I Became a Disaster-Class Newbie by Stealing Abilities - Chapter 35

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 35. Hidden Dungeon (3)
On the sixty-third floor of the 63 Building, one of Korea’s most iconic skyscrapers, a certain meeting was underway.
A man swirled a glass of Whiskey, then spoke slowly.
“So you’re asking me to become your cult’s attack dog?”
The leader of the Ghouls.
A member of the community.
Non-Violence himself.
“Isn’t it true that as long as the price is right, you’ll do anything?”
Across from him sat the Priestess, dispatched from the Immortal Cult.
A woman with lustrous blonde hair, wearing a black butterfly-shaped mask.
“Ha ha! Well, let’s hear it first. What’s the job?”
“You know the royal court is holding a ball soon, don’t you? And the secret auction that follows afterwards.”
A festival that would light up Yeouido in grand fashion.
Even a snot-nosed brat living in the Slum District knew about it—the head of the Ghouls could hardly be ignorant.
“Of course. I also know the schedule’s been moved up due to special circumstances.”
“Thanks to that, we’ve gained an opportunity to lay hands on the items being auctioned off.”
“My. So there really is a way to breach that airtight security. Looks like the rumors about the Immortal Cult having connections inside the palace are true?”
“If you’re probing, you can stop. You won’t get anything from it anyway.”
“Touchy, aren’t we. Okay, okay, I get it. Let’s drop the guessing games. So. What exactly do you need me to do?”
“Deal with any potential interference that might arise.”
“Be specific. Who exactly do you mean by interference?”
“Knights.”
At her words, the atmosphere shifted instantly.
Once that entity was mentioned, there could be no more banter or games.
“The 5th Knight Order?”
“They haven’t even reached your level.”
At minimum, she meant the 4th Knight Order.
Elite soldiers deployed only to the capitals of each colonial territory.
“Tsk. Those guys are rather troublesome… Any normal payoff would barely break even with them.”
“You may select one of the items kept in the auction house. I believe someone with your discernment wouldn’t take a losing deal.”
“Your silver tongue is something else, really. So in the end, either I refuse and eat the loss, or I take the deal and lose money anyway—is that it?”
Non-Violence sank deeper into the sofa.
“So what’s your answer?”
“A ball, huh… As it happens, I wanted to get my hands on something there too. It’s a bit unsettling, but fine. I accept.”
Mermaid’s Tear.
According to what he’d heard through Hyang Pyeong-jak, that item was being put up for auction.
‘I’ll be able to tell if he betrayed me or not.’
A subordinate who had sole survived the reckoning and even managed to escape.
When he’d looked into it separately, he’d found no logical gaps or inconsistencies.
So he’d left it alone for now.
There was no clear evidence, after all.
But.
Something reeked.
The rotten stench of betrayal.
Non-Violence drained his glass of Whiskey in one gulp.
* * *
More than seven hours after entering the Lava Zone.
Joo-sang and four other party members came to a halt beneath the Waterfall.
“Huff… huff…”
“I… I feel like I’m dying.”
They all bore ashen, bloodless faces.
They’d been in constant combat and sprinting at full speed for hours without pause.
A thick darkness was beginning to settle over the entire dungeon.
[First Night has arrived.]
[During the night, all monsters’ stats increase by 10%!]
‘Going any further is impossible. I need to rest.’
Joo-sang himself finally exhaled the breath he’d been holding.
Gathering materials for Matching Manipulation had genuinely pushed him to his limits.
But the effort had been worth it.
He’d obtained nearly everything he wanted.
Most crucially, he’d managed to charge Han Yong-su’s Smartphone — that was the biggest achievement.
[Smartphone Battery Remaining: 72%]
Phew. Seventy-two percent.
With this much power, matching even Purple Doll would be possible.
“I’ll take the first watch. Since I’ve only been providing support fire from the rear, I’m not nearly as exhausted as the rest of you.”
Taylor volunteered for the first shift.
It worked out well for everyone.
Any of them could have collapsed where they stood without raising an eyebrow.
“P-please. Wake me in ninety minutes — I’ll take over then.”
“You’ve all done well,” Han Yong-su said.
Han Yong-su and Garten claimed spots deeper in the alcove.
“I’ll position myself on the upper rocks where the sightlines are clear.”
Hyang Pyeong-jak moved toward a location where he’d face the full force of the wind.
A sacrifice for the team, then.
“You two.”
Ju-sang summoned Salamander and Sylphid.
If monsters approached, they’d alert the group instantly.
“Kyaaow!”
“Shrieeek!”
Both spirit beasts nodded vigorously.
Eyelids grew heavy.
Some inexplicable warmth and a pleasant fragrance pulled him deeper into sleep.
How much time had passed?
Squelch!
A chilling, flesh-piercing sound cut through the air.
“Gack… khhhrrr….”
Han Yong-su convulsed, blood foam gathering at the corners of his mouth.
“Shrieeek, stay still. In just a moment, you’ll meet the wizard who went ahead of us,” Taylor cooed, driving the dagger deeper.
Blood surged from the wound, and Han Yong-su’s body went rigid, then slack.
Slurp.
The dagger drank deeply from the corpse.
With each life claimed, the Crescent Moon Marking etched into the blade’s surface darkened further.
Two down.
The last pair remained — the ones who’d seemed most formidable.
“I really am lucky, aren’t I? Who would’ve thought I’d be matched with powerhouses like these?”
Taylor’s expression shone with pure rapture.
Just as each life carries different weight,
the stronger the victim, the deeper the black that stained the Crescent Moon.
And if the target was a Super Rookie who’d captured Ghouls members and caught the attention of every major guild…
then they would make the perfect offering indeed.
Those above would surely be satisfied.
