“I’ll say it again, you must be prepared for death. You should not think of this as an ordinary Dungeon.”

The Celestial Spirit Maiden said. Her usually blunt tone sounded even colder.

It was a slight threat, perhaps.

Don’t whine after deciding to challenge it; if you’re scared, leave now.

That must have been what she meant.

Of course, Kim Songcheol’s resolve was not so shallow as to be swayed by such a threat. He knew his life could be in danger at any time, and he had already experienced it.

If you fear danger, you won’t survive.

Furthermore, completely eliminating danger is impossible, and in a Dungeon, danger is an opportunity to become a Castle Lord.

The more dangerous it is, the more you gain. You will grow stronger, and the next danger will be easier to overcome.

On the other hand, if you avoid immediate danger, you might survive for now, but the next danger will be even greater.

‘Danger accrues interest.’

Building such a powerful team was an opportunity Kim Songcheol couldn’t easily come by.

He planned to use this as a stepping stone to reduce the interest as much as possible.

The Celestial Spirit Maiden roughly guessed Kim Songcheol’s thoughts from his expression. Any further questions would be meaningless. So, her gaze naturally turned to Setsu.

Kim Songcheol also looked at him.

Setsu calmly met their gazes.

“I can do it. There are still many people outside the Safe Zone.”

Setsu’s voice, now a bit lower, flowed out.

Setsu had grown during that time. He had literally grown taller, and his voice was changing due to puberty.

When Setsu first entered the Dungeon, he was truly a boy thrown into an unfamiliar world.

He wandered the Dungeon, trying to help his friends and people however he could.

The Setsu of then and the Setsu of now are different.

At first, he thought he would try hard because his power was a bit stronger than others, but now he knows how strong he is, and he also knows that he possesses unknown potential to become even stronger.

That fact gave Setsu a sense of responsibility, not arrogance.

It was a sense of responsibility to expand the Safe Zone and save more people.

That was something he had been influenced by Kim Songcheol for.

Because Kim Songcheol also carried the responsibility of ‘if it’s not me, it won’t work.’

As the time they spent together grew longer, Setsu began to resemble Kim Songcheol.

Thus, the three Hunters decided to participate in the Trial, each for their own reasons.

Now, all that remained was to go to the Trial grounds.

***

There was a massive crater, seemingly tens of kilometers in diameter.

It looked as if a meteor had fallen.

There were no living creatures nearby. Even monsters avoided approaching it.

The crater was black, as if it had been scorched dry.

The rim maintained its gray color, but the blackness deepened towards the center.

And in the darkest center, there was a large purple Portal.

It was dozens of times larger than an ordinary Portal.

The purple light reflected on the black, gleaming ground, creating an eerie color.

“Is that it?”

Kim Songcheol stopped at the rim of the crater and looked down.

The crater was so vast that it looked like something created with computer graphics.

Nevertheless, the presence of the distinctly purple Portal in the center was considerable.

“That’s it.”

The Celestial Spirit Maiden replied indifferently.

“…I wonder what the first person who entered there was thinking.”

It was an unusual Portal at a glance.

What was he thinking when he threw himself in?

Did he survive?

The Celestial Spirit Maiden opened her mouth.

“There’s a fine line between foolish and brave. If you die, you’re foolish; if you survive, you’re brave.”

“So, they were foolish when they went in?”

“Of course.”

Entering a Portal whose identity is completely unknown is foolish.

The interesting part here is that thanks to them, they learned about the ‘Trial’ and its rewards.

Just like the people who figured out how to eat pufferfish.

Foolish individuals certainly played a part in the survival of the species.

Perhaps that’s why foolish individuals keep appearing.

The three walked a considerable distance even after descending another slope, finally standing before the purple Portal.

It was so close that they had to crane their necks way back to see the top of the Portal.

It was almost ten meters tall.

“Get ready. It will begin as soon as we enter.”

The Celestial Spirit Maiden took her hand out of her pocket, regulated her breathing, and drew forth Sky Breaker.

Kim Songcheol finished his preparations by stretching his arms slightly, and Setsu, floating in mid-air, created several Green Spheres.

The three exchanged glances. It meant they were ready.

No more words were needed.

The three Hunters simultaneously threw themselves into the purple Portal.

The scenery changed dramatically.

An endless gray land stretched before their eyes. It looked like an alien planet.

The sky was dark. Occasionally, a purple light flashed beyond the clouds.

It was then.

Boom!

A large, rectangular Stone Slab fell from the sky, piercing through the clouds.

On the Stone Slab, a creature was bound by glowing chains. The chains were connected to the four corners of the Stone Slab, and they glowed more intensely whenever the creature thrashed.

The creature was a four-legged Beast with multiple tails. It was difficult to make out anything more.

It was due to the Purple Aura that enveloped its entire body. The deep purple pulsed like burning flames.

Around the Stone Slab, a transparent wall emitting colorful light had been erected.

It seemed they couldn’t attack yet.

“It’s beginning!”

The Celestial Spirit Maiden shouted and stomped her foot. Sky Breaker surged from her entire body, momentarily forming the shape of a Demon God.

Clang! Clang!

The chains began to break one by one. The moment all the chains binding the Monster disappeared, and the transparent wall blocking their path vanished.

The Foe kicked off the ground.

Incredible speed.

Instantly, The Foe, now tripled, targeted three Hunters simultaneously.

‘Definitely fast.’

The moment he thought it was coming, its maw was already right in front of him.

Kim Songcheol used Blink to create distance for now.

Boom!

The one hit by the Celestial Spirit Maiden’s punch bounced off, and Setsu had already protected himself with a sphere.

Then, the Clones flew towards the one who attacked Kim Songcheol, merging as if time had rewound.

Screech!

