Phyladia Mountain Range
In the Phyladia Mountain Range, a group of hunters stood in stunned silence amid the countless monster corpses scattered everywhere.
"What the hell? It's all cleared out?"
"Who did this... We skipped the factory on purpose to come here today."
"Did you even guard properly?"
Ignoring the murmurs, the tall man at the front stepped forward to assess the situation.
"Looks like they came at night. To cause this much damage, at least one full party must've passed through. They wiped out everything, even across to the other side."
The man next to him nodded in agreement.
"Yeah. Taking down a Giant Ogre means at least level 40s, and over ten people probably. Huh? Wait a sec."
The guy trailed off, scanning the area with a puzzled expression as if something had just clicked.
The first man turned to him. "What?"
"No, but why'd they dump all the material items?"
"Inventory must've been full. And the junk they left is all low-grade crap anyway."
"That's what makes it weird. You ever see a single party leave materials behind? Especially this much?"
Only then did the man realize something was off. No matter how cheap, material items were still worth money if you picked them up. So why abandon them all?
Someone else chimed in. "What if it was just one guy?"
"What?"
"Normally, when we clear and calculate the valuables, it fills about one inventory slot. The rest is like four slots of junk materials."
"So?"
"Think about it. Solo hunter comes in, grabs only the good stuff, inventory fills up, dumps the rest and bails."
The first man shot back incredulously. "You seriously think that makes sense? Soloing an ogre means at least level 50. Why come here when better spots exist?"
"Even if levels are low, unique gear could do it."
"Unique? Sounds like someone's pet dog. Cut the bullshit and let's head back. Gotta report to HQ."
Two days after hunting in the Phyladia Mountain Range, Park Taemin set out again. This time, the location was the old city hall site.
Downtown areas were riddled with portals of every rank. Most had spawned there during the initial outbreak.
However, these high-risk zones were state-controlled, accessible only to government agents. The spot Taemin was at now had Hunter Agency operatives standing ironclad guard.
But who was he? A hunter with the ultra-rare class boasting Invisible.
He activated Invisible and strolled casually into the portal.
Inside, Taemin immediately deployed Arrainba and dashed through the mountains.
It didn't last long. Disappointment clouded his face.
"What? Already cleared?"
Powdered monster corpses littered the ground. He pushed on hopefully, but it was the same everywhere—someone had beaten him to it.
Taemin exited and checked nearby dungeons. No living monsters anywhere.
The city's too crowded.
After a couple more spots with no luck, he headed to the outskirts.
Somehow, he ended up near the hills where he'd hunted days ago.
"Guess there are a bunch of mid-tier dungeons around here."
Following the path up, he soon spotted a portal guarded by four hunters.
That guild from before.
Spotting the emblem on their arms, Taemin realized they were from the same group that had blocked him earlier.
They must control this area. Big guild by the looks of it. If I snag a bit, will they even notice?
With a casual thought, he triggered Invisible, slipped between them, and vanished into the portal.
Wolfsrein Seoul Headquarters. Guild master's office. Late at night.
A middle-aged man entered the office.
"Chief of Staff, what brings you here so late?"
"I have a report, sir."
"Another clash with those guys?"
"No. Recently, one of my subordinates reported an unauthorized intruder in one of our managed portals."
"Unauthorized entry?"
"Yes. Seems they slipped in at night when guards were off, hunted, and left. It was a bottom-tier mid dungeon, so we didn't pay much mind. But similar incidents piled up over the last few days—too many oddities to ignore."
"Oddities? What exactly?"
"First, high chance it's a solo intruder. Reports note a ton of deliberately discarded materials—mostly cheap stuff like orc hides or troll pelts. Quantities suggest one person swept through, took the valuables, and dumped the rest."
"Go on."
"We concluded it's someone in level 40 gear. No high-level would bother with these spots. With hunting grounds scarce lately, outskirts hunters are spilling over. Figured it was one of them, so we tightened security. But then four nearby dungeons got hit the same way— all within an hour's radius of the first site."
"So someone's orchestrating this? Your point?"
"Exactly. Same pattern, timed a day or two before our hunts. Makes me suspect a rival guild with overlapping interests."
"Hm. Possible. Any guesses on which?"
"Not yet. We have too many enemies to narrow it down."
"Still, weird. What were the guards doing? First time, fine—but after, you reinforced."
"That's the kicker I was about to explain. Shockingly, not one of the 24-hour guards saw the intruder."
"Four dungeons raided, zero sightings? Negligence?"
"Doesn't seem so. I spoke to each personally—no dozing or slacking. Whatever method they used dodged all eyes. Not your average hunter."
"Hah. What, a Hydriger—those transparent upper-dungeon monsters? So, your plan?"
"Deploy high-level sorcerers to install Image Mirrors in each dungeon. If they return, mirrors will catch 'em. Then set a trap, capture, and ID the culprit."
"Understood. But no unnecessary force. Korea's a powder keg right now. One spark, and society's chaos. If not hostile, handle politely—explain and send off. Got it?"
"Crystal clear, sir."
Taemin's hunts continued until two days before Chuseok break.
He hadn't noticed at first, but mid-tier dungeons teeming with monsters dotted the areas near his spots. Hunting every other day netted him level 33 and 2 billion won.
On the last day, after selling materials and buying weapons, Taemin headed home to check his growth.
"Nice. Steady progress."
Gazing proudly at his status window, Taemin closed it, stripped off his gear, showered, then lay in bed staring at the calendar.
Chuseok break started the day after tomorrow. The thought of heading home after so long had him buzzing with excitement.
Truth be told, holidays hadn't thrilled him before. Scraping by on part-time gigs, even bus fare was a burden.
Plus, most neighborhood friends had jobs, so visits meant nagging comparisons and gossip-fueled stress. Eventually, he skipped trips using "busy" as an excuse.
But now? He was a hunter. Earning unimaginable sums overnight. One business card, and he outranked corporate elites.
Next morning, alarm blaring, Taemin grabbed his wallet, clothes, and headed out.
Early dawn, air crisp. He grabbed breakfast at the first highway rest stop en route to Busan.
Leaving early paid off—smooth traffic. He arrived ahead of schedule.
Before home, he hit a big mart for gifts.
First, the butcher section. He leisurely eyed the displays, zeroing in on once-unthinkable luxury.
[Premium Hanwoo Gift Set]
1st: 370,000 won
2nd: 590,000 won
3rd: 798,000 won
No hesitation—he loaded two of the priciest into his cart.
Cruising on, another temptress: [Sura Emperor Gulbi Gift Set] Extra Large 10-pack: 899,000 won.
Nine hundred grand for ten fish? Mind-blowing, but pocket change for his billions.
"Dad loves fish."
One box of gulbi too.
He scoured the mart, grabbing every fancy gift set: red ginseng, ginseng, mushrooms, even premium honey.
Overcompensating for lost time, he piled in even unnecessaries.
As the cart filled, old memories bubbled up, drawing a chuckle. Things unimaginable back then, now effortless. What a world of difference.
"Never dreamed my life would flip like this. Gotta keep grinding."
Last stop: whiskey aisle.
Wonder what he'll like?
Brief ponder, then Valentine 30 and Johnny Walker Blue into the cart. To checkout.
The cashier blinked at the endless scan; waiting shoppers gawked too.
"6,359,000 won."
"This'll do."
Taemin swiped casually. Upper potions cost more than this—gum money.
"Points number?"
"Nah, just ring it up."
Paid clean, he wheeled to the lot, loaded his car, returned the cart, and hopped in.
Ignition on, chest swelling with pride.
Mom's gonna love this.