Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Abyss Knight Gaulp
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Three days later.
E-rank Dungeon 'Den of Flesh-Eating Dogs'.
Kyaaang!
[You have defeated the boss—Demon Hound Pack Leader 'Belroc'.]
[You have cleared the dungeon, but there is no honor here.]
[You have reached Lv. 30.]
[Rewards will be given.]
[Choose—Skill Point +1 or Knight Summon or Equipment Grant.]
"Hmm, finally level 30. Phew~ Time for an additional summon!"
[You have selected 'Knight Summon'.]
[Summoning a knight to aid you.]
Fourth knight summon! Once one more joins, my party will finally be complete.
The fourth knight after Akaron, Seom-myeol, and Krokbane!
I watched in anticipation of who it would be, but something felt off about the atmosphere.
[Abyss Knight—Gaulp]
"Hmm hahaha! The material world's air after so long. Hmm, are you my contractor?"
An incredibly cool guy had appeared.
Taller than me with a burly build, clad in jet-black armor and a tattered cloak, he was a humanoid knight wielding a sword and shield.
With that imposing presence and a low, resonant voice, he embodied every man's fantasy.
He appeared with such gravitas, then knelt before me, laying down his sword in a show of proper respect.
"Hmm~ I like the look of you. Contractor, I shall follow you."
"Right away?"
"Are you doubting the skills of I, Gaulp?"
"No, that's not it. I was just wondering if you had any particular requests."
"The mere fact that I've been summoned to the material world is the contract condition. The abyss was far too boring."
He gave off an ominous vibe, but his powerful appearance left no real reason to refuse.
With this, my lineup of five—including myself—was complete.
But the problem was that none of them possessed the functional or supportive abilities I'd hoped for.
"Finally, we've got a full party of five."
"The knight order is finally taking shape, Captain!"
[...Master... hungry...]
[Where did you contract these guys? Fascinating. Very amusing. Contractor, this one's just a lump of metal?]
[Ally recognition code granted to Sir Gaulp.]
Yet all five were 'knight'-class types wielding swords for close combat.
I'd thought at least one might have magic or healing abilities, or some other knightly variant, but reality was harsh.
'Like, you know how there are magic knights or holy knights? Why don't any of those show up? One would have been nice... Sigh~'
No use lamenting it, though. Time to accept the cold reality.
I returned everyone to the sanctuary and headed back to Academia alone. I submitted the dungeon report, the dropped materials, and the magistones, then announced that I'd reached level 30.
Ayoung widened her eyes in slight surprise as she looked at me.
"Level 30... Guess it's time for D-rank dungeons?"
"Yeah. So, handle the paperwork appropriately."
"Hmm, but D-rank is too much for training purposes, so I'll make a fake party on paper. A three-man party should do it, right?"
Fake party.
Exactly as it sounded—a way to fill slots with nonexistent members to apply for a dungeon as a party.
It would list me, with the other two as fake info.
Not entirely fake, though. It used personnel data from guild members resting or unavailable for dungeons, and you paid a fee. Essentially mutual aid.
Think of it like renting a certification.
"The fee?"
"Five percent of dungeon earnings each for the data lenders, so ten percent total."
Pretty steep for just borrowing profiles, but money wasn't an issue for me.
With the fake party data ready, I finalized my application and scouted the D-rank dungeon list.
"Hmm~ Shall I dip back down for a bit? Feels monotonous after nothing but demons."
"Outside Seoul?"
"I'd like combat experience against a variety of monsters if possible... Gotta search carefully."
"Oh, right. I can't join the next sparring session."
"Hm? That's my entire job. Suddenly can't make it?"
"The guild got a mobilization order. Got to help prep for an S-rank demon subjugation. Things are quiet here, but HQ is chaos."
No idea which demon was losing it this time, but it didn't sound ordinary.
S-rank, though? Another high-rank demon out of nowhere.
Even among organized Awakeners, B-rank and above were rare. Same for scavengers and demons—B+ were exceptionally scarce.
Academia nurtured them preciously, yet casualties happened. Imagine the wild scavenger world where they killed without hesitation? Even rarer.
"S-rank demon~ Wonder where it crossed over from. Maybe sent by the Eternal Wrath constellation?"
"What are you talking about? It's that demon from the news recently. The one that killed Go Seongjun."
"...Wasn't that A-rank?"
"Turns out that 'A-rank' was actually S-rank. The Slaughter King must love it~ A demon pegged as B-rank turns out S-rank~"
Totally unexpected.
The scavenger I lured into killing Go Seongjun had become an S-rank demon.
Sacrificing a B-rank Awakener for S-rank. That guy's ridiculously lucky.
Or maybe he already had near A-rank power.
'Not a good development, either way.'
