Chapter 72
The S-rank dungeon that Wraith Guild had secured was named the Hermitage of the Magician Scholar, and it was expected to contain a large number of guardians animated by magical traps and formula-based workings.
Even if it was only the lowest sub-tier of difficulty, it was still an S-rank dungeon. He couldn’t afford to be careless. So Hyun-jun decided to mobilize every available fighter beyond the members of Wraith Guild. The first person he called was Han-seok.
“Mr. Han-seok. What do you think?”
No sooner had he finished explaining the situation than Hyun-jun asked the question. Han-seok grinned and answered.
“I’ll take part.”
The danger of an S-rank dungeon was beyond imagination. Even porters were hard to find, because only B-rank hunters and above had enough defensive capability to be allowed to support such an operation, and even then, despite the fact that death allowances were being thrown around like confetti, they were still hard to recruit. But Han-seok trusted Hyun-jun.
He had seen how reliable Hyun-jun had been during the exclusive raid, and after Hyun-jun had saved his life in the monster attack, Han-seok had made up his mind to follow him to the end.
“Thanks for trusting me.”
Hyun-jun answered with a smile of his own. The next person was Jin-a. If he brought her in, her attendant Seok-hyun would follow as well. Of course, he could move more hunters under her wing, but he had no desire to borrow that much help, and there was no need to do so.
“Would it be all right if just me and Team Leader Park went?” Jin-a asked.
She made the decision to join at once. That gave Hyun-jun two S-rank hunters and two A-rank hunters, himself included. But he didn’t stop there. After ordering Tae-min to secure porters who were allowed to enter an S-rank dungeon, he went to find Baek Han-soo.
“Of course I’ll take part in the raid! Honestly, deciding to follow Guild Leader back then was the best decision I ever made!”
At the explanation that an S-rank dungeon had been secured, Han-soo burst into tears. The moment he had been waiting and hoping for was about to come true. He knew there was a risk to his life, but he resolved to follow without hesitation. Once Han-soo’s participation was settled, Hyun-jun contacted So-jin and Gyu-hwan as well. So-jin replied immediately, but Gyu-hwan thought about it seriously for about an hour before saying in a calm voice that he would come along.
S-rank, two. A-rank, five...
It was by no means a small force, but it still felt insufficient for taking on an S-rank dungeon. As much as he wanted to call in more people, there weren’t any suitable candidates.
“At this rate, the damage might be severe...”
Sitting in his office and worrying, Hyun-jun bit his lip. He was confident he could clear it, but he wasn’t confident he could protect everyone throughout the raid.
“What should I do...?”
But no answer came, and the dungeon date kept drawing closer. Just when he was worrying over whether he would have to organize the raid team exactly as it was, Hyun-jun thought of a cruel but certain solution.
“You called for me?”
Hyun-jun summoned Executive Director Kim Tae-min. Tae-min, who had been handling work downstairs, rushed up at once after receiving the call.
“Please submit this roster to the Dungeon Management Bureau as it is.”
“Guild Leader. Lee Jin-a and Park Seok-hyun are missing from the list. Should we proceed anyway?”
After receiving the provisional roster and reviewing it once, Tae-min asked carefully. Hyun-jun nodded and spoke.
“There’s no problem. Proceed.”
“Understood.”
Hyun-jun had told him to go ahead with the list missing Jin-a and Seok-hyun, the guild’s main combat strength, but Tae-min didn’t ask anything further. He believed Hyun-jun must have a reason for doing what he did. That was how much he trusted him.
Now someone will bite.
People at the Dungeon Management Bureau were not exactly tight-lipped. Rumors would spread that Wraith Guild had submitted a smaller-than-expected raid roster, and once someone took the bait, the game would begin.
In the worst case, there was a chance no one would take it until the day of the raid, but Hyun-jun believed in human greed. Sure enough, it didn’t even take a day before someone bit.
“Someone from the Dungeon Management Bureau is here.”
Tae-min gave a brief report and stepped back, leaving the door open. A man in a suit slowly walked in. Neat styling, even glasses, gave him an intellectual air.
