I became a childhood friend of the middle boss. - chapter 20

Episode 20

After the banquet ended, the people returned to their assigned rooms for a brief rest.

When the designated time arrived, they gathered in the central entrance on the first floor.

Soon, my grandfather came down the stairs and scanned the crowd.

“Is everyone here?”

“Yes, Head. Everyone is here except those who chose to stay in their rooms due to poor health.”

“I see. Then let’s head to the artificial gate. If anyone is late or changes their mind about participating in the evaluation match, tell them to come to the artificial gate.”

“Yes, understood.”

The head of the household management reported the numbers to my grandfather.

Nodding quietly, he followed the manager’s lead as we, along with our family and clan members, followed behind him.

“You’re not staying behind.”

“How can I wait in the room when Gyeon-woo is participating?”

My father and mother whispered as they descended the stairs.

My father looked anxious about my mother, who was an ordinary person, entering the gate.

But my mother was resolute.

“It’s just watching while being protected by the clan’s hunters. It shouldn’t be dangerous. And if anything happens, you’ll be there, right?”

“Mom! I’m here too!”

“Fine… Alright. But you have to stick close to me. Yeo-eun, don’t mess around at the gate.”

“Yes!”

In the end, my father had to give in.

I chuckled at the sound of my mother responding while following Yeo-eun.

“Haha. You two get along well.”

Did my grandfather hear that too?

At that moment, I could hear my grandfather, who was going down ahead, softly laughing and seemingly referring to us.

It seemed he glanced back at us, confirming it.

‘He didn’t pay us any attention before.’

In the past, he wouldn’t have listened to our family’s words.

No, our family would have kept quiet, trying not to give him any reason to criticize us.

But it seemed that after I defeated Do Seung-woo, the mood among my family had changed, catching my grandfather’s interest.

‘Not bad. No, this is good.’

As my standing in the clan grew, my family’s spirits lifted as well.

This added another reason for me to perform well in this evaluation match.

How much time had passed since then?

“The gate is functioning well.”

“…”

In the main building of the Shin-Geom clan, on the third basement floor.

We entered the room where the artificial gate was installed.

As expected, the gate was glowing yellow, indicating it was operational.

At that moment, a hunter guarding the artificial gate approached to explain.

“We started the assault in time for the banquet, so if nothing unusual has happened, they should have completed the stage setup and be waiting inside by now.”

“Good work.”

This meant that the dangerous elements within the artificial gate had been mostly removed.

After listening to the hunter’s report, my grandfather placed his hand on the yellow dimension.

“Then let’s all go in.”

After saying that, my grandfather stepped into the gate.

Soon, everyone followed suit.

As my vision turned yellow

You have entered the gate.

[Yellow: Lake of the Spirit King IV]

Whoosh!

When my vision returned to normal, we were suddenly met with a strong wind blowing from the other side.

‘This wind is no joke.’

It was hard to open my eyes.

Quickly clearing my vision with my hand, I raised both arms to shield myself from the wind.

Once the wind settled, I finally had a moment to take in my surroundings.

I lowered my arms.

“…”

Before me lay an expansive jungle.

It was then that I realized I was standing on the edge of a cliff.

I could see the dense greenery below and the steep drop-off.

The height of the cliff was considerable.

In the midst of this

I will now relay the conditions for the assault.

[Descend the cliff.]

A message appeared before my eyes.

It was the first condition for the assault.

“Descend this cliff.”

“How are we supposed to do that?”

“…”

It seemed that others had also checked the assault conditions by then.

The faces of those participating in the assault turned pale as they looked down over the cliff.

It was certainly something to be afraid of.

I was momentarily taken aback as well.

“I will now begin the evaluation match.”

Despite this, my grandfather calmly began to speak.

“You all received the message, but the assault for this gate begins with descending the cliff you’re standing on.”

“…”

“Once you descend the cliff, the gate will inform you of the next assault condition. You must break through the jungle ahead according to the gate’s conditions and reach the lake at the center.” He pointed with his finger.

People naturally turned their heads.

“That lake.”

The lake was clearly visible even amidst the lush, dark green trees of the jungle.

The sunlight sparkled off its surface, making it stand out.

If we weren’t here to assault the gate, it would have been a sight worth admiring.

“That lake is home to the Spirit King. It’s a 3-rank monster that won’t show itself outside the water, and you’ll have to face it in the water to defeat it.”

“…”

“Of course, I’m not saying you should dive into the water to defeat the Spirit King with your current skills.”

My grandfather chuckled.

Those who had decided to participate in the evaluation match let out sighs of relief.

I felt the same way.

‘It’s insane to expect us, who aren’t even high school academy students yet, to fight underwater.’

My grandfather continued speaking.

“Considering your abilities, the hunters who arrived first have already captured the Spirit King and placed a sealing spell on the surface to prevent it from entering the water.”

“…”

“They’ve also drained some of the Spirit King’s power and applied debuffs. So, you’ll be fighting a weakened Spirit King that has been drawn out onto the surface. With this, you should be able to clear the assault easily.” No one responded.

Fighting on the surface still required significant skill.

It was merely slightly less difficult than fighting underwater.

Moreover…

‘We’re not just facing the Spirit King.’

I quickly estimated the distance from the cliff to the lake.

It seemed I would expend quite a bit of stamina on the way to the lake.

Especially considering the monsters lurking in the jungle.

“Don’t worry. The hunters have already dealt with the monsters that pose a threat to you.”

“…”

“There may be some monsters they haven’t accounted for, but if that happens, we will come to your rescue at any time.”

