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“Ugh…!”

The monsters from the maze were surging in. Even though the raid party had already cleared a path, they were coming in endlessly. The commander frowned, as the meaning of the situation was painfully clear.

“A frenzy… I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly…”

Understanding the circumstances, the commander relayed orders to the raid party, and the one who got busiest among the chaos was Euna.

“Add…!”

With a throat already worn out, she had to keep shouting warnings about the approaching monsters. The mist in the maze had a disorienting effect, after all. Her vocal cords felt like they were about to snap, but Euna didn’t stop shouting. Feeling the presence of a tunneling bug rising beneath her, she barely managed to roll away and grasped her hand just in time to see it trying to pounce on the fallen Gu Jin-ha.

“Distort…!”

She barely managed to grab it in mid-air, grinding her teeth as she struggled. The recoil was stronger than expected — it was just a palm-sized bug, yet resisting it with magic was tough. With all her strength, Euna clasped her hands together and managed to form a fist, crushing the tunneling bug in the process.

‘……’

When she reflexively patted her pouch, nothing was left. The potions she brought had already run out. Gritting her teeth against a pounding headache, she shouted with all her might.

“Add! 2 at 6 o’clock!”

Monsters kept surging in endlessly — the commander frowned and banged against the wall, when suddenly, a hidden parasitic tentacle shot out beside him. Despite being startled, he calmly batted it away and stomped on it. Once he stepped on the tentacle and it was subdued, he let out a short sigh. The real worry wasn’t the maze. Even though many of the elite members, including the team leader and raid commander were missing, the current raid party should manage to navigate the maze without much issue. They had already cleared the path when they entered. But the real problem was…

‘It’s the maze itself.’

—The nature of the maze.

Steel skeletons and steel giants break apart and crumble, yet they merge back and restore themselves. This meant they had to break through the maze like that…

‘…This is tough.’

There were reasons for the reduced numbers and abilities of the raiders, but more than that was the issue of stamina and supplies. Consumables like potions and scrolls had long been consumed. Even the arrows were gone, leaving archers fighting with swords instead.

‘—Can we break through?’

After simulating the situation in his mind multiple times, the outcomes looked bleak. If they continued like this, it was clear the raid party would be annihilated.

‘The monsters in Area 2 as well…’

If a frenzy occurred, the monsters would surely try to break out of the dungeon through dimensional rifts. The raid party didn’t change their goal to attack Area 2 for no reason. Monsters capable of escaping the dungeon during a frenzy only came up to Area 2. Imagining what would happen if the unchallenged monsters from Area 2 surged in sent shivers down his spine. Time was running out, and the situation was dire—a voice filled with despair echoed.

“Add! 13 in the rear…”

Thirteen creatures. Upon hearing that number, the commander squeezed his eyes shut.

‘Could it be the monsters from Area 2…’

No way. They still had to cross the river, so they couldn’t arrive this quickly. While the raid party tightened their grip on their weapons, a silhouette emerged through the faint mist — it was human. When they finally revealed themselves, the commander sighed in relief.

“…I’m glad to see all of you safe.”

“Looks like Lord Yeo-myeong is leading the way.”

The late arrivals were Ha Yeon, who had been leading the rescue party in place of Euna. Thirteen people — fewer than before, but each of them was an A-class hunter. The commander felt a flicker of hope among the grim circumstances.

‘With this…’

Maybe they could somehow break through the maze. Together with the newly joined members, they rushed towards the door of the maze, and once they arrived, the commander ordered a brief rest.

“Thirty minutes. Just 30 minutes of rest.”

There was still time left before the dungeon sealed off, but the monsters from Area 2 would come faster than that. They couldn’t afford to waste any more time. Though some might grumble, most were veterans who had participated in Neverland and understood the seriousness of the situation, so there were no complaints. They all knew that rather than talking, taking a moment to regroup and re-equip themselves would raise their survival chances, even if by 1%.

“Lord Yeo-myeong…”

The vice team leader of Team 1, Ha Yeon, nudged the commander, who nodded. It was necessary to confirm their circumstances and set guidelines.

“So, the final problem is the maze.”

“That’s been weighing on my mind. Thank you for joining us, it seems we’ve finally got a chance.”

In front of the entrance to Area 1 of the maze, Ha Yeon quietly closed their eyes. It was this isolated door that prevented the maze’s monsters from flooding in, despite the frenzy. The commander shook his head. Although he couldn’t be sure of a 100% escape, when the promised thirty minutes passed, he clapped to gather the raiders’ attention.

“Now, we’re setting off.”

As he spoke, the raid party stood up, readied themselves, and reached for the door of the maze— at that moment, the door began to open of its own accord.

“Prepare for battle!”

Following the commander’s call, they aimed their weapons, and when the door finally swung open, what they saw wasn’t the expected horde of monsters, but the figure of a man.

“L-Lord Yeo-myeong?”

Scanning the raid party with a calm gaze, he then briefly stopped to look at the makeshift stretcher carrying Gu Jin-ha. Closing his eyes as if chewing over something, he muttered softly.

“…Good job.”

