Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 287

Dungeon Chronicle – 287

# 287

Dungeon Chronicle

Episode 288

The awaited Under Elf scouts were nowhere to be found, and someone unexpected visited the Great Labyrinth first.

“My Lord.”

Mimir, who had returned after only a short absence, looked more pathetic than ever.

“Did you leave something behind?”

Kim Jin-woo feigned ignorance, though he had a good idea of what was going on. Mimir looked at him with a complicated expression.

After barely refilling the warehouse that had been emptied after dusk, and showing him reports he hadn’t even known existed, the owner had taken only the good stuff, rendering all his efforts meaningless.

Moreover, as a result, he had been deprived of his comfortable nest and driven into the perilous underground. It would have been strange if he didn’t feel bitter.

He was probably cursing him with every imaginable insult in his mind.

“Ahem. Things have become complicated. That’s why I’m here to seek refuge with you, my Lord.”

The situation must be quite dire. It was extremely rare for Mimir, who usually liked to twist and turn his words, to be so direct.

“Situation? What situation?”

Kim Jin-woo still feigned ignorance, asking innocently.

“The Merchant Guild’s base has been exposed. Given the numerous grudges we’ve accumulated, I seek to take shelter under your wing for the time being.”

A thirsty man digs a well [idiom meaning desperate times call for desperate measures]. In the end, Mimir’s only option was to humbly bow and rely on his generosity.

In fact, he was the one who had exposed the Black Merchant, but he probably had too much on his conscience to openly argue about it.

Even if it wasn’t his fault, what right did he have to question the transfer to the original owner of the warehouse? Besides, in the underground where power was everything, he was the strong one and he was the weak one, so he didn’t have the guts to argue.

“Hmm.”

He didn’t readily answer Mimir. Instead, Angela stepped forward.

“I don’t know what face you have to come here with all that darkness in your heart.”

Angela pointedly criticized Mimir’s past actions, which he had carried out without her master’s knowledge.

“I have made mistakes, but I believe the benefits have been greater. If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have been able to grow so quickly…”

“Shut up.”

Her gentle voice turned vicious in an instant.

“If my master weren’t here, I would tear your pathetic body to shreds and scatter it across the underground.”

Mimir looked bewildered at the sudden curse. He seemed to believe he had taken care of her after receiving her from Anatolius the Iron-Blooded.

“Never call my master ‘My Lord’ again. What kind of servant calls their master ‘Lord’? You claim to be a servant, yet you are so shameless.”

Her fierce demeanor, as she extended her long, black nails, silenced Mimir.

“You probably called other High Lords ‘My Lord’ with that disgusting mouth. If you truly want to rely on my master, you must change your title first.”

Angela glared at the imp with a murderous look before stepping back, glancing at her master’s face.

“There’s no need to be so harsh, as he may become part of the family.”

“My… Master!”

Mimir’s face brightened instantly. But it was only for a moment, as Kim Jin-woo’s next words turned his face pale again.

“But she’s not entirely wrong. If there are merits, there are also faults. You should be seeking a way to survive by relying on my generosity, yet you’re ridiculously bringing up your past contributions, forgetting your position.”

His voice grew colder as he spoke, becoming as frigid as dripping ice water by the end.

“Is your mind not working because the situation is urgent? It seems you haven’t understood me.”

“Pardon? What do you mean…”

Mimir asked, looking clueless, and he replied coldly.

“What you should be doing now is not flapping your eloquent mouth, but groveling and begging for leniency.”

If left unchecked, there was no telling how far Mimir would try to climb. Besides, he had been played by his behind-the-scenes manipulations more than once, so if he didn’t correct his behavior now, it would be better to get rid of him altogether.

“Kneel. And beg.”

Kim Jin-woo seemed determined to force him to submit.

“If you do, I might extend your miserable life and that of the Black Merchant a little longer.”

Mimir didn’t hesitate at his arrogant words. He must have anticipated this situation when he came all the way here, so there was no reason to hesitate.

“Master.”

Thud. Mimir knelt and bowed his round head to the ground, calling him Master for the first time.

“Please, take in this unworthy servant. Allow this humble life to protect your treasure once more, and let my clan assist you.”

Thump, thump.

Knowing his own actions hadn’t been very good, Mimir repeatedly slammed his forehead against the ground until it turned red with blood.

After Kim Jin-woo accepted his request, Mimir hurriedly left to move his subordinates and assets.

“How far can we trust him?”

The summons, including Morrigan, all said they couldn’t trust Mimir and pleaded with him to reconsider.

“I don’t trust Mimir either. I’d rather join hands with the nobles of the deep than trust that cunning imp.”

