27. Dungeon

Ko Byeong-gap and his party moved quickly. The underground passageway was twisted around like a maze. Every time they passed one corner, a mob of monsters welcomed them.

-Bang! Tadang!

Gunfire went off one after another. The hunters with guns fired and retorted as if to relieve the sorrow of the past. All the monsters had their heads exploded and died.

As they ran frantically, they came into a crossroad the shape of an ‘ㅗ.’ Yeom Jeong-hwa progressed well, but she suddenly stopped.

“Growl! Groan!”

“Kiyaaaaaaaaa!”

“Wow, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!”

The monster flocked without a break. It was like a swarm of ants sensing pheromones.

“Argh!”

“Look around, you bastards!”

Park Soo-Tae, Jo Young-hoon, Choi Min-young. Each of the three took charge of one place and launched indiscriminate attacks. Even if they weren’t, the loud gunshots caused resonance so much that it was almost deafening.

“What’s going on? Where do I have to go?”

Ko Byeong-gap shouted. Yeom Jeong-hwa was just a short walk away, but it was self-evident that she wasn’t the one that cried. Her voice would be buried.

Yeom Jeong-hwa looked around with anxious eyes.

“Why did you stop? Where is it?!”

“Here!”

“What?”

Yeom Jeong-hwa pointed to a wall.

What kind of nonsense was she talking about? Ko Byeong-gap pointed to the three-way crossroad and asked again. “Are you saying the boss monster is out there?”

“No! It’s beyond this wall!”

“Beyond the wall?”

“There are too many monsters! They’ll be pushing in soon!”

“Ah, why did you stop? Where do we have to go?”

Choi Min-young and Park Soo-tae shouted with their backs turned.

As they spoke, the monsters began to push in. Suddenly, Yeom Jeong-hwa shouted.

“Get away from me!”

“What did you say? Get out away from you?”

“Get back! Get back! Yes! More! More!”

The group walked five to six steps away from Yeom Jeong-hwa. As soon as that happened, she began to shoot out huge amounts of Karma.

“Ahhhhh”

Light pink Karma shot out of her entire body. Her hair rose, and the torches on the wall flew like a strong wind. She then took a stance. All her Karma rushed to her Hwando.

“Haaa!”

Spurt. Yeom Jeong-hwa roared and swung her psychedelic sword.

Boom boom! Boom boom!

There was a roar when the Hwando hit the wall. The roar shook the entire dungeon.

A cloud of dust rose, and their vision became hazy. Coughing erupted from all sides.

‘What’s this?’

Beyond the collapsed wall was a cliff. Ko Byeong-gap straightened his neck out and looked down. There was a vast expanse of space.

In the swarm of monsters, at the center of it was an unusual object. It was a cocoon bigger than most large buses.

‘Is that a boss monster?’

“Jump down!”

As soon as she finished speaking, Yeom Jeong-hwa jumped. The height was more than 8 to 9 meters, but she made no hesitation.

Ko Byeong-gap followed suit immediately, and although with a frown, the rest of the hunters went on a death dive.

If they were ordinary people, they would’ve screamed, but it was manageable because they were hunters.

“Mr. Byeong-gap, fight the boss with me! The rest of you, please take charge of the subordinate monsters!”

“Alright!”

“Please get it over with!”

“Everyone, watch your head!”

Jo Young-hoon said so as he took a grenade out of his suspenders and threw it into the collapsed wall.

The next moment, there was a massive explosion near the wall. The debris and monster remnants splattered in all directions. The wall completely collapsed and blocked the entrance. It blocked additional incoming monsters.

‘He’s experienced. He’s pretty good.’

Ko Byeong-gap admired Jo Young-hoon’s judgment, but the shadow of death still covered them. There were 200 monsters there.

Ko Byeong-gap took off all the equipment that was on him and held only his sword.

“Mr. Byeong-gap, let’s go!”

“Yes, don’t shoot me in the back of the head!”

“Don’t worry about that and get the boss!”

Yeom Jeong-hwa and Ko Byeong-gap sprang out like spring.

“Argh!”

“Get out!”

“Kuk!”

He cut a Spider Monster and a Claw Ghoul with a single slash. As soon as that happened, a spear went for his temple. He bent down quickly and looked to the side. It was a Skeleton Soldier.

“Woooo!”

He swung his sword horizontally and separated his enemy’s waist. Looking forward again, a Sand Golem was raising its hands.

Before Ko Byeong-gap could respond, Yeom Jeong-hwa split the Sand Golem vertically. The two exchanged glances briefly and then teased their feet toward the cocoon.

“Keeeek!”

“Woooooooo!”

“Oh, shit!”

The monsters obstinately blocked the front. It was clear they were trying to protect the cocoon.

Blades, tentacles, fists. All kinds of attacks flew in.

Ko Byeong-gap cut, dodged, and hit to move forward. A mountain of corpses piled up on either side.

