Chapter 461
As the war between the two forces reached its climax—
Swoosh…
Several figures moved stealthily beneath Guntafer’s fortress.
“This is the Demon King’s stronghold?”
Chun Yoosung held his breath.
He agreed that a small elite unit was necessary, but…
He never imagined they would infiltrate the enemy’s heart with so few people.
“Yeah.”
“No more reinforcements?”
“Yup!”
Watching Jinhyuk nod cheerfully, Chun Yoosung became painfully aware of how insane this mission was.
“Damn it, this is going to be a nightmare. This is the biggest fortress I’ve seen since arriving in the Demon Realm.”
“Well, Guntafer is sitting on quite a hefty fortune.”
If he exaggerated a little, it looked a hundred times larger than Berial’s domain.
The quantity and quality of the stationed troops were on a whole different level.
Even so, they had no choice but to push forward because time was absolutely on Guntafer’s side.
“You’re not suggesting we go in through the front, are you…?”
“A true warrior always takes the front! Right, my friend?”
Pudalak immediately cut off Chun Yoosung’s words.
“Kahaha! Now that’s someone who gets it! Schemes and trickery are for those bookish types. Men like us—our only path is a head-on charge!”
Flex!
Following Pudalak, the Dark Emperor also tore off his shirt.
His living, breathing muscles looked as if they would start chanting ‘Valhalla!’ at any moment.
“No, Master… No matter how you look at it, this is way too dangerous…!”
“I’ll kill them all!”
“Kahahaha! You lot can follow at your own pace. We’ll clear the path ahead.”
Before anyone could stop them, the two warriors kicked off the ground.
“Enemies approaching from the front!”
“There are two of them, but Kang Jinhyuk is nowhere to be seen!”
“They dare attack with just that? Rip them apart at once!”
Doom! Doom! Doom!
With the sound of war drums, the demons in the fortress instantly sprang into action.
“We need to help them—!”
Teresa shot up from her seat.
If they got surrounded, the two wouldn’t last long.
“Wait, Teresa. We can’t let their noble sacrifice go to waste.”
“…What do you mean?”
“Those two… ngh! They have resolved to sacrifice themselves for us. They’ll draw the enemy’s attention so we can use the secret passage to infiltrate.”
Jinhyuk put on a deeply moved expression.
He even pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at his eyes.
Of course, not a single tear actually fell.
“That can’t be… No, I’m sure they told us to follow them…”
“Ahem. That was just your imagination.”
Without looking back, Jinhyuk turned and headed toward the sewer that led beneath the fortress.
After descending a few steps, they were met with solid iron bars blocking their path.
“If it’s just cutting through…”
Shing!
Chun Yoosung drew his sword.
No matter how sturdy the bars were, they would be sliced clean if he infused them with his sword energy.
“No, there’s an alarm spell on it. Forcing it open would alert them immediately.”
Jinhyuk ran his fingers over the gate.
Alarm spells were relatively low-tier beginner magic, but if a Demon King had personally set it up, it was a different story.
If it had been a barrier, he could have used his barrier-breaking skills, but…
“There’s no way to get through undetected?”
“Normally, that would be the case.”
However, there was something even Guntafer had overlooked.
A veteran player knew this place better than its own master.
Jinhyuk’s hands moved quickly.
If he remembered correctly, the mechanism was between the 7th and 8th joint…
Clank!
Bingo.
The bars were set slightly inward by about three degrees.
Jinhyuk pressed firmly.
Creak!
The bars shifted ever so slightly to the side, creating just enough space for a person to slip through.
This way, they could enter without triggering the alarm.
“You really… know everything. Have you actually been here before? If not, there’s no way you’d know all this.”
“No way… Jinhyuk, is it true?”
Teresa’s eyes widened like a startled rabbit.
No way.
There was no way a person had climbed past the 40th floor in this broken, nightmare of a game.
That would make them less human and more like a ghost haunting the Tower of Trials.
Or just a masochistic lunatic.
“There’s no doubt. That bastard… He must’ve made it to the 44th floor at least. But after that, he must’ve been blocked by Guntafer and the other Demon Kings, forcing him to give up.”
Chun Yoosung formulated his own theory.
“Now that this has become reality, he needs our help to push through, right?”
If that were the case, everything lined up.
In other words—
“The highest floor you reached was the 44th.”
“Hmmm.”
Jinhyuk scratched his chin.
Well, it was a reasonable guess.
“Who knows? Oh! But we should hurry inside. These bars have strong restoration properties, so they’ll snap back into place soon.”
“Don’t dodge the question! Just answer me straight—was it the 44th floor or not?!”
Chun Yoosung shouted after him, but Jinhyuk had already disappeared into the sewer.
⁕⁕⁕
[‘Primordial Flame’ is activating!]
Fwoosh!
Fist-sized fireballs floated into the air.
The pitch-black passage suddenly brightened.
“It’s darker than I expected.”
Chun Yoosung frowned.
Even with fire magic, visibility was limited.
At most, they could see a few meters ahead.
Beyond that, everything remained swallowed in darkness.
“…This place seems incredibly deep. Even when I extend my detection range to the max, I can’t find the end,” Teresa noted cautiously.
Then—
“Fuhuhu! Welcome to hell, foolish humans! You have no idea where you’ve walked into. If you had known I was here, you wouldn’t have dared to enter in the first place!”
A sinister, yet strangely familiar voice echoed through the tunnel.
Wait a second.
Jinhyuk frowned.
Why did that voice sound so familiar?
Jinhyuk tilted his head.
That voice, buzzing with excitement as if knowing a tiny bit more information had lit a fire under them.
It was definitely familiar.
“Especially you. I’ve been waiting to meet you again.”
“…Hm? Me?”
“Yes, you! You couldn’t have forgotten me already, could you?!”
“Uh… I feel like I should remember, but… Nope, not coming to me.”
“They say the one who gets hit remembers, but the one who hits forgets. Fine, then let me remind you of my name!”
The voice echoing through the air took a deep breath.
“Does the name… ‘Balseter’ ring a bell?”
“Oh! Foot stink!”
“It’s Balseter, you bastard!”
Ah, now he remembered.
The examiner from the 5th floor, the one from the Abyss of Fanatics.
The one who managed the Path of Choice, that adorable little guy.
He had endured so much humiliation that he ended up running away. Who would’ve thought they’d meet again here?
More importantly, he got promoted. From a mere floor lackey to managing the 44th floor.
“How have you been? Eating well…?”
“Eat?! You think food has been my priority, you worm lower than a maggot’s ass?!”
Seems like he had built up quite a bit of resentment.
His greeting was not just hostile—it was passionate.
Well, it’s not like they shared fond memories.
“Fortunately, Lord Guntafer valued my experience dealing with you and entrusted me with this place. He’s given me the chance to take revenge.”
So Guntafer already knew they were coming.
That bastard was always thinking ten steps ahead, covering every possible scenario.
Except for one.
‘Though… entrusting this job to an idiot like this seems questionable.’
Sure, he had fought Balseter once before, but that alone wasn’t enough to warrant putting him in charge of an entire sewer system.
After all, his abilities were only relevant in the lower floors.
“Fufu. You still underestimate me. But don’t worry. I’ve prepared something that won’t disappoint.”
[Balseter activates his unique ability ‘Path of Trials: Phase 2’!]
A strange magic spread throughout the tunnel.
At the same time—
Whoosh!
A faint sound of something cutting through the air.
It was subtle, but something was flying toward them in a straight trajectory.
Clang!
“…!”
Chuhon Sayoung reacted first, swinging her blade instantly.
The projectile spun through the air.
…An arrow.
One that was tough enough to withstand a sword strike infused with aura.
“A skilled archer…”
Chuhon Sayoung’s arm trembled slightly.
She had thought she completely deflected it, yet a thin line of red traced down her pale wrist.
“Master!”
“Chuhon Sayoung!”
“Shh! Making noise will just reveal our position. Kang Gongja, put out the fire.”
“…Understood.”
Jinhyuk immediately extinguished the flames.
As Chuhon Sayoung had pointed out, keeping a fire lit here was practically asking to be shot.
[Due to the trial’s effects, toxic gas and dust are filling the sewer.]
[Time limit: 0H: 4M: 59S]
“Kahahaha! The first trial is ‘Ambush.’ You must dodge the arrows flying at you from the darkness! Ah, and by the way, the dust in here is flammable, so I’d advise against using any abilities. Unless you fancy turning into a roasted corpse.”
Balseter’s voice was brimming with amusement.
“No matter how strong you are, you won’t survive this one. But since I’m feeling generous, I’ll even give you a hint—”
“Not interested.”
“You damn son of a—!”
Jinhyuk cut Balseter off without hesitation.
Whoosh!
The second arrow shot forward like lightning.
The first one had been a warning—this one erased even the sound of its flight.
Boom!
A burst of flames erupted in the darkness.
That was just the beginning.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A chain of explosions followed where the fire had struck.
“Argh!”
“Don’t block them!”
Not even a few moments had passed since the message about the rising dust and already the explosions were this intense.
Even deflecting them was dangerous.
Whoosh!
Without a moment to breathe, more arrows came flying.
Each one concealed its presence, aiming directly for vital points.
Worse still, the archer was predicting where they would step next, making dodging increasingly difficult.
On this floor, there was only one person who could shoot like this.
“Paris…”
The Greek hero was guarding the first trial.
⁕⁕⁕
Sizzle… Thump!
The floating flames all extinguished at once.
At the far end of the sewer, Paris momentarily stopped drawing his bow.
“Hoh, so they’re not complete fools.”
He had expected them to flail around like moths before dying, but it seemed they would take a little more effort.
Not that it mattered.
It was just a matter of time.
This was the perfect sniping setup.
Even Achilles, a great hero, had fallen to his arrows.
…Did they really think they stood a chance?
Paris smirked as he nocked another arrow.
Whoosh!
Powerful mana gathered at the tip.
The arrows would only grow stronger and faster.
And his prey? They wouldn’t even be able to see them coming.
All they could do was pray their pathetic lives lasted just a little longer.
‘I’ll take them down one by one.’
Just as Paris infused three arrows with different types of mana—
Roll…
Something tumbled toward him from the darkness.
A round, golden object.
An apple.
“Why is this here…?”
Paris froze on the spot.
