Dungeon (1)

Lee Seung moved swiftly between his clones, his hands tightening around their arms, surprising them with his unexpected grip. A wide grin spread across his face as he asked,

"Have you ever tried pizza?"

He knew it was a rhetorical question—he himself had only tasted pizza once in the past two years. The query was more about his excitement than any genuine curiosity.

Straightening his back, he looked at the two astonished clones standing before him. With a calm demeanor, he pulled out his phone and placed an order at a nearby pizzeria.

"When the delivery guy arrives, you can grab the order," he said, a playful smile lingering on his lips. "And make sure to enjoy yourselves. I'm going to take a rest in my room."

As he turned and walked toward his bedroom, his clones bowed their heads in unison and chorused, "Have a nice rest, master!"

Seung entered his room and immediately settled in front of his monitor. With a flicker of anticipation, he navigated to his favorite game, Bloodline Avenger, a ritual he cherished after school.

"Let's see how many golds I've saved up for a new character," he muttered, fingers dancing across the keyboard. But as he delved into the game, the allure of stronger weapons proved too tempting. Deciding that power would grant him victory in every match, he spent his gold on weaponry instead.

Hours slipped by unnoticed. When Seung finally checked his wristwatch, he realized he had been playing for five hours straight. He should have been exhausted, yet he felt as energized as when he first started.

"That's strange," he murmured, brows furrowing. The lack of fatigue was unnatural, unsettling even. He quickly theorized that it might be the game's AI or something in the screen itself that was behind this.

'Why don't I get tired?' he thought, and as if in response, the screen displayed a message:

[You have reached an advanced level, granting you the ability to maintain full concentration on any task for as long as you desire, without experiencing fatigue.]

Seung's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh... really?" he muttered, rubbing his chin in thought. 'There's still so much I don't know about this screen, about my abilities. Could my cloning powers have limits? What else is hidden from me?'

Resolving to dive deeper, he began exploring the screen's functions, starting with the Inventory, where he delved into the details of his new skill—Mana Reservoir Fusion.

Next, he navigated to the 'Missions' interface, where he was taken aback to find that the mission from the dungeon remained active. "It should have been cancelled after I failed to kill the Hunters," he mused. But then, another thought crossed his mind: 'Maybe the mission has no time constraints.'

The memory of sparing the Hunters surfaced, filling him with a mix of regret and frustration. 'Was I an idiot? Why show mercy to those who tried to kill me?' He shook his head, slumping back into his chair as he pondered his actions in the dungeon.

Lee Seung spent the rest of the night scrutinizing every icon on the screen, his curiosity keeping him awake. The following day, he awoke still slumped in his chair, a sharp pain stabbing through his neck as he tried to move.

"Argh!" he grimaced, forcing himself to stand. As he made his way out of the bedroom, he was greeted by the sight of pizza leftovers scattered across the floor.

He sighed loudly, shaking his head in disappointment. 'Seriously, those guys need to learn some hygiene.' After cleaning up the mess, he called Mr. Choi to pick up the clones. Once the clones were reassembled, the three of them waited outside the house.

As they stood there, Seung spotted a familiar red car approaching. He grinned. "Here he comes. Let's go, little guys."

As Mr. Choi parked the car, Seung and his clones hopped in, the engine's hum filling the quiet street. As they drove, Seung turned to Mr. Choi and said, "I've decided I won't be tackling F-rank dungeons anymore. I can handle E-rank monsters now, with these little guys by my side."

Mr. Choi glanced at him, his expression a mix of surprise and concern. "Are you sure about this? Moving up that quickly could be dangerous. Aside from that monster at the train station, you have no experience with E-rank beasts..."

"Don't worry, Mr. Choi. I'll be fine," Seung reassured him with a calm smile. 'If only he knew how I handled those Hunters back then,' Seung thought, stifling a chuckle. He didn't want to show off.

The car sped along the empty road, eventually arriving at the dungeon's entrance, guarded by military officers. One of the officers, gripping an M16 tightly, approached them. "Can you show us some ID?"

Mr. Choi handed over his card, and after a brief inspection, the officer nodded. "The Hunters may proceed into the dungeon."

Seung exchanged a brief smile with Mr. Choi before leading his clones toward the entrance. However, what greeted him was far from what he expected. The building he believed housed the entrance was blocked by a solid wall of bricks, stacked meticulously on top of each other.

