C-Class Gate Disappearance, The Beginning of Gratitude
"Fire attribute ability 70%, Agility 40%, Stamina 30%. It's B-class equipment that boosts those stats."
Jaehoon hyung clapped his hands the moment the results appeared. "No need to think twice. You should use it, Team Leader. Team Leader Jang Tae-wook gave it to you in the first place. You need to get stronger first—that's how the rest of us stay alive."
Doyun hyung nodded immediately. "Today's battle proved it. Reinforcing our firepower should be your top priority, Team Leader."
Sorin clasped her hands and gave a light nod of agreement. "I agree too. An item like this… isn't something we should split among ourselves. It naturally belongs to you, Team Leader."
After a brief silence, Team Leader Yoo Mira stared at the necklace, then slowly exhaled. "…Then I'll use the equipment. In exchange, divide the rest of the loot without my share. Everyone worked hard today."
"Let's keep it clean. Twenty-four cores means six each for the four of us. Perfect."
Doyun hyung and Sorin quietly nodded as well.
"Let's wrap this up. Team Leader takes the equipment, and we each get six cores."
"…Thank you. All of you."
Everyone gathered their mana stones and packed their bags. After confirming the ten o'clock meeting for the next morning, the team members began heading toward the vehicles one by one. I zipped my backpack last. On the surface, all I'd collected were six mana stones—but what remained in my hands was another "change" that no one else knew about.
Just then, Arin looked up at me with an innocent face, her eyes sparkling. "Jihoon~ What are you doing? Hehe."
"…Arin. What exactly did you pick up earlier? Don't tell me it was something like a top-grade mana stone?"
Arin tilted her head, her mouth still moving as she chewed. "Huh?? What?? Earlier??"
"You were wandering around the Behemoth earlier and picked up something big and red, then stuffed it into my backpack. You also secretly grabbed a bunch of the surrounding stones."
"Ah—that?" Arin rolled the thing in her mouth for a moment, then swallowed it in one gulp. "I already ate the red one…?"
"You ate it…?"
"Yeah! It fell near the Behemoth's heart. It had a lot of fire energy in it, so eating it felt good."
For a moment, I just stared blankly. I couldn't even react right away.
"…Then what about the dark-red stones?"
"Those are fire spirit stones." Arin patted my backpack with a proud expression. "They were just lying around, so I picked them up."
"Those were… spirit stones?"
"Yep! People don't seem to recognize them. They just walk right past. Since no one was taking them… I grabbed them."
"Of course no one recognized them. They probably didn't even know such things existed."
"From now on, I'll collect them first. But if you see any, you have to grab them too. We both need to get stronger together! You can sense energy now, so if you feel something, remember it… and make sure to collect it next time."
"Hahaha, got it! I'll definitely pick them up if I see any next time! We really are… alike. Secretly absorbing things without anyone knowing."
Arin burst into laughter and plopped down in front of me again. "Exactly! You're my contractor, after all~ Hehe!"
"Yeah, yeah. We should head home now."
I adjusted my backpack and asked casually, "By the way, Arin… Are you going to stay by my side like this all the time?"
Arin nodded as if it were obvious. "Yeah! If you want me here, I'll be right beside you anytime. But if my spirit power runs out, I'll have to return to the spirit realm for a bit to rest."
"The spirit realm… A place like that actually exists?"
"Of course! The connection's a little fuzzy right now, but it's stable enough that I can come right away if you call."
"If you just call my name—poof! I can appear."
"Oh… That's pretty reassuring."
"But you look tired right now. Wouldn't it be better to go rest in the spirit realm?"
"Hmm…" Arin pressed a finger to her lips, thought for a moment, then brightened. "Should I? Then… can I take the spirit stones you put in the backpack earlier? Absorbing them should help me recover quickly!"
"Of course. If you get stronger, that's good for me too."
"Thanks, Jihoon! You're the best!"
I just smiled and waved. Arin nodded, and her body gradually began to turn light and transparent.
"Then I'll head to the spirit realm! Call me later and I'll come right back, Jihoon!"
"Yeah. Rest well."
"Okay! See you later!"
With a sparkle, light scattered like flower petals, and Arin vanished.
In the suddenly quiet space, I let the tension drain from my body. The fatigue I'd been holding back all day settled heavily onto my shoulders.
"…Time to really head home. After a shower, I should lie down… and maybe eat some meat to celebrate being alive."
I walked slowly. I'd survived another day, and another secret had taken root inside me. Strangely, my steps toward home felt a little lighter.
The lights in the Dungeon Investigation Bureau headquarters conference room were only half on. The large screen displayed the final log from the Yangju C-09 gate, frozen in place. Entry records, combat traces, survival confirmation—and one last line at the end.
No Dungeon Core Recovery Record.
Natural Disappearance 3 Hours After Entry.
A short silence followed, and the air in the room grew heavy.
"A C-class gate… closed without a core?" Director Han Seo-yeon said, her voice low. Her expression remained calm, but tension coiled at the back of her neck.
"There's no precedent. C-class gates are structurally required to leave a core behind."
Audit Division Chief Choi Jun-hyuk pushed a document toward the screen and continued. "The probability of natural disappearance is less than 0.1%. There's only one conclusion: someone took the dungeon core. The black market price has risen sharply. A C-class core goes for at least 400 to 500 million won these days."
"That kind of money… would tempt anyone."
When he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the conference room sank even further. Audit Officer Park Eun-chae operated her terminal, and the movement logs of the two teams overlapped on the screen.
"The problem is that this was a joint operation between Investigation Team 3 and Hyunmu Guild Team 3."
He selected one line and enlarged it on the screen.
Investigator Byun Jihoon — Solo movement for 10 minutes / Location signal lost for a period
A faint sound of a chair scraping echoed from one side of the room.