[Drowsy Soul Incense added.]
She’d used an amount approaching lethal concentration to ensure nothing went wrong.
Fragrant smoke billowed thicker, exhaling its pleasant perfume.
“Blame your misfortune in meeting the wrong opponent.”
Their greatest mistake had been trusting the spirit beasts into carelessness.
This incense worked on divine beasts, illusion beasts, spirit beasts — all of them.
Salamander and Sylphid lay drooling, asleep for the next hour at least.
Once she finished them cleanly, there’d be fresh prey to hunt.
Shwip.
Taylor raised the dagger high.
Time to bring this job to a close.
* * *
Crack!
The dagger lodged halfway through a thin Ice Wall.
“…!?”
Taylor’s eyes widened in shock as she gripped the hilt with both hands.
But her Strength stat wasn’t sufficient; no matter how hard she strained, the wall wouldn’t shatter.
Then.

“Ugh. I thought my head was going to split.”
Ju-sang staggered upright, swaying.
It felt like carbon monoxide poisoning.
Nausea rose in his throat, retching unbidden.
“You… how did you…?”
How was he conscious after inhaling all that Drowsy Soul Incense?
“Something felt off about it, so I prepared for the worst. Besides, I wasn’t about to trust my back to someone I’d just met.”
Paralysis or sleep.
If attacks were coming at night, those two tactics were almost always in play.
“You suspected me from the start?”
“I watched you fire arrow after arrow packed with serious mana the whole way here without breaking a sweat. Volunteering to take point on your first try? Of course I’d be suspicious.”
It wasn’t absolute certainty.
Just a judgment call that overdoing precautions beat trusting a stranger.
“I was trying to finish this quickly, but that worked against me. I should’ve played it differently—groaned more, made myself look weaker.”
“My turn to ask now. Who sent you to do this?”
“Hmm. What makes you think I’m not acting alone?”
“That drug isn’t something any individual could obtain.”
The Drowsy Soul Incense itself was already rare….
But what she’d used had gone through a far more intricate, demanding process.
The fact that he still had these aftereffects despite taking an antidote beforehand meant this was no ordinary Drowsy Soul Incense.
“Wow, you really do know your stuff. Fine, yes. I work under people you couldn’t even dream of. I was blessed—chosen by them, in fact.”
Color rose in Taylor’s cheeks.
Her whole body trembled finely, unable to contain her elation.
A chill ran through him.
He’d somehow managed to antagonize someone completely unhinged.
‘I picked her because she offered the biggest reward.’
Nothing ever went simple, did it?
“Look, if we keep trading blows, we both lose. What if we call it even here? Let me and Hyang Pyeong-jak walk, and I won’t make any more trouble.”
They’d already dropped to three members, and the Penalty had already activated for them all.
[The trait ‘Mild Hand Tremor’ has been forcibly granted.]
Fingers trembling faintly.
Failing to maintain five members meant random Penalties kicked in.
They started small, but the longer they stayed below five, the worse the traits would become.
No longer “mild” or “light”—descriptors like “severe” and “fatal” would take their place.
“Exactly. Which is why I’m planning to kill you as quickly as possible and find new teammates. Nice, naive friends with no weird preconceptions about me.”
She’d rather take the Penalty than have her identity exposed.
“There’s no talking to you.”
Like reasoning with a wall.
“You look pretty dizzy from the Drowsy Soul Incense fumes. Don’t push yourself too hard. Just get some sleep. When you wake up, it’ll all be over.”
Taylor nocked an arrow to her bowstring.
The arrowhead, dripping with black liquid, was aimed at Ju-sang’s heart.
“I appreciate the thoughtfulness.”
But the threats end now.
[A matched party member has entered the dungeon!]
The final member he’d been waiting for had arrived at last.
[The Matching Manipulation app’s power ‘Summon’ activates!]
A low hum filled the air.
Light flashed, and a blonde Paladin materialized.
Clad entirely in White Armor, she gripped a thick Shield in one hand and a Hammer in the other.
A girl he knew all too well waved toward Ju-sang.
“Ju-sang!”
Amy von Bastian.
The second Great Calamity he’d recruited.
“How have you been? I was told to come here, so I just rushed in, but I had no idea how to find you in this place!”
Amy’s words tumbled out in a torrent.
“I’ve been well enough. But you’ve grown incredibly strong in such a short time. I almost didn’t recognize you.”
She was a different beast from when he’d seen her at Starfield.
At this level, she could hold her own one-on-one against someone like him without being overwhelmed.
It was proof of just how weightily the title “Great Calamity” deserved to be carried.
“I’m glad you approve. I’ve really been working hard to be useful to you.”
Amy’s eyes melted into a warm smile.
Perhaps it was the afterglow of fighting alongside a deadly assassin.
Her mood kept growing lighter.
“…….”
Tremor—tremor—tremor!
Ju-sang gripped his right arm as it shook uncontrollably.
The Penalty had escalated to Severe Hand Tremor, and it was far worse than he’d anticipated.
At least his left hand remained steady—that was something to be grateful for.
Since he’d trained as a left-handed fighter for so long anyway, this particular handicap wasn’t a serious problem.
“What sort of Penalty did you receive, Amy?”
“I was given a trait called the Abyss.”
The Abyss…..
A trait that continuously drew in malevolent and sinister energies from the surroundings.
If it grew severe enough, it could shatter one’s mind or reduce them to a servant of darkness.
But that was a concern for ordinary people.
For a Necromancer like Amy, it was actually an advantage.
“How fortunate. Luck was on our side.”
“It’s all thanks to you, Ju-sang.”
And there they were, the two of them, warm and companionable.….
“This is absolutely ridiculous.”
Taylor watched them both, utterly exasperated.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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