[Entering the dungeon, Geskal's Secret Storehouse.]

Geskal's Secret Storehouse was extremely straightforward. It was just an arched passageway.

He didn't see any monsters, so he just walked right on in.

However…!

Once he took a single step, the ground began to radiate light.

'This is...!'

It was a trap.

"Grr!" Kang Oh gritted his teeth and threw himself out of the way. But it was already too late; the magic circle had already activated.

Swoosh!

The iridescent light consumed him, and he was transported somewhere else.

"Tch." Kang Oh clicked his tongue. To think there'd be a trap at the beginning of the dungeon.

'Is it a trap that sends you to a designated location? It doesn't look like it sent me just anywhere.'

Kang Oh took a look around. It was a circular arena.

Plus...!

There was a pale man on the floor. He was dead.

'Is he...' Kang Oh searched the body and found a notebook.

[Radal's Exploration Notebook]

Radal dreamt of getting rich overnight. This notebook contains details of Radal's expedition.

"As expected..." Kang Oh looked through the notebook and scowled. "It was Radal."

The body did indeed belong to Radal.

[You have found Radal.]

[The quest, Find Radal, has changed to 'Report Radal's Death'.]

[Return Radal's keepsake.]

Once the messages stopped, something within Radal's chest began to glow. It was probably his keepsake.

Kang Oh stretched out his hand.

Then...

Rumble!

The door to the circular arena opened, revealing a bloodthirsty monster. The boss monster had suddenly appeared.

The door to the arena opened, revealing a bloodthirsty monster. The boss monster had made a sudden appearance.

[You have discovered the Cruel Gladiator, Maxius.]

[You are the first to discover him.]

Gladiator Maxius!

He was 3 meters tall. His helmet completely covered his face, and he wore light chainmail over his upper body. Maxius also wielded a sword and an oval shield!

Based on the black fur on the back of his sword hand, the shape of his legs, and the tail protruding from his butt, he wasn't a human being.

"Did you kill him?" Kang Oh pointed at Radal's corpse.

"I killed the trespasser. And..." he said huskily. "I'll kill you too!" The Cruel Gladiator, Maxius, pointed his sword at Kang Oh.

"I wasn't planning on letting you live either," Kang Oh said icily.

* * *

Kang Oh and Maxius's battle was intense. Eventually, Kang Oh managed to land a clean hit.

Swish.

Demon Sword Blood split Maxius's helmet in half!

Split.

The helmet split in two, revealing Maxius's face. His true identity was that of a saber-toothed tiger with protruding fangs!

[You have destroyed Maxius's armor, which also acts as a seal.]

[Maxius's defense has decreased significantly.]

[Maxius's attack power has increased significantly.]

He'd thought that the helmet broke too easily... It seemed like it was meant to be broken.

"Die!" Maxius's face contorted, and he fiercely swung his sword.

Earth Scratching Aura!

A white three-lined aura shot straight at Kang Oh.

Kang Oh swung his sword horizontally.

Tempest Tiger!

A large, beautiful golden tiger flew from his blade and crashed into the opposing aura.

Boom!

The two auras exploded, resulting in a shockwave. Neither Kang Oh nor Maxius were pushed back by the shockwave; they actually charged at each other.

Slash!

A white line cleaved through space itself.

Claw Blade!

Serrated, fang-like energy gathered around Maxius's blade.

Clang!

The two blades clashed in midair, emitting sparks.

"Heup!"

"Kyahahk!"

The two kept attacking each other.

Demon Sword Blood and Maxius's sword clashed several times, and both sides repeatedly used their skills to kill each other. At the same time, they engaged in a battle of wits, predicting each other's attacks.

'He's pretty good.' Kang Oh acknowledged his skill.

He wasn't like other bosses, who moved according to their instincts and an already established attack pattern. Maxius was more like an NPC; he had a high intellect, could make his own decisions, and could react accordingly!

When Kang Oh deliberately exposed himself or used a feint, Maxius wouldn't fall for it. He also wouldn't fall for the same thing twice. Thus, it didn't feel like he was hunting a monster; it felt like he was sparring with a master martial artist.

'This is fun.' Kang Oh began to deeply immerse himself in the battle.

As the battle intensified, Maxius's armor completely broke apart. However, that didn't weaken him at all .

Now, only his lower body was covered in brown fur!

Once his armor fell to the floor, Maxius came flying at him. He was a sharp, brutal beast, but also a well-trained warrior at the same time!

But now that Kang Oh's concentration was at its peak, 'amazing' wouldn't even begin to describe his abilities. It was almost beautiful watching him; he made no wasted movements, and his swordsmanship was sharp and precise.

Ultimately, Kang Oh overpowered Maxius.

Stab!

Demon Sword Blood pierced through Maxius's heart.

Thud!

His giant body fell backwards.

"Failed to kill... the trespasser..."

Those were his last words.

[You are the first to defeat the Cruel Gladiator, Maxius.]

[As a reward, Maxius will drop his highest rank items.]

[You have leveled up.]

Kang Oh looked at one of the two items that Maxius had dropped. It was an AA-rank oval shield that shone silver, and had an equip requirement of 400.

He picked up the other item. It was a brass key.

[Storehouse Key]

Opens the door to Geskal's Secret Storehouse, wherever it is.

'The Secret Storehouse's key!'

Wouldn't there be treasure there? Moreover, this was a hidden dungeon. He was getting excited.

Kang Oh wanted to look for the door, but he had to do something before that.

"Rest in peace." He clasped his hands together and paid his respects. Then, he picked up the shining item on Radal's chest. It was a lark-shaped necklace.

