Chapter 18: Join them if you can’t run away (2)

A C-rank dungeon in front of an abandoned building in Pavel city.

The current state: 'mutated'

Raydel instantly felt an abnormal presence in the air when he arrived at the destination. All the streetlights were turned off and the air was filled with the smell of some peculiar energy. A message box appeared in front of him.

[Raydel Klein: No Rank]

[Body Strength +2]

[Boss' Language Skill +1]

[Dagger Skill +2]

[Hunter Attraction Skill +10]

"Umm…" Raydel rested his hands on his hip. Then, he looked at Jinny's status as she stood next to him.

[Jinny Klein: No Rank]

[No skills]

"What? How can we see the status page?" Jinny asked. "Don't we usually need to access it through a phone?"

"I guess it's because different flows of energy are contradicting each other," Raydel answered as he looked at the other hunters. They were standing, focused on the status pages in front of them. "Actually, the hunter system that the government is using is inspired by the system of dungeons. All these message boxes, status pages, and conditions already exist in dungeons. Our government just took the power to activate the hunter system on our phones. When we go into a dungeon, we'll still find the natural system. That's why something like this happened when the lights went out near a mutated dungeon."

"A natural system like this is more convenient than having to look on the phone all the time." Jinny crosses her arms. "But the government probably wants to track their hunters."

"You're right." Raydel knew because it was explained in the novel.

Jinny pressed her status page.

"No skills… no skills…," she whispered. "Well, you have to teach me now. Shall we?"

"Why are you so excited?" Raydel asked and laughed at the same time. He looked at the other hunters and mumbled to himself, "I guess he won't make it in time."

"Who won't make it in time?"

"My friend."

At Raydel's house before this.

'You'll teach me?!'

Raydel nodded.

Jinny tried to suppress her excitement. She jumped up and down and said, "let's go then! There's a mutated dungeon nearby!"

She ran to her parents' room and knocked on their door loudly to ask for permission to go out. Raydel sighed at his sister. 'A mutated dungeon, huh?' he whispered. Honestly, he was never good enough to teach anyone. But, at least, if Jinny wanted to learn how to be a hunter, he knew who would be the right teacher for her.

Raydel pressed call, and the other person picked up immediately.

He tightened his lips and said,

'Han, I want your help. Where are you now?'

'On the train.'

Raydel's jaw dropped.

'So, you arrived in the capital city now?!'

'Yeah, what happened?'

'I thought you were still in my town. Jinny wanted to try going into a dungeon, so I want you to join us…'

Raydel heard the sound of the train's doors opening and closing from Han's side.

'You're going into a dungeon now?' Han asked. 'I can go back.'

'Huh? Are you crazy? No, no, no. You don't have to come back here.'

'I can do it.'

'It's late now. Don't come here and go home.'

'I'll go back.'

Raydel did not know if Han really took the train back here…

Back to the present, Raydel was hugging himself against the cold while Jinny, who wore only a hoodie and leggings, could stand in the cold unbothered. She tightened her grip on the dagger that Raydel gave her as if her life depended on it. She looked through her status page eagerly.

Then, she said, "there are a lot of people here. Is it because it's a C-rank dungeon?"

"Because it's a mutated dungeon and some monsters escaped out of it," Raydel answered. "They came to kill monsters for crystals. If monsters keep coming out of this dungeon, they probably can make several thousands of del for each wave of monsters."

A large crowd of hunters gathered here, but no one went into the dungeon because they just wanted to kill the monsters that came out of it.

"Actually, we shouldn't rush into the dungeon because we won't be able to kill its boss for sure. Try fighting against these monsters first," Raydel said. "Come here, Jinny. You see that?"

Raydel pointed at the monsters that escaped out of the dungeon's door. It was a huge serpent with fresh wounds all over its body.

[Monster: 'Resurrected Giant Garter Snake']

[Level: 23]

"Snake!" Jinny exclaimed. Her eyes switched between Raydel and the monster. "What should I do!?"

"Its level isn't that high. We can wait for it to attack and slash at it then."

"Wait for it to attack first?!"

"Yes." Raydel stood behind Jinny and put his hands above Jinny's on the dagger. He stared at the snake. Once it saw its target, it charged at them. The snake suddenly attacked Jinny. Raydel forced her to slashed it with the dagger. Jinny left a new wound on the snake's face with blood gushing out. When she attacked again, the monster disappeared in the blink of an eye!

