Chapter 39
[Booooom!]
The Golem Howler violently charged toward Hong Man-gi and Lee Yu-han while swinging its massive hammer arm.
Every step shattered the abandoned mine floor.
Sharp fragments flew in every direction.
Its overwhelming pressure was worthy of a mid-boss from a BX-0 Dungeon.
"Ugh!"
Lee Yu-han instinctively lowered his body and avoided the attack.
Even the wind pressure from the strike made it difficult for him to breathe.
If an F-rank Hunter like him had taken that attack directly, he might have died instantly.
Fear filled his face.
Along with it came doubt about whether they could truly defeat such an enormous monster.
Han Young-mi quickly shouted,
"Mr. Hong Man-gi! That thing is extremely hard! Most attacks won't even scratch it!"
Her urgent voice rang in Hong Man-gi's ears.
She had fought a Golem Howler while alive, so she knew its traits very well.
"Its attacks are heavy and direct, but that also creates large openings! Don't clash with it directly. Wait until it attacks and then, yes, counterattack!"
'A counter?'
Hong Man-gi listened carefully to her advice.
A counterattack was a technique from boxing and martial arts where one struck during the opponent's attack.
Against a heavy and powerful enemy like a golem, that could be more effective than attacking directly.
"Understood, Ms. Han Young-mi!"
Hong Man-gi adjusted his grip on the Bloodline Sword and faced the Golem Howler head-on.
'Let's do this.'
The passive skill "Fighting Spirit," which he had received from the departed Park Si-hoon, stirred deep inside his body.
[Kwaaaaaang!]
The Golem Howler roared again and brought its massive hammer arm down toward Hong Man-gi.
It looked impossible to avoid.
'Now!'
At the exact moment the golem's attack reached its peak, Hong Man-gi moved forward instead of retreating.
Then he swung his greatsword upward with all his strength.
The golem's hammer arm and Hong Man-gi's greatsword collided directly.
[Kaaaaang!]
The sound of metal striking metal echoed through the entire abandoned mine.
A tremendous shock ran through Hong Man-gi's whole body.
But he gritted his teeth and endured it.
His greatsword struck directly against the joint of the golem's hammer arm, creating a deep crack.
[Grrrrk!]
The Golem Howler groaned as if in pain and stepped backward.
Just as Han Young-mi had advised, the counterattack worked.
"Good! Yu-han, now! Aim for its leg!"
At Hong Man-gi's shout, Lee Yu-han hesitated briefly.
Then he gathered his courage and rushed toward the golem's side.
He swung his sword repeatedly at the joint of the staggering golem's leg.
[Clang! Clang! Kaaang!]
His F-rank attack power was too low to cause serious damage.
However, his persistent attacks helped destroy the golem's balance.
"One more time!"
Hong Man-gi once again drew out the golem's attack.
This time, the other arm came flying toward him.
Hong Man-gi moved smoothly like he was dancing, redirecting the attack before landing another precise counter.
[Crack!]
This time, sparks flew from the golem's shoulder along with a sharp breaking sound.
Its movements became noticeably slower.
"Almost there! Final strike!"
Hong Man-gi activated Breakthrough.
[Dash!]
His body shot forward in an instant.
He drove his greatsword deep into the glowing red core in the center of the golem's chest.
[Booooooom!]
The Golem Howler's entire body violently shook.
Then it began collapsing.
Huge pieces of mineral and iron ore fell to the ground and raised a thick cloud of dust.
[Grrrrk....]
The red light in its chest completely faded.
The enormous golem stopped moving.
"Whew... we did it."
Hong Man-gi breathed heavily and planted his greatsword into the ground.
His whole body was drenched in sweat.
Still, satisfaction from the victory appeared on his face.
"A, amazing, Hunter Hong Man-gi! Seriously! I can't believe it!"
Lee Yu-han ran toward him, unable to hide his excitement.
There was awe on his face.
At the same time, he looked proud that he had contributed to the battle too.
"You did well too!"
The Golem Howler's corpse turned into light and disappeared.
In its place remained a pair of rough but sturdy-looking stone gauntlets.
A faint mana aura flowed around their surface.
Hong Man-gi picked up the stone gauntlets and handed them to Lee Yu-han.
"Here. These are yours. You fought bravely back there."
"What? M, mine? But Hunter Hong Man-gi, you were the one who...."
"No. I'll keep getting rewards, and right now I prefer using equipment I'm already comfortable with. You can't keep carrying around low-grade weapons forever either."
Lee Yu-han waved his hands in panic.
An item dropped by a mid-boss would be extremely valuable.
But Hong Man-gi remained firm.
"It's fine. Besides, you should have at least one proper piece of equipment by now. Try them on."
Encouraged by Hong Man-gi, Lee Yu-han carefully put on the stone gauntlets.
The moment he equipped them, he felt powerful energy flowing into his body.
