Chapter 228: Solemnise Defense Agency (1)
Every time interference was applied to the dungeon, monsters appeared.
It wasn’t just once or twice. Ever since Newbie found me, it had happened multiple times—each time, high-ranking monsters appeared. Even Chirp, based on his stats alone, seemed to be the offspring of a high-ranking monster.
[※ When installing the disk, there is a possibility that monsters may appear due to external interference, so please be cautious!!]
This time, there was even a warning. It only mentioned a possibility, but—
‘It’s a hundred percent.’
Honestly. A Newbie connecting to this world and the dungeon was a significant interference—there was no way nothing would happen. I was certain that monsters, at least SS-rank or higher, would appear.
And, of course—
“Two SS-rank monsters detected!”
An S-rank guard shouted urgently. Two of them had shown up. I should probably wait until I find at least two more people before installing the next disk.
The overwhelming pressure covering my entire body sent a chill through my chest. I stood firm, suppressing the instinct to flee. Hopefully, it wouldn’t hurt too much.
Losing a life was regrettable, but no matter how I looked at it, this was the best method here. Rather than wasting time seeking cooperation from that fake Seong Hyunjae, it was better to install the device quickly and move on to another city.
‘If I die right in front of them, they won’t bother chasing me.’
My body trembled reflexively, but I laughed. Sorry for making you waste money. Unlike me, Sigma’s expression had hardened. He even seemed a little surprised.
Well, it’s not like he’s ever been through something like this before. Even a high and mighty SS-rank like him sometimes has to deal with getting scammed and cheated. Just take it as a learning experience.
The moment I felt a shadow fall over me and closed my eyes—
“Ugh!”
Something yanked me roughly.
Boom!
A thunderous roar rang out. Amidst the monsters’ howls, the scent of blood filled the air. Not mine. I barely managed to push myself up after being thrown to the ground.
Even before opening my eyes, I had a rough idea of the situation—but I couldn’t understand it.
“Is your life really that boring that you’d throw it away?!”
“I didn’t bet my life on it. Just an arm.”
I responded nonchalantly. My eyes landed on Sigma, whose arm had been severely torn open. Of all places, it had to be the arm I shot.
“Is it okay for the city’s defense commander to be so reckless?”
Krrrk! The sound of claws digging into the ground reached my ears. The monster, momentarily pushed back by the lightning strike, raised its mane.
One of them resembled a massive lion, but with two long snake heads protruding from either side of its head. Thick spikes lined its back, and its tail was also a snake. With three long-necked snake heads, there were no blind spots.
The other was a dragonkin with skeletal wings. With no membranes or feathers, only bare bones spread out sharply.
“Where’s the healer?!”
“I’m not on good terms with Medsang. No high-ranking ones would join the battle.”
What the hell? Then at least use a potion. But potions needed to be applied manually, and the monsters weren’t giving us any time for that.
- Kraaah!
With a deafening roar, the lion lunged. The sound of hissing snakes mixed in. Sigma moved his uninjured arm. Clink. Along with the metallic sound, golden chains appeared.
‘…Is he really someone else?’
Wasn’t that the Seeker’s Chain? Sure, this place could have chain-based weapons too, but it looked way too similar.
Crunch! The lion bit down on the chains blocking its path. At the same time, a blinding light flashed. The lion flinched but didn’t take significant damage. I thought the attack was weak for an SS-rank, but then I realized—Sigma was already standing beside me.
For a moment, it hit me—this bastard must have weakened the skill so I wouldn’t die.
Ah, this damn guy.
I immediately turned to run, but his hand caught my arm faster than I could move. Thunk! With a push off the ground, my body was pulled into the air.
“That hurts!”
If I were still F-rank, my arm would’ve dislocated!
Crash!
In that instant, the lion broke through the chains and crashed into the spot where Sigma and I had been standing. The ground was torn apart, sending dirt and grass flying. The spiky lion’s massive body writhed below.
When I tried to yank my arm free, he let go without hesitation.
‘Wait, you’re seriously letting go here?!’
This is mid-air, you bastard! I left all my best gear behind! Though, thanks to you, everything I have left is at least A-rank. As I felt myself falling, I pulled out a wire from my inventory.
It wasn’t a standard one but an expensive A-rank model with special features.
Whirr!
The wire shot out like a snake and wrapped around the tip of the spikes on the lion’s back. Grabbing the end, I stepped onto a spike and then landed on its back.
Before I could retrieve the wire, I heard a sharp hissing sound. The snake tail had raised its head high, glaring at me.
‘The length shouldn’t reach this far—’
Splat!
Poison sprayed toward me.
Right, a snake would obviously have venom. I quickly leaped back to dodge, but a few drops landed on my body. I was fine.
So, this lion’s poison skill only affects those S-rank and below.
“I have poison resistance.”
