Gu Poison.
It is the name given to a specific type of poison.
Gu Poison is created by confining venomous creatures such as snakes, centipedes, toads, wasps, and turtles in a large jar. The jar contains no food, water, or light.
Only complete darkness fills the jar.
The creatures trapped inside survive by preying on each other. The strong devour the weak, and the strong eventually die from the weak's poison.
This brutal survival of the fittest continues until only one creature remains.
The last surviving creature is called the Gu.
And the cursed poison obtained by killing the Gu, completely crushing its hope for survival, is named Gu Poison.
'I need to raise the Gu quickly.'
The method to clear Efnell's Garden is to utilize Gu Poison.
To be precise, it's not about using Gu Poison, but applying the principle of Gu Poison to this ecosystem.
"Teacher, isn't it too dark here? It would be nice if we could light a fire."
"No. Creatures living in caves are terrified of light."
As we ventured deeper into the dark cave, the light grew dimmer.
The darkness enveloped us faster than our eyes could adjust. Lee Ji had to feel the damp walls with his hands to move forward.
"Stop being scared for no reason and hurry up."
"Seriously! How can you expect me to move quickly in this darkness?!"
"Stop complaining and follow me."
Darkness stimulates humanity's primal fear.
As a child, when I lay alone in bed, I was afraid of what might be under it.
As we grow older and gain more experience, we learn just how dangerous darkness can be. You could trip over unseen obstacles or be struck by a blind blade.
For these and many other reasons, humans fear the dark.
But sometimes, there are creatures that live only in such darkness.
To catch them, we must adapt to their environment.
"T-Teacher, how much further do we have to go?"
"We're almost there."
"You've been saying that for a while now! How much deeper do we have to go?"
I ignored Eji's complaints and scanned the surroundings.
Though the thick darkness obscured my vision, my amethyst-like magical eyes illuminated the cave. A monochrome world revealed itself, and the blue magical energy became visible.
I focused all my senses on my sight, scanning up and down.
The surroundings were filled with shades of gray.
That's why the blue colour stood out so vividly.
The boulders scattered throughout the cave.
Inside them, faint magical energy was clustered.
It was the trace of a living creature. So small that I almost missed it.
"Found it."
"Really? Can I see it too?"
"It's too dark for you to see."
"Ah, right."
I reached out and rummaged through the crevices of the boulders.
The space was filled with large and small rocks, making me wonder what kind of creature could live here.
Squelch!
The sensation of touching fatty meat.
An abnormal feeling transmitted to my fingertips, something that shouldn't be in the crevices of rocks.
When I lifted it with my fingers, it let out a powerful cry.
This creature was the Gu.
Squeeeeeeak!
A screeching sound like fingernails on a chalkboard.
The cave amplified the sound, making the effect even more intense.
"Ahhhhh! What's making that noise?!"
"...This is a bit much."
Lee Ji covered his ears with both hands.
Since I was holding the creature, I used magic to create earplugs.
Even so, the creature's cry was vividly transmitted.
Squeeeeeeeeak!!!
The cry grew even louder than before.
It seemed to be protesting, demanding to be put down, but I couldn't do that.
"Do something quickly! I'm going to go deaf!"
"Let's run to the entrance. There's no other way."
"Wait, does that mean I have to listen to this noise until then?!"
"Stop complaining and run. By the time you finish talking, you could've taken ten more steps."
Lee Ji and I ran at full speed.
Though the cave was dark, we didn't get lost since we were retracing our steps.
Still, it took some time to climb back up since we had gone so deep.
Meanwhile, I left the screaming Gu alone and thought.
What should I feed it first?
'Should I start with grass?'
My gaze shifted between the ceiling and the floor.
The shadows pervasive in the dark cave caught my eye.
My amethyst magical eyes pierced through them.
About three adult men.
Hmm, I should start with a vegetarian diet.
It's too early to awaken the taste for blood and flesh in the Gu.
***
Squeeeeeeak!
As we emerged from the dark cave, the Gu screamed.
The blinding sunlight seemed painful for it.
I set the Gu down in a shaded area and said.
"Hey, little guy. Get some sunlight. You're not a vampire, why are you avoiding the sun so much?"
"Doesn't it feel like a mole?"
"Do you really think that looks like a mole?"
"Of course not."
The Gu, settled in the shaded grass, showed interest in the grass beneath it.
Immediately, it started eating.
It devoured the grass like a vacuum.
In an instant, it grew from the size of a handful to that of a small dog.
A bizarre trait that ordinary creatures couldn't replicate.
Its appearance was similar to a centipede.
But its behaviour was undoubtedly that of a monster.
'To think that looks like a mole.'
If Lee Ji had seriously asked if it looked similar, I would've sent him to an eye doctor.
Meanwhile, the Gu, having devoured all the grass in the area, shifted its attention to the flowers.
It seemed to have developed a taste for plants after eating the grass.
All the grass here is poisonous, by the way.
The Gu swallowed the flowers indiscriminately.
It ate the thorny poisonous flowers, the expensive Moondew flowers, and even the Flame flowers.
"Hey! Do you know how expensive those are?!"
