Monsters in the Heart of the City
It was known that monsters appearing in urban areas would see an overall stat increase of around thirty percent upon their second awakening. It wasn't quite that much, but it was still a remarkable transformation. As excitement surged through me and a dizzying sensation began to set in, Yeonhee, who had been watching my change, cautiously approached and stared at me intently.
"Ilwol... W-what did you do? What kind of class change is that? Skeleton Bomber?"
"Clack clack clack!!"
"I don't know what it is, but you've gotten incredibly strong, haven't you? Like throwing bombs everywhere, boom boom?"
When Yeonhee put it that way, it somehow sounded cute, but in actual combat it would be an entirely different story. I raised both arms to show off just how much stronger I had become.
"Wow... Then should we try challenging the Hobgoblin dungeon tomorrow? It's supposed to be easier than the Lizardman Swamp!"
I nodded eagerly.
Hobgoblin. Though the name's true origin had little to do with being an enhanced variant of goblins, at some point people had simply started calling goblin variants by that name. It was easy to understand if you imagined the larger, stronger goblin leaders moving in packs. If a regular goblin was a five and a leader was a ten, a hobgoblin's stats would sit around a nine. The troublesome part was that they possessed higher intelligence than normal goblins, which meant they used poison. Mixed among them were those that blew poison darts from tubes, and naturally it was difficult to spot and dodge those thin needles in the heat of battle. That was why specially crafted safety goggles to protect the eyes were mandatory, along with a generous supply of antidote.
"Lizards, do you want to try wearing safety goggles too?"
Hiss!!
"You don't like it? I guess I really will have to give up on making these guys wear anything... I hate forcing them, but it looks like I'll need to raise my domination power even more."
These arrogant lizards. They should just do as they're told. Once a needle sticks in your eye, you'll change your tune real quick.
"How much antidote will we need? We have so many family members... A low-grade antidote costs 2,980 won..."
When I spread my arms wide to signal that we should buy as many as possible, she nodded and kept raising the quantity arrow without end. Buying a hundred would give a discount, after all.
We probably don't need that many, but there's no harm in stocking up for the future.
In the end, Yeonhee invested every last won she had left after the move into antidotes. Since we'd purchased them through the Hunter Market, the items should arrive at our door by tomorrow morning.
I walked over to Lizard No. 1 and gave his side a few taps to convey my message.
(Tomorrow, focus entirely on protecting Yeonhee. Don't show off or act reckless. Understand? Block every direction completely.)
(Enemy... kill. Slaughter them...)
(Sigh... Never mind.)
They would follow initial orders faithfully, but as time passed they began acting on their own will, so it was necessary to give them advance instructions. Still, watching them thump their tails in uncontainable excitement made it impossible to shake my unease.
The next day.
The Hobgoblin dungeon was an hour farther away than the others, so we woke up that much earlier.
We'll have to walk quite a distance from the subway... Maybe Yeonhee should learn how to drive? Ugh... I can't drive either. This skeleton body is so frustrating at times like this.
Unlike me, she radiated bright, energetic vibes.
"Aaaah!! Let's run with full energy today too!!"
Yeonhee stretched as she stepped into the living room, and at that moment her phone began ringing loudly.
Riiiiing—!
Yeonhee hurriedly checked it.
"......Oh no... Big trouble, Ilwol! They say a dungeon broke at Guchang Road!!"
What?!
Even with my hazy memories, there should still be about a week left, right?
"I think we have to go support this one. It's right in the middle of the city, after all?"
I nodded.
We rushed through our preparations and headed outside. The boxes waiting at the door were opened, and we stored the liquid contained in small brown bottles no bigger than a pinky finger into my inventory. The dungeon break site was only ten minutes away by car. Not far, but we needed to hurry.
Guchang 2-ro 17. A dungeon break that had erupted on one of the most bustling streets in the entire country. Sometimes monsters from underground dungeons would accumulate until they finally burst forth. Among incidents of that type, this location had previously produced the worst loss of life. And today's disaster was in even worse condition than that day from my previous life.
The sudden massive sinkhole and the monsters leaping out of it were the same, but unlike before it was a weekend, and an art festival had taken over the eight-lane road, which had been closed to traffic so artists could paint directly on the pavement. Tens of thousands of citizens had come out with their families. By the time Lee Yeonhee received the call and left the house, the casualty count had already surpassed a thousand.
The first responders—roughly five hundred D- and E-grade hunters—couldn't help tensing up at the horrific scene that had turned into pure pandemonium. Yet after only a few minutes, they began subduing the monsters with relative ease.
