Chapter 117: Land of the Dead (5)
On the way to Death Valley, there were strangely many zombies.
The skeletons of the Tomb of the Dead seemed to have been captured by Maro and his party, but the zombies felt like they had not touched Maro and his party.
Ikegami said as if dissatisfied.
"That's it… I will lose everything."
Heather answered with a worried face.
"It's difficult… … . If you fight the boss without the help of artifacts… … ."
"Now, Maro is more urgent than the boss. If we lose the other two, then Maro might come to hunt us."
"That, right… … ."
"Damn it, how it works… … ."
Ikegami said as Jang Hana followed her with a worried face.
"If a battle occurs, run away well, actively use the shield, and carry the shield."
"Yeah… … ."
After leaving a word, Ikegami approached the approaching zombie and drew a sword.
After a five-hour journey, they entered the borders of the area marked on the map as Death Valley.
Some zombies looked like monsters, and the corpses of monsters more enormous and hideous than zombies were scattered on the floor.
Judging from the traces of being cut or crushed, it was in a state similar to that of the tomb of the dead.
Such traces were at regular intervals.
Song Wei Guang saw the time.
After 20 hours of not sleeping, it was time to run full-time for a long time and get tired from fighting.
"It would take at least seven hours to get to the Tower of Bones. If they didn't catch the zombies, they'd most likely have harvested the Tower of Bone artifacts by the time we arrived. However, there is also a possibility that this will not be the case, so I would appreciate it if you could give me your opinion on whether to take a break or go ahead."
Ikegami immediately responded to Song Wei Guang's words.
"Once you know you are collecting artifacts, you must chase after them even in a crowd."
Heather also helped.
"I agree. It's not even a situation of accumulated fatigue."
"Lewis?"
Jun-woo said.
"Let's go. If we don't meet there, I think we'll be in trouble."
Song Wei Guang nodded.
"Jang Hana, please be a little bit stronger."
"I am excellent. It's still cool."
“Thank you. Then let's move on again. Maro and his demons will be killed when found. I hope you all prepare your heart."
Needless to say, in their minds, Maro was already on the same level as a monster.
If there is a slight difference between monsters, it is about wanting to ask why they did this when they were caught.
Anyway, unable to lose any more artifacts, they rushed towards the Tower of Bone with all their might.
The battle with the zombies continued again, and Butte and Maro, who were far away, looked down at it from the cliff of a bare mountain with nothing but land.
Butte looked at Jun-woo, who was flying with a blue light.
"Is that guy a legend-level human?"
"Yes, Butte."
"It's the ability to fly, so it's tricky. His attack power is also considerable."
"It also has tanking power due to the mana shield."
Butte looked at Jun-woo and wrinkled the tip of his nose.
"There are two bad guys."
"Perhaps you are talking about Jang Hana and Heather. They are Rudiel's followers."
"One of them is particularly filthy, with a human-themed resemblance to the Elyos mana."
Maro did not say it hastily because he did not know which one he was talking about, Jang Hana or Heather.
"Are they all on the same level as you?"
"Yes, Lewis and Song Wei Guang are a little taller."
"I'll have to find my wings first."
"That's right, Butte."
They stand there for a while, watching the battle from afar. As they moved away, they too turned their backs on them.
* * *
Jang Hana's mouth opened slightly when she saw a massive tower of bones.
"Wow… … ."
It was a tower that felt like a playground built up through bones to the sky's end.
They ran towards the bright moonlight and entered what appeared to be the entrance.
The phrase appeared in front of the people who entered.
[When catching a monster in the Tower of Bone, there is a chance to increase DEF by 1. The increased value will disappear when you leave the ‘Land of the Dead.']
And at the same time, as I felt the mana of the monsters that I couldn't feel outside, they approached me in the dark.
“Coming."
"What about monsters?"
When Ikegami was puzzled, something like a wolf or a bear made of bones ran from the back of a gigantic bone pillar.
Thud!
Song Wei Guang and the defensive robot approached them and bumped into them, and Ikegami and Heather scattered sideways.