“I’m Park Cheol-min, team leader of Raid Affairs Team 2 in the Dungeon Management Bureau.”
“I’m Kang Hyun-jun, Guild Leader of Wraith Guild. Please, have a seat.”
“Thank you, Mr. Kang Hyun-jun.”
Cheol-min sat down first. Hyun-jun sat opposite him.
“Haa... Mr. Kang Hyun-jun. Our side at the Dungeon Management Bureau is in a very awkward position.”
Even from his expression alone, it was obvious he felt trapped.
“May I ask what happened?” Hyun-jun asked with the innocent face of someone who knew everything and nothing at all.
Cheol-min shook his head as if dumbfounded.
“I’m sure you know already. The raid roster was thinner than expected, and there’s a lot of concern coming from above.”
“So you’re saying the higher-ups think I’m going to fail?”
“Yes. They’re judging that if the raid proceeds with only the hunters currently listed, the chance of clearing it will be quite low.”
Cheol-min spoke cautiously. It was the kind of thing that could provoke an S-rank hunter, but there was no polite way to phrase it.
“And where is that coming from?” Hyun-jun asked sharply.
He wasn’t actually offended, but it was part of the proper atmosphere.
“The Dungeon Management Bureau’s Special Support Division has a Raid Analysis Section. It’s the department that professionally analyzes the clear probabilities of hunters listed for S-rank and higher dungeons. You may find it unpleasant, but please understand that this is also unavoidable from our side.”
Hyun-jun didn’t answer. Cheol-min let out a short sigh and continued.
“You know better than anyone that if an S-rank dungeon-out happens, it’s a national disaster, Mr. Kang Hyun-jun. To prevent the worst-case scenario, rapid response is essential. That’s why we conduct preliminary analysis.”
“I understand. So you’re saying you intend to intervene? About the occupancy rights I obtained through a lawful deposit bid?”
His voice was unpleasant, but in truth the whole board was already moving exactly the way Hyun-jun had set it up. Now, if the Dungeon Management Bureau failed to notice and handed over a few meat shields, everything would be perfect.
“There’s a clause in the contract stating that, in an emergency, our side may request additional personnel.”
“That’s a request, not a compulsion.”
“Mr. Kang Hyun-jun... if a dungeon-out occurs, thousands more could die.”
“That won’t happen.”
Hyun-jun’s tone was firm. Seeing that, Cheol-min bit his lip slightly. If he accepted the request obediently, he wouldn’t receive an apology or compensation from the Dungeon Management Bureau. Since they were going to use him anyway, Hyun-jun intended to squeeze every drop of value out of them.
“Haa... What exactly do you want? What do we need to do for you to accept additional personnel?”
“Priority access to future S-rank dungeons.”
“That’s not impossible. It’s beyond my authority, but if the higher-ups approve it, I can grant it.”
“Then go get the approval.”
“Give me ten minutes.”
When Hyun-jun nodded, Cheol-min made a call to somewhere. Exactly ten minutes later, he ended the call and put his smartphone away.
“It’s been approved. We’ll issue you priority access for future S-rank dungeons.”
“Good. I’ll accept the additional personnel provided by the Dungeon Management Bureau.”
The deal was done.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“This is infuriating!”
Lee Si-yeon, who led the Platinum-tier Night Sky Guild, hurled her anger at the empty air, where no one could hear her.
The humiliation from the S-rank dungeon auction still remained. In truth, Hyun-jun had only bid properly and happened to have money, but from Si-yeon’s point of view, it hadn’t looked that way at all. In the end, she had mobilized her informants and begun investigating, and it hadn’t been difficult to learn that Hyun-jun had obtained the occupancy rights.
“Na Han-min!”
“You called for me?”
Na Han-min, dressed in black, emerged from the darkness. He was Si-yeon’s right hand and the executive director of Night Sky Guild.
“How did what I told you to do turn out?”
At her question, Han-min’s mouth curled upward.
