Chapter 14: Hidden Piece (1)
An artifact hidden in places like dungeons, far more difficult labyrinths, or extremely rare ruins.
That is what is usually called a 'Hidden Piece'.
Naturally, within this dungeon lay several Hidden Pieces that would be of great help in clearing the early episodes.
Just finding them was extremely tricky.
And obtaining them was incomparably more difficult than that.
'The Hidden Piece here, in particular, is something that can counter the dungeon's true boss.'
Therefore, he had to obtain it, no matter what.
Yohan moved his steps carefully.
The tangled terrain of sharp, jutting rocks was close to a maze.
He turned left here.
Crawled under a dokkaebi-shaped rock, then slipped out through the 11th crevice.
'I've made some preparations, but...'
He was curious what the actual difficulty would be.
Considering he had defeated the Patchwork Golems with ease, he thought the possibility was high enough, but...
...what you hear in a story and what you experience in reality were as different as heaven and earth.
Letting his guard down was absolutely forbidden.
-The Withered Garden was, true to its name, a place overflowing with treasure. But it was also hell. You know? It wasn't called the 'Raid-Crusher' for nothing. Honestly, if it wasn't for the Ranker, Lee Siwoo, we all would've croaked there. Anyway, the Hidden Piece was in the direction indicated by the red mark in the valley. Only 4 of the 200 of us survived.
'Was it around the 150th playthrough?'
He'd had a chance to talk with a survivor of this dungeon at a bar somewhere.
The man had already become a wreck, but when it came to the dungeon, he remembered it as vividly as if it had happened yesterday.
For the price of a bottle of whiskey, he had obtained quite a lucrative piece of information.
And just as the man had said.
Where his steps came to a halt, there was a red mark that looked like it had been scratched by a beast.
Suppressing his feelings of tension and excitement, Yohan stepped inside.
Before long, he reached a giant cliff with red letters written on it.
[And 'light' is the boundary that divides the shy from the attention seeker.]
[And 'smile' is the mirror that compels eloquence and silence.]
[For the table set where the enemy has departed shall be the start of the true banquet.]
[And at last, my cup runneth over.]
"Hmm."
Yohan's eyes narrowed.
Content like a riddle, its meaning difficult to grasp.
At a glance, it was easy to pass by as if it were nothing.
However, Yohan chewed over the sentences whole, ruminating on the meaning written within.
Because whether or not he remembered these sentences correctly would decide his life or death in a few moments.
And it would decide whether or not he could obtain the Hidden Piece.
But right at that moment.
"See. What did I tell you? I said he was an interesting one."
The voice of a cold man came from behind him.
"Indeed. Just as you said, he is no ordinary Hunter."
"Wow. There was a place like this here?"
"Khaha! We're really in luck. Structurally, the probability of finding treasure or a Hidden Piece here is extremely high."
There were seven of them in total.
Five men and two women.
Every single one of them had a sharp and strong impression, and it was obvious at a glance that they were seasoned veterans who had been through thick and thin.
While they were all distracted by the fact that they had found a hidden location...
...there was only one.
The man who seemed to be the leader was looking solely at Yohan.
"My name is Sa Junhyuk. I'm a mercenary affiliated with Daesan Industries."
He was in his early 40s.
A muscular body approaching 185cm, a neat beard, and a sly, cunning smile were his defining features.
However, Yohan could already feel it.
That among all the people here, this man was the most dangerous.
The vile stench of blood ingrained in his body.
It was the karma he had built up from harvesting countless lives.
'The fish have been hooked...'
The number was exactly what he wanted, too.
The problem was.
'They're a bit too lively, these fish.'
The 'Prophet's Eye' shone.
Tiring!
[Sa Junhyuk]
Class: Mercenary [Pre-Class Advancement]
Rank: Has not yet ascended to a rank.
Unique Ability: Serpent's Fang
Traits: None
Description: A 20-year veteran of the mercenary life. Cares for his subordinates and will do whatever it takes to complete a given mission. Is currently operating as a mercenary for Daesan Industries under a mission from 'Taehwa Pharmaceuticals'.
It wasn't a particularly unusual history, but one thing.
There was one thing that stood out.
