3 Four Sides of Death

"I'm not kidding!" Sumei shook her head. "It's your predecessor."

Jacob's heart shook, and he tensed up. His blood pressure jumped, and countless thoughts clashed in his mind.

'Did she know? How did she know? How many know this? What should I do? Silence her? Here?'

Jacob looked around the military camp filled with soldiers and teachers around. He looked hesitant as sweat drenched his back, but his eyes soon flashed coldly.

'She cannot be allowed to share this with others. If someone else knows my secret, I might even end up on a dissection table in the hands of a mad scientist or a scary Hunter!'

Sumei was unaware of the plans of her teammate whom she planned to protect today. She continued, "I'm talking about the boy Kevin's gang bullied before you. They did that to him from the beginning of the year, and he stopped coming after a month."

Jacob finally understood what she was talking about and relaxed. The four plans he had just made for her vanished into thin air. He even began feeling guilty for planning something so terrible for her. But he didn't regret it.

"Oh him. I remember that thin stick. So he's finally willing to come out of his shell?"

Jacob clearly looked down on him. Even though Jacob's predecessor remained silent during the bullying, he didn't stop attending class. So he looked down on Bob, who didn't fight back and gave up in a month.

"You…" Sumei noticed the disdain in Jacob's tone and didn't know what to say. She knew about the details of Bob's bullying and the reason for his absence. But she also respected Bob's privacy, so she didn't share it.

"Be normal with him. He's had a tough time too," Sumei finally said.

Jacob shook his head. "Not as tough as me. But don't worry. I know my priorities."

Sumei nodded in relief.

Just then, Adam approached the gathered students.

"Listen up. I've talked with the Commander here, and there's a slight change in our plans. I'll stay outside while Mr. John and Mrs. Lucy will take you in. Two teams will go in at a time. Your job is to…."

He was soon done with explaining their mission. The students left for the dungeon entrance while he stopped Sumei and Jacob.

"Follow me," he said.

They looked at each other in confusion but obeyed him. He took them across a few green tents and entered one of them. They followed him inside. He was talking to a chubby man with stubble wearing full-framed square glasses. He seemed unusually quiet and mostly nodded or shook his head in response.

After a moment, Adam returned and said, "He's Bob, your third teammate."

"What!?" Jacob involuntarily shouted.

"Calm down," Sumei pulled his shirt.

But he didn't seem to listen. "How did he turn out… I don't understand." Jacob said.

Adam sighed. "There's no choice. The others chose their teams, and he was the only one left. But don't worry. He's obedient and won't trouble you."

Jacob looked him dead in the eye.

"You know about my body."

"Yes."

"You know I can't kill a monster."

"Yes."

"Can he solve traps?"

"He will try not to trigger them."

"Can he act as bait?"

"He's not smart enough for that."

"So, can he fight?"

"He can run."

Jacob was speechless.

Sumei was speechless too. Though she knew she'd have to carry Bob as well, she didn't know he was as big of a dead weight as Jacob.

Bob lowered his head and remained silent.

Adam knew how upset Jacob was, but he had no choice.

"Listen, Jacob," he said. "I know you're not happy with him, with your body. But there's no option now. I don't expect you to awaken today. But you can at least follow Sumei's lead and learn more about an actual dungeon, even if this is a Conquered Dungeon. This will greatly help you survive the Graduation Exam!"

Jacob nodded. He knew the world didn't revolve around him and didn't plan to continue his tantrum.

"Good. Now gather in front of the dungeon. You'll be following Mr. John, so head over to him."

Adam finally left the tent, leaving three of them alone.

"H-hello," Sumei broke the awkward air and stretched a hand towards Bob. Since she only reached his chest, it looked like a dwarf was greeting a giant. Sumei was slightly nervous. She wasn't aware of Bob's personality after he had been severely bullied and out of society for so many months.

Bob finally raised his head and shook her hand gently. Sumei saw that face and those innocent eyes. She then knew that Bob would not be difficult to lead. It was because he was a gentle giant.

Jacob resigned to fate and shook hands with Bob as well. He didn't want to cause further issues with the team because it could harm them.

The trio of a chubby giant at 195 cm, a thin teen at around 170 cm, with a kid of around 155 cm finally left the tent. They soon reached the entrance of the dungeon.

Four Sides of Death was a conquered dungeon. It meant that the mana inside was gentle, and the final boss was taken care of. Since it was given for public use, most of the resources inside had already been excavated. The only value it held was now giving newbies experience in dungeon diving and getting accustomed to high levels of mana.

Jacob saw a stony gate held with 2 pillars at the side. Upon them, he could see carved monsters like goblins, kobolds, and cows. They screamed brutality, and he noticed hostility in those stony faces. At the top of the gate lay a gargoyle statue on whose forehead lay four embedded prisms in a rhombus. Three at the bottom among them were cracked.

