Chapter 17: Chapter 17

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

The crystal dagger glowed purple with the light emitted by the luminous minerals on the ceiling of the cave. At that moment, an ominous chuckle echoed throughout the cave. From the sound of it, the source couldn’t be too far off. Startled by it, Ho Sung froze in place. Soon, a shadow appeared, followed by a monster.

‘Lv621 Jin Sang Yoo: Decaying Bandit Leader’

With maggots crawling all over his body and his face crushed beyond recognition, the monster was rotting all over. To make matters worse, dozens of undead bandits followed their undead leader.

‘Wait, Jin Sang Yoo!?’ Ho Sung thought. Prior to his death, Jin Sang Yoo had been a hunter and leader of a bandit guild called The Mountains. One day, after having set foot in the dungeon with reckless ambition, the leader and his guild had vanished from the face of the Earth as a result.

‘So, he died here and became a zombie, huh?’

On top of being the leader of a bandit guild, Jin Sang Yoo had also been an infamous criminal who had been known to rob hunters passing by his territory. The most notable rule of The Mountains was that they never left their targets alive, not to mention their notoriously horrendous and cruel methods.

“Just a couple of small fries,” the undead bandit leader said in a harsh, scratchy voice.

Although Ho Sung was about to faint from that horrible sound, Min Sung remained completely unfazed, chuckled, and said, “Huh! So, you talk.”

‘Is he laughing!? Does he even realize the weight of the situation!?’ Ho Sung thought and said, “His-his level is in the 600s. I can’t believe this place is throwing level-600 monsters at us right off the bat… What kind of crazy place is this!?”

At that moment, the undead ringleader raised his oversized axe. Although it looked crude, its blade, which shone brightly from the luminous minerals on the ceiling, still seemed incredibly sharp. Wielding the giant axe, the zombie started to waddle toward the champion and Ho Sung in the most bizarre and terrifying manner. Standing toe to toe with the walking corpse, Min Sung glared at it with disgust.

“Why, I almost thought you were a girl for a second. You must be pretty popular with the ladies, am I right? I think I’ll carve out that pretty face of yours and keep it as a trophy…”

“So, do people become walking corpses when they die here?” Min Sung asked.

“He-he-he! A mere level 150 walking into a labyrinth? You don’t seem to know your place, little one. I should skin you alive to teach you a lesson.”

Seized by terror due to those horrendous words coming out of the monster’s mouth, Ho Sung shuddered and shook uncontrollably. At that moment, noticing something different about Min Sung, the zombie tilted his head and stared intently at the champion, saying, “You… are not afraid.” Then, turning his head toward Ho Sung, the zombie said, “You there, answer me. Is this man in his right mind? Why isn’t he afraid?”

Paralyzed by fear, Ho Sung rolled his eyes around anxiously, unable to say a word. At which point, Jin Sang smiled, revealing his black, rotted teeth and said, “Now that I think about it… No level 150 in their right mind would walk in here and expect to walk out alive. Maybe I should just start with this coward here. You. I want you to stay right there and watch. You’ll see just how fun it is to watch someone die. He-he-he-he-he!”

With his face deathly pale, Ho Sung started to back away. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before he found himself standing against a wall.

“Killing people and taking their belongings…” Min Sung said, looking straight at the zombie, and added, “That sounds about right.”

Then, he swung his dagger at an imperceptible speed, and with what sounded like a thunder cracking, dozens of bandits were cut in half at the waist. Caught off guard, the bandit leader looked around at his dead followers. Then, just as he opened his mouth to speak…

“Who? Who are…”

… the champion’s dagger created a streak of light, decapitating Jin Sang in a split second. His eyes still wide open, the zombie’s head rolled and stopped at Ho Sung’s feet. Frightened at the sight, Ho Sung jumped and fell to the ground. At that moment, the zombie’s body exploded into pieces, scattering items all over the cave.

[A Labyrinth Belt (Unique)]

[Blessed Armor Enhancement Scroll]

[Glass Mask (Rare)]

[Spirit Stone]

“Pick ’em up.”

At the champion’s command, Ho Sung, who had been staring at Min Sung in a daze, ran toward the items and picked them up frantically. Then…

[Level up!]

[Skill levels increased.]

[All Stats increased by +1]

Ho Sung’s eyes widened upon seeing the text that appeared before him. Having picked up all the loot, he stared at the cynical champion who had already started walking.

‘What’s going on…?’

Having been thrown into a Hell labyrinth, the very first monsters he had come across were a zombified bandit leader in the 600s and his followers. Yet, the champion had not only massacred dozens of the undead bandits in a single blow, but he had also managed to decapitate their leader with a single swing of his dagger, in a manner that resembled the way he had killed Ho Sung’s clansmen. The champion was far more powerful than Ho Sung had expected. In fact, powerful could only begin to describe the extent of the champion’s power.

‘Wait… Maybe… Just maybe…’ Ho Sung thought, swallowing anxiously. ‘… I’ll get out of here in one piece!’

