First Dungeon, Setting Out
A massive tectonic shift rattled the Abyss leaderboards.
Vid.
Rank 3 on South Korea's overall rankings, and Rank 7 globally.
At the very same time, Rank 1 worldwide across the entire supporter class.
With the sudden arrival of this unprecedented supernova, a torrent of rampant speculation erupted across the Hunter Board and every affiliated online community.
Burning just as furiously as the Hunter Board was none other than the Korean Hunter Association's landline telephones.
“Ugh, seriously, just yank the cord out already!”
“We can't, Chairman! What if an urgent call comes through...?!”
“Ji-won-ssi. Have you already forgotten what those last twenty 'urgent' calls were about?”
“They were... all asking for Hunter Vid.”
“You know full well, so why are you making me repeat myself? Pull the plug this instant!”
Association Chairman Kim Gun-woo, A-rank. Young, and only in his third year on the job.
He felt as though his sanity was hanging by a thread.
Emails, landlines, text messages, physical mail. Representatives from every major guild were mobilizing every conceivable resource to track down a single hunter.
Faced with an avalanche of scouting calls, the Chairman's strategy was simple.
Total radio silence.
Ghost the emails, ignore the texts and letters, and unplug the phone lines. Was it acceptable for an official organization to act like this? Surprisingly, yes. It was the guilds on the other end who were trampling over established protocols and privacy laws, not the Association.
Naturally, he had prepared for in-person visits as well. Most administrative staff had been sent home early, and the main entrance was sealed tight with his defensive barrier magic.
Even so, he couldn't bring himself to relax.
Please, just let it end like this for today...!
His barrier magic was formidable, but it wasn't invincible. If the stubborn, heavy-hitting S-rank hunters decided to force their way through, it would tear open like wet tissue paper.
Worse still...
“Is the master of the house in?”
“Eek!”
Some didn't even need to tear through the barrier at all.
A figure had materialized beside him without a whisper of warning. Jolted out of his skin, the Chairman caught sight of the intruder's face and exhaled in sheer relief.
“Ah. Hunter Ga Jin-ho... Please don't appear out of thin air like that. You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
“Ho-ho. How can a man holding the esteemed title of Association Chairman possess such a faint heart? You must accustom yourself to it, Chairman Kim.”
Ga Jin-ho.
Currently South Korea's Rank 1 Hunter and Global Rank 2.
His archaic speech and venerable cadence stood in stark contrast to his youthful, strikingly handsome features. He had appeared out of nowhere seven years ago without pedigree or warning, unseating the long-reigning Red Bow from the nation's top throne.
“So, what brings you here, Hunter-nim...?”
One of the most famous facts about Ga Jin-ho was that he operated entirely alone, refusing to affiliate with any party or guild. Because of that, the Chairman dared to hope that his visit had nothing to do with the Vid incident.
Ga Jin-ho ruthlessly pulverized that fleeting hope.
“That supporter who has stirred up such a tempest over the Abyss rankings. I should like to learn of the child's whereabouts.”
“Ah... Not you too, Hunter Ga Jin-ho....”
“Do not wear a face as though the world itself has crumbled.”
“Why are you looking for them?”
“...Let us call it an old man's passing whim and curiosity.”
The Chairman was about to refuse, insisting that personal data could not be disclosed to anyone regardless of their status, when a sudden thought sparked in his mind.
“How about this, then?”
“What might that be?”
“Divulge the personal history you've kept hidden, Hunter Ga Jin-ho. Do that, and I'll tell you about Hunter Vid.”
While nowhere near as mysterious as Vid, Ga Jin-ho harbored plenty of secrets of his own. Ever since his registration seven years ago, he had flatly refused to reveal his true age or his past to the Association.
Ga Jin-ho's contemplation was brief.
“Ho-ho, that simply will not do. My curiosity is hardly so grand as to barter away this old man's personal tales.”
A razor-sharp refusal.
“Then it would be equally difficult for us to assist you.”
“A pity, truly a pity. Should you ever consider offering different terms, do speak up later. Be it labor, wealth, or whatever else you might desire.”
“...!”
With those parting words, Ga Jin-ho vanished from before the Chairman's eyes. It was as though he had never occupied that space to begin with.
“Capricious in arrival and departure alike. Tsk.”
The Chairman clicked his tongue in exasperation and moved to reinforce the entrance barrier even further.
Yet another S-rank harbored a keen interest in Vid.
Rank 2 in South Korea right behind Ga Jin-ho: the 'Red Bow', Yeon Hwa-yeon.
A damage dealer who commanded the fire attribute, and among dealers, a supreme sniper wielding a bow. She caught wind of the Abyss leaderboards immediately after returning from preliminary behind-the-scenes negotiations—the real bare-knuckle brawl—for next year's salary review, which would later be staged politely for the press.
“What? A supporter ranked third on the first floor? Seriously?”
“Yes, unnie. The information is solid.”
“...That supporter must pack quite a punch, wouldn't you say?”
“......Is that literally all you ever think about, unnie?”
