Free Web NovelChapter 40: Daven?
The corridor wound deeper into the earth, sloping downward at a gentle angle. Nacho moved carefully, his Combat Precognition alert for any sign of danger. The passage opened into a natural cavern about half the size of the boss room, and what he found there made him pause.
Cages. Dozens of them, stacked against the walls. Most were empty, but a few still held creatures that looked like a cross between wolves and lizards, their scales gleaming dully in the crystal light. They watched him with hungry eyes but made no sound.
In the center of the cavern, three figures sat around a makeshift fire, playing cards on an overturned crate. Two men and a woman, all wearing leather armor and carrying weapons that looked well-used. The woman had a crossbow within arm’s reach. One of the men had a warhammer leaning against his knee.
They hadn’t noticed him yet.
Nacho assessed the situation. Three targets. Unknown levels. Unknown Talents. The smart play would be to use the knockout powder the Rat King had given him, but that required getting close enough to administer it without them raising an alarm.
Or he could just ask nicely.
"Evening," he said, stepping into the light.
The reaction was instantaneous. The woman grabbed her crossbow and had it aimed at his chest before he finished the word. The man with the hammer was on his feet half a second later, weapon raised. The third man, who’d been holding a handful of cards, scrambled backward and tripped over his own boots.
"Who the fuck are you?" the woman demanded. Her eyes were hard, the color of river mud, and they didn’t waver from his face.
"The guy who just killed your meal ticket back there." Nacho jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Big stone thing? Glowing eyes? Made a lot of noise when it died?"
The three smugglers exchanged glances. The woman’s grip on her crossbow didn’t loosen.
"You killed the golem?" freёwebnovel.com
"Wasn’t that hard. It was slow." He took a step forward, and her finger tightened on the trigger. "Relax. I’m not here to fight. Well, not unless you make me."
"Then what do you want?"
"The Rat King sent me."
The name hit them like a bucket of cold water. The clumsy one stopped scrambling and went very still. The hammer guy’s face drained of color. Even the woman flinched, though she recovered quickly.
"Bullshit."
"You’ve been moving cores through his tunnels without paying tribute. He noticed." Nacho spread his hands in a gesture of innocence. "I’m just the messenger. And the collector."
"We don’t answer to the Rat King. This operation belongs to—"
"Careful." Nacho’s voice went flat. "The next words out of your mouth might be something I’d have to report back. And I don’t think your boss, whoever they are, would appreciate being connected to an illegal dungeon."
The woman’s jaw clenched. She was calculating, weighing her options. He could see it in the way her eyes flickered between him and her companions, assessing whether they could take him in a fight.
He helped her make the decision.
His tentacle, still invisible, shot forward and wrapped around the crossbow, yanking it from her grip before she could fire. The weapon clattered against the far wall, and by the time she looked back at him, he had a Silverion Dagger pressed against the hammer guy’s throat.
He hadn’t even seen Nacho move.
"Let’s try this again," Nacho said pleasantly. "The Rat King wants his tribute. You’re going to give me every core you’ve collected, plus ten percent of whatever you make going forward. In exchange, I don’t tell the Inquisitors about this cozy little setup you’ve got."
The clumsy one spoke up, his voice cracking. "We... we can’t. Lord Daven will kill us if we—"
"Marcus!" the woman snapped. "Shut up!"
Lord Daven. That’s a name.
Nacho filed it away and pressed the dagger a little harder against the hammer guy’s neck. A thin line of blood welled up beneath the blade.
"Here’s the thing. Lord Daven isn’t here right now. I am. And I’m the one who decides whether you walk out of this cave or get buried in it."
Silence stretched between them. The creatures in the cages watched with predatory interest, as if they could smell the fear in the air.
Finally, the woman lowered her hands.
"Fine. The cores are in the back. Take them."
"Smart choice."
He withdrew the dagger and stepped back, keeping all three of them in his line of sight as he moved toward the rear of the cavern. A wooden chest sat against the wall, its lock already broken. Inside, nestled in straw, were monster cores. Lots of them.
[Monster Core (Common) x47 obtained]
[Monster Core (Uncommon) x12 obtained]
[Monster Core (Rare) x3 obtained]
The Rat King’s going to be happy.
He closed the chest and tucked it into his inventory, ignoring the way the smugglers’ eyes widened at the casual display of storage magic.
"One more thing," he said, turning back to face them. "This dungeon belongs to the Rat King now. You can keep farming it, but he gets his cut. Every week, without fail. Someone will be by to collect."
The woman nodded stiffly. Her jaw was clenched tight enough to crack teeth.
"We understand."
"Good." Nacho started toward the exit, then paused. "Oh, and tell Lord Daven that the Rat King sends his regards. I’m sure he’ll appreciate knowing his little side business isn’t as secret as he thought."
He left them standing in the crystal light, their faces pale with the knowledge that they’d just become pawns in a much larger game.
The corridor back to the boss room felt shorter on the return trip. Nacho’s mind was already racing ahead, planning his next moves. The dungeon would respawn eventually, which meant more experience, more cores, more opportunities to level up. And now he had legitimate access, courtesy of the Rat King’s influence.
Not a bad night’s work.
He stepped through the green gate and emerged into the cool night air outside the dungeon entrance. The forest was quiet around him, the distant lights of Valdris glittering through the trees like earthbound stars.
His status screen flickered in the corner of his vision, and he pulled it up to check his progress.
[Status]
Name: Nacho
Level 24 : 1,042 / 2,400 Experience
HP: 2,260 / 2,260
MP: 2,190 / 6,390
[+15 Free Stat Points available]
Fifteen points, eh? Not bad for one dungeon clear.
