Secret Shelter and the Monster Nest
html, body { margin:0; padding:0; } Sergeant: Baek Jaesung 25
“Nngh…!”
Rina, her mouth stuffed full of semen, scowled and glared at me. Our steamy playtime had, of course, gone completely unnoticed by anyone. A total happy ending.
But it was like tightrope-walking between cliffs with no safety gear whatsoever. The risks we were taking far outweighed any thrill. No wonder Rina hated it. The difference in her personality from Yeonji's was crystal clear.
“Gulp—! Ugh…! Never do this childish roleplay again.”
Rina honestly swallowed every last drop, then grumbled in a sulky voice. Still, she dutifully opened her mouth wide to prove she'd gotten it all down. I stroked her hair gently and said,
“Think about it.”
“'Think about it' my ass!”
Quit this fun game just like that? No way in hell.
With Rina's dinner filled by my load and me feeling refreshed after unloading, we headed back to where the rest of the company was.
The company commander was still buried in the map, deep in thought. Hwang Cheolmin and Jang Gun-gi had finished eating and were leaning against their gear, chatting. Han Seungjin still hadn't returned.
“Ah! Jaesung. What's your favorite ice cream flavor?”
Hwang Cheolmin hit me with that the second I got back. Total pointless bullshit.
“Why the sudden ice cream talk?”
“We were talking about what to eat when we get back, and it came up. The Cheonghaejin mart has tons of foreign stuff too. I love that mint pineapple one.”
What the hell kind of mutant hybrid is that?
Somehow imagining it actually working was kinda funny.
“Ice cream's gotta be simple vanilla. Chocolate's for kids.”
Jang Gun-gi chimed in with his two cents. Rina's body twitched at that. She hadn't even said anything, but she'd taken a stray bullet from Jang Gun-gi.
“Wh-what's wrong with chocolate? It's a bestseller even at big franchises.”
Rina rarely jumped into the convo like that. Jang Gun-gi wagged his finger and shot her down flat.
“That's 'cause kids eat a ton of it. Adults enjoy all kinds, but kids' tastes converge on chocolate, so it sells well.”
“Th-that baseless nonsense…!”
“Yeah, what's wrong with chocolate!”
Hwang Cheolmin glanced around slyly before backing Rina up. Trying to score points, huh?
Guy's got a girlfriend and he's still simping like that…
The nutrient-free chatter dragged on when footsteps echoed from deeper in the mart. The company commander, who'd been glued to the map, finally looked up.
“What took you so damn long?”
He called out to Han Seungjin approaching from that direction. The guy's face had this weird smile plastered on it.
No matter how you sliced it, he was handsome as fuck—annoyingly so. More suited for acting than dungeon hunting.
Why the hell did heaven crank out Han Seungjin, Jang X-geon, Won X, Jeong X-woo, Kang Dong X, Song X-gi, Lee Seung X, Park Bo X, Cha X-pyo… and then half-ass me, Baek Jaesung?
That lazy bastard up there.
“Found something interesting back there, sir. You should take a look.”
Han Seungjin jerked his thumb toward the employee break room inside. The commander tilted his head.
“Interesting?”
“Faster if you see for yourself.”
His words were straight-up clickbait. Hwang Cheolmin jumped to his feet.
“What is it?”
“Come see.”
We all got up at Han Seungjin's say-so. Rina was still pouting like she couldn't accept Jang Gun-gi's comment. Cool and straightforward as she was, getting called “kid-like” was a sore spot. Everyone's got their fatal complex.
We followed him to the employee break room deeper in the mart. We'd already swept the whole interior at the start. So what fun thing did he find?
Didn't seem like Han Seungjin's style to prank us.
“Seungjin, this better not be a joke.”
Hwang Cheolmin said, arms crossed. Hilarious coming from the biggest prankster in our group. Han Seungjin didn't even bother replying—just silently opened the closed break room door.
Screeech!
The rusty metal door screeched unpleasantly as it swung open. Dungeon corrosion or just age—either way, it was pretty rusted.
Inside: a small sofa, a table, mini fridge, AC. Big mart, so the break room was more legit than expected.
But we'd seen all that in the initial search. No way he'd call this special.
Wait—had that table always been there?
“Look here.”
Han Seungjin pointed at the floor—right where the table had been. There was a pull-up hatch for an underground room.
“Whoa! Secret passage to the basement!”
Heavy steel door. Hidden under the table during our first sweep. Who'd guess?
Classic psychological blind spot secret door.
“Looks just like a bunker hatch.”
Hwang Cheolmin voiced it perfectly. Why the hell would a mart need this? Like a nuke shelter. Maybe dungeon erosion created it. And if so, maybe raid hints inside.
Bet that's why Han Seungjin brought us.
The thick iron door was rusted like it hadn't been touched in ages. The commander knelt to check it, grabbed the steel handle, and yanked up.
Screeech!
It opened slowly with a gross grinding noise, revealing stone stairs descending into darkness.
Like heading into a cult chapel. If this were a horror game, you'd have to go in for the next stage key.
“Checked inside?”
“No, sir. Could be dangerous.”
The commander nodded at Han Seungjin's reply.
“Good call. Gear up, everyone. It's late, but we're scouting.”
We'd just eaten, but he chose to explore. No one objected. The sudden secret passage had us all hooked.
Secret passage.
Words that stir every man's heart. Adventure lust surging.
Gearing up, we descended the underground stairs slow. Pitch black inside, so the commander at the front flicked on his light.
The bright beam cut through the dark tunnel. Han Seungjin might hate it—his Darkness Control peaked in shadows.
Stairs dropped about 5 meters. At the bottom: a straight concrete-walled corridor. Dust thick everywhere—long neglected.
“Ah! Look at that.”
Rina pointed at the wall. A shelter pictogram.
“Whoa, a real shelter.”
Hwang Cheolmin sounded shocked.
“Heard some countries mandate shelters in big buildings. Does South Africa too?”
The commander muttered, head tilted. Kinda anticlimactic if it was just a shelter after all that buildup.
We decided to check it fully. Like finding this stair under the table after thinking we'd cleared the mart—maybe more surprises.
About 10 meters in?
A wide room opened up. Vents on the ceiling, scattered metal cabinets.
Red cross box on one cabinet.
First aid kit?
Probably emergency supplies in the cabinets too.
“Cabinets are empty.”
Hwang Cheolmin, opening one. Forgot to restock, huh? Some faceless prick embarrassing us.
Shelter looked normal overall. Except one thing.
“This hole. What is it?”
A huge gap in one wall—big enough to walk through. More tunnel than hole.
Torn-up edges suggested not part of original construction. Like heavy machinery forced it open.
“Unlike the dusty main tunnel, this one's got signs of use.”
Han Seungjin scanned around. Our eyes went to the hole.
“Gotta check it out, right?”
Hwang Cheolmin asked. Commander nodded.
“Move out.”
No backing off now. No one wanted to.
We filed in single line—narrow for one person. Commander tanking front, Han Seungjin DPS rear.
“Who dug this?”
Rina eyed the rough dirt-and-rock walls. Like being in an active tunnel. Crushing pressure like it could collapse any second.
Scree… eek—! Scree… eek—!
Noise from ahead. Commander halted, signaled alert. We were combat-ready before that.
“Something's there. I'll check. Wait here.”
He crept forward quietly. We held position. He returned after ~10 minutes, face grim.
“What is it?”
Hwang Cheolmin looked dying of curiosity. Commander sighed thin, thumbed deeper in.
“Tons of monsters. They dug this as their nest. At least 1,000.”
We gulped in unison.
“Their main base. That's why dungeon erosion won't stop.”
“Yeah. Clear this, and we purify the dungeon.”
Endgame raid vibes kicking in.