Chapter 171

[You have entered the Shadow Dungeon.]

Fortress of Body Strengthening.

Ammit, seated deep within the pyramid, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, slowly opened them.

[…An intruder has entered.]

SSSSHHHH—

A dimensional gate opened without warning, and an overwhelming presence stepped into the Shadow Dungeon.

But strangely—

It didn’t feel like an intrusion. There was no unnaturalness in the arrival.

‘He’ entered as if this were his own home—effortlessly, naturally—appearing before Ammit.

[You… Who are you?]

Ammit bared his fangs toward the man.

As the massive crocodile-man rose, a crushing pressure descended upon the stranger.

RUMBLE…

But the man stood unaffected, as if such intimidation meant nothing to him.

Instead, he gazed at Ammit with interest and nodded thoughtfully.

—Ammit… from a Yoin-tribe?

[…]

Ammit froze for a moment, unnerved by the strange aura he felt from the man.

The man wasn’t speaking to his face.

His gaze was focused above Ammit’s head.

As if something invisible hovered there.

[Could it be…]

Ammit’s eyes sharpened. He finally noticed it.

The black aura flowing from this man strangely resembled Sung Suho’s.

[…Are you the Shadow Monarch?]

—No. More precisely, something like it.

[What?]

—You should be able to tell, right?

[What are you talking about?]

At the cryptic reply, Ammit furrowed his brow.

But despite the reaction, the illusion of Sung Jinwoo simply met Ammit’s eyes and smiled faintly.

—Magically speaking, I’m something more like you.

[…]

Ammit’s eyes shot wide open.

A reaction Sung Jinwoo clearly expected.

His illusion casually looked around, scanning the interior of the pyramid.

His gaze pierced through the enchantments etched into the pyramid by Kandiaru.

FLASH! FLASH! FLASH!

Following his gaze, various magical circuits embedded throughout the pyramid blinked and emitted streaks of light.

[You… could it be…]

As he admired the magical formation, the illusion of Sung Jinwoo spoke.

—That’s right. I too am an artificial soul created by magic, just like you. Some call it an avatar, or NPC—whatever sounds nicer. But in the end, it’s all the same.

[…]

Seeing Ammit brought back a memory—of Demon King Baran, atop the final floor of the Demon Castle Dungeon.

Baran, Monarch of White Flames.

The only Monarch he had encountered who wasn’t alive.

To be exact, Baran had already been killed by the first Shadow Monarch, Ashborn, before Jinwoo met him.

His soul had been recreated by Kandiaru and used for the level-up system.

But that fabricated Demon King Baran never matched the original in strength.

Because he lacked the source of all Monarch power—[Primordial Darkness].

—But now I’m curious. Just how long have you been trapped in here?

[Heh…]

Faced with those piercing black eyes, Ammit let out a small laugh and answered.

[I don’t remember. Time doesn’t flow here.]

—Want me to kill you?

[What? Heh… That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard in ages.]

Ammit chuckled self-deprecatingly.

Then—

BOOM!

He swung his massive arm and smashed the wall beside him.

Bricks crumbled with a roar, revealing a massive hole.

But strangely—

After a moment, the broken wall began repairing itself.

[See that?]

Ammit stared straight into Sung Jinwoo’s eyes.

[Even if you were the real Shadow Monarch, you couldn’t kill me. This place is my tomb—and I am the tomb itself.]

—A magical formation that auto-repairs itself when destroyed.

Sung Jinwoo nodded, eyes growing sharper.

Even if it wasn’t possible for him, the “real” Sung Jinwoo could easily kill Ammit.

But he hadn’t asked because he wanted to kill him.

What mattered more now was understanding this place.

This pyramid—was not in Jinwoo’s memory.

It was, in a sense, Kandiaru’s legacy.

There must have been many experiments in the development of the level-up system. This pyramid was likely one of them.

But the real mystery—

How had such a massive magical construct ended up inside Sung Suho’s shadow?

—A self-restoring system…

Then, Sung Jinwoo realized the answer.

—…Could it be that the incomplete level-up system, having lost its purpose, is now trying to repair itself?

In truth, the system’s original purpose had already been fulfilled long ago.

It no longer had a reason to exist.

But then, Sung Suho had reactivated the level-up system as a new Player.

And in response—

The system had begun reconstructing itself.

In the same form as before.

Or more precisely—

—It’s adapting itself to the new conditions.

The purpose of the level-up system had always been to raise a Player into the vessel of the Shadow Monarch.

But Sung Suho could never become the Shadow Monarch.

So then—

What was the system trying to achieve now?

—Could it be… the class advancement quest itself?

The system was now restructuring itself to create Sung Suho’s class advancement.

That much, Sung Jinwoo’s illusion was sure of.

Everything—the existence of Ammit as an NPC, the pyramid’s magical engravings—proved it.

—Well now…

Finally realizing the truth, he let out a soft chuckle.

He couldn’t help but be anxious—yet eager to see—

Just what kind of class his son would awaken.

It really wasn’t so different from the concerns of any ordinary parent.

But—

—I know exactly what I need to do now.

As that thought settled, the illusion of Sung Jinwoo chuckled softly.

Fzzzt.

Suddenly, his body flickered—beginning to dissolve like a signal losing its frequency.

Ammit, who had been silently watching, let out a chuckle.

[Still, you’re better off than me. At least you can slip free of this magical domain and move around a little. But looks like that’s the end of your limit.]

Fzzzt.

Sung Jinwoo’s illusion looked down at his flickering hands, murmuring,

—Yeah. Time to head back. I’ve confirmed everything I needed to.

He waved his hand through the air, and a system message appeared.

[Would you like to exit the Shadow Dungeon?] (Y/N)

As he turned without hesitation and walked toward the shadow gate that had appeared, Ammit asked,

[But why did you even come here in the first place?]

—Why else? I thought maybe I could help my son somehow.

[Heh? And did you? Help him, I mean?]

—I did. Quite a bit.

[Such as?]

To that, Sung Jinwoo’s illusion reached into the air.

FWASH!

The moment he did, the magical formations etched into the pyramid flared to life, radiating brilliant light.

Standing at the center of those dazzling circuits as always, Ammit heard Sung Jinwoo’s voice.

—Ammit, I’ve linked your soul in this prison to your true soul drifting in the Sea of the Afterlife. Just like mine.

[…What are you talking about?]

—It means, if you want to, you can now become a shadow soldier.

[…]

Ammit’s eyes widened as he understood the implications of those words.

Grinning mischievously, Sung Jinwoo continued,

—You’re not planning to rot in this prison forever, are you? In that case, be part of my son’s army. Well, that is, if my son can…

[Become strong enough to claim me… far stronger than he is now!]

CRACK!

In that instant, Ammit’s face filled with blazing determination as he clenched his massive fists.

He slammed his fists together with a beastly snarl.

[Leave it to me! From now on, I’ll double—no, triple the difficulty of his daily quests!]

—…Make sure he gets potions.

Seeing that explosive enthusiasm made Sung Jinwoo a little nervous.

Still, if Suho could endure such training and someday claim Ammit as a shadow soldier—

His legion’s power would skyrocket beyond measure.

—Oh, and one more thing.

Snap!

As Sung Jinwoo snapped his fingers, the preconfigured magical array began to activate.

RUUUUUUMBLE!

[……!]

Ammit’s expression turned anxious as the entire pyramid began to shake violently.

Being one with the pyramid, he realized what was happening.

The entire structure was growing.

And then—

FWWWWOOOSH!

At the pyramid’s peak, a beam of black light shot straight up into the sky.

It pierced the dimensional veil and extended toward the distant reaches of the universe.

[What the hell are you doing?!]

—Just a bit of insurance. Doesn’t concern you, so don’t worry about it.

Leaving only those words behind, Sung Jinwoo disappeared the same way he came.

[Heh…]

Ammit could only stare blankly at the space he’d vanished from.

‘How can something that’s just an illusion wield that kind of power…?’

Over the long years he’d spent trapped here, Ammit had occasionally wondered.

What if he had followed the Monarch of Body Strengthening—joined him as the mightiest Yoin in the war?

Maybe… just maybe, they could have won.

[No… Nothing would’ve changed.]

* * *

[You have exited the Shadow Dungeon.]

The moment Sung Jinwoo returned to Suho’s side—

Suho’s battle was reaching its end.

CRACK! CRUNCH! KRA-KOOM!

With his massive hands, Suho tore through all of Zarvier’s tentacles and grabbed the neck of the real body hiding inside the illusion.

[Kuh… How is this…]

The body of Zarvier, the illusionist of the Maeryung Clan famed for his overwhelming illusions, turned out to be nothing more than a frail skeleton.

Through the pale ribs, his soul emitted streaks of sinister light.

[This is impossible…!]

Zarvier bared his teeth at Suho with hateful eyes.

Thanks to Shadow Assassin Kira’s intervention, the Hunters trapped in illusions had begun to awaken one by one.

And as they did, Zarvier’s seemingly infinite mana reserves finally ran dry.

His illusions lost their strength.

Still, Suho—despite having Zarvier by the neck—hesitated to deliver the final blow.

The reason, of course…

—What are you doing? Finish it already.

“…Father.”

Suho’s eyes flickered as he looked toward his father, who had appeared at his side without warning.

Jinwoo was proud of the sentiment, but—

He scolded him just like before.

—Just kill him. Don’t worry about me.

CRACK.

Suho’s lips pressed into a firm line.

And then his grip pierced through Zarvier’s ribs and shattered the soul within.

BOOM!

[You have defeated Maeryung Illusionist Zarvier.]

[Level has increased!]

[Level has increased!]

[Level has increased!]

……

(T/N: Good luck Suho. Looks like Do-Gyun will have a “gym-buddy” back in the Shadow Dungeon. lol)