The Living Jar that charges while spinning!
"Wah!"
Maru was so startled that she panicked, completely forgetting to dodge.
And honestly, you couldn't blame her. When a giant jar—taller and bulkier than a person—comes spinning at you at high speed like Garen, the sheer visual impact alone is enough to erase the very concept of dodging from your mind.
"What are you spacing out for?!"
Leon yanked Maru behind him and brought his sword crashing down on the Living Jar.
Bang!
Cutting a Warrior Jar cleanly in half like that was, of course, impossible.
No one can stop a spinning, charging Living Jar.
No one!
"Boss!" Maru suddenly screamed—
Because Leon had just taken a Living Jar's fist straight to the face and was sent flying.
The wall shook as he slammed into it, then slowly slid down like a cartoon character, his cheek swollen to an absurd size, eyes rolled back.
Yeah… he looked like he was about to get carted off.
As the Living Jar charged toward her again, every hair on Maru's body stood on end.
---
Outside the room, Darrick was speaking with someone he never expected to interact with.
"Your swordsmanship is interesting," Gapar said, casually sitting on a broken chair without caring about the dust.
"But you didn't create it yourself, did you?"
Darrick nodded nervously, obedient like a well-behaved kid.
"The form is copied well," Gapar continued, saying something Darrick never expected to hear,
"but the core is lacking. Want me to teach you a thing or two?"
"Huh?!" Darrick looked up in disbelief.
"What, not interested?"
"No, no!" He shook his head, then nodded frantically.
"I am! Very interested!"
He truly hadn't expected the famous Sword Saint to offer him guidance. Countless people begged for such an opportunity and never received it—yet this unbelievable stroke of luck had fallen straight into his lap.
Gapar seemed pleased with his reaction.
"Then what should you call me now?"
Darrick hesitated. "…Master?"
"Mhm." Gapar nodded.
"Then your first lesson begins: contribution. Give me your jacket."
Darrick blinked, confused, but obediently took off his jacket and handed it over.
After all, Gapar was still bare-chested—his clothes had been blown apart during his fight with Onze.
"Very good. I'll teach you the second lesson next time."
He patted Darrick on the shoulder, smiling warmly.
Wait—so you weren't shirtless for style?!
"Ah!"
Before Darrick could realize he'd been completely scammed, Maru's scream echoed from a nearby room.
---
When the two arrived, chaos greeted them.
Leon lay on the ground, waiting for Drew's rescue.
Terl was locked in a wrestling match with the Living Jar, his arms tightly wrapped around it.
Meanwhile, Maru stood behind the Living Jar, gripping her curved sword, clearly trying to sneak an ASS—but…
That jar's backside was airtight.
This Living Jar was an elite variant. Even Terl, who had already turned green-skinned, was being overwhelmed in sheer strength, sweat pouring down his face.
Still, his restraint prevented the jar from using its signature spinning charge.
All that remained was for Maru to slowly grind it down with her curved sword.
"Uh…"
Darrick stared at the absurd scene for a moment, then stepped forward and smashed the Living Jar apart with his greatsword.
Maru collapsed onto the floor, panting heavily.
"Hah… hah…"
She never wanted to bring a jar like that home again.
She immediately flipped open the Hunter's Manual to check what kind of monster this thing actually was.
---
[Hunter's Manual: Monster Category]
[Name: Living Jar]
[The Warrior Jars of Jar Village are lovable beings. They cherish peace and honor in battle, and among themselves form a harmonious, family-like community.]
[Their strength comes from the dead. They place the bodies of recognized heroes inside themselves, inheriting their power and glory. Being chosen by a Living Jar after death is considered an honor.]
[However, some Warrior Jars contain evil beings from elsewhere…]
---
After reading this, Maru's gaze toward the shattered jar turned strange.
When the Warrior Jar broke earlier, blood and flesh had spilled everywhere. She had assumed it was simply the jar's internal organs—some creature that merely looked like a jar on the outside.
But now—
That was all corpses?!
She instinctively took several steps back. Who would have thought that such an honest-looking jar would collect bodies?
The contrast was… hard to accept.
Even if both the Living Jars and the deceased considered it a good thing, to an outsider, it was deeply unsettling.
