The Second Absorption – Evolution Begins
The next day, at the Dungeon Investigation Bureau's Uijeongbu Northern Branch. The conference room lights cast a gentle reflection across the desk. Team Leader Yoo Mira flipped through her terminal, organizing the data.
"Review of the Cheongpyeong E-05 report confirms the internal core reaction has naturally dissipated. The residual mana coefficient has returned to the stabilization range, and the gate closed on its own. Logs and video data have been transmitted."
Team Leader Yoo Mira flipped the screen once more.
"Next is Gapyeong E-04. The stabilization readings are showing slight fluctuations."
"It's an E-rank unstable dungeon, correct?"
"Yes. The rank remains the same. However, the residual mana coefficient has been inconsistent since yesterday. And starting today, the power has been restored."
Team Leader Yoo Mira turned her gaze to the seats beside her.
"Kang Doyun, Baek Sorin. With you two back, the team is complete again."
Kang Doyun, 25 years old. C-rank gravity-attribute ability user. His solidly built frame from training paired with calm eyes. He spoke little, but his movements never wavered.
"The Pocheon branch dispatch went smoothly. I've also finished checking the equipment for today's deployment."
Sorin raised her hand in a light greeting.
"Right back into the field the moment vacation ends. I'll handle wind control and airflow observation."
Baek Sorin, 23 years old. C-rank wind-attribute ability user. Her light gaze and neatly controlled movements were her defining traits.
Rehun's brother closed the case and looked up.
"Now the team is truly assembled. Gravity and wind joining forces."
"Good. Today's objective is simple. We'll only confirm the value fluctuations in the Gapyeong E-04 dungeon and record the necessary logs. Avoid unnecessary combat and do not stray beyond the line."
Everyone nodded in confirmation. When the meeting ended, the sound of chairs scraping briefly echoed, and each person picked up their equipment checklist before rising calmly.
"We'll depart right after equipment inspection."
A short while later, in the garage. Equipment cases were loaded into the trunks as indicator lights flickered on one after another.
"Team Leader! No equipment issues."
"Mana stabilization meter, reconnaissance drone, two spare bombs. Use them only in real emergencies. One detonation costs a month's budget."
"Still, think of it as the price of survival."
Two SUVs pulled out of the garage with a low engine hum and accelerated onto the road. Team Leader Yoo Mira led in front, while Rehun's brother rode in the rear vehicle, gradually picking up speed along the national highway.
Low mountain ridges stretched endlessly beside the road, and the air felt slightly damp, leaving tiny droplets on the windows. As we passed the scenery, today's investigation target naturally surfaced in my mind. Gapyeong E-04—the dungeon whose stabilization readings had been reported as subtly fluctuating.
Before long, about three hundred meters ahead, a faint gate began to appear in view.
"Inspect your equipment and recheck the readings before entering."
Team Leader Yoo Mira's voice crackled briefly over the comms.
"Understood."
"No issues."
"Then everyone, enter the gate."
Crossing the gate, the walls felt cold like metal, and blue fragments lay scattered across the floor. The smell of rusted iron mixed with lingering mana stung the nose. The sensor beeped shortly, signaling uneven internal pressure. The aftereffect sent vibrations to my fingertips, and even the equipment trembled faintly. I immediately checked the readings, readjusted the channel, and calmed the reaction.
"Deploying reconnaissance drone forward."
As Rehun's brother's voice continued, the red sensor light activated, and the drone rose into the darkness. The vibration from its metal wings spread low through the passage, while the camera's light stretched along the walls, scanning deeper inside.
"Forward visibility secured. Internal air pressure normal. Residual mana weak."
As the drone ventured deeper, the waveform graph trembled slightly. Within normal range—no signs of rampage. Then, the sensor alarm blared.
Stabilization Value Surge. 4.6 → 5.8
The graph spiked sharply, sending dust cascading from the wall cracks. The scattered fragments on the floor began to tremble lightly from the aftershock. Almost simultaneously, the sensor continued its warning tones as the internal mana fluctuated rapidly at short intervals. In that moment, the surrounding air trembled briefly, and the floor swelled from within, causing the metal plates to burst under the strain. Red flames spread outward, fragments flying in all directions, and the passage filled instantly with heat and shock.
Amid the settling smoke, a Blood Kobold slowly raised its head at the end of the passage. Standing just over two meters tall, its blood-red hide was rough and hardened like rusted iron. Hot breath escaped between its thick fangs, pressing heavily on the surrounding air.
"Fall back!"
Team Leader Yoo Mira's voice cut through the passage. At the same time, flames compressed at her fingertips, revealing a high-density fire orb. In the next instant, the orb shot forward and struck the Blood Kobold's torso directly. With a thunderous explosion, the passage flipped red. The compressed heat released all at once, melting the blood-red hide in seconds. All that remained were scorched traces and scattered embers.
A brief silence followed.
"It's over."
"That was really one shot. As expected of an A-rank."
"This is why guilds are eyeing her."
"I heard upper ranks get annual salaries in the billions."
"Among Investigation Bureau personnel, Team Leader Yoo Mira is the most famous. Guilds keep contacting her, apparently."
"That's right. But I don't like that side. It's all combat and following orders. Being able to choose like now is much better."
Rehun's brother tilted his head as if joking.
"You're saying giving up billions to run these field operations is better?"
"Money is nice, but staying alive matters more. And even if it's not as much as a guild, I get paid what I deserve."
