Chapter 171 Dungeon Breakthrough 2
[We're going to take over the dungeon now. Please wait a moment.]
It sounded a bit far away, like a cell phone call with a poor signal, but it was definitely Lucia's voice.
One day passed after Yong-ho's army defeated the main forces of the eastern army.
Yong-ho, who kept making an inroad into the eastern area without a hitch, took over the dungeon of the Nagaraja master who had surrendered and used it as a forward base.
The number of the eastern masters also dropped significantly amid the turbulence caused by Embrio. According to the Nagaraja master, there were only two eastern masters under the command of Stravadi and Sargatanas.
And the number of soldiers that the eastern army could mobilize again was about a thousand or so. Given that even if all the soldiers left in the north or scattered in various dungeons were mobilized, it would be no more than 2,000, so Yong-ho didn't have to worry about confronting the enemy with a huge army beyond his imagination.
The intelligence that the Nagaraja master provided was better than expected. He even knew the power of Stravadi and Sargatanas.
Stravadi's power was short-range space jump, while Sargatanas's power was strengthening of the body.
Both were good at close combat, but Stravadi of the Nagaraja race also seemed to be good at spelling magic. In some respects, they might be tougher than Yong-ho thought.
Yong-ho sat down on the throne engraved with a serpent's head and pondered over how to deal with the two. He drew a map of the eastern area in his mind. The current dungeon was located in the south within the eastern area. Moving a little further to the northeast, he could find Stravadi's dungeon.
Tigrius, Rikum, and Ophelia said in unison that the next battle would be a dungeon battle, not a battle in the open field like this. Their opinion was reasonable. Actually, Yong-ho himself thought of fighting the King of Gluttony at the dungeon fight instead of a battle. It was when the master was fighting at the dungeon that he became the strongest.
Thanks to the Dungeon Market, the concept of supplies in the demon world was different from what they used in the human world. As long as they could secure a dungeon with access to the virtual space of the Dungeon Market and enough funds, they could deliver supplies even into the heart of the enemy camp, though incompletely.
Yong-ho had no intention of letting Stravadi buy his time. He intended to devour the eastern area quickly like lightning.
The current situation was different from when he defeated Agares.
Back then he was pressed for time. He had to hurriedly take the essence of the dungeon's heart and leave the eastern area while guarding against other masters in the surrounding areas.
But it was different this time.
The dungeon's treasures and resources, dungeon spirits, and the essence of the heart.
He intended to take away all of them by all means.
Really, he would do it, just like the King of Greed!
[Takeover of the dungeon was over.]
[Are you going to access the virtual space of the Dungeon Market?]
The energy of greed arose. The greed that grew much bigger and more abundantly than before engulfed Catalina and Kaiwan, standing next to the throne. It did not stop there and spread widely.
Yong-ho closed his eyes and accessed the virtual space of the Dungeon Market.
***
[Recognition number: 009]
[Descendants of the man.]
[Yong-ho Cheon, the current master of the House of Mammon.]
[Recognition has been completed. Welcome.]
As soon as he arrived in the all-white virtual space, the letters of light spread in front of his eyes amid a woman's hard voice.
Since he already experienced it, he waited instead of feeling embarrassed.
As he expected, her voice continued, [Sitree is currently taking care of her personal affairs.]
[You can't chat with Sitri at this time.]
[Would you like to go back? Or would you like to trade in normal mode?]
Yong-ho agonized for a moment. Last time, he waited for Sitri while trading in normal mode.
But he didn't have to do it again this time. It was true that his conversation with Sitri was pleasant, but he was not here to play in the virtual space. He came here to purchase supplies and various equipment for attacking the dungeon.
'It's regrettable, but I can't help it anyway.'
It seemed that the war between kings in the northern area seemed to affect the Dungeon Market more than he expected.
"Let me trade in normal mode this time. I want to buy supplies and equipment for attacking a dungeon."
[Okay. We will provide you with the relevant catalogs.]
A white chair soared behind his back. He, seated in place, reached for it in the air.
Then, he came to grab two catalogs.
'What I need most, above all, is food and lighting devices for the dungeon. By the way, is it a woman?'
