novelTo Egypt, Part II
| ← Ch.075 | Ch.077 → |
Translator: HunterW
Editor: RED
The fifteen-man healer party was talking among themselves loudly enough that I could overhear everything they said.
-Hunting undead is perfect for a healer-only party like them. -
Undead monsters were largely avoided by most devas, but were also the best monsters to hunt for fire mages and healers. Healers especially loved hunting undead monsters; leveling was slow for healers when they hunted normal monsters with other classes, as they didn't get as much EXP as everyone else. But when hunting undead monsters, healers could use their heal spells as attacks to get more EXP.
I was about to let the part where the party mentioned Khufu's dungeon go in one ear and out the other until I remembered something from the past.
-Khufu's hidden dungeon!-
While there were normal dungeons like the Bukhan Mountain dungeon and the Mt. Fuji dungeon, there were also other dungeons known as hidden dungeons. Hidden dungeons had the same characteristics as normal dungeons: dungeon monsters yielded twice the EXP and drops as field monsters. Hidden dungeons, however, had two extra traits!
First, while normal dungeons always remained open when they were found, hidden dungeons remained open for a limited amount of time. Once that time limit was up, the entrance to the hidden dungeon disappeared. Second, one could enter a hidden dungeon while under a dungeon blessing!
Obviously, I had never entered a hidden dungeon during my past life. That was probably why I had completely forgotten about them. I always thought that I was fated to never come across one.
-Damn...I really didn't do much in the past, did I?-
It wasn't like I knew much about them, either. Everything I knew came from rumors.
All I heard was that there was a hidden dungeon right next to the Pyramid of Khufu. That was all I knew. However, I did remember the hidden dungeon being discovered much later, so I was pretty confident that no one had found it yet.
-Should I go?-
I didn't know the exact location of the entrance; just that it was right next to the Pyramid of Khufu. I wasn't sure if I could find it if I actually made the trip.
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"Now then, let's go! It's almost time for our flight to Cairo."
"OK."
"Did you all exchange contacts? If you do, we can all plan another expedition like this again in the future!"
"Yes, we have."
"Good. Then let's go!"
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While I was contemplating on whether or not I should search for the hidden dungeon, the healer party stood up and left the café. I made my decision as they walked out.
-I'll go!-
I wasn't sure if I could find it, but I wanted to at least try. I wouldn't lose out on much if I couldn't find it after a few days.
I followed the healer party out to the Incheon Airport.
-I wonder if the Messenger Guild hasn't been formed yet. -
In the past, the Messenger Guild was one of the more successful guilds. Their business was teleportation. The guild would have one of their members in each large city around the world to set up teleport points in those cities. They would then teleport people to whichever city for a fee. The guild started off with points in eleven cities and before I jumped into the Sea of Reset, I remembered that the guild had expanded to have points in forty-seven cities!
Other large guilds tried to get in on the action when they saw how much profit the Messenger Guild was making, but they failed. The Messenger Guild had already solidified their position by offering the safest and most reliable teleportation service.
-They were pretty expensive, but using their services was always worth the price. -
I got on the same plane to Cairo as the healer party, wishing the Messenger Guild was around right now.
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In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh was a vessel of a god. The ancient Egyptians believed that when the pharaoh died, he began a journey to return to godhood. At that time, the only methods of transportation were horse-drawn chariots and ships that sailed the Nile. When the pharaoh was buried in his pyramid, he was buried with his chariots and ships.
There was a chamber that stored the buried ships inside the Pyramid of Khufu. Inside that chamber was where the entrance to the hidden dungeon was located. Lee Jiwon did not know that.
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Back at the Sunbin Guild headquarters...
"You say he's on his way to Egypt now?"
"Yes sir. He just got a plane for Cairo."
"Hmm..." Song Daechul had just received a report from Uno, an agent of his guild's Intelligence Division.
"Are Song Haechang and the Hitman Guild still after Lee Jiwon?"
"Yes, sir. The Hitman Guild attempted to kidnap him, as per Song Haechang's request, but failed. They are still looking for Lee Jiwon with the promise of being paid thirty times their usual fee."
"Pathetic..." Song Haechang had no idea that Song Daechul already knew everything about his illicit affairs. Nothing escaped the eyes of the Sunbin Guild's guild master. Song Daechul knew that his grandson was working with the gangster guild and occasionally passed on information, but allowed it to happen.
There must be evil in the world so that the good could prove its purity above it. A large city such as Seoul had to have trash on the corners of its streets so that a cleanup crew could pick it up. That was why he allowed the Hitman Guild to exist.
Song Daechul and his Intelligence Division knew that Oh Taeshik knew his place in the city. Oh Taeshik never made too much noise, and did his best to stay under the Sunbin Guild's radar. That was why the Sunbin Guild left him alone. Of course, Oh Taeshik and Song Haechang had no idea of this.
"Haa...I don't know if this is the right decision to make."
"..." Uno didn't reply.
"My grandson... my only grandson." He knew about Song Haechang's inferiority complex and the hatred he felt towards Lee Jiwon. He knew about Song Haechang kicking Lee Jiwon out of the building the second he woke up. He knew about Song Haechang's order to have Lee Jiwon kidnapped and why.
"Men are blind to their own causes." Song Daechul got up from his seat and looked out his window.
The Sunbin Guild became even more powerful once the Otadolon stage kicked into full gear. There was no other entity that could ever come close to rival its power. The Sunbin Guild already had twenty thousand of its elites hunting in a mid-grade dungeon in China and one in Mongolia. Only Sunbin Guild members were allowed to hunt there.
The guild had even set up safe zones and rest areas in each floor the two dungeons so that all guild members could focus on getting stronger. It had been five months since they began.
The guild also had ten thousand guild members on rotation to clear out the fields surrounding Seoul and for the territory in Siberia it had received from Russia.
Song Daechul knew that this was all thanks to the information Lee Jiwon provided when they first met. However, if he had to pick between his grandson and his benefactor, he believed that he would choose his family.
"Tell me... how did Lee Jiwon get so strong?" At first, Song Daechul and his Intelligence Division made the judgement call that it was the end for Lee Jiwon. It was why Song Daechul ordered him to be protected as a final favor to him.
"That's..." Uno had always been able to clearly answer every single one of his guild master's questions, until now. Only Uno, the Intelligence Division, and Song Daechul knew about the fight between Lee Jiwon and the Hitman Guild's specialist. Not a single one of them expected the fight to turn out the way it did.
"It also doesn't make sense that he slept for four years straight, " Song Daechul didn't rebuke Uno for being unable to answer. If Uno didn't know, no one could know. He knew it wasn't because Uno was slacking off.
"Haein still doesn't know he's up, does she?"
"No, she doesn't."
"When is she due back?"
"She and the Shire Guild have completed the boss raid and are currently hunting at a hidden dungeon."
"Then she should be back in a month or two at most."
"Yes sir, it would seem so."
"Good. Continue to collect as much information on Lee Jiwon as possible."
"Yes sir."
"You may go."
"Yes sir. Oh, and should we continue to track him?" Song Daechul had the Myth Guild keep track of Lee Jiwon's movements while keeping its distance. Uno asked if they should follow him all the way to Egypt.
"..." Song Daechul quietly thought to himself for a while.
"It's... about time to put an end to it and our old ties."
"Understood. I'll have the Myth Guild cease at once." Uno then disappeared into a cloud of smoke. Song Daechul continued to look out his window and watched the city below him.
"I've... changed a lot as well. I didn't die when my time came, and it seems I've become a monster..." Song Daechul walked out of the conference room, removing the ward that surrounded the room as he left. The ward was there to repel the prying eyes of the Gnosis Guild.
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The Gnosis Guild members were gathered once more at their Han Dong building in Yeouido.
"He's not trying to hide his ward from us now."
"We did take a lot of information from him." X, the wielder of the Nearly All-Seeing Eye, spoke up for the first time.
"Do we need to conceal ourselves now?"
"We do. My Eye is telling me to not underestimate Song Daechul."
"Really?" Alpha asked X.
"The old man's found some new desires after escaping death. Or maybe he's found something new to latch on to. Either way, he's gotten too strong and I'm sure he knows it, too. Soon, we won't know what he'll decide to do. One wrong move, and we'll become his new target."
"Damn." Alpha swore at what X just said and began to think. Soon, he came to a decision.
"Cease all intel operations on the Sunbin Guild. Don't even accept requests that have to do with the Sunbin Guild. Turn over all profit we made using the Sunbin Guild over to Song Daechul. We need to make ourselves as scarce as possible." No one said anything in objection. They all knew this decision was based on what X just told them.
"But... do we really need to turn over everything? It's not like he knows exactly how much we made, " said Lim Gina.
"This meeting is adjourned."
"I guess we're huddling in for the storm."
"Damn, it's getting scary. Do you think I should leave Korea for a while?" No one paid attention to what Lim Gina said.
"Hey. Hello? Excuse me? Can you guys hear me? Are you guys actually ignoring me again?"
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I arrived at Cairo International Airport in a record six hours, thanks to airline companies using wind magic to speed the planes up without having to make any mechanical improvements. The Healer party got on a bus right away, as if their itinerary was already planned out ahead of time.
I didn't set out to follow them to the Pyramid of Khufu right away, as it wasn't my target destination. I left the airport and walked around Cairo to see what the general situation of the city was.
I bought a map to see where the dungeon location was, but the map said it was only fifteen kilometers away from me. Hell, I didn't even need a map; I could have just followed the crowd of devas that was heading towards the dungeon.
-Damn, that's a lot of devas. -
There was not a single mortal in sight. Of course it did make sense, since it was pretty close to the dungeon, but the fact that there was not a single mortal around meant that the place was pretty dangerous.
Cairo was not a safe place for mortals to live in. In other words, there was a high chance that Cairo was pretty lawless, and that whatever power resided here was too weak to properly maintain the city.
I was alone in this unfamiliar place, but I wasn't nervous or afraid. I looked around some more before heading to the Pyramid of Khufu. I did take my time, but thanks to my high movement speed, I arrived in no time.
"It's pretty big." The Pyramid of Khufu, also known as the Great Pyramid of Giza, was surrounded by smaller pyramids and was truly a sight to behold. However, the best part was the dungeon entrance. The dungeon entrance stood in the middle of the pyramids and there was a line of devas waiting outside, with another group of devas blocking the entrance. They were part of the guild that controlled the dungeon and were collecting entrance fees from devas in line.
"That mark..." It was a normal sight to see members of the controlling guild collect entrance fees, but I noticed the insignia on their shoulders.
"Isn't that the Myth Guild?" It was one of the famous guilds I had heard about in the past.
-If the Myth Guild is here, then is this place connected to the Blood Prince?-
I didn't know about the Myth Guild just because it was famous. Well, it was famous since it was Egypt's number one guild, but it was famous because of the deity known as the Blood Prince.
-That's the guild that was obliterated by the Blood Prince. -
Deities; 114 beings that were chosen by the Creator Himself. Seven of them were known as the Seven Monarchs. These seven were considered to be the strongest out of all the deities. The Blood Prince was one of them.
The Blood Prince and ten of his followers completely annihilated the Myth Guild. That was why I remembered the guild.
-Damn. The Blood Prince, huh...-
I had never met him in person. The Blood Prince never really came to Asia, especially South Korea. But everyone had heard of his evil reputation.
Countless mortals and devas died by his hand. Everyone all the way to Seoul knew about how he killed without discrimination.
-I suppose I don't have to worry about that yet. -
I didn't put too much thought into it, as it was bound to happen to someone else, and not to me. Besides, if it did already happen, these Myth Guild members wouldn't be here!
Over by the Babylon Fortress in Old Cairo, there were signs of a huge fight.
"It's time to go. The Myth Guild will be here soon to investigate."
"Hah. Are you afraid of those insects? Insects are insects, no matter how many there are."
"Yes, I know. You've told me many times before, but right now, your men are anxiously waiting for the return of their captain. They may be in this for the money, but they don't enjoy carrying out dangerous missions."
Um-nefer, one of the 114 deities turned away. Um-nefer had a different name he was known as: the Blood Prince! Those that knew him called him the Blood Prince, whether they were deities, devas, or mortals.
"Must we contract devas?" the Blood Prince asked Ang-te, another deity.
"Yes. We need them, regardless if they're helpful or not. If we take on all the devas on our own, we will be evenly matched. But if we have devas on our side, we can pull ahead and they'll be too busy fighting one another."
"It's exactly that kind of political thinking that's preventing us from advancing. We don't need to split them up when we have absolute power."
"Only those as strong as you can think like that, captain. Besides, didn't you get clocked real good not too long ago? I can still see you running away with your tail between your legs when you got caught in the Myth Guild's trap."
"I..."
