Chapter 43
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: In Search of the Legendary Monster (2)
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“The Ogre's Sanctuary?”
Her oasis-like, light blue eyes turned to me.
“Yeah, I've heard about it. It was designated a special management zone a few days ago, and the Pungbaek Guild is trying to clear it. I heard they've already completed it three times with different teams.”
A Hunter from Russia, and the top expert in the country when it came to dungeon exploration and analysis.
‘Libra's Eye’ Anastasia mumbled around a mouthful of gelato and nodded.
I crossed my arms and spoke.
“And yet, it hasn't been fully cleared. The Ogre's Sanctuary is still there.”
“That's right. Do you know how thrilled our boss is? He hated seeing the Pungbaek Guild Master act so smug, so he says it serves him right.”
If the dungeon did erupt, he'd have to go clean up Pungbaek's mess, too.
Ah, so he'd probably even enjoy that part.
Ma Dongpal definitely had the personality for it.
“He has every reason to be excited.”
He must have been in a great mood, which would explain why Asha was able to sneak out during work hours.
After swallowing her gelato, Asha's eyes turned back to me.
“So, why'd you call me? A surprise fan meeting?”
“Not exactly. About your ability. Can you identify the types of monsters inside a dungeon, not just in gates?”
“Hmm... It's possible, I guess?”
Asha's smooth brow furrowed slightly.
“If I pester my sister, I can identify the types of monsters in an existing dungeon. But I can't tell you exactly what's in there. I could be wrong, too. Things can change because of variables, like with the Queen Ant last time.”
*Sister*... she must be talking about the Divine Seat she contracted with.
It didn't matter if it changed.
After all, Akasha had been inside that gate last time.
“Could you check what kind of monsters are in the Ogre's Sanctuary?”
I needed to confirm this before setting out on the expedition.
There were only nine days left until the next wave.
If I went to the Ogre's Sanctuary on a wild goose chase, I'd be wasting precious time.
“The Ogre's Sanctuary? Aren't there only ogres in there anyway?”
“There's a story that someone saw a different monster besides the ogres.”
“Hmm...”
Asha rested her chin on her hand and looked at me.
Hesitation flickered in her light blue eyes.
“To be honest, peeking inside a dungeon isn't a very pleasant feeling. It's different from predicting future gates. That's why my sister usually advises against it.”
That sounded dangerous.
If a Divine Seat was against it, there must be a significant risk.
There was no reason to force her to take that risk.
I waved my hand and said.
“Then never mind. You don't have to go that far...”
“I'll do it. But.”
Just then, Asha held up her fingers and smiled.
“Five broadcast alert tickets.”
Broadcast alert tickets?
Seeing my confusion, Asha grinned and explained.
“Message me before you start a stream.”
“Is that all it'll take?”
“Well, in that case... another fan meeting?”
She was completely driven by her personal feelings.
If Ma Dongpal were here, I could just picture him clutching his chest in frustration.
That's why I liked it.
This girl wasn't trying to use me with some complicated scheme.
“If that's all, then fine.”
“It's a promise.”
She looked like she'd shove a bottle of vodka down my throat if I didn't keep it, so I nodded.
Asha finished the rest of her gelato and sat up straight.
“Alright, I'm starting.”
“Right here?”
Luckily, the cafe was empty.
I was a little taken aback that she was starting immediately.
“I just have to pester my sister. You didn't think I had to go to the dungeon in person, did you?”
And suddenly, a blue aura began to flow from her eyes.
At the same time, shapes resembling runic characters appeared in her pupils.
Staring into the empty air, Asha began to speak.
“Ah, I see it. Yes, they're ogres. A lot of ogres. A hundred, maybe more? There's a wide plain, and I see a strange structure. Ah, that must be the Ogre's Sanctuary.”
So far, this was all known information.
After a brief pause, Asha continued in a low voice.
“There's nothing else special?”
...Was it just a rumor?
I had considered that possibility.
It was strange for a monster like that to exist in a B-rank dungeon, anyway.
“Oh.”
Just then, Asha's eyes widened.
“No, there's something else. Strange, why is there more?”
Something was wrong.
Suddenly, her face tensed and she gripped the table tightly.
She gripped it so hard that the empty gelato bowl began to tremble.
“Something huge... incomparably bigger than the ogres... And, it's hot, but cold...”
Asha started muttering incomprehensible words.
“You can't tell what it is?”
“Hold on, I'm trying to see...”
And then, just as suddenly, Asha winced.
“Asha?”
Fortunately, her expression quickly relaxed, replaced by one of confusion.
The eerie blue glow in her eyes vanished.
