New Environment (1)
“Congratulations on surviving the Tutorial. I’m Lee Sanghee, the person in charge of this Tutorial Dungeon.”
She was remarkably polite.
The fact that she bowed her head quietly and even offered us a slight smile made it clear that at the very least, Lee Sanghee and the others didn’t hold any hostility toward us.
If anything, they seemed almost friendly.
“What do you mean, the person in charge of the Tutorial Dungeon?”
“Exactly what I said. As the vice guild master of the Blue Guild of the Benigore Empire, I’m managing this round’s Tutorial Dungeon.”
“So you’re saying you were the ones who called us here?”
“No. We’re in the same position you are. One day, we were suddenly summoned to the Tutorial Dungeon and subjected to the same trial. We simply arrived here a little earlier than you did. We still don’t know why this happened, or why the summoning ritual began.”
“Hmm….”
“Our mission is to welcome you once the dungeon has been cleared and rescue the survivors still inside. Beyond that, our purpose is to help you adapt to this new environment, educate you, and guarantee the most basic standard of living.”
“The most basic standard of living?”
“Yes. The most basic standard of living.”
“I see. So you can only enter this place after the clearing is over?”
“That’s right. The Tutorial Dungeon remains open for about three days after the clear. Exactly three days later, the dungeon gate closes again. We still don’t know why that is, but in any case, please come with me. I’ll explain the details inside.”
I was a little dazed.
In truth, I had never imagined we’d be able to enjoy anything resembling peace after coming out.
What puzzled me even more was the woman’s attitude.
[Checking Player Lee Sanghee’s status window and talent values.]
[Name - Lee Sanghee]
[Title - Iron Blood]
[Age - 33]
[Disposition - Ideal Mediator]
[Class - Holy Knight]
[Class Effect - Learned Basic Swordsmanship Knowledge]
[Class Effect - Learned Basic Shield Knowledge]
[Class Effect - Learned Intermediate Swordsmanship Knowledge]
[Class Effect - Learned Advanced Swordsmanship Knowledge]
[Class Effect - Learned Basic Holy Knowledge]
[Class Effect - Learned Intermediate Holy Knowledge]
[Stats]
[Strength - 82 / Growth Cap: Heroic or higher]
[Agility - 52 / Growth Cap: Rare or higher]
[Stamina - 90 / Growth Cap: Heroic or lower]
[Intelligence - 30 / Growth Cap: Normal or lower]
[Endurance - 91 / Growth Cap: Heroic or higher]
[Luck - 33 / Growth Cap: Rare or lower]
[Mana - 77 / Growth Cap: Rare or higher]
[Equipment]
[Saint Caliber - Heroic Grade]
[Iron Blood Shield - Heroic Grade - Knight Only]
[Power Belt - Rare Grade]
[Trait - Iron Blood]
[Overall Evaluation - Her raw stats are extremely impressive. She looks like someone who has already matured and settled into her place. There’s still some room for growth in endurance and strength, but the rest may not improve any further. It’s by no means bad, but something about it feels a little disappointing. Still, don’t underestimate her. She’s not even remotely comparable to Player Lee Kiyoung.]
Ignore her?
Obviously, there was no way I’d ever ignore her.
Monster.
Even if all of us charged her together, we wouldn’t be able to do a thing to her.
The same went for everyone else around us.
Judging by her stats alone, the difference between us was so vast it wasn’t even worth comparing.
If she really wanted to, killing us on the spot would be nothing.
And yet….
She’s friendly.
Too friendly. No, it almost felt like she was trying to make herself seem smaller.
“Ms. Hwayeon?”
“Yes.”
“Please begin searching for the survivors inside. I’ll remain here and spend a little time with these gentlemen.”
“Yes, understood.”
Watching the soldiers head into the dungeon, I decided that rescuing the others in the Shelter—Lee Jihye and the rest—was only a matter of time.
I could see not only Koreans but foreigners as well.
From the style of their clothing and their appearances, they looked a little removed from modern people.
I assumed they were probably the locals of this place.
As we walked along, looking around in confusion, I saw Lee Sanghee ahead of us open her mouth to speak.
Kim Hyunsung, the party leader, answered her.
I figured it would be better to listen to their conversation and gather information than to take part directly, so I quietly kept their voices in mind.
“It seems you cleared the dungeon extremely quickly.”
“Isn’t this how it usually goes?”
“Yes. Normally, a clear takes about six months. Completing the dungeon in under three months is certainly unusual. I imagine this dungeon was cleared much faster than the others.”
“There are dungeons in other places too?”
“Yes. The Republic and the Kingdom Alliance are each managing several Tutorial Dungeons as well. In the Benigore Holy Empire, where I’m stationed, we manage three in total. It isn’t only Koreans. People of many different nationalities are usually summoned to their designated locations and undergo the Tutorial there.”
“I see. So that means we’re the ones who cleared our dungeon the fastest.”
“Yes, that would be the explanation. Asking what happened inside is usually taboo, but I’m genuinely curious how you managed to break through so quickly. Especially with such a small group… only four people.”
“There were a lot of circumstances involved. I can’t explain everything, but… we didn’t really suffer any major setbacks. It was possible not only because of me, but because Deokgu, Kiyoung, and Hayan each did their part. Ah, and on the first floor above ground, there should be a Shelter prepared. Please make sure the people there are rescued as well.”
