Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 103

#103

Dungeon Journal

Episode 104

#41. Summoning Stone

Kim Jin-woo, leaving Mr. Baek’s appraisal office, let out a sigh of relief.

Thanks to Chief Kim Joo-hyuk’s swift decision, most of the remaining forces in the Harimao Maze on the 5th floor were rescued.

Although they suffered minor and major injuries from the creatures swarming the maze, Jung Chan-sik and his group, including Lee Joon-young, seemed to be safe.

Of course, Kim Jin-tae, the owner of the Harimao Maze, was gone for good, but Kim Jin-woo could ease his conscience knowing Lee Joon-young, with whom he had a close connection, was alive.

However, regardless of his feelings, the situation on the surface was chaotic. Most of the mazes in various countries were attacked, and many lost control.

In severe cases, communication was cut off before they could even understand what was happening, so it was no wonder the surface world was in an uproar.

‘It seems like there will be a meeting for the first time since the armistice. It’s not just one or two places; almost all mazes were attacked simultaneously, so it’s no wonder. The underground management offices and explorers of each country are in an uproar, trying to figure out whether the recent attack was an armed provocation against the surface or just a common power struggle in the underground.’

Mr. Baek also seemed busy trying to profit from the chaotic situation.

‘Who would have known that the owner of a maze would face such a fate? It’s romantic to share the fate of the maze, but it’s best to avoid such dangerous things. Your decision to decline the position of maze owner was really wise.’

He was so brazen. He used to make such a fuss about taking the underground development bureau’s test, but Mr. Baek completely changed his attitude as if he had never done so. Just thinking about that made him feel like swearing, and his face contorted.

He shook his head vigorously to clear Mr. Baek’s image from his mind.

“Hmm.”

Holding his phone, he sighed as he looked at Lee Joon-young’s name in his call list.

She was receiving treatment at a hospital somewhere. He could find her if he wanted to, but he didn’t dare to contact her.

Lee Joon-young had insisted on fighting to the end because of her loyalty to Kim Jin-tae. Her somewhat aggressive attitude of demanding a desperate fight in the unfavorable battlefield became a problem, and she even lost some of her reputation.

She valued her loyalty to her colleagues that much, but how could he, who had ordered Angela to assassinate Kim Jin-tae, dare to show his face?

There had been subtle feelings between them, but that was it.

Now, they would never see each other again. He would settle the emotional debt by saving her life and never see her again.

He almost lost a lot because of clumsy emotional games. He had made a hole to escape, but just because the result was good didn’t mean everything was fine.

“Portal.”

Since some time ago, he had habitually visited the underground whenever his head was complicated. Now, as soon as he crossed the portal and inhaled the stuffy air, his head cleared.

At this rate, he was starting to wonder if he was a surface dweller or an underground being.

But that was only for a moment. Seeing Dominick and the Nagas busily moving around, his face regained its usual composure.

“The Frozen Land and the Fortress are completely connected. After maintaining the activated gate for 36 hours as a test, there seem to be no problems.”

He nodded at Dominick’s report, who had become more charismatic since gaining the title of King’s Advisor.

Although there were some issues in the middle, the Naga’s fortress was growing smoothly.

The dungeon energy sent from the 56 fiefs provided more energy than the Naga workers in the fortress working all day.

Thanks to this, the tight financial situation was rapidly improving.

However, the most important fortress upgrade was facing a wall.

“Still haven’t found the materials?”

“I’ve commissioned the Black Merchant [a shadowy dealer of rare and illicit goods], but it seems they’ll have to inquire as well. It looks like it will take more time.”

“Tch. I spoke too soon.”

He had been upgrading without any problems with the supplies he had accumulated, but he couldn’t achieve level 8 with abundant supplies alone. This was because not only Down Jam [a valuable resource], but also separate materials were needed.

“How am I supposed to find the heart of a sea dragon in this underground world?”

There was a water dragon in the maze’s front yard. But where in this underground world could he find a sea dragon and get its heart? It was an absurd condition.

But what could he do? Like a thirsty person digging a well, he needed the sea dragon’s heart, and the heartless system message would only repeat the same thing no matter how much he argued.

“Find the sea dragon’s heart first, no matter how much Down Jam it costs.”

“I’m keeping that in mind. The patrols are also touring the maze to gather information, so whether it’s the Black Merchant or the patrols, they’ll bring good news soon. Don’t worry too much.”

He sighed at Dominick’s consolation and rose from the throne.

“How are the Frost Fairy warriors doing?”

“To be honest, it was a stroke of luck that we won the last war. If only half of them had come forward, we would never have won the final battle.”

“Is it that much?”

“Even Quantus can’t handle five Frost Fairies. Ortea can’t handle more than seven either.”

“That’s amazing.”

The 400 Gale Warriors who had newly joined under Boreas boasted formidable power, as if showing what the power of a deep noble was like.

The Naga fighters and warriors, who had been upgraded repeatedly and had become completely different beings from the beginning, were being brutally defeated by the Gale Warriors, who were not even half their number, so their power was evident.

Only the Naga Dragon Knights, paired with the Guardian Dragons, were able to match them.

“It’s good to have strong forces in hand, but that also means that the power of the 10th floor nobles is great, so I can’t just be happy.”

