Chapter 14: The Ants and the Secrets Beneath

“What’s up with those ants?”

They weren’t scout ants, no.

The ones wandering around the ant hill were mostly worker ants, still young and assigned tasks within the colony.

In fact, whether they were worker ants or scout ants, the difference was mainly in the name; their combat strength was about the same.

The worker ants, however, were in overwhelming numbers, making them a bit tricky to fight.

But if it weren’t for the soldier ants, we’d be fine.

Once we faced soldier ants head-on, our party would be at a disadvantage. They had both strength and numbers.

But if we were up against twenty worker ants, they’d be a bit stronger than twenty goblins.

The monster combat strength of the ants wasn’t high, it was just that their numbers made them difficult to deal with.

The sound of the longbow echoed through the air, signaling the start of the fight.

Thwip!

The bowstring vibrated, making a sharp, musical twang.

One of the advantages of the raiders—

They could craft their own items through events.

That was a hand-crafted Raider’s bow.

Using both swords and bows, and with high morale, they were the versatile class.

Swoosh…

The arrow from the bow pierced the neck of an ant, which had been craning its head toward the sky.

It cut through the thin exoskeleton, and the arrow pierced the ant’s neck, turning it into a skewer of meat.

A critical shot to the throat—there was no chance of survival.

Next came Loa’s crossbow.

Piiing!

Just like when it had pierced through the ant’s exoskeleton before, the Guardian’s crossbow was incredibly powerful.

As one of the few ranged classes in Dungeon Overseer, a Guardian specializing in crossbows could deliver overwhelming ranged firepower.

Its armor-piercing capabilities were so formidable that it was often referred to as the “death spear” among overseers.

[Guardian]

The Guardian, a watcher of the Twilight Tower and a member of the Forgotten Secret Order, seeks the harmony of the world with the ability to see both past and

future. Those who take the role of the world’s watchmen are known for their intuitive ranged combat, and their attacks ‘almost never’ miss.

Foolish beings attempting to escape the gaze of a Guardian often forget the Guardian’s famous oath:

“The Eyes of the Guardian Never Close.”

*Guardians have the following characteristics:

[Ever-Wakeful Eyes]

Never caught off guard.

Difficult to evade.

[Twilight Guardian]

Sometimes able to predict the outcome of events.

Sometimes able to choose the outcome of events.

[Secret Order]

Receives slightly reduced reputation from companions.

Often refuses to investigate items with historical significance.

Sometimes feels displeased when investigating items tied to history.

The concept of the Guardian is a foreseeing archer.

With guaranteed, unavoidable damage, the Guardian is the undisputed powerhouse in ranged combat.

Their physical damage is so high that even other ranged classes like the “Ranged Radar” or “Long-Range Stalker” can’t compare.

While their damage output is truly impressive…

The weakness of the Guardian?

After firing the crossbow, it takes a long time to reload.

If you’re seriously considering a Guardian who only focuses on crossbow shots, you’ll need at least three to four crossbows.

That way, you can keep reloading and shooting, like a walking turret.

They sacrifice utility, but make up for it by focusing all their efforts on dealing damage.

But Roa was holding only one crossbow.

As expected, Roa kneeled down and was loading the next bolt.

We managed to take two with a surprise attack, but the ants didn’t panic and charged toward us at high speed.

[Calmness (Not applicable!)]

These heartless monsters have no fear.

+Acquired through the trait “Lack of Intelligence.”

If these were goblins, they would have been trembling in fear by now, starting the fight with hesitation.

The giant ants, however, approached us without caring whether their comrades were left behind or not.

It was a charge typical of ants, where the concept of “individual” is almost nonexistent.

The ants, each weighing around 20 kg, crawled along the ground, blackened by their numbers.

The ones who stopped their charge were the Ironclad, with steel shields leading the charge.

Sion, fully protected by armor covered in steel plates, mercilessly swung his shield to stop the ants’ advance, regardless of how many came at him.

Watching Sion fend off the ants with a sword and shield reminded me of a scene from the movie 300.

A few ants charged at Sion’s arm, but

“Ha!”

Jangcheok, who had discarded his bow, drew his sword and cleaved through an ant’s head.

[Critical Hit!]

The ant, losing its head, staggered for a moment before collapsing.

A sour smell spread through the air.

I too swung my newly acquired tomahawk.

Shiiing…

Though it wasn’t as clean as a knife slicing through,

when the tomahawk’s tip hit the ant’s chitinous head, it made a dull thud, like a blunt weapon, before driving the ant into the ground.

Again, the tomahawk is a two-kilogram two-handed sword.

It’s heavier than it looks, and the saw blade at the end of the tomahawk keeps the ant from moving.

I moved the saw blade horizontally across the ant’s head, cutting it in half like a watermelon.

As expected, the expensive tomahawk performed exceptionally well.

Meanwhile, Roa loaded and fired the second bolt.

The angle looked a bit off, but it was intentional.

Roa’s bolt pierced the chest of the first ant and exploded the abdomen of the second one.

An ant, its abdomen ruptured by the steel bolt, crawled helplessly on the ground.

Sion stomped on the exposed innards with his spiked boots, crushing them.

Roa then threw the crossbow to the ground and drew two daggers from her belt, charging into the fray.

She didn’t want to risk shooting more crossbow bolts in the tangled fight.

For a while, the battle was chaotic.

The giant ants swung their jaws up, charging headfirst.

The explorers, maintaining formation, fought back, helping each other.