“Then why did you accept him? Keeping someone like that nearby will only make things worse.”

Morrigan asked, looking utterly puzzled, and Angela cautiously probed her master’s intentions.

“Is it because you don’t trust Mimir that you want to keep him close, Master?”

Kim Jin-woo smiled.

“That’s part of it, but I had to prevent Mimir, who has nowhere else to go, from choosing the Lord of Depravity.”

“If that’s what you were thinking, wouldn’t it have been cleaner to kill him on the spot earlier?”

It seemed they had a deep-seated dislike for him, as none of the summons defended Mimir.

“Don’t worry. Mimir’s punishment has already been decided; it’s just that his usefulness remains, so the schedule is being postponed.”

Just because the water in the pot wasn’t hot didn’t mean the pot wasn’t hot [idiom meaning appearances can be deceiving]. The poor Mimir didn’t even realize his body was being cooked, entrusting himself to a burning rage disguised as composure.

“That day is not far off.”

The accelerating changes in the underground were reaching their peak. On that day of restoration, which would come no matter what, he would overturn the plans of all those who had deceived him and punish them.

And the cunning imp, who had repeatedly stabbed him in the back, would share their fate.

“Ahem.”

Watching their master’s chilling smile, the summons once again realized how tenacious he was and groaned.

While Mimir was gone, the Under Elf scouts returned. They all reported that the underground had expanded more than ever before.

“Its vastness is incomparable to before, so it seems impossible to survey all areas in the short term. But if you give us time, we will surely see it through.”

Kim Jin-woo thought about Rikshasha’s report. He suspected that the underground, which had once been a single world without layers, had completely reverted to the past. But for now, he couldn’t know how much the underground had expanded, as he said.

Also, Rikshasha expressed concern, saying that bizarre creatures never seen before had been sighted in various parts of the underground.

“A dragon with seven heads, a giant with golden, shimmering skin, creatures with the faces of goats, lions, and old men. All were terrifying monsters that we couldn’t even approach.”

She said she had seen several labyrinths attacked by monsters and destroyed in less than a day.

“They devoured the labyrinths themselves in a gruesome manner. They chewed up the soldiers like rice grains in a bowl and eventually swallowed the labyrinths whole. And after their meal, they became even larger and more ferocious, so if left unchecked, the damage would be immeasurable.”

It seemed that even duke-class labyrinths were among them, as Rikshasha’s expression was not good while reporting the monsters’ atrocities.

“A duke-class labyrinth couldn’t last a day; that’s terrible.”

He had used the power of the Evil Dragon to wipe out the kings of the Ursus and Tarus, but that didn’t mean he had dealt with them easily. They had the dignity and proved their worth as rulers of the deep. It was just that their opponent was not good.

“It seems that the ancient creatures the old lords had been fighting all along have awakened.”

Dominique’s expression was serious, but she didn’t seem too worried.

“But no matter how fierce those monsters are, they won’t be able to covet this place. Valhalla and this Great Labyrinth are on a different level from other labyrinths.”

The power of Mjolnir [Thor’s hammer], crouching in Valhalla’s spire, was so strong that it could change the surrounding terrain, and the Great Labyrinth’s appetite had swallowed countless enemies. Even if they were truly ancient monsters that had just awakened, he was confident that this place’s defenses would not be easily breached.

“Still, the situation in other labyrinths besides this one will be different.”

The problem was that if they were truly monsters that devoured labyrinths themselves, as in Rikshasha’s report, the fragments of the old power he had to absorb would decrease over time.

“It’s never easy.”

Kim Jin-woo frowned. He didn’t feel comfortable having to argue with monsters from unknown origins over a table. But there was a bigger problem.

“If the underground is in this state, it won’t be easy for Dinarihon to bring in the Wish Stone, even through Brunhilde.”

The Queen of Corruption, who had promised to bring the Wish Stone, was only a countess, and she would surely not be able to withstand the monsters that could destroy even duke-class labyrinths in a day. So he decided to press Mimir to find Brunhilde’s whereabouts.

“He’s an eyesore, but it was good to keep him alive. As soon as Mimir returns, have him find the Queen of Corruption.”

“Yes, Master.”

As he gave the order, he didn’t seem to care about Angela or Brunhilde’s opinions. After all, they were the High Lords at the pinnacle of the underground, so there was no reason to care about a countess.

But as always, the guest he wanted didn’t come, and an uninvited guest came first.

Boom!

Kim Jin-woo rushed out of the labyrinth at the sound of Mjolnir roaring, a sound he had heard once before during the battle with the Giant Lord of the Sky.

“That’s the one.”

He saw a monster as huge as Valhalla’s tall walls wreaking havoc.