"Whatever. Let's go back now. Hasn't the countdown started anyway?"
"Tsk! But I'm not fully warmed up yet to go back now. Is the Giza Pyramid still guarded by the Myth Guild?"
"I suppose so. It is the Myth Guild's biggest source of income. Why? Do you want to go there, too?"
"I'm not warmed up yet. Besides, isn't it better for all of us if I kill at least one more of them?"
"Haa...fine. But be careful. The Myth Guild is most likely on full alert after getting hit that hard. I also don't want to deal with Shin's temper..."
"I get it, I get it. You worry too much. Shin thinks about too many things to freely go anywhere. She's probably in a middle of a hysterical fit right now, " the Blood Prince interrupted Ang-te, annoyed.
"I understand. I'll take the men back to base." Ang-te gathered the 950 mercenaries and returned to the safe house to await the start of the Myth Guild Invasion.
"Now then, I suppose I should make my way over there." The Blood Prince began to head towards the Pyramid of Khufu, the primary source of income of the Myth Guild, where Lee Jiwon was earnestly in the middle of searching for the hidden dungeon!
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"Damn, this is tough."
I had no trouble digging through the pyramid itself. There were devas everywhere and none of them paid any attention to me. No one else probably expected there to be another dungeon here when there already was one.
"Is this the wrong way to look for it?" I was looking for the hidden dungeon the same way I found the dungeons in Korea. I kept punching at the air while going around.
I rapped my knuckles here and there while taking care not to attract any attention towards me, but couldn't find any sign of the dungeon.
-If I remember correctly... hidden dungeons were found through quests or scrolls found in random chests. -
-I've got no information about the hidden dungeon's entrance at all. Can it only be found if I fulfill certain requirements?- I continued to knock at the pyramid's walls while thinking to myself.
All of a sudden, I heard a loud crash echo through the pyramid. I turned my head towards the sound and heard a voice. It didn't sound very far away.
"Ahahaha! This place is about to come into my possession! Who said you can go around collecting golden rings like this?" A man right outside the pyramid entrance was holding one of the guards by the neck.
"Gahk!"
-The Blood Prince!-
I had never seen him face to face, but had seen him on multiple news reports, so I knew it was him. On the way here, I had thought that there was no way that I would encounter him like this, but there he was, right in front of me.
"You...mothe..."
"You're just another descendant of the loser, Ay!"
"Attack him!"
"Burning Black Dragonfire!"
"Solid Sand Chain!"
"Summon! Sand Warrior!"
The Myth Guild guards began attacking the Blood Prince.
"Ha! Good, good. Struggle as hard as you can. It'll make crushing you that much more fun!" The Blood Prince took all of the attacks head on, but it didn't look like he received any damage from them. He just stood there, smiling.
"Hahahaha! It's almost a crime to control Egypt when you're all this weak. Blood Pool!" Blood began pouring out from the ground beneath the Blood Prince like a geyser of blood. Soon, the whole area around him was covered in blood.
"Run away!"
"Don't get caught in the Blood Pool!" The guards quickly jumped away to get away from the pooling blood.
"Where do you think you're going? Steel Chains of Blood!" Chains covered in blood shot out from the pool of blood and wrapped around the ankles of guards that jumped away and pulled them down in the Blood Pool.
"No..."
"Shit!"
"Cut them away! The Blood Prince can't move away from the center of the Blood Pool. Just cut the chains away."
"We just need to stay away from the Blood Pool. The Blood Prince will have to lift it sooner or later."
The Myth Guild guards started to attack the chains that were dragging them deeper into the pool little by little. However, the Blood Prince remained where he was and the chains remained intact, no matter how hard they struck at them.
Soon, the six guards were completely submerged in the pool of blood. And that was it; they never came back up.
"Insects..."
"Whoa! Hey, does that mean we can enter the pyramid for free?"
"Maybe."
"Come on, let's go."
"Let's get inside before the Myth Guild gets here!" The normal devas that were waiting to enter the Khufu dungeon began to move towards the entrance. They seemed confident that the Blood Prince was only here for the Myth Guild and wasn't going to attack them.
"Blood Spear."
"Gahk!"
"What..."
Spears of blood protruded from their chests.
Most of them were Healers. The spears pierced through them without much resistance.
"You insects are pretty bold to think you can just enter my dungeon without permission!" The Blood Prince didn't hesitate to strike at the non-guild devas that tried to enter the dungeon.
