Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 88

Dungeon Journal-88

# 88

Dungeon Journal

Episode 89

[Naga Handmaiden (Heroic) Dominique has evolved.]

[Dominique has evolved from Naga Handmaiden (Heroic) to ‘King’s Advisor (Common)’.]

[Having dedicated herself to her master’s honor, she has now become a true advisor.]

Dominique looked even more human than before.

Her black hair and violet eyes were the same, but her pale blue skin had a human-like complexion, making her look exactly like a human except for her lower body.

[Her pure desire to serve her master has touched the mysteries of the underground.]

[The mysteries of the underground are at work. Surpassing slim odds, her rank has increased.]

[Her rank has increased from King’s Advisor (Common) to King’s Advisor (Elite).]

And as soon as she emerged from the cocoon, she began to transform once more.

[The King’s Advisor is equipped with everything the king needs. She has become even wiser and more suited to serving the king.]

[Acquired special ability ‘Dignity of a Minister’. There is no one more capable than her in the operation and management of the labyrinth. Under her command, the work efficiency of all Nagas increases.]

[Acquired special ability ‘Proxy Qualification’. In the king’s absence, she can arbitrarily summon or command troops. She also has the authority to forcibly conscript reinforcements from the fiefs belonging to the king.]

[Her transformation is solely due to her loyalty to the king. That desire has become the driving force behind her awakening to new abilities.]

[Unique ability ‘Devotion and Service’ has been created. She will always exert strength beyond her capabilities at the king’s command. Even if it is a battle.]

Before he could even catch his breath, Kim Jin-woo realized from the series of messages that Dominique had finally surpassed the limitations of the Handmaiden race, as she had so desired.

“Master!”

When the transformation finally ended, Dominique called him with a face full of emotion. But her voice was not echoing in his head as it always had, but was heard aloud.

“I haven’t been away for too long, have I?”

She approached him as if she would run and hug him at any moment, stopped in front of him, turned around, and proudly drew cold and healing light from each of her hands.

“Hehe, now I can stand by Master’s side.”

She had always regretted not being able to help her master, who had been fighting so hard, so her face was filled with pride as she examined her transformed body.

“You’re saying strange things.”

Kim Jin-woo tilted his head at Dominique. Her face, which had been excited, turned anxious for a moment.

“Dominique’s place has always been by my side. I don’t know what you’re talking about now.”

“Ah……”

Only then did she let out a sigh of relief at his words, and looked at him with a touched expression.

But only for a moment, she lowered her gaze and bowed gracefully.

“I have returned, my one and only master.”

She paid her respects to him, her voice already back to normal.

***

Dominique, who had returned as the King’s Advisor, immediately began to deal with the backlog of work.

It was as if the labyrinth, which had been dead, was somehow revived just by her return.

Although Angela had been filling her vacancy, she could not keep up with her work.

“Wow, in some ways, she’s the real monster.”

Angela said with a fed-up face at her amazing speed and skill.

“Dominique is the true meritorious subject. If it weren’t for her, I would still be struggling with a labyrinth that isn’t even Rank 4 yet. No, maybe I would have already lost my life during the Jiao Dragon King’s rampage.”

Angela narrowed her eyes at his expression of infinite trust.

“You trust her completely.”

“She has never betrayed my expectations.”

She had not been noticeably active in battle, but because she was there, he could leave the labyrinth with peace of mind, whether on the ground or underground.

“Hmm. I’m jealous.”

He frowned at the voice that reeked of the possessiveness unique to vampires.

“I trust you won’t do anything unnecessary.”

“Isn’t the differential treatment too much? She and I both live looking only at Master, but you’re being too harsh. Are you worried that I might harm a member of the same family?”

She was complaining as if she was truly upset, but Kim Jin-woo saw a strange heat flickering behind her eyes.

And in reality, she was expressing more disappointment than necessary.

“I’m warning you. Don’t do anything unless I order you to.”

At his cold attitude, Angela instead looked at him with a flushed face and licked her lips.

“Angela.”

Kim Jin-woo, who would normally have let it go, stubbornly clung to her today for some reason.

This was because he was concerned about the twisted loyalty stemming from the excessive possessiveness and selfish tendencies unique to vampires.

She had been quiet for a while, but seeing the murderous glint in her eyes when she saw a member of the same family, he needed to give her a warning at this point.

“I’m not that stupid. Why would I do something that would obviously make Master angry?”

As expected, she was somewhat broken. He sighed at her attitude, which was more concerned about falling out of favor with her master than about harming her allies.

“Hoo.”

If there was someone in charge of everything that happened underground, he would like to ask them. He would definitely ask why they were driving these troublemakers to him.

Coincidentally, he discovered Balzac, Morrigan, and Ortega hurrying past him, and he let out another long sigh.

***

Dominique, having finished processing the overall labyrinth, showed great interest in the newly created satellite labyrinths. It was inevitable that the misdeeds committed by the Naga wizards would be revealed in the process.

“Black Merchant, who thinks so highly of the labyrinth, would be furious if he knew.”

Kim Jin-woo smiled bitterly as he explained the situation, but for some reason, Dominique seemed positive about the synthesis of cores.

“But Master, think about it. Even if the synthesis of cores can probabilistically create useless cores, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. When you think about it, what Master and the fortress need is no longer quantitative expansion.”

