Chapter 4
Chapter 4
A Visitor Has Arrived.
The Cannibal had appeared.
Grrrr—!
A beastly growl echoed from beneath the ceiling.
Through the narrow gap in the not-yet-fully-closed ceiling, Joo Do-gyeom deliberately observed the creature's form.
To put it bluntly, it was grotesque.
Emaciated, its skin wrinkled like the folds of a brain, its eyes pitch black.
Its mouth was circular, lined with teeth like an insect's maw.
But that wasn't the only mouth it had—its arms and hands were also covered in them.
One large mouth on each palm, dozens more along its arms.
Crunch, crunch, crunch—!
The eerie sound of teeth gnashing at the air sent chills down the spine.
In fact, one of the most frequently mentioned things about the Mansion of the Cannibal in hunter forums was its appearance.
—It's so horrifying it could haunt your nightmares.
—I could never set foot in there, my stomach's too weak.
└Honestly, the rewards aren't even worth it.
└And it's not fun—just running for your life the whole time.
└Ah, damn, I just remembered. That sound of teeth gnashing all over its body...
└└Just imagining it gives me goosebumps. Seriously. Ugh. Shouldn't have thought about it. Gotta watch some kids' cartoons before bed tonight.
Joo Do-gyeom stared at that grotesque form without so much as a flinch.
In the future he had lived through, there were far more terrifying beings than this Cannibal.
Instead, he focused purely on its movements.
The way it frantically searched for him—darting toward the kitchen corners, yanking open drawers, flinging open windows.
As he'd said, it was erratic, but fast.
Which confirmed one thing:
'It's weakened as much as I expected.'
The effect of the tutorialization.
'Soon, I'll be able to kill it.'
His eyes gleamed with cold killing intent.
As if sensing it, the Cannibal flinched, its head whipping around rapidly.
Joo Do-gyeom closed the ceiling hatch and channeled the small amount of internal energy he'd cultivated to activate another martial technique.
『Skill Acquired: Vanishing Shadow (1★).』
Vanishing Shadow (Scattered Flower Shadow).
A high-tier stealth technique that suppressed not just presence, but scent and traces as well.
Maintaining it, he crossed his legs and sat in meditation.
Then, inhaling and exhaling deeply, he simultaneously activated Heaven-Binding Qi Art (Heavenly Severance Breathing).
Though separated from the monstrous Cannibal by just a ceiling, he felt neither fear nor threat.
The Cannibal was a creature of instinct.
When prey entered its dungeon, it chased, toyed with, and ultimately devoured them.
The entire process was pure pleasure.
But.
This prey was... strange.
It had clearly entered the mansion, yet it was nowhere to be seen.
No—that alone would've been fine.
But sometimes, it felt like something was watching it.
No matter where it looked, it couldn't find the source.
Just moments ago, it had pretended not to notice, walking forward before suddenly spinning around—
Kiee—!?
Nothing.
Frustrated, it stomped its feet.
And then, hunger gnawed at its stomach.
By now, it should've been asleep, full from devouring its prey.
But with no prey caught, its stomach remained empty.
Enraged, the Cannibal rushed into the kitchen.
And then—
Kieeeeeeek—!?
It shrieked in shock.
The refrigerator door was open.
And some of the food inside was missing.
Furious, it flailed its arms wildly, wreaking havoc.
Kieeeeeeeee—!
A roar of rage erupted not just from its face, but from the mouths on its arms and hands, reverberating through the entire mansion.
Somewhere above the Cannibal, watching it rage at the open fridge, Joo Do-gyeom's eyes remained calm.
'It's exhausting itself.'
His hands and mouth were busy tearing into a block of cheese he'd taken from the fridge.
Despite being a Cannibal, it had once been human—and thus kept regular food stored.
The cheese he was eating now was one such item.
'Probably a gimmick for dungeon challengers.'
Sometimes dungeons were kind.
Other times, mercilessly cruel.
Either way, it made for decent meals.
Today was cheese, yesterday rye bread, the day before—sausage made from pork offal.
'Not a bad balance.'
With that thought, he closed the ceiling hatch again.
His mind raced.
'About a week now?'
His sense of time since entering the dungeon.
Of course, without a clock, it was just an estimate.
Even as a regressor and veteran, dungeon time was hard to pin down.
But he was probably close.
In that time, he'd built up a fair amount of internal energy through Heaven-Binding Qi Art.
'Not enough to rank up yet.'
But enough that, with a little more, he could execute the martial technique he had in mind and face the Cannibal in a decisive battle.
'Two days at most.'
Within that time, he'd settle things with the Cannibal.
