The reason for the fighting inside the treasure chamber was simple.
“That black bastard said we could take as much as we wanted!”
“Are you insane? And you actually believed that?!”
“So what, you’re not taking anything? Just grabbing this much would make you filthy rich! Be honest, you wanna take some too, don’t you?”
The black figure gazed down at the squabbling people. It had no eyes, nose, or mouth, yet it somehow looked like it was smiling. Beside that shadowy form sat a large, worn-out clock.
But despite being a clock, it lacked both hour and minute hands—only the second hand continued to tick forward.
‘What is that thing?’
Still, the people seemed far more interested in the treasure.
“He really said we could take it?”
“Hey… isn’t it weirder not to take it?”
“Hold up! What if it’s a trap?!”
“The hell are you babbling about, trying to take more for yourself, huh?”
The group that had just joined them wasn’t doing much better. Upon hearing they could take as much treasure as they liked, the hunters had turned frantic, yelling at each other with bloodshot eyes, desperate not to lose out.
“Hunter Blue Star, Hunter Oh Kwon-hyuk… and Hunter Baek Tae-beom. Nice to see you. I already said hello earlier, but ah—Hunter Choi Ga-hyeon, you’re here too.”
“Hello.”
“What a shame to meet again like this~ Hunter Lim Chang-joo. To think you’d decide to join us even with things escalating to this point. If it were me, I’d have gone straight up~”
Short bobbed purple hair—Lim Chang-joo. One of the key executives in the Association, and someone who sided with Kang Si-hoo and fought to the bitter end in The Apocalypse Chronicles of Another World.
“From the look of this chaos, I think we can both agree that joining us might’ve been a huge miscalculation~.”
Blue Star said this, then looked over at the now-doubled number of people furiously insisting on taking the treasure. Honestly, the fewer people there were to manage, the better.
But Lim Chang-joo shook his head.
“Not at all. In fact, I plan to use this very situation to filter people out.”
“Filter them out?”
“If they refuse to listen to orders and insist on taking treasure even when there’s someone giving instructions, then they’ll just keep doing the same on the upper floors. Better to let the ones who want treasure go ahead and take it—then send them off.”
A logical argument. Was that why they were just letting things play out like this? Still, Blue Star didn’t look entirely convinced, rubbing his chin with a discontented expression.
“But surely there are some people too valuable to just leave behind.”
“Aren’t we looking for people who’ll actually help clear this dungeon? Not those who are just after treasure. Look at the ones fighting now.”
“So you’re going to hand them the loot and send them back?”
Oh Kwon-hyuk asked bluntly.
“That’s the idea. Unless you have objections?”
Just then, a man approached slowly. Clad entirely in white from head to toe, he’d been drawing attention the moment he arrived. He wore something like a hanbok overcoat, his face serene and composed.
‘Who is that?’
With someone so eye-catching, it felt like someone who knew the original The Apocalypse Chronicles of Another World would remember him. But no one came to mind.
“Excuse me, I’m Jin Ha-yoon from the Gongmyeong Guild.”
‘Gongmyeong Guild?’
So even Gongmyeong was part of this?
Blue Star looked somewhat surprised, eyeing Jin Ha-yoon up and down.
“Mind if I say something?”
“Sure, go ahead…”
“I don’t think we should abandon people so easily. Aren’t they also people who could be saved, if only they had help?”
Listening to him, it almost sounded like they were the ones planning to toss people away. That oddly solemn tone made the atmosphere strangely uncomfortable.
“Our Guildmaster has always said: one should never discard another person lightly. If we stay by their side, I’m sure they’ll eventually listen to us.”
“…Hmm. And how, exactly?”
“I’ll try to persuade them.”
With that, Jin Ha-yoon stepped in between two men who were in the middle of a fight.
“The hell?”
“Everyone, please hear me out. Conflict… is born from hatred in our hearts.”
The two men paused, staring back and forth between each other and Jin Ha-yoon, their eyes full of confusion.
“But you two, you don’t actually… ow, ah, hate each other. Just a moment…”
“What the fuck is he on about?”
“I truly believe… you don’t hate one another—ah, ow, that hurts…”
They all stared at Jin Ha-yoon, dumbfounded. He’d said he’d go talk them down, but he was just sitting there getting his ass beat. With long strides, Oh Kwon-hyuk approached and pulled Jin Ha-yoon out from between the men like yanking out a stubborn radish.
“Wow, thank you. You’re so kind.”
“……”
Oh Kwon-hyuk simply stared at Jin Ha-yoon with an expression that said, What the hell is this guy?
Clearing his throat, Lim Chang-joo spoke up.
“See? Trying to persuade everyone here is pure fantasy.”
“That much I understand. But what is that black thing?”
I pointed at the massive, pitch-black figure. It must have realized I was pointing at it because it slowly turned its head toward me and gave a playful little wave. No matter how you looked at it, this wasn’t a normal boss monster. Behind that looming shadow, a staircase stretched upward.
