WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Ceaseless

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Dungeon Gallery's Terrifying Newbie ◈

Chapter 5: Hidden Theme

──────

A dungeon appeared in the Lowjinrat Great Mountain Range.

It was an incredibly sudden occurrence.

The hundreds of dungeons in this world all underwent location shifts at the same time after a set cycle had passed.

No dungeon had appeared in the Lowjinrat Great Mountain Range during the previous location shift cycle.

Normally, that meant no dungeon should have surfaced there until the next cycle.

Yet this dungeon had appeared out of nowhere.

Still.

The residents of the Lowjinrat Great Mountain Range were not intelligent enough to find that discrepancy suspicious.

It was a tremendous stroke of luck for the new Dungeon Master.

That is, unless the dungeon had happened to appear beside the lair of a massive Troll.

The Troll had lived in the Lowjinrat Great Mountain Range for decades. It was an old fixture of the place.

It was twice the size of an average Troll and far more vicious.

"Grrrr..."

It was also quite intelligent for a Troll.

After all, it had enough sense not to wipe out the nearby Goblin village, instead ordering the villagers to offer it food every month.

The Troll was cunning.

So even after discovering the dungeon, it did not make the foolish decision to enter alone.

It went to the village and returned to the dungeon with a group of Goblins it had made into underlings.

"Krrrk, krrrk!"

Every species became excited upon seeing a dungeon.

It was a physiological response.

Just as the sight of delicious food made one's mouth water when hungry, a dungeon stirred the same reaction.

Instinctively, they knew a dungeon could make them into something great.

"Kyaaaak!"

One excited Goblin could not contain itself.

Thwack!

The Troll split the Goblin that tried to enter the dungeon in half.

"Krrr..."

The Goblins cowered as they stared at the Troll, now drenched in blood.

Order was restored in an instant.

The Troll picked out the useful Goblins.

There were seven of them in total.

They entered ahead of the Troll, which followed behind them.

The remaining Goblins tried to follow, but only two managed to enter.

The Goblins left behind looked around in confusion, but with no way to break through the closed dungeon entrance, they waited where they were.

If the Troll did not come back within a few hours, they would probably return to the village.

They had very little patience, after all.

* * *

Meanwhile, the monsters that entered the dungeon found themselves in an unknown space.

It was a mystical sight unlike anything in this world.

Within a sheet of drawing paper where vivid colors bloomed chaotically, the intruders all fell asleep.

How much time passed like that?

They all woke up.

They faced one another in a dark cave.

It was not as mystical as the place they had seen before falling asleep, but it was still unfamiliar.

"Krrrk..."

As the stupid Goblins stood there, flustered...

Thud! Thud!

The impatient Troll stomped its feet.

"Kiek!"

The Goblins hurried forward.

The Troll followed behind them.

"Grrrr..."

The Troll could barely contain its excitement.

It instinctively knew that the treasure in this dungeon could make it great.

Like an explorer standing before a mountain of gold and jewels, its steps were almost cheerful.

Perhaps...

It thought it could become a true leader, like the Manticore that ruled the Lowjinrat Great Mountain Range.

The dungeon was a straight passageway.

It was like walking down a long hotel corridor.

With the small Goblins leading the way and the Troll trailing after them, they looked a little like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

The Troll was nothing like the delicate Snow White, though. It was terrifying, and the Goblins were stupid and ugly.

No one would have thought of them that way.

One hour.

Two hours.

Three hours.

The Troll and Goblins walked steadily.

They found neither treasure nor even a single pebble.

Four hours.

Five hours.

Six hours.

"Krrrk..."

Seven hours.

Eight hours.

Nine hours.

By the time their march had reached fourteen hours...

Plop.

One Goblin collapsed from exhaustion.

The others were no different.

They were all completely spent.

"......"

The Troll did not like it, but it had no idea what might lie ahead.

It set down its axe and sank to the ground.

They rested there, enjoying a sweet rest.

But.

There was a problem.

They were thirsty and hungry.

They probably had not expected to walk for so long.

They had failed to prepare food or water.

It was the result of being blinded by dungeon rewards.

"Grrrr."

Still, it would get the reward tomorrow.

If enemies stood in its way, it only had to smash them apart.

There was no Troll as powerful as it.

It was one of the ten strongest monsters in the Lowjinrat Great Mountain Range.

If it could not find the treasure, it would return and prepare again.

That was what the Troll thought.

Click.

Something activated while they had their eyes closed.

Not one of them heard it.

The next day.

The Goblins and Troll endured their thirst and hunger as they continued exploring.

They found nothing again.

"Grrrr!!"

The Troll grew frustrated.

It swung its axe into the dungeon's stone wall, but it would not break.

Goblin and Troll alike, they were all exhausted.

The Troll turned around.

It was a clear signal to retreat.

"Kerrrk!"

The Goblins happily followed the Troll, relieved that they no longer had to walk through that creepy, unpleasant passage.

Another hour.

Two hours.

Three hours.

Four hours.

...

...

Sixteen hours.

Seventeen hours.

Eighteen hours.

"G-Grrrr..."

There was no exit in sight.

What was going on?

It had definitely turned back along the path it had walked.

Had it somehow gone the wrong way?

