NOVEL NEXT Chapter 2
[Lv. 5]
[Lv. 6]
[Lv. 5]
[Lv. 4]
What’s a level? It’s the ultimate power gauge to figure out if this dude is tougher or weaker than me.
Levels are an absolute necessity for weaklings like that guy who only strives against the weak.
Fortunately, even now that it’s real life, levels are still visible.
By the way, in the <72 Dungeon Guide>, the level isn’t just a measure of strength but also gives a peek into the emotions of the opponent.
Red level is hostile.
Green is friendly.
Orange is cautious.
Pink is affectionate.
Black is fear.
Currently, all the levels in sight were as black as my coffee.
Just a second of staring at each other. Bodies frozen, only thoughts were moving.
“I’m screwed.”
Levels 3-5 are typical adult male NPCs. For a level 44 Death Knight, they were less than bugs.
But meeting these low-level humans was a crisis in itself.
They must be thinking something worse than me. That pitch-black level was evidence enough.
First, I have to clear up the misunderstanding through conversation, right?
Ah, don’t worry. Just a friendly Death Knight here.
“I’m just a—”
“A DEATH KNIGHT!!”
“Grrraaaah!!”
But damn, this body couldn’t even attempt to have a chat.
As I gestured to calm down, people were scrambling to get away in a frenzy. It was a narrow straight path, so they were pushing and tripping all over the place — complete chaos!
Someone even dragged their butt on the ground while still staring at me. You’d get a milder reaction from someone spotting a ghost!
“Run! Run fast!”
“Don’t push! Hurry up!”
I’m trying to talk things out, but they’re running away? I barely had time to think.
“Don’t go! Just listen to me!”
“Grrraaaah!!”
“They’re coming! Hurry!!”
“Damn, Mom!”
Screams turned into wails, and it hit me that I messed things up. I just stood there when everyone had run off.
Suddenly, memories of accidentally walking into the girls’ restroom back in school flooded in. The reaction was just like this.
“I’m suddenly so upset.”
It hadn’t even been an hour hiding from the humans, and I was already found out.
It wasn’t just a couple of people who saw me; there were even nearby villages.
In no time, the rumors would spread like wildfire: “Hey, that Death Knight is around here!”
“It’s still daytime; I can’t just head out, huh.”
I’d rather leave right away, but the sun was still up.
Before worrying about humans, I had a big threat from sunlight exposure. Once night falls, I’ll need to get out of here at first chance.
No way a hunting squad is gonna show up here within a day, right?
*
Outside the cave, it was already soaked in pitch-black darkness.
Any worry about the hunting squad arriving before night began proved to be unnecessary.
A natural sigh of relief escaped me, though it turned into a chilly draft.
Swoosh~
As I was about to leave through the entrance, the bushes rustled.
“Oh great, here we go again?”
It felt like something was approaching, rather than just the wind, and soon something leaped out from the bushes.
Undead have perfect vision in the dark. I immediately recognized that it wasn’t “them” but “him.”
Seriously? Less than a minute after I let my guard down, and here comes another one?
I stepped back further into the cave just in case.
But for some reason, the footsteps kept coming closer and eventually entered the cave. At this point, it was clear they must have heard the rumors and come to see me.
It couldn’t have been the people who came earlier. Given how scared they were, coming back again didn’t make sense.
“Get it together! Please, sis…!”
“I’m so sorry, everyone. I think I messed up.”
The thick smell of blood. Ironically, even the scentless Undead can smell blood like a hawk. I could smell it too.
The unsettling atmosphere caught my attention. In the dark, there was a dying female vampire surrounded by others who were sobbing.
At first, I thought she was human. If I hadn’t seen her crimson eyes and fangs, I might have mistaken her for a human until the end.
[Lv.12]
[Lv.10]
[Lv.14]
Looking at the levels, she seemed like she wasn’t a full-fledged vampire after all.
Usually, high-class vampires tend to be over level 20. Even though the visible vampires were all high-class, none of them was even close to level 20.
She was probably some subspecies or a lower-tier.
‘She’s not gonna last long.’
The dying female vampire had lost her color, and even her lips had turned pale. It was strange for a vampire known for her crimson lips.
It was a sad situation, but I couldn’t do anything. All I could do was sneakily watch this melodrama until it was time for me to leave.
[Target has met evolution conditions.]
[Would you like to evolve the vampire, Isabella?]
What?
As I stared at the vampire, a notification popped up.
‘Is it really happening?’
Evolution requires the individual, not the practitioner, to meet the conditions.
There are three conditions to meet.
First, it assumes the target has great potential.
Second, the target must be in life-threatening danger.
Third, if that life-threatening moment was driven by the sacrifice for others, all conditions are met.
In this case, even without the third condition, just the first two were enough for an attempt at evolution.
Two conditions would give a 50% chance, and meeting all three would give a 100% chance.
As for why the third condition—self-sacrifice—exists, it’s because to become a servant to a practitioner, one must be willing to sacrifice oneself.
Not that all who evolve become servants, but still.
It looked like that woman had sacrificed herself for the other vampires.
I, too, am a sensitive person, no, a Death Knight after all.
If there’s a way to save her and I just stand by and watch, that would make me a heartless Undead.
Even if my body is like this, my heart is still that of a passionate human.
My feet were heading towards the vampires before I knew it.
