Monster Company Tycoon Chapter 48

Chapter 48

 

As I stepped into the dungeon, an empty lobby greeted me.

After taking a few steps inside, a damp, chilly atmosphere brushed against my skin.

‘So this is what the air in a dungeon feels like.’

It must have been the peculiar, ominous atmosphere created by the magic energy emitted by monsters accumulating over a long period of time.

It was dark, making it impossible to see very far ahead. As a result, my hearing became all the more sensitive. The clanging of metal, footsteps against the floor, and occasional rough breathing. These were signs that told me there were definitely other beings beyond the darkness besides myself.

After passing through the lobby and venturing a little farther inside, I came across a massive iron door blocking my path.

I could sense a faint presence from beyond the thick, heavy door.

‘Once I open this door, the battle will begin immediately.’

I had mentally prepared myself for it, but that didn’t mean my nervousness had disappeared.

Before I knew it, the palm gripping my sword had grown damp with sweat. After taking a short breath, I tightened my grip and pushed against the door.

Grrrrrr

The heavy iron door slowly opened, scraping against the floor.

And through the gap…

“Keekee. Hehehe.”

Along with a creepy laugh came a rattling sound, as though bones were clacking against one another.

‘Monsters!’

The first to emerge from the darkness was a goblin.

It was larger than an adult human, with long limbs. Veins and bony joints stood out against its dark green skin. Its pointed ears and nose, along with the drool dripping between its sharp teeth, made it far more hideous than the illustrations I had seen.

“Ugh…”

The creature was hunched over, holding a club and a crude wooden shield.

Its yellow eyes glistened even in the darkness, glaring at me like a beast that had spotted its prey. I almost looked away without realizing it. And standing beside it was a skeleton that looked as though human remains had been forcibly pieced together.

Its pure white skull, rib cage, and bony limbs, with not a scrap of flesh remaining, were connected by some bizarre force. Every time it moved, its bones clattered against one another, and a faint blue light flickered inside the empty sockets where its eyes should have been. It, too, was holding a wooden club.

‘At least the weapons aren’t particularly threatening.’

This was my first time seeing actual monsters in front of me, rather than illustrations in a book. The pressure they gave off was no joke.

‘They’re much scarier-looking than I expected.’

I involuntarily swallowed a scream and tightened my grip on my sword.

‘Just do what Father taught you.’

There were three monsters in the room in total. Two skeletons and one goblin.

I charged first toward the monsters, who were watching me warily and gauging the distance between us.

The moment I swung my sword at the nearest goblin…

“Keek!”

The creature stepped backward as though it had been waiting for me to do exactly that.

Just as my stance faltered from my sword cutting through empty air, the two skeletons on either side moved.

Whoosh!

Their wooden clubs came flying at me one after another.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

I blocked one with the flat of my sword, but I couldn’t avoid the other. The impact of the blow to my shoulder made me stagger.

‘What was that just now?’

I hurriedly put some distance between us.

Something about this was strangely different from the way I had imagined monsters fighting.

‘They weren’t simply charging at me with their weapons.’

When I attacked, the goblin blocked my path, and the two skeletons took advantage of the opening to swing their clubs at me from either side. Conversely, when I targeted the skeletons, the goblin would interfere and disrupt my attacks.

They moved as though they had already decided on their respective roles.

‘Could these guys actually be coordinating their attacks? Have these monsters even received training?’

It was an absurd thought.

‘They’re still just low-level monsters!’

I raised my sword again and charged. But the battle didn’t go as I had expected.

Whenever I cornered one of them, the other two would interfere. And whenever I retreated to avoid an attack, the goblin would once again block my path.

It was remarkably sophisticated teamwork.

Thud!

“Grrk!”

In the end, I even took a club to the side.

‘Damn it, why isn’t this going well?’

The battle, which I had expected to end quickly, dragged on longer than anticipated.

My breathing grew ragged, and the strength in the hand gripping my sword gradually began to fade. After repeatedly engaging in an exhausting battle of attrition, I finally came up with a plan.

