Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: The First Casualty
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The dungeon exploration was going smoothly.
Park Hye-yeon and her group were strong, and since it was a C-rank dungeon, it was only natural in a way.
On the contrary, it was strange that the Helmont Academy beginner class students were so tense and unable to perform at their full potential.
Park Hye-yeon thought to herself.
'Pathetic bunch who can't do anything on their own. Why do I have to keep watching over guys like that?'
With only one path through the tunnel, their routes overlapped. Because of that, Park Hye-yeon had no choice but to keep seeing them, even though she didn't want to.
'Just ignore them.'
After that, she focused on the hunt.
Park Hye-yeon experimented with various spells in all sorts of forms. The results were astonishing—she could clearly see how much she had grown.
'I've improved beyond belief compared to before...'
Park Hye-yeon's magical comprehension had surpassed exceptional levels, bordering on genius. But she had always suffered from a lack of mana.
Her innate talent allowed her to wield magic fluidly, but it consumed a tremendous amount of mana. Since she wasn't born with a large mana pool, her body had never been able to keep up with the spells her mind conceived.
In other words, there were many spells and techniques she understood but couldn't actually use.
But now, it felt like her total mana had increased. And more importantly...
'External mana... It's an unbelievable technique...'
Using external mana was like having a portable battery always plugged into your phone. She could fire off spells without worrying about running out.
That synergized explosively with Park Hye-yeon's natural gifts.
'Maybe... I can really get my revenge with my own hands...'
Park Hye-yeon had done everything possible, driven by her obsession to avenge herself against Baal Guild's master, Choi Seung-hyun. She would have even swallowed monster poison if it made her stronger. But she had only sunk deeper into despair.
A towering wall.
Choi Seung-hyun was a swordsman who could wield aura, and the master of a top-tier guild with hundreds of members.
The overwhelming sense of powerlessness—from knowing she couldn't win against him either individually or as a group.
The helplessness of facing the man who had undoubtedly killed her father, yet being unable to exact revenge—it had rotted her away from the inside.
But now things were different. The Masked Instructor of unknown identity had rapidly strengthened not just her, but all the other disciples too. He had even taught them the revolutionary technique of using external mana.
'Maybe... he's even stronger than Choi Seung-hyun.'
She knew it too. The Masked Instructor was a mage. There was an insurmountable wall between mages and swordsmen.
One absolute premise:
[At the same realm, swordsmen surpass mages.]
But conversely, that meant a mage at a higher realm could overwhelm even a swordsman.
-Crunch
'This chance won't come again... This time, no matter what, I'll stake everything...'
With the Masked Instructor, killing that man wouldn't be impossible. And she believed such an opportunity would never come again.
Yoon Seulgi, a Helmont Academy beginner class student trailing behind Park Hye-yeon's group, spoke up.
"Everyone... doesn't this dungeon feel a bit off?..."
Kim Siyeon replied.
"I've been feeling it too... Doesn't some ominous energy keep creeping in? It's like we've dived into the deep sea... Am I just too tense right now?"
Kim Siyeon felt an inexplicable foreboding. A sticky, sinister mana sensation. It was like plunging into the ocean depths.
Baek Hyunseo chimed in.
"I feel it too... Something's been weird since earlier."
Baek Hyunseo had sensed something unpleasant ever since entering the dungeon.
'It must just be my imagination...'
At first, she thought it was because she had to enter without a guardian, and brushed it off. But now, not just her—everyone else was voicing the same sensation. Something unusual was definitely happening.
Baek Hyunseo said,
"Um... shouldn't we head back out? This place feels too dangerous..."
Kim Siyeon replied darkly.
"If we just bail... you think Yang Hangil will let that slide?"
In that instant, all the other beginner class students fell silent.
Kim Siyeon's words reminded them—they weren't in a position to act freely.
"Th-then... let's stick right behind them as much as possible... They seem really strong..."
Baek Hyunseo suggested, and Kim Siyeon agreed.
"Yeah, that's best. Their attitude sucks, but their skills seem solid. They don't seem to be deliberately letting monsters slip toward us either... If we hug their tail, nothing should happen."
Everyone nodded.
-Tap tap tap
They quickened their pace.
Choi Juwon's disciples—Kang Eunbyeol among them—had been feeling the strangeness just like the Helmont Academy beginners since earlier.