【Equipped 'Stone Gauntlets of the Iron Fist', C+ Rank.】
【Strength +15, Defense +10】
【Special Ability: Crushing Strike, has a certain chance to deal additional damage and briefly stagger the enemy.】
"Wow! So this... is what it feels like!"
Lee Yu-han repeatedly opened and closed his fists in amazement.
He could feel heavy power unlike anything he had experienced before.
For an F-rank Hunter, C+ rank combat gauntlets represented an enormous increase in strength.
Now he had gained the ability to actively participate in combat instead of remaining only a support member.
"Thank you, Hunter Hong Man-gi! Really! Thank you so much!"
Lee Yu-han expressed his sincere gratitude.
"Now I guess it's time to head toward the final boss."
At that moment, Han Young-mi spoke.
"I... think we can stop now."
"What? What do you mean?"
Hong Man-gi asked in confusion.
Han Young-mi continued.
"This is enough. I learned that someone remembered me and tried to leave proof of what I did. And if Mr. Hong Man-gi and Mr. Lee Yu-han return safely now, you can tell people about the situation here and explain that a Hunter named Han Young-mi fought desperately in this dungeon before dying. In many ways, I'm already satisfied. You don't need to keep risking yourselves because of me."
However, Hong Man-gi shook his head.
"I appreciate what you're saying, but after coming this far, I think I need to see this through to the end too."
"Th, then...?"
"We'll defeat the final boss."
Han Young-mi tried to say something.
But after hearing Hong Man-gi's firm tone, she seemed to change her mind.
Instead, she expressed her gratitude.
"Mr. Hong Man-gi. And Mr. Lee Yu-han too. Thanks to both of you... my final moments no longer feel quite as lonely. If that's your decision... then I also... I don't think I can close my eyes without seeing the end of the creature that killed me, that 'Veiled of Server.'"
There was strong determination in her voice.
It did not seem like simple revenge against those who had abandoned her.
Instead, she seemed desperate to reclaim her final dignity by helping destroy the final boss that had actually caused her death.
Hong Man-gi nodded as if he understood.
"Understood. Let's go together until the end."
Lee Yu-han also nodded firmly.
"Yes! I'm going too!"
The three strengthened their resolve once again and walked toward the deepest part of the abandoned mine.
Toward the darkness where the final boss was waiting.
* * *
Before long, they reached an enormous underground cavern.
A strange structure resembling an ancient altar stood in the center.
On top of it stood a creature giving off an indescribably ominous presence.
'That must be it.'
It was the final boss of the BX-0 Dungeon.
"Veiled of Server."
Its appearance was horrifying, as if a human and a beast had been twisted together.
Distorted horns.
Sharp claws.
Black fur covering its entire body.
And more than anything else,
'Those eyes are shining like a psychopath's....'
Hong Man-gi and Lee Yu-han both swallowed.
Then the monster spoke.
"Grrrrr. More have come. Foolish mortals."
Veiled of Server's voice echoed through the cavern.
A monster capable of speech.
That alone proved it was not an ordinary creature.
Then it happened.
"Kyaaaaaah!"
Han Young-mi's spirit screamed in terror.
Her body began trembling violently.
The trauma of seeing the creature that had driven her to death seemed to be swallowing her soul.
"Are you all right, Ms. Han Young-mi?!"
"U, uuuugh...."
"Calm down!"
"Ugh... hhh... uuuugh...."
Hong Man-gi urgently checked on her.
But she had already fallen into extreme fear and could barely communicate.
Lee Yu-han's entire body also froze before the horrifying talking monster.
"Th, that thing looks completely insane...."
The fear was so overwhelming that he could barely feel the power of his new stone gauntlets.
The final boss of BX-0, Veiled of Server, slowly opened its mouth.
"I admire the courage that brought you crawling this far, but you will meet the same end as the fools who came before you. Do you know why all the dungeon surveillance drones were destroyed? I broke them all for entertainment. It was irritating to have insects like you watching my movements."
Veiled of Server continued speaking leisurely as though mocking humans.
"Not only the drones, but that woman who came here recently was the same. Such a stubborn and annoying woman. That look in her eyes as she struggled until the very end... I still remember it clearly. But soon, you too will collapse beneath my feet wearing the same hopeless expression she showed when she was defeated."
It was clearly talking about Han Young-mi.
Hong Man-gi clenched his fist in anger.
"Good. You're worth fighting."
"Kukuk... foolish insects...."
"Let me ask you one thing."
Hong Man-gi slowly continued.
"As far as I know, when a dungeon boss is killed, another boss eventually appears. Then if that one is killed, another appears, and so on. I'm about to kill you now. Could you tell me what kind of monster comes after you?"
"K, kukuhahahaha!"
Veiled of Server burst into laughter as if it could not believe what it had heard.
"Yes, I suppose you're still at an age when you're curious about all kinds of strange things. Unfortunately for you, I'm not that kind."
At the same time, Hong Man-gi's eyes turned cold.
As though he had finally run out of patience, he drew the Bloodline Sword and charged toward Veiled of Server.
Lee Yu-han overcame his fear and followed behind him.
