Reverse Dungeon

Thunk!

The arrow struck dead center.

The fish head burst apart, scattering foul-smelling fragments in every direction.

Leaving the collapsed skeleton behind, Ian nocked another arrow and fixed his sights on the next target. He drew the bowstring taut, narrowed his focus, and held his breath. The tension of the string trembled in his fingers. Slowing his heartbeat as much as he could, Ian released.

Crack!

Bone shattered with a sharp report as the skeleton’s pelvis broke apart. Its upper and lower halves split away from each other, leaving it unable to advance any farther.

Normally, skeletons—sturdy monsters by nature—were a poor match for arrows.

But when those arrows were imbued with high-level , the situation changed completely.

The arrow was not at a disadvantage.

The skeleton was.

“That’s done.”

Ian felt as though he was adapting well to aiming in the real world.

At this rate, though, it would not take long for the skeleton army to surround him and gnaw him down to the bone.

Ding!

[Skill]

Archery

Ian checked his skill window.

The character “Ian” himself was not particularly remarkable, but his starting skill—archery—was exceptional.

And at level 4, archery unlocked an essential function.

[Skill]

Archery LV.4

Shoot arrows to hit your target.

Rapid Fire LV.4

Allows shooting arrows in rapid succession.

The description was simple.

The effect was anything but.

Archers did not have the wide-area firepower of mages, nor the tanking ability of warriors. Instead, their strength lay in guerrilla tactics and long-range precision.

Ian began backpedaling, loosing arrows as he moved.

The aim assist from was not perfect. It did not magically force an arrow to strike an impossible target. All it did was make minor corrections.

The aim assist from worked the same way.

But Ian was a veteran of this game.

As long as the direction and power were right, the arrow would hit.

And arrows fired by Ian’s instinct rarely missed.

That was enough.

The rest could be left to the skill’s automatic adjustments.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Crack!

With the final arrow, the horde of pursuing skeletons collapsed all at once.

“It works!”

Ian smiled.

One of his goals in coming here had been to assess his own abilities as objectively as possible.

was, at its core, a defense game.

Even when facing the Demon King, the rules of a defense game still applied.

The player had to defeat the Demon King before his army overran the dungeon.

That meant players had several options.

They could build a character powerful enough to kill the Demon King quickly.

They could fortify the dungeon’s defenses until it became nearly impossible to breach.

Or they could find a balance between the two.

Ian already had a plan in mind.

“I’ll train Keith to face the Demon King, while I focus on holding the dungeon’s defenses.”

To do that, he needed to strengthen the dungeon as a whole.

And the easiest way to accomplish that was to raise the stats of the dungeon’s only resident—himself.

That was why Ian and Keith needed to work together on this journey.

After all, the fastest way to level up had always been to get carried.

Ian intended to pour every experience point he earned directly into his own stats.

“I can’t control the others.”

Ian was not the type to trust anything he could not oversee directly. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Life had taught him that much.

In this world, if a person lacked power and backing, even the deeds he had done could be erased, while deeds he had never committed could be pinned on him.

The only thing Ian trusted was himself.

And, of course, tangible things like Keith’s absurdly brilliant stats.

“Five necromancers spotted.”

Keith’s voice cut through Ian’s thoughts.

Standing at the top of the volcano, Keith had already carved through every skeleton in his path and reached the summit. Against the ash-covered landscape, the gleaming white of his armor was almost blinding.

‘He might actually be able to kill the Demon King.’

Ian stared at him in a daze.

Keith was not designed as a growth-type character.

He was more like a fully developed hero created so the player could explore this bleak world with minimal difficulty.

Then Ian noticed something strange.

“Five?”

“One is missing.”

“Missing?”

Keith’s mindset treated all evil beings as something less than human.

Apparently, he even referred to them as “things.”

In fairness, he was not entirely wrong.

Ian was not worried.

“It’s fine. We’ll find it. Search again, carefully this time.”

“Understood. But Lord Ian, I have excellent eyesight.”

“...?”

What was he even talking about?

“Uh... congratulations?”

“That is not what I meant. If I cannot see it, then it likely is not nearby. Could the necromancer be hiding somewhere else?”

“No. It’s definitely around here. I’m sure of it.”

Game logic said so.

“I will search more thoroughly.”

Keith pressed his lips together.

He swung his sword and decapitated a skeleton, sending its head flying twenty meters away. But the moment the skull hit the ground, it reattached itself to a nearby body.

