NOVEL WEB Chapter 26
Chapter 26
The hidden gate “Cavern of Blood” was divided into three stages.
The first stage was Monster Room 1, followed by Monster Room 2.
And the final third stage was the Boss Room.
In the first stage, one had to face a horde of vampire bats, and in the second stage, one had to confront blood slimes.
Of course, for Suho, it wasn’t that difficult.
Even in Monster Room 2, Suho’s overwhelming power had shone brightly.
Thanks to that, Suho was able to level up three more times, reaching level 46 before standing in front of the final Boss Room.
There was nothing to fear.
Suho already knew exactly what awaited beyond.
As he opened the large stone door and stepped inside, the rugged, cavernous environment he had seen up until now was replaced by a grand hall, polished and refined with marble.
At the end of the hall, there was a huge bed draped with lace, and in the center of that bed, the silhouette of someone lying down could be seen.
Then, a notification sounded.
[You have entered the Boss Room.]
[The Boss Monster is awakening.]
Rumble…
With the notification, the surroundings began to vibrate.
At the same time, vampire bats hidden on the ceiling took flight, and blood slimes lurking around started crawling out like zombies.
They weren’t trying to attack Suho; they were merely showing themselves to add to the sense of intimidation with the Boss Monster’s appearance.
Simultaneously, the figure lying on the bed slowly rose without any sudden movement.
—”To dare invade here without fear… Foolish intruder, do you realize what you’ve just done?”
The figure on the bed didn’t raise his voice at all.
However, even so, his voice echoed powerfully throughout the hall, creating an intense sense of intimidation in and of itself.
[The Cursed Prince radiates a formidable aura.]
[A Boss Monster-level fear effect has been activated.]
The voice itself was imbued with fear, creating an effect no different from ordinary fear.
However…
[Dragon Blood has been activated.]
[Due to the mental resistance effect of Dragon’s Will, fear does not apply.]
Suho remained unaffected.
This was thanks to the first power of Dragon Blood, one of the two innate abilities of Dragon’s Will.
Suho recalled the effects of Dragon’s Will.
[Dragon’s Will]
— Rank: S
# A privilege and inherent authority granted only to those born with the bloodline of dragons.
# Grants immunity to all mental debuff effects used by beings of lesser rank than a dragon.
This was why bloodline was important.
Just by having inherited a powerful bloodline, he could ignore even the Boss Monster’s fear effect.
Instead of answering, Suho took a spear out from his inventory.
Unlike the spear he had thrown at the Tower Dragon, this one had a faint blue glow to it.
Suho used a skill on the newly prepared spear.
[Holy Power has been activated.]
The skill he used was “Holy Power.”
It was a basic skill exclusive to healers, obtained at level 30, that enchanted the weapon with the attribute of holy light.
With the attribute enchantment complete, Suho aimed at the silhouette of the figure and threw it without a moment’s hesitation.
[Throwing Spear has been activated.]
Increased strength and penetration power.
The spear, enhanced with skill adjustments, flew like a ballistic missile and embedded itself in the figure’s body.
Crash!
The attack hit its mark.
And then…
[The Cursed Prince, angered at the rejection of his conversation, becomes enraged.]
[The Cursed Prince uses Blood Scream.]
Kyaaaaah—!
A scream filled with the essence of blood.
At the same time, the silhouette and bed exploded, scattering fragments everywhere, revealing the Cursed Prince’s true form at last.
He had purplish skin, long ashen hair, and white eyes with no visible sclera, constantly shedding bloody tears.
Suho checked the information displayed above the figure’s head.
— Cursed Prince Lv. 76
A staggering level 76.
Considering Suho had only just reached level 46 after passing through the first and second Monster Rooms, there was a massive gap of 30 levels.
At that moment, the Cursed Prince, with a spear embedded in his left forearm, cried out in rage.
—”How dare! How dare! How dare! You filthy intruder, do you too ignore my words?”
[The Cursed Prince uses Blood Scream.]
Another notification sounded.
And at the same time, a scream of blood echoed throughout the hall, as crimson needles scattered from the Cursed Prince in all directions.
Clang!
Suho pulled out his sword from the inventory and blocked the attack.
The sword trembled in his hand.
It was only a wide-area ranged attack, but the trembling of the sword suggested just how powerful the enemy was.
However, it wasn’t beyond Suho’s ability to block it.
The Tower Dragon had been similar in the beginning as well.
Suho thought with a smile.
“As expected, a silver spear empowered by Holy Power; it’s incredibly effective.”
For this hidden gate, Suho had prepared special weapons.
They were weapons made of 100% pure silver.
And for good reason.
After all, the master of this place, the “Cavern of Blood,” was none other than the “Cursed Prince,” a “vampire.”
“And on top of that, he’s a real royal vampire, a prince in name as well.”
The one who first discovered this place was a notorious player who was once known as the “Blood Emperor.”
He was an uncommon case, a player from a different race who, in this Cavern of Blood, was bitten by the Cursed Prince and turned from human to vampire.
“Although technically, he became a half-vampire.”
He had once worked as a healer at the Central Blood Bank.
By chance, he got caught up in this place and barely managed to reach the Boss Room, but regrettably, he couldn’t defeat the Cursed Prince and ended up being bitten, transforming into a vampire.
Ordinarily, he would have been doomed to die.
When bitten by a vampire and the transformation progressed, the system classified the player as a monster and closed the gate permanently.
But the Blood Emperor didn’t just sit back and accept his fate.