Although his words were unheard, the commander felt that Gu Jin-ha’s expression seemed to lighten. The expressions of the raid party were filled with disbelief.

“The Sword Saint…”

The title bestowed upon the most extraordinary swordsman among all hunters… A whisper of excitement rippled through them. Beyond the door, none of the maze’s monsters remained. The commander swallowed hard as he recalled the remnants of what had been steel skeletons.

—Kang Tae-jun seemed too indifferent, passing right by the raid party in silence.

“……!”

Even amid the approaching chaos of closure, Ha Yeon followed without a trace of doubt. As the footsteps grew louder, the raid party turned to see that, naturally, all the members of Yeo-myeong, except for the downed Gu Jin-ha, were following behind.

If the dark clouds lifted, dawn would break. A dim light began to slowly rise in the horizon.

***

The exact reason was unclear, but the condition for preventing the raid party’s annihilation had been fulfilled. —Chances were high that the raid party had escaped the dungeon. Thanks to that, they seemed to have reached level 30 and met the evolution criteria. Shaking water off his body after emerging from the river, Fairy hurriedly used her blink ability. This time, she hadn’t gotten splashed, which made her puff up with pride. Even in this situation, it made me chuckle. I turned to measure the distance over the river for a moment.

‘At this distance…’

[Evolution Path]

[Path of the Gale (飛嵐)] – Evolution Possible

[Path of Calamity (劫火)] – Evolution Possible

[Path of the Void (空虛)] – Evolution Possible

The messages popped up, showing the conditions were met. Including the Gale, which was already possible, Calamity and Void were also available. I had some thoughts about which evolution to choose. If I could meet the Queen, I might be a bit more certain, but there wasn’t time for that.

‘If the conditions have been met, then the raid party shouldn’t be annihilated. First, let’s get out and meet the Queen…’

The battle between Snowell and Kang Hoon — By now, Kang Tae-ho should have crossed over to Area 1 successfully. No matter how strong Kang Hoon was, he wouldn’t easily defeat Snowell… But Kang Hoon turned and started to run.

‘……That should be it.’

I expected nothing less. There was no way Kang Hoon couldn’t do what I had done. As I had drawn Snowell away, he too began to lure Snowell. But things wouldn’t change. Once the frenzy started, Snowell would surely come out of the dungeon regardless. It was a grim situation, but if drawing Snowell away saved Kang Tae-ho, that in itself would hold meaning. Once we got out of the dungeon, other clans that had figured out the situation would be waiting. The plateau must have moved… It wouldn’t be easy to escape, even if Kang Hoon got out with Snowell.

Having thought all that through, there was one thing that the Wolf had overlooked.

—To uphold the honor of a father who was a hero until the end, and to take responsibility as his blood, there were people who thought it would be better to die together than to burden others.

***

“Hey, Sword Master?”

Kang Tae-ho at the entrance spotted Kim Joo-seop and Euna, who had arrived late. With a reaction that seemed puzzled as to why they were still here, Kang Tae-ho shook his head and turned away, his superhuman vision catching sight of Kang Hoon and the giant White Lion, letting out a sigh as if the ground had caved in beneath him.

“What the hell…”

It was great to have made it to the entrance, but if they fled like this, they’d all be sitting ducks. The thought of the carnage that would unfold when Kang Hoon and Snowell exited Neverland was horrifying. Ultimately, Kang Tae-ho scratched the side of his head.

“Damn it, I guess this is what it means to be a son.”

He muttered quietly, handing over the two he was carrying to Euna and Kim Joo-seop.

“You go ahead. And take these two with you.”

Both of them accepted the body of the bishop, who was grunting and just starting to regain consciousness. Euna frowned and asked.

“What about you, Sword Master?”

“Hey, it’s nothing to worry about. I have some work left to do.”

“You aren’t planning to stay, are you? Why…?”

With a reaction as if they didn’t understand, Kang Tae-ho simply shrugged and lightly lifted the two by their collars.

“……Just, it turned out like this.”

Having thrown the struggling duo through the dimensional gap, Kang Tae-ho looked up at the skies of Area 2, taking a deep breath.

—Duty and responsibility. And reality. He weighed the options coldly and decided that it was better to die together here in the sealed dungeon than for both himself and Kang Hoon to escape. As he sensed Kang Hoon’s presence drawing closer, Kang Tae-ho retrieved the great sword he had put away.

“Well then, I’ll make sure things go well for the business.”

Kang Tae-ho chuckled to himself as he rested the massive sword on his shoulder, waiting for Kang Hoon to arrive.

***

Amid the chaos right before closure. In a situation where endless monsters were rushing to break out of the dungeon, the Wolf clenched his teeth. Kang Tae-ho did not escape in the end. He didn’t plan to mock that choice as stupid, but at least it wasn’t the situation the Wolf wanted. Even if they fought together, it was impossible to stop Kang Hoon and Snowell. —In the direst of situations, the Wolf hoped for power to overcome this predicament.

[——Choosing the Path]

As that decision was made, the karma that had been accumulated thus far began to envelop the Wolf.

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