Chapter 180  

Yu-Seong and Do-Jin ceased their battle and dashed towards the deepest part of the mine. Since both of them were injured, they moved somewhat slower than before, but eventually passed through a dark tunnel to reach a huge cave where bright light illuminated the space.

Their gaze naturally turned to the Dragon Egg, which shone brightly on a polished stone at the center of the cave. The egg was seemingly sitting on a throne. However, they noticed one peculiarity.

‘There's…more than one Dragon Egg?’

Yu-Seong and Do-Jin observed two eggs of contrasting colors—black and white—that were neatly arranged like twin brothers. They then exchanged looks.

‘How interesting.’

Do-Jin’s lips twisted into a smile upon noticing Yu-Seong’s bewildered expression.

In fact, there was nothing Yu-Seong could do about this situation.

‘In the original novel, only one black Dragon Egg was mentioned. But if there are actually two Dragon Eggs…’

There were only two options in this case. First, Yu-Seong and Do-Jin, who were both called ‘foreigners,’ could each take one Dragon Egg and proceed to the next floor. This was the very situation that Count Monte and Count Chris had feared the most.

‘The second option is…’

The plan was to negotiate with the two Counts for one of the eggs while keeping the other one for himself. In fact, the Counts only needed the justification for them to be the ultimate ruler in the first place. In order to obtain that outcome, giving them one Dragon Egg was better than having two.

Additionally, there was also the possibility that one of the Counts may not want to share the Dragon Egg. Of course, there were mountains to cross before making such a decision.

Suddenly, the gray-eyed monster, frozen like a statue beneath the throne where the Dragon Eggs were placed, lit up its eyes with a red glow and spread its wings.

"Gargoyle...!"

The monsters, resembling bats, primarily attacked with powerful sonic waves as they flew through the air. However, they were also physically strong due to being made of stone. Furthermore, there wasn't just one of them.

‘There are at least ten of them...’

Yu-Seong realized why the knights who came before them had failed and returned. The Gargoyles were on a whole different level with the Orc crowd.

Watching the monsters spread their wings, Yu-Seong turned to Do-Jin. Even if they were in their best condition, it wouldn't be easy to pass through the crowd of Gargoyles.

Meanwhile, the monsters' screams coming from behind were getting closer and closer.

Yu-Seong looked at the flapping Gargoyles with his eyes wide open. They were quite threatening, but they didn't seem to have any intention of attacking first as long as he didn't get closer than a certain distance. After all, the Gargoyles were guard monsters. Their purpose would be to protect the Dragon Eggs.

"Can you hold your breath for a while?" asked Yu-Seong.

"If it's in such a chaotic situation..." Do-Jin lightly nodded his head.

Indeed, They were inside a spacious cave, but there was a way to get through.

"Then, trust me and wait for a moment. I'll take care of the rest."

"You want me to trust you and wait?"

When Yu-Seong nodded, Do-Jin had an incredulous look on his face.

"Why? Is there something on my handsome face?"

"Yes, it’s covered in your blood." "Damn... No wonder it feels sticky."

After exchanging a light joke, Yu-Seong stared at Do-Jin, whose eyes were full of suspicion. However, Do-Jin's emotion conveyed through Yu-Seong’s Character Understanding skill was 'confusion.'

In fact, Yu-Seong could understand why Do-Jin felt such a feeling.

‘Since Kim Do-Jin always had to solve his own problems.’

That was just the destiny of any protagonist of a fantasy novel. Difficult and challenging situations always had to be resolved by the protagonist himself. No matter how much the supporting characters played significant roles, in the end, it was inevitable for the protagonist to muster up the strength to push forward. That was Do-Jin's life, the life of the original novel’s protagonist.

However, the situation had arisen where Do-Jin could rely on someone else and take a step back. Although he had faced similar situations in the past, this was the first time he was fully conscious of stepping back and directly relying on someone else. Because of this, Do-Jin felt confused and complicated emotions.

"But if I think I'm in danger, you have to save me. You know you can't let your guard down, right? If I die, it's your fault,” said Yu-Seong as he reassured Do-Jin.

"I had that in mind from the beginning,” said Do-Jin.

As if he finally understood the situation, Do-Jin's expression relaxed into a casual one. He stepped back while conjuring magic in both hands. Now, although Do-Jin was clearly right next to Yu-Seong, Yu-Seong couldn't feel his presence at all.

"Now, shall I get ready too?" Yu-Seong muttered to himself.

In this strange situation, he used one hand to melt and wipe away the dried blood on his face. The acrid scent of blood filled his nostrils, penetrating deep into his lungs.

***

The two Counts rushed through Renton Mine like madmen until they finally arrived at a large cavern, where they were met with a pouring light that almost blinded them. At the same time, the first thing that caught the attention of the two Counts was Yu-Seong, who stood in place with numerous injuries.

"Choi Yu-Seong!" Count Monte exclaimed as he recognized the injured man.

Meanwhile, Count Chris scowled.

‘I don't see Kim Do-Jin.’

Naturally, the idea came down to a single one.

"So, it seems that you have knocked down Count Chris' mercenary," said Count Monte with a chuckle.

As his pace relaxed, he felt a sense of victory rising up within him. He thought about the alternate scenario where if things had gone differently, he would have been the winner.

