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🕑 Added 2025-08-02 19:46:58 +0000 UTCEP.36 To the Dungeon to Obtain the Artifact – 2
Fwoooosh-!
Even after closing the thick stone door, the powerful roar of flames pounded at my ears.
If I’d been even a second slower, I would have been roasted alive.
First, golems shoot lasers at me.
Now, a giant wolf spews fire from its mouth.
I miss the innocent wolves of Earth.
But I can’t just turn back now.
If I go back, I’ll just end up on the run for a while before getting caught and killed.
I didn’t come to another world to die like that.
“Huuuu…”
I take a deep breath.
The beast shows no sign of trying to come out from behind the stone door.
Was it ordered to guard the altar I glimpsed for a moment?
I focus as much mana as I can into my legs and kick the massive stone door with all my strength.
Bang-!
“Hey, you bastard!”
The shock of kicking the thick stone leaves my leg numb.
But it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t dash through the now wide-open doorway.
I’d barely taken a few steps when the giant beast was already tilting its head back.
“Grrrr-”
I sprint to the side with all my might-to survive.
Fwoooosh-!
A torrent of flames engulfed the spot I’d just been standing in.
Even though I wasn’t hit directly, the heat was so intense it made my skin sting.
The temperature of the huge, coliseum-like chamber instantly soared.
“Damn mutt, aren’t you hot?”
A creature that breathes fire probably doesn’t mind the heat.
But unless I cursed, I had no way to vent my boiling frustration.
At least the beast didn’t seem able to breathe fire continuously.
It glared at me from in front of the altar, catching its breath.
Does such a powerful attack require time to prepare?
If so, I’d need to land a decisive blow before the next attack.
I focus mana into my legs again.
Standing still means death.
Judging by the interval between attacks, I don’t have much time.
“Seriously, life…”
I move.
The distance between me and the beast shrinks from about 100 meters to just 5 in an instant.
Up close, its massive size was even more intimidating.
From its perspective, I must look like an ant.
No sign of it breathing fire again.
But what am I supposed to do with a toothpick of a sword?
I have no choice but to try stabbing it.
“GRAAAH!!”
The beast, which had only been watching me until now, suddenly moved.
It raised a massive forepaw.
“Ah…”
I block the descending sharp claws with my sword.
Screeeech!
An unpleasant noise, like fingernails on a chalkboard, grates on my ears.
I deflected the attack and avoided injury, but my sword was another story.
The blade was chipped in several places and had lost its sharpness.
“And I don’t even have money to buy a new sword!”
Grumbling, I swing at the beast’s ankle.
Slice-!
I feel the impact through the hilt.
I cut it, but the wound is shallow-barely a centimeter deep.
Given its size, it was just a scratch.
“Grrrr-!”
The beast spun its body powerfully.
By the time I realized what it was doing, it was too late.
A massive tail came flying at me.
A huge body means a ridiculously wide attack range.
Having missed my chance to dodge, all I could do was try to minimize the impact.
“Guh…”
A pain like slamming into concrete slammed through my whole body.
They say if pain is too intense, you can’t even scream, and I could only manage a faint groan.
Spinning, spinning.
The world flipped dozens of times, my body skipping across the floor like a stone on water, until I finally came to a stop.
Even the slightest movement sent waves of pain through my body.
I’d definitely heard things crack inside me as I flew, so I was in no normal condition.
But I was able to stand only thanks to my survival instinct screaming at me.
“Shit…”
The beast threw its head back.
Ignoring the pain that wrapped around my whole body, I forced my legs to move.
I will make you die in agony.
Fwoosh-!
As soon as I took my last step, flames rushed at me again.
Luckily, I wasn’t hit directly, but even the sparks that landed nearby were enough to set my clothes alight.
“So damn hot.”
I brushed off the embers from my clothes.
Even as my body burned with heat, my mind felt oddly cold.
If I make a mistake here, I’ll really die.
How can I survive this?
With my sword skills, I can barely scratch it.
It’s not like I’m a swordmaster who can bring down the environment on it, either.
“Grrrr-”
The only thing I could think of was to get inside its body and tear it apart from within.
But could I really survive inside a monster like that-especially one that breathes fire?
“Wait…”
The beast stared at me.
Eyes are a weak point for many creatures.
No matter how huge, they’re still vulnerable, right?
Besides, it looks like a wolf, and even wolves on Earth have weak eyes.
It was worth a shot.
Just you wait, you damn mutt.
Hup!
I mustered my last strength and charged.
Every part of my body-legs, ribs, arms-screamed in pain.
This was my last chance. If I failed, I’d die.
“Grrrr-”
Again, the beast swung its forepaw down.
I stopped running and jumped back to dodge.
Thud!
I barely dodged between its claws.
Thanks for conveniently providing a foothold.
I climbed up its leg.
It shook its paw instinctively to throw me off, but that wasn’t enough.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Enduring the fierce wind and shaking, its paw finally lifted upward.
Now!
My reason and instincts aligned as I leaped toward its sharp eye.
Pouring all my pent-up rage into my sword, I shouted:
“Nobody on the continent is better at shoving things into holes than me, you bastard!!!”
Thud-
My sword and body plunged into the beast’s eye socket.
Did I burst its eyeball?
I wasn’t sure, but there was only one thing to do: tear it apart.
“GRRRRR!!!”
Even though I couldn’t see it, I could feel the beast thrashing violently.
Stabbing its eye and slashing around inside must have been agony beyond imagination.
I nearly got thrown off a few times, but I clung on desperately, stabbing into its eye socket.
A few minutes later, the beast finally stopped moving.
Is it dead?
Usually, thinking that means the enemy will get back up, but not this time.
No one could endure having their eye gouged out like that.
I crawled out of its eye and saw the beast’s corpse and Sylvia.
“Are you okay?”
“I think… I survived somehow.”
“I’ll heal you right away.”
Sylvia murmured a spell, and light flowed from her hands.
The pain tormenting my whole body gradually eased.
“I’m glad I came with you, Sylvia.”
If not for her, I’d have needed days to recover.
Healing magic, which I experienced for the first time, was better than modern medicine.
It was like getting a shot of a powerful painkiller-my pain faded instantly.
No wonder patients would love it.
I can see why medicine isn’t very advanced in this world; no drug could work faster than this.
“Thanks to you, I feel much better.”
I wasn’t fully healed, but the severe pain was gone.
“Just be careful, okay?”
Sylvia looked at me with worried eyes.
Given I nearly died, it was understandable.
“Don’t worry. Let’s get the loot first.”
The area was a mess from the beast’s last thrashing before death.
But when I turned to the altar, that spot was relatively untouched.
On the altar sat an ornate treasure chest.
Unlike the keyhole I’d imagined, this one had a palm-shaped mark.
“Looks like it’s your turn, Sylvia.”
Whether it was fingerprint recognition or sensing royal blood, it clearly wasn’t my place to touch.
If her ancestor had any sense, at least there wouldn’t be a trap triggered by her hand.
“Leave it to me.”
Sylvia confidently stepped forward and placed her hand on the chest.
Even though there was a chance of a trap, she showed no fear.
“If anything seems wrong, hide behind me.”
“Yujin, you risked your life fighting, so this is nothing.”
The treasure chest shone brightly.
Just in case, I gripped my sword and watched the chest.
After a moment, the light faded, and I could see what was inside.
“Hm…”
A nearly rusted bracelet…?
This is the royal treasure?
“Is this it?”
“Well… I’m not sure.”
Sylvia looked flustered too.
Given it reacted to her hand, it probably wasn’t a mistake.
Maybe it had just deteriorated from neglect.
If it’s real or fake, maybe I’ll know if I put it on.
“Let’s try it on.”
Surely, after preparing such a terrifying guardian, they wouldn’t have left a cursed item as well.
As soon as I put the rusty bracelet on my wrist, it automatically shrank to fit perfectly.
It became comfortable, and then started absorbing my mana.
“Looks like we found the right thing.”
The rust disappeared, and the bracelet slowly began to shine.
On top of that, instructions for using the bracelet were being imprinted in my mind.
Aside from feeling a bit dizzy from using so much mana in the fierce battle, there were no problems.
If it were cursed, it would have just kept draining my mana until I died.
“To celebrate getting a legendary artifact, let’s give it a try.”
I smiled and looked at Sylvia.