Still, the lore neatly explained why Living Jars often appeared in graveyard areas.
Darrick picked up an item from the pile of gore.
---
[Raw Meat Dumpling]
[A strongly flavored raw meat dumpling, nearly spoiled—perfect for consumption. Restores vitality but causes mild poisoning.]
---
He glanced at Leon lying on the ground, then stuffed it straight into his mouth.
After all, Drew still hadn't returned.
Then Darrick fed Leon an antidote potion. His healing potions were already gone—only antidotes remained.
As the dumpling took effect, Leon slowly regained consciousness.
"…Why does my mouth taste salty? What did you feed me?"
Maru hesitated. She exchanged a glance with Darrick.
Darrick shook his head.
…Yeah. Let's just keep that a secret.
At that moment, Drew finally returned. He had been inspecting the structure of the surrounding rooms—some contained books, which were extremely valuable finds.
Unfortunately, most were unreadable for various reasons, and the few that could be read contained nothing useful.
Still, history enthusiasts would treasure them. Drew decided to spread the information once they got out.
The team reorganized and continued deeper.
Their exploration steadily descended. Floating stone platforms and ladders leading downward appeared frequently—it felt as though they were already far underground.
The deeper they went, the clearer the signs of the Abyss became.
Sticky, filthy black substances began appearing in corners of the map—and even on monsters themselves. Any creature infected by the Abyss became wildly aggressive.
Was this the Sein Dungeon's indirect way of increasing difficulty?
As they continued downward, the environment shifted—from connected small rooms, to unfinished chambers, and finally to rough mining tunnels.
It was as if the dungeon itself were saying: the deeper you go, the less humanity remains.
"The further down we go, the fewer traces of humans there are," Drew analyzed confidently.
"This is the dungeon warning us—powerful monsters await at the deepest level."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
In reality, though, it was just asset reuse.
Gapar looked bored. None of the monsters here were even worth a single swing to him.
The roguelike dungeon had been far more enjoyable—challenging yet balanced.
He really wanted to fight Onze again.
No—focus. I need to find the Larval Tear.
There was something he hadn't told Leon and the others—
He wouldn't be staying in Bed City for long.
The Larval Tear was important, but other matters awaited him. He planned to stay only about a week.
If it didn't drop by then… perhaps he'd ask someone else to farm it for him.
Like his daughter.
"Boss! Something's up ahead!" Maru called out, acting like a living radar as usual.
Ahead lay a descending staircase. Below it was a space packed with monsters—but something was off.
They seemed to be attacking… another monster?
The besieged creature looked familiar.
A large Living Jar.
But unlike the one they'd fought earlier, this one's surface was riddled with cracks—clearly battered and wounded.
It braced itself against a small door, using its body to block the invading monsters.
The cost was obvious—it couldn't counterattack.
Or rather, it no longer had the strength to.
Its body trembled weakly.
It looked… pitiful.
"Should we help it?" Maru asked sympathetically.
"But if it attacks us, we kill it too."
"Agreed."
Before the monsters noticed them, Drew began chanting spells rapidly.
Thanks to the terrain, he had a clear line of sight. Magic missiles and other spells landed perfectly.
"Gaaah!"
The monsters howled in agony.
The Living Jar seemed stunned—it clearly hadn't expected help.
Only when Leon and the others approached did it finally react.
Leon tightened his grip on his sword, eyes locked on the jar. Any hostile movement, and he'd strike without hesitation.
Yet this jar felt different—less savage than other monsters.
…Could it communicate?
At that moment, the Living Jar shifted aside, opening the path behind it.
From beyond the door came many similar presences.
The jar waved its arms, gesturing for them to enter.
Inside was… just an ordinary room.
So where were those presences coming from?
The Living Jar knocked on the wall.
A hidden door appeared.
Beyond it—
A completely different scene.
Still a graveyard—but not eerie.
Warm firelight illuminated the area.
Grass and flowers grew freely.
With blossoms adorning the graves, the place felt more like a park than a cemetery.
Maru stared deeper inside, mouth hanging open.
She spotted several small figures.
A group of smaller Living Jars…
Playing among the flowers.