"But you don't look too good yourself," Count Chris muttered as he halted his steps, then looked at Count Monte’s relaxed figure.

"At least he’s still alive," Count Monte replied while shrugging his shoulders as if he didn’t care about anything else.

Currently, two Counts confirmed the situation where one of your foreigners was gone while one was seriously injured.

‘It seems we’ve caused quite a fuss,’?thought Count Monte.

Despite his serious injury, Count Monte knew that Yu-Seong was still quite useful. Moreover, in the cavern, there were only him, Count Chris, and Yu-Seong.

‘It's difficult to say who is superior or inferior between Count Chris and me.’

Rather, it was highly likely that they would both knock each other out simultaneously. However, what if Yu-Seong supported him here?

‘I could use him as a shield and take down Count Chris,’?thought Count Monte.

The thought of using Yu-Seong to his advantage and easily solving the problem made Count Monte's eyes glint with desire.

"Count Monte, now is not the time for other thoughts," said Yu-Seong all of a sudden.

For Count Monte, Yu-Seong’s words were somewhat incomprehensible. Feeling confused, he muttered, "Huh?" "Look over there."

Yu-Seong didn't say much, but instead pointed at the throne where the Dragon Eggs were located. The wings of the Gargoyles had obscured their view, making it difficult to see the Dragon Eggs clearly. Both Count Monte and Count Chris’s eyes soon widened in surprise.

"There is more than one Dragon Egg," said Count Chris.

"There are two eggs..."

Both Counts had the same reaction as when they saw Yu-Seong and Kim Do-Jin before. The knowledge that there were Dragon Eggs in Renton Mine had been received by the bishop’s oracles of their respective churches at the same time. The god's words in this world were beyond doubt.

Of course, it had already been established that there would be a Dragon Egg, but no one knew that there would be two of them. Thinking back, even the oracle given to them by the bishops in their respective territories did not mention the number of eggs. Naturally, the two lords stared at each other.

Under the iron helmet worn to protect his head, Count Monte with his red eyes contemplated.

‘The wisest decision here would be to kill this foreigner, and for Count Chris and me to each take one Dragon Egg.’?

Was there a need to end the fight between the two here?

‘It's better to kill this foreigner…’?

Through a pact with each other, the two Counts had already made a relatively certain decision on the path they would take. Naturally, a desire to kill Yu-Seong had surfaced in Count Monte's eyes as he looked at Yu-Seong.

Sensing the Count’s gaze, Yu-Seong took a step back with a surprised expression. "Count Monte?"

"...I'm sorry, but I'm not certain that you would be able to resist your greed once you have one of those eggs in your hands," said Count Monte.

"The Dragon Egg is necessary for both of us," said Count Chris before he stepped forward with his sword drawn. Aiming the sword that dripped with the blue blood of a monster at Yu-Seong, he said, "Your death would be the most beautiful conclusion.”

"Why would it come to that?" asked Yu-Seong.

"Because we would have to spill too much blood to face each other," replied Count Monte.

Count Chris slowly approached Yu-Seong with his sword still pointed at the man.

Now in this suffocating situation, Yu-Seong was not going to stand still and be killed. He pulled out his own weapon and asked, “You mean, even if you guys eventually have to shed blood?’"

At that moment, Count Chris paused slightly.

“In my world, there is a saying: two suns cannot rise in the same sky. I assume you both understand the meaning behind this,” Yu-Seong said.

Actually, Yu-Seong knew why the two Counts were hesitating and moving slowly even though they could have easily closed the distance to prevent Yu-Seong from speaking. He was clearly reading their emotions though Character Understanding.

Yu-Seong's eyes sparkled.

‘Just as I expected. These selfish humans, their thoughts are crystal clear.’

Perhaps because the two Counts were so alike, Yu-Seong was able to take control of the situation with ease while acting as if he were in a desperate situation. He then said, "Think carefully. The Dragon is known for its strength. Isn't that symbolism what both of you need the most? What if it was divided in half?”

"Shut up!" Count Chris shouted urgently, speeding up his steps.

In fact, Yu-Seong didn't take any more steps backward. He stood in place and looked at Count Monte, who was hesitating. Then, he said calmly, "Attempting to achieve it alone, something that is difficult to accomplish even for two people... There is a high probability of encountering an insurmountable obstacle."

"You foreigner! If you don't shut up right now...!" Count Chris raised his voice, glaring at Yu-Seong.

"Are you going to kill me? But if you do, both of your positions will go back to a stalemate.”

At the same time, Yu-Seong moved forward towards Count Chris' sword. This time, it was Count Chris who took a step back.

"Ugh...!" Count Chris groaned, unable to hide his wavering gaze.

Count Monte was no different.

“Think carefully, Count Monte. Why do you think I told you about the oracle's specific details? I already knew from the beginning that there are two Dragon Eggs! And I thought that sharing one with Count Monte would be the most ideal resolution,” said Yu-Seong.

Yu-Seong's lie once again caused a shift in the two Counts’ expressions, since it was something that they had never considered before.

'He knew about the two Dragon Eggs from the beginning? Then... did Yu-Seong do this for me all along?'?

After collecting his thoughts, Count Monte quickly moved to stand by Yu-Seong's side.