Who Designed This Underworld Dungeon?
Chapter 181 - 164 Dream is to Kick the King’s Ass

Chapter 181: Chapter 164 Dream is to Kick the King’s Ass

When did the atmosphere change?

The air in the adventurer’s guild suddenly began to flow sluggishly, like sticky mud, and a sense of oppression filled the room. Both Berto and the other members of the New Strategy Group felt that something was amiss.

Being stared at by pairs of eyes, the attention should have been comforting, a motivation for them to strive further, but now...

The members of the New Strategy Group started to sweat coldly.

"Hey hey, looks like they killed the Little Pot," said the man wearing a garland, disbelievingly.

"That’s despicable, to even kill such an adorable Little Pot..." the woman with the garland covered her mouth.

So what on earth is the Little Pot?

As the atmosphere grew increasingly tense, Berto forced a smile and was about to ask what exactly the Little Pot was, when someone said:

"They killed the Warrior Pot and found the Hidden Door, of course they would have killed the Little Pot!"

"Really, you should have paid more attention to the details during your exploration. Didn’t you notice that the Warrior Pot doesn’t attack people?"

"Ugh, I was just starting to like them..."

Some people had already begun to turn and leave, and Berto quickly looked towards Luluwo, fumbling together the bits and pieces he had heard.

It seemed that the Warrior Pot, besieged by Monsters, was an ally, and not killing it would have led to a reward; moreover, they could have encountered an even cuter, smaller version of the Warrior Pot. The garlands on people’s heads were also gifts from the Little Pot.

Damn it, when their New Strategy Group entered, they encountered content of living pots mangled flesh and Warrior Pots spiraling in attack; they never saw the adorable Little Pot mentioned by the others.

Was it all because they killed the Warrior Pot Carl in the beginning?

"Wait!"

Luluwo suddenly spoke up, her eyes fixed on the crowd, in a tone challenging disbelief: "It’s just killing a Monster, why do you all have that look on your faces? Isn’t it right and proper for adventurers to slay Monsters!"

The crowd began to stir.

"Do you know that the Little Pots you killed were still innocent children? The first flowers I ever received in my life were given to me by them!"

"So what, we didn’t even find any Little Pots!" Luluwo retorted. "That Grave Plain was just filled with twisted, bloody aliens!"

"That’s the punishment given to you for killing the Warrior Pot."

Someone shouted: "It’s your own fault for not paying attention to the details; the Warrior Pot never showed any hostility towards you from start to finish, didn’t it cross your minds that it could be a [special event]?"

Luluwo was at a loss for words; in their urgency to explore more of the map, indeed many details had been overlooked.

Thinking carefully, that battered Warrior Pot indeed had never taken the initiative to attack them...

"But..." She wanted to argue further, but an older adventurer shook his head at her and said:

"You chose the worst possible timing."

"Early this morning, Maru from the Strategy Group announced some intel on the Grave area, including detailed descriptions of a hidden map called the Pot Residence. Do you know, this event is moderately difficult, but the rewards are substantial, and almost everyone who went into the Dungeon today was aiming for that place. And what’s more important," he pointed to the garland on his head.

"For the first time in the Sain Dungeon, to encounter such a lovable creature, the emotional reward was richer than the material ones. And this was just the first day; the Warrior Pot has made such a positive impression. What about in the future? It might even become Sain’s mascot."

"So, you see, your timing was just unfortunate. Everyone was enthusiastically discussing the Warrior Pot, and you barged in announcing that you had killed it and even stole its wildflowers."

Luluwo’s pupils were trembling. What the hell was happening?

How could they be so unlucky today?

"But, it’s not just us who have killed the Warrior Pot, right?" she struggled in the end: "Why is there so much malice against us..."

"It’s because you claim to be the New Strategy Group."

The older adventurer said: "I’ve seen many Strategy Groups, do you know what they have in common?"

"What?" Luluwo was taken aback. Isn’t the most important thing about a Strategy Group speed? Whoever clears the Dungeon first is the Strategy Group.

"It’s attention to detail."

"Indeed, the information you’ve released is useful, even more so than Leon’s, but, since you completely missed the Warrior Pot incident, everyone has lost confidence in your information."

"Before Maru released the information, some people had already discovered the Warrior Pot incident, and the trigger conditions aren’t difficult."

"Every Strategy Group pays the utmost attention to detail; with the same information, they might verify it multiple times before releasing it, and you... were too fast, too careless."

"If you announced the information as ordinary adventurers, right now everyone would be lifting you in celebration, stuffing you with silver coins, and you would become as reputable as a Strategy Group in people’s conversations."

"But you have to brand yourself as a Strategy Group, so naturally, people will have higher expectations of you, isn’t that reasonable?"

Using the name of a Strategy Group, then you must bear the corresponding responsibilities.

Especially with Leon’s Strategy Group setting such a great example, the New Strategy Group would naturally be compared, and any flaws would be amplified.

The adventurer placed a cup of iced beer in front of Luluwo and said: "This drink’s on me, thanks for your information."

Bubbles continuously rose in the golden liquid, bursting one by one, like dreams fracturing.

"But let me give you some advice, if you want to continue using the name of a Strategy Group, you should learn more from Leon and his team."

The adventurer turned and left, and before going, he said one last thing:

"Stop always looking for shortcuts, if you want fame, you must be down-to-earth."

This sentence dealt a ton of damage to Luluwo!

"Team, team leader?"

Seeing Luluwo’s body trembling, Berto’s expression was extremely worried.

All sorts of misfortune had come their way today, and they were too impatient, which led to the current disastrous situation.

