Racodic, a crystal imbued with magic. Though less efficient than a true magic stone, it was valued as a mid-to-high-tier material. Blacksmiths and mages were its main buyers, but recently, merchant guilds from both the Demon Realm and the continent had begun seeking it out. The market value of Racodic was high; a single stone could easily fetch over 100,000 Zen.

After becoming the master of the dungeon in the Kollad Mountains, Geonsun had discovered two crystal caves around the time he reached B-rank. He had been earning Zen from them ever since.

“Master, Master! Drive out the wild monsters and take over the mountains with our soldiers!”

“I know. The more treacherous the mountains, the harder it is for raiders to enter. It’s most efficient to secure the area with our soldiers and pick them off inside.”

“Master, Master! The crystal distribution has started! We’re earning more Zen than we did wiping out raid parties!”

“I know. From now on, I can run the dungeon at a leisurely pace. I’m going to bed.”

If Aquantile was located in a lake, Rivixian was nestled in a mountain range. With the Raider Association having given up on it, the two crystal caves were its sole source of income, steadily bringing in Zen. Thanks to this, Geonsun had been running his dungeon quite comfortably. But now, troops from another dungeon had suddenly appeared.

[B-rank soldier Black Gnoll has died.]

[B-rank Named soldier, Brute Force Bear, has been caught in an explosion trap and is moderately injured.]

[C-rank soldier White-Skinned Orc has died.]

Explosions erupted across the mountainside. His soldiers, who had secured the high ground in advance, were dying. It was as if the enemy knew all their positions. Geonsun checked the other screens and noticed that the one near the crystal cave was dark.

“When did the vision sharing get cut off?”

“Master, Master! Do you think they found the crystal cave? Is this big trouble? Are we going to lose the ruin?!” the girl with rabbit ears panicked.

Geonsun sighed and calmed his supporter, Mikang. “You’re giving me a headache. Stop it. There were definitely soldiers guarding the cave. If the enemy discovered it by avoiding their line of sight, there are two possibilities.”

If the soldiers assigned to watch the cave had died, a message would have appeared. But for the enemy to discover the cave ‘before’ the soldiers died meant they either had scouts with superior vision or they had used a Ruin Exploration Radar.

Their target was the two crystal caves. He didn’t know which dungeon it was, but they had clearly invaded to seize the ruins. Geonsun shook off his grogginess and spread out a map of the entire mountain range.

‘Geographically, I still have the advantage. They have to break through a treacherous mountain range. But the problem is that their soldiers might have already occupied the area near the crystal cave.’

His eyes darted across the map, his mind already focused. He identified the four most critical locations.

[The uphill path at the entrance]

[The side path below the mid-point cliff]

[The entrance to the crystal cave]

[Hest’s Bridge for adventurers]

The uphill path at the entrance was key to securing vision during the initial engagement. From the side path below the cliff, he could roll down prepared boulders to devastate enemy troops. The entrance to the crystal cave was a wide field perfect for his gnolls to run wild. And Hest’s Bridge was the only path across to the opposite cliff.

If the enemy had already occupied the area near the cave, they might have also figured out the path to the cliff.

“Mikang, deploy the Red Gnoll unit with Pluton. Their primary destination is the cliff with the bridge.”

“Master, wouldn’t it be better to stop their soldiers at the entrance first?”

“That’s just a diversion. Whoever this is, they’re no idiot. Their plan is to use Position Shift to move their entire force to the cliff.”

If they had sent scouts to explore the ruin, it was highly likely they had given them a Position Shift item. Losing the area near the cave was a mistake. To make up for it, he had to turn their Position Shift against them. Geonsun sent out his soldiers one after another, his eyes fixed on the screen.

“I don’t know what kind of lunatic you are, but let’s see what you’ve got.”

—

At that moment, the scout unit climbing the cliff came to a halt. The Goblin Captain at the lead gave a quiet signal and turned back.

“Kreek! What is it, yessir?”

“Kreek! Master Taehyun orders return to the crystal cave, yessir! Everyone, move out, yessir!”

