Everything had been ready as Michael’s Sense expansion was over. The time to get there had been delayed compared to our calculations because he was that unlucky. The necessary points didn’t come out from the boxes on time, but he managed to familiarize himself with the expansion in just three days.
We were in the courtyard of the ward, which was the part that had not been operated as a hospital yet.
Smash!
Woo Yeon-Hee’s small fist punched Michael’s back, and he bounced off with a short scream. He fell downhill and disappeared from my sight, but he came into view with a grimace after a few seconds. Woo Yeon-Hee then threw herself high in the air, somersaulted several times, and kicked Michael’s chin when she landed on the ground. She was so fast, and her kick seemed to have broken his jawbone. She didn’t wait for Michael to get up. Instead, she pressed his face with one hand and aimed her dagger at his neck with the other hand. A tiny amount of blood came out from the part where the dagger had been lightly inserted.
“Do you want to do more?” she asked.
“Ugh… Yes, if you could heal me,” Michael replied.
“Alright.”
Although his combat skill was outstanding, the class gap between them was insurmountable. However, Michael seemed to have realized his improved capabilities with E-class stats. He smiled from time to time, but of course, the smile faded into pain whenever he got hit by Woo Yeon-Hee.
Bam!
He was sent flying again, and Woo Yeon-Hee chased after him to kick his face. She seemed to have distanced herself from him because of her memory regarding what happened with Casino Chip. However, she now met his demands as if she had no choice but to admit that he’d be a companion to the next high-class dungeons. She didn’t want to see someone else die.
***
“You said you want to be like me, right?” I asked.
“Yes,” Michael responded firmly.
I explained, “It’s simple to become strong. If you follow Mary and me, you’ll get rewards without putting much effort. Just keep up with how you’ve been doing so far.”
“When I think about the people in Germany, I know how much you guys are doing for me. I really do appreciate it.”
His gratitude was not enough as no one could develop oneself without risking danger in the past. Everyone had to risk their lives for even one point.
“But Michael.” I looked at him.
“Yes?”
“Have you thought about why I’m giving you this opportunity? Mary and I have risked our lives to come up to this point, and we’re using our power and time for you. This isn’t something that can be repaid easily,” I said.
Michael remained quiet.
“And we only expect one thing from you. We just hope you fulfill your duty. Follow me.”
I took him to the parking lot, and the items we had brought from Seoul yesterday were in the trunk. He needed actual equipment that increased his attack power and defense levels, rather than accessories. I gave him the Winner’s Helmet, Cloak, Iron Mace, Iron Boots and Gloves. These were so-called the Winner’s sets, and people would laugh at him for wearing them. However, they would also look at him with longing eyes as the items would give off golden energy when the user at D-class and above.
“This was what Mary and I risked our lives for. Try them on.”
In the beginning, Woo Yeon-Hee and I lacked items to arm ourselves, and it took a while to obtain a dagger that fit our styles. However, this novice had plenty of items to equip himself as we had opened up a number of boxes.
Woo Yeon-Hee clapped quietly when Michael appeared after equipping the Winner’s sets.
“You look amazing, so don’t be shy.” She smiled.
He replied, “It’s just because I’m unfamiliar with all this.”
“We are going to wear them, too. Right, leader?” she asked.
***
As soon as we arrived in front of the E-class dungeon the next day, Woo Yeon-Hee and I began to arm ourselves. My main weapon was Youxia’s Scimitar and my main defense equipment was Deva King’s Protective Gloves. Those two and the Ruler’s Ring weren’t noticeable, but I had to wear a cloak and helmet to reinforce my defense.
Golden energy started gushing out from items as they were converted to fit the user’s size. Not every item was visibly notable due to their diverse appearances, so many of them didn’t seem out of place. Woo Yeon-Hee’s plain white shirt was one example.
We became silent after arming ourselves as we were busy looking at the slope to the E-class dungeon that stretched under the blue barrier.
“Of course, the difficulty of E-class dungeons is significantly harder compared to the previous ones. However, this one’s doable as we have managed to conquer the F-class dungeon in Hwasung,” I said.
I had upgraded all my stats and skills that had S-class potential up to C-class. In addition, I had equipped both Youxia’s Scimitar and Deva King’s Protective Gloves at the same time, and they were known as the best combination. When I thought rationally, my current capabilities was stronger than that of an A-class hunter who hadn’t optimizing their skills.
“However, I can’t guarantee the battle against the boss monster will go smoothly. You’ll have to risk your life, but don’t forget that our growth is like a staircase. Once we take a leap forward, E-class dungeons will be like jokes to us,” I emphasized.
Woo Yeon-Hee and Michael exchanged looks, and we began the conquest by carrying our backpacks in silence.
