Chapter 32
In roughly two hours, the 'Dome' phenomenon would begin.
Just like what happened at Songpa University, the inside of an ordinary company building would turn into complete chaos.
There was only one way to stop it.
We had to defeat the boss monster and clear the dungeon within two hours.
Han Siwoo spoke calmly.
“We've experienced a Transitional Phase before.”
“Yeah. And we nearly died even though that was only an F-rank dungeon...”
My brother's gaze turned distant as he remembered the past.
I glared at him.
“This isn't the time for nostalgia. This is an E-rank dungeon, so after the transition, we should treat it like a D-rank dungeon.”
“How long did it take us to clear the dungeon last time?”
“We barely made it within two hours.”
I answered Han Siwoo automatically.
Then I realized something.
We were screwed.
“What do we do now?”
No matter how hard I thought, I couldn't find an answer.
I was starting to wonder if we should simply waste time here and wait for everything to end when...
Ding.
I raised my head at the cheerful sound I hadn't heard in a while.
A familiar window appeared.
[New Quest: Work together with your teammates and clear the dungeon before the 'Dome' phenomenon occurs!]
[Quest Objective: Clear the dungeon with your teammates within 2 hours.]
[Penalty Upon Failure: (3)]
[Quest Summary: Clear the dungeon within 2 hours. (0/1)]
[Quest Reward: (?), Skill Proficiency.]
This was the first time since the battle with Arachne that such a detailed quest window had appeared.
Naturally, I felt hopeful.
Maybe something like the previous balance adjustment would appear again and increase my stats.
But surprisingly...
Nothing happened.
Hey.
...Maybe it's just delayed!
I refused to give up hope.
It had never happened before, but what if the system experienced some kind of error and an additional window appeared late?
“Are you even listening to me?”
I stared hard into empty space.
Still nothing.
I swallowed a sigh and looked back at my brother.
“Uh... yeah.”
“Your face says you weren't listening.”
Ignoring him, I casually asked Han Siwoo,
“What were you talking about?”
“You're shameless enough to ignore me and ask him?!”
Was there a fly buzzing next to me?
Why was it so noisy?
I pretended to clean my ear.
Han Siwoo glanced between us and smiled awkwardly.
“Junhyuk's skills aren't working right now. Excluding him, I think the most useful skill we have is your 'Lag'.”
Normally, Lee Junhyuk was the main damage dealer of our party.
My brother and Han Siwoo covered whatever he lacked.
Meanwhile, I supported everyone from behind with buffs and made sure the team stayed balanced.
That was how we normally raided.
But if our main damage dealer, Lee Junhyuk, couldn't properly use his strength, Han Siwoo would have to take over his role as well.
Hmm.
That made me nervous.
“...Will Lag really be enough?”
This wasn't an F-rank dungeon.
It was E-rank.
And thanks to the 'Dome' phenomenon, the dungeon's difficulty had increased by roughly fifty percent.
And we were supposed to clear it in two hours?
Impossible.
We probably wouldn't clear this dungeon.
I had finally earned the chance for a rank evaluation, so I had been excited.
But how could a party made mostly of F-ranks clear a dungeon close to D-rank difficulty?
The Center would probably understand.
Our party's limit was E-rank.
D-rank was completely impossible for us.
Now that the Transitional Phase had started, there was no way the Center employee outside would fail to notice the sudden change in mana flow.
They had probably already placed a rescue team on standby in case something went wrong.
Of course, no one could enter from outside during the Transitional Phase.
They would have to wait two hours until the dungeon fully changed into a Dome.
“You scared?”
“What?”
I turned around.
My brother was staring at me with his usual mocking face.
“That's exactly what your expression says. You look like you're scared and want to run away.”
It was the kind of cheap provocation we threw at each other like a greeting.
Still, seeing him look at me as if I were pathetic made something inside me flare up.
This wasn't stubbornness.
As the party leader, this was a perfectly reasonable decision.
“Of course I'm scared. Think about it logically. What are the chances we can clear this place within two hours?”
“So you're going to give up before even trying?”
“Some things don't need to be attempted to know how they'll end. Just look at us right now. We couldn't even defeat the mid-boss. Everyone is already tired. Do you seriously think we can reach and defeat the boss within two hours like this?”
As I always said, I was an ordinary person.
I valued my own life.
And the lives of the people around me mattered too.
Rather than gamble on a one-percent hope, I was the type who trusted the ninety-nine-percent possibility.
Call me cowardly if you wanted.
That was simply the kind of person I was.
And because of that, I assumed most normal people would think the same way.
“I'm not tired yet.”
“Me neither. We haven't even properly started, have we?”
“A coward like you being party leader is a joke. I should've been party leader instead. Right?”
Lee Junhyuk stood first.
Then Han Siwoo.
Then my brother.
I stared at them speechlessly.
