The palace, cloaked in a gloomy, ominous air, was nothing short of magnificent. Surrounded by towering walls, the only entrance was a single, massive gate. As we walked the exposed path leading into the heart of the structure, we once again found ourselves awestruck by its sheer grandeur.
“Are these… statues?”
I reached out and brushed my fingers against one of the figures lining the corridor, voicing my uncertainty. It was far too detailed to be a mere sculpture, yet its hard surface—like cold metal—left little room for doubt.
“There are so many books….”
“And every single one’s something I’ve never seen before.”
“Hey! Don’t just go touching stuff!”
Aquila snapped, grabbing the wrist of a man who had been about to reach for a bookshelf. Lim Chang-joo spoke.
“This is the final floor. We need to be especially careful. There could be traps….”
“Come on, traps? Seriously?”
Kim Seong-jae scoffed, his tone mocking.
“Executive Director, aren’t you being a bit too cautious? We’ve made it this far just fine.”
“…The other guild members have certainly done well, but that doesn’t mean we can afford to let our guard down now. Who knows what might happen if we get careless at the last moment?”
Kim Seong-jae looked less than pleased. Lim Chang-joo glanced calmly around and added,
“So please, everyone—let’s stay vigilant until the very end…”
“What the hell is this?!”
Someone had yanked out a book mid-sentence, ignoring Lim Chang-joo’s warning, and cried out in panic. In an instant, the floor gave way, and those nearby plummeted through the gap. A woman jolted in alarm, bumping into a vase with her elbow. The vase hit the floor and shattered—at that exact moment, a thunderous roar rang out.
The statues—those statues—began to move.
Blue Star shouted,
“Run!”
We bolted without hesitation. It was the right call—fighting in such a narrow hallway would only lead to injuries.
The chaos scattered our group as we ran every which way. Startled by a gargoyle statue chasing close behind, Baek Tae-beom grabbed my hand and said,
“In there! Hide in that room!”
The moment we rounded the corner, we ducked into a room and slammed the door behind us. We could hear the flapping wings and heavy thuds of the monster passing just outside.
“There must be a lot of traps. We’d better not touch anything.”
“How are we going to regroup?”
“Let’s find the boss room first.”
Judging that the immediate danger had passed, we cautiously stepped back into the hallway.
And that’s when we saw it.
A skeleton wearing a bowtie, holding a serving tray.
While Baek Tae-beom instinctively reached for his sword to strike it down, the skeleton simply clacked its jaw in what seemed like confusion, as if it were surprised.
“Wait.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t think it’s trying to attack us.”
I calmly placed my hand on Baek Tae-beom’s arm to lower his sword and tried to meet the skeleton’s hollow gaze. Its jaw clattered again, almost as if trying to say something—but of course, I couldn’t understand a word of it…
‘Oh, right.’
[Skill: Free Language]
[You activate the skill: Free Language]
[Free Language has been activated. The blessing of the Constellation is bestowed.]
– Are you guests?
Absurdly enough, the skeleton spoke with a pleasant, refined voice. Gripping Baek Tae-beom’s hand tightly, I replied,
“Yes. We got a bit lost on the way…”
“Hyung?”
– You must be here to see the master. Allow me to guide you.
“Thank you.”
“Hyung??”
I kept a firm hold on Baek Tae-beom’s hand as I followed behind the skeleton. With his sword still half-drawn, Baek Tae-beom had a look on his face like he couldn’t believe what was happening, but he followed along nonetheless.
“Since when could you talk to skeletons? What the hell is it saying?”
“Seems like it’s mistaken us for guests. Says it’ll take us to its master.”
“…Guests?”
The look on Baek Tae-beom’s face made me burst out laughing.
Ridiculous as it was, the statues that had been ready to attack just moments ago now let us pass with docile expressions as we walked with the skeleton. Was there some kind of recognition system between them?
The interior of the palace was breathtaking. The aura that shimmered in the light streaming through the windows made it all the more ethereal.
But as grand as it all was, the dead roamed freely here as well. A headless corpse in a suit wandered the hallway, while another—half of its body crushed—sat sipping wine in an elegant dress.
– This is the Strategy Room.
The skeleton spoke politely. Corpses clad in knights’ armor and helmets were locked in combat or diligently maintaining their weapons.
– The master is fond of watching duels. On rest days like this, everyone checks their gear.
As it spoke, the skeleton looked… as though it were smiling with its eyes. Baek Tae-beom muttered irritably,
“That bastard’s trying to flirt with you, hyung.”
