NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 70
“Ugh.”
No matter where I turned, the same news blared from every channel. Even the variety shows and dramas were just pumping out breaking reports. It wasn’t just the TV—radio and the internet were on the same page. An unprecedented invasion of monumental scale was happening. In a slightly different way, humanity was now hyper-aware. The cries to eliminate those who turned their backs on humanity were growing louder. How long had it been since that fateful night in Daejeon? Now, thousands were reported casualties, including students from the Academy, in the entirety of Seoul. Thinking about it, it was a miracle that the number wasn’t higher, but there were still many condemning the hunters.
“…”
Hong Yu-ri, flipping through the channels, finally sulked and hit the power button. It was chaos on all fronts. Many were angry that Go Won and Chang-seon were keeping quiet and hiding away.
“…I just want to quit at times like this.”
Nobody knew, but those who did were aware that Chang-seon was seriously injured. He wasn’t on the brink of death, but it was because of that monster they saw alongside Kwang-hui.
“You can’t say two of the Seven Heroes have fallen. You just gotta deal with it.”
So Go Won decided not to mention Chang-seon’s injury, thinking it would only stir more chaos.
“I know that…”
With a deep sigh, Hong Yu-ri expressed her distress.
Above all was the death of Mun-ho. For someone who had withdrawn from the world, it would be easy to hide it, but how could they conceal the death of a teacher and dean at the Academy? The Seven Heroes were like the spiritual pillars of humanity. News of Mun-ho and the Academy’s faculty passing sent shockwaves through society. It made people realize that nowhere was safe anymore.
“But at least the mood isn’t all bad.”
It was a small blessing. If people were changing their thoughts, it made rooting out the traitors easier.
‘…Though whether we can truly root them out is another issue.’
The team leader let out a deep sigh. The monster had been stopped at just breaking the armor, but Chang-seon suffered serious injuries. How do you handle that?
“First off, what about Baek So-yul?”
“She’s below. Honestly, I find it hard to believe.”
Seeing Hong Yu-ri be grouchy, Gu Jin-ha nodded. Who wouldn’t be skeptical? The former target of the spoiled brats, and now an Academy student saved by Alpha. She was definitely a key figure in this invasion… Though she was a bit talented, it didn’t seem like that alone would make her a target. There was definitely something more going on.
“Let’s go.”
They needed to find out why to move forward.
***
“You’re back sooner than expected.”
“…Got a bit tangled.”
Most of the Academy building had collapsed, and the recent news confirmed the death of Mun-ho. It left my mind in chaos.
‘Who the hell killed Mun-ho?’
I briefly thought of Broken Finger, but I knew it was impossible for him to have killed Mun-ho. In this world, the Seven Heroes were like humanity’s last stronghold next to the Square.
‘It shouldn’t have been easy, even for the spoiled brats.’
There were indeed a few who could kill Mun-ho among them. I could think of about three.
‘…But.’
One was probably still unregistered, and the Silent Mouth likely hadn’t recovered.
‘I still have the copy Elixir.’
So they most likely couldn’t have regained their original powers.
By the process of elimination, there was only one possible suspect who could have killed Mun-ho. I gritted my teeth. This world had strayed much from the story I knew. The future was shifting incessantly—Daejeon night seemed to be a pivotal turning point.
‘Now all I can do is wait.’
Knowing the progression of the story was no longer an absolute advantage. The future had twisted, and everyone would act according to that twist. It was impossible for me to predict and move accordingly.
‘…With the Academy half-ruined, finding the protagonist won’t be easy.’
The building wasn’t the only problem; in a situation where teachers were dying, teaching students was out of the question. It was temporarily put on hold, so for now, they returned to the Fantasy World. The Koryo Dinosaur Museum—this place where the Dragon’s Wasteland lay.
“Are we going in?”
I nodded at Baek Rok’s question.
The desolate, barren wasteland greeted them once more. Even with my senses, I couldn’t detect a single hint of life. While I was busy stopping the Witch’s disaster, Baek Rok had cleared out the wasteland.
‘But it hasn’t collapsed.’
If all the monsters had disappeared, the dungeon should have fallen apart. Baek Rok had definitely wiped out all the monsters.
‘…Right. Above ground.’
I recalled the Dragon-Turtle I had seen inside the belly of the Earth Serpent. The remaining monsters weren’t in the wasteland; they had to be below the surface. I suggested going underground, and Baek Rok nodded.
“Be careful.”
“Kkyururuk!”
Less than an hour earlier, I had jumped off the floor where the Earth Serpent had collided. I fell for a while, entered the water, and activated my senses immediately.
‘Less than I expected…’
Compared to the size of the lake, there were fewer monsters. Considering the Earth Serpent had a swimming skill, it seemed it often came down to prey.
