#931 An Adventurer’s Impatience

I’m Corey.

A-rank adventurer Corey.

But damn, I’ve never felt as inadequate as an adventurer as I do today.

I was all fired up to ace the S-rank promotion exam, an event hosted by the revered Silver Wolf, yet I ended up achieving nothing.

The dread I speak of is the Saint’s Farm Dungeon.

When I was brought here, I thought it was just one dungeon. But three?

They cover all types, too: cave, mountain, and ruins.

Is such a place even real?

Normally, just one dungeon would give rise to a town around it due to its economic impact, yet here at the Saint’s Farm, there are three dungeons side by side.

First-time adventurers are absolutely blown away by this.

The longer you’re in the adventuring world, the more you appreciate its uniqueness.

Is this a paradise? Or the underworld?

The reality simply shook me.

But we didn’t come here for sightseeing; we came to earn the glorious title of S-rank.

It’s not enough to be amazed; we have to enter the dungeons, navigate them, and conquer the finish point.

That’s what I thought.

The requirement for S-rank promotion is to conquer all three dungeons in Saint’s Farm.

With that in mind, I hesitated not!

I aim to proudly follow in the footsteps of Silver Wolf, who gave me hope to live!

Thinking so, I first dove into the mountain dungeon.

By the way, I am a wolf therianthrope.

Although my beastly traits may have weakened over time, my sense of smell and sensitivity are still sharper than those of a regular human.

These therianthrope-specific supersensory abilities have been helpful in my adventure, though not as strong as Silver Wolf’s.

The mountain dungeon seemed the best fit for fully utilizing my unique skills.

I figured I’d conquer my area of expertise first and use it as a springboard for the others!

Alas, I quickly realized how naive that idea was.

I barely set foot in the dungeon before being trampled by a wild boar and forced to retire.

What the heck happened?!

Square boars are indeed vicious monsters, but they’re known for their straightforward charges without any deceptive maneuvers.

This makes them predictable and, for their level, relatively easy prey.

Like many adventurers, I thought that I could easily handle one...!

But it turned out I was the one easily handled!

What kind of unorthodox movement was that?!

“It suddenly curved?!”

“It threw a sinker?!”

“It left a tangible afterimage?!”

“Oh, it used me as a stepping stone!”

Other adventurers, too, were utterly thrown off by the square boar’s unpredictably nimble movements, getting scattered like bowling pins.

Thus, I had to gracefully exit the mountain dungeon.

But giving up there wasn’t an option.

I am to become an S-rank adventurer, following in Silver Wolf’s footsteps!!!

With that relentless determination, if the mountain dungeon was a bust... I’d simply switch to another dungeon.

I imagine people would critique me for wanting to continue despite boldly saying that I’d clear my forte dungeon first for momentum, but still...!

Maybe that dungeon just has an absurdly high difficulty, rendering any semblance of aptitude moot... It’s possible, right?

Then, the plan is to first clear the cave and ruins dungeons, gaining momentum before tackling the mountain dungeon again.

Yeah, let’s go with that plan!

...Or so I thought.

That as long as you get the ball rolling, everything else will follow.

But there are problems beyond whether momentum exists.

Next up, I tried my luck at the cave dungeon, only to be thoroughly humbled yet again!!!

I mean, I made it to the deepest part here!

It made me wonder if the mountain dungeon was the only one with a ridiculous level of difficulty.

But such optimistic thoughts are not befitting of an adventurer, as I was about to learn.

After all, what awaited us at the very bottom was one of the adventurer’s greatest threats, a Lifeless King, one of the World’s Two Greatest Calamities!

A Lifeless King is bad news.

The more you hear from S-rank adventurers about their encounters, the more you realize just how dreadful it is.

Being one of the World’s Two Greatest Calamities, its threat level is on par with dragons.

It’s essentially beyond mankind’s opposition; encountering it guarantees instant death.

Thus, fleeing is the only survival strategy drilled into every adventurer.

If you come across a Lifeless King or a dragon, don’t hesitate for a moment and run immediately.

Survival belongs to those who flee at once; hesitation means death.

This is considered an axiomatic strategy among adventurers, but a Lifeless King proves an exception to the rule.

Dragons, being transcendental beings, tend to rely on brute force and look down on humanity as inferior. This arrogance leads to complacency.

If you exploit this arrogance, hiding or escaping is entirely possible. Dragons are not meticulous in their search for lost prey, and they give up quickly... That’s how adventurers view dragons.

Of course, “defeating” them is another story. No amount of complacency from the dragon can compensate for the vast biological superiority gap.

Compared to that, a Lifeless King is the epitome of a dreadful being.

To start with, a Lifeless King isn’t a species in itself but rather what becomes of humans who, through forbidden magic, transform into undead and ascend to the pinnacle of monstrosity.

Being formerly human, a Lifeless King lacks the vulnerabilities one might exploit in a dragon.

Moreover, any human who has mastered the dark arts to become undead is, without exception, wise and well-informed. This intellect carries over even after their monstrous transformation.

To such beings, adventurers are as harmless as infants, easily ensnared in their traps.

Add to that their undead nature and magical prowess, which rivals the physical strength of dragons.

In essence, they possess both power and flawlessness, a being (?) more impeccable than dragons.

The chances of escaping unscathed when encountering such a monster are even slimmer than with a dragon.

If you happen to meet one in a dungeon, brace yourself for death even more so... This was the advice from S-rank adventurers.

But now, in front of me, stands a Lifeless King...?!

Wait, two of them?!

“Guhahaha! Welcome, tiny humans! ...Uh, dare to tread in my domain, and... pay with your life for your foolishness... uh, carelessness!”

“Your villainous speech lacks a bit of punch, doesn’t it? Weren’t you supposed to be the most feared in these parts? Can’t you be a bit more... villain-like?”

In this despair-inducing sight of not one but two Lifeless Kings, one seems to be taunting the other.

Moreover, I recognize the one being taunted.

That’s the Earl from the Country Castle.

He’s known among the Lifeless Kings for his brutal cruelty, ranking high on the “Encounter Equals Death” list!

Yet, recent rumors claimed he had mysteriously vanished!

“Adventurers who have arrived today. Take this opportunity to learn about dealing with Lifeless Kings,” says the other Lifeless King.

A class session out of nowhere?!

“What would you do if you suddenly encountered a Lifeless King in a dungeon? Run, of course, and rightly so. But outsmarting a Lifeless King, who has lived hundreds of years longer than any of you, is no easy feat. Choosing the right answer doesn’t guarantee survival... such is the adventurer’s plight.”

...Ah, yes.

That’s right...!

“That’s why you must learn a more reliable way to escape from a Lifeless King through hands-on experience. Today, this fellow will serve as perfect teaching material. I could have played the role myself, but thought it best to separate the demonstration from the explanation.”

“I am honored to serve as your educational material! Please come at me!”

The once haughty Lifeless King, who prided himself as an Earl, is now utterly terrified and submissive to the other Lifeless King.

That must mean the other Lifeless King is of a higher rank.

Maybe even the strongest?

Considering the Earl was once the master of a different dungeon, it’s easy to infer that the master of this farm cave dungeon is that other Lifeless King.

And he’s strong enough to make others of his kind obey with just a glare?!

This farm is terrifying.

Having traversed dungeons far and wide, the true terror of this land seeps deep into my bones.