TWKH Ch 15

“Please don’t tell me the person I made plans with tonight has no conscience, right?”

It was a direct shot aimed at Ha Baekyung. Jehyun, who had entered the over-saturated dungeon of K-Hill’s laboratory, continued speaking before the party members could respond.

“From now on, we can’t leave in front of the monitor until we clear it… Did everyone wear diapers?”

Boss→ Hey, do you really think it’s going to take that long?

Matgom→ Yeah. Since we’ve cleared it once, it should be manageable, right?

“Manageable? Well, let’s talk after we actually clear it.”

K-Hill’s laboratory.

If you asked which dungeon took the longest to get a first clear from Caplet, it would undoubtedly be K-Hill’s laboratory. While the highest-level dungeon at the time, Mallorca’s Tomb, took 13 hours for a first clear, K-Hill’s laboratory took a staggering 15 hours. That was a hardcore dungeon, with more than 5 hours spent just on the first boss clear.

They had tackled the dungeon for 15 hours without proper meals, and the memory of losing the first clear to Jangji, leaving only 5% left, was still vivid. Two of the five who had made Jehyun angry back then were now in the same party with him. Jehyun let out a long breath, realizing that yesterday’s enemies had become today’s comrades.

Today’s first-clear party members were the same as last time.

A tanking swordsman, SpellChecker; a healing priest, Healer; a time thief, Habaek, and a dark sorcerer, Boss12MoreHours, as well as a chain swordsman, Contempt.

It was their second challenge for a first clear after the Spirit’s Sanctuary, but Jehyun was confident. Since clearing the sanctuary, they had gone on several K-Hill saturated ranking runs, and every time, their teamwork had been spot on.

“Gather up.”

Before Jehyun could say any more, the party members were already gathered around the healer. Jehyun quickly pressed the shortcut key to apply the buffs and then focused his gaze on the wide map in front of him.

The security checkpoint at the entrance to K-Hill’s laboratory was the first boss… or rather, the first area they had to face. The first hurdle in K-Hill’s laboratory was passing the security checkpoint.

“I’ll start the countdown. Let’s take it easy for now.”

Wanting to keep things light, Jehyun deliberately spoke in a casual tone. He then pressed a shortcut key to bring up the countdown on the screen.

3

2

1

Start!

K-Hill was one of the raptor legion commanders, the commander of the Raptor Medical Command. His medical command had a space for healing and recovering injured raptors, and deep underground, K-Hill’s laboratory was hidden.

Few were allowed into K-Hill’s laboratory. So, the allied forces had disguised themselves as K-Hill’s workers by capturing subspecies raptors, and after arriving at the laboratory’s entrance, they began by tackling the security checkpoint there.

Security check starting.

As soon as they entered, a message appeared in the center of the screen. Jehyun moved the mouse and noticed the bodies of subspecies raptors piled up in one corner of the map. He quickly ran toward that spot.

Then, a “rotten smell” debuff appeared, and an effect like smoke began to rise around his character. The hellhound training was about to begin.

K-Hill is looking for usable workers.

Searching begins.

Messages popped up one after another, and lines were drawn on the ground in a grid-like pattern. The slightly raised lines on the bare floor soon turned bright red and began to radiate heat. It was a sorting line for melting down useless raptors.

K-Hill, get to work, you guys~

A voice, smooth and slithering through the headset speakers, echoed. It was K-Hill’s nasal voice, often referred to as “Gay Hill.” Along with that, numbers appeared on the black panel in front of the security checkpoint.

“4, 7.”

Jehyun quickly read out the numbers and moved his character to begin jumping.

In the laboratory, K-Hill used workers to move the bodies of humans and raptors, and the numbers were the code used to notify where to place them.

4, 7 meant to fill the spot at the fourth row and seventh height. Since the floor was arranged in a square grid, players had to fill four spots: 4, 7 from the east; 4, 7 from the west; 4, 7 from the south; and 4, 7 from the north.

“Nobody’s going to mess this up, right?”

Jehyun asked quietly as he carefully avoided the sorting line and jumped toward the fourth row, seventh spot in the east.

Contempt→ Who would mess this up?

Matgom→ If someone messes up, 100 million calls?

Boss→ Call!