My grandfather pointed to one side.

Before long, the hunters had prepared seats for the clan members to observe.

My grandfather took a seat in the best spot and looked up at the massive screen floating in the air.

The screen was divided into dozens of sections, each showing different parts of the jungle.

“This is one of the artifacts used for communication inside the gate. Through this artifact, we can monitor the jungle in real-time and keep an eye on you. There, you.”

“Yes, Head.”

“Give that to the children.”

When my grandfather spoke to one of the hunters, he brought a box placed near the observation area.

Then other hunters began taking items from the box and distributing them to those participating in the evaluation match.

It was a choker with a camera.

Name: Screen Choker.

‘I see this here.’

It was an artifact worn by students during classes in the academy city when they were in artificial gates.

It could be considered a video transmission device.

“You must wear this during the evaluation match. This way, we can closely monitor how you perform and, more importantly, track your locations. This is the ‘Gate Watch,’ which monitors your mana status and pulse.”

Next, I received a wristwatch made of a material that doesn’t sweat.

This also appeared in the game.

“If any problems arise, we will immediately locate you through the artifacts you’re wearing and send nearby hunters to assist.”

“…”

“Safety is guaranteed, so please don’t worry unnecessarily and focus on the gate assault. Don’t accidentally break the artifacts.”

Even without my grandfather saying it, people were handling the artifacts as if they were precious.

After that, we learned how to use the artifacts from the nearby hunters.

“The evaluation match will last for three hours, so set your timers.”

“Once you defeat the Spirit King, the person who contributed the most to the assault will receive the gate key. When you receive the key, make sure not to take it outside; hand it over to a nearby hunter before leaving.”

The gate would generate near the key.

Therefore, if you wanted to change the location where the gate was generated, you needed to move the key to the desired location.

My grandfather was reminding us to be prepared for when the evaluation match ended.

If the gate key was taken outside, the gate would be fixed at that location, and those observing from here would have to move to the lake.

‘If that happens, my grandfather will be angry. Not just him, but everyone else will be annoyed too.’

I had to remember this if I didn’t want to fall out of favor with the clan.

Of course, the hunters waiting near the lake would prevent that from happening.

For reference, the time the gate remained fixed after taking the key outside was 24 hours from the moment it was taken.

If 24 hours passed, the gate would completely disappear, and no one knew what would happen afterward.

“Participants, stand at the edge of the cliff.”

Anyway, once all the explanations were over, the time for the evaluation match was approaching.

I heard my grandfather’s voice and greeted my family.

“Then I’ll be off. Please don’t worry and just watch.”

“Yeah, trust your skills and don’t let your guard down. I know you won’t do that, but…

“Come on, would I do that?”

My father smiled wily.

Having seen my skills previously, my father didn’t seem too worried.

My mother, however, was different.

“Don’t push yourself too hard. Be careful not to get hurt. Got it?”

“Yes, don’t worry.”

Overwhelmed by the world of the gate, my mother repeated her concerns several times.

I understood her feelings and nodded.

And Yeo-eun…

“I wish I could do it too. I want to be eight years old quickly so I can participate in the evaluation match with you.”

“I’ll be back soon.”

“Yeah! Do your best!”

While all the children who entered elementary school this year, whether direct or branch family, were scared and chose to withdraw, Yeo-eun was even excited to see the monsters reflected on the screen.

She was a younger sister who feared nothing.

I stuck my tongue out at Yeo-eun and stepped to the edge of the cliff.

“Has everyone set their timers?”

“Yes!”

“Then press the timer the moment the starting signal drops.”

Including me, there were 17 participants in the evaluation match.

We looked down at the cliff from a certain distance.

Finally…

Whoosh!

A hunter fired a powder gun toward the lake.

Red smoke spread through the air.

It was the signal announcing the start of the evaluation match.

We immediately activated the Gate Watch, which had the time limit set.

03:00:00

The remaining time is displayed on the watch.

Having confirmed the artifact’s operation, I tightly grasped the rope leading down from the cliff.

“How do I even go down this road?”

By then, others were also preparing to grab the rope and descend the cliff.

Some hesitated.

As they tried to descend the cliff, their bodies wouldn’t move as easily as they thought.

‘Don’t be afraid.’

I needed to avoid becoming like them.

I tried not to look down and placed my feet on the steep cliff.

Fortunately, the first descent was difficult, but after that, it wasn’t too hard.

Once I got used to the sensation, I relied on the safety gear strapped to my body and let go of the rope.

My body plummeted down.

“I give up!”

I heard a voice from above.

It seemed the first dropout had occurred.

As I heard the fading sound, I activated my internal mana.

‘It’s okay.’

My instinct to evade was kicking in.

Trusting my gift, I grabbed the rope at the right moment.

Then I swung my body in the air, pressing it against the cliff.

As soon as my feet touched the cliff, I jumped down again.

――!

The sound of the wind was fierce.

It made my consciousness dizzy.

But my evasion instinct held my awareness and guided me on when to move.

I repeated the actions I had just taken, reducing the time it took to descend the cliff.

When I was close to the ground

Thud!

I stepped on a rock protruding from the cliff like a stair to prevent a fall.

Activating the mana circuits in my lower body, I jumped down from the remaining height.

The impact from the fall was absorbed through my legs as they met the ground.

And then…

“It’s not as hard as I thought.”

I landed safely.

[The next assault condition will be relayed.]

[Break through the jungle and move to the Spirit King’s lake.]

The message appeared at that moment.

Reading the content, I plunged into the jungle unfolding before me.