The Ghost’s Grave (1) and The Ghost’s Grave (2)
Because Ain spoke so confidently, Hyeon thought he heard it wrong for a moment.
“What are you doing in my room at night?”
“I won’t do anything! Can’t we just go in and take a look?”
“that… .”
“Why, tongue and string, what were you thinking, but you’re so flustered…?” ?」
‘Is he confused about who is agitated by fairy tales?’
Hyun was at a loss for words for a moment.
First, I decided to calm Ain down.
“Stay still for a moment.”
‘Assimilation off.’
When the soul was separated, the head calmed down.
Hyun mentioned the promise he made with Ain earlier.
“Even if you quit school, you decided to wait.”
“Until next year… ?”
“It’s not your fault, but if we’re famous now, we might get caught up in useless gossip.”
There were countless people speculating about themselves and Ain, so it was still time to be self-respecting.
But if it ends like this, something big might happen in real life.
I couldn’t just treat Ain with kindness.
“instead. I’ll listen to anything in the game. You don’t have to wait until next year.”
Hyun decided to lower his guard just a little bit.
Ain won’t be able to turn off the adult filter anyway.
“anything… ?”
“okay. Where there are no people.”
“really… as… ?”
Ain suddenly approaches with his eyes shining.
Feeling like a herbivore facing a beast, Hyun broke out in a cold sweat.
Did you say something? when i was thinking
“no. It’s done now.”
Ain’s approaching steps stopped.
He said while restoring his usual relaxed smile.
“Hyun, is the private room often vacant these days?”
“I think it was.”
Hyun thought about the state of the private room recently.
empty house.
Louise only stayed for a short while to sleep, and Poppy built her own house in the city.
The rest of the guild members were busy with their own work and had no reason to come to the private room unless called for a meeting or other reason.
“Huh, because there is later. Let’s go hunting for now.”
Skeletons were gathering around them before they knew it.
The respawn time of the monsters here is much shorter than in the cave.
After a little bit of wandering, new monsters would appear again from somewhere like this.
“okay.”
Hyeon also laughed and assimilated into Ain again.
Time continues to pass even if you don’t want to.
The later work will have to be promised later.
***
Before entering the dungeon, Hyun and Ain turned off the ‘automatic exploration’ function.
This was to prevent unintentional recording of information.
‘Okay, it should be fine like this.’
If he were to catch a high-level boss in a dungeon, the existence of himself and Ajin might be revealed.
Ain also agreed with the explanation that secrecy should be prioritized.
After completing all the preparations, Hyun and Ain entered the dungeon.
Ghost’s Tomb.
As befits a dungeon with an eerie name, the scenery inside was dreary.
It was like an old abandoned cathedral.
Inside the eerie dungeon was full of undead monsters such as skeletons and ghosts.
‘It’s like an old castle built underground.’
The dungeon was made up of several layers.
The size of one floor is enormous, but thanks to the simple structure of the dungeon, there was no need to get lost.
It took about an hour for Hyun to reach the 10th basement floor!
However, from the 10th floor, the level of monsters exceeded level 300, and the structure of the dungeon began to become more complicated, so I had to spend more time than before.
‘It’s a bit strange.’
Hyun noticed one thing that bothered him.
That the demons were howling every time the protection of darkness was used.
I don’t know what you’re screaming at
‘If you were a vampire, you would understand. Shouldn’t I have gotten the transformation potion from Scotanatos?’
Hyun, who had such thoughts, soon had an opportunity.
It was because after the 10th floor, monsters with high intellect began to appear.
The moment I used the Protection of Darkness, an ogre covered in demonic energy charged at me as if in a frenzy.
Through the guy’s atmosphere, Hyun was able to guess the meaning of the monsters’ howls earlier.
‘Maybe it was the problem of showing off the dark energy.’
The meaning behind the ogre’s expression is murderous intent.
Did the cries of other monsters have a similar meaning to this one?
“Hyun, that wolf seems to hate us.”
Apparently, Ain felt the same way.
He muttered as he faced the growling giant wolf.
“Why do you hate it?”
“Do you know the wolf’s expression?”
“There is a little of that, but… Rather than that, you’re keeping your tail tight.”
Just as Ain said, the giant wolves surrounding Magi changed their eyes fiercely the moment they used the Protection of Darkness.
It was the moment when the protection of the darkness that planted ‘friendship’ in the beings of the abyss was colorless.
‘What really happened.’
No matter how much I thought about it, it was strange that there was a monster more hostile to a being with dark energy.
Just as most followers of the heavens cannot disobey the archangel, there are few monsters that can disobey the will of the archangel.
Unless you have a grudge against the darkness.
‘no way… It’s not the dungeon of the traitor’s forces, right?’
For a moment, Hyun recalled Louise’s words.
Even the abyss is full of ganja from the sky.
Just as deception hid itself among the forces of the sky, it meant that there could exist a sky disguised as an abyss.
‘Well, it will become clear if I go to the end.’
Hyun decided to seal the protection of darkness for the time being.
Even if I tried to use it, I couldn’t see any effect, and it only made the monsters ferocious.
‘huh? here is.’
Hyun, who was going down the dungeon smoothly, stopped walking the moment he reached the 13th floor.
Immediately after descending the stairs, Hyun felt an unknown coolness run down his spine.
‘I can’t see anything.’
The 13th floor was dark enough to be called dark.
The atmosphere was completely different from the previous floor where magic lanterns were hung here and there.
got into trouble at the same time.
The torch was used to light the darkness, but for some reason no magic was activated.
“Hyun, don’t you turn on the lights?”
“… The torch has not been written.”
“Isn’t it too dark?!”
“Wait, I’ll try again.”
Hyun tried to use the torch again and again, but not a single handful of light appeared in the dark space.
As if the surrounding darkness eats up the light.
Without seeing anything, it was impossible to move forward any further.
“If not, shall I turn on the lights?”
“Is Mana okay?”
「If you catch some monsters along the way, you will recover. Because there is regular absorption!”
Hwareuk! The moment Ifrit’s claws turned on, the darkness was removed.
Ain’s claws were huge torches with an unquenchable flame.
and that moment.
「Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!」
“Wow!”
Hyeon and Ain almost lost their hearts.
Because right in front of me, a woman who was shedding bloody tears was looking at me with her eyes open.
“Calm down Ain, it’s a statue!”
Hyeon first realized what it was and shouted.
“Joe, the statue… ?”
“Or maybe it’s a golem. I think we should check it out a bit.”
Hyeon looked at the statue several times and found that it did not move.
An eerie woman with an upside down cross.
Even the malice was felt in the gruesome expressions on the faces.
“What’s this!”
Crisp!
When Ain struck the claw, the monstrous statue shattered and scattered on the floor.
“Who made this deal? You were surprised… !”
This time, Hyeon also strongly agreed with that statement.
Perhaps the most surprising thing since starting Assrian?
「Ahin, it would be better to release the fairy tale for a while here.」
Then Hyun realized an important fact.
“Why all of a sudden… ?」
“I can’t see a single monster around me.”
“really… That’s it.」
“Your mana may be insufficient.”
If mana is not restored through regular absorption, Ain’s mana will be depleted quickly.
I don’t know how long the darkness will last, so I need to save mana as much as possible… . By the way, mana consumption is 10 per second for claws of flame and 15 per second for ifrit’s claws.
In terms of mana management, the former was more useful.
If you run out of mana, you will have to assimilate again for stat bonuses.
“Then I’ll solve the fairy tale now… ?」
“huh.”
“Even if I solve a fairy tale, I can’t take my hands off my body… ?”
“Even if you don’t say anything, I’ll still hold onto you.”
The Celestial Coupling worn by himself and Ain has the following effects.
-All stats increase by 20% when in contact with a partner.
The user’s maximum amount of mana is [horse power] X 10.
Of course, even if magic power suddenly increases, the maximum value increases, but mana does not recover.
Since the ‘natural recovery amount’ of mana is proportional to the maximum value, it is to keep the magical power level high.
Hwareuk.
A soft flame lit up in the dark space.
The slightly faint flame made the surrounding atmosphere even more spooky.
“Hyun, just using Ifrit’s claw… .”
“no. That’s enough.”
“But it’s too dark… .”
“Because I just need to secure a nearby view.”
Hyun put his hand on Ain’s shoulder and moved forward.
The 13th floor was a little unusual.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that the map itself has completely changed.
The width of the corridor is only 3 meters… It is only 1/10 the size of the previous floors.
Go through the narrow hallway and open the door to the main hall.
Kikii Iik-.
An old grating sound filled the room.
Hyeon and Ain pass through the creaking door nervously.
As soon as Hyun entered the room, he quickly checked his surroundings.
Even in this room, I couldn’t find even a single monster.
‘What, is this the end… ?’
Looking closely, the hall was blocked.
There were no doors or passageways leading to other places, and there were no stairs leading down to the next floor.
‘It must have been a single road?’
only about 5 minutes. Even, I just walked very slowly.
It was because they had to be wary of threats that might lurk in the dark.
About 500 meters in terms of distance?
If the already narrow dungeon ended with this, it was a very disappointing result compared to the previous vast floors.
cooong!
It was the moment Hyun thought so when he heard a huge echo from behind.
Startled by the sudden sound, Ain’s shoulders jumped up.
“Um, what was that… ?!”
“The back door closed by itself!”
in the ensuing silence.
click. The small metal sound came again.
“just now… Isn’t the door locked?”
“well… .”
Hyun felt Ain’s voice tremble.
If he had assimilated, his own heart would surely have been beating.
“Shin the back for a moment.”
After Hyun asked Ain to do so, he rushed toward the closed door in an instant.
It was to find out who the bad prank was.
If you’re a human, you can try to talk, and if you’re a monster, you can fill the demi-human’s mana.
Kwajik!
The wooden door was easily broken even with a low-strength string kick.
“no one is here… !”
But when I looked straight at the place I had passed.
I couldn’t find the guy who closed the door in the back.
“Yeah, after all, a ghost… There was!”
Even while Ain was in a panic, Hyeon quickly shook his head.
Why is the door closed alone?
invisible monster. Or an unknown force.
Either way, it wasn’t a pleasant situation.
“Ah, let’s go back for now.”
“As expected, it will be over now… ?”
“No, I’ll fill up my mana on the previous floor and come back.”
Pod! Hyun assimilated into Ain and used Ifrit’s claws.
As a huge flame rose, the darkness became brighter.
When I returned, I didn’t have to be wary of my surroundings, so I was able to get to the starting place in an instant.
To the location where the 13th floor began.
“hyeon… .”
The moment I was about to climb the stairs, Ain muttered in a trembling voice.
“That statue was broken earlier… It’s back to normal.”
“what?”
Hyun looked in the direction Ain said.
Just as she said, the statue with a terrifying expression was smiling towards us, revealing its teeth.
for a moment… . Hyun’s memory suddenly raised its head.
Were you smiling earlier?
“Ain, doesn’t that look like its face has changed?”
“face… ? I haven’t looked closely before, so I don’t know.”
“I must have been crying… I mean, he’s laughing now.”
Even if I don’t watch the recording, I remember it clearly.
The woman in the statue was clearly shedding bloody tears.
“What, what, suddenly, it’s more scary!”
Thanks to the fairy tale, Hyeon was able to feel Ain’s goosebumps together.
“I have no idea what this place is.”
“Run away quickly!”
“Okay, let’s fill up the mana first.”
Hyun went up the stairs to the twelfth floor.
It was at that moment that the sound of laughter could be heard from behind.
“laugh… !”
‘As expected, there’s something more!’
Chuckling laughter filled the aisles of the stairs.
The voice that seemed to ridicule this side of the run was definitely not human.
‘Is it that monster?’
Hyun remembered the unknown monster he had seen in the ‘record window’.
A video of a shapeless object swallowing a human whole.
Even knowing it was a game, it was a chilling sight.
In the meantime, I haven’t met a monster similar to him.
Maybe that guy is the owner of the 13th floor.
okay. If this was really the end of the dungeon, there was no way it would end so easily.
***
<Added record>
– A dungeon, ‘Ghost Grave’, has been discovered in the Central Cave.
– Some of the information on the monsters in the Haunted Grave has been recorded.
It was around the time Hyun and Ain were in the middle of the dungeon that the information about the ghost’s tomb was recorded.
‘Is this information related to Magi?’
‘Someone kicked the ball!’
Magi was also involved in the core mission of exploring Ufia Island.
Naturally, numerous guilds and exploration teams flocked to the haunted tomb.
‘What, it’s incredibly wide… !’
Some users were prepared for friction.
Because someone ahead of them must be sweeping up the information.
However, such worries disappeared as soon as I saw the inside of the ‘Ghost Grave’.
‘Fortunately, this way the traffic lines won’t overlap.’
The dungeon was not in the form of a ‘cave’.
Rather, it was more like a large-scale museum.
It wasn’t a complex structure like a maze, and there were many objects on each floor, so even those who arrived late could record ‘new information’.
‘this.’
After a while, users figured out the problem.
Since the monsters in the early stages were only around level 100, they only thought the dungeon was easy.
but. B1F, 2F, 3F… As I went down the stairs, my thoughts gradually changed.
Most users couldn’t even dare to go down to the 5th floor where monsters of level 200 appeared.
It was because the cycle of monsters appearing was extremely short.
<Record 55-2. The respawn time of normal monsters in the Ghost Grave is 5 minutes.>
There was no such thing as a safe zone in the dungeon.
