Chapter 4
Chapter 4
“Definitely…”
Lee Jeonseok repeatedly tapped the keyboard.
Soon an image appeared on the monitor.
Bukhansan.
A tourist destination quite famous even overseas.
If Lee Jeonseok remembered correctly, a dungeon rampage would occur here three days from now.
Normally, clearing a dungeon without a license was illegal.
“But if it’s a rampaging dungeon, that’s a different story.”
A civilian who just happened to get caught in a dungeon rampage.
Awakens there and clears the dungeon.
Who could possibly blame them?
If anything, the situation would deserve a commendation.
“For now, I’ll go to Bukhansan in three days.”
Lee Jeonseok made plans while looking at the calendar.
And three days later.
In the deep hours of the night just past midnight.
Lee Jeonseok quietly left the house.
He had left a note on the dining table in the living room.
He had already said the day before that he would go to Bukhansan, but just in case.
And so Lee Jeonseok boarded a late night bus and headed toward Bukhansan.
Climbing a mountain is difficult.
But there is also pleasure in it.
The feeling of conquest when reaching the top.
The clean air that cannot be felt in the city and the view that can only be seen from the summit.
Quite a few people become addicted to it and climb mountains all across the country.
For a brief moment, Lee Jeonseok could understand their feelings.
Before he knew it, the sky had brightened like fading colors. The sunrise rising over the ridgeline. The mountain ranges scattered between the clouds.
It was truly scenery worthy of being called magnificent.
“Hoo…”
Lee Jeonseok steadied his rough breathing and wiped the sweat forming on his skin.
Maybe it was because he had no proper equipment.
But it had truly been exhausting.
He had lost count of how many times he had rested along the way.
Even though he had awakened, he was still only level one.
Stats that were only ten.
In terms of physical ability alone, a newly awakened hunter was not that different from an ordinary person.
“…There’s still time.”
Lee Jeonseok checked his wristwatch.
Perhaps because he had climbed at a relaxed pace.
There were about thirty minutes left until eight.
He sat down on a rock to rest.
The surroundings were crowded with hikers.
Dozens of people had gathered in this narrow place to watch the sunrise, and to Lee Jeonseok it simply felt suffocating.
But even so, the sunrise rising beyond the ridgeline was beautiful.
“…”
Lee Jeonseok silently watched it.
A cold wind brushed past his cheek.
Soon, a disaster would arrive here.
Something no one knew.
There was no way they could know.
The science of this time had not advanced that far yet.
“Even if I tell them to run away, they’ll just think I’m crazy.”
So Lee Jeonseok simply checked his wristwatch without saying anything.
The hour and minute hands moved silently.
Time passed mercilessly.
Before he knew it, it was eight o’clock.
Lee Jeonseok brushed off his pants and stood up.
He took a small knife from his pocket and gripped it in his hand.
Two minutes passed.
Dungeon gate is forming.
At the center of Baegundae.
Light exploded among the people.
“What is that? What’s happening?”
“The light suddenly…”
“Ugh, I can’t see!”
People murmured in confusion.
The light soon gathered into a single point.
The mass of light formed a huge crack.
The entrance of a dungeon commonly called a gate.
But it was not a normal gate.
It gradually expanded its range and began to cover all of Baegundae.
The dungeon is rampaging.
“A dungeon rampage?”
“What is going on all of a sudden?”
Chaos quickly spread in all directions.
“Aaaah!”
“R-run! Everyone run!”
“Kyaa…?!”
People began running all at once.
However, they were on the summit of a towering mountain.
The paths were limited and they could not run freely.
If they made a mistake, they would fall off the cliff.
In fact, some people did.
The situation was nothing short of complete chaos.
Evacuation was delayed.
Entering Blackened Prison.
The people were swept into the dungeon rampage.
Only Lee Jeonseok remained calm, quietly accepting the darkness that swallowed him.
Blackened Prison
Rank C
Description: An underground prison where ghouls are confined. In that place where everything is frozen, only lifeless blood flows. Mortals, face the mad king of ghouls.
This dungeon is in a rampage state. Escape is impossible until the boss monster is defeated.
“Prison…”
Lee Jeonseok stared at the system message.
The content was the same as before his regression.
The dungeon’s environment was the same as well.
A dark underground.
Iron bars filled the area in every direction.
A scene reminiscent of a prison.
Looking closely, many places were frozen.
A damp and chilling aura hung in the air like fog, and icicles formed on the ceiling fell and shattered on the ground.
It looked like a place where ghosts might appear.
But instead of ghosts, what appeared was a zombie with its entire body rotting away.
A monster commonly called a ghoul.
“Gheee…”
Rotting flesh dropped off in clumps.
Dried blood filled the torn skin.
An extremely grotesque appearance.
Ghoul Lv. 32
Above its head,
the system appeared.
Level thirty two.
Compared to Lee Jeonseok, it was overwhelming.
“But level isn’t everything.”
Lee Jeonseok held the knife in a reverse grip.
Ghouls were undead.
Living corpses.
Because of that, compared to other undead, their durability was especially weak. They could be killed even with an ordinary knife.
The problem was that if he got bitten even once, it would immediately become a fatal wound.
“But if I don’t get bitten, it’s fine.”
Lee Jeonseok kicked off the ground.
The ghoul creaked as it turned its head.
It had noticed Lee Jeonseok too late.
But it was already too late.
Its movements were as slow as its reaction.
Thud.
The knife pierced into its head.
A strike aimed precisely at the left eye.
“Ghe…!”
Perhaps because it was already a corpse, it did not feel pain.
The ghoul opened its mouth regardless.
At that moment.