"Kerek!! Kerek!!"
At most there were a few hundred goblins and kobolds. And because the dungeon had burst from underground, there were quite a few slimes. Overall it was an unremarkable combination. With more hunters still arriving, the ratio was nearly one-to-one, so the fight couldn't help but feel manageable.
Among the gathered hunters, a few were putting on particularly brutal performances.
"Kehek! Kieeeek!!"
Han Eulmin, the party leader, deliberately smashed the head of a goblin that had been gravely wounded and completely lost its fighting strength, then spoke while swinging his hammer.
"Heh heh heh— Hey, make sure you film this, you punks. Time to farm some views."
"A lot of people in the surrounding buildings are filming too. Should we really let them, boss? We might need to secure copyright."
"It's fine. Leave them be."
"How about herding them together and blowing them up all at once? Or spamming magic missiles at those trembling bastards?"
Han Eulmin thought for a moment before shaking his head.
"Hmm... Isn't that a bit weak?"
"It is weak, boss. Why are you even offering opinions, you idiot? Wasn't that the clip the Wind Guild posted recently? You'll just get flamed for copying it, dumbass."
"The safest thing is copying whatever gets good views, but this guy really doesn't know anything."
The situation was gradually being brought under control, but this was already a site where a massive number of victims had fallen. The conversation was far too casual for such a place.
They belonged to the Guardian Guild. Korea's three major guilds were the White Knights, Dwarves, and Vision. If the list expanded to five, the Guardian Guild would usually make the cut. It didn't boast as many top-tier hunters as the big three, but it maintained a solid core of mid-tier talent. However, the Guardian Guild's public image had not been favorable lately. Having expanded by simply increasing hunter numbers, they attracted plenty of criticism. The biggest issue was the atrocious behavior of hunters who abused the guild's name. Acting arrogant toward civilians was standard, and incidents frequently escalated from verbal abuse to outright violence.
Han Eulmin contributed more than his fair share to that reputation. With his father serving as the guild's vice leader and his own confidence in his abilities, he acted without restraint. Moreover, only three out of every hundred people awakened as mages. Though he could only use basic spells like Magic Missile for now, it was more than enough for him to consider himself special.
"Kyaaaaah!!"
Even when a citizen who had sprained her leg while fleeing screamed for help, no one moved to assist her. That alone made their true purpose clear—they were not here for rescue operations.
Helen shook her head at the four snickering Guardian Guild members, then led Hyun-seok, Jin-gyeong, and the fallen woman to safety, prioritizing the evacuation of those in danger.
"Aren't those the same guys who got rejected hitting on girls at a bar last time and threw a tantrum?"
"Yeah, and Han Eulmin's with them. With that kind of backing, he managed to bury every article about the incident in one go."
"Ugh, bastards like them should be sent straight to the Samcheong re-education camp."
Hyun-seok and Jin-gyeong glared at the Guardian Guild members with open displeasure.
"Stop paying attention to them and let's head inside. With so many deaths, this will probably be upgraded to Disaster Level 2 soon."
"The civilians have been evacuated and it looks like goblins are the main force. Let's take it slow. It's not like we get paid extra for killing more."
"With that attitude—tsk."
"Catch more than me before you lecture me."
The roughly five hundred hunters who had arrived first moved in coordinated fashion, slowly driving the monsters from the outer perimeter toward the gate. Though the goblins were numerous, being surrounded severely weakened them. Even with their racial trait of growing stronger in groups, they could not overcome the tactical formation.
After ten minutes of relentless pressure, monsters could be seen emerging from the gate while other hunters approached from the opposite side. Not far to the left, Han Eulmin's group strolled toward the gate with their hands clasped behind their backs as if taking a leisurely walk, accompanied by three leeches filming him with their phones.
Tsk. I didn't like it, but even the normally cautious Helen was already thinking about what to eat afterward. The atmosphere was thick with the sense that the situation was nearly over.
That was when it happened.
A piercing, ear-splitting screech tore through the area.
"Ah, fuck, what the hell is that awful sound?"
"Ugh!! Shit, even scraping a chalkboard wouldn't be this bad!!"
It was such an unpleasant noise that even Helen unconsciously nodded in agreement with Han Eulmin's group's irritated reaction.
A few seconds later, the sound intensified.
"Aaaaack!! Ugh!! My—my ears...!!"
It grew powerful enough to bring all five hundred hunters to their knees as they clutched their ears. The driving formation collapsed. More and more hunters distanced themselves from the gate to escape the noise.
From the massive sunken sinkhole, a group of monsters with a never-before-seen appearance began crawling upward.