A Very Strange Thing

It was truly bizarre. Floor 2 of the dungeon shouldn't have a lake or apple trees by any logic. But it was hard to complain when these things had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Even Ferrofero didn't know all the hidden achievement systems tucked away in the dungeon. He only managed it—he hadn't designed it himself.

Whatever. Right now, Ferrofero just wanted grilled fish.

"Do you have any fish left? I asked!"

A sharp aura exploded from Ferrofero. The heroes, who had momentarily lost their fear, were suddenly shrouded in the terror of death. On the first day they'd been kidnapped into the dungeon, twelve people had died by his hand. A cat that killed without batting an eye and even spoke. When such a creature started yelling, the heroes froze in fright. Even the iron-willed Mitchell couldn't respond and stiffened up.

Right then, Seol Ara stepped forward.

"Kitty. You want this?"

In Seol Ara's hand was the half-eaten body of a fish.

"Yes, indeed!"

Ferrofero answered immediately. Everyone stared in shock at Seol Ara, who had suddenly addressed him. Even Mitchell, who had stayed calm and led the charge against monsters, was gripped by fear now. Yet here she was, treating Ferrofero like some stray cat?

"Ara."

Mitchell tried to stop her, worried Ferrofero might kill her. But Seol Ara had no intention of backing down.

"It's fine, Mitchell. Kitty. Want this?"

Seol Ara gently shook the fish she held. Everyone tensed up at her fearless demeanor. Of course, she wasn't doing this because she didn't value her life. She knew Ferrofero couldn't kill her.

Ferrofero had slaughtered all those people on Floor 1 in an instant. If he wanted grilled fish, he didn't need to ask if any was left—he could just take it. Who would dare resist? But now, he was asking if there was any spare, even though the heroes' hands were full of half-eaten fish. In other words, Ferrofero could no longer kill them.

Her guess was spot on.

"Do you not know that mocking me leads only to death?"

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Ferrofero didn't unleash his killing intent, resorting only to threats. Why, when he'd taken twelve lives without warning? It defied all logic.

My hunch was right.

As Seol Ara had suspected, Ferrofero had no authority to arbitrarily control the phenomena appearing in the dungeon. He could only interfere in the survival game at his whim for the first ten minutes. During that window, he could kill based on the heroes' attitudes, impose penalties, or grant starter items. In short, their starting point depended on his mood.

One might think such rewards and penalties made it unfair, but it hardly mattered. Whether penalized or rewarded, every team ultimately failed to breach Floor 10's wall and got wiped out.

Anyway, after those initial ten minutes, no matter what happened, Ferrofero couldn't wield power on a whim. He had to follow the dungeon system's rules. That's why he couldn't harm the heroes ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠recklessly and was stuck bickering.

Seol Ara figured she could get something out of him using the grilled fish.

"Will you give me the fish?"

Ferrofero asked in a pleading tone.

"Yeah, I can. But shouldn't you give us something in return?"

"M-me too?"

"Of course. Nothing's free in this world."

"What do you want?"

"What can you offer?"

Seol Ara countered with a question. She wanted countless things, but with no idea his limits, she made him suggest first.

Ferrofero, chin propped on a jelly-like paw pad, pondered before proposing:

"From now on, I won't kill you myself!"

He wore an expression that said, You can't refuse this, right? But...

"Rejected!"

Seol Ara shot it down coldly.

"A deal needs something of value. You're already in no position to kill us—who'd trade for that? Where'd you learn to be so sly?"

She pushed hard deliberately. Not because she knew he couldn't kill her—no, she was still scared. But in negotiations, seizing the initiative was key. The one who yielded first lost ground.

"Hmm... Truth be told, I could kill you, but this once, I'll let it slide."

With a lie and a white flag, Ferrofero snapped his fingers. A quest window appeared before the group.

"A quest out of nowhere?"

"What the hell."

The heroes murmured, but Ferrofero suddenly boasted.

"This is a special quest usable only once per floor from the same layer! And my collectibles are all top-notch!"

A quest from Ferrofero, not the dungeon. It was his legal way to get what he wanted from heroes without breaking system rules. They could clear or ignore it—no big deal. But no reason to ignore now.

Seol Ara asked Mitchell:

"Any spare fish left?"

"Yes."

With one fish per three people, two were left over. Mitchell handed one to Ferrofero.

"Ooh! Received for sure! Purr~ Purr~"

Ferrofero purred happily and vanished. The quest cleared, leaving something on the ground: a rolled-up parchment.

Mitchell picked it up and unrolled it; the others crowded around. It read:

Barracks Construction. A skill the heroes desperately needed without a place to sleep.

Mitchell passed the parchment to Seol Ara.

"This should go to you, Ara."

No one objected. Everyone coveted it, but in this dungeon, the value of a universally useful skill was immense—boosting survival odds in crises.

Seol Ara accepted graciously and tore it. She activated the new skill.

A large canopy tent appeared.

"Whoa!"

"Whoa~ Haven't seen one of these since basic training."

The group peered inside, amazed. Fully enclosed by fabric, with air mattresses on the floor. Those who lay down let out ecstatic groans.

"Ahh... Can't believe how much I've missed a bed like this. You're the best, Ara sis."

"Sweetheart~ You're blessed."

"Alright! Since we burned mana on the barracks, let's split into A and B teams, rest in shifts, and push on?"

Sixty-three survivors. The 30-person barracks could squeeze in 35. Splitting 31-32 per shift for sleep sounded refreshing.

Mitchell agreed.

"Sounds good. Everyone rest here before moving."

"Yes!"

"Sweet dreams tonight."

They divided into those wanting to sleep first and later. Thirty-two entered; within five minutes, snores formed a symphony. Exhaustion meant no one woke.

Outside, the rest ate leftover fish, gathered around the fire, and chatted leisurely—the first real breather since entering.

Then, a system message floated in the air.

"Han Ji-woo again?"

"Who the hell is this Han Ji-woo?"

Curiosity about Han Ji-woo now boiled over. No one by that name among the kidnapped. Yet this nonexistent person built toilets, created apple trees and lakes, and now unlocked the Pet System.

"Who is this Han Ji-woo guy?"

Mitchell muttered while warming his hands by the fire—not really to anyone. No one could answer.

"...What is this?"

Ferrofero, blissfully munching grilled fish, froze solid. No Han Ji-woo existed in the dungeon. Yet he'd unlocked the Pet System? Ferrofero had slept through the heroes' climb to Floor 2, missing all those messages about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Han Ji-woo's contributions. If he'd known, he wouldn't have casually collected fish.

"Han Ji-woo? Who is this Han Ji-woo!"

Ferrofero checked survivors via his crystal orb. No Han Ji-woo.

Gulp!

His throat bobbed.

"W-wait. Come to think of it, only 99 were summoned initially!"

He always kidnapped 100. This time, 99—because the Siamese twins counted as two. He'd assumed the missing one stayed on Earth. But no.

That extra one was Han Ji-woo!

"This is bad! Impossible!"

Ferrofero clenched his fists, trembling. Things were going horribly wrong.

Opening his status window after eating masou salmon, Han Ji-woo's vitality had risen to 17. He felt subtly refreshed. Humming, he stood abruptly.

"Almost forgot!"

He approached the flowers, now budding. Growth had shifted from "1 day" at dawn to "half day" past noon. Applying Growth Acceleration changed it to '01:04:13'. Flowers in an hour.

"Can't wait for these beauties. You too, right, Lucy?"

Nyaah~

"Aigoo~ Yeah, yeah."

Alone, no one replied to his chatter, feeling lonely. But with the talkative cat, it was fine.

"What's up with this guy?"

Turning from flowers, he checked the Dungeon Tree sprout.

Despite time passed, no growth. Even Growth Acceleration failed. Different growth method needed.

"What could it be?"

Pondering idly wouldn't help, so he crafted necessities: two weed trays, one weed blanket, one pair of wooden chopsticks. Creation proficiency rose, then...

The skill itself upgraded. In those 30 thoughtful minutes.