Chapter 196

Chapter 196

Its been quite a while since weve seen each other, Nameless. How have you been?

After calming down the furious Kellibey somehow, I approached Nameless, pretending to be friendly.

This girl is an NPC dungeon merchant who sells all sorts of items inside the dungeon!

Last time, she even gave away two SSR-grade pieces of equipment. Ive secretly judged her to be an incredibly good fellow.

If I get close to her, perhaps some other goodies might drop too!

In response to my greeting, Nameless just shrugged.

Every day in Lake Kingdom is always the same. Killing monsters, lighting lanterns, and... praying.

Though her face was obscured by scattered white hair and a hood, I could tell that she was wearing a bitter smile.

Im here today to repair my equipment.

Equipment?

My sword.

Nameless gestured towards Kellibeys blacksmith shop.

Kellibey is about the only one here who can fix my sword.

Looking in that direction, Kellibey was hammering an old sword with a grim expression.

It was the worn-out longsword that Nameless always carried on her back.

Clang-! Clang-!

With every strike of the hammer on the blade, a dazzling bright light seeped out. It seemed to be going through some magical process.

Its been a long time since weve met, so Ill give you some advice, Ash.

Tearing her eyes away from the sword being repaired, Nameless slowly said to me.

Some of the Nightmare Legionnaires are targeting you.

Nightmare Legionnaires?

You know that Lake Kingdom has been occupied by monsters, right?

Of course, I do. Monsters are everywhere. Theyve filled this place to the brim, overflowing into Crossroad.

Lake Kingdom has countless varieties of monsters. And within each monster legion, theres a leader, called a Legionnaire.

Nameless briefly glanced at the path leading to the base camp on the other side.

Beyond the path, everything was shrouded in pitch darkness, and nothing could be seen.

The top 10 strongest legions among those monster legions. The Legionnaires of the top 10 ranks are referred to as Nightmare Legionnaires.

So shes talking about the ten toughest bosses.

I casually shrugged.

So those guys are targeting me, huh? But isnt it natural for monsters to target humans?

Yes, its natural. But Ash, theyre specifically trying to kill you.

Nameless looked over at my party members standing in the distance.

You and your comrades have already taken down two of the Nightmare Legionnaires. Its only natural that theyd start to be wary of you.

...

Even if you killed Orlop, by the time you defeated Celendion, you were bound to catch the monsters eyes.

In other words, the monster bastards have put a mark on my head. Like a Wanted: Dead or Alive bounty notice or something.

The deeper you go into Lake Kingdom, the more easily they will find your trail and send trackers after you. In the worst-case scenario, a Legionnaire might personally appear to kill you.

I snorted and crossed my arms.

So what if we have to fight the ones were supposed to kill outside? Isnt it fine to meet and fight them early?

This place is their stronghold.

Nameless quietly shook her head.

The monsters outside the Lake Kingdom have their abilities constrained. However, here, they can unleash their full power without any restrictions.

...Its one thing to face a boss during the defense stage where stats are readjusted and it becomes manageable to defeat, but in the dungeons? Theres none of that nonsense.

I highly value your potential and that of your teammates, Ash. Above all, your persistence in not giving up until now is commendable, Nameless warned in a gentle but stern voice.

But with the current level of your party, if you encounter a Nightmare Legion Commander in the darkness here... its going to be hard to guarantee your lives.

...

Suddenly, I remembered the time when we faced Celendion in the Path of the Overlord in this dungeon.

Our party almost got wiped out by Celendion back then.

Though the freak wanted to die himself, he spared us, but there would be no such luck next time.

If we encounter the Legion Commander in the dungeon again, we would have to fight for our lives.

And Legion Commanders without stage readjustments will exhibit truly nightmarish strength.

The exploration ahead will become more treacherous.

Well, of course. Starting from dungeon depth 6, its nicknamed the Demon Realm. Each dungeon is freakin difficult.

Having to keep tabs on the enemy Legion Commander in this situation...

The level of difficulty keeps increasing endlessly, like adding more stuff to a hamburger. Patty, lettuce, cheese, sauce...

I checked the stats. A jackpot item-?!

[Lord of Crimson(SSR) Lv.55]

- Category: Magic Staff

- Attack Power: 149-151

- Durability: 10/10

- Intelligence+15 Magic Power+15

- Absorbs essence upon killing an enemy, stores up to 10.

- Can consume stored essence to recover HP or MP. (10 percent per essence)

- Can use a random blood spell by consuming all 10 essences at once.

- ??? (Unlock depending on the number of enemies killed with this weapon)

- ??? (Unlock depending on the number of enemies killed with this weapon)

The base damage was decent, and the stat bonuses were generously applied. It was a great piece of equipment.

Moreover, fitting for a weapon made with the Magic Core of a vampire lord, it had the option of absorbing essences from killed enemies and using them as resources.

Depending on the situation, I can adapt flexibly. This could be overpowered if utilized well...

I didnt know what kind of blood magic I could use, but Junior would probably make good use of it.

The problem was, like [Black Queen], this equipment was also a Nightmare Slayer, so it had the ??? option that would unlock based on the kill count.

I quietly observed Damien, who was shrouded in the darkness of the [Black Queen] slung over his back.

Our eyes met, and after a moment of hesitation, Damien grinned at me.

"Heh heh..."

"..."

Look at what became of Damiens once naive smile, now transformed into a poseurs smirk filled with adolescent bravado. All because of that weapon.

Can he truly overcome it and wield it as his own power...?

Junior should also stop using this weapon once its kill count increases too much.

In any case, it could be extremely useful for now, so I had to give it to him.

I called Junior over and handed her the staff.

Juniors eyes widened as she took the staff. The young wizards mouth dropped open.

"This, this is... truly an incredible piece of equipment, Your Highness? Ive never seen this much Magic Power in my life."

"Youll know, but its equipment made with Celendions magic core."

Juniors shoulders quivered, and her hands tightly gripped the staff.

"Youre giving me something so precious...?"

"Its powerful but dangerous equipment. Handle it with care."

Junior, who had lately been nonchalant as if chewing spinach with tomatoes, turned serious in front of this staff.

She nodded his head firmly.

"Youre the first to acknowledge my worth like this... Thank you so much. Ill do my best not to make you regret it, with a resolve to work myself to the bone...!"

"No, lets not go as far as working to the bone."

His body was not in good shape already; what was this working to the bone nonsense? Dont do that. Just keep recovering HP with that staff and deal damage comfortably from behind.

I also requested new equipment from Kellibey.

It was equipment made from two magic cores of the Vampire General obtained in Stage 5. Being of SSR grade, it would certainly be powerful.

Having acquired the necessary equipment, and with the tasks at the base camp mostly sorted, I was ready.

"Hmm."

I looked towards the darkness where Nameless had vanishedthe direction of the next dungeon depth, and then turned in the opposite direction.

It was the way to a dungeon we had previously cleared.

I planned to heed Namelesss advice but felt the need to scout the old dungeon instead of retreating.

I had to know what kind of monsters would be attacking in the next defensive battle.

Having prepared early, I called out to the main party members.

"So, everyone, shall we loosen up a bit after a long time?"

Lucas, Evangeline, Damien, and Junior all raised their torches and lanterns.

Thus, we entered the previously conquered third-area dungeon. As we stepped into the dungeon entrance, I exclaimed,

"What kind of monsters will we have this season~?"

Then,

Squish! Squish!

Something... squelching... jelly-like creatures started rolling toward us from the dungeon entrance.

I was taken by surprise and blurted out,

"What the hell is this, shit?!"