The Gate beyond them looked rather small for a C-rank. Thud. Thud. As Jin-Woo and Yoo Jin-Ho stepped down from the van, Hunters gathered around them one by two. Almost none of them looked fit. The most common type was Hunters who seemed to have trouble moving, but there were also people who looked like patients and alcoholics. There was even a teenage girl that neither the Association nor any guild would take in. At a glance, she looked about high school age.
"Is it okay to bring a kid along?" "I consulted a lawyer, and legally there's no issue at all. It's just that if something goes wrong, the fallout becomes enormous, so they don't really do it."
Jin-Woo nodded.
'Then it should be fine.'
After all, only he and Yoo Jin-Ho were going inside the Gate, so the chance of any incident was effectively zero percent. These people were there to fill numbers. Clearing a C-rank Gate required a total of ten Hunters. So he'd recruited the other eight. Naturally, all eight understood exactly why they were here. They were people who held Hunter licenses but, due to circumstances, couldn't work as Hunters. They were the ones who'd mainly answered the recruitment call because of the financial hardships that came with it. Yoo Jin-Ho stepped forward.
"My name is Yoo Jin-Ho, and I'll be leading this raid. And this is Hunter Sung Jin-Woo, who will be entering the Dungeon with me. All you need to do is wait near the entrance until we return."
One of the Hunters cautiously raised a hand.
"Um... if we really just do that, we'll get three million won?"
No hunting required. No—they wouldn't even need to enter the Dungeon. Three million won per raid, paid out for each participation. For simply lending their names on the records as raid participants, the compensation was absurdly generous. This wasn't some scam where you'd be handed river water from the Taedong and told it was fine wine—the conditions were so good that everyone looked uneasy, wondering if they were being conned.
"The conditions are guaranteed."
Yoo Jin-Ho's voice strained with tension. His gaze turned serious.
"In exchange, you must never reveal anything you see or hear here. If you violate the confidentiality clause, you'll be required to pay back ten times the amount received, as stated in the contract."
Murmur, murmur. The Hunters whispered among themselves. What on earth were those two planning to do inside the Dungeon that they'd set conditions like these? Curious, but nobody could ask. That too was part of the confidentiality clause.
- Absolutely no questions regarding anything that happens inside the Dungeon.
Jin-Woo didn't want to reveal his unique constitution, and Yoo Jin-Ho needed to keep the team's mouths thoroughly shut for his plan of becoming a Master.
'...'
Rather than questioning the two, the Hunters quietly exchanged whispers among themselves.
"Wait, but can two people really clear a C-rank Dungeon?" "They don't look like that strong of Hunters." "If they had the strength to clear a C-rank Gate with just the two of them, wouldn't it make way more sense to join a major guild and take on higher-ranked Dungeons?" "Exactly."
They all sounded skeptical, but not a single person bowed out. That was only natural. The conditions were just too good. Even Jin-Woo had been tempted by the two million won. The extra million over what Hwang Dong-Suk's group had offered was because the contract came with a strict confidentiality requirement. The explanation had taken quite a while. Glancing at his watch, Jin-Woo tossed a remark to Yoo Jin-Ho.
"Let's get going." "Understood, Hyung-nim."
Yoo Jin-Ho answered with a sharp bow, then clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention.
"Well, that's all for the explanation. There's absolutely no coercion. If anyone wants to back out now or can't go through with it, speak up." "..." "..."
Nobody raised a hand. The moment had arrived where all they had to do was step inside the Gate.
"Ah, Hyung-nim. One second."
As if remembering something he'd forgotten, Yoo Jin-Ho hurried to the back of the van. He rummaged through something, pulled out a set of gear and put it on, then waddled over.
"What... is that?" "A full set of reinforced armor from an Italian craftsman's guild. Hyung-nim. If we're going to clear a Dungeon together, we need to be at least this prepared, right?"
Jin-Woo pressed his hand to his forehead.
"..."
From head to toe, Yoo Jin-Ho was encased in a slab of metal that looked suffocating just to stand next to.
"What's the matter, Hyung-nim?"
Unable to watch any longer, Jin-Woo yanked the long sword from Yoo Jin-Ho's hip and dropped it to the ground.
"Huh? Huh?"
Yoo Jin-Ho reached to pick it up, lost his balance, and toppled over. Thump. Jin-Woo swallowed the rising anger building inside him and spoke with difficulty.
"Take it off while I'm asking nicely." "...Yes."
But Yoo Jin-Ho stopped mid-rise and called out to Jin-Woo again.
"Hyung-nim..." "What now?" "Could you help me up?"
Jin-Woo looked at Yoo Jin-Ho's outstretched hand and let out a deep sigh.
"Is this acceptable, Hyung-nim?" "Yeah."
In the end, they settled on just the helmet. Yoo Jin-Ho jumped into the Gate with a satisfied look on his face. Jin-Woo followed soundlessly behind him. After the two had entered the Dungeon one after another, the Hunters slowly crept toward the Gate. One of them spoke worriedly.
