Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 219

Dungeon Journal – Episode 220

# 220

Dungeon Journal

80. New Creature

“We’ve received reports of creatures emerging from the west side of the Great Labyrinth, outside the maze! Our analysis indicates these beings have never been found in any layer of the Underworld!”

Kim Jin-woo shot up from his throne at Dominick’s report.

“Are you certain?”

“Absolutely! The creatures, a mix of goat and human-bird features, are unlike anything we’ve ever encountered in the Underworld. Moreover, the Under Elf patrol leader who made contact reported they were unable to communicate.”

At the confident response, he grimaced, his face contorting.

“Damn it! They said the layers of the Underworld were merging!”

It wasn’t a situation he hadn’t considered, but directly confirming that the information Catherine’s messenger provided was completely wrong was frustrating.

“What’s the status of the patrol team that first encountered them?”

He pressed hard on his furrowed brow with his index finger, asking, and Dominick wore a grim expression.

“We haven’t received any reports since the initial one.”

The Under Elf patrols had a communication network so tight and intricate, its secrets were truly something to behold.

Their delayed reports were definitely not a good sign.

Either the situation was so dire that they couldn’t spare a messenger, or there weren’t any personnel left to report in the first place.

Either way, the situation was bad.

“What are your orders? The Under Elf patrols aren’t particularly strong in combat, but they are second to none in stealth and escape. If those Under Elves were defeated, the enemies’ strength is certainly at least on par with a Count-class [a high-ranking demon or monster] from the deeper levels of our Underworld.”

Dominick looked regretful, as if blaming herself for the delayed reinforcement due to the Nagas’ stubbornness.

But Kim Jin-woo didn’t think so. Everything she said back then was right.

He stroked Dominick’s head, which was bowed low.

“And our labyrinth isn’t so weak that we can’t wait for the Nagas to fully mature.”

A few days ago, he would have been nervous about the lack of forces, but now he was overflowing with confidence.

“Tell Valishus! I’ll prioritize deploying the Moai [ancient hero-grade summons] that have recovered first into battle!”

He had another alternative.

***

The clumsy speech, the hazy eyes, and the awkward movements were all strange. But the power felt from the newly recovered bodies was real.

“This battle should be sufficient with just them.”

Thus, Kim Jin-woo left a brief remark as he looked at the Moai, the ancient hero-grade summons that had just recovered.

“There are only thirty of them right now. I guarantee I’ll recover all of them before it’s too late.”

Valishus, feeling the deep satisfaction within him, stepped forward with a proud face, chattering away.

“How could I not? It’s the result you obtained by throwing yourself into it.”

After the ordeal of throwing himself into becoming a test subject, Valishus finally did it.

He hadn’t left the labyrinth, so he wasn’t contaminated by the Underworld’s malice, and thanks to that, he was able to recover by simply inserting Down Gems [a type of magical energy source] to replace the broken vessels.

And Valishus, who had recovered in that way, knew better than anyone how to reconstruct the Moai’s collapsed bodies.

As a result, he succeeded in recovering some of the hundreds of Moai who followed him.

Again, if he hadn’t subjugated the Great Labyrinth at the right time, he wouldn’t have been able to bring the Moai into the Great Labyrinth, so it was truly a stroke of luck.

Thanks to this, he was able to incorporate thirty hero-grade summons, who had regained their collapsed bodies, into the force.

“It will take time to fully restore their previous intelligence, but there won’t be any major problems deploying them in battle right away. Battle is done with the body rather than the head.”

The Moai that Valishus recovered were all ancient hero-grade summons. As ancient summons with extraordinary power, they were sure to do more than their fair share even with their small numbers.

“I’ll look forward to it.”

Kim Jin-woo briefly wrapped up the situation, as he would have had to listen to Valishus’s fuss all day if he stayed there.

Valishus, preferring to return to his workshop and wrestle with the Moai rather than receive praise, handed over the recovered Moai, the ancient summons, without complaint and disappeared.

Originally, he would have had to go through a process of loyalty or testing, but the recovered Moai themselves were already drawn to the aura of the High Lord and followed him.

They followed his instructions without any resistance and blended into the Naga forces led by Quantus.

“Dominick, I entrust the labyrinth to you while I’m gone.”

Kim Jin-woo left words of caution to Dominick, leaving behind the arrayed Naga forces.

He repeatedly urged her to be wary of any enemy provocations, even though the Great Labyrinth itself would exert some degree of defense.

“Don’t worry about the labyrinth, and please be careful, Master.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t intend to overdo it.”

There was too little information about the enemy to wage war.

If the opponent was indeed a deep labyrinth from another Underworld layer, he didn’t even know if it was a Count-class or a Duke-class labyrinth [referring to the power level of the labyrinth].

You had to know the enemy first to build up your forces.

“Then I’ll be off.”

Kim Jin-woo, who had boarded the Law-Protecting Dragon that was waiting in advance, shouted as he looked back at the Nagas.

“Move out!”

***

The world outside the Great Labyrinth had completely changed.

