Dungeon Breaker

Chapter 14

—–CROW—–

It was common for a Hero – no, a renowned hero – to have equally renowned equipment.

Guan Yu’s Green Dragon Crescent Blade.

King Arthur’s Excalibur.

Roland’s Durendal.

Even his father had a sword.

The Dragon Sword Kshatriya, the strongest cursed sword in Phion.

A tremendous weapon imbued with the power of the Dragon God, practically a god among swords.

‘Son, a Hero should carry at least one holy sword.’

‘Does it have to be a sword? Can’t it be a spear?’

‘A spear or an axe is fine, but a sword is best.’

‘Why?’

‘Swords are the coolest.’

Cheon-ho nodded silently and glanced at the kukri in his hand.

It was a well-sharpened blade, a true masterpiece, but it still felt inadequate as a Hero’s dedicated weapon.

“Luciel, can you tell me about the Imperial Guardian Sword?”

“Yes, Hero.”

Luciel, having finished praying for Notrang, explained with a calm expression.

Perhaps because she had just finished praying, she looked incredibly holy in Cheon-ho’s eyes.

“The Imperial Guardian Sword… the Holy Sword Mitra, was forged by Yivnyle, one of the Five Goddesses and the Goddess of War. 700 years ago, she bestowed it upon a human Hero to defeat a Demon King from another world who appeared in our world.”

“Hmm.”

It was a truly divine – no, holy – backstory befitting a holy sword.

“The human Hero, after numerous adventures with the Holy Sword Mitra, defeated the Demon King. And he liberated the humans who suffered under the Demon King’s oppression and established a human nation. That nation was the Aiter Empire.”

The human Hero, who became the founding emperor, didn’t rest.

He continued to lead his armies on the battlefield, even after ascending to the throne, to expand and protect the human nation.

“The Holy Sword Mitra was always by the founding emperor’s side. And finally, as time passed… the young founding emperor became an old man. Sensing that his life was nearing its end, the founding emperor passed the Holy Sword Mitra to the crown prince, saying that Mitra would protect the Empire.”

“So that’s why it’s called the Imperial Guardian Sword?”

“Yes, from that day forward, the Imperial Guardian Sword became a sacred object symbolizing the emperor’s authority.”

“Hmm.”

It was quite a compelling story.

And if what he heard was true, the Holy Sword Mitra had a history and origin that rivaled even his father’s Dragon Sword Kshatriya.

‘The first user was a Hero, after all.’

So he had to protect it.

He had to obtain it.

Something about the phrasing felt slightly off, but Cheon-ho didn’t pay much attention.

He looked at Luciel and said,

“Then, next is the sub-quest.”

“Yes, it seems there are two more earthbound spirits in the tower.”

The Imperial Maid Noir and the Royal Guard Catlan.

‘With Luciel here, ascension itself shouldn’t be difficult.’

“Alright, then let’s get going again. There will be monsters from the second floor onwards, so don’t let your guard down.”

“Yes, Hero.”

Luciel nodded with a serious expression.

Cheon-ho took a deep breath and opened the door leading to the second floor.

Waiting for Cheon-ho and Luciel on the second floor was a group of skeletons.

Quickly switching his weapon from the kukri to the war hammer, Cheon-ho calmly smashed the slowly approaching skeletons, just as he had done outside.

‘When dealing with tough opponents like skeletons, aim for the joints.’

That way, even if they don’t die, they can’t get up.

As always, Cheon-ho faithfully followed his father’s teachings.  Focusing on smashing the skeletons’ knees and pelvises, the scattered bones on the floor twitched but couldn’t approach him.

And Luciel delivered the final blow to these broken skeletons.

“Light of Purification.”

As the pink light emanating from Luciel’s fingertips enveloped the skeletons, a black aura rose from the twitching bones.

The evil energy was being cleansed by the Light of Purification.

Cheon-ho smashed, and Luciel finished them off.

They worked together surprisingly well.

‘There are only skeletons on the second floor.’

From the outside, he had thought it would have at least seven floors, but with the high ceilings, the actual number of floors seemed to be around five.

‘If the Imperial Guardian Sword is on the top floor, then all that’s left are the third and fourth floors.’

As they reached the door to the third floor, a blue, translucent spirit appeared, just like Notrang.

It was Noir, the Imperial Maid.

[Ah… Notrang has departed first. I’m glad he’s finally found peace.]

It was said that imperial maids were often nobles, not commoners, and Noir was a noblewoman with an air of elegance.

Appearing to be in her late thirties, she clasped her hands and smiled faintly.

She seemed genuinely relieved about Notrang’s ascension.

[Thank you very much, Angel. And Hero.]

“Hmm, we only did what we had to do.”

