Chapter 260: Mandra's Helix

Turns out Ratia was right. There was a door here that led outside. With it, Kang Oh and Eder were able to return to Saharamant without going back down the cliff.

"Ah, Mr. Kang Oh." Sephiro was waiting for them there. "Did you clear the dungeon?" he asked.

"Of course." Kang Oh nodded his head.

"Could you tell me what happened after I went down?"

"So..."

Kang Oh briefly explained how he'd made it to the top using Abyss Transfer, but was attacked by the blade winds in the process, as well as their meeting with Deborah's priestess, Ratia.

After that, Kang Oh approached the fourth door with Ratia's perfume in hand. It was the second largest door of the five.

Kang Oh forcefully pushed open the gold and silver studded door.

Creak!

The door slowly opened.

"Let's go."

Kang Oh's party entered the dungeon.

[You have entered the dungeon, Mandra's Helix.]

Exactly as advertised, it was a 'helix'. The road was 10 meters wide! However, there were no rails, so falling would mean grave danger. The spiral-shaped road led downwards.

There were monsters along the way too. They wore scarlet armor, as if they'd been doused with blood, and wielded a mace in their right hands and a shield in their left. Red eyes glowed from beneath their visors.

There were five of them!

"Those are Ghost-Possessed Armors, Red Knights," Sephiro said.

Although the armor was completely empty inside, it was cursed, monsterizing it. The red Ghost-Possessed Armor's official name was 'Red Knight'.

Kang Oh raised Demon Sword Blood. "Attack."

That was enough. He didn't need to explain how the Red Knights attacked, nor did he need to tell them what to do either. Eder and Sephiro would do their part without his instruction.

"Roger!" Sephiro pulled out an arrow from his quiver and notched it.

Aim, fire!

The arrow struck a Red Knight right in its breastplate.

Earth Shaking Arrow!

Boom!

The arrow created a shockwave, which swept through everything around it. The battle had begun!

Sharp bone spears floated above Eder's shoulder.

"Skewer them!" Three bone spears flew simultaneously and struck the Red Knights.

Bam, bam, bam!

The Red Knights raised their shields, blocking the bone spears, and then charged at Kang Oh's party.

Kang Oh grasped a Fire Bomb and forcefully threw it, like he was a pitcher standing on the mound. In baseball terms, it was a fast ball.

The Fire Bomb flew through the air and struck a Red Knight's shield. Upon contact, a wild flame began to spread.

Roar!

However, it didn't really do much. The Red Knights simply charged through the flames, their shields protecting their bodies.

One Red Knight swung its mace at Kang Oh.

Whoosh.

A spiked mace flew through the air.

'Slow.' Kang Oh easily dodged the mace. However, the mace struck the ground, causing...

Boom!

A small explosion, accompanied by a 'boom'.

Heavy Blow!

Eder could also use this skill when he possessed Arumode's remodeled body and became a Curse Knight.

Kang Oh immediately swung Blood and counterattacked.

Slash!

The Red Knight was over level 300. It wouldn't be beaten so easily. Though Kang Oh's slash was frighteningly quick, the Red Knight was able to block it without much difficulty.

Clang!

Blood crashed into the shield, emitting sparks and a metallic 'clang'. In the midst of that, another Red Knight approached him from behind.

Shield Bash!

This skill allowed the user to deal damage with their shield! And if Shield Bash struck the target's head, then they would lose consciousness. Obviously, the Red Knight swung the edge of its shield at the back of Kang Oh's head.

"Hmph."

Kang Oh's Hyper Intuition was like the equivalent of having eyes on the back of his head. He turned his body to the side, dodging the shield, and immediately thrust Blood. Like a skilled acupuncturist, Kang Oh precisely stabbed the Red Knight's shoulder joint.

Stab!

Red shards exploded out! The Ghost-Possessed Armors' weakness was their joints; the shoulders, the knees, elbows, etc. These areas, which kept the armor whole, were weaker than the rest of the armor.

Then, the Red Knight counterattacked. It swung its mace vertically, and black energy wriggled around its mace.

Resentment Strike!

This skill dealt a huge amount of damage if the user was damaged, but... It was pointless if it didn't hit.

Kang Oh stepped back. The mace, having lost its target, struck nothing but air.

Then...

"A new enemy is approaching," Sephiro yelled.

As he said, four new Ghost-Possessed Armors appeared from the winding road. They wore blue armor and carried bows.

"Blue Knights!" Kang Oh yelled.

"Mr. Eder and I will deal with the Blue Knights. Mr. Kang Oh, please take care of the Red Knights!" Sephiro said.

Blue Knights were ranged monsters! He believed it was better for him and Eder to fight them rather than Kang Oh, who was proficient in close quarters combat.

"Ok!" Kang Oh agreed with him.

"Understood," Eder replied immediately. He then summoned a bone mass and launched it at a Blue Knight.

After that, Sephiro shot an arrow.

The Blue Knights raised their bows. However, they didn't draw any arrows. They simply drew their bowstrings, forming arrows of blue light.

Whizz! Whizz! Whizz!

The blue arrows flew through the air, coming for Kang Oh, Eder, and Sephiro simultaneously.

