Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 133

Dungeon Chronicle – Part 134

Down Jam was indeed a drug. Jung Chan-sik’s decision, initially intended for mental stability, quickly led to Lee Jun-young’s complete ruin.

Jung Chan-sik belatedly realized the severity of the situation and stopped administering Down Jam, but by then, Lee Jun-young’s addiction had already become severe.

The situation was beyond control; there was no way to manage her.

Even in a deteriorated state, she retained some strength. Although her mind was completely broken, her body seemed to have become even stronger due to the drug’s effects. When they stopped administering Down Jam and tried to restrain her, she became violent, causing a significant disturbance.

In the end, Jung Chan-sik temporarily calmed the situation by adjusting the dosage of Down Jam, knowing it was only a temporary solution.

Perhaps that was why Jung Chan-sik readily handed her over to Kim Jin-woo, who volunteered to take responsibility for her, as if he were shedding a heavy burden. Afterwards, for some reason, he became hostile towards Kim Jin-woo.

And that strained relationship continued to this day.

Her turbid eyes were unfocused and hazy, and her parched lips were half-open, gasping for shallow breaths.

Her disheveled hair, long unkempt and tangled, couldn’t hide her slovenly appearance. Her once striking features were gone, replaced by a gaunt face and emaciated body, resembling a mummy.

That was Lee Jun-young’s current state.

“Ugh…”

Kim Jin-woo, watching her pant like a beast while letting out suppressed groans, sighed and turned away.

“Keep watching her.”

At Kim Jin-woo’s quiet command, the air momentarily rippled [indicating the presence of a hidden observer or guardian].

“Hoo.”

He left the stone chamber and sighed once more.

It had already been half a year since he forcibly brought Lee Jun-young to the underground, but she still hadn’t regained her senses. Her craving for Down Jam had only grown stronger, and her reason was fading away.

His heart was heavy.

He realized that mere isolation was not the solution. Down Jam’s addictiveness was like a poison that wouldn’t fade away with time.

But what could he do? She was already bound to the underground system and could not leave.

The scraps of the lowest grade Down Jam were the price of buying Lee Jun-young’s entire life. That was enough to tempt her during her withdrawal symptoms.

And she became Kim Jin-woo’s one hundred and twenty-fourth vassal [a subordinate or servant bound by oath].

***

“Master!”

Kim Jin-woo, who had been walking aimlessly through the fortress’s corridors lost in thought, stopped at the urgent voice calling out to him.

Dominique was running towards him with hurried steps from afar.

“It’s an enemy attack!”

Kim Jin-woo’s face, which had been somewhat distorted due to his complicated thoughts, instantly turned cold.

“Which direction this time?”

At his voice, as cold as his expression, Dominique grabbed his hand and said, “Three labyrinths in the west were attacked simultaneously!”

“Gather the troops!”

The quiet fortress instantly became bustling with war preparations. Naga dragon knights were frantically pulling out the guardian dragons, and warriors, fighters, priests, and mages all gathered in the plaza.

Meanwhile, Kim Jin-woo was receiving a report from Dominique.

“This one is the most urgent. The other two can defend themselves to some extent. At least they can hold out until we can send reinforcements. But this place is in a dangerous state because it hasn’t recovered from the losses of the last battle.”

“Of all times…”

“It could be intentional, or it could be a coincidence. I’ve already sent orders to nearby labyrinths to provide support, but they probably won’t send more than a small force, as they don’t know what might happen if they leave their labyrinths empty.”

Thanks to the countless battles fought over the past year, the 9th floor labyrinths had become quite accustomed to large-scale battles. But in this case, that experience became a liability.

Because there were more than a few labyrinths that were destroyed after being emptied.

“I’ll go over there first. I’ll drive out the enemies here and then support the other labyrinths.”

“No! It’s too dangerous for you to go there yourself!”

Dominique rarely contradicted him.

“They’re just a force that couldn’t even conquer three labyrinths. Dragon knights are going with me, and warriors and fighters are going too. What’s dangerous about that?”

“Master, please remember the last battle.”

Enemies knew very well who they needed to eliminate first to bring down the 9th floor.

Thanks to that, Kim Jin-woo had been trapped in ambushes and encirclements several times in the past year, facing near-death experiences.

“Instead, send the King of Mirror Specters again this time. He’ll do your role better than anyone else.”

After repeated dangers, Dominique devised a method of using the King of Mirror Specters, who could disguise himself as Kim Jin-woo.

In fact, Espetos had excellently performed his role as his proxy, leading several battles to victory.

“No. I’m going myself this time.”

Kim Jin-woo’s mind was complicated because of his meeting with Jung Chan-sik and the matter with Lee Jun-young.

He was almost at the point where he’d rather run wild without thinking. So, despite Dominique’s repeated dissuasion, he didn’t give in to his insistence on going to war himself.

“Then take Crow and Daybreak Chicken with you.”

“I was going to do that anyway.”

Dominique, who couldn’t break his stubbornness, compromised by helping him go to war with Morrigan, one of the strongest on the 9th floor, accompanying him.

“Preparation is complete!”

While he was arguing with her, Quantus ran over to inform him that the troops were all gathered. Indeed, the past battles had not been in vain, and the battle preparations were completed in less than 30 minutes after the summons was issued.

