Chapter 955. Mood (6)
“The name of the hidden boss is Gelk, and it is about ten meters tall. We believe it’s a roaming-type monster that wanders around the entire dungeon.
"The sixth strike squad was attacked exactly an hour and eleven minutes ago. They regrouped after the ambush and tried to take down Gelk, but it was no use.
"While trying to help the members of the strike squad escape, Mr. Elias suffered a serious injury, so they decided to create a safe zone where Mr. Elias is currently resting,” Floretta reported.
“Is Hye-Jin noonim safe?” Park Deok-Gu asked.
“Yes, she’s safe,” Floretta replied.
‘Did Elias get hurt while trying to rescue Jo Hye-Jin? I feel like he overextended there...’
I wasn't supposed to think that way, but I couldn’t help but question it.
As expected, a needlessly tragic scene played out in the footage recorded by the sixth strike squad.
— Get away, everyone! Leave it to me.
‘What can you do?’
— Mr. Elias!
‘Look at Hye-Jin’s sad face.’
— Damn it!
A towering monster charged at everyone, seemingly trying to crush the entire strike squad with its body alone.
A member of the strike squad screamed as the monster stomped on him. The monster had a bizarre appearance. It actually didn't look like one entity. Instead, it looked like the entire monster was made out of many different monster body parts.
Overall, it looked gross.
When I saw how there were appendages of various sizes sticking out all over it...
“We believe it absorbed the monsters in the dungeon,” Floretta told me.
Floretta was right.
“I can see why there hasn’t been a big battle up until now,” I commented.
“That’s right. The sixth strike squad encountered Gelk on the second basement floor of the dungeon. Considering the first strike squad is currently on floor five, it’s likely that Gelk had absorbed other monsters while climbing from floor five to floor two.
"We assume that the boss monster was also probably...” Floretta trailed off.
‘If Gelk had absorbed it as well, then we should assume that its stats are incredibly high right now.’
“Why couldn't the rangers find any traces of Gelk when they went ahead of the strike squad? I’m sure a monster that big was easily noticeable...” I asked.
“We've confirmed that the monster can erase its traces. After escaping, the rangers of the sixth strike squad tried to find it, but...” Floretta trailed off.
“But they couldn’t find it,” I said.
“Yes. They couldn’t find any traces of it," Floretta said, nodding.
Gelk’s ability to erase its traces could be one of its innate abilities, or it could have obtained it upon absorbing another monster.
[I must tell them... I must... tell them...]
— Miss Jo Hye-Jin. Get away! I’ll take care of....
[I have to tell them... I have to...]
— Ahhhhhh!
[I have to tell them...]
Elias, the most innocent man of this era, pushed Jo Hye-Jin away and tried to move just outside of the monster's range.
— Mr. Elias!
However, if Hye-Jin hadn't pulled his arm toward her, he would have become one with the boss monster. Elias wanted to be a pure-hearted man, but sadly, he lacked the skills to do so, and a pure but incompetent person was just a pitiful person.
‘He's becoming a nuisance, damn it.’
Whether Elias wanted it or not, the situation ended that way.
“This was all we could confirm from the footage. We haven’t confirmed Gelk’s exact location, but we analyzed its behavior, and we believe that it’s trying to find a way to the top. According to the report sent by the sixth strike squad...”
I thought the same thing.
Those who were unaware of the dungeon's history would have a difficult time figuring out what was going on, but Benigoa used to be here.
If we took into account the size and the architectural style of the underground temple as well as Benigoa’s strange behavior, this underground temple was definitely her prison.
Over the years, many people had to have come here to complete a variety of missions, and the key members of the operation had to have fused to become the boss monster. I was convinced that Gelk was a messenger with a mission to travel between the surface world and the underground temple.
[I have to... tell them... I have to.]
It would make sense if one took into account its strange obsession with its final task. If one were to add its ability to erase its traces, the theory would become pretty convincing.
“The main force is most likely going to encounter Gelk,” I said.
“That’s right. If we’re certain that it’s finding a way to head to the surface, it’s highly likely that it’ll run into the main force,” Floretta said.
“How about forming a separate group to subdue Gelk, Mr. Ki-Young?” Kim Hyun-Sung suggested.
‘Does he have some kind of sickness that makes him chase after monsters whenever he encounters them?’
“It’s too risky, Mr. Hyun-Sung. We haven’t figured out the details of the dungeon or the monster’s base stats. This probably won’t happen, but I’d like to avoid casualties as much as possible,” I answered.
“How about ordering the sixth strike squad to eliminate the monster again?" Kim Hyun-Sung asked.
‘Do you want Hye-Jin to get hurt?’
“I don’t want to burden the sixth strike squad. Mr. Elias and other people with serious injuries are still recovering. Moreover, the monster is also difficult to locate. Even if we can somehow find it, it's not that easy to take it down. The main force will take care of Gelk. We’ll set up camp at the entrance and wait for it to come,” I ordered.
“But...”
‘What do you mean 'but'? This guy...’
“That’s the best solution. Don’t think about taking a separate group to fight Gelk. We’ll get ready now. We'll send the rangers out first, and the main force will follow. We’re near the entrance, so let’s pick up the pace,” I instructed.
‘Hidden Boss or not, it’ll just be a sandbag.’
