The Sea Dragon Temple (5)

Rumble!

Moon Bora stared ahead in disbelief.

Beyond her gaze, Im Hyeja could be seen casually tossing and catching the sphere in her hand.

‘…No, this can’t be.’

Moon Bora was a highly rational and cool-headed individual.

Sure, she often came across as gullible or naive, but at her core, she was intelligent and level-headed.

To her, the whirlpool protecting the <Sea Dragon Temple> was something that would require at least three A-grade working together to dispel.

At least, one month.
And that was just for dispelling it.
For structure, understanding, and analysis, it would take decades.

Such an absurdly powerful magic…

Im Hyeja crushed it like a paper sheet.

It was a situation beyond Moon Bora’s comprehension.

“…Hmm.”

Regardless, Im Hyeja stared blankly at the sphere in her hand.

Crunch! Crack!

The sphere, which had been quiet until now, twisted and swelled as if it were about to burst.

“Tsk!”

Im Hyeja clicked her tongue and tightened her grip.

It returned to a stable sphere, but she judged that it couldn’t hold due to the clearly shaky sensation of power.

“Seha, didn’t you say this [Trial] was named after a sea dragon?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“The flow… Could this magic really have been created by a dragon? I’ve never encountered something like this before… And I’ve never even heard of a dungeon involving dragons.”

Concerned by Im Hyeja’s words, Yu Seha asked cautiously.

“…Is there a problem?”
“No, no, it’s not that. I just don’t think I can maintain this for long. We have no choice. Let’s refine it right now.”
“Are we starting immediately?”
“It looks like we have to.”

With that, Hyeja looked toward not only Yu Seha but also Ju Na-young, who had been watching in awe.

“Hey, pretty lady over there.”
“Y-Young-ah. M-Me?”
“Uh, sorry, but…”

Could you light this up?

Kang! Kang!
Fwoosh!

“Increase the heat a bit more! This won’t do!”
“Yes!”
“Y-Young-ah!”

Yu Seha and Ju Na-young were eagerly spewing [Burning Flames] at Im Hyeja’s words.

The source of the flames? Surprisingly, a furnace.

Right in the middle of the dungeon.
Equipment and facilities that one would expect to see in a smithy were installed.

All of these were part of one of Im Hyeja’s skills.

[Workshop of Volcanus].

An Epic grade skill, it was a magic manifestation skill that could create a workshop made of mana whenever Im Hyeja desired.

“Hyeja noona, with a workshop like this, you could make a fortune selling these weapons.”

“Do you think I have unlimited magic power? Do you know how hard this is to maintain? I didn’t even want to use it.”

Im Hyeja downed a mana potion she had in her possession and raised the hammer she held high.

Bang!

The hammer came down on the anvil, striking the sphere she had extracted from the vortex.

Normally, she wouldn’t have processed it so hastily.

Im Hyeja’s ability focused on countering by creating more advantageous items after seeing the appearance of the enemy.

“But this thing feels like it’s going to explode if I leave it alone. It’s better to forge it into a weapon right now.”
“I see.”

Bang, bang, bang!

Im Hyeja continued hammering the sphere.

Its crude shape began to transform.
What had once been a round object was now quickly taking on the shape of a blade.

They all gathered closely, watching in amazement.

Only Yu Seha nodded as if he knew.

‘As expected, she lives up to her reputation…’

Im Hyeja.

An NPC known to most Supervisors.

He had talked to her once.

In the world of <GAL>, <Supervisors> were the protagonists, beloved by many characters.
But Hyeja was an exception.
She disliked <Supervisors> who tried to bring Ma Hana onto the path of adventure.
That was just who she was.

But what truly made her famous among <Supervisors> was this power she was demonstrating right now.

‘A cheat-level backup skill…’

The exact details and scope of the ability weren’t fully understood.

But when transformed into a <Backup>, Hyeja had the ability to forcibly dismantle gimmicks, traps, and structures.

Just like how she had dismantled the <Sea Dragon’s Vortex> and turned it into a sphere.

She couldn’t destroy dungeon walls or anything like that, but even the most powerful obstacles were little more than toys to her.

These transformed structures could be used by Hyeja as materials items, which she could then refine at [Workshop of Volcanus] into powerful weapons.

These weapons weren’t permanent, though.

They were single-use items.

Of course, “single-use” was a bit of an understatement…
In reality, these were considered one-time-use bombs powerful enough to blow a dungeon boss’s head clean off.

When Im Hyeja’s ability first appeared in the game, the Supervisors were shocked.

Many cried out, calling it a bug, saying it was too overpowered.

