The Devil’s Cage

No!

In the end, Kieran decided not to take the ring from Mordred.

He recalled what Hanses had been through.

Hanses had thought that he had enough time to get out of the dungeon safely.

As a result, he had gotten nothing at all and had even unlocked this Special Dungeon as punishment.

Kieran was confident that he could lower the possibility of a potential punishment. All he needed to do was kill Mordred.

Still...

Kieran touched the medallion, which was hanging over his chest.

Stagner’s present made him unable to kill Mordred, at least not until Mordred became hostile. Kieran could not take his life.

”What a hypocrite I am!” Kieran mocked himself as he took another glance at the alleged Legacy ring.

Then he turned around and walked deeper into the cave’s darker parts.

The soldiers from Morko Principality finally noticed that something was wrong.

When they rushed over, all they saw was the Grand Duke, Ferlin, and Stagner, all dead, plus the unconscious Mordred.

None of them knew what had really happened.

After a few days, Mordred recovered and ascended to the throne without any objections, wearing the Legacy on his hand.

The first thing he did was declare war on Titan, who had plotted to assassinate the previous Grand Duke, Consultant Ferlin and sword master Stagner.

His army was bound to win the war.

After all, Titan had planned the uprising in Morko castle and schemed to overthrow Grand Duke Morko.

The entire Morko Principality was fueled by rage towards a common enemy. After barely two weeks, Titan Principality had fallen and Mordred had successfully accomplished the lifelong wish of the Grand Dukes of previous generations.

The fall of Titan was only the beginning for the newly ascended Grand Duke’s conquests.

During the next 20 years, the Grand Duke conquered multiple principalities around the country and forged a unified dynasty.

Grand Duke Mordred, the eldest son of the previous Grand Duke, had ascended to the king’s throne successfully.

A statue had been built in the palace square right after his ascension.

Some maidens and servants heard the king address the statue as his father, but an older servant said that the statue was not the king’s father, but the king’s teacher, the sword master of the previous generation, Stagner.

...

Kieran returned to the game lobby after finishing the storyline of the dungeon.

The dungeon rating followed.

[Special Dungeon: Prisoners]

[Dungeon Type: Special Punishment Dungeon]

[Dungeon Difficulty: Average]

[Main Mission: Escape from Morko Principality]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating F)]

[Sub Mission 1: Sudden Arrival (Rating Good, Unable to increase rating any further)]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating F→E)]

[Sub Mission 2: Pursuers (Rating Great, Rating increased)]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating E→C)]

[Sub Mission 3: Prevention]

[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating C→B)]

[Battle Performance: Very Active (Rating B→A)]

[Exploration Performance: Average]

[Special Rating 1: Eliminated the Grand Duke’s second son, LeGrand (Rating A→ S, Rep+1]

[Special Rating 2: Eliminated the Grand Duke’s consultant, Ferlin (Rating S→SS, Rep+1)]

[Special Rating 3: Eliminated Grand Duke Morko, altered Main Mission course (Rating SS→Z, Rep +3)]

[Title Acquired: King’s Assassin]

[King’s Assassin: You eliminated either one of the faction leaders and altered their forces’ balance, causing tremendous effects in the dungeon. You brought a changing of the tides. When equipped, 20% Attack increase against nobles and natives with authority, +5% Defense Effect, You have a certain chance to induce Fear and attract hostility from local faction leaders]

[Player Final Rating: Z!]

[Calculating Player Special Dungeon rewards…]

[Player final rewards are as follows…]

[Points: 25,000; Skill Points: 15; Golden Skill Points: 2; Golden Attribute Points: 2]

[Note 1: As a participant of the Special Dungeon, you have earned no additional Special Dungeon.]

[Note 2: As a participant of the Special Dungeon, you have earned no additional share of the special rewards.]

[Note 3: Your total reputation has reached 10. You have made quite a name for yourself among the natives. Some of them will remember your name.]

...

”No additional Special Dungeon or share of the special rewards?”

Kieran was not surprised that he had surpassed an SSS rating.

He had entered a high entry number dungeon with a lower entry number after all. Although it had seemed like he’d had his own solo mission, because of the contract, Kieran had stayed close to Hanses almost the whole time.

As a result, he had been through the same difficulties as Hanses. Plus, he had killed the Grand Duke. Considering his reputation and position, Kieran had known what he would get. He’d had a similar experience back in the newbie dungeon after all.

However, he had not expected those notes. He had earned no additional Special Dungeon or share of the special rewards.

Reading that last note hurt as much as getting hit.

Although Kieran had no idea what the special rewards were, he was certain they would be good. Otherwise, it would not be worth getting a Z rating and surpassing an SSS rating for them.

”There must have been at least one Legendary Rank item!” Kieran thought to himself.

He covered his heart unconsciously with his right hand, feeling heartache at the missed opportunity.

To divert his attention from the loss, he turned to his final rewards.

A Rare Rank weapon, a Rare Rank full-body armor, and a Special Rank Skill Book.

The weapon had come from Ferlin.

[Name: Rose Thorn]

[Type: Sword]

[Rarity: Rare]

[Attack: Strong]

[Attributes: Armor Penetration Lvl 2, Technique Lvl 1]

[Effects: None]

[Prerequisites: None]

[Able to bring out of the dungeon: Yes]

[Remarks: This sword was forged by a master swordsman and bestowed with the master swordsman’s knowledge of swords!]

...

[Armor Penetration Lvl 2: Able to penetrate Medium Armor (Powerful Defense)]

[Technique Lvl 1: +1 for any type of sword skill (Sharp Weapon, dagger, knife, longsword, dual-handle sword), Unable to surpass Transcendence Level]

...

”It’s able to increase skill level?”

Kieran saw the attribute and instantly realized the value of the sword. Even though he only had a dagger skill, it struck a chord in his heart, because the dagger was listed as well.

This could save any player tons of points in upgrading skills. It was something anyone would be after.

Kieran quickly came back to his senses though.

”The skill increase cannot surpass Transcendence?” he mumbled.

This made the [Rose Thorn]’s value drop a little, but that was understandable.

Without that limitation, it would not be Rare anymore. It would be Legendary, or even more valuable.

Kieran placed the [Rose Thorn] down and checked the full-body armor he’d gotten from the Grand Duke.

The armor looked sturdy and tough. It included a helmet, a mask, a gauntlet and grieves. It was a complete set.

[Name: Monolith Armor]

[Type: Armor]

[Rarity: Rare]

[Defense: Powerful]

[Attributes: Monolith]

[Effects: None]

[Prerequisites: Strength D+]

[Able to bring out of the dungeon: Yes]

[Remarks: This armor has a sturdiness worthy of its name. When you put it on though, you need to discard any equipment on your palms, hands, boots, helmet or mask. You also need a certain amount of Strength.]

...

[Monolith: When activated, Defense +1 immobilized, 15 seconds, once per day]

...

”Powerful Defense!” Kieran was astonished.

From his experience with [Primus Guard], he knew how big an advantage a Powerful Defense could provide. Activating [Monolith] would give him +1 Defense and boost it up to Extremely Powerful.

Most of his body would be immune to damage. Still, after calming down, Kieran decided to sell it.

He had [Primus Arm] and multiple rings, the [Half-Dead’s Gaze], [Wilco’s Grudge] and [Spectre Grip], each of them with its own unique skills.

Kieran could not exchange one Legendary item and three Rare ones with multiple skills for a Rare piece of armor.

If [Monolith Armor] could provide a Powerful Defense under normal circumstances, he would not have minded, but this was just a thought.

Kieran sighed again.

Then he turned his attention to the last reward, the Special Rank Skill Book.

When he saw the name of the Skill Book, his eyes widened.

Translator’s Thoughts

Dess Dess

probably the most satisfying ending of a dungeon