Looking back, when did it start going so wrong? They used to explore the Dungeon so smoothly.

Berto thought hard, and it seemed... ever since they decided to use the Soul-sucking Ghost to obstruct the Strategy Group, their exploration began to be fraught with problems.

In that instant, his body also trembled.

Maybe the gods of this world were still watching over the mortal realm, and their malicious thoughts meant that encountering misfortune was natural.

"Captain, let’s go back," Berto said with a bitter smile, "let’s rest for now—"

Suddenly, Luluwo swatted away his arm and turned to rush out of the adventurer’s guild.

"Captain!"

The members of the New Strategy Group hurriedly followed, but Luluwo’s strength far surpassed theirs, and in the blink of an eye, she had disappeared.

But the direction she went to... the Sain Dungeon!?

"Damn it!" Berto shouted anxiously, "The captain no longer has the Teleportation Crystal on her!"

————————————

When did her streak of bad luck begin?

Was it when she resorted to underhanded tricks against Leon? Maybe it was indeed the Gods punishing her.

Luluwo sprinted through the night. It wasn’t even midnight yet when she shoved people aside at the Teleportation Gate and charged into the Sain Dungeon.

"Hey, hey, no cutting in line!"

The people already inside the Dungeon were stunned to see Lulu come in, not a companion but Luluwo herself.

She bypassed the campfire and headed directly into the Grave Area.

Confusion and madness shone in Luluwo’s eyes, her recent experiences had broken her down, her mind in utter disarray.

Hence, she made an irrational decision.

But one thing she was clear about—is that as long as she secured the First Kill of the Death Ritual Bird, she could still claim the name of the New Strategy Group!

With the title of the New Strategy Group, she might pass the Gold Level adventurer’s promotion exam, and once becoming a Gold Level adventurer, she could possibly be granted a noble title by the Yanor Kingdom.

The Kingdom always held Gold Level adventurers in high regard. As long as one swore loyalty to the King, one could obtain a noble status, even the lowest level of peerage would do!

In the Grave Plain, giants summoned countless archers. Luluwo’s iron chains formed a sturdy shield in front of her, bracing the onslaught as she rushed toward the giant, knocking it to the ground.

But without the time to fight the giant, she continued along the path atop the city walls, a route undoubtedly leading to the Call Ship, and at the end of the path awaited the Death Ritual Bird.

Right, why did she want to become a noble in the first place?

Luluwo remembered her hungry childhood, her family taken away by the Great Nobles, her grandmother who was a thief and the only family she had left.

She could no longer recall the face of the noble that took her family, only knowing that their power was immense, their status lofty, and said to be blood-related to the King—they were out of reach for someone like her, and hard to encounter even as a noble.

So, was her effort to become a noble to try and save her family? No, her family could not have survived until today.

What was it for, then?

"Luluwo, you need to take shortcuts," said her thieving grandmother before passing away, "Climb faster and higher than anyone, reach the pinnacle of the Royal Capital, and then..."

Luluwo muttered to herself:

"Find the root cause of everything and give that old bastard the King’s ass a good kicking!"

That’s right, her goal was always the King’s ass!

If it weren’t for the indulgence of the King, how could that Great Noble have possibly kidnapped her family, and how could her childhood have been so tragic.

After finding the King, I’ll stuff ten chains into him!

No, ten is too few, twenty, thirty... never mind, stuff in as many as I can!

And I’ll dunk him into a cesspool until he mends his ways before letting him out!

That cesspool will be known as the Rebirth Pool, where sinners are reborn!

A spirited light burst forth from her eyes.

But as she passed by a quiet lake, its surface exploded, and an immense White Ape leaped out.

This was the Lion Ape—it had been placed here.

"Get out of the way!"

In the past when traversing this path, Luluwo would leisurely tear the Lion Ape to shreds, never witnessing its revival.

This, too, was a detail she had overlooked.

Today she was in a rush, her chains wrapped around the large saber on the Lion Ape’s neck, and with a heave, she beheaded it.

Blood rained down like a shower, and Luluwo licked her parched lips—after such a long run, it was certainly time for a drink.

Her Bat Bloodline made her quite fond of fresh blood, even that of the Lion Ape. She approached the decapitated neck and drank heartily.

With replenishment, her sanity gradually regained the high ground.

She suddenly widened her eyes, realizing the foolishness of her actions.

How could she have single-handedly rushed into the Dungeon without a Teleportation Crystal?

Am I an idiot!?

Panic began to rise within her, she wanted to turn around and leave the Dungeon, but then she locked eyes with a pair shining brightly.

The Lion Ape was staring at her and blinked.

"Ah." Luluwo’s mouth opened slightly, and droplets of crimson blood slipped from her red lips, her expression dazed.

"Aoaoao!"

A mist of blood burst forth, and the roar of the Lion Ape echoed throughout the Sain Dungeon.

Luluwo’s Horror bar was full!

"Ahh!"

She screamed, and all her greatest fears appeared before her—nobles, Wolfman, garlic, crosses...

And beyond these things stood a figure wearing a pointed hood, under the hollow eyes of the hood shimmered a faint light!

Luluwo "gah" fainted due to terror.

On one side lay the headless Lion Ape, and on the other, the unconscious beauty—what was going to happen next was self-evident.

The Lion Ape picked up the broadsword from the ground, lifting the slaughter blade towards Luluwo.

[Invasion by the Sun Warrior "Mysterious Hooded Man"!]

And at this moment, the Masked Rider who brings hope to the people made his entrance.