The Ancient Dungeon (Part 2)
I cast a flame spell toward the front.
“Burn it all up right in front of us.”
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-boom!
A massive explosion erupted, sending a towering wall of flames shooting up fifteen meters ahead. Zerfield spoke next.
“Minsu, your words ring true. That spot ahead is absolutely packed with toxic fog.”
Toxic fog—flammable and deadly. I had blasted the entire surrounding area with a spark of Blue Flame, then used Wind Cutter’s gale to sweep it away in a single breath.
Casting powerful wind spells normally demands a mountain of mana, but thanks to Wind Cutter’s special abilities, even ordinary gusts barely touched my reserves.
A+ Rank Ancient Gear
Effect: Amplifies mana output, increasing total available mana.
Special Ability: Synergy with fire spells boosts flame spell damage. Allows instant use of all wind-attribute spells without separate casting.
Checking the system for Wind Cutter would have shown something exactly like that. Zerfield gave my back a light tap.
“An incredibly efficient dungeon-crawling method. If you keep leading teams like this, we’ll never face real danger.”
“You’re exaggerating,” I replied. “But you’re right,” I added quickly. “Minsu is ranked among the top operators in the Hunter Association. For Guild Leader—well, for Flame—it’s an enormous stroke of luck. And his talent isn’t limited to that…”
Yuri kept gushing with pride. I felt a little embarrassed, but both reactions were genuine.
Zerfield’s assessment was spot-on. By navigating ancient dungeons my own way, the two of them felt the gains were extraordinary.
My operating skills had improved dramatically from these internship expeditions.
More than that, the Research Manual of the Qimen Array Artisan Yeon Moon-woo had gifted me had raised my dungeon-analysis ability several tiers in record time.
‘He mapped every hazard by type with terrifying precision—even ancient dungeons.’
That lifetime of research was impossible to repay.
‘Just like if I had used the system…’
Unique Grade
📍 Effect: Dungeon structure understanding increased by 3 ranks (SS). Trap skill understanding increased by 3 ranks (SS).
My dungeon-reading ability had skyrocketed in moments.
“Ancient dungeons are far more complex in terrain and layout than regular ones. Think labyrinth. But with Minsu here, it’s like walking a dungeon with a precision map. Even though we’re on our first run.”
“No, it’s even better! Minsu’s dealer skills are every bit as impressive as his operating. Fire mages who can produce Blue Flame are extremely rare…”
Yuri laughed brightly, praising me nonstop. When the Aberrant Zerfield saw my strength and was stunned, the Guild Leader—her—seemed even happier.
It might have gone beyond guild pride; his private feelings were clear. Zerfield glanced at me and Yuri, then leaned in close.
“It’s love’s elopement, isn’t it? That icy beauty melts the second you look at her?”
“Not at all.”
I denied it instantly, but Zerfield only grinned. Then his expression turned serious.
“Anyway, just like Yuri Tarkovsky said, that Blue Flame we cleared the toxic fog with earlier was insanely precise mana compression and rotation. I used to clash with the White Magic Tower brats over magic, so I know my stuff. Your flames are on another level. That rotation speed…”
The man who stood just below the Five Heavenly Stars had read me perfectly. Just as he said, my body was finally growing comfortable with real combat.
Not quite the extreme precision control I had back in Eins Academy, but the rotation count had jumped higher with Wind Cutter’s help.
‘Instant explosive power exceeds even that era.’
I had only unlocked Ruby’s first seal, so I still felt a slight shortfall. Zerfield pressed on, doubtful.
“You’re still a B-Rank hunter, right? How can a B-Rank fire mage create something this structurally complete?”
“I haven’t been updated yet. Minsu deserves A-Rank. He already qualifies!”
“Hmm. You’re probably right.”
The Aberrant Zerfield, a match for the Five Heavenly Stars themselves, agreed with Yuri’s words. She beamed.
The three of us continued deeper into the dungeon, heading for the massive black tower visible far ahead—an obelisk that fit the name perfectly. Ancient dungeons always held something extraordinary here.
And then, as we walked…
I called out urgently to the pair ahead.
“Wait! Stepping on that tile will spawn a swarm of monsters!”
The two of them stopped dead.
“Wait. These tiles are the most common style from the old empire. Trap tiles usually have different patterns.”
“Carrying a water jug isn’t standard.”
“That’s impossible. I’ve seen these tiles in ancient dungeons… wait.”
Zerfield’s eyes widened in realization.
“A water jug in the hand… the ring is on the little finger.”
“Exactly. It should be on the middle finger.”
