Scorched Earth
Scorched earth.
Clack, clack—
Kim Jun slowly lifted his head as he passed through Thebes’s city gate.
Massive ramparts of white marble rose overhead, and the red-tiled roofs visible beyond them were washed gold by the setting sun.
Torches burned atop the watchtowers lined along the wall, their light standing in stark contrast to the darkening sky.
Just as I remember.
It was exactly the same as it had been before his regression.
Kim Jun looked at the buildings lined up on either side of the street.
Two-story wooden houses with warm light spilling from every window gave the district a homely air.
Clang! Clang!
From the first floor of one building, the hammering of a blacksmith rang out at steady intervals, while from the bakery next door, the savory smell of freshly baked bread drifted into the street.
He walked a little farther, and in front of a shop, an NPC merchant was finishing the day’s business and straightening the sign outside.
Beyond that, the wooden sign of an inn swayed gently in the wind, creaking softly.
“Oh my, someone’s already made it here!”
“That’s incredible. They got here in just one day?”
The residents passing by whispered among themselves as they looked at him. Their gazes were curious, but not wary.
Kim Jun watched them for a moment.
The “residents” who had stayed with him until the very end before his regression.
The ones who had taken up swords beside him on the walls when the monster wave came crashing in.
The ones who had tried to defend the city to the bitter end when the disaster of the 25th floor struck.
Smirk.
He looked at them for a moment longer, then turned away. As if holding his emotions in check, he let out a short breath and kept walking.
The deeper he went into the city, the grander the buildings became. After passing through the shopping district and entering the quarter lined with noble mansions, three-story stone buildings flanked the road on both sides.
Stained glass filled every window, and between the buildings, magic stones serving as streetlamps cast a soft glow.
And at last, in the very center of the city, a vast circular plaza came into view.
Still overwhelming, as ever.
Five spires rose from the center of the square. The temples, each with a different shape, thrust themselves toward the heavens and filled Kim Jun’s vision.
The most eye-catching of them was, naturally, the Temple of the Warrior. A massive structure built from rough-hewn granite, its straight, uncompromising lines gave it the look of a fortress.
Without hesitation, Kim Jun walked toward it.
Two guardians stood at the temple entrance. Clad in full plate armor, each with a massive two-handed sword strapped to his back, they stood so rigidly they looked like statues.
“Seeker. Do you wish to walk the path of the warrior?”
“Yes.”
“Then go and find Sir Valderion. He will judge your qualifications.”
Creak, creak—
The temple’s enormous doors slowly opened.
When Kim Jun stepped inside, a grand hall spread out before him, all soaring ceilings and towering pillars.
Portraits of warriors from throughout the ages hung on the walls, and the weapons they had once wielded were displayed beneath them.
Kim Jun paused to look at the weapons. Old, yet still razor-sharp blades. Axes that looked heavy and indestructible.
They had all once shone in the hands of great warriors.
He lifted his gaze toward the inner hall and saw, in the distance, a man seated atop a raised platform.
Valderion…
The master who had taught him swordsmanship before his regression. Even though his level had only been 70, his skill with the blade had already reached the realm of mastery.
Even when Kim Jun had risen to EX rank, he still couldn’t surpass Valderion in pure swordsmanship alone.
“It’s been a while.”
Kim Jun murmured.
“Hmm?”
Valderion raised his head. He looked to be in his mid-sixties, with short-cropped gray hair, a grizzled beard, and sharp eyes that left a strong impression.
“You’ve got a face I’ve never seen before, and yet you say it’s been a while?”
“My apologies. It’s my first time meeting you, Sir Valderion.”
Kim Jun bowed.
“Hmph.”
Valderion swept him from head to toe with his eyes. His gaze moved from Kim Jun’s shoulders to his waist, then to his legs.
“A swordsman, are you?”
“Yes.”
“Then you’ve come to the right place.”
Valderion rose from his seat and stood before Kim Jun.
“Do you wish to become a warrior?”
“Yes.”
“Then pass the test I give you.”
Valderion’s expression turned cold in an instant.
“But I warn you now: this is no game. You’ll be betting your life on it.”
Kim Jun nodded. He already knew that. It was more dangerous than any job-change quest.
He had already experienced it once.
Ding—!
[Job Change Quest Available]
Quest Name: Warrior's Qualification
Description: Survive for 5 minutes in the nest of the Red Dragon.
Difficulty: ★★★★★
Reward: Warrior Job Change
Failure: Death
Would you like to accept?
[Yes] / [No]
Click.
Kim Jun didn’t hesitate.
*
“I’m going to die again, aren’t I?”
The coachman looked at Kim Jun with pity.
“Young man, do you really have to go? The nest of the Red Dragon, you say? I’ve never seen anyone come back from there.”
“I have to go.”
Kim Jun stepped onto the carriage and answered with complete calm.
“Haaah.”
The coachman let out a deep sigh.
“This makes three just this month. They all headed there, saying they’d become warriors. But…”
He didn’t finish, but Kim Jun understood the meaning anyway.
Thebes was a massive city with a population of fifty thousand residents. The force defending Thebes’s walls numbered two thousand. Among them, only four had obtained the Warrior class.
Valderion, the warrior-class examiner.
Garenthos, lord of Thebes.
Hena, commander of the northern wall garrison.
Draconis, commander of the southern wall garrison.
Hundreds of “residents” had challenged it so far—for honor, for status, or for a better life.
But none had returned except those four.
The Red Dragon’s nest was that hopeless a place.
“I’ll take the fare up front. I’m not about to drag your corpse back with me.”