Mr. John noticed their arrival and waved at them. They joined the line behind him while other students formed a parallel line led by Mrs. Lucy.

Jacob finally saw two groups disappearing into the dungeon with their respective teachers.

As time passed, Jacob saw two more teams head in and come out. Both teams had injured members, but nobody had awakened their talents yet. They came out with dejected faces, and some even had to seek the teacher's help.

Then it was their turn. Mr. John motioned them to follow, and Jacob saw that Kevin's team was following Mrs. Lucy inside simultaneously.

Jacob stepped into the dungeon. It felt as though his body had entered a completely different world. The air smelled different, heavier. He stood in an open forest, with three paths diverging before him.

Tall trees with thick trunks and dense foliage separated the paths. It felt like he had entered an ancient primeval forest untouched by human beings. But he took a closer look and noticed the footsteps of those who went there before him. He looked behind him and found no path. They could only walk forward.

"Okay, listen up," said Mr. John as he clapped his hands. "We'll wait here. Release your flares if you are in danger. Give us up to a minute to get there." He took out a tab. It had their names on its screen that shone with a green glow.

Everyone understood the flare was not simply used to give a visual location. It was also connected to the device in Mr. John's hand. They nodded.

Jacob, Sumei, and Bob stood together. Kevin was near them with his two goons, one fat and short, while another was thin and tall.

Mrs. Lucy added, "Decide which path to take."

"I'll take the middle one," Kevin instantly said. He took his men and went ahead.

"Right or left?" Jacob asked Sumei. He knew he had to leave the decision-making to her.

She looked around and seemed hesitant. Her nervousness was further fueled by everyone's stares.

"R-right! Let's go right," she finally answered.

Jacob looked at her unsure face and questioned his decision to follow her lead. But it was too late to have any regrets.

"Well, I hope you're right."

***

"Are you sure this works, boss?"

"Yes, just do it. We won't be found out." Kevin grinned devilishly.

***

Jacob walked along the uneven ground. It was littered with dead leaves, stones, and even splashed dried blood. Initially, the blood drops were few. But as they went in deeper, even others started paying attention to them.

Jacob was standing together with Sumei. Bob was taking the lead since they expected him to play the role of a tank. Like others, he wore leather armor but didn't have a weapon.

"In this dungeon, we can expect either goblins, kobolds, or demonic cows," Sumei shared. "It's fine if we meet the first two, but the cows spell bad news."

Jacob asked, "Why? Aren't these cows… just cows? They can't even use weapons or strategies. Why should we fear them?" He was eager to know more.

Suddenly, the trio stopped walking. They felt vibrations from the ground. They looked at each other in confusion for an instant before Sumei's eyes widened in fear.

"RUN!" she screamed and jumped into the dense grass to the side. Jacob hurried after her while Bob caught up. As they left the path, they heard a roar!

MOOO!

It was not one cow roaring. It was a herd!

MOOO! MOOO! MOOO!

They used the ancient trees for cover and sneaked a look. That single glance turned them pale. Even Bob, who was normally expressionless, was shivering in fear.

Ten gigantic cows with curved horns atop their heads were running toward them. They were taller than 2 meters each and were thick, bulky, and muscular. Jacob finally understood why these cows were named as such.

"Demonic indeed!" he exclaimed but grew worried.

How were they going to overcome this obstacle?

He looked at Sumei who was thinking the same thing. While they were lost in thought, the cows passed them and continued running.

"This time, the task is to reach the end of this path and grab an item in the treasure chest near the boss room. Then return all the way to the entrance to the teachers. They will defeat the boss, and we can get the Return Stones to leave this dungeon.

"Now we can either hide and get the item or fight these cows. But… I don't think hiding is an option." Sumei analyzed.

"Why?" Jacob asked.

"Because there will be more cows ahead, and we can't always escape their senses. If they see us running towards the forest, they'll come rushing in, and there will be no place to hide." Sumei shook her head.

While Jacob began feeling dread, she added, "So we can only fight!"

She looked at Bob with slight anticipation.

"Can you hold one down?"

He looked at the ground.

"How?" he asked.

"By the horns."

"Horns?" Bob muttered, then slowly nodded.

"What about me?" Jacob asked. He wanted to play it safe but realized there was no chance of that happening.

"Blind its eyes. You need to climb on it, though. Can you do it?" Sumei asked with concern.

Jacob silently prayed for everything to go smoothly and nodded.

"I'll take care of it."

"And I'll keep it distracted," Sumei concluded, waving her staff. It was meant to be equipment to cast magic but was now being used as a club until she awakened. But Jacob still trusted Sumei's technique, so he knew her help was essential.