Chapter 197: I would take you out of here,
Julian went to the only place he knew. He teleported and, in an instant, appeared at the dungeon entrance.
Crowds of dungeon raiders followed in, their eyes occasionally falling on Julian with doubtful, disbelief-filled gazes as they watched the guards let him in.
It showed he was familiar with the dungeon, and the guards did not stop him. Julian was numb to the prying glances and walked emotionlessly into the dungeon.
He walked through the warp gate and strode toward the inner area of the dungeon. His mind was lost, grappling with how to cope with the deaths of all his family members, knowing he was the one who had murdered them.
Julian walked aimlessly, his gaze constantly scanning for monsters the Dungeon might spawn. He gripped his shoulder-length sword tightly, the crystal’s dim light casting a faint glow over his small, solitary figure.
Time passed without any monsters in sight, causing Julian to walk further in and accidentally stumble into the central floor of the dungeon.
The air around him grew colder, white mist escaping his lips. The chill snapped him out of his daze, and he realized he was in a completely different part of the dungeon.
He looked around, trying to recall the path he had taken, but the walls all looked identical. The realization made Julian’s panic rise.
For some reason unknown to him, he hadn’t encountered a single monster since entering the dungeon. Realizing this, fear gripped his heart, and he remained on high alert as he continued forward, hoping to find a pathway or bridge leading back the way he had come.
Tension hung in the air as bone-chilling cold seeped through the entire area. Julian couldn’t find any extra clothes in his space bag and could only hug himself for warmth as he moved on.
What felt like ages passed before he finally heard the sound of fighting ahead. His pace quickened as he rushed toward it.
His gaze fell on the two hydra snakes as soon as he arrived. His blood froze in terror as he stared wide-eyed at a woman guarding a boy his age, facing off against two monsters.
The green snakes were larger, their bodies slithering with hisses as they crisscrossed one another, lunging at the black-haired woman.
"Ethan! Run! I’ll create an opening. No matter what you hear, don’t look back! Go!" the woman shouted as she charged forward, an ice chain shooting toward the monsters.
The chain wrapped around two of the snakes’ necks, and she yanked hard. Their heads were severed, blood sputtering out as the remaining snake hissed in rage and pain
"No! Mom, I can help!" Ethan cried out as he formed ice chains, trying to prove he could fight as well.
Julian watched from the side, a flicker of envy flashing through his eyes at the way the woman protected the boy. He wished his own mother had been able to protect him like that—but she had died the day he was born.
He didn’t rush in to help, knowing he would only be a hindrance. These monsters were far stronger than anything he had ever encountered—S-class monsters, and there were two of them.
The woman was strong enough to hold her own against both beasts, and Julian didn’t want to distract her. Even a moment of hesitation or distraction could create an opening for a killing blow.
She formed ice arrows that pierced through the snakes’ bodies, blood splattering as the ground turned red. Enraged, the serpents reared back and struck forward at her again. The other hydra joined in as well.
This action caused rocks from the walls to scatter across the room, and the debris struck Ethan in the shoulders, leaving him disoriented by the pain.
The woman sensed her power weakening—she wouldn’t last much longer. She glanced at her son one final time, her icy gaze softening, before steadying herself and sending him flying out of the room.
"Please, take him out of here!" she pleaded with Julian, who had been hiding in the shadows. She had noticed his presence the moment he arrived, but upon realizing he was not a threat, she chose to ignore him.
Julian blankly caught Ethan, skidding backward from the force.
He held on tightly to the struggling Ethan as he watched the woman turn determinedly to face the monsters, ready to take them down with her.
"Let me go! I need to go back and help her!" Ethan yelled, tears streaming down his face as he struggled in Julian’s grip.
"If you go back there, you’ll only distract her and get yourself killed! I’m taking you out of here!" Julian yelled back. An indescribable urge kept him from disappointing that woman, so he planned to safely get Ethan away from here.
Ethan was stunned by Julian’s words. He looked over to his mother, surrounded by monsters, their fangs dripping with venom as they aimed to kill. Then he looked down at his small arms, his power level so low that he could only scratch the monsters.
This realization dealt an agonizing blow to the young Ethan. He began to regret pestering his mother to take him to the dungeon today.
Julian noticed his dazed state and took the opportunity to pull him away.
Ethan clutched the delicate ice-chain strung across his neck subconsciously—the piece of jewelry his mother created.
Feeling the coolness in his palms, he grew hopeful that, since the necklace remained intact, his mother was still alive and safe.
"Quickly! I need to get out of here, call my dad, and get the guards to help Mum. Mum, please hold on—I’m coming!" Ethan cried out, a determined, hopeful gleam in his eyes.
Since he couldn’t help, it was best for him to seek help.
He glanced at his mother’s back one last time, as if she could feel his gaze. She turned back slightly and offered him a warm, comforting smile.
The regret, pain, and hopelessness welling in her eyes went unnoticed by young Ethan. She knew she wasn’t going to survive this, but she was relieved to see her child safe—her only regret was that she would not be there to watch him grow up.
"Live well, my child."
The heartfelt whisper lingered in the air, amid the hissing of the snakes. Then she turned resolutely toward the monsters and fought with every last drop of her strength.
Ethan, whose idea gave him boundless hope and energy surging through him, broke free from Julian and dashed forward without a clear direction, his only thought was to reach the entrance faster and call for help.
Julian ran after him. "I can teleport you ahead; it would shorten the distance," he muttered, then grasped Ethan by the hand, and they both disappeared.
They appeared ten meters away from the previous location. Julian’s powers weren’t strong enough yet to travel long distances, but it was better than running.
He heaved, catching his breath, then teleported them again. He repeated this cycle about four times, his face deathly pale and his energy completely drained.
Ethan was filled with gratitude and was about to help Julian lean against the wall to rest when he froze in his tracks.
The chain necklace around his neck shattered into dust. Somewhere in a mansion, a middle-aged man resembling Ethan stared in shock as his ice ring broke apart. He shot to his feet in stunned disbelief and rushed out of the study in unsteady steps.
A wave of agonizing loss surged through them all, tightening their chests until it hurt to breathe.
Ethan let out a tear-filled scream. He stumbled backward in shock, then turned and rushed back toward the location they had teleported from.
"No... Mummy is safe... she’s waiting for me to save her... I have to go back..." he murmured incoherently, his voice growing frantic as he ran ahead in stunned disbelief, unwilling to accept reality.
Julian’s expression changed. He took out an energy-boosting potion from his space bag, downed it in one gulp, and rushed after Ethan.
"Come back! It’s not safe!" he called out, his expression turning grim and panicked as he felt the presence of a strong monster lurking nearby.
He needed to get them out of here, or they would both die—he didn’t know the reason for Ethan’s sudden outburst, but a fleeting idea of what might have happened flickered in his mind.
Julian didn’t dwell on it further; his main priority was to fulfill his promise to the kind woman. Subconsciously, he had begun to see her as a mother figure, feeling that this was what a mother was supposed to be like.
He finally caught up with Ethan and pulled him backward just as a claw flashed through the darkness, striking at where Ethan had stood moments earlier.
The monster let out an angry roar, jolting Ethan out of his daze.
"We need to get out of here. I promised your mother I would take you out of here," Julian whispered, his brow deeply furrowed as beads of sweat ran down his neck and his heart pounded with fear.
Though he was terrified, his eyes remained resolute—he was determined not to abandon Ethan.