Cheon-ho replied by the book, and Luciel, knowing the truth of Notrang’s ascension, writhed in guilt.

In any case, it was a brief encounter.

Cheon-ho asked Noir, who seemed to be showing signs of ascending,

“Noir, is this tower five stories high?”

[Just as you said.  There are five floors in total. Sir Catlan, the Royal Guard, is on the fourth floor.]

“Are there only skeletons on the third and fourth floors as well?”

[That’s not the case.  The skeletons on the second floor are merely monsters that were wandering around and entered the tower.  The monsters on the third and fourth floors originate from the true monster that occupies this tower, the one on the fifth floor.]

“The fifth floor, where the Imperial Guardian Sword is?”

[Yes, the monster controls the entire fifth floor.  According to Sir Catlan, it’s a plant-type monster… but I don’t know for sure. In any case… plant-type monsters roam the third and fourth floors.]

“I see. Thank you for the valuable information.”

[It was my pleasure. But it’s unlike Notrang, the librarian, to ascend without even telling such a story… It’s not like him, who loved to talk.]

“Hmm, I think he ascended in a hurry.”

[I see. Angel? You look a little pale…]

“Ah, no, I’m fine. Haha.”

Luciel forced a smile, and Noir tilted her head, looking slightly puzzled, but didn’t pry further.

[It seems my time is almost up. Hero, and Angel. I don’t know if you’ll need this, but it’s the only thing I can give you now. I hope you’ll accept it.]

Noir offered Cheon-ho a small leather pouch.

[Imperial Maid’s Sewing Kit acquired.]

“Oh!”

The pouch was filled with needles and thread.

There was even a thimble with the Empire’s emblem on it.

Cheon-ho was genuinely delighted, and Noir smiled warmly.

[I’m so glad you’re happy. May the blessings of the Five Goddesses be with you…]

Noir’s spirit disappeared in a bright light.

It was a truly exemplary ascension.

“Hmm.”

Cheon-ho offered another silent prayer and then handed the pouch to Luciel.

“Luciel, please take care of this.”

“Ah, yes.”

Cheon-ho was probably the only Hero who would be so happy to receive a sewing kit.

“Let’s be more careful from the third floor onwards.  I should switch back to the kukri.  And…”

As Cheon-ho trailed off, Luciel took out the pre-made torch set from her inventory.

Plants were weak to fire, after all.

“You’re the best.”

“Hehehe.”

Luciel giggled shyly and handed him a torch, which Cheon-ho lit with his flint.

Then he said to Luciel,

“Luciel, we haven’t entered the third and fourth floors yet, but if what Noir said is true, the structure itself should be similar to the first and second floors.  Moreover, since Sir Catlan is on the fourth floor, let’s finish this quickly.”

“Do you have a plan?”

“Yes.”

After briefly explaining his strategy to Luciel, Cheon-ho opened the door to the third floor.

Cheon-ho’s plan was simple.

Open the door.

The monsters appear.

As Noir had described, the monsters on the third floor weren’t ordinary skeletons.

Vines, like those clinging to old building walls, were wrapped around the skeletons’ arms and legs.

Some had so many vines that they looked more like green monsters than skeletons.

There were dozens of them.

Thanks to the vines, they were also much faster than ordinary skeletons.

But Cheon-ho wasn’t fazed. He immediately signaled to Luciel.

“Luciel!”

“Yes!”

She responded quickly and spread her wings to take flight.

Cheon-ho had always thought that the angel wings were a magical symbol, since there was no way a humanoid creature with wings on its back could actually fly.

And as he thought, Luciel, unlike ordinary birds, could fly with considerable freedom.

Luciel soared.  Her target was the top of the stone stairs that stretched upwards along the wall.

Cheon-ho moved simultaneously.

As soon as he grasped the monsters’ positions, he kicked off the ground and ran towards the stairs.

The monsters reacted.

But they couldn’t do anything about Luciel flying in the air.  The tower’s ceiling was nearly 10 meters high, so there was no way the skeletons walking on the ground could reach her if she flew close to the ceiling.

They had no choice but to target Cheon-ho, but he was fast too.

Reaching the stairs in a flash, Cheon-ho swung his kukri and torch simultaneously, instantly defeating the skeleton blocking his path.

He severed the neck bone with the kukri and set the vines on fire with the torch.

The two actions unfolded rapidly, almost as one.

The headless skeleton, engulfed in flames, staggered, and Cheon-ho kicked it down and jumped over it.

He climbed the stairs with lightning speed.

The skeletons swarmed the stairs.

Cheon-ho set fire to the skeleton he had felled midway up the stairs and pushed it down.

The tumbling skeleton collided with other skeletons, and Cheon-ho threw his torch at them. The fire spread naturally.

“Luciel!”

