Chapter 70
Hummmm—
The dragon that hovered above Suhyuk began to fade. Suhyuk, who had swallowed the yellow gem, seemed to lose consciousness, his eyes rolling back as his head tilted.
The dragon’s form grew faint right after Suhyuk swallowed the Heart of the Lightning.
Even as the dragon’s image blurred, the fresco on the wall did not return. Its purpose fulfilled, now it was time for it to ascend. Having consumed the Heart of the Lightning, Suhyuk’s ascent would be different.
Although this new bearer wasn’t as exceptional, he possessed something the last one didn’t. The Heart of the Lightning. An essential item for humans to wield the power of lightning, akin to a divine weapon’s antithesis.
Though it wasn’t fully complete, being still in its early stages, there was room to cultivate the remaining aspects.
The dragon’s form vanished completely, dispersed like golden mirages, leaving Suhyuk half-conscious, sitting on the floor. As Suhyuk struggled to stay conscious, a long-awaited message appeared before his eyes.
『The skill rank of ‘Lightning’ has increased to S-.』
And with that.
Thud—
Suhyuk’s body collapsed to the ground.
*
Schneider, having entered through the door, couldn’t hide his astonishment.
‘What is this?’
The room seemed different. And it didn’t take him long to identify the change.
‘It’s gone. The murals.’
The yellow lines that had been painted on the wall. The fresco of the Thunder Dragon that should have been there to prepare the trial was nowhere to be seen.
What had happened?
After thoroughly searching the room, Schneider had no choice but to accept that the dragon had disappeared.
Finally, Schneider called the others inside.
“This finished rather quickly, didn’t it?”
Schneider had spent around thirty minutes searching for the dragon. That time was relatively fast. Moreover, Schneider appeared unscathed, with no signs of injury or burns.
Don Zhao had assumed Schneider would grit his teeth and push through another trial.
But.
“It’s gone.”
“What?”
“The dragon is gone. Look.”
Schneider pointed to the walls of the room. The interior walls looked no different than those in the other parts of the cave. Whether before or after the trial, the murals of the endlessly long dragon had always been there.
But now.
“It’s really… gone?”
Schneider had passed the dragon’s trial multiple times. But never had the murals disappeared like this.
“Did you do this, Schneider?”
“I didn’t even start the trial.”
“Then?”
“There’s another one besides us inside the cave, isn’t there?”
“… No way?”
The Thunder Cave was interconnected. According to Schneider, the dragon’s mural extended from here to the Conrad Kingdom’s side. This meant the trial could also be taken from the other side.
“Yes. From the Thunder Chamber onwards, there’s no distinction between Odman and Conrad.”
“… They already passed through here?”
“That’s what it seems.”
“Wasn’t it a solo challenge? How could they already… Never mind that—why did the dragon disappear?”
Confounded, Don Zhao’s words tumbled out incoherently, and Paul Rimen interjected.
“Is this the time to debate that?”
Paul marched towards Schneider.
“If Lee Suhyuk has already passed through here, we need to hurry after him. Do you want to let him take all the Thunder Cave’s rewards?”
“That wouldn’t be so bad, either.”
“What?”
“Do you really think I’m here just for some cheap rewards?”
Paul Rimen was left speechless by Schneider’s unexpected question. Theoretically, he could answer.
Of course, that’s why everyone is here. Isn’t it obvious?
But if asked whether Schneider fell into that category, Paul Rimen couldn’t confidently say yes. Schneider was peculiarly obsessed with the Thunder Cave. Not all players could fixate on one goal like he did.
“I’ve faced countless failures, but finally, something’s different. Someone other than me is nearing the end of the Thunder Cave.”
Schneider spoke, barely containing his excitement.
“So I’m warning you, don’t mess with me. I feel like I could explode with joy right now.”
“…Sure, that seems wise.”
Seeing Schneider on the verge of exploding, Paul Rimen cautiously stepped back. Feeling somewhat sorry for Paul Rimen’s submissive retreat, Don Zhao glanced at him and spoke.
“No need to worry too much.”
“What do you mean, don’t worry?”
“I’ve faced him in a tournament, you know? I got crushed, but still.”
“And?”
“Even if there were two of him, the next part would be difficult.”
Paul Rimen frowned at Don Zhao’s confident words.
“Doesn’t that imply even Schneider would find it difficult, even if there were two of him?”
“Well… that’s…”
Catching Schneider’s eye, Don Zhao hesitated.
“Yes, that’s what it means.”
Schneider interjected, answering in Don Zhao’s stead and downplaying his own abilities.
