Chapter 56: Dungeon"Master?"
"Report the current situation."
I assessed the atmosphere.
It was gloomy. Even during training, the mood had been bright, but now it felt as heavy as a funeral procession.
"Ah... One of our team members died, so we were resting."
They truly had held a funeral.
I immediately identified the culprit.
The work of a doppelgänger.
The brain-eating worms had infiltrated even Isia's guild.
"Huh? Doppelgänger...*gasp*"
Seol-hwa was shocked.
Understandable, considering there was a doppelgänger hiding among them.
She started to speak about the doppelgänger but quickly covered her mouth.
"Don't worry. If we had the Tracking Trait, everything would be resolved..."
I confidently began speaking but immediately shut my mouth.
'Ah, fuck, I don't have it.'
The Tracking Trait wasn't in Seol-hwa's body.
"We're screwed."
I marveled at my own stupidity.
'Fuck, why didn't the Myohaengseong Guild use their Tracking Skill?'
If doppelgängers were scattered throughout the university, they must have infiltrated the Myohaengseong Guild too.
"Sigh. Seol-hwa, tell me the details about the murder."
This problem could be solved by eating just one doppelgänger.
Which meant I needed to catch and devour one first.
"Yes... It happened right after our first battle..."
She haltingly began explaining the circumstances of the murder.
It occurred immediately after their first battle.
The guild members had been smiling about the easy fight, they said.
If monsters were this weak, they could clear the Dimensional Gate within hours and leave early.
Even as Awakened, everyone welcomed an early departure.
While happily mining magic stones, a member suddenly screamed.
There lay the Deputy Guild Leader's corpse.
"She was strong enough to serve as Deputy Guild Leader in our guild. But dying without even screaming makes no sense..."
The Deputy Guild Leader had been mining magic stones alone.
Normally they wouldn't have allowed it, but the weak monsters and her strength made everyone overlook the risk.
Guild members were terrified.
The picnic-like atmosphere vanished instantly.
She possessed strength second only to Isia.
Such a powerhouse had been killed without even screaming.
A monstrous entity of tremendous power lurked here.
The problem was they couldn't grasp what it might be.
No footprints, no traces - nothing remained.
As if a ghost had come and gone.
"Get up if you want to live."
A low voice shook the cave.
Guild members who'd been bowing their heads like frightened pheasants began looking up one by one.
"Get up if you want to live! We need to clear this gate to get out!"
A valid point.
They hadn't brought much food.
Staying put meant starving to death.
"We don't have much food."
"We'll starve if we stay here."
Whether from newfound urgency, guild members began rising.
"How will we clear the dungeon?"
The interior was maze-like in complexity.
Sticking together would never let them clear it in time.
"First we find the exit. Ho-young was alone when she got killed. Forming groups of five drastically reduces death risk."
Isia proposed the textbook solution.
Anyone could have thought of it.
But coming from her during this mentally overwhelming situation, her words became a lifeline.
"How should we divide parties?"
"Five per group doesn't divide evenly."
"My party can take three members."
Guild members composed themselves and began forming parties.
Thirteen people total.
Five per group left two extras.
They finished organizing by having the strongest party - Isia's - take three members.
"Take care of me... Seol-hwa."
The party formation completed.
A timid-looking woman requested Seol-hwa's protection.
She was the Supporter.
If combat erupted, her fate would depend on Seol-hwa's performance.
Because Seol-hwa had been assigned to rearguard in this party.
Second only to vanguard in importance.
Though a rookie, her exceptional talent earned her this position.
"Yes, don't worry."
Seol-hwa thumped her chest reassuringly, mimicking Isia's mannerisms.
Preparations concluded.
When the path forked, pre-formed parties split up.
Coincidentally, the fork had three branches.
"Let's survive and meet again."
Wishing to reunite, they bid each other luck before separating.
No conversation followed.
A tension like walking on thin ice set in.
The atmosphere discouraged casual talk - any misplaced word might draw ire.
-Monsters detected ahead.-
Two Ability Users at the vanguard signaled silently.
"Enemies also approaching from the rear."
As if synchronized, monsters emerged behind them.
