Chapter 11: The First Dungeon (7)
Chapter 11: The First Dungeon (7)
When a portal opens on Earth, there are usually warning signs.
It starts with animals like cats and dogs becoming sensitive and acting restless...
Then, winds blow from directions where no wind should be able to reach, or phenomena occur that look like static electricity crackling to the average person.
With nearly thirty years of data on portals, most developed nations have established systems to quickly detect and respond to their appearance in real-time.
The portal that appeared in Daejeon was detected quickly for that very reason.
Fortunately, this one appeared in an easy-to-find location: the underground parking lot of a residential-commercial apartment complex.
Thanks to a security guard on patrol who discovered it early, the response was smooth.
Residents in the vicinity were quickly evacuated, and Awakeners were dispatched to clear the dungeon inside the portal.
Han Shin and Grace had cleared their first dungeon rapidly because they were focused solely on the objective, but typically, dungeon exploration took several days.
This was because the interior of a dungeon was a fragment of the world Grace had come from—a piece of space turned into a dimensional bomb by the Evil Gods trapped there and sent to Earth.
Consequently, things like artifacts, which did not exist on Earth, could be found inside. These items held immense value.
Furthermore, there were minerals and other materials never before seen on Earth that were worth researching and utilizing. Naturally, everyone focused on the dungeon's byproducts.
The humans of Earth had spent the last thirty years through trial and error.
Driven by greed, it was common for people to intentionally keep a portal open as long as possible to strip it of everything inside.
This, of course, led to unfortunate incidents where Awakeners were injured or killed...
Or cases where the dungeon wasn't cleared in time, causing the monsters inside to come pouring out.
In truth, though Han Shin and Grace didn't know it, the dungeon they had cleared was one designed to exploit this human greed.
The Serpents themselves were strong enough to challenge average D-rank or C-rank Awakeners, though B-rank Awakeners could handle them with relative ease.
However, that was only because there was only a single pair of Serpents.
The Evil Gods had also been indirectly observing the state of Earth. They realized that the humans of Earth were beings of desire, obsessed with the gains to be had from dungeons.
So, much like mixing tiny amounts of drugs into food to cause addiction, they hid artifacts inside the dungeons—the dimensional bombs.
The dungeon Han Shin and Grace cleared was also designed with a manageable difficulty level, buried with plenty of minerals, and seeded with three or four hidden artifacts.
It was a dungeon intended to lure humans into clearing it slowly, dazzled by the potential profit, even though they could have finished it quickly if they gave it their all.
By sending large quantities of such dungeons, the Evil Gods aimed to prolong the time humans spent tied down to a single location, slowly gnawing away at them.
Grace and Han Shin, unaware of this, had wiped it out in one go. While this was unexpected, the Evil Gods dismissed it as a mere anomaly, considering the sheer number of dungeons they were sending.
*
Meanwhile, the Awakeners moved to clear the portal that had appeared in Daejeon.
The Awakeners from the Yuseong Clan set out to clear the dungeon with light hearts.
Based on the observation and analysis of the dungeon's energy from the outside, it was estimated to be an F-rank dungeon.
While such analyses weren't entirely foolproof, they were accurate most of the time. There had never been a case where such a low-rank dungeon contained an unexpectedly powerful enemy, so there was nothing to worry about.
The first day of exploration was a light reconnaissance phase, involving moderate combat with monsters.
The party consisted of five people, an appropriate number for a dungeon of this scale.
Han Seong-woo, the party leader, spoke to his team as they headed toward the underground parking lot under the guidance of the police.
"Keep your guard up; we might run into a Core Monster."
"Yes, sir!"
The rest of the party answered with voices full of discipline.
They were what Han Seong-woo called "newbies," fresh out of the Academy.
He had come along as their leader to train these kids who lacked field experience.
This was a vital and mandatory process for all clans. Infusing new blood and nurturing talented Awakeners into clan members was a win-win for everyone.
Though Han Seong-woo was usually a laid-back man who cracked lame dad jokes, he acted quite strictly in situations like this.
The police had completely blocked off access to civilians, so the parking lot was empty.
Only a few officers remained to monitor the portal for any abnormalities or to prevent any reckless individuals from trying to enter.
"There it is."
Even without him pointing it out, everyone’s eyes were fixed on the portal emitting a bluish glow.
A large, rectangular gate was dyeing the dark underground parking lot in blue light.
The portal, shimmering like ripples on water, felt like a beautiful work of art.
In the early days, the fact that one couldn't see what lay beyond the portal had inspired great fear, but things were different now.
By now, portals had become an inseparable part of human society.
"Check your equipment one more time."
"Yes, sir!"
With a vigorous shout, the disciplined Awakeners began checking their gear one by one.
From their weapons to their armor, they checked everything from top to bottom to ensure there were no issues.
Just as everyone was finishing their checks...
An abnormality suddenly occurred in the portal before them.
Zap! Crackle!
It looked as if electricity was overloading and throwing off sparks.
"Wha—what is that?!"
