Chapter 76

EP.76 The Forest Covered in Snakes (10)

Midway through the Inwangsan Field.

The medium for entering the undiscovered dungeon, "The Forest Covered in Snakes."

Near a large rock.

The masked individuals realized something was seriously wrong.

"Mr. Branch Manager... this..."

"......"

The masked individual called the branch manager also silently observed the current situation.

The plan itself was perfect.

After obtaining information from the spy named "Crow."

A plan was prepared to take all the rewards from this dungeon.

"Crow" would raid the dungeon with the 5th Hunting Team of "Judgment of Fire," and they would enter the dungeon a bit later.

Then, they would kill the exhausted 5th Hunting Team and monopolize the various rewards from the dungeon.

A meticulous plan that "Judgment of Fire," unaware of the spy's existence, could not avoid.

It was a strategy planned by the Gangnam branch of the "Villain" clan.

"......"

But that was only under the assumption.

The assumption that "they were unaware of the spy's existence."

"Although I knew that the 'Villain' members formed their branches in a decentralized manner... who would have thought they would be so close?"

Right in front of the masked individuals.

A middle-aged man, who had planted a large sword in the ground, spoke.

Among the numerous holders, each wielding their weapons, the middle-aged man exuded a presence that made the surrounding air heavy.

"I never thought that even if the 'Villain' is sloppy compared to their cruelty, they would believe a single spy's words entirely. I didn't expect you to come in such a large group."

The plan they thought was perfect had collapsed.

The Gangnam branch members of the "Villain" clan, who intended to enter the dungeon a bit later to monopolize the rewards, had to witness with their own eyes that their plan had gone awry from the start.

"Judgment of Fire."

The elite members of one of the three major large clans representing Korea had gathered at the entrance of the "Forest Covered in Snakes."

Not only that.

A middle-aged man, who stood majestically among the elite clan members, was none other than...

One of the five S-grade holders in South Korea...

The master of the "Judgment of Fire" clan.

Kang Woo-hyun was there.

He, who was rarely seen even in official settings, had appeared in the middle of the Inwangsan Field.

"I didn't plan to come originally..."

Kang Woo-hyun slowly looked at the masked individuals.

His face showed no hint of crisis.

It was a face of utmost calm.

"My daughter unexpectedly joined the raid. If she's in danger, how could I, as a father, not come? Haha."

S-grade holder Kang Woo-hyun and the elite members of "Judgment of Fire."

In terms of numbers and abilities.

The holders who were superior in every aspect blocked their path.

A thorough encirclement, with the "Villain's" plans completely exposed.

* * *

Kwon Oh-jun continued to speak with a calm face.

"Min Chae-hwan. I'm tired of talking, so listen carefully. I knew you were a spy for the 'Villain' clan... before this operation even began. The reason the dispatch date was moved up a day, and the reason your ridiculous objections were not accepted, is the same."

A shocking fact was revealed.

The faces of the party members who were with him were filled with shock.

Was the archer who had fought alongside them all this time a spy?

And he was even a high-level holder with outstanding abilities?

"I've been watching your every move. You did a lot of cute things. The clan leadership and security team have been checking and preparing for your actions. Do you understand? It means that 80% of the information you provided was nonsense."

Kwon Oh-jun's words, which cut through sharply.

From his word choice, one could tell how angry he was.

Usually a team leader full of mischief, but Kwon Oh-jun had a significant trust in his teammates.

For him, infiltrating as a teammate to act as a spy...

It was one of the actions he could never forgive.

"Probably the members of your branch are also near the dungeon? You sly bastard. The clan support personnel are already here, and if you go out now, your comrades will be captured as well."

Min Chae-hwan's expression changed moment by moment.

From a sense of injustice to shock.

From shock to despair.

From despair to anger.

In the end, his expression showed a gaze that seemed to want to tear Kwon Oh-jun to pieces.

Proof that Kwon Oh-jun's words were true.

'Ah...! Min Chae-hwan! That was his name.'

And only then did I remember Min Chae-hwan's name.

A holder who, in the original story, was mentioned as a spy for the "Villain" clan who had infiltrated "Judgment of Fire."

His name was Min Chae-hwan.

- "Judgment of Fire" clan's first raid on the undiscovered dungeon fails... Clan member Min Chae-hwan revealed to be a spy for the "Villain" clan...

The story had passed by like a news article at the time.

This time, it was slightly altered when I joined as an intern, but in reality, none of the main characters had participated in the dungeon raid.

That's why I couldn't remember it at all.

The fact that the first dungeon raid had failed and that Min Chae-hwan, an archer, was a spy for the "Villain" clan.

Only after hearing Kwon Oh-jun's words did I recall these details.

"Since it's all over, kneel and clean your neck."

Thus, Kwon Oh-jun's final judgment was directed at Min Chae-hwan.

A terrifyingly cold and meticulous plan.

"Judgment of Fire" knew everything about the "Villain's" intentions.

The acquisition of information about "The Forest Covered in Snakes," the mobilization of personnel to monopolize the dungeon's rewards, and even the plan to use the 5th Hunting Team as a proxy to raid the dungeon.

"Judgment of Fire" had devised a plan to counter their plan.

Instead of disrupting the information flow, they advanced the dispatch date to make the "Villain's" preparations immature.

Then, they mobilized support personnel to eliminate variables.

Min Chae-hwan, the spy, was used as a force to bring the raid to the boss room of the dungeon and was subdued at the last moment...

This was a battle that the "Villain" side could not win from the start.

"Damn... it."

Min Chae-hwan slowly knelt down.

And he threw the bow he was holding onto the ground.

His expression was filled with humiliation.

It was essentially a declaration of surrender.

"Then..."

"Team Leader!"

But at that moment.

Although Min Chae-hwan's actions were already subdued...

A barrage of arrows rained down from the sky.

A multiple attack, like the magical attack of the wooden snake earlier.

The black arrows that filled the sky made me feel like I would get PTSD.

"Damn it..."

Kwon Oh-jun instantly cursed and raised his spear.

The other party members also took defensive stances in their own ways.

I didn't know exactly what skill it was...

But it was a long-range skill used by Min Chae-hwan, an archer.

It was his last desperate attempt as everything seemed to be over.

Everyone was tense and had to defend themselves.

But as I watched, I thought to myself.

'This... isn't a magical attack, right?'

The barrage of arrows was not a magical attack.

Just by observing the aura around Min Chae-hwan, I could tell.

He showed no signs of channeling mana.

If Min Chae-hwan had tried to use mana,

He would have already been attacked by Choi Dong-wook at that moment.

This barrage of arrows seemed to be a physical long-range skill triggered by dropping the bow.

Thinking this far,

I felt a sense of relief.

A physical attack coming from a distance.

No matter how many there were...

It couldn't harm me at all.

Thud- thud-

Thud-thud-thud-

Thud-thud-thud-thud-

Countless arrows fell helplessly to the ground.

The party members' expressions changed moment by moment at this astonishing sight.

"......?"

"What...?"

"Team Leader. What's going on?"

"...I'm not sure."

I smiled.

The reason the barrage of arrows was ineffective was due to my skill.

[Declaration of Melee Combat].

A skill I obtained by combining the upper rune [Master of Martial Arts].

During combat, for 10 minutes, it allowed me to ignore all physical attacks coming from a distance.

'I finally got to use this.'

When fighting the Imugi in the wild mountain, there was no need to use it.

Most of the Imugi's attacks were close-range, and the long-range attacks were earth magic using mana.

But in this specific situation, it was a perfect 200% effective skill.

"What... is this?"

The surprise arrow barrage ended so futilely.

As a result, Min Chae-hwan's expression was filled with bewilderment.

But I didn't stop there.

'This is an opportunity.'

After using [Declaration of Melee Combat] to nullify all the arrows,

I quickly picked up my sword and ran over.

And I stabbed it into Min Chae-hwan's shoulder.

It was an attack before Choi Dong-wook, who was subduing him, could react.

"K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K-K