Chapter 26: Too Late to Regret

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"Ugh…" Zach Darnell clenched his fists, unable to come up with a response. His jaw tightened, and his face twisted into something bitter and ugly.

The facts were right in front of him, and no matter how much he resisted, he couldn't deny them.

Lucas had replaced his old armor with Ogre Leather Armor—gear that only dropped from nightmare-level dungeons.

Which meant that his previous equipment… wasn't better. It wasn't high-level.

It meant the armor he wore before wasn't some high-end disguise—it was genuinely weaker than what he had now.

Which meant…

"He really did clear the nightmare dungeon. Alone. And in just fifteen minutes…" Martha said softly, more to herself than anyone else.

That realization struck like a hammer. One person. Nightmare difficulty. Under twenty minutes.

That kind of strength meant only one thing: Lucas was a monster.

Whether it was his level, his combat skills, or—most importantly—his awakened Talent, everything pointed toward someone far beyond the average career changer.

If he were just a high-level professional, this would still be impressive.

But if…

If Lucas really was only Level 20—and hadn't even gone through his first class advancement yet—then his Talent had to be S-Level at minimum.

Maybe SS-Level?

Or… higher?

Martha shivered slightly, her expression a mix of disbelief and awe.

She subconsciously patted her chest to calm her racing heart, which only made her teammates more uncomfortable to watch. She felt a nervous wave pass through her body.

"If that guy is really Level 20, then…" her thoughts raced. "…he's got a divine-tier Talent. There's no other explanation."

And if that was true—he hadn't lied to her earlier at all. Everything he said, every calm sentence he'd spoken, had been genuine.

He wasn't trying to deceive them. He wasn't pretending.

He was just strong. So strong that normal logic didn't apply to him.

Which meant…

She had just missed the chance to team up with a rising legend.

The moment hit Martha hard.

She covered her face, groaning inwardly. "Did I just miss the chance to latch onto a golden ticket…?"

He hadn't even had his first class change yet, and he was already this strong. Once he advanced?

Who knew how far he could go?

Zach was still muttering bitterly, trying to force the pieces in his mind to fit a different narrative, but it was useless now.

Even his teammates weren't buying it.

"I should've just pulled him into the team," Martha muttered. "Who cares what the others said? If I'd done that, we could've breezed through hard mode, maybe even nightmare."

She sighed. "Now he's done with all his dungeon runs for the day…"

"If I go over now and apologize… do I even have a chance?"

Would he accept their apology? Would he even listen?

Would he consider carrying them through nightmare tomorrow?

The thought made her squirm with embarrassment. She had judged him so wrongly—and now, the golden opportunity had already walked away.

It wasn't just Martha who was filled with regret.

All three of her teammates wore the same expression—guilt and self-loathing.

They had dismissed Lucas when he first appeared, mocked him behind his back, and now they knew the truth:

They had judged a true boss like he was just another pretty face.

If they could go back just twenty minutes, they'd slap themselves. They could've gained a powerful ally. A potential friend. Maybe even a party member for the long haul.

But now?

Too late.

There was no undoing the mistake.

---

Meanwhile, inside the dungeon…

Lucas had no idea the team outside was spiraling into existential crisis over him.

Even if he had, he wouldn't have cared.

He never planned on joining a team. From the start, Lucas's goal had been clear: solo grinding, equipment gathering, and pushing his limits.

So once inside, he immediately made a beeline to the sentry tower and zeroed in on a werewolf.

He had one thing to test.

"Let's see what these new stats can do."

With a flick of his wrist, his dagger sliced through the air—and across the werewolf's throat.

A red number appeared.

5126.

One hit. One kill.

He raised his eyebrows. That was more than the werewolf's entire HP.

"Nice. Not just a kill—overkill."

Lucas smiled. Two pieces of upgraded equipment, and already his damage had jumped by several hundred points.

Now, even nightmare monsters were just meat for the grinder.

No second strike needed. No drawn-out fight. Just walk in, slash, walk away.

With a glint in his eye, he dove into the next mob group.

His twin daggers danced like shadows. The werewolves barely had time to react before they dropped like rag dolls.

Blood sprayed across the stones. Lucas didn't even blink.

"This… is way too smooth," he laughed. "Compared to last time? This is half the effort!"

Before, he had to be careful. Now, he was just breezing through it.

He leapt to the top of the tower, took out two werewolf archers with clean slashes, then dropped back down.

Time check: same as hard mode.

"Perfect. My speed's consistent, and I'm way safer now."

The next few waves went the same.

Even the Elite-level werewolf mini-bosses couldn't do much. A few skill rotations, and they were gone.

And then…

The ogre boss returned.

It was just as big. Just as ugly. Just as angry.

Lucas grinned.

"Sorry, big guy. I need more gear."

The ogre groaned awake.

"Time to hand it over."

In two rounds of devastating skill chains, Lucas brought the beast to its knees once again.

With a ground-shaking thud, it fell forward—and lay still.

Lucas waited for the glow.

But…

Nothing.

No equipment drop.

"Seriously?" He blinked, stepping forward.

There was only a single material—a blue-grade Ogre's Eyeball. Not even rare.

He sighed. "Wow, stingy much?"

Compared to last time, this was straight-up disappointing.

Still, he tossed the eyeball into his space backpack.

"Guess the RNG gods are fair after all."

Even an "EU Emperor" like him couldn't expect gear every single run. That kind of drop rate just didn't happen.

If equipment dropped every time, blacksmiths would be out of business.

Materials always dropped more often. Gear was special.

He took a breath, shrugged it off, and chose to exit the dungeon.

---

Outside, at the entrance…

As soon as Lucas reappeared from the portal, he noticed something odd.

Martha and her team were already approaching him.

Their eyes were filled with… uncertainty. Maybe even guilt.

Lucas tilted his head slightly.

This should be interesting.

---

Summary of Key Events (Bolded):

Zach Darnell is forced to admit Lucas is far stronger than he thought

Martha realizes she missed an opportunity to team up with a hidden boss

Lucas re-enters the dungeon and confirms he can now one-shot nightmare enemies

He clears the dungeon smoothly, defeats the ogre again

No equipment drops this time—only one blue-grade material

Lucas exits the dungeon to find Martha and her teammates approaching

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