“W-wait, isn’t this some kind of mistake?”
“A Dungeon Break happening this suddenly?”
“They’re not pulling some prank just because some rookies joined, right?”
The hopeful guesses blurted out by the clueless rookie Hunters collapsed at once under the heavy, reverberating roar that followed.
Boom!
Boom, boom!
The sound of something massive moving echoed throughout the entire building. It was a noise no ordinary human could possibly make. At the same time, scattered screams rang out from all over the building.
“Aaaah!”
“Close the door! The door, hurry!”
“Let me in! Let me in first and then close it—aaaargh!”
It didn’t take long for the rookie Hunters inside the office to realize the reality of the situation after hearing voices filled with desperate agony. Their young faces were stained with terror.
“A prank, my ass. It’s a real monster, what do we do?!”
“I don’t even have a weapon! I haven’t been trained yet!”
“I’m trying to call the rescue team, but the call won’t go through!”
“…Sorry for grabbing you so suddenly.”
Only then was I finally able to break free from Yu Hanul’s grip. My cheek hurt from being slammed into the floor, but this wasn’t exactly a situation where I could complain about something like that. Rubbing my cheek, I grabbed his hand with my free hand and stood up. Looking around, I saw that although the fluorescent lights were out, it was still late afternoon, so light streamed in and it wasn’t dark.
“First, we need to assess the situation—”
“You really have terrible luck, don’t you, Daon?” A leisurely voice completely out of place for the situation rang. It was Han Jaeyeong. “You just got dragged into a dungeon not long ago, and something like this happens again.”
They took a step toward me, then another, until their face was close, so close I could feel their breath. I frowned in irritation. Han Jaeyeong’s sharply defined black-and-white eyes swept over me insistently, like a Cheshire cat’s.
“What do you think?”
What do I think, indeed.
It’s just damn annoying.
My mind was filled with nothing but anger and questions. Was this another Dungeon Break caused by someone targeting me? Like last time, shattering someone’s life to pieces in the process?
It had only been two days since I’d gotten caught up in a dungeon. I’d heard that the old lady’s supermarket still hadn’t even been cleaned up because a man’s body had been blown apart. Who on earth was doing this, and for what purpose?
The idea that someone wanted me dead wasn’t surprising. There were plenty of reasons to kill me. For instance, someone might simply dislike the emergence of a human with potential S-rank abilities, or perhaps there was someone somewhere in this world who knew about my past life and knew who I really was. Either was possible, but what I was most curious about was something else entirely.
Wouldn’t it be easier to just come and kill me directly?
With the power and wealth to scheme something like this again in barely two days… why go out of the way to target me through a Dungeon Break? Right now, I’m just a “human” with great latent potential, still on a leash held by the system. If I were the target, wouldn’t it be better to simply aim for my life directly instead of triggering a Dungeon Break twice?
Or is there some reason the enemy, whose identity I don’t even know, can’t come after me in person?
While I was turning things over in my head, Yu Hanul gave a brief warning. “Hunter Han Jaeyeong, remember that the other party is a minor.”
“Hahaha, why get hung up on something so trivial? She’ll be an adult in a month.”
“Han Jaeyeong.”
“Yes, yes.”
Han Jaeyeong stepped back with a look of regret. Yu Hanul silently mouthed a question to me, asking if I was okay. He probably thought my quiet stillness meant I’d been overwhelmed by Han Jaeyeong. That was a misunderstanding. I’d simply been thinking about something else entirely.
Han Jaeyeong smiled brightly, as if they hadn’t been staring at me so intently just moments ago. “Let’s deal with what’s right in front of us first.” I agreed with that. Han Jaeyeong covered their mouth with a hand and coughed exaggeratedly. “Ahem. A Dungeon Break in the middle of Seoul, huh. What a mess. This is troublesome.”
One of the 18th-generation trainee Hunters, who had been caught up in the chaos, raised a hand and spoke to Han Jaeyeong. “Um, Hunter Han Jaeyeong.” He looked like a student asking a question in class. Considering his age, that wasn’t entirely wrong. “It is a Dungeon Break… but there are two S-rank Hunters here, aren’t there? Can’t the two of you just clear it?”
“Th-that’s right!”
“Wouldn’t you be able to handle it quickly?”
“That’s precisely why it’s not realistically possible,” Han Jaeyeong said coldly.
It was more than enough to pour cold water over the already chaotic atmosphere, unfortunately, in the worst way possible. When someone doesn’t meet their personal standards of value, Han Jaeyeong really doesn't hold back. Exactly the kind of human a demon might favor.
“Everyone should get into the habit of checking system messages. They’ll contribute greatly to keeping you alive.”
It seemed the rookie Hunters still weren’t used to checking system messages. That was probably why they hadn’t noticed the temporary drop in overall level. And honestly, this caught me off guard too.
[Warning!] Overall level has temporarily decreased.
That was the message that had appeared just before Yu Hanul knocked me to the floor. And at the same moment that message appeared…
Jeong Daon (Abnormal)
Potential Ability Rating: S-rank
Stamina: LV. 12 (No cap)
Strength: LV. 8 (No cap)
Mana: LV. 18 → 1 (No cap)
Overall Level: LV. 12 → 8
Warning! Overall level has decreased due to unknown reasons. Exercise caution when clearing the dungeon.
“What is this? A temporary drop in overall level?”
“Yes. That smoke is responsible.” Han Jaeyeong traced the smoke leaking out from under the door with their finger. In its wake, something like fine white powder remained. “It’s a latest invention designed to suppress Hunters by temporarily disabling their mana circuits.”
