Chapter 38
Chapter 38: (3). Unknown Dungeon -1
The interior of the dungeon was neither too small nor too big. It was a corridor.
‘It’s not complicated but simple. I like it.’
Small and complicated dungeons were good for fighting multiple enemies at once, but it was also
easy to be ambushed or trapped, so Ian didn’t like that kind of dungeons.
‘But it’s somewhat creepy…’
It was cold inside because the dungeon was on a snowy mountain, but there was something else that
gave Ian goosebumps.
‘Are there ghosts here?’
He thought it was like the time he went to a haunted house in the theme park for the first time as a
child. Ian moved carefully with Big Buy going in front of him.
It was an unknown dungeon, so he didn’t know what kind of dangers would be in there.
Kaaaaa-
Something like the shriek of a ghost echoed down the long corridor.
‘Ah, I am getting even more nervous because there’s nothing.’
Ian complained silently.
Next, as if they heard Ian’s complaint, the walls on both sides collapsed and monsters started to
appear.
They were ghosts which fit well with the atmosphere in the dungeon.
What was strange was that the ghosts didn’t resemble humans. In fact, they were drakes, lizards with
wings.
“Big Guy, Ice Wave!!”
Ian had been on guard, so he reacted immediately.
Big guy stamped its feet hard and a blue Ice Wave started to spread.
- Ghost Drake received 235 damages.
- Ghost Drake has been slowed down by 30% for 10 seconds.
Their names were Ghost Drakes and there were three of them in total.
They lunged at Big Guy who had attacked them.
‘Uh, Ly needs more time to use Frenzy…’
Ian thought how to fight and moved fast.
- Your pet Big Guy received 1466 damages from Ghost Drake.
Ian flinched a little when seeing that Ghost Drakes were even stronger than Ice Trolls.
‘This can be a little hard…’
One or two wouldn’t have been difficult, but to handle three simultaneously, sweat started to ran down
his back.
However, he wasn’t frightened.
Ian had found out that the Summoner’s will to fight greatly affected the pets’ morale.
“Ly, you fight the one on the left. You don’t have to attack, just drag time for as long as you can!”
Growl-!
Ly understood Ian and lunged at the Drake on left.
Next, Ian moved as well.
Aiming Weak Spot skill was activated, then he punched the Drake’s weak spot. It was a fatal blow at
his first attack.
- You inflicted fatal damage to Ghost Drake!
- Ghost Drake’s Health decreases by 905.
- Linking Ability of the Ancient Summoner’s Steel Knuckle has been activated.
Looking at the last system message, Ian was thrilled.
‘Lucky me!’
- You borrow Ice Wave from your pet Big Guy.
He had hoped for Frenzy, but Ice Wave was enough.
Ian’s fists glowed in blue and a huge wave started to spread.
Kukukung- Kung-!
- Ghost Drake received 635 damages.
- Ghost Drake has been slowed down by 30% for 10 seconds.
Thanks to the repeated use of Ice Wave, the slowdown effect was doubled. The Ice Drakes became
very slow for a short moment.
And Ian knew well he had to attack as much as he could in this short moment.
“Ly! Come here and attack him first!”
They had exchanged blows. Therefore, Ian could guess his opponents’ stats.
They were attack type monsters.
They had a strong Attack Force, but their Defense Force and Health were comparatively low.
‘We received huge damage, so I thought they were much stronger than Trolls.’
Ghost Drakes had stronger Attack Force than Trolls, but their Defense Force was weaker.
So, Ian chose to kill one fast.
Now, with the slowdown effect doubled, was the best time to act.
Pak- Papak-!
Ian and Ly attacked the Drake’s weak spots four or five times, Big Guy’s fists were quite strong as
well.
Kiaaaak-!
The Ghost Drake screamed and twisted.
Its name started to blink, so it meant that it had less than half of its Health left.
But then, the slowdown effect faded. The other two Drakes attacked from behind.
“Huup-!”
Ian barely managed to dodge the Drake’s tail. He breathed hard.
“Huk… huk.”
It looked like it would be a hard battle, he had to find a way to save himself.
He then saw Bukbuk standing in a corner.
‘Bukbuk… please do something!’
Next, he gave an order to Bukbuk, “Bukbuk, attack those two and distract them!!”
He wasn’t expecting much, he said those words because he had nothing to lose.
Buk!
But to his surprise, Bukbuk courageously crawled toward the two Drakes.
Buk- Bukbukbuk-!!
Because Ly was out of their eyesight, the Drakes were looking for another opponent. They
immediately turned to Bukbuk when they heard its weird sound.
Bukbuk glared at the Drake with his usual ‘frightening’ eyes and luckily, the Drakes lunged at it.
‘Good, well done Bukbuk!!’
Ian attacked one Drake with Ly and Big Guy while glancing at Bukbuk from time to time.
He was counting on Bukbuk’s great Defense Force. Nevertheless, he was still worried.
However, Bukbuk was doing very well.
It quickly hid in its shell when the Drakes attacked it.