Tada Tada Tada Tadadadada!

“Kueeek!”

Gunshots, screams, groans, shouts.

That place, mixed with all kinds of noise, was simply a mess. If hell existed, it would be there.

Yeom Jeong-hwa once again gathered Karma. Kicking the ground, she swung the Hwando wide. Monsters flew everywhere as if a huge invisible pillar had beaten them.

She jumped high. She was going to aim for the cocoon at once. However, as soon as she did, dozens of spears flew into the sky. All skeleton Soldiers attacked in unison.

“Ugh!”

There was no damage thanks to her Karma Barrier, but her advance was blocked.

After she landed, she glared at the cocoon with bitter eyes.

‘Dangerous!’

The Karma emitted by the cocoon had already surpassed the B-class level. Whatever was in that cocoon, there was a high probability that they wouldn’t be able to handle it once it hatched.

Moreover, the growth rate of the cocoon was accelerating every moment.

‘Is that why all of a sudden the signs were amplified? We need to get rid of it. It’ll hatch soon.’

Yeom Jeong-hwa’s mind became nervous.

“Argh!”

Meanwhile, there was a cold scream in the background. A Claw Ghoul caught Park Soo-tae. The Ghoul shot a bunch of tentacles at Park Soo-tae’s body.

“Hey, man, hey, hey!”

Choi Min-young fired a series of shots with a face mixed with fear and anger. The Ghoul reassembled a hive filled with holes.

Click!

“Gasp! Gasp! Now, load up… Ahhhhh!”

A Skeleton Soldier swung its giant blunt weapon. Choi Min-young came to his senses and rolled around the floor, while his arm that got hit was bent at a bizarre angle.

“Argh! Arms! My arms! Argh!”

“Calm down, there’s a potion in your backpack! Take it out and drink it!”

Jo Young-hoon protected Choi Min-young. He calmly fired a shot and shook off the approaching monster.

“Humph! Humph! Humph!”

Choi Min-young shed tears and opened his backpack. The hand that picked up the potion shook.

He used only one hand to pick the cap off the potion. When he managed to open the cap, Jo Young-hoon fell right next to him.

“Ah…!”

“Cough!”

Jo Young-hoon’s side burst. It was a wound from the tail of the scorpion monster, the Scorpion Lava.

‘What a mess!’

Ko Byeong-gap saw the situation behind him and gritted his teeth. There were too many monsters concentrated in the closed place.

The lower awakeners gave up their distance too easily, and hordes of monsters helplessly attacked them. If left as they were, they would be wiped out in less than five minutes.

Ko Byeong-gap’s eyes moved fast. The monsters became a huge wall and blocked Ko Byeong-gap and Yeom Jeong-hwa. To make matters worse, Yeom Jeong-hwa wasn’t in good condition since she had consumed too much Karma.

There was no hope of buying more time. Ko Byeong-gap made a decision and ran toward Yeom Jeong-hwa.

He sprayed his sword and killed two monsters at once. Yeom Jeong-hwa exhaled a harsh breath and looked up at Ko Byeong-gap.

“Jeong-hwa, open the way!”

“But the monsters…”

“I can’t open it! You have to open it!”

Yeom Jeong-hwa’s eyes trembled for a moment. It wasn’t long before she nodded solemnly.

“I’ll open the way!”

She released Karma once again and had drawn all the Karma in her body. She curled up, and her figure was like a beast on the verge of hitting its prey. Ko Byeong-gap quickly hid behind her.

“Haaaaaaaa!”

At that moment, Yeom Jeong-hwa sprinted. It wasn’t the speed at which Ko Byeong-gap’s eyes could track.

Suddenly, all the monsters ahead scattered. Not a part of them didn’t fall apart. Not a limb or neck.

The front was hollowed out. It was as if a huge chariot had pushed past it.

“Mr. Byeong-gap, please…”

Yeom Jeong-hwa collapsed. She was exhausted from pulling out her power forcibly. Ko Byeong-gap immediately teased his leg.

‘More! More! Faster!’

He concentrated his energy on the muscles of his legs. In an instant, the muscles swelled noticeably.

Although temporary, he was able to gain momentum that could compare to the top awakeners. Ko Byeong-gap jumped up.

He saw the cocoon right away. Ko Byeong-gap never stopped sending Karma to his long sword.

His Karma was insignificant. Therefore, he couldn’t dream of gaining momentum by wearing a Karma Barrier or exploding Karma like Yeom Jeong-hwa.

However, his Karma was enough to fit his long sword. A light blue karma enveloped the blade.

‘I’m stabbing you deep!’

That time, he amplified the muscles in his arm. He clasped the sword upside down and fell.

Chorak!

The tip of the knife hit the cocoon. It then broke through the cocoon’s outer shell.

Ko Byeong-gap didn’t distract his concentration until the very end. After a while, something caught the tip of his sword.

“Argh!”

