The Last Adventurer

Chapter 20

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 20: 100-man Gate (2)

3.

Most Mystic Gates didn’t have any significant external features. The difficulty could only be distinguished by the color of the portal that appeared when you approached it.

However, there were exceptions.

The highest difficulty Mystic Gates that could appear at that level, such as the 100-man Mystic Gate, had a unique feature.

“The golden light is definitely there.”

The wooden frame of the Mystic Gate, which could be called the gate, emitted a faint golden light.

The moment they saw the golden light, the eyes of the adventurers gathered around began to sparkle.

‘It’s real.’

They were all right to think it was real and come here. There was no reason for the Top 10 they belonged to to play a prank about something like this.

‘It’s really the 100-man Gate.’

However, thinking about something and seeing it become reality before your eyes are two different things.

Above all, the 100-man Mystic Gate was like a heaven-sent opportunity for adventurers.

“Man, this is real. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Even Longco, a 5th Circle B-rank adventurer who had just confirmed the Mystic Gate, didn’t have the title of 100-man Mystic Gate Conquest among his titles.

And that was the norm.

Only 2nd Circle or lower adventurers can enter the Red-rank Mystic Gate.

No matter how talented an adventurer was, if they were above 3rd Circle, they had no chance to challenge the 100-man Gate.

No, the more talented they were, the harder it was to get the chance.

After all, those with talent easily and quickly broke through the wall of Circle Up.

They quickly reached the realm of 2nd Circle and 3rd Circle.

Of course, they couldn’t throw away the opportunity to Circle Up just for this title.

For those gathered here, it was a heaven-sent opportunity.

The eyes of the adventurers, faced with this opportunity, now began to blaze beyond shining.

The greed of the adventurers, who had the treasure before their eyes, began to burn.

That was the moment.

“Ah.”

Clang!

Longco spoke after touching the sword on his belt with his hand.

“My stomach hurts. Should I just break it?”

At those words, the burning atmosphere around them cooled down like it had been hit by a heavy rain.

‘As expected.’

The only exception was El Paume.

He was the only one who looked at Longco with cold eyes.

Because he knew.

‘It’s just as I expected.’

The reason Longco and his companions came here.

On the surface, they were here to protect the promising challenger, the adventurer, but that was just a superficial reason.

The real reason they came here was to let the adventurers know.

‘Don’t even think about messing around.’

You didn’t come here because you got a great opportunity, something like the chosen one of heaven, but to make sure you get the Unique-rank item inside out safely.

So don’t be greedy.

Don’t try to take the Unique item or take unnecessary risks out of greed.

Furthermore, this was also for the sake of those adventurers.

‘If they try to play any tricks, it’s all over.’

The fact that 100 people could enter meant that it was filled with terrifying monsters that even 100 people would have to work together to capture.

However, even though there were 100 people gathered here, and they were all skilled, they were not one team.

There were a total of 10 teams, and even within those teams, it was difficult to say that they were one team.

What if greed took over in such a situation?

The result was clear.

‘Failure must be avoided. If we’re going to fail, it’s better to just give up.’

The worst case scenario was that if the adventurers tried to escape the moment they thought the situation was not going their way, the opportunity to obtain the Unique-rank item would disappear altogether.

In any case, Longco’s words turned the atmosphere upside down.

The look in the adventurers’ eyes changed. From eyes filled with anticipation, they now turned to eyes filled with fear.

Longco said, satisfied with the fact.

“Now, let’s decide on the order of entry. We’ll do it by drawing lots.”

4.

The moment they crossed the portal of the Mystic Gate, the feeling the adventurers felt was like walking through water.

The feeling of something pressing down on them, the inability to walk quickly, and the feeling of suffocating.

As they endured that feeling and walked towards the light, they could see a new sight when they reached the light.

And the adventurers enjoyed that moment.

Nothing excited adventurers more than the fact that they were in a completely different place, having a completely different adventure.

The adventurers who crossed the 100-man Mystic Gate were the same.

“……It’s a field.”

The forest landscape, which had not even a single ray of light until a moment ago, had turned into a field filled with reeds that were much taller than people.

The world had truly changed, and the hearts of the adventurers who stood before this changed world began to beat faster.

Dibo was no different.

‘I’m here. I’ve come to the 100-man Gate. As an adventurer.’

Just a few days ago, he had been treated as nothing more than a slave, far from being an adventurer. But now, he had set foot in the dream of all adventurers.

It would be strange if Dibo’s heart, whose dream and goal was to become an adventurer, didn’t shake with excitement.

“Don’t try any funny business.”

However, Dibo’s soaring heart quickly cooled at the words of Kiri, who was behind him.

She was as cold as ice.

And that was what the Cygnus Knights were.

Beings who were completely different from adventurers.

That was why.

The moment she appeared, the adventurers who had already crossed the gate turned their attention to her.

Of course, it was not attention in a good sense.

‘Gafor Merchant Union gave up after all.’

‘It’s good that they gave up, but why are they giving the opportunity to a trainee knight?’

‘That’s just how they are.’

From the adventurers’ point of view, the Signus Knight trainees were a thorn in their side in many ways.

It wasn’t because the Signus Knight trainees were noble beings, or beings superior to adventurers.

Like the relationship between dogs and cats, adventurers and the Cygnus Knights simply didn’t communicate well.

To be precise, from the point of view of the Cygnus Knights, who protected the peace of Maple World, the adventurers, who never knew when they would cause trouble, were not seen in a good light.

Of course, the Cygnus Knights also knew that there were many good adventurers. That’s why they had good relationships with good adventurers.

However, it was clear that there were also many bad adventurers.