The skeletons Ian had just defeated began rising again as well, wobbling back to their feet.

Their numbers were no longer merely in the dozens.

They were nearing the hundreds.

It was a hellish sight.

“Necromancy!”

He had known they would regenerate, but this was excessive.

“Is this grind really worth it?”

For a moment, Ian doubted himself.

It was becoming clear that this plan was terrible for his mental health.

“There are too many skeletons. If the necromancer is hiding among them, I may not be able to find it.”

“Then thin them out!”

“I am doing my best.”

“Can’t you try harder?!”

“It is too much. Shall I eliminate two necromancers?”

Ian hesitated.

To him, Keith’s question sounded like, “Should I throw away one-third «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» of the experience points?”

There was not much time to think.

Skeletons were regenerating beneath Ian’s feet and grabbing at his ankles. He fired an arrow, blasting one skeletal hand to pieces.

“Do it.”

Ian’s voice trembled as he made the decision.

It felt as if he were carving flesh from his own body.

‘Was aiming for just two necromancers too greedy?’

Maybe.

But Ian had soloed this place with “Ian” before.

Sure, that had been in the late game, but still...

Before Ian could finish the thought, Keith vanished.

Ian blinked.

Then a piercing scream erupted from within the mass of skeletons.

“A necromancer!”

There was no mistaking it.

That was the scream of a necromancer.

Ian’s instincts told him so.

The corrupt magician did not fall quietly.

The surrounding skeletons collapsed for an instant, then fused into a massive figure—a dinosaur-like giant skeleton that lunged at Keith.

Ian was about to shout, “Don’t engage!”

Fighting a necromancer’s creations was a bottomless pit.

But Keith did not need advice.

If anything, he seemed even more experienced at fighting monsters than Ian himself.

Keith dodged the enormous skeleton, rolled to his feet, and sprinted straight toward the necromancer.

The distance between them closed as if space itself had folded.

Ian could not understand how a human being could move like that.

By the time Keith drew his sword, neither Ian nor the necromancer had seen the strike coming.

Crash!

The necromancer’s robe fluttered as the blade pierced through it.

It sagged lifelessly, spilling not blood, but foul black liquid that dripped from Keith’s sword and exuded dense dark energy.

Ding!

[You have defeated the Necromancer of Hatred: Kolos!]

The remaining skeletons around Ian crumbled instantly, scattering bone fragments and scraps of flesh into ash.

Dust rose in waves, forcing Ian to cough and cover his face.

Ding!

[You have defeated the Necromancer of Regret: Moritif!]

‘This guy is insane.’

Ian narrowed his eyes, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

In the swirling dust and ash of the ancient tomb, Keith stood tall and completely unharmed.

‘Did I even need to come here?’

Maybe Keith could handle the Demon King on his own.

Did Ian really need to bother with the dungeon defense plan?

If Keith simply walked into the Demon King’s castle, the whole fight might be over in an hour.

Ian had forgotten just how absurdly strong Keith was.

It had been so long since he had played Keith’s route that he had underestimated him.

Seeing that strength in real life, Ian could only stare in awe.

“Are you alright, Lord Ian?”

Keith approached him.

‘Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?’

Keith, of course, looked perfectly fine.

Ian stared at him blankly, a chill running down his spine.

Then he noticed something odd.

“...The ground is shaking.”

“I feel it as well. Is it volcanic activity? Though I am not sure we should even call that a volcano.”

Keith’s voice turned cautious.

‘No, it’s not volcanic activity. That thing is a temperamental bomb set off by Kyarakus’s tantrums.’

Ian’s expression hardened.

But there was no reason for Kyarakus to act up now.

Four necromancers were still alive, weren’t they?

They could not possibly be foolish enough to awaken him...

And yet they had been.

A piercing noise split the air.

Beeeeeeeeep!

Above them, the black clouds twisted and writhed.

It was the signal of a powerful monster’s arrival.

Ian’s ears filled with endless murmuring.

“What is this...?!”

Keith’s reaction made it clear that he could hear it too. He clutched his ears in pain.

The whispers.

The incantations.

Ian knew exactly what this effect meant.

“The Kyarakus release event!”

Why now?

There was no time to think.

“It’s going to blow! Run!” Ian shouted.

At that moment, Keith scooped him up.

Behind them, the volcano erupted.

Boom!

Rumble...!