Damn, that startled me. For a second, I thought it was Seong Hyunjae talking. His voice carried the same amused tone—it was uncanny.
I turned to look, and sure enough, he had already used a potion. The bleeding had stopped, but the wound had only partially healed.
“There’s no way you don’t have a good potion… So, is this the effect of a monster skill?”
“They say you must avoid Shalonatz’s first attack at all costs.”
That was the name of the lion cub beneath us. You knew that and still jumped in?! The wound wasn’t healing properly, and considering he probably had battle foresight, the fact that he got injured while saving me suggested that the first attack was a high-ranking conditional special skill.
Rumble. The lion shuddered. Its three snake heads glared at us and hissed menacingly. The lion’s back was broad, but with the length of the snakes at the front and back, there was barely any room to dodge.
- Hiss!
The snake heads at the front lunged forward, their bodies stretching. The snake at the tail side also bared its fangs, as if daring me to try and escape in that direction. Meanwhile, the lion’s massive body trampled over the park. Thanks to the golden chains wrapped around its muzzle and front legs, it hadn’t yet escaped into the city, but at this rate, it was only a matter of time.
‘The dragonkin…’
The S-ranks who came with Sigma seemed to be keeping it occupied somehow. Thunk! Sigma kicked one of the lunging snake heads. As the snake’s jaw snapped upward, his hand reached underneath it, and with a flash of light, the snake’s head exploded.
But only for a moment. The head regenerated almost immediately.
“Forget about me and just use your skills properly!”
I was planning to die anyway, damn it! Click! I quickly fired a bullet that lightly tapped the snake head at the tail. I knew full well it wouldn’t even scratch it, so I didn’t bother checking and immediately hid behind one of the massive spikes.
Crunch! The snake bit into its own body’s spikes and spewed venom everywhere. In that brief moment, I gathered more mana into my gun and aimed for the soft scales on its underbelly. The monster only twitched slightly.
“What are you doing?!”
If you’re so bothered, should I just die for you? I was going to throw away a life anyway. As I returned my gun to my inventory and prepared to leap toward the snake, Sigma noticed instantly and grabbed the back of my collar, yanking me backward. I tumbled roughly across the lion’s back.
I was going to be covered in bruises, from my stomach to my entire body!
Annoyed as I rolled away, I hurled a dagger at him. Of course, he caught it effortlessly and even crushed it in his grip. Sure, it was just a backup C-rank blade, but still, that was overkill.
A long blade flashed, slicing through the snake heads one after another. But Sigma still didn’t seem intent on launching a proper attack. Was he conserving mana? Or maybe…
“…Does getting hit by the lion’s first attack affect skills or stats?”
“As expected, you seem quite experienced.”
His golden eyes looked at me as he smiled. This was no time to be smiling!
“It’s probably not permanent, so how long does it last? If an SS-rank rampages beyond the park, the damage will be enormous.”
“There’s a Shelter #5 not far from here, but… oh well.”
“You’re really irresponsible, you know that?!”
Logically speaking, prioritizing the safety of an SS-rank guard over civilian casualties made sense. It was smarter to wait rather than recklessly charging in with weakened stats.
But that damn lion had poison too. If things went wrong, the destruction could be beyond horrific.
“Why the hell did you save me?! I’m not even from here!”
Even though I told myself it didn’t matter since this was just past information, I still ended up shouting. Fake or not, it was right in front of me, so vividly real.
Thud! Another snake head was struck down. Sigma withdrew his fist and replied in a monotonous voice.
“If that’s the case, then I have even less reason to care.”
“You bastard!”
Easy for you to say!
Fine, I just won’t care. Sure, I may have been the reason the monster appeared, and yeah, that idiot got hurt saving me, but this world was built on past information. I knew that.
‘Damn it, even when you know a story is fake, people still get attached to it.’
Besides, helping out here wouldn’t really cost me anything. The disk was already installed.
“How much weaker are you right now? If your attack skills double in effect, can you handle it?”
“Of course.”
Looking slightly bored while dealing with the snakes, he suddenly smirked. His expression made it seem like he’d been waiting for me to step in. I approached him from behind and spoke in a low voice.
“This is a buff skill I have. It only works while we’re in contact, and I can’t maintain it for long, so finish it in one go.”
I specifically told him to end it in one hit. That way, I wouldn’t have to endure it for too long. If I died from the aftereffects of Sigma’s skill, that was fine. Even if I survived, I could just pretend to cooperate and look for an opportunity to die.
He might try to recover my body, but would an esteemed SS-rank really sit next to a corpse for over an hour? He’d leave it to a subordinate.
Then, the moment I revived, I’d just use my stealth skill and escape.
So, there was no harm in helping. Until we killed the monster, he’d at least keep me alive. No reason to drag this out—let’s just end it quickly.