Perhaps because of her position as the King’s Advisor, Kim Jin-woo asked her why, seeing her advising him more actively than before.

“Master’s goal is not the 9th floor, but the deep layers. Leaving aside the nobles of the 10th floor who were defeated in the last war, if we assume the nobles of the deep layers as enemies, it is no longer advantageous to gather mediocre troops.”

“You’re saying that it’s better to synthesize cores, even if there’s a chance of failure, than to gather mediocre troops.”

“I can’t say for sure, but maybe the Naga wizards have found a clue to solve the problems our labyrinth is facing now.”

Kim Jin-woo immediately understood Dominique’s words.

Even the counts lurking in the deep layers were vastly different from the Naga fortress and troops in terms of quality.

Although the labyrinth had reached Rank 6, only the number of troops had increased, and the quality of the troops had not been dramatically improved compared to the old labyrinth.

No matter how many Naga Dragon Knights or Warriors there were, they would not be able to withstand the Iron Blood Knights for even a few hours.

“Master, we need to be clear from now on.”

“About what?”

When he asked, Dominique looked at him with eyes shining more brightly than ever before.

“What exactly is Master’s goal?”

The Nagas all knew that he had a grudge against someone in the deep layers, but Kim Jin-woo had never revealed exactly who it was.

The reason was that he had been too busy trying to survive, but Dominique pointed out the problem head-on.

“If it’s just to dominate the entire 9th floor, our current strength is enough. The Naga Fortress alone is not enough, but we have the Lands of Gluttony and other fiefs. But Master’s goal is not just the 9th floor, is it?”

“Hmm……”

At first, he accepted the labyrinth to avenge the King of Hell Spiders, the Underground Duke of the 12th floor. But now that he was about to answer her question, he had become accustomed to the underground system.

The more he knew about the mysteries of the underground, the more he realized how absurd the goal of becoming an underground duke was.

Even the counts on the 11th floor were forces that he could not dare to face, so he hesitated to tell her his goal.

But only for a moment, Kim Jin-woo finally told her his goal.

“My goal is the King of Hell Spiders, the Underground Duke of the 12th floor.”

Contrary to expectations, Dominique was not very surprised to hear his goal. But that didn’t mean she took the Underground Duke lightly.

“There are still so many mountains to climb, from the nobles on the 10th floor to the counts on the 11th floor.”

She listed the goals that needed to be addressed first, pondered for a long time, and then came to a clear answer.

“First of all, we need to subjugate all the remaining labyrinths on the 9th floor.”

“There will be resistance.”

A war without a cause can sometimes be a cause for the weak to unite. The Naga Fortress and his subordinates were not yet strong enough to wage war against the entire 9th floor.

“If we try to bring them to their knees all at once, there will be resistance, as Master said. And that would not be good for Master’s actions.”

With that, she pointed to the huge map in the center of the owner’s room.

“First, gather the owners of the labyrinths who are friendly to Master.”

“Gather them?”

Dominique replied nonchalantly to his question.

“We need to give them a choice.”

“Will they easily come under me?”

Although he had gathered the relatively mild-tempered owners among the fierce and violent owners of the 9th floor to form an allied force, that mildness did not mean weakness.

Even Malakus, the King of Hammer and Anvil, was fierce in his temperament.

Malakus was so strong-willed that he declared that he would rather explode with the labyrinth than give way to the nobles of the 10th floor.

The other labyrinth owners were also straightforward, without being cunning.

That’s why they participated in the allied forces even knowing the overwhelming power of the 10th Floor Noble Alliance.

“They have already bowed their heads under Master once to fight against the nobles of the 10th floor.”

“The situation was special at that time. Besides, although I commanded them, only the Succubi and the Half-Demon actually followed my orders.”

“That’s enough.”

Dominique’s attitude, which remained consistent throughout, was completely different from when she was a handmaiden just a while ago. She now looked more like a seasoned staff officer.

“The first time is difficult, but once they admit to being above them, the second time is easy.”

With that, she tapped the Lands of Gluttony marked on the map and continued.

“Besides, those who have tasted sweetness once will not easily forget that taste.”

***

The owners of the labyrinths who had made contributions in the last war gathered in one place again. They were all wondering why Kim Jin-woo had summoned them.

“Is there another sign of war?”

“Is there any sign that the nobles of the 10th floor will rise again?”

Perhaps because their first meeting was to face the allied forces of the 10th floor nobles, they were extremely sensitive to any signs of war.

They were now proud of their victory, but they had almost had their labyrinths ravaged by the nobles of the 10th floor, so it was no wonder they were worried.

“That’s not it.”

Kim Jin-woo, who could not bring guests to the owner’s room, sat on the throne temporarily made in the wide open space, and looked down at them with an arrogant expression.

“Then what is the reason for calling us?”

The impatient dwarf Malakus stepped forward and asked.

“I have one thing I want to ask you.”

The owners of the labyrinths were already paying attention to Kim Jin-woo’s every move. At his words, everyone pricked up their ears and listened attentively.

Looking at them, Kim Jin-woo said with a satisfied face.

“Was the fruit of the last war sweet enough?”

When the labyrinth owners, not knowing what he meant by the sudden question, were looking at each other, he asked again.

“If you had another chance, would you accept it?”