The Greatest Estate Developer - Chapter 37: The True Path to Repentance (2)

*Psssshhhhh!*

Colorless gas poured out from the ceiling.

At the same time, a sweet fragrance tickled their noses, prodding at the deepest corners of their minds, coaxing a sense of languidness.

This was the notorious aroma said to put even an elephant to sleep in one breath—a deathly gas that would send anyone it engulfed into an eternal slumber.

The attack of sleeping gas infused with concentrated Asonia extract had begun.

*Pssshhh!*

The confined space quickly filled with the Asonia aroma gas.

If an ordinary person had been present, they would have immediately collapsed, succumbing to the kind of sleep that transitions into eternal rest.

However, the two people trapped inside the sealed steel walls were different.

“Well, this is exactly like in the novel.”

Lloyd calmly scanned his surroundings, even as the deadly Asonia aroma entered through his nose and mouth.

Yet his face and eyes betrayed not the slightest hint of drowsiness.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah.”

Javier’s inquiry was met with Lloyd’s reply.

A single white leaf was already clasped between his lips—a leaf of Insomnia, the only herb capable of neutralizing Asonia’s sleep-inducing effects.

“I came prepared.”

Deadly steel walls and sleeping gas were straight out of the novel *Iron-Blooded Knight*.

Having anticipated this, Lloyd had prepared in advance.

During the journey from the orc village to this location, he had diligently picked Insomnia leaves whenever he spotted the flower.

He carefully collected and stored them in his pouch.

Since earlier, he had been holding a leaf in his mouth.

Thanks to that, no matter how much Asonia aroma he inhaled, he felt no drowsiness.

Of course, there was a small drawback.

“*This thing is insanely spicy. Is the awakening effect from sheer burning heat or what?*”

That seemed to be the case.

Insomnia was extraordinarily spicy.

Not just mildly spicy—his lips felt like they were burning. No, it was as if they were being erased entirely.

“*Good thing I’m Korean.*”

Fortunately(?), Lloyd was Korean.

And what are Koreans known for?

A people who dip chili in chili paste and eat it, no less.

Lloyd was no exception.

On rainy days, he’d crave spicy food and order fire chicken.

In sunny and hot weather, he’d relish sweating through a bowl of doenjang stew loaded with green chili.

Even during his destitute life in a cheap studio apartment after his family went bankrupt, it was no different.

When surviving on triangle kimbap, he always picked the spiciest flavor.

Thus, his lifetime of building resistance to capsaicin was proving invaluable now.

He endured the fiery pain and kept the leaf in his mouth.

“What about you?”

Suppressing the burning sensation in his lips, Lloyd asked.

Javier let out a rare, faint yawn.

“I’m fine. Though, hmm, feeling a little drowsy.”

“Drowsy? How drowsy?”

“Like that rare bout of spring fatigue, perhaps.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Indeed, it was just that—a mild drowsiness.

But as someone with chronic insomnia, Javier was not easily subdued by sleep.

Like most insomniacs, he had tried everything to achieve the elusive dream of restful sleep.

Counting sheep? Check.

Sleep masks? Check.

Baths and foot soaks? Check.

Aromatherapy candles? Check.

Meditation for inner peace? Check.

Even yoga, popular in far-off countries, had been attempted with much groaning and effort.

In his desperation, he’d even tried the Asonia aroma he was currently inhaling.

Yet, none of it had worked, leaving him to endure countless sleepless nights, the blood vessels in his eyes bursting from the strain.

This mild drowsiness was far from enough to overwhelm someone like him.

Yet, the situation did stir a bittersweet melancholy in his heart.

“*Hah… Compared to the lullabies Lord Lloyd hums, this doesn’t even make me sleepy.*”

Was he now truly incapable of sleeping without Lloyd’s bedtime service?

The unsettling thought that he might never escape Lloyd’s influence crept into his mind, accompanied by a deep sense of shame as bitter as espresso.

He let out a sigh, laden with these heavy thoughts.

Javier, shaking off his internal struggles, drew his sword.

While it was fortunate the gas hadn’t incapacitated them, they couldn’t remain trapped here forever.

