Dungeon Maker

A man wearing a black robe and a beast shaped mask guided Yong-Ho.

Even though their outfit was similar to Kaiwan's, they had a large and firm body, so it was easy to tell that they were a male.

However, they didn't show any interest towards Yong-Ho. All they did was walk ahead slowly.

Could it be that he used to be an owner too?

The House of Mammon's history was long. Kaiwan probably wasn't the only one that found the Arena and became a challenger.

Once they were near the audience seats, the man opened a door to a hallway that led to the arena. After meeting Yong-Ho, he spoke for the first time.

"The challenger may enter the arena. Those that came with the challenger cannot enter. Please watch from here."

He spoke in an unsophisticated way and the way he talked was rather awkward.

Instead of replying, Yong-Ho looked down at the arena. He imagined a tower because Gusion mentioned that there were Floor Masters on each level and stairs that led to the dungeon. But, it seemed like the Floor Masters actually came to the Arena.

"Master."

Catalina called Yong-Ho. She used up a lot of her mental energy from trying to endure in front of Gusion, so she looked like she was going to pass out at any moment.

Her large eyes were filled with anxiety and concern. She didn't show it in front of Gusion, but when she first encountered Kaiwan, Catalina was actually really agitated.

What if Yong-Ho ends up in the same position as Kaiwan?

Yong-Ho understood how she felt. He was worried as well, but he smiled nonetheless. He used his empty left hand and patted Catalina's head.

"I'll be back."

"I'll be waiting."

Catalina replied confidently. Like always, her tail and ears showed her true emotions.

Yong-Ho smiled again. After patting her head once more, he turned around. He walked towards the arena without any hesitation.

The Arena's atmosphere was cold.

***

Despite the fact that there were thousands of seats, only a few of them were filled up.

They were filled with a small group of spirits from the arena and since there were only about 30 of them, it was impossible to fill all the seats.

But because of that, it was easy to spot Yong-Ho. He was like a dark tree standing in a field of white snow.

Out of the spirits that belonged to the Arena, there were some that were able to move freely.

Some male, some female. There were kids, elders, young women and teenagers.

While sitting in groups of twos or threes, they were looking at both Yong-Ho and Catalina. Catalina felt them looking at her, but she didn't turn around or approach them. She just sat in her seat and solely focused on Yong-Ho.

Gusion sat in a special seat that was located in the center of the audience seats. Three chairs were located within the large space. The seat right of Gusion was empty. But on his left, a figure that was on the same level as Gusion was sitting there. Aamon, or more like his alter ego, was sitting there in the form of a Red Lotus Flower fire.

It was safe to say that Mammon's Arena was Mammon's magic barrier. Even though Aamon's body was with Yong-Ho, it was possible for him to take a part of his conscious and place it next to Gusion.

Gusion scratched his chin as he watched Yong-Ho walk towards the arena after patting Catalina's head. Gusion put on an uninterested look as if to hide his true feelings.

"Do they have a chance?"

"Are you interested?"

Gusion didn't reply right away when Aamon asked. He pouted for a moment and then snorted.

"It was a stupid question. You're only serving under that young owner because he has a chance at winning."

He was speaking to Aamon, the Red Lotus Flower Lance.

Out of all of Mammon's spirits, Aamon was special, so he probably wouldn't decide on an owner so easily.

'However.'

Or maybe he was in a hurry? Aamon wasn't in the Arena like Gusion. There's a possibility that Aamon made a hasty decision since he was the only one that knew how much time had passed.

"I know what you're thinking. But, I want to ask you too. Isn't it you that's been pressed for time?"

Gusion flinched because it seemed like Aamon read his mind.

Aamon was able to learn a lot of things just from the way Gusion treated Yong-Ho. But he stayed silent and Gusion gritted his teeth. Gusion stopped scratching his chin and leaned back into his chair.

"As you know, we're unable to feel the same sense of time in the Arena. A majority of the flow of time has been suppressed, but...it's also because this space is Master Mammon's barrier. Kaiwan...it's understandable as to why she's so cautious. She knows that time has passed, but doesn't exactly know how much. Sometimes it feels like it's only been a few days, but it's actually been a few years."

Gusion closed his eyes. He was able to vividly remember a few memories.