Confused, he scanned his surroundings. 'This can't be the only entrance...' he thought, but his musings were interrupted by a loud hiss, followed by a sudden flash of lightning. His gaze snapped to the front, where a portal crackling with electricity had materialized. His eyes widened in disbelief. From his research, he knew monsters emerged from such portals, often establishing territories that became known as dungeons.

'Well, I'm not afraid of going through this,' Seung resolved, clenching his fist. He turned to his clones. "Let's proceed."

The trio stepped into the swirling vortex and found themselves inside the dungeon. The air was thick with the stench of decay, but there was something else—something metallic.

"That's the smell of fresh blood," Seung whispered, his senses heightened. 'Someone was killed here, and not too long ago.'

Just as he processed the thought, a deafening roar echoed through the chamber. "Watch out, master!" one of the clones shouted, yanking Seung out of harm's way as a massive, scaly tail crashed into the spot where he had just been standing, reducing it to rubble.

Seung rolled across the ground, his heart pounding. His clone, now alone, brandished a dagger, his eyes locked on the source of the attack. A colossal serpent, towering at least fifteen meters high, loomed above them. Its head, shrouded in darkness, nearly touched the ceiling, its tail sweeping the perimeter with lethal intent.

Seung's pulse quickened as he summoned his 'Shadow Blade.' Thunder crackled in his hand before a silvery dagger materialized. "Let's go!" he shouted, leaping into the air, aiming for the serpent's eyes. But the beast was quick, and Seung had to retreat as it launched a counterattack.

His clones, undeterred, scaled the serpent's body, but the creature thrashed violently, sending them tumbling to the ground before slamming its head down with bone-crushing force.

"Argh!" they cried out, their voices echoing through the chamber. Seung's eyes widened in horror at the serpent's strength. 'Damn it! An E-rank monster shouldn't be giving me this much trouble! If I die here, I'll disappoint everyone! I just need to find its weak spot!'

[Light Speed activated]

Seung's body blurred as he dashed across the serpent's length, his movements a blur. Despite the serpent's attempts to shake him off, he remained focused. Just as he was about to strike its eye, the serpent spewed a greenish liquid, forcing Seung to retreat.

'Damn it! Acidic venom!' he cursed, barely avoiding the deadly spray. But he refused to back down. Mid-air, he twisted and landed back on the serpent, driving his blade deep into its eye.

The serpent roared in agony, thrashing wildly as it tried to dislodge him. Seung was thrown into a nearby pool of water, the impact sending a splash of murky green liquid everywhere. The pool, stagnant and foul, swallowed him whole, leaving no trace on the surface.

"Yah!" one of the clones shouted, stabbing at the serpent's tail, but the dagger barely scratched its scales, as if the creature were made of solid metal. The serpent retaliated, smashing the ground and sending the clone flying.

Silence fell over the battlefield. The clones were down, possibly defeated, and Seung was nowhere in sight. The serpent, sensing victory, began to turn away when a sudden splash caught its attention.

Seung emerged from the pool, water cascading off him as he charged forward, determination etched into his features.

'Activate Shadow Manipulation!'

The Shadow Blade in his hand pulsed with a milky blue light as Seung pointed it at the beast. A dark, shadowy form—an exact replica of the serpent—materialized from its body, only to vanish in the blink of an eye.

The real serpent was suddenly flung across the chamber, crashing into a wall with enough force to shatter it.

The serpent rose, disoriented and enraged. It snarled, but before it could retaliate, Seung was upon it, his blade glowing with lethal intent.

"AHHH!!!" he screamed, plunging the Shadow Blade into the serpent's flesh. The creature's body convulsed before collapsing with a final, resounding thud.

Seung stood over the fallen serpent, his breath coming in ragged gasps. The adrenaline coursing through his veins began to ebb, leaving behind a profound exhaustion. He looked down at the lifeless body of the beast, its scales now dull and lifeless, the enormous wound where he had struck still smoking faintly from the power of his blade.

"This fight was unlike any other," he muttered, wiping the sweat from his brow. His eyes flickered toward his clones, who were slowly dissolving into wisps of shadow. They had fought bravely, but they were spent—he could see it in the way their forms wavered, struggling to maintain solidity.

"My clones must be about to vanish," he realized. Moving quickly, Seung approached the serpent's corpse and pressed his hands against it. He focused, channeling his remaining energy into absorbing the creature's mana.