Level Up Machine

Chapter 88 Grave of the Forgotten (6)

Clang! Boom!

A heavy roar echoed through the dungeon. The Guardian’s massive body split in two.

Through the gap, another Guardian’s sword thrust forward.

Clang!

“Ugh!”

Yeong-sik’s body was flung backward as he raised his blade to block the sword.

A tremendous shock traveled through the arm that blocked the Guardian’s sword.

‘Their strength is disgustingly strong.’

Yeong-sik, who had landed on the floor using a rolling technique, glared sharply while clutching his trembling left hand.

Three Guardians began rushing toward Yeong-sik, who had just landed.

“Yeong-sik!”

Tiria appeared in front of him as if to protect him.

She extended her right hand, which shimmered with a white light.

The angel wings sprouting from her back fluttered.

“Judgment of Themis!”

Dozens of beams of light split from her right hand, sweeping over the Guardians approaching Yeong-sik.

Boom!

With a massive explosion, the bodies of the three Guardians shattered into pieces.

The power was so immense it sent shivers down their spines.

“…There are too many of them.”

Yeong-sik grimaced as he looked at the Guardians still swarming the passageway.

He had been mistaken about two things regarding the Guardians.

One was that the Guardians were not that strong.

No, the Guardians themselves were formidable enough that ordinary summoners would find them hard to deal with, but Yeong-sik and Tiria’s power was even more overwhelming, so it was not too difficult for them to handle.

Their movements were simple, and they didn’t bombard with high-powered magic either.

‘The problem is the other one…’

The other misconception about the Guardians was their numbers.

He had thought that even if other Guardians came running upon hearing the commotion, there would be at most just over ten. However, the number of Guardians in front of him now exceeded twenty.

“They’re not Orcs, for crying out loud.”

Yeong-sik glared at the Guardians filling the passageway with a grim expression.

Like Orcs, whose reproduction rate was unmatched, there were just too many of them.

“Huff, huff. Are you okay, Yeong-sik?”

Tiria turned to him with a visibly exhausted face.

They had been fighting this intense battle for over an hour now.

No matter how powerful Tiria was, it was natural for her to get tired.

“I’m fine. Tiria, you should rest a bit at the back.”

“But…”

“Fighting any longer here will lead to mana exhaustion.”

“I’m fine! If I use a bit more of the angel’s power, those monsters will be…”

Yeong-sik responded with a stern voice.

“I told you that using power beyond your control puts a strain on your body, didn’t I?”

“But still…”

“You dislike sacrifices just as much as I do, don’t you, Tiria?”

Hearing his words mixed with slight anger, Tiria flinched. She lowered her head and stepped back behind Yeong-sik.

Tiria pulled a health recovery potion from her inventory and gulped it down.

“I’ll rejoin as soon as the potion takes effect.”

“Got it.”

Yeong-sik nodded and looked at the horde of Guardians approaching them.

Hesitation lingered on his face.

‘Should I use the suit?’

There was a way to get out of this situation.

If he used the Lacteon Type 2 multipurpose functional combat suit he had, it wouldn’t be difficult to sweep away the Guardians filling the narrow passage with its powerful firepower.

‘The problem is that such a move might cause the passage itself to collapse…’

The firepower of the Lacteon Type 2 was too strong.

Just as the cave he had stayed in had collapsed, there was a high possibility that the dungeon itself could collapse.

Of course, even wearing the Lacteon Type 2, he could use weapons that didn’t affect the surroundings like his blade and take them down one by one.

But doing that, he could only use the Lacteon Type 2 for five minutes.

Furthermore, if he used the Lacteon Type 2 now, he wouldn’t be able to use it again for the next three days.

In a situation where he didn’t know what dangers lurked beyond the Guardian horde, he couldn’t use it recklessly.

‘I’ll hold off for now.’

With that thought, Yeong-sik glared at the horde of Guardians charging toward him.

Yeong-sik raised his right hand and placed it on his left chest.

In a motion like he was scratching his chest, he moved his hand to his right chest.

“Incarnation of Fire.”

Whoosh!

With his low voice, flames emitting intense heat enveloped his body.

Unlike Lekras, who was actually blood-crazed, or someone whose soul was connected to Kargas, he couldn’t achieve the same level of effect.

However, it was still a skill with power far beyond that of a normal skill.

After all, it was the skill of the S-rank boss monster, Lekras.

Boom!

Yeong-sik stomped the ground harshly and rushed forward.

Like the Blaze Step used by Yu-na, fierce flames erupted from his footsteps.

“Blade Draw.”

Click!

The blade engulfed in intense flames sliced through the Guardian’s body. The flames penetrated the Guardian’s sturdy armor and exploded it from within.

Boom!

With a violent explosion, the Guardian’s body burst apart.

Whoosh!

Another Guardian’s axe swung toward Yeong-sik. He bent low to dodge the attack and sprang up nimbly.

Click.

His right hand twisted, revealing two shotguns.

“Detonate.”

Bang!

Three shotgun shells fired simultaneously. Thanks to the effect of the Incarnation of Fire, the shotgun shells, each imbued with flames, blew off the Guardian’s upper body completely.

Boom! Bang!

The fight against the endlessly approaching Guardians continued. Yeong-sik used the overwhelming power of the Incarnation of Fire to sweep away the Guardians unilaterally.

The Gatling gun’s bullets swept through the Guardians, and the fully charged energy blast pierced their bodies.

However, despite this, the Guardians kept coming, seemingly without end.

“Huff, huff, huff!”

Yeong-sik panted heavily.

Even though Yeong-sik felt less fatigue than an ordinary person, hours of continuous intense combat had taken its toll.

‘The bullets are all gone.’

More serious than his depleted stamina was the fact that the shotgun and Gatling gun bullets were all used up.

There was also little boost and energy blast charge left.

At this rate, he would have to fight the Guardians with just his blade.

‘Where on earth are they all coming from?’

Yeong-sik frowned as he looked at the Guardians still appearing from somewhere despite having destroyed dozens of them.

Although their numbers had clearly decreased compared to the beginning, he could still see Guardians approaching through the passage. It felt like all the monsters in the dungeon were converging toward them.

“Shotgun!”

Click.

[All shotgun shells are depleted. Usage is not possible. It will take 10 minutes to recharge the shells.]

“Damn it!”

A harsh curse escaped Yeong-sik’s lips.

Whoosh!

A Guardian’s spear thrust toward where he was standing.

“Heavenly Shield!”

Clang!

Tiria, who had rejoined the battle, deflected the spear aimed at Yeong-sik. However, exhaustion was evident on her face as well.

‘Should I use the suit?’

Yeong-sik, thinking he had no other options, reached into his inventory to take out and equip the suit.

Just then.

“Charge!”

Park Si-a’s voice echoed through the passage. Following her command, the Leviathan Guild charged towards the Guardians.

Crash! Boom!

“Heh! Still just a bunch of filthy scrap metal!”

Kang Ha-rin, leading the charge, shouted as she swung her two-meter-long greatsword. Following behind her, Park Sang-jun and Cheon Tae-hwang rushed towards the Guardians.

“Guild Leader! Yeong-sik!”

Han Seong’s urgent voice called out. He looked back and shouted frantically.

“Deal with the Guardians first!”

“Leave it to us!”

“Understood.”

Park Cheol-tae, Jeong So-rim, and Yu-na charged at the Guardians in the front. Hwang-hyeon’s arrows and Ara’s magic supported them.

“Cursed Shield!”

Han Tae-yeong’s spell activated on the three leading the charge. A dark crimson barrier formed over their bodies. It was a special skill of the ‘Corrupt Priest,’ which cast a curse spell on those they attacked while the shield was active.

Boom! Bang!

Huge explosions echoed throughout the passage. With the Leviathan Guild and the Salvator Guild joining forces, the swarming Guardians began to be swiftly cleared out.

“Haa…?”

“Aaah…?”

Yeong-sik sighed in relief as he watched the guild members arrive just in time. When he turned to look at Tiria, she had an expression as if she was about to cry.

“It’s okay now.”

“Yes?”

Despite her exhaustion, Tiria smiled brightly and nodded. It seemed she felt reassured by the arrival of the guild members.

The battle ended shortly after. Not only had Yeong-sik and Tiria already taken down a significant number of Guardians, but the newly joined forces were overwhelmingly powerful.

“…Well done.”

Park Si-a glanced at the bodies of the Guardians that Yeong-sik and Tiria had defeated on their own and wore a stunned expression.

She had known they were strong, but she hadn’t expected them to handle dozens of Guardians by themselves.

“Thank you for coming.”

“No, we’re sorry we couldn’t come sooner.”

Park Si-a’s face looked quite exhausted as she spoke. This showed that their side had also pushed themselves hard to reach the lowest level.

“Tiria, are you okay?!”

“Are you hurt anywhere?!”

Yu-na and Chae-rin ran to Tiria. She embraced them both with a bright smile.

“Yes, I’m fine. Nothing happened.”

“Sob… Yeong-sik oppa didn’t do anything weird, did he?! Like secretly groping nuna’s body in a space where they were alone?”

“Ye-Yeong-sik would never do such a thing!”

Tiria shouted, her cheeks reddening at Chae-rin’s sudden words.

“Really? Nothing happened? A healthy man and woman were in the same place for three days?”

Chae-rin, apparently selling off the initial emotion from their meeting, pouted her lips with a disappointed expression.

“Grr…!”

Listening to the conversation, Ara glared at Yeong-sik with sharp eyes. Ara, striding up to Yeong-sik, asked in a low voice.

“You didn’t do anything weird to the Guild Leader, did you?”

“I’m innocent.”

Yeong-sik raised both hands playfully, cracking a small smile.

Seeing their reactions, Chae-rin stomped her feet in disappointment. She narrowed her eyes at Yeong-sik.

“Oppa, I didn’t think you were like this. Turns out you’re more of a herbivore than I thought. How can nothing happen when the two of you were alone for three days?”

“Well, it’s not like nothing happened.”

At Yeong-sik’s words, all the guild members’ gazes focused on him. They looked at him as if they were ready to shoot lasers from their eyes. Ara’s eyes shone with a different kind of light as she stared at him.

“Ye-Yeong-sik?! What are you saying…”

“Haha. It’s nothing. I just saw an unexpected side of the Guild Leader.”

Yeong-sik, recalling Tiria almost losing herself and pouncing on him, chuckled lightly.

“Yeong-sik.”

Tiria, realizing what he meant, called out to him with a hardened expression.

“If you open your mouth any further, I won’t let you off.”

Tiria smiled brightly, focusing strength into one hand. Despite the fierce battle they had just fought, an intimidating force gathered in her hand, as if wondering where she had such power left.

“Tell us already, Yeong-sik. What exactly happened?”

In contrast to Tiria, Ara demanded an answer in an icy tone.

Caught between the two, Yeong-sik swallowed hard.

Regret for his words came rushing in belatedly.

“Kyah! Yeong-sik oppa! So something did happen! Come on! Tell us!”

“What did you do to my sister?!”

“Yeong-sik. If you open your mouth even a little, be prepared.”

“Tell us now!”

No matter how fast, regret was always too late.

‘Maybe… I should change the subject.’

Yeong-sik turned his head to look at the massive wall blocking the entrance to the lowest level.

A short phrase caught his eye: ‘Only those who carry the blood of the angel can pass through here.’