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
– Please, follow me. If you continue along this way, you’ll arrive at the palace’s pride and joy: our garden.
As promised, a stunningly beautiful garden unfolded before us. Fields of blooming violet flowers, ornate fountains, and trees blossoming like cherry blossoms filled the space with breathtaking charm.
– Isn’t it beautiful?
If only there weren’t corpses strolling through it, it would’ve been convincing. I ignored the undead figure trudging past with a spear pierced through its abdomen, groaning uugghh, and kept walking. Baek Tae-beom whispered,
“What’s the skeleton saying now?”
“He’s bragging about how beautiful the garden is.”
“And what do you think, hyung?”
“I guess… it is pretty.”
“Do you like flowers?”
Do I like flowers?
“I don’t… hate them?”
“Got it.”
Still, everyone else was probably running for their lives, and here we were just taking a leisurely stroll. Was that okay? I thought I heard explosions and screaming from far away.
– Apologies, we’re currently dealing with some uninvited guests. We hope for your understanding.
“Y-yes…”
I couldn’t bring myself to say we might be those uninvited guests.
– This way, please…
The next stop was the banquet hall. I was starting to get the impression that this skeleton was genuinely giving us a full-on tour of the palace. Watching the translucent ghosts eating with clinking utensils left me with an indescribable feeling.
– If it pleases you, would you care to dine first?
“No, no, we’re good.”
Everyone knows not to put even a single pomegranate seed in your mouth in the afterlife. The skeleton visibly looked disappointed.
Our next stop was the ballroom. A waltz played gracefully in the air as ghosts danced in elegant circles. I found myself admiring the way their flowing dresses twirled as they spun. The skeleton made another offer.
– Would you care for a dance?
“We’ll pass. More importantly, are you sure this is the right way?”
– Of course. Just follow this corridor, and you’ll arrive at the master’s chamber. However, the master is currently asleep, so—wait! Sirs! Please stop!
I immediately grabbed Baek Tae-beom’s hand and dashed in the direction the skeleton had pointed. The clattering of bones echoed behind us, but I ignored it. We ran down the hallway for what felt like quite a while, until finally—
A massive door stood before us.
And at that moment, the others arrived too.
“Huff… huff…”
Lim Chang-joo and Kim Seong-jae from the Association, Jin Ha-yoon of Gongmyeong, Blue Star and Lee Tae-hyung of the Wanderers, Oh Kwon-hyuk of Goblin, as well as Aquila and Yoo Ji-won.
Including me and Baek Tae-beom, there were ten of us in total.
“Only ten left?”
Yoo Ji-won groaned, burying his face in his hands. He looked like he’d been through hell.
“Damn it! The beginning was glorious, but the end is pitiful!”
[Lmao how did this happen XD]
[Boss room now???? They’re so screwed]
[Can ten people clear it? It’s S-Rank??]
[But they’ve got S-Ranks too, so maybe?]
[S-Rank isn’t something to take lightly T_T]
[If they’re all S-Rank, maybe it’s doable lol]
“Isn’t it amazing we even made it this far? Honestly… we lost so many along the way. Let’s just head back, yeah?”
“Mr. Kim Seong-jae, did you just suggest we retreat?”
“What can we even accomplish now, with just this many people?”
Lee Tae-hyung shook his head, speaking rapidly.
“To give up without trying goes against my principles… A principle is, psychologically speaking, a belief or idea one accepts as a moral tenet—”
“Okay~ Tae-hyung, could you please be quiet for a second?”
Blue Star calmed him down.
“I’m also against turning back now. After everything we’ve been through, what, we’re going to leave without even seeing the boss? No way.”
Oh Kwon-hyuk nodded in agreement.
“For once, our views align.”
“Hey, you folks are all strong, so maybe you don’t get it, but for someone like me—”
“I also agree with moving forward.”
Ignoring Kim Seong-jae’s puffed-up complaints, Jin Ha-yoon chimed in.
“Advancing suits me more than retreating.”
“Agreed,” Aquila nodded.
Kim Seong-jae threw a tantrum.
“Ugh, seriously!”
“Hunter Baek Tae-beom, Hunter Choi Ga-hyeon—what do you two plan to do?”
At Lim Chang-joo’s question, Baek Tae-beom slowly turned to look at me. All eyes were on us. I nodded.
“Let’s go in right away.”
We already had a good idea of who the boss was. There was only one path forward.
Creeeeeaaaak.
The massive doors groaned as they swung open. And then, we saw it.
Atop a throne, seated upon a mountain of corpses stripped of their fingernails and toenails— sat Hel.
