Chapter 278: Aspiration (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 278: Aspiration (1)
Ansan, Gyeonggi Province.
On a street quieted by a rift that had opened on the outskirts of the city, about twenty people stood in formation.
Zodiac.
The guild, which had only fifteen members just a few days ago, now numbered twenty.
They were reinforcements, hastily recruited after securing Kim Do-jin and Han Ju-yeon’s acceptance of the request.
This should be enough.
It was a precaution against any unforeseen circumstances.
With these numbers, they should be able to handle anything unexpected.
Just as he thought all preparations were complete, an expensive sedan, worth hundreds of thousands, smoothly approached and stopped a short distance away.
Through the heavily tinted windows, a man and a woman could be seen.
They're here.
At the arrival of the main characters, he put on the smile he had been resting for a moment. Meanwhile, a small doubt occupied his mind.
What exactly is their relationship?
They had an unusual air about them when I first met them, and now they’ve arrived in the same car.
Could they be one of those common celebrity couples, pretending not to be together in public while secretly dating?
Or was there something more between them?
While he pondered, the two opened their respective doors and got out of the car.
Han Ju-yeon, dressed casually, exuded a strange sexiness amidst her bright and cheerful aura.
Kim Do-jin, in a suit with a long coat draped over his shoulders.
“…Perhaps I miscalculated.”
That was his first thought upon seeing him.
What was revealed by his perfectly tailored clothes surpassed his expectations.
Maybe even with the current numbers, preparing for an emergency would be difficult.
Contrary to such ominous thoughts, he greeted the two with a flawless smile.
“Welcome, you two.”
“We’re not late, are we?”
K shook his head at Han Ju-yeon’s polite question.
“Not at all. You’re right on time.”
After a brief exchange of greetings, the three went to meet the members who were lined up in front of the rift in their gear.
Since they would be clearing the dungeon together, they needed to at least know each other’s classes.
“Excuse me for a moment, then.”
Before the raid, Han Ju-yeon stepped away to put on her gear.
In the meantime, Kim Do-jin scanned the faces of the Zodiac guild members with a dry, impassive gaze.
“Hmm…”
The number of guild members, which had been ten A-ranks and five B-ranks, had now increased to fifteen A-ranks.
This is on par with a fairly large guild.
Excluding the S-ranks, who are considered an asymmetrical power, A-ranks are the strongest assets.
A guild is considered large when it has over 200 members, with at least ten percent being A-rank or higher. Considering that, this number was simply absurd.
But there was something even more surprising.
They don't seem to be ordinary A-ranks, either.
All of them seemed to be at least mid-to-high tier among A-ranks.
The ones worth watching were a large man with a greatsword on his back, a woman with bluish hair flowing out from under a deep hood, and a man with an expression so cold-blooded he looked like he wouldn’t bleed a single drop if stabbed. Three in total.
No, maybe not just three.
Kim Do-jin turned his head to look at the man standing beside him, K.
In fact, this is the one I need to be most careful of.
He had introduced himself as an A-rank Hunter, but Kim Do-jin didn’t believe a word of it.
Unlike the others, whose strength could be gauged by the mana subtly leaking from them, only a faint trace of mana flowed from K’s body—so faint it was doubtful he was even a Hunter.
There were two possible explanations.
Either he possesses a special ability comparable to an A-rank, or he has something that can conceal his power.
Either way, he was a tricky opponent, so Kim Do-jin marked him as a person of interest.
While he was mentally ranking the Hunters he would be working with, Han Ju-yeon, now changed into her Hunter gear, approached with light steps and stood next to Kim Do-jin.
“Have you been waiting long?”
She wore a pure white dress and held a wand made from a unicorn’s horn.
Her preparations complete, she spoke to K.
“Well then, let’s get started.”
The raid began with her confident smile and tone.
The front-liners began to enter the dungeon one by one, placing their hands on the rift.
Kim Do-jin once again reviewed the dungeon information he had received from K.
A vast, urban-type field. Numerous grotesque creatures, including zombies. The terrain is at least the size of a city.
A raid party of twenty—no, twenty-two—people had been formed accordingly, with a long raid time of two days and one night.
When his turn finally came, Kim Do-jin placed his hand on the rift.
His eyes closed instinctively as a strange sensation of floating swept over him, as if his body were drifting somewhere.
He took a breath, and a pungent smell, completely different from before, stung his nostrils.
Hearing the sound of hurried footsteps with his pricked ears, he finally opened his eyes.
The semi-transparent message window that ritually appeared upon entering a dungeon popped up.
