Chapter 16. The Treasure of the Abandoned Mine
Boom!
The moment the enormous foot slammed into the ground, the entire abandoned mine shook.
Stone dust poured from the ceiling, and the old wooden supports creaked ominously as if they might snap at any moment.
Do-yoon unconsciously stopped breathing.
The monster standing before him was on an entirely different level from the Mutated Rats he had fought before.
Its body was nearly as large as a wagon.
The black fur covering it stood stiffly like wires.
Its two glowing red eyes were filled with the hunger and madness of a wild beast.
The huge front teeth protruding from its mouth looked sharp enough to chew through not only rock, but even metal.
"What the hell is that...?"
Do-yoon's voice dropped without him realizing it.
Even Liana had lost her usual composure.
Her grip tightened around her sword, and obvious shock appeared on her stiffened face.
"A Mine Rat Queen."
"A queen?"
Liana looked the enormous creature up and down and swallowed.
"No. A normal queen isn't that big."
"Then what is it?"
"It's closer to a monster that's undergone mutation several times."
Do-yoon moved his flashlight and illuminated the surroundings.
Countless Mutated Rats had gathered around the gigantic Mine Rat.
At first, he thought there were only dozens.
But once he saw the red eyes extending deep into the mine...
Counting them became meaningless.
There were at least a hundred.
The smaller Mutated Rats were gathered in orderly ranks around the massive queen.
They did not look like a simple pack of animals.
They looked more like soldiers waiting for their commander's orders.
Then the giant Mine Rat raised its head and shrieked.
Screeeeeech!
The ear-piercing cry filled the entire mine.
And as if the sound had been an order...
Every rat moved at once.
"Run!"
Liana shouted and threw herself aside.
Do-yoon reacted instinctively and jumped in the opposite direction.
CRASH!
Dozens of rats trampled the spot where the two had been standing only a moment earlier.
They stepped over one another and fell, but none of them stopped.
The first rat leaped toward Do-yoon's throat.
Do-yoon drew his dagger and stabbed forward.
Stab!
The blade pierced beneath the rat's jaw.
Do-yoon shoved away the falling corpse and immediately slashed at the second rat charging behind it.
But every time he killed one...
Two more attacked.
Every time he killed two...
Five appeared behind them.
There was no end.
"This is insane!"
Do-yoon cursed as he retreated.
"I told you to run!"
Liana shouted back while swinging her longsword in a wide arc.
Slash!
The blade swept through a half-circle and cut down three Mutated Rats at once.
Blood and fur scattered everywhere.
But Liana did not stop.
She stepped forward, twisted her sword, and cut through another rat's neck.
Even in the middle of the desperate battle, Do-yoon was surprised by her movements.
Until now, he had mostly seen Liana get excited about money or throw sarcastic jokes around.
But the moment a battle began...
She became a completely different person.
There was no wasted movement in her swordsmanship.
She redirected every claw and fang that came toward her with perfect precision.
She was clearly a genuine mercenary who had experienced far more battles than Do-yoon.
While Do-yoon fought off the rats swarming toward him, a powerful blue glow entered the edge of his vision.
Behind the giant Mine Rat.
It was nothing like the small Mana Stone they had found earlier.
Blue light flowed from an entire wall deep inside the mine.
"Liana!"
"What?!"
"Look behind that monster!"
Liana kicked away a rat and turned.
Her eyes widened.
"A massive Mana Stone vein..."
And it was not only blue.
Silver and red crystals were mixed throughout the wall.
The vein continued so deeply into the tunnel that they could not even see where it ended.
"This is insane. How has a deposit this large never been discovered?"
Do-yoon had the same thought.
Then he immediately understood why.
Everyone who entered this place had been killed by the Mine Rats.
People may have discovered the Mana Stone deposit before...
But not a single one of them had survived to tell anyone.
The first thing that came to Do-yoon's mind was money.
If they could claim that vein...
This was no longer a matter of earning a few dozen silver coins.
It was wealth capable of completely changing his life.
But no treasure mattered if they could not leave alive.
BOOM!
The Mine Rat Queen moved again.
Its enormous front paw smashed into the floor.
The stone exploded beneath it.
Do-yoon rolled aside just in time.
A shattered piece of rock flew past his face.
Cold sweat ran down his back.
If that had hit me, I'd be dead.
There was no chance his unarmored body could withstand an attack like that.
Then the back of his hand grew hot.
The mark of Pride.
This time, the heat was incomparable to anything he had felt before.
It burned like his skin had been pressed against fire.
Yet strangely...
It did not hurt.
Instead, strength seemed to flood through his entire body.
Then an unfamiliar will entered his mind.
Do not lower your head.
Do-yoon nearly stopped moving.
It had not been a voice heard through his ears.
But the words were so clear that it felt as though someone had whispered directly beside him.
You are stronger.
The Fruit of Pride was stirring his emotions.
Telling him not to fear the monster.
Telling him not to run.
Urging him to prove that he stood above his enemy.
Prove it.
Do-yoon's heart began pounding violently.
He could not tell whether this impulse came from the fruit...
Or from himself.
But one thing was certain.
Simply running would not allow them to escape the Mine Rat swarm.
As long as the queen continued commanding the others...
There was a good chance both of them would be caught before reaching the exit.
They had to kill the queen.
Do-yoon clenched his teeth and adjusted his grip on the dagger.
"Fine."
Then he charged toward the enormous monster.
"Do-yoon, are you insane?!"
Liana shouted from behind him.
Do-yoon did not answer.
The Mine Rat Queen was enormous.
Overwhelmingly powerful.
One swing of its front leg could crush a human being.
But that massive body had an obvious weakness.
It was slow.
Do-yoon avoided the front paw sweeping toward him and changed direction to the right.
The queen's red eyes followed him.
Do-yoon suddenly cut left.
Right.
Left.
Then right again.
The gigantic rat could not keep up with his movements.
Its size made changing direction slow.
Do-yoon did not waste that brief opening.
He kicked off the ground, stepped onto the queen's front leg, and ran upward.
He grabbed its rough fur and climbed over its shoulder toward its head.
BOOM!
The instant Do-yoon landed on its back, the Mine Rat Queen twisted violently.
Screeeeeech!
Its massive body thrashed from side to side.
Do-yoon nearly went flying.
He desperately clenched the black fur and held on.
"Do-yoon!"
Liana's desperate voice reached him.
But Do-yoon did not climb down.
Instead of falling...
He crawled toward its head.
Every time the massive body shook, his arms and legs felt as though they were being torn apart.
Still, he refused to let go.
Then...
He finally found his target.
The red eye.
An eyeball almost as large as a human head was right in front of him.
"Found it."
Do-yoon gripped the fur with one hand.
With the other, he raised his dagger.
Then stabbed downward with all his strength.
STAB!
The dagger pierced through the red eye.
SCREEEEEEEECH!
The Mine Rat Queen screamed so loudly it seemed to tear the air apart.
The entire abandoned mine shook as if it were collapsing.
Driven mad by pain, the monster smashed its body against the walls and floor.
Its huge front paws shattered rocks.
Every swing of its tail sent nearby Mutated Rats flying.
Do-yoon's body was thrown into the air several times.
But he refused to release the dagger handle.
It was not over yet.
Losing an eye did not guarantee that the monster would die.
Do-yoon pulled the dagger free.
Then stabbed again.
STAB!
This time, he drove the blade even deeper through the eye socket.
He felt the dagger pierce bone and hard tissue beneath his hand.
The Mine Rat Queen's body convulsed.
