He finally had a goal worth chasing for the first time. He finally had companions he could rely on.
So why did things turn out like this?
Darrick stared at his two grey wolves circling around Leon and the others, his expression twisting with jealousy.
I was clearly the one who came first…
For some reason, Leon was exceptionally good with animals. With just a few strokes of his hand, the two wolves completely melted under his touch—tails wagging, bodies leaning into him, their eyes shining in anticipation of yet another pat from those strong, reassuring hands.
Darrick looked down at his own.
Every time he petted them, the wolves always wore this subtle expression of "It feels a bit uncomfortable… but we don't want to hurt his feelings."
That memory alone was enough to make his soul leave his body.
Right now, he was seriously questioning why he ever agreed to team up with them.
Originally, his plan had been simple: bring his two lifelong grey wolf companions—who had undergone the Wolf Blood ritual with him—and test the waters inside the Dungeon. Nothing too deep.
Sure, it sounded painfully edgy…
But Leon loved it.
Unfortunately, after bumping into the group at the teleport gate, Darrick was warmly invited to join. He'd always been terrible at refusing people—by the time he realized what was happening, he was already walking into the Dungeon with them.
One moment of introversion, and his childhood partners were "stolen" right in front of him.
"Well, be careful up ahead," Maru said as she glanced back before they entered the Catacombs. "There's a surprise waiting."
A surprise? What surprise?
Is there anything left in this Dungeon that can actually scare me?
Darrick prided himself on knowing every trap and monster behavior in the Dungeon. Nothing inside should be able to surprise him now.
What could possibly be scarier than Farron Keep?
"Bwoom— bwoom— bwoom—"
The moment he saw more than a hundred archers all pull their bowstrings in perfect unison under the command of a giant, Darrick and his wolves instantly bristled.
I'm gonna die I'm gonna die I'm gonna die—
There was no way anyone could dodge that! Getting hit by that many arrows at once meant instant death, right!?
"Hehehe—"
Maru was delighted with Darrick's reaction, laughing so hard her small body shook. Her stomach already hurt.
Recently, a new trend had taken over Dungeon culture:
Taking your friends to the exact same places you were once ambushed, purely to make them suffer the same pain.
Watching others suffer—an essential delicacy in any dungeon.
"Maru, enough," Leon sighed helplessly as he pulled Darrick behind a row of tombstones.
Arrows fell like a storm, smashing into the tombstones with deafening noise. Even while hiding, they couldn't relax—tombstones could only withstand three or four volleys before breaking.
Arrows shot through gaps between tombstones as well, giving anyone near the edge a terrifying jolt that instantly sharpened their senses.
The barrage only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like a lifetime. The moment it stopped, they dashed toward the next row.
But this row was farther away. No matter how they timed it, they would be hit by at least one volley while crossing. Their only option was to split up into two small groups, head for two smaller tombstones, and regroup at the long row afterward.
Darrick had barely gotten over the shock. He admitted it—it scared him.
His wolves were even worse. It took a long time before they stopped trembling.
Sein Dungeon is terrifying…
That was Darrick's honest thought. Every time he believed he had mastered an area, something new appeared just to slap him in the face.
But… being slapped didn't feel entirely bad.
No, he wasn't a masochist.
It was just that this dungeon—full of surprises and tension—felt alive.
Unlike other lifeless dungeons, this one had vitality. And vitality meant potential.
He wanted this place to grow stronger and stronger.
"Too slow."
At that moment, Gapar finally reached the end of his patience.
In front of Darrick's widened eyes, the Sword Saint stood, lifted his blade, and unleashed a single swing—sending a violent gust that blew all incoming arrows aside. The next heartbeat, he was already sprinting toward the giant.
Having to hide behind tombstones with everyone else was suffocating even for him. He couldn't tolerate it anymore.
Last time, he had shielded everyone using wide sword sweeps during the arrow rain—but that forced him into a painfully slow crawl.
Now that he didn't have to cover anyone, he sprinted freely through the storm, slicing arrows mid-flight while rushing ahead at full speed.
"Wow, Master is so cool!" Leon popped his head out from behind the tombstone—only to immediately duck back as another volley came.
Luckily, Gapar cut down the giant soon after.
This time, however, no reward dropped.
Elite monsters like giants only dropped major rewards the first time someone defeated them. Afterward, they only yielded Souls.
Gapar swung at the spot where the giant vanished—multiple times—as if venting his frustration.
Darrick watched his back with admiration.
When would he become that strong?
If he had power on the Sword Saint's level, he would have saved every survivor from Val City.
