When the Pope Becomes Competent - Chapter 71



Only Noblemtl

◈71. Dungeon, the buried dragon palace

It was sticking out from the horizon… It was cone-shaped.

It almost looked like a giant conch shell turned over.

The color was dark and the surface was rough and bumpy.

A monstrosity that seems to ignore human aesthetic standards.

That monster was the dungeon, the destination our group was supposed to head to.

I looked at the peacock again and asked.

“I think it was written in the Duke’s letter that Sir Argelio was ‘kidnapped’ and taken to that dungeon… Is that correct?”

“that’s right.”

Answering me, the duke took a handkerchief out of his bosom.

He wiped his wet eyes with it and then answered.

“Brother Argelio… came here to investigate the source of the seeds that sprouted in the Imperial Palace Banquet Hall, but was captured and dragged away by a dungeon monster. Many witnesses have given the same testimony.”

“Why did Kyung-i come to investigate a place like this… without sending a subordinate.”

This is something I have wanted to ask since I first learned of the situation through the Duke’s letter.

Why was Argel, who took such good care of his own life, hanging around the dungeon in such a dangerous way?

The duke hesitated and could not answer easily.

It was only after three or four more seagull cries that she finally opened her mouth.

“… … It must be because of me. My brother felt guilty toward me.”

“Guilt… …?”

“My brother always felt sorry for leaving me alone when I was young. That’s why he wanted to solve the problem that happened at the Freeburn family estate for me. Actively… as if he was punishing himself… .”

I remembered what Argelio had said about his sister in the carriage on the way to the palace.

-“The child who was left alone in Timor’s hands because I ran away alone is my last worry and regret that I couldn’t let go of.”

The boy clearly felt guilty for leaving his younger sister at the duke’s house and running away on his own.

He must have wanted to do something to atone for his sins.

Now I finally understand why the guy who was so good at saving his life approached the dungeon.

The Duke of Freeburn, the last of his worries and follies, bowed his head respectfully to me.

“Please. I understand that Your Majesty has already destroyed one of those cursed seeds. That dungeon was also created by that seed, so Your Majesty must have a plan this time. If you save my brother, the Duke of Freeburn can promise full support for the sect—”

“Okay, don’t worry, I can handle it this time too.”

I calmed her down for a moment, as she desperately and hurriedly poured out all the money she could afford.

After that, he emphasized in a tone of absolute certainty so that there would be no anxiety.

“I promise. I’ll take care of that within three days and bring Sir Argelio out.”

I thought there would be no more tears to shed.

From her, who had been so dry and exhausted, a quiet sadness overflowed again.

* * *

The dungeon jutted out, encroaching upon the horizon.

That is, it meant that it was located in the middle of the ocean.

Of course, it was not possible to approach on foot.

We were debating whether to borrow the Duke’s warship and go there, or to just fly there on the boarding horse we had brought.

The commander of the duke’s knights who was escorting the duke just then gave the answer.

-“Approaching by ship is dangerous. Even if it is a battleship equipped with the latest weapons, there is no way to deal with monsters attacking from the bottom of the sea.”

He continued, saying that several powerful monsters had already flowed out of the dungeon and into the sea.

He added that because of this, ships passing nearby are often attacked by monsters.

After hearing that, we decided to completely abandon our plan to approach by battleship.

So, I was currently riding on Rubin’s back, who had transformed into Guardian Mode.

I came here riding a service horse, but I planned to fly to the dungeon riding a Rubin.

I climbed onto Rubin like that, and all of our knights, including Luciana, boarded their servant horses and floated into the air.

The Mongma siblings flew up, united and transformed into beasts just like when they fought me.

“let’s go.”

The group, each flying in their own way, set off for the dungeon according to my words.

The first to set off were the Mongma siblings.

They flew towards the dungeon, flapping their giant bat wings.

Rubin and I set off one after another, and the knights followed us in formation.

Wheeing―

As we crossed the sea and sky, the sound of the wind brushing past our ears was loud.

The dungeon that was visible far away on the horizon was quickly approaching.

‘It’s closer than I thought. If I do my best, I’ll get there in 3 minutes.’

I thought so as I watched the dungeon getting closer and closer.

Since it flies, it really is fast.

And, incidents tend to happen just when you’re feeling safe like that.

―Gurrrrrr… … .

A huge shadow rippled across the seabed.

It was as big as a whale, but the shadow was not a whale.

The combined demons that were flying together at the time simply and clearly defined its form in one word.

【【Oh, it’s an octopus.】】

As they said, the shadow of the monster lurking on the seabed was in the shape of a huge… very, very huge octopus.

Swish!

Its slimy, gooey head rose above the water with a slosh.

Then, legs full of suction cups stretched out towards us.

“It’s a monster that came out of the dungeon!”

“damage!”

“Eww!!”

The knights shouted and reported the situation.

Thanks to that, everyone managed to lead their servants in time to avoid the octopus legs, but one D-rank knight was caught by it.

And the monster that captured the knight―

Thud! Thud!

He grabbed the article and shook it wildly.

It seemed to have a habit of stunning its prey in this way before eating it.

Taking advantage of the gap, I took out the Nerebloka bow that I had been holding and aimed it at the octopus.

And with his other hand, he tightly held the evil egg hanging around his neck.

‘It’s time to try this.’

Before flying here, I fed the bulgasal eggs about 1kg of iron.

That means you can now make a wish worth 1kg from the egg.

As I was about to grab the egg, a message window popped up asking me what I wanted.

[The Immortal Egg pays attention to your wishes.]

I held the egg tightly and made a wish.

“Let my arrow hit that swinging octopus leg.”

