Memorize

Soon, Imprison began to emerge from the magic circle.

Its appearance was unimpressive.

The spirits summoned by elemental summoners often had a majestic quality, but Vivienne's summoned beasts… Well, they were honestly more on the grotesque side. Sure, their performance was undeniable, but as the saying goes—if you're paying the same price, you might as well pick the prettier one.

It had a gaunt, emaciated body, completely wrapped in what looked like heavy chains. A single eye rolled around erratically on its forehead, and its triangular, pointed head shape carried an unsettling aura.

Still, since it was on our side, I decided to remain indifferent.

Vivienne, however, looked at her summon with unmistakable pride before immediately giving it a command.

"Imprison? Bind that thing's arms. Show everyone here the might of the ruler of the 49th Legion."

"━━━━."

Imprison's mouth opened slightly, letting out an unintelligible murmur. Though I couldn't understand its words, I could tell it was acknowledging Vivienne's order.

Even though Imprison ranked slightly below Queritatus of the 14th Legion, which Vivienne had summoned previously, it still demonstrated its abilities to the fullest.

Clank! Clank!

The chains wrapped around Imprison's body unraveled.

Radiating an eerie energy, they shot toward the giant with ferocious speed. The giant instinctively curled its body inward, but in such a confined space, there was no way something of its size could fully evade the oncoming assault.

Seizing the opportunity, I turned to An-Hyun and spoke.

"An-Hyun."

"Yes!"

Hearing An-Hyun's disciplined response, I couldn't help but smile. His expression betrayed his anxiety—he was likely worried that I had been disappointed by his failed attack earlier.

Glancing over at Yun-Jung, who was maintaining Keeper in the distance, I noticed a subtle smirk on her face. That confirmed my suspicions even more.

In a calm voice, I continued.

"Once Vivienne's Imprison finishes binding it, I'll move in and completely restrict its movements. That's when you strike—whether from the side or from behind, just drive your spear in as deep as possible. You don't need to stab multiple times. Just once. Got it?"

"This time… I'll make sure I meet your expectations."

Gritting his teeth, An-Hyun focused his mana at the tip of his spear. After confirming that he was ready, I turned my attention back to the battlefield.

By now, Imprison's chains had coiled tightly around the giant's arms.

"Grrrr! Grrrrr!"

The giant struggled desperately, but with one hand already shattered, there was no way it could free itself from the unrelenting chains.

Now fully bound, the giant let out a sorrowful roar.

The moment Vivienne gave her signal, I kicked off the ground with all my strength.

Going in from below would have been risky—I could have been kicked away. A wounded beast was unpredictable, and caution was always wise.

Suspended midair, I pulled my sword back as far as I could. Then, as I descended and the giant's massive form came into range—

With its arms forcibly wrenched back, the giant's chest was left completely exposed.

Vivienne's handiwork.

And I intended to make full use of her support.

Thud.

I thrust my sword straight into the center of its chest.

A giant's skin was tough, but it was no match for the blade of a sword specialist.

Feeling my sword sink deep, I let the momentum of my downward descent carry me further, slashing powerfully downward.

A sensation, like cleaving through a rotten log with an axe, vibrated through the blade and into my hands.

"Krarararara!"

"An-Hyun! Finish it!"

"Haaap!"

Before I knew it, An-Hyun had moved behind the giant, his spear pulled far back in a one-hit-kill stance. At my command, he thrust his spear straight at the giant's throat. The sheer force of the magic imbued in the strike tore through the air with a deafening sound that echoed throughout the room.

"Krrr! Krrrhh! Krrrhhh!"

Having been trapped for so long, the giant seemed unwilling to accept such a futile end. Tears of blood streamed down its face—proof of its unbearable frustration. But that wasn't my concern, and An-Hyun showed no mercy in his attack. The spear tip soared cleanly through the air and struck the back of the giant's neck with immense force.

"Guh… grrk…."

Thud! Crack!

At the same time, the giant's neck was pierced—or rather, it would be more accurate to say it was shattered. Blood foamed from its mouth as its eyes darted around in disbelief. And then, slowly, its massive body crumbled to the ground. That was the giant's end.

"Hehe. Well done, Imprison. You can go back now."

With a cheerful expression, Vivienne dismissed Imprison back to its realm, then turned to me with a mysterious smile. I gently patted her head. No matter what anyone said, she was the MVP of this battle. If she hadn't restrained the giant's arms, An-Hyun wouldn't have been able to get behind it. As I petted her, Vivienne squirmed proudly, a smug grin on her face.

Still, An-Hyun had delivered the final blow well, so I didn't forget to praise him too.

"An-Hyun, that last strike was good. Well done."

"Haa… My heart is still pounding. Thank you."

An-Hyun let out a deep breath before finally smiling.

Meanwhile, Shin Sang-Yong and Jung Ha-Yeong, who hadn't contributed much to the fight, wore guilty expressions. Sol looked relieved that no one had been hurt, while Yun-Jung pouted at An-Hyun—but I just ignored her. She will have her chance next time.

Since I planned to explore the entire first floor before the day was over, we needed to move quickly. Still, just in case, I thoroughly searched the room, but this time, I didn't find a single thing. And so, we left the room behind, leaving the cold, lifeless body of the giant.

"Ugh. It was huge, but completely useless. What kind of laboratory is this?!"

Yun-Jung grumbled, and An-Sol frowned slightly, but I was secretly pleased. The fact that she was saying things like this meant she was finally starting to understand Hall Plain's nature. If she were still spouting nonsense like 'Life is precious,' or 'We shouldn't kill so easily,' I might have abandoned them myself. But they were changing. Now, they could witness death right in front of them without so much as a flinch.

"Well… After all the effort I've put into them, it would be disappointing if they couldn't at least handle this much."

Muttering to myself, I took the lead. The intensity of the battle still lingered, and I could hear An-Hyun's breath, still heavy and ragged.

"Alright. Let's move forward."

Speaking in a low voice, I stepped into the flickering light of the corridor's shadows. There were still five rooms left to check.

*

"Haaah… Five in a row, and not a single decent find. This is depressing."

"Cheer up. At least we got something. Even if it's not even worth ten gold…"

Behind me, I could hear Yun-Jung's complaints and Jung Ha-Yeong's voice trying to console her. But from the bitterness in her tone, it was clear she was just as disappointed. I understood how they felt, so I simply kept walking in silence.

Some explorations are exciting. The ones where you discover piles of gold, rare magical weapons, and other great opportunities. Those kinds of explorations are fun. They make you want to keep going, eager to find out what might come next.

However, our current situation was the complete opposite. The more we explored, the more exhausted we became from battle, yet we had gained almost nothing. Of course, there was some reward—the small amount of gold we managed to scrape together from the rooms we had cleared. But compared to the fights we had endured, it was a pitiful return.

To be more specific, we had opened five rooms, including the one where we had fought the giant, and the results were disappointing. In fact, four out of the five rooms contained monsters, and none of them were easy opponents.

The first room had a giant.

The second, undead.

The third, a mud golem.

The fourth was empty.

The fifth had more undead.

We fought battle after battle, and all we got in return was less than ten gold. Of course, with Vivienne and me around, none of the fights were life-threatening, but fatigue was inevitable.

Now, we stood before the sixth and final room on the western path. Unlike the previous rooms, this door wasn't made of iron—it was wooden. But the differences didn't end there. The other rooms had all given off a sinister chill or some kind of presence, but this one felt completely ordinary.

"This place… kinda looks like a janitor's closet or something."

An-Hyun tilted his head, speaking with a hint of irritation in his voice. Clearly, he wasn't completely without complaints. Vivienne chimed in with an even sharper tone.

"Tch. Just look at it—it's obviously a storage room. Su-Hyeon, hurry up and open it so we can move on."

I glanced around at the group. Whether they realized it or not, exhaustion was creeping onto their faces. The back-to-back battles had worn them down. My gaze finally settled on Sol, who was the only one silently watching me. I hardened my expression.

I planned to let everyone rest after this room, but there were still things that needed to be addressed first.

"Everyone, get it together. We're standing right in front of a door. Take your positions… What are you all doing right now?"

At my sharp command, An-Hyun and Vivienne, who had been grumbling, flinched and took a step back. Seriously? Even if the loot had been disappointing, we were still in enemy territory. What if we carelessly opened the door and got ambushed?

Sensing my mood, the others quickly readied their weapons and turned their focus to the front. With a sigh, I raised my leg and kicked the wooden door wide open.

Unlike the iron doors from before, this one swung open easily.

Fortunately, unlike the giant in the first room, there was no immediate attack as soon as we opened the door. I briefly sensed the room's interior, and when there was no immediate reaction, I spoke in a low voice.

"Hm… No enemies are coming. But it's too dark here."

"─Light!"

Jung Ha-Yeong immediately cast the Light spell. A bright sphere appeared and floated into the room, illuminating it. I leaned forward to get a better look inside.

"Hmm…?"

As the light sphere lit up the room, I couldn't help but let out a sound of amazement. I retracted the half-drawn sword I had pulled out and sheathed it again. I stepped fully into the room, stopping a few steps in, and felt the others hurrying to catch up behind me. Then—

"Wow…!"

"Waa~ah."

"Oooh! Amazing!"

The amazed voices of my companions echoed all at once. They had caught up with me and were now staring, equally entranced by what lay before them.

The room was certainly a storage area. With about 20 pyeong of space (around 66 square meters), there wasn't a single piece of furniture in sight. However, what was truly astonishing was the array of scattered weapons across the floor. That wasn't all—there were also gleaming items scattered here and there, and it seemed like there were gold coins and jewels among them. I could see the excitement lighting up my companions' faces, so I spoke in a calm tone to steady them.

"It looks like this is a storage room for weapons prepared for emergencies."

"Yeah, you're right. But these weapons… don't they seem like they're from the ancient era? If these are really ancient weapons…"

Jung Ha-Yeong couldn't hide her thrilled expression as she smiled widely. If these were indeed ancient weapons from a flourishing time, they wouldn't just enhance the efficiency of mana—they could potentially have more direct effects. For example, weapons that boost attributes were quite likely. Such weapons were rare, but they certainly existed.

"Ah… Oppa."

Yun-Jung called me in a pleading tone. When I turned my head, I saw her fidgeting with her hands, clearly impatient. I nodded in response to her unspoken plea.

"Let's gather anything useful for now. Just in case, someone should keep watch by the door."

"Eh…?"

As soon as I finished speaking, I noticed the others glancing at each other, clearly hesitant. It seemed none of them wanted to miss out on this process. Realizing what they were thinking, I let out a wry smile. Still, I decided I would take charge, and as I started to move toward the door—

"Ah, I'll do it. You just stay put, Leader."

Turning toward the voice, I saw Shin Sang-Yong with his hand raised and a bright smile on his face.

"It's fine. I can see there are a few magic-enhancing items here, too."

"Oh, no. I don't take any rewards from the exploration anyway, so… I'm really fine with this. I'll stand guard."

With that, Shin Sang-Yong, before I could stop him, made his way toward the door. But I could sense his true intentions. He seemed to enjoy the atmosphere of our group and didn't want any unnecessary conflict, so he probably preferred to take this task upon himself.

Of course, he probably wanted to participate as well. But still, with a pleasant face, he voluntarily stepped aside. Watching him carefully keep watch outside the door, I paused to think for a moment. If he continued to show this kind of behavior, it was only natural to want to reward him in some way.

After briefly observing him, I shifted my gaze back to the floor. Before long, the rest of the group, excluding Shin Sang-Yong, had fully immersed themselves in searching for treasure.

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