"Anyway, before their forces grow more, Blue Dragon Guild's taking lead. Five guilds mobilizing five A-rank Awakeners. My mom's one of them. Plus support forces..."
"I see."
"Probably can't spar for about two weeks because of it. So hit dungeons hard and level up. Hmm..."
Ayoung seemed like she had more to say, but I decided to back off for now.
Sticking around felt like it'd invite bad news.
'Demon subjugations are dangerous...'
Demons were terrifying because they had human-level intellect, fought in groups, and used any means necessary.
Guns and explosives were standard; they'd rally other scavengers or demons, set traps, use hidden weapons—vicious lot, with poor returns.
Monsters dropped materials and magistones, but demons? Just XP, their gear, or base loot. Like bad dungeon hauls.
'Still, they have to be hunted, hence the mobilization...'
Bittersweet.
Felt like it was my fault, which soured my mood, but I'd play ignorant.
I had S-rank stats, but facing demons was premature.
No combat experience, no intel—what did I know?
'No, why am I even thinking about fighting? Ten A-ranks and one S-rank should handle it fine...'
Yeah, just another crisis like always. Resolved quickly.
Solid lineup, no need to worry. But my heart wasn't settled.
The seed I sowed putting this guild—no, Ayoung and her mom—in danger?
"If things go south, I'd lose my safe dungeon access... No choice. Yeah, no choice."
Worst case, in a crisis, saving one or two would be proper.
Funny coming from me, but it tied directly to my interests. Enough to step in.
Decision made, I texted Ayoung.
「Yoo Seongwon: When's the demon subjugation?」
「UniverseStrongestAyoung: Assembly in four days.」
「Yoo Seongwon: Any staff spots open?」
「UniverseStrongestAyoung: Of course! Nobody wants demon fights. Hazard pay's stacked.」
Quick as if she'd been waiting.
A covert B+ Awakener would be reassuring...
Anyway, joining wouldn't be an issue.
「Yoo Seongwon: Cool. I'll join, but don't expect much. First time seeing a demon, let alone taking on an S-rank~ Won't overdo it. If shit hits, I'll grab your mom and bolt.」
「UniverseStrongestAyoung: What about me?」
「Yoo Seongwon: You'll be faster than me. Worst case, tie one up with Judgment Field and hunker down.」
「UniverseStrongestAyoung: Uncle, are you a genius? Kidding. Can't really use it like that anyway. Truth is, I can't go even if I want. Guild heir, minor—all that red tape.」
Makes sense. Family wipeout would be a mess, and losing top Awakeners would screw the guild. Fair.
Just focus on her mom then—relief, ironically.
「UniverseStrongestAyoung: Register you as staff now?」
「Yoo Seongwon: Nah, need to level up meantime. Make it last-minute emergency staff join due to manpower shortage. Like, two days prior. I'll prep in the interim.」
Grind D-ranks hard for levels and skill unlocks?
Or snag good gear.
Using the cobbled-together fake party profiles, I opened the phone app, formed a D-rank party, and headed straight for the dungeon.
***
Kaesong, the city of scavengers.
This city north of the old DMZ was already half in ruins.
Once a special city under North Korean rule, disasters including the monster outbreaks left it half-destroyed. Now it was a haven for scavengers and demons.
"Goddamn unlucky. Saw a corpse while shuffling— that's why!"
"You see slave corpses here daily? Fuck off, deal again."
No proper government meant no normalcy.
Half-naked human corpses littered streets, yet scavengers shuffled cards and chugged beer indifferently.
"Boss, another beer!"
"Pay magistones first, asshole! Prepay, forgotten?"
With no functioning society, only magistones served as currency.
A paradise of sorts for scavengers and demons—strength meant near-limitless freedom.
Thus, no scavenger thieves or outlaws did honest work.
Labor came from kidnapped slaves or tamed monsters. Still short, so undercover scavengers posing as normal Awakeners bought supplies.
"Heard rumors in the city... They're forming a subjugation team to take out Captain Min-su now that he's S-rank. Usually they don't bother unless we attack first, right?"
"Obviously Blue Dragon bastards. Pushed by their War constellation or whatever."
"So what'll Captain Min-su do? Run? Hide awhile?"
"No way he'd hide. Opponent's Blue Dragon Guild—chases you to the ends of the earth."
Other guilds might give up if you laid low, but not Blue Dragon.
Once entangled, they pursued to the poles if needed.
Insane costs on failure, but success brought Blue Dragon constellation rewards, so they acted like it was routine. Demons and scavengers despised them.
"So, what's the plan?"
"Who knows~ Still thinking, they say?"
He glanced up at the old Kaesong Grand Hotel atop the city.
Built for the Kim dynasty and foreign tourists, it was now the hideout of Jeong Min-su, the newly minted S-rank demon.
He knew Blue Dragon was after him, and was racking his brains over what to do.