Wolfsrein Headquarters (New)

Two weeks had already passed since Park Taemin led the guild members on a carry session. Thanks to his support during that time, they shattered unprecedented records and underwent explosive growth. The existing C-rank and B-rank hunters had all ascended to A-rank status, while the A-rank members hadn't ranked up yet but had reached the notorious level 90 barrier.

Sitting at the conference table and reviewing the newly updated status report, Kim Hwan murmured with a smile tugging at his lips.

"It's truly unbelievable. For something like this to happen in such a short time."

Sin Dong-hyun, who had placed the report on the table, chimed in agreement.

"I'm still a bit dazed myself. We're probably the only guild with a precedent like this."

"Exactly. This is all thanks to our Combat Commander. You've worked hard."

Kim Hwan praised Taemin, who sat across from him, for his efforts.

"You've all worked hard."

"Haha, come on. What have we done? It was all you. Anyway, from what I've seen while hunting around, the portals in this area seem completely abandoned. I didn't spot a single person."

"Yes. Based on the places we've patrolled, we've identified six mid-to-high-grade portals. Five ruins and one Death Land. That's more than enough for the entire guild to rotate hunting shifts without issue."

Kim Hwan nodded with an 'as expected' expression at Taemin's detailed explanation.

"You even thought that far ahead? You're something else, alright."

"That's what I had in mind from the start of the hunt."

"Hmm. So what are your plans now?"

At Kim Hwan's question, Taemin brought up something he'd been considering for a while.

"I have some personal matters to attend to. I was actually planning to ask you about that, Chief of Staff."

"A favor? Speak it. I'll grant anything."

"I need some personal time. About a month should do."

Kim Hwan, who had tensed slightly at the mention of a favor, relaxed upon hearing it was nothing major and approved it readily.

"That's well within your authority, isn't it? Go ahead."

"Thank you. I'll hand over the duties I've been handling to the Attack Captain."

"Sure. But what do you plan to do during that time?"

"Some tests to run, and since I'm almost level 100, I need to pioneer a new dungeon, right? Growth and analysis combined. I'll just grind hunts nonstop for a month."

"New dungeon—if you've seen the Demon King's Castle, you mean the Spirit Castle."

"Yes. I'll head there first, adapt, and then climb straight to the Heavenly Stairs."

At the mention of the Heavenly Stairs, not only Kim Hwan but also Sin Dong-hyun, listening beside him, paled in shock.

The Heavenly Stairs. The highest-grade hunting ground accessible to hunters right now. A dungeon of publicly acknowledged extreme difficulty, where only the pinnacle hunters of an organization could barely enter. Above it lay the Gods' Battlefield, but nothing was known about that place—no one who entered had ever returned alive.

"The Heavenly Stairs... I trust you, but be careful. I've only heard rumors, but they say it's crawling with insanely powerful monsters."

"I know. I heard even the former Three Commanders and Captain couldn't conquer it fully. That just means the difficulty is sky-high."

"Right. Even the Captain couldn't fully clear it. Same for other guilds. Anyway, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠caution above all. If something happens to you, our guild has no future."

"Understood. I'll head out then."

After Taemin left, Kim Hwan turned to Sin Dong-hyun beside him.

"What do you think of the Combat Commander?"

"Pardon? What do you mean?"

"The man himself. His character, personality, abilities."

"Well, you've seen it too, Chief ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of Staff. Park Taemin is a perfect specimen in this day and age. No one can match his dedication to the guild or his consideration for others. Even the hunts—he says it's for the guild, but who else would push their members that hard? Plus, he's a hunter with a unique class unprecedented in history, capable of outputting brigade-level power single-handedly, if I may exaggerate a bit. He probably wouldn't fall short compared to the former Three Commanders."

"So you think the same as me. That's why... how about we promote him to Captain this time? We formed it temporarily, but we've stabilized here somewhat. Doesn't it make sense to formally build the guild now? Leaving the Captain position vacant isn't ideal. The other executives seem to agree. What do you think?"

"No objections from me. But will he accept? He seems burdened even by his current role..."

"Don't worry. I have plans. Oh, right—I got Chief Kim Yoon-jin's report today. Hwarang's pushed down to Jeonju."

"Yes, I heard. Jeollado will fall soon. If Hwarang takes the whole province, that'll be exactly half the country. The Gangwon-Gyeongsang alliance won't be able to turn the tables then."

"It's regrettable. The Red Knight Alliance crumbling so easily... With China joining the fray on top of our disadvantage..."

"Big trouble. We need resistance forces left to lend aid or scheme with. We've grown fast, but we're still too small to step in now. If we could absorb scattered guild hunters, that'd be ideal... Still no word on the Blue Moon defectors?"

"No. We have barely enough manpower to send out, and we can't leave the Yongin area, so intel gathering is limited. Plus, we're all newbies at this. Chief of Staff, how about recruiting unaffiliated hunters into the guild instead?"

"Unaffiliated hunters?"

"Yes. There must be tons hiding in the capital alone. Bringing them in would expand our forces quickly."

"Good idea, but would they come? Joining us means making an enemy of the government. We'd need a compelling incentive for them to risk that. But we have nothing to offer right now."

"Don't worry. Offer them growth in exchange for joining. Rotate guild members to take them to mid-grade hunting grounds—they'd hit B-rank fast. Proposing that kind of rapid growth would be an irresistible temptation."

"Membership for growth? Nice. But how do we find where they are?"

"We can scout from the community sites where unaffiliated hunters gather. It'll be quick."

"Mm. Discuss with the other executives and proceed. But no room for error. Hwarang spies might be mixed in. We need countermeasures in place first. If this base is exposed, our future ends. Got it?"

"Yes, Chief of Staff."

Leaving the conference room, Taemin headed to the Demon King's Castle to grind the last level before his promotion.

'Less than ten billion EXP left. I can blow it all and level up easy.'

Entering the dungeon, Taemin methodically cleared monsters from the field onward.

Pap! Pat! Swipe! Clang! Boom!

Monsters' bodies tore apart mercilessly under his red daggers. With critical hits over 60%, normal attacks and crits blurred together in chain explosions. Even glancing blows left no corpses behind.

After sweeping the field clean, he mercilessly cut down the gargoyles babbling about undead at the castle entrance and pressed inside. As always, he blitzed through floor by floor.

From the 2nd floor wave section to the 6th floor Death Knight area, he cleared like clockwork. At the stone door to the final 7th floor, he checked his remaining EXP.

'25 million. Grab this guy, and it's level up.'

With a satisfied grin, Taemin shattered the stone door and entered the Death Knight's room.

As always, its gravelly voice echoed in his ears.

- Astonishing. Undead... no?

But its line cut off mid-sentence. Its body was bound mid-speech.

Taemin added softly to the bewildered Death Knight caught in the sudden trap.

"I'm in a hurry."

With that, his form vanished from sight. A heaven-shaking roar and massive explosion followed, erasing the trapped Death Knight without a trace.

His eyes gleamed as the sequential messages popped up with the level up.

"Perfect."