Among the remaining monsters was the Dragon-Turtle I had seen before.
Seeing me suddenly appear, it approached with a puzzled expression.
‘It came on its own.’
Extending my tentacles, I caught it from behind. When I grabbed its tail and hind legs, it kicked and thrashed as if to say let go. No matter how much it struggled, its structure made it impossible to twist around to shake off my grasp. With that, I consumed it through contact.
[You have consumed an Ancient Dragon-Turtle. Experience and Satiety increase.]
‘…A bit sad, huh.’
It was regrettable seeing it thrash about helplessly before giving in. I didn’t want to spill any blood. If they caught the scent, it could be dangerous underwater.
[Diving (F) Lv.8 skill has reached its limit. Diving (F) Lv.8 → Diving (F) Lv.9]
Diving further down, my swimming skill, which had risen to level 9 inside the Earth Serpent’s belly, also leveled up to 9. Thanks to both skills, I dispatched any underwater monster with ease.
[Experience has reached its limit. Lv.10 → Lv.11]
Upon hitting level 11, only one remained.
‘I thought I had eaten them all.’
Wyvern, Earth Serpent, Armored Dragon. I had thought I was out of tough monsters to deal with, but it seemed there was one left in the underground lake.
[Lake Saurus]
[Length 8.41m] [Height 2.11m] [Weight 3.61t]
[Strength 451] [Agility 462] [Stamina 401]
[Skills]
[Amphibious (D)] [Predation (F)]
The shape resembled that of a mosasaurus, except it had legs instead of fins. In fact, it looked more similar to the swamp dragon seen in the forest dungeon.
‘…Of course, that’s a bit unfair to compare.’
It simply had higher stats. Though its appearance resembled a dragon-type, it couldn’t be called one without magic. Perhaps due to that, it was dubbed a lizard.
Realizing it was the last one, it glanced around nervously and then charged at me.
Even with its massive size, the water swirled around as it approached, but thanks to swimming and diving, I was easily able to keep up.
I extended as many tentacles as I could, but the creature elegantly dodged them all.
‘Of course.’
Agility 462 wasn’t just for show. It wouldn’t be easy to catch it even with tentacles.
‘That wasn’t my plan, though.’
Using the shadows of the excessive tentacles to cover a wide area. If tangible tentacles would take resistance from the water, the intangible shadows would manage just fine.
Even so, it wasn’t easy to catch, but wounds began to accumulate on its body. Soon it would have to decide to flee or fight.
Before long, it began to paddle in the water with all four legs. Oddly enough, it chose neither option. It kept a safe distance and observed me, stalling for time.
‘Clever, huh.’
It made me smile. It was waiting for me to run out of breath. Even with the diving skill, I still had to breathe. It was getting more and more difficult to keep afloat. The moment I attempted to rise, it slowly approached.
‘Stalling won’t help you.’
Having failed several times, it wouldn’t recklessly charge again. I had to be the first to make a move. Instantly, I transformed my body shape into an aerodynamically sleek form, and the fins stirred the waters.
“……!”
As I attempted to break the surface, it quickly pursued. Even though I had changed form, I couldn’t match its speed, and as I neared the surface, it blocked my way, keeping its distance.
‘Not a chance.’
With my tentacles and shadows extended, it evaded in fright. Just as I finally broke through the surface, its tail was caught.
‘I knew it.’
It was as I expected. I created a strong current. Deep underwater, I could only stir up a whirlpool, but closer to the surface, I could clear the water. The creature, caught by my tail, stared blankly at me.
‘Transformation.’
Just like before in the Earth Serpent’s belly, I prompted a transformation while pushing the water away. The creature, startled by my attack, dove just as I inhaled deeply, filling my lungs with air. When I returned under the water, it was fleeing. It was only natural to escape from an opponent it couldn’t beat.
‘That should do it.’
With agility at 462, capturing it underwater wasn’t feasible. Therefore, taking my sweet time, I kept it within my sensing range while slowly pursuing it.
[Swimming (F) Lv.9 skill’s proficiency…]
[Diving (F) Lv.9 skill’s proficiency…]
At long last, both swimming and diving reached their maximum levels and gained the label ‘excellent’ for E-rank skills. The two skills with the ‘excellent’ label were now.
[Excellent Swimming (E) Lv.1 and Excellent Diving (E) Lv.1 combined into Amphibious (D) Lv.1]
The skill I acquired was the Amphibious skill.
‘I thought this might happen.’
From the skill list that the system showed, swimming and diving were the only likely candidates to contribute to the Amphibious skill. Even whales, who spend their entire lives in the sea, have to break the surface for air. So why had this lizard never emerged before? It was all thanks to that skill. Unlike just holding breath, it allowed for comfortable breathing underwater.