As I made that wish, a new message emerged from the egg.

[The Immortal Egg has accepted your wish!]

– Amount of metal needed to fulfill this wish: 230g

-Currently paid metal amount: 1000g

– Remaining metal amount: 770g

After checking the message, I breathed divine power into the bow.

Soon, the item’s special effect was activated and a message saying [Would you like to summon the wind spirit to help you?] appeared, but I ignored it.

The spirits were noisy and consumed a lot of divine power every time they were summoned, so they were not very effective.

[The special effect of the item “Egg of the Immortal” increases your hit rate!]

[Current hit rate 100%]

100% hit rate.

I didn’t bother to aim at the octopus’s legs and just shot an arrow filled with divine power.

Then―

Phew-!!

An arrow hit the monster’s leg.

The long leg that was hit directly by the arrow burst apart, unable to withstand the divine power.

-Grrrrr!!

The octopus shrieked and shrieked loudly, and the captured knight was released unharmed.

It seemed like no one was hurt, as it was just being tossed around in the air.

Then the octopus tried to escape straight into the water.

If we let them run away, they might attack us again when we come out of the dungeon.

I clutched the egg of immortality tightly once again.

“Let my arrow hit the head of that fleeing octopus.”

Let’s make that wish―

[The Immortal Egg has accepted your wish!]

– Amount of metal needed to fulfill this wish: 230g

-Currently paid metal amount: 770g

– Remaining metal amount: 540g

The same message as before appeared.

It was the same even when I held the bow and breathed divine power into it.

The message I received earlier popped up.

[The special effect of the item “Egg of the Immortal” increases your hit rate!]

[Current hit rate 100%]

The hit rate was still 100%.

For a moment, I became curious. Is it really true that no matter how I shoot, it will hit 100%?

I wanted to check, so this time I aimed the arrow not at the octopus, but towards the sky.

Pervert!

An arrow shot into the sky changed its trajectory along the way due to some power…perhaps the power of the Immortal Egg… and hit the octopus’s head.

It really guarantees 100% accuracy no matter how you shoot it.

Thanks to that, the octopus that was hit by the arrow shot with divine power died instantly without even being able to utter a final word.

“Let’s go. Before something else comes out.”

I said this to my companions who were looking back and forth between the octopus carcass and me.

The knights who had been frozen in a daze seemed to have finally come to their senses.

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

We headed towards the dungeon again.

On the way, Rubin asked me excitedly.

“Nike! What did you do just now?! How did you hit that octopus’s legs all at once while it was moving wildly!? Even the arrow you shot into the sky broke in the middle and ended up in the octopus’s head!?”

Rubin didn’t know about this yet, because he wasn’t there when I handed him the Egg of the Immortal.

Watching that excited reaction, I felt a playful side and curled the corners of my mouth.

“If you wish for it earnestly, it will come true.”

“Huh? I just hoped it would hit the target and it did??”

“Yeah. If you want something, pray earnestly. You might get your wish granted like I did just now.”

Upon hearing that, Rubin recited his wish as if to be heard.

“Please let Nike become a polydroid like me… … . Please let her stay by my side forever without dying… … . Forever… Forever and ever… .”

“… … .”

Well, I felt like I had granted a wish that I shouldn’t have.

I pretended not to hear Rubin’s strangely creepy wish and kept my gaze fixed on the dungeon.

As we chatted, it suddenly appeared right in front of us.

“Are we all here? Let’s land over there.”

I said this to my companions who were waiting for my instructions near the dungeon, and pointed to a place.

The direction I was pointing was towards the very bottom of the dungeon… that is, the direction where the dungeon entrance was.

After that, the group landed at the entrance one by one, making a ‘flap, flap!’ sound as their wings flapped.

As everyone landed, a familiar message appeared.

[Would you like to enter the dungeon “The Dragon Palace (L)”?]

-Number of attendees: (13/20) people

-Entry Race: Human (10), Demon (2), Polydroid (1)

―Yes

―No

I shook my head as I looked at the dungeon level listed behind the dungeon name.

I had a feeling that the octopus monster that attacked us was something unusual… … .

‘Was it an L-class dungeon…?’

I thought it was a good idea to bring a lot of people.

If it had been just me, an S-class player, and Luciana, an A-class player, we would have had a hard time clearing the dungeon.

Finally, I carefully counted the number of people entering to make sure no one was left out.

Fortunately, it seemed like no one was missing, so I immediately pressed Yes.

Soon, something like black smoke enveloped us and moved us inside the dungeon.

[You have entered the L-rank dungeon “The Dragon Palace.”]

The inside of it was like a dragon palace from a fairy tale.

The Dragon Palace has been around for thousands of years and is now practically a historic site.

The once spacious and ornate floors and pillars were now covered with barnacles, and the old pieces of cloth that appeared to be curtains were covered in seaweed.

And the floor was soaked to the knees, making it difficult to walk.

“This is a dungeon… … .”

Luciana muttered as she looked around.

Dungeons weren’t that common, so she felt like this place was new and unfamiliar.

Following her, Rubin also looked around and said something.

“This is a dungeon. A place where monsters spawn due to a powerful magic source… … I’ve heard of it, but this is my first time seeing it in person.”

Rubin soon approached the wall.

I quickly stopped him as he seemed to be trying to touch the wall full of barnacles.

“It’s dangerous to touch. There might be a trap.”

“… … !”

When Rubin heard that, he quickly stepped back.

It was the same with the other group members.

They slowly gathered around me and began to watch their surroundings.

With everyone safely gathered together, Luciana turned to me and asked,

“What should we do?”

“Well, there are only two things you can do right after entering the dungeon.”