“I’ll cover the rear, so don’t worry about anything else and just swing your sword!”
“Got it!”
Following Shin Jaeha’s orders, the Swordsman swung his sword with gusto.
They were already in the eighth room.
A dungeon grew more difficult the deeper one went into it, so a group that had struggled in the fourth room should have collapsed by now.
“The Ghouls are pushing forward too aggressively. It’s a sign that more are about to spawn. Stay alert.”
“Focus your fire on the Mage’s right! Supporter, please give me a Strength Enhancement Buff!”
“A big one’s coming! When I give the signal, jump together!”
Instead, their clearing speed only accelerated.
It was as though instruments that had each been playing separately and producing discord had finally come together to create pleasant music in harmony.
“Kahah! It’s nice not having anything to worry about!”
“This side is all cleared!”
The members who had been grinding along separately began to synchronize, and synergy began to form.
Naturally, everyone could feel the change.
And its cause was, naturally—
“Let’s finish this!”
It was nearly flawless direction from Shin Jaeha, a Level 6 Warrior.
-Wait…….
-Those orders are really clean… Isn’t he a professional player?
-Was Underground Prison always this easy…?
Those watching the scene through Taeya’s stream could not help but marvel as well.
At first, after one or two times, they had dismissed it with a laugh as ‘He got lucky’ or ‘He’s seen it somewhere, so he’s good at imitating it.’
But as it piled up—three times, four times, five times…—they had no choice but to admit it.
-At that point, isn’t he an actual coach?
-How the hell is he Level 6?!
-…I’d want him to advise me on my growth path.
-Man, I think we need to bow our heads to him.
That the Level 6 had not volunteered to lead merely out of stubbornness.
And the person who knew Shin Jaeha’s true ability best here was none other than—
‘This is… insane….’
Taeya.
He skimmed the scrolling chat reactions, inwardly stunned.
‘Who the hell is that guy?!’
As rumors had it, he had received a recruiting offer from Eclipse, a K.P.L. First Division team, and they were in fairly positive talks.
As a result, he had met famous players and head coaches working there in person, exchanged a few words with them, and even received feedback on his play.
‘None of them were on this guy’s level.’
Of course, they possessed exceptional insight as well, but they were in a completely different league from Shin Jaeha.
It felt as though Shin Jaeha could see through every part of him.
At the same time, he seemed to see every detail of the battlefield without missing a thing.
“Three Ghouls on the left are preparing an ambush! Intercept them with your daggers!”
Taeya moved and acted exactly as ordered.
Then—
THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!
“GAK!”
“Urk!”
“Grrk-k-k…!”
The best possible result always followed.
“…….”
Though he hated to admit it.
Though he truly, terribly hated to admit it.
‘I’m… waiting for his orders.’
Shin Jaeha was better than him.
No, perhaps even better than anyone in the K.P.L.
[Rooms Cleared: 8]
Only after confirming that the count had risen again did I relax my shoulders.
“Good work, everyone.”
I rubbed my somewhat stiff arm and nodded lightly.
Honestly, I still wasn’t entirely satisfied.
‘At least they’re more decent than they were at first.’
At the very least, they were actually cooperating now.
A team was not supposed to be ‘10 + 10 + 10 = 30.’
‘It has to be 40 at the very least. Around 60 on average.’
Otherwise, there was no point in forming a team and fighting together.
But before I took up the conductor’s baton, this team had been a 25.
In other words, they had been in the worst possible state, eating into one another’s combat strength.
‘It’s easy to get confused. Something that was difficult alone feels easy when you do it with other people.’
But that was only because a 10 on its own had become 25.
Viewed as a whole, the total combat strength had declined.
That was why excellent coaches and leaders were necessary.
Someone who stood between the team members, devised strategies so they could help one another, and assigned their Positions.
A guidepost the team could trust and follow.
It was not for nothing that professional teams paid high salaries to hire coaches.
“What, it’s over already?”
The Swordsman smacked his lips.
After being made to do nothing but tank at the front, he had been allowed to act as a damage dealer, and he had been so thrilled that he was practically flying around.
Now, whenever he saw a Ghoul, he was the first to rush forward and swing his sword.
“Great work!”
The Mage smiled cheerfully.
Perhaps she had recovered a fair amount of Mana. The color had returned to her face, and her hands no longer trembled.
Having to run around frequently due to her Archer Position had left beads of sweat on her brow, but it was far better than Mana Exhaustion.
“Good work.”
The Supporter… remained expressionless.
Ever since entering Underground Prison, she had worn the same expression.
‘Still, this woman… I feel like I’ve seen her somewhere before….’
A vague sense of déjà vu flickered through me, but nothing came to mind, so I let it go for now.
“We’re already in the eighth room. I can’t believe it!”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. We haven’t had a single scratch since the fifth room! Kahah!”
The two had been chatting cheerfully, but they suddenly fell silent at the same time.
Both pairs of eyes turned toward one person.
“…….”
Taeya.
Now the former leader, he returned after retrieving the daggers he had thrown.
“Wow~ You’re fast, really fast. This is going to make me look bad.”
“Wouldn’t it be more embarrassing if you went easy on us?”
“Haha! That’s true, too!”
He smiled faintly.
Perhaps because half his face was covered, it was difficult to read his emotions.
“Now… I suppose it’s time to choose.”
With this, we had each led the party and cleared four rooms.
Only the vote remained.
‘In terms of sheer skill, I’m obviously superior.’