On the other hand, there were many adventurers who were dissatisfied with the Cygnus Knights, who demanded justice and righteousness.

That’s why they were like cats and dogs.

A relationship that was necessary, but could only lead to trouble if they were put together.

‘Still, a knight trainee must be something.’

Moreover, the strength of the Cygnus Knights was beyond that of an adventurer.

In fact, if it had been in a different place, a few adventurers would have already started a fight.

However, this time was different.

‘Let’s just keep quiet for now.’

No one was foolish enough to cause trouble here, on this stage.

That was why everyone was gathered here.

In normal circumstances, they would have trusted their own skills and acted alone, but this place was different.

A place where there had to be at least some agreement and communication even if they acted alone.

“This is the last one.”

And the moment all 10 parties had crossed over, the leaders of each party immediately gathered and began to talk.

“The boss is no longer the boss.”

It was obvious, but the representative of the Gafor Merchant Union party was Kiri, and El Paume and Dibo could only watch her from behind.

“Boss, how do you feel?”

However, El Paume was not too upset about that.

“Boss?”

No, he wasn’t even upset. He was just not interested.

“What are you doing?”

El Paume sniffed a few times, then lay down on the ground and put his ear to the ground.

“Dibo.”

Then he stood up and said.

“Yes.”

“Get ready to run.”

That was the moment.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ground shook violently as if an earthquake had hit.

“It’s the pigs!”

At the same time, one of the adventurers shouted.

“The ribbon pigs are coming!”

5.

The Ribbon Pigs

The moment those words were spoken, the faces of all the adventurers turned ashen or pale.

Dibo was no different.

“Ribbon pigs, you say?”

Ribbon pigs.

The name alone was ridiculous.

However, anyone who had ever aspired to be an adventurer, or even studied a little bit about adventurers, would not dare to laugh at the word “ribbon pig”.

The pigs, which were two meters long and had red markings like ribbons wrapped around their bodies, were no different from predators.

Moreover, ribbon pigs were much more aggressive than ordinary predators.

They would attack with all their might even if there was just a fly in front of them.

What was even more terrifying was that ribbon pigs never moved alone.

“They’re coming!”

The scene before their eyes was proof of that.

“There are at least a thousand!”

A thousand!

The enormous herd of ribbon pigs, with red markings around their necks, charged towards the group of adventurers.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Causing a tremendous earthquake.

“Damn it, I can’t see!”

All the while, hiding their enormous numbers in the reed forest.

“Is that the way?”

“A thousand? Are you sure?”

“How far?”

It was a moment when it would be natural to be confused.

“Everyone, snap out of it!”

But at this moment, the 100 adventurers didn’t hesitate. If they were the kind of people who hesitated, they wouldn’t have come here.

And here, everyone came to the same answer.

“Everyone! Scatter!”

The same answer.

There were no exceptions.

‘They seem to be evenly matched in terms of skill.’

Because it was the correct answer.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

‘It’s impossible for the warriors to hold out against this herd of ribbon pigs in this situation.’

Normally, when faced with a herd of monsters, it was the warriors, especially those with shields and tanking skills, who stood at the front and blocked the herd.

However, that was only effective against monsters like orange mushrooms.

To withstand the ribbon pigs, the warriors needed to be of a very high level.

Of course, there were definitely warrior adventurers among those gathered here who had that level of ability.

‘The frontline is all about breathing in sync.’

However, not everyone was like that, and so if they created a tanking line, there were bound to be gaps.

It would be worse than doing nothing.

‘There’s no need to push ourselves.’

Crucially, the adventurers here now had no reason to fight the ribbon pig herd in this area.

There was nothing to protect, and they didn’t have a good understanding of the situation.

‘Especially against ribbon pigs.’

Moreover, ribbon pigs were not particularly valuable monsters.

So what was the answer?

To simply run away.

Kiri was the same.

She shouted.

“Everyone, follow me!”

She made a path herself, and her companions followed her without a second thought.

“Kiri!”

There were only two exceptions.

“Those two guys are gone!”

6.

The reed forest, which had become a scene of chaos with the appearance of the ribbon pig herd.

“Boss!”

In the midst of the chaos, Dibo and El Paume were running through the reed forest, avoiding the ribbon pig herd.

“Are we really just going to leave them behind?”

In a completely different direction from Kiri’s group.

“Is this okay?”

Dibo couldn’t help but worry.

El Paume answered his concerns.

“It’s fine. They won’t even notice if we’re gone.”

“Ah, no, boss. I mean…”

Of course, that wasn’t the answer Dibo was hoping for.

‘How are we going to deal with those ribbon pig monsters, just the two of us?’

Dibo was worried about the ribbon pigs.

Against a herd of ribbon pigs, party coordination was more important than ever.

Of course, El Paume had a different thought.

‘The ribbon pigs won’t be a problem.’

To him, the ribbon pig herd wasn’t a threat.

‘Not with the level of adventurers here.’

The same was true for the other adventurers.

Sure, they were difficult and dangerous monsters, but the adventurers gathered here were not ordinary adventurers.

Of course, there were bound to be other dangerous factors, including the boss monster.

‘No one will die.’

But it wasn’t enough to wipe out the adventurers here.

‘Even if we can’t catch the boss monster, we can still escape.’

After all, veteran adventurers could always run away.

That was the problem.

‘But this Mystic Gate has never been cleared before.’

In El Paume’s memory, no one had ever returned alive from this place, even though it was a place where no one should die.

In fact, that wasn’t a question in itself.

The answer to that question had already been decided.

That was why El Paume was moving separately.

“Dibo.”

“Yes?”

“From now on, don’t trust anyone.”

“What?”

“There’s someone here trying to troll us.”

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]