"How is it?" Raydel asked.

His sister stood shocked for a moment.

"Are you scared?"

"No, I'm not," Jinny said. Her eyes sparkled. "I like it."

"Why? Do you really want to be a hunter?"

"I like the feeling of slashing at something."

"You mean the feeling of 'killing' something?"

Jinny smiled but did not say anything. She looked the other way as Raydel failed to read her expression.

"Then, let's practice with snakes for today," Raydel said. "I'll practice as well. I'll kill the ones that you didn't see."

Raydel pulled out the dagger that Han gave him. It was outstandingly colorful and radiated such energy that Raydel was certain it must have been an artifact from a high-ranking dungeon. When he tried using it with a monster, it killed the monster with one single strike.

However, Jinny alone could handle those twenty-three-level monsters with ease, so Raydel did not have to do much. She learned quite fast. If this was a game, she would have leveled up so many times from killing so many monsters. Raydel never knew that Jinny loved fighting. Han would be a great teacher for her.

Raydel stood watching his sister attacking the monsters for a while before realizing that the place was too quiet. He saw no one when he turned around.

No one was left in the area.

Raydel frowned and suspected. The dungeon was in front of an abandoned building, which was located in the city. It was not in some secluded area, so there should be people walking around and living their lives in other buildings. But now, all of them were void of people…

Empty.

"Brother," Jinny called him.

Raydel immediately turned to her. His sister was pointing toward a direction. When he looked that way, he saw a message box floating above the door to the dungeon.

[Condition to leave the 'special dimension': Defeat the Boss]

Special dimension?

"Where are we?" Jinny asked.

Raydel scratched his head. "I'm sorry, Jinny. I think we're so unlucky we found the condition of the dungeon. It seems we're stuck in a 'special dimension' instead. It's probably a part of the dungeon. To get out of here, we need to defeat the boss as the message box says."

"So, we have to go into the dungeon?"

"Yeah, we have no choice."

"Will we be able to kill the boss?"

"It's a C-rank dungeon. We should be able to do it."

"Then let's go!" Jinny raised her arms up with excitement as if she was on a school trip. It made Raydel wonder whether his words were the right encouragement for her. But if his sister was not scared, he had nothing to be afraid of. So, they both walked into the dungeon.

Everything was in darkness for a moment as if waves of pure black water flooded over everything. Then, Raydel sensed a freezing coldness.

He realized why it was so cold when he saw the arena.

They were surrounded by a snowy forest in the middle of the night.

White snowflakes fell down in the dim light. In the sky, a moon was shining silver over the forest, helping Raydel see the appearance of the arena.

He explored the place silently with his eyes. Oaks? Raydel thought. Oaks and pines scattered around in all directions, including down the steep hill. The arena seemed like a forest from some western countries. Does this mean the boss is probably from the Western world as well?

Raydel took Jinny's hands and led her forward.

Their feet dug deep into the snow. Strong gusts of wind screamed in their ears. Raydel could only curse himself in his mind for not preparing well enough. He was shivering because of the cold. When Jinny noticed that he had to hug himself, she moved closer and hugged him tightly. The two walked side by side through the snow in silence and only sniffed from times to times.

When the storm started to subside, Raydel suddenly heard a stick snapped.

"...!"

He turned around instantly. Jinny and Raydel had their weapons ready before they saw a blurry figure under a tree.

"Eh, there are other people getting stuck in this special dimension too?"

There were other hunters here.

The person walked out of his hiding. He was a man in his thirties, dressing like an office worker. His clothes looked shabby and he walked like he was drunk. He had a weary, unshaved face.

Raydel raised his brows and lowered his weapon, not entirely trusting the person.

"You guys are still so young," the stranger said. "How old are you? High schoolers?"

He said the word 'high schoolers' with a weirdly sweet tone.

Raydel did not answer the question and kept looking around to see if this person had company. But it seemed he had none.

"How long have you been stuck in here? Have you found the boss room yet?"

"I've been walking in a circle for several times now, but I didn't find even the miniboss."

The stranger raised his two hands to show that he had no weapon and walked toward the two.