Yeon Hwa-yeon's thought process was remarkably straightforward:
A supporter claimed a top spot on the Abyss leaderboard.
→ Low-floor Abyss rankings prioritize pure offensive firepower over broad tactical versatility.
→ That supporter must possess astronomical firepower.
→ A prime rival candidate!
Though her conclusion was eccentric, her intuition regarding the Abyss was spot-on. Yeon Hwa-yeon prided herself on understanding the Abyss better than anyone else in the country, a claim substantiated by her national record of clearing the 58th floor.
She was already dreaming of the day she would meet the record-breaking supporter. Naturally, her objectives were a duel of raw firepower and making friends.
Despite holding the executive title of Vice Guildmaster, guild politics had been booted straight to the back of her mind.
Today's pop quiz: What is the recurring monthly appointment I must attend without fail?
My period? Beep, incorrect. Sure, that's something I'll have to deal with when the time comes, but not just yet.
The correct answer is a regular psychiatric consultation.
Today's itinerary: morning counseling, afternoon dungeon run to dip my toes in the water.
To cross off the first item on the list, I was currently sitting inside the General Hospital Psychiatric Department.
“How have you been feeling lately?”
“No bad changes. Plenty to talk about, actually. In a good way.”
“...Would you care to elaborate?”
Was it when I was sixteen? Or seventeen? Around that time, unable to focus on work and completely devoid of the will to live, I had started attending regular psychiatric sessions on the recommendation of the diner Boss.
The schedule had shifted a few times over the years, but the current interval sat at once a month.
Today, I had plenty to share. So much had happened over the past forty-eight hours that I felt like Roronoa Zoro stumbling into another dimension.
Leaving out the single detail that my body and legal identity had transformed into a woman, I laid out everything else: awakening, regressing into an unemployed youth, visiting the Association, and diving into the Abyss for the very first time.
“...I see. ...Yes, wow... Understood.”
The doctor's hands flew across his keyboard, typing frantically while making brief, attentive eye contact.
“Yes. I've heard you out... and I cannot help but ask this.”
“Ask what?”
“How do you feel right now, emotionally?”
“...”
“As long as it isn't an utter absence of thought like before, or a desperate urge to follow someone to the other side. Any state of mind besides those negative impulses is acceptable.”
Right. Come to think of it, there had been times like that.
About two years ago, right in the middle of a consultation, I had broken down and made a scene about wanting to follow my deceased parents into the grave.
...Looking back on it now, it was a rather embarrassing memory.
“You've been doing admirably well so far, but moving forward, you'll need to pay even closer attention to your mental health.”
“Ah, right.”
“For the time being, let's adjust our sessions to once every two weeks instead of once a month. The consultation fee will remain identical. Does that work for you?”
“Yes.”
I completely understood why the doctor was so vigilant. Mental health management for awakened superhumans was a matter of vital national security.
It was tied directly to another catastrophic threat humanity faced in the hunter era:
Monstrization.
A rare phenomenon observed in hunters suffering from severe psychological collapse.
Those who underwent monstrization exhibited two horrific traits: astronomical physical capabilities stacked on top of their awakened powers, and an indiscriminate, feral urge to slaughter human beings.
A high-ranking, powerful hunter undergoing monstrization was nothing short of a walking cataclysm. Large guilds went so far as to embed dedicated counselors into individual raid parties just to prevent it from ever taking root.
“We'll conclude our session here for today... I will prescribe two weeks of medication, so please take it without fail.”
“Understood.”
“Ah, and since you have awakened as a hunter, Gyeoul-ssi, you are eligible for reassignment to a psychiatrist specializing in hunters. Would you like to switch?”
“...I prefer things the way they are.”
“Very well. Then we will keep our arrangement as is.”
It had taken me long enough to get comfortable with my current doctor. I had zero desire to start all over with a stranger now. Put new wine into new wineskins? Unfortunate as it was, my psyche was still vintage wine, so motion denied.
“One last thing, Gyeoul-ssi.”
“Yes?”
“...You look quite well right now. I hope you continue forward just like this.”
“...?”
“Even if it's merely mundane, everyday life, having a wealth of stories to share every time you visit here is far better for you, wouldn't you agree?”
“That's true.”
It took me a second to fully unpack his meaning. Having drifted through each day simply because I had no reason to die yet lacked any reason to live, he was advising me to accumulate plenty of reasons to stay alive.
Even without being told, I fully intended to do so.
I collected my prescription, settled the bill, and walked out of the hospital—not forgetting to offer a crisp, ninety-degree bow to the doctor before exiting the clinic.
Now, all that remained was grabbing lunch and heading to the dungeon.
...Before that, maybe I should change clothes?
A plain white tee identical to yesterday's (a different shirt, obviously), a casual jacket thrown over top, and denim jeans.
This was the absolute best outfit I could coordinate from yesterday's shopping spree. Still, these jeans were unexpectedly snug around the hips and thighs. The boutique clerk had insisted the size would fit like a glove, but next time I'd definitely have to track down a looser cut.
The rendezvous point was a public park twenty minutes by bus from my apartment.
As I stood near the entrance spacing out, someone strode toward me.