'Entangled with Taehwa Pharmaceuticals, a company with a market cap of over 10 trillion...'
'So that's how it was.'
He had a rough idea of why these mercenaries had come here.
"What brings the mercenaries of Daesan Industries to such a remote place? As far as I know, they're more interested in mining Mana Stones than clearing dungeons. Shouldn't you be heading straight for the Mana Stone deposits after taking down that Frankenstein thing?"
"Haha. You even know our internal affairs. Impressive. But right now, I'm more interested in you than in something like Mana Stones."
"I'm not so great that a group of this size should swarm over. Your interest is a little burdensome."
"Well, for me too, it was just simple curiosity at first."
But.
"Now I'm thinking I'll have to dig a little deeper."
The look in Sa Junhyuk's eyes changed.
The instinct of a hunter looking at its prey seeped into his cunning smile.
Ssk.
Yohan subtly took a step back.
The number of people was just right.
It was time to start the main game.
Kukukung!
It was then that a roaring sound echoed out.
"Wh-What was that?"
"Something's been activated!"
The mercenaries created distance and surveyed the situation.
At the same time as the letters disappeared, the valley split apart, and a stone statue appeared.
The form of a beautiful woman, around 170cm tall.
A single wing sprouting from only one shoulder.
The sight of her with both hands gathered in a prayer-like pose even looked devout for a moment.
[The trial begins.]
[Survive.]
[Time Limit: 0H : 29M : 59S]
[The difficulty of the trial and the rank of the rewards will change according to the number of challengers.]
"A trial?"
"Survive...?"
"Damn it. Snap out of it! It's coming!"
Before they could even fully register the reality, the statue moved.
Its target was the muscular man at the very front.
TUKWAAAANG!
"Aaargh!"
He managed to block it with his shield, but the immense shock penetrated to his very bones.
"It's strong! Don't face it head-on! Focus on deflecting its attacks while you figure out its traits."
"Tsk!"
Sa Junhyuk glanced back and forth between Yohan and the statue, then turned his body.
'Smart move.'
'At this timing, it's right to leave the relatively weaker prey alone.'
'From his perspective, he probably thinks I'm an easy opponent anyway.'
'But still, this is more than I expected.'
Despite having the form of a delicate girl, the sound of its sword tearing through the air was terrifying.
Power and speed.
The statue, with its perfect balance, weaved through the mercenaries, swinging its sword.
KWAANG! KWAANG! KAAANG!
The sound of steel clashing against steel stimulated every cell in their bodies.
They probably still felt like it was manageable.
However.
The real trial had not yet begun.
Flash.
Suddenly, a bright light emanated from the statue.
Yohan quickly directed his gaze downward.
The mercenaries, of course, only covered their eyes with their hands for a moment.
They immediately focused all their senses to figure out the statue's next move.
That was the beginning of the tragedy.
CRUUU...NCH!
"Keok!?"
A body, bent completely backward along with its shield.
Splaaat!
The muscular man's upper body, sliced in half, flew lightly into the air.
"J-Jang Hyungseok!"
"No way. It went through the shield in one shot...!"
This time, the light faded, and it grew a little dark.
Yohan's gaze moved from the ground back to the statue.
He continued to stare at his opponent without even blinking.
"Aaaargh!"
Another scream echoed out.
It grew dark again. Then bright again.
As light and darkness alternated, the stench of blood grew thicker.
Paaang!
The statue spread its one wing wide and launched itself forward.
Its speed was incredible.
Before their eyes could even follow, the statue was behind the short-haired woman.
From above.
To below.
It brought down a strike that could split a great mountain.
But.
KAAAAANG!
Sa Junhyuk crossed his two daggers and blocked the statue's sword.
"Team... Leader?"
"When it gets bright, avoid the statue's gaze! When it gets dark, meet its gaze! Then you won't be attacked!"
He shouted quickly, warning his subordinates.
At the same time.
"You... you knew, didn't you?"
Sa Junhyuk glared at Yohan.
[When it is bright, it becomes a shy person and must never be looked at. On the other hand, when it is dark, it becomes an attention seeker and one must never take their eyes off the statue.]