- Your pet Bukbuk received critical damage.
- Bukbuk’s Health decreased by 1.
- Bukbuk’s Health decreased by 1.
Bukbuk received only 1 damage even though it was a fatal damage. Ian could stop worrying about it
and concentrate on the Drake in front of him.
As a result, Ian soon killed the Drake.
- You killed the Ghost Drake. You gained 3078 EP.
Ian was thrilled at seeing the EP he got.
Ghost Drake had bigger EP than Ice Troll, and he had the ‘First Finder of the Dungeon’ effect, so he
received a huge amount of EP.
After checking his EP, he began to see Drakes, which he had found hard to handle, as EP
lunchboxes.
That greatly boosted Ian’s morale. He started to attack even more fiercely.
- You inflicted fatal damage to the Ghost Drake!
- Ghost Drake’s Health decreased by 912.
- Ghost Drake’s Health decreased by 562.
.
.
.
Ian killed all three Drakes with Bukbuk’s help. He was breathless.
It was just for a while, but he had fought for his life.
“Hu, hi.”
During the fight, Ly received a few blows and received a huge damage that almost killed it, but the
reward was as sweet as honey.
‘But Drakes are originally super high-levels monsters of at least Lv. 90… why were these ones not
that strong? Maybe because they were ghosts?’
These Ghost Drakes were at about Lv. 65.
Ian had been a little worried at first because Drakes had been strong monsters he couldn’t hunt easily
even before he reset his character.
“First Aid!”
While he caught his breath, he recovered his pets’ Health with First Aid.
And he didn’t forget to compliment Bukbuk.
“Bukbuk, you did well. That is what you are supposed to do from now!”
Buk-!
Bukbuk looked so proud of itself.
Ian gave it another meatball as it had done a lot of good things today. Then, he moved again.
‘Hhh… good, good!’
Ian grinned.
Fighting continued endlessly, but he got used to the dungeon and got around it.
He started to hunt faster and faster.
A while later, he saw a pleasant system message.
- You have leveled-up. You have reached Lv. 43.
“Yes!”
That message was always so pleasant.
Ian got so thrilled that he decided to hunt without eating and sleeping until his First Finder effect
ended.
‘If I hunt without stopping until then, I will be able to reach Lv.49.’
It looked like a realistic goal.
Monsters in the dungeon were a little stronger than Ice Trolls, but their Health and Defense Force
were weaker, so he could hunt even faster.
However, it was also more dangerous.
Ian continued hunting. Next, he found something and stopped, ‘Huh? It’s not a one-story dungeon!’
Dungeons that consisted of large corridors normally had only one floor. However, he found an
entrance that went down to the lower floor.
‘There are still many remaining monsters here… should I kill them first and go down?’
Ian thought about it for a while, then he moved toward the entrance.
‘I have to clear the dungeon first.’
Ian had to check what was at the end of the dungeon first to focus on hunting without worries, so he
decided to clear the dungeon first.
Another day of endless hunting passed like that.
…
“Wow, Himenes, you are great. Lv.45 already! Dark Sorcerers are quick at gaining levels, but still, you
are magnificent.”
Lim Eunyeong, a reporter of YTBC, had logged in as Lucia, her Kailan character. She was
interviewing Himenes, a Dark Sorcerer user who had signed an exclusive contract with YTBC.
“Haha, it’s nothing. It has been possible because the Titan Guild is fully supporting me. But it’s not like
I got much help, of course. Huhu.”
Himenes was the highest-level Dark Sorcerer so far.
Lucia had received a bonus from YTBC for getting him to sign an exclusive contract with the
company.
Dark Sorcerer gained levels faster than the other classes, but Himenes had reached Lv. 45 after three
weeks the server was opened, so a lot of people were interested in him.
‘His huge ego is unbearable, but I got a huge bonus thanks to him, so I can tolerate with this…’
Lucia knew that Himenes had gained levels so fast because his guild had given him hunting grounds
in which he could hunt alone, of course, she didn’t mention that.
‘Good is good…’
Lucia smiled brightly like a professional reporter and went on, “Well then, Himenes, please tell us
some tips to quickly grow as a Dark Sorcerer to the many users who will watch this.”
“You mean my secrets?”
“Yes!”
Himenes cleared his throat, “Ahem, I have to make a living, so I cannot tell you all of my know-hows,
but I will give you some decent tips, haha.”
Lucia resisted the urge to throw a punch to Himenes’s face and continued with a smile, “Hoho, then
viewers, shall we listen to the tips from the No. 1 ranked Dark Sorcerer, Himenes?”
“Well, to talk about the Dark Sorcerer…”
Himenes then started to brag about himself.
However, Lucia was thinking of something else while Himenes talked, ‘Was it Lauren? A Lv.37
Summoner… I must find her quickly…’
Lauren was the name of the highest-level Summoner she had found so far.
And Lv.37 was probably the highest level for all Summoners.
She needed to find Lauren and convince her to sign a contract before the other employees of YTBC
did, just like she had done with Himenes.