"Where did you say you got that from?"
"I think I got it almost as soon as I awakened. The God of Life gave it to me."
[The God of Life is feeling proud.]
[The God of Death tells you not to forget
"The God of Life has given me many good skills too. Isn't there anything else they can give? Like another weapon item."
Kwon Jihan chuckled as if he had received some message from the God of Life.
"Anyway, I think the only weapon without durability is Riceball. It's a good thing Seo Chaeyoon has it and not someone evil."
"It would have been even better if you had it."
While they conversed, Yoon Seo walked around, stabbing twitching monsters with
"Hyung, come to think of it, don't you think getting those good items was because it was early during the Cataclysm?"
"Getting good items because it was early?"
"When the Distorted Beings first appeared on Earth while it was defenseless, the guardian gods had to urgently support humanity, giving out great weapons to stave off imminent destruction."
Yoon Seo nodded, finding it plausible.
"I heard that the first guild master of Seokyoung, Lee Seokyoung, also had incredible weapons. And powerful skills."
"Now that you mention it, I think Hunter Lee Seokyoung's weapon also had no durability. Its default form was a chain whip, and its length could increase almost indefinitely."
"Did you ever fight alongside Lee Seokyoung?"
"A few times. We were active in the same era."
"It really hits home that you're the legendary Seo Chaeyoon, hyung."
As the two continued talking while poking at the monster corpses, someone approached them. They turned to see Jo Mani.
"Hey, Kwon Jihan. Are you planning to handle all these confirmatory kills after slaughtering hundreds? Someone in your position shouldn't be doing that."
With a nod of his head, Jo Mani instructed the guild members he brought from Rainbow. Each of them took out their weapons and started confirming the deaths of the monsters.
"Hyung's the one who slaughtered hundreds and is doing the confirmatory kills, why are you blaming me?"
"Shut up. If Hunter Seo Chaeyoon wants to kill hundreds and confirm their deaths, who cares?"
"…."
Even Kwon Jihan was left speechless, and Jo Mani spoke to the two of them.
"Come into the tent. We have something to discuss."
Jo Mani spoke with an arrogant expression before turning around. Yoon Seo and Kwon Jihan exchanged glances, shrugged their shoulders, and followed him.
***
The discussion was about finding the final boss monster of the Lava Zone. Rather than relying on items, they proposed to search for it themselves. This plan had several drawbacks: the range of
"Even if we stay here and fight the mobs, we'll still lose stamina."
"How will we manage the power loss from spreading our forces?"
"Power loss? It's already been proven that one team can handle the boss monster by themselves."
"It'll also take time to regroup and move to the swamp area after spreading out."
"That can be solved with a portal stone."
"The portal stone was reserved for the labyrinth zone."
"So, we should just let time pass like this?"
"I'm saying the time spent waiting or regrouping would be about the same."
The other leaders simply listened quietly. Yoon Seo found both sides of the argument reasonable and had nothing to add.
"What's Hunter Seo Chaeyoon's opinion?"
Jo Mani asked Yoon Seo, who was daydreaming behind his mask. Since his voice was modulated by the mask anyway, Yoon Seo answered.
"Since the time and stamina spent are similar either way, why don't we decide by drawing lots?"
"What?"
"Huh."
"Haha…"
Do Deungsoo chuckled, but stopped awkwardly when Jo Mani glared at him.
Yoon Seo was also taken aback by his own suggestion. Drawing lots… It seemed like he was definitely feeling less burdened now.
"You're the only one among us who's been through the Great Dungeon, but you're not really engaging in the strategy discussion. You won't even give your signature. I hope you'll actively share your opinions as a strategist, not just slaughter monsters. I'd like to keep hearing your modulated voice."
Wasn't there something odd mixed into that statement?
This time, Kwon Jihan glared at Jo Mani, his ash-gray eyes widening intensely. Jo Mani, caught off guard, glared back instinctively.
Yoon Seo felt like Kwon Jihan might say this after the meeting ended.
'Hyung, why are you so popular? It's seriously annoying.'
Yoon Seo, wanting to end the meeting quickly, spoke up.
"We still have ten hours until the additional
"Ten hours…"
"No one has died yet, and although our stay has exceeded the planned duration, we're still within the scope of Plan A. We didn't devise a strategy outside just to abandon it, so we should stick to the plan for now."
Yoon Seo said firmly.
Both sides nodded in agreement.
