The Player Who Stands Above All

Chapter 43

The world changed, dungeons with monsters appeared, and players who caught monsters also appeared.

Players, with power beyond human common sense, sold the byproducts obtained from hunting monsters and earned a huge amount of money in a short period of time.

The government was pleased to see the market economy recovering at a rapid pace due to the rapidly growing players.

But apart from that, they grew more and more wary of the players.

The world was not a fairy tale world full of dreams and hopes, where only happy things happened.

Even before the dungeons appeared, people had used violence, committed crimes, and deceived each other for a large amount of money, for their own desires, and to rise above others.

In other words, it was too optimistic to think that everyone would use this suddenly acquired powerful force for the right things.

Slowly, people who abused the powerful force that players had began to appear.

The appearance of Chaotic Players, who wore smiling masks, entered dungeons, hid among the players, and aimed for the hearts of their fellow players instead of monsters.

Black Guilds, created as those Chaotic Players gathered one by one.

It was the name of the dark shadow that was slowly beginning to appear on the surface.

***

"Hmm, is this the boss room of a LV.2 dungeon? From the outside, it doesn't seem much different from a LV.1 boss room."

"I know, right? The mana was flowing out more strongly from the dungeon entrance, so I thought the boss room would have some special features."

At the words of the two siblings, Ja Yi-hyeon and Ja Yi-yeon, the people didn't say it out loud, but they inwardly nodded.

"Now then, let's take a short break and regroup, and then we'll enter the boss room."

"Hyaaawn~ There's nothing to do even if you tell us to regroup."

Lee Shin said leisurely in a voice mixed with a yawn.

It was an attitude that didn't suit the situation at all, but no one could raise an objection to the content.

Thanks to the guild members spreading out to various parts of the dungeon and running rampant against the Black Jaguars, they were able to come to the boss room without any battles.

'We also knew the location of the boss room through prior investigation, so we didn't get lost.'

Ignoring his leisurely complaint, Cheon Yuhwa began a simple boss room briefing for the team leaders and Kim Jae-hyun.

"First, the three of us will not step in."

At her words, the team leaders and Kim Jae-hyun nodded as if they had expected it, but Lee Shin looked at her with surprised eyes as if he were shocked.

"Then what am I supposed to do for fun?"

"Eat some popcorn in the corner."

As if to say it wasn't a joke, she took out popcorn from her inventory and threw it at him.

At that, Lee Shin staggered with a shocked face, then collapsed exaggeratedly like a tragic heroine and sat down in his original spot.

Of course, everyone ignored him.

"From your reactions, it seems you all roughly expected it, but if even one of the three of us steps in, it will end too easily, so we will not intervene."

If those words had come from someone else's mouth, they would have been called arrogant.

What she had said was the same as saying she could clear the boss room of a LV.2 dungeon by herself.

And in fact, she had said it with that meaning.

"You can think of us as insurance that will step in when it looks like you're about to die."

"Hmm? I have no intention of stepping in whether those guys die or not."

"The same goes for me."

At the sudden interruption of Lee Shin and Yeonhwa's words, the team leaders' bodies momentarily got goosebumps.

Because they felt the sincerity in the two's words.

She lightly glared at the two and then continued.

"Anyway, those two are guys who can't even use sword ki properly and can only cut things that are close, so it doesn't matter if they're not there. I can cover for them, so don't worry."

"Yes!"

"And I will also only move in a situation that is judged to be a crisis that you cannot handle. Don't think that I will help you a lot."

"Yes."

"And to add the meaning of a test, if it seems to be taking more than 30 minutes, I will step in, so be careful."

"Yes. I understand."

At her words, the team leaders nodded and answered.

After finishing all her words, she looked at Lee Shin and pointed to the boss room with her finger.

"You want me to go in first?"

"If I go in first, leaving you behind, and you go back to the camp instead of entering the boss room, the plan will get twisted in many ways."

As she spoke as if she was sure he would do that, he nodded as if he couldn't help it and entered the boss room.

Swoosh-

Following him, Yeonhwa also entered the boss room.

Swoosh- Swoosh-

The team leaders also entered the boss room in order, and then Kim Jae-hyun also entered.

Swoosh-

And finally, she also threw herself into the boss room.

Screech-

After accepting everyone inside, the door of the boss room slowly closed.

***

'Is it a little wider than a LV.1 boss room?'

As Lee Shin was looking around and briefly examining the boss room, the team leaders, Kim Jae-hyun, Yeonhwa, and Cheon Yuhwa followed him in.

Thump-

"Oh, it seems they've smelled us from over there and have come to greet us."

Following Lee Shin words, they turned their heads, and there was the owner of the house, exuding a cold aura at the presence of the intruder who had opened the door without permission.

A giant black jaguar with glossy, ink-like black fur came down from a tree without a sound and looked at them with golden eyes overflowing with wildness.

Clank-

Clatter-

Seeing him, the team leaders and Kim Jae-hyun took their positions considering their respective abilities, raised their weapons, and revealed their purpose.

At that, the boss of this dungeon, the Shadow Jaguar, revealed its hostility.

Tension began to flow in the standoff.

Swoosh-

The three of them took a few steps back and watched with different eyes.

Yeonhwa with indifferent eyes, and Cheon Yuhwa with eyes full of anticipation.

Lee Shin sat on a nearby rock and looked on with a blank expression, munching on the popcorn she had thrown him.

"Here I go."

Kuuung-!

First, the 1st team leader, Choi Seok-ho, rushed toward the Shadow Jaguar.