Seemingly unsatisfied with just the Blood Spears, the Blood Prince charged at the devas to attack them.
"Gaahhh! Please! We're not with the Myth Guild!"
"He's right! We just want train in the dungeon!"
"We have nothing to do with the Myth Guild!"
The devas didn't attempt to stop or counter the Blood Prince's attacks. Instead, they opted to beg for their lives.
"Gahahaha! I don't care. You're all insignificant insects to me. You're all insects trying to come inside my dungeon. Isn't it obvious that the owner exterminate any insects invading his home? Struggle for your lives and make it interesting for me. It's boring if you just go straight to begging. React a little like the Myth Guild." The Blood Prince cut down the devas while smiling. It was a complete massacre.
-I need to get out of here. - I turned away after watching the Blood Prince. The devas that were around me were thinking the same and started to inch away from the Blood Prince. There were still a few staring at the Blood Prince in shock, frozen in place.
I wasn't about to fight with the Blood Prince.
He saw devas as lower than insects; words were of no use to him. Challenging him was pointless.
I haven't made myself his enemy yet, and I didn't want to step in to save any of these devas. It's not like anyone would thank me if I did, and I had nothing to gain from fighting him.
"Stop there!" The Blood Prince, however, thought otherwise."I'm far from done yet. It looks like there are still more insects to exterminate. Hehehehe."
"Run!"
"Fuck this!"
The other devas began to book it, and I was right there with them.
I still had Blink from the Lightning Boots, but I decided not to use it yet. It did have a cooldown of five minutes, but I also didn't want to needlessly attract his attention. The Blood Prince was looking around, deciding who would be his prey.
"Good. Running away is the best you insects can do." The Blood Prince charged at one group of devas. Unfortunately, that group was right next to me.
"Block him!"
"We need to work together!"
"We have a chance if we combine our power! We'll all die if we abandon each other!" A few devas shouted out and took fighting stances when they saw the Blood Prince charging at them, but it was all in vain. Everyone else was more focused on staying alive. Once they saw the Blood Prince pounce on the group, they sped away. Others even ran in the opposite direction of the Blood Prince and into the dungeon.
"Blood Wave!" The Blood Prince's attack swept the group of devas away and continued straight for me.
There were a lot of healers here in the Khufu dungeon. Healers could actually gain more EXP than any other class by killing undead. However, healers are mainly supposed to be on the back line supporting, not on the front line taking attacks head on. The group of devas next didn't have anyone to protect them from the Blood Wave and were swept away without any resistance. But not me.
I turned to face the incoming Blood Wave and swung my greatsword down in front of me in an arc. The attack split the wave in half and the blood washed away from me to the sides, soaking into the sand.
-I did not mean to do that...-
I only tried to block the attack because I didn't want to just stand there like an idiot and take it to the face.
I wasn't afraid of the Blood Wave. I was an Unrivaled, a deva that could stand up to a deity, and the first one at that. But that still didn't mean I wanted to be some sort of defender of justice for these guys.
-I really don't want to needlessly fight this guy...-
"Well, well!"
The other devas around me couldn't avoid or block the Blood Wave and were swept away by it. Most of them died, and those that survived were either screaming on the floor in pain or running away.
"You're different." The Blood Prince stared me down, ignoring everyone else, and walked towards me.
"I don't want to fight you, " I said, looking right back at him.
"I don't think you're a deity..."
"I'm a deva."
"It's been a while since I've felt such power from a deva."
"I'll say it once more. I don't want to fight you, but I won't run if you attack me." What's done was done. I lost my chance to get out there with Blink. The Blood Prince would follow me wherever I went. The only chance I had was to fight back.
"Is that right? But I don't care about what you have to say!" The Blood Prince formed a sword out of blood and charged at me. Now I really had no choice!
The blade of my sword met his with a clang. I felt the strongest force I'd felt from an attack so far, but it wasn't enough to push me back. My HP did fall, however, even though I blocked his attack.
==[You have been afflicted by Blood Curse. ]==
==[Blood Curse removed due to status immunity. ]==
==[Damage received from deity reduced by 50%]==
==[You are the first Unrivaled. Attacks against deities increased by 25%]==
"You...! You're an Unrivaled?!"
| ← Ch. 075 | Ch. 077 → |