

"Boss! Duck!!"

Just then, Peron's voice came from beyond the doorway, and Woojin instinctively turned.

CLATTER...!

BANG! BOOM!

Something Peron had thrown sailed over his head and rolled beneath Taikan's foot.

CRUNCH!

Enormous iron spikes erupted from the floor.

["GRAAAAAH!!"]

The spikes drove crosswise into Taikan's remaining ankle. It screamed as though in agony and rolled across the floor.

"Move!!"

Woojin leaped over Chason and closed in against the creature's chest.

"Hyaaaaah!!!"

He thrust his sword into Taikan's chest.

CRACK...! CRRRACK...!

The sword moved slowly downward. As the once-tough skin split apart, the heart inside came into view.

["Grrkh... Grrkh..."]

The fallen Taikan merely heaved with ragged breaths, as though it no longer had the strength to resist.

"When did you even prepare traps?"

"I just had some left over."

"Oh, from back then?"

"Haha..."

Seeing Peron's sheepish expression, Woojin chuckled too. To think the traps prepared to kill him would end up being used like this.

"Good work, Peron."

The traps brought from the central continent had no level requirement for use, but their power was calibrated for players level fifty and above. The reason traps could not be used in dungeons was that killing a monster with one yielded no rewards.

Taikan, however, was different. It would only die for good once its heart was destroyed with magic.

"If we can use traps from the central continent... wouldn't that make raid dungeons a little too easy?"

"Not really. The trap only worked because we'd already weakened it with Essence Stones. Our strategy probably wasn't the standard way to clear it. Hidden Spots disappear after they're first discovered, remember?"

"Ah, that makes sense."

Peron nodded at Woojin's answer.

"By the way, what are Essence Stones?"

"Oh, those are..."

As though she had been waiting for the question, Ruen hurried over and pointed to the magic circle.

"Let's finish this."

Leaving the two of them behind, Woojin addressed Kim Chan, who nodded tensely.

SLICE!

Woojin cut off the remaining arms and leg. Its heart was still beating, and it could start rampaging again at any moment.

"Phew..."

Kim Chan held a hand over the enormous heart visible amid the red blood.

HUMMM...!

His mana began flowing into the heart.

["Grrkh... Grrkh...!!"]

Just as Woojin had expected, Taikan began struggling madly. But with its limbs already severed, its movements were merely pitiful.

BURST!

The heart turned blazing red and swelled larger and larger before bursting like a balloon.

[You have defeated Snow Demon Taikan.]

"W-we did it...!"

At the notification ringing in his ears, Kim Chan threw both hands into the air and shouted.

[Congratulations.]

[You have leveled up.]

▶ 49 → 50

Pure white motes of light scattered around Kim Chan.

[Congratulations.]

[You have met the minimum requirements to travel to the central continent.]

[Embark on a new adventure.]

"Congratulations. Looks like you've graduated from the Dark Forest."

"Th-thank..."

BOOM!

Just then, a sudden explosion sent both men hastily reaching for their weapons.

"H-haha. Sorry. It just suddenly blew up."

Pointing at the Essence Stones remaining around the magic circle, Peron scratched his head sheepishly.

"Urk?!"

"Careful."

Woojin pulled him back by the nape.

"Exploded Essence Stones release poison. Even a little whiff can kill you instantly."

"Gasp..."

At his words, Peron hurriedly backed away.

-Never mind that. Could you hurry up and check the rewards? The curiosity is killing me.

Gareth's message appeared in the party chat. He had resurrected at the shrine in Hundred Flowers Valley, but the ice trolls crowding the entrance prevented him from returning to the Ice Cave.

The first raid dungeon to appear in the Dark Forest. Just what would its reward chest hold...? Everyone wanted to know.

Footsteps echoed as Woojin walked toward the reward chest before Taikan's corpse. Unlike any chest he had seen so far, this iron chest was lavishly decorated with all manner of patterns.

[Would you like to inspect the reward chest?]

Woojin slowly opened the lid.