Seol-hwa drew her sword.
They were grotesque creatures with pitch-black bodies.
Each monster's form varied wildly -
As if roughly cut and pasted together with scissors.
'But where did these things come from?'
I couldn't discern their origin point.
After passing the fork, there'd been no side paths or additional forks.
Unless monsters popped out mid-path.
They shouldn't have appeared from behind.
"Strange... Where'd they come from?"
The Supporter noticed too.
She dismissed it casually.
This was a dungeon.
Not Earth. A space defying earthly logic.
'New monsters mean new traits to acquire.'
I shelved my doubts.
First priority: kill and consume these new monsters for their traits.
I stretched my body to completely envelop Seol-hwa's fist.
This way, I could secretly devour monster flesh unnoticed.
"I'll cast a curse."
The Supporter used her ability.
Dark energy touched the tattered monsters.
Their movements slightly slowed.
"Haaap!"
Seol-hwa lunged at the opening.
Her blade bisected a monster.
It died without resistance.
Another monster tried flanking Seol-hwa during the opening.
Seol-hwa swung her fist.
It pierced through the monster's body.
Inside, I tore out and devoured a handful of flesh.
'What? Why no reaction?'
The system remained silent.
Normally, the interface would pop up immediately after ingestion, announcing new traits.
"Good work."
Combat ended.
The Supporter rushed over immediately.
Come to think of it, I didn't even know her name.
During training, I'd been too bored to inhabit Seol-hwa's body.
"Amazing. No wonder the Guild Leader personally recruited you."
The Supporter praised Seol-hwa excessively, almost uncomfortably so.
Likely due to unstable nerves.
"Wait... Where did the other party members go?"
Other members who should've been behind the Supporter were missing.
"Senior Hyungwoo? Senior Gichan?"
Seol-hwa called for the vanished members.
Only her voice echoed back.
No replies came.
Goosebumps erupted on Seol-hwa's arms.
Comrades had disappeared without warning.
"Senior Yena?"
The Supporter's presence had vanished.
An eerie feeling set in.
Seol-hwa turned around.
"Hic... Hic..."
Contrary to expectations, the Supporter hadn't disappeared.
She'd simply been too terrified to speak.
"I-It's okay. Breathe. Breathe."
Seol-hwa calmed her.
She looked ready to pass out any second.
"I'm okay... Calm now."
Time passed before the Supporter finally stabilized.
"Let's move. Staying put is more dangerous."
Seol-hwa supported the Supporter.
Monsters could ambush from behind anytime.
Moving forward felt safer.
Since they'd taken rearguard, seniors must've advanced ahead.
Thus, proceeding forward offered relative safety.
After an indeterminate time walking,
Two figures appeared ahead.
The vanished seniors' backs.
"Seniors! Over here!"
Seol-hwa waved, forgetting stealth as she shouted.
Unconsciously, Seol-hwa relaxed her guard.
"Wait."
I stopped her.
No human presence emanated from the men ahead.
"Huh?"
She reflexively froze, but too late.
Swoosh.
A sword split the air.
Crunch.
The blade precisely targeted the nape.
Had I not stretched to protect her neck, Seol-hwa would've died instantly.
"Senior! What are you doing?!"
Seol-hwa counterattacked.
No intent to kill -
Just defensively swinging her sword to protect herself.
But contrary to intent, her blade cleaved through the attacker.
Splat.
Blood sprayed.
Seol-hwa's body soaked crimson.
She dropped her sword.
She'd killed a person.
This unexpected first murder shocked Seol-hwa mentally.
"Senior Yena... This was unavoidable. Right...?"
Seol-hwa called to the Supporter.
She desperately wanted someone to reassure her it was self-defense.
"...Senior Yena?"
But no comfort came.
The Supporter's condition was abnormal.
Where whites should be, only black darkness remained.
Her gaping mouth showed no throat - just a bottomless abyss.
The human-shaped monster stabbed a dagger into its own neck.
It collapsed.
Red blood pooled across the cave floor.
"Yena?"
Blood on her sword.
The Supporter's corpse on the ground.
A situation ripe for misunderstanding.
The seniors drew their swords without asking questions.
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