Zombie Streets and a Desperate Escort
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Rookie: Baek Jaesung 14
During dungeon exploration, your body has to stay in a constant state of tension. In this otherworldly place called a dungeon, where anything could happen at any moment, you need razor-sharp focus just to boost your survival odds a little. That's why even walking takes way more out of you than it does on the outside.
What appeared before us when we opened the door to the ice room was, surprisingly, a city. Concrete roads familiar to our eyes, buildings packed with glass windows, utility poles—everything looked so much like we'd stumbled right out of the dungeon exit.
"What the hell is this place? Did we actually make it outside?"
Rina had the exact same misconception I did. But we quickly spotted clues that this was still inside the dungeon.
"Kinda gives off those creepy zombie vibes, huh."
Sujin muttered while eyeing a rundown building about 10 meters away. Its windows were shattered, and graffiti was spray-painted all over the outer walls.
It wasn't just that one building in ruins. Roads everywhere were pockmarked with craters, abandoned cars littered the streets, and shattered storefronts revealed trashed interiors beyond. Plenty of utility poles were half-collapsed too.
An unmanaged city.
Or more precisely, a city swept through by some catastrophe. This skeletal urban wasteland, like the site of urban warfare, reeked of death—even without a single corpse in sight.
True to Sujin's words, this place could've been the perfect backdrop for a zombie apocalypse flick. Hell, it might be the ideal setting, period.
We pressed forward without letting our guard down. No one in our party had nerves thick enough to relax amid scenery like this.
Darkness Radar.
Darkness Radar 6Lv (C-rank)
Consumes mana to scan a 60m radius. Range doubles in darkness.
I used the skill to scan our surroundings. Darkness Radar's range was only 60 meters, but it could pierce through buildings, making it perfect for cluttered areas like this. I could check insides of structures or even underground spaces.
Our pace naturally slowed. We advanced cautiously, probing ahead and confirming no monsters lurked nearby. With commercial buildings everywhere that screamed "hiding spots," enemies could've jumped us from anywhere.
"Huh?"
Yeonji, walking point, suddenly let out a suspicious murmur and looked up.
"Yeonji? What's up?"
"Ah. Felt like something was watching us from up there."
Her finger pointed at a massive department store about 100 meters ahead. Like the others, it was crumbling in spots, eerie enough for ghosts to haunt—if ghosts instead of monsters came out.
"Wanna check it out?"
Yeonji glanced at me. I pondered briefly.
Were monsters setting a trap? Did they have that level of intelligence? Most monsters were aggressive by nature, charging hunters on sight indiscriminately. The penguins from the ice room earlier were a rare non-aggressive exception.
"Let's check it out. If it's monsters, we kill 'em. Could be another party too."
This was our assigned sector. Parties got different zones, but Level House's paths shifted irregularly, so others could've wandered into ours.
"Hey! Over there—you guys another party, right!?"
As we neared the department store, a booming voice echoed from above. I looked up toward the sound. Through a broken window, a woman waved at us frantically. A woman.
Too far for details, but she looked like a beauty. My little buddy twitched faintly—confirmation enough.
"Sounds urgent. Something go down?"
As Rina said, the woman's calls dripped with desperation. Odd for an exploring party to hole up atop a building like that—unless they were camping or, more likely, pinned down after trouble hit.
We headed up together. The elevators were predictably busted.
"Bloodstains on those stairs over there."
Sujin pointed at the emergency staircase. Dried, dark red blood decorated it ominously. A foul stench wafted too. Signs of fierce combat.
The trail stretched long. Midway up the stairwell, we found decayed corpses sprawled out.
"Real zombies!"
Quite a few zombie bodies littered the passage. Redundant since zombies were basically corpses anyway—but yeah, zombie corpses. Looked like zombies were this room's monsters.
"Battle went down here, huh."
The party that called us was on the fifth floor.
Upon arrival, I clocked their lineup: three guys, two gals—nicely balanced.
Perfectly even gender splits like that were surprisingly rare. Most parties were same-sex, guys with guys or girls with girls. Sure, ultra-rare cases like me existed, but barely.
"Over here!"
A woman in her early-to-mid thirties with a hippie perm yelled loudly toward us. Relief washed over her face at our sight. She let out a soft sigh and continued.
"Thank God. Thought we were done for."
She was the one who'd called. Up close, though, her face was just shy of stunning.
Right on the edge of 'beauty' territory.
Not enough for my sky-high standards anymore. My little buddy shrank back, embarrassed by its misjudgment. Still, far from ugly—snack-worthy, maybe.
"Sorry, but do you have a healer? Ours is badly hurt, and we're out of potions."
Standard etiquette: help distressed parties in dungeons. It benefited everyone, an unwritten rule almost no one broke. I handed over potions without fuss.
