Chapitre 9: Chapter 9
As the battle reached its climax, Min Ji hurled her blade toward Tae-min. He caught it mid-air, instinctively stabbing the sharp weapon deep into one of the serpent's glowing eyes. Green blood sprayed from the wound, and the beast let out a final, guttural hiss that shook the towering trees before collapsing lifelessly to the ground.
Before Tae-min could pull the blade free, another serpent lunged at him with blinding speed. Time seemed to slow as its massive jaws drew near, but a blur of motion intercepted it.
Jun-hee.
Her kick, impossibly powerful, sent the massive creature hurtling through the forest, crashing into a tree with a force that splintered the trunk. The serpent recovered almost instantly, its glowing eyes narrowing with malice as it refocused on Jun-hee.
But she didn't flinch.
Her hard-construct blade, still glowing with crackling purple lightning, ignited again as she met the serpent head-on. With unrelenting precision, Jun-hee leapt straight into its open mouth, disappearing momentarily.
There was a sickening sound of flesh tearing and bones snapping.
Moments later, she emerged from the back of the serpent, her blade glowing brightly as she sliced the creature in half. Green blood sprayed everywhere, coating her from head to toe. The serpent's remains slumped to the ground, its organs spilling out in a grotesque display.
The group stood frozen, stunned by the sheer brutality of what had just occurred.
"That was the last one, right?" Jun-hee asked, shaking the blood from her blade before the construct disappeared entirely.
"Yeah… I think so," Tae-min replied, still catching his breath.
"If that's the last one, we should leave before the gate closes," Min Ji said, her tone urgent.
The group began to turn back, moving cautiously toward their entry point.
As they walked, Jun-hee glanced at Tae-min. "You've got some unspeakable strength for a D-class healer."
"Thanks," Tae-min muttered, still processing everything.
Min Ji, however, couldn't shake the suspicion in her eyes as she watched Tae-min. Something about him didn't add up.
Just as they were about to leave, Tae-min froze. His chest tightened, a searing pain radiating outward. Before anyone could react, two sharp, gleaming appendages—long, thin, and slick with venom—pierced through his torso from behind.
Blood dripped from the wounds as Tae-min stumbled forward, his vision blurring.
"Tae-min!" Min Ji shouted.
The group's eyes widened in horror as they turned to see a figure emerge from the shadows of the forest.
The being was humanoid but monstrous. Its skin shimmered with a green, scaly sheen under the red sky. Four glowing white eyes glared at them, and from its back protruded eight massive, writhing tails—two of which were still embedded in Tae-min.
Jun-hee's eyes narrowed. "The Ten-Tailed Serpent King."
"A king?" Min Ji stammered. "In a B-rank gate? That's impossible!"
As if on cue, the gate behind them began to shimmer and shrink.
"Why is the gate closing?" Min Ji demanded, panic creeping into her voice.
Jun-hee stepped forward, twin glowing constructs forming in her hands. "When a dungeon's apex predator—its ruler—is still alive and active, the gate starts to seal itself. It'll only reopen once the threat is eliminated. That's why."
The team's panic escalated as the shimmering entrance to safety shrank further.
"System Notification," Tae-min's vision blurred as the familiar text appeared before him:
[System Warning]
Threat Level: Extreme.
The Ten-Tailed Serpent King exceeds the current capabilities of User Jin Tae-min.
Advised Action: Immediate retreat.
Tae-min's thoughts raced, but his body felt weak. For the first time in days, he felt powerless, like the D-class healer he was supposed to be.
The Serpent King lowered itself, its tails undulating menacingly as it surveyed the battlefield littered with the corpses of its offspring.
It growled, its voice echoing in a guttural, otherworldly tone: "Look at what you've done to my children. My children! You shall suffer as they have suffered."
Jun-hee's grip on her glowing constructs tightened. "If you think I'm afraid of a King, you're mistaken. Let's get this over with."
Without hesitation, she dashed forward, leaping into the air.
The Serpent King lashed out with the two tails still embedded in Tae-min, flinging him violently into the bushes. Tae-min hit the ground hard, gasping for breath as darkness threatened to consume him.
Jun-hee glanced briefly in his direction, but her focus remained on the towering Serpent King.
The creature lunged at her, all eight tails whipping forward in a deadly flurry. Jun-hee descended, her twin blades glowing brighter as she met the King's assault head-on.
"Go! Now!" she shouted to the others without breaking stride.
"But—" one of Min Ji's teammates started to protest.
"I said GO!" Jun-hee's voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.
Min Ji hesitated, her heart heavy as she glanced at Tae-min's motionless form.
"Please don't die," she whispered before turning to escape with the others through the rapidly closing gate.
As the gate sealed shut, the Ten-Tailed Serpent King let out a roar that shook the entire dungeon. It lowered its gaze to Jun-hee, who stood defiantly before it, her body crackling with energy.
"This isn't going to end well for you," she muttered, leaping forward once more.
In the bushes, Tae-min's vision darkened, but the system reappeared, a single message flashing before his eyes:
[System Override]
Unlocking Emergency Protocols…
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone