Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Dual Dungeon - 2
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[You have entered the dungeon.]
[This dungeon is a real-time shifting maze.]
[This dungeon contains a boss monster.]
[If you fail to defeat the boss monster within the time limit, a toxic gas will fill the dungeon.]
[Time remaining: 24 hours]
Messages popped up one after another.
"W-What's this?"
"A maze-type dungeon? It shifts in real time?"
Starting with Colonel Lee Pil-du, all the officers who had followed him in couldn't hide their bewilderment.
A maze that shifted in real time.
It was a type of dungeon none of them had ever experienced or even heard of.
"What's a boss monster?"
If that weren't enough, a new kind of monster called a boss monster had appeared.
Even veterans with tons of experience and top-notch skills couldn't help but panic in a situation like this.
'A maze dungeon with a time limit. And a boss monster on top of that.'
On the other hand.
Kim Minjun felt anticipation for this new type of dungeon.
Three passages stretched out before his eyes.
Watching them shift in real time made him feel like he'd stepped into a game.
'A boss monster, huh. Probably tougher than an irregular monster?'
Boss monsters were usually...
Overwhelmingly stronger than regular monsters, right?
'Wonder if it drops items when you take it down. Gonna have to set things up right if I want to snag it solo.'
Unlike Kim Minjun's happy dilemma, the other officers were huddled together with serious expressions, devising a plan.
The three paths laid out before them at the start.
Should they split the squad and take them separately, or stick together for safety?
How should they approach the boss monster?
How to make the most of their time.
There were no shortage of things to consider.
'Check this out. My presence detection isn't working in this dungeon?'
While everyone else was deep in serious discussion.
Kim Minjun tried to map out the dungeon's layout but ended up marveling at an unexpected phenomenon.
Presence detection failed, so he sent out a Night Walker, only for it to bounce right off the maze walls.
'No cheats allowed, huh? Interesting.'
He instructed his summon to scout around on its own, then waited for Colonel Lee Pil-du's decision.
"Listen up. This dungeon has a 24-hour limit. We need to use our time efficiently."
The three paths right in front of them.
They didn't know what dangers lurked in the dungeon, but considering the time limit, they decided to split into groups of three.
They'd confirmed radio communication worked inside the dungeon first.
As expected.
A field-grade officer through and through, he'd made the best call for their first encounter with this situation.
'Toxic gas, huh. No idea how bad it is, but the moment it hits, it's game over.'
He'd be fine, but the officers had no way to handle it without gas masks.
Even if they did, they hadn't brought extra filters, so they couldn't last long.
"If you spot the boss monster, report its position immediately. If combat is unavoidable, focus on defense."
"Yes, sir!"
"Understood!"
The briefing ended.
Following Colonel Lee Pil-du's orders, they divided the squad into Team 1, Team 2, and Team 3 of three each and headed down the three paths.
'Team 1 is the battalion commander, me, and the medic officer. Not a bad call.'
Kim Minjun inwardly admired how the battalion commander had factored in combat ability when assigning teams.
Even prioritizing dungeon exploration while accepting some risk, given the 24-hour limit.
This was why Hunter Officer Academy grads were known for their smarts.
'That said, in a scenario like this, picking squad members by specialty kinda loses its point.'
In dual dungeons like this.
They assembled squads from top officers in various fields to handle the dungeon's diverse challenges.
That's why they'd included the combat-inept medic officer.
Without knowing how long clearing would take, having a medic hunter made a huge difference in stability.
They took the leftmost path at the fork, scanning their surroundings as they moved slowly.
The structure and environment were worlds apart from any dungeon they'd cleared before.
Towering black walls over 10 meters high made visibility tough.
The officers stayed on high alert, not knowing what might happen.
'Wonder if I smashed these walls full force, would they break?'
If he were alone in this dungeon, he'd have tested brute-force methods.
Nothing could really hurt his body anyway.
But with the other officers and in a maze dungeon, he had to hold back on risky moves.
"Hmm..."
"Another fork."
They'd been moving in silence for about ten minutes.
Another fork appeared ahead.
Swish.
"Right."
"Yes, sir."
Colonel Lee Pil-du marked the fork, then headed right.
"Hmm... left this time."
"Got it."
They zigzagged like this, but no sign of monsters anywhere.
Did this dungeon only have the boss monster?
"Battalion commander! There's a statue up ahead!"
Just as he thought that.
The medic officer pointed forward.
A statue frozen in the shape of a gargoyle.
