Title: Breaking News) Dungeon Break Erupts in the Middle of Gwanghwamun
Content: No details
— Holy shit… is this the dawn of the apocalypse?
— Honestly, ever since dungeons started appearing, it’s been a semi-apocalypse anyway.
— Korea just handled things relatively fast, that’s all.
— That’s only true for the capital area though. If a Dungeon Breaks out in a depopulated region, it can take over a week to clear.
— Still, a Dungeon Break in Gwanghwamun, with that population density, feels unprecedented.
— And not even on a weekend with low foot traffic. It was on a weekday… office workers got screwed.
— Feels like the first time since the dungeon Yu Hanul stopped years ago.
— Those all had massive death tolls too…
— But Gwanghwamun is a Hunter-dense area, right? Central Management is there, so it should be suppressed quickly?
— A live feed just went up—apparently it’s a Type 2 dungeon, and a barrier formed around it so the rescue teams can’t enter.
— Huh? What does that even mean?
— Has something like that ever happened?
ㄴ I’m a current core researcher. Theoretically, it is possible. When a Type 2 Dungeon Break occurs, the substance known as a “core” pulls toward the dimension it originally belonged to. If you artificially amplify this core tension, reality within its range is affected more strongly. As a result, a temporary dimensional separation can occur. This was recently published in a U.S. academic journal and is still in the verification stage, but it’s possible that something like that happened here.
ㄴ Wait, then are you saying this was artificially caused?
ㄴ It’s too early to be certain, but in my opinion, this would be very difficult to happen without artificial intervention.
ㄴ Then why even research stuff like this?
ㄴ If core tension could be artificially controlled, the applications would be limitless. Even this Dungeon Break could’ve been suppressed immediately if such control were possible.
— What the hell are you guys talking about? Someone explain this simply.
ㄴ In short… it sounds like this Dungeon Break might have been caused deliberately?
ㄴ Why are people believing random internet info? I’m actually a Harvard professor—would you believe me?
ㄴ No way. If that were real, the government would’ve announced it.
ㄴ There’s no way they’d disclose this kind of info to civilians.
ㄴ I’m the one who commented about cores earlier. If you check overseas academic databases, it’s all there. Downside is that it’s in English.
— If that’s true, the scale is insane… but surely not.
— Still, shouldn’t rescuing the people trapped inside come first instead of arguing about the cause?
— Since monsters can’t get past the barrier, isn’t that at least somewhat positive?
ㄴ Positive? You’re not even thinking about the people trapped inside—watch your mouth.
ㄴ It’s better than Gwanghwamun turning into a monster hellscape.
— Please… my family member is a civil servant working there. I can’t contact them and I’m losing my mind.
ㄴ That’s terrifying…
ㄴ It’ll be okay. It’ll be cleared soon.
— Guys, you know today was the registration day for trainee Hunters, right? Apparently a ton of this year’s trainees were at Central Management… parents are freaking out after getting calls.
— Huh? Then what about Jeong Daon?
— Why is Jeong Daon suddenly coming up?
— Jeong Daon lives in Eunpyeong District, wouldn’t she go to that local office?
— A-rank and above have to register at Central. Jeong Daon is probably there too.
— Is that confirmed?
— If that’s true, does that mean Jeong Daon experienced two Dungeon Breaks just days after awakening??
— What the actual hell is this—talk about insane bad luck.
— Hey, wanna see this video? There’s a former American A-rank Hunter YouTuber who tells Hunter stories. He was livestreaming, got a donation with news about Korea, and immediately said, “This Dungeon Break was triggered to target Jeong Daon.”
— You mean that guy who retired due to injury? He only got S-rank for potential and capped out at C-rank in his active days. Not worth listening to, pure clout chaser.
— Americans love conspiracy theories.
— How would you even trigger a Dungeon Break artificially? Ridiculous.
— But read the comments above—it actually sounds possible?
— Needs verification. It’s not confirmed; why believe internet rumors?
— Someone check the overseas journals.
— If this were real, Rabbit would be on fire by now. Anyone seen posts about it?
