Gamers of the Underworld (Web Novel)

In the Dungeon Lord Main Hall of Winterfell.

Nicholas was enjoying his breakfast as the Winterfell Dungeon Lord.

A conservatively dressed Sludge Monster was carrying a tray as he knocked on the door.

The Sludge Monster crossed his legs and made a seductive pose.

“Lord Nicholas, your bloody chrysanthemum tea is ready,” the Sludge Monster said.

“My sweetheart, thanks to you, I’m able to be in a good mood every morning,” Nicholas said with relish as he looked at the Sludge Monster’s tray.

The Sludge Monster blushed. He didn’t notice Nicholas’s eyes. Instead, he looked at the tray.

“Lord Nicholas, you’re making me very shy,” the Sludge Monster said, but from his actions, he wasn’t shy. Instead, he pulled down the collar of his Office Lady costume.

“What are you talking about? Dear, you don’t have to feel shy,” Nicholas said.

“Bring the bloody chrysanthemum tea over.”

The Sludge Monster twisted his barrel-sized hips as he walked before Nicholas and placed the tray lightly on Nicholas’ table.

Nicholas held the cup of bloody chrysanthemum tea and sniffed it. He was enjoying the fragrance. He couldn’t wait to enjoy his marvelous breakfast tea.

Sounds of hasty footsteps were heard coming from outside.

The Sludge Monster was about to speak, but when he heard the sounds outside, he went to the side.

This was the Dungeon Lord’s office, so there would be many employees sending documents or conveying important information.

As the Dungeon Lord’s secretary, he had to be mindful.

Nicholas heard the footsteps. He frowned and put the cup of bloody chrysanthemum tea on the table.

An armored Orc general walked in with a sealed red letter.

The Orc came before Nicholas and placed the letter on Nicholas’ table.

“Lord Nicholas, this is a top-secret letter from the Merchant Alliance,” the Orc general said solemnly.

“Are there any matters pertaining to security? Or is it related to something else?”

Nicholas was grave as he picked up the letter and opened it.

After reading it, he was in disbelief. He put down the letter slowly and said to the Orc general, “Assemble your troops. The commander of the Ancient Gods army, Frangipani, has revived.”

…

Candidate 89757 was a graduating student of Specter College.

He was working on his graduation thesis. However, he would never forget the incident that occurred during his recess time.

The college was shaking with a loud bang. He thought it was an earthquake, but he discovered he was unable to move and was connected to a huge strange spiritual body.

Everything was happening like in a dream. Though it didn’t look real, he was sure everything happened.

He thought he wouldn’t be able to see his parents again. He was being forced to do terrible things, like providing Mana energy like a battery to a huge monster. He could feel his Mana being drained. He didn’t know what that was, and he abhorred the feeling.

He also controlled Skeleton Soldiers to attack the gamers of Eternal Kingdom. Did he not do that on the examination grounds?

Candidate 89757 thought he was going to die until Sherlock appeared with the miraculous warriors of Eternal Kingdom. They saved him.

He fled together with his classmates as soon as he could. Then, he reported the incident to the Specter Committee and the nearest Merchant Alliance location, Winterfell.

Since Professor Cabbage controlled the entirety of Specter College, the Teleport Portals within Specter College couldn’t be used.

They had no choice but to flee.

Candidate 89757 and his classmates found a hidden location outside Specter College to take cover.

While they trembled and waited for rescue, the professors who were controlled by Frangipani and Professor Cabbage appeared.

After the professors appeared, the students discovered something strange about the Teleport Portal.

When they were about to test the Teleport Portal to see if it was working, many armed troops exited from it.

“Are you the students of Specter College?”

The leading troop discovered the hiding students, and he shouted at them and readied his Bow.

“Don’t harm us. We’re students from Specter College!” a professor from Specter College stepped forward and shouted.

“We are the Central Garrison Guards of the Merchant Alliance. Where is Frangipani? We received information that Frangipani has revived!” the armed Orc asked loudly.

“Frangipani is in the courtyard. You have to be careful, he seems to have revived. The warriors of Eternal Kingdom are battling him,” the professor said loudly.

“Eternal Kingdom Dungeon?”

The leading Orc was taken aback. But he quickly ordered his highly-trained subordinates to enter the courtyard.

Debris from the buildings and Skeleton fragments were everywhere. The Skeleton fragments were the remains of the Skeleton Soldiers defeated by the gamers.

“What a vicious battle!” the Orc Garrison Guards commented.

“Why aren’t there any corpses of the Eternal Kingdom warriors?” one of the Orc guards asked. There were no corpses of warriors from Eternal Kingdom. It was as though they didn’t suffer any casualties. However, there was strong evidence of an epic battle.

One of the Orc Garrison Guards smoked a metal stick and puffed out smoke. Then, he said with experience, “You’re from the headquarters and have never met the warriors of Eternal Kingdom. I’m from Winterfell and have met them several times. They’ll not sustain any casualties in battle. I don’t know how they do it, but they salvage all of their corpses.”

The other Orc guards showed signs of respect for the warriors of Eternal Kingdom.

During a vicious battle, remembering to bring back the corpses of comrades wasn’t something every unit could do.

No wonder at the headquarters, they heard that the warriors of Eternal Kingdom were the strongest in the entire Northern Underworld.

“Buck up lads. We’re facing the legendary commander of the Ancient Gods army, so don’t think of other matters, and focus on the current task,” the Orc commander said to his subordinates.

After the Garrison Guards left, they saw some creatures wearing blue uniforms and some wearing white robes exiting from the portal.

They were the paramedics from Winterfell.

“Are you the students and professors of Specter College who reported the case? We have finally set up the Teleport Portal. Leave this place immediately. Go to Winterfell and take cover. We provide the best rescue operations and medical services!” a white-robed paramedic shouted. On his uniform were the words “Fatality Hospital”.

“We’re saved. We’re finally saved!”

“That’s great. Send me to the hospital. I feel like I’m not going to make it.”

The students shouted.

“What? Which part of your body doesn’t feel well?” the white-robed paramedic asked in concern when he heard that a creature wasn’t going to make it.

“I feel aches and pains all over my bones, and I don’t have strength,” the student said.

“That’s serious. I’ll contact the hospital headquarters and set up an emergency line for you. When you arrive at the hospital, the doctors will conduct an operation. Don’t worry, everything’s fine, you won’t die! Our Fatality Hospital is well known for defeating the Soul Reaper. The Soul Reaper won’t be able to steal our patients away!”

The students and professors of Specter College smiled gratefully after hearing the paramedic.

…

The students and professors of Specter College left the danger zone with the help of the Winterfell rescue crew. Meanwhile, the Central Garrison Guards of the Merchant Alliance approached Specter College’s courtyard warily.

When they walked along the corridors and came to a classroom, they discovered that the tables, chairs, and podiums had vanished.

Besides the disappearance of the school’s furniture, the Mana materials and eye products in the experiment laboratories also vanished as though they were stolen.

“What happened?”

They searched the various classrooms and laboratories and found the same thing.

“I don’t know, but we have to be extra careful. This is too bizarre,” the Central Garrison Guard Captain said.

At this time, he heard suspicious footsteps of a group with tens of members.

He quickly gave a hand gesture for his team members to be on alert. The well-trained members immediately took cover behind tactical spots and observed the classroom in front.

A team member squatted down carefully and leaned against the wall.

His forehead was full of sweat. Their target was the commander of the Ancient Gods army, who could conquer the world. If there were any mistakes, he could die here.

Images of his newborn baby, his wife taking care of the kids, and his aged mother flashed through his mind.

He missed his family and was fearful of death, but he didn’t give up. He continued to press against the wall and advanced towards the classroom.

What made him courageous? Was it loyalty to the Merchant Alliance or his ambition to protect the Underworld and world peace?

No, it was being poor.

When he arrived under the window of the classroom, he heard voices within and sounds of furniture moving.

“Wah, this is cheating. After fighting the BOSS, why is there no loot?”

“This is normal. Previously, many BOSSES didn’t have loot.”

“But this BOSS was so difficult to defeat. We had to sacrifice our Gundam to kill him. There’s no loot after paying a high price. I can’t take it lying down.”

“Don’t say anymore. When the Gundam exploded, Sherlie seemed very sad.”

“Do you think that Sherlie is sad over the loss of the Gundam?”

“Impossible. Sherlie must be sad over the death of Bacon. In the Plot, Sherlie helped Bacon turn over a new leaf, and he died after that. If I were Sherlie, I would be sad too.”

“But I saw Sherlie looking in a daze at the fragments of the Gundam.”