“Pardon?”
“You mean the Shelter made by that hyung. He gathered the survivors separately. He organized a clearing team and left the people who couldn’t hunt on their own there. He made some kind of wall in a safe place and ran things from there, so I’d imagine they’re still alive. We had enough food too. Hmm!”
“Ah….”
She looked a little stunned.
Aha.
Only now was I starting to understand what was going on.
I finally understood the situation surrounding us.
“Th-that’s….”
Lee Sanghee’s expression, unable to fully hide her emotions, came into view.
Kim Hyunsung, you sly bastard.
It seemed our party ace—the protagonist—had no intention of wasting time on the irritating business of hiding his strength.
As I casually looked back toward the Tutorial Dungeon, people began appearing one after another as they were rescued.
They didn’t seem to be the ones in the Shelter, but rather people who had been hiding alone.
Needless to say, it was absolute chaos.
Some were wailing, while others were demanding to know where they were.
That was probably the normal reaction.
Even the attitude of the armed soldiers toward the others was subtly different from how they treated us.
A little more forceful. A little more condescending.
“Where am I? W-what is this… what is going on…?”
“Mom… Mom… w-wahhh….”
“We’ll gather everyone immediately. We’ll explain everything afterward. For now, please come outside with us. Hey! You there! Stop shouting!”
“Where is this! Where are we!?”
“Hey! Drag that bastard out now!”
“Let go of me!”
“Wahhh… where is this?”
“I already told you—we’ll give you all the explanation you need at once. Please cooperate. For now, you must cooperate! You are safe. There is no further danger. Please, everyone, cooperate.”
Nice.
The way they treated us and the way they treated the others were completely different.
That was the normal reaction.
Panicking, crying, and begging to be saved was what you’d expect from most people.
But our party was a little different.
Not only was Kim Hyunsung unnervingly calm, but Jung Hayan was glued to my side and showing no reaction at all to the new environment.
Park Deokgu, who kept peppering everyone with questions as if he had a million things he wanted to know, was the same.
From Lee Sanghee’s perspective, it might have been a little disorienting.
This party had cleared the Tutorial Dungeon spread across the entire world in the shortest time possible.
And there were only four of us.
That wasn’t all.
Not only were we strikingly calm, but we had even gathered other survivors and built a Shelter.
I could understand why she seemed a little speechless.
So the treatment is different….
It made sense that the treatment would differ from that given to people who had survived by hiding, running, and avoiding fights.
Merely having participated as a clearing team already meant you were capable of adapting to this environment.
Given the way they talked about guilds, empires, and republics, there had to be power blocs here.
The comparison might not be perfect, but we were basically rookie athletes whose market value had already skyrocketed.
These people were the clubs trying to sign us.
And if there weren’t many promising players like us, but there were plenty of clubs, then only one conclusion could be drawn.
We’ve got the upper hand.
For now, we had the upper hand.
I could even guess why Kim Hyunsung didn’t hesitate to hide nothing.
From the way he casually described our accomplishments, it seemed he was trying to raise his own price too.
If he was going to be sold anyway, maybe he was hoping to be sold as expensively as possible.
Of course, I had no way of knowing exactly what Kim Hyunsung was planning right now, but whichever path he chose, the road ahead of us was nothing but a flower path.
The corners of my mouth rose without my meaning to.
Not bad at all. Being part of a regressor party.
“Please, come this way.”
The room Lee Sanghee led us into was also rather luxurious.
It was so lavish it was hard to believe we were still near a Tutorial Dungeon.
“Drinks… ah, and if you’d like, I can also arrange a meal.”
“Is there food?”
“Yes. It may be a little different from what you’re used to on Earth, but it should be far better than what you were eating inside the dungeon.”
“Then I’d appreciate that.”
The blue banners and the furnishings inside the room seemed designed to display the authority of the Blue Guild, which was managing this dungeon, to the fullest extent.
They had clearly put a lot of effort into today.
I couldn’t tell whether they were about to make us an offer of recruitment or whether there were several other procedures left to go through, but even a glance made it obvious they were trying to leave a positive impression on us.
“Ah, come to think of it, I haven’t heard your names yet. If it isn’t too rude, may I ask what they are?”
“Kim Hyunsung. Swordsman.”
He even mentioned his class, which was somewhat surprising.
Not to be outdone, Park Deokgu spoke up too.
“Shield Warrior Park Deokgu.”
“I-I’m Jung Hayan. I’m a mage….”
Her gaze naturally landed on me.
I briefly considered hiding my class, but decided there wasn’t much point.
Figuring I might as well join the crowd of people inflating their value, I gave a small nod.
“Lee Kiyoung. Alchemist.”
Unlike the other three, I had already completed my second class advancement.
I thought their internal evaluation of me must have gone up, and was just nodding to myself in satisfaction when I saw Lee Sanghee’s face.
Huh?
I definitely hadn’t seen it wrong.
For just a moment, there had been a look of deep disappointment on her face.
“Ah. Th-that’s… amazing. Already a second advancement….”
Her voice sounded a little pained for someone calling it amazing.
Before I knew it, I found myself looking toward Kim Hyunsung.
You said alchemists were good, you bastard….