“It’s changed a lot.”

Kim Jin-woo, who had never been outside due to the many events within the labyrinth, exclaimed in admiration, if not awe, at the changed appearance of the Underworld.

The thick darkness was still there, but everything else looked like something you’d only see on the 11th deep layer.

The narrow passage where a few Law-Protecting Dragons could barely stand side by side was gone, and the wide-open passage was so spacious that a dozen Dragon Knights could run at once.

The ceiling was also soaring high, so Morrigan no longer had to fly close to the ground.

The open spaces encountered from time to time were just as enormous.

“Halt! We’ll rest here before moving on.”

Kim Jin-woo ordered the troops to rest after discovering an Under Elf patrol that suddenly popped out of the darkness.

“Report.”

“We found traces of Patrol Team 17, which had lost contact.”

Having ordered them to keep their distance from the enemy, they seemed to have been searching for the missing patrol team separately. The Under Elf patrol took something out of his chest with a stiff face.

“It doesn’t seem like there are any survivors.”

The curved sword that Under Elves favored was broken from the middle, and the handle was covered with dark red stains.

“What is the enemies’ location?”

Kim Jin-woo asked about the enemy’s whereabouts instead of comforting the Under Elf who had lost his comrades. He thought there was no greater comfort than revenge.

“They moved southeast from the site of the battle and are slowly circling the vicinity.”

It seemed the other side was just as bewildered. According to the Under Elf’s explanation, their movements were extremely cautious and slow, and they never strayed far from the vicinity of the labyrinth where they first appeared.

Who in the Underworld would have expected restoration, and who would have expected layers to move and touch each other? It was clear that the uninformed opponent was more confused by the natural disaster.

“We can meet them in half a day.”

Kim Jin-woo, having gauged the approximate direction and distance through the patrol, ordered the troops to move.

“So far, all the enemy forces that have come out of the labyrinth are small units of about 20 to 30, and a total of twelve units are conducting reconnaissance activities in the vicinity.”

The enemy’s forces had increased during the move, but he didn’t care. After all, the enemy units conducting extensive reconnaissance activities were too far apart to have close coordination.

In that situation, it was not difficult to target and eliminate one or two units separately.

“Increase speed!”

If the other side was also operating reconnaissance units, it would be more advantageous to move aggressively and not give them time to prepare than to move cautiously. So he rode on the Law-Protecting Dragon and maximized the Nagas’ movement speed.

After moving like that for a while, Kim Jin-woo stopped the troops again at the Under Elf’s hand signal.

“A small enemy unit is approaching from the northwest.”

“Are they the ones?”

It was a question with all the context cut out, but the patrol seemed to understand and shook his head.

“No. They are a little further away than those guys. The enemy approaching now is a new unit.”

It seemed the number of enemy reconnaissance units was constantly increasing.

“The size is sixteen, and the number of enemies who appear to be hero-grade, including the commander, is four.”

It was a considerable force. The number itself was small, as befitting a small reconnaissance unit, but the ratio of hero-grade summons being almost 25 percent was something to be wary of.

This further increased the possibility that the other Underworld layer that touched the 9th floor was a deep layer.

No ordinary low-level labyrinth would have been able to deploy that many hero-grade summons in a mere reconnaissance unit.

“Maybe it’s a Duke [a high-ranking demon lord] from somewhere.”

While Kim Jin-woo was briefly contemplating the enemy’s strength, which exceeded expectations, the Under Elf asked.

“What are your orders? Will you avoid the enemy’s path as it is?”

“The enemies can probably track traces anyway. Let’s avoid meaningless movements.”

“Then?”

“We’ll attack before the enemies come crashing in.”

The opportunity to establish peace through dialogue had all but disappeared with the annihilation of one Under Elf patrol team.

No, he never thought that it would be possible to coexist peacefully with a labyrinth from another Underworld layer in the Underworld, where only the law of eat or be eaten exists in the first place.

It wasn’t difficult to track the enemies. Patrols from all directions reported the enemies’ traces and provided directions. The patrols in charge of guiding led the troops based on the information they provided.

As a result, they were able to find the enemies in less than half a day after leaving the Great Labyrinth.

“Those are them.”

The enemies were not beasts or humans, but rather half-human, half-demon creatures. The enemies, with the lower bodies of goats, the upper bodies of human men, and the heads of white eagles on their crowns, were larger than most Naga warriors.

Seeing that, it would have been strange if the Under Elf patrols had not been annihilated without even getting a chance to make additional reports. The enemies looked that agile and strong.

But to Kim Jin-woo now, such facts didn’t matter. Without hesitation, he selected only the strongest from the troops and immediately attacked the enemies.

“Kyaak!”

The half-human, half-demons let out bizarre screams at the unexpected ambush, raising their fierce nature. The ancient hero-grade summons, led by Morrigan, pounced on them.

The Nagas spread out widely in an instant and surrounded the enemies, and a battle broke out in an instant. And soon, blood splattered everywhere, and fierce roars and screams erupted.