Whoosh.
Lee Jeonseok activated his Ignition trait.
Dark crimson flames rose from his hand.
They flowed along the knife and burned fiercely inside the ghoul’s brain.
One of the weaknesses of the undead.
Fire.
“Gheeeeee…!”
Flames burst out from its eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.
The fire spread across its entire head and burned the creature alive.
After some time passed.
When Lee Jeonseok pulled out the knife, the ghoul collapsed helplessly.
Its head was charred black and no longer moved.
Crunch.
Lee Jeonseok stomped on its head and crushed it.
Immediately after.
You have hunted a ghoul.
The system appeared before his eyes.
“Hmm?”
But something felt strange.
Congratulations.
Level increased.
Level increased.
Level increased.
Level increased.
Level…
The system messages appeared an unusually large number of times.
Looking at the status window, he was now level eight.
He had gained seven levels all at once.
Well, it was only natural.
After all, he had killed a level thirty two monster at level one.
“Not bad.”
The experience gain was quite good.
Before taking the hunter exam, he could raise his level as much as possible here.
“And there’s something else I want to test.”
Saving people in this dungeon.
Would good karma increase?
It had increased when he killed a villain.
Then what about killing monsters or saving people?
He wanted to confirm whether good karma increased in various other situations.
“I killed a ghoul, but it didn’t increase.”
That meant it did not count as good karma by itself.
Then what if he cleared the dungeon completely?
“There should be some kind of change.”
Lee Jeonseok manipulated the status window.
You have used 7 stat points.
Agility increased by 5.
Stamina increased by 2.
He raised agility and stamina using the stat points.
The stats most necessary for Lee Jeonseok’s combat style.
He wanted to raise strength too, but distributing stat points too randomly could result in what gamers often called a ruined character.
“For now, focus on agility and stamina.”
Lee Jeonseok closed the status window.
Just then.
“Kyaaah!!”
A sharp scream echoed.
A person. The voice of a young woman.
Judging from the sound, it was nearby.
Lee Jeonseok immediately kicked off the ground.
He ran through the dark and damp underground prison.
Beyond the maze-like corridors.
“G-go away!”
“Gheee!”
He saw a woman confronting a ghoul.
A woman around the same age as Lee Jeonseok.
Her straight hair was tangled and soaked with blood.
Judging by her clothes, she seemed to be one of the hikers.
The ghoul opened its jaws toward her.
A hopeless situation where even a scream would not come out.
The woman closed her eyes in fear.
But something felt strange.
Pain did not come.
“Uh…?”
The woman slowly opened her eyes in confusion.
On the side of the ghoul’s head,
a small knife was embedded.
“Lower your head.”
A voice followed.
Someone approached quickly and grabbed the knife.
Lee Jeonseok.
He burned the ghoul’s head with Ignition.
Perhaps because of the sudden flames.
“Kyaa…?!”
The woman instinctively lowered her body.
In that moment.
Slash.
Lee Jeonseok pulled out the knife and cut the ghoul’s neck, weakened by fire, completely severing its life.
You have hunted a ghoul.
Congratulations.
Level increased.
Level increased.
Level increased.
This time, he gained three levels.
But that was not the only change.
Good Karma increased by 10.
His good karma had increased.
Only ten.
A very small number.
Compared to when he stopped the department store terror attack, it was extremely low.
Perhaps because the scale of the event was so different.
But that alone was enough.
He had confirmed that saving people increased good karma.
Then there was only one thing Lee Jeonseok needed to do now.
Rescue the people trapped in this dungeon.
“Are you alright?”
Lee Jeonseok extended his hand to the woman.
The woman who had fallen on the ground came to her senses.
She grabbed Lee Jeonseok’s hand and hurriedly stood up.
“Y-yes! Th-thank you…!”
Was she still shocked?
She could not bring herself to meet Lee Jeonseok’s eyes.
Lee Jeonseok did not mind.
He was already used to reactions like this.
Ever since he had become a monster mad for blood.
The eyes people looked at him with had always been like they were seeing a ghost.
“Ar-are you… a hunter…?”
The woman asked quietly.
Lee Jeonseok nodded vaguely.
He was not actually a hunter.
But explaining would be annoying.
Lee Jeonseok was not particularly good at explaining things.
Perhaps it was more accurate to say he found it troublesome.
Instead, he asked her a question.
“Did you see anyone else?”
“Ah… I-I did! We got separated while running…”
Lee Jeonseok cut her off and asked again.
“Where were they?”
The king was a being who knew no fear.
He had been born a ruler from the beginning.
Everything was beneath him.
He believed nothing could surpass him.
But at this very moment, the king felt fear.
The number of his servants was disappearing one by one.
They were monsters that could easily kill a human.
Even without intelligence or reason, their strength could not be ignored.
Yet those servants were being slaughtered helplessly.
“Ghh…”
He could not speak, but he knew.
It was coming.
Something.
Something extremely terrifying.
Clack.
The king’s teeth clattered.
Dry blood flowed down like sweat.
“GHEEEEK!!”
The king roared in fear.
He commanded all his servants.
Protect this place where he resided.
Thoroughly eliminate the intruder.
But it was meaningless.
Soon the door to the chamber opened and someone walked in.
“You really live in a filthy place.”
A man’s voice, utterly indifferent.
Dry, lifeless eyes.
Eyes that looked as if they had seen death.
Without any vitality, endlessly alien.
“Gha…”
The king shrank back.
He had been born as one who subdued death.
Yet the moment he looked into the man’s eyes, the king lowered his head.
It was an action born from instinct.
“…What?”
There was a death worse than death standing there.