Everyone seemed confident. After quickly solving the gimmick, light filled the correct spots while flames shot up from all the incorrect ones. It was the “incineration” mechanic, clearing out useless materials.

[Party] Habaek: 47

K-Hill: “Hehehe, I wonder if these guys are actually useful?”

K-Hill: “Get to work, you guys~”

Once the flames disappeared, K-Hill’s laughing voice echoed again as the panel lit up.

“1, 1. Let’s go.”

This time, it was the first row. Jehyun pressed jump, avoiding the sorting line, and dashed toward the first spot. As the seconds ticked down rapidly, he reached his spot with just two seconds to spare.

When K-Hill’s laboratory first appeared, the number code had caused massive struggles. If players didn’t fill all the spots, incineration flames would erupt all over the map, and nobody knew they had to fill four specific spots.

Even if players gathered in the correct locations, the flames would still rise everywhere, causing some to abandon the attempt, speculating it was a bug update, waiting for an official announcement from Cass.

K-Hill’s laboratory was the first dungeon to use the entire map as a gimmick, so players couldn’t figure it out right away.

When the active players and Jangji were about to give up, a streamer from another server in “enjoyment mode” found the solution. They had to match the empty spots from all four directions—north, south, east, and west.

It took three hours for the solution to surface. Players were furious, cursing Capitol Studios for not planting any hints in the game, with over fifty posts expressing their frustration.

Once the pattern was understood, the first boss was cleared in under two hours.

“Has the pattern changed?”

But there was no difference between the saturated and over-saturated dungeons. Would the first boss be this way? Jehyun tilted his head, and just then, numbers appeared on the panel, and the walls around them opened.

[Party] Habaek: 11

K-Hill: “Hehehe, not bad?”

K-Hill: “Get to work, you guys~”

“3, 9. Ah… lasers are out.”

The pattern changed from the third round. Jehyun focused as massive laser beams shot out in all directions.

These lasers were common in other dungeons. They were said to be a raptor’s new technology, and could not be avoided with movement but only through invincibility or evasion skills.

The problem, however, was that the lasers came from four directions simultaneously.

If the positioning was poor, one would have to use four evasion skills, and only swordmasters and time thieves in Caplet could manage to evade four times within ten seconds. Dark sorcerers might survive with invincibility and evasion skills, and priests could survive with perfect timing.

The problem was Contempt, who had no invincibility and only one evasion skill.

“Ah, damn it. Contempt is going to die.”

Contempt→ Seems like they don’t know Caplet has a chain swordsman class…

“Right. You should probably dodge in the center.”

The chain swordsman only had one evasion skill, but its long cooldown allowed for longer resistance time. If all the lasers converged in the center, it could be avoided in the right moment. It seemed Caplet had designed the dungeon with that in mind, considering the chain swordsman’s central evasion.

Jehyun quickly ran toward the ninth spot in the third row, dodging the two lasers approaching from the left and below with a single evasion.

“Using Retreat.”

You received 300,000 damage from the new technology conglomerate.

You received 300,000 damage from the new technology conglomerate.

“Using Origin.”

You received 300,000 damage from the new technology conglomerate.

Then, he used invincibility to resist the laser coming from above, and just before reaching the correct spot, he prepared to dodge the last laser with his evasion skill, which had just come off cooldown. He turned the screen to check the situation.

Contempt→ Sigh…

Contempt, who was stationed on the west side, had stood in the center to avoid the lasers. However, when all the lasers overlapped, Contempt, who was supposed to use evasion, stood still in a daze and died. Seeing this, Jehyun frowned and smirked.

Contempt has died.

K-Hill: “What’s that smell?”

K-Hill smells human.

K-Hill: “Ugh, disgusting~ so disgusting~”

Disinfection is being conducted.

As soon as Contempt fell, the wall that had shot out lasers opened, and a massive stream of water began pouring in. It was an unstoppable disinfectant, and anyone caught in the disinfectant would be swept toward the surplus labor sorting line, leading to certain death. It was a wipe. Clicking his tongue, Jehyun spoke in a light tone.

“Let’s go again.”

Contempt→ Sorry…

Boss→ Isn’t it forbidden to say sorry from the first try?

Matgom→ Right, it’s forbidden.

Boss12MoreHours has died.

You received 300,000 damage from the surplus labor sorting line.

You have died.