"I'm Cadane. Who are you?"

"Raydel," Rayde answered. "This is my sister, Jinny."

"Let's fight the boss together so we can get out of here."

"You haven't found any other hunters at all?"

"You two are the first hunters I found here."

Raydel stood in silence for a moment and asked, "Where in the dungeon have you explored already?"

"I can't remember since it's a forest, but I vaguely know a way…. Don't tell me you don't trust me. Why would I ever trick you? I want to get out of here too."

His words lessened the suspicion Raydel had in his mind a little, but he still had his weapon ready in his hands. He embraced Jinny by her shoulders protectively. "Tell me the things that you remember."

"That way," Cadane gestured to his right side, "had a building. It could be the boss room."

Then, Cadane turned around and started walking toward the direction instantly. His legs moved so fast that he disappeared in a minute as if he did not just stand here just a while ago. Raydel blinked, and when he tried to call the man, the freezing breeze completely submerged his voice. He had no choice but to follow Cadane along with Jinny.

Fortunately, Raydel could see Cadane's back after walking through the walls of trees for a while. He was searching for something and shivering in the cold. When he noticed Raydel, he signaled Raydel to come closer.

"There."

Finally, Raydel saw the building Cadane mentioned.

It looked like a house in ruins. The only thing left was its structure. When Raydel paid more attention, he realized that the house seemed like it was burnt down. There were several piles of broken house structures. Raydel's first thought was that this place might be the ruins of some villages that got lost in time. He knew just by these details that it must be a special place that spawned bosses or monsters, but he was not sure if it was the boss room.

However, he saw a message box floating in the distance above the ruins.

[The condition to awaken the boss: satiate the boss' hunger…]

Suddenly, a great force pushed Raydel and Jinny from behind!

The two staggered forward into the area of the village. When they turned around, they saw Cadane, who pushed them, stood grinning outside a barrier. Raydel rushed in and hit it with his fist before realizing that they could not get past it. They were imprisoned within the village now.

"Bon appétit," Cadane said and walked away.

Raydel was stunned.

We haven't done anything yet and we're already betrayed!

"Brother!"

Jinny's scream made Raydel aware of something striking through the air. He pushed her away and rolled the other way to dodge the attack that missed its target and hit the ground instead.

"?!"

The blow was so powerful that it created a hole in the ground. Raydel noticed a monster with bloody red eyes. It had huge gaping wounds all over its body that Raydel could see its rotting internal organs. Its black heart was beating inside.

[Miniboss: 'Resurrected Black Bear']

[Level: 35]

"...!"

The black bear slashed with its claws at Raydel who tried to parry it but was shocked by the sheer strength of the attack!

The bear threw him away.

Then, as it was about to follow him, it stopped right in its track because of the rocks that Jinny threw at it.

"This way!" she shouted and kept throwing rock at the miniboss. It snarled, seeming like it couldn't choose who to kill first.

However, Jinny successfully teased it, so the bear charged at her.

Jinny's face went pale. Her heart beat like crazy. She used the advantage of her small size to duck the attack. The huge and heavy bear could not stop itself and clashed into a tree instead.

Jinny ran as fast as she could to Raydel. "Are you hurt?" she asked.

Raydel shook his head and tried to stand up. "It's a miniboss in a mutated dungeon. We can't estimate its strength by just its level. I think it's actually at about level B or even higher. Jinny, I'll attack it head-on. You try to attack it in its blind spots, okay? It's an animal, so it'll only focus on me when fighting against me."

Jinny did not answer but ran toward the other direction.

At that moment, the miniboss raced toward Raydel who almost choked in fear. Still, he forced himself to be brave and raised the dagger in his hands up to block the claws, creating an earsplitting clang that echoed in the area! Raydel dug his feet into the ground as he took the attack that was so strong his arms trembled and his whole body almost got pushed down to the ground.

"...!!"

The bear let out a blaring roar when a dagger stabbed it in the center of its back!

It was Jinny who could eventually land a hit on the black bear. Her eyes widened when the miniboss suddenly turned to her.

Sshluk!

Raydel stabbed his dagger into the flank of the bear. Darkened blood overflowed out of the wound spreading its foul smell everywhere. The blood streamed down his hands onto the snow-covered ground. Raydel cursed when the black bear moved. It tried to attack Jinny, so he pulled the dagger out and stabbed it in the same spot. The miniboss shrieked thunderously!