Soon, a shattering scream was heard.

Squeak! Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!

The blade penetrated something hard. Ko Byeong-gap stirred the blade with all his might.

Whether it was the head of the monster or its body, he intended to cut its flesh.

“Scramble! Scramble! Don’t live! Scramble!”

Ko Byeong-gap’s arms moved non-stop. He mangled like a madman as he sliced and sliced and sliced again.

“Kra-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra!”

“Cough!”

Suddenly, the pain came. He was beaten by something and flew dozens of meters away.

He looked ahead even though he was distraught from pain. Something huge popped out of the cocoon’s shell.

It was two arms.

‘What the fuck!’

It was the owner of that dungeon, which was a giant spider-human, the Queen Arachne. A grotesque monster with a spider leg and the torso of a human woman.

In terms of appearance alone, it resembled a Claw Ghoul, but its strength and size were different.

Queen Arachne’s rating was B-rank, but there was a bigger problem. That monster was over 6 meters tall and was classified as a super-large class.

Even with just one leg, it was the size of an electric pole, and its bloated arms that made even those legs look thin was the highlight.

“Argh!” The Queen Arachne roared.

She wasn’t in a normal state either. Its head and body were like a rag because Ko Byeong-gap had cut her into pieces.

Furthermore, the perfection of her body was also lowered as it hatched earlier than expected. Its underdeveloped legs couldn’t withstand her mass and were crushed. The other parts were also sloppy, like melted chocolate.

However, the situation was still the worst. Yeom Jeong-hwa laid face down without movement. Park Soo-tae, Cho Young-hoon, and Choi Min-young had also collapsed on one side.

Everyone was unconscious. To make matters worse, the subordinate monsters continued to stand in front of the Queen Arachne.

‘I’ve been attacking it, but it’s still as good as I am?’

“Darn it!”

With his current energy, it was impossible to penetrate the meat shield and reach the Queen Arachne. However…

There was no opening for him to attack, but that wasn’t it. Without eyes to see, he took out his last resort.

“Whoa.”

He took his breath and screamed, “Turka! Kiriyan! Dorma! Get out of here now!”

The door to Ashvilam opened. There appeared three Goblins like lightning.

They looked around in surprise.

“Lord, what the hell is going on here?”

“I don’t have time to explain. Listen to me!”

“Yes, Lord!”

“Kiriyan, Dorma. Intercept that big bastard with the strongest attack you can and Turka…”

“Say it! Say it!”

“Can you hold me and leap to where that monster bastard is?”

“No problem, no problem!”

“Then let’s get started!”

“Yes!”

Kiriyan and Dorma concentrated their strength.

Kiriyan fired a huge arrow of lightning, while Dorma summoned a dark sphere condensed with Karma. Turka immediately picked up Ko Byeong-gap. After that, he crouched down and prepared to leap forward.

“Shoot!” Ko Byeong-gap cried. The thunder arrow and dark sphere were shot in harmony. At the same time, Turka stamped his foot and jumped high.

“Kyaaaah!”

The thunder arrow baked the Queen Arachne. Before she could come to her senses, the dark sphere flew in and hit her torso.

A tearing scream echoed through the vast space.

“Turka! Throw me!”

“Yes!”

Turka, who jumped high, threw Ko Byeong-gap and flew with tremendous momentum. He squeezed his last power and wrapped Karma around his sword.

The Queen Arachne immediately tried to defend with her arms closed, but…

Whoo! Whack!

Kiriyan and Dorma immediately intercepted her arm. The thunder arrow and dark sphere each took charge of one arm. The Queen Arachne’s arm lost strength and fell and revealed her torso.

“Ahhhhhhhh!!!”

It was a desperate shout.

The world stopped for a moment, and when it began to flow again, fresh blood splattered and sprinkled in all directions.

“Kkkkkkkasp!

The Queen Arachne’s torso was cut in half. The giant spider’s body collapsed and crushed her monsters, and after a while, an escape portal opened.

Hell was over.

***

“Hmm?”

Kim Tae-yong, dispatched from the association, felt his backbone grew cold. So he turned around and looked at the crack behind his back. People were coming out.

‘Are they finally done?’

Such carefree thoughts were short-lived.

“Uh, huh? What, what is this?!”

A man rushed out and carried four people at once.

It was the D-class hunter, Ko Byeong-gap. However, their condition was strange. The rest were unconscious, and Ko Byeong-gap was the only one who maintained consciousness.

Even he was on the verge of fainting, Ko Byeong-gap barely said in a hoarse voice, “Potion… Get me a potion!“

Ko Byeong-gap bowed forward and left those words behind. The faces of those waiting were shocked.

“Emergency team! Emergency team!”

“Emergency team, come on! Come on!”

Members of the association had to make a scene.

The five hunters, who had been deployed for the subjugation, were immediately taken to hospital after receiving first aid.

Fortunately, there were no fatalities.