***
In the cartoon ‘Ninja Turtles,’ the teacher Splinter becomes mutated by the green liquid that Shredder sprays as a trap. The Barba Corps reminded me of that since they looked like rats that were mutated into human beings. Their unsightly appearance was bearable, but the infected liquid that splattered everywhere when they died, contaminating the surrounding area, was intolerable.
I activated Gaia’s Will. When the monsters that jumped into Woo Yeon-Hee and Michael turned their heads toward me, my Youxia’s Scimitar transformed from a ring to a large sword.
Zing-
With one stroke, their heads flew in the air, and their blood sprayed everywhere.
[Your defense has been damaged by 20.]
[Defense: 13180 / 13200]
Woo Yeon-Hee didn’t have the skills to purify the contamination. Therefore, our party had nothing to stop the ground from turning into a plague zone. There was a limit to stepping on the monsters’ heads, and my speed and defense decreased as soon as my foot touched the ground. Then, I saw a troop of Barba rushing toward us.
Bang!
I sliced them with Shiva’s Knife, and ran towards another troop coming from the side and killed them all. Since the rats were after me due to Gaia’s Will effect, Woo Yeon-Hee and Michael were busy searching for the dead bodies to find a quest item. Their defense was also weakening, so we needed to hurry.
“I found two!” Woo Yeon-Hee yelled.
“I found one, and I can’t find any more!” Michael shouted.
“Okay, keep close to my side. We won’t stop until we reach the safe zone,” I said.
The safe zone was far from the corpses. In other words, we could leave the site and didn’t need to fight anymore. However, the rats attacked us no matter how many we killed them, and it was a never ending wave of them. Some of them were flooding in from the back.
“Woo Yeon-Hee!” I shouted.
“We’ll take care of this side!” she yelled back.
She was shrewd, and the numbers on her side were certainly small. On top of that, the Barba warriors were rushing in from my side. The warm-up was over. The rats had positioned themselves into an attack formation and had placed warriors on the front line and archers on the rear side. Arrows stained with infected fluid poured out in a curve, but they were too slow. By the time the arrows struck the place where I was standing, I had already jumped into the formation as if I was a mounted knight.
Bam!
The Barbas bounced off.
“Kieuuuk?”
“Kieuuuuk. Kieuk!”
Since I didn’t have an item that translated their language, their words just sounded like rats squeaking to me. I sliced the warriors’ necks and their numbers rapidly decreased. Then, the archers began shooting arrows in every direction, not caring if they were aiming at their own allies or not. At that time, rays of thunderbolts formed in my fingers, and they stretched out like dozens of thick branches.
Zaaaaap!
“Kieeuk! Kieeuuuk!”
The entire corridor was filled with wails, and the streaks of lightning pierced those that were running away.
Clear.
“This side is clear!”
I heard Woo Yeon-Hee’s voice, but the monsters’ nasty blood was already permeating into the ground and polluting the area. The land became blackened and the contamination was diffusing around the cave.
“There’s no time to search the bodies. Hurry up! We will run to the safety zone!” I yelled.
We sprinted towards the spot where the cave narrowed down, and the polluted area ended there. After a while, Woo Yeon-Hee caught up to me with Michael on her shoulders. She acted like a mother cat who was taking care of her kittens as she carried Michael, who was much bigger than her. She checked his defense barrier as soon as she placed him on the ground.
“You two stay here,” I said.
“Are you going to be okay by yourself?” she asked.
“We already checked. The rats are not a problem.”
“That area might have the combat quest,” she said while pointing to the front where the cave narrowed significantly. I finished calculating and came to the conclusion that I would have no issue doing combat quests even without Odin’s Wrath.
I dashed toward the area as I sensed there were a number of rats swarming in there, and I wasn’t going to give them time to create a formation. As expected, Barba warriors rushed to me acting like shields, but I managed to slice them all and saw the combat quest monster in the center.
“Ah, was it you, the plague sorcerer of Barba? Good!” I said.
The monster was powerful enough to be placed as an F-class dungeon’s boss monster. The bone necklace it wore was the source of its power, and it was the first sign of the Barba corps’ plague I found after returning time. When it was about to sparkle, my lightning rays pierced through the rats in the combat monster’s guard corps. The lightning that actually struck the monster was from Youxia’s Scimitar, and it’s shield vanished as it collided with the scimitar.
“Kieuuuuk…”
I trampled on it with my foot and ripped off the necklace first.
[You have exceeded the maximum number of items you can possess.]
When I gave up on the necklace, I began to understand its cry.
“What happened… to you?” it asked.
“Open the plague laboratory. Then, I’ll spare your life, you little rat,” I replied.
Of course, I had no intention of saving it.