Had it forgotten the direction after sleeping?

It was hungry.

Thirst was even more urgent than hunger.

The Goblins were terrified as well.

The endless corridor filled them with instinctive fear.

The Troll was no exception.

It had to make a decision.

"Grrrr..."

In the end, the Troll concluded that it and the stupid Goblins had made a mistake about the direction.

When the Troll ordered them to turn back...

"Krrrk! Krrrk! Kyaaaak!"

The Goblins grew furious.

They pointed their spears at the Troll and protested.

Crunch!

One Goblin was crushed on the spot.

The Troll drank the dead Goblin's blood to quench its thirst.

"......"

The atmosphere fell silent in an instant.

The Goblins swallowed their anger and desperately licked the blood of their companion that the Troll had left undrunk, barely easing their thirst.

They rested again and resumed walking.

But.

The next time, and the time after that.

They still could not find the exit.

A long corridor with no end in sight.

A dark, straight maze.

They could neither return nor move forward.

"Aah, kyaaa, aah!!"

After repeating that meaningless march for a long time, the impatient Goblins began to lose their minds from thirst, hunger, and fear.

The remaining eight pointed their spears at the Troll and vented their rage.

"Aah, kyaaa, krrraak!!"

The Troll was pierced by their spears in an instant.

The Goblins came at it fiercely.

But.

"────!!"

There was a gap in power between Goblins and Trolls that could never be overcome.

The Troll regenerated its wounds in an instant, then literally beat the Goblins to death.

Every last one.

The Goblins that had once been its underlings became food.

Enraged, the Troll chewed them all up and drank their blood.

To leave the place scattered with spears and bloodstains.

To escape this unpleasant, gloomy dungeon.

It hurried onward, then rested, over and over again.

......

......

Only then did the Troll realize something was wrong.

It had been going around in circles through the same place.

No matter how hard its legs moved, it always returned to the spears and bloodstains on the floor.

The result was the same whether it walked forward or backward.

"Aah, haaah, uuh..."

The Troll's breathing grew harsher.

Had it ever been this afraid?

There was no exit.

The terror of hunger and thirst closed in.

After repeating the same actions amid the same scenery for so long, the Troll's mind was slowly breaking.

No matter how powerful its regeneration and strength were, they were useless before an incomprehensible phenomenon.

The predator that had feared nothing in Lowjinrat finally wet itself where it stood.

The Troll scratched wildly at its skin.

Its skin tore away.

Dark blood splattered the walls, but it did not care.

Its regeneration was slowing down.

It was probably because it was so exhausted.

The Troll walked.

How long had it been walking?

It could not even guess how much time had passed.

The Troll could not rest.

It was afraid that if it slept and woke again, it would lose its way once more.

It could only keep moving its legs endlessly, terrified.

It drove away sleep through self-harm.

It eased its thirst and hunger with its own blood and flesh.

Why did I come here?

All that remained was regret.

...

...

The thing that looked like a Troll eventually collapsed.

Its body had reached its limit.

The thing that looked like a Troll was smiling.

It no longer had to walk through this unpleasant place.

Death was freedom to it.

And more than anything.

Step.

Step.

It was relieved that it no longer had to see the approaching presence beyond the corridor with its own eyes.

* * *

newbie: Guys, I successfully defended against the Wave lol

I uploaded a proof screenshot.

I'd broadcast it live in the gallery, but I still had to let everyone know it was over.

newbie: Cleared one Troll and all nine Goblins

└squintychar: Isn't this fucking place the Backrooms, not a dungeon...?

└op_ghost: I'm an evil spirit... newbie's scary...

└kongkong: That Troll died smiling...

└tvhead: I really can't make the "Leave it alone, it's having a nice dream" joke... yeah...

└sealedphilo: You're the first bastard to stop a Troll like this... Scary bastard...

└sealedconq: You made this with the Dungeon Expansion Feature (+New Dungeon Master Bonus) and a Direction-Loss Debuff Trap, right?? Why didn't we think of this before...?

└antqueen: Maybe because we have no memory, or because we're stupid???

└dip: My temp ban's over. Hi lol.

└golemking: You're the best lmao

└anonbutcher: I think we could be good friends. I came away very inspired.

└kingslayer: That's insane.

└worldiscold: newbie, please come here and teach these elves a lesson, fuck.

└skullbones: You're the pride of our gallery.

└psychward_mvp: Lmao, this idea is seriously legendary.

└imaclown: Agreed.

└3mhamster: This makes it impossible not to leave a comment... yeah.

└cowhead: Hmm... Is it really that impressive...?

└dm_disappointed: Shut up.

└orange★: Oh...

└no_minions_4_me: That's amazing...

└humanluvr: New-bie, you're scaaary T_T

Even unfamiliar usernames had left comments.

This Wave defense must have been a success.

└whaleyeah: How much reward did you get??

The reward...

I'd earned quite a lot of Points.

My level had also gone up a lot, but...

【All intruders were repelled after experiencing extreme fear and suicidal impulses.】

【The level gap between the intruders and the Dungeon Master is substantial.】

【You have achieved a special accomplishment.】

【Hidden Theme - Anomaly has been unlocked.】

What was this?

Should I take a screenshot and upload it first?

Footnotes:

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried