Episode 62 No.388 Feather Serpent Altar (1)
‘Why are you giving me something like this?’
A large ruby glowed red in my hand.
An essence imbued with the unique magic of the Ruby Tower.
If you trade, it will always be in gold units, and if you use it to craft or upgrade items, a high grade is guaranteed.
It felt like too much for the price of just giving the replay back privately.
In fact, to some extent, it is possible to keep it private for ethical reasons among team members, and even if we give something, we tend to resolve it by giving something light like a snack or coffee.
So when Hong Yeon-hwa held out the ruby, I shook my head. I didn’t need it.
Then a much larger ruby pops out.
I accepted it for now because I didn’t know what would come next if I rejected it again, but I’m not happy about it as if I just hit the jackpot.
If you just pick this up and swallow it, there’s a high chance it’ll be a stool.
‘I’ll take it to Ruby later,’
I think it would be best to talk to your manager and then decide.
Anyway, I’ll probably have to go to Ruby Tower too.
If you take the ruby, wouldn’t you be treated like a guest?
When I suddenly checked the time, it hadn’t been long since I entered the dungeon.
‘It ended quickly.’
Clearly, the purpose of this sweeping strategy was to cultivate observation skills by examining things closely, even if it took some time.
The Hong Yeon-hwa duo and I cleared the dungeon in an instant as if we were doing some kind of time attack.
‘Hong Yeon-hwa did a good job.’
It may be said that this was the result of moving along an extremely efficient route to reduce waste, but it was even easier because Hong Yeon-hwa followed the route well.
Even if I find a monster right away, if it takes a long time to kill it or I miss it, time will inevitably be delayed.
On the other hand, Hong Yeon-hwa showed off her coolness by instantly burning away any number of them that popped out.
‘I fought well against the boss too.’
He also put up a good fight against the twin trolls.
In fact, these twins are the ones that appear when you have really bad luck with the draw among the many randomly selected bosses, and they are stronger than the [Strong Enemy] Decapitator Goblin.
I thought that this guy was worthy of his reputation as a promising player, since he lost about 30% of his stamina while dealing with it alone.
Towards the end, it seemed like it was too much for me, so I joined in, but I saw as much as was needed until then.
Until you decide which skills to copy.
▷Copy-Skill [2/2]
1. Overheat (D)
2. Thief’s Step (B)
Overheat.
This skill absorbs one completed flame skill and gains physical abilities equivalent to the power of the absorbed skill for the duration.
This means that your abilities will increase more when you absorb [Flame Orb], which creates a large fireball, than when you absorb [Combustion], which creates a small flame explosion.
I only have one fire series skill.
Instead, he became a very ignorant person.
‘Inferno Fist.’
Since the power is power, it is expected that when absorbed, physical abilities will also increase significantly.
Inferno Fist is a banned skill, so you have to be careful about the situation when using it, but now you can use it as an overheat sacrifice even while the replay is running.
With this increased physical ability, the B-rank thief’s gait, and the shoes he received from the calligrapher added in… … .
‘I guess I could play tag with third graders.’
As for mobility, you can probably ignore it for the time being.
[Sub Quest: 4th Week Strategy] (Complete)
▷Goal: Clear the dungeon before the attack
▷Completion 100/100%
▷Reward: [Copy-Characteristic] Slot +1
Copy-Attributes[1/2]
1. Elemental Resistance (S)
2. (None)
100% Sweep Reward: Add [Copy-Trait] slot.
It is now possible to copy new traits without overwriting [Elemental Resistance].
Unlike skills, traits do not have noticeable precursors to their activation, making it more difficult to determine whether or not you have them.
It’s more difficult to gauge rank.
Now that all the characters have been replaced due to the aftermath of the EX-class reincarnation quest, it will take some time to find out the characteristics of other students or faculty members.
So let’s put that aside for a bit and aim for something I know for sure.
Boss monsters located in the underground dungeon.
* * *
“Brother Kim.”
dinner.
On the way to Dungeon-dong at the appointed time, I ran into Go Hyun-woo.
We walked side by side and exchanged a few words.
“Have you memorized all the strategies?”
“Of course. I didn’t miss a single word, just as you instructed.”
“The more you follow along, the better. It’s okay to make a few mistakes. Just don’t get too lost.”
“I will never let Brother Kim down.”
“I believe.”
As we arrived at the entrance to the dungeon, Shin Byeong-cheol, who had been waiting, greeted us with a smile.
“You’re here. Are you ready?”
“then.”
“Okay, okay. First, take these.”
Shin Byeong-cheol handed over the items he had prepared one by one.
One is a silver pin to attach to a tie.
This is a second grade pin.
At this point, first-year students can’t even go down to the basement, and their tie pins are white?
It is a leading implementation on the spot.
To avoid such mishaps, it is necessary to replace the pin with a second-year pin.
Changing tie pins is a violation of school rules and will result in severe punishment if caught, but if you don’t get caught, isn’t that the end of it?
The second item was a badge shaped like a human face, but instead of facial features, it had a large question mark in the middle.
[Someone’s Badge]
He put the badge on his front pocket and looked around at the other guys.
Go Hyun-woo also looks at me and Shin Byeong-cheol alternately and lets out exclamations.
“Oh, so that’s why it’s so-and-so.”
The faces of the two people seem blurry, as if they are passing by, or as if they belong to a different person.
An item with a kind of perception-disrupting magic that makes a person’s face look as normal as possible.
However, if you focus your mana on your eyes, the unnatural flow will be immediately noticeable, and those with keen eyes will quickly notice the discomfort.
It is a flimsy item in many ways.
But to most people, it just looks like an ordinary face, so they just pass it by and don’t remember the face.
Combined with the above, it is a shabby but surprisingly effective item.
And because this so-and-so badge is often used for impure purposes, it is on the list of prohibited items.
In summary, there are already three violations of school rules, including trespassing on the basement floor of the dungeon building, changing pins by grade, and wearing prohibited items.
Is it okay for a student to break school rules like this?
‘It’s all for world peace.’
If you don’t break the rules, you won’t get the hidden piece.
If you don’t get the hidden piece, your growth will be slowed down,
If your growth is slow, you may be defeated by stronger enemies you meet later.
Then, the world will end as a result.
Since it’s an EX-level quest, it’s probably true.
Shin Byeong-cheol spoke with a mean smile, as if he had no awareness that he was contributing to world peace.
“Well then, shall we go down?”
“Let’s do that.”
We followed Shin Byeong-cheol’s instructions and headed down the stairs.
What started out as a basement staircase gradually widened and turned into a large circular staircase.
If you look down over the railing, you will see an endless series of circular stairs.
Even though the lights were bright, the depths below were still dark.
After walking down the circular stairs for a while, I came to a fork in the road.
Either continue down this path or exit through the passage on the right.
Shin Byeong-cheol, who is leading the way, gestures.
“right.”
Go a little to the right and there are more stairs going down.
Compared to the circular staircase we first went down, it is somewhat narrower, but it still leads downward.
If you go down like that for a while, you will reach another fork in the road.
There are two paths and three paths.
Every time, Shin Byeong-cheol faithfully played the role of guide.
“This way.”
“Not there.”
“This way.”
However, since it seemed like he had deliberately chosen to go to remote places, Go Hyun-woo asked, perhaps out of curiosity.
“Brother Shin, can I ask you something?”
“Oh, go ahead and ask.”
“What’s the difference between just going down and going like the new type?”
What I mean is, if you just go down the circular stairs you first took, it will be spacious and comfortable, so why bother making a complicated maze?
Shin Byeong-cheol answered that there is a reason for everything.
“Honestly, we’re not exactly upright. We should avoid it as much as possible.”
Of course, we’re not the only ones wandering the basement.
It is basic for second and third year students to do strategic battles, and the leadership team and faculty members also make periodic patrols.
It goes without saying that the risk increases as more people pass by the route.
So, I just choose the paths that are the least crowded.
Shin Byeong-cheol made a boast, pointing at himself with his thumb.
“Don’t worry, just trust this Shin Byeong-cheol and follow him! I won’t let you meet even a single rat.”
But even a tiger will come if you call it.
In less than five minutes, Shin Byeong-cheol flinched and sent us a signal.
He speaks with an urgent mouth shape like this.
‘Let it go naturally. Naturally.’
Soon a noise was felt from below and a party of second-year students appeared to be coming up.
We naturally lined up and stuck to one side, and the other person stuck to the opposite side.
“… … .”
“… … .”
As we passed by, a couple of eyes turned towards us.
He tilts his head as if to say, ‘Was there a kid like that in our grade?’
However, he soon turned away, not feeling the need to look deeper.
You’ve just finished clearing a dungeon, so you’re probably tired and bothered by everything.
It’s fortunate for us.
The second graders disappear upwards,
Go Hyun-woo and I looked at Shin Byeong-cheol in silence.
You said you wouldn’t let me meet a single rat?
Shin Byeong-cheol immediately makes an excuse.
“… … I was unlucky just now. Do you trust me?”
“… … .”
Rather than offering words of encouragement, Go Hyun-woo seemed determined to quickly change the subject.
“How long have you been here?”
“If you count the numbers, it would be in the 700s.”
“What if it’s in the 700s?”
“F-class. D-class is a long way down.”
Go Hyun-woo was purely impressed.
“Huh. I’ve heard that Dungeon Cave is vast, but I didn’t know it was this vast. If it takes this long to get to Class D, how much further down do you have to go to the Deep Zone… .”
“It’s not called the deep-rooted department for nothing. Let’s think about that later, but let’s go for now.”
In fact, the reason this feeling of endlessness was so great was because we had sneaked down to the basement.
In consideration of students who find walking cumbersome or time-consuming, there are means of transportation between floors, such as elevators and teleportation magic circles, located throughout the basement.
However, to use these facilities, you basically have to scan your student ID, and a correction device is installed so that a record is left.
I couldn’t leave a record because I wanted to be a little more comfortable, so I had to ignore it and just pass it by.
If the guide’s level was high, it would be possible to deceive the correction ball, but unfortunately, Shin Byeong-cheol was a first-year student like us.
In the end, I had no choice but to keep on walking diligently.
* * *
On the way to our destination, we encountered two more groups of second-year students.
I chose the evening time slot, when there are relatively few people, and took the route with the fewest people possible, but it still happened like this.
“Haha… … . I’m a little sorry about this.”
Shin Byeong-cheol scratched the back of his head.
If it happens once, you can just chalk it up to bad luck, but if it happens three times, it becomes shameful.
But I didn’t complain.
He said he only came down once.
This is how you gain experience.
“If you didn’t get caught, that’s fine. Drive well next time.”
“Oh, sir, is there anything you would like to do, sir? Please come this way.”
I left the tedious stairs and entered a passageway that was like an ant hole.
D-class dungeons are waiting for challengers with their mouths wide open here and there.
Each teleportation portal has a different appearance, and the scenery that is glimpsed from inside is also different.
[No.396] [Corresponding State]
[No.394] [7th Laboratory]
The commonality is that they exude an atmosphere that is several times more sinister than that of artificial dungeons.
We kept passing through those portals and stopped at one place.
[No.388] [Feather Serpent Altar]
“Just wait a minute.”
Before entering.
Shin Byeong-cheol took out several devices from his inventory and started to install them while walking around busily.
This is to temporarily disrupt the crystal ball monitoring the area and leave no room for later tracking.
This is also part of the service provided by the Thieves’ Club.
Shin Byeong-cheol, who had quickly finished installing the device, shook his hands.
“All done. How long will it take?”
“It’ll be over soon.”
“Okay. I’ll be waiting outside.”
After saying that, he takes a few steps back.
I exchanged glances with Go Hyun-woo and nodded.
And then, one by one, we stepped into the portal.
Soon the view changed drastically.
