Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 100

The torch on the wall cast a gentle glow around the room in a dark, dimly lit space.

Nine adventurers stared at the statue standing in the center and swallowed hard. The man on the throne rested his chin on his right hand while his left hand held a spear as tall as he was.

“What should we do...? What exactly is that thing?” asked a woman, presumably part of their group.

The man carrying a greatsword checked the floating “Notice Board” in front of him. It was a kind of community forum accessible only from the second floor of the Core. Adventurers could post or comment whatever they wished, but the main point was that they could share information with one another.

He scrolled down to read the comments on his post.

└A guy holding a spear? Are you sure it’s not a monster?

└I really wish we could upload photos on the forum. It’s hard to imagine what it looks like just from text.

└Just die, you newbie idiots, lolololol

└Let’s keep it civil, even if it’s anonymous.

└Yeah, whatever, Mr. Serious.

└Here’s a list of Gatekeepers found on the second floor so far: Kaeg (★★★★★★), Omchik (★★★★★★), Chains of Death (★★★★★★★)... There’s never been a humanoid one. And you said he’s holding a spear? I am currently on the sixth floor, and I’ve never seen anything like that. In conclusion, there’s a 99.999999% chance that this post is a click-bait.

The woman sighed deeply as she read the comments.

“Looks like no one else knows, either,” she said, resigned.

“Sons of bitches. They don’t care since it’s not their problem...”

The man who had been scrolling through the forum ground his teeth in frustration. He glanced at the Gatekeeper again.

“Why don’t we just give it a try?” suggested an elderly man with long, misty gray hair.

They’d been debating here at the entrance for a week now. If this went on, they’d be stuck here forever.

They could wait for other adventurers to come down, but there was no guarantee that was the best plan either. They didn’t know when other adventurers might arrive, and if a “Monarch” descended, that would truly be a nightmare.

“Let’s just wait a few more days,” murmured a man leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

“Would anything change in a few days?”

The adventurers sighed in frustration.

***

It was the dead of night in the early hours of Saturday when everyone else was sound asleep.

Do-Jun slowly opened his eyes and glanced at his right arm.

At some point, Yoon-Hee, who had fallen asleep straight, had cuddled up close to him, tightly hugging his right arm. She had been holding onto it for the past two hours. Though it wasn’t uncomfortable, ever since they had started sharing a bed, Do-Jun had learned that Yoon-Hee’s sleep habits weren’t exactly mild.

Fortunately, she didn’t snore or grind her teeth, which was a small consolation.

He gently pried her off his arm, carefully lifted himself so as not to wake anyone, and headed to the living room. He filled the kettle with water and turned it on.

[Welcome to the Fissure Management System.]

Do-Jun turned on his SpacePad and tapped on the Core button among the Fissures he managed. Most of the information for the tutorial zone and the first floor had already been entered.

The kettle automatically turned off with a click as the water finished boiling. He poured the boiling water into a mug with coffee grounds and stirred it with a spoon. It was bitter black coffee without a trace of sugar. freёnovelkiss.com

Drinking it didn’t necessarily help him stay awake, but Do-Jun had recently taken a liking to black coffee. Its taste reminded him of the Dragon Well tea he used to drink in Martial World.

While content with his life now, he often reminisced about his other world.

I wonder how she’s doing.

How many lives ago was it?

He chuckled, recalling a woman who would visit him for duels whenever she got bored. Even in her youth, she had claimed one of the top spots among the Four Supreme Beings and was known as the strongest of the Mount Hua Sect. She always lost by a narrow margin, and whenever she did, she sulked, requiring Do-Jun to console her.

I probably should have just defeated her outright.

He put down the half-finished coffee, done with the drink. Do-Jun decided to briefly visit the Core during the early morning hours.

He quietly entered the bedroom, opened a drawer, and took out the Core Talisman.

Since it was already 2 AM, he thought he should only look around for a couple of hours, at most. That’s when he heard a slight rustling sound.

Yong-Yong had been curled up on the bed but now stirred and approached Do-Jun, crouching in a low stance.

With a gentle wag of his tail, he quietly whispered, “Master, I can’t sleep.”

He was asking to be taken along.

***

“Huh?” Jaycee squinted.

A new adventurer had entered the entrance of the second floor in the Core, but his outfit was a bit unusual. He only wore a short-sleeved T-shirt and cotton pants, the kind of casual look you’d see on any ordinary street.

His face was completely unfamiliar.

Other adventurers, who had been quietly resting, also turned their attention to the newcomer.

The man, however, seemed unfazed, engrossed in whatever he was doing, tapping a small rectangular device in his hands as he wandered around, snapping photos here and there.

“Excuse me,” Jaycee called out.

The man turned around and replied, “Yes?”

Upon closer inspection, his appearance was even more simple. He held no weapon, wore no armor, and the only item that could be an artifact was the backpack on his back.

“Uh, wouldn’t most people talk to the first people they see in this kind of situation?” Jaycee asked, slightly flustered.

The man, who had been calmly looking at her, simply nodded before finally introducing himself.

“I’m Lee Do-Jun from Korea. Nice to meet you.”

“Is that it...?”

“What more should I say?”

“No, I just...” She was at a loss for words.

Usually, new arrivals might mention which Blood Alliance they belonged to, how long they’d been in the Core, or maybe ask what others were doing here and what they should be doing themselves. However, this man didn’t seem the least bit curious about any of that.

Just then, Kim Gap-Hwan, a man carrying a greatsword on his back, planted his sword into the ground with a loud clang.

“What a cocky bastard,” he growled.

An older man, Yang Moon-Chang, tried to calm him. “Easy now. We agreed not to fight among ourselves.”

“Did you not see this guy’s attitude? You think I’m just gonna let it slide?” Kim Gap-Hwan glared at the man, who merely shrugged and chuckled slightly.

A vein bulged on Kim Gap-Hwan’s forehead as he gripped his sword, pulling it out of the ground and pointing it at the man. Nobody knew who this man was, and given that he was still loitering near the entrance of the second floor, he couldn’t have been in the Core for long.

Kim Gap-Hwan had no idea how this “casual” had raised his magic resistance to even make it to the entrance of the second floor, but one thing was for sure—his red Status Window shouldn’t be very advanced. Even if he had an orange Status Window, it was likely below 30%, meaning he wouldn’t stand a chance against a red Status Window maxed out at 100%.

Finally, to top things off, he had no item on him.

However, one thing nagged at Kim Gap-Hwan’s mind. He noticed the sword tattoo on the man’s wrist and wondered which alliance he was with.

Kim Gap-Hwan’s expression suddenly hardened, and he asked, “Are... are you a Monarch?”

***

Do-Jun glanced at the tattoo on his wrist and nodded. He remembered getting it in a B-rank Great Fissure, the Troll’s Cave, when Ye-Ji unexpectedly awakened a new skill.

“We’re fucked...” Kim Gap-Hwan muttered.

Waiting those few extra days had turned out to be the worst possible move. The other adventurers paled.

As Do-Jun calmly watched them turn ghostly white, his gaze settled on a statue in the center.

“My apologies. This is all my fault,” the man who suggested they wait a few more days apologized and sighed deeply, casting his eyes down.

“What’s done is done. No point dwelling on it.” Yang Moon-Chang shook his head.

Do-Jun placed his SpacePad in his bag, then turned to Jaycee and asked, “Is there a problem?”

“Yes... There are two issues. This is the entrance to the second floor of the Core. Any adventurer trying to descend further has to pass a trial—defeating the Gatekeeper.” Jaycee pointed to the statue.

“The Gatekeeper appears randomly, but the first issue is that no one knows what this one is. Even the people on the forum were stumped. The second issue is... that you’re a Monarch.”

Do-Jun opened the forum.

He remembered the system screen that had appeared when he stepped onto the second floor of the Core, briefly explaining the “Forum” function. Most posts were casual chatter, though some occasionally asked for information on Core strategies.

Do-Jun opened his bag. Yong-Yong poked his head out, but Do-Jun brushed him aside and pulled out Interpreter – Ataraxia.

Yong-Yong hopped to the floor, loudly yawning and stretching as he landed.

“What... what is that?”

The adventurers recoiled in shock at the sudden appearance of a foreign creature.

Ignoring them, Do-Jun opened the Interpreter and walked over to the statue to check its details.

[Curta]

Category: Individual/King

Description: An exile cast out from the Deep Realm. He was overwhelmingly defeated in a battle with the Transcendent Imfelheim and was subsequently sealed in the Void. His current whereabouts are unknown. Known as the Battle King, one of the countless kings in the Deep Realm, he is said to possess strength comparable to those ranked in the sixties among Solomon’s 72 Demons.

Danger Level (Estimated): ★★★★★★★★★★★★

After glancing over the information, Do-Jun returned the Interpreter to his bag.

He remembered the mythical creature Laikar from the first floor of the Core, which had a danger level of thirteen stars. Although only an estimate, Curta’s danger level was twelve stars, one lower than the Laikar.

“What’s the issue with me being a Monarch?” Do-Jun asked Jaycee.

“According to the forum, the Gatekeepers that appear here are already tough for adventurers who’ve just reached the second floor. So, what appears is usually a weakened version with only 50% of its full strength. But if a Monarch is among the challengers...”

Instead of a weakened version, the Gatekeeper would show up with its full, original power.

This was triggered just by the presence of a Monarch, the effect remaining in place until the Gatekeeper was defeated even after the Monarch was killed or not around.

“Well, it’s not like we can blame you. We were the ones who decided to wait for more adventurers to arrive, after all. Now, there’s only one option left—to gather as many adventurers as possible and then challenge it. Even if it takes years...”

The other adventurers listening to Jaycee’s words felt their hearts sink.

Even if they waited years and gathered more people, there was no guarantee they’d be able to defeat the Gatekeeper in front of them. No one on the forum knew who the Gatekeeper was or how many stars it had, while the faceless voices continued to spread rumors.

“Just our luck, huh.” Kim Gap-Hwan slumped against the wall.

Meanwhile, Yong-Yong had been silently observing till now.

He watched as Do-Jun approached the statue and mumbled, “Wow... these guys have insane luck.”