They even begged the developers to make her a playable character.

Naturally, the developers refused.
Because there was no way those evil GMs would patch the game to please the users.

On the contrary, Im Hyeja probably had such an absurd ability because she was an NPC, not a character.

The official name of the ability was [Volcanus’s Judgment].

It was a Legendary grade skill, like my [Eyes of Reversed Heaven].

Whether it was a true “skill” or something more divine was unclear.

In many ways, it felt more like a god’s authority than a simple ability.
The <Volcanus> that appeared behind her was a genuine god.

‘This was the first time <Supervisors> had ever seen a true manifestation of a god.’

No one knew why the god of blacksmiths had chosen to bless Hyeja.

Her detailed past was never mentioned at all.

‘…Even if I asked sneakily, she wouldn’t tell me.’

In any case, it was an absurdly powerful skill.

But it came with heavy limitations.
I’d heard that once it was used, it took a full month for the cooldown to finish.

There were other drawbacks, too, but I didn’t need to go into all of that now.

“It’s done.”

While I was lost in thought for a moment.

Im Hyeja, who had finished forging, landed with a thud, her stocky body making a sound.

She inspected the weapon in her hand and then handed it to me, turning the hilt toward me.

“Take it. As I said, it’s disposable, so use it on the boss.”
“Thank you.”

The grade of the weapon was Hero.
Interestingly, it was a long sword with a swirling blade.

While I equipped the sword at my waist, the rest of the party gathered around Hyeja, showering her with praise.

“You’re really amazing. Where do you get such strength…?”
“Can I call you sister? Wow! This is really awesome… How many years have you been working in the forge? The sword came out so cool.”
“Meoww, unnie, you did great! You were amazing!”
“Even though we serve different gods… witnessing the holy divinity with my own eyes… Thank you. May the blessings of the gods be with you…”

Caught off guard by the sudden shower of compliments, Im Hyeja blinked.
With her short stature, she cleared her throat with a cough.

“Ahem! You juniors sure know how to flatter your senior.”
“You were really incredible!”
“Ahem!”

No matter how much you say it, nothing more will come out!

Thanks to Hyeja’s remarkable efforts, we easily entered the <Sea Dragon Temple>.

Inside, it wasn’t much different from the <Underground Waterway>.

The main difference…

Was that the terrain was mostly made up of water and lakes.

Oh, and additionally…

“Marrululuk”
“Lurururuk!”

The appearance of the monsters had completely changed.

“Seha! It’s an enemy!”
“Yeah!”

I heard Meowi’s shout.
I quickly bent my waist.

A sharp sound of something tearing through the air echoed near my ears.

The spear shaft that grazed over my head generated a fierce speed.

The one thrusting the spear had the body of a human with a fish head.

It was a <Merman>.

A representative sea monster, not just any ordinary <Merman>, but a higher species. I guessed it was a <Spear Merman>.

‘…An ambush all of a sudden?’

I grabbed the spear the creature was retracting with one hand.

“…Murk?!”

The creature seemed flustered, perhaps not expecting me to catch it with one hand.

Its fish eyes rolled around as it struggled to pull back the spear.

But the spear shaft didn’t budge an inch.

The reason this was possible was due to the [Monstrous Strength] that greatly enhanced my basic strength.

At the same time, my endurance, supported by [High Bone Density], allowed me to maintain that strength effortlessly.

Schuck!

“Kuek!”

Eventually, the [Saint’s Sword] struck down on the head of the [Spear Merman] that failed to retrieve the spear.
It cleaved through its skull, splitting its head in two as blood and brain matter splattered out.

Immediately, I sensed multiple dangers behind me.
I perceived something sharp flying at high speed.

Should I block it? While pondering, I realized it was unnecessary at the sound of ‘Meoow!’ rushing towards me.

“Seha!”

My ever-reliable Meowi stood beside me.

She raised her [Turtle Shield], deflecting the incoming arrows.

Thud-thud-thud!

The sound of arrows hitting was unusual.
It wasn’t just ordinary archery, but a skill.
It seemed to be a derived skill of [Bow], called [Double Arrow].

“Krueek!”

I turned my head at the sound.
The one who shot the arrow was the <Merman Archer>.

Calmly, it loaded its crossbow again, preparing for the next shot.

Moon Bora, who was watching, cast [Icicle].

But the magic, which flew like a bullet, did not hit the creature.

“…Uung!”

Moon Bora’s brows furrowed in frustration.

Did the <Merman Archer> dodge the attack because it was fast?

No.

The creature was just sitting and preparing without doing anything.