"But, I do have an idea. Because I'm used to this space. It's not like I spend my time sleeping like Kaiwan and the other Floor Masters. A lot of time has passed. Over 1,000 years have already passed. But it feels like it only happened yesterday. The time when I followed the master and walked up those stairs."

Skyscraper stairs.

It was like Gusion had mentioned. Aamon was able to vividly remember that moment as well.

And that wasn't the only thing he was able to remember.

Mammon, the King of Greed.

The greatest demon king in the demon world's history.

His last.

His last moment.

Gusion gritted his teeth. Even though he didn't mention it, it was obvious that he was thinking about that "moment."

"Gusion."

"I know. I know, Aamon. It was the master's wish and because of that, I still respect him. I just want to follow him and walk up those stairs again. Even if it's in my dreams."

Gusion released a heavy sigh. Instead of replying to him, Aamon gave him some time.

"It's been a while since I've had an emotional conversation like this."

Gusion smiled. He leaned forward again and made a demeaning comment.

"Don't worry. It's safe to say that there aren't any punishments on the first floor. Your young master may feel disappointed from being defeated, but he won't die or get detained."

Only Gusion was able to make such annoying comments like that.

Aamon smiled. Even though he was just a fire, Gusion knew. And because of that, he had high expectations. He didn't make those comments to Yong-Ho just to provoke him.

"It's starting."

Aamon spoke. Gusion and Aamon turned their attention to the arena and watched Yong-Ho.

***

[Mammon's Arena First Floor]

[Floor Master : Steel Ox]

[Max Number of Challenges per Day : 3]

[Reward : Two Choices]

[Punishment : Mental Pain]

Yong-Ho slightly opened his eyes when he read the letters of light that were displayed in the air. He made a short comment.

'It's...honest.'

On the other side of the large stadium, that was about 50 meters in diameter, a large ox was standing there. It was as if they were made out of steel because Yong-Ho felt a certain heaviness.

The Steel Ox released a low growl. They were about two meters tall with a horn on its head that was both extremely long and large. Fire came out of its nose every time it breathed out..

After coming to the demon world, Yong-Ho had fought against both a Salamander and a Land Worm, but this was his first time fight against an ox.

'But in the end, the basics are the same.'

Yong-Ho changed his pose as he wielded Aamon with this right hand. Aamon was now two meters long and Yong-Ho's lance technique was closer to the Eastern style rather than the Western style.

"Ready."

"Start!"

As soon as the letters of light shattered, he heard the sound of a loud drum. But Yong-Ho wasn't able to focus on anything. The ground was shaking. The Steel Ox jumped forward and charged like a runaway locomotive.

Yong-Ho quickly threw himself to the side. He couldn't counter it head-on. After rolling on the ground once, he stood up. The ox passed through the area that Yong-Ho was originally standing in and after moving about 20 meters, the Steel Ox quickly changed its direction. As soon as Yong-Ho stood up, he kicked off the ground.

He didn't have time.

Yong-Ho moved as soon as he thought of it. He waved Aamon roughly in the air and created a wave of fire.

The wave of fire that was released head-on was pretty horrifying. However, the Steel Ox must've not cared because it didn't slow down in the slightest. The ox instead charged even faster and broke through the wave of fire.

The fire dispersed.

As expected, the fire didn't affect the Steel Ox at all. The ox didn't even stay within the fire for that long. But, there were results nevertheless. Yong-Ho's original plan was to blind the Steel Ox so he didn't have to roll around to dodge the ox's attacks. He remained standing at the side while the Steel Ox charged in a straight line.

As soon as the Steel Ox realized that it had missed, it tried to change directions, but its speed got in the way. Right when the ox was about to turn, Yong-Ho targeted its ankle and attacked with Aamon.

Clank!

Aamon bounced off as the sound of metal filled the stadium. The unexpected counter made Yong-Ho's arms numb. Even though Yong-Ho was the one that attacked, he was affected more than the ox.

Fire came out of the Steel Ox's nose. His opponent changed direction and Yong-Ho couldn't wait any longer. He ignored the pain he felt in his arms and threw his body when the ox charged yet again.

The ox was fast and hard. Fire and ordinary attacks didn't work.

Catalina was really nervous. Most of the spirits that were watching started laughing when they saw Yong-Ho roll around on the ground.

Cold sweat started rolling down Yong-Ho's face. Even though his attacks had failed, he didn't lose concentration or feel discouraged. He released another wave of fire and blocked the view between him and the Steel Ox.

The ox's attacks were simple. They were fast, but they moved in a straight line, so Yong-Ho was able to predict its attacks. Just blocking the ox's view was more than enough to decrease its accuracy.

The ox charged again.

Yong-Ho had an idea while dodging his opponent. He was clearly aware of the arena's entire structure and his current position.

He read the mana's flow. The Power of Evolution analyzed targets for development purposes. And of course, the flow of mana was included in that analysis.

The Steel Ox wasn't Yong-Ho's spirit. It was impossible to do an analysis. But, it didn't matter. Right now, Yong-Ho wasn't expecting the Steel Ox's development information.

Red mana was flowing out of the Steel Ox. That mana created a constant flow. The ox didn't simply use their strength to charge towards Yong-Ho. The ox also used mana to charge really fast.

The flow of mana showed Yong-Ho the direction the Steel Ox was going to go.

Boom!

The ground shook. Yong-Ho dodged the ox's attack once again. The Steel Ox became angry and released a growl. Yong-Ho gulped. Reading the flow of mana during a battle was really difficult, but he had to continue doing it. He also didn't forget about the arena's structure. Whenever the Steel Ox charged, it created fire. The ox threw itself while charging in a straight line.

A different sound was released this time. It seemed like the entire stadium was shaking.

Beyond the fire that was destroyed, Yong-Ho saw the Steel Ox twist its body. The ox's horn was stuck to a wall, like Yong-Ho had expected, but he had to delay his opponent more.

Yong-Ho immediately made his next move. This time, Yong-Ho charged towards the Steel Ox.

His plan to make the Steel Ox charge in a straight line and crash into the wall was great. It wasn't exactly the most creative plan, but since he actually executed it, Gusion gave Yong-Ho a lot of points.

But, what was he going to do now?

Yong-Ho's attack didn't affect the Steel Ox. Despite the fact that the ox crashed into the wall, its horns were perfectly fine.

Gusion leaned forward more. The spirits that were watching spoke louder. Catalina clenched her hands. Kaiwan, who wasn't allowed to speak, desperately watched Yong-Ho.

Yong-Ho jumped. Aamon transformed into a knife and released fire once again. The wave of fire was useless. Yong-Ho knew it as well. That's why, he targeted something else this time.

He focused the fire towards the tip of the blade. Instead of creating a large fire, he focused a small amount on a single area and created a fiery blade.

Aamon's tip shined brightly. An immense amount of heat was released from the white light.

The Steel Ox felt the need to be cautious. It used its strength to twist its body and before Yong-Ho could reach it, the ox destroyed the arena's wall, and turned around.

Yong-Ho wasn't surprised. He read the mana this time too. The Steel Ox's horn was drawing a curve and when Yong-Ho charged towards it, the ox barely managed to dodge him. Because of that, Aamon pierced into the Steel Ox's body.

It worked. The fiery blade pierced through the Ox's body. It screamed. But, Yong-Ho didn't stop. He poured the remaining mana through Aamon.

Fire shot out of the holes that were all over the Steel Ox's body. The ox looked down on Yong-Ho because of the wave of fire he released earlier, but now the ox was powerless against the fire that was entering it.

It couldn't even scream. The ox weakly fell to the ground. It transformed into light and disappeared.

The spirits that were watching clapped with joy. Catalina stood up from her seat and flapped her ears and wagged her tail while Kaiwan released a sigh of relief.

"First Floor Completed Successfully."

"Please choose your reward."

Words of light appeared in front of Yong-Ho. Instead of replying, he turned around and looked up. He looked at Gusion, who was sitting in the middle of the audience seats.

Gusion looked down back at him. He couldn't contain his excitement when Yong-Ho looked at him.

He knew how Yong-Ho fought.

He knew that Yong-Ho read the flow of mana and was able to freely control the fire by using Aamon.

"You asked if he had a chance, right?"

Aamon asked and Gusion momentarily looked at Aamon with a blank expression. A big smile appeared on his face as he nodded.

"You chose a worthy owner, Aamon. But you're making a mistake if you think he'll become my owner just from this one battle. Even Kaiwan completed the first floor."

Instead of replying, Aamon created a bigger fire. He looked at his young owner.