As I walked, I began to notice increasingly tangled paths emerging. I moved forward slowly, as if unraveling a knotted skein of thread, carefully tracing each path. Before I knew it, the caravan had passed Point <5> and was entering the area corresponding to Point <6>.
"Ugh, Sol. Stop fiddling with it already. Is it that great?"
"Hehe. What can I do? It's awesome! Don't you like earrings too, unnie?"
"…Yeah, I guess they're nice. I feel a bit lighter too."
From behind, I could hear Yun-Jung and Sol chatting softly. The party members who hadn't received any items were quietly following along, but those two couldn't hide their excitement. Only Ha-Yeong seemed to sense the mood and kept silent. I didn't bother to stop them, though. Obtaining two pieces of equipment from the prosperous era of the Ancient Hall Plain was undeniably encouraging.
From my research, I knew the Ancient Hall Plain was a continent where magic was highly advanced. In terms of pure
The items we just obtained were proof of that. While it's not impossible to create magical equipment today, crafting items of this quality is a distant dream. At best, we can mimic similar effects, but the performance gap is staggering. That's why players are obsessed with exploring dungeons—these are the places most likely to yield equipment from the Ancient Hall Plain.
In any case, the luckiest player was undoubtedly Sol. It was a bit unfortunate that the item was priest-exclusive, but that was beyond my control. According to the description I read with my Third Eye,
By now, we had fully entered the interior of Point <6>. No undead had appeared since Point <5>, but letting our guard down was not an option. From here on, we'd encounter undead far stronger and more dangerous than those we'd faced before. If luck wasn't on our side, we might even run into another lich like the one we met at the entrance to the Blue Mountains.
Some time had passed since we left Point <5>. While scanning with my detection, I suddenly felt an odd sensation at the edge of my range. It was as if my detection was being swallowed by something. I stopped walking and signaled the party to halt.
"Is something caught in your detection?" Go Yeon-Joo asked.
I shook my head. About 200 meters ahead, there was an area my detection couldn't penetrate. That meant there was likely a barrier or something emitting a wave that blocked magical energy. The only way to find out was to get closer and use my Third Eye. Slowing our pace, I cautiously moved forward again. The party, sensing my unease, began preparing themselves, their sounds of readiness audible.
After about eight minutes of walking while staying vigilant, a large, circular clearing came into view ahead. The entrance to the passage limited our view, but even so, I could tell it was wide enough to resemble a plaza.
And at the center of the plaza, a thick, ominous black miasma was settling heavily.
"It's an oppressively foul aura."
"If we recklessly step in, it might end up like that clearing earlier…"
The party members, witnessing the scene, all grimaced. The aura was so thick that even enhancing my vision with magic failed to pierce through it. I took a deep breath and immediately activated my Third Eye. As I peered inside, a low groan escaped me. Within the dark haze, a massive horde of monstrous creatures was swarming.
I caught my breath for a moment before calmly speaking.
"There seems to be a trap in the plaza. It's still not registering in my detection, but judging by the dense, dark auras gathered, it won't be easy. We have two options here."
"Go in, or take a detour."
The sharp-witted Go Yeon-Joo quickly picked up on my words. Nodding once in acknowledgment, I turned slightly toward the party.
"As player Go Yeon-Joo said, we can either charge through and break the trap head-on, or take the longer route by backtracking to find another path. If anyone has any good suggestions, please speak up."
Silence hung over the caravan. Some exchanged wary glances, while others wore expressions of deep thought.
In my first life, we chose to detour. The reason I opted for this path despite that was because, according to my calculated route, it could drastically shorten the journey to our destination. A detour might add several dozen minutes, but if we could pass through the visible passage beyond this point, we could significantly cut down the time needed to exit Point <6>.
"..."
No matter how long I waited, no one spoke. Yet, their gazes carried a resolute determination. Many of those looks conveyed a desire to press forward or trust in my decision. Ultimately, the final call fell back to me.
And I answered by calmly drawing my sword.
*
"Huff, huff. Did we finally take them all down?"
"What… what kind of monsters are these…?"
"…It feels like it. They were nothing like ordinary skeletons."
After the grueling battle in the clearing, the party members collapsed to the ground, faces etched with exhaustion. Watching Sol bustle around healing everyone, I steadied my breathing. As expected, the difficulty had noticeably spiked after Point <5>.
Having chosen to charge straight through, we took a moment to regroup before entering the clearing. The moment we stepped in, the auras in the area reacted violently, swirling fiercely and being drawn toward the center—or rather, absorbed into something.
As I'd predicted, the miasma concealed a horde of undead. A legion of skeletons—skeletal knights, soldiers, and warriors—filled the clearing. Individually, they weren't much, but having absorbed the miasma, each one radiated a formidable presence.
We maintained a tight defensive formation against the relentless wave of enemies. The line nearly broke a few times, but Vivienne's timely support kept us from being overwhelmed. I stood at the forefront, managing the incoming waves with precise strikes, but with their sheer numbers, some enemies inevitably slipped through the sides.
There were close calls. An-Hyun and Yun-Jung held their own for a while, but they eventually took hits from a skeletal knight's bone sword, nearly exposing our mages and priests to danger. If the line had collapsed then, it would've been catastrophic.
But at that critical moment, Go Yeon-Joo, our keeper, stepped up, shielding the ranged players. As a
So, I hauled Yun-Jung up from where she lay sprawled on the ground and started lecturing her. I'd been itching to do this since the fight with the Blood Golem.
"You keep pushing forward, and that's why gaps form in the formation! What's the point of advancing in a defensive line? Gaps open, you get surrounded, and that just creates more attack routes against you. Do you get that?"
"Ugh, oppa… It's just… the skeletal knight was so tough, I wanted to take it down first. I saw an opening, so…"
"An opening? What about the skeletal soldiers around it? You didn't break through—you just got yourself stabbed! If player Shin Sang-Yong hadn't used Gust of Wind to clear some space, we'd have been in deep trouble ages ago. What's the use of those earrings widening your field of view if your body can't keep up? If you focus on one spot like that, you're guaranteed to get blindsided from the side or behind."
"Ugh… Oppa, I'm sorry. I'll be more careful next time."
Yun-Jung lowered her gaze with a sullen expression. For now, I decided to wrap things up with her and turned my attention to An-Hyun. He seemed to have just finished treatment, as he was gently rubbing his stomach. When our eyes met, he flinched slightly. Even though he was pretending not to listen, it seemed he had been watching me scold Yun-Jung. I clicked my tongue once and decided to let An-Hyun be. Sure, he nearly got himself killed, but at the very least, he had fulfilled his role faithfully. His skills were simply lacking when it came to holding his ground.
After roughly concluding my round of nagging, Go Yeon-Joo, who had been quietly leaning against a corner, approached me and spoke.
"Ho ho. Done scolding everyone?"
"I wouldn't call it scolding—more like offering advice, if you'd care to correct yourself."
Go Yeon-Joo let out a scoff at my words. Then, in a low voice, she continued.
"For mere skeleton-type monsters, they were quite formidable. I suspect it has something to do with them absorbing that energy."
"I'm thinking along the same lines. They don't seem to have special effects like regeneration or curses, but it's as if their class as undead monsters has been elevated."
"Hmm. Class elevation, huh. That could very well be the case. Right now, they're just skeletons, so we can handle them even if their class is higher. But if undead like Death Knights, Liches, or that Blood Golem we faced earlier were to absorb that energy…"
"It wouldn't be easy. For now, we had no choice but to engage this time, but if we spot any of them roaming around, we should think carefully. For tougher ones, we could ambush them or at least deal some damage with a preemptive strike to start the fight."
"Sounds like you're saying you'll fight no matter what. Just so you know, evasion is also an option."
Go Yeon-Joo chuckled and patted my shoulder. I shrugged and turned around.
The mage players, having poured an immense amount of mana into the recent battle, were meditating with pale, drained faces. Vivienne wasn't quite as bad, but she still had her brows slightly furrowed and eyes closed, likely focusing on maintaining the barrier. I gave the group enough time to recover, then lightly clapped my hands a few times.
At the sound of my clapping, the mage players, who had been quietly meditating, slowly opened their eyes. Having obtained most of what we needed from the Cave Of Wailing, it was time to wrap up the conquest quickly.
After enduring the toughest battle since entering the Cave Of Wailing, we left the clearing and proceeded into the passage on the opposite side. As we continued walking, we encountered a series of branching paths, confirming my earlier hunch. Had we chosen a detour, we likely would have arrived here through one of these many forks.
It was around the time we moved from point <6> to point <7>. There, we clashed with another group of undead. This time, it was a group of ten skeleton knights, and as Go Yeon-Joo had feared, their eyes glimmered with a dark aura.
Fortunately, I spotted them from about 150 meters away, allowing us to prepare thoroughly before engaging. Vivienne, Jung Ha-Yeong, and Shin Sang-Yong unleashed a barrage of powerful magic attacks with clear determination. The skeleton knights, struck by the spells, swiftly mounted their ghostly steeds and charged toward us.
Unlike before, their numbers weren't overwhelming. We managed to take down four of them before they reached us, so dealing with the remaining six wasn't too challenging. Four of them rushed at me, while one each targeted An-Hyun and Yun-Jung. In the end, all six collapsed coldly onto the ground, defeated in sync.
After that battle, we finally discovered a room similar to the one we found at point <5>. It wasn't exactly a secret room, but it was tucked away in such a secluded spot that we might have passed it by if I hadn't remembered its location.
To sum it up, we found some rewards there. The haul included 800 gold coins, some gems, and a bracelet. The gems alone were worth over 2,000 gold when converted, meaning we gained close to 3,000 gold from a single room.
The group's reaction to the gold was lukewarm. Having seen an absurd amount of gold from the Chaos Mimic earlier, they seemed unimpressed. Some players out there would tremble over a mere 10 gold, so their indifference felt a bit pathetic. Regardless, I scraped up every last coin and stuffed them into my backpack.
The bracelet, however, piqued their interest. Using an appraisal scroll, we identified it as the Bracelet of Recovery (allows the wearer to cast a healing spell on themselves once per day). Since it could only be used by the wearer, I figured it would be best suited for close-combat classes who take the most damage in battle.
I briefly debated between An-Hyun and Yun-Jung for the bracelet's owner. While An-Hyun, with his rare class and tanking capabilities, could use it, Yun-Jung's shorter reach and higher risk of injury made her the better candidate. Focusing on
After quickly distributing the equipment, I mentally calculated the remaining distance. The Cave Of Wailing was nearing its end. Once we cleared this area and passed through points <8> and <9>, we'd soon reach point <10>, where
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