Its maw open, threatening.

The Purple Aura, coiling around its entire body, flared up even more fiercely.

Thump!

The Foe moved like lightning, disorienting the Hunters’ vision. They couldn’t relax for a single moment. It felt like their necks would be torn off if they made a mistake.

Kim Songcheol cast 2nd-tier Electric Shock Magic.

He had to aim for the moment it split. That was its weakness.

The Hunters exchanged glances. They had roughly adapted to its speed, so they intended to finish it this time.

At that moment, the creature, which had been running wildly on the ground, looking for an opportunity, suddenly changed direction and created Clones.

The Clones shot towards different targets.

The Celestial Spirit Maiden grabbed The Foe’s lower jaw with a hand overflowing with crimson Sky Breaker, then struck The Foe’s abdomen with a powerful True Stomp. Her fist went through its belly and came out its back.

Boom!

Kim Songcheol pulled out threads of Electric Shock, wrapped The Foe like a net, and then sent a powerful Electric Shock through it.

It was an Electric Shock so intense that all the purple aura scattered.

Rupture sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle!

Setsu simply enveloped The Foe in a sphere. He tried to crush The Foe by contracting the sphere, and when that wasn’t enough, he impaled the sphere with numerous Cones.

Unless it was a magic show, it would have been riddled with holes.

The Clones couldn’t merge into one. They simply slumped to the ground, having lost all their purple aura.

Even those unsightly corpses didn’t last long. They soon turned to dust and scattered.

Thus, Stage 1 was completed.

Whoosh…!

As proof, with a large vibration, a large purple Portal appeared in front. It was the same size as the one in the center of the Crater.

And behind it, a blue Portal formed. One could give up on the Stage 2 Trial and leave, but once given up, one could no longer undertake the Trial.

The three Hunters naturally entered the purple Portal.

Because they hadn’t come all this way just to complete Stage 1.

This time, a slightly darker land than before unfolded.

Again, no living creatures could be found. Only a vast, dull, dead land.

Boom!

As expected, a large Stone Slab fell from the sky again this time.

Kim Songcheol narrowed his eyes slightly at the ‘Monster’ bound on the Stone Slab.

It was blindfolded, its mouth covered with a Muzzle. Then its limbs were tightly bound with chains.

Purple Aura was clearly rising from its entire body, but it looked very similar to a human.

Except for its slightly pointed ears.

Rupture Spear! Rupture Spear!

The chains burst apart. Its bound limbs were freed, and the blindfold disappeared. The Muzzle was still on.

The Foe swayed its arms weakly and half-opened its eyes.

Its purple eyeballs slowly scanned the surroundings.

Mumble mumble.

The Foe mumbled. It was impossible to understand because the Muzzle was on.

Mumble mumble.

The Foe mumbled a few more times, then flipped its right hand over. Its palm split open, and a bone protruded by a span. The Foe grasped the bone with its left hand and slowly pulled it out.

Then, a blade soaked in purple blood emerged from its hand.

Swish!

When it powerfully swung the sword downwards, purple blood splattered on the floor. The wound on its palm had already healed.

Rupture Spear!

Only then did the transparent wall surrounding the Stone Slab shatter.

It was then that The Foe’s sleepy, half-opened eyes snapped wide open.

Just as The Foe was about to rush forward, the Celestial Spirit Maiden blocked its path.

Clang clang clang!

The sword and fist intertwined at an incredible speed. Kim Songcheol’s Electric Shock burst into the two’s battle.

Rupture sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle!

A large Electric Shock flew past the Celestial Spirit Maiden, targeting The Foe and closing the distance.

The Foe pulled out a Bone Dagger from its side, and a thick Purple Aura gathered around the dagger.

Rupture clang!

Surprisingly, The Foe simply parried the Electric Shock with that dagger.

The Magic’s trajectory twisted sharply and instantly plunged into the ground, disappearing.

‘Just parried…?’

Parrying an Electric Shock.

Even while engaging in a Workshop with the Celestial Spirit Maiden.

It meant it had power to spare.

But it created an opening.

It was then.

“Kid!”

Boom!

The Celestial Spirit Maiden shouted loudly and powerfully uppercut The Foe’s chin. The Sky Breaker extending from her fist was a powerful blow that seemed to pierce the sky.

The Foe’s body shot towards the sky as if fired from a cannon.

Clang clang!

Setsu’s orb flew at incredible speed and bound The Foe’s body. A total of six cylinders tightly squeezed The Foe’s body.

Setsu’s clenched hand trembled. Setsu was not pushed back in a simple test of strength. But The Foe was doing something inside.

Of course, The Foe did not have much time either.

Rupture tss-tst!

The Electric Shock discharging from Kim Songcheol’s body had already converged at one point.

The gray sky turned red, and static electricity made Kim Songcheol’s hair stand on end.

It was then that The Foe’s struggling movements stopped.

Kim Songcheol was clearly reflected in The Foe’s purple eyes.

At that moment, a massive Electric Shock Rupture was fired.

Kwagagagak!

The Electric Shock, spreading to engulf space, swept through The Foe’s entire body.

Completely losing its purple Aura, its charred body fell from the sky to the ground.

But just before it hit the ground.

Suddenly, a purple Aura flashed Fear from its chest, and its body, as black as charcoal, spun rapidly and landed on the ground.

As the purple Aura rose Fear again, The Foe’s body instantly recovered.

The Foe remained in a kneeling position, with one Nothingness knee on the ground, and looked up with gleaming eyes.

“You can’t kill me with that.”

A voice like grinding metal leaked from The Foe’s mouth. This was because the Muzzle had disappeared with the previous attack.

“The Monster speaks…”

Kim Songcheol clenched his fist, scattering the magic formation of Thunder Shock as he replied.