Cheon-ho extended his empty hand, and Luciel, who had already reached the top of the stairs, handed him the war hammer.

Gripping the war hammer with both hands, Cheon-ho took a deep breath. He concentrated his internal energy, drawn from his dantian, into his arms and swung with all his might.

Bang!

He hit the stairs. He literally smashed them.

This was possible because the stairs weren’t built by stacking stones one by one from the bottom, but by inserting long stones into the wall.

The broken stairs fell to the floor with a loud crash.

And Cheon-ho didn’t stop.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

He continued to smash the stairs he was stepping on as he climbed.

He destroyed a total of four stairs.

A gap of over a meter was created between the stairs.

‘Skeletons can’t jump.’

This way, they wouldn’t be able to cross over.

He could find another way to get back down later.

He could even just jump over a meter or so.

“It went according to plan.”

“Yes, Hero. You’re truly brilliant.”

Luciel smiled brightly, watching the skeletons hesitate and fidget in front of the gap, unsure of what to do.

Cheon-ho smiled back and opened the door to the fourth floor.

The fourth floor felt like a training ground for knights.

Several straw dummies stood on the flat floor, and targets were set up on one wall.

But something else caught his eye more than those things.

Countless vines descending from the ceiling and along the walls.

Some even looked like roots.

“Grooooar!”

A roar echoed the moment he opened the door.

It was the scream of tree monsters that not only took root in skeletons but seemed to have grown using them as nutrients.

“H-Hero?”

“Fly!”

Cheon-ho shouted urgently.

Luciel immediately took flight, and Cheon-ho, just like on the third floor, kicked off the ground.

But it wasn’t as easy as the third floor.

The tree monsters were slow like skeletons, but they had ranged attacks.

“Luciel!”

“Kyaa!”

One of the tree monsters threw a fruit growing from its body at Luciel. Its speed was so fast that it looked like a cannonball.

Luciel quickly spun in the air to dodge the attack. The tree fruit hit the ceiling and exploded with a terrifying sound.

“Hero!”

Luciel, somehow managing to land in front of the door to the fifth floor, lowered her stance and shouted.

Cheon-ho was also in a critical situation.

The tree monsters whipped their vines like whips.

The sharp and swift attacks grazed Cheon-ho several times, leaving sharp lines across his arms, thighs, and back.

It stung.

His clothes tore, and blood flowed.

But Cheon-ho didn’t stop.

Instead of swinging his kukri at the tree monster blocking his path, he thrust his palm forward, pushing it aside, and vaulted over it.

Cheon-ho thought,

‘There’s no time to break the stairs.’

The tree monsters were fast. Moreover, they had ranged attacks.

Luciel, who had reached the top of the stairs ahead of him, was also crouched down, protecting herself with the hot plate – no, the kite shield.

“Kuhaa!”

“Woooh!”

Shouting loudly as if not to be outdone by the monsters’ roars, Cheon-ho thrust his palm forward, imbued with internal energy.  Rather than pushing, he swung, knocking the tree monster on the stairs down, and then put strength into his legs.

He leaped in one bound.  He reached the top of the stairs.  And he shouted,

“Luciel! Bookshelves!”

Not the war hammer.

Luciel’s eyes widened for a moment, but she quickly understood.

The moment Cheon-ho landed, she opened her inventory.

Large and heavy objects like bookshelves couldn’t be easily taken out.

But that was only if she tried to take them out properly.

If she just pulled them out haphazardly, without caring about the contents, and threw them…

It could be done much faster.

It was slower than actually throwing them, but a few seconds were enough.

Cheon-ho also helped Luciel.

As soon as he toppled a bookshelf onto the stairs, he pulled out another one from the inventory.

Two bookshelves collapsed onto the stairs, and the bookshelves piled haphazardly on the slope became a difficult barricade to overcome.

Luciel pulled out another bookshelf and set it up like a wall beside them.  This time, it took a little longer because she took it out carefully, but it was necessary.

The tree monsters were momentarily confused by the sudden appearance of cover.

Cheon-ho calmly caught his breath and then pulled out another bookshelf, toppling it onto the stairs.

A total of three bookshelves.

They were so heavy that the stairs might collapse, but that wasn’t a bad thing either.  If a gap of that size suddenly appeared, the tree monsters wouldn’t be able to cross over.

Thud! Thud!

The tree fruits collided with the bookshelves, making a terrifying noise. Luciel let out a small shriek of fear but supported the bookshelf with her back to prevent it from collapsing.

“H-Hero! What do we do now?”

Unlike the third floor, they needed to talk to Catlan, so they had to secure a safe position.

Cheon-ho had Luciel pull out another bookshelf and reinforced the barricade. With two bookshelves stacked together, they only shook slightly when hit by the tree fruits, showing no signs of collapsing.

“Calm down. It doesn’t look like they have any immediate means to get past this.”

Indeed, aside from the tree fruits, they didn’t seem to have any other means of attack.

Hearing Cheon-ho’s words, Luciel took a deep breath and looked around, finally breathing a sigh of relief.

“Let’s do some work.”

“W-Work?”

Surely he wasn’t suggesting they cook here?

Fortunately, and obviously, no.

Cheon-ho cut and tore the vines and roots attached to the wall with his kukri and doused them with Giant Rat oil.

“Let’s light them and throw them.”

Unlike the previous floors, the fourth floor was full of tree roots and vines.  The monsters also had more plant parts than skeletal ones.

He wasn’t planning on setting the entire fourth floor ablaze.

Blocking the stairs was enough.

Cheon-ho and Luciel threw the burning vines over the bookshelves. After throwing about ten, the effects began to show.

“Grooooar!”

“Groar!”

The burning tree monsters thrashed about, creating a commotion.

As a result, more tree monsters caught fire, and the fourth floor quickly filled with intense heat.

“W-What if the whole fourth floor burns down?”

In fact, the fire had already begun to spread to some of the vines on the wall.

Cheon-ho calmly replied,

“We’ll quickly finish our business and go to the fifth floor, or escape.”

“Uh…”

He had a point.

“So calm down. We can solve anything if we stay calm.”

“Yes, Hero.”

Luciel gulped and nodded.

And even amidst this chaos, they were gaining experience points.

[Experience points increased.]

[Experience points increased.]

[Experience points increased.]

The tree monsters were burning nicely.

Glancing at the window of light, Cheon-ho hurried to the door leading to the fifth floor. As he did, a blue, translucent ghost appeared, as before.

[W-What is going on here?]

A middle-aged knight with a magnificent beard looked around with a bewildered expression.

Instead of armor, he wore a luxurious uniform, white on top and black on the bottom, which looked quite dashing.

“There’s no time. I’ll explain briefly. I’m a Hero, and this is an Angel.  We’re here to reclaim the Imperial Guardian Sword from the monsters.”

[A H-Hero and an Angel?]

“I am Angel Luciel.”

As Luciel hurriedly spoke, emitting a pink light, Catlan nodded amidst his confusion.

[With the Angel’s Ring, there’s no doubt. As the stories say, angels are truly beautiful!]

“Huh? Uh… Th-Thank you.”

Luciel also nodded in confusion, and Catlan lightly kissed the back of her hand.

[It’s truly an honor to meet an angel and express my respect like this.]

He had a handsome face, a good physique, and good manners.

Luciel blushed slightly, but this wasn’t the time for this.

‘No, it’s never the time for this.’

Muttering nonsense to himself, Cheon-ho put his face close to Catlan’s and said,

“Sir Catlan, I’ve heard the story roughly from Notrang and Noir. We need to go to the fifth floor and reclaim the Imperial Guardian Sword.”

[Hmm, since the Angel has come, it’s only natural that the Imperial Guardian Sword be entrusted to you and the Angel.]

Nodding, he looked around at the burning surroundings and said,

[A giant tree monster lives on the fifth floor. Its roots and vines have spread throughout the entire floor.]

“The entire floor?”

Luciel’s eyes widened in surprise as she asked again.  The fourth floor they were currently standing on was nearly 50 meters in diameter.

[Indeed.  Therefore, it’s difficult to defeat it with conventional methods.  It’s a powerful demonic tree, so fire won’t work very well.]

“W-What should we do, Hero?”

There was no way to deal with a monster tens of meters large, let alone a few meters.

And fire wouldn’t even work?

How were they supposed to deal with it?

Cheon-ho took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and organized his thoughts.

‘Son, always remember this.’

‘What?’

‘A stitch in time saves nine.’

[This proverb doesn’t quite fit the Korean idiom used (아끼다 똥 된다).  A more fitting proverb would be “Waste not, want not.”]

His father’s teachings.

Cheon-ho opened his eyes.  With a determined expression, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the most powerful and dangerous item among the weapons hidden in the dining table.

It was a small, round leather tube that looked like a glasses case.

Cheon-ho silently opened the lid, and Luciel’s eyes widened.

“H-Hero?”

An ominous magical power emanated from the leather tube.

No, it wasn’t just ominous.  It was truly powerful.

Instead of answering right away, Cheon-ho took out the only item inside the leather tube.

It was a neatly rolled piece of parchment.

“It’s time to use this.”

[W-What is that?]

Catlan also gulped and asked. Just being near it felt like his spectral body would scatter and disappear; it was a powerful magical artifact.

Cheon-ho gulped and unfurled the parchment – the magic scroll.

It wasn’t his father’s, but his mother’s.

A magic scroll created by his mother.

—–CROW—–