"Wh-what?" Piggy stammered. "It seems I heard wrong" The fat man still couldn't believe what he had just heard.
"You didn't hear wrong. I will not claim this dungeon."
Hearing Isaac's firm answer, Piggy lowered his shoulders. Disappointment was evident on his face. He had long hoped to find a new master. A master who would treat him well.
However, that hope had to be dashed.
Isaac did not claim the dungeon for no reason. Xenovia was an Earl, a middle-class noble. Despite her ugly and anti-social nature, that female demon had quite a good image. Her strength could not be underestimated. She was the first demon invited by Duke Barbatos into his alliance.
If an Earl was defeated by a Baron, this would certainly attract the attention of the dungeon masters. Especially since it had only been a year since the game started. They would definitely pay more attention to the demon that defeated her. The Dukes would definitely mark the demon.
Isaac would be the bounty.
A nail sticking out needed to be hammered. People tend to dislike individuals who stand out. Anyone who looks unique will be beaten down to look the same as everyone else. This also applies to demons. The nobles would crush Isaac if he rose too high in the ranks. It was not impossible that they would kill him before he reached his full power.
Even more so the Dukes. They have high paranoia.
Hence, Isaac decided to keep a low profile. He chose to give up the dungeon rather than face 106 Demon Lords simultaneously.
Piggy let out a disappointed sigh. "Alright if that's your decision, lord."
That fat man suddenly bowed down. Of course, this surprised Isaac.
"I thank you for relieving my suffering from Lady Xenovia," he said in a sincere tone.
Isaac smiled and shook his head.
His attention was then drawn to the Moses's Staff lying in the snow. He picked up the legendary weapon and checked its condition.
"Lucky this artifact wasn't destroyed."
Actually, Isaac didn't plan to get Moses's Staff at all. Although his magic stat was very high, he had no talent as a caster. He was an all-rounder fighter who could use a variety of weapons, but not magic casting.
This was pure luck. However, there was another piece of luck waiting for him.
As he put Moses's Staff into his inventory, something caught his eye.
Among the debris, there was a flame of light in a pile of snow. Isaac approached the object. He walked up to it while squinting. His hand rubbed the snow that buried it. Slowly, a bright green light hit his face.
His eyes opened wide as he grinned.
A dormant homunculs was inside the capsule tube. His body was athletic. His skin looked as shiny as quartz sand. Not a single hair was visible on the man's body. He was completely different from the average homunculus.
"This is...!"
<Information>
[Name: ???]
[Race: Super Homunculus]
[Type: Savage]
[Class: S]
[Level: 1]
Isaac discovered the strongest creature from Earl Xenovia's experiment. Super Homunculus. In his past memories, this creature was often seen in Duke Barbatos' battle troops. Isaac did not have detailed information on how he fell into the demon's hands. He suspected that Earl Xenovia gave Super Homunculus to Duke Barbatos as a form of proof of loyalty.
Overall, it is not much different from homunculus in general. Has a slightly higher strength than humans who experience awakening. It's just that, the super homunculus is able to level up without the need to upgrade.
"Not too great, but it's pretty decent."
Piggy looked curious. He joined in on what Isaac was looking at. Instantly, his eyes opened wide as well. He had often seen homunculus, but had never seen one with such a strong aura.
Just as the fat man was about to ask, Isaac broke the glass of the cotton tube. Green liquid instantly spurted and drenched his body.
As the green liquid diminished, the homunculus' sleeping face sensed the air. Then, his eyes opened. A pair of golden pupils stared at Isaac.
"Papa..." said the super homunculus.
Isaac grinned. He touched the homunculus' face. "Good boy, good boy. I am not your father. I am your employer. From now on, you will obey me. I give you a name, Seth."
"Seth?" her eyes looked questioning. The homunculus really looked confused.
"Go back to sleep. I'll wake you back up."
"Yes, Master." The homunculus closed its eyes again.
Isaac smiled widely.
Piggy pursed his lips. The fat man had not expected that the lord would be able to tame a sleeping monster.
The demon accessed the inventory.
[Do you want to put 'Super Homunculus (S)' into inventory?]
[Yes/No]
Ding!
[Monster is put into inventory!]
Because of the super homunculus' conspicuous form, she chose not to carry it along.
Isaac then approached Guo Chen who was passed out on a pile of snow. He lifted the young man onto his shoulders. His attention returned to the system window.