“He was staring at the corpse of Frangipani, not the Gundam fragments. If not for Frangipani, Bacon wouldn’t have perished. He must be feeling empty after killing his foe. That must be it.”

“You sound logical.”

“Stop wasting your time trying to figure out what the NPCs are thinking. Let’s salvage the furniture. If we can’t carry it, we’ll dismantle it. The wooden planks can be sold for money. Make haste, please.”

The creatures in the classroom stopped talking and worked hard. The Orc guard lifted his head slowly and peeped into the window. He saw 20 Orcs, Goblins, Gnomes, and Houndhead Men carrying the furniture in the classroom.

Where did these bandits come from? Were they in cahoots with Frangipani? The Orc guard was puzzled.

He didn’t act rashly. Instead, he returned quickly and reported the situation to his Captain.

The Orc guard who encountered the warriors of Eternal Kingdom previously asked, “Did they have strange symbols above their heads?”

“That’s right. How did you know?”

“Captain, they are the warriors of Eternal Kingdom. They aren’t enemies,” the experienced Orc guard told his Captain.

The Central Garrison Guard Captain ordered his team members to close in on the classroom carefully. Though his member told him that they were warriors of Eternal Kingdom, anything could happen. It could be a trap set up by the enemy.

As a Garrison Guard Captain, he had to be responsible for the safety of his members. They had to be extra careful.

The Orc guards surrounded the classroom.

With the Captain’s order, the Orc guards barged into the classroom via the windows and door, aiming their Crossbows at the gamers who were carrying the furniture.

The gamers were astonished. They didn’t expect well-equipped Orcs to appear in the classroom. They were exhilarated.

“Gosh, this must be our reward!”

“Is it our Strange Encounter? They have so many pieces of equipment. Oh my god.”

“We can’t defeat them. Why don’t we call for reinforcements? If they flee, we won’t get any equipment.”

The Garrison Guard Captain didn’t understand what the gamers were babbling about.

The gamers didn’t attack them at first sight or have any signs of animosity.

When the gamers were about to attack the Central Garrison Guards of the Merchant Alliance, a system notice appeared before them:

[Sorry, they are friendly units. You are unable to attack.]

That was the notice.

“We are the Garrison Guards of the Merchant Alliance. Are you citizens of Eternal Kingdom? Please identify yourself to prevent any mishaps!” the Central Garrison Guard Captain shouted. He didn’t relax his vigilance.

“That’s correct, we are the warriors of Eternal Kingdom. We have just saved the world. Are you giving us an Area Mission? Or rewards? Both are good,” a gamer shouted.

Other gamers wanted to stop him, and they said, “Can you be more patient? This game is about being immersive. You’ll scare them off. We could potentially get a Strange Encounter Mission if you don’t scare them off!”

“Yes, yes, don’t do that. We should take it step by step,” the gamers said.

The Garrison Guard Captain didn’t understand what they were saying, but they didn’t look like Frangipani’s minions.

They were citizens of Eternal Kingdom after all.

“How’s the combat situation? What are you doing here? We’re the reinforcements,” the Orc Captain lowered his weapon and said to the gamers of Eternal Kingdom.

“We have finished the battle. Are you here to reinforce us?” a gamer asked.

The Orc Captain was taken aback. He felt embarrassed by such a reply.

A gamer pushed his comrade aside and said to the Orc Captain, “Don’t be like this, you won’t get any missions. Let me take over. Respectable Orc Captain, greetings, I’m the Guild Chairman of CoolBreezeButtocks of Eternal Kingdom. We are carrying out Lord Sherlock’s mission of decontaminating the rooms. Specter College was severely contaminated, so it has to be cleaned. Don’t be mistaken, we’re not robbing Specter College. If you need any help, please tell us. You may want to meet our Dungeon Lord.”

“It would be great if you could bring us to meet your Dungeon Lord.” The Orc Captain thought for a while and said, “Apologies for being late and letting you battle alone. We are late because the Teleport Portal malfunctioned. It was only just repaired.”

“No problem, we understand.”

The gamer smiled and said, “We’ll take you to see our Dungeon Lord. What is our reward?”

Reward? The Orc Captain was befuddled.

“Why do the citizens of Eternal Kingdom require a reward for everything? Giving some Magic Stones or equipment will suffice,” the experienced Orc guard said to his Captain.