“Kreek! Kreek! Understood, yessir!”

This was the same Goblin Captain who had discovered Yuslan’s Ice Palace. An order from the Dungeon Master was absolute. The scout unit immediately returned to the crystal cave and left a Position Shift marker.

[The Dungeon Master of Balak has used Position Shift.]

[The positions of Rabiz and Elenora will be changed to the previously saved location.]

Soon, two women appeared. They accepted the goblins’ greetings and began to cast their skills as instructed.

[A-rank Named Guardian Rabiz has installed a Permanent Teleportation Circle.]

[Permanent Teleportation Circle uses remaining: 2/3]

[A-rank Raider Elenora has cast Divine Precept.]

[A barrier with infinite durability will be maintained until all divine power is consumed.]

[Divine Precept uses remaining: 1/1]

The Permanent Teleportation Circle, its usage limit increased through proficiency, and Elenora’s single-use skill, Divine Precept. Balak had used a precious Position Shift for just these two skills.

“Should I just stay here?” Inhye asked.

“You must remain here until the Master gives a separate order,” Rabiz replied stonily.

“Mmm. Okay.” Inhye sat down on a chair she had brought and leisurely watched the situation unfold. One by one, Balak’s soldiers began to appear through the teleportation circle. As long as Divine Precept was active, it wouldn’t matter even if they were discovered. Feeling a bit bored, Inhye looked at Rabiz.

“Come to think of it, Miss Rabiz, you’re always with Mr. Taehyun. Could you tell me a little about him? It’s a bit awkward just sitting here like this.”

“I refuse.”

“Wasn’t that refusal a little too quick?”

And so, troops were being secretly summoned from within the crystal cave.

—

One of the dozens of screens went black. A soldier entering the initial area must have died, cutting off the vision. The soldiers advancing into the mountains were also starting to die off. They had secured vision through the scout unit that went in ahead, but that was no longer possible.

“I don’t think we can go any further,” Riel said, her voice laced with concern. “The Rivixian soldiers are regaining their vision. They’ve probably secured the area around the crystal cave by now, so from here on, we’ll just be sacrificing our soldiers.”

Just as she said, familiar summons were reappearing on the map. With reinforcements continuously pouring out of Rivixian, it would be impossible to keep pushing forward. However, Taehyun shook his head.

“No. Keep sending them in. If we don’t have vision, we’ll create it. From now on, have the High Elves and Kadum lead the soldiers. The side that takes the entrance hill first will have the advantage. And tell Hyena to stick as close to Kadum as possible.”

“Is there really a need to go this far?”

“Currently, Rivixian is sending soldiers to the entrance, but not its main forces. They’re probably trying to keep our soldiers near the crystal cave in check.”

Rivixian already knew its ruin had been discovered. The fact that they hadn’t concentrated their main forces at the entrance meant they intended to focus their firepower near the cliff. Seeing as they hadn’t used any exclusive items yet, it seemed they were even anticipating a Position Shift.

[Balak’s scout unit has discovered a gnoll unit.]

[The Dungeon Master of Rivixian has used Radar Detection Net.]

[Balak’s scout unit has been detected.]

He had already located the scout unit with a Radar Detection Net. The reason he was so obsessed with the scouts, even using an exclusive item, was undoubtedly because of Position Shift. The Dungeon Master of Rivixian probably assumed he had placed a marker near the bridge.

‘That guy knows the soldiers at the entrance are a diversion,’ Taehyun thought. ‘He probably believes the scout unit’s role is also just to lure his soldiers.’

Since the scout unit was currently heading down the cliff, it was reasonable to think their role was to act as a lure. Rivixian would surely try to deal with the shifted troops without using a nullification skill. Now that his ruin had been discovered, it was only natural for him to be wary of a return item.

“Since Rivixian is also an A-rank dungeon, its main forces must be strong,” Riel noted. “The fact that they aren’t nullifying the Position Shift must mean they think they can handle it directly.”

“My guess is they have an ability that can bind clustered troops or block their attacks. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be moving like that.”

“If your prediction is correct, isn’t that dangerous?”

