Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 52

Dungeon Journal-52

# 52

Dungeon Journal

Episode 53

Looking at the map leading from the Naga Labyrinth, through the old Kyo Ryong Labyrinth site, then through the Gluttony Labyrinth to the passage leading to the 8th floor, Kim Jin-woo realized something.

The Naga Labyrinth was located on the outer edge of the 9th floor. Generally, the closer you get to the passage leading downwards, the stronger the creatures and labyrinths become.

In the end, that meant the labyrinths he had encountered on the 9th floor so far weren’t truly representative of the 9th floor’s potential.

“Master.”

Lost in thought, Kim Jin-woo relaxed his frown at Rickshasha’s voice and looked back at the Naga riders.

“Good work. You can head back now.”

“As you command.”

Rickshasha and the Naga riders had been instructed from the start to only accompany him to the 9th floor, so they turned around without complaint.

It was somewhat regrettable to send back Rickshasha, who was skilled in stealth and reconnaissance, but with searchers flocking to the underground, it was impossible to bring a non-human like her along.

“Be careful not to get lost.”

“This humble servant will ensure the master’s path through the labyrinth is secure.”

Still, with Rickshasha’s experience wandering the underground, he wasn’t too worried. Kim Jin-woo watched the Naga riders and Rickshasha disappear into the distance, then turned.

“Fortunately, it’s quiet near the passage.”

Woosuh, who had wriggled over from beyond the passage and stuck a lump of mucus to his side, told him about the situation on the 8th floor, whether he had sent out a scout or not.

“Still, caution is advised, as the 8th floor is uncharted territory, even for me. Perhaps even your esteemed name may hold no sway there.”

Listening to Woosuh’s advice, Kim Jin-woo immediately gathered his party and crossed the passage to the 8th floor.

“Angela?”

“Yes. There are no living creatures in this area. If anything appears, it will be something neither alive nor dead.”

Woosuh’s face visibly relaxed at Angela’s words.

Kim Jin-woo asked why he was so intimidated, even as the master of the 9th floor labyrinth. Woosuh drooped his shoulders, explaining that he had never ventured to another floor in his life.

“That’s not unusual. Underground beings rarely leave the floor they were born on. The further they stray, the weaker they become.”

It was the first time he’d heard this. Come to think of it, Woosuh’s body seemed smaller than before, even though they had only just left the passage.

“That’s why the surface dwellers were able to win the war with the underground.”

Even Woosuh, the master of the 9th floor labyrinth, was affected like this, so the other creatures must be even more so. He clicked his tongue, and Woosuh and Angela looked serious.

“Master, although we surrendered through an agreement, none of the masters of the deep layers, who represent the true power of the underground, participated in the war. They only sent a few subordinates. If they had participated, even considering the restrictions, the surface would never have claimed victory.”

“The surface dwellers have never breached the lower levels. They’re arrogant to celebrate defeating the uncivilized rabble at the entrance.”

Did the underground beings have their own pride? Kim Jin-woo smiled wryly as he watched them get angry and talk.

Perhaps each side had entered the battle with handicaps. The underground didn’t commit any of the deep layer masters, and the surface couldn’t use their ultimate weapon.

“Anyway, you’re saying Woosuh becomes useless as we ascend.”

Kim Jin-woo said with a smile, trying to divert Angela and Woosuh, who were more worked up than necessary.

“It’s even sadder because I can’t deny it.”

Woosuh soon shed mucus again and became despondent. Angela laughed at Woosuh and stuck close to Kim Jin-woo.

“I don’t care about the floor as long as I’m by your side, Master.”

Woosuh shouted again, enraged by her boastful words.

“Your vampire clan can’t set foot on another’s land without the master’s invitation, and you can’t cross water without the master! You’re the one who can’t do anything alone, so who are you laughing at!”

Compared to Woosuh, who was clearly resentful, Angela’s face was full of laughter, and it was clear she was just teasing. Kim Jin-woo sighed as he watched the scene.

“We’re wasting too much time. Stop the chatter and let’s go.”

Now that Yoon-hee’s guiding ability had been shared and the 8th floor map had been updated, there was no reason to delay any longer.

“Yoon-hee, lead the way.”

Yoon-hee, who had been standing still without a word even amidst the commotion caused by Woosuh and Angela, began to move only after receiving the order.

No, she was about to move. Angela stopped her the moment Yoon-hee tried to step forward.

“Master.”

“What is it?”

“We’re surrounded.”

The content was serious, considering her expression was devoid of tension.

“How many?”

“About fifty, I think. Their hearts are beating wildly, so they must have rushed here.”

“You can tell that?”

“Only for living beings.”

Kim Jin-woo looked at Woosuh, seeing her give a strangely eerie smile.

“Woosuh, you can hide with Yoon-hee, right?”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Woosuh, wriggling and breaking down his form, swallowed Yoon-hee whole. Then, he stuck to the wall and became one with it.

“Oh.”

Kim Jin-woo, impressed by Woosuh’s new ability, said to Angela.

“Let’s go.”

[Special ability ‘Camouflage’ has been activated.]

[The camouflage ability has become stealth by partially sharing Angela’s ability.]

[Stealth is even more secretive than camouflage. There will be very few beings who can find you, whose heartbeat and presence have completely disappeared.]

Message windows popped up as soon as he activated the camouflage ability. Kim Jin-woo’s eyes widened at the effect, which was more like erasing his entire existence than disguising it.

Angela smiled brightly as she watched him.

“I told you, I’d be useful.”

Her body, like Kim Jin-woo’s, began to melt into the darkness.