He charged head-on based on his physical abilities enhanced by his aura and swung his greatsword with that power.

A powerful but simple attack that didn't even consider a counterattack, so much so that it was foolish.

But that was enough.

Kaaaaang--!!!

"...It seems I can somehow endure it."

Because he had an aura that had blossomed into the characteristic of [Steel].

He pressed the Shadow Jaguar by swinging his greatsword, and the Shadow Jaguar dodged all of his attacks with flexible and swift movements and counterattacked.

He endured by wrapping his armor with the aura of [Steel] to increase his defense.

His appearance, continuing to charge even while taking damage, was like a single tank.

Of course, it wasn't without damage.

But he stubbornly blocked or deflected the Shadow Jaguar's attacks and swung his greatsword.

A shield that faced the monster's attacks head-on, that was the role he had taken on in the party.

The moment he took his place as a shield.

Thwack-

The other party members also began to move.

"Was the vice guild master also a swordsman?"

"For now, yes."

As Jo Yu-hyeon and Kim Jae-hyun mixed in with his movements, a wound was carved into the Shadow Jaguar's body for the first time.

"You two over there. Save the chatter for later."

Shin Ye-eun, hiding between the trees, shot an arrow at the Shadow Jaguar's eyes and interfered with its movements.

"Physical enhancement buff A."

"Ten mana arrows, enchant light."

Ja Yi-yeon's buff wrapped around the bodies of everyone present, raising the party members' power, and Ja Yi-hyeon's pure white mana arrows were shot at the Shadow Jaguar.

The Shadow Jaguar, seeing the mana arrows that were being shot at it, drawing a pure white trajectory, tried to dodge at first.

But the other four did not let him.

They pushed even more strongly and interfered with the Shadow Jaguar's movements.

Seeing the 10 arrows that had approached right in front of it, drawing a pure white trajectory, the Shadow Jaguar intuitively felt that dodging was impossible.

"Everyone, close your eyes!"

Just before the mana arrows hit the Shadow Jaguar, Ja Yi-hyeon shouted loudly.

Everyone who heard his voice closed their eyes, even mobilizing their ki.

Because they knew from their experience that the moment the arrows hit the target, a huge light like a flashbang would burst out.

But there was no flash of light that they had expected.

Shwraaaak-

Before the mana arrows could reach the Shadow Jaguar, the shadow beneath it wriggled and shot out, swallowing all 10 arrows that were flying from different directions and suppressing the explosion.

"Damn it! It's not as easy as the guys outside!"

"Brother, do a better job!"

"Shut up! You do a better job!"

Ja Yi-hyeon and Ja Yi-yeon, while bickering, each prepared a new magic.

But the Shadow Jaguar had no intention of just watching.

Chwraaaak--!

"Keuk!"

The Shadow Jaguar swung its shadow like a whip and tried to shake off the three people around it.

Dozens of whips raged around the Shadow Jaguar.

But the three were not so weak as to be thrown off by that.

"Haaap!"

Choi Seok-ho and Kim Jae-hyun wrapped their swords with aura and cut down the shadow whips.

Jo Yu-hyeon unfolded his footwork and dodged the shadow whips.

"You shouldn't forget that there are arrows too."

Shin Ye-eun poured arrows like rain toward the empty space like the eye of a storm.

The Shadow Jaguar continued to swing its shadow whips and moved out of the way to dodge the arrows.

"Damn it, unlike the guys outside, it was able to move even while controlling its shadow."

Shin Ye-eun clicked her tongue as if disappointed and quickly grabbed the next arrow.

Tadadak-

Kim Jae-hyun chased the Shadow Jaguar and threw five daggers from his pocket at once.

Thwack-

The five daggers were futilely deflected by the Shadow Jaguar's tail.

But he, as if he had expected it, swung his hand that was not holding a sword with a calm expression.

Woooong-

Then, the daggers that had been deflected into the air, as if they had a will of their own, changed their direction in the air and flew toward the Shadow Jaguar once more.

At that, the Shadow Jaguar was surprised and deflected the daggers once more with its shadow whips.

But even if it kept deflecting them, the daggers changed their direction in the air and flew toward the Shadow Jaguar.

Seeing him, Lee Shin asked Cheon Yuhwa.

"What kind of ability is that? Is it something like telekinesis?"

"He says it's a characteristic called [Hand]. Well, as you said, the way he uses it doesn't seem much different from telekinesis."

At her words, he nodded roughly and watched the fight.

'They're fighting much better than I thought.'

The Shadow Jaguar was by no means a weak opponent.

Even though it had been continuously chased from the beginning, it had not lost its composure and was making the best judgments.

And yet, the moment it saw even the slightest opening, it was flashing its golden eyes to dig into that gap.

But the six who were facing it were also raising their strength to the maximum and pressing the Shadow Jaguar.

The Shadow Jaguar was waiting for an opening to be created, but the six had no intention of creating an opening.

'It's not a fight so low-level as to spoil the taste of popcorn.'

He summarized their fight in one line and put the last remaining popcorn in his mouth.

Since he could roughly predict the end of the fight, there was no need to watch anymore.

He closed his eyes and began to circulate his ki.

And when 28 minutes had passed since they had entered the boss room.

Kuuung-!

"Heok... heok..."

"We... we got it..."

As he had predicted, the Shadow Jaguar, which had resisted and endured until the end, finally had its breath cut off by the hands of the six.

"Good work."

She approached the team leaders, who were panting with injuries, and handed them potions.

On this day, six more LV.2 players were born in [Wonderland].

(End of Chapter)