Dungeon Hunter - Chapter 112
Chapter 112: Episode 32. Infinity Armor (1)
“Huh? What is this?”
Immediately after the light disappeared, the flummoxed Lyhee calmed down and came back to Flesh. She felt grumpy, so she kicked it. Her toes hurt as if they were beaten. She stomped and rolled around in pain. She rechecked the Flesh and frowned. Then she realized that its shape had become a little different than before.
“Hmm. It absorbed the branch.”
It was the sharpest and hardest branch. It was evident that Flesh had changed after it had absorbed the branch, emitting light. Lyhee could sense the Magic of Origin from it.
“Hey, Flesh. You are not mad at me, right?”
Lyhee, bothered by her conscience, stealthily approached and poked Flesh again. It used to bounce against her finger, but now, it was just solid and hard. It looked like it had stiffened itself with anger.
“You are not moving anymore. Bah. No fun.”
Kick!
Lyhee felt upset and kicked it again.
“Ouch!”
She hurt her toes again. Lyhee rolled around the floor in pain again. Although she had done the same thing ten seconds ago, she had not learned her lesson.
“Bah! I won’t play with you anymore!”
Lyhee stormed off with a tearful face and flew off to harass the bees.
Steane. He was the oldest Dwarf and the elder assigned to the 7th floor of the dungeon. He was now heading to the 15th floor with a few gasping Dwarves.
“Sir. Do you think we will get some fine roots again this time?”
“You sound worried. We are not going there to beg.”
“But… they are Dark Elves. Honestly, I don’t feel comfortable.”
“Well. No matter how they disregard us, we are getting the roots fairly at the command of our Dungeon Master. I have gathered information from a few resources. And they didn’t germinate the Tree of Origin. It all happened because of our great Dungeon Master,” Steane said in an angry voice.
Dwarves and Elves were natural enemies. So, a meeting between the two often took place in a grim mood.
However, the branches from the Tree of Origin were great material for making weapons. They could improve their skills quickly, and they could gain the trust of the Dungeon Master when they laid the excellent equipment at his feet. So, the branches of the Tree of Origin were things of great importance that they had to get.
But the Dark Elves had always tried to negotiate with them about using the Tree of Origin. Steane thought that was ridiculous and unfair. The Elves would not get the tree in the first place without the Dungeon Master.
Steane smirked and went on, “We Dwarves are doing very productive work. All they do is grow a few plants. We can do that, too.”
“Yes. It is disgusting that they pretend to be in charge on behalf of the Dungeon Master.”
“Just wait. These days, the woman named Krithli is very important. But the day we produce the perfect weapon from the branches, it will change. And if we get ‘Dwarking’ title, we will rise to the top of the dungeon.”
“Right. I can’t wait for that day.”
The bulky Dwarves felt better. They even felt thrilled at the thought of gaining the trust of the Dungeon Master and getting prestige.
Steane frowned after walking through the forest for a long time. “Anyway, they are supposed to come out to meet us. Whew. Those lazy b*stards…”
“It is their personality, sir, isn’t it?”
“Tut-tut. That is why the Dark Elves— Huh?”
When Steane was about to curse, clicking his tongue, he found something. He tilted his head. Something shiny was hidden in the bush. He walked to it with his short legs and found a metal plate about as big as the body of a Dwarf.
“Huh. What is this…?”
He carefully lifted the metal plate. Steane touched, knocked, and put his ear to it. He observed it for a while and rubbed his chin.
“Sir. What is that?”
“I’ve never seen this metal before. The magic from it is unusual, too. I think I should strike it to figure out.”
The young Dwarves widened their eyes. “Is there any metal you don’t know?”
“Of course. There is much more that I don’t know.”
Steane was not Dwarking who could know and handle all metals naturally. He was just an ordinary Dwarf that had to research the stuff he did not know. But that just made him more excited about the metal plate.
“It seems extraordinary. I think I can make a masterpiece out of this,” Steane thought.
An unidentified metal that would be born anew in his hands, Steane felt excited just thinking about the result.
Clang! Clang!
Steane struck the metal plate with a hammer, sitting in front of the furnace. For over 40 hours, he did not eat or drink anything and struck repeatedly.
“What an incredible metal! I never imagined that there would be metal like this in the world.”
The metal that he had picked up by accident was made of a material that Steane had never touched or seen before. It was a metal that might have existed in myths or legends. It was impossible to explain. He just admired it.
“When it breaks, it returns to its original state. It has a strong nature to maintain its original shape.”
Besides the hardness of the metal, its nature surprised Steane. It was very hard to change and fix its form.
“I shall make armor out of this. It will be an armor that has never existed in the world.”
He had no idea why he wanted to make armor. But he just felt like he had to.
Clang—!
Steane poured all his energy into the armor. He spent dozens of hours without resting because as soon as he turned his head, the metal plate went back to its original shape. The hammer and anvil were red-hot, and the workshop was burning hot with heat from the furnace.