“Even if there were two, or maybe even three of me, it might still be challenging.”
Step, step—
Saying this, Schneider began to move again.
“So stay alert. If you want to bask in the glory of conquering the Thunder Cave, you have to survive first.”
“Y-Yeah, sure.”
Paul Rimen’s voice trembled in response. Schneider’s demeanor had shifted. It had changed when they initially arrived at the Thunder Cave, but now it felt even more intense.
‘Finally, we’re here.’
Step, step—
From the moment he confirmed the dragon’s disappearance, Schneider had been riding a high.
‘It’s disappointing that I couldn’t handle everything myself, but…’
Step, step—
His pace quickened.
‘Trusting that guy wasn’t a bad decision.’
Schneider, along with his team, walked for quite a while. After over thirty minutes of following the long, winding cave. A bend in the path shaped like a backwards “L” revealed another door.
“Turn here, and we end up on the Conrad Kingdom’s side. Beyond this door is the final stretch of the Thunder Cave that we’ve confirmed.”
“It looks like Lee Suhyuk came through from that side.”
Rather fixated on Lee Suhyuk, Paul Rimen glanced toward the direction of the Conrad Kingdom rather than at the newly revealed door.
Then, he turned his gaze to the massive iron door covered in dust.
“He might be beyond this door right now.”
“Probably.”
He had to be. The key to this raid was in his hands. Thinking this, Schneider reached forward.
Creeeak—
The rusty metal hinges groaned as the door opened. Leading the group, Schneider entered, revealing a stairway standing alone, reaching high into the cavern.
“…An exalted throne?”
A stairway with seemingly a thousand steps. The cave’s ceiling was artfully raised to accommodate it. Judging by the structure, the stairway, and the throne at the top, it was clear.
The Thunder Cave was no naturally occurring dungeon. It was more like an artificial construct, deliberately created.
『’You have entered Thunder’s Second Chamber.’』
『’Sit on the throne.’』
The trial of the second chamber was straightforward. Sit on the throne before you. The stairs were high and might tire your legs, but even an ordinary person could accomplish this.
“…This feels ominous.”
Because of this simplicity, Paul Rimen felt a growing sense of unease. Players preferred trials that were not merely easy but those that presented a reasonable challenge, achievable with effort.
When a trial appeared overly easy, it usually meant one of two things. Either the rewards were meager. Or there was an unseen complication.
In this case, it was undoubtedly the latter.
Why?
‘There’s no way he couldn’t move forward because he couldn’t climb those stairs.’
Paul Rimen thought as he glanced at Schneider’s back. Schneider stood motionless, staring ahead. After a moment, he spoke in a hushed tone, his words partially omitted yet clear.
“…Not here.”
“What? What’s not here?”
“Lee Suhyuk.”
It seemed Schneider had been searching for Lee Suhyuk. Paul Rimen didn’t think much of it.
“Well, maybe he’s already sat in that chair and moved on.”
Just because Lee Suhyuk was ahead didn’t mean he was only one step ahead. He could be two steps, or even three or four steps further along.
‘Looks like this might be another path Lee Suhyuk has already passed.’
But that was a naive assumption, born of Paul Rimen’s lack of understanding of the Thunder Cave.
“That’s not possible.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“To claim that throne…”
Step—
As Schneider took a single step towards the throne.
Flash—!
Boom—!
A thunderous sound bolted down with a yellow flash from the cave ceiling.
『You have encroached upon the throne’s domain.』
『‘Thunder Knight’ appears.』
“…You have to defeat that.”
Crackle, crackle—
With the sound of thunder, what descended from the ceiling of the cave was a knight clad in full plate mail, with remnants of electricity coursing through his body.
He stood at the foot of the stairs, his face obscured by his helmet, and gripped an ancient, worn-out sword in his hand. It was as if he was declaring that no one would ascend these steps without first overcoming him.
“The Thunder Knight?”
“A boss mob?”
“Why is there a human boss….”
Human-shaped monsters were rare. Especially in these lower levels, such cases were almost unheard of. The startled players hesitated. The Thunder Knight radiated a golden glow from his eyes, intimidating the players with sheer presence.
“That was him.”
Facing the knight, Schneider spoke with a voice tinged with despair.
“The insurmountable wall I encountered here.”
Not ten years, but twenty. Or perhaps he had wondered if he would ever overcome this mighty knight, even if he dedicated his entire life.
The guardian of the Thunder Cave. A few months ago, Schneider had finally learned the knight’s name from a source.
“Ferius.”
TL’s Corner:
Ferius is back as a boss.