Dungeon & Commander (204)
Jeong Myeong-ho scowled, glaring at Yun Chang-hwan, the leader of the Yi Sun-sin team.
"Your serious face tells me it's true. Looks like the frequent mana vortex phenomena make it tough for your average buffer."
Jeong Myeong-ho bit back the urge to ask who had fed him that nonsense. No point—the guy wouldn't give a straight answer anyway. The real issue was that internal team matters had leaked outside.
Who was the loose-lipped bastard?
Did the Lincoln team have a mole? Or had it slipped from another team in B Group?
Yun Chang-hwan stepped out on the fourth floor. Spotting Jeong Myeong-ho in the hallway, he flashed a sleazy grin.
"Good luck. Come back in one piece. Don't push it for some dungeon item and end up in the afterlife. You've got a debt to pay me, after all."
"Mind your own business."
The elevator climbed to the seventh floor.
When the doors opened, a vast space unfolded: a swimming pool, gym facilities, top-tier simulators, and a running track. While other floors buzzed with Brave Guild raiders training, this one felt eerily quiet.
It was reserved for exactly one person.
"What brings you here?"
The voice came from right in front of him.
Only then did Jeong Myeong-ho realize someone stood just three meters away—and he stumbled back.
A shimmering silhouette.
Flashes erupted, and Lee Hwan materialized.
Jeong Myeong-ho jolted in surprise. Once he recognized the skill Lee Hwan had used, shock overwhelmed him.
"Invisible?"
"I asked what you want."
Lee Hwan's eyes hardened, his voice dropping to a cold chill. It was a clear warning: anyone invading his private space without permission was an enemy.
Jeong Myeong-ho hurried to explain.
"Mana vortex."
"Yeah, I heard. The relic raid. Follow me."
Lee Hwan walked ahead, his right arm gradually fading to transparency. He'd applied Invisible only to his arm. Frowning at the elbow and shoulder area, he muttered irritably.
Looking at Lee Hwan stirred a toxic mix of rage and inferiority in him.
This kid, five years younger, had always spat casual barbs from the start. Jeong Myeong-ho wanted to crush him, but the guy's fame and skill made it impossible.
No—touch him, and Jeong Myeong-ho would be the one suffering. In truth, he'd been the one dodging confrontation.
As far as Jeong Myeong-ho knew, Lee Hwan had entered relics seven times.
Two years ago, he'd raided a relic in a B-rank dungeon and unearthed one of only nine rare rings in the world: the King of Ring.
Jeong Myeong-ho's eyes flicked to Lee Hwan's fingers. The famous ring wasn't there.
Probably stashed in his item vault.
The punk had found five dungeon items across seven relic dives. Young as he was, his skill demanded respect.
Especially Invisible—a skill Jeong Myeong-ho had tried years ago before quitting in frustration at its difficulty.
A luxurious table and plush sofa sat by the window.
Lee Hwan flopped onto the sofa and poured himself expensive wine, not offering any to Jeong Myeong-ho.
"Aiming for the Five Stars, huh?"
"...Yeah."
The sudden jab caught him off guard, leaving no room for denial.
"Makes sense—you might actually pull it off. Anyway, where's this dungeon you're hitting?"
"Sokcho."
"Ah, D-rank?"
The implication stung: you're bothering me for a relic in a mere D-rank dungeon?
Jeong Myeong-ho clenched his fist.
"Dungeon Management says the mana vortex is abnormally intense."
"So?"
"Legio and searcher items are useless half the time. You've been in relics plenty. How do you find dungeon items in those cases?"
He'd swallowed his pride to ask.
"You've never even entered a relic before?"
Lee Hwan feigned shock.
That innocent act, knowing full well—it nearly made Jeong Myeong-ho lunge. But that would spark a brawl, ending with him carted to the hospital.
Causing a scene up here would paint him as the troublemaker, costing him the upcoming relic quest.
He had to endure. No choice.
"Never had the chance."
"That's an excuse. Opportunities aren't handed out—you seize them. Disappointing. Thought you were better than Yoon Chang-hwan's ilk."
Jeong Myeong-ho bit his lip.
He wanted to bolt for the elevator, done debasing himself. But he stayed because he desperately wanted this raid to succeed.
Lee Hwan eyed him steadily before speaking.
"Gonggak Raider."
"...What?"
"With a Gonggak Raider, you can snag dungeon items even in a messed-up mana vortex zone, though it'll be rough."
"Ah!"
Clarity hit Jeong Myeong-ho like a splash of cold water.
Gonggak was the sensory instinct for detecting mana or qi. With that talent, even if Legio or searchers failed, dungeon items were findable.
"But there's a catch."
"What kind?"
"Plenty claim Gonggak, but most are useless in real fights. Real ones are usually high-level anyway."
Lee Hwan smirked.
The mockery was obvious.
Jeong Myeong-ho got it instantly. Brave Guild alone had over ten Gonggak raiders—all at his level or higher.
Zero chance they'd join his expedition.
Even if they did, problems remained.
"Join us?"
Lee Hwan asked with sly interest.
Jeong Myeong-ho recalled the guy sipping wine so smugly was a Gonggak Raider too.
If Lee Hwan joined... leadership would naturally shift. He'd take charge; Jeong Myeong-ho would follow.
Worse, any dungeon items from the relic would have nothing to do with him—useless for his goals.
"What about Busan Dungeon?"
Busan was B-rank.
"Oh, right. Can't do it."
He'd poked deliberately, knowing full well. Maybe reveling in crushing Jeong Myeong-ho's pride.
Jeong Myeong-ho turned slowly.
He walked to the elevator. If the dungeon gods granted him a miracle—making him stronger than that smug prick—he'd repay today's humiliation tenfold.
Fat chance.
Barring that, he'd love to see someone else topple Lee Hwan.
Lee Hwan called from afar.
"Don't look far."
Jeong Myeong-ho glanced back at the cryptic words.
"Cheonroegeom."
Lee Hwan vanished on the spot—Invisible activated—leaving the riddle behind.
The elevator doors opened.
Stepping in, Jeong Myeong-ho tilted his head. Cheonroegeom had vanished in a dungeon, recently rediscovered. Its owner was that cocky kid who'd just passed awakening tests.
He pulled out his phone and searched Cheonroegeom.
Skimming articles, he grasped Lee Hwan's hint.
Kim Jun had acquired Cheonroegeom deep in a dungeon.
Dungeon items weren't roadside pebbles. High chance Kim Jun had Gonggak.
If so... no need to grovel to high-level raiders.
Kim Jun was already a team leader in an expedition group.
Descending to the underground parking, Jeong Myeong-ho slid into his Benz, lost in thought.
First, confirm it.
* * *
"Pink Team, Sokcho Dungeon raid simulation, reconnaissance mission, number seven. Start!"
Kim Jun hit the button.
Darkness enveloped them, a massive gate looming faintly ahead.
He spotted his team members linking into the virtual Sokcho Dungeon almost simultaneously.
Diamond formation locked in under five seconds. No orders needed—Yeom Sang-taek floated light orbs, illuminating the area.
Lead: Tanker Choi Muhyun.
Main dealer Yoo Min-jeong at three o'clock behind him; main buffer Yeom Sang-taek at her rear.
At nine o'clock, second dealer Skyla shot a side-eye at second buffer Sa Yeonggyo approaching from behind.
Kim Jun held six o'clock, rear guard, scanning all.
"Advance."
No need to shout.
Pink Team passed the gate into a chilling void.
Dungeon darkness thickened with rank—beyond C-rank, it was a monster in itself.
Kim Jun mentally listed Sokcho spawns.
Gelusaurs were familiar, but here they were bigger, faster, with fiercer cold breath.
Stimus firing body spines, ever-mutating Awakerus demanded caution too.
Those were F or E-rank staples—manageable.
The real pain... was something else.
"One o'clock, 46 meters, one Gelusaurus."
Main buffer Yeom Sang-taek called it.
Sa Yeonggyo glanced at him. Kim Jun read her look instantly.
From day one in Pink Team, she'd ignored Yeom Sang-taek—no greetings, barely a word.
His easygoing nature prevented clashes.
But as a buffer—detection especially—Yeom Sang-taek surpassed level 8 long ago. Leaderbook checks showed his range and accuracy nearing level 6.
Kim Jun knew what sat at Yeom Sang-taek's locker: his ever-present tarantula spider, Violet. Add marble generation via that medium, and Kim Jun figured he could leap past level 7 to 6.
The Gelusaurus approached.
Kim Jun watched without commanding.
This seventh recon sim wasn't basic drill. He wanted to test how their honed teamwork flowed in recon.
Choi Muhyun's body—upper half especially—swelled; Moon Shadow Geumgang Heart Technique-based defense Geumgangbyeok formed.
A radiant golden wall!
Since becoming team leader, Kim Jun had Leaderbook-researched the technique.
Many merits, few practitioners.
Simple reason: minimum ten years, usually fifteen, to combat readiness.
Early growth was glacial.
Later, it shot up like spring bamboo—but that "early" could drag to ten, twenty, even thirty years without payoff.
Kim Jun had no doubt Choi Muhyun would master it.
Yoo Min-jeong conjured a fireball. The massive blaze's heat scorched Kim Jun's cheeks from behind.
He eyed the second dealer.
Skyla had three ice arrows ready, timing her strike.
The Gelusaurus entered the light. It closed gap in a flash, slamming its hard forehead into Geumgangbyeok.
Choi Muhyun barely budged. Tanking had improved since last raid.
"Attacking time—three, two, one!"
Yeom Sang-taek.
Geumgangbyeok dropped; fireball smashed the Gelusaurus's chest. It pierced icy hide, igniting innards—immense power.
Ice arrows sank into its flank.
It writhed in pain but fled into shadows aflame—not downed. A second fireball nailed its crown.
Sa Yeonggyo eyed Yoo Min-jeong narrowly again. Not just power—casting speed was elite.
Kim Jun stifled a grin, drew Cheonroegeom, and broke from formation.
Updated data let him wield it freely in sim.
He hurled Cheonroegeom at the flaming, still-vicious Gelusaurus. It spun, embedded—crackle—sparks erupted; the beast convulsed from voltage.
Summoning it back instantly, Kim Jun vaulted skyward with Mukhonbo Tan subtlety.
Thud.
Cheonroegeom pierced crown; sparks flew again.
It slumped.
For confirmation, he stabbed the jaw too.
Habitually, he plunged Cheonroegeom into its side, digging deep. Shoulder-deep, he extracted the hefty core.
This raid's goal was core securing, but carrier digging needed practice too. He seized every chance.
Glancing back, Sa Yeonggyo's dumbfounded expression caught his eye.
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