Chapter 97

Futile Effort (2)

The red pattern exuded a mysterious feeling, distinctly different from the magic circle composed of magical power.

Despite thinking it couldn't be, Clark couldn't help but swallow hard.

The treasure, rumored among adventurers to grant extraordinary abilities beyond common sense to those who discover it, the mysterious pattern.

'Really... is it a mystery?'

Clark cautiously approached the pattern and extended his hand as if entranced.

In an instant, the pattern emitted a bright light, traveled up his arm, and was absorbed into his body.

Soon, the pattern vanished without a trace, and Clark blinked, looking down at his hand.

As he was lost in the strange sensation he had never felt before, a loud noise suddenly rang out.

"······?!"

Startled by the sudden noise, he snapped his head around.

Stone statues, now brandishing their weapons and emitting a fierce glow, came into view.

Kwaang!

Clark, terrified, threw himself to the side. A massive stone blade that had been aimed at him plunged into the ground where he had been standing.

He was surprised by his own agility, moving much more quickly and nimbly than usual.

The mysterious ability he had absorbed was one that increased his physical speed.

The knowledge that flowed into his mind along with the absorption of the mystery allowed him to use the acceleration ability naturally and immediately.

"Uaaaaa······!"

Maximizing his speed, Clark screamed and dodged the attacks of the stone statues, moving instinctively.

However, it was impossible to adapt instantly to the sudden enhancement of his physical abilities.

Before long, he stumbled and rolled on the ground.

As Clark, who was trying to get up, was struck by a statue's attack, his thigh was torn to shreds.

"Kyeok!"

Clark tumbled awkwardly on the ground again.

The intense pain in his leg made it impossible to control his body.

Just as the stone statues, which had surrounded him, were closing in, he tightly shut his eyes.

Kwagwang!

The stone statues suddenly all fell.

Clark, trembling, slowly opened his eyes.

The fallen statues on the ground were completely motionless.

Then, the sound of footsteps approached, and a figure entered the chamber.

He thought it might be a party member, but it was an unfamiliar young man.

"······."

What did he just do?

Did this person knock down the guardians?

Unable to grasp the situation, Clark involuntarily shuddered as the man's gaze met his.

The man, after a quick look around, approached the center of the chamber and stopped right next to him.

"Who are you?"

Clark, dazed, finally answered the man's question.

"I, I'm an adventurer. Who are you...?"

"Was there a pattern here?"

"······."

"Did you not see it?"

The man asked, looking down at him with a cold gaze.

Clark's thoughts froze for a moment.

He felt a chill run down his spine and, like a frog in front of a snake, he froze and swallowed hard.

The man was clearly asking about the mystery he had just absorbed.

Though he didn't know who this man was or where he had suddenly appeared from, one thing was clear: he was in deep trouble.

"I, I didn't see anything."

***

'······Too late.'

I looked at the man, cowering in fear, and clicked my tongue.

This place was definitely where I had discovered the acceleration mystery.

But since the pattern was nowhere to be seen, there were two possibilities.

Either the mystery hadn't been generated yet, or the man in front of me had already absorbed it.

From his reaction, it was easy to tell it was the latter.

The acceleration mystery that had been here was now in his possession.

"Really, I, I didn't see anything. I really didn't."

The man repeated this, looking at me with desperate eyes, hoping I would believe him.

He seemed to think I would kill him if I found out he had absorbed the mystery.

I was a bit annoyed, but there was no way to make him spit it out once he had absorbed it.

It wasn't a particularly useful mystery anyway, and I just had bad luck this time.

'But there were multiple signs of entry.'

I wondered where the others were and why he was alone, but it wasn't important, so I ignored it.

Just as I was about to turn away from the frozen man,

Kugugu.

A sudden vibration occurred, and the center of the chamber floor slowly opened.

The man, who had been sitting nearby, jumped back in surprise.

The pit that had suddenly appeared was filled with glittering treasures.

······Come to think of it, were there such rewards in this ruin?

I had no reason to take the treasure, so I was about to leave when,

"······?"

I sensed more presences at the entrance of the chamber, and soon several men and women appeared.

"······Captain!"

Hearing the man shout, I immediately understood the situation.

These were the people who had left the traces of entering the dungeon. They were adventurers, it seemed.

I wondered if the man had been separated from the group due to a trap, which was a common occurrence.

They were also surprised to see the man.

"Clark, are you alive?"

"I barely survived! Didn't you see?! Hearen used me as bait and tried to run away alone! After all the help I gave him!"

The woman with the bow flinched and shouted angrily.

"U, you're kidding! Why are you blaming me for you falling over on your own?!"

"You're a damn liar! Are you even human?!"

The conversation was filled with curses and hostility.

I didn't know the details, but from what I could gather, he had fallen into a trap and been hit in the back of the head by the woman with the bow.

The man glared at the woman and asked,

"Anyway, how did you all get here? I fell into a trap..."

"We don't know. The path we took was blocked, so we kept moving forward and ended up here. But... "

The man called the captain looked at me curiously, then his eyes widened when he saw the treasure.

The others reacted similarly.

"······."

The adventurers' eyes, filled with greed, were fixed on the treasure.

A moment of silence fell over the chamber.

I had a bad feeling that things were about to get complicated. The captain exchanged glances with a few others and spoke again.

"Who is that man, Clark?"

"Huh? That, that's... I don't really..."

The man looked at me for a cue.

Just as I was about to speak, the woman with the bow interjected.

"Everyone, see? The pit is filled with treasure! We're rich now! Right?! But... "

Puuuk!

A sword blade pierced the woman's chest and protruded from her back.

Her eyes, filled with joy, widened in shock.

"Gyeok... "

The man who had stabbed her was the captain.

The other members, who had been standing nearby, turned in shock.

"What the...?!"

At that moment, a few members launched a surprise attack on the others.

A spear-wielding member stabbed the neck of the member next to him, and a woman in a robe launched a fireball at two members standing a bit away.

One of the members, who had managed to dodge, tried to retreat but was beheaded by another member who had already blocked the escape route.

The victims, caught off guard by the sudden ambush, were all killed instantly.

Including the captain, four members remained.

They, who had killed their comrades without hesitation, looked at me, wiping the blood from their weapons.

"Uh, uh...?"

The man, stunned by the scene, and I, frowning, watched.

What the hell is going on?

***

"······What is this?"

Clark couldn't believe his eyes.

The bodies of the fallen members were scattered on the floor.

The captain, Regnil, and Thomas, Ann, and Barok, had ambushed and killed the rest of the members.

'Why?'

His mind was in chaos, but he soon realized.

Because these four were the oldest members of the party.

And the treasure in front of them.

They had killed their comrades to claim the treasure for themselves, without a moment's hesitation.

"Damn bastards. Was this your plan from the start?"

The man's muttering made the mage, Barok, smirk.

"Pretty quick on the uptake, huh? Of course, we discussed it before entering the dungeon. If there was real treasure, we'd take it for ourselves."

Clark couldn't believe it as he looked at Regnil.

He had joined this party because he respected the captain's character, but he had never imagined he would hide such a nature. His trust had been betrayed in an instant.

Regnil, without even looking at Clark, pointed his sword at the unknown man.

"Are you an adventurer? When did you enter the dungeon?"

"······."

"Doesn't really matter. I don't know where you came from, but you had bad luck."

After a moment of silence, the man chuckled and muttered,

"······No gain, just a lot of trouble, really."

He glanced at the treasure in the pit and said calmly,

"What are you checking? You're planning to kill everyone and take the treasure for yourselves, right?"

Regnil's eyes twitched.

"Kil... "

Before he could finish,

The man, who had vanished, suddenly reappeared in the middle of Regnil and the members.

"······!"

Before the four could react in shock,

They all fell at once.

Clark, already in a state of confusion, was completely stunned.

Just like with the guardians earlier, they were killed in the blink of an eye.

All Clark could vaguely see was a red, blood-like substance shooting from the man.

"Ah... "

Clark, watching the scene, involuntarily let out a weak groan.

A mix of confusion, betrayal, the futility of the party's demise, and fear of the man.

The man turned to him and approached.

Clark wanted to run, but with his leg torn, he could barely stand.

Thinking it was his turn, Clark felt a sense of impending death.

But when he saw what the man pulled out from his pocket, he couldn't help but widen his eyes.

A small glass bottle containing a red liquid. It was a potion.

"Use the mystery you obtained well."

The man placed the potion on the ground nearby, said those words, and turned to leave.

Without a glance at the unclaimed treasure, he walked towards the exit.

Clark watched his retreating back until it disappeared, then, half-exhausted, slumped to the ground.

"······What the hell is going on."