Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 20

Dungeon Journal – Episode 21

# 20

Dungeon Journal

Stray Under Elf Found

“Under Elf?”

Just because Kim Jin-woo was born and raised in the underground didn’t mean he was familiar with everything. Back then, he was just a digger mobilized for construction to expand the labyrinth’s outskirts.

Dominique, sensing his confusion, explained.

‘They are a fairy race from the underground. Their combat power isn’t as good as a Naga warrior, but they are skilled at finding their way in the dark and hiding themselves.’

“Sounds useful.”

‘Their abilities are somewhat useful, but they are not very trustworthy.’

Dominique’s face showed clear displeasure as she explained the Under Elves. Noticing this, Kim Jin-woo stared at her, and she hesitated before speaking.

‘The loyalty of the Under Elves is lighter than a feather, and their methods are despicable. They are no different from underground prostitutes without pride.’

Although Kim Jin-woo hadn’t spent much time with Dominique, this was the first time he had seen her express such emotion.

‘If you decide to accept the Under Elves, please remember that their loyalty is not to be trusted.’

He had never suffered a loss from listening to her.

“If they are so untrustworthy, why did you let them into the labyrinth instead of kicking them out?”

‘I wanted to, but they claimed to be a guest of the master, and the Under Elves are not entirely useless. I thought the decision should be made by you, Master.’

She seemed resentful but maintained her steadfastness until the end. Kim Jin-woo smiled at Dominique’s unwavering loyalty. After waiting for her to calm down, he rose from the Naga throne and said,

“Let’s go meet this Under Elf.”

***

Kim Jin-woo, expecting something different from an underground tavern, couldn’t help but chuckle at its similarity to those on the surface.

There were three or four roughly-hewn wooden tables, and a shelf filled with unidentified liquids stood against one wall, guarded by a Naga worker.

Shh! Shh!

The Naga worker, upon discovering him, flicked its tongue, expressing its respect in its own way. Kim Jin-woo casually acknowledged the greeting before turning his gaze to the unusual figure sitting at a corner table.

It was undoubtedly an Under Elf, the first guest allowed into the space reserved only for Nagas.

The elf was looking at him, its head deeply covered by a brown cloak.

Although more of the Under Elf was hidden than revealed, Kim Jin-woo could tell at a glance that its appearance was not much different from that of a human.

‘Show respect to our guest!’

Dominique shouted with a sharp hiss, displeased with the Under Elf’s passive demeanor.

However, the Under Elf ignored Dominique and slowly rose to its feet.

“Oh, master of the solitary throne, who can see through the blackest veil even while seated.”

The Under Elf removed the hood covering its head and spoke in a rather archaic tone.

“A humble wanderer with no fixed abode has dared to dwell in the darkness belonging to the master without permission.”

The words were cringeworthy, but Kim Jin-woo was more surprised by the Under Elf’s appearance than by its low, deep voice.

He had already guessed from the outline of the cloak that its appearance would not be much different from a human, but the Under Elf was even more human-like than he had imagined.

With pale skin like the dawn’s twilight and strangely black eyes, it was somewhat alien. Except for the large ears sticking out from the black sideburns, she looked like an ordinary woman.

However, her beauty was so striking that Kim Jin-woo couldn’t take his eyes off her for a while.

While he was staring blankly at her, the Under Elf prostrated itself and approached on its knees, bowing its head again.

“I humbly beseech you to allow this insignificant being to pay homage to the noble master.”

The reverence was overwhelming. After watching for a moment, the Under Elf took his silence as permission and approached, kissing the top of his foot.

Startled, he instinctively tried to step back but frowned, feeling the gesture was excessive. The Under Elf, having finished its business, spoke while still prostrate.

“Grant me the honor of introducing the wanderer’s worthless name to the master of the labyrinth.”

“Speak.”

As he played along, the Under Elf, as if receiving the greatest honor in the world, introduced itself with a moved expression.

The Under Elf’s name was Rickshasha, a somewhat strange name. Rickshasha, who called herself a wanderer, hoped to stay in the labyrinth.

‘As you wish, Master.’

Kim Jin-woo chuckled at Dominique’s words. It was irresponsible of her to say that now after all the slander she had made, but she seemed to have done her part by informing him that the Under Elf might be useful in her own way.

Eventually, Kim Jin-woo nodded.

‘A low-grade Down Gem should be enough for her salary.’

“Ah……”

It seemed to be a kind of wage. Fortunately, it wasn’t a significant amount, so Kim Jin-woo didn’t show any unsightly behavior like reversing his decision.

“Listen to Dominique here for your duties.”

Had he been influenced by her tone? He unconsciously imitated a dignified tone, and Dominique looked proud.

“Huh?”