In the end, I forced my way toward one of the skeletons, accepting that I would have to take a hit in the process.

“Haaah!”

Crunch!

My sword shattered its rib cage and brought the skeleton down.

With one of them gone, the delicate balance of the fight finally collapsed.

I took down the remaining skeleton first, then struck the stubbornly resilient goblin with my sword several more times. Only then was I barely able to bring the battle to an end.

“Huff… huff…”

I sank to the ground just as I was, gasping for breath.

I had won. But it was a far cry from the clean victory I had imagined.

I thought I would be able to handle them much more easily.

‘…Well, it was my first battle, after all.’

I tried to console myself with that rationalization as I looked at the fallen monsters.

Then reality dawned on me.

This was only the first room.

“Damn it…”

Rattle.

Just then, I heard something fall to the floor.

Turning my head, I saw a stone key lying among the fallen monsters.

“A key? Is this what I need to open the next gate?”

After picking up the key, I struggled to my feet.

I passed the monsters lying motionless as though they were dead and headed toward the next room.

With every step I took, one anxious thought after another came to mind.

‘Just how many rooms like this are there in the dungeon?’

I had already used up a considerable amount of stamina. If I had to repeat battles like this several more times, I might collapse from exhaustion before even reaching the reward room.

More than anything, I couldn’t stop thinking about the monsters’ abilities.

‘Those guys were much stronger than I expected, too. So just how strong is the boss?’

I wasn’t sure if I could really take on the boss. The confidence I had been brimming with just moments ago was beginning to crack.

I had just left the first room and stepped into the corridor leading to the next one when…

“……”

I stopped walking and looked around.

The corridor stretched far ahead, but there was nothing in sight. No monsters, and nowhere for anything to hide.

It was clearly just an empty corridor, yet for some reason, an ominous atmosphere seemed to linger in the air.

Gulp. I swallowed my dry saliva, tense with nerves.

“This doesn’t look like a place where battles take place. So it should be fine.”

Muttering words whose intended recipient I didn’t even know, I tried desperately to calm myself.

And just as I cautiously took another step…

Click.

“…Huh?”

I felt something subtle beneath my foot.

It was as though the stone floor, which should have been solid, had sunk slightly beneath my weight.

‘What is this?’

The moment I lowered my head…

Rumble!

“Huh?”

Suddenly, the entire stone floor beneath my feet collapsed.

“AAAAH!”

As my body began to fall, I instinctively reached out.

Thud!

Fortunately, I managed to grab the edge of the floor that hadn’t collapsed.

“Hah, huff…!”

My body, dangling in midair, swayed violently.

My heart was pounding like crazy.

The moment I cautiously lowered my head to look below, a chill ran down my spine.

A pit so deep that I couldn’t properly see the bottom. Far below, dozens of sharp spikes jutted upward, packed tightly together.

‘If I fall down there, I’m dead!’

I would undoubtedly lose my life with spikes piercing all over my body.

I hurriedly put strength into my arms. But perhaps because I had used up too much stamina in the previous battle, my body simply wouldn’t move upward.

Instead, my fingers gradually began to slip.

“Grrk, please…!”

I tried desperately to hold on somehow, but I had reached my limit.

Slip.

At last, my hand slipped completely.

“Daaamn it! I don’t wanna diiie!”

My body plummeted downward in an instant.

The wind violently rushed past my ears, and the spikes in my field of vision rapidly grew closer.

‘No!’

Just as I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for the impact…

Thud!

I didn’t feel the horrific pain of having spikes pierce my entire body, as I had expected. However, the impact of falling from such a height struck me in full, and a heavy pain spread throughout my body.

But I no longer had the strength to even lift my head and look around.

I couldn’t move at all, as though every last bit of energy had drained from my body.

‘What…?’

My consciousness rapidly began to fade.

Beyond my dimming vision, I thought I could faintly make out a bright light.

“…Checking…. Administrator, situation terminated.”

Just before losing consciousness, I thought I heard some incomprehensible voice, like a hallucination.