The Flight to America and the Giant's Cradle

I booked a flight to America. Suddenly, a thought occurred to me: What if even Lee Jiyoo can't escape from GN-493688? I know the probability is low, but it's not impossible. Lee Jiyoo said she’d be fine, but she lacks experience.

“Assistant Manager Shin. Has the raid on GN-493688 begun?”

“Yes. They entered the dungeon this morning.”

But the party had already passed through the gate. It was too late to turn back now. My team leader, who had heard the news that I was in charge of GN-493688, asked me, “Are you sure about this? No matter how I look at it, a successful raid seems unlikely… and I heard your family is in that party.”

“…It will be fine.”

Lately, the team leader had been going around saying, “As expected of Assistant Manager Shin! Truly, Assistant Manager Shin is the best, hahaha!” But even he looked worried after seeing the raid party roster.

“Well, I’m sure you have a plan, Assistant Manager Shin. You made the impossible look easy in the previous dungeons, too.”

No, Team Leader. I have no plan. This dungeon is a failure, and a dungeon break is going to happen. Still, it’s hard to be certain about this one. Meanwhile, the other team members who had been jealous of me were all shooting side-glances my way.

‘Do they really think that party can clear it?’

‘All his luck is finally going to run out.’

‘That’s what I thought. How could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a first-year employee get a special promotion, anyway?’

Their eyes seemed to be screaming those very thoughts. It wasn’t a pleasant gaze, but I decided to be magnanimous and let it slide. That’s right! You’re right! I’m going to ruin this dungeon! I’m going to trigger a massive dungeon break and quit! Goodbye, everyone!

“It can’t be helped.”

The outcome is already set in stone. I can only hope Lee Jiyoo does well. If they’re unlucky, the party might be wiped out. But worrying about it won’t change anything I can do ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠right now. I should at least try to keep my mind at ease. Stressing over a problem that’s out of my hands is pointless. Besides, my stepmother and stepsister chose to join that party of their own free will. I definitely tried to stop them.

“Right. Let’s do what I can do now.”

Take action. Spend money. Someone once said that if you spend money on what you want, you’ll be forced to follow through just so the money doesn’t go to waste. So, I decided to book that flight to America. Once the ticket is bought, I’ll find a way to quit. Just thinking about quitting and flying off to America makes me feel good. And honestly, my resignation is practically guaranteed. How could this party possibly clear the dungeon?

“…Wait, what if this F-class hunter is an Unbound awakener? No, that’s impossible.”

I shook my head. Even for me, that’s too much of a stretch. Could a miracle that’s hard to experience even once happen to me twice? If so, this world is definitely a simulation. Just to be safe, I carefully reviewed the information on the F-class hunter, Jung Shin-woo. There were no physical abnormalities that appear in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Unbound awakeners. He is definitely just an F-class hunter.

“Let’s see, the airfare is…”

I felt relieved and opened the booking page. I guess it’s expensive because it’s to America. That’s fine. It’s a gift for myself after I quit. Since I’m at it, I’ll just book business class!

Ding-

“Whew.”

I booked a business class ticket to America. Spending the money in advance made it feel like I was already there. My heart felt much lighter. I feel refreshed. Yes. Everything is already decided. Inside the gate is the hunters' domain. Once the results are out, all I have to do is quit.

“Hahahahahaha!”

It felt like the time to quit was finally approaching.

Jung Shin-woo had loved stories about hunters since he was young. He enjoyed reading about famous hunters from around the world and loved searching for raid stories of historically unique dungeons. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Such stories are hard to find the further back you go in history. Information on recently occurring dungeons is relatively easy to find, but stories from the time the first gates appeared—the period right after the Korean War—are extremely difficult to track down. Jung Shin-woo enjoyed digging up those very old pieces of information.

A dungeon is a world completely different from this Earth. And the stories of the hunters who raid those dungeons. Jung Shin-woo admired hunters and hoped that one day he, too, would awaken. He did awaken, but his ability was pathetic.

“You are F-class.”

Jung Shin-woo felt despair when he first received his grade assessment. Being F-class meant he had no potential to grow, not just for the moment, but ever. He had only one skill gained upon awakening: the ability to communicate with monsters. It wasn’t like he was going to socialize with monsters, so it was useless. Even then, his grade was so low that he couldn’t communicate properly. Furthermore, his innate stats and growth limits were expected to be very low. At first, he doubted the Association’s measuring device, but he eventually had to accept the truth. His physical abilities were only slightly better than an average person’s. Even that was inferior compared to a top-tier athlete. He was, for all intents and purposes, a normal human.

But Jung Shin-woo lived as a hunter, clearing even E-class dungeons. It was the lifelong dream he had always wanted. Then, one day.

“An S-class dungeon?”

A request arrived for Jung Shin-woo to join an S-class dungeon raid party. And the Association employee who sent that request was Shin Jiwoo.

‘A-Assistant Manager Shin Jiwoo asked me to join an S-class dungeon raid…?!’