“Two days ago I picked four good-looking ones and sent them to Team Leader Park Cheol-min.”
“And the result?”
“Sending four must have pleased them. I heard the Dungeon Management Bureau pressured Wraith Guild and got a firm answer that they’d provide additional personnel. Of course, they said all the additional personnel will be our guild members.”
Han-min spoke calmly. A cold smile spread across Si-yeon’s lips.
“How many do you think we can take?”
“I haven’t received the exact number yet, but I don’t think we’ll be able to take many. Even the Dungeon Management Bureau has to consider Wraith Guild’s position to some extent.”
“What is one little Silver-tier guild even supposed to matter...”
Si-yeon complained, but she knew in her head that Wraith Guild had influence beyond what most Gold-tier guilds could claim. That only made her more irritated. She hated the way Hyun-jun had appeared out of nowhere like a supernova and started tearing through everything around him.
“How should we arrange the personnel?”
“Put together a team centered on the executive division.”
“Not the guild’s raid team?”
Most hunters in the executive division specialized in human combat and covert operations rather than dungeon raids. That was why Han-min couldn’t help questioning Si-yeon’s order. Normally, raid-team personnel were the ones selected as the core.
“Do what I tell you. I’m not planning to go into the dungeon just to hunt monsters.”
“Is Wraith Guild also a target?”
“Of course. It’s an S-rank dungeon. Just selling the mana stones that drop from it would bring in at least tens of billions of won, and if it’s really good, hundreds of billions. And you think I’m going to split that with Wraith Guild? I have no intention of doing that.”
A greed-soaked killing intent leaked from Si-yeon’s eyes.
“We can just make it look like they died during the dungeon raid. You know how the investigation division handles things, don’t you, Han-min?”
Because video and recording devices don’t work in dungeons, if someone dies inside, investigators have little choice but to rely almost entirely on witness testimony. There was an investigation division, but proper investigations were almost never carried out. Because of that loophole, murders inside dungeons were common.
“Then I’ll assemble our absolute best, even from the first team.”
“And say we’re taking the porters too, then slot them under the executive division.”
“Understood. I’ll prepare it right away.”
Han-min answered and withdrew, and once left alone in her office, Si-yeon couldn’t contain her excitement and began to laugh, her body trembling with it.
“I’m already looking forward to it.”
Despite her buoyant voice, her eyes were cold. And with that anticipation hanging in the air, several days passed, and the day of the raid arrived. After abruptly notifying the Dungeon Management Bureau that Jin-a and Seok-hyun would be added to the existing roster, Hyun-jun headed for the dungeon gate.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Lee Si-yeon, Guild Leader of Night Sky Guild.”
“Kang Hyun-jun, Guild Leader of Wraith Guild.”
It was just a light greeting, a handshake. The moment their hands met, however, another voice rang in Hyun-jun’s mind.
The insidious laughter of Hashashin warns you of danger. Someone is aiming for your heart.
Hashashin issued the warning. Hyun-jun immediately drew mana into his eyes and activated Romanov’s blessing.
Romanov’s Eye descends upon you. A gaze containing absolute insight sees through all existence.
Above Si-yeon’s head, her True Name appeared.
[Lee Si-yeon: Ambitious Murderer.]
The moment he confirmed her True Name, Hyun-jun had no trouble guessing what she was thinking. Hashashin’s blessing had warned him as well, and above all, the people she had brought with her all carried killing intent, even down to the porters. They had hidden it as well as they could, but they couldn’t fool Hyun-jun’s senses, not with the past lives of Ripper and Hashashin behind them.
So that’s what this is. You’re planning to kill them all.
Considering the rewards from clearing an S-rank dungeon, it wasn’t hard to understand the greed. But the important thing was this.
She showed her teeth to me.
As he ended the handshake and withdrew his hand, Hyun-jun thought it through.
“Please take care of me, Mr. Kang Hyun-jun.”
With a fresh smile, Si-yeon began walking toward the gate. Watching her back, Hyun-jun lifted the corner of his mouth.
In the end, the ones who die will be you lot.
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