Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 292

Dungeon Journal – 292

# 292

Dungeon Journal

Episode 293

In the deepest depths of the Underworld, which had transformed into an entirely different world, Kim Jin-woo was so preoccupied with battling the relentless Evil Deities that he lost all track of time.

“Hoo.”

He sighed deeply, watching the giant’s corpse, which had charged at him with a bizarre scream, disintegrate into dust. His breath was heavy with exhaustion.

It wasn’t a matter of dwindling energy. As long as he possessed the Authority of Greed and the Evil Deities continued to swarm him like moths to a flame, his body wouldn’t tire.

It was his mind that was weary. Wandering away from the familiar floor was agonizing, and constantly fighting the Evil Deities, who seemed to hold a deep-seated grudge against him and sought him out from afar, was simply draining.

It felt like he was reliving the past, wandering through the Underworld alone.

*Could I have grown weaker?*

It seemed he had grown accustomed to the presence of others without even realizing it. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be feeling such profound fatigue.

He even began to suspect that the Underworld itself might not welcome his existence.

The presence of the Evil Deities, who desperately tried to block his path, and the constantly shifting terrain, which usually never disoriented him, all pointed to this.

It felt as if the entire Underworld was conspiring to impede his progress.

The stronger the pressure became, the more he gritted his teeth and quickened his pace.

If the Underworld also yearned to merge with the Surface, he sensed that his current actions were a step the Underworld and the old Overlords opposed.

That premonition solidified when he encountered a giant possessing an even more potent energy than any Evil Deity he had faced before.

The giant, with skin as red as if drenched in blood, attempted to converse with him instead of blindly attacking like the other Evil Deities.

“You’re a strange one. Don’t you despise me?”

[I have been observing you from afar. And I have finally become convinced.]

The giant stated that after witnessing him destroy the immortal Evil Deities, it was convinced he was different from the other High Overlords.

“Is that important?”

[It is important. More important than anything else. I felt that it was meaningless to be hostile to you.]

He inquired, listening to the giant’s gravelly voice echoing in his mind.

“So, what do you want me to do?”

[I sensed the ‘Devil’ lurking within you, and I felt the malice. Therefore, we have decided to cease obstructing your path.]

“We?”

[I am the Evil Deity among Evil Deities, the adversary of the Overlords who were destined from the beginning, and those like me have decided that there will be no more clans blocking your path.]

It seemed this giant held a high rank among the Evil Deities. Kim Jin-woo responded indifferently to the Evil Deity’s unexpected words, simply saying, “That’s great.”

But it was only for a moment. He quickly replaced his indifferent expression with a serious one and spoke.

“Now that you’ve made that decision, why not do me an even greater favor?”

The red giant tilted its head, as if momentarily confused by his words.

“I haven’t had the chance to explain, but my purpose isn’t so different from yours.”

[You speak in riddles.]

The giant still seemed unable to grasp his meaning.

“To put it simply…”

He subtly suggested to the giant.

“I’m asking you to help me.”

The red giant’s words proved true. The Evil Deities, who had been quarreling and attacking him relentlessly, no longer blocked his way. Thanks to this, he was able to proceed quietly.

But it was *too* quiet. The transformed Underworld was silent. No creatures lurked in the shadows, and no labyrinths guarded against intruders.

He couldn’t tell if they had all been annihilated by the Evil Deities or if the floor had always been like this, but he knew this silence was abnormal.

*Would it have been better to fight the Evil Deities without a second thought?*

He sighed, listening to his footsteps echoing in the silent passage.

He walked on and on, plunging into the darkness to find a passage. How long had he been walking towards the depths of the Underworld? He stopped when he discovered a passage radiating a presence unlike anything he had ever encountered before.

*Don’t come. Don’t come. You must never cross this place.*

The passage seemed to be conveying these words with its very essence. It was as if the Underworld, now forcibly shielded from the threat of the Evil Deities, was issuing its final warning.

But the increasingly intense sense of foreboding was nothing more than a groan from the ravaged Underworld, so he dismissed it, pausing only to catch his breath.

“I’m sorry. I can’t heed that warning.”

He took another step, as if addressing a living being.

The pressure and buoyancy he had experienced so many times before washed over him, and his body, completely enveloped in darkness, was propelled beyond the passage.

And beyond the passage, a world utterly unlike any part of the Underworld he had ever seen unfolded before his eyes.

A lake filled with dark blue water, cliffs as steep as if carved with a knife, and a forest so vast that its end was nowhere in sight. It was a landscape that defied belief as being part of the Underworld.