“Excuse me... Are you the supporter from the messages?”
“Ah, yes. And you're Hunter Pauli?”
“That's me.”
The man standing before me appeared to be in his mid-to-late twenties, sporting clean-cut glasses. His codename had been 'Pauli', which left me guessing, but he was indeed a guy.
“I had no idea you were a woman. For a second, I thought you were an underage student and hesitated to approach...”
Right back at you, buddy.
Here was an amusing detail: despite exchanging messages back and forth yesterday to coordinate this meetup, I hadn't disclosed a single shred of personal information. On his end, he had only shared his hunter codename and affiliated guild.
How was this possible? The mechanic was surprisingly straightforward.
He only knew that I was a 'novice supporter' and had messaged me through an anonymous thread I created. The Hunter Board's direct messaging system hid user handles whenever conversations originated from anonymous posts.
In many ways, the board was exceptionally diligent about protecting user anonymity.
“Shall we introduce ourselves properly? What is your codename, Supporter-nim?”
“It's Vid.”
“Wait, WHAT?!?!”
Whoa. Why the extreme reaction?
“Vid-nim, you're an absolute celebrity on the Hunter Board right now! You didn't know?!”
“...Me?”
Pauli pulled out his smartphone and thrust the glowing screen straight into my face.
It was the Abyss forum on the Hunter Board. More specifically, the 'Front Page' section.
• [For the record, they're not in this season's Hunter Camp]
• [(Speculation) Just my personal theory, but]
• [PinkLove confirmed washed-up fraud, smash upvote lol]
• [Hot take) If I were Vid]
• [Vid: Opening a brand-new horizon for supporters.fact]
• [There is simply zero competition within their class]
...Huh?
I didn't even need to ask what was going on. The popular tab was completely plastered with posts about me.
There was only one plausible explanation: my clear record from yesterday had gone public.
Why hadn't I noticed until now? Well, after clearing the Abyss yesterday, I traded messages with Pauli while eating dinner, watched a few YouTube Shorts, got blindsided by a brutal blood sugar crash, and passed out cold. Thanks to that, a clip of a cat running on an exercise wheel had probably looped several hundred times while I slept.
I hastily pulled out my own phone and navigated back to the question thread I had posted yesterday. It remained quietly buried with barely any replies. Thank goodness I posted anonymously out of habit...
“Originally, I was just planning a light, casual run, but had I known I was escorting someone so distinguished, I would've prepared far more thoroughly.”
“It doesn't matter. It's my first dungeon run, after all.”
“Please don't worry about a thing! I'll provide the smoothest ride of your life.”
Was it just my imagination? In the brief moment Pauli turned his back to lead the way, he looked stiff as an iron board with nerves.
As we walked along the road toward the dungeon, Pauli babbled endlessly about dungeon mechanics without showing the slightest sign of fatigue.
Naturally, every single scrap of advice was helpful. I was, after all, an absolute novice.
Dungeons.
A phenomenon that materialized alongside the dawn of the hunter era.
They shared the trait of spawning monsters with the Abyss, but everything else was fundamentally different.
Multiple hunters could enter and raid them cooperatively. Entry didn't happen through a mental status window, but via 'Gates' manifesting directly in physical reality.
And most critically, they came with an expiration timer.
If a dungeon wasn't cleared within its designated timeframe after manifestation, a 'Dungeon Break' occurred, allowing the monsters trapped within to pour out into the civilian world.
Back in the chaotic early days before institutional countermeasures were established, Dungeon Breaks frequently escalated into massive civilian disasters.
Among the countless casualties of that era were my parents.
“We've arrived!”
Our footsteps halted in unison.
Before us stood a circular Gate emitting a faint, pale green luminescence.
Judging by its size and coloration, this was an E-rank dungeon—a tier calibrated for a raid team of two or three E-rank hunters. Our current roster consisted of me, an E-rank (theoretically an outlier), and Pauli, a C1-rank. We had far more than enough firepower to steamroll this place.
The dungeon we were about to enter was a 'repeatable' type.
Rather than collapsing permanently upon a single clear, it was a sustainable gate that reset at fixed intervals, allowing hunters to run it repeatedly. The overall difficulty was on the easier side, and crucially, once cleared for the first time, it carried zero risk of ever suffering a Dungeon Break.
“Let's do one final equipment check. Are you wearing any specialized gear?”
“No. I came with just my bare clothes.”
“Hmm, well, alright. Once you join our guild later, I'll make sure you're issued high-tier mana equipment. Supporters are usually starved for mana, after all.”
I never said I was joining your guild, though.
There was no real reason to argue, so I kept my mouth shut. Right now, I just needed to sit back and enjoy the free bus ride. Any guild recruitment pitches afterward could be considered slowly. Very, very slowly.
The two figures stepped through the threshold and vanished beyond the Gate.
The pale green portal, which had remained serene for so long—
—Vvvrrr...
Without warning, it rippled violently, flashing a sinister, dark crimson light.
And watching that anomaly unfold from the shadows—
“That is...”
A solitary observer stood in silence.