Feeling something all of a sudden, he looked a little further away. Since both the sky and the earth were pure white, a new being appeared in an all-white world where even he could not identify the horizon.
Her bright blonde and black wings made a strong contrast. Her neat and active suit reminded him of a career woman in the human world.
Although she was at quite a distance, she was an outstanding beauty that Yong-ho could recognize at a glance. As if she was stepping down from the air, she came down but flinched momentarily. She seemed to be surprised to see him.
'No, She's a little different.'
There was no clear evidence that he could think so, but he felt that way.
She seemed to have been surprised by the fact that there was someone in this space.
He called a table from the floor and put the catalogs on it. Rather than rushing to act, he wanted to watch how the woman would act first.
The woman didn't agonize for long. She flapped her big wings once, and in no time, she narrowed her distance with him. When he looked at her up close, she was so kind and gentle despite her black wings that he immediately thought she was an "angel".
However, it was just her look only. Her eyes that were as soft as a gentle sheep showed she was smart. Landing in front of him, she politely bowed to him, as Sitri did.
She introduced herself with a gentle smile.
"I am Samael, one of the five directors of the Dungeon Market."
"I'm Yong-ho Cheon."
Yong-ho got up from his seat and returned her greeting. And there was a moment of silence.
Both of them quickly examined each other as if they promised to do so.
It was Samael who opened her mouth first.
"You must be the master of the House of Mammon. I have heard of your excellent military activities in the south. It is an honor for me to meet you like this."
She once again appreciated him politely. It seemed that during that short span of her greeting him with a nod, she obtained some information about him at the Dungeon Market.
Yong-ho also succeeded in recalling her name.
'Dungeon Merchant Auction House.'
She was its manager there. Yong-ho once participated in the auction with Sitri.
Why did she come here? Why was she showing interest in him?
In the human world, Samael could be called an executive of a world-class multinational company, and a top-ranking executive overseeing business in Europe at that.
But Samael was now looking at Yong-ho with curiosity, who was the master of the House of Mammon in the abandoned southern land.
Of course, his situation in the southern land was not the same as before. He built up power enough to be comparable with that of the very powerful demon kings of the demon world.
So, even if she was one of the five directors of the Dungeon Market, it would be hard for her to look down on him. However, there was a difference between her looking down on him and her looking at him with lots of interest and curiosity.
Why? For what purpose?
"I came here to see Sitri, but I unexpectedly met a nobleman here. Are you usually doing business with Sitri like this?
As if to read his mind, Samael quenched his curiosity readily. She was now showing interest in Yong-ho because of Sitri.
Yong-ho pondered over her question, namely her question about him doing business with Sitri as usual and the way she behaved when she appeared in this space first. And he could discover why she was surprised when she knew he was in this space.
It was never uncommon for Sitri to deal directly with her client.
So, Samael wanted to know the reason why Sitri wanted to face Yong-ho in person.
"Samael."
Somebody, not Yong-ho, called her. Samael turned back to the voice naturally.
"Sitree!"
Wearing a nightgown, Sitri let out a long breath. She concealed her fatigue and said to Yong-ho, "Dear client, could you wait a minute? Please!"
Samael looked back at Yong-ho. Instead of answering, Yong-ho responded with a nod.
Then Sitri and Samael disappeared. And within a few seconds, Sitri appeared again.
"What about Samael?"
When Yong-ho asked instinctively, Sitri frowned a bit. Then she curled her lips and approached him.
"I sent her back for now. Did she act rudely?"
"No, not at all."
When he replied, Sitri sighed again. She seemed uncomfortable just like she did when she was caught recalling the memories about the House of Mammon the other day.
But shortly afterward, she made a smile again and gently pressed her chest. In the blink of an eye, she took off the nightgown and put on the dress she usually wore.
"Do you know that your pupils got big a moment ago?"
Instead of answering, he cleared his throat at her mischievous question.
Sitri made a hearty laugh as usual.
"Now, what kind of deal do you want today? Let me provide a little more service than usual because I feel sorry for being late."
She winked at him right at the moment when she mentioned 'a little more' then sat down on the chair that soared before her and leaned against it. Yong-ho also sat down.
He started striking up a deal with her, as she wanted.