Chapter 196: Rift between Brothers, Part I
Translator: HunterW3
Editor: RED
-They’re hiding everywhere.-
I followed Fuad out of the reception building towards the palace. Every ten steps I took on the way there, I felt someone hide their presence and watch. This was the first time a large guild was so on guard towards me. I mean, I got why, but there were just way too many of them around. It was almost as if something horrible was about to happen.
“We’re here, Mr. Lee. It’s through that door,” Fuad said as he pointed to a large door. As he stepped forward to open the door, I took out my Scroll of Predation from my inventory.
“Activate,” I quietly said as I ripped the scroll. Once I obtained the Predation ability, I slipped my hand into my pocket and took out the Dungeon Mole I had hidden away before coming to Abu Dhabi. I looked down at the candy-eating mole.
“Predation.”
==[You have consumed your target.
Target: Dungeon Mole
Time applied: 24 hours
Effect 1: Dungeon Teleport (Can be used 3 times a day.)
Effect 2: Dungeon Search (Can be used once a day, three additional uses available)]==
This was my third time consuming the Dungeon Mole and since I hadn’t used Dungeon Search yet, I could use it three times. I was planning on using it today to find Amplification.
—
The giant door slid open easily, revealing Prince Jayid’s room. It was really big for a ten-year old. About twenty grown men were waiting inside with room to spare. A man standing in the middle stepped forward with his hand outstretched to greet me.
“Welcome. I am Baden al Nayan, guild master of Abu Dhabi.”
“Thank you. My name is Lee Jiwon.” I had never met or seen Baden before. The man I knew to be the guild master of Abu Dhabi was the man standing behind him, Khalid.
“Thank you for coming all this way to help us find Prince Jayid. Now that you’re here, I feel as if Prince Jayid has already been found.”
“Please, it’s nothing like that. I don’t really have the ability to find the prince. I just want to be as much help as I can be in finding the boy.” Baden al Nayan’s words would have put a huge burden on my shoulders but from the expression he had, I didn’t feel burdened at all. They were just the words a worried father would say. Besides, I was going to find Jayid no matter what and soon.
“Umaru.”
“Yes, guild master!”
“Explain to Mr. Lee the events of that day.”
“Yes, sir.”
I could tell how Baden was feeling through his hands that still held mine. He was grasping at straws.
“Hello, Mr. Lee. My name is Umaru and I’m the head of Abu Dhabi’s Intelligence Division. Allow me to explain the events of that day.” Umaru led me around Jayid’s bedroom, playroom, bathroom and all of the places Jayid went to. He also explained what time they believed Jayid disappeared and whatever else they had found out.
I didn’t need any of that, however. I already knew how he disappeared and where he was taken to. “I want to look around alone.”
“By all means.” Umaru left me alone in the room and I walked around before coming to a stop at the center.
“Dungeon Search.”
==[Dungeon Search has been activated.
Dungeon Search’s counter is currently at 3.
Please choose how many Dungeon Searches you wish to use.]==
“Use all 3.”
==[Searching for dungeons in the surrounding area.
Dungeon Search range will be increased by 3.]==
I probably didn’t have to use all three uses, but I wanted to be on the safer side. If it meant getting Amplification, using all three uses was definitely not a waste.
==[A dungeon has been found.
Khalid al Nayan’s Dungeon.
Time remaining: 47 days 14 hours 52 minutes
Once the timer hits 0, Khalid al Nayan will lose ownership of this dungeon and access to this dungeon will disappear.]==
“Hehehe.” I couldn’t help laugh to myself. I actually found it!
“Dungeon Teleport: Khalid al Nayan’s Dungeon.” I moved to the dungeon right away to find Prince Jayid, and didn’t care at all about those secretly watching me off to the distance.
——
“Holy shit!”
“What just happened?”
“He disappeared!”
Lee Jiwon’s hidden observers were shocked when he disappeared in an instant. He could have used a skill or a Warp Scroll, but there was no reason for him to do so. The observers quickly moved to the garden by the prince’s room, where the guild master, vice-master and the other guild officers were waiting.
“What? He disappeared?”
“Yes, sir. He seemed to have muttered something and vanished into thin air right after.”
Baden al Nayan fell silent and thought about everything he knew about Lee Jiwon and how he operated. Currently, Lee Jiwon had five powerful factions at his side: Sunbin, Myth, Ravi, Shire, and the Werewolf Clan. No, it was safer to say that they all vied for his attention to the point that they all took it upon themselves to protect his home. That was enough to tell Baden what sort of man Lee Jiwon was; a man powerful and charismatic enough that he wouldn’t just up and disappear for no reason. Lee Jiwon must have discovered something in Jayid’s room that no one else could ever find.
“We’ll wait for his return.”
—
Khalid flinched when he heard that Lee Jiwon had vanished into thin air, but quickly regained his composure.
-What are you planning, Lee Jiwon?-
Khalid was confident that he wasn’t going to get caught. The power of Declare Dungeon was supposed to be so strong that normal Search-type skills couldn’t detect it. He had tested it countless times and decided to use it right there, in his nephew’s room. He knew it was risky to do it so close to home, but he was confident it would work.
He felt safe over these past couple of months after no one could find a single clue as to Jayid’s whereabouts… that is, until Lee Jiwon arrived. When he heard that Lee Jiwon had disappeared in Jayid’s room, Khalid grew anxious. There was a chance Khalid had just made himself another of Lee Jiwon’s targets.
-But it has to be impossible, even for Lee Jiwon! He couldn’t have found it!-
—
It was just unlucky for Khalid. There existed only one Dungeon Mole in the world that could create dungeons that blocked Comm Links and even the Rank 10 Clan Badge from the outside world. It was just unlucky for Khalid that that Dungeon Mole had ended up in Lee Jiwon’s possession.
—
Khalid al Nayan’s dungeon…
“This is supposed to be a dungeon?” If this really was a dungeon, then there should be monster around; after all, what’s a dungeon without monsters? But there wasn’t a single one in sight. This dungeon wasn’t exactly that big, either. Then again, maybe Khalid’s Declare Dungeon only transferred ownership of a portion of a dungeon over to Khalid. Either way, that made it easier for me.
I picked a direction and walked down the linear path while searching for Jayid. After about thirty minutes, I felt weak signs of life off into the distance. I doubted monsters would appear now of all times so I was sure the source was my goal. I quickly sprinted over and found a child curled up underneath a crevice made by a few boulders. From the blood-soaked face and clothes, I could tell that he wasn’t in good shape.
“Who…who are…you?” the boy croaked out as he struggled to turn his head towards me.
I stepped on the empty, plastic water bottles scattered around him as I drew closer. “Me? I guess a knight of justice works.”
“Are…are you…here…to save me?”
“That’s right.”
The child gave a weak laugh before dropping his head back on to the floor, no longer having the strength to keep it up. I felt a little sorry, to be honest. I knew that he was destined to die and I could have come sooner. But I had to wait. If I had come any sooner, I would have been suspected as the culprit by Abu Dhabi.
“Let’s get you home.” I carefully picked up the boy and got us both out of the crevice. He was so light. He was also filthy and reeked, but I didn’t care. I pitied the boy too much after he was caught up in a stupid adult’s game of power.
I carefully cradled Jayid in my left arm so that he could rest his head against my shoulder. If I had any heal or support skills, I could ease the boy’s pain a little, but all I had were combat skills. Well, if that was the case, I could just use them to break through the space around Khalid’s dungeon and get Jayid out of here as soon as possible.
“Mana Conversion – Wind. Warrior’s Brave Spirit. Howl of the Wolf.” When I was imprisoned in Kazunari’s dungeon, I had tried digging my way out, but those efforts were in vain. I couldn’t make a single scratch on its space. But when I came into Khalid’s dungeon, I noticed right away that the space around it was different, almost artificial. Because it was so different than Kazunari’s space, I was sure that I could punch my way out of this dungeon.
“Judge’s Gavel!” I tightened my hold around Jayid and placed my right hand on the dungeon’s wall. If this didn’t work, then I’d just laugh it off and get out by using Dungeon Teleport. It wouldn’t take more than ten minutes to return to the palace from Bukhan Mountain.
I pulled out my Harrier with my right hand and thrust the spearhead into the wall hard. I was rewarded with a strong resistance and I thought for a second that the attack failed, until I noticed a faint crack in the wall. I pulled my spear back, and struck once more so hard that I was even pushed back a couple of feet away from the wall. This time, I was rewarded with resounding pop and a gust of wind.
“You really…are a…knight.” Jayid couldn’t see me attack the wall, but when he heard the sound of the wall crumbling, he slowly craned his head around to look at the hole in the wall.
“I told ya, didn’t I?” I answered the boy and watched as my surroundings changed.
—
The guild’s officers were waiting in Jayid’s room for Lee Jiwon’s return when a huge crack echoed through the room.
“What was that?”
“Are we under attack?”
The sound echoed all throughout the palace, shocking everyone and they stopped whatever they were doing. People looked around, wondering if the sound was from an enemy attack, but saw that nothing was destroyed and no one was hurt. That only served to confuse everyone in the palace, except for one man. That man knew what was going on and began to break out in cold sweat as a message appeared before him.
==[A dungeon under your possession via Declare Dungeon has suffered a powerful blow.
The dungeon has been destroyed by that attack and will now be removed.]==
In the end, Lee Jiwon had gone to the dungeon. No one was able to find it, let alone get inside, but Lee Jiwon had, and he had destroyed it from the inside.
Khalid couldn’t help but grind his teeth in anger. His perfect plan was in ruins thanks to a single foreigner. There was no way he could yield now. Once the sword is drawn, it must draw blood. Khalid knew that his own brother wouldn’t readily forgive him for his transgressions.
At this point, Khalid no longer had a choice. Thanks to Lee Jiwon, he had to start the next stage of his plan much sooner. It was kill or be killed now!
“Astes, listen up! We’re retaking Abu Dhabi!” Khalid had formed a secret organization of his most loyal followers within all seven emirates, who also did not like Baden’s current regime.
“Yes, sir!” Out of the twenty guild officers, ten of them were agents of Astes. As Khalid’s voice carried outside, some of the devas in the palace grounds suddenly turned on their former comrades with weapons drawn. Soon, a small battle broke out.
Two people suddenly appeared amidst the chaos, as if they had just used a Warp Scroll.
“What the hell? It’s starting already?” a voice asked calmly.
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