ㄴ I live in the U.S. and check Rabbit sometimes. Even there, it’s just “this might be possible” speculation. Making an item to control core tension would cost an astronomical amount, so it never even reached commercialization.
ㄴ Oh…
ㄴ Still, that means it can be made if you have enough money, right?
— People might be dying right now, do you really want to bring in rumor-bait nonsense?
…
…
— Breaking news: Dungeon break cleared!!
— Took a total of 4 hours and 28 minutes.
— Casualties are still being assessed, but there appear to be fatalities.
ㄴ Oh no…
— May the deceased rest in peace.
— Holy shit, Yu Hanul and Han Jaeyeong were both inside that building?
ㄴ Then isn’t it weird that it took 4 hours and 28 minutes?
ㄴ Did an S-rank monster show up or something?
ㄴ Korea’s top two Hunters were there—that makes the time even stranger.
ㄴ Do people think dungeons just get instantly wiped if a high-rank Hunter shows up…
ㄴ Remember how Yu Hanul crushed that dungeon the moment they entered two days ago?
— Han Jaeyeong says there were many special circumstances this time, and due to classified matters, they’ll give a detailed briefing later after consulting with the government.
— For all that, Han Jaeyeong looks perfectly fine though?
— Damn, over a thousand people were trapped in that building.
— Thirteen dead, over twenty critically injured.
— Biggest loss among recent Dungeon Breaks… and civilians too. May they rest in peace.
— What’s wrong with dungeon “quality control” lately?
— Reporters are swarming the scene, but there’s zero solid info. What kind of monster caused that disaster?
— Injured survivors are saying it was C-rank. Some shadow ghosts, one of the common C-rank monsters.
— No way. C-rank monsters, and Yu Hanul and Han Jaeyeong couldn’t do anything? Impossible.
— Central Management was packed with Hunters, so how does this make sense? Struggling against mere C-rank monsters?
ㄴ I keep saying this, but entering a prepared Type 1 dungeon and unexpectedly colliding with a Type 2 dungeon are completely different things.
— Yeah, even Hunters can fail to respond properly if a dungeon suddenly erupts during daily life.
ㄴ Still, there were two S-ranks. That explanation doesn’t cut it. C-ranks are something they could kill with their feet.
— There must’ve been extenuating circumstances.
— Han Jaeyeong said they’d brief after consulting the government.
— If it’s classified, there’s a good chance the public won’t be told.
— F**k. We pour insane tax money into Hunter support, if suppression takes this long, shouldn’t they at least explain why?
ㄴ Then you go clear it yourself if you want; we’ll pay you.
— Also weird that Han Jaeyeong, not Yu Hanul, did the interview… could Yu Hanul be injured?
ㄴ Holy shit, don’t tell me…
ㄴ If that’s the case, it would be classified.
— YouTube is already flooded with clout-chasing videos linking the Korean Dungeon Break to Jeong Daon lol.
— Looks like Jeong Daon is a seriously desirable asset. People are losing their minds.
— What kind of bait is this? Are there really factions trying to kill Jeong Daon by artificially triggering Dungeon Breaks? Assuming that’s even possible, this is insane.
— Is Jeong Daon really that big a deal? Sure, she showed latent S-rank potential, but we don’t even know how she’ll grow.
ㄴ That’s exactly why it’s scary. You don’t know how far she’ll go.
ㄴ Between the S-rank result from the ability test and that video from a few days ago, mages are all calling her a “Yeokcheon-Goe.”
ㄴ What’s that?
ㄴ It means “historical-level genius monster.” Basically, a super rookie.
— I don’t like conspiracy theories either, but the idea that someone targeted Jeong Daon doesn’t sound impossible. Two Dungeon Breaks in under a week? That’s ridiculous.
— Maybe the first was coincidence, but after seeing that magic video, could a foreign guild have sent assassins?
— Hey, dial back the conspiracy stuff.
— Still, it is suspicious. It’s been a long time since an S-rank prospect showed up. Foreign countries eyeing them sounds plausible.
— Even so, isn’t this going too far? Doing all this for a rookie? If anything, targeting Yu Hanul or Han Jaeyeong would make more sense.
