Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: No Way Out
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Really, no solution.
“I’ll speak on behalf of everyone.”
The one who stepped forward toward Kang Sun-wook was a single man.
Tuk!
He touched the blue nameplate hanging from his waist.
“As you can see, I’m a B-rank Hunter. That’s the highest grade among the survivors here.”
The man’s words were met with silence from the group.
Me, Kang Sun-wook, and the survivors.
We all naturally focused on his mouth.
“Phew.”
He let out a sigh, paused for a moment, then continued.
“This place... it’s hell itself. I’ve been a Hunter for a decent while, but this is my first time seeing such a bizarre dungeon.”
“Bizarre dungeon?”
“Yeah, look. There’s no exit.”
“Hmm, true enough.”
The guide, Kang Sun-wook, nodded.
Even to an expert’s eyes, it clearly looked strange.
“No matter which way we went from the starting point, the result was the same. This damn cave always led us right to this ‘door.’”
Kang Sun-wook furrowed his brow, but the man pressed on with his explanation regardless.
“Then it seals us in with energy so we can’t leave. Our food and water are long gone. In the end, the only thing we can do here... yeah, challenge that ‘door’... that’s it.”
They were people who had chosen a life-risking challenge over starving to death.
The survivors nodded along with bitter expressions.
“Yeah, we were starving. We wanted to live. If there were even bats around, we would’ve eaten them raw.”
Hunger.
“We had no choice but to go through the ‘door’ together to survive.”
Survival instinct.
“But... the clear condition makes no sense. How do you even deal with that?”
“Exactly... that deep-voiced old man with white hair...? He’s insane. There’s no way to beat him. D-ranks, C-ranks, B-ranks... in front of that old man, we were all just infants.”
Despair.
“Ahh, thank you for coming.”
“A-rank Hunters. Thank you so much. You can get us out of this hell, right?”
And then, the faint spark of hope.
Desperate light filled the eyes of the survivors, who had been devoid of life.
It felt like they’d been struggling so hard just to hold on, on the verge of giving up, when we arrived.
“......”
It left a bitter taste in my mouth for no reason.
Is this the true face of dungeons hidden behind the glamour of ‘rankers’?
‘But.’
One question popped up.
“Excuse me, but.”
So I asked right away.
“An old man? No, if the boss is that strong, how are you all still alive?”
It was weird.
Would any dungeon boss in the world let challengers live?
They said they went inside the door.
Did he personally kick them back out?
“Good question.”
That’s when the B-rank Hunter smiled faintly and nodded.
“I get it. That was my first thought too when I arrived as part of the later group.”
The man said.
“Surprisingly, the old man doesn’t kill people. He just accepts the challengers and gives them some kind of test.”
“A test?”
“I don’t know the details. He just overpowers them painfully, more agonizingly than anything, then clicks his tongue like ‘tut tut, not the right material,’ and tosses them out the door.”
The man made a horrified face.
His body shuddered.
Hmm, just imagining it is torture?
But he still doesn’t kill them?
“......”
I couldn’t quite accept the B-rank man’s explanation.
What kind of dungeon is this?
“Kinda weird, right? Come to think of it, yeah. An old man means an elderly person. In other words, a human. This is the first time a dungeon boss has been human, not some dwarf or elf-like being.”
“......Right. Not some other race, definitely human, yeah?”
“Yeah, for sure. Though he seems a bit senile.”
“......”
A real human as the boss?
Does that even make sense?
Kang Sun-wook and I fell silent for a moment, staring at the man.
I closed my eyes.
‘Whatever.’
In the end, we’re trapped here just like them.
To find the exit, we have to open that ‘door’ and complete the mission.
‘But I don’t trust Kang Sun-wook for some reason.’
He’s a Hunter specialized in guiding, true to his title.
Just seeing him struggle against the energy from the ‘door’ made it clear he couldn’t clear the dungeon.
So what now?
As the crease between my brows deepened.
“Kang Sun-wook?”
No need for long deliberation.
From afar.
I sensed the presence of the ranker, Gi So-yul.
* * *
“Hmm... Sounds good.”
After hearing a rough explanation from Kang Sun-wook, Gi So-yul nodded simply.
“We can just go in right away. The energy suggests these survivors aren’t doppelgangers or traps. The system shows a mission too. The energy is a bit intense, but... we can’t just sit around, right?”
No point overthinking when there’s no answer.
Better to just charge in.
That was her mindset.
And then.
“Woooah!”
“We’re saved! Three A-ranks and one S-rank!”
“S-rank? For real?”
“Sniff sniff, it’s moving. Blue Guild, huh? From now on, I’ll bow toward Blue Guild HQ every morning for the rest of my life. Don’t stop me.”
The survivors cheered at her confident words.
A far cry from the vibe when they saw Kang Sun-wook and me earlier.
‘Well, yeah.’
How could A-ranks outshine an S-rank’s presence?
Not just any S-rank, but one in the top 1,000 ‘rankers.’
Even I felt my blood heat up at her presence.
“Porters and survivors, stay here. We’ll handle it.”
Reliable words.
Cool mentality, success or not.
Assuming the man was telling the truth.
Failure wouldn’t matter anyway.
The boss doesn’t kill people, after all.
Plus, Blue’s first team and rescue squads full of elites would come eventually.
She was Ki Pa-rang’s one and only little sister.
No way he’d ignore his sister’s disappearance.
“Alright, let’s go. Get ready, everyone.”
Gi So-yul tied her hair back.
She checked her daggers and hung throwing stars on her waist.
The other A-rank Hunters stretched with determined looks.
“The old man gives a test, right? Let’s pass it.”
“Ugh, sounds brutal just hearing about it. Wonder what rewards we’ll get?”
Brimming with confidence, they opened the door and went in.
But not long after...
“Gaaah!”
“It hurts! Damn it, it hurts!”
The A-rank Hunters, covered in bruises, came flying out one after another—
“......?”
Kwaaang!
The ranker, Gi So-yul, bounced back too, bloodied all over, slamming into the cave wall.
And the menacing ‘door’ closed quietly as if nothing had happened.
‘Crazy?’
My jaw dropped.
What is a ranker?
The idol of all Hunters, my ultimate goal!
For such a ranker to be neutralized in less than 10 minutes...
Compared to her earlier confidence, she looked so pitiful.
Even the expectant survivors stared in stunned silence.
Gi So-yul...
“......I’m not the right material? No way.”
She muttered with a super annoyed expression.
Then she looked at me.
“Porter.”
“......Yes?”
“Hand me a high-grade potion from the bag. I’m going again.”
What, this girl?
After getting wrecked like that, she’s going back in?
“You okay?”
“Yeah, the survivors were right. The old man didn’t try to kill me. Just overpowered me painfully.”
“Then?”
“It fires me up. We’ll see. Whether I’m the material or not.”
Material.
Meaning, checking if you’re worthy talent?
The kind of term a hidden master uses when seeking disciples.
‘Then...’
The old man’s ‘one’ he’s looking for.
Has he not found anyone with talent yet?
“Anyway, hurry up and give it.”
“Yes....... Be careful.”
For now, I handed her the potion.
And so the farce began.
An endless challenge farce.
* * *
Time passed.
“Hah, hah!”
Not a ranker for nothing.
Gi So-yul’s tenacity was incredible.
The other A-rank Hunters had shaken their heads and given up.
“Wow, pissing me off to death?”
She got even fiercer.
Her clothes were already in tatters, but she didn’t care.
“What’s the problem? What doesn’t satisfy him?”
“This sneaky old man. I thought he was just good with swords, but spears too? Come on.”
A day passed, two days, three, four.
Her challenges didn’t stop.
“Uwaaaah!”
“You old man! What are you? Magic too? How do you expect anyone to clear this crap!”
Even a combat-type ranker was powerless against this dungeon.
“......”
I shook my head.
She can fail, no big deal?
No, correction.
This is serious.
Even if Ki Pa-rang came personally, it’d be a problem.
I’d never seen him in person.
But the gap between the old man and her seemed huge.
I could sense it.
I felt it.
Even two rankers—no, five—couldn’t beat him.
So is this dungeon SS-grade?
“Fine. I admit it.”
She nodded.
“The old man is strong. Really strong. But as long as I’m alive, I’ll challenge him endlessly.”
The fierce glint in Gi So-yul’s eyes hadn’t faded.
“Whoa......”
I was genuinely impressed.
Is this a ranker’s mindset?
Do you need this kind of obsession to crack the world’s top 1,000?
Honestly, I was jealous.
A dungeon where you can train endlessly without risking your life.
Is this the kind of opportunity in dungeons that Dark Lord talked about?
But as more time passed.
Problems started surfacing.
“......Is the dungeon’s time flow different from outside? No rescue team yet?”
“Hey, Sun-wook? Emergency rations are running low. We’re rationing, but it won’t last.”
“Feels like... over two weeks already?”
“I’m exhausted. This is suffocating.”
Unable to clear it, the survivors began to falter.
“We’re all dead. This was our fate all along. Waaah.”
One low-rank Hunter even broke down crying.
And not just that.
‘I’m frustrated too.’
Even as a porter, I came here to grow.
I’d trained my bones in spare moments.
Would’ve been better to hit other dungeons in this time.
And honestly, it was scary.
What if we’re really stuck here?
Starving without rescue?
“No way.”
I clenched my fist.
Then I approached Gi So-yul, who was resting.
Think about it—all the Hunters here.
They’ve all gone in and come back out that ‘door.’
‘Everyone except me.’
Too unfair not to try.
Opportunity should be equal.
Her monopolizing it just because she’s a ranker? Nah.
Especially after all this time with no clear.
‘Plus, slim chance, but.’
What if I’m the material the old man wants?
“......?”
As I approached, Gi So-yul gave a puzzled look.
Like, what does the porter want?
She looked worn out for sure.
To her, I gritted my teeth and said.
“Gi So-yul.”
“Yes? What is it, porter?”
“I think I need to go in once too.”
“What?”
At my declaration.
An eerie silence fell over the clearing.