【Ah, finally setting foot on my land.】
The voice of Koolara resonated in Ramus’s mind. And there was someone who overheard that voice. It was Jong-sik.
【Hm-hm. Finally, I can feel you. Let’s see, ho-ho! Now that I see you, you’ve grown remarkably. You are a vessel without flaws.】
Koolara was firmly under a misconception. The magic of Jong-sik, imbued with Ramus’s soul, belonged to him.
【Ah, I’ll show you the way. Come to me.】
As a result, Koolara desired Ramus even more. He drooled while looking at Ramus, unaware that he was already subservient to Jong-sik.
【Hurry up. Wait a minute! Hmm. The one near you, I sense a tempting aura from him! Bring him here. He’s a bright kid; he won’t misunderstand my intentions.】
Koolara was being pushy. Asking Ramus to bring him as a sacrifice. Well, isn’t this amusing? It’s worth subtly leaking the magic. Jong-sik let out a chuckle.
Meanwhile, Matthew grabbed Alex by the neck and slammed him to the ground. People glanced at him with pity, but he paid no heed.
“Go out and wait quietly. Disobeying orders, deserting special military duty—I’ll decide your punishment when I come back.”
“Mm, okay.”
Was it shame, or guilt for abandoning his comrades?
For some reason, Alex started shedding tears belatedly.
But the gazes of the people looking at him were icy.
Eventually, Alex began to walk away with small steps. Soon after, Alex left the gate.
‘Where did it all go wrong? It’s all a problem with my leadership.’
Matthew sighed deeply in embarrassment. But he couldn’t help but perk up at Jong-sik’s subsequent words.
Because finally, the operation had begun.
“Looks like things are roughly sorted out. Let’s start moving slowly.”
At the base camp, two teams remained, totaling 20 members, while the remaining 80 members formed eight teams to explore the jungle.
The eight teams that went on the exploration had previously agreed to detonate signal flares immediately upon discovering the dungeon’s Boss or any suspicious location. However, there would be no need for the signal flares to go off. Because the dungeon’s Boss, Koolara, would be discovered by Jong-sik’s team.
For that to happen, Ramus is needed.
[Well, now it’s time to faithfully fulfill the role of the prophet, right?]
Upon receiving Jong-sik’s thoughts, Ramus blinked his eyes nervously. Then, he suddenly began to speak with a voice full of conviction.
“I-I saw something!”
“…?”
“We need to go right. If we go that way, we can see the dungeon’s Boss!”
And his teammates couldn’t help but understand his words.
“What? The dungeon’s Boss is over there?”
“Yes. Everyone needs to head in this direction.”
“Wait, how far does the ability of prophecy go? Ramus, perhaps…”
“…?”
“Do you know how to read faces or something? Take a look at my face. Do you see anything?”
“Read faces? I don’t know about that.”
“Tsk, are you kidding me now?”
“I’m sorry!”
“…Captain.”
One of the team members, Kang Chang-soo, called out to Jong-sik. He was holding a spear taller than himself.
“I’m listening. What do you have to say?”
“If the words of the prophet are true, shouldn’t we detonate the signal flare immediately to inform? With your permission, I’ll detonate it.”
From the appearance of the gate to the time and even the grade of the dungeon, Ramus’s prophecies had been spot on so far. Kang Chang-soo was confident that the prophecy he just heard would also be accurate.
So it must have been his thought to gather the scattered team members.
“No, it’s not. It won’t be too late to confirm and call them. Finding the boss is important, but reducing the number of monsters is also important. Calling back the scattered people now would only leave our base camp vulnerable.”
But Jong-sik seemed to shake his head as if there was nothing to think about. After all, they couldn’t capture Koolara.
It wasn’t like they could temporarily capture his henchmen either.
So, rushing over there would just be annoying. That was Jong-sik’s true feelings.
Of course, the team members who didn’t know this said, “Well, there’s no need to call them hastily. We also need to clean up the monsters…. Understood,” and agreed.
In the end, they walked in the direction Ramus pointed out, with the signal flares still in place. How far did they walk like that?
They trudged through thickets and crossed swamps until they finally entered the depths of the jungle. But until then, they hadn’t encountered any monsters.
“I guess it’s just us experiencing this?”
“Yeah, it’s definitely strange. In a typical dungeon, as you get closer to the boss monster, the number of monsters increases, but this is, well….”
The team members who sensed something strange expressed their doubts.
Crreeeeeeek-!
Kwaaang! Boom!
It was understandable.
Judging from the sounds coming from around them, it seemed like everyone except themselves was engaging in fierce battles with monsters.
So why were monsters only appearing in front of them? Could it be that they were being hidden and only appearing to them? Of course, it was an unreasonable guess.
Unable to find answers to the situation, eventually, Pyeong-ari stepped forward. Since Ramus was the one who said they should go this way, maybe he knew something?
“Ramus, do you know anything?”
“Well, I just saw something vaguely at the end of this path.”
However, Ramus pretended to know nothing and shook his head subtly. It was something he had been doing from the start. After all, it wouldn’t be right to say that their boss sacrificed his subordinates to protect you.
“Really? Hmmm. That just makes me feel even more uneasy. Team leader, I mean, Captain Jong-sik, you feel something strange too, right?”
“Well, I always try to think positively about good things. What could be unsettling?”
However, peace was shattered with that statement. As if to prove it, there was a sense of something catching Jong-sik’s attention. Soon, the team members could feel it too.
Rustle, rustle.
It was the sound of bushes being pushed aside.
“Grrrrrrr.”
Along with what sounded like boiling phlegm. The team members determined that it was definitely a monster.
“Oops, I guess it’s true that when you talk about tigers, they appear. Phew. Still, I feel relieved.”
“Yeah, right. Life sure has its surprises. Who would’ve thought we’d be so happy to see monsters?”
“Pyeong-ari, I’ll take the guard duty. Stay behind me.”
“Sure. I’ll start healing right away as soon as I’m done buffing your head. Stay close to the tanker until then.”
With that, the team members prepared for the impending battle.
Meanwhile, Jong-sik was different. He fixed his gaze towards the source of the sound with narrowed eyes.
It wasn’t the monster the team members were expecting to see. It was Michael, one of the escaped hunters. And he was a henchman of Koolara. His reddened skin was evidence of that.
The moment Jong-sik saw it, his demeanor turned ferocious. Was it because he became a henchman of Koolara? No, it was because of the team members standing beside him. He was angry at the despair they would soon feel.
Suddenly, a long-forgotten memory came to mind.
Back then, one of his comrades also became a henchman of Koolara.
“…I had to take care of such a comrade with my own hands.”
That memory was still vivid. He didn’t want to leave such a memory to them. As this sense of righteousness continued,
“…Michael?”
The mouth of someone who had been watching straight ahead opened. It seemed they had just seen it belatedly.
Gally, an American hunter, gazed at it with a puzzled expression. His flushed face reminded one of something.
“The troll’s skin color…!”
Next, he remembered how such trolls were dealt with. However, he couldn’t do such a thing to his comrades. Gally desperately shouted,
“Micahel! It’s me, Gally! Look at me!”
However, his cry didn’t help resolve the situation. Instead, it provoked Michael even more.
“Hahahaahah-!”
Michael rushed towards Gally at lightning speed. Gally couldn’t do anything.
Then, Jong-sik intervened. Unlike the others, Jong-sik had no hesitation. Like a flash, he ran and slit Michael’s throat.
Slice.
It happened in the blink of an eye.
Ssshhhh-!
The jungle fell silent, and Gally let out a silent scream.
“Ah…!”
But it wasn’t time to be in awe. Michael hadn’t found peace yet.
Jong-sik calmly gave orders.
“Pyeong-ari, don’t just stand there. Do your job.”
Fortunately, Pyeong-ari was a quick thinker. At Jong-sik’s words, she suppressed her surging emotions and swiftly approached him.
Soon, she cast a skill, and the movements of the man known as Michael finally ceased.
Shortly after, the American hunters let out animal-like cries.
“Michael, Michael hahahaah!”
Why wouldn’t they?
Just a few hours ago, their comrade, who had been laughing and joking by their side, had become a tragic corpse.
Gally and his comrades held onto Michael’s body and shed tears for a while. Jong-sik didn’t rush them.
With that, after a moment, Gally, who had calmed down, approached Jong-sik. Pyeong-ari, by his side, looked at Gally with a tense gaze.
‘Surely he’s not thinking anything strange, is he?’
But that was a groundless suspicion. Suddenly, Gally standing in front of Jong-sik bent his waist. Thud, thud. Thick tears soaked the ground.
“Th-thank you. Thank you for letting Michael rest in peace.”
Gally expressed his gratitude sincerely. Of course, at first, he was angry. Angry at Jong-sik for ruthlessly taking the life of his comrade.
But seeing Michael’s body in front of him, Gally could understand. Jong-sik hadn’t killed their comrade.
‘…Seeing his half-buried head, Michael was already dead. Alex had clearly said so.’
Rather, he had granted him peace. It was something their comrades couldn’t do. So, he could only be thankful.
As if Jong-sik understood Gally’s feelings, he patted his shoulder as if to say he knew everything.
“It’s not over yet. Wipe your tears. The culprit who made our comrade like this is still out there. So let’s stop mourning here and get moving again.”
His words acted as a catalyst. The American hunters, including Gally, gritted their teeth and swallowed their tears. Now wasn’t the time to cry.
They couldn’t cry comfortably until they avenged their comrade who had been made like this. They clenched the weapons in their hands. Someone held a bow, while another held a sword…
Meanwhile, Ramus could understand that Michael’s appearance indicated Koolara’s doing.
【Huhu, my boy. Has the interesting sightseeing come to an end? It was a small gift for you. It’s a shame you couldn’t see it yourself. Anyway, you’ve brought many sacrifices, which is commendable. Come on over.】
At the same time, he realized that this was where Koolara was sealed. He took a step forward and stirred the bushes where Michael had come through.
Beyond it lay a black cave. Ramus, thinking, ‘I need to inform the master!’ turned his head.
But it seemed the master already knew. It was to be expected, as Jong-sik, with a cold gaze, was looking here, shooting a glance at the cave.
