Cleared Just by Walking

What the hell is going on here?

The dungeon had been cleared out of nowhere. Jisu was staring at the Essence of Life scattered all over the boss room when Seyeon's voice came through in his ear at just the right moment.

"Ah, thank you."

He'd asked her to check in after a set interval even without being prompted. She really was good at following instructions.

Must be that operator he mentioned earlier, Gaeul thought, watching Jisu suddenly start talking to himself. Her guess was right on the money.

"Well, that's actually what I was about to ask you about. We came in and there's no sign of anything. No monsters showing up, nobody in the mid-boss room, and then we get to the boss room and some weird guy just takes off running..."

Seyeon's words sparked something. Jisu remembered what Gaeul had said just a little while ago.

Unless your Mental Power stat can keep up, they're hard to deal with...

"Seyeon. Is there some kind of connection between dungeons and the Mental Power stat?"

"Ah."

Now it made sense. Jisu pressed a hand to his forehead for a moment, then spoke to Seyeon again.

"Just out of curiosity — how high did you figure my Mental Power was?"

"..."

Jisu quietly pulled up his status.

"..."

Right. So that was it.

He couldn't be completely sure, but he had a pretty good idea why this was happening. If the Mental Power stat had that much of an ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠impact on dungeon raids, there was only one conclusion to draw—

The monsters just ran away because I walked by, didn't they?

If those booming footsteps from earlier had been the sound of things fleeing, it all lined up. And if that last humanoid monster really had been the boss — and it had run away too — then at least nothing about this was strange anymore. Of course, why every last monster was already dead and why Essence of Life was scattered everywhere was still a mystery.

Amazingly enough, Jisu's guess was almost exactly right.

If a hunter with 50 Mental Power walked in, they could at least keep their wits about them. They'd be able to hold some kind of conversation with a mid-boss, but without any other outstanding abilities, combat could still be dangerous.

A hunter with 100 Mental Power wouldn't have any trouble taking down a mid-boss. Reaching the final boss — a place so few people ever made it to — would be another story.

A ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hunter with 200 Mental Power could stroll through a dungeon like it was their own living room. Hunters of that caliber were probably the only ones who could even make it to where the final boss waited.

And so.

What happened when a hunter with 1,424 Mental Power walked into a dungeon?

Message windows kept blooming into existence in front of Jisu and Gaeul, who were still standing there in a daze.

A whole lot of other things seemed to be dropping as well, but none of it particularly caught Jisu's eye.

"Hey, Gaeul."

"Yes?"

"If you added all this up, about how much would it be in won?"

Gaeul thought for a moment at Jisu's question, then answered.

"I'm not really sure about the going rate for Special Artifacts. I'd have to look into it. Some of them boost a hunter's abilities, so I couldn't give you a hard number."

"What about the Essence, then?"

Essence of Life. This wasn't the first time he'd seen it. He'd picked some up last time they'd taken down that wyvern, and he knew it could be used as an energy source or converted into cash. And this Essence of Life was pretty much the only way low-rank hunters scraping through dungeon raids ever made any money.

"With this much of it... you'd get at least three to five million won, I'd think."

"I see."

The moment he heard that, Jisu felt like he understood why high-rank hunters wouldn't even glance at dungeon raids. The artifacts didn't look all that impressive, honestly, and unless you were in a situation like his — where monsters keeled over the second they walked toward you — the income probably felt laughably small compared to how exhausting a raid actually was.

"Ah, about the distribution. I didn't do a single thing this time, so—"

"Right. About the distribution. You take all of it, Gaeul."

"......What?"

Gaeul, who had been so composed this entire time, looked thoroughly flustered. From Jisu's point of view it was basically leftover scraps, but from hers, of course it was startling. No matter how she looked at it, she hadn't done a thing on this raid. If she'd contributed even a little, she might have been able to claim a tiny share — but this time she had quite literally just walked along behind him.

"I just wanted to see a dungeon for myself. You helped show me around, so consider this payment for that."

"That doesn't sit right with me, though."

"Why not?"

"Because I didn't do anything."

Gaeul's answer was firm. Taking help and giving nothing back was something she couldn't even stand to think about.

Six million won. With that kind of money, she could actually breathe. She could cover the rent. Even if hunter work kept drying up, she'd be able to get by for a while. But even so, she honestly hated the idea of just gobbling up someone else's charity.

"Hmm..."

Jisu had more or less figured her out from the way she was reacting.

"Then how about this. Next time we run into each other, I'll ask you for a favor. You can help me out then."

"......Well."

"Let's do it that way. Okay?"

Jisu said it with a smile at the corner of his mouth. Gaeul thought it over for a moment, then nodded.

"Understood. If you're going to put it like that, I won't refuse. Thank you."

"Come on, what's there to thank me for? Don't mention it."

It's pocket change even if I take it anyway.

Just the money coming in from the Hunter Association made six million won nothing to Jisu. Banking a little goodwill with Gaeul while he was at it wasn't a bad move. Even if she was a low-rank hunter, there was no downside to treating the people around you well.

With that, Jisu assigned the entire reward distribution to Gaeul.

After that, Jisu started back the way they'd come. Gaeul followed behind him in silence, and together they walked out of the dungeon.

Waiting outside the dungeon was a man who looked vaguely familiar.

"Who's that?"

Jisu was sure he'd seen that face somewhere. A well-tailored black suit. Accessories dotted here and there like the man was trying a little too hard, and a hairstyle that looked like it had taken a full afternoon at the salon.

"I think that's Hunter Shin Jihoon."

"Shin Jihoon?"

Now that she mentioned it, he remembered. Had it been at that gathering of S-rank and above hunters? He remembered the face, but honestly, the impression hadn't stuck.

And Jihoon, having confirmed Jisu's face, was lost in thought of his own.

I rushed over because I heard a dungeon had been cleared, wondering what kind of lunatic had caused this mess...

News of a dungeon clear went straight to the Association. And a cleared dungeon no longer functioned as a dungeon at all.

So it was this guy.

Back in the early days of hunter society, maybe it would have been different — but in this era, dungeons were essentially crude oil wells. Low-rank hunters farmed moderately difficult dungeons on a rotating schedule. Entry order and time slots were set so the monsters inside had time to respawn. The end result was a steady harvest of Essence of Life, the new energy source. In other words, it was mining.

The reason high-rank hunters didn't run dungeons followed the same logic. Jisu had assumed it was because it didn't pay — and that wasn't wrong, but it wasn't the whole picture either. A dungeon that had already been mapped was far more profitable in the long run if you just kept milking it for Essence. It provided work for hunters, and everyone already knew that actually clearing one didn't yield much of a reward.

So who could have predicted that this dungeon — sitting in the heart of Seoul, no less, and providing a fairly generous supply of Essence — was about to vanish? It hit Jihoon especially hard. He was the one with management rights over the place.

"..."

Jihoon kept a smile on his face as he approached Jisu and offered a handshake.

"Meeting you in a place like this, Hunter Hyun Jisu. A pleasure."

"Ah. Yes. Nice to meet you."

Jihoon presented his hand with the other one supporting it, so politely that Jisu shook it on reflex — but a strange feeling crept over him.

Was this guy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠always this courteous?

By the judgment of Hyun Jisu — a man destined to be enshrined in textbooks as the unshakable Confucian gentleman of his generation — anyone this well-mannered would have left a mark. But his impression of this man was faint. If he was being honest, the guy barely had any presence at all.

Of course he didn't. The first time they'd met, Jihoon had ignored him.

But that was no longer an option. No — from Jihoon's position, it simply couldn't be.

I still don't know how far this man's power goes. This is a time to be careful.

He could have leaned on his pride as an S+ rank, but Jihoon chose practicality instead.

Putting him in my debt wouldn't be a bad move. Stay on good terms and it'll surely come back to help me.

Jihoon operated without a proper guild, but he wasn't trying to be a perfect lone wolf either. He shut down the hole I was managing, and I let it go anyway — to anyone who understood honor, that would be a considerable kindness. Of course, it wouldn't mean a thing to a thug like Woohyeok, but at least in Jihoon's eyes, Jisu didn't seem like that kind of man.

Alright. Let's feel him out a little.

Jihoon put on a professional smile and started building toward the real subject.

"That aside, it seems you've cleared the dungeon."

A hunter would know what a dungeon clear meant — or so Jihoon thought, already planning to mention that he managed this place and that he was in a rather difficult position because of it. If the man apologized even roughly, Jihoon would just say it was fine this time and let it go.

That was the plan, until—

"Yeah, and?"

"......?"

Yeah, and? Is he asking me what I'm going to do about it?

Jihoon nearly let the smile slip at Jisu's answer, but he held it in place by a thread and started turning the gears in his head.

What is this? Is this guy the same type as Cheon Woohyeok?

Jisu was not that type at all. He simply didn't know the logic — that a dungeon clear meant the dungeon closed, and a closed dungeon meant no more monsters — so he'd asked a straightforward question. But when the person asking that question was the Strongest Hunter on Earth, the meaning changed entirely.

Is this his way of telling me not to talk back?!

Jihoon took pride in his own ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠abilities, but he was also a man who could look at himself objectively. He could not beat Jisu. After watching that one-on-one with Cheon Woohyeok, he was even more certain of it.

Then was clearing the dungeon a kind of warning? He does whatever he wants, then watches to see who becomes an ally and who becomes an enemy?

Jihoon's usual bad habit was overthinking things several steps too far. Because his abilities were so far above the rest, that habit had always worked in his favor — but not this time.

An utterly absurd misunderstanding.

"?"

Jisu looked at Jihoon with a puzzled expression. Of course, to Jihoon, it only looked like he was being told to hurry up and answer.

"......It's nothing. I understand your meaning perfectly. I'll let this matter rest. If you'll excuse me."

With that, Jihoon turned on his heel and walked away.

I may have underestimated a monster. If I make an enemy of that man, I'm going to die. It's humiliating, but if I can end this with just losing one dungeon, it might actually be a gain!

Jihoon gritted his teeth. He was a rational man, but that didn't mean he had no pride. It was the first taste of defeat he'd felt since becoming an S-rank hunter — S+ rank, even — but he sorted his thoughts quickly. The Shindolim Dungeon, which had been such a reliable cash cow, had vanished in the most hollow way imaginable, but there was nothing else to be done.

Forget it. Don't think about it anymore. Just end it here.

Jisu, of course, found the entire exchange so baffling that he watched the man's retreating back and said—

"Man, what's with that guy? So bland."

And Gaeul, standing behind them and watching the whole thing unfold, was having an equally absurd misunderstanding of her own.

He sent Hunter Shin Jihoon packing with nothing but a battle of presence... Just how powerful is this man?

And so, without even realizing it, Hyun Jisu continued to climb the stairs toward becoming the Strongest Hunter on Earth — one step at a time.