Chapter 2
Beep, beep, beep—
“Yes, Chief. Proceeding with Dungeon No. 1 in Bulgwang-dong for eradication as per procedure.”
Jung Eun-hee from the Seoul Branch of the Hunter Association’s External Support Department put down her smartphone.
“Eradication team, please begin.”
At Eun-hee’s words, two men who had been on standby moved toward the dungeon. They began taking equipment out of their work bags and setting it up around the entrