Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Unrated Dungeon
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Unrated Dungeon. Dungeon rating.
Since the System doesn't assign one.
Humanity had no choice but to create its own subjective measure of difficulty.
A famous ranker once said on the mass media.
"If you want to know the dungeon rating in advance? Sorry, but there's no way. You have to go in and check the difficulty yourself."
The System was a weirdo.
Friendly in some ways.
But downright rude in others, to the point where you wonder why it bothers.
It'd be so much easier if it just told you before you entered.
"As a hint, check the brightness of the color surrounding the dungeon. The darker it is, the higher the chance it's a high-difficulty one."
But even that wasn't accurate.
Difficulty was subjective to begin with.
And it was widely dismissed as flimsy superstition based on probability and statistics.
That's why the World Hunter Association had to set its own standards.
The criteria were simple.
"If five or more hunters of that rank can't clear it, we adjust the rating upward!"
For example, suppose five or more A-rank hunters enter and fail.
Then the dungeon gets rated S-rank.
It was a brutally crude way to judge, but hunters were pretty satisfied.
Dungeon accidents dropped way down compared to when there were no standards at all... Well, this method still inevitably required sacrifices.
In short, that's the problem.
'What about dungeons where people went in, but no one came out? How do you rate those?'
"Right? Until someone goes in and checks, we can only guess."
"So who goes in?"
"They do, eventually. Those teams chasing the big jackpot."
"Hmm, well... entering's free, but shouldn't a top-tier guild check it out first? Some people are scared, you know."
The dungeon I'm about to enter.
We call these "unrated dungeons"—
And eventually, for those that aren't cleared after a certain time, major guilds agree to step in and investigate.
You could see it as mandatory since the Association designates them.
But it's not noblesse oblige.
High-difficulty dungeons promise big rewards.
Which sparks fierce bidding wars.
'However.'
Even major guilds prioritize safety.
Sending in their second or third-string teams recklessly and getting them wiped out would be a massive loss of manpower.
So they send out a 'scout team' first.
Thanks to that.
I caught the scent of this dungeon way earlier than other mercenaries.
* * *
'A cave?'
[Entering the dungeon.]
A sharp, crisp sensation hit as the surroundings shifted.
Field type: cave.
Drip, drip!
Water fell sporadically from the ceiling.
Fortunately, the night pearls embedded here and there on the walls ensured no visibility issues.
"Oh ho, night pearls? We could pry those off and get some good money."
"Forget it, be careful. Don't you know hunters who've died messing with stuff in dungeons?"
"Just saying."
Unlike me, tense as hell.
Gi So-yul and her team members stretched leisurely and chatted.
Four members excluding me.
All wearing purple plaques, A-rank, except for S-rank Gi So-yul.
"......"
I swallowed hard.
These folks laughing and joking like neighborhood uncles weren't normal people.
Top-tier hunters you'd barely glimpse on TV.
And ones with epithets.
"Don't get too relaxed, everyone. Stay alert."
First, Dark Agent Gi So-yul spoke up.
"First off, Swift Sword, Little Fire—you're with me. We'll circle the place."
"Yes."
"Got it."
As expected of rankers' reputations.
The A-rank hunters, who seemed chummy among themselves, bowed politely.
"And Guide Kang Sun-wook?"
"Yes?"
"You search for the exit. Cover the porter too."
"Figured as much."
The middle-aged hunter, Kang Sun-wook, glanced at me and nodded.
"Confident?"
"If I wasn't, would I have the epithet Guide?"
Unlike the others, his slightly unusual epithet: Guide.
The System gave it to him because he had an uncanny knack for finding paths in dungeons.
Perfect fit for a scout team.
"Alright, let's move out."
Gi So-yul turned and dashed off without another word to me.
'Did she even say anything?'
No name, no epithet.
Just "porter."
Even with my rare unique ability, 「Necromancer」.
Even with my record of dominating E-rank dungeons like a king for three years.
To them, I was a rookie.
That's my current position.
"Hey, porter. Nervous?"
Kang Sun-wook grinned and asked.
Since he was older, I'd told him to speak casually at our first greeting.
The extroverted type who'd insist on being called "hyung" right off the bat.
"Yeah? Well... it'd be a lie to say no."
"Then keep being nervous."
"Huh?"
I tilted my head.
"Just so you know, this dungeon's got more than a few suspicious things. Dark Agent didn't tell us to stay alert for nothing."
"Oh, really?"
Come to think of it.
Gi So-yul did look a bit urgent.
No matter that it's unrated, it's just a dungeon a few ragtag teams failed.
Yet a top-1,000-world ranker seemed in a hurry?
"This dungeon's too quiet. Simple structure too. High chance no monsters. In a narrow cave like this, if there were lifeforms, you'd hear echoes or feel vibrations. Hmm, means there might be some unique gimmick hidden..."
"Wow, you can tell that before even scouting?"
"Of course, kid. How many years you think I've been at this?"
He chuckled.
"Come on, follow me. Let's find the exit like she said."
"Yep."
I followed him.
Direction: opposite from where Gi So-yul went.
Cold sweat slicked my back and palms, but I didn't hesitate.
Still, with an expert along, it felt kinda reassuring?
But that feeling didn't last.
"Haa, this is unnerving."
"Hmm, weird... No traps, no hints... Ha, this is one bizarre dungeon."
"Hey, porter. Don't you feel heavy? Like your body's weighed down? Just me?"
"......"
The further we went, the stranger Kang Sun-wook's expression grew.
The air thickened with an unpleasant stench, and like he said, my body felt heavier.
Something sticky and thick was yanking me toward the floor with a squeeze!
A chill ran down my spine.
"Giving me goosebumps here, Guide hyung... Should we keep going?"
"Dunno. First time feeling like this. Even facing rankers didn't feel this way."
"Huh?"
"Feels like something utterly ridiculous is waiting. Damn, you're the Necromancer, right?"
"Yeah."
"Summon something for now. I'll help if I can, but you never know. If shit hits the fan, save your own neck."
"......"
Scary words.
But first, follow the expert's advice.
[‘Bone1’ appears.]
[‘Bone2’ appears.]
[‘Bone3’ appears.]
[‘Bone4’ appears.]
[‘Bone5’ appears.]
Creak, clack!
Used 50 stamina to summon all available skeletons.
Then, positioned shield-bearing Bone1 up front.
Bow-wielding Bone3 and mage Bone5 on the flanks.
Bone2 and Bone4 in the rear.
'Damn, did I name them too sloppily?'
When I first got the unique ability and it asked for names.
Didn't know they'd grow like this, so I slapped on lazy ones.
Never thought I'd use them this long.
"Ooh, skeletons? Got anything better?"
"Nah..."
The question stabbing my chest made me grumble a reply, but.
I couldn't.
"Ugh?"
The unpleasant aura seized the space like it was welcome home.
Immense pressure made breathing hard.
Like being in a sauna over ten minutes—my whole body heated up inside.
"G-Guide hyung?"
"Damn it! Just a bit further! There's an open space ahead!"
"Ugh... What changes in the open space?"
"No idea! But I sense some auras there! Someone's there, so it's livable, right?"
"Auras?"
"No clue! Could be the advance team that went in first. Or monsters. Move!"
Fuck it.
Can't even open my mouth now, can't keep my eyes open.
Ears plugged tight, pressure buckling my knees.
That's when Bone5 used his skill.
[Skill: ‘Air Shield’ (Lv.1) used.]
[‘Air Shield’ (Lv.1) shatters.]
"Cough?!"
Blood sprayed from my mouth.
Unbelievable.
Pressure shattering a skill the instant it formed!
I yelled on instinct.
"Damn it, Bone2!"
Borrow the barely moving skeletons' strength to get out of this passage.
Only way I could act now.
Plus, Kang Sun-wook was already way ahead.
"Ugh..."
This make sense?
A dungeon popping up in Paju City making even rankers tense—a super-ultra high-difficulty one?
Gave me a half-baked unique ability too!
Does the holy transcendent hate me for some other reason?!
Damn.
I want to live.
Ranker or whatever.
Gotta survive first to achieve anything!
As I chanted madly in my head.
"Haaah!"
The suffocating pressure vanished like a lie.
We'd finally reached that 'open space' Kang Sun-wook mentioned.
[Arrived at stage: One Deep White-Haired Old Man.]
Son of a bitch.
One Deep White-Haired Old Man?
What the hell?
* * *
The open space was about three times wider than the regular cave.
A certain pattern was etched on the floor, and in the center of the left wall hung a pitch-black artificial 'door.'
Then the message popped up.
[Ding!]
[Stage: One Deep White-Haired Old Man]
['One' is so vast, frost formed on the old man's hair.]
[Enter the room and defeat the old man.]
"Huh?"
I knew instinctively.
The white-haired old man inside that artificial 'door' was this dungeon's boss mob.
And the pressure we'd felt came from that 'door.'
That's why it intensified as we neared the open space.
'But it's bearable inside the open space...?'
I looked down at the pattern on the floor.
Hmm, some kind of magic circle blocking the aura?
Or before that.
"P-people!"
"Hunters are here at last! R-reinforcements?"
About ten men and women huddled in the open space.
Judging by the colors of the plaques on their belts.
Mostly C-rank (green) or D-rank (yellowish) hunters.
They wailed at me and Kang Sun-wook.
"Purple plaque! A-rank hunter!"
"And skeletons? Necromancer too! It's the rescue team! Save us, please get us out of here. Sob sob."
"No, first... food... No, water please. Throat's so dry."
Ages and genders varied, but they shared one thing.
Totally desiccated bodies.
Makes sense.
No food or water on this patterned floor.
If trapped here long-term with no 'exit'?
Yeah, explains their state.
"Whew, hand out emergency rations for now."
Kang Sun-wook looked at me.
"......"
I'd been a bit miffed seeing him bolt alone to survive.
But whatever, gotta understand.
He warned me ahead, and dungeons are like that.
I nodded and handed them some chocolate bars and water bottles.
As a porter hired by a major guild, I carried emergency supplies for potential survivors.
"W-water!"
"F-food!"
They swarmed like apocalypse zombies, wolfing it down greedily.
"......"
My chest tightened.
Could be my future self if things go wrong.
"Easy now, eat slowly."
Middle-aged Kang Sun-wook stroked his goatee and stepped in.
After a while.
Once they'd eaten, he spoke slowly.
"Mind telling us what happened, step by step?"