—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: JayM
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“You’re such a traitor.”
“Seriously, how can you go hunting with Cheon Yoo-hak this weekend?”
“You’re both so whiny.”
Friday evening.
Lilac and Kang Ha-ni complained when I refused their invitation to join them for volunteer work.
“You said you weren’t interested in points. It seems like that was a complete lie.”
“That’s right, So-hyun. You’re already going hunting, are you aiming for the top spot?”
“How can I be the top student when you and Cheon Yoo-hak are here?”
Seriously, not just you two, I couldn’t even beat Ha-ni in my current state.
“So you can’t come on Sunday either?”
“Probably not.”
Actually, the dungeon we were going to wasn’t that big, so we should be able to clear it in a day. But I didn’t know what kind of incidents might occur, and even if it ended quickly, I wanted to rest afterward.
“Can’t be helped. Let’s all go volunteering together next time!”
“You know I didn’t join the volunteer club, right?”
“Wow, you’re going hunting with Yoo-hak, but not volunteering with me? We need some proof of our friendship.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Sorry, but So-hyun won’t be able to go volunteering next week either.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Because I’m planning to take him out next weekend.”
“What…? Then I should join too.”
“Sounds good.”
“Um, where did my opinion go? Are you guys ostracizing me?”
“So-hyun, we’re hanging out next weekend, do you want to join us?”
Were they crazy…?
I wasn’t exactly happy with their giggling, but I would probably be free next weekend.
I was planning to take care of all the urgent matters during this week.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“Everyone’s here.”
This was strange.
I came thirty minutes early to avoid being picked on, but everyone except Cheon Yoo-hak and I were already here.
At least I wasn’t later than Cheon Yoo-hak.
We arrived almost simultaneously, but thirty seconds earlier was still earlier, right?
So I could confidently ignore the glares of that useless big guy named Jae-hee or something.
Seriously, who told them to gather so early? Don’t drag me into your loyalty tests.
Well, no one else was glaring at me except that big guy.
“I’m glad to see everyone’s enthusiasm, arriving so early. Then shall we go over today’s destination one more time?”
As Cheon Yoo-hak looked at me, the others naturally followed his gaze.
I had already posted a summary in the group chat, but knowing Cheon Yoo-hak’s perfectionist personality, I guessed that he would probably want to go over it again.
“First, we’ll go to the field near the coordinates of the portal.”
A “field” referred to an area completely transformed into another world due to a dungeon break, a phenomenon where the magic power in an old dungeon goes haywire.
Their sizes varied depending on the dungeon’s rank. There was even a setting where a massive dungeon break in China swallowed half the country.
“I thought that area had already been explored?”
The useless big guy was interrupting again while an adult was talking.
But no one stopped him this time, perhaps because it was a valid question.
That was right. Korea had a relatively well-established hero system, so most areas, except for a few that experienced dungeon breaks in the early stages, had already been explored and stabilized, and the dungeon we were going to today was also hidden in an almost stabilized area.
“It’s a dungeon that can’t be found through ordinary methods.”
“How did you find it?”
How did I find it? I saw it in my friend’s settings book because I’m a transmigrator. Got a problem with it?
“I found it because I have my ways. Do I have to explain everything?”
“No, I mean…”
“Dude, I know you don’t like me, but don’t be a pathetic loser. We made a bet, didn’t we? Just shut up and follow me. If there’s no dungeon, or if I’m less useful than you, I’ll do whatever you say.”
Yes.
I made a bet with this annoying big guy who kept picking on me during our first meeting.
If you were going to settle things like a man with a bet, you should do it properly, but there were always guys who acted like this.
Although it was a rigged bet with a predetermined winner, most bets were rigged anyway.
He flushed red, seemingly offended by my insult, but Cheon Yoo-hak just smiled, amused.
“But if the dungeon is where I said it was, and if I’m more useful than you, you’ll do whatever I say.”
Ah, by the way, he readily accepted the bet at the time.
He probably thought it was impossible for me to be more useful than him even if the dungeon actually existed.
“You’re dead if you’re lying.”
“You’re the one who should be worried.”
I felt a momentary sense of self-loathing, wondering what I was doing arguing with a kid several years younger than me, but it seemed right to put him in his place for the future of Cheon Yoo-hak’s party since these were the type of people who caused trouble.
Ah, by the way, this wasn’t a joke or a prediction. It was the truth.
In the original story, Cheon Yoo-hak’s party, which had a promising start, was completely wiped out except for Cheon Yoo-hak himself thanks to the fantastic collaboration of a troll and a villain.
I had taken care of Lilac’s side, so it was Cheon Yoo-hak’s turn.
Well, I had other reasons, but all’s well that ends well, right?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
After walking for about thirty minutes after using the portal, the big guy started complaining again.
“Is there really a dungeon in this forest?”
Cheon Yoo-hak’s party, even excluding me, was quite balanced.
First, there was Cheon Yoo-hak, a melee damage dealer who could also tank, and the big guy, a dedicated tank. Joo-ri, who could use simple support magic and was skilled at disarming traps. And the rest: a healer, a mage, and a porter.
Porters were usually hired or provided through long-term contracts with companies, but Cheon Yoo-hak was training a dedicated porter for his ideal party.
Well, they all died in the original story despite his efforts.
“Yeah, we’re almost there.”
“See, Lira? That bastard is just wasting our time.”
“Be quiet. Even if he is, it’ll be Yoo-hak who will decide, not you.”
“Who said otherwise? I’m just saying, it would have been better to hunt as we initially planned.”
Seriously, since he couldn’t win against me with words, he was trying to manipulate the girl he liked?
He was a truly pathetic excuse for a big guy.