- Hiss!
With a soft thud, a severed snake head rolled away. Sigma reached into his inventory and handed me something.
A long coat in a bright beige color… SS-rank gear!
“It’s defense-oriented, so wear it.”
Wow, SS-rank! I put it on instinctively, but the moment I did, I had a strong urge to take it off and stash it in my inventory. Could I take this with me? If I shoved it in my inventory right before dying, they wouldn’t be able to take it away. Please let me take it outside—please! Newbie, Newbieee! If you make this happen, I’ll forgive every mistake you’ve made so far!
‘Now that I think about it, this place must have way more high-ranking items than ours!’
They’ve had Awakened for much longer, and their average rank is higher. Maybe Sigma was decked out in full SS-rank gear. Maybe, just maybe, he even had an SSS-rank weapon.
Oh, wait. If I really can take things out of here, it might not be so bad to work under dear Sigma for a few days. They said time flows at least five times faster here, so let’s assume it’s ten times. Spending a week robbing—I mean, working for Sigma should be fine.
My heart pounded, and my resolve wavered.
‘Not that he’d give anything up easily.’
Even if I managed to snatch something after all that effort, I might have to leave it behind. Still, the thought was exciting.
“Thank you, Sigma.”
I couldn’t hide my excitement and smiled brightly. Sigma raised an eyebrow slightly. Yeah, I probably looked like a total opportunist, but let’s be real—items were everything in this world. When it’s something money can’t even buy, who cares about sacrificing a bit of dignity?
“Well then, let’s apply that double buff now~.”
As I spoke, Sigma wrapped an arm around me, pulling me close. With the defensive options on this coat and Sigma’s electric resistance, I wouldn’t die no matter what. He probably had at least SS-rank resistance.
I shared the skill effect that doubled his attack power, and Sigma moved. With a light jump, he landed on the lion’s head. The two snake heads lunged wildly, but they were cut down just as easily as before.
- Kraaargh!
The lion roared, and the tangled chains around it shone with blinding light. Unable to handle the brightness, I instinctively shut my eyes.
Boom!
Something shattered. A heavy pressure surged as if we were being pulled somewhere.
When I felt the light fade and cracked my eyes open—
‘Ugh!’
A grotesque lizard head was right in front of my face. It was the dragonkin that the S-ranks had been keeping at bay. Its massive jaws, dripping with saliva, revealed jagged, saw-like teeth. But before I could react, the scene changed again.
Suddenly, the perspective shifted. Below, the lion—bound in chains—thrashed violently. The dragonkin had lost both of its right legs. The gaping maw that had been opening toward me was now half-crushed.
What the hell just happened?
Even with my Eyes That See Through skill boosting my dynamic vision, my C-rank stats couldn’t keep up with an SS-rank’s movements.
“Close your eyes again.”
Barely had Sigma finished speaking when—
CRAAACK!
A thunderous noise shook the air. Maybe you should’ve told me to cover my ears too! My hearing buzzed, and I could barely make out the monsters’ agonized screams.
When I opened my eyes again, all that remained were two charred lumps. Next to them, floating text displayed the accumulated points.
‘How much is that…?’
It was over a million points. They must have given me a high contribution score.
One SS-rank monster alone was worth more than a million points. That meant if I killed ten, I could trade for an S-rank item. And since items exchanged through the points shop could be taken outside—
Yeah, forget staying with Sigma. I needed to find the others and go hunting. If I was going to invest time, it had to be somewhere worthwhile.
I quickly collected the points and reached for the coat. I was about to take it off and store it in my inventory when—
“…Ugh!”
A sharp numbness spread through my body. At that precise, cunning moment, my hands lost their grip, and the coat slipped from my fingers, falling to the ground.
I heard footsteps approaching. My stiff body slowly turned, not of my own will. Someone was controlling me.
“What… is this…?”
Sigma smiled silently.
Uh-oh. Maybe I’d been too obvious about trying to keep it.
“Well, you’re not completely irresponsible, C-rank.”
“What do you mea—urk!”
The moment I tried to lift my arm, a surge of electricity coursed through me, locking up my muscles.
“Unmatched special skills for your rank, an unknown past… And.”
His gaze shifted toward the remains of the monsters.
“External interference. Are you connected to the beings outside?”
The beings outside. He had to be referring to the Filial Duty Addicts and the Unfilial Children. Did he know about them?
Since they had approached both Han Yuhyun and Seong Hyunjae, it was highly likely that this world’s Sigma had experienced the same.
Was that why he saved me, even at the cost of getting injured?
“I… wanted to ask that too.”
If it was information about them, I wanted to know as well.
“…You—ugh!”
“Let’s take our time finding out.”
A numbing shock crawled up my spine, reaching my neck and head. Darkness flooded my vision.
My body crumpled forward, and I lost consciousness.