Thank you, SirZed, for your comment on the previous chapter.
I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Enjoy the read, Everyone!
*** *** ***
Inside the Dungeon
At the exact moment the Engineer's fingers touched Louis's forehead—
his body froze.
It was not a normal freeze, and not paralysis caused by fear or shock. It was a complete shutdown, as if something deep inside him had suddenly gone out. Every trace of aura around him vanished. The pressure he gave off disappeared. His presence faded, and even his shadow seemed to lose its weight and meaning.
Louis, who only moments ago stood at the center of a battle beyond time itself, was now nothing more than an empty body standing in place.
The Engineer smiled.
It was a calm, confident smile, filled with the pleasure of control. He looked at Louis for one more second, as if confirming the result, then slowly turned his gaze toward the other three.
He spoke in a mocking tone, as if suggesting a simple game:
"So… shall we continue playing for a little longer?"
The moment his words fell—
the dungeon moved.
The stone monsters that had been frozen moments ago began to move again. Sharp grinding sounds came from their limbs as dark energy lit up the cracks in their bodies. Their stone eyes ignited one after another. The ground trembled under their heavy steps, as if the dungeon itself was responding to the Engineer's will.
At the same time—
the arms that had been cut off from the Engineer's body began to return.
This was not slow healing, but complete reconstruction. Shadows and stone merged together, forming new arms that were thicker and more stable, as if the damage had never happened at all.
His body was whole again.
"This power… interesting," the Engineer said with a smile.
And the battle resumed.
Thomas Andre clenched his fist. Hwang Dongsoo lowered his stance. Liu Zhigang fixed his gaze on the Engineer. All of them understood that the situation had become far worse than before.
They did not understand what had happened to Louis, why he was frozen in place, or whether he was even still alive. But now was not the time to ask questions.
But in another place—
far away from the noise of battle—
stood the Shadow Monarch.
Ashborn.
He looked at Louis in silence.
No anger. No surprise. Not even visible curiosity.
That silence was heavier than any words.
Then, in that dark void, Ashborn's voice finally rang out, slow and measured, as if every word carried a final judgment:
"Do you really think I would believe your words so easily?"
Louis's consciousness trembled.
Ashborn continued, his tone firm and without hesitation:
"You underestimate the plans of the Monarchs."
Then he added, as if stating an unavoidable truth:
"No matter what you do… you cannot change fate."
The words struck like an arrow.
Louis was shocked.
This was not the answer he expected. Nor the ending he had prepared for.
Before he could think any further—
darkness rushed in.
It swallowed his consciousness completely, without resistance, without transition.
And in the next instant—
he returned.
Returned to his body inside the dungeon.
*** ***
At the Same Moment – Outside the Dungeon
At the same time the Engineer touched Louis's forehead—
an unexpected person arrived near the dungeon.
Only one person.
And he was exactly the person Louis had carefully planned for a long time to keep out of this dungeon in particular.
Using his official identity as a member of the Hunters Association, he passed through the security checkpoints without much difficulty. He was asked only a few routine questions, and once his identity was confirmed, the path was opened.
His presence drew no attention.
On the contrary—once his identity was known, all interest in him disappeared, as if he was not worth watching.
He walked slowly through the stone corridors for several minutes.
His steps were heavy. His breathing was uneven. And his body… was trembling.
Not from the cold.
But from fear.
Fear of the place. And of what might be waiting inside.
Finally—
he reached the gate to the boss room.
He stopped.
Slowly raised his head.
And for some reason—
the gate was not fully closed this time.
There was a small gap. Very small. But enough.
He hesitated for only one second.
Then, swallowing hard, he slipped inside quietly—
unaware that his entrance at this exact moment…
might be the spark that changes everything.
*** ***
Inside the Dungeon
The moment his awareness returned to reality, Louis felt the heavy weight of his body again, as if his soul had been forcibly dragged back to a battlefield that was still unfinished. He opened his eyes quickly, his pupils widening as he took in the scene before him.
The fight… was still going on.
At the center of the hall, Thomas Andre was locked in a close and devastating clash with the Engineer. Their blows were not just exchanged attacks, but a collision of wills. Each strike shattered stone and twisted the space around them. Every punch sent shockwaves through the air, and every movement threatened to bring the entire hall down.
