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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Crawling to Survival
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Green smoke filled the surroundings.
Crash!
Leyzon rolled across the floor.
At the end, he flew at the maximum speed of Bone Broom.
Crashing into the Golden Spider in that state and then plummeting.
Naturally, his body was shaken to its core.
It was a relief that Pelox's Spider Silk reduced damage.
If he hadn't worn Pelox's Spider Silk, he would've died from that fall just moments ago.
His body was a total wreck.
His mind was hazy.
He could barely feel his right arm.
He knew it was in dire need of treatment right away.
But Leyzon first struggled to prop up his upper body with grim determination.
Then he gripped the Fierce Poison Fang tightly.
Drip... drip...
Before he knew it, blood was trickling from his nose.
His body felt utterly drained.
The nosebleed seemed to be the price of overusing his magic power.
But he couldn't afford to pass out yet.
The moment Leyzon quietly awaited the outcome.
Thud...
A crumbling sound echoed through the smoke.
Soon, Leyzon's eyes caught sight of the fallen Golden Spider.
The Fierce Poison Explosion had shattered the core in its body.
Even for that tough Golden Spider, there was no way out.
He had defeated it.
He had taken down the magic-immune Golden Spider.
There was no triumphant rush like in a game.
Only a sense of relief at having survived.
Relief was good enough.
Leyzon smiled faintly.
'Not yet.'
But it still wasn't time to relax.
Once time passed, a horde of spiders would respawn in the plaza again.
At that moment, Leyzon noticed the Golden Spider's abdomen glowing.
Was there some pattern different from the game?
The instant Leyzon tensed, a beam of light shot toward him.
Ting!
A single golden gem rolled in front of Leyzon.
Seeing it, Leyzon's eyes widened.
The Golden Eye, which had a mere 3% drop chance from the Golden Spider.
A material that could fetch a high price to craft items.
'Equipment made from the Golden Eye grants magic immunity.'
An incredibly rare material had dropped.
Even Leyzon was honestly surprised.
'I got lucky.'
It was worth the desperate fight against the Golden Spider.
'Luck comes back around, after all.'
Leyzon quickly pocketed the Golden Eye.
Then he somehow forced himself to stand on both legs.
He pulled out the potion vial he'd used earlier.
A tiny amount remained, which he somehow poured onto his right arm.
Fortunately, the burning sensation meant his nerves weren't severed.
"...Let's go."
Leyzon started walking.
Passing through the plaza, he entered the exit, then took a shortcut.
The spiderwebs scattered by the Golden Spider hadn't melted away.
Leyzon walked and walked.
The shortcut felt much longer than before.
The endorphins from the battle were fading.
A throbbing pain gradually spread through his entire body.
His legs were cracked from the earlier impact.
Evidence of it: his ankles and various spots were swollen and bruised.
Leyzon had been dragging his legs like rags for a while now.
His pace was understandably agonizingly slow.
It was beyond the point of calling it walking anymore.
Yet even that was preferable to the alternative.
Thud!
Finally, his legs gave out completely, and Leyzon collapsed.
He no longer had the strength to lift his body.
The endorphins had fully worn off at last.
His body felt as heavy as lead.
It burned hot, as if squeezing out the last bits of heat.
"Hngh... hng."
Now, Leyzon began crawling forward using his left arm.
He had to get out.
If he passed out here, he wouldn't wake up next time.
All of Leyzon's focus poured into that one left arm.
How much longer did he have to crawl?
He didn't know, but Leyzon kept crawling, crawling again.
'Why am I doing this?'
His mind was starting to fray.
'Why, indeed.'
But Leyzon seized the thread of his sanity once more.
His mouth forced a smile.
'To survive.'
A survival instinct far stronger than most people's.
That single drive held his mind together.
He had overcome countless hardships before.
To give up at the end would be the greatest regret.
So he crawled.
Crawled.
Crawled.
Kept crawling.
Crawled and crawled some more.
After repeating that.
Flash...
Light entered Leyzon's eyes.
Sunlight unlike anything in the Earthhold Layer dungeon.
It was warm.
His body nearly froze in the face of that sunlight.
'See?'
Refusing to give up had led him to the light.
Luck belongs to those who seize it.
"Wha, a person?"
Soon, a voice rang out.
Leyzon's consciousness began to fade.
There was no guarantee this voice would save him.
In Dungeon Replay, bandits popped up everywhere.
Security was poor in countless places.
Especially in front of dungeons, it was even worse.
So Leyzon decided to use the fortune he'd earned right away.
"...Advance... payment."
Leyzon pulled the Golden Eye from his pocket.
"Do... this."
He somehow wrung out more words.
Even in this state, where he could barely see, Leyzon forced a smile.
A tenacious bastard, smiling even now.
"Heal me... and I'll give you... way more than this!"
There was nothing more Leyzon could do.
With that final gambit, he finally lost consciousness.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
In front of the computer.
The boy was playing Dungeon Replay.
"Mom, look at this! If you do it like this here, the door opens. It's a puzzle I solved. Cool, right?"
The boy excitedly boasted his game strategy to his mom.
His mother watched with a smile.
This was around the time he'd finally paid off all the debts to the loan sharks.
The bank loans remained, but.
At least the sharks wouldn't pound on their door anymore.
A happy interlude.
Perhaps the happiest time in Leyzon's life.
Until his father fell back into gambling addiction and his mother left home afterward.