“Gasp.”
As I gathered my courage and revealed myself, seven pairs of red eyes were fixated on me.
‘Oh?’
If they had orange levels, that meant they were on guard.
I suppose it’s because we’re all monsters that they weren’t scared right away.
I thought maybe if I spoke properly, I could win their favor.
Just like there’s humanity among humans, I’ve heard there’s such a thing among monsters too.
“Death Knight?”
The vampire holding a female vampire jumped up in shock.
Then, after alternating glances between her and me, she turned pale.
“How did a Death Knight get here? Is this… is this Death Knight’s dungeon?”
What kind of nonsense is that?
It’s not a dungeon, but it’s true that I’ve entered my own lair. In a way, they could be considered uninvited guests.
I genuinely wanted to help them, but they had no way of knowing that.
“I apologize. Oh, great master of the dungeon. If you are still angry, take my soul. Please let the others live.”
“No way! Young master must not be harmed! Instead, kill me!”
“O great boss of the dungeon. These folks are pitiful. Please, let my life atone for your anger.”
What did I even do?
It was genuinely disheartening from the perspective of someone who came to help.
Suddenly, my reflection in a spring came to mind.
…With this face, I’m bound to look more like a reaper on a black horse than a prince on a white horse.
*
Hoober Village was settled near a road connecting a commercial city and a free city.
Mercenaries and traders frequently passed through, and there was also regular traffic from merchant groups heading to the commercial city.
Additionally, it was a perfect spot for dungeon raiding parties preparing to head to the free city.
“So you’re saying there’s a dungeon on the back mountain?”
“That’s right! I nearly died!”
The tavern in Hoober Village was quite lively.
As taverns often are, it was noisy, but today it was especially so.
It was all because of an exploration team boasting that they were survivors from the dungeon.
Not a hunting party, but an exploration team claiming to be dungeon survivors? At first, people brushed it off as a joke, but they were soon listening closely to the detailed explanations from the exploration team.
“I hear you’re the exploration leader? Are your crew’s claims real?”
“Would I lie about that? Why would I bother weaving such an elaborate falsehood?”
“Explain in more detail.”
A voice interjected from the back, and the exploration leader turned around. His eyes widened in surprise.
The six men were all either lightly or heavily armed. It was clear without explanation that they were an official hunting party.
The middle-aged man who seemed to be the leader looked like a veteran who had seen it all.
Wearing a padded armor over a chainmail shirt, on his right hip was a sheath containing a two-handed sword, and on his left hung various potion pouches.
He had a dagger strapped to his thigh, and the crossbow on his back looked spotless, undoubtedly well-maintained.
From what I can see, maintenance must have been done in between.
“And who are you?”
“I’m Sergey, the leader of the Billions of Divine Creation Hunt Squad.”
“Ser… gay?”
As expected, Sergey, who introduced himself as a hunt leader, flopped down into the empty seat next to him. He snatched the beer mug just brought over by the waitress and shoved it to his mouth.
With an unusual vigor, Sergey tilted his head back and drank the beer.
Bang! In less than three seconds, the beer mug was set down, completely empty.
Sergey nodded towards the stunned expedition leader, who was gaping with his mouth wide open.
“Care to tell me more about that dungeon?”
“….”
Without hesitation, the expedition leader explained the whole story.
Sergey, who had been silent, seemed to perk up at the mention of the Death Knight they encountered.
“Are you sure it’s a new dungeon?”
“Absolutely. The village herbalist said just two days ago, people were going in and out of that cave.”
“New dungeon with a Death Knight, huh…”
“I’m not lying. If you doubt me, just ask the kids.”
If it were only one person, it would be odd. But with over a dozen witnesses, it seemed hard to chalk it up to a mistake. Still, it was hard to believe.
Undead are beings that defy the natural order of living after death. The Death Knight belongs to the upper echelons of such undead.
For a Death Knight to appear at the entrance of a new dungeon was anything but normal.
Moreover, the Death Knight is a monster often placed as a guardian or mid-boss.
Unless it’s the 72nd dungeon, it’s rare to even catch a glimpse of one—
“Surely not.”
Suddenly, a thought popped up, a recent piece of news that stirred up quite a commotion.
The 72nd dungeon, known as the achievement of humanity. Among the distinctly ranked 72 dungeons, the top 7 had never been conquered—an unknown territory.
The Empire’s hunt command referred to it with awe as ‘The Seven Lairs’.
However, exactly one week ago, the final lair of The Seven Lairs was completely cleared by the hero hunting squad.
Just because the 7th ranked dungeon disappeared doesn’t mean the 8th takes its place.
Soon enough, a new dungeon emerges, resembling the previous one in strength.
“Jayden.”
“Yes, Captain.”
“How many 72 dungeons have been conquered since a week ago?”
The hunt team was quick on the draw when it came to information about dungeons. The members knew this tidbit well, and Sergey was simply asking to confirm the facts.
“Only the Phantom of Bangho.”
The Phantom of Bangho refers to the final lair of The Seven Lairs.
No other dungeons have been conquered. It had been a week already—plenty of time for a new dungeon to arise to inherit that slot.
One conquered dungeon, the perfect timeline, and a new dungeon with a Death Knight appearing right from the start.
There was only one answer.
“The Seven Lairs has been renewed.”