"I'm the healer. Let me take a look."
"Thank God! Over here! Sun-uk, hang in there—just a bit longer! Healer's here!"
The woman clapped joyfully, eyes even tearing up. Her looks fell short, but she wasn't bad. Decent for a quick bite.
"Hmm..."
"Rina-unnie? What?"
"Jisu-ya. Look at oppa's eyes. Hyena spotting prey. Reeks of shady intent."
"Huh? They're all sparkly and kind. Pure as a baby's, right?"
"...Jisu-ya, you're lucky you met oppa. Otherwise, some scumbag would've shredded your heart. Though oppa's plenty bad himself."
Who the hell's trash-talking me? Ears are itching.
I approached the downed healer. Male. My urge to heal halved instantly, but the teary-eyed woman watching from behind made me check properly anyway.
Even visually, his state was rough. Unconscious, body covered in gashes and slashes. The rest of his party looked relatively fine—clearly targeted.
These zombies seemed smarter than average, heads not fully rotted. Prioritizing healers was a hallmark of intelligent monsters.
Without a healer, a party's sustainability tanks. Long dungeon runs rely on them. Hence, healers were top priority to protect.
Sun-uk, was it?
His wounds were all deep gashes. But worse was the blackened patches on his body—poisoned, probably. Type unknown.
"From those zombies in the hall?"
"Yeah. When it gets dark here, zombies swarm. No power in the building, so defending's a nightmare."
"You've been in here a while, huh?"
"Day three today."
While I examined the healer, the others handled their tasks.
Sujin cross-checked their map. Updating it was essential in labyrinthine dungeons like this.
"Ah, this area's changed. Gotta note it."
The guys eyed our girls. Four vibrant flowers blooming in this zombie apocalypse? Only a eunuch wouldn't notice.
Gawking was fine. I'm magnanimous.
"Patched him up for now. But no using abilities right away—that's impossible. And my techniques aren't touching those black wounds. Needs high-grade potions or outside medical help."
Treatment done. His breathing eased, but he stayed out, dark blotches persisting like dead tree bark. Untreated fast, they'd claim his life.
"Potions are... all gone."
The woman said pitifully.
Gotta watch out for these zombies myself. If we run into any.
I glanced at the woman staring anxiously at me. Her gaze on the downed healer was intense—beyond mere teammate worry.
Attuned to emotions, I spotted the subtle shift: glacial crevasse-sized to me. Definitely lovers, or at least in the flirting stage.
I prided myself on NTR prowess. My next move crystallized. NTR senses tingling.
First, shake things up.
I stood. Our crew packed up, prepping to leave. That should...
"W-wait! We need to head out now, but with our healer like this... Could you escort us? We'll pay generously."
Bingo. She requested an escort.
Not just 'cause the healer was down. They had four able-bodied left. Prioritize escape over fighting, and they could've made it out fine—barring surprises.
But he was precious to her. Hence her rush to bail.
Dungeon hunter etiquette meant aiding the distressed, but not full escort service. Standard was mid-to-low potions max.
You could go further—or skip it if pressed. Everything in dungeons was on you, so minimal courtesy was the norm. That's why the association hammered "appropriate-level dungeons."
"Hmm. Escort, you say?"
To seize control, play push-pull. Get dragged along from the start, and you're chump bait.
"Can't you?"
She mustered max pitifulness. I flicked eyes to Rina. She'd get my hint with a look.
"......Haa..."
Rina sighed softly. Good girl, Rina! She read me.
Face etched with displeasure, she trudged forward anyway, expression aloof and icy—perfect for her.
"Sorry, but we're just starting exploration. Turning back now's a huge loss."
Carrot and stick: classic, still effective.
I'd be carrot; Rina, stick.
"Please help. We'll cover any losses."
"Opportunity cost's a pain to calculate, and one goal's quick full clear for contribution points. Can't buy that off. Plus, you've got four fit members—getting out shouldn't be an issue, right?"
Rina went sharper than I'd planned.
Nice! Crush it!
"Ugh... Please, can't you?"
Tearing up, whimpering. Time for carrot.
"Rina-ya, they seem desperate. How 'bout we cut 'em a break?"
Rina twitched at that. Acting, or legit pissed at her villain role? Either way, convincing.
"Messes with our schedule."
"Can't be helped... They look rough. Help once?"
"......Hmph! Whatever. Oppa handles it."
She huffed curtly and stomped off to the others.
Sujin, clued in, gave Rina a sympathetic look. Clueless-in-this Jisu went, "Unnie, why say that?" Rina snapped back, "Wasn't my choice!"
Finishing early sucked, but if even one survived and badmouthed us, trouble. Rep's hard-won, easy-lost. Though refusing here wouldn't tank it much.
"Alright, let's prep and head out."