“What? My sister blocked me.”
“She blocked you?”
“Yeah. I saw something huge besides the ogres, so I tried to get a better look. But just as I was about to make out its silhouette, my sister suddenly cut the connection. That's never happened before... She won't answer when I ask her, either.”
A dozen thoughts raced through my mind.
The Divine Seat had directly intervened to stop Asha from using her ability.
Did that mean there was something that dangerous in the Ogre's Sanctuary?
Or perhaps something that twisted.
“Sorry. I wasn't much help.”
Asha said with a sullen look.
“No. You still saw something other than the ogres.”
“Yeah. I'm sure of it. There's something else in that dungeon besides the ogres.”
“That's enough. Thanks.”
She might not even remember it, but she'd also said the word 'hot'.
That confirmed it.
Asha giggled.
“Don't forget your promise, okay?”
* * *
“Report from Operations Team 3. Dungeon clear complete, zero casualties. Time to clear was three hours, a new record.”
The Pungbaek Guild headquarters in Yeouido.
Choi Kangwoo stared at Yoon Sua as she calmly delivered the report.
A new record.
A meaningless record.
So he asked.
“And the dungeon?”
The most important part.
Yoon Sua's gaze wavered.
“According to the report, it has not disappeared. We have once again failed to identify the conditions for a full clear.”
“...”
Choi Kangwoo said nothing.
But everyone in the room knew.
He was extremely troubled right now.
“The pattern hasn't changed either.”
“Correct. According to the Dungeon Management Bureau, the dungeon's pattern is still Red. We've received notice that it's been elevated from Red Stage 3 to Red Stage 2.”
The stage had been elevated.
Red Stage 1 meant a dungeon eruption was imminent.
To prevent an eruption, they had to satisfy specific conditions to make the dungeon itself disappear.
“So it's not a matter of clear time. And no hidden quests were found.”
Over the past three days, they had sent in ten raid parties, but none had discovered those 'specific conditions'.
In fact, those ten clears were accelerating the dungeon's eruption.
“Are you sure all the monsters were dealt with perfectly? Without leaving a single one?”
“That is what the leader of Operations Team 3 reported. Including the Ogre Archpriest, the boss monster of the Ogre's Sanctuary, a total of 300 ogres were annihilated. No other monsters were found in the field.”
Choi Kangwoo's eyes deepened.
There were no other options left.
One more failed clear, and the dungeon would erupt.
Even with maximum preparation, the area around Hwaseong New City Station, where the dungeon was located, would be devastated.
A dungeon eruption was a terrible disaster.
Hadn't all three major guilds been called upon for help during the Garden of the Abyss incident?
“Agh. Why did this have to happen in one of our dungeons? And in a useless one like the Ogre's Sanctuary, of all places...”
Yoon Suhyeok muttered, slamming his hand on the conference table.
The Ogre's Sanctuary.
The dungeon had always been a white elephant for Pungbaek.
That white elephant.
Had now become a noose tightening around their necks.
“Are there any guild members left who can enter the expedition?”
Choi Kangwoo asked quietly.
Everyone of importance in Pungbaek was in the conference room, except for Kim Bogeom, the leader of Operations Team 3.
But no one could speak.
At the end of the silence.
Yoon Sua, who had been reporting the situation, bit her lip and answered.
“...I'm sorry. We should have checked more thoroughly during the first clear.”
Anyone who had cleared the dungeon once could not re-enter.
Yoon Sua was the first guild member to have cleared the Ogre's Sanctuary.
The same went for the others.
The leader of Operations Team 3 and his team members were the 'last guild members who had not cleared the Ogre's Sanctuary'.
No. To be precise, there was one more person left.
Hence the silence that filled the conference room.
“It's just me, then.”
Choi Kangwoo spoke in a low voice.
“Prepare the expedition.”
“Brother Kangwoo? Are you seriously thinking of going yourself?”
“Guild Master! I know the situation is dire, but for you to enter a dungeon on the verge of eruption alone is...!”
Naturally, everyone stared at him, aghast.
But Choi Kangwoo asked quietly.
“Is there another way?”
“It would be better to request help from freelance Hunters or other guilds...”
“This is the last expedition that can stop the dungeon eruption. You want to entrust that precious opportunity to Hunters from another guild?”
If they failed, it would obviously be a problem.
And even if they did stop the eruption, the Pungbaek Guild would not be free from criticism.
It would be twisted to look like they had stood by and done nothing while leaving it to another guild.
It didn't matter if it wasn't the truth.
The fall of those reigning at the top was a juicy morsel the media would drool over.
Checkmate.
Even if there were other choices, they were all terrible.
