He Counters the Unexpected Raid Offer

"A raid? Where to?"

"The Ice Cave. It's a wave dungeon, so at your level, you should gain at least 5 levels."

"Ice Cave... You mean the one in the Crystal Plateau?"

"Yes, exactly. We've got the mages and healers covered, but we're short on dealers."

"Hmm. Think I can handle it? I've never been there before."

"If you can solo the Factory, you'll be fine."

When she put it like that, there was no reason to refuse.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot. When is it?"

"We're still short a dealer, so I'll let you know the details later. Your number...?"

"Sure. 010..."

After parting with Yoon Ji-young, Taemin returned to his lodging and settled for instant ramen, making all those ingredients he'd stocked up on look pointless. He was just too exhausted. Having filled his stomach, he passed out without even cleaning up.

Seven days had passed since Taemin met Yoon Ji-young and received the raid invitation. In that time, he'd steadily hunted in the Factory, and now level 40 was in sight.

As he charged ahead, smashing robot monsters relentlessly, a brilliant glow enveloped his body.

'Oh, finally.'

With the new skills unlocked, he quickly cleared the surrounding monsters and opened his skill window.

The new skills were passives.

"Hmm, passives, huh. Let's see... Evasion and base attack? Gotta max these out. I've got plenty of points anyway."

Taemin invested points into Avoid and Fierce Assault.

"But what's Third Eye? View target's inventory... Does that mean I can peek into other people's inventories? I'll test this later..."

Muttering to himself as he checked the skill window, Taemin moved to the next room to resume hunting. He finished late into the night, reported back at the management office, and was about to leave when curiosity struck.

'Let's give it a try. If I'm right, it's like Insight...'

Taemin activated Third Eye. As expected, a square aiming reticle appeared before his eyes.

'Target is... that woman.'

He aimed it at the woman who'd just handled his check-in report. An inventory window materialized in front of him. At a glance, its contents were completely different from his own—women's armor, clothing, a staff, snacks, water, various materials, and more. Definitely not his.

'What the... I figured, but seeing it for real is wild.'

Just to check, he reached toward an item in the inventory. His hand sliced through empty air, the window flickering briefly before sharpening again. A notification chimed.

'What?'

Thinking he'd misheard, Taemin reached out again.

'What the hell? Cannot acquire yet? So that means I can steal someday?'

Stunned by the unexpected revelation, he stared blankly into space. He hadn't even considered this possibility, so his shock was immense.

"Does this even make sense?"

He muttered aloud without realizing it. This was a game-changer of a skill. If he could pull items from others' inventories, he'd never have to scramble for gear again—just steal it. Sure, he couldn't yet without a retrieval skill, but one would surely unlock eventually.

"Unlocked at 40... Stealing probably hits at 50 or so."

Hunting lust surged anew within Taemin. As he struggled to calm his excitement, his phone buzzed. It was Yoon Ji-young.

"Hello? Oh, Ji-young. ...Yeah, the small conference room? Got it. See you there."

Taemin headed straight to the small conference room on the second floor. These eight rooms next to the data archive were for pre-raid or party hunt strategy meetings among hunters.

He opened the door marked Room 3. As he entered, all eyes in the room turned to him.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Uh, hi?"

Taemin gave an awkward greeting, and Yoon Ji-young, seated to one side, beckoned him over.

He shuffled to the seat beside her and whispered, "This many people normally?"

"What do you mean?"

"The crowd. Looks like over thirty..."

Taemin gestured at the hunters filling the seats around them.

"Exactly thirty. We were supposed to have more, but another team split off, so numbers got divided."

"Ah."

Taemin nodded and focused on the man presenting up front, who seemed to be the leader.

"Alright, looks like everyone's here, so let's start. Quick intro: I'm Ha Jung-woo, team leader for this raid. Level 56, knight-class tank. Some of you know me, some don't—there'll be sheets at the end to fill out personal info. We'll compile and print them for everyone, so save introductions for later."

Ha Jung-woo stepped in front of the large whiteboard.

"First, the basics. If you've been there, you know, but the Crystal Plateau is massive—almost continent-sized from what we've gathered. Easy to imagine the scale. Field hunting's fine solo-style, but we need to reach the Ice Cave in the inner gorge, so at least one night camp is unavoidable. Could stretch to two depending on travel time, so bring your own sleeping bags, tents, and camping gear."

A man up front raised his hand. He looked like a raid newbie.

"Isn't sleeping in a dungeon risky? I heard the monsters there don't distinguish day from night."

"We'll rotate guards, so no worries. We'll camp in the safest spots possible. Oh, and one more thing—you've probably heard, but it's freezing cold. Regular armor alone? You might freeze to death. Pack anti-cold gear. Not a joke—you'll die for real. The shop ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠downstairs has heating undergarments; great value, buy at least one."

Ha Jung-woo's briefing continued.

"Now, field and raid hunting details. Before entering the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠plateau, we'll form four combat squads of 5-6 each, plus one support squad. This setup maximizes efficiency—avoids healers getting overwhelmed if dealers clump during mob pulls, prevents overlap. Healers can't one-on-one everyone in a near 4:1 ratio. Certain high-spawn zones require squads to cover front, rear, left, right flanks while support holds center."

Someone raised a hand as soon as he paused.

"How do we form squads? Can we group with people we know?"

"Depends on levels, gear, class. Tell me after, and I'll match as best I can."

"Got it."

"Uh... where was I? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Right, we'll march like that. Adjustments on the fly once we hit the gorge. At the Ice Cave, real hunting begins. Entrance is narrow, so healers and mages in the middle, dealers and tanks front and back. Path widens to a central plaza, then waves start—monsters pour endlessly from eight massive caves in the walls."

Questions flew even mid-explanation.

"How many?"

"What monsters?"

"One-on-one kills?"

"Survival rate?"

'Whew.'

Ha Jung-woo sighed inwardly at the constant interruptions. Most here were raid newbies. His original team had splintered, and he'd only taken this due to a few hunters' insistence. Could he pull off a successful raid with this group? Watching them chatter, doubt gnawed at him.

"I'll explain slowly. Cave monsters are weaker than field ones, but they come in hordes. No strict tank/DPS roles—maintain formation, help flanks when you can, stay proactive. Frontline dealers and tanks hold, mages blast cave mouths, healers keep recovery and heals constant."

Ha Jung-woo drew diagrams on the whiteboard, explaining accessibly.

"That's the overview. Oh, dealers—earth-attribute gear is mandatory."

With explanations done, everyone submitted sheets with levels, classes, and positions.

"I'll use these for watch rotations and squads. Rosters go to your lodgings. See you on raid day."

As people filed out, Taemin and Yoon Ji-young stood to leave. Just as they reached the door, Ha Jung-woo called out.

"Taemin, right?"

"Yes?"

"Your sheet says class: Il-sala-ja... What's that mean?"

No good explanation handy, Taemin fudged it.

"Like assassin."

"Ah, assassin... Position?"

"Dealer, please."

"Got it. I'll factor that in."

"Thanks."