“In the next battle, our forces will have to fight while enduring the inter-floor penalty. In fact, the Gale Warriors are the only forces that can be properly utilized.”

Looking back now, it was fortunate that he had gained the name of Commander of Victory.

If he had known from the beginning that the power of the 10th floor was this great, he would have settled the situation by giving Morrigan to Parthenon.

The warriors of the 10th floor, who had overcome the penalty, were that powerful.

“Ah, now that I think about it, the summoning stone of the ancient hero that Parthenon sent to exchange for Morrigan is still left.”

He had forgotten about the summoning stone of the ancient hero because he had been so caught up in incidents after obtaining Morrigan. Realizing this belatedly, he rummaged through his pockets and frowned.

“Damn it…….”

“Master?”

Kim Jin-woo started running like crazy with a pale face.

“Master, where are you going so suddenly…….”

Dominick’s face also crumpled at the anxious question.

***

“Give it back!”

Kyaaaa.

The high-level Naga mages feigned ignorance at Kim Jin-woo’s angry voice. Perhaps because they still remembered the fun they had with the research on the core, the Naga mages avoided his gaze and no one came forward to hand over the summoning stone.

“I said give it back! Summoning Stone!”

Kueeee!

Only after he got angry several times did one of the high-level Naga mages hesitate and come forward to hand something over.

“You crazy bastards!”

The summoning stone of the ancient hero, which had been experimented on in the meantime, had lost its original radiant light and was cracked all over.

“Th, th, this!”

He was so dumbfounded and angry that he even stuttered. He was disgusted by the Naga mages’ atrocities of experimenting with the summoning stone of the ancient hero.

“Ah…….”

Dominick, who had arrived belatedly, was also stunned to see the faded summoning stone.

“I was crazy. How could I forget this?”

Kim Jin-woo, who was shining the summoning stone from the light flowing from the lamp in the center of the laboratory, sighed.

He should have recovered the summoning stone when he recovered the core. He had to endure a war as a price for summoning Morrigan, and he didn’t know Parthenon’s intentions, so he had kept it, which was the root of the problem.

“But it doesn’t seem to be broken or damaged.”

“If there’s something wrong with the summoning stone, you’re all dead.”

The high-level Naga mages, seeing Kim Jin-woo grinding his teeth, awkwardly looked away.

Their appearance was the same as when they had tried to synthesize the core without permission and were severely scolded. Seeing that, his anger boiled over.

But that was only for a moment. He carefully tucked the faded summoning stone into his arms and left the laboratory.

Seeing the greedy eyes of the mages flashing from time to time, he felt that something bad would happen if he stayed here.

“Damn it, it’s not broken, is it?”

It was a hero-grade summoning stone. Until he used it, he couldn’t know what was inside or what condition it was in.

In Morrigan’s case, Anatolius had kindly told him what was inside, but he had no idea what was inside this summoning stone of the ancient hero that Parthenon had sent.

“Call Morrigan.”

“Should I call Quantus and Ortea too?”

He prepared for the worst in case a war maniac like Morrigan came out.

“No. Morrigan will be enough.”

He was confident that he and Morrigan could subdue even an uncontrollable summon.

“Oh, is that the summoning stone of the ancient hero?”

Morrigan looked at the summoning stone with shining eyes.

“It’s from Parthenon. It was a condition to exchange with you.”

“That greedy bastard gave up quite a bit.”

“I sent enough of a reply.”

Although the reply was a bunch of bombs brought from the surface, he was confident.

That’s because Parthenon had once incited the nobles of the 10th floor to eliminate him. There was no need to feel sorry or grateful now.

“Tch. Master is really cunning and vicious. And cowardly too.”

“I don’t think it’s a compliment, but I don’t feel bad.”

Kim Jin-woo, who had realized how foolish and pathetic a fair good deed was after experiencing various things, was confident even in the face of Morrigan’s sarcasm.

“But that’s why I like you.”

Morrigan grinned. He scolded her for no reason.

“You’re cheeky. How dare you evaluate your master.”

“It’s my way of expressing affection.”

Morrigan wasn’t like this when she first woke up.

It seemed that she had been influenced by hanging out with Angela. The proud and tough warrior had disappeared, and all that was left was a sly crow.

“Tch. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

In the end, Kim Jin-woo, who didn’t get anything out of it, stared at the summoning stone and asked her.

“Have you ever seen this summoning stone before?”

“Well, I haven’t been awake for very long.”

Morrigan, who had only accumulated grudges in the underground, would have spent more time sleeping inside the summoning stone than awake. Realizing this belatedly, he changed his question.

“Can you handle it?”

He heard that all the useful ancient heroes had already taken their places next to the deep nobles, so the possibility of a decent guy coming out of the summoning stone that Parthenon sent was very slim.

No, maybe he had picked and sent the most troublesome guy to take revenge on the 9th floor’s lower noble who had tricked him.

“Are you curious?”

Morrigan couldn’t hide her displeasure at Kim Jin-woo’s question, as if her pride had been hurt.

“See for yourself.”

Saying that, she pointed to the summoning stone with a provocative gaze.

“Okay, I’ll trust you.”

Kim Jin-woo grinned and used the summoning stone without hesitation.