— Han Jaeyeong is cheaper to naturalize than to kill, probably. Yu Hanul, I get.
— Communities are in absolute chaos right now.
Yeah, it really is a mess. With Dungeon Breaks happening twice in less than a week, everyone’s understandably losing their minds over this bizarre situation.
I should look more into those comments about that paper.
A paper on methods to artificially trigger Dungeon Breaks… Of course, considering the information the system just gave me and who the so-called “Enemy of Humanity” behind this phenomenon might be, it’s not that surprising either.
“Daon!”
At the sound of a trembling voice, I closed the phone I’d been scrolling through. Jeong Dajeong was running toward me. I’d contacted him as soon as the barrier in the area disappeared and the rescue teams moved in, but even so, this was faster than I’d expected. Normally, he’d still be at work right now, I’d thought it would be at least past 7 p.m. before he arrived…
“Did you take a half day off?”
“Half day or not, is that really what matters right now? Are you okay? Huh? You’re not hurt anywhere, right?”
“I told you I’m mostly fine, so take your time coming over… ah.”
“What do you mean ‘fine’?! You’re covered in bandages!”
I thought I wouldn’t be found out right away since the rescue team had wrapped me up in blankets from head to toe and told me to rest, but I was busted immediately.
“Let me see. How badly are you hurt for them to do this?”
“Just scrapes. I took a pretty bad fall. I tripped while evacuating down the stairs and rolled,” I lied without blinking.
When I dealt with the Dungeon Break, my injuries were far worse than mere scrapes, but fortunately I’d run into Han Jaeyeong before Jeong Dajeong arrived and squeezed some potions out of them. Thanks to that, all the urgent wounds were treated. What showed now were only scabbed abrasions and a slightly pale face from anemia. If things got rough, a day in the hospital with an IV tomorrow would fix it.
“You fell and rolled down the stairs?! And they said you don’t need to be hospitalized? For something like that, your face is way too pale.”
“Hospitalization for scrapes? There are so many people more seriously hurt. I can’t say something like that.”
I should remind them one more time not to release the emergency stairwell CCTV footage.
It was a good thing I’d already come to an agreement with Han Jaeyeong before Jeong Dajeong arrived. If footage of me got released like last time and Jeong Dajeong saw it… my eardrums might actually burst.
Seeing that I was at least alive seemed to calm him down a little. Jeong Dajeong hugged me tightly, his voice trembling. “Seriously… what on earth is going on…” Honestly, from his perspective, all of this must feel insane. So much chaos in just a few days.
To be fair, my own thoughts weren’t all that different. I patted his back. “It’s okay. It’s nothing serious. It’ll turn out to be nothing serious.”
“…Daon, you…” His expression tightened as if he was about to ask something. “Huh? There’s something squishy here… what?!”
“Grrrr!”
Leo, who had been pressed right up against me, suddenly poked his head out from between the blankets and growled. Jeong Dajeong nearly fainted from shock at the sudden appearance.
“A cat?! Did it crawl in because it was cold?”
I guess to anyone else, he really did look like a cat. I glanced at Leo. Just moments ago, he’d bared his teeth to threaten Jeong Dajeong, but now he was looking at me as if expecting praise.
“Yowl!”
Of course, that was nonsense.
After taking a hit, Leo looked utterly confused. “Why did I get hit?”
“Daon! How could you hit a cat?!” Jeong Dajeong gasped and tried to pull Leo away from me, but Leo bared his teeth again. His attitude clearly said he wouldn’t tolerate some lesser being touching him, so I kicked him once more.
“Grr… yowl!”
“Why?”
“Serve him properly. He’s your top-priority protection target.”
Leo stared at me in disbelief. “What are you even saying?”
“Did your intelligence drop too? You can’t even understand a command?”
“Whiiine…” Having taken both physical and emotional damage, Leo’s shoulders drooped.
He must’ve looked pitiful enough, because Jeong Dajeong glared at me. “Jeong Daon! No, seriously, what did you even do to that cat—!”
“Don’t be fooled by appearances. That thing’s basically a monster.”
Jeong Dajeong recoiled in shock. “Wh-what? A monster? This thing?”
“Yeah. You know how games you play have summons, right? It’s like that.”
“Then this cat is your summon, Daon?!”
“That’s probably the most accurate way to put it for now.”
In proper magical theory, a summoned beast bound by a summoning contract with another world and a vassal whose body is painstakingly created from scratch are fundamentally different, but to an ordinary person, they’d look much the same.
“Anyway, be careful. If you give it an opening, it’ll bite.”
It might look like a kitten, but it was undeniably dangerous, something that could handle a C-rank monster with a single paw. For a normal person like Jeong Dajeong, even a light swipe could be fatal. That was why, even if it seemed harsh, I needed to establish a clear hierarchy. Normally, vassals couldn’t act against their master’s will, but…
“Hmph.”
In Leo’s case, I hadn’t just built a command mechanism. I’d given him a soul, too. He was, for all intents and purposes, an independent life-form. I’d started making him because I was too lazy to micromanage commands, and now here we were. If I’d known it’d turn out like this, I should’ve just made a standard vassal despite the hassle.
“But still, Daon.” Jeong Dajeong spoke carefully. “You’ve only been awakened for three days. And you already summoned something? Isn’t that really hard? Does this even make sense?”
A perfectly reasonable question. It really did make no sense. Even to Jeong Dajeong, a civilian living in the era of great dungeons, this situation clearly seemed abnormal.
But who was I, after all?
I nodded shamelessly. “I guess I’m just an exceptional genius. The Supernatural Test said I was S-rank, remember?”
“That’s true, but… still, even for S-rank, doesn’t this defy common sense…?”
“Who cares about common sense? It happened, didn’t it? Right, Leo?”
“Grrk… grrr…”
“Figure it out yourself.”
Sensing my irritation, Leo flattened his ears and crouched low to the ground. “Whine…”
“I didn’t even do anything…”
Jeong Dajeong tilted his head, unconvinced. “I mean… I guess? But still…”
“I even named him already. Leo. It’s not like I can just throw him away.”
“That’s not what I meant! Daon, are you going to keep dodging the point?”
“Grrr!” Leo bared his teeth at Jeong Dajeong as he scolded me. I patted his back.
“See? He understands what you’re saying and he’s mad.”
“No, that’s not what I was trying to say…”
“Hey, it’s Hero Big Sis!”
Fortunately for me, the scene was absolute chaos. A child who’d been waiting longer than the others for their parents waved at me.
“Hi, Hero Big Sis! Hi, Super Cat too!”
“Hero Big Sis?”
“Must’ve mistaken me for someone else.”
I pretended not to see them and didn’t wave back, but the child threw a fit, insisting on saying hello. Unfortunately, the parent, clearly exhausted from the long day, had none of it.
“Come on, I said I’m going to say hi to Big Siiiiiis!”
“We have to be quiet outside!”
What a loud kid. Maybe they were too young to understand public manners or maybe they were just desperate to say hello.
At least none of the children’s parents were among the casualties.
After sacrificing my body to save them, it would’ve left a bitter taste if the kids had lost their parents anyway.
In the distance, reporters could be heard conducting interviews in front of cameras.
“A Type 2 Dungeon Break has occurred in the heart of Seoul. This is the first time we’ve seen a Dungeon Break form a barrier that blocks outside intervention, causing considerable shock. Let’s hear from a rescue worker on site…”
Jeong Dajeong sighed. He looked like he had a lot more he wanted to say, but with the site in such chaos, he seemed to decide this wasn’t the time. “Anyway, I’m glad you’re not badly hurt. Seriously, what is all this? If things keep going like this, how are we supposed to live without being scared? I really need to find some way to avoid mandatory service…”
“So, about that, Jeong Dajeong.”
“You should call me ‘brother.’”
“Okay. Brother.”
Since Jeong Dajeong is my older sibling, there was something genuinely urgent now. More urgent than grand quests about saving the world. More urgent than running into people tied to my past life in the most unexpected ways.
I spoke seriously. “We need to move. As soon as possible.”
I needed to hide my family from this life. Anywhere would do.