After clearing the giants and archers, they returned to the roguelike stage—and encountered the Darkwraith.
Enemy and nemesis meeting face-to-face reignited Darrick instantly. He and his wolves lunged at them with fierce howls.
The Darkwraith who once terrified him—who he couldn't even fight back against—were now opponents he could engage, even suppress.
It wasn't just the Undead Legion's "special training" that helped him. He had also started intentionally collecting Souls for leveling. His progress was modest, but to him, monumental.
Sein Dungeon was growing.
Adventurers were growing.
Everyone had a bright future ahead.
After defeating the Darkwraith, the group reached the teleport chest.
This time, they entered together—more people meant more strength.
Unfortunately, they didn't know that dynamic difficulty had just been implemented.
Inside, it was still the familiar tombstone area—but something was wrong.
Darrick's wolves did not enter.
He tried to step back out, but the exit was gone—apparently, dying was the only way to return.
"Don't worry, they're smart. They'll be fine," Leon said soothingly, then taught him how to use the tombstone.
Darrick, a little clumsy, offered his Humanity.
It was still a fresh experience.
Along the way, he had learned the lore: everyone believed the tombstones belonged to the Grave King's faction, who opposed the Abyss. Their role was to assist the Grave King's followers in resisting its corruption.
Darrick didn't care which side he helped—as long as it involved slaying the Abyss.
Just thinking about the Farron Undead Legion succumbing to Abyssal corruption filled him with sorrow and rage. He wanted nothing more than to tear the Abyss apart.
One day, he would grow strong enough to kill the monster ruling the Abyss.
Offering Humanity granted a Tomb King's Blessing.
Darrick looked through them, but none felt suitable.
He rolled:
Grave King's Sword — powerful, but with a steep drawback. He wasn't arrogant enough to think he could completely avoid getting hit.
The other two were Bone Revival and Ossification—
Bone Revival restored the bones of all living beings within 100 meters.
Ossification caused one's bones to grow and mutate.
…These were clearly for necromancers!
Who in their right mind would mutate their own bones!?
He eventually picked [Bone Revival] since it was the only one that seemed remotely usable.
Leon had already mentioned that blessings and items from the Catacombs could be exchanged outside, so even useless ones might become valuable later.
Gapar stood silently before his tombstone, thinking for a long time. His three options were:
Grave King's Sword, Hellblade, Hard Bone.
His eyelid twitched.
In the end, he chose—
Hard Bone.
He would never again choose anything with a negative effect.
Never again.
Damn Scarlet Rot.
Damn Rotspawn.
Leon looked a little disappointed—he didn't get the blessing he wanted and ended up choosing one at random.
After everyone finished, they entered the first stage: a trial filled entirely with skeleton monsters.
The moment the fight began, something felt off.
CLANG!
Darrick's sword bounced off a skeleton.
"What!? Why is it so tough!?"
Everyone had similar problems—
Except Gapar, who could still cut them cleanly.
An armored skeleton punched Terl.
A perfectly ordinary-looking punch—yet it sent him stumbling back in shock.
BOOM!
The ground cracked, leaving a fist-sized crater where it struck.
Terl's eyes nearly popped out.
Seriously!?
The skeletons had all been massively strengthened.
They had to go all-out just to kill one.
Only Gapar could fight comfortably.
Gapar smiled with confidence.
"Leave them to me. You young ones are still lacking."
Even with strengthened monsters, he could overpower them with sheer force. He could fight completely unhindered.
This was normal.
Because of Difficulty Balancing, the skeletons were scaled to match the strongest member—Gapar.
What they were fighting now were the skeletons' final form.
But—
"Master! Behind you!"
Leon shouted.
The skeletons Gapar just cut down were standing back up—their shattered bones regenerating right before their eyes!
Why could they still recover!?
That was cheating!
Gapar turned to destroy the revived skeletons, but the moment he finished them off, the previous ones were already standing up again.
The hundred-plus skeletons suddenly felt like an infinite swarm.
"Sss—"
Darrick sucked in a cold breath.
Watching the skeletons collapse and revive over and over, he suddenly remembered his blessing:
Bone Revival.
No way…
Was his blessing affecting the monsters too!?
Who would ever think to check whether a blessing also applied to monsters!?
Sein Dungeon, why would you design something like this!?
At that moment, Darrick's mental pressure peaked—and since he had shared his blessing choices earlier, everyone immediately understood what happened.
Their eyes toward Darrick grew… complicated.
Soon after, everyone except Gapar was sent back to the starting point.
They all said the same thing:
"Always read the blessing effects carefully before choosing!"