As a result, he was losing weight day after day. His muscular body gradually became lean. He was sacrificing his life to make the masterpiece. He just endured it with his strong willpower and obsession. Little by little, the shape of the metal was changing. His passion was still the same.
Three days, four days… a week.
The Dwarves were worried about him, but Steane banned anyone from entering his workshop. He thought he would make the best equipment of his entire life. He did not want to be disturbed by anyone.
After about ten days, the shape of the armor began to set little by little. As work progressed, Steane’s body became thinner, and his mind gradually eroded. He drooled. His eyes were bloodshot. His hair and beard turned white. But he still didn’t stop hammering.
His will was worn, and soon, he became a slave to the metal. He was moving as the metal instructed him. The long month passed that way.
“This armor… is mine. I can’t give it to anyone else.”
Steane held the armor in his hand. His eyes were filled with greed.
<hr />
After the party, a storm blew in. But Kim Yongwoo was the only one who was busy. Time passed quickly, and I lived my life as usual. Of course, there was nothing special. I spent most of the time training Yoo Eunhye and Edward. Well, Krathra usually trained Edward, but in the case of Yoo Eunhye, I was more suitable since I dealt with lightning power as well.
“You still have a hard time keeping the Lightning Bolt in your sword,” I said.
“Right? I keep trying, but it’s not working well.”
“I will try to lead you.”
“Do you want me to take it off?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“…”
Yoo Eunhye grinned like a sly cat. She had grown so much that I didn’t have to guide her by touching her skin directly. I lightly put my hand on her stomach area and sent a strong current flow.
“Umm…”
Yoo Eunhye struggled to endure, twisting her body. This was because the electric current that I sent through her belly stimulated her sexual excitement. If I did it to other people, they would pass out. But it was nothing for Yoo Eunhye since she had received the blessing from the thunder fairy.
The current in Yoo Eunhye’s body moved along with my flow. Soon, it gradually moved to her sword. Moving other people’s energy was very delicate work. Even I had to pay the utmost attention.
― Master! We’re in big trouble! A Dwarf has gone rogue!
“Argh!”
I lost my focus and the disturbing current made Yoo Eunhye jump. Fortunately, nothing big happened, but it was a dangerous moment.
“Wh-what’s wrong?” Yoo Eunhye asked.
“Hold on a sec.”
I got up and left the room. At the same time, I contacted Lyhee.
“Lyhee. What happened?”
― Lyhee has no idea. The elder Dwarf is wearing the Flesh. Lyhee tried to stop him, but he didn’t listen. He keeps trying to absorb Lyhee and the Tree of Origin. Griffin fainted, Gigantes is blocking him now. But Lyhee is not sure how long he can last…
“It must be Steane. But what did you say? He is wearing the Flesh?”
― It looks like he made the Flesh into an armor. What should Lyhee do? Lyhee is scared, Master.
I assumed the Flesh meant the Infinite Flesh. But I thought it had died a long time ago when I abandoned it near Fagan Grewoolly’s dungeon. I had no idea how it survived, why it came back, or how the Flesh turned into armor. But Lyhee’s voice was shaky. If the happy-go-lucky Lyhee shook with anxiety, it meant things were really serious.
“Griffin fainted…?”
I slapped my hand against my forehead. Griffin was a high-level monster. It had the lowest level among the others, but still, it was not easy to defeat. Moreover, Lyhee said even Gigantes was facing difficulty.
Griffin and Gigantes were the strongest monsters I had. Although I had Krathra, Krithli, and the White Tiger, they were still lower than Griffin and Gigantes.
“Hold on. I’ll return as soon as possible.”
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, I immediately began to move.
<hr />
Steane, no, Greed, was hungry and thirsty. It wanted the source that had awakened it. It thought its thirst would go away if it absorbed the source. Like a thirsty man looking for an oasis, Greed continued to move forward. But it was not easy. Too many things blocked its way.
“You! You can’t go forward anymore!”
After the big bird, this time, the giant was blocking its way. Greed did not like it. It could not understand why they were trying to stop it. But, even if they were in its way, it thought it would just go through them.
The battle with the giant was fierce. It was more complicated and more aggressive than the big bird. The armor was crushed several times. But soon, it reverted to its original shape.
Infinite power without exhaustion. That was the real power of Greed. Gigantes was strong, but that was all it was. If it was a matter of real power, Greed was pretty good, too.
Boom!
They hit each other. Surprisingly, Gigantes was pushed back.
“Cough!”
Blood spurted out of Gigantes’ mouth. Everyone who was watching the fight felt anxious. A group of Dark Elves and Dwarves gathered for their turn to fight Greed. If they lost, there would be no one who could stop it anymore.
At the center, Krithli grabbed her cane firmly. The Lich, Spartoi, White Tiger, and other monsters gathered, but it did not seem like they could stop the monster with infinite power. As Greed was getting closer, the tension doubled. And when Greed was about to reach them…
“Funny. This is very funny.”
The true owner of the dungeon appeared with a smile on his face.