I'll Show You What the Heavenly Demon Is
I looked around the interior of the building erected above the Namsan Dungeon.
It really does look like city hall.
There was a place to take a waiting ticket, and individual service windows too. At those windows, Superhumans were speaking with civil servants. It was, quite literally, a city hall.
After glancing around for a moment, I took a waiting ticket. Standing around would only push my number further back.
Waiting number… twenty people?
I couldn't tell if that was long or short. I sat down in an empty seat and waited. Naturally, my clone sat beside me.
Glance.
Glance.
Quite a few eyes were on us, by the way. Not because I'd become famous. It was because of the clone.
Everyone kept sneaking looks at her. Honestly, hair that vivid a red was rare. That alone was enough to draw attention. But right now, it didn't seem to be the unusual appearance that had them staring. It was more likely the strange aura flowing around her.
Even I flinched every time I looked at her. People who weren't used to it would feel it even more. Anyone whose eyes actually met hers was quick to look away.
Superhumans are avoiding her?
Maybe the Heavenly Demon was even stronger than I'd thought. That idea kept coming back to me today.
How long did we wait?
Ding-dong.
Finally, my turn. I took my number slip and headed to the window.
"Customer number 183."
"Yes."
"Your Superhuman License, please."
"Here."
"Thank you. Will you be entering a dungeon today?"
"Yes."
"Then please fill out these forms."
I looked over the papers the female civil servant handed me. There wasn't much to write. It was basically a liability waiver — including a clause stating that even if you died inside the dungeon, you would never hold the state responsible. Reading that made entering a dungeon feel real in a way it hadn't before.
I filled in what was needed, checked the boxes, and handed the papers back. The civil servant entered them into her PC while asking questions.
"How many people will be entering?"
"Just me?"
"…Excuse me?"
Her typing stopped cold.
"Alone? This is your first time, isn't it?"
I'd written "first time" on the form. Of course she'd seen it.
"Well, more precisely, I'm going in with my summon."
"Even so, going in alone on your first run…"
She looked genuinely worried. Apparently cases like mine were extremely rare.
"You don't need to worry about me."
"…All right. Understood. But please fill this out as well."
I took the additional form she held out.
"Firearm rental?"
"Yes. Complete the paperwork and you can rent a firearm. It'll be a great help in the dungeon."
"Ah, thank you."
I had no intention of turning that down. I filled it out quickly.
Then the civil servant hesitated a moment before speaking again.
"Would you also like a will form?"
"A will?"
"Yes."
She was looking at me with a very serious face. Did she think I was walking into a dungeon to kill myself on purpose? Her concern was kind, but it was unnecessary meddling.
I shook my head.
"No. I'm fine."
"…All right. Understood."
She looked at me with deep pity, then went back to her PC. Watching her, I felt a faint prickle of fear after all. I turned my head and glanced at the clone sitting quietly nearby.
She happened to be looking at me too. For a second, the corner of her mouth curved up — utterly at ease. That expression shook the worry right out of me.
Right. I've got the Heavenly Demon with me.
I finished the remaining paperwork and handed it over. A short while later, I received an assault rifle and returned to the seat beside my clone. When my turn came, the app I'd installed beforehand would send a signal. Then we'd head underground.
"Is that a gun?"
"Yeah. First time seeing one?"
"Yes. The first time I've seen one in person. May I hold it for a moment?"
"Here."
The clone showed considerable interest in the rifle — probably because it was a weapon. Honestly, it was my first time seeing a real gun too. Still, I'd watched enough NewTube tutorials to know the basics, so I could fire it if I had to.
We waited about an hour, using the time to get familiar with the rifle. Then, at last, the app started buzzing.
I stood with a faintly tense expression. The clone rose with me. We headed underground, took the elevator down roughly three floors.
Whirr.
The doors opened — and right in front of us was an enormous purple portal. It looked a lot like the one my clone had emerged from, but the scale was completely different.
It's huge.
The diameter alone looked to be five meters. Near the portal, a large contingent of armed personnel stood guard — soldiers, by the look of them, all holding rifles and securing the area.