Assistant Manager Shin Jiwoo was a famous Association employee, even appearing in the news recently. He was the man who had discovered not only the largest magic mine in history but also an Unbound awakener. ‘…Could it be that I’m an Unbound awakener, too?’ Did he see the potential for Unbound awakening in me?! Jung Shin-woo soon shook his head. He had no physical changes after his awakening. There was no way Shin Jiwoo wouldn’t know that. ‘Then why on earth…’

He even checked the dungeon information, and it was abnormal. An S-class party had been wiped out twice. It was on the verge of a dungeon break. But because Shin Jiwoo was the one in charge of this dungeon, he felt a subtle sense of trust. “…Let’s go.”

After much deliberation, Jung Shin-woo decided to participate. He didn’t know the reason, but Shin Jiwoo must have had an intention. And an S-class dungeon was a dream for Jung Shin-woo. He wanted to raid a vast world, just like the hunters of history had. He didn’t know if he would ever get to experience an S-class dungeon if he missed this opportunity. Of course, he knew he could die. But he couldn’t stop his heart from racing. If someone who had thought they could never reach their lifelong dream was given a miraculous opportunity, anyone would have made a similar choice.

And eventually, Jung Shin-woo really entered GN-493688. It was a mysterious and magnificent world that made his jaw drop, just as he had expected. The party proceeded into the dungeon along a bridge laid across the sky. His excitement was only for a moment; as they neared the temple where the real S-class monsters were, Jung Shin-woo began to realize the reality of the situation.

‘I-I-I-I-I’m scared!!’

The atmosphere of the party was quite different from E-class dungeons. It seemed to be partly because the party leader had said before they left that they would truly die. Above all, the density of the air itself was different. For an F-class hunter, fear welled up just by being in that space.

‘Rok-yok-yok? What does that mean? Gintaion… I feel like I’ve heard that name somewhere before.’

When they arrived at the main dungeon entrance, there was a stone monument as they had heard. He didn’t know what it was, but it seemed to be a dungeon related to something called Gintaion. The characters written on the front were indecipherable. In his experience, such things were expressions of an otherworldly realm that had no corresponding concepts on Earth. Anyway, the academic consensus was that such characters were just like objects; they had no practical meaning.

“It begins now.”

The party began the raid in earnest. With the words of Kim Yeo-won, who held a massive sniper rifle, the vanguard climbed the stairs. The temple felt much larger than it had looked from the outside. Everything that made up the temple was not meant for humans. It was a very massive existence. Perhaps they saw humans as nothing more than ants. Everything was huge, as if it were a temple built by such beings.

“I can’t even see the ceiling…”

Kim Eunji, who was walking in the front with massive gauntlets on both hands, muttered. As she said, the ceiling was impossibly high. Considering that even ordinary humans build temples to be grand, the owner of this temple must truly be a giant. And as she thought, the main monsters appearing in this dungeon were Giant Soldiers.

“…! Two monsters about 2km ahead. They are approaching. They are incredibly huge monsters…!”

As soon as Lee Jiyoo said that, all the hunters began to prepare for battle. Normally, exploration skills are mainly the responsibility of support-type hunters. But since Jung Shin-woo was the only support hunter in this party, Lee Jiyoo did everything from healing to utility. Yet, there wasn’t a single gap in her performance. Lee Jiyoo handled the work of several people all by herself without breaking a sweat.

‘This is an Unbound hunter…!’

Jung Shin-woo watched her, stunned and in awe. It was a complete contrast to himself, an F-class who couldn’t do anything.

Boom— Boom— Boom—

A few seconds after Lee Jiyoo spoke, the ground began to tremble. But the speed was unusual. Massive vibrations were approaching the party at high speed. And the interval of those vibrations was by no means short.

“Already?!”

And in an instant, the massive existence revealed itself. It was just walking. The standards for humans and giants were different. One step of a giant was never a step as humans thought of it. It was like a massive marble building.

“Why are its legs so long…!”

Kim Eunji, covered in Lee Jiyoo’s buffs, rushed out first. Kim Eunji charged forward and climbed up the Giant Soldier’s leg. Her movements showed no fear, even in front of the Giant Soldier. Easily dodging the Giant Soldier’s hand as it tried to grab her, Kim Eunji leaped onto the Giant Soldier’s head in an instant.

“This is an S-class hunter…!”

Jung Shin-woo could do nothing but marvel at the sight. From that impossibly high place, Kim Eunji swung her fist toward the Giant Soldier’s chin. The fist, which seemed to swing slowly at first, instantly gained speed and struck the Giant Soldier’s chin.

———!

A massive wave spread out from the center of the collision. While Jung Shin-woo was unable to collect his wits due to the vibration, the other hunters joined in.

Click-

And Kim Yeo-won, who was preparing to snipe from the rear. While the other hunters were dealing with the Giant Soldiers, she was aiming without a single tremor. And the moment her aim was perfectly aligned.

Kiiing—

With a very small sound, fitting for a sniper, a red bullet was fired. But its power was by no means small. A bullet forged from Kim Yeo-won’s unique red mana. The red bullet left a massive sonic boom in its trajectory and pierced the Giant Soldier’s head. And at the same time, the Giant Soldier’s head exploded.

‘This is an S-class dungeon… maybe we really can clear it…!’

It was a level of combat Jung Shin-woo had never seen before. He thought they might really be able to clear it. But that was only for a moment. His hope was shattered mercilessly when they arrived at the boss room. To clear this dungeon, the hunters had to die.