As soon as he made the decision to accept her, Rickshasha rose and approached him. And then, without saying a word, she kissed him.

Feeling a sweet scent spreading, he was stunned for a moment. She then pulled away.

Kim Jin-woo stared at her with a bewildered expression. Rickshasha licked her lips like a cat and swore her allegiance. It seemed that Under Elves expressed their loyalty in this way.

‘Hmph!’

Dominique snorted as if she was annoyed, and Rickshasha raised the corners of her eyes as if to tease her.

Thus, a new force was added to Kim Jin-woo’s labyrinth.

***

After that, Kim Jin-woo didn’t see Rickshasha for a while. Whenever he thought of her and asked, he was always told that she was patrolling the outskirts to explore the vicinity of the labyrinth. Perhaps because she didn’t like Rickshasha from the beginning, there was a sense of intentional avoidance.

‘The value of the Under Elves lies not in staying put. They are wanderers, so I just assigned her a job that suits her. I don’t like it, but she is a capable patrol, after all.’

It sounded like an excuse, but Kim Jin-woo didn’t care much. He had entrusted the part about Rickshasha’s usefulness to Dominique anyway.

“Still, it’s been quiet lately.”

There had been more than ten attacks since the labyrinth was upgraded.

Most of them were handled by the Naga warriors, but as the creatures seeking the labyrinth grew stronger, he couldn’t help but worry.

He couldn’t summon new creatures right away because his Down Gem and dungeon energy reserves were tight.

Since there had been no significant reinforcement of forces since the addition of the Naga mage, Kim Jin-woo had no choice but to make up for it with his own strength.

He led the Naga warriors and other troops to sweep around the labyrinth.

“No matter how I think about it, it’s strange.”

Kim Jin-woo tilted his head, having just returned from battling nearby creatures and beasts as usual. Dominique, who was always there like a tongue in his mouth, quickly spoke.

“This is definitely the first floor, right? But among the creatures I see around here, there are sometimes creatures that appear on the lower floors.”

He had discovered the labyrinth when he was wandering through the underground with Jang Yun-ju. He had no memory of going down to the second floor, so the Naga’s labyrinth must have been on the first floor.

However, Dominique gave a completely unexpected answer.

‘Master, this is not the first floor.’

“What are you talking about? It was definitely the first floor. I clearly remember it now. I entered the labyrinth while wandering the first floor.”

Despite his confident answer, Dominique shook her head.

‘I have never been to the surface, so I can’t know for sure, but this is definitely not the first floor.’

Dominique wouldn’t say something strange. None of her words had been wrong so far. She said to him, who was blinking in confusion,

‘At that time, you were swallowed by the labyrinth. And when it was done, the labyrinth spat you back to your original place. A labyrinth without an owner often attracts beings who will become its master in that way.’

It was hard to believe, but he had already gone in and out of the underground countless times through the portal, so he couldn’t think it was a lie.

‘The underground is wide and endless. Even if you combine all the soil on the surface, it wouldn’t be as much as what’s here. Don’t try to understand everything. Even the deep-seated artisans have given up on that.’

At Dominique’s words, Kim Jin-woo eventually sighed and shook off his 잡념 [雜念 – japnyum, stray thoughts].

In fact, it wasn’t a bad thing if you thought about it. If the Naga’s labyrinth existed on the first floor, it would have been easily exposed to people.

And Kim Jin-woo knew very well what would happen to the upper labyrinth that was caught in the eyes of people.

The core of the labyrinth would be destroyed and moved piece by piece, and all kinds of valuables would be looted. And the Nagas would be brutally murdered and dismantled.

That was their way that humans had learned after a long war.

“Still, it would be good to know the location. It doesn’t make sense if I don’t even know what floor I’m on.”

At his words, Dominique’s eyes lit up. She rarely showed a sly face, but she was probably going to change Rickshasha’s mission to all-out exploration. Looking at her, he added a word.

“She’s a wanderer, so she must have seen a lot. Have her wait when she returns from patrol. If I ask her directly, I might get some information.”

Dominique looked openly disappointed at his words.

Kim Jin-woo left the labyrinth and had dinner with his family for the first time in a while.

Whether the time was right, Hyun-ji was also home for the first time in a while, so they could have dinner together. Unlike his worries, she seemed to be doing well.

His father and mother’s newly opened chicken restaurant had also overcome the 경영난 [gyeongyeongnan – financial difficulties] and finally started making a profit, so Kim Jin-woo could rest assured.

So he could focus on exploration with peace of mind. Exploring around the Naga’s labyrinth would make the labyrinth’s defenses weak.

So he decided to go through the Paju Gate and roam the upper floors alone.

He had been worried about the Down Gems he had left behind while taking care of Lee Jun-young and his party.

Before entering the underground alone, he visited the Naga’s labyrinth again.