"…A reporting omission?"
Director Han Seo-yeon lowered her voice. "No. His report matches the equipment logs. He fell into a lower area due to ground collapse during combat near the gorge. During that time… his solo location is correct."
"Ten minutes… is enough time to hide a core. What did Hyunmu Team 3 say?"
"They passed through the same route and reported they didn't find the core. Their statements are consistent."
"…Natural disappearance is impossible. So the answer is one of two things."
She raised two fingers. "First, someone inside took it. Second, an external illegal team snuck in and took it."
Choi Jun-hyuk immediately followed up. "There's a 'dungeon core specialist team' operating in the Gangbuk area these days. An organization affiliated with the Black Dragon Guild that strips cores clean."
"It's possible—but the issue is that this case is directly connected to a gate our own organization handled jointly. Put Investigation Team 3, especially Investigator Byun Jihoon, under observation."
Audit Officer Park Eun-chae spoke carefully. "Investigator Jihoon shows no suspicious signs. His report, equipment logs, and movement records all match."
Director Han Seo-yeon slowly raised her head. "That's exactly why he could be more dangerous. Just because nothing looks wrong on the surface… doesn't mean nothing's there."
The conference room paused for a moment. Only papers rustled lightly under the lights. Director Han Seo-yeon reached her conclusion.
"Understood. Launch formal audits on both Investigation Team 3 and Hyunmu Team 3. Personal asset investigations can wait—start with on-site audits, equipment logs, and movement route verification first."
"Yes."
Director Han Seo-yeon quietly pointed at the name on the screen one last time. "…Keep a closer eye on Investigator Byun Jihoon. Sometimes the people who look the cleanest on the outside… are the ones hiding the biggest secrets."
The atmosphere in the conference room dropped another degree. No one raised their voice, but everyone knew—the "hunt" had begun.
The next morning, in the Uijeongbu Investigation Team 3 conference room, Team Leader Yoo Mira placed a thin document on the desk. The sound of the cover sliding across the surface echoed in the quiet room.
"We received word from headquarters. Yesterday's C-09 gate… has been classified as a natural disappearance."
Jaehoon hyung's eyes widened. "It really closed without a core?"
"Yes. It's the first case for a C-class gate. Headquarters is extremely sensitive right now."
She checked the document once more and continued. "So… starting today, Audit Division will conduct a formal investigation on Investigation Team 3 as well."
At that moment, Doyun hyung slowly raised his gaze. "Then… has Hyunmu Team 3 already been audited?"
"Yes. They're already under investigation. Our audit begins today as well."
When she finished, everyone's eyes naturally turned toward me. I kept my expression as calm as possible.
'…I didn't expect it to blow up this much.'
A chill ran down the back of my neck. My heart suddenly began pounding.
'…This is obviously about me. If I'm caught, it's over.'
Team Leader Yoo Mira continued in a calm tone. "Don't worry too much. We followed regulations, and our reports are accurate. I heard there were traces of an illegal hunter team nearby."
Sorin leaned slightly forward with a pout. "Still… being audited doesn't feel good. Especially when we didn't do anything wrong."
"It's a necessary procedural step. Just cooperate."
'…Core absorption. Nothing left behind, no traces… If Arin is right, detection itself should be impossible.'
The meeting ended, and the team members quietly returned to their seats.
After work, at the training hall. Every time I struck the sandbag, its surface shook violently, and the recoil traveled straight up my arms to my shoulders. Even though I'd swung lightly without putting much force into it, the impact sank deep, making the entire sandbag sway. I shook out my hands and picked up a sword this time. Imagining a line drawn in front of me, I repeated the motion of cutting along it. Each time I shifted my feet, I adjusted my stride and angle slightly, checking whether my center remained steady.
Today, my movements felt unusually natural. It was closer to my body reacting on its own. Dojang owner Han Do-hoon watched my form carefully from beside me, then spoke.
"Jihoon, your movement has changed a lot. Honestly… this is on the level of C-class or higher close-combat hunters. Are you really D-class?"
"Come on, owner, of course I'm D-class. I'm not C-class. My condition's just good today."
'…Even after holding back this much, it's still this strong. I need to control it more carefully.'
Han Do-hoon didn't ask further and headed into the office. I swung the sword a few more times to confirm the sensation, then finished my training.
When I got home, I tossed my workout clothes into the washing machine and washed away the remaining heat with the shower. The stream of water hitting my shoulders and back gradually loosened the tension. After showering, I sat on the living room sofa. Once my breathing stabilized, I gathered a thin layer of mana at my fingertips.
"Arin."
A red light flashed and flickered above my hand, and a small, pretty red doll-like Arin quietly appeared.
"Jihoon?"
"…About the Yangju C-09 core."
I flexed my finger joints once and checked the sensation. "Did anything… remain in my body?"
Arin let out a small breath and floated closer. "No need to worry. It was completely absorbed into your body. There's no energy leaking out at all. No one can detect it."
"…Really?"
"Really. There are no external reactions, and the flow only circulates inside you. There's no problem."
Arin placed her hands on her hips and continued. "However… your abilities have grown significantly. You'll need to practice controlling them yourself. Your power has increased, but your control is still at D-class level. If you move like before, accidents will happen."
I slowly exhaled. The sensation flowing across the back of my hand vibrated faintly.
"…Got it. I'll have to start practicing control again. But how about you? You went to the spirit realm after a long time."
Arin's expression darkened instantly. "The spirit realm… has changed a lot. The spirit gods are in deep slumber, the king's throne is empty… the environment is ruined and devastated, and the number of spirits has dropped sharply."
"The spirit realm… I imagined it would be a beautiful place. Why did it end up like that? Come to think of it, why were you sealed inside a dungeon core in the first place?"