Though he wanted to run to Jaehwi, Raon, who found even walking difficult, only realized something strange after walking for quite a while away from the team members. Bbobbo, flying around him, was still busy, and he was in that middle zone where the influence of the flames and wind created by the team members didn’t reach and where Jaehwi, who had gone ahead, wasn’t visible either, but nothing threatened Raon.
As if focusing on destroying the golems, the golems were completely shattered, but there were still injured or unharmed monsters around. Even the injured ones seemed to have been hurt not because they were attacked, but because they happened to be nearby during the process of destroying golems.
Though he had no intention of deliberately provoking monsters, due to the nature of the dungeon structured like a cave, there wasn’t much space between the monsters and himself. If the monsters were visible to his eyes, there was no way he wouldn’t be visible to the monsters’ eyes either.
Raon petted Bbobbo, who had been flying around for a while before briefly perching on his shoulder. As his fingertips touched the dungeon watch that Bbobbo had been wearing when it went in to reveal the map, Raon quickly removed the watch first and wore it on his own wrist.
Though he couldn’t easily see various information as comprehensively as on a tablet, he could check simple information related to the current dungeon and use it as a walkie-talkie.
Raon, who had stopped in place, first checked the surrounding monsters. Judging by the many dots gathered further inside than where the team members and he were located, it seemed Jaehwi was handling them while drawing the swarming monsters inside.
“So that’s the one. I heard its outer shell is really good as protective gear.”
Raon, who had been checking simple information, confirmed the name of a monster leisurely passing right in front of him and muttered what he knew before closing his mouth. Because the monster stopped at his voice and looked at him. Though Jaehwi was ahead and the team members were behind, if that monster lunged at him right now, there was no way but to be helplessly attacked.
Hoping not to provoke the monster, Raon’s right hand moved very carefully and slowly toward the pistol holstered on his thigh. Unlike the other team members who had weapons specialized and suited to each of them, a pistol and dagger were all the weapons he currently had.
At least the fire-element gemstone embedded in the dagger could deal additional damage to metal-types, but with his current abilities, it seemed he’d depart this world faster than he could attack with this dagger.
Even while gripping the pistol handle, Raon’s gaze didn’t leave the monster. But he couldn’t read any hostile energy from the monster’s red eyes, which were larger than his fist. The monster, which had been looking at him with a very indifferent feeling, like ‘I’m looking because you’re there,’ blinked its eyes. And only after seeing it turn its head and continue on its way as if nothing had happened did Raon moisten his parched lips with the tip of his tongue.
Though he didn’t know exactly what was going on, the monster didn’t regard him as an enemy and passed by with him right in front of its nose. His hand gripping the pistol while tensed enough for his palm to be soaked with sweat was becoming meaningless.
Unlike the indifferent monster, Raon, who had started to feel the monster’s energy, couldn’t move around boldly and recklessly like before. Should he say his reckless bravado had completely disappeared? His whole body’s senses became sensitive and everything around him approached him stimulatingly.
At the feeling of something brushing past his side, Raon quickly turned his head and realized that a very small monster had rapidly passed by him.
“What is it?”
The small monster wasn’t the only problem. Until just a moment ago, he couldn’t see even a few steps ahead due to the thick dust. But from some point on, he could clearly see injured monsters hastily hiding themselves in blind spots and unharmed monsters moving around warily.
“Bbobbo. Is it you?”
Above all, the monsters weren’t regarding him as an enemy. There were more than just one or two monsters whose eyes met his, and there were quite a few monsters passing by at a distance where he could reach them if he stretched out his arm, yet nothing attacked Raon. Bbobbo, who was scratching behind its ear with its hind leg on his shoulder, couldn’t possibly solve the question he had.
Was it because he was with Bbobbo? Since he couldn’t just keep standing in place thinking, Raon took a step toward where there were as few monsters as possible.
Kwakwang-!
As if sensing that he was about to move more, at the vibration and sound that rang out with tremendous light, Raon unknowingly sat down right there. The dust that had seemed to settle for a moment rose thickly again, and Raon’s body, sitting there, rolled backward like a ball in the gust blowing from inside the dungeon.
“Ppyoppyak! Ppuyuung.”