His finger pointed at the 'No' option.
"My business is done. Goodbye, Piggy," he said.
Piggy smiled widely. For the first time, the man felt treated with respect. He bowed his head. "I pray you win this game, my lord."
Isaac pressed the option.
Ding!
[You did not receive this dungeon.]
[The dungeon's possession is empty.]
[The dungeon will be destroyed.]
[Ranking will be randomized in order.]
[Starts the destruction of the dungeon.]
[Within 24 hours, the dungeon will be destroyed!]
After the notification disappeared, a huge shock suddenly occurred. This didn't happen to the lab alone, but the entire floor of the dungeon.
The self-destruction began.
Piggy slowly vanished. His body faded into fragments of light. Since he was born from the Crystal Core, his existence was tied to the dungeon. In other words, the dungeon vanished, and so did he.
Isaac then walked leisurely towards the exit.
.
.
.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The sound of explosions echoed through the air. Lawrance raged in the center of the battlefield. The hunters fought desperately. Bitterness could be seen on their faces. The death of Cheng Ho was enough to break their morale.
The bearded man was not a Six Star, but still, his existence was very influential. He was the leader of the party. His every decision determined the fate of his members.
However, they still couldn't give up. If the raid leader died, the position would automatically fall to the highest rank in the party. Since Ling Tian and Golden Dragon were not part of the party from the beginning, this position went to Wang Mei.
Now, that mighty woman was in command of the battle.
"The battle still continues. Hope still hasn't been dashed! We will win this battle!"
Wang Mei shouted with all the breath left in her chest. Her words sounded excited, but she was actually really pessimistic about winning the battle.
The morale of her combat troops had plummeted. Especially the hunters from Phoenix Armada. Their mentality really couldn't be helped. Many of them were killed.
Lawrance was rampaging in the middle of the battle. He ravaged the battlefield. Meanwhile, the low-class monsters continued to pressure the hunters from various sides; from the front, from the back, and even from the air.
The small number of Golden Dragons made it difficult for them to withstand the endless waves of monsters. Even if the hunters from Nine Sky helped out on the frontlines, their presence still wasn't enough.
The human troops continued to be pushed back.
Seeing the increasingly dangerous situation, Wang Mei began to make decisions.
"Ling Tian, please hold the front line as much as possible," she shouted in the middle of the battle.
"This is what I'm doing!" Ling Tian snapped back. The man who always appeared charismatic looked frantic. This situation made him desperate.
Wang Mei only bit her lip when she heard his reply. The woman ran to the back, brought 50 of her men, then helped the rearguard troops sweep away the enemies inside the castle. Though the Phoenix Armada was superior in numbers, they were overwhelmed by the few homunculus and ogres.
She quickly jumped into the crowd of monsters and killed them off. Her sword slashes cut off dozens of monster heads.
Splat! Splat! Splat!
"Everyone! Don't be afraid! We can win this battle!"
Wang Mei shouted hope to the hunters of Phoenix Armada.
"Don't give up! Remember your loved ones who are waiting for your return home. Remember them! Fight for them!"
Her shouting penetrated the heads of the maroon-armored hunters. They opened their eyes wide and mumbled the names of their loved ones.
Hope reignited their spirit.
"Yeah! I want to go home! We'll beat them!"
"My mom's waiting at the hospital! I must go home!"
"We're going home!"
Various exclamations of encouragement echoed through the air. Instantly, their morale was boosted. They began to kill the ogres and homunculus on the castle grounds.
Seeing her men's condition improve, Wang Mei smiled. Although the smile was actually bitter.
She was well aware of the situation. She was only prolonging the lives of her men by taking over the castle. This plan was a gamble, as an attack could come from within. Wang Mei didn't know what was inside the castle. But since no monsters came out, she assumed that castle was empty.
This was all she could do. After Cheng Ho's death and Lawrance's appearance, the possibility of them winning was small because many hunters were killed. They could only survive until the end.
At least that's what Wang Mei thought.
The monsters inside the castle courtyard were successfully wiped out. Slowly, the human army entered the castle. They held back the onslaught of monsters from behind the walls.
"Is this all you got?! HAHAHA!"
Lawrance laughed as he fought Ling Tian in the form of a human torch. The gold-armored hunters fought with all their might to help the man.
In that moment of hopelessness, suddenly, a massive earthquake occurred.
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