Beyond it lay a desolate gray city that looked quite familiar.
“……”
Kim Do-jin’s gaze fell upon the words written in the semi-transparent message window.
[You have entered ‘World Swept by Ruin, Sector 2’.]
[Confirming the ‘Bearer of Karma’ trait. A new mission is assigned.]
[Find and eliminate the ‘Seeker’ who is hiding somewhere in the city, biding their time.]
*
A desolate gray city that looked somewhat familiar.
Sure enough, a familiar place name greeted me.
And along with it, a new mission given only to the 504.
“Hmm.”
Of all the places, the dungeon this mysterious group brought me to had to be this one.
Is this truly a product of coincidence?
Or is it an inevitable trap they’ve laid?
“Mr. Kim Do-jin?”
“Ah, yes.”
K called out to me as I stood there blankly, watching them with suspicious eyes.
“We’re planning to split into teams of four for reconnaissance. Who would you like to go with?”
“Let’s see.”
Reconnaissance, huh.
To clear a field this large, reconnaissance isn’t an option—it’s a necessity.
Moreover, with over twenty people in the raid party, it was an unspoken rule that splitting up to search different areas was more efficient than moving as one large group.
But for some reason, I had a bad feeling about it.
In times like these…
“I’ll go with Hunter Han Ju-yeon.”
It’s safest to party up only with people you can trust.
K asked back with a hesitant expression.
“Are you saying the two of you will form your own team?”
“Yes. There are twenty-two of us anyway, so we can’t divide perfectly into groups of four. Let’s do it this way.”
At that, the guy began to dissuade me with a look of disapproval.
“Even if it’s just for reconnaissance, you won’t be able to avoid combat.”
Ju-yeon is a healer and buffer, and I’m a mage.
To his question of whether we’d be fine in a fight without a front line, I readily replied that we would be.
“Sometimes, it’s better to not have teammates you haven’t synchronized with.”
Did my tone get on their nerves?
Sharp glares shot out from the surroundings before vanishing as if they were never there.
These bastards. Still clumsy at controlling their emotions.
After a moment of thought, K finally nodded.
“If you insist… I understand. Please take this instead.”
In place of teammates, he handed me a ‘D-Messenger,’ one of the Magic Tower’s best-selling products.
“It’s the latest model, equipped with an emergency rescue request function. It will be useful in a crisis.”
“Alright.”
It was a badge, its appearance slightly different from the one I used during the Kraken raid.
Did they release a new model already?
I pinned the badge to my suit’s breast pocket, finishing my preparations for the reconnaissance.
Then it suddenly occurred to me.
I had made this decision about our team so naturally, all by myself.
“Um… Nuna?”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Well, I feel like I was a bit selfish, deciding we’d go out on our own.”
But Ju-yeon just waved her hand dismissively with a smile, as if it didn’t matter.
“It’s fine, it’s fine! I’ll agree with whatever you decide, Do-jin.”
As she said that, she subtly pressed her chest against my arm and whispered.
“So… if there’s anything you want from me, don’t hold back. Just go for it. Got it?”
“……”
Is this what that famous entertainment agency CEO meant by ‘half air, half sound’?
The breathy sounds escaping between her words tickled my ear.
The teams of four finished their preparations, each facing their designated search direction.
Ju-yeon and I also stood in an empty spot.
“We will now depart. Don’t forget to gather back here in two hours.”
“Yes, sir!”
The reply wasn’t particularly loud, but its forcefulness made me realize they operated under a strict hierarchy.
Most villain groups have a messy, dysfunctional structure. What the hell are these guys?
After confirming that the members were leaving, Ju-yeon and I set off as well.
“Shall we get going, too?”
“Yeah.”
We walked along a main road littered with the debris of broken buildings before turning into a narrower street.
I’d been here once before.
Of course, it was a different sector back then, but the basic concept should be largely the same.
If so, wandering aimlessly to find the boss and the Seeker would be inefficient.
“Back then, I’m sure…”
The zombies and other grotesque creatures roaming the city.
When I killed them, they would occasionally drop notes or memos that provided clues.
That means engaging in active combat might be better than just wandering around.
But there was one problem.
“Nuna.”
“Hm…?”
Han Ju-yeon, who was right beside me.
“I have something to ask you.”
“What is it? I’ll tell you anything, as long as I can answer it.”
She had an air about her that suggested she’d even tell me her measurements without hesitation if I asked.
Pushing away the lewd thoughts filling a corner of my mind, I asked with a serious expression.
“How far can I trust you… no, Hunter Han Ju-yeon?”