This was a situation that even a veteran Awakener like Han Seong-woo couldn't help but find baffling.
In fact, the phenomenon currently occurring was something Han Seong-woo knew very well.
It was the sight seen when a dungeon was cleared and the portal was closing.
Before the Awakeners—including Han Seong-woo—and the police could even process what they were seeing or try to do anything, the portal emitted a brilliant flash of light and vanished.
Feeling utterly bewildered, Han Seong-woo rushed over to the police.
"Did anyone enter this place before us?"
When Han Seong-woo, a warrior with bulging muscles, approached with heavy thuds and asked his question, the police officer was overwhelmed by his intensity and stammered.
As a civilian, it was natural to feel suppressed by an Awakener's aura.
'Ah...'
Realizing too late that he had let his agitation show due to the absurd situation, Han Seong-woo closed his eyes and calmed himself.
"I'm sorry. I got worked up because of this completely unexpected situation."
"N-no, it's fine. Ahem. We've been guarding this place strictly. After the residents were evacuated, no one has even come near here."
"I see... thank you. Just in case, there are CCTV cameras here, right? Could we check them?"
"Yes, of course."
The new clan members Han Seong-woo had brought were still standing there, mouths agape.
They had been incredibly tense and excited, as this was to be their first taste of real combat.
They had finished all their preparations and were just about to enter, only for the dungeon to suddenly be cleared by someone and vanish.
Though it was their first time seeing a dungeon being cleared in person, they had studied it through videos and knew exactly what had just happened.
Even the police knew, as anything related to portals and dungeons was a topic of great interest and discussion among the general public.
Han Seong-woo’s mind was a mess as he hurried to the security office with the police.
The police don't seem to be lying, and they're showing us the CCTV right away, so that's certain... Did some opportunists sneak in? No... if they did, there's no way it would be cleared this fast...
Han Seong-woo wondered if some shameless types had snuck in to snatch the artifacts as soon as the dungeon appeared, even though they weren't assigned to it, but that was physically impossible.
No matter how small a dungeon was, it was impossible to dodge monsters and steal artifacts in such a short amount of time.
Given the hostility monsters felt toward humans and the fact that artifacts were usually located deep within the dungeon, even if there were such opportunists, you would usually run into them inside.
This really makes no sense... We got here less than an hour after the portal opened... How is this possible?
The Yuseong Clan's training ground happened to be near where the portal opened, and Han Seong-woo and his party had been there.
That was why they were able to arrive much faster than usual.
And yet, for this to happen, it was simply incomprehensible.
"It's right here."
"Alright."
While cycling through various theories, Han Seong-woo arrived at the security office and, with the help of the police, reviewed the CCTV footage of the parking lot entrance and the interior.
But it was just as the police had said.
Absolutely no one had entered or exited.
"I mean... what the hell happened... shit..."
The curse escaped Han Seong-woo's lips involuntarily as he immediately reported this anomaly to his superiors and the Association.
Upon receiving the report, both the Yuseong Clan and the Association took it seriously and reacted swiftly.
From the Yuseong Clan's perspective, they moved under the assumption that someone had poached the dungeon they were assigned to...
The Association, on the other hand, had to be sensitive because an anomaly where a portal vanished this quickly was unprecedented.
While portals were currently seen as lucrative gold mines, many in the Association still remembered the chaos and destruction they had brought.
In truth, looking at Han Seong-woo's report alone, it wasn't as if there had never been similar claims.
In the past, every time such a report came in, an investigation revealed that someone had indeed snuck in first to target the artifacts.
But this case was slightly different, which triggered a sensitive response.
First of all, the Association knew exactly when the portal had appeared, and they knew exactly when Han Seong-woo had arrived on the scene.
Just as he said, the portal had vanished less than an hour after it appeared.
It was truly a case that had never been reported before.
Even if someone else were targeting the artifacts inside, they would need a minimum amount of time and would have to exit the dungeon, but since there wasn't even a trace of that, a thorough investigation was necessary.
Keeping the matter a secret for the time being, the Association immediately dispatched an investigation team to begin a detailed probe.
However...
The more they investigated, the more baffling it became.
Modern Korea had very few blind spots thanks to the countless CCTV cameras and vehicle dashcams.
No matter how hard they searched for traces of others, there were none...
They even checked to see if any magical traces different from previous portals had been left behind, but they found nothing.
The situation called for a long-term investigation, but in reality, they had already done everything they could, making further efforts meaningless.
The Yuseong Clan and the Association were at a loss as to how to conclude this incident.
"For now, let's list it as an unsolved mystery... and investigate slowly."
Those were the words of the investigation team leader.
Saying they would "investigate slowly" was essentially code for burying it as a cold case. Since the Yuseong Clan couldn't find anything no matter how much they dug, they had no choice but to agree.
"In exchange, please make sure we get priority placement for the next portal that appears. I need to train my recruits."
"Yes, let's do that."
Though it left a bitter taste in their mouths, they felt they had no other choice, and the case of the vanishing Daejeon portal was quickly buried.