This was the hint written in the first sentence.
"I'm not a psychopath. If I knew, I would have said something. I may not look it, but I have a heart as warm as sunshine."
"Look at this bastard. You're the only one who hasn't been attacked a single time, and you're still lying?"
'Hmm. He's pretty quick on the uptake.'
'It couldn't have been easy to figure that out just by observing in a panic situation.'
"Ah, well, due to the strange weather lately, the sunshine has gone a bit crazy, so maybe my heart has gone a bit crazy too?"
Yohan smiled with an innocent face.
Grit.
The sound of teeth grinding was particularly loud.
"If you act all high and mighty just because you know some paltry strategy... Haa. Enough. Let's finish this first and talk again later."
KWAANG!
Sa Junhyuk deflected the statue's sword and created a large distance, taking the short-haired woman with him.
"I'm sorry. This is all because of me..."
"Stop the bleeding first. For now, surviving the remaining 25 minutes is the priority."
Fortunately, thanks to them figuring out the strategy, no one was attacked after that.
And then.
Creeak.
A smile spread across the statue's lips.
"Quite... strong humans, you are. Do you covet that which I protect so much?"
For the first time, human words came out.
"There are a few things I covet. And a few things I wouldn't take even if you gave them to me, to be honest. I do hope something comes out that will satisfy my expectations. It would be even better if you could give my friends around me a nice stab wound each."
Yohan answered with a shrug.
And.
The rest of them, too busy trying to figure out the intention of the question, were too late to answer.
Several spears flew from behind the statue.
To be precise, they rained down on all those who had not answered.
THWACK!
The short-haired woman's body was sent flying.
A long spear had impaled her body and shattered the wall behind her.
"S-Seoyun!"
"It's too late. It was an instant kill!"
The rest somehow managed to block or dodge the spears.
It was more thanks to good luck than skill.
There was no guarantee they could survive if the same attack came again.
"The question! You have to answer the question!"
Sa Junhyuk recalled the reason why Yohan hadn't been attacked.
"What is the wish you desire? And what is your reason for wanting to live in this world?"
The smile vanished as the statue asked a question once more.
"Money! Looks! Popularity! Honor! Power! I want to have all of it and..."
Thwack!
The head of the man who had been so happy to discover this place at first disappeared.
Then, another man next to him shouted.
"Damn it, why! Why did you attack even though he answered the question!"
'Isn't that because he asked for too much for his station?'
'The statue isn't the genie of the lamp. How on earth could it give you all that when you look like you'd be blood brothers with an orc?'
Well, more accurately, it was because the statue's phase had changed.
[When it speaks with a smile, you must skillfully continue the conversation. On the other hand, when it speaks with a cold face, you must never answer.]
Furthermore, as if everything up to now had been a practice game, the patterns began to mix.
It would speak with a smile when it was light.
And ask questions with a hardened face when it was dark.
Kwaaang!
Tukwaang!
The statue, using a sword, shield, spear, and whip, unleashed a fierce barrage.
The last minute.
From this point on, even if you knew the strategy, you were not safe from the statue.
Yohan approached Sa Junhyuk, who was panting for breath.
"What was that you said earlier?"
'Did he say I was showing off with just a paltry strategy and no real skill?'
'Let's see if you can say that again in a little bit.'
Yohan angled his body behind his shield and lowered his center of gravity.
This time, the statue smiled toward Yohan.
"I have heard enough of your wishes. Then answer me. The reason I was trapped in this valley. And what it is that I desire most. If you get it right, I will let you live."
"Hmm... You were trapped here for stealing mint chocolate? And I think what you want most is to eat all the mint chocolate you couldn't eat until now."
Yohan answered, chewing over the memory of his father, Jinhyuk, praising the mint chocolate that was outside the Tower all day long.
A treasure you couldn't trade for a thousand pieces of gold.
He had said that even the alchemists who had finally succeeded in creating gold shed tears of emotion upon seeing the golden ratio of mint and chocolate.
'The possibility is high enough.'
'If I play this right, I might be able to subdue the statue easily...'
KWAAAANG!
"Wrong!"
The statue seemed particularly more enraged for some reason and threw its spear like a bullet.