Swish.

Kang Oh swung Blood, cleaving an incoming arrow in half. A nearby Red Knight saw the opening and swung its mace, forcing Kang Oh to quickly withdraw his sword in order to protect himself.

Bam!

Upon impact, the mace created a small explosion.

Heavy Blow!

Kang Oh backed off.

Another two Red Knights attacked him, aiming for his head and solar plexus. What an impressive combination attack!

'Not bad!'

It was impossible to dodge or block.

'If that's the case, then...' Kang Oh rushed at the Red Knight, which was aiming for his head. It was almost as if he were voluntarily running in front of a speeding car!

"Huaahp!" Kang Oh swung Blood with transcendent speed.

Transcendent Blade!

His blade flashed! In exchange, a massive amount of HP, MP, and Stamina had been consumed.

However...!

Split.

The Red Knight was split right in the middle.

[You have defeated a Red Knight.]

Because he'd rushed at the now dead Red Knight, Kang Oh had avoided the other Red Knight's attack. Kang Oh had simultaneously attacked and defended.

After that, the battle became easier for him. After all, there were only four Red Knights left, not five.

"C'mon!" Kang Oh rampaged about like a rabid beast.

The Blue Knights weren't able to do much and fell one or two at a time. They couldn't withstand Eder's bone magic and Sephiro's arrows!

Obviously, Kang Oh's party had attained victory.

* * *

"Huh?"

Once the battle was over, Kang Oh noticed that he'd gotten a message.

- Oppa.

It was Asu. Kang Oh immediately wrote a message and clicked 'send'.

- Sorry, I was busy. What's wrong?

- Are you busy the day after tomorrow?

She messaged him back rather quickly.

- The day after tomorrow? I don't have anything planned. I'm just going to keep hunting in Despia. Why?

- My group has time off then, so we decided to play Arth on that day.

- Oh, really?

- Yes. I was thinking of having a picnic. You should come too, Oppa.

'A picnic with Soo Ah!' He really wanted to go.

Kang Oh turned to Eder and said, "Eder."

"Yes?"

"Once we're finished with this dungeon, set up a magic circle in Saharamant."

They'd mostly verified that Saharamant was a safe place. Moreover, there was a reason he needed the magic circle now. A picnic with Soo Ah! He couldn't afford to miss it.

"Understood."

"Oh, then I can go back to Altein?" Sephiro asked, seeming mighty pleased. As soon as he returned to Altein, he'd head to the Tamer Guild and hatch the wyvern egg.

Kang Oh sent a message, stating 'sure', and looked at Eder and Sephiro. 'I feel bad for you, you bachelors!' His eyes were filled with sympathy.

Eder had been a bachelor for a long time, and he knew that Sephiro was currently single. The bigger problem here was that he'd never even seen them with a girl before!

'Tch, tch.' He couldn't help but click his tongue.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Sephiro stared at Kang Oh.

"Yeah. It feels unpleasant," Eder agreed.

"Mm, it's nothing." Kang Oh looked away and messaged Soo Ah back.

- I want to go too! Could you ask the others if they're ok with me bringing Sephiro and Eder along?

- Ok, will do.

Sometime later...

Soo Ah sent him a message back.

- They're ok with it.

- Alright, thanks.

- I'll see you then.

- Yep!

Kang Oh closed the message window and grinned.

"Eder, Mr. Sephiro. Do you have time the day after tomorrow?"

"Why?"

"I'm going on a picnic with my girlfriend and her friends. Let's go together."

"Those friends of hers aren't men, are they?" Sephiro asked.

"They're women."

"I'll go. I really love you, Mr. Kang Oh!" Eder clasped Kang Oh's hands.

"I'll go too." Of course, Sephiro couldn't stay behind.

"Then let's have fun at the picnic."

"Yeah!"

* * *

Kang Oh's party encountered Red Knights, Blue Knights, White Knights, and Black Knights in Mandra's Helix.

The White Knights wielded spears, but they also had the ability to heal and buff their allies.

On the other hand, Black Knights wielded swords. Their combat abilities were the highest amongst the four. They also had the ability to command troops. Thus, the Ghost-Possessed Armors became completely different when led by a Black Knight.

Like right now.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The Red Knights stood side-by-side and advanced, their shields at the ready.

Meanwhile, the White Knights, wielding their long spears, stood behind them, just waiting for their opportunity.

At the rear, the Blue Knights stood in two lines and drew their bowstrings. Right beside them, a Black Knight stood with its sword planted in the ground.

It felt like they weren't fighting against monsters, but a well trained brigade instead.

Of course, there were several ways of engaging a formation like this. There were several ways for Kang Oh, Eder, and Sephiro, at least.

"I'll break their formation with my bone magic," Eder said.

"Please take care of the Red Knights," Sephiro said.

"Everyone do your part," Kang Oh said.

"Arise!" Eder raised his gaunt hands. Then, a white bone ball rose between the Red and White Knights, separating them and breaking their formation. "Explode!" Eder clenched his fist.

Bone Bomb!

The massive explosion swept through the Red and White Knights, heavily damaging their ranks.

Then...

Kang Oh got right in the middle of them!