You never know when or where a monster will pop out.
In this way, even the highest level of exploration was limited in advancing to the 7th floor, the area where level 250 monsters appeared.
‘Since I came here, the amount of points supplied has increased more than 10 times.’
‘It seems that information that can be obtained from upstairs is gradually disappearing.’
Users who entered the dungeon soon realized a certain fact.
The value of information recorded in the deep layer is higher!
Also, the lower the floor, the fewer the competitors!
It meant that it was advantageous to go down as deep as possible.
‘Can’t we go further?’
‘I think I can get to the next area if I overdo it a little.’
When everyone realized this, they began forming alliances with parties and guilds with high power.
Even users of the same level could go down one more floor if the number of people increased.
In the meantime, the ones who suffered the most loss were the expeditions who tried to push through the number of people.
Even in caves, they avoided monsters and only recorded information, so they couldn’t go deep into dungeons without safe zones.
Some paid money and asked other exploration teams to accompany them, but were rejected every time.
It was because users who came to Upia Island for the purpose of points had no reason to choose money.
The only choice left to them is to explore the cave outside again, or pick up what others spilled inside the dungeon.
Most of the users who went back and forth between the 1st and 4th floors were such people.
***
‘What happened.’
Hyun was embarrassed.
A dungeon full of suspicious demons.
At the end, I thought, of course, something suspicious would come to light.
‘Is there really nothing… ?’
Hyun went back and forth between the 12th and 13th floors countless times and searched the 13th floor.
There were no more stairs going down, so it was clear that this was the last floor.
However, no matter how much I searched, I couldn’t find even a monster’s nose.
It was all about the occasional spooky freak phenomenon.
‘It’s not some kind of horror game.’
The most suspicious thing is, of course, the statue of a woman standing tall at the entrance.
The statue’s expression kept changing.
At first he was crying, then he laughed, showing his teeth.
I got goosebumps when I tried using ‘Blessing of Darkness’ in front of her.
It was because the statue had such a distorted expression that it made me wonder if it existed in reality.
After that, Ain suddenly left the capsule saying he was full of fatigue, so Hyun had to continue his exploration by assimilating with Ain, who was in a resting state.
Fortunately, Ain periodically renewed the connection.
For some reason, Ain insisted that he was full of fatigue but could not sleep.
‘There might be another staircase on the twelfth floor.’
No matter what he did, Hyun went back to the previous floor.
Still, I couldn’t find any new passages.
Thanks to the search here and there, the experience has risen considerably.
It was because, thanks to the extremely short regeneration time of the monsters, they were able to continue fighting on the 12th floor without a break.
‘No, this is not the time to earn experience points… There are many hunting grounds that are more efficient than here.’
Hyun looked at the situation again.
Perhaps the 13th floor is the end of the dungeon.
At the same time, the 13th floor was a place where nothing existed except strange phenomena.
‘I’m sure there is something, but I don’t know what it is.’
What came to mind in the end was the same way as yesterday.
If you take a magician to the 13th floor and detect it, wouldn’t it be possible to find something?
If the monsters are causing strange phenomena, they will surely respond to divine power detection.
‘Oh no, there’s no way to contact you… !’
Hyun realized it belatedly.
I didn’t register as a friend with Mina whom I met yesterday.
At the time, I didn’t think that something like this would happen.
‘I hope we can meet again.’
From then on, Hyun started going back the way he came down.
[‘Ain’ is out of rest!]
It wasn’t long after the 13th floor had moved away that Ain returned.
“Is it finally over?”
“yet… Nothing has progressed. I just did a lot of hunting unintentionally.”
“What, the experience level has actually gone up considerably!”
After reconnecting, Ain seemed to have completely recovered from his fatigue.
Even though it was quite late, he didn’t show any sign of drowsiness.
“Then where are you going now?”
“To see that woman again yesterday.”
“what… ? Now I’m watching from the side… ?!”
“It doesn’t matter if it’s her, as long as she has the Divinity Detection skill.”
Hyun quickly climbed the dungeon.
On the way, I could see a group of users exploring.
Some were fighting against level 250 monsters, while others were examining artifacts throughout the dungeon.
“Do any of you have a job as a magician?”
Hyun entered among the users and abruptly asked a question.
Focused attention for a moment.
After a while, someone shook their head and answered.
“no. There is no place.”
“okay. Then, everyone, please explore diligently.”
‘who is this… ?’
Some looked suspiciously at the hooded man.
7th floor underground. You need to form a full party of at least level 200 to get here safely, but he was wandering around alone.
‘Are you the user who secretly followed the large guilds?’