Habaek has died.

SpellChecker has died.

All characters were wiped out by the disinfectant. After the sudden wipe, Jehyun paused for a moment, then moved the mouse and clicked the resurrection button, saying:

“Lasers are too tough. Looks like Contempt will have to be the bait. Matgom, can you do it?”

Matgom→ Ah, if the dealer can’t do it, the tank has to.

Contempt→ I’m not saying I can’t do it, it’s just that the chain won’t work, okay? Caplet messed up the dungeon design!

Matgom→ Sure~ I’ll fix it for you.

Contempt→ I’m not the problem!

Originally, Matgom, the tank, was tasked with following the person assigned to the north. With five party members and four directions, the MMORPG aristocracy law required treating the precious tank with care.

“I’ll move.”

As the second attempt started, Matgom, who had taken the west, received a debuff and moved west. Seeing Contempt running north to become the boss’s key ring dealer, Jehyun made an uneasy face, sensing an ominous feeling.

Contempt→ …Should I just go out and die?

Security checkpoint, 5th try.

Contempt, who died while trying to dodge lasers in the center but missed the timing, asked in a sullen voice. Jehyun picked up the tumbler on his desk and drank the lemonade filled with ice. Then, without saying anything, he started tapping his fingers.

The oversaturated version of the security checkpoint boasted extreme difficulty for characters with few movement and evasion skills. The problem was that during the security checkpoint, no one could die. The moment someone dies, disinfectant would be sprayed, and the Party would be wiped, so Contempt absolutely had to dodge the lasers. But that wasn’t happening…

“…Should we just remove Contempt?”

Contempt→ Are you telling me to leave…?

Contempt asked in a dejected tone after Jehyun blurted out the thought. However, Jehyun immediately shook his head. Attempting the first clear with only four people was too risky. If Jehyun, the healer, died, the chances of resurrecting him would be drastically reduced, so trying a four-man first clear didn’t make sense. Additionally, there might be a gimmick later on that required five people.

“Shit, I don’t know. Hey, just do your best.”

After letting out a sigh, Jehyun urged Contempt on. Contempt, crying ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ at the Party chat, responded with “Yes…” and complied with his scolding.

Just as Jehyun was about to start the sixth try, counting down again:

[Party] Habaek: “Let’s just kill and move on?”

[Party] Contempt: “;ㅅ; Please use proper subject…”

[Party] SpellChecker: “Who?”

[Party] Habaek: “If you just lie down from the start, the disinfectant won’t show up.”

“Ah…?”

At Habaek’s remark, Jehyun recalled a memory he had forgotten.

When K-Hill’s laboratory was the top dungeon, parties would often form to sell the items dropped there. The current top dungeon, the Tomb of Mallorca, had been out for a long time, and since the five who knew all the gimmicks had to cooperate, there were almost no selling parties for it. However, K-Hill’s laboratory had quite a few selling parties.

Jehyun had never participated in a selling party, as he didn’t need to earn money through the game. However, he had wondered about selling parties before. Did people in selling parties have to know how to clear the checkpoint? That kind of thought crossed his mind.

If Habaek was right…

“Is that how selling parties go? The ones taking the bus just lie down from the start, and the other four clear it?”

[Party] Habaek: “Yeah.”

Jehyun clicked his tongue at Habaek’s lackluster response and waved his wand at him. It felt like he was still upset about losing in the guild war. Anyway, his words had provided an answer.

Just because there are five party members doesn’t mean they have to clear it with five. Jehyun smiled as he broke conventional thinking and said to Contempt:

“Yeah. Contempt, just die quickly.”

Boss→ “Is this really going to work?”

Contempt→ “…I’ll try dying first…”

Contempt seemed to be hurt by the fact that he had become surplus labor. He spoke in a dejected voice and, before Jehyun could even start the countdown, walked into the map alone. The security checkpoint message appeared, and as the lines on the ground lit up, he positioned himself and died.

Contempt has died.

K-Hill: “What’s that smell?”

K-Hill smells human.

K-Hill: “Ugh, disgusting~ so disgusting~”

Disinfection is being conducted.

As soon as Contempt died, K-Hill initiated disinfection. The disinfectant pushed into the area, shoving the Party members who had gathered at the entrance aside.

After the disinfection was finished, Contempt’s body remained where it was. Could it really be? Jehyun, with a slightly doubtful expression, activated the buff and started the countdown again.

3

2

1

Start!

Security check starting.

The stench of decay is noticeable.

K-Hill searches for a useful worker.

A series of starting patterns passed, and soon K-Hill began its search.

K-Hill, get to work, you guys~

After that, numbers appeared on the panel right away.

As Habaek had said, K-Hill did not detect Contempt, who was stretched out in a large line in the center of the map. Without Contempt, the worker pattern wasn’t that hard.

“I’ll clear this right away.”

Jehyun muttered this and began to follow the numbers on the panel.

[Party] Habaek: 23

[Party] Habaek: 75

[Party] Habaek: 10 1

The patterns kept passing by. When the pattern with lasers appeared, and 10 and 1 showed up, Jehyun quickly rushed toward the end and briefed.

“Move one spot each. I’m going north.”

The first spot in the tenth row.

So the last spot was the same as the 1, 1 of the counterclockwise position. When 10, 1 showed up, they would usually switch their positions by one spot. This was because the first team would show up next.

Jehyun, who was in the east, moved to the north, Habaek in the north went west, Matgom in the west went south, and Boss in the south went east. Shifting counterclockwise, they began to move their characters again, checking the next pattern.

Boss→ Ah, mistake!! Sorry, sorry. Let’s go again.

Matgom→ It’s okay. Let’s clear it this time.

In the middle, Boss died from the laser, causing a wipe. They quickly revived, finished repairing, and tried again while Contempt just lay idly on the floor.

[Guild] Contempt: I… am a firefly… useless…

[Guild] Sangjae: Fireflies are useful, though;

[Guild] Contempt: ;ㅅ; I… am useless like Yiyoung…

[Guild] Sangjae: OK I admit it

[Guild] Contempt: ㅠㅅㅠ.. I also want to contribute to society..

[Guild] Contempt: I’ll suggest adding chain evasion from today ㅠㅂㅠ..

Caplet’s balance had been terrible for a while, but this security checkpoint felt especially harsh for the chain checkers. To nullify four lasers with just one evasion skill?

Anyway, while Contempt was whining, Jehyun, Habaek, Boss, and Matgom showed incredible focus.

The security checkpoint had two phases. There were six patterns from 1 to 10, after which they moved on to phase 2. In phase 2, the numbers were called in reverse order from phase 1. Of course, it wasn’t just in a straightforward manner.

[Party] Contempt: 2 4 ㅇㅅㅇ

[Party] Contempt: 3 9 <(‘^’)>

[Party] Contempt: 10 1 ㅇ-<ㄷ..

[Party] Healer: Remove the rotten emotes

[Party] Contempt: 1 8 ㅠㅅㅠ

[Party] Contempt: 4 7

[Party] Contempt: 5 5

Taking over the briefing role from Habaek, Contempt wrote down all the numbers that had been called so far. Jehyun saw the code [ 5, ? ] that appeared on the panel after phase 2 and quickly checked the chat window.

“5, 5.”

Next was [ ?, 1 ]. For a moment, he mixed it up with 10, 1, but remembering that it was in reverse order, he briefed.

“8, 1.”

Following Jehyun’s lead, the party members continued to find their correct spots. When 1, 10 appeared, they moved their positions clockwise.

The panel numbers kept flashing, the ground lit up, and incineration fire pillars soared.

Finally, the last number, [9, 3], was called, and once it was matched, the excess labor cleanup light on the floor went out, and K-Hill spoke.

K-Hill: Ho-oh, these guys are pretty good?

K-Hill: Follow me, you guys~

Once the line was finished, the red light on the screen went out, and the colors returned to normal. The door to the 2nd named boss entry area, directly in front, opened. As the automatic door slid open like a sliding door, Jehyun ran toward it and spoke.

“Good job. Shall we go right in?”

Contempt→ Hyung… can you save me before you go…

“Ah.”

Hearing Contempt’s almost dying voice, Jehyun stopped in his tracks and turned the screen. Only then did he notice Contempt’s body lying in the middle of the security checkpoint. Apologizing with a smile, Jehyun quickly moved over and helped Contempt get back on his feet.

Boss→ I’ll grab a cup of coffee real quick.

“Isn’t Noona at the PC room?”

Boss→ Huh? It’s at home.

“Aha, I thought it was a PC room.”

Boss→ I didn’t go out today, worried it might take 12 hours. Matgom is following. I’ll be back.

“Okay.”

Answering quietly, Jehyun headed toward the 2nd named boss. Ahead, he saw Habaek, Matgom, and Boss running. Then, he burst into laughter as he saw Matgom secretly ditching Boss and rubbing himself against a structure that had popped up.

Swish swish, Matgom used his evasion skill, leaving Boss caught on the structure. Agreeing to his playful antics, Jehyun took a few steps back, then used the teammate rescue on Boss to match the maximum distance. As Boss’s character was moved far back, Matgom moved inside the structure and stopped her character completely. Jehyun smiled quietly and set off again.

[Party] Habaek: ??

[Party] Contempt: ㅇㅅㅇ?

[Party] Habaek: Who laughed just now?

At that moment, Habaek’s question caught attention. He seemed to be looking for trouble with everything. Jehyun frowned slightly and didn’t answer. Then, stopping in his tracks, Habaek asked again through the Party chat.

[Party] Habaek: Who just laughed?

[Party] Contempt: Wasn’t it Hyung? ㅇㅅㅇ; Why?

[Party] SpellChecker: Gibaek: Don’t laugh when I’m not around.

[Party] Contempt: Jealous, obsessive guy who even monitors laughter.. Ew

[Party] Habaek: Lol? Did Gilma just laugh?

“What. What are you picking on now?”

Only then did Jehyun reply with a teasing voice.

After losing the guild battle, Habaek had been avoiding speaking to Jehyun. Now, when he pointed out the laughter, his tone was less than polite.

“Did you add anything when I was splitting it?”

Contempt→ They say a couple’s fight is like cutting water with a knife.

“Shall we be quiet?”

Contempt→ Yup….

He was still bitter about losing the guild battle and felt sorry for the guild members. But like the law of action and reaction, the more Habaek acted sulkily, the more Jehyun would respond childishly and annoyingly to his words. Habaek twisted his lips and asked.

“Did you add anything? You brat.”

With that teasing tone, Habaek started running toward the 2nd named boss again.

[Party] Habaek: Ugh I was mistaken

It wasn’t until they arrived at their destination that Habaek’s reply came. What he was mistaken about or what he meant, Jehyun didn’t care. He let out a quick snicker and placed his hands on the keyboard. Using chat to piss off Habaek, who wasn’t using a mic, was much more effective.

[Party] Healer: Are you over sulking about the guild war now?

[Party] Habaek: ? Who said I was sulking?

[Party] Healer: The person who says, “Who’s sulking?” ^^

[Party] Healer: You got upset because you couldn’t take first place, right? LOL

[Party] Habaek: Haha.

[Party] Habaek: Maybe I was angry instead?

At Habaek’s curt reply, Jehyun snorted.

[Party] Healer: Do you actually live for this game?

[Party] Healer: Sulking for three days without saying a word just because you lost a guild war…

[Party] Healer: Oh dear, poor thing who hasn’t done their military serviceㅠㅠ

[Party] SpellChecker: Is this how you aim for the solar plexus?

[Party] Contempt: Tremble tremble…

[Party] Contempt: Except for Hyung, no one here has done their service…ㅇㅅ”ㅇ

[Party] Contempt: Please clarify your subject..?

[Party] Boss12MoreHours: ?

[Party] Boss12MoreHours: What about me?

[Party] Contempt: Hyung got exempted with a gold medal;ㅅ;

[Party] Boss12MoreHours: Oh~ forgot LOL

[Party] Boss12MoreHours: But Matgom is disappointing… just leaving me behind

Boss’s casual remark made everyone burst into laughter. Jehyun chuckled quietly but felt bothered by Habaek’s silence, so he turned his view to check.

Habaek stood idly in front of the second boss. For some reason, his pose looked lonely. Of course, it was just Jehyun’s imagination. He only felt that way because of guilt.

Sighing briefly, Jehyun ran a hand through his hair, messing it up. Then, biting his lips, he sent a whisper to Habaek.

[Whisper] To Habaek: I’m really sorry.

[Whisper] To Habaek: I’ll make sure not to lose our mark next time.