On the other hand, Cheon Yoo-hak was following me without a shred of doubt, as if I was incredibly trustworthy.
“Hey, just tell me honestly if there’s no dungeon. I’ll let it go if you promise to pay for the portal and never bother us again.”
“You’re really talkative for a big guy.”
“What? This bastard.”
“We’re here.”
“What?”
“I said we’re here. Are your ears full of fat? I must have been inconsiderate. I’ll be more careful next time, so how about you shut up for now?”
“Pfft.”
Cheon Yoo-hak, who had been distracted, burst out laughing, and the big guy’s face turned red.
“This is just an empty field with a bunch of trees. One of them is even rotten.”
“No, this is it.”
-The reason this dungeon remained undiscovered for so long was that no one noticed that the single rotten tree, unimpressive among the ordinary trees, was the entrance.
It was exactly as described in the novel, and the coordinates matched the ones in the settings book.
The tree in front of us, unlike the others, was rotten and dead, but when I touched the rotten part, it started vibrating as if asking for something.
-Wooo…
“Uh, uh? What? Why is it doing that?”
“Why are you scared? I told you it’s a hidden dungeon.”
“Everyone, get ready for battle.”
The method to open this dungeon was quite extreme even among the numerous dungeons in this novel.
You had to offer the life force of a person, enough to wither them away, to the tree.
You couldn’t switch with another person midway, and if you ran away before the tree was satisfied, the door wouldn’t open.
In other words, there was no normal way to open it.
But not for me.
Innate Qi? Life force? Take it if you want.
It was the only thing I had in abundance.
Energy slowly flowed from my hand into the tree.
After draining nearly a person’s worth of innate Qi from my body, though my appearance remained unchanged, the rotten tree started making strange noises.
-Wooo…?
It seemed confused and tried to absorb more, but since it was specifically stated that it required the life force of a single person, it couldn’t absorb anymore.
After having absorbed my life force to its limit, leaves finally started sprouting from the rotten tree as it shed its bark, and a gate appeared in front of the tree once the molting was complete.
“What? How did you do that?”
“Huh?”
“You just revived a dead tree.”
The mage girl was staring at me as if she had seen something unbelievable, but I didn’t really do anything, it revived on its own.
“What are you talking about? It’s just a dungeon entrance gimmick. Let’s go in.”
How could I revive a dead tree? I wasn’t a druid or a High Elf.
“I’ll take the lead.”
Cheon Yoo-hak took point, and the big guy, who had been spacing out, followed him.
It was finally time to obtain my second opportunity.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The Man-Faced Tree Dungeon.
A dungeon filled with tree-like monsters that devoured humans and bore fruit.
It held decent treasures, and the reward from the dungeon master upon clearing it wasn’t bad either, but in the original story, all of them went to some villains.
Not only was it difficult to find, but even after it was discovered, no one could clear it due to its bizarre entry conditions. Then an executive of a villain alliance secretly cleared the dungeon after sacrificing one of his subordinates.
Thanks to the opportunity he obtained here, he became a powerful villain who gave Lilac and Cheon Yoo-hak quite a bit of trouble.
“Well, it’s meaningless now.”
In the original story, this dungeon was cleared around the time of the Jin Kyung-tae incident relatively early on, but that was in the novel. Since the story had progressed a month earlier, I assumed that the dungeon would still be here.
“Huh, Man-Faced Trees.”
The Man-Faced Trees that appeared as mobs in this dungeon were classified as low-level mid-grade due to their excellent stealth abilities, but their combat abilities weren’t that impressive.
A bit stronger than a high-level lower-class Hobgoblin, maybe?
But the problem was that there were a lot of Man-Faced Trees in this dungeon.
That was another reason why I came to this dungeon with Cheon Yoo-hak, and not Lilac.
“A disorganized mob.”
Cheon Yoo-hak took out his weapon, a long spear.
Cheon Yoo-hak’s talent was Peerless Warrior.
A cheat-like talent that made him stronger the more enemies he faced and the longer he fought.
“Get lost…!”
Man-Faced Trees started getting shattered by his magic-infused spear blade.
Lilac was still a bit weak against a large number of enemies. Had he been the one fighting, he would have been forced into a defensive position, trying to protect his companions.
On the other hand, Cheon Yoo-hak was relentless because he trusted his companions.
He occasionally missed a few Man-Faced Trees as he fought, but it wasn’t a problem.
“Huff…!”
The big guy smashed the Man-Faced Trees with his shield, the mage burned them with fire magic, and Joo-ri managed the monsters’ aggro from afar, preventing them from scattering.
“Haha, this isn’t enough!”
Everyone, including the big guy, was doing their job well. As expected of a party gathered by Cheon Yoo-hak.
What did I do? I just watched.
I had already done my part by telling them about the dungeon, and Cheon Yoo-hak wouldn’t expect me to participate in the fight directly.
I just occasionally…
“Be careful.”
…stopped the ones trying to ambush the rear with their roots.
“…How did you see that?”
Joo-ri looked at me questioningly as I blocked the roots reaching for the healer with my dagger.
“I don’t know, I just saw it.”
I was watching with enhanced eyesight to make sure no one got hurt, but there was no need to tell them that.
I just had to do my part, right?
And these guys didn’t know this, but I was planning to handle almost everything by myself in the boss room, so it was fine for them to relax for now.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
T/N – The big guy is getting annoying… I’m feeling a bit of a déjà vu here. I hope this isn’t a trend. Also, the opportunity stealing from villains continues! I’m so glad he’s still focused on the opportunities of the villains. Hopefully, he continues to steal opportunities from the villains in the future as well.
If you find any mistakes, feel free to point them out in the comments.
