The Resignation Plan

Assistant Manager Kim is being a pain in the ass again. "Jiwoo! We have an urgent A-class dungeon case. You need to handle it! If we don't clear it this time, a Dungeon Break is going to happen!"

"Excuse me?" I asked, as Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon shouted frantically from the desk across from mine. I glanced at my computer screen, where information about a specific dungeon was pouring into our internal email system in real-time.

"...Isn't this your assigned dungeon, Assistant Manager?"

"It's an emergency, Jiwoo! What does it matter whose assignment it is in a situation like this!"

She jumped up and shrieked at my perfectly reasonable question. I stared at her, my jaw hanging open in disbelief.

"No, it’s not like this is the first or second time you’ve dumped your work on me like this. I have my own assignments, and even other branches don't usually entrust anything above C-class to a first-year rookie..."

"-Jiwoo! We’re on the verge of a Dungeon Break, and you’re worried about that? I’m just asking for a little help because we need to put out the fire!"

Assistant Manager Kim cut me off mid-sentence, looking toward the hallway as if the Branch Manager might be walking by. Since this wasn't the first time, I let out a deep sigh and looked at the screen.

The transmitted document contained the dungeon's information along with the progress of the clearing operation so far. The SC-339101 dungeon was a high-risk, A-class, scale-7 dungeon. Since it was A-class on a scale from E to S, it was obviously high difficulty. A scale of 7, independent of the rank, indicated the size of the dungeon. It ranged from 1 to 10, so a 7 meant it was quite vast. It meant the dungeon was large and there were a lot of monsters to kill. In other words, the scale allowed for a rough estimate of the dungeon's size and the time it would take to clear.

Beyond that, the list of guilds and hunters currently participating was listed below, and the analysis of the dungeon and its monsters was recorded in detail. When I first saw these documents, they were so unfriendly that they were hard to understand, but after a while, I found that writing only the necessary information efficiently was convenient for practical work. Of course, I had to be cursed at quite a bit before I realized that. I mean, how was I supposed to know the jargon they used among themselves from the start? How is a rookie supposed to know all the document formatting rules!

I still feel resentful about the time I asked Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon about the document formatting on my first day and got yelled at.

"No, shouldn't the most budget have been spent on deploying hunters with inherent mental barrier traits? Most of the budget is concentrated on combat, so the clearing speed is..."

"Jiwoo. Is that important right now? We need to stop the current situation!"

"Ha..." That incompetent Assistant Manager. First of all, this dungeon has mental interference magic throughout. That means a large number of hunters with mental protection abilities must ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be deployed to keep the other hunters from falling into mental chaos. But Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon didn't deploy enough mental protection hunters. Even if those traits are rare, this is still too much of a waste of money.

It is a tedious task to track down people with mental-type traits. So she probably thought, 'Let's just throw in a lot of combat personnel and solve it.' She spends money so carelessly because it's not her own, but the country's. It's because of people like her that public servants get criticized and people talk about outsourcing work to private companies.

"This is... ha..." I was about to say, 'We can't stop the Dungeon Break,' but I shut my mouth. No matter how incompetent Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon is, she’s in her fourth year. She knows that with this kind of estimate, a Dungeon Break cannot be stopped. She probably gave me the work anyway to share at least a little bit of the responsibility. I wonder if it’s a characteristic of public servants to try to avoid responsibility at all costs.

'...Wait a minute. Isn't this actually an opportunity?'

Normally, I would have thought, 'This bitch messed up again...' But I am currently in a situation where I need to leave this damn Korea Hunter Association by any means necessary. In fact, if I make a huge mistake here, it could accelerate my departure. This dungeon is already screwed up from the personnel allocation. The budget was used haphazardly, and if a Dungeon Break occurs, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon will take a huge hit to her performance review. Then, there’s a high possibility she’ll be laid off after her mandatory service period. She’s acting so angry because she’s trying to resolve this situation—or at least reduce her responsibility.

"...Assistant Manager." I made up my mind and stood up. Korea won't collapse just because one A-class Dungeon Break happens. In the nearly 70 years since the first gate, the hunter society has developed significantly. A system is in place so that we can live safely even if gates appear all over the city. Naturally, there are sufficient preparations for Dungeon Breaks. The problem is that it costs a lot of money to suppress them. The important issue is to clear the dungeon with low costs before that happens.

That's why to join the Hunter Association, one must possess skills in efficiently composing hunter combinations according to dungeon types, financial accounting, and the ability to negotiate with hunter guilds. Anyway, there's no real problem with peace even if a Dungeon Break happens here. It’s just that the person in charge’s performance review will plummet, putting them at risk of being fired. A little more of the national treasury will be used, but others are already wasting more than this anyway.

"Isn't this going too far? If this succeeds, you'll take all the credit, Assistant Manager! If a Dungeon Break happens, you'll share the responsibility!"

"...What?"

"Is this the first or second time I've been hit like this? I won't do this kind of work dumping anymore!"

"Huh...? Huh?"

Is a rookie talking back to an Assistant Manager? Is he crazy? Yes, I am crazy. How crazy must this be for that crazy woman to be so dumbfounded that she’s speechless? Rumors might spread poorly in the association, but I don't care. I'm quitting anyway!

"If that's the case, I'll change this to my assignment. Even if a Dungeon Break happens, I'll take the blame as my own mistake, so just hand it over! If the clearing succeeds, I'll take the credit too!"

"Wh-what? Jiwoo, are you now..."

Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon turned red and stood up abruptly. But soon, her expression softened. She’s probably thinking, 'What a sweet deal?' This dungeon is clearly in a situation where a break will happen, no matter who looks at it. She’s probably saying 'thank you' that I’m taking the responsibility all by myself.

"...Jiwoo, you're unbelievable. Do you think I do this all the time! Fine! I'll change the assignment now, so go ahead!"

"Yes! Please do!"

Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon started typing on her keyboard, hiding her smile. She probably thinks I’m a rookie who doesn’t know anything and made a mistake. But the one who made the mistake is you. I’m leaving this country!

A short while later, the assignment for the SC-339101 dungeon was completely transferred to me.

"Hehehe..." I also tried to suppress my laughter as I scouted for hunters to deploy. I had to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hire hunters to support the dungeon within the remaining budget. Of course, there was almost no budget left, so I couldn't hire high-rank hunters to clear it. I made a call to the site.

"Hello, this is Shin Jiwoo, the person in charge from the Korea Hunter Association Seocho Branch."

-...What? Shin Jiwoo? Wasn't someone else in charge? Well, whatever. We are currently preparing for the final clearing attempt. Honestly, it's impossible. If we determine that clearing is impossible, we will escape the dungeon without hesitation, and if a Dungeon Break happens, deal with it yourself.

It was Shin Hyung-cheol, an A+-class hunter from the Ilseong Group, one of the top guilds. It goes without saying that if more of Ilseong Group’s power were added, clearing the dungeon would be possible. But the guild won't deploy more personnel than we requested. Basically, a guild is a business, and it’s right to work as much as you’re paid. And since other guild members are clearing other dungeons, they wouldn't be able to be called in so urgently. It’s not like Dungeon Breaks happen just once or twice. I understand their position, too. In fact, it’s Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon’s fault for handling the work like a fool.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Understood. I will send additional personnel, so please join the clearing operation."

-Got it. It’s going to explode anyway, so I guess I can just leave it be.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

But what if I waste the remaining money to add useless personnel? Then I will be evaluated as even more incompetent, and I will be closer to being fired. I immediately scanned the list of available freelance hunters. Since there was no money, C-class hunters were the limit.

"...Oh!" While scanning the list, I found one very suitable hunter. Her name is Lee Jiyoo. A D-class hunter. Even though it had been quite a while since she registered as a hunter, she had only completed one request. I don't know if it was because of her skills or her personality, but she didn't even join a guild and seemed to be working alone. Her trait was a basic healer. She had no trait evolution yet, and no experience. She’s perfect. I’ll waste the money properly and fail the clearing completely.

Just as I was about to make the decision and contact her, a special note written below caught my eye.

"Blind...?"

I see. So she’s blind. No matter how much of a healer position it is, being blind is quite troublesome in a dungeon. It was natural that she hadn't received any requests for a long time. Well, it’s a good thing for Lee Jiyoo, too. Shin Hyung-cheol will definitely just pretend to clear it and then escape. Even if there is one blind hunter, he won't be working hard enough at the clearing for her to be a hindrance. Of course, Shin Hyung-cheol might file a complaint asking why I sent such a hunter, but that’s actually a good thing for me.

"Hello, Hunter Lee Jiyoo?"

I called Lee Jiyoo immediately without hesitation.

A few days later, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon came to work with a light step. She had dumped the most problematic dungeon onto a rookie, so she had nothing to worry about. The SC-339101 case was a mistake she made while handling work haphazardly because there had been many gate occurrences in Seocho recently. She was on the verge of being fired, but the rookie took the shit for her. She couldn't help but laugh, so she couldn't stay in the office.

Before starting work, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon came outside with a coffee. She happened to meet someone from the next department and talked about Jiwoo.

"Even if he's a rookie, isn't that stupid? He said a Dungeon Break was certain."

"Exactly. He couldn't even control his emotions and shouted at his senior... He must have lost his mind for a moment. He’s probably regretting it by now, right? He must have failed the clearing. He’s probably busy trying to stop the Dungeon Break. I saw his expression earlier, and he looked like his soul had left his body."

"But if that happened last week, shouldn't the Dungeon Break have happened by now? I haven't heard any news about a Dungeon Break recently."

SC-339101 was effectively in a situation where clearing was impossible. If so, it’s usually normal to just test the waters and escape as soon as you enter the dungeon.

"...Oh? That’s true."

It had been a week since Jiwoo took the job, but there was no such news. If it were a normal flow, there should at least be news by now that the area around the gate is being controlled because a Dungeon Break occurred.

"Is the party really trying to clear it?"

If the party was attempting to clear it despite the difficult conditions, they might still be inside the dungeon. Originally, a scale-7 dungeon would take at least 14 days based on experienced hunters.

"There's no way the guild people would do that."

But that was too absurd a thought. Guilds are people who move strictly for profit. There is no case where they hold onto a dungeon that isn't working for a week. Kim Hee-yeon thought it was strange and returned to the office. But then, hearing the news that followed, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon doubted her own ears.

"SC-339101 has been cleared?"