Chapter 19: Straight into the Mine
The first thing that caught Park Taemin's eye the moment he entered the dungeon was the layers upon layers of stalactites in every shape and size hanging from the cave ceiling. Each one emitted a faint yellow glow of its own, making it easy for him to make out his surroundings without much trouble.
A bit eerie, Taemin thought as he scanned the area and advanced slowly and cautiously.
It wasn't long before a pack of monsters entered his field of vision. Bat-like creatures the size of an adult man's torso.
Taemin immediately activated his Insight.
"So this is a Jude," Taemin muttered after checking its info. He then opened his quest window. Having completed all the tutorial quests, he was now on regular quests.
[Regular Quest - Rank: D]
📍 1. Mine Extermination - Jude
Progress: Jude (0/20)
🎁 Reward:13,000 EXP
"Time to get started?" Taemin closed the quest window, activated Arrainba, and charged straight at them. Since their levels weren't high, he didn't need any other skills.
Swish!
Slash!
Swish!
Slash!
Every time Taemin swung his dagger, a bat sprayed blood and tumbled to the ground. Their defense was laughable compared to their speed, so it was one-shot, one-kill.
He dispatched the monsters in front of him in an instant and dashed onward. Soon, another pack of Judes came into view—over twenty if you combined them with the previous group.
That should wrap up the first one.
The moment he spotted the pack, Taemin rushed in without hesitation, slaughtered them all, and completed his first quest.
You have slain the Judes.
You have completed the quest.
You have acquired 13,000 EXP as a reward.
Please check your new quest.
Taemin checked the messages and immediately looked at the next quest.
[Regular Quest - Rank: D]
📍 2. Mine Extermination - Jabara, Kallus
Progress: Jabara (0/10), Kallus (0/10)
🎁 Reward:17,000 EXP
"Two types this time." Staring at the quest window, he set off again without delay.
The cave interior was wider than expected. The further in he went, the broader it became—the width, which had been less than ten meters at the entrance, was now too vast to measure.
As he cut down Jude packs lurking in various spots, a new monster appeared in his vision. It resembled a scorpion from the Desert Zone, but only half the size.
Once again, he activated Insight to probe its info.
This one's got solid defense. Gonna need Hydeger, Taemin thought, activating the skill right away.
Just then, something odd caught his eye. The stalactites around the Jabara began to move.
Watching closely, Taemin sensed something off and fired off Insight again.
As expected.
So this is the monster that looks just like a crystal and scuttles around.
Taemin had memorized most monsters' traits and appearances from community info. He scanned the area carefully for more, but the stalactites and Kallus looked too similar to distinguish until they moved.
Pondering for a moment, a idea flashed in his mind.
"Right, that."
Smoke Screen.
Taemin deployed his smoke screen, and black mist billowed out across dozens of meters. It even seeped from the stalactites—the hidden Kallus.
Now that he'd pinpointed them, he downed a potion and activated Hydeger. His dagger blazed with light, illuminating the interior.
Cranking up Arrainba as well, Taemin surged toward them. Their defense outstripped Desert Zone monsters, but with his attack power nearing 400, they were no issue.
Swish!
Slash!
Light swings severed necks and split torsos. They flailed desperately, but against his overwhelming speed, it was futile resistance.
The monsters fell helplessly, wiped out in mere minutes.
[Regular Quest - Rank: D]
📍 3. Mine Extermination - Taria
Progress: Taria (0/20)
🎁 Reward:22,000 EXP
"Just EXP again?" he muttered, eyeing the new quest and reward. He looted the drop materials from the scattered corpses. He didn't know what was what, but it was all money, so into the inventory they went.
Glancing around once more, he pressed on.
Repeating this grind, he cleared all the Mine quests in half a day. No equipment dropped as hoped, but the EXP was juicy, so he wasn't too bothered.
Clearing the Mine, Taemin exited and roamed the Underground Hot Zone and Desert Zone. By evening, he'd full-cleared all lower dungeon quests.
Looking at his inventory stuffed with lower dungeon materials, a smile crept across his face.
"Hunting like this would rake in the cash."
The next day and the day after, Taemin cycled through the three dungeons, sweeping up materials. Solo hunting let him cherry-pick the valuables, boosting his earnings by over 30%.
After two days of grinding, he hit LV.25 and pocketed a whopping 200 million won.
With the big sum, Taemin headed to the gear shop on the 6th floor of the Hunter Market.
Passing the front desk, he entered the accessory corner and closely examined the standard display rack. With 200 million, only normal gear was in reach, so his path was set.
Taemin scrutinized the items and picked up the Blessing Ring and Swift Ring. The Blessing Ring had a useless option, but its 110 total mana boost was great. The Swift Ring's agility and speed suited him perfectly.
The downside? Insanely high prices.
"Excuse me."
The staff hurried over at his call.
"Yes, sir? How can I help?"
"I'll take these two. Any discount?"
He'd seen the discount sign at the entrance and figured it was worth asking.
"Discounts apply only to Rare-grade or higher, sir. Normal items are all fixed price."
"Not even 1%?"
"Sorry, sir."
"Alright, ring me up."
Taemin hesitated but handed over his card. Gear like accessories sold out fast—skip now, and it might be gone. Plus, they held resale value well.
After paying and grabbing his shopping bag, some gear caught his eye on the way out.
A set item displayed solo.
Haven't seen this before. Might as well check it out.
Taemin approached and flipped through the catalog below.
◈ Set Effect: All Skill Levels +1 | Additional Defense +100
Original: 3,730,000,000 → 10th Anniversary Discount: 2,990,000,000
Whoa.
Taemin skimmed the info, stunned by the stacked options, then again by the price.
Individually, the stats weren't amazing—uneven and the skill option standalone. But the set bonus was huge, making the discounted price a steal.
"Man, owning this would solve my mana woes. Skill levels too..."
Gazing at the gear, Taemin felt a strong urge to buy. More mana, plus +1 skill levels boosting speed, attack, smoke range—it was pure profit.
"Wonder when I can snag something like this. Gonna take forever at my current pace."
Licking his lips, Taemin left the market, vowing to return.
Back home, he unpacked the bag, pulled out the boxes, and tried on the rings. The equip guide made it easy.
As he slipped them on, slot messages popped up, applying the options.
[Ring Slot (1/2)]
MP +50 increased.
Mentality +3 added.
No applicable skill.
[Ring Slot (2/2)]
HP +30 increased.
Agility +5 added.
Movement Speed +10 increased.
Satisfied with his rising stats, Taemin sat at his computer with a serious expression.
That set'll sell out fast.
The Necris set lingered in his mind, so he searched for quick cash methods.
His daily hunting netted about 100 million, minus potions leaving 50 million profit. Huge, but not enough for gear.
Two months to grind 3 billion? Unlikely to last that long. High discount, rare all-skill level-up on low-level Rare gear—whales would snap it up.
"Even grinding crystals would take dozens of days. Gotta be another way."
For his level, Kallus crystals were top earners—20 million each, lottery for solos. But rare; he'd gotten zero in two days.
"Sigh. Aiming for a jackpot at this level is dumb anyway. Beginner gear's fine for now... Take it slow, raid with folks, and the money'll..."
Taemin trailed off, then muttered.
"Wait... Raid?"