The resurrected black bear was now outraged. It pawed him with all its strength. The blow sent Raydel flying backward into the ground. His whole body was covered in snow and dirt. As the miniboss ran toward him, Raydel was taken aback by a message box that appeared out of nowhere.

[Activate the 'Boss Summoning' skill]

Something dashed to stand between Raydel and the bear. The newcomer took the attack for him!

"...!"

The miniboss made a mistake. The newcomer pulled the dagger out from its cane and continuously stabbed the bear with lightning speed. It started to retreat in just a second of receiving those blows, but the one who protected Raydel would not let it go easily and kept attacking the miniboss without giving it the chance to strike back.

Because of the difference in power, the resurrected black bear was defeated with ease.

Blood spilling everywhere as the huge figure of the bear collapsed onto the ground and disintegrated.

Raydel regained his senses when Jinny approached him. She tried to help him stand up but failed because she was trembling and had no strength left. Raydel was also trying to stand up by himself, but then he saw someone walking toward him and stopping in front of him.

The Plague Doctor took his wrist and pulled him up.

"Thank… Thank you…," Raydel stuttered.

He brushed off the snow on his butt. His whole body ached because of the bear's paws. The Doctor stood still before touching Raydel's chest. The warmth that flowed into him started to lessen the pain.

Is it because he's a doctor, so he can heal? Raydel thought. The wounds from the bear disappeared right in front of his eyes.

"Did you summon him?" Jinny whispered.

Raydel brushed the snow off her hair.

"I can summon bosses."

"Really?!"

Jinny glanced at the Plague Doctor before whispering to Raydel.

"But he looks quite unwell."

Jinny was right. When Raydel looked at the Doctor's body, he was confused because it could easily beat the bear, so why did he look like… he had just gotten beat up? There were injuries, bloodstains, and tears in his clothes. His beak mask was distorted a little and had several messy spots like it was… torn apart.

"Is it because of his fight with Cthulhu?" Raydel mumbled.

Raydel suddenly sensed that the Plague Doctor was quite weary.

In the past, Raydel had never cared about the skills he got, so this was the first time he read the details of the skill.

[Skill: 'Boss Summoning'

Description: the user can summon the possessed bosses to fight for them. The strength and health points of the summoned bosses will correspond on both the user's skill points and the level of the bosses themselves. The user will be able to feel each boss' health points. When the points are close to zero, the boss will be stored in the inventory and cannot be summoned until it has recovered. If all of the health points run out completely, the boss will disappear.]

This meant that the Plague Doctor's health points were almost zero. Raydel had to find out how to heal him, but how?

He continued reading the description.

[Passive Talent of the Skill: 'Boss Summoning'

Description: the user can recover bosses' health points using their leadership skill.]

"Leadership skill?" Raydel frowned.

Jinny tilted her head. "Does this mean you have to act tough?"

"Act like I'm not afraid and actually am brave? But I'm not acting like I'm in fear now."

"Then how?"

Raydel pursed his lips and whispered.

"I think… leadership doesn't involve only acting tough and brave."

He patted the Plague Doctor on the shoulders.

"You did very well. I'm happy that you're not seriously hurt," Raydel said.

The boss stood still.

"..." Raydel was silent.

Did I do it right?!

However, the Plague Doctor suddenly bowed to him as if to show respect. Raydel gasped, never really believing that this was the right way to recover the health points.

"Uh," he exclaimed.

A message box appeared in front of him.

[Boss' Language Skill upgraded]

[You acquired a new skill: Boss' Language Translation]

"Boss' Language Translation?" he pressed for more details.

[Boss' Language Translation Skill

Description: the user can understand the boss' thoughts and feelings. The relationship between the user and bosses is one of the factors to make the bosses stronger.]

As he was confused about what it meant, he saw a message box appeared above the Plague Doctor's head. In the box were five pictures of hearts.

[The Plague Doctor is pleased by the compliment.]

[The Plague Doctor wants you to compliment him more.]

"..."

"Great job…" Raydel said.

One of the five hearts filled up.

[The Plague Doctor is pleased by the compliment.]