"Alright! Everyone okay?"
"No issues."
While the team members confirmed their status, a faint sound came from the wall I was leaning against. A tiny crack spread like a web, and through the gap, a blue light cautiously seeped upward. It was a dungeon core. The small light rippled as if waving, revealing its presence. The moment I saw it, my hand reacted before my thoughts could finish forming.
If I absorb this too… could I become even stronger?
That judgment came belatedly. The moment my fingertips touched it, pressure surged up my arm, and my heart reacted a beat late, pounding heavily. An electric-like tremor spread along my spine, shaking my vision briefly as the air seemed to burst outward. It felt as if a switch somewhere inside my body had been pressed, electricity spreading through every nerve, and for an instant, all surrounding sound cut off completely.
After a short blank, the team members' conversations began to filter back into my ears, hazy.
"Team Leader, I heard the equipment in upper guilds is on another level."
Sorin's voice continued.
"Even throwing one bomb costs millions, apparently."
"Still, the losses are bigger too."
"I like it just like this. Even if it's dangerous, the choice is mine."
"That sounds cool."
"I'm having trouble giving up the money, though."
"That's why everyone joins guilds. But the more you earn there, the more dangerous it is. We get to live longer."
Sorin raised her hand.
"I prefer living longer."
"I also think this side is better than a guild."
Meanwhile, the heat remaining in my palm gradually subsided. The pain had completely vanished, but a faint vibration still lingered inside my body, refusing to settle. It felt as if that tremor started from my fingertips and slowly moved toward my chest.
Team Leader Yoo Mira glanced at her terminal before turning to us and nodding.
"Good. Stabilization confirmed. Let's head back."
Stepping outside the dungeon, the cold air immediately touched my skin. Rehun's brother, who had been loading equipment into the truck, turned his head to look at me.
"Three people have already received scouting offers from guilds. I heard upper investigators get a billion in annual salary."
"A billion annual salary means no worries about retirement."
"But it's a slave contract."
"No freedom. And dangerous too. I think being less dangerous and freer like now is better."
"Right. The team leader has the qualifications for that. That one shot today was really clean."
"Thank you. Next time, I'll finish it a little less flashily."
I organized the equipment box, clenching and unclenching my hands. A faint vibration still remained at my fingertips. As the vehicle door closed, today's dungeon came to an end.
Returning home and closing the door, I immediately turned my gaze to one side of the room. A 10kg dumbbell rolled in the corner. It was a lump of iron I'd bought intending to exercise but had barely lifted before. I raised my hand without thinking. Then I focused my will lightly at my fingertips.
Thud—.
The dumbbell lifted from the floor. Without physical contact, it floated steadily in the air, rotating slowly according to my hand gesture.
"This… to this extent."
I left it like that for a moment. Even after a minute, it showed no movement. Now it wasn't just the feeling of enduring weight, but a stronger sensation of handling it as part of my body. I lifted another dumbbell beside it. Two lumps of iron moved side by side in the air. Up and down. Left and right. Rotation. The movements followed my thoughts precisely.
"…It's certain."
I slowly lowered the two dumbbells and sat at the table. After absorbing the second core in today's Gapyeong dungeon, the sensation remaining inside my body still hadn't completely settled. Whether this was a temporary reaction or a continuing change, I couldn't tell yet. But one thing was clear. The change I felt then was no illusion.
The next morning, after the meeting ended, the office fell briefly quiet. Only report screens lined up on the terminals, with the occasional sound of paper flipping.
"Hyung, did you see this report?"
"What, did the numbers go up again?"
"E-rank and above dungeon stabilization rate at 92%. That's what it says."
"You believe those numbers?"
"It's an official document. It's written to be believed."
"Does anyone actually believe it?"
Hyung leaned back in his chair.
"E-rank ends quickly, so we can call it stabilized. The problem is the higher ranks. C-rank and above are still fighting inside."
"The report only says 'external value stabilization complete.'"
"Right. Reports always only clean up the outside. That's the trap. Only the gate's external readings are captured, while the inside is still chaos. Guild hunters are mining resources and fighting residual mana, with several teams coming and going every day."
"So in the end, only the easy-to-clean places get organized."
"Exactly. D-rank closes in a day with nothing to see, so just clearing the monsters quickly ends it. But from there up, resources come out, so people risk their lives going in."
"Reports are always clean. They write '92% stabilized' and the remaining 8% just disappears."
"In the end, it's just number decoration."
"Decoration is necessary too, if you want to secure budget."
"Politicians will just look at the documents and say 'good work.'"
"Media will write one article and be done. We're the only ones actually going in."
"We haven't even finished the work that ends with one line in a report."
"Reality is already divided by guild units. The capital region is Hyunmu, the East Sea region is Cheongryong, the south is Jujak, the west is Baekho."
"I know. Each manages only their own territory. Only the profitable places."
"Cheongryong makes sensors, Baekho handles transport, Jujak sells resources, Hyunmu takes care of administration. When guilds turn, cities turn. When they stop, administration stops."
"Dungeons have become industry, and hunters have become office workers."
"We're just the ones filling the gaps."
"Areas guilds' hands don't reach. Officially written as closed in reports, but actually still running."
"That's where we get deployed."
"The name is Investigation Bureau, but in reality it's the guild cleanup department."
Rehun's brother stood up from his seat.
"Still, someone has to do it. The remaining people—that's us."
I closed the terminal and organized my thoughts for a moment. In the end, the cleanup was our share.