Flash...
And Leyzon opened his eyes.
Sizzle...
The sound of a pot boiling came from somewhere.
Leyzon slowly sat up.
"Ugh!"
Immediately, pain wracked his entire body.
Every bone in him felt crushed.
He saw bandages wrapped around his body.
'...I survived.'
Seeing that, Leyzon finally felt it sink in.
That he had somehow made it out alive.
Leyzon clenched his fist.
At the same time, memories of the Golden Spider fight flashed back.
The reality so different from the game.
The blunders born of complacency.
They raced through his mind.
It was something he could've resolved far more easily.
If he'd been more skilled, stayed calm, kept his vision clear.
He could've handled it without this crisis.
The Poison Necromancer Leyzon had possessed had that level of ability.
'But thanks to this, I have a next time.'
No regretting what couldn't be done.
Failure is invaluable experience that prevents future mistakes.
'I learned something priceless from this.'
An experience no amount of money could buy.
He couldn't have started off any better.
Leyzon reflected positively on the ordeal.
'Don't take real combat lightly from now on.'
Here, he was a rookie.
Live with the mindset of starting from scratch.
As Leyzon steeled himself, voices reached his ears.
Leyzon stood from his seat.
He quietly approached the door and pressed against it.
Voices drifted faintly from outside.
"Son, why bother bringing in a guy like that and going through the trouble."
"Even so, I couldn't just leave an injured person."
The voices belonged to a young man and an elderly man.
"Dad, we have to save those worth saving."
"Even so."
With that, their conversation ended.
Not the friendliest exchange.
Leyzon opened the door.
The young man and his father both looked his way.
"Ah, you're awake. How's your body feeling?"
The young man approached Leyzon with a bright face.
Conversely, the father eyed Leyzon with displeasure.
He seemed unhappy about treating a total stranger on their meager means.
Watching them, Leyzon smiled and bowed deeply.
"Yes, thank you. You saved my life."
You can't spit in the face of a smiling man.
Hearing Leyzon's thanks, the son grinned.
"Haha, the living must live on. You must be hungry? I prepared stew. Have a seat."
He said that and headed to the kitchen.
Leyzon pulled out a chair and sat.
The man's father remained silently quiet.
Thus, silence stretched between Leyzon and him.
This was better, actually.
A peaceful quiet beat getting nitpicked.
Leyzon enjoyed the silence.
Only clattering from the kitchen reached his ears.
The man preparing food.
"How old are you, young man?"
At that moment, the old man spoke.
"Twenty-seven."
"Young. Same age as my son, practically. Kids?"
"No wife either."
Leyzon stated flatly, and the old man nodded.
"Then take your stuff from that room over there and be on your way."
Leyzon looked up.
The old man pulled a cigarette from his pocket.
"You're a Necromancer, aren't you."
Leyzon's eyes were gray.
In Dungeon Replay, a mage's eye color changed with their attribute.
That's how he knew Leyzon was a Necromancer.
"About ten years ago, after the Gray Mage Tower fell, the Empire rounded up every Necromancer. Nothing good comes from associating with them."
The Gray Mage Tower, home of Necromancers, had collapsed?
The Empire targeting Necromancers?
This was news even to Leyzon, who'd played Dungeon Replay.
What the hell was going on?
"Think of this as payment for saving your life, and please just go without a word."
He issued the eviction.
Leyzon stood silently.
'Lucky. My first encounter was with people like this.'
He could've been handed to soldiers, but he met good folks.
The old man was prickly, but valued life like his son.
Leyzon entered the room, gathered his belongings.
Then he pulled out the Golden Eye from his pouch.
Leyzon smiled faintly.
"Payment for saving my life. Sell it at a magic tool shop—it's worth a fortune. Enough for at least two houses like this."
The old man's eyes widened.
He clearly hadn't known the Golden Eye's value.
That's why he'd left it in the room.
Leyzon hadn't known the Empire was after Necromancers.
If not for these two.
He might've been captured while unconscious.
So this was his repayment for their kindness, the price of his life.
Their goodwill had saved Leyzon.
Repay favors twofold.
That was Leyzon's creed.
Leyzon bowed with a smiling face.
"Thank you for saving my life."
You can't spit in the face of a smiling man.
True to the words, the old man worked his lips but said nothing.
Leyzon stepped outside.
He had no intention of imposing further.
Judging by the vegetation and fields, it was quite rural.
"Bone Broom."
Leyzon mounted the Bone Broom and soared into the night sky.
The star-filled sky was clearly different from the Korea where Leyzon had lived.
Dungeon Replay.
In this world where good and evil intertwined.
Leyzon had to survive from here on.
Leyzon looked up.
What did he want to do in this place?
The answer was simple.
'Survive and go back.'
This was Leyzon's world, not Ryu Han-hyuk's.
The world he lived in was real Earth.
Those who strive every day would choose the present even if offered a return to the past.
Because they know their efforts made it the best life.
Ryu Han-hyuk had lived harder than anyone.
So he'd return.
Return and climb the corporate ladder to executive and CEO.
And moreover.
'Whoever sent me here, I don't know who.'
He burned to get revenge on the bastard who dumped him here.
Repay favors twofold.
But.
'Grudges tenfold.'
Leyzon's gray eyes twisted into a mad grin.
Once he set a goal, he always achieved it.
In that instant, his objective for living ahead burned clear.