It was Bbobbo that stopped Raon’s helplessly rolling body, and the next course of action was his body floating up into the air. They say no one can predict what will happen or how inside a dungeon, and Raon’s current situation was exactly that situation.
The light, dust, and resonance from just now were clearly due to Jaehwi’s attack. And now flying was…
“If you could do this, why didn’t you do it earlier?”
Bbobbo, the size of his two fists combined, was biting the shoulder of his protective gear, and its small, cute wings were flapping. Having suddenly become able to fly through the air, albeit unstably, Raon stopped his continuing thoughts and looked down below his feet.
If he wasn’t being recognized as a monster because of Bbobbo, then the horde of monsters Bbobbo had brought just before didn’t make sense. Because if it had brought monsters like before, it would be common sense for the monsters to be conscious of him and Bbobbo now and follow or attack them.
“Ah, I don’t know. It’s difficult. Difficult.”
With Bbobbo’s help, Raon, who was moving through the dungeon much faster than staggering along on the shaking ground, hastily covered his eyes with his hands at the flashing light.
“Ppiyuu.”
Only after feeling the vibration again did Raon realize that Bbobbo had put him down. Until the flash of light accompanied by heat ended, Raon stood with his back to the light, covering his face with both hands.
“How on earth can I get Kang Raon to listen to me?”
At the voice that came with the heaviness of something settling on top of his head, Raon slowly lowered his hands. Who was the person who left him behind knowing full well he would follow? He was also the one who taught him how to break through the barrier he had created.
He said to throw Bbobbo outside if it was urgent. That meant nothing would be able to break the barrier before that happened. And the barrier moved precisely only until in front of Team Leader Lee. If he had headed outside the dungeon instead of inside, he would have been able to go all the way out.
“When will Hwi, who always says he’ll never see me again or whatever, stop treating me like baggage and carefully take good care of me?”
Returning his words exactly as they were, Raon turned his body to look at Jaehwi. On his face, full of the smell of burnt dust, there was also something like soot. His hair, with the flying dust settling on it, had lost its original color and looked as if it had been dyed gray.
Raon, who had been looking at Jaehwi covered in dust all over his body, raised his hand to cup his cheek. So this is what he looks like inside a dungeon. It wasn’t difficult to notice that he, who must have continuously used his abilities and performed only aggressive actions in succession, was in an excited state.
His body temperature and heart rate were higher than usual, and instead of pitch-black darkness in his dilated pupils, they were filled with a reddish energy. And the capillaries that rose prominently up to his nape, jawline, and cheek that his protective suit couldn’t cover were making him look even more dangerous.
“Gray hair suits you well too.”
The prominent blood vessels of Jaehwi, who stood there steadying his rough breathing, gradually subsided under his hand. He could clearly see the reddish energy that had filled his eyes settling down.
“Aren’t you too carefree for someone inside a dungeon? What would you do if I couldn’t protect hyung?”
“Do you also have the ability to control monsters?”
“If I had that ability, why would I be suffering like this?”
Beyond Jaehwi, who was slowly rotating his neck as if it was stiff, Raon glimpsed something and subtly moved his body to the side. Deep in the darkness very far away, it seemed like his eyes had met with something.
“There’s nothing behind you.”
Even at Jaehwi’s words, who had noticed his actions, Raon couldn’t take his gaze away from the darkness. There was definitely something watching him and Jaehwi. There was no way Jaehwi, whose senses were more acute than his own, couldn’t feel this presence.
“You’re saying this is the end of the dungeon?”
As soon as his words ended, Jaehwi flicked his fingertips in the air, and the light that arose with it illuminated the surroundings. It wasn’t a flash so strong that he couldn’t see ahead like before. With moderate light that allowed him to see all around without discomfort, Raon looked around carefully, turning his head.
In the round area about the size of a baseball field, there were only traces of shattered golems. In the space where the trembling that had been shaking so much one couldn’t stand properly and the loud rumbling had stopped, all that could be heard was the noise created by team members approaching from afar.
They must be cleaning up the monsters that he had just passed through.
Jaehwi, who had subtly removed his hand that was still touching his cheek, turned around and headed toward the shattered golems. And he skillfully found the core from the remains of the broken golem.
It’s a wall. It’s definitely a wall. Blocked walls except for where they came in.
Raon, who had met eyes that seemed to be targeting Jaehwi, ran straight toward the wall.