With that, the meeting came to a close. As Yoon Seo and Kwon Jihan were about to head back to their camper, Alec stopped them.
"Mr. Seo Chaeyoon, I have a question for you."
Alec had recently dropped the title "Hunter" after Yoon Seo's name, opting instead for "Mr." as a sign of familiarity.
"You have a trait called 'Creator,' right? 'Survivor' and 'Protector' are related to attack skills and shield skills, while 'The Chosen One' is related to Gaia skills. What skill is 'Creator' related to?"
"It doesn't relate to any skills."
"Hmm? Didn't you gain a skill when you got the trait?"
"No, I just received a message saying I gained the 'Creator' trait, and that was it."
Normally, when someone acquired a trait, they would also gain at least one related skill. However, ever since Yoon Seo received the 'Creator' trait during his initial awakening, it hadn't provided any associated skills, and he often forgot he even had that trait.
"That's unusual. Anyway, got it. Thanks for answering. What are you planning to do now?"
"I'm planning to go in and rest. You should rest too, Hunter Alec. Or maybe go for a run or do some squats."
"Haha… Both of you, take a good rest."
After parting with Alec—who had no intention of exercising—Yoon Seo and Kwon Jihan entered their camper and rested. Yoon Seo heard exactly what he had anticipated from Kwon Jihan: "It must be nice, huh? Being young, good-looking, and popular?" Kwon Jihan said in a snarky tone, which made Yoon Seo feel oddly happy.
It was surprising to feel this happy here, in the Great Dungeon.
When monsters attacked, they fought them off, and after dealing with them, they rested.
They were spending their time like this when something unexpected happened—something not good for the new Revengers.
***
"Stomachache?"
"Yes, Vice Guild Master Do Deungsoo. It's strange that twenty people suddenly had stomachaches at the same time."
"What ingredients did you use?"
"We used military rations brought from Earth in our inventory. The water was the same."
"There's no way they could have gone bad… Did they eat any poisonous herbs? Let's go and take a look."
Inside the camping car, Yoon Seo and Kwon Jihan were playing with Riceball when they heard the conversation outside. They exchanged glances. But since they weren't being called, they didn't go out.
A few minutes later, the sound of someone running approached.
"Kwon Jihan Hunter, Hunter Seo Chaeyoon. Leader group meeting!"
Yoon Seo quickly put on his mask, and Kwon Jihan opened the door. With a fluttering sound, Riceball flew over and perched on top of Kwon Jihan's head.
Upon arriving at the tent where the leaders had gathered, they saw twenty B-rank and C-rank hunters lying pale-faced.
Alec approached the two and explained the situation.
"Team 2, Group 4, twenty people. They took shifts keeping watch for six hours, and while eating afterward, they collapsed, complaining of stomach pain. They only ate military rations brought from Earth. They didn't eat any dungeon plants. Just to be sure, Hunter Park Soobin used a poison-healing skill, and it worked."
"Are you saying someone poisoned the food?"
Kwon Jihan asked, his voice lowered.
[The God of Life clicks their tongue.]
[The God of Death rejoices.]
Yoon Seo thought it'd be nice if the guardian gods could just be quiet.
"Right. We almost lost twenty people in vain. No one else knows yet except the leaders."
"Who was in charge of the food?"
"That person over there."
One of the twenty lying hunters had been in charge of the food.
Yoon Seo glanced at the dungeon entry message.
[Number of Hunters: 301]
That mysterious one person. Was it really Galaxaia infiltrating rather than the child of the couple? But hiding one's presence among hundreds of people for days made no sense. Dozens of life detection skills had been used to find monsters during that time…
While the leaders talked, Yoon Seo observed the twenty lying with pale faces. They had narrowly escaped death, but they still looked like they were on the brink.
The thorough defenses made monsters and terrain not a problem, but humans had become the issue.
What would've happened if these people had died?
There would have been a drop in morale, distrust would have taken root, and the loss in power would have been significant. Even now that these people had survived, the drop in morale, distrust, or loss in power were still present.
Galaxaia had succeeded in their mission, whether these people lived or died.
Both boss monsters were killed in Phase 1, and although the schedule was delayed, the progress was otherwise smooth.
For humanity that had entered the Great Dungeon with meticulous preparation, it wasn't yet, but so far, it hadn't been a match.
The true enemy of the new Revengers wasn't the dungeon, it was ultimately humanity itself.