"A gargoyle... Is that the boss monster?"
Gargoyle.
At a glance, it resembled a bat.
Despite its fragile appearance, it boasted immense strength and durability.
Magic bullets didn't work, and even military blades dulled against it.
Plus, its stamina was impressive, making it a pain for hunters to take down.
'Can't tell if that's just decoration or not.'
Kim Minjun stared hard at the statue.
His senses could pick up even the stealthiest monsters.
But he couldn't judge for sure if this statue was one or not.
'No wonder they only pick the best officers for dual dungeons.'
A brand-new dungeon in this environment.
No surprise dual dungeons had such high difficulty.
"Tch. To deal with a gargoyle, we need blunt weapons."
Meanwhile.
Colonel Lee Pil-du, observing the statue, clicked his tongue in frustration.
Blunt weapons were effective against gargoyles.
Standard military blades just dulled without doing real damage.
Mana blades, newly issued lately, could handle it easily.
But this was a maze dungeon.
In the worst case, they might be stuck for over 23 hours.
Better to avoid using mana blades if possible.
They guzzled stamina way faster due to their power.
"Doesn't feel like that's the boss monster."
So it was a regular monster...
No telling how many more of those statues lay ahead.
"What? It's just a statue."
They approached cautiously, but nothing happened.
"Here's one too."
"Two over here."
As they explored further, gargoyle statues popped up one by one.
While the medic officer grumbled about why decorations would be here.
Whoosh!
The statue lunged at his nape with nimble speed.
"Huh, h-heck!"
No time to react.
Just as its sharp teeth were about to sink in, Kim Minjun moved first.
"Sergeant Kim Minjun! Bare-handed against its teeth..."
Colonel Lee Pil-du saw him raising an arm to block and quickly drew his mana blade.
A gargoyle's bite was no joke.
Focused, it could sever an arm.
Even for a hunter.
"Grah! Graaaah!"
But that prediction missed completely.
"...What?"
The gargoyle aiming for Kim Minjun's arm clutched its jaw and staggered back.
"Where you going?"
Thwack!
Kim Minjun closed in on the howling beast and swung a fist.
"It's sturdy, alright."
First time facing a gargoyle, so he'd held back.
Didn't expect it to tank his punch.
'Even with my recent strength stat boost, it held up. Tough bastard.'
Gargoyles ranked high among mid-tier monsters in kill difficulty.
Thanks to their stamina and toughness—hard to put down.
Splat!
Still, two punches for him.
One if he'd gone full power.
'How many more of these? And a boss monster besides.'
This dungeon was gonna be fun.
He shook out his hand casually and rejoined the group, where the officers stared in shock.
Taking down a gargoyle bare-handed.
In under a minute.
No hunter could do that.
"Hey! Medic! Do something! Check him already!"
"Y-Yes! Right away!"
At Colonel Lee Pil-du's shout, Major Ma Seok-du rushed over and grabbed his arm.
Mood soured instantly, but it was the commander's order, so he endured.
"...It's fine. What the hell are you?"
The medic twisted the bitten arm every which way, face dumbfounded.
It had definitely been bitten.
Good and proper.
He'd seen the teeth sink in...
Not even a scratch mark.
"Sergeant Kim Minjun. My body's pretty tough."
"Even so, gargoyle teeth pierce most gear... Alright, noted."
Unlike the baffled medic, Colonel Lee Pil-du nodded approvingly.
"Now I get why the 104th Division commander recommended you so strongly."
When they'd asked to include Sergeant Kim Minjun for the dual dungeon...
He'd nearly blurted out if they'd lost their minds.
They'd always built squads from elite officers, and now a random sergeant?
He'd been ready to shut it down.
But the files from division HQ gave him pause.
'Sergeant Kim Minjun. Racked up insane feats in record time.'
From handling irregular monsters to soloing the unit's emergencies.
And lately, the military's first live ogre capture.
Feats that beggared belief.
'Why's talent like that still in a regular hunter unit?'
Body strong enough to smash gargoyles bare-handed.
Colonel Lee Pil-du felt he'd made the right call bringing Sergeant Kim Minjun.
"Sergeant Kim Minjun. Thank you."
Truth be told, saving that guy hadn't appealed much, but they were inside a dungeon.
Right in front of the commander, too.
'I've already figured out how to use him anyway.'
Better to milk him for achievements than pick a fight outright.
"Eek!"
As he thought that and moved.
The medic officer made a colossal blunder.
And Kim Minjun hadn't even done anything yet.