Whoop!
An arrow flew from the darkness, and Ikegami ran towards it.
A skeleton archer with a quiver fired his bow, and a skeleton knight with a shield blocked Ikegami's front.
Thud!
Energy bullets flew at the Skeleton Knight, and the Skeleton Knight blocked it with a shield and pushed back.
And since the cannonball robot was firing without mercy, the skeleton archer was busy moving and flying arrows to avoid it.
Ikegami drew a sword while chasing such a skeleton archer.
Swang
The bones of the skeleton archer fell due to various skills and successive movements, and as the skeleton knight was fighting the defense robot, Ikegami caught up with him and struck the skeleton knight in the head.
Squash!
One by one, the monsters made of bones died.
The place became quiet as the light mace shattered the quadruped bones.
Everyone gathered in one place, Song Wei Guang said.
"It looks like he hasn't come yet, or he's already gone upstairs."
Ikegami was the first to answer.
"I don't think he came. The bones were nowhere to be seen."
"Let's go out for a while."
They went outside as Song Wei Guang wanted, and Song Wei Guang asked Jun-woo a favor.
"Can you go upstairs and check if you can see the inside, Sir Lewis?"
"I will go."
Jun-woo flew up with a magic light.
The tower was a huge building made up of bones.
If there is space, the inside can be seen, but where the field of vision is lit, the bones are so densely packed that the inside cannot be seen.
Jun-woo shot a mana cannon from a distance and threw a self-destruct robot.
Thud!
The bones didn't even budge and looking around, there seemed to be no place to look inside.
Jun-woo came back and reported it.
"There is no such thing as a window. It doesn't break, and there's no way to look inside."
“All right. Judging from the structure, it seems to have about 10 floors. Let's go up to the second floor."
They went back in, hunted down the monsters, and searched for the stairs leading up to the second floor.
Break!
[Defense increases by 1 as a reward.]
[This figure disappears when you leave the ‘Land of the Dead']]
People's defense increased by 1 according to their contribution.
Ikegami, who had learned two of the best skill books, was grabbing the skeletons with great speed, but the contribution from the effects of artifacts did not apply to this contribution.
In other words, the contribution of those who contributed when obtaining artifacts increased as much as Ikegami was active.
If you use a heel on the skeletons, an attack will happen, but Jang Hana does not do that as a buff shuttle, just watching.
And the target audience was mainly Ikegami.
After learning the skill, the speed at which monsters die and their movements have changed.
"Five… … ."
When Ikegami, who quickly approached and wielded a sword, took care of the skeleton, the situation calmed down.
As Ikegami, who had been hit by a poisoned arrow, approached, Jang Hana quickly cast Purification.
They sprinted forward again with the magic lamp ahead.
And when he saw a staircase made of bones.
"It is on the second floor."
They could feel the air change with the first floor, slightly more powerful energy.
They hunted on the second floor for a while, and as they could not find any traces of the bones, they had a gut feeling that Maro had not come.
It was a complex structure to climb the stairs without catching monsters.
"I'm going down."
They went back down to the first floor.
Fatigue, it had been about 30 hours since he hadn't slept, and it was unreasonable to force further.
As he went down the stairs, Song Wei Guang said.
"Let me sleep here."
Jang Hana rolled her eyes left and right and shrugged her shoulders as if feeling a chill.
It was the first time he had slept inside a dungeon he hunted a while ago.
"That's right. Let's go to sleep. I'm tired."
Ikegami straight away pulled out the tent and unfolded it, and they started laying the tent a little distance away.
Ikegami said while looking at Jun-woo, who was setting up a tent next to him.
"You've worked hard, Lewis."
"Sr. Ikegami worked hard too."
"Thanks to that, it seems to be progressing quite quickly."
"No, it's because everyone is doing well."
Ikegami answered with a light smile.
"Then I hope you get a good night's sleep."
Jun-woo lightly bowed his head, and Ikegami entered the tent.
They all went into the tent and slept like that for the second time.
Ikegami woke up one by one at a set time that could be said to be the next day, and Ikegami went to Jang Hana, who could not wake up by shaking the tent.
"Yeah! Go!"
It took quite a while for Jang Hana to come out, and the four men looked at the map.
Heather questioned.
"Where did Maro go?"
No one could come up with an answer.
Jun-woo asked implicitly.
"Are there any crafting items Maro made?"
“No…, You seem to be talking about a potion that has been given divine power, but that is possible for priests like Jang Hana, but why?"
“No."
When Heather looked at Jun-woo as if puzzled, Jang Hana hurriedly came out and joined the meeting.
"Forgive me for being late!"
Heather suggested a seat next to him.
"Sit this way."
"Yeah!"
As Jang Hana sat down, Song Wei Guang said.
"Let's clear the Tower of Bone first, then why not focus on finding Maro's whereabouts?"
Ikegami asked.
"What about the boss?"
"If Maro attacks while clearing the boss, trouble may arise."
"What if you already have a certain boss and Maro?"
Song Wei Guang paused as if speechless.
Heather intervened.
"Let's organize the tower first because the quest might come out when we finish it."
"Let's do that first. We'll have breakfast and leave."
They filled their hungry stomachs with bread and went to the second floor for digestion.
They went up to the 8th floor by catching the skeletons that became even stronger.
Ikegami was treated by Jang Hana, wiping the blood dripping from her torn forehead.
Heather was using a heel on himself as he cleared his breath, and Song Wei Guang looked around them and drank the potion.
Jun-woo also drank a potion for the first time after coming here.
Jang Hana, who purged the team members, drank a mana potion and carefully looked at the 9th floor.
Ikegami took a deep breath and mumbled.
"It's tough, but luckily, even with the stats reduced by 5%, this is enough."
Song Wei Guang put down the potion and said.
"Let's go up."
“Let's go. We have to see the end."
So they went up to the ninth floor, and again Peter G struggled.
Blood spurted out, and an arrow hit Jang Hana's body.
snuggle
Ikegami shouted at Jang Hana, who had fallen.
"Avoid it, look!"
"Yeah!"
When the defending robot is destroyed, it respawns 30 seconds later, and when the shell robot is destroyed, it respawns 30 seconds later.
Powerful magic flew over and attacked all the humans, and the agile skeleton swordsman attacked Ikegami with blue eyes.
Swoosh!
"Is it true that the stats of these guys have decreased?"
While grumbling, Ikegami faced the guy and the sword, and Jun-woo was flying while receiving the most attacks.
Bang!
A spear pierced into Jun-woo, who fell to the floor after being hit by a bayonet, and an arrow was struck.
When the sword was lowered again, Jun-woo changed his position and fired mana cannon, and when the magic flew, he disappeared into the shadows using Butte's movement technique.
Thud!
A fighter-type skeleton kicked Jun-woo, and a great sword fell on it.
Bang!
Ikegami glanced at Jun-woo like that and was admiring inside.
‘That bastard…, even if that's right… I don't think I'm going to die at all. I have invincible skills… … .'
Jun-woo got up and created a self-destructing robot as he was attacked by the skeletons.
Thud!
The flying skull was cut by Ikegami's sword and crushed by Heather's mace.
The missile flew and smashed the skeleton archer, and Ikegami appeared behind the skeleton holding the shield facing the Song Wei Guang and drawing a sword.
Break up!
The nape of the neck was shattered, and the skull sank down.
Ikegami sat down on the floor and sighed.
"Whoa… It's not easy, really."
They all drank the potion to the point that they were full, so they took a rest there with natural treatment to quench their fullness.
Ikegami asked, looking at the blue bone staircase on the 10th floor in the distance.
"The color of the stairs looks like the last. Are you going to the 10th floor?"
Heather was quiet, and Jang Hana was afraid.
Song Wei Guang said as he sat on the floor.
"First, let's get enough rest."
They sat on the bones and took a long break, silently staring down the stairs to the tenth floor.