[Whisper] To Habaek: So cheer up, okay?

But after sending it, his face flushed, and he felt awkward. It was probably because he’d never had a serious conversation with Habaek before. Would this guy think, “What’s gotten into him all of a sudden?” Jehyun chewed his lips anxiously before adding a teasing follow-up to shake off the awkwardness.

[Whisper] To Habaek: Didn’t think you’d sulk this much over losing a guild war.

[Whisper] To Habaek: If I’d known, I wouldn’t have used Sacrifice ㅠ

[Whisper] From Habaek: You’re seriously annoying, just stop.

[Whisper] From Habaek: I’m trying to forget, but you keep reminding me.

[Whisper] From Habaek: And it’s not because of losing the guild war.

[Whisper] To Habaek: ??

[Whisper] To Habaek: Then what is it?

At least he’d unblocked him, so Jehyun supposed he should be grateful for that. Habaek cut off his response midway and fell silent again. When Jehyun spammed question marks, Habaek stayed quiet for a while before finally replying.

[Whisper] From Habaek: There are two ways to annoy someone. One is to stop talking mid-sentence.

[Whisper] To Habaek: LOL?

[Whisper] To Habaek: Hey.

And then there was no response again. Jehyun frowned, staring intently at the chat window, then burst out laughing and shook his head. Still, seeing Habaek joking like that, it seemed like he was in a slightly better mood. That was a relief. Breathing a sigh of relief, Jehyun adjusted his voice and called out the signal to start.

“Let’s start the second boss, military service dodgers.”

Matgom→ Yes, old man.

Contempt→ Ugh, the stench of the army.

At Jehyun’s playful tone, Matgom and Contempt replied cheekily. Jehyun grinned as he initiated the countdown.

3

2

1

Start!

The mutated Raptor No. 27 senses something unusual.

The ground trembles.

The second boss in K-Hill’s laboratory was the “Mutated Raptor No. 27,” one of K-Hill’s most trusted workers. The battlefield for the second phase was the corpse disposal site where 27 did its work. The area was laid out like a grid, with marked sections on the floor.

The lines divided where the corpses were buried and decomposed, and Jehyun thought it reflected K-Hill’s obsessive nature.

Why bother organizing where to bury corpses? Wouldn’t it be easier to just throw them anywhere?

27: Th-th-there’s something… s-s-suspicious… I-I-I smell something strange…

Mutated Raptor No. 27 was one of K-Hill’s experimental subjects. Having been fused with human and raptor features, 27 had a human body with a raptor’s head. The unnatural connection between the two caused it to stutter when speaking. Jehyun glanced past 27’s monologue filling the screen with a bored expression while applying a defense reduction debuff in preparation for the fight.

The mutated raptor creates a trap.

In the Overflow Dungeon, 27 would lay traps on the ground to attack players. The traps resembled deep pits used to bury corpses.

Falling into a trap would awaken the buried corpses, which would then rush at the players. Upon contact or after 10 seconds, the corpses would explode, each dealing up to 100,000 damage. If unlucky, this pattern could result in a party wipe.

Traps couldn’t be dodged or avoided with mobility skills. Regardless of invincibility, simply passing over them would trigger the trap. Only teleportation skills from Spirit Masters and Dark Sorcerers could bypass them since those skills theoretically allowed players to skip over space itself.

“Wow, damn… Did you see that?”

Jehyun, who had been watching 27 set traps absentmindedly, suddenly straightened up, swearing under his breath. As the ground cracked open and several traps formed, the earth shifted again, burying the traps in sand.

It was clear what this meant. In Overflow difficulty, the traps would be hidden again, requiring players to memorize their locations.

Boss: Wow, I didn’t see anything.

Matgom: I saw one. It’s next to the boss’s left hand.

Contempt: I didn’t see anything either…

They only managed to recall one trap: the one near 27’s left side that Matgom had spotted. Jehyun sighed in disbelief.

“We’ll have to reset, won’t we? No, let’s observe a bit more and see.”

Given that this dungeon had the longest clear times, it wasn’t surprising that the second boss, 27, was no pushover. When 27’s health dropped below 90%, the fight forced players to trigger traps by releasing toy-like orbs from the walls. These orbs would bounce off players if hit, and the goal was to prevent them from falling into the traps by carefully hitting them at the correct angles, much like playing a block-breaking game.