She spoke up.
"Everyone... doesn't the dungeon give off a bad vibe? Like some demonic energy..."
Though Kang Eunbyeol said it, the other disciples just glanced at her once before turning back to the monsters.
"Um... everyone?..."
She tried again, and Park Hye-yeon responded.
"I'm not an idiot; I've already noticed. The others have too. So what? You wanna turn tail and run right now?"
"If it feels dangerous... shouldn't we obviously get out?..."
Kang Eunbyeol trailed off, feeling oddly intimidated.
'She's different from anyone I've seen so far...'
As the daughter of the Hunter Association president, Kang Eunbyeol had observed countless hunters and people. She'd experienced all sorts of mages and swordsmen.
But the girl before her now—Park Hye-yeon—was a type she'd never encountered.
'She feels like someone sentimental who's been worn down and broken... Like a damaged doll...'
Park Hye-yeon had a beautiful face and a slender, delicate build. Her words might make her seem like a bad person, but upon reflection, that wasn't quite right.
Her remarks leaned more toward realism than malice, and she never actually harmed anyone. Moreover, while the other disciples ignored trivial questions or chatter with a glance, Park Hye-yeon always bothered to respond.
Whether cold or not—that wasn't the point. The fact that she reacted every time mattered.
"If you wanna leave, go ahead. I won't interfere with what you do. It's your choice either way."
Upon entering, Park Hye-yeon had been granted partial command authority by the Masked Instructor. The principle was free movement for each, but combat matters and key decisions would be hers, per his orders.
Kang Eunbyeol felt a prick of wounded pride.
Park Hye-yeon, with her small frame, was slicing through monsters at the vanguard.
Yet here she was, balking at advancing in a mere C-rank gate because of a bad feeling.
'Let's go just a bit farther.'
With that thought, Kang Eunbyeol replied.
"I wasn't saying I want to leave. I was just asking if anyone else felt the same."
With that, she rejoined the group.
How long had they walked? The tunnel began widening from its cave-like shape.
"Everyone, stop."
At Park Hye-yeon's command, all the disciples halted. The Helmont Academy beginners following behind stopped as one.
Park Hye-yeon had sensed something off the moment they emerged into the cave.
'Cracks are forming chaotically in the mana flow.'
It was hard to describe. Like sinkholes pockmarking the ground, holes were riddling the mana flow. It wasn't just ominous anymore—it was eerie.
'What the hell is going on? Why is this...'
Then, an enormous rumble echoed through the dungeon.
-RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE-!
-BOOM-!
-RUMBLE RUMBLE-!
-KABOOM-!
A massive earthquake struck the dungeon, and the terrain began shifting rapidly.
'This... this is...'
Park Hye-yeon knew what this was. A precursor phenomenon to a black gate—something every hunter knew, taught to her by her father as a child.
A phenomenon of unknown cause. In extremely rare cases, the gate turns black and becomes corrupted by demonic energy. Simultaneously, the gate's rank jumps 2-3 levels, a massive quake hits the dungeon, the internal structure changes, and the clear difficulty skyrockets. Escape to the outside becomes impossible too.
'We have to get out now.'
This was a C-rank dungeon. In the worst case, it could become A-rank. Black gate dungeons were far more vicious than normal ones, with unpredictable variables. She was certain no one here could clear it.
With a grave expression, Park Hye-yeon shouted to everyone.
"Run—now!"
The others just stared at her blankly.
"If you want to live, run—NOW-!"
The moment her shout reverberated through the dungeon—
-Stab-!
"Gaaahhh!"
A male Helmont Academy beginner class student's abdomen was pierced by an unidentified monster tentacle.
"Kyaaah-!"
In an instant, everyone screamed and bolted.
A high-rank monster was there. It looked like a human-bat hybrid, grinning as it muttered.
[Ah, the feel of stepping on land after so long.]
It absorbed the blood from the person impaled on its tentacle, smiling in satisfaction.
[Humans, don't bother running. I'll kill you all anyway.]
-Thud
The student, drained beyond his limits, collapsed lifeless.
"Kyaaah-!"
People screamed at the fallen man. The vampire smiled at them.
[Ah... what ecstatic screams...]
The monster's laughter echoed through the dungeon.