“Oh, is it war?”

Morigan, who had heard the news and rushed over, raised the corners of her lips. To the war-crazed crow, battle seemed more like a festival.

Heimdall, standing beside her, was also showing clear signs of excitement rather than tension and fear about the battle.

“I’ll give you a chance to run wild this time.”

When he told them that with excited faces, the crow and the Daybreak Chicken became even more excited, their faces flushed red.

“Let’s go! It’s a sortie!”

“Hah!”

Kim Jin-woo shouted in front of the troops gathered in the plaza. The Nagas responded by pounding their chests in unison.

“Portal.”

At his quiet whisper, a door to space opened in the middle of the plaza.

“Please be careful.”

“I’ll be back.”

Kim Jin-woo, who was seen off by Dominique, crossed the portal. And following him, 50 dragon knights and 100 warriors and fighters crossed the portal in turn.

“Your Majesty!”

Someone who had been waiting in the owner’s room, sensing the signs of the portal opening, ran and knelt at his feet.

“The situation is not good.”

He now had over a hundred vassal labyrinths under his command, so he couldn’t remember each of their owners. But even to his eyes, the owner of the labyrinth kneeling at his feet was familiar.

The passage connected to another underground, which had been fixed in the past year, and countless labyrinths that couldn’t withstand the front line formed beyond it had either migrated to the rear of the front line or been destroyed.

And the places were filled by the owners of labyrinths who had migrated from other floors.

But among them, there was an owner of a labyrinth who stayed in his place without migrating, and that was the man in front of him, Trindal, the King of the Knights of the Void.

“The enemy’s numbers are four hundred, and the number of enemies who appear to be hero-level or higher is about twenty. A hundred troops are fighting against them, but the situation is not good.”

The price of keeping his place was high. Trindal, who was once one of the strongest on the 9th floor, now had only less than a hundred knights under his command, and even they were not in good condition.

“But I will definitely overcome it, so please watch over me.”

But even so, Trindal was still full of fighting spirit.

“If I was just going to watch, I wouldn’t have come here first in the first place.”

Kim Jin-woo dismissed Trindal’s words with a single word.

“Morrigan. Heimdall.”

“I’m listening.”

Morigan answered, raising the corners of her eyes. Heimdall also didn’t answer, but he was waiting for his words with his eyes straight.

“Lead the troops and annihilate the enemies.”

“Can I kill them all?”

“Then were you thinking of sending them back alive? What a stupid question.”

“You got angry last time because I killed them all.”

Kim Jin-woo frowned at Morrigan’s nonchalant retort.

“That’s because you annihilated even our allies back then.”

“There are so many drifters looking for the 9th floor that I couldn’t tell who was an ally and who was an enemy. So I just chose the easy way.”

He shook his head at the excuse that didn’t even sound like an excuse.

“Withdraw the Knights of the Void. You might get caught up in it.”

Kim Jin-woo ordered Trindal, as he seemed ready to run wild at first glance. Trindal glared at Morrigan with a resentful face and bowed his head.

“Then I’ll be back.”

With the sound of fluttering wings, Morrigan disappeared. Following her, Heimdall skipped away, and the dragon knights and Nagas ran towards the battlefield again.

“Let’s talk when I get back.”

Only Trindal, who remained in the owner’s room, dropped his head with a resentful face, excluded from the battle.

***

Kieeeek!

Kim Jin-woo frowned as he arrived at the battlefield. The sharp roar that pierced his ears was as ugly as the distorted appearance of the enemies.

The enemies, who were once dignified beings of the underground, had their bodies half-collapsed due to the depletion of Down Jam.

Thanks to that, their features and limbs were grotesquely pressed and collapsed, making them look like failures made by Valishus [likely a reference to a creator or experimenter of monsters].

“Your Majesty! The enemies’ strength is stronger than expected!”

Quantus prostrated himself and shouted. As he said, the enemies were showing unexpected resistance against the Nagas, who had grown dramatically through the past battles.

Kuaaaak!

But that was it. As soon as black feathers fluttered, the already grotesque enemies were now completely covered in blood and splattered in all directions.

Following that, the high and unpleasant cry of the Daybreak Chicken echoed, and one corner of the enemies began to collapse.

“Focus on minimizing damage, and leave the main attack to the Crow and the Daybreak Chicken.”

If he wanted to push them forcibly, it wouldn’t be impossible to handle them with the Nagas alone, but there was no reason to bear the consumption of troops now that Down Jam had become scarce.

So Kim Jin-woo ordered the Nagas to focus on defense.

Quantus, who usually jumps up even in his sleep at the word battle, did not object to his order.

“Then I’ll go too.”

Kim Jin-woo, who was watching the dragon knights stomping their feet in place and threatening the enemies, said that and jumped into the battle.

The Commander of Conquest, who had become incomparably stronger in the past year, once again crossed the center of the battlefield and ran.

“Liar!”

Morigan spat out a disgruntled voice as she watched Kim Jin-woo split an enemy in half. But Kim Jin-woo ignored her and looked at the message window that appeared in front of him.

[The Commander of the Battlefield…]