If Gelk had already shown everything it had in the footage just now, then it'd become nothing but a sandbag once it reached the entrance.
Gelk seemed to have a penchant for attacking others using its massive body. If we knew exactly where it was going to show up and its destination, then we could easily prepare for it in advance.
'And we have Ha-Yan with us.’
The Blue Guild's foundation was solid. Park Deok-Gu and the other tanks could block its path while the mages were going to attack it from afar. If the shields of the tanks were enough to withstand its attacks, then its towering body would become its biggest weakness rather than its strength.
‘It's screwed if we can place a trap for it in advance.’
Our stats were amazing, so it’d be embarrassing if we couldn't take down a massive idiot with these members.
‘We can also get samples from it.’
If it had started from the fifth floor and had been absorbing other monsters while climbing, I was sure it had a ton of samples to give us.
We could obtain both normal and boss monster samples.
It was a chance to achieve great results and the one and only chance to bring Jin Cheong down. I'd be able to criticize that incompetent fool by hunting down a monster that he couldn't hunt down.
The only variable would be us getting stuck here.
‘I wonder how many special abilities it has.’
I assumed it had at least five special abilities. If it was truly capable of plundering the abilities of other monsters, then things would become dangerous. We could end up in a safe zone, just like the sixth strike squad.
Fortunately, we were on the lower floors.
The meeting had already ended, but I was still thinking about the upcoming operation.
It was a good thing that we stood to gain more than what we'd lose.
“Mr. Lee Ki-Young, we’ll be at the entrance soon,” Floretta informed.
“Okay.”
I opened the window and saw the large door that I had seen earlier using my Telescope.
The massive door was even more overwhelming in person, but it also looked like a work of art.
I couldn't help but come up with a story in my head as I stared at the people setting up camp. The field commanders had taken control of the situation, and a large wall of shields was soon created. The mages and priests moved to their designated locations.
They started channeling an easy spell in the safest location possible, so I was confident that they wouldn't encounter any issues whatsoever.
“The strike squads will rest but are ready to fight at any time!"
“Is there anyone who hasn’t received a potion yet?”
“The Strike Squad Commander will soon visit each unit. Make sure the preparations are done perfectly.”
‘They’re all professionals, so I’m sure they’re doing fine. Do I really need to visit them and make them feel uncomfortable?’
No one would look forward to the visit of their superior. I understood that they wanted everything to be perfect, but the members of the main force weren’t rookies.
I had won the hearts of the people earlier, but it felt like my efforts had gone down the drain. Fortunately, the ground started trembling, and the distraction minimized the damage to my reputation, eliciting a smile from me.
“Prepare for battle!”
The rangers notified the control tower that the monster was coming, while the control tower notified the field commanders of the rangers' report.
“Mr. Ki-Young, I think you'll be safer if you stay back a little,” Kim Hyun-Sung suggested.
‘I’m already in the back.’
Jung Ha-Yan and the other mages continued with their channeling as the giant door opened slowly.
[I have to deliver it...]
A massive ball of fire erupted, enveloping the monster along with many other spells.
[You have encountered Gelk, the dungeon's Hidden Boss.]
BOOM!
[I have to... I have to...]
The allied troops fired magic arrows at the monster. Magic arrows were powerful, but they couldn't obstruct anyone's vision, so they were pretty useful.
From time to time, powerful spells capable of inflicting serious damage to just about anyone would be cast at the monster, causing a thick fog to envelop the battlefield.
However, the fog was not really an issue as the mages easily vanquished it with a wind-type spell. The archers fired their arrows nonstop, and the powerful ranged adventurers unleashed their powerful attacks as well.
[I-I have to...]
‘What do you have to deliver, you weakling?’
[I have to...]
“Keep attacking! Don’t give it a chance to attack us!”
Booooooooom!
Kabooooooooom!
[Ack... ahh... ahh!]
The monster swung its large hand while moving slowly toward us. The allied melee adventurers blocked its path, preventing it from coming closer. Park Deok-Gu was the main tank, and he looked pretty reliable as he faced the massive monster on his own.
“Don’t let your guard down and maintain your distance, you pig,” I said.
“I know that!” Park Deok-Gu shouted.
We only had one job to do here—make sure that the monster wouldn't inadvertently assimilate us.
The mages cast spells imbued with holy power on Park Deok-Gu, while the traps were activated to trap Gelk. We were also using the ballistas that were made to fight extremely large monsters.
The battle was going so smoothly that I didn’t need to get involved at all. Of course, there were variables. The monster stomped forward, creating a shockwave that interrupted the mages' channeling.
“Mages, move to the back!”
[I have to... deliver...]
‘What are you talking about, you idiot?’
[The fact that... the Mole Saint has died... must be delivered to the surface...]
‘...’
[The Mole Saint has died... She... dead...]
‘What?’
[The Mole Saint who's been supporting the continent for a long time... has died...]
“Stop attacking,” I ordered.
[The poor and pitiful Mole Saint... the saint who was forced to make sacrifices... has killed... herself.]
“Stop attacking! Stop attacking! Stop attacking!"
[She crawled into the iron maiden herself... and met... a miserable... end. Ahh... the continent... the brilliant... and blinding continent... now...]
I had to say something.
“Messenger Gelk will follow the orders of the honorary cardinal.”
From my experience, nothing bad had ever happened whenever I talked in a situation like this.