The Western Continent—
a forbidden land of living death—has been shrouded in dense miasma all year round.
For ordinary people, stepping inside would be no different from walking into a latrine to kill yourself. Pure suicide.
To this day, no magic or tool capable of completely purifying the miasma has ever been developed. At best, there are spells that allow brief activity within it—but even those come with severe side effects. Because of this, exploration is limited to the shallow outskirts of the Western Continent. Venturing deeper is impossible.
As a result, humanity knows almost nothing about what truly lies within.
And deep inside a forest so remote that even the Western Continent itself considers it isolated—an untouched primeval jungle beyond all detection—
There lies the Hive Nest Dungeon.
Its exterior resembles a towering pyramid, stacked upward layer by layer. Yet its structure is formed not of stone, but of a sticky, gelatinous substance that reeks of blood and decay.
Passing through a portal that constantly oozes viscous slime grants entry into the dungeon, but—
At this moment, not a single visitor can be found within.
"Deserted" isn't a strong enough word. Something far more severe is needed to describe this state. This isn't mere emptiness—it is absolute abandonment.
If one looks closely, the scorched ruins of former buildings can still be seen scattered around the dungeon.
Where did the people who once lived here go?
To answer that question, one would need to ask the dungeon lord—Ganago.
Inside the lord's chamber, an enormous purple mantis sprawled across a fungal carpet, radiating a ferocious and sinister aura. This was Ganago's true form.
"Just a little longer… just a little more, and my Mana will be replenished…"
"Damn priest… once I recover my strength, I'll slice you into ten thousand pieces!"
His body looked utterly drained, yet his voice seethed with venomous hatred.
All of this traced back to a newly appointed priest of a certain tribe.
On the Western Continent, the demon race was divided into dozens—if not hundreds—of tribes. Due to their rapid reproduction, every tribe possessed an enormous population.
Each was ruled by a priest.
The largest tribes had signed non-aggression pacts with one another, cooperating for the resurrection of the Demon King. However, the smaller tribes under their jurisdiction fought endlessly, day in and day out.
Not long ago, a massive tribe known as Gray Song welcomed a new priest. The moment she seized power, she began slaughtering all disobedient tribes without mercy.
The tribes surrounding the Hive Dungeon were completely wiped out.
And with them went all traffic to the dungeon.
After surveying the area, the new priest judged the Hive Dungeon to be worthless. It was already remote, its resources uncompetitive, and with the local tribes exterminated, no one dared risk offending her by coming here.
Just like that, Ganago was pushed into a corner.
All he wanted now was to go on a rampage—to kill the new priest and turn the Gray Song tribe into a living hell!
But he believed his current Mana was insufficient. To be safe, he needed to plunder a massive amount first.
And so, he set his sights on Wade, who had just advanced to Level 3.
A newly promoted rookie—that's all he is!
Defeating him will be effortless! I'll spend a tiny bit of Mana and reap enormous gains!
Ganago never considered any other factors.
Or rather—his mind had long been consumed by rage. Dealing with the Sein Dungeon was no longer part of his thoughts. All that remained was revenge.
In other words, the Sein Dungeon had already been marked as his possession.
Even if the Sein Dungeon possessed unexpected strength, it didn't matter. Ganago's unique authority would crush it regardless.
That authority was called:
[A World You Cannot Leave Without Victory]
By invoking it, he could create countless small-scale labyrinths, filling them with monsters—or even conscious "people."
These "people" weren't real, but they possessed self-awareness, could think, and were indistinguishable from living humans—except that they would act strictly according to the script he provided.
Fail to conquer the labyrinth, and you cannot leave.
This authority was effective even against other dungeons. As long as he trapped the enemy's One inside, victory was guaranteed.
"Faster… just a little faster…"
Crawling through the darkness, Ganago whispered like a demon.
Wade had no idea he had already been designated as a hidden backup energy source.
If he did, he'd probably laugh until his stomach hurt.
At this moment, Wade was observing images within a crystal ball. Scenes involving adventurers that required special attention were enlarged and displayed prominently.
Within one of the images, Leon and Darrick had just achieved victory.
They had defeated the final boss—
the Demi-Human Swordsman.
Yes, that was correct.
The final boss they fought was the Demi-Human Swordsman, not the Sword Master.
The roguelike dungeon possessed its own evaluation system. Based on the challengers' strength, it determined whether the Demi-Human Sword Master would appear.
Clearly, for Leon's group, the swordsman was sufficient.
Defeating the final boss granted three Marks of Veteran Battle, a large quantity of souls, and a small chance to obtain the boss's weapon, carry away a learned spell or combat art, or—with an even smaller chance—receive a random blessing.