***

“Sniff, something definitely came up from the 9th floor around here.”

“But where did those guys who came up go?”

The monsters, who were talking loudly, looked like boars standing on two feet.

“I know, right? They were definitely here.”

“Did they hide somewhere?”

“Sniff, if I could hide and avoid my nose, wouldn’t I be nicknamed ‘Big Nose’?”

It seemed that these were the guests Angela was talking about. As Kim Jin-woo, hidden in the darkness, examined the giant boars, Angela’s telepathy came into his head.

[Ugh! They’re really ugly.]

He thought she was going to say something profound, but it was just useless chatter. He frowned and sighed inwardly, and Angela belatedly continued.

[Those two are the ones with the strongest life force.]

It couldn’t be helped. Even to Kim Jin-woo, those two boars looked like at least heroes (powerful individuals).

It was probably those two who were the leaders of the creatures that had surrounded his party.

“Sniff, I was going to feast on the meat of the 9th floor guys after a long time.”

“We have to look more. Do you think the chief will leave us alone if we go back like this? We brought this many warriors of the tribe.”

Listening to their conversation, it seemed the passage connecting the 8th and 9th floors was unfortunately located in the territory of these boars.

Otherwise, there was no way so many boars would have gathered so soon after he came up to the 8th floor.

[Master, what are you going to do? Ah, frustrating. Just think of talking to me in your head…]

[Like this?]

Angela giggled, happy with the telepathy ability, which was easier than he thought. The sound of laughter echoing in his head gave him a very strange feeling.

[More than that, what are you going to do? If we pass by like this, it seems like we’ll keep getting caught from behind.]

[What else.]

The moment he finished speaking, Kim Jin-woo was already behind the boars.

“If you find a being who can talk, you should have them guide you.”

This time, it wasn’t telepathy but his own voice. The boars sniffed and cried out at Kim Jin-woo’s sudden appearance.

“Squeak! I found it! This guy is that guy…”

The boar, who was excited and crying, sniffed Kim Jin-woo’s scent and then closed his mouth.

“You can talk, so you must have intelligence, and if you have intelligence, you’ll know who I am, right?”

The baron’s seal on Kim Jin-woo’s finger shone brightly as he said that.

[The baron’s unique ability, ‘Authority of a Low-Ranking Noble,’ has been activated.]

[If a being has intelligence, they cannot resist that authority. However, if the opponent is stronger than the baron himself, they may attack the seal in reverse.]

[Your charisma is not enough to be effective on all beings. But it was enough to subdue the current opponent. The opponent succumbs to the authority of a low-ranking noble.]

***

“Woosuh.”

Kim Jin-woo almost passed Woosuh because he was so well disguised. When he called out in a low voice, Woosuh belatedly found his original color and spat out Yoon-hee.

“Ugh.”

Even Yoon-hee, who rarely expressed emotions, seemed to have had a terrible time being buried in mucus.

As she shook off the lumps of mucus on her body, Woosuh made a fuss about picking them up again and sticking them to his body.

“It’s not replenished well here… More than that, what are those pigs?”

Woosuh, who belatedly discovered the boars, tilted his head and then became happy.

“Is it lunch?”

At those words, the boars rolled their eyes and drooled.

“No. They’re guides.”

***

The boars were said to be warriors of the ‘Big Tusk’ boar tribe, who were stationed right in front of the passage connecting the 9th and 8th floors. Interestingly, they referred to their labyrinth as a village, but listening to the story, it seemed the labyrinth itself was one big village.

“Sniff. Still, I have to report to the chief before I go.”

“Your subordinates went anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”

“Those guys are so stupid that I can’t trust them.”

The person who was speaking didn’t seem very smart himself, but Kim Jin-woo didn’t bother to point that out.

After all, what he expected from the boar was guidance, not an 8th floor tour guide.

“But why did a precious person from the deep layers come all the way here… Nobles have never come up here, even during the war…”

The boar asked with curiosity, as if the creatures and beasts that had been pushed out of the territory competition occasionally crawled up the passage.

“If you try to know too much about a precious person’s affairs, you won’t die in your own bed.”

The boar quickly closed his mouth at Woosuh’s words, who had somehow become particularly indifferent from the moment he heard that the boars were not lunch.

“Hmm, Master?”

“I’m feeling it too.”

Angela, who had stopped while they were talking, called Kim Jin-woo.

“There’s no way I wouldn’t know when they’re rushing over so loudly.”

Kim Jin-woo’s party stopped and prepared for battle at the sound of footsteps shaking the ground from afar.

“Probably pigs, right?”

As expected, dozens of boars with particularly large tusks appeared.

“Ugh. I thought this would happen, so I said I was going to report.”

The boar who had been caught as a guide complained, and the boar with a particularly large nose next to him replied.

“He probably forgot that a precious person had arrived on the way.”

Listening to the boars’ conversation, it was getting worse and worse. Still, he wondered if they could be that stupid, but looking at the way things were going, it seemed likely.

But it seemed that not all boars were stupid.

“Master, there’s a particularly strong boar hiding beyond them.”

Angela said, pointing beyond the boars who had crowded in and completely blocked the passage.

“I think it’s probably the chief. If not, I can’t explain this much vitality.”

It seemed there was a particularly strong boar among the newly appeared boars. At Angela’s words, Kim Jin-woo narrowed his eyes and examined the group of boars, and indeed, he saw one head sticking out in the middle.

He seemed to be hiding in his own way, but his body was so big that one head was sticking out above the other boars.

“Is it a strategy in its own way?”

As Kim Jin-woo shook his head, the boars who had been caught earlier stepped forward and shouted.