‘no way… It’s not like they were following us behind our backs… ?’
Most users concluded that way.
No one had seen the man just come up the stairs on the eighth floor, so that would be a reasonable idea.
‘To think there’s not a single magician.’
Hyun asked the same question to the users he encountered on the way up.
However, the users only answered with suspicious eyes, and some with cold eyes.
There were also rude guys among them, so Hyun thought about this.
Reveal my true identity?
It would be fun to say that points are confiscated.
It was such a stupid idea that I soon quit.
There is no need to risk yourself by ruining your image.
‘Is it already on the second floor?’
Hyun arrived near the entrance of the dungeon before he knew it.
Hyun was unconsciously looking for Mina’s figure.
‘I think we met around this time yesterday.’
Suddenly, memories of yesterday flashed through my mind.
As soon as I turned the corner of the cave, I could find a woman striking a cane all alone.
I remember watching the eccentricity in a suit for a long time because it looked interesting.
‘Yeah, like that guy… . huh?’
It was the moment when Hyun found Mina on the first floor.
While I was pounding the ground with all my might with the cane in my hand, I met the eyes of this person who had come up the stairs and stopped moving.
“ah… Yesterday’s large guild leader… ?”
When Mina found out about her private parts, she smiled awkwardly.
“Hmm, is this the woman?”
It was Ain who had closed the connection yesterday, but thanks to his sufficient rest today, he was able to live up to this time.
Simultaneously with Ain’s muttering, Hyun felt a chilling feeling.
For some reason, I had the illusion that there was intent to kill in that voice.
“Hey, don’t do anything weird!”
“What’s strange?”
“I wasn’t just trying to PK… ?”
“no. You can’t do that in front of Hyun, right?”
‘then… Where I can’t see?’
Hyun didn’t add anything that came to his mind at the moment.
It was because it didn’t seem like a good answer would come back.
Anyway, Ain’s silence means it’s okay to be with her, right?
If you get her help again, you might be able to unlock the secret of the 13th floor.
***
Right after meeting Mina, Hyun couldn’t bring up the idea of asking for help.
It was because her expression didn’t look very good.
“Do you think I’m running out of points today?”
If you belong to a corporation like her, Assrian’s play will be no different from ordinary labor.
If you are forced to do anything, your interest in the field you were interested in will wither.
“no. Not this time, but… .”
When Hyun started rhyming moderately, Mina started talking first.
She complained about working overtime for the second day.
His voice sounded like he was crying a little.
Hyun listened to Mina’s lamentations about her situation for a while.
“I got a lot of points thanks to the guild leader yesterday.”
“It was.”
“So, you meet the guild leader again and ask him to try a collaboration proposal this time?”
“Who is it?”
“My boss!”
Mina said that she was the only one working overtime this time.
I was expecting a reward because of the great achievement this time, but it only increased my work because of it.
From now on, he uttered his enthusiasm that he would only work in moderation and inconspicuously.
“No, which company is that?”
“That’s my company. Still, the guild leader has nothing to worry about. I won’t earn any points today… !”
“It’s fine… ?”
“does not matter. I can’t enter it as my performance anyway.”
After hearing Mina’s story, Hyun was able to learn a few more things about her.
Her job is a jewelry designer. In other words, a jeweler.
The reason for collecting points is to obtain various types of magic stones sold at the Shade Shop.
Also, it seemed that he was going through a lot of trouble in a conflict with his boss.
“Are you really losing all your achievements? to the boss? Why are you just looking at it with your eyes open?”
“I have little political power. If you don’t want to get fired, you have to work just enough to not be heard.”
“… .”
“I wanted to do design purely! I studied hard on craftsmanship every day by myself… !”
Really?
Hyun had never been in a specific group, let alone a company, so he couldn’t fully understand Mina’s feelings.
But when I listened to her words, it seemed that the company was not functioning normally.
“That’s right, it was that bastard who brought me into the expedition!”
“I work for him… ?”
“Yes, he’s my direct supervisor, but how picky he can get when he makes a little mistake! Stay still. I’ll show you that boss’s face.”
Mina seemed a little out of control.
Pod! A screen appeared in the air, and the face of a man in a suit came to mind.
‘huh… ?’
In an instant, Hyun’s eyes narrowed.
Surprisingly, he was a familiar man.
“Hyun, isn’t this him?!”
Ain recognized the man’s face and his eyes lit up.
“Right! that person!”
Right after arriving on Ufia Island, a user who had been arguing with the village about whether he was an information thief.
Even wearing the same suit, there was no doubt that they were the same person.
Continued in the next volume