Additionally, there were at least three random item rewards, which could be recycled into souls at the altar if unwanted.
These rewards were temporary. They would certainly be updated in the future.
Darrick was especially lucky—he learned Blessing: Skull Leap, a blessing that enhanced jumping ability.
His street dance moves were about to become even more outrageous.
Yet despite that, he still looked dissatisfied.
"No painting fragments…" he sighed, deeply disappointed.
He had thought this run would finally allow him to collect enough fragments to recreate the legend of the Wolf Knight. But now it seemed painting fragments weren't so easy to come by.
Leon comforted him. There was plenty of time ahead—no need to obsess over a single gain or loss.
But Darrick was already planning to spread the news once they got out, mobilizing more people to challenge the Sein Dungeon.
Once enough people came through, painting fragments were bound to drop eventually!
When they returned to the starting point, they saw Gapar playing with two gray wolves. The scene was oddly warm and harmonious.
"Master, when did you come out?" Leon asked with a smile.
His gaze drifted toward the unusual sword at Gapar's waist—the Star-Lined Sword.
Huh? Doesn't that look a lot like the weapon used by the Demi-Human Swordsman we just fought?
"Not long ago," Gapar replied, patting the wolf's head as its eyes sparkled.
"It was a battle worth savoring. A pity I didn't obtain a Larval Tear."
"Well, um… Master," Leon hesitated before speaking,
"I don't think clearing this place really counts as clearing the Sein Dungeon."
"Oh? I see."
Gapar seemed to have expected this. He shrugged lightly.
"Tell me about your experience. Entertain me a bit."
And so, the three men and two wolves sat together, sharing their experiences inside the roguelike dungeon.
By the time Maru's group returned and rested briefly, everyone reached a unanimous decision—
They would take a detour and explore elsewhere.
"I feel like throwing up…" Maru's face was pale.
"I didn't find a single useful blessing, the monsters were way too strong, and the soul drops were awful."
"Let's change direction and relax a bit," Drew said, patting her shoulder.
Their team hadn't beaten the final boss and had even died once midway through.
The experience was miserable—so miserable that it made them sick of roguelikes. They absolutely needed to unwind somewhere else.
If an ordinary person overheard this conversation, they'd probably wear a baffled expression.
Relax… inside the Sein Dungeon?
What kind of lunatic suggestion is that?
Yet none of them found it strange.
It was as if they truly regarded this place as home.
Maybe they'd stayed here too long.
Maybe their brains were broken.
Darrick wanted to go home and rest, but seeing the relaxed atmosphere… he sighed.
Fine. I'll risk my life and accompany you.
According to the intel, killing the Demi-Human Sword Master could weaken the Death Rite Bird.
Who the hell came up with that information?
Did someone really clear the roguelike dungeon and defeat Onze before all these groups?
There was no rumor of such a monster emerging from the City.
"Let's go this way."
Instead of returning to the roguelike route, they chose to explore a small room beneath the city wall.
It was dark and cramped, the air thick with mold. One small chamber connected tightly to the next, traps perfectly paired with Doors That Cannot Be Opened From This Side. Hidden walls between routes could be opened to create shortcuts.
After a short while, everyone felt refreshed.
Compared to the repetitive square rooms of the roguelike dungeon, this kind of traditional map exploration was far more enjoyable.
It seemed future roguelike stages would need more varied environments.
Wade's notebook gained yet another new entry.
Most of the monsters here were scrawny Hollow Slaves.
They were everywhere, capable of jumping out at any moment to scare someone senseless. Maru was nearly at her limit.
Fortunately, they weren't very strong. Aside from those that fired poisoned darts, they posed little real threat—mostly just jump scares.
"Uh… what's this?"
Leon cut down a slave imp and picked up the light it dropped.
[Thrall Hood]
[In Lothric, only the lowliest individuals wear this. They are treated like slaves, and sometimes criminals are forced to wear it as well—purely for humiliation and mockery.]
He stared at the filthy hood with open disgust, wondering what kind of sane person would ever want to wear something like this.
And yet, some strange force compelled him to quietly stash it into his backpack—unnoticed by anyone else.
"There's a really big jar here!"
Maru suddenly called everyone over from one of the rooms.
Before them stood an enormous jar—so large it would take three or four people to wrap their arms around it.
Just a strangely shaped giant jar. Nothing special.
No one paid it much attention.
"…Kind of want to take it home," Maru muttered, glancing back repeatedly as they left. She'd always had a weakness for weird things.
Then—
A strange sound echoed from behind them.
Something was moving.
Maru spun around sharply.
The giant jar—
It stood up.
Not only that—it began spinning at high speed, charging straight toward them!
In a room this cramped—
There was nowhere to dodge!