“...”
No one could offer a counterargument.
They all understood that this was the best option they had.
But that didn't mean they agreed with the decision.
“But you still can't go in alone, brother! If you go in like that, what will people think of us? They'll think we're a bunch of psychopaths who sent our Guild Master to his death. Do you think people will even care about our circumstances?!”
“We should request cooperation from other guilds, recruit members, and have you enter as the expedition leader...”
“No, don't even think about forming an expedition with Hunters from other guilds.”
The countless other guilds beneath Pungbaek.
They were, in the end, like hyenas bowing before a lion.
They would smile and offer flattering words about how honored they were to help.
But any help received from them would later become a noose to strangle Pungbaek.
“Bringing a bunch of randoms would just get in the way. It's easier for me to go alone and handle it.”
“That's not the issue, brother! This isn't just about lopping off some ogre heads!”
“The Vice Guild Master is right. It's not that we doubt your abilities, Guild Master, but this isn't a simple monster extermination. We have to consider many variables...”
But their opposition was fierce.
“Absolutely not. We will not let you go alone, Guild Master.”
Yoon Sua was even glaring at him, her eyes filled with unshakable resolve.
Choi Kangwoo understood how she felt.
Still, there was no other way.
“There's no time to waste. Leader of Operations Team 2, report to the Dungeon Management Bureau and prepare some simple expedition supplies. I'm leaving immediately.”
It was then.
“Huh? Brother, wait a second.”
“Yoon Suhyeok, I just said there's no time to waste...”
“Ah, brother! Stop being ridiculous and just wait a second!”
“...?”
Choi Kangwoo stared at his Vice Guild Master, dumbfounded.
Had he finally lost his mind?
The other Hunters in the room had the same expression.
But the moment Yoon Suhyeok, who was checking his smartphone, opened his mouth.
“I just got a message from Hunter Kim Hanul.”
Surprise filled everyone's eyes.
Kim Hanul?
The Hunter who cleared the Garden of the Abyss alone?
“About the Ogre's Sanctuary...”
As everyone, including Choi Kangwoo, focused their attention on him.
Yoon Suhyeok organized his thoughts with an ambiguous expression.
“Uh, well. Hunter Kim Hanul has sent a request for permission to enter the Ogre's Sanctuary.”
Choi Kangwoo's eyes wavered.
Kim Hanul.
The skilled individual who cleared the Garden of the Abyss alone.
An unknown figure about whom the media knew very little.
And most importantly.
He was a super rookie who wasn't entangled in the interests of any guild or group yet.
His position offered Pungbaek a new way out.
A strange light glinted in Choi Kangwoo's eyes.
Kim Hanul. With him, things were different.
* * *
The expedition permit request was approved faster than I expected.
It took less than an hour to get approval from the Gate Management Bureau.
They even gave me the go-ahead to start the expedition as soon as I was ready.
It was proof of how urgent the situation was.
Just as I'd expected.
[Yoon Suhyeok: Ah, damn it ㅠㅠ You're really our only hope... Our dear Hanul saved Pungbaek, for real ♡]
“...Still, this is a bit much.”
Considering Pungbaek's current situation, his attitude was understandable.
But still, getting a heart emoji from the 5th-ranked Flame Emperor was a lot to take.
I read the rest of the message.
[Yoon Suhyeok: When you get to Hwaseong Station, just wait for a bit. A porter will be there to meet you, got it, Hanul?]
*I don't need a porter.*
For me, with my subspace pocket, such a person was completely useless.
In fact, they were more likely to be a hindrance.
“Sage, should we just petrify them and go on our own?”
Poring!
The Sage, floating beside me, bounced as it replied.
A porter would obviously be a D-rank Hunter or lower.
They would definitely slow me down, so it would be much more efficient to hit them with Baby Petrification and proceed alone.
As I was plotting with the Sage, a voice came from behind me.
“Hunter Kim Hanul, it's a pleasure to finally meet you.”
I turned to see the porter Pungbaek had sent.
And then.
...?
For a moment, I wondered if Yoon Suhyeok had lost his mind.
“It's a pleasure. I am Choi Kangwoo.”
It seemed things were about to get much more interesting.
Several questions popped into my head, but I shook his hand first.
Then the Sage, completely oblivious to the mood, started bouncing beside me.
[The Sage reports that Baby Petrification is ready for activation! It asks if it should turn the porter before you into stone while you restrain his movements! ( •̀.̫•́)✧]
No, Sage. Put your eyeballs back in.
If you make one wrong move in front of this 'porter', you might get sliced in half.
Pu, poring.
The terrified rice cake clung to my shoulder.