Though the ants seemed to have the advantage in numbers, as time passed, more and more ants fell to the ground.

Ant corpses, hacked, torn, and shattered, continued to pile up.

The explorers did not falter.

These were crazy fools who had entered the dungeon for greed and honor, and they weren’t about to go down easily.

Just then, an ant leaped toward Roa’s arm, trying to bite.

“Ahh!”

Sion and Jangcheok were slow to react.

The ant climbed up Roa’s upper body, moving with terrifying speed.

If a dog of that size attached itself to me, I’d be terrified, but seeing a large insect with those distinct black hexagonal eyes charging toward me was pure horror.

Roa, forgetting to resist, frantically swung her arms, trying to block it with her daggers.

But it was too much for her to handle alone.

“Roa!”

I hastily threw the tomahawk forward and successfully wedged it between the ant’s jaws.

Crazy ant bastard!

“Die!”

I placed the blade on its left jaw and, with a motion like chopping wood, pulled it back. The sound of cracking echoed as the ant’s left jaw was torn clean off.

I retrieved the tomahawk and raised the blade above my head like splitting firewood, then severed the ant’s head.

Splat!

As the ant that had been clinging fell off, Roa threw a dagger at the ant crawling through the corpses.

The dagger pierced the joint between its head, chest, and abdomen.

More precisely, it drove deeply between its chest and abdomen.

The ant twitched before dying.

“Ha.”

And that ant was our last foe.

Looking around, there were ant corpses scattered everywhere.

None of the ants had their limbs properly attached.

It seemed to tell the tale of how fierce the battle had been.

Aside from one twitching ant, none of them moved.

Our victory.

“Anyone injured?”

When Jangcheok asked, no one responded.

Thank goodness. Everyone’s fine.

“No injuries.”

An awkward silence followed, and then Sion spoke up.

Most of the aggro had been drawn by Sion, so no one got hurt.

Thanks to Sion blocking the attacks with his shield at the front, the ants couldn’t get past the human wall wrapped in steel.

As a result, we were able to easily unleash our attacks.

Sion’s shield was drenched in ant fluids.

Various parts had turned black from the staining.

“Then… a short rest.”

Jangcheok collapsed with a groan onto the ground.

I too laid down, feeling utterly exhausted.

I was about to die from the fatigue.

Dungeon entrance.

Engaged in battle with twenty ants enjoying sunlight in the underground plaza.

Zero casualties. Twenty ants killed.

A very satisfying start.

“If we properly investigate this, we could make some money.”

While Jangcheok lay out cold and Sion wiped sweat from his brow, I was walking around the plaza with Roa.

They said this was part of an ancient underground kingdom.

Now I understand why the Dungeon Seeker Guild put up money for an investigation.

Once we clear out the ant swarm, this is definitely a site worth researching.

An underground city, no less.

It’s amazing how sunlight pours through skylights in the ceiling, and there’s even ventilation.

The walls are filled with reliefs, and the floor, made of stacked blocks, has such clear grid patterns, it almost looks modern.

I sometimes think about this.

Many things created by the ancients are surprisingly sophisticated, even by modern standards.

How could they have made such things so long ago?

“Isn’t it amazing?”

I casually asked.

Roa, with her hood off and her face exposed, was staring at the murals as though entranced.

It’s clear—Roa looks quite young.

Somewhere between an adult and a teenager.

Around eighteen. She looks about nineteen if you give her more credit.

Her flowing, shimmering purple hair.

Her neatly cut bangs. And her eyes, close to a bluish hue.

Roa, who always wears a robe and rarely looks straight ahead, almost never shows her face.

“Ah…?”

Roa muttered in awe, gently touching the wall painting.

“I’ve heard of it.”

Honestly, I can tell it’s an old painting, but beyond that, I have no clue.

What is that? Is it an animal painting?

That’s a person, I think, judging by the limbs.

“Long ago, the Diggers dug underground and built cities,” Roa said.

Diggers?

“Diggers, they were born underground. Is that it?”

“No. The Diggers were humans, just like us. They sang the greatness of the gods on the surface. They were ordinary humans.

One day, a monster appeared on the surface.

The monster ate humans indiscriminately… Eventually, to escape the monster, they went underground… but it ruined everything.”

“Did they make this?”

Roa shuddered, as if sighing, and stepped back from the wall painting.

“Maybe. I haven’t learned all the details yet.”

She then nervously pulled her robe over her again.

“I’m still lacking in knowledge…”

[The Guardian researched the secrets of the ancient kingdom…]

[The forgotten secret makes the Guardian anxious!]

[Roa (Lv 1, Anxiety)]

+ Victory in combat!

– Investigated an object tied to historical origins.

No.

There was no need for the trait to trigger here.

When I think about it, it’s kind of funny.

What in the world are the Guardians so upset about that they feel bad after investigating underground ruins and discovering some secret among themselves?

“Roa, are you okay?”

Roa, with her robe still covering her, stared at the ground, silent.

It seemed like she didn’t want to talk anymore.

I couldn’t force her to speak.

It couldn’t be helped.

I left Roa alone and looked at the wall painting a little longer.

It was a jumble of crude pictures, but on closer inspection, it seemed like some patterns were repeating.

If only there had been a Dungeon Seeker here…

But that was a pointless thought.

Then, it happened.

[You have discovered a series of repetitive continuity in structural complexity.]

[Your memories are stirred!]

[You feel the forgotten knowledge being revived.]

Huh?

Suddenly, the system went crazy.

 


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