“Doesn’t seem like it wants to attack us.”
“That figure spoke when we first arrived. Said we could take as much treasure as we desired.”
“As much as we desired?”
Lim Chang-joo nodded.
“To be exact, it said: ‘You may take the treasure freely, as much as your greed desires. But those who take shall ascend. Those who do not will not escape death.’”
“That basically sounds like it’s telling us to take it.”
“Isn’t it obviously a trap? Anyone who’s raided a few dungeons should catch on right away… but everyone’s blinded by greed.”
At those words, I slowly turned my gaze to the black figure. I mouthed, Is it a trap?, but the pitch-black being only shook its head slowly.
‘Could it be… that it only speaks in lies?’
But even if the treasure is a trap, what could we do about it? I bent down and picked up one of the gold coins scattered across the floor. It looked like any ordinary gold coin…
[CH.#fdl990/One More Dazzling Than the Sun] : Put that down right now.
[CH.#fdl990/One Who Seeks to Escape Destruction] : Huh?
[CH.#fdl990/One More Dazzling Than the Sun] : I said DROP IT!
[CH.#fdl990/One Who Seeks to Escape Destruction] : Why are you yelling all of a sudden…?
In that instant, I realized something was very wrong.
[Skill: Eye of the Dead]
[You are using the skill: Eye of the Dead]
[Activating Eye of the Dead. Blessing of the Constellation granted.]
A status window popped up in front of my eyes—one that revealed the black entity’s details.
[Remnant of Loki]
[Speaks everything in reverse. A mischievous remnant of the ever-kind Loki, as long as it is not attacked. Everything it says comes true.]
‘Speaks everything in reverse… and anything it says becomes reality?’
I looked at the clock beside Loki’s Remnant. The second hand continued to tick away.
“You may take the treasure freely, as much as your greed desires. But those who take shall ascend. Those who do not will not escape death.”
I dropped the gold coin as if it were on fire and immediately ran past the others, shoving my way forward. I screamed at the people desperately trying to hoard the treasure.
“Put that down RIGHT NOW!”
I yanked open the info window of the nearest person in front of me.
[Viewing target’s information…]
[Kim Geun-sik the Crooked]
[Title: Crooked, Clear-Eyed
Rank: C
Status: 23 seconds remaining
Contracted Constellation: None
Coins in possession: Cannot be verified
Skills: [Note-Taking] [Lockpicking] [Powerhouse]
This awakened being has no contracted Constellation. He is under an abnormal status effect and requires recovery.]
Baek Tae-beom, flustered, ran after me.
“Hyung?”
But I ignored him and struggled to snatch the treasure from their hands.
“PUT IT DOWN, YOU IDIOTS! UNLESS YOU WANNA DIE!”
“What the hell is your problem? Get lost!”
“YOU’RE ALL GONNA DIE!”
But I was shoved aside by a rough hand and sent tumbling backward. Meanwhile, the seconds kept ticking away.
[Viewing target’s information…]
[Kim Geun-sik the Crooked]
[Title: Crooked, Clear-Eyed
Rank: C
Status: 11 seconds remaining
Contracted Constellation: None
Coins in possession: Cannot be verified.]
[Skills: [Note-Taking] [Lockpicking] [Powerhouse]
This awakened being has no contracted Constellation. He is under an abnormal status effect and requires recovery.]
“No!”
“Hyung, what’s wrong?!”
There was no time. I grabbed the collar of the man at the front, yanking him toward me, and desperately tried to pry the gold coins out of the pouch he had stuffed full.
No, screw that—I needed to get my staff out—
But the summoned staff slipped from my grasp in midair, and I fumbled helplessly.
“What the fuck are you doing, you crazy bastard—!”
No.
The man raised his fist, and at the exact same moment, the alarm on the clock beside Loki’s Remnant began to sound. And then—something massive slammed down over my eyes and pulled me back.
Pop.
Squelch.
A burst echoed out, and a thick, wet sensation coated my entire body. I stood frozen, mouth agape, unable to speak. One after another, explosion-like sounds rang out in every direction—and then, silence.
[The Constellation ‘One Who Seeks to Escape Destruction’ is synchronizing with the Holy Vessel.]
Blood flowed into my mouth. I couldn’t even spit it out. I remained stiff, paralyzed in place—until a long, slender finger slid between my lips.
“It’s okay, hyung. You’re being good, right…? Come on, stick out your tongue. It’s okay. Everything’s okay. Nothing happened. You’re fine.”
Baek Tae-beom whispered softly, calmly, as he stroked my tongue with his finger. The rough ridges of old wounds dragged across my flesh. Still covering my eyes, he carefully pulled me into his arms.
[The Constellation ‘One Who Seeks to Escape Destruction’ is synchronizing with the Holy Vessel.]
My whole body was ice cold. Baek Tae-beom held me tightly, pressing me into him.
Somewhere nearby, the black figure was chuckling—low and gleeful.