“…Something like that actually exists?”
“It was first invented in the United States. A creation of Estella, the head of the Hunter Association.”
Estella. I’d heard that name a few times on the news. One of the strongest mages in the world, if I remembered correctly.
Yu Hanul nodded grimly. “Given human anatomy, inhaling it through the airway is hard to prevent, no matter how strong an S-rank Hunter is. Unless you were already wearing a gas mask, it circulates through the lungs and around the body in an instant.”
“Why would the Association head invent something like this? She’s a mage herself.”
“For the happiness of more ordinary people.”
What is that supposed to mean? That part sent a chill down my spine, at least, from a demon’s perspective.
As I rubbed my arm, Han Jaeyeong continued their explanation, “For lower-rank Hunters, when making a living becomes difficult, there are many cases where they turn to robbery. It’s especially troublesome in places like the U.S., where control over public security is weaker. Basically, this item was created to deal with criminals who possess special abilities. Its necessity is quite clear.”
“…I understand the necessity. But is it really okay for something like this to be circulating freely? An item that can incapacitate an S-rank Hunter this easily?”
“Of course not. In the U.S., it’s managed as strictly as firearms, and it’s expensive too. That’s why I thought it hadn’t made its way into Korea yet…”
“Now that items can be stored in inventory slots, customs inspections have essentially become meaningless. It’d be nice if a Hunter like Leila were here in our country too, honestly.”
Han Jaeyeong put the white powder clinging to their finger into a small plastic bag and tossed it into the air. It seemed to disappear as it turned into an item. “We’ll investigate how this item ended up circulating here later. For now, we need to deal with this situation first.”
“Um… then…” One of the rookie Hunters listening to the conversation spoke in a voice full of despair. “What happens to us…?”
“There’s no need to worry too much. For S-rank Hunters, it’s usually detoxified within an hour.”
At Yu Hanul’s words, Han Jaeyeong smiled faintly. “In other words, for one hour, both Yu Hanul and I are basically useless.” This was hardly something to talk about so lightly, yet they said it with such cheer.
Yu Hanul looked around at the anxious faces and spoke. “You don’t need to worry that much. First of all, this Dungeon Break isn’t Type 1, it didn’t pull us into the dungeon. It’s a Type 2, manifesting in reality. Does anyone know what that means?”
It really seemed like a class lesson was about to start.
“Ah, me.” One of the rookie Hunters raised their hand and answered as if giving a presentation, “If the number of monsters in the area where the dimensional rift occurs is fewer than the number of people, the monsters appear in reality.”
“Correct. Looks like you’ve been studying hard.”
“Ah, y-yes…”
Yu Hanul, like a proper senior, handled the anxious rookie Hunters calmly. He’d probably make a good teacher. “And in the case of a Type 2 Dungeon Break, the number of monsters doesn’t increase explosively. If dealt with early, it often ends with just one or two. Also, this building has many areas that can serve as barricades, and since the Dungeon Break happened in the middle of Seoul, rescue teams will arrive quickly. We just need to hold out for a bit.”
It was a concise and accurate explanation. It took Yu Hanul exactly three minutes to organize the situation like this.
And the speaker mattered. Even in his current state, practically no different from an ordinary person, the sense of trust Yu Hanul inspired in the people of South Korea was immense.
Hope appeared on the faces of the rookie Hunters who had been floundering in despair.
Crash! Bang!
Kieeeek!
Of course, right after that, the monster’s screech came from beyond the glass door. Something slithered, and outside the window grew dark.
“Th-the glass door looks too dangerous. Should we block it with something so we can’t see through?”
“Against that monster, being in a dark place is even more dangerous.”
“Do you know what that monster is?”
“Based on the noise and the sounds, I can make a reasonable guess.”
Yu Hanul nodded. “It’s probably a shadow ghost. The name sounds childish, but it’s a fairly troublesome monster. It’s a psychic-type creature that feeds on people’s despair and gives form to that despair. However, it can’t appear in brightly lit areas. That’s why the sounds are coming from the emergency stairwell, where sunlight doesn’t reach, even inside the building. That’ll likely become their base.”
“How do you know it’s the emergency stairwell?”
“Because the sound echoes,” Yu Hanul replied sharply, causing a few of the rookie Hunters to look on in admiration. “The problem is how many people in this building, in this situation, actually know that monster’s traits and can respond appropriately.”
Han Jaeyeong tapped their cheek lightly. “It’s a building Hunters frequent, so I think they’ll manage to some extent. The office areas are mostly glass, so as long as we let in enough light, it should be fine.”
“The problem is the people who were in places without light to begin with. Hallways, elevators, the lobby…”
Yu Hanul was staring through the glass door with a serious expression when someone let out a piercing scream.
"No!"
It was the staff member who had been helping process my paperwork beyond the glass.
“We have to go to the second floor. Right now, the second floor!”
Crash! Bang!
Startled, the woman jumped to her feet, knocking over the stacks of file folders piled on the desk, which fell with a loud clatter. She tried to bolt through the glass door at a pace that looked like she might trip at any moment.
The rookie Hunters, who had been listening quietly to Yu Hanul’s instructions, were thrown into confusion by the civilian’s sudden behavior.
“Wh-what?”
“What’s wrong with that lady?”
“Wait!” Yu Hanul hurriedly grabbed the woman’s shoulder to stop her as she tried to rush out. “You can’t go out there. Even if it’s a bright area, it can infiltrate anywhere there’s a shadow—”
“There’s a daycare on the second floor. My child is there!”