Decision made, he pulled out another slice of cheese and ate it.
Munch, munch.
Below him—
Kieeeeeee—!
The Cannibal's furious screams echoed.
The cheese tasted even richer.
Some time later.
Joo Do-gyeom, seated in meditation atop the ceiling, opened his eyes.
A brilliant light pierced through the darkness before quickly fading.
『Skill Upgraded: Heaven-Binding Qi Art (2★).』
『Skill Upgraded: Earth-Binding Qi Art (2★).』
He recited in his mind.
'Status.'
『Name: Joo Do-gyeom
Age: 26
Class: Universal Chef
Stats:
Strength: E-
Stamina: E
Agility: F+
Magic: F-
Skills:
Heaven-Binding Qi Art (2★), Earth-Binding Qi Art (2★), Vanishing Shadow (1★)』
His stats hadn't visibly increased, but his internal growth was undeniable.
With Heaven-Binding Qi Art and Earth-Binding Qi Art reaching a higher level, his magic had grown more stable, and his physical condition had improved drastically.
Compared to when he first entered the dungeon, this was nothing short of a leap.
As for other martial techniques, he could pull them out as needed in actual combat.
With his knowledge, anything he could learn at his current level was already within reach.
But skill level growth was different.
To level up skills, one needed the foundation of what martial artists called heart, energy, and body.
The system's stat display played a role, but it wasn't everything.
'Technique must be ingrained in the flesh.'
Even as the once-titled Martial God, Joo Do-gyeom's current body—only a month into regression and still working part-time labor—couldn't reach that level yet.
That said.
There was a way to accelerate skill growth even in this state.
'Real combat.'
To be precise, combat at the limits of survival.
Half-hearted battles wouldn't help someone like him, who had already reached the pinnacle of enlightenment.
Only by pushing himself to the absolute brink could his body and techniques evolve.
The good news?
Research suggested that even the system granted growth bonuses in such situations.
Long story short—
Meditation alone had taken him as far as it could in the Mansion of the Cannibal.
Tutorial dungeons imposed growth resistance on hunters, making further progress through training alone inefficient.
'Even if I could squeeze out a little more, the next dungeon would be far faster.'
This was enough.
With that, Joo Do-gyeom finally descended from the kitchen ceiling.
In the silent, tension-filled air—
His hand grasped a sharp kitchen knife resting on the counter.
Immediately—
『Skill Acquired: Knife Proficiency (Lv. 1).』
『Skill Acquired: Chef's Blade Work (Lv. 1).』
Knowledge of knife handling flooded his mind.
'Universal Chef.'
A skill granted instantly due to his class.
Not bad.
The way he wielded a kitchen knife differed slightly from the swords he'd used in his past life.
'Mixing the two will be more efficient.'
Decision made.
He tossed the knife into the air, caught it by the handle, checked the edge, and nodded.
"Perfect for killing a Cannibal."
The day of reckoning had come.
Kieee...
As usual—no, unlike the beginning, with slumped shoulders—the Cannibal wandered the grand central hall, searching for its prey.
Then, abruptly, it let out a shriek.
Kieeeeeee—!
Not of pain or anger.
But of joy.
A voice brimming with delight.
And why not?
It had finally found it.
The prey that had entered its mansion.
The insolent sacrifice that had hidden somewhere, plundering its food all this time—Joo Do-gyeom.
Standing at the end of the hallway, expression blank, he pointed the tip of his kitchen knife at the Cannibal.
"Come."
The Cannibal tilted its head briefly.
This was a first.
In this mansion, no one had ever faced it without fleeing.
And this man—with that frail-looking body?
Armed with just a kitchen knife?
Kekekeke—!
It burst into laughter.
Joo Do-gyeom smirked back.
"So you do have emotions..."
He'd heard as much.
Good.
'Jin Woo-seong.'
The former owner of Heaven-Slaying Star (Thousand Killing Star) and one of humanity's worst villains.
According to him, the Cannibal had to have emotions for this to work.
Joo Do-gyeom flicked the knife tip toward the laughing Cannibal again.
"Not coming?"
If it wouldn't come to him, he'd go to it.
The moment he lunged forward—
Kekekeke—!
The Cannibal, as if waiting, charged straight at him.
The distance closed rapidly.
Joo Do-gyeom focused his internal energy into his eyes.
『Skill Acquired: Clear Sight Art (1★).』
The Cannibal's movements appeared to slow dramatically.
To be precise, his perception of them did.
The power of Clear Sight Art (Bright Eyes Technique), which heightened dynamic visual acuity to its limits.
Using it, he effortlessly dodged the Cannibal's claw swipe.
Simultaneously—
『Skill Acquired: Shadowless Divine Step (1★).』
His footwork flowed like water, stepping into the blind spot before lifting his leg—
And slamming it down.
『Skill Acquired: Asura Flame Kick (1★).』
BOOM—!
With a deafening crash, part of the Cannibal's head was crushed flat as it slammed face-first into the hallway floor.
Keeek—!
It shrieked in pain, vomiting blue-tinged blood.
Joo Do-gyeom cleanly severed both its arms with the kitchen knife.
『Skill Upgraded: Knife Proficiency (Lv. 2).』
He ignored the expected notification.
Instead, he drove the knife into the floor right beside the grotesque face of the trembling creature and unleashed his killing intent.
"Now, answer me. Who's the prey here?"
Ki, kieee—!
The Cannibal—a man-eating monster.
Terror surged in its pitch-black eyes.
Kieeeee—!
Screaming like a wounded animal, the Cannibal fled.
Joo Do-gyeom watched its retreating back for a moment before leisurely following.
Why hadn't he killed it in one strike?
Obviously, it wasn't because he enjoyed toying with his prey like some villains.
That was the kind of thing scum like Jin Woo-seong reveled in.
The irony?
'That's exactly how he got Heaven-Slaying Star.'
The villain Jin Woo-seong.
During his capture by Joo Do-gyeom's strike team, he had rambled:
—Is it true that killing the Cannibal gets you Heaven-Slaying Star? Keu... Now that's an interesting question. What do you think? Should I tell you?
—.......
—Ah, fine, I'll spill. We're comrades, right? Joo Do-gyeom. Don't look so serious. So the answer is—ta-da! Only half right. Or more like... one-third? Pffft...
—What do you mean?
—It's true that killing the Cannibal in the Mansion of the Cannibal gets you Heaven-Slaying Star. But you can't just kill it normally. There are conditions.
First.
'Make it afraid.'
Second.
'Let it flee to the basement.'
Third.
'Kill it while it's weeping on the altar.'
Back then, Jin Woo-seong—the madman who had enjoyed tormenting the Cannibal—burst into laughter.
—Pffft... But even if you try now, you can't get it. Heaven-Slaying Star. You've probably guessed—it's unique. Ah, but you can't even enter the dungeon now, can you? Oh, what a shame. Pfft... Gah!
The last scream came when one of Joo Do-gyeom's comrades punched him mid-sentence.
Now, through regression, Joo Do-gyeom could verify the truth—and he had just fulfilled the first condition.
'Make it afraid.'
Impossible if the Cannibal had no emotions.
And now, the second condition was met.
Ki, ki, kieeee—!
Terrified, the Cannibal pressed a hidden mechanism somewhere in the mansion, opening the basement door to escape its pursuer.
The existence of a basement in the Mansion of the Cannibal was another fact he'd learned from Jin Woo-seong.
Before that, no one had known.
'So far, so true.'
The thing was—Jin Woo-seong was a liar.
Expected, given he was a villain, but it was just his nature.
A capricious madman, impossible to predict.
And yet, he had devoured Heaven-Slaying Star.
Becoming one of humanity's worst villains was inevitable.
But Joo Do-gyeom knew him.
He was a liar, but not everything he said was false.
That was why he was certain Heaven-Slaying Star could be obtained here.
'He mixes small deceptions into fundamental truths.'
So—was everything he'd said true to the end?
Passing through the narrow, dim brick hallway—a stark contrast to the bright, lavish mansion—he arrived at a vast underground cavern.
There, he saw it.
The bizarre ritual engravings covering the walls.
The hexagonal altar at the center—Hexagram.
And atop it, the Cannibal—cowering, trembling violently.
Seeing it from afar, Joo Do-gyeom nodded.
'...Was it all true?'
Uncharacteristic of Jin Woo-seong.
But then again, maybe not.
As he'd said, back then, humanity had no way to verify it.
Still, remaining cautious, Joo Do-gyeom slowly stepped into the cavern where the Cannibal and altar waited.
GRRRR—! BOOM—!
A deafening noise erupted as thick iron bars stacked in dozens of layers sealed the passage behind him.
Then—
Whoosh—!
Blue flames erupted from ceremonial braziers placed throughout the cavern, illuminating the darkness.
Simultaneously—
KWAaaa—!
A massive surge of magic swirled violently, funneling into the Cannibal crouched on the altar.
『The Cannibal is undergoing transformation.』
『The tutorial effect of the dungeon Mansion of the Cannibal is rapidly weakening.』
『Escape.』