On the day Caplet’s hardcore players finally cleared the lab, they discovered a strategy for this orb mechanic. Classes with invincibility skills capable of surviving 27’s area-of-effect attacks would stand in front of the orb spawn points, moving back and forth to perfectly knock the orbs away.

Sometimes, if traps spawned too close to the orb spawn points, players would reset the fight entirely. This method was so effective that it became standard practice. Fixing the camera and batting the orbs away like squash balls made the mechanic manageable.

However, Overflow was different. As if mocking the established strategy, 27 released two orbs when its health hit 90%.

“Ah, these bastards.”

Jehyun immediately cursed upon seeing the two orbs bouncing in from opposite sides. There was no subject to his swearing, but everyone understood.

Boss: These jerks have no sense of fair play.

Matgom: Absolutely filthy.

Contempt: Yiyoung has no conscience…

Because the squash-centered strategy had become standard, Dark Sorcerers were almost mandatory for K-Hill’s lab in Overflow difficulty. They were the most efficient class for handling the mechanic.

This meant that other classes had barely practiced orb handling on the second boss recently.

“Who’s taking this?”

Contempt: M-m-m-me-me-me-me-me!

The moment Jehyun asked who would handle the second orb, Contempt shouted enthusiastically and dashed toward it. He seemed determined to prove himself after lying around uselessly during the first boss. Jehyun chuckled at his eagerness but soon sighed when Contempt fell into a hidden trap mid-run.

Contempt: Ah! Dammit!

Someone has triggered a trap.

The impact awakens corpses imbued with vengeful spirits.

As the system message appeared, several areas of the ground trembled. From the disturbed earth, corpses—part raptor, part human—crawled out, flailing their arms as they charged at the players. Their speed was impossible to avoid.

Contempt has died.

Using a revive skill.

You took 200,000 damage from a Vengeful Human Corpse.

You took 200,000 damage from a Vengeful Human Corpse.

You took 200,000 damage from a Vengeful Raptor Corpse.

You took 200,000 damage from a Vengeful Raptor Corpse.

You are affected by Corpse Stench.

Jehyun immediately used his invincibility skill to resist the explosion damage, but he couldn’t block the subsequent debuff.

[Corpse Stench: A horrendous odor emanating from decaying corpses. Contains toxic properties.]

Noticing that his health was dropping by 50,000 per second due to the debuff, Jehyun quickly attempted a cleanse. The debuff was removed upon cleansing, but a green AoE lingered at the explosion site. A Healer standing inside the area was re-affected by Corpse Stench the moment their debuff was cleared.

Watching characters die without even a chance to heal, Jehyun clicked his tongue.

“Let’s go again.”

Jehyun sent out the retry signal and hit the respawn button. Light poured around the entrance to K-Hill’s lab as his character was recreated.

Just as Jehyun clicked the entrance pad to re-enter, a guild member from Jicheonwang moved beside him. Upon closer inspection, it was ElkaRose, the same person who had benchmarked Countess’s underhanded tactics and decapitated their guild master to secure victory for Jicheonwang.

ElkaRose: Hi-hi-hi, guys~ ^^

ElkaRose: What boss are you at? lol

The moment ElkaRose encountered Jehyun and the other Countess guild members, he urgently asked. Annoyed, Jehyun smirked slightly, his expression turning sour as he spoke.

“I’m ignoring him.”

ElkaRose: We’re at the final boss, lol. Want some tips for the third boss?

But then, ElkaRose’s chat bubble caught Jehyun’s attention. Standing still, Jehyun stared, unable to believe his eyes, as he placed his fingers back on the keyboard.

We’re only at the second boss, but they’re at the final one? Just as Jehyun was about to type to confirm the truth, party chat messages appeared.

[Party] Habaek: Total BS.

[Party] Habaek: Ignore that guy’s blabbering.

[Party] Habaek: Especially the guild master.

[Party] Habaek: Don’t engage with ElkaRose.

[Party] SpellChecker: Damn, that was intense. Don’t even talk to the other guild.

[Party] Contempt: Damn, that’s alpha male energy.

[Party] Boss12MoreHours: LOLLLLL

Habaek’s messages finally brought Jehyun back to his senses.