The hidden passageway was quite long, and led underground. There were no traps to speak of, and no monsters either.

'Is this a safe zone?'

The only safe location within the ziggurat, which was rife with monsters and traps, was the hidden passageway! But when he reached the end of it, he didn't see Honadan, or anyone else for that matter.

Kang Oh left the hidden passageway and followed the Life Lamp's flame.

* * *

Kang Oh explored the ziggurat for more than three hours, all the while following the flame of the Life Lamp.

He couldn't find Honadan, but he learned a few things. First, Lalka's Ziggurat was huge, and it was also extremely complex! Second, there were countless hidden passageways! Third, a variety of monsters lived within it!

For example, there were Scratchers, Sandzards, Lalka Lizards, Sand Golems, Sandurions, etc. Scratchers popped out of the walls and attacked him with their sharp claws, while Sandzards were mage-type monsters that cast all sorts of sand magic. Lalka Lizards breathed white fire and Sand Golems boasted extremely high defense.

Of these, the most annoying monsters were Trackies.

The Wicked Fairy, Tracky! It was garbed in all green and wore a sharp hat; it also had a hooked nose and sharp, pointy ears.

Trackies specialized in one thing and one thing only: dangerous pranks! 'Trap field' was a good way to describe them in this ziggurat; their abilities were truly annoying and dangerous.

As we speak...

Kiki.

A Tracky suddenly showed up, sporting a nasty expression, and began spinning its index fingers. Then, arrows shot out from a hole in the ceiling, and poisonous gas seeped out of the cracks in the walls.

Kang Oh rolled on the floor to avoid the arrows, and ran forward to avoid the poisonous gas.

Kikiki!

The Tracky kept moving its index fingers around. A boulder came rolling towards him from afar, and a pillar of flame arose in front of him.

Kang Oh threw a Darkness Chain at the Tracky. He planned on grabbing a hold of it and forcing it to stop. However, the Tracky moved too quickly, allowing it to dodge the chains.

He then drew two daggers, one in each hand, and threw them consecutively.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

The two spinning daggers flew towards it. However, the Tracky leapt up and avoided the daggers too. Meanwhile, the boulder was rolling towards him, getting ever so closer to flattening him.

"Tch." Kang Oh transformed into the Jet-Black Demon and used Abyss Transfer. The darkness that lingered around him engulfed his body.

Rumble.

The boulder swept through the passageway, and Kang Oh reappeared right next to the Tracky.

Kii?

The Tracky's eyes widened. It forcefully waved his index fingers. However, Kang Oh was faster.

Slash!

Demon Sword Ubist cleaved through the center of its body. He didn't stop there.

Abyss Claw!

The black aura clawed through the Tracky.

"Die!" Kang Oh attacked it again and again, but it didn't take long before it was dead.

'Hoo, annoying bastard.'

Kang Oh began moving again.

* * *

'Huh?' Kang Oh suddenly stopped. Then, he focused on his hearing. It felt like he'd heard something just now.

"Ugh." He could faintly hear someone's groans.

'That way!' Kang Oh followed the source of the sound. The Life Lamp's flame also pointed in that direction.

A short while later...

Kang Oh had found someone. The middle-aged man's shoulder had been pierced through by one of the wall's spears! There was also a one-eyed scorpion, or Creeper, coming towards him from afar!

'That guy is...!' Kang Oh had a hunch that this was Honadan. 'I have to save him!'

He immediately stretched out his hand.

Whoosh!

Darkness Chain wrapped around the Creeper's body. Kang Oh immediately pulled on the chain, dragging the Creeper towards him and away from Honadan.

Swoosh!

The scorpion swung its pincer at him. Kang Oh deflected it with Blood, and immediately counterattacked.

Whack!

As expected, a Creeper's carapace was tough. But that was all it was. By striking at the same area repeatedly, Kang Oh was able to kill it without much difficulty. Once he'd finished it off, Kang Oh immediately approached the middle-aged man.

"Please drink this." Kang Oh pulled off a health potion from his belt and poured its contents into the man's mouth.

Gulp.

As soon as he drank the potion, the man's complexion brightened significantly.

"This will hurt a bit." Kang Oh pulled the middle-aged man as hard as he could.

"Ugh!" The man's face contorted significantly. Removing the spear that was lodged in his shoulder must've hurt tremendously.

"Haa, haa." The man breathed haggardly.

"Are you alright, Honadan?"

"Haa, haa. I'm alright. But... who are you?" Honadan asked, pressing down on his shoulder wound.

"I came to rescue you at your wife's request."

"Mm."

"Let's go home." Kang Oh smiled. He was really happy that Honadan was alive.

"I can't do that." Honadan shook his head.

"Why not?"

"I need to find the purifying water! I have to find it no matter what!" he said unwaveringly.

"You'll die at this rate."

"I can't die until my daughter's cured!" Hodan said desperately.

Kang Oh thought the matter over. He couldn't afford to leave him here, not when he had such important information. Kang Oh had to get him out of the ziggurat and take him someplace safe.

'The only way to convince him is... Ah!'

