Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 199

Dungeon Journal-199

# 199

Dungeon Journal

Episode 200

Perhaps it was because he had heard news of Sohee, whom he thought he would never see again, but Kim Jin-woo’s usually calm expression turned emotional before quickly settling down.

The situation in the Underworld always flowed in directions he couldn’t predict. This time was no different.

Just when he thought he had finished preparing defenses against the Moais [stone statues animated by souls] and had taken a breather after weeding out the traitors, danger had silently approached, ready to bite his neck off.

He, who had only just awakened the power of a High Lord, could now look down on Counts [a rank in the Underworld hierarchy].

But how much more powerful would the High Lords who had awakened long before him be? And how persistent and threatening would their trials be?

If the power of the High Lords grew stronger over time, he would be no match for them.

Even the Lord of Lament, who was giggling right in front of him, didn’t seem like an opponent he could defeat.

But instead of shrinking back with worry and fear, he simply laughed.

Just when he thought he had freed himself, a new snare was tightening around his neck. As always, the monster that was the Underworld seemed to want him to struggle to survive.

“I’ll give you what you want.”

“Are you already prepared to accept the trial?”
The Lord of Lament, misunderstanding his mutterings, quickly chimed in with a smirk. Looking at her, he said,

“You’re mistaken.”

At his sudden change in expression and demeanor, the Lord of Lament now wore a puzzled look.

“The weak are eaten. And everything, from the loser’s bone fragments to their last drop of blood, belongs to the victor.”

What did it matter who awakened first or later? The most important thing in the Underworld was survival, nothing else.

“The Underworld I know is a place like that. It’s not a place for you guys to play at being lords.”

With those words, Kim Jin-woo snarled fiercely.

“If they try to test me, they will be tested themselves.”

If they came, he would destroy them. That was how he had always faced his enemies, and how he had survived. Although the opponent was of a higher and more powerful caliber than ever before, none of his enemies had ever been weaker than him.

The Lord of Lament, seeing his unwavering attitude, wore a somewhat impressed expression, unlike before.

“It’s different from what I heard from Sohee, but I like this too.”

But her gaze was still arrogant and condescending, as if looking down from a high place.

“I played a little trick, but I hope you don’t resent me.”

There was no reason to resent her in the first place. If it hadn’t been for her, he would have been ignorant and would have been subjected to the High Lords’ trials. Knowing about their existence like this was not a loss for him.

“Actually, they would have found you even if I hadn’t.”

Looking at him, she said something incomprehensible again.

“You’re a bit special, you see.”

She grinned at him as he frowned.

“You’re the only one among us High Lords who has received a new name.”

***

The interrupted auction was resumed the very next day.

The Black Merchant, having somehow prepared a new stage in a single day, apologized for the unfortunate incident of the previous day and promised individual compensation.

Seeing the participants, who seemed ready to rush at the Lord of Lament while grinding their teeth, pretending not to notice her even when she appeared in the auction house, the compensation promised by the Black Merchant must have been substantial.

The Lord of Lament, unlike the previous day, was on stage from the beginning. With a skilled Imp host by her side, she looked down at the stage with an extremely High Lord-like arrogant expression.

Perhaps the Black Merchant had managed to appease her somehow, as she didn’t bother to pick on the VIPs who were looking down at her this time.

However, her expression was still clearly displeased, and the Imp host next to her was sweating profusely with a pale face as he watched her carefully.

“Let me say again, I am not here to antagonize you.”

Considering the commotion she had caused the previous day, her attitude was excessively brazen, but none of the participants dared to object to her words.

But that was it. They were listening to her words as if they were looking at a chicken or a dog, paying little attention.

The Lord of Lament remained calm even as she looked at the participants.

“I do not know how to completely return those spirits who have invaded your territory. Frankly, whether you are caught by the spirits and torn to shreds or not is your fight, not something I should be involved in.”
The participants’ expressions quickly turned fierce, and the Imp host’s face turned white. But she continued to babble on without paying any attention.

“However, I do not want to see the forces of the Underworld become so weakened that the Surface Dwellers run rampant, so I will show you some generosity.”

Even though she herself was a Surface Dweller, she spoke shamelessly.

“You, the masters of the Underworld, beware of the disaster that will come after the war.”

But her words were by no means ordinary. The eerie feeling given by the word “disaster” quickly made the fierce expressions of those present turn cold.

“The life of the Underworld will come to an end, there will be no place to set foot, and your appearance will be no different from the ugly spirits that have covered your territory.”

Kim Jin-woo, who was watching her actions from the VIP room, shook his head.

She was talking grandly about disasters and whatnot, but in the end, the Moais were those who had their source of life stolen by the awakened High Lords and the Great Labyrinths and were contaminated by the evil of the Underworld.

When you thought about it, she and the High Lords, including himself, were the culprits of all this.

From his perspective, having already heard the secret history related to the birth of the Moais the day before, he was almost impressed by how brazenly she was spouting nonsense.

But the majority of the Underworld’s masters, who were unaware of this fact, seemed to be quite shocked by her warning, listening with pale faces.

“If you do not admire that ugly appearance, prepare a vessel to contain the source of life. That is the only way for you to avoid being contaminated by the evil of the Underworld.”

At her gesture, those who had been pressing down on their hoods all at once threw them back.

Giants, beasts, half-humans, half-demons. The only commonality among them, each with their own appearance, was that they all had jewels embedded in their foreheads, emitting a brilliant light.

Perhaps the vessel of life that the Lord of Lament was talking about was the jewels embedded in their foreheads.

Seeing the murmuring auction participants, the Imp host, who had only been watching until then, stepped forward and opened his mouth.

“We, the Black Merchant, have secured enough life stones to return to everyone gathered here through the secret method taught by the Lord of Lament. We promise to provide life stones to anyone who wants them free of charge, without expecting any compensation.”
The masters of the labyrinths, who had been pale with the disaster that would befall the Underworld, beamed at the sight of the small and large, colorful jewels that the Imp had presented.

“Oh!”

“So you were preparing something like this!”

Those who had been complaining about the Black Merchant and the Lord of Lament with dissatisfied faces just a moment ago changed their attitude as if turning their palms over, and in the end, even Kim Jin-woo, who had been watching, could not help but laugh out loud.

The Lord of Lament, creating an atmosphere of fear by mentioning the disaster of the Underworld, and the Black Merchant, jumping in with good timing and presenting the life stones, were no different from peddlers selling cheap medicine in a marketplace.

It was amazing how the sly and suspicious masters of the labyrinths were so easily swayed by such a ridiculous play.

It was common for labyrinths on the same floor to fight among themselves.

Therefore, it was strange that they would believe the words of the Lord of Lament, who was not even on the same floor but an existence from a completely different Underworld.

But it was not unreasonable.

Each word that the Lord of Lament casually threw out contained the majesty unique to a High Lord.

Overwhelmed by the High Lord’s dignity without even realizing it, they were so captivated by that high-class presence, which was like hypnosis, that they could not even harbor the slightest suspicion.

‘All the other High Lords stand at the pinnacle of their respective Underworlds. To stand alongside them, you too must have all the insignificant nobles of the Underworld beneath your feet. I will help you do that.’

He recalled the Lord of Lament’s smirking words.

Come to think of it, perhaps it was just his imagination, but the color of the life stones presented by the Black Merchant and the life stones embedded in the foreheads of those who followed the Lord of Lament seemed different.

***

Perhaps it was because there had been so many events. The special auction, which the Black Merchant had ambitiously prepared, was not very lively.

One reason was that there were no particularly noteworthy items on the first day of the auction, but even considering the various circumstances, the atmosphere of the auction house was not very good.

“6,300 Jams! 6,300 Jams have been offered! If there are no additional bids, we will close the auction for this item at this point!”

The bids were also incomparable to the regular auctions that had been held before.

However, the Black Merchant, the host of the event, did not seem to be very concerned about the bids or the subdued atmosphere.

Whether it was confidence that they could raise the atmosphere again, or whether they had other ideas, it was impossible to know, but it was clear that they had anticipated all of these situations.

“Now, there are only two more auctions left until the end of today’s auction!”

The somewhat lukewarm atmosphere of the auction house began to heat up, albeit slightly, as it approached the end. The reason was that the item that went up on stage bound in chains was something no one had expected.

“Once famous in the Underworld under the name of Invincible, but lost everything with a single defeat! Although the name of Invincible is a thing of the past, his innate divine power and bravery have not gone anywhere!”

“Oh! Is that him?”

“Why is he here!”
The auction participants, who had been lukewarm throughout the auction, quickly became agitated. The host, excited by the long-awaited lively atmosphere, shouted loudly.

“Let me introduce you! The leader of the Invincible Mercenary Corps of the Deep Layers! The legend of the Two-Headed Giant Clan! Krasto!”

With the host’s words, Krasto, a giant with two heads, one young and one old, listlessly took to the stage.

Kim Jin-woo, who had been lost in thought amidst the commotion, also raised his head and looked at the giant below the window.

“I thought he had been swept away and died in the chaos, but I’m seeing him in a place like this.”

The giant, who had received the stigma of defeat in his place and had even had his seal stolen during the one-year war, had met a miserable end. Looking at the giant with his defeat-ridden, cloudy eyes, who would think of the Invincible Giant who had been on par with the Victorious and his name?

“Since the item is what it is, we will start the auction at a somewhat high price of 5,000 Jams [Underworld currency].”

Down Jams, which had become invaluable due to the widespread war throughout the Underworld.

Nevertheless, the auction participants were frantically raising the auction price in order to buy Krasto. Thanks to this, a satisfied smile appeared on the host’s face after a long time.

But that was it. Kim Jin-woo lost interest after briefly looking at the giant on the stage.

In any case, the value of Krasto, as he saw it, was already over. He had no interest in a giant who had lost the name of Invincible and even his seal.

“The Invincible Mercenary Krasto has been sold for 19,300 Jams!”

Krasto was sold to someone in the VIP room for a high price of 19,300 Jams. The host, who had been chattering with a gleeful face, became serious and started the final auction.

“Now, for today’s highlight!”

Judging from the host’s voice, which was full of energy even before the auction started, this item must be the one that the Black Merchant had ambitiously prepared.

In accordance with the host’s exaggerated gestures, who had paused for a long time, the orchestra beat the drums and the lights moved dazzlingly.

“I guarantee that this item has never been auctioned before!”
The host, who had shouted boldly, introduced the item with a bang of the drum.