## **"Off Guard."**
The monster had already reached an adventurer—
and before anyone could react,
he collapsed to the ground.
Blood slowly spread
across the floor.
"**Body Enhancement!**"
Durk's voice rang out instantly.
In a single moment,
the adventurers enhanced their bodies.
Arthur, Joseph, and Karaku reacted without thinking.
Still,
some of them began to panic.
But monsters never wait.
"Tanks, move forward!
Maintain formation!"
Durk shouted again.
But by then—
it was already too late.
The monster charged at the adventurers
at high speed.
As if it felt no fear of death.
As if it desired nothing but—
brutality.
Some of the newer adventurers screamed in terror.
"Help me!"
They had all been caught off guard.
Yet these people had been fighting for years.
Even amidst the panic,
the adventurers quickly regained their positions
and began fighting back.
The mages unleashed their magic.
Arthur, Joseph, and Karaku
moved forward once again.
Once more—
a rain of blood began.
This time…
from both sides.
A monster lunged at Arthur from behind—
but just in time,
Joseph and Karaku were already covering his back.
Together,
they blocked the attack.
"Thanks," Arthur said.
"No problem," Joseph replied shortly.
The fight didn't stop.
Arthur pushed forward—
slightly ahead of Joseph and Karaku.
This time,
an attack from the side caught him off guard.
The next moment—
Arthur slammed into the dungeon wall.
**Thud.**
Blood began to flow from his head.
For a brief moment—
the world spun.
But he didn't fall.
Arthur steadied himself
and rejoined the fight.
After some time,
working together,
they brought down the monsters one by one.
When the final monster fell,
the noise of battle slowly faded.
After the fight—
many adventurers were injured.
And one of them…
never stood up again.
Durk's voice grew heavy.
"You all… this dungeon—"
His words trailed off.
For a moment,
the entire group froze.
No one even remembered to breathe.
Arthur felt the same.
His grip on his weapon tightened.
Right behind Durk,
a massive shadow stood.
Nearly ten feet tall.
Arthur's breath caught.
"Lord Durk! Behind you—!"
Before he could finish—
the shadow clenched both fists
and slammed down on Durk from above.
Durk reacted instantly, throwing himself aside.
He dodged the strike—
but not the shockwave.
The ground cracked open.
Durk was hurled into the air
and crashed down onto several adventurers.
The next moment,
the shadow stepped forward—
and let out a deafening roar.
The sound was so heavy
that everyone's ears rang.
As if the air itself was exploding inside their heads.
Through that roar,
the monster's body came fully into the light.
This was no ordinary monster.
**"Gravehowler."**
Stone-like thick skin,
covered with scars from old battles.
Its long arms hung past its knees,
and at the tips of its fingers
thick, jagged claws gleamed.
Its eyes were not yellow—
but deep red,
completely hollow…
as if nothing remained inside it but slaughter.
On the other side,
Durk pushed himself up onto his knees.
Blood dripped from his mouth.
"Stay alert… everyone,"
he said in a strained voice.
A priest rushed to Durk
and immediately began healing him.
Arthur forgot to breathe for a moment.
Then, regaining himself,
he looked at Joseph and Karaku.
"Let's go."
The three of them charged at Gravehowler together—
but Gravehowler didn't stop.
It unleashed one heavy attack after another.
The tank faced each blow head-on.
With every strike,
the ground sank deeper,
as if the dungeon itself were screaming.
Durk joined the fight in the next moment and shouted,
"Hold Gravehowler for just five seconds!"
Easier said than done.
Everyone was already injured.
Arthur could feel it—
Gravehowler was growing stronger with every passing second.
"His legs!" Arthur shouted.
"Attack the tendons in his legs! Don't let him stand!"
At once, everyone shifted focus.
Joseph and Karaku moved in as well.
All three attacked together—
Arthur released his skill.
"**Sword Hammer.**"
The next instant—
Gravehowler dropped to its knees.
Seizing the chance,
several mages activated chain-binding spells.
Magical chains wrapped around its body,
trying to restrain it in place.
Durk sprinted toward Gravehowler without hesitation—
and the very next moment,
before anyone could even process what happened—
a flash.
Gravehowler's body split cleanly into two
and collapsed to the ground.
Arthur froze in shock for a second…
then quickly composed himself.
He looked around—
adventurers lay everywhere, badly injured.
Some had broken arms, others broken legs.
Everyone was in pain.
Arthur slowly began to feel his own injuries.
Joseph and Karaku were no different.
Those who had still been standing moments ago
now sat down where they were.
No one spoke.
The priest was exhausted himself…
yet still did everything he could
to heal the most severely injured.
After a while,
Durk came and sat beside Arthur.
"That was a good call," he said.
Arthur saw Durk up close for the first time.
For a moment,
he couldn't speak.
Then, calming himself, he said,
"Lord Durk… you noticed it too, right?"
"Yes, I noticed,"
Durk replied.
"And one more thing—drop the 'Lord.'
I don't like how it sounds.
Just call me Durk."
For a moment,
Arthur felt as if Durk was testing him.
"No… I can't call you by your name directly."
Durk smiled lightly.
"It's fine."
Arthur noticed then—
Durk wasn't the same on the inside
as he appeared on the outside.
Durk turned toward Karaku and asked quietly,
"What was your name again…?"
Karaku paused, as if steadying his breath.
"Ka… Karaku," he finally said, his voice trembling slightly.
Durk's gaze remained fixed on him.
"I noticed… you've been watching Lord Gustav for a while now.
Do you know him?"
"N-no… I don't,"
Karaku said, shaking his head.
Durk took a long breath and said softly,
"If you want to keep your secret, I can't stop you.
By the way… you three seem to be in the same party."
Arthur simply nodded.
Durk stood up and looked at Joseph.
"What's your name?"
"Joseph."
"Alright then.
Get some rest… who knows what's waiting for us ahead,"
Durk said, then walked away.
Arthur looked at Karaku.
Karaku was still staring at Lord Gustav.
Arthur followed his gaze.
Gustav was in terrible condition—
one of his arms was broken,
and a priest was healing him.
A little later,
a priest came to Arthur, Joseph, and Karaku
and healed all three of them.
After an hour of rest,
Durk called everyone to move forward.
They stood up, adjusted their armor and weapons,
and continued onward.
Along the way,
they encountered a few monsters,
but Durk handled them alone.
At one point,
an adventurer moved toward the dungeon wall
to pick a mushroom.
Arthur noticed and shouted quickly,
"Don't touch that!
It's a poisonous mushroom—
one touch and you'll die!"
The adventurer placed a hand on his head, apologized,
and moved on.
After walking for some time,
they arrived before a massive door.
Durk warned everyone to stay alert,
then took a deep breath and pushed the door open.
Everyone stepped inside—
and the door slammed shut behind them.
For a moment,
panic spread through the group.
The room was completely dark.
A few seconds later,
the torches mounted on the walls
began to ignite one by one.
As the light spread—
everyone's gaze locked
onto a single spot.