Kim Jun handed over the pouch of coins. It was the reward he had earned from clearing floors one through five.
“This much?”
The coachman’s eyes widened.
“That includes the round trip. And future service fees as well.”
“And you’re confident you’ll come back alive?”
“Of course.”
A confident smile curved Kim Jun’s lips.
The coachman couldn’t make sense of him.
The gigantic tower had only been “built” in this new place a single day ago.
And yet here was a hunter who had already cleared up to the fifth floor and reached Thebes—all by himself.
He must be insanely strong.
To achieve that much in a single day was astonishing. Even most guilds would need several days to do it.
And yet this powerful bastard had chosen the Warrior class of all things.
There were mages who could stay safely in the rear and cast spells, guardians specialized in defense, and even a thief with stealth would be a better choice than a warrior.
I thought maybe, finally, someone who could save us had shown up.
The coachman looked disappointed.
The residents who had lived trapped in Thebes for so many years had one desperate wish: that one day, a hero-like hunter would appear and put an end to all these trials.
That hunter was probably still low-level.
He had only cleared the tower’s early floors. And now he was going to face the Red Dragon in that state?
Even the job-change test itself had an absurdly low survival rate, and if he did become a warrior, he would always have to bear the most dangerous battles on the front lines.
So we’re waiting again.
The coachman sighed. No matter how strong you were, the Red Dragon was a problem of an entirely different order.
“…It’ll take about four hours to get to Scorched Earth. You may as well close your eyes and rest. Though I suppose you’ll be closing them for good soon enough.”
Clop, clop, clop—
The sound of hoofbeats rang out in steady rhythm as the carriage picked up speed.
*
When Kim Jun stepped down from the carriage and looked ahead, he saw Scorched Earth.
Not a single blade of grass grew on the black land stretching all the way to the horizon.
Smoke still rose here and there, and whenever the wind blew, ash and charcoal dust whirled into dancing spirals.
Even the sky had been stained red. It was a hellish sight created by the dragon’s breath mixing with the dust in the air.
And far ahead, at the edge of the wasteland, rose a massive red cliff.
The entire cliff was heated to a lava-like crimson, and from the enormous cave mouth opened near its middle, flames periodically belched forth.
[Red Dragon's Nest]
The rocks around the cave had all melted and solidified like glass.
Before my regression, I learned about the hidden class through an information broker on the 50th floor.
He had paid a steep price for that information. The existence of hidden classes.
Every job-change quest concealed a truth beneath the surface. Not just the apparent objective, but hidden power that could only be unlocked by satisfying special conditions.
Clench.
Kim Jun tightened his fist.
What if he had known from the beginning? What if he had started as Dragon Slayer from the fifth floor?
Whoosh…
Kim Jun stepped forward across Scorched Earth.
Ash crunched underfoot, and the hot wind scorched his face.
“You really mean to go in.”
The coachman asked one last time, as if to confirm it.
“See you in a bit.”
“Tsk.”
The coachman clicked his tongue.
“Since we’ve shared a conversation, I’ll wait an hour for you. Though I suppose you’ll be dead within five minutes anyway.”
“Haha. See you in a bit, Redel.”
“Huh? What?”
The coachman, Redel, was startled. He had never told the young man his name, so how could he know it?
“Wait, how did I—”
But Kim Jun had already turned away and was walking toward the cave.
Redel frowned and watched his back. Something was off. He was a hunter he’d never seen before, and yet for some reason he felt strangely familiar, and he even knew Redel’s name.
Who the hell is that guy?
The question only deepened, but Redel soon shook his head. What did it matter? He’d be dead soon enough anyway.
Kim Jun crossed the scorched wasteland and kept walking.
With every step he took, ash and charcoal dust scattered into the air, and the heat grew more intense. His throat burned every time he breathed, but he didn’t stop.
At last, he reached the cave mouth.
Whoooooom—!
A massive breath rumbled from deep within the cave. At the same time, he saw a faint golden barrier covering the entire entrance.
A translucent film that rippled like liquid. Beyond it, red light flickered and swayed.
As Kim Jun reached out, a system window appeared.
[Red Dragon's Nest]
Warning: You cannot leave for 5 minutes after entering.
Would you like to enter?
[Yes] / [No]
Clench.
A vast space opened before him. The ceiling soared endlessly high, and red lava poured down from all around, staining the entire cave like a vision of hell.
And when Kim Jun looked down at the ground beneath his feet, he was momentarily speechless.
“…”
The entire cave floor was covered in white bones.
Human bones, beast bones, and even huge bones of unidentifiable origin.
Hundreds—no, thousands—of skeletons had been piled layer upon layer, forming a carpet of bones.
They were the remains of all who had challenged this place and failed.
Between the bones lay rusted swords and shattered pieces of armor. Weapons that had once been someone’s hope were now just scrap metal, mixed in with the dead.
The moment Kim Jun took a step forward—
Rumble, rumble—
The piles of bones slid apart in every direction. They rolled away like waves, revealing new skeletons beneath.
At that instant, the sound of something enormous moving echoed from deep within the cave.
He was ready.
His level was far lower than before.
But because he had steeled himself even more than last time—
“Hoo.”
He took a breath.
He gripped the greatsword with both hands and settled into a middle guard stance.
“Hoooo.”
He slowly exhaled and calmed his mind.
Then he fixed his gaze on whatever was coming out from deep inside the cave.
Thud—
Thud—
Thudthudthudthud—!
“KROOOOOOOOOOOO—!!!”
4
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