chsdbacks Chapter 133: Celia and Baalzerith (1)
Chapter 133: Celia and Baalzerith (1)
Chapter 133: Celia and Baalzerith (1)
The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices – 133
EP.133 Celia and Baalzerith (1)Yôur favorite stories at novelhall.com
‘This is a complete luck-based game,’ he thought.
Recently, the Monster Arena system had been introduced. The promise of earning part of the profits as gems had been enticing, but the results were disappointing.
“Tsk.”
The Monster Arena’s system was simple. You bet gold coins on the challenger you thought would win. If your chosen challenger emerged victorious, your earnings would increase according to the odds. Since I had set the rules myself, there was no room for cheating in the process.
The problem wasn’t the rules but the behavior of the monsters. It was as if the matches were rigged; every challenger I bet on ended up dying without putting up a fight. This was especially suspicious since I always bet on challengers with high survival chances.
“Hah... This is strange. Something’s wrong.”
Maybe I was just unlucky. Since the arena had opened, not once had my bets hit the mark.
Especially on the opening day of the arena, I had bet on a silver-ranked adventurer.
– Bayden: A silver-ranked adventurer with extensive experience in monster hunting. He joined the arena to escape his debts. –
– Cale: A teenage boy who barely made a living doing odd jobs. –
The other challengers were either ordinary people who couldn’t handle weapons properly or young teenagers. Surely, an adventurer would be much stronger than such opponents. Confidently, he placed my bet on Bayden.
– The final winner is ‘Cale’! –
The boy, who seemed most likely to die first, survived until the end. The funny thing was that the goblins seemed to avoid attacking Cale specifically. It was an absurd situation.
Moreover, the same thing happened in the next match and the one after that. The promising challengers all died, while those who seemed unlikely to survive became the winners. Up until now, he had never seen his chosen challenger win.
“So, it’s not just a simple game?”
Even though I watched the matches through my smartphone screen, the world beyond was real. Perhaps analyzing the challengers’ backgrounds alone wasn’t enough. My pride was starting to take a hit.
‘What exactly should I be looking at to place a winning bet?’
Were there even people making money from this?
I meticulously read through the profiles of the next challengers, deep in thought. Just then, an alarm went off.
– Congratulations! ‘Kazel von Rosenberg’ has become the first human to voluntarily pledge loyalty. –
“What?”
What was this about? Someone had voluntarily pledged loyalty to the dungeon?
– As a reward, you can enhance ‘Kazel von Rosenberg,’ who has pledged loyalty. –
Not only that, but I could also enhance a human. This unexpected news wasn’t bad at all.
‘This means I have more cards to play, right?’
If there were more talented individuals like Kazel von Rosenberg, the recent Sael Kingdom incident might have been handled more smoothly. Enhancing and utilizing humans, in addition to monsters, would be highly beneficial for future endeavors. I was quite satisfied with this reward.
However, the next alert was rather surprising.
– Baalzerith has visited Lee Kang-hyun’s dungeon. –
What was this about?
‘Baalzerith.’
That name was unforgettable. Baalzerith was the first 5-star monster I had drawn during the Manager selection. But Baalzerith had rejected mu offer. Why was Baalzerith visiting my dungeon now?
This was no time to worry about the Monster Arena.
‘Something must be happening.’
I quickly closed the notification window and looked at the dungeon.
====
***
====
Riche.
“Surprisingly, this is it, Riche. Please follow us,” Lils said.
Baalzerith found herself surprised multiple times today. The ability to conceal a dungeon’s aura was remarkable. She followed Dambi and Lils into the dungeon.
Inside, the dungeon was unbelievably clean. The floors and walls were spotless, without a speck of dust. As they proceeded further, they came to a three-way fork. Without hesitation, Dambi took the central path.
‘The other paths must be traps,’ she thought. Having never been here before, she silently followed Dambi.
What she saw next left her speechless. The vast hall was filled with goblins of all kinds. Among them was a Goblin Lord, who seemed to be the leader.
“Could that be the dungeon master?” she wondered. The Goblin Lord was a 5-star monster, equal in rank to herself, so she assumed it must be the dungeon master. Moreover, the hall was teeming with goblins, goblin shamans, and hobgoblins, all diligently training with their weapons.
However, Dambi and Lils walked past the goblins without stopping.
“?”
Baalzerith, bewildered, continued to follow them. After passing the area filled with goblins, they entered the next zone, where a massive underground lake spread out before them.
“This is...”
She was so astonished that she could barely speak. A gigantic lake existing underground was beyond her imagination. Nearby, ghouls and humans were fervently working with shovels and pickaxes. Overseeing them was a formidable presence.
“Could it be that the Death Knight is the master of this place?”
A 5-star Death Knight was intently watching the humans. Yes, it must be the dungeon master, she thought. Though she didn’t understand why a Goblin Lord and a Death Knight coexisted, there must be a reason.
“What kind of dungeon do you live in...?”
Baalzerith muttered, awestruck by the scene before her. Even from what she had seen so far, she could gauge the dungeon’s immense scale and power. A dungeon of this magnitude might even make the Demon Merchant Association bow its head. The possibility of this dungeon falling seemed nonexistent, and even if it faced danger, the Association would likely step in to help.
“Wow...”
The current dungeon was beyond her wildest expectations. However, Dambi silently moved on to the next area.
“......?”
She noticed another passageway ahead. This time, it led downward. Lils spoke up.
“If you go down here, you’ll reach the second floor. The area we were just in was the first floor. Please be careful as you descend.”
As they descended, a completely different scene unfolded.
“Aaah! I’ve told you everything! Please stop!”
The air was filled with the sounds of agonizing screams. Ogres were relentlessly torturing humans.
“Won, should we stop now?”
“No, Won. The manager said to continue. This time, we’ll use water.”
“Good idea, Won. Water knows the truth.”
The ogre had two heads. Nearby, a water spirit was crying out.
“Bwee! Bwee!”
The ogre grabbed a human’s head and thrust it into the water spirit’s body.
The scene was so brutal that Baalzerith involuntarily shut her eyes tightly. What was the true nature of this dungeon?
‘A Goblin Lord and a Death Knight aren’t enough...’
It was a dungeon created by a gathering of various monsters. She was bewildered. Yet again, Dambi walked forward without a word.
‘Could there be more?’
She hurriedly followed, wanting to escape the gruesome sight. Finally, they reached the heart of the dungeon.
The core area was very quiet. The dungeon core was visible, guarded by robed figures on either side. As they walked further, she saw humans imprisoned in iron cages. Among them were three goblins that looked almost human.
Continuing on, she noticed skeleton knights standing still, waiting. Next to them, a human was busy flipping through documents, looking quite satisfied despite the hectic atmosphere.
At last, Dambi, who had been silent all this time, spoke.
“This is the office of the one who manages the dungeon.”
As Dambi said, it was an office, with the door firmly closed. Baalzerith stared at the office door, feeling tense. Judging by everything she had seen so far, she couldn’t even begin to imagine how powerful the dungeon master must be. What kind of being could command two 5-star entities?
A skeleton knight knocked on the office door. After a brief moment, the tightly closed door opened.