The one that leisurely dodged the attack was the horse with a faint blue hue that the <Merman Archer> was riding.

“…Pururung.”

It was a B-grade monster commonly known as the Water Horse, <Kelpie>.

It had the upper body of a horse, while its lower half resembled that of a seahorse.

It was using its high mobility to run circles around us while carrying the <Merman Archer>.

“Damn it. Yu Seha. Is this ever going to end?”

Ju Na-young grumbled as she deflected incoming arrows with her fist.

In fact, the speed of the <Kelpie> was not that fast, considering it had the name of a water horse.

If she really put her mind to it and used [Fearless Agility], Ju Na-young would be faster.

The reason we were helpless was that the <Kelpie> and <Merman Archer> were moving around in the lake right now.

Since they were moving on the water, fighting them there was extremely limiting.

‘Well, of course…’

I didn’t mind, though.

“I’ll be right back.”

“…Huh? Yu Seha? Hey, wait! You’ll fall into the water—”

Ju Na-young couldn’t finish her sentence.

She must be flustered.

Instead of sinking, I jumped into the water.

Ignoring the laws of physics, I ‘ran’ forward.

The [Underwater Sprint] skill I had copied from the [Frogman].

Seeing me running as if on land, the <Kelpie> and <Merman Archer> started to panic.

“Neigh!”

Even a B-rank monster was still a monster.

The <Kelpie> summoned magic as I closed in.

Three water orbs formed, swaying above its head.

They approached, tracing a curve at high speed.

It was the derivative skill [Water Bomb] from [Stream’s Water] used by the [Pearl Spitting Tortoise].

“…Hoo.”

Instead of responding, I increased my speed.

Splash!

The water bombs burst out.

Originally, there should have been some damage, but the [Stone Hardening] that covered my body served as sturdy durability to block the [Water Bomb].

Gurgle!

“…!”

Oh no, one of the half-burst water bombs entered my nose and mouth.

Of course, I should be suffocating and coughing.
However, after about two seconds, I quickly adapted.

Thanks to [Deep Underwater Breathing], it felt as though I was breathing in fresh air.

“K-Kuuek?!”
“Purrung?!”

As their attack had no effect, the two startled creatures hastily turned to flee.

“Where do you think you’re going…?!”

After having so much fun, you think you can just run away?
No way!

I grabbed the [Saint’s Sword] and cast [Flowing Slash].

With [Free Charge], I blocked their movements like lightning.

Shuk!

In an instant, I beheaded not only the <Merman Archer> but also the <Kelpie>.

“…Yu Seha.”
“Huh?”
“…Are your ancestors by any chance mermaids?”
“What? How did you know?”
“…R-Really?!”
“Of course, I’m joking~”
“…Young-ah!”

As soon as we returned, Ju Na-young showed a cute reaction.
I burst out laughing heartily and advanced towards the remaining journey with my companions.

While appropriately dealing with the various monsters appearing in the [Sea Dragon Temple].

Clang.

“…!”

At a certain section.
Passing through a rather unremarkable corridor, I heard a faint mechanical noise near my ear.

“Meow! Seha!”

Meowi, who sensed it as well, shouted.

Ssssss!

Soon, gas started flowing out from the gaps in the wall.
I instinctively recognized it as something unavoidable.

“Yu Seha? Hana?”
“Everyone, lower your heads and cover your mouths!”

The yellow gas spread rapidly, and we all began to bleed.

Blood trickled from our eyes, noses, and mouths, the black color of it indicating we had been poisoned.

Cough, cough!

Coughs tinged with the scent of blood were heard here and there.

The first to speak was Choi Mari.

“E-everyone! Please gather around me.”

With the calmness of a nun, she took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the blood from the party’s faces.

Thanks to Yu Seha’s help, Choi Mari had managed to unlock the unique ability [Lucky Machine].

As a result, the output of <Divine Law> had risen sharply.

A strong buff might be difficult, but purifying this level of poison was easy for her.

“O foolish servants of the Lord, I humbly ask that you relieve us of our—huh?!”

Snap.

However, Choi Mari could not finish reciting the [Divine Spell].

Yu Seha, who had approached without her noticing, grabbed her wrist to stop her.

“Ju-junior Seha? We don’t have time for this. No matter how weak it is, leaving the poison untreated—”

“No, senior. This poison should not be neutralized.”

“…What?”

At those words, Choi Mari’s eyes widened.

“Do you remember?”

When we first entered the <Underground Waterway>, I mentioned a specific phrase.

“The one hanging on the wall…”

The words of the [Warning].