[Lark Necklace (Keepsake)]

The only item that Radal ever received from his deceased mother. He treasured it so much that it never left his body.

Returning this necklace to the old woman would complete the quest.

Kang Oh placed the necklace into his inventory and turned around. It was time to find the storehouse!

However…

His conscience kept reminding him of the old woman's request, as well as how badly she wanted to see Radal.

"Mm." Kang Oh furrowed his brow.

Ultimately, he carried Radal's body with both hands and immediately returned to Latnia City.

"Ah, Radal!" The old woman wailed after burying her grandson.

"Goddess, please take care of his pitiful soul."

"I pray that he be delivered by the goddess."

"Granny Per, please hold it together."

The people nearby comforted the old woman.

However, she wasn't easily comforted, as she cried and cried for some time. Eventually, it seemed like she had managed to calm down just a tiny bit.

The old woman, with tears still lingering on her face, came over and bowed at Kang Oh.

"Thank you... for bringing back Radal, Savior."

[You have completed the quest, Report Radal's Death.]

"He's gone to a better place. Here." Kang Oh passed her Radal's Lark Necklace and his exploration notebook.

"Heuk, thank you." After accepting the lark necklace, the old woman began to cry again. "Heup, the notebook... Please take it with you, Savior. I'm sure that's what he'd want."

"Understood." Kang Oh stashed the notebook again. "Please stay strong."

That's all he could say to comfort her. He also had no other reason to stay now.

He headed back to Muto Cave.

[Entering the hidden dungeon, Geskal's Secret Storehouse.]

A magic circle, which had previously transported Kang Oh to Maxius's circular arena, was installed at the entrance of the dungeon. Of course, Kang Oh wasn't stupid enough to fall for the same trap twice.

'I wonder where the secret storehouse is.'

Kang Oh jumped over the magic circle and began searching the dungeon. There were traps all across the dungeon, but there weren't any monsters here, so searching was pretty easy.

'So this is where it was!'

He had returned to the circular arena.

Kang Oh made his way through the passageway that Maxius had come out of, and discovered… A thick steel door with a keyhole! It was definitely the entrance to the secret storehouse.

'If I'd known earlier, then I would've just fallen for the trap again!'

He hadn't expected the storehouse to be located directly behind the circular arena. That's why he'd avoided the magic circle at the entrance, and wasted his time looking through the dungeon. It felt like he'd unnecessarily gone through a lot of trouble for nothing!

'Tch, whatever. I found it. That's all that matters.'

Kang Oh pulled out the brass key and stuck it into the keyhole. What would be inside? Would it be heaps of treasure or a legendary item?"

Screech.

As it hadn't been opened in a long time, the hinges were extremely stiff, emitting a harsh 'screech' sound.

Thud!

The door had completely opened, and what he saw inside was...

Absolutely nothing.

Kang Oh rubbed his eyes and looked once more. However, he wasn't seeing things; there really wasn't anything there.

'Why isn't there anything here? Did someone get here first?'

"Hmm." Kang Oh briefly thought it over, and then pulled out Radal's notebook from his inventory.

Radal had found this place first, so there might be some more information inside his notebook. Kang Oh leaned against a wall and began reading through Radal's notebook.

Sometime later...

Slap.

Kang Oh closed the notebook.

"Is this a fake storehouse?" Kang Oh muttered as he looked at the empty room.

According to Radal's notebook, Geskal was once extremely rich, and had hid his fortune somewhere in the Goddess's Land.

Radal had tried to find Geskal's hidden fortune.

However, Geskal had created several fake storehouses all across the Goddess's Land, so that no one would be able to find his fortune. Which meant that the storehouse Kang Oh and Radal had found was a fake!

[You have learned something new regarding Geskal's Secret Storehouse.]

[The dungeon's actual name is being revealed.]

[Geskal's Bleh Storehouse!]

'Geskal was really rich, right?'

He was also renowned for being a scrooge. So much so that he hid his fortune somewhere within the Goddess's Land!

'And I'm the only player that can freely explore the Goddess's Land!'

Moreover, his sole competitor, Radal, had regretfully died. It was as if the heavens were proclaiming that 'Geskal's fortune is yours for the taking!'!

"As you wish!" Kang Oh looked at the sky and grinned.

* * *

Despia was dangerous enough to be called the Land that Borders Hell. Unexpectedly, many people lived in the Goddess's Land, the deepest and most dangerous part of Despia.

It was because many of the Goddess of Death's followers had moved here in the past. How did they move here?

Did they, like Kang Oh's party, deliberately get eaten by Liviola, pass through the portal in its heart, and then go through the volcanic region and Saharamant?

No way.

Her believers were able to come here directly.

How, you ask?

Through a giant mirror that lay deep underneath the Great Temple of Death!

It was because of the Believer's Mirror that they were able to travel to the Goddess's Land. This mirror was essentially a door between the Goddess's Land and the Arth continent!

And it was being used once more.

Cyndia and 100 paladins stood in front of the mirror.

"Supreme One, please open a path so that we, your humble servants, can fulfill your sacred task." Cyndia reverently knelt on the floor and clasped her hands in prayer.

"My children, fulfill your calling." A resplendent, divine voice rang out. They couldn't see the source of the voice, but it was clear who was speaking. It was the Goddess of Death, Deborah!

"As you command." Cyndia deeply bowed her head.

Whir!

Something strange happened. The world that shone in the mirror transformed into something completely different!

"Let us depart," Cyndia said to the closest middle-aged paladin. His name was Muhawk, and he was an old knight that led the Church of Death's paladins.

Cyndia tidied herself up, and then walked over to the mirror.

Swish.

She passed through the mirror as if she'd just surfaced above water. The 100 paladins followed her soon after.