"I know a way to cure your daughter's disease without the purifying water."

"What?"

"I know the greatest healer in the land. If we get his help, then we'll be able to cure your daughter's disease."

Kang Oh thought of Eder. He was once the Legendary Healer. Because he wasn't in his original body, he couldn't heal people right now, but his medical knowledge hadn't gone anywhere. With that knowledge, they should be able to cure his daughter's condition.

"Really?"

"There's a chance that he can't cure your daughter's condition."

Honadan furrowed his brow at that.

"But if he can't, then I'll come back here myself and find you the purifying water," Kang Oh added.

"Mm."

"Think about what's truly best for your daughter."

"Hoo. I'll do you as you say." Ultimately, Kang Oh was able to convince him.

"A wise decision. Let's return to the Sand Village," Kang Oh said.

Honadan nodded his head.

Kang Oh had successfully rescued Honadan.

* * *

"Aah, honey!"

"I'm back."

Honadan and his wife embraced each other.

"Dad!" A cute, sickly girl saw Honadan and got teary-eyed.

"My little girl!" Honadan carefully hugged his daughter, making sure not to hurt her.

"Thank you so much, thank you so much! I can't thank you enough!" Honadan's wife bowed at Kang Oh.

[You have completed the quest, Save Honadan.]

"I just did my job," Kang Oh said.

"Hurry and bring that healer over here," Honadan urged, pulling away from his daughter's embrace.

"Understood." Kang Oh left Honadan's home and called Eder. "Summon Eder!"

"Huh?" A pale-faced Eder, who was wearing a lab coat, appeared. "Ah, Mr. Kang Oh. Why did you call me out of the blue?" Eder furrowed his brow.

"It's urgent," Kang Oh said, sporting a serious expression.

"Haa, what is it?"

"I need you to treat someone."

"Treat someone?"

"Yeah." Kang Oh briefly explained Honadan and his daughter's circumstances.

"As you know, I cannot make an accurate diagnosis because I'm not in my original body. I obviously can't heal her either," Eder said.

"But you can still make her medicine. You said you were selling medicine with Mr. Man Bok." Kang Oh wanted him to use medicine to cure her, not a procedure.

'If it doesn't work, then... I'll return to the ziggurat and find the purifying water.'

"Let me take a look first."

"Follow me."

Kang Oh and Eder entered Honadan's home.

"This is the healer I was telling you about." Kang Oh pointed at Eder.

"Ah, please fix my daughter."

"Please."

Honadan and his wife said earnestly.

"Have you ever taken her to a healer before?" Eder asked.

"I have." Hodan nodded his head.

"What was their diagnosis?"

"They didn't know what illness she had."

"Little miss, what's your name," Eder asked softly.

"Sonia," the sickly girl replied.

"Sonia, could you give me your hand for a second?"

"Ok."

Eder carefully looked her over. He also asked Sonia, Honadan, and his wife several questions.

How much time had passed?

"It's Mixed Blood Disease," Eder said.

As expected of the Legendary Healer! He was able to diagnose a condition that no other healer had been able to in the past.

"Mixed Blood Disease?"

"What is that?"

"It's a very rare condition that occurs in children of mixed blood, so it's not well-known."

Honadan was a human being. His wife, however, wasn't human, despite how much she looked like one. She was part of the Sand Tribe, so she was capable of changing her body into sand! Sonia was obviously of mixed blood, and had caught the very rare Mixed Blood Disease.

"Is it possible to cure?" Honadan asked, his voice quivering.

"Mixed Blood Disease cuts the lifespan of the patient due to their parent's conflicting traits. It can be cured with the proper medicine and healing." Eder smiled.

"Really?"

Upon hearing that it was curable, Honadan and his wife beamed.

"I can give you the medicine, but you'll have to find another healer to heal her."

"You can't do it, Doctor?" Honadan asked.

"No, I have some circumstances that don't allow me to."

"Mm."

"When Sonia takes a dose of her medicine, she'll get a lot better. After that, take her to a large city like Altein and ask a good healer to fix her up."

"Thank you." Hodan clasped Eder's hands.

"It was nothing." Eder smiled.

Kang Oh tapped Eder's back. He was basically saying, 'You did good!'.

* * *

After taking the medicine Eder gave her, Sonia's complexion gradually brightened. Honadan and his wife gave him their thanks again and bowed their heads.

"By the way, I had something to ask you, Mr. Honadan," Kang Oh said.

"Go ahead."

"Please read this first." Kang Oh passed him the letter of introduction that Krohn had written.

The letter of introduction stated that Kang Oh was trustworthy, and that he was tracing the whereabouts of the Black Hammer Dwarves.

"I have to go to Despia no matter what. Me and this person over here." Kang Oh pointed at Eder.

Honadan nodded his head and said, "You're wondering how the Black Hammer Dwarves entered Despia."

"Yes."

"Death exists within the time-eating entity. Have you heard this before?"

Kang Oh nodded his head. The drunkard, Tino, had said that to him.

"The time-eating entity is a Death Worm called 'Liviola'."