"From the way they were acting, they seemed pretty underwhelming..."
Another Hunter looked at the Gate and agreed.
"Right."
That exchange broke the dam, and the Hunters' words started flowing. Everyone let out what they wanted to say.
"What happens if they both get killed in there?" "Well, we've already received our full payment, so..." "That's true, but..." "Wait, what were their names again?" "That's the thing."
A man with a cast on his leg quickly pulled out his phone and searched their names.
"Yoo Jin-Ho, Sung Jin-Woo..."
Whether because the man on crutches looked unsteady, or because he wanted to see the search results faster, another Hunter steadied the cast-legged man and leaned in to look at the phone screen.
"What? The raid leader is D-rank?"
The Hunters were stunned. But the next result was even more shocking.
"The guy next to him is E-rank?" "E-rank going into a C-rank Gate is dangerous just by itself." "A D-rank and an E-rank clearing a C-rank Dungeon?" "Is that even possible?" "And the so-called raid leader has zero raid records." "No, why would young people..."
It was practically suicide. There was a reason the Association had set a minimum standard of ten people with at least five C-rank Hunters for a C-rank Gate raid.
"Tsk, tsk."
A middle-aged Hunter with flecks of grey in his hair pulled a cigarette from inside his coat and put it in his mouth.
"Youthful arrogance kills more people than you'd think."
Cigarette smoke rose in a pale grey curl.
"..." "..."
The Hunters fell silent. They felt uncomfortable, as though they'd had a hand in someone's death. Even strangers—no, to be precise, somewhere inside the Gate right in front of their eyes—nobody wanted to wish for people to die. And that wasn't all. The money was a waste, too. They'd already received the signing bonus, but if they could follow through on the remaining eighteen raids as stated in the contract, they'd stand to pocket a much larger sum. Unfortunately, the odds of those two coming back alive were slim.
"Shouldn't... shouldn't we report this right now?" "I know. What if we catch stray sparks from this?"
Right then. Wuuuung. Jin-Woo and Yoo Jin-Ho burst out of the Gate.
"Hah, hah, hah."
Yoo Jin-Ho panted heavily. Steam rose from the two exhausted figures.
"Oh!" "They made it out alive!" "Thank goodness."
The Hunters greeted them with relieved faces. Judging by how long the two had been gone, they figured the pair had barely scraped their way out after wandering around near the entrance. But then something happened. The Hunters' expressions began to change.
"Th-the Gate is closing!"
What? Everyone turned to look at the Gate.
"Oh my God!" "Over there!" "They k-killed the boss?"
Just like when a Dungeon's boss was defeated, the Gate's image was growing blurry. As the Hunters were struck dumb with shock, Jin-Woo calmly asked, ignoring their stares.
"Where's the next one?" "It's about an hour's drive from here, Hyung-nim." "Let's go."
Jin-Woo and Yoo Jin-Ho strode toward the van without hesitation. The Hunters stared blankly at their retreating backs. When Yoo Jin-Ho noticed the Hunters weren't following, he turned around.
"Hurry up, Hunter-nims. We've got two more Gates to clear today and we're short on time."
The Hunters' jaws dropped. Tsk. The middle-aged Hunter with greying hair named Yoo Gwi-Won was so stunned he didn't even notice the cigarette falling from his mouth to the ground.
'They cleared a C-rank Dungeon just the two of them and now they're going to raid again?'
It wasn't just Yoo Gwi-Won. All the Hunters had the exact same thought at the same time.
'What the hell kind of people are those two?'
***
Day One. Grrraaaah. Zombies came charging in a horde.
"Hyung-nim, here they come!" "Yeah."
Jin-Woo glided smoothly through the oncoming wave of zombies. Every time he passed, zombie heads tumbled to the ground. The number of zombies dwindled fast. The last one remaining. Thunk!
"Graaah!"
As Jin-Woo drove his sword into the creature's chest, the familiar mechanical sound rang out. Ding!
[Level Up!]
Standing back, Yoo Jin-Ho applauded with admiration.
"That was amazing, Hyung-nim!" "Mana crystals." "Ah, yes sir."
Yoo Jin-Ho quickly pulled out a bag and began collecting the mana crystals. But then the mechanical sounds continued beyond just the Level Up notification. Ding!
[You have learned the skill: Advanced Dagger Arts Lv.1.]
Ding!
[You have learned the skill: Vital Strike Lv.1.]
Ding!
[The skill 'Sprint' has leveled up!]
Jin-Woo's expression brightened.
'New skills?'
How long had it been since this happened? Pleased, Jin-Woo immediately pulled up the skill information window.
[Skills] Passive Skills: (Unknown) Lv.MAX, Fortitude Lv.1, Advanced Dagger Arts Lv.1 Active Skills: Sprint Lv.2, Killing Intent Lv.1, Stealth Lv.1, Vital Strike Lv.1
Using the Sprint skill frequently had raised it to Lv.2. And Advanced Dagger Arts and Vital Strike had appeared under passive and active skills respectively.