His heart started to thump at the thought of leaving the dungeon alive. At Ho Sung’s level, one had to kill thousands of monsters in an ordinary dungeon just to move up to the next level. However, in a Hell labyrinth, his level had gone up in a matter of seconds. It had to be the benefit of being in a party.

‘Maybe, it’ll be one hell of a ride sticking with this guy,’ Ho Sung thought.

“If you check out on me again, you’re gonna be wondering the depths of this cave with your undead friends.”

At Min Sung’s warning, Ho Sung gathered his senses.

—

‘Clack! Clack!’

A series of metallic sounds came from the zombies’ armor whenever they took a step. So far, most of the monsters Min Sung and Ho Sung had run into appeared to be dead hunters.

‘Lv777 Decaying Central Hunters’ Institute Soldier.’

Upon coming across the next monster, a ghastly look appeared on Ho Sung’s face.

“Ce-Ce-Central Hunters’ Institute!?” Ho Sung said, shaking uncontrollably and hiding behind Min Sung. Meanwhile, remaining completely unfazed, Min Sung stared intently at the monster, whose shoulders and limbs were hanging loosely. Armed with a long spear, the monster was at a whopping level 777.

While the champion scanned the monster up and down, the decaying soldier jolted its head up, revealing its deep, dark, lifeless eyes. Then, unlike the previous monsters, it started charging at the champion at a frightening speed. Remaining unfazed, Min Sung fixed his gaze on the monster and swung his dagger horizontally, creating a streak of light. That time, the monster jerked its body to another direction in order to dodge the blow. Contrary to the undead bandits, the undead soldier was rather dexterous.

Although a chunk of its shoulder had been cut off, it seemed hardly affected by it. After all, it was a zombie. At that moment, the undead soldier charged at the champion yet again, its sharp spear cutting through the air like a snake charging at its prey in order to bite its neck. Then, parrying the spear away from him with his dagger, the champion charged toward the undead soldier, and in a matter of seconds, Min Sung stabbed his crystal dagger into the zombie’s head, making it explode into chunky pieces. Just as he had expected, a zombie’s weakness was its head. As its brain splattered all over the place, the limbs of the undead soldier hung lifelessly. Without hesitation, Min Sung kicked its chest and pulled his crystal dagger out of its head. What was left of the undead soldier collapsed to the ground. Then, just like its predecessors, its remains exploded into pieces and scattered items all over the place.

[The Lance of Life (Normal)]

[Weapon Enhancement Scroll]

[“Rammos’ Shell” Shield (Rare)]

[Spirit Stone]

Paying no attention to the items that dropped on the ground, Min Sung wiped the dark blood off of his crystal dagger. Then, while Ho Sung was busy picking up the loot, he raised his dagger to the ceiling and let the light from the luminous minerals shine through it, thinking, ‘Not too shabby.’

Not only was it light, but it was also incredibly easy to enchant it with his power. At that moment, Ho Sung called for Min Sung, and the champion looked in his direction.

“Sir…? Just how powerful do you think you are? That was one of the Central Institute’s soldiers you just killed! That’s incredible. I’m starting to wonder if you’re a miscellaneous type yourself,” Ho Sung said, impressed by the champion’s ability. By that point, Min Sung suspected that the miscellaneous types might be hunters who had returned from the Demonic Realm. However, the champion didn’t dwell on the thought for long. There was a bigger matter at hand.

“Keep your mouth shut and follow me quietly.”

“Yes, sir!” Ho Sung replied enthusiastically, looking slightly more relaxed and even smiling. With that, the two continued on their way. Soon, another set of footsteps approached.

‘What are they gonna look like this time?’ Min Sung thought, and shortly after, three of the same monster he had just killed appeared out of the dark, their suits of armor making the same metallic clicks. The only difference was that there were three of them this time. That time, instead of waiting for them, Min Sung took the initiative to attack. In no time, the head of one of the undead soldiers fell by the swing of the champion’s crystal dagger.

As the decapitated head was launched into the air, the other two swung their spears at the champion, sending streaks of blue light through the air. Then, while Min Sung parried the blows, one of the streaks ricocheted off of the champion’s crystal dagger and flew toward Ho Sung, grazing past his neck before it lodged itself into the wall, creating a massive crack. Feeling the scratch on his neck, Ho Sung couldn’t help but shake uncontrollably. Had he been even remotely closer to it, he, too, would’ve lost his head. As his legs gave out, Ho Sung collapsed to his knees.

Nevertheless, Min Sung, dodging the spears nimbly, observed the monsters’ movements. Seeing as though he was still able to catch the movements of their spears, the champion realized that his combat ability hadn’t suffered one bit since the time when he had lived in the Demonic Realm.

‘This is getting old.’

With streaks of light as bright as the stars, the heads of the undead soldiers fell by the blade of his crystal dagger, and they went flying everywhere.