‘—Just like breathing on land.’
True to its name, the Amphibious skill allowed for easy breathing underwater, and the pressure significantly decreased.
‘This is good.’
I whipped my tentacles furiously. Naturally, increasing surface area raises resistance, but the skill I’d just gained reduced that resistance. Altering both fins and tentacles like paddles, the surge propelled me forward. Moreover, the current generated at the tips of my tentacles swirled like a propeller.
‘This is fun.’
That propulsion allowed me to close the gap almost instantly. The captured creature stared in horror as it opened its mouth.
As I swerved and passed it, shadows between the tentacles reached out and stabbed at the lizard. The pristine lake turned crimson with its blood, and soon its breath ceased.
[You have consumed a Lake Saurus. Experience and Satiety increase.]
The last monster of the wasteland. I immediately checked the experience.
[EXP 102467 / 178923]
‘The experience is insane.’
After devouring it, I gained nearly 100,000 experience. There weren’t many monsters in the lake, but I had expected to raise my level up to 12.
‘…What a pity.’
Just to be sure, I scanned with my senses, but there were no more detectable presences. I had cleaned up everywhere, both above and below ground, so there should be no more business left. As if to confirm that, the dungeon began to slowly collapse. The crumbling world began to regain its rightful appearance.
The wasteland that had seemed endless returned to the appearance of a museum, and the system sent a message.
[Destruction probability 96.19% → 96.08%]
[You gained 0.11% of the Merit.]
[Merit (業) 2.82%]
Clearing the dungeon I had relied on for quite some time, including the evolution into Shadows, left me feeling a mix of relief and bittersweetness. Emerging from the underground lake—no, from the basement, Baek Rok nodded in welcome.
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
The Fairy Dragon flew above my head and yawned as if it was tired.
“Baek Rok, what about other dungeons?”
“You really don’t get tired, do you?”
On the contrary, I felt the opposite.
I felt like I would collapse if I stopped moving. As we walked together, we returned to Daejeon, where the fairy circled around, buzzing with excitement, waking up the sleepy Fairy Dragon.
“Kkyu~!”
“Perry!”
As the Fairy Dragon rubbed its sleepy eyes, I suddenly remembered.
‘I was supposed to name it.’
I had totally forgotten. Trying to think of a nice name but coming up short, I decided to just call it Perry, like the fairy did. The moment I did, its eyes widened, and a soft glow surrounded it.
“Kkyuuuu…”
As Baek Rok looked amazed and the fairy marveled, the glow quickly disappeared. It flapped its wings joyfully and patted me with its tail.
‘Something feels different about it.’
[Perry (Fairy Dragon)]
[Length 28.2cm] [Height 3.1cm] [Weight 271g]
[Strength 19] [Agility 17] [Stamina 28] [Magic 91]
[Skills]
[Blink (D)] [Magic Regeneration (D)]
Upon checking through Insight, I found that the name had taken the place where the species name previously was. Like a title I possessed. Glancing back, I noticed Baek Rok quietly nodding.
“Wow! Perry! Perry!”
The delighted fairy, pleased with the name it had given, made me feel a bit uneasy. Wouldn’t it have been better to name it properly?
“Kkyuuuu!”
Seeing the happy little creature, I figured my concerns were unwarranted. The Fairy Dragon had grown at least twice its size since we first met. No, Perry gently tapped my nose with the tip of its tail. I closed my eyes softly, enjoying the delightful touch.
‘I’m just glad it doesn’t seem like it dislikes it.’
Though the little creature, lively just moments ago, nodded off, becoming drowsy, the feeling of naming someone for the first time felt oddly stirring.
***
Baek So-yul fell into deep thought.
The people from the Dawn asked numerous questions.
About those targeting me. About Yoo Chang-baek. About the Academy. And about the wolf that saved me. In response to their inquiries, Baek So-yul answered as thoroughly as possible. But honestly, her answers were all vague. She didn’t know enough details.
If anything, she became more aware of what she had been oblivious to.
The organization that targeted her were the spoiled brats.
The wolf that saved her was known as Alpha.
—But she couldn’t bring herself to discuss the matter of dreams. However, with the Dawn’s intel, wouldn’t they know I had spoken about dreams with others?
‘…….’
Her chest felt heavy.
Putting aside all other questions, there was just one thing Baek So-yul wanted to know.
‘Why did he…’
Why did the wolf, the Alpha, rescue her? And how did he know about her?
[―The Witch’s disaster will not occur.]
His repeated assurances to save her echoed in her mind, refusing to fade. Baek So-yul, after recalling those engraved words once again, rummaged through her pocket.
The fur that remained in her hand when she cuddled the wolf.
Gazing at the few strands of fur for a long time, Baek So-yul cherished them gently, placing them back into her pocket.