On the other side, Hwang Dong Su and Liu Zhigang were dealing with the remaining stone monsters. Dong Su moved with brutal speed, his energy claws tearing through the statues without mercy. Liu Zhigang, in contrast, was calm and precise, using spiritual energy to strike vital points, restraining the monsters or destroying them from within.
Louis clenched his fist.
He did not fully understand what had happened with Ashborn in that dark void, but one thing was clear to him now—
The other side would not give him its power so easily.
As this realization settled in, dark anger rose inside him. Part of him wanted to release it all on the Engineer, to erase this being completely, here and now, without hesitation.
But before he could move—
Soft footsteps echoed.
Small steps… uneven… filled with fear.
Everyone froze.
Attacks stopped halfway, and the stone monsters unconsciously stepped back, as if the dungeon itself had stopped breathing. All eyes turned at the same moment toward the entrance of the room.
There—
A boy stood there.
Thin and weak, his shoulders clearly trembling, his eyes wide with fear as he stared at the scene before him. It was obvious that he did not belong in this place, neither by strength nor by presence.
Thomas Andre frowned immediately.
Hwang Dong Su knitted his brows.
Liu Zhigang did not hide his shock.
A person… here?
Who was he?
How did he pass the boss room door?
And how did he even enter a dungeon of this level?
But the one most shocked by this sight—
Was Louis.
The moment his eyes fell on the boy, his anger exploded openly. His aura shook for an instant, and a suppressed fire burned in his eyes, as if all the careful planning he had done from the very beginning had collapsed at once.
Everything…
Was ruined.
Because the boy standing at the entrance was not an ordinary person.
It was Sung Jin-Woo.
As for Jin-Woo himself, his mind was in complete chaos. Since he woke up that morning, that voice had never left him. A strange, deep voice calling him again and again, urging him to come… to enter this dungeon.
He did not know where the voice came from.
He never saw its owner.
Yet it echoed in his head without mercy, chasing him every moment, almost driving him insane.
In the end… he gave in.
He decided to find out the truth, no matter what it was.
Even if it meant putting himself in danger.
At the very least, the Association existed.
His mother and sister would be safe—this was clearly written as one of the clauses in the contract he had signed before.
Thomas Andre opened his mouth in confusion, his voice barely coming out.
"What the—"
But he did not get to finish.
Because someone had already moved.
Louis.
In a single instant, he burst forward with all his strength. The ground cracked beneath his feet, his aura exploded without restraint, and he threw a direct punch toward Sung Jin-Woo.
Time froze.
Shock spread across everyone's faces.
When did Hunter Kim Yoo-Won regain consciousness?
Why… was he attacking this boy?
And who was this boy, really?
But the strangeness did not stop there.
The only one who reacted in time—
Was the Engineer.
Before Louis's punch could reach Jin-Woo, the Engineer suddenly appeared between them, as if distance did not exist at all. He raised his six arms and gathered all his power in a single moment, blocking the attack head-on.
The two forces collided.
BOOOOM!!
The hall shook violently, and a massive shockwave blasted the air backward.
Louis stepped back, his eyes widening in disbelief.
He did not expect this.
He did not expect… the Engineer to move in order to protect Sung Jin-Woo.
At that moment, the situation became unbelievably strange.
Did the dungeon boss…
Just protect a human?
Before anyone could process it further, the Engineer's laughter echoed throughout the dungeon. Loud, genuine laughter, as if he was truly enjoying what was happening.
"Hahaha…"
His voice rang through every corner.
"I didn't expect things to develop this far."
Then he looked directly at Louis, real interest in his tone.
"To be able to understand the grand plan to this extent… that is truly fascinating."
He paused briefly, then continued with a faint smile.
"Although I have many questions… let us postpone them until our next meeting."
In the next moment—
The Engineer reached out and touched Sung Jin-Woo's forehead.
Jin-Woo could not resist. His body could not endure the pressure of the bright, Conqueror haki that had burst from Louis moments earlier. His eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness instantly.
With a single wave of the Engineer's hand—
Jin-Woo's body was thrown through the air, passed through the gate of the room, and was cast directly outside…
Out of the dungeon itself.