“Where is Rickshasha? Hasn’t she returned yet?”

He thought he should make sure what floor his labyrinth was on before starting the exploration in earnest.

When Kim Jin-woo looked for Rickshasha, Dominique said with a firm face.

‘Master, this is the heart of the labyrinth, where the core is located. It is also where you reside. It’s not a good idea to bring an untrustworthy Under Elf into such an important place.’

Dominique’s words were full of pride. She seemed so proud of the fact that she, as the closest aide to Kim Jin-woo, the master of the labyrinth, could come and go to the owner’s room at any time.

It was a childish act at first glance, but it wasn’t wrong if you thought about it.

Unlike the Nagas he summoned himself, Rickshasha was a wanderer who had flowed in from the outside. The underground was too dangerous to believe in a mere oath of allegiance.

“Then I’ll go.”

Rickshasha, whom he found in that way, was sitting at a corner table as she had been when they first met.

One thing that had changed was that she, who had been wearing a cloak from head to toe, was now wearing a somewhat lighter outfit.

Wearing a black vest and pants made of leather of unknown material, she boasted a figure that could not be hidden despite the tight fit.

It was definitely a good sight to see, but he didn’t come to her now to admire her figure.

“Rickshasha.”

Rickshasha, startled by Kim Jin-woo’s voice, jumped up and knelt on the spot.

“Oh, solitary king.”

Kim Jin-woo, worried that she would be too polite and the words would be too long again, cut her off.

“You said you were a wanderer before you came here, right?”

“That is correct.”

“Then do you know what floor this is?”

He had a sense of expectation that she might know since she had wandered the underground aimlessly. But Rickshasha’s answer was not what he wanted.

“I have heard rumors that humans divide the world under the ground in that way, but I, who am just a wanderer, do not know the criteria for counting. Please punish this useless 종 [jong – servant].”

When he showed a disappointed face, she prostrated herself and apologized as if she had committed a crime worthy of death.

“Okay. More than that, can you tell me what you’ve seen around here?”

Perhaps he could find out what floor this was based on her information. She blinked, seemingly thinking for a moment, and began to explain.

She first explained the creatures and beasts that lived in the vicinity. There were names he had never heard before and names he knew well, but there was nothing distinctive enough to be a clue.

Even after talking for a long time, Kim Jin-woo’s face did not show a satisfactory light, so this time she listed the nearby geography that remained in her memory.

But there was still no clue.

Kim Jin-woo, disappointed, was about to stop Rickshasha from speaking when she said something unexpected at that moment.

“Wait a minute. Say it again.”

Rickshasha said what she had just said without changing a single word.

“There is a labyrinth ruled by a 교룡 [gyoryong – a scaled dragon] less than four days’ walk from here.”

He hadn’t misheard. Kim Jin-woo frowned at the cruel reality.

“Damn it.”

A curse word came out of his mouth. He couldn’t find the clue he was desperately looking for, and he only heard bad news.

There was no worse news than the fact that there was another labyrinth near his labyrinth.

Kim Jin-woo, who had been working as a digger on the outskirts of the underground artisan’s labyrinth before ascending to the surface, knew very well.

He knew better than anyone how belligerent the owners of the labyrinths were and how they treated the labyrinths with weak forces.

In the first place, the existence of a digger was often mobilized to create invasion routes to other labyrinths rather than to expand the outskirts of the labyrinth.

As a result, he had witnessed the war between the labyrinths before his eyes.

And of course, he could see how terrible the war between the labyrinths was.

“Four days away is like right in front of us, isn’t it?”

Suddenly, he felt a sense of crisis. He, who had been trying to grow the labyrinth without overdoing it for revenge, felt as if a fire had fallen on his feet.

He became anxious at the thought that his labyrinth might have already been discovered.

That’s because 암상인 [amsangin – black marketeer] and Rickshasha had come to the labyrinth. There was no way that the owner of another labyrinth would not know the Naga’s labyrinth.

He needed a way. The Naga’s labyrinth was still lacking in many ways to overcome the invasion of another labyrinth.

“Dominique!”

Dominique, who had been waiting outside because she didn’t want to see Rickshasha’s face, rushed in. She looked quite surprised at his urgent voice.

“Immediately organize a group and follow Rickshasha.”

‘What suddenly…….’

“There’s a labyrinth nearby. And it seems like it’s not an empty labyrinth.”

This time, Dominique was also surprised, and her already pale face turned even whiter. She also knew very well how fierce the conflict between the labyrinths was and how harsh it was for the losers.

“It would be impossible to grasp the exact size or grade of the labyrinth, but you should be able to compare its power with our labyrinth.”

‘When shall we depart?’

Kim Jin-woo answered firmly at Dominique’s words.

“Right now!”