“You spotted that tiny detail? My god.”
Zerfield stared at me in utter disbelief. Of course, the observation came from Yeon Moon-woo’s manual.
“Ugh. Who knows who the real archaeologist is here. You’re the only one finding the path. I’ll just keep swinging my pickaxe… hm?”
The dungeon that had been bright as midday suddenly plunged into darkness.
Zerfield’s earlier playful grin froze. His face went stone-hard.
“The sun…”
We all looked up. The sky was darkening. Zerfield shouted.
“Damn it! A solar eclipse has begun! This ancient dungeon is far more dangerous than I thought!”
Black mist began rising from every direction.
***
‘What the hell is going on?’
I had entered ancient dungeons before and cleared high-risk ones just to obtain Ruby, but I had never seen an eclipse inside one. Yuri hadn’t either.
‘This is nothing like the dungeon Si-woo passed through in the original novel. And Zerfield wasn’t here then.’
Zerfield was right to warn us. It really might be dangerous.
We couldn’t look directly at the sun, but Zerfield probably had special sunglasses and was staring straight into it.
“Minsu, you know ancient dungeons differ from regular ones.”
“Yes. They’re relics that contain stories.”
“You know exactly. Hunters today think ancient dungeons are special treasure vaults for Ancient Gears, but that’s not true. They’re ruins holding one complete tale. In this case, a legend from the old empire that once ruled Ailetan.”
I had known that much. Ruby was an Ancient Gear tied to the Vermilion Bird’s myth. Wind Cutter was linked to the wind spirit’s legend. Ancient dungeons were the key to scattered clues about that fallen empire.
‘But this place feels far more ominous than any ancient dungeon I’ve seen.’
Zerfield had gone quiet. Then he spoke.
“If it weren’t for President Jeon Taehyeon of the Korean Hunter Association, Korea wouldn’t have become a superpower. Korea spawns the most dangerous gates on Earth.”
Exactly. Thirty years ago, when gates opened, the most lethal ones appeared here.
The man called the Radiant Emperor, Jeon Taehyeon, had led the Light Guild that turned that curse into a blessing.
His Light Guild and Grand Duke Andrei’s Snowfield Knights had ruthlessly cleared dungeons across the Korean peninsula and the north.
From the massive loot they acquired, Korean hunters and knights became stronger than any foreign counterparts.
‘More gates spawning was actually a blessing.’
Now the Light Guild had become the Hunter Association, the most powerful force in Korea.
And though he never ran for president, every Korean knew the core power rested with Jeon Taehyeon.
I answered Zerfield.
“So it makes sense that an ancient dungeon appeared in Seoraksan?”
“You’re correct. Otherwise the Vatican priests wouldn’t have sent you here.”
And in that moment, as I watched the eclipse unfold inside the dungeon, one story from Yeon Moon-woo’s manual resurfaced.
‘A prophecy of the end from the Research Manual.’
Legends of a vast empire that once spanned east and west Ailetan—stories told as that empire fell.
Ancient dungeons tied to the end-of-the-world prophecy were known to be exceptionally dangerous. Though only a handful had ever been witnessed, Yeon Moon-woo himself had never entered one.
At that instant Zerfield muttered, “Damn it… the one they warned about… this really is an end-times dungeon. And with the eclipse…”
The sound that followed was beyond human comprehension—terrible screams that seemed to slice through the dungeon’s very walls.
‘What was that…’
Wind Cutter stirred the air to block the noise, but it felt less like sound and more like the dungeon itself screaming.
At its center stood a reaper on a skeletal steed.
A corpse-colored horse, pale blue skin glistening. Black magic whipped like mane.
Upon its back rode a giant scythe-wielding figure—the Pale Knight of Death, one of the Four Horsemen.
‘White Cross Church doctrine and end-times prophecies mirrored reality.’
The apocalyptic rider from the Book of Revelation. The Pale Rider.
A monstrous aura of pure evil hung in the sky beneath the eclipsed sun.
Yuri cried out.
“It’s no ordinary monster! And look—monsters everywhere!”
Just as she said, black fog poured in from all sides the moment the Pale Rider appeared. The fog coalesced into more horrors.
‘I have a return stone. Ancient dungeons don’t collapse like regular ones. If I can defeat this boss-like Pale Rider…’
I could run if I wanted.
But Zerfield stared at the Pale Rider without a word, and I felt the same resolve.
‘Ancient dungeons are stories, but they hold special items that complete those tales.’
If the end-times prophecy was linked to whatever the Red Lake syndicate planned, I had to claim it.
Zerfield shouted toward us.