Chapter 18

“They’re coming again! Everyone, get ready!”

After moving a bit further, monsters attacked once more.

“Kieeeek!”

“Everyone, be careful. Lee Seo, take out the archers first!”

“I know, old man!”

Whoosh—

Thud!

“Keeek…!”

Kang I-seo started taking out the archers with her bow. Just like before, Mr. Ho-won blocked with his shield while the close combat fighters dealt with the frontliners.

I held my bludgeon and shield, ready to switch positions if anyone in front got tired.

“….. Ugh!”

Not long after, Ahn Tae-woo, who was thrusting his spear through the gaps, got grazed by a sword swung by one of the monsters, and blood started pouring from his arm.

“Tae-woo, fall back!”

After quickly switching places with Tae-woo, I started blocking the monsters’ attacks with my shield. Unlike Mr. Ho-won’s large shield, mine was small, so I couldn’t feel completely at ease.

‘Just hold on and buy some time…!’

If we could just buy some time, Yoo Ju and Kang I-seo would reduce the number of monsters.

“…..!”

Suddenly, I felt an intense pain in my foot. Struggling to endure the pain, I realized one of the monsters had stabbed my foot with a dagger.

‘I can’t back down here.’

If I retreat now because of the pain, the front line might collapse. I immediately swung my bludgeon at the monster’s head.

Thwack—

“Keeek!”

Since my movement was limited, the blow didn’t kill it, but it sent the monster flying.

“…. Ugh…!”

The pain was unbearable. If it were my arm, I could manage, but with my foot stabbed, it was hard to even stand.

“…. Yoon Seong?!”

Yoo Ju seemed to notice something was off with me and quickly spotted the wound on my foot.

She bit her lip and, in an instant, thrust her spear twice, causing the heads of two charging monsters to explode.

‘Crazy…!’

“Yoon Seong, fall back! Get treated first…!”

“… No. If I fall back now, the front line will…”

Kang I-seo also noticed my condition and, while shooting arrows, came over and took my shield and bludgeon.

“Hey! Stop showing off. I’ll cover the front for now, so hurry back and get treated!”

Yoo Rim and Yoo Hyun immediately helped me move to the back.

“Bro! Just hang in there! I’ll…!”

Thud.

I grabbed Yoo Hyun’s hand and spoke.

“… Yoo Hyun. How much mana do you have left?”

“….. Bro.”

“Not much, right? Then… don’t heal me.”

“Oppa! What are you talking about?! Your foot is completely stabbed…!”

“… I’m a Dark Sorcerer. If I can’t fight on the front lines, I can stay in the back and cast spells. Don’t waste your precious mana on me.”

With only Yoo Hyun as the priest in the team, using up his mana on me would make it harder to deal with the Boss Monster later.

The others didn’t know about the Boss Monster, but I was half-convinced of its existence because of what Yoo Ju had said.

‘At the very least… the close combat fighters on the front lines need to be healed.’

Mages can just cast spells from the back. If the Boss Monster attacks the rear, we can deal with it then.

‘It’s not just healing. If I get treated now, Yoo Hyun might not be able to use his protective shield later.’

I thought about getting treated now, resting in the dungeon for a day to recover mana, and then going after the Boss Monster, but it was too risky.

‘… The longer we delay, the more likely we’ll be attacked again.’

“Don’t worry about healing me. Just stop the bleeding… Ugh…”

Eventually, Yoo Rim and Yoo Hyun nodded with dark expressions, respecting my decision.

After the battle, Yoo Ju was shocked to see I hadn’t been treated and spoke up.

“… Yoon Seong?! Why didn’t you get treated? Yoo Hyun?!”

“I told Yoo Hyun not to heal me.”

“Huh?”

Yoo Ju looked baffled. Kang I-seo also started speaking to me.

“Hey?! What are you talking about? Why didn’t you get treated? I told you not to show off…!”

“Yoo Hyun doesn’t have much mana left.”

Hearing this, both of them fell silent.

“I can just cast spells from the back. If you use healing now, you might need it later for someone on the front lines.”

Yoo Ju probably knew this too. She just couldn’t think straight because I was hurt.

Yoo Ju tends to lose her rationality when it comes to me.

Yoo Rim spoke up, seemingly having the same thought.

“Oppa, what if we get treated now, rest in the dungeon for a day to recover mana, and then go after the Boss Monster?”

I watched Yoo Ju’s reaction to confirm my suspicions. As expected, she immediately responded.

“… No, that’s too risky. The longer we take, the more likely we’ll be attacked again.”

‘Exactly.’

This dungeon seemed like a time attack. The faster we clear it, the better. The longer we take, the harder it gets.

‘… No matter how I think about it, the difficulty is insane. How did we clear this place on the first run?’

Mr. Ho-won, who had been silent, finally spoke.

“… I regret to say it, but Yoon Seong is right. I also think it’s better to save the healing.”