As a healer, he managed to neutralize the vampiric transformation progressing within himself using his skills.
And then, something surprising happened.
“Not only did he gain vampire-exclusive skills, but all his stats were restructured as well.”
His class hadn’t changed.
Only new traits were added.
The reborn Blood Emperor used his newfound powers to defeat the Cursed Prince and conquer the gate.
And that marked the beginning of the infamous, world-renowned villain, the “Blood Emperor.”
“Well, in the end, he got caught by me.”
Suho pulled out another silver spear from his inventory, gripped it in his left hand, and aimed it at the Cursed Prince.
In response, the Cursed Prince leapt into the air, radiating the dark aura unique to vampires.
—”Rise, my soldiers!”
Shhh!
The moment the vampire’s dark aura manifested, blood slimes stationed around the hall started to gather in one place, forming a towering structure as arms and legs emerged, eventually forming a massive golem.
[The blood slimes have fused.]
[Blood Golem has been summoned.]
It was a system guarantee.
Above its head, its name was displayed prominently as proof.
— Blood Golem Lv.72
Its level even reached an intimidating 72.
Intimidation wouldn’t work here.
The Blood Golem was a named monster summoned by the Boss Monster.
But Suho welcomed it instead.
After all, Suho’s level hadn’t even reached 50 yet.
“Thanks, mosquito!”
Mosquito.
A derogatory nickname for vampires among players.
Suho redirected his target, throwing his silver-enchanted spear toward the Blood Golem.
The spear flew straight into the center of the Blood Golem, making it stagger upon impact.
— …!
The Cursed Prince’s eyes widened momentarily at the sight.
He hadn’t expected his Blood Golem to be damaged this much from just one spear throw.
In haste, he began summoning additional troops.
— “Gather, my soldiers!”
More dark energy surged forth.
The vampire bats were the ones affected this time.
Just like the blood slimes, the vampire bats began merging in mid-air, forming a colossal bat.
[Vampire bats are merging.]
[Centennial Bat has been summoned.]
Following the Blood Golem, the Centennial Bat appeared next.
It, too, was level 72.
But so what?
Suho took out a third silver spear and enchanted it with Holy Power.
Then he threw it.
Crash!
The Centennial Bat, pierced in the abdomen, couldn’t withstand the force of the half-buried silver spear and was sent flying into the wall.
[Throwing Spear has been activated.]
Without missing the opportunity, Suho threw a Ghost Shadow Spear into the bat’s shadow.
[Shadow Binding has been activated.]
[Shadow Bleed has been activated.]
In a situation without flight skills, dealing with flying enemies was the biggest nuisance.
That’s why Suho had waited, using the Ghost Shadow Spear on the Centennial Bat instead of the Cursed Prince.
With the Centennial Bat’s movements now bound, Suho finally drew his sword.
Naturally, it was a pure silver sword.
Suho, having infused his silver sword with Holy Power, charged straight at the Blood Golem.
[Quick Draw has been activated.]
[Decapitation has been activated.]
Close to the Blood Golem, Suho unleashed sword skills in quick succession, steadily draining the golem’s health.
He deliberately avoided its vulnerable core.
After all, this golem was formed from a mass of blood slimes.
In other words, its body was made up of individual blood slimes, meaning that targeting the body rather than the core would kill the blood slimes and reduce the golem’s health.
To put it another way, each time Suho attacked the golem…
[You have defeated a Blood Slime.]
[You have defeated a Blood Slime.]
[You have defeated a Blood Slime.]
…
[Your level has increased.]
[All stats have increased by 1.]
[You have gained 1 bonus stat point.]
This meant Suho was gaining experience from the blood slimes in real-time.
And finally, when more than half of the Blood Golem’s body had been destroyed…
[You have defeated the Blood Golem.]
[Your level has increased.]
[All stats have increased by 1.]
[You have gained 1 bonus stat point.]
Suho once again achieved the feat of leveling up.
— “This is absurd…!”
“What’s so absurd?”
The Cursed Prince was in shock at Suho’s overwhelming strength.
But his astonishment was brief, as he quickly realized the gravity of the situation and prepared his next attack.
In that instant, Suho suddenly appeared right before his eyes.
“It’s not your turn yet.”
— “No, how did you…!”
[Decapitation has been activated.]
Slash!
Suho, having closed the distance in an instant, swung his sword.
The Cursed Prince’s head was sliced off, falling to the ground, and Suho kicked it far away.
Then…
“Summon Ghost Shadow Spear.”
[Ghost Shadow has been activated.]
Crash!
Suho summoned another Ghost Shadow Spear, stabbing it into the shadow of the decapitated Cursed Prince’s body.
[Shadow Binding has been activated.]
[Shadow Bleed has been activated.]
With this, the special options of the Ghost Shadow Spear were activated simultaneously.
Only after securely binding the Cursed Prince’s body did Suho draw his sword again.
“Hold on just a bit longer. I’ll deal with the Centennial Bat first, then finish you off.”
— “W-what did you say?”
The Cursed Prince, experiencing such humiliation for the first time, cried out furiously.
But with only his head left, there wasn’t much he could do other than scream.
Suho, with his sword drawn, approached the Centennial Bat, whose health had been significantly reduced by Shadow Bleed.
Then, he swung his sword again, slaughtering the bat.
[You have defeated the Centennial Bat.]
[Your level has increased.]
[All stats have increased by 1.]
[You have gained 1 bonus stat point.]
Finally, Suho reached level 50.