"Don't talk nonsense to a beast, just stay still."
"Teacher! We could've made 20 million won in cash if we sold those!"
"Think of it as an investment. It'll pay off soon with something more valuable."
If we wait a bit, we can get something worth more than 20 million won.
Just then, the Gu, which had been voraciously eating grass and flowers, suddenly stopped moving.
It seemed to be in pain, groaning.
The Flame flowers and Moondew flowers had a synergistic effect, creating a potent poison.
Ordinary creatures would suffer severe internal injuries if they consumed both at the same time. Their liver and internal organs would be saturated with poison.
A toxicity strong enough to kill quickly without resistance.
The Gu's skin began to show red streaks.
Its skin started to necrotize from the poisoning.
"It looks like it's going to die soon..."
"Just watch."
Lee Ji panicked as he watched the dying Gu.
I didn't feel pity for a monster dying from poisoning. But if it dies, our trip into the cave would be meaningless.
She must be thinking that.
But that thought wouldn't last long.
Because the Gu, which had fallen as if dead, suddenly sprang back to life.
Chomp, chomp!
As soon as it got up, it devoured the remaining flowers.
As if it had forgotten collapsing after eating recklessly, it ate every plant in sight. Before long, the Gu had grown to the size of a person.
"...Is it still growing?"
"It's not even halfway there."
Now, the Gu didn't just eat plants.
It swallowed small monsters in its path.
During this, it glanced at Lee Ji and me.
"What are you looking at?"
Whoosh!
I ignited a flame in my right hand, and it immediately curled its tail and turned its head elsewhere. The Gu was looking towards the depths of the forest.
Where higher-tier monsters with intelligence lived.
The Gu, now the size of a person, moved forward.
Its flesh-like appearance had turned green from consuming various plants.
A camouflage matching its surroundings.
Because of this, the nearby orcs didn't notice the Gu.
"Squeak, humans have entered the garden again."
"Avoid them. If we mess up, we'll die!"
"We'll die!"
The orcs communicated in their clumsy language.
They spotted players gathering flowers and grass below and spread the word.
Though their language was crude, it was sufficient for passing knowledge to the next generation and coordinating actions.
The orcs moved in different directions to inform their comrades that humans had invaded the dungeon.
Unaware that a greater danger was approaching.
Thud, thud!
The ground shook faintly.
The tremor was so slight that most orcs didn't notice.
That a camouflaged monster was approaching from behind.
─Crash!
The ground shook, and the earth flipped.
The epicenter was right in the middle of the orcs.
Crash!
A centipede—or something resembling one—shook the ground and swallowed two orcs in one bite.
It must have been at least 5 meters long.
As it devoured its kin with its massive body, the monsters looked up in shock. Lee Ji and I, hiding in the trees, also watched.
Just moments ago, it was the size of an adult man.
But before reaching the orc village, it had indiscriminately consumed small monsters, soil, and plants.
Now it had grown to this monstrous size.
No, it was still growing.
"M-Monster!"
"Run! We'll hold it off!"
The orcs were armed with weapons made from monster bones and stones.
Though lacking in sharpness, their powerful muscles made the weapons as effective as blunt instruments.
They charged at the Gu.
They couldn't let the creature that had invaded their village and eaten their kin live. But the orcs' attacks were futile.
The rib-bone weapons shattered uselessly, and the stone weapons couldn't even scratch the Gu's mountainous body.
One orc managed to throw a torch, which the Gu reacted to momentarily.
Crash!
But that only seemed to provoke the Gu, as it swung its massive body like a weapon.
The orcs were swept away like fallen leaves.
Their organs and bones shattered, killing them.
The Gu didn't stop at devouring the corpses; it also swallowed nearby trees and soil.
Its size was now approaching 10 meters.
It's really getting huge.
"Teacher, is it okay to leave it like this...?"
"Why?"
"What do you mean why?! If it keeps eating like that, it might become a high-tier monster!"
"That's what we're waiting for."
"What?"
Lee Ji looked at me in disbelief.
"I told you. We came here to clear this dungeon."
This is how you clear it.
As if to prove my point, a message appeared.
[Hidden Boss Monster 'Gu' has consumed 50% of the dungeon.]
[Due to the high progress rate, you have obtained information about 'Gu Poison'.]
[You have acquired the method to clear the dungeon 'Efnell's Garden'!]
[Sub Quest: Hunt the Gu.]
[Description: The Gu is the last surviving creature in this ecosystem. As long as it lives, the 'Garden' will continuously regenerate. However, to kill the Gu, you must lure it into devastating the ecosystem itself.
You have realized this. If you wish to end the Garden, lure the Gu into completely consuming the ecosystem, then hunt it.]
[Success Reward: Skill 'Ten Poison Immunity,' Knowledge of Gu Poison, Points +3]
See? I told you.
I pointed triumphantly at the air.
But Lee Ji's reaction was different from what I expected.
"...What are you doing?"
He looked completely oblivious.
I was about to ask if he couldn't see the message when it hit me.
I was the only one who lured the Gu into consuming the dungeon.
He probably can't see it.
I was the only one doing all this.
I realized I had been acting alone.
***
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