“….. Alright. Let’s move again. Yoon Seong… stay in the back and be careful. Ha-eun, can you help Yoon Seong?”

“Yes, yes…”

“Let’s move.”

While Lee Seo was walking, someone snickered and spoke to her from the side.

“Hey, if you can’t walk, just say so. I’ll carry you.”

“Pfft… What… Never mind. Stop showing off.”

“Oh, now you’re dropping formalities? What brought on this sudden change of heart?”

“….. Hmph… Just stop showing off, Lee Seo. You might break your back.”

It seems I unconsciously felt close to her, as I ended up speaking casually.

“Ah, why are you back to formal speech? Just speak casually.”

“I’m worried about your back, Lee Seo. You might get hurt. You’re showing off too much.”

I spoke to Kang I-seo with a slight smirk, and she whispered in my ear.

“Oh, really? Then, can I hurt your back in a different way?”

It took me about 10 seconds to understand her meaning, and then I was flustered.

“Puhahaha! Look at your red face. Hmm~ So, stop acting tough, okay? Cute Yoon Seong? Puhuhuhu…”

Song Ha-eun, who was watching from the side, spoke to Kang I-seo.

“What are you doing to an injured patient?!”

“Goodness… You’re really gone, aren’t you?”

******

After some trivial conversation, we slowly moved forward, and after about 30 minutes, a massive black iron gate appeared before us.

“…. This is.”

Everyone was amazed by the fact that such a huge gate existed underground.

‘This is where the Boss Monster is.’

“Wow… Damn… It’s huge. Just looking at it, you can tell there’s something behind it.”

Everyone seemed to intuitively realize that there was something behind this gate. Seo Yoo-ju, after staying silent for a while, spoke to everyone.

“…. I think this is the end of the dungeon. It seems like the final battle. Everyone, please be careful.”

Everyone swallowed hard. The thought that we had finally reached the end of the tutorial made everyone tense. Then, Mr. Ho-won spoke up.

“Then… I’ll open the gate.”

— Kuruurururururung.

The gate was so massive that the sound of it opening echoed throughout the cave.

After the gate opened, what we saw was a throne. And sitting on the throne was a monster slightly larger than a human.

Its body was black, and overall, its appearance was the same as the monsters we had seen so far, except for its size and color.

One noticeable thing was that it was holding a rather large halberd.

The monster opened its eyes, which had been closed, and spoke in human language.

“…. It’s been a while since I’ve seen humans. Kerek.”

Everyone except Seo Yoo-ju seemed shocked that the monster could speak human language.

“What the…?! Damn, this bastard can talk?”

“Shut up, human wench. Kerek.”

“……”

Kang I-seo seemed shocked that the monster had told her to shut up, her mouth hanging open.

“How dare you interrupt when I’m speaking? You vermin. Kerek.”

The monster stood up from the throne and slowly began walking towards us.

“I’ll tear you all to pieces, you vermin. Kerek. It’s been a while since I’ve tasted fresh human meat. Kerek.”

Seo Yoo-ju gripped her spear with both hands and spoke.

“Everyone, prepare for battle! It seems he wields a halberd, so I recommend dodging rather than blocking. Yoon Seong, Ha-eun, and Lee Seo, attack from the rear. Mr. Ho-won, please keep an eye on the safety of those in the rear.”

Mr. Ho-won nodded in response.

“Understood.”

As soon as our conversation ended, the monster charged at us.

‘He’s fast…!’

Seo Yoo-ju slightly dodged the halberd swung by the monster and swung her spear.

Ssshh—

“Kuh… Human woman…! Kerek!”

The monster, not expecting Seo Yoo-ju to react so quickly, was slightly cut on the waist.

Immediately, the wind spirit summoned by Song Ha-eun began to blow wind at the monster, but it rolled to the side to dodge and started running towards Song Ha-eun.

“Die, you vermin! Kerek!”

Kwaang!

“Kuh…!”

Mr. Ho-won jumped in just in time to block the monster’s halberd. The impact was so strong that a bit of blood trickled from his mouth.

“Uncle!”

“I’m fine…! Shoot this bastard—!”

Kang I-seo shot an arrow, and the monster dropped its halberd and retreated to dodge, then immediately ran towards Mr. Ho-won and kicked his shield.

Thud!

“….. Ugh!”

Mr. Ho-won couldn’t withstand the impact and fell backward. As the monster grabbed its halberd again and was about to swing it at Mr. Ho-won.

“Burn, flames!”

Whoosh—

I had been waiting for the right moment and cast a spell I had prepared, hitting the monster’s back.

“Kyaaaak! Kerek! You damn bastard…! Kerek!”

Unlike the other small fry, it didn’t flail around with its body on fire, but it seemed to have taken some damage as it started to retreat and guard itself.

As the battle momentarily calmed down, Hyeon-jin spoke up.

“This guy… He’s pretty fast for his size.”

Everyone agreed. The monster was not only strong but also quite fast and agile for its size.