"I apologize for that sudden outburst." Jinwoo said humbly.
He added, "please allow me to make it up to you."
He turned his gaze at Thalia…his eyes changed to a bright purple color.
!Alert!
[The Shadow Monarch is watching you]
Thalia's heart started to race…it felt like he was looking straight into her very soul. After a moment the following alert appeared.
!ALERT!
[The Shadow Monarch is accessing the System]
Then the following happened.
!ALERT!
[Daily Quest – Maiden's Training is in!]
[Maiden's Training – Daily schedule will be determined by Ammut]
Jinwoo smiled cheerfully…like an old man confirming that "he still got it." He opened his hand and extended a black key to Thalia and said, "this should help. Take this…and please remember to complete the daily quest every day."
!ALERT!
[You have acquired a Shadow Dungeon Key]
After a few minutes, Jinwoo excused himself and left…leaving behind two very shocked women.
[THE NEXT DAY]
Thalia was extremely nervous…this would be her first time entering the Shadow Dungeon. She had no idea what to expect…daily training? What exactly is meant by "training"? Would it be dangerous? Who is this Ammut person?
Her nerves diminished when she thought about the events that occurred the day before. After Jinwoo left, Gaia collapsed. Thalia chuckled recalling the hilarious memory.
Meeting the Shadow Monarch was nothing like how either of them imaged. He was kind, and caring…not a "devil" tyrant as many believed. Contrary to expectations, he was not the "King" or "God" of earth…he easily could claim that authority if he wished…not a single person could stop him. Yet, the Shadow Monarch chose to entrust others with that authority.
The irony was too great…both Thalia and Gaia chuckled thinking that the cosmos was full of Itarim Gods craving more power…and here the "Dark God" chose to relinquish power.
Gaia nearly fainted again when Hae-in explained that her husband was no "God" and he didn't want anyone to see him that way. In fact, Jinwoo and Hae-in lived a very ordinary life. They lived in a modest home in South Korea (not a palace full of servants), he had a normal job (before the war), helped with errands at home, cooked occasionally, and enjoyed watching TV.
To think that the Shadow Monarch would be so different…so "normal". Gaia had served for many years an Itarim God…and she knew from first-hand experience how cruel and heartless the Itarims were. The contrast between the Shadow Monarch and Itarim was too big to process…any sane person would reasonably faint trying to reconcile this contradiction.
Thalia chuckled thinking about her mom…Hae-In and Thalia spent the rest of the day calming Gaia down…lol.
She took a deep calming breath, used the Shadow Dungeon Key and entered the Shadow Dungeon. Immediately after entering, she saw the following messages,
!ALERT!
[Arsha the Monarch of the Void and Queen of Insects is watching you]
[Ammut the Monarch of Trials and King of Monstrous Humanoids is watching you]
[Thomas Andre the Monarch of Conquest and King of Giants is watching you]
Thalia gulped…she felt like the new girl in school walking into a crowded cafeteria on her first day with all the kids watching. As soon as she entered the dungeon, she observed a tall and beautiful woman with brown eyes and long wavy black hair approaching.
"You must be Thalia. Hi, I am Arsha, the Monarch of the Void and Queen of Insects. You can call me Arsha…Unfortunately, Ammut is busy training that ape over there…let me show you around."
Arsha spoke casually and care-free…like two old friends catching up on old times.
The Shadow Dungeon was surprisingly a very diverse place. It had a ruined city, jungle, and other biomes. The most obvious feature, however, was the large Pyramid Training Center near the spot where Thalia had entered.
After 15-20 minutes, two large figures approached them. One was a large muscular man and the other was a very large muscular reptile.
"Hi there! I heard a newbie was coming today, you must be Thalia. I'm Thomas Andre," he said with a giant grin on his face, "pleasure to meet you. I would love to stay and chat, but my vacation time is over."
"Vacation! Grrr…" Ammut was clearly upset. He yelled in a menacing voice, "next time I won't go easy on you!" Thomas continued grinning as he departed from the dungeon.
"That man really gets on my nerves…next time I will kill him for sure…yeah…I WILL KILL HIM." Ammut snarled.
He turned his attention to Thalia and without any introduction he said, "are you just going to stand there? Time to train!"