But human affairs did not work so conveniently.
If competent workers were promoted and good people were rewarded fairly, there would be no disputes in the world.
‘No matter how much I prove myself through skill, I’m a Level 6 Warrior with nothing to my name. Meanwhile, he’s a renowned streamer with rumors flying about a First Division team recruiting him.’
It was no different from being told to choose between a capable new hire and the boss’s grandchild.
Just as I left the rest to their consciences and drew a breath—
“But I get a choice too, right?”
Taeya suddenly raised his hand.
“I have a vote too, right?”
“…Pardon?”
“We said we’d have the team members vote. I’m a team member too, so it’d only be fair for me to have a vote!”
It was quite out of the blue, so I was taken aback.
Then again, candidates had the right to vote too.
Though nine times out of ten, they voted for themselves, so it did not mean much.
“Then I’ll vote first.”
As everyone merely watched one another’s reactions, the first person to cast a vote was—
“My vote goes to Jaeha, sir!”
Taeya himself.
And he had voted for me, not himself.
“T-Taeya?!”
“Honestly, wouldn’t it be shameless if I voted for myself here? I can tell objectively who did better.”
Taeya shook his head and shrugged.
“I lost, sir.”
It was a surprisingly forthright admission.
A hollow laugh escaped me before I knew it.
“I also believe it would be better for Player Shin Jaeha to take the lead.”
Surprisingly, the Supporter spoke next.
She looked steadily at me with clear eyes.
“I’d like to see a little more of that skill….”
So she was capable of saying that much at once.
As I blinked in inward amazement, the other two voted simultaneously.
“Th-Then, me too…!”
“I’ll cast my vote for the Level 6 fellow.”
As for me, the last one remaining—
“Then I’ll vote for myself.”
Naturally, I voted for myself.
“It’s unanimous!”
“Urgh—if I’d known this would happen, I wouldn’t have promised to give away all the clear equipment….”
Thus was born a bizarre combination: a Level 6 leader for a party with an average Level above 20.
“Thank you for trusting me, everyone.”
I gave a faint chuckle and rested my club on my shoulder.
“Then, as promised, I’ll take responsibility and make sure we clear it.”
Thinking about the rewards I would receive after this run, I could already feel saliva pouring from my mouth like a waterfall.
[Rooms Cleared: 11]
.
.
.
[Rooms Cleared: 15]
.
.
.
[Rooms Cleared: 18]
Once I had firmly taken hold of the leader’s authority, we pressed onward without a hitch.
‘Underground Prison is avoided because its patterns are devious and it’s packed with traps.’
But if someone knew nearly everything about the dungeon like I did, it was actually easier than other dungeons.
It was much like even five-year-olds being able to solve a difficult exam paper if an answer sheet were laid open before them to copy from.
“This trap requires all team members to move at the same time. If even one person makes a mistake, monsters will pour in from every direction, so be careful.”
“Don’t touch that treasure chest. The moment you open it, the trap activates. The clear condition is to simply smash it.”
“This place… Just stick close behind me and follow. If you step on any other platform, it’s over immediately, so stay sharp.”
Even the trap patterns that appeared from time to time were nothing more than breathers, since every answer was already in my head.
After advancing like that—
[Rooms Cleared: 20]
At last, we had cleared twenty rooms.
[You have reached the depths of Underground Prison!]
[The next room is the ‘Boss Battle’.]
[Prepare thoroughly and check yourselves.]
“Twenty rooms… This isn’t a dream, is it…?”
“My best record was nine rooms…!”
The Swordsman and Mage stamped their feet in excitement, their faces full of emotion.
‘Anyone watching would think we’d already cleared the dungeon.’
“The Boss Battle hasn’t even begun yet. Don’t get ahead of yourselves.”
Right now, reaching this point was an achievement in itself only because the methods for clearing Underground Prison were not widespread.
Later, once people had simply learned the strategy, nearly anyone would be able to make it this far.
‘Yet there’s a reason Underground Prison is still called vicious.’
Because this damned boss was absurdly difficult.
“A Boss Battle… Do you think we’ll be all right, sir?”
“What do you mean?”
“Actually, I’ve seen it on a stream before. The Underground Prison Boss Battle. An American professional team streamed it after becoming the first to reach it.”
“I don’t think we can pierce that monstrous defense as we are now.”
“Ah! I saw that too.”
“I did too. It caused quite a stir.”
Thinking back, I believed I had watched that livestream before my Regression as well.
In the end, I remembered that the video had widely publicized just how difficult the Underground Prison Boss Battle was.
‘There are plenty of things to pay attention to, and the boss monster’s defense is at an insane level.’
For now, the known strategy was to funnel all the damage into one point and somehow force it through.
Otherwise, attacks practically could not get through at all.
“Will we be enough, sir?”
“No?”
“…What?”
“Of course we’re not enough. Among our Classes, only the Mage is capable of burst damage, but due to her total Mana capacity, it’s practically impossible. We can’t pierce that defense.”
“Uh… Umm….”
At my frank admission, everyone’s eyes trembled at once as though an earthquake had struck.
“That is why you need to carry out my instructions properly.”
Of course, cramming attacks in and brute-forcing a breach in its defense was not the proper strategy.
“If a shield is thick, all you have to do is strip it away.”
What I was about to do was—
the standard strategy for ‘Underground Prison, Floor 131.’
The method to defeat this dungeon’s boss—
[The Imprisoned One, Minotaur].