“Shall I break through the steel wall?”

“No.”

Lloyd shook his head at Javier’s suggestion.

“You’re not planning to just stab or cut it, right? You’d use blasting techniques, wouldn’t you? Do that in this confined space, and my eardrums will burst with a nice pop-pop sound.”

“…”

Javier lowered the sword he had raised.

Instead, Lloyd picked up a steel shovel.

“Let’s dig down. I’ll make a tunnel—just follow me.”

“Understood.”

Lloyd began digging.

At the same time, he activated a specialized skill from the Asrahan Heart Technique.

*Energize.*

*Ding!*

[The Asrahan Heart Technique’s *Energizer* option has been activated.]

[The efficiency of the Double Circle has reached its maximum.]

[You will not tire for 10 minutes.]

“*Let’s get digging!*”

*Thud! Crunch! Smash!*

The steel shovel danced in Lloyd’s hands.

With each strike of the ground, he unearthed enough soil to fill a bucket.

A pit quickly formed in the ground.

First, it reached knee depth.

Then waist depth.

Eventually, it grew deeper than his height.

Once the vertical pit was deep enough, Lloyd shifted to digging horizontally.

“*Tunnel time! Let’s go!*”

With 10 minutes of *Energizer*, it was more than enough to dig a tunnel past the steel wall.

Lloyd burrowed forward with dazzling speed.

Javier quietly followed behind, watching Lloyd’s movements.

“*He’s like a mole.*”

Javier made a mental note to use this against Lloyd the next time he was teased.

As he mentally logged this retort, he remained vigilant, keeping watch in case the black magician launched an attack from above the tunnel.

Several minutes passed.

“Hey.”

Lloyd’s voice called out.

“Come forward, angle your sword upward, and prepare to blast. Got it?”

“What about your eardrums?”

“They’ll be fine—it’s not against steel this time.”

“Understood.”

Javier nodded.

Having dug past the steel wall, it was now time to dig upwards.

Quietly shoveling their way out wasn’t an option—doing so would leave them vulnerable to attacks from the black magician.

“Step back.”

Once Lloyd retreated to a safe distance, Javier raised his sword.

He drew it back and thrust it upward.

*Thunk!*

At the same time, the three circles surrounding his heart spun rapidly.

The angles of the rotating circles twisted.

Two circles converged at high speed.

A violent collision ensued.

…!

The shockwave traveled through his heart, surging through his veins and amplifying as it coursed to the ends of his muscles.

It reached his elbows, wrists, and fingers before transferring to his sword.

The force extended straight through the blade’s path.

The explosion erupted.

*BOOM!*

From the tunnel, a slanted upward direction was obliterated.

The blast vaporized a 10-meter-long stretch, carving out a long tunnel.

“Let’s go! All at once!”

Lloyd, who had been covering his ears, shouted.

The two dashed through the tunnel, bursting outside like two wild beasts escaping from a zoo.

Their sudden appearance left the black magician wide-eyed, his pupils dilated in shock.

“Wh-what?! How is this possible!”

He couldn’t believe it.

The dungeon’s defensive measures, which he had thought were impregnable, had been breached so easily.

Even though he was witnessing it firsthand, it felt utterly unreal.

“*No way. That silver-haired guy couldn’t even get through the entrance a few days ago—he had to retreat!*”

In truth, the black magician had been closely monitoring the situation around the dungeon for the past few days.

This was because of Javier, the silver-haired knight, who had attempted to infiltrate the dungeon not long ago.

He had been the first intruder in ages.

Although he had been forced to retreat after encountering a magic circle near the entrance, he had proven himself to be no ordinary foe—he had survived.

The black magician had assumed he would return soon.

“*And I was right.*”

Of course, he hadn’t spent those days idle.

After the silver-haired knight’s retreat, he had fortified the dungeon’s defenses.

He doubled the number of magic circles, ensuring he could relax with the thought that the dungeon was finally safe.

But then, just moments ago, the silver-haired knight and an unfamiliar companion had suddenly appeared in the deepest part of the dungeon.

Without triggering a single magic circle at the entrance!

“*I was stunned.*”

Truly, he had been caught off guard.

Since they bypassed the magic circles entirely, he hadn’t even realized they were coming.

Panicked, the black magician had activated the final defensive trap—a steel wall to trap the intruders and lethal gas to put them to eternal sleep.

“*But even that has been breached!*”

Now, the two intruders emerged, their intensity blazing.

They were no ordinary opponents.

Letting his guard down could prove fatal.

The black magician immediately clasped his hands together.

“*Khaaaa!*”

He formed a distinct gesture with his hands, intertwining his bent fingers into a seal.

Mana surged, rearranging itself into specific patterns.

Before him, a ten-centimeter black magic circle materialized.

He thrust his hands forward.

“*Take this!*”

*SHWOOSH!*

The magic circle trembled violently before spewing out a mysterious liquid, much like a creature regurgitating its stomach contents.

*SPLASH!*

A thick, viscous substance shot forward in a straight line, aimed directly at Javier.

In an instant, Javier’s sword sliced through the air.

*Swoosh!*

From below to above, his sword surged vertically, leaving a gleaming arc in its path.

The sword’s wind split the liquid in half, forcing it into two streams that were blown sideways by the pressure.

*Sizzle…*

The displaced liquid struck the rocks nearby, causing them to bubble and melt with a hiss.

Meanwhile, Javier charged forward without hesitation.

*BOOM!*

“……!”

The black magician’s eyes filled with terror.

The spell he had cast unleashed a deadly acidic liquid, highly corrosive and impossible to block—or so he believed.

Particularly, he thought it couldn’t be deflected with a sword or shield.

But now?

“*He cut it? With the mere wind pressure of his sword swing?*”

It was insane.

That silver-haired knight—Javier—was utterly insane.

“*Could he actually be a Sword Master?*”

The thought crossed his mind.

The skill on display was leagues beyond any Sword Expert he had ever encountered.

Still, the black magician wasn’t ready to admit defeat. His eyes gleamed with ferocity.

“*Khaaaa!*”

With a guttural yell, he dropped to one knee and spread his arms wide, palms pressing against the ground.

His fingers dug into the earth, their different bends and depths rearranging the mana once more.

The new mana patterns etched a magic circle into the ground.

*RUMBLE!*

A black magic circle emerged, trembling violently against the earth.

And then—

*Thud!*

Gray hands burst through the soil, clawing upwards.

One of the hands grabbed Javier’s ankle mid-charge.

“……!”

But it didn’t stop there.

As Javier briefly paused, dozens of hands emerged from the ground, sprouting like weeds.

First, only hands.

Then wrists.

Next, forearms and shoulders.

Finally, rotting faces surfaced.

“*Kraaagh! Guuuuugh! Haaaaa!*”

These were ghouls—undead creatures consumed by an insatiable hunger for human flesh.

“*Gyaaaaah!*”

A swarm of fifty ghouls rose around Javier, trapping him in their midst.

The black magician smirked triumphantly.

“*Hahaha! These are no ordinary ghouls! Unlike the mindless, sluggish ones you’re used to, these are my masterpieces, crafted over a hundred days and nights with countless reagents and enhancement magic circles!*

“*Their granite-like skin, speed rivaling the wind, absolute loyalty to my commands, and savage nature—they’re weapons of slaughter!*

“*Each one is comparable to a Death Knight. Even a group of ordinary Sword Experts couldn’t hope to handle them!*”

*Slice.*

Before his laughter could fully blossom, a chilling flash of light surrounded Javier.

A frosty wind, as cold as eternal ice, followed.

The fifty enhanced ghouls charging at Javier froze in place.

And then they all spoke in unison:

“Ghouls?”

That was all.

*Thud.*

One by one, all fifty ghouls had their heads severed.

Their skulls dropped to the ground with a dull thud.

Then their arms and legs.

Next their torsos.

The “enhanced” ghouls fell apart like broken toy figurines.

*Crash.*

Cold silence followed.

In the quiet, Javier turned his gaze.

His frostbitten eyes locked onto the black magician.

“Do you have any other friends to summon?”

“…….”

At that moment, the black magician realized the truth.

Ah, today is the day I die.