“It would be,” Taehyun admitted with a smirk. “But my favorite strategy happens to be the forward barracks.”

A tactic from a modern online game he vaguely remembered. Among his fading memories of his old life, the forward barracks was the one thing he hadn’t forgotten. He watched the enemy’s soldiers continuously shifting their positions and let out a sneer.

“Now, try and stop this. If you focus on the crystal cave, the entrance will be breached. If you focus on the entrance, your dungeon will be raided.”

—

[Balak’s scout unit has been annihilated.]

The goblins fleeing towards the crystal cave were dead. Geonsun scowled as he read the message. Of all the dungeons, it had to be Balak, the rising power of the West.

“Are they really attacking a dungeon that was minding its own business just for a ruin?”

“Master, Master! Who is the Dungeon Master of Balak?”

“Ugh. I don’t really know,” Geonsun admitted. “He skipped every meeting, and I was assigned to a different city during the Holy Kingdom invasion.”

Rivixian had never interacted with other Dungeon Masters. Although Faction Wars had been introduced recently, unless he attended the meetings, it was impossible to find out who Balak’s master was. Geonsun scratched his head and deployed soldiers near the bridge.

“Well, they invaded first, so it can’t be helped. Even if it’s Balak, within the Kollad Mountains, they’re in the palm of my hand. Now that they’ve found the ruin, I can’t just let them return home.”

They had tried to use the soldiers at the entrance as a diversion, but he had already seen through the Position Shift strategy. Geonsun stared at the screen and took out his communication device.

“Did you find the marker?”

“…It is not visible,” a soldier reported. “No matter how much we search, we cannot find a marker, let alone any other traces.”

“It’s not visible?”

Rather than breaking through the treacherous mountains, using Position Shift was the obvious choice. And yet, Balak hadn’t used it. Puzzled, Geonsun sent his soldiers toward the crystal cave. Just then, the screens before his eyes began to flicker out.

“Wh-what? Why are the vision-sharing screens suddenly turning off?!”

“Oh! Master! They’re back on!” Mikang cried.

Soon, the blacked-out screens were restored. Geonsun let out a sigh of relief, but it was quickly replaced by horror.

[A-rank Named Guardian Pluton has been lightly injured.]

[B-rank Hero soldier, Gnoll Captain Tangkrang, has died.]

In an instant, two of his main forces had taken damage. Tangkrang was now a cold corpse rolling on the ground. Geonsun stared at the figures who had appeared before his soldiers.

“Dropin? Are they raiders from Balak?”

Seventeen raiders stood there, all dressed in identical outfits. The Rivixian soldiers rushed toward them in a panic. But at that moment, the screen went black once more.

[B-rank Named soldier, Swift Gnoll Frank, has died.]

[B-rank soldier Werewolf has died.]

[C-rank soldier White-Skinned Orc has died.]

By the time the screen turned back on, more of his soldiers were dead. Geonsun broke out in a cold sweat as he read the message that appeared.

[B-rank Raider Dropin’s special ability ‘Time Freeze’ is being cast.]

[Time Freeze has been cast.]

The vision had been cut off by Dropin’s special ability.

“Time Freeze? It stops time? Damn it! Pluton, trap those guys first!”

“Understood!”

Slowly, the space began to frost over. At the forefront, the injured Pluton cast his skill.

[A-rank Named Guardian Pluton has cast Cube Imprisonment.]

[All enemies within a certain range will be trapped in the cube.]

A square-shaped prison of energy descended from the air. Time Freeze activated a moment too late; the raiders were already trapped inside the cube. Geonsun let out a sigh of relief and checked the restored screen. Fortunately, the rest of his soldiers were unharmed.

“Pluton, take care of the raiders first.”

“Underst—” ‘Gak!’

Just as Pluton was approaching the cube, a magic bullet shot out from a distance.

[A-rank Named Guardian Pluton is now lightly injured (+).]

[Balak’s archer unit has appeared.]

[A-rank Guardian Arch-elf Mederia has appeared.]

It was Balak’s second unit.

—

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep