NABC Chapter 85 Hidden Level
Chapter 85 Hidden Level
boom!
As Fred's body lay on the ground, I stood alone in the forest, my gun in my hand.
"..."
Da da da
Raindrops fell to the ground, making a soft sound, and before me lay the corpse of the dead half-demon.
I still hold that cold gun in my hand.
I just stood there, silently watching everything I was doing, without making a sound.
My clothes were soaked, but I didn't care at the moment.
'Is this what it feels like to hunt someone down...?'
A strange feeling enveloped me; I had finally achieved some kind of goal after arriving here.
The anger in my heart still lingered, because the figure before me reminded me of the scene where her chest was pierced by that demonic claw.
"It's all because of you..."
This made my emotions boil even more. When I confronted Fred, I forced myself to calm down, think rationally, and suppress my emotions.
But now, there's no need to do that anymore.
"It's all because of dogs like you..."
My voice grew even colder as I raised the dagger and fixed my gaze on the pitiful creature before me.
Thorn, thorn.
Each stab of the blade carried with it the pent-up anger and sorrow within me. The world seemed to blur as I continued to plunge the dagger into his lifeless body.
"It's all because of you, you damn bastard!"
Spikes, stabs, stabs, stabs, stabs, stabs.
This frenzied behavior marked the release of my emotions, but what followed was a feeling of emptiness.
I continued stabbing that bastard, venting all my emotions. As time went on, this feeling gradually became meaningless.
Just as everything began so suddenly, it also came to an abrupt end.
Da da da
The rain had completely soaked my clothes, and the chill went straight to my bones.
"Ha ha……"
My panting filled the silence, no longer drowned out by the rhythmic sounds of assassination.
I looked at the dagger; rain and blood were dripping from its blade. I staggered back a step.
The gaze that was once filled with anger now held a deep emptiness as it stared at the mangled corpse of my enemy.
The forest, the rain, and the corpse before me bore witness to this complex emotion, which ultimately turned into a profound sense of emptiness.
That's not enough.
In this surreal scene, I finally began to realize that the turmoil of the past had been replaced by an emptiness, an emptiness that demanded that I confront and reflect upon it.
This isn't the end.
The rain continued to pour down relentlessly. I stood there, my complex emotions replaced by an uneasy emptiness, searching for some meaning in the aftermath of my revenge.
'I'm not finished yet...no, I haven't even really begun...'
Looking at the corpse, I slowly lowered my hand and began to search for it, my hand wandering over the body.
The first thing I noticed was his bracelet, which was larger than a regular space bracelet.
In addition, he also has a small watch.
A watch that is slightly different from the others.
This is a modified smartwatch; only those who have made a pact with a demon can use it.
This is an untraceable artifact that demons use to contact their followers.
'However, I guess he's still in the early stages.'
I turned on the watch and started looking at its contents.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
[Message (6)] [Telephone (1)] [Email (23)]
The initial interface is the same as the normal style, but there is a small needle on the side of the watch.
'I guess he was too confident, thinking he wouldn't get caught.'
I slowly pushed the needle away, and then the interface changed. The colors became darker and darker, and a bunch of labels popped up.
That's the label for the villainous community, called "Hell Contract".
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
[......][......][......][Task][Currency]
The first three tags are inaccessible. However, I know what they do.
'Announcement, Bounty and Contact'
They only appear when someone has passed a certain trust threshold and is recruited under the leadership of a high-ranking villain, and they also need to have enough currency.
Like any other society, villains also have a hierarchy, although their goals differ.
After looking at my watch for a while, I saw the balance in his account.
'Fifty thousand, huh? That completely makes up for my loss.'
This is the money in his normal bank account as the hunter Fred Nelson. However, he also has another currency, which is 'Deval' points.
When it comes to villainous organizations, the first thing that comes to mind is the concept of antisocial behavior, which can be felt even from the name itself.
The villain who founded this community is a despicable character, but it doesn't matter.
There's still so much to explore, but right now, I don't have much time.
'I need to find the hidden level before they clear the boss.'
Now that Fred is dead, I have nothing else to do but leave this place and find the location of the hidden level.
'However, I cannot leave any evidence.'
At this moment, my mind was much clearer than before, and I was finally able to think like a normal person.
I stored Fred's body and other belongings in my spatial storage, and then left the place.
'Rain and the dungeon mechanics will automatically repair this place.'
I didn't stay here long, nor did I make any effort to erase the traces of the battle. The characteristic of dungeons is that any external influences are eliminated.
This is why some dungeon environments are widely used for training or work, and even for killing.
'At least it's quite convenient.'
With this thought in mind, I left and began heading towards the location of the hidden level.
......
Hidden levels
As the name suggests, hidden levels only appear in phased dungeons, and even then, they are a rare phenomenon.
Currently, most of the hidden levels haven't even been discovered yet.
Many dungeons contain hidden levels, but few people discover them. Even when they are discovered, the discoverers usually hide them, as these levels cannot be identified using current technology.
This is human nature for most people. If you discover something, you usually don't share it immediately, but rather examine it yourself first to determine if it's useful to you.
This is a very logical thing to do, and I'm doing it now.
After walking for a while, I arrived at a scene I had seen in the game and stopped in front of that rock.
Roar!
Occasionally, I could hear monster screams coming from afar. It seemed that even the distant monsters were becoming frenzied because of Fred's skill.
Upon reaching the rocks, I checked what I had prepared.
"Everything is ready."
After confirming that my preparations were complete, my mana was extracted from my attributes.
I closed my eyes, and the moon's magic shone brightly in my dark world. The magic flowing within me was indescribable. It felt like moving an extra organ, yet not quite.
It really felt surreal.
Just as I drew upon my magic and began to release it, a powerful sense of oppression suddenly pressed down on me.
A sense of oppression descended upon me, as if trying to suck me in. Unlike the portals I had used before, this feeling was more like a black hole.
Whoosh!
I relaxed and didn't resist, letting the pressure pull me in. Soon, I felt my insides churning inside me.
boom!
Then came a simple bang, indicating that I had arrived at my destination.
I opened my eyes and entered a completely lost realm, a place that defied the laws of time and space.
'The Forest of Time.'
If I were playing a game right now, these words would appear on the screen: "This is a mysterious entrance to a vision of the future."
This is a place that defies common sense, where time, space, and the laws of physics have been altered.
This is all thanks to the magical phenomena occurring around us.
What unfolds before me is the Forest of Time, a second dimension hidden within the rainforest dungeon, extending into an inaccessible realm.
Time flows extremely fast here, 30 times faster than outside. Standing on the boundary between the ordinary forest and this surreal realm, I felt a stinging sensation on my skin, slowly adjusting to this distorted flow of time.
This woodland is a magical realm of complex climate and landscape that is constantly changing over time.
The sun hung high in the sky, its scorching rays shining on the earth, but suddenly it was replaced by dark clouds and torrential rain.
This is a constantly changing place, a unique training ground. It's raining now, but it will soon be replaced by scorching sunshine or biting cold.
But what truly sets the Forest of Time apart is its mana density and mana wavelength.
Here, the magic is both dense and intense, generating a stronger resonance and more energy, challenging my ability to control it each time I try.
I closed my eyes again, trying to sense the magical energy around me; even finding a point became a challenge.
'Indeed, this is the perfect place for training.'
A surreal and incomprehensible place.
"Ok?"
However, at that moment, something extraordinary happened. My lunar magic began to surge with unprecedented intensity, flickering like the center of this chaotic magical realm.
"What is this?" I murmured, the sudden surge of power overwhelming me. This wasn't the first time my [Moon] trait had reacted autonomously, but this time it was far more intense than ever before.
Then, as if in response to my confused reaction, the lunar magic flowing within me began to manifest on its own.
It surrounded my body like a ghostly curtain, shimmering with the light of the starry sky.
This is a phenomenon I have never experienced before, an uncontrollable display of moonlight energy.
"what!"
Just as the magic was surging around me, a sharp, piercing pain suddenly assaulted my senses.
My vision blurred, and suddenly I felt the scenery around me change. Everything became vivid and dreamlike, yet I could feel my body and everything around me, as if this were not a dream.
In this dreamlike state, I saw a familiar figure engaged in fierce combat.
I couldn't see his face clearly, but his fighting skills were undeniable.
He wielded a variety of unpredictable weapons—bows, strange phantom guns, flamethrowers, crimson daggers, and so on—and used all of them with extreme speed.
'It's him.'
At that moment, I understood who that person was. It was that mysterious figure who had appeared in my dreams.
This mysterious figure is fighting hordes of enemies, constantly switching weapons, and swiftly eliminating each opponent.
This time, his movements were smoother, and I was able to understand and perceive them better.
It was as if the person in front of me wasn't teaching me, but fighting for their own life.
Is this real? Is it a scene from the past?
I asked myself. This scene still reminds me of the Forest of Time I inhabit, but at the same time, the details are different.
The forest is burning, and chaos engulfs everything.
As I gazed at this mesmerizing scene, I tried to discern the identity of the mysterious figure, but he remained shrouded in mystery, unable to reveal his true form.
Nevertheless, the image of him fighting was deeply imprinted in my mind, filling me with awe for his extraordinary abilities. Although his face was obscured, one thing I could clearly see was that his magic had changed color.
Just like me.
Before I could even delve into and analyze the scene, I was abruptly pulled back to reality, and my vision returned to normal.
'What is this?'
More questions have surfaced, troubling me.