I walked toward the portal. A man who seemed to be the commander addressed me.
"Two of you?"
"Yes."
"Try not to stay longer than a day if you can help it. Even Superhumans are at risk from the corrosion."
"Understood."
"Go carefully."
They didn't check our IDs. Probably because everything had already been thoroughly verified upstairs.
I walked toward the portal with a tight expression. Thankfully, the clone beside me looked completely unfazed, so I didn't shake too badly. We reached the threshold.
Everything is frightening the first time. I was no exception. I swallowed hard, then stepped into the portal. The clone moved with me.
Fwaaat—!
A brilliant light wrapped around me, and my body felt like it was floating. My eyes shut on their own. The sensation of weightlessness lasted only a moment — then something solid touched my feet.
I opened my eyes.
An unfamiliar space stretched out before me. Nothing but sand in every direction. It felt exactly like standing in a desert. Nearby sat a single stone stele.
[1]
A stele marked with a 1. Meaning this was the first floor.
I looked around. In the middle of the desert stood a building that resembled an ancient Greek temple. I recognized the place instantly.
The Temple of Silence!
Every dungeon had rules. Break them, and disaster followed. The Temple of Silence was no different. Here, you had to make as little noise as possible. The moment you made a sound, monsters poured from the sky.
And of all things, the first floor is the Temple of Silence.
The Temple of Silence was something of a bonus floor. All you had to do was stay quiet. It wasn't particularly difficult. That said, no one had ever fully cleared it. You could escape the Temple of Silence — but clearing it was considered impossible.
Even so, it was an easy dungeon if you didn't need a full clear. Easy money, too.
Mine the Stones of Silence and sell them — decent cash.
Smash the temple, collect the fragments, and bring them out, and you walked away with a solid payday. The problem was extracting stone from the temple without making noise. Guns were useless here too. That was why it wasn't a popular spot.
I pulled a mount from my bag and connected it to my smartphone. I needed at least some video evidence. Otherwise, no one would believe I'd actually run a dungeon. I started recording, then glanced aside.
The Heavenly Demon was surveying the surroundings. This place was new to her as well — she looked genuinely intrigued.
Then the clone opened her mouth. At her usual volume.
"What a curious place. Almost no presence at all."
I jumped at the sound of her voice. I'd told her plenty about dungeons beforehand — but I hadn't mentioned the critical rule of the Temple of Silence. I hastily put a finger to my lips.
"Shh."
The Heavenly Demon ignored me.
"Why must we be quiet?"
"No — it's the rule. If you make a loud noise here, monsters rain down from the sky!"
I spoke as softly as I could. She did not lower her voice.
"A rule, you say?"
"Yes. So please, just be quiet…"
It was already dangerous. The sky had begun turning red. Once it went fully crimson, the monsters would come.
I looked at the clone with desperate eyes. She looked back at me — and her expression hardened instead.
Then she spoke in a firm voice.
"Come to think of it, I taught you only martial arts. I never taught you the bearing or posture of the Heavenly Demon."
"Please be quiet!"
"The Heavenly Demon," she said —
— and stomped the ground with tremendous force.
An earth-shattering boom roared across the desert.
In an instant, a colossal sound rolled out, and countless grains of sand shot high into the sky. It was spectacular — a small tidal wave of sand rising into the air.
I wore an expression of pure horror. We were completely finished.
The Heavenly Demon, of course, was unfazed. She continued in the same voice as before.
"No!!"
The sky turned blood-red. It looked as though blood itself might start dripping from above. In that same moment, light erupted from every direction — and where the light appeared, monsters of every kind filled the view.
House-sized spiders. A golden giant mantis. Trolls. Ogres. Wyverns wheeling through the sky. A monster paradise.
I jammed my finger onto the trigger. My hands were shaking. The terror of death crashed over me.
"Never fear breaking the rules. That is what the Heavenly Demon is."
The clone was still spouting nonsense. Then she took a step forward.
"Allow me to show you why."
Thud.
Thud.
They were ordinary footsteps. And yet, somehow, I couldn't tear my eyes from the way she moved.