“What is this…”

What surprised him even more was a mass of light floating in the black sky of the Underworld, resembling a cold, extinguished full moon rather than a burning sun.

It was a truly breathtaking sight. Who could gaze upon this scenery and still claim it was the Underworld?

But he wasn’t granted the leisure to leisurely admire the scenery.

It was because he had caught a glimpse of a familiar shadow beyond the landscape, which had turned pale in the blue moonlight. His eyes widened as if they would burst as he saw a pure white hem fluttering in the breeze.

Bang!

His body moved before he could even think. The moment he regained awareness, he was already leaping off the ground and sprinting towards the shadow.

But for some reason, his usually swift steps, capable of quickly overtaking any enemy, felt sluggish.

“Damn it!”

No matter how hard he ran, the distance remained unchanged, and he could only grind his teeth in frustration.

“Aaaaaaaaa!”

In the end, he was forced to watch the pure white hem vanish into the dense shadows of the forest.

The forest swallowed the shadow he had been so desperately pursuing, and remained as calm as if nothing had occurred.

“Why! Why!”

He slammed his fist into his thigh repeatedly, his powerlessness fueling his anger. But that didn’t make her shadow reappear.

“How pathetic.”

He smiled bitterly, catching his breath. He had thought he wouldn’t care if he met her again, but the mere sight of the hem of her dress had driven him crazy.

He rubbed his eyes, still burning with fever, and mocked himself.

“Anyway, this is definitely the deepest part of the Underworld.”

The deepest Underworld was once accessible only to one of the old Overlords, but since then, it has been reserved for the usurper who has reigned as the one and only king.

The fact that she had revealed herself, even from a distance, proved that he was on the right path.

“Hoo…”

There’s no need to overthink it. Her brightness was a deceptive facade built on lies, and the warmth that brushed his fingertips was nothing more than the sinister breath of someone concealing their true intentions. She was an enemy.

The clear dichotomy that prevails in the Underworld, the simple law that distinguishes between enemies and allies, was helpful to him now.

He quickly regained his composure and belatedly realized he was standing in the middle of the forest.

Swish.

The trees swayed in the breeze. And the gaunt branches, swaying erratically, reached out and pointed in one direction.

“You’re completely selfish.”

He smirked, observing the path created by the forest, now fully regaining his usual arrogant demeanor.

*I’ll play along for now. But after that, I’ll do as I please.*

He followed the forest’s guidance, pointing towards the direction where the white hem had disappeared.

The forest was far more expansive than he had perceived from afar. Kim Jin-woo continued to walk through the sea of black vegetation that seemed endless, no matter how far he traveled.

“It’s exhausting.”

The desolate forest was truly devoid of anything except trees. Even the common wild creatures were absent.

But that didn’t mean the forest was silent. The forest continued to whisper, its gaunt branches clashing in the breeze, and he was thoroughly weary of the unintelligible murmurs.

Nevertheless, he couldn’t stop walking because of the gradually intensifying sense of foreboding.

He took a breath. The pressure didn’t diminish at all.

The darkness, which grew more intense as if pushing him from behind, was unlike the darkness of the Underworld he knew so well. It was colder and more alien, tinged with a pale moonlight. He felt suffocated by the bluish hue.

But he never panicked. He didn’t flee in fear, nor did he frantically try to escape the forest.

The entire Underworld rejected him, and even the air he breathed felt rough, as if grasping his uvula, but he endured all the discomfort.

If this was her labyrinth, it was bound to be a trap. And the more he rushed, the tighter the snare she had prepared would tighten around his neck.

Prepared to unleash his Authority at any moment, he continued to move forward.

But contrary to his expectations, he encountered no threats until he emerged from the forest. The forest simply ended, as if its eerie atmosphere was all it had to offer.

The trees, which had been guiding him all along, stood there blankly to see him off once their task was complete, and this time, the lake guided him instead of the forest.

The surface of the calm lake rippled in one direction. He walked again, following the undulations. And when the lake finally ended, he was able to meet her, whom he had been so eager to reunite with.

“Usurper.”

Perhaps because he had already vented his anger once, the voice that escaped his lips was a cold and sinister growl that even surprised him.

“You don’t call me that anymore.”

She replied casually, as if they had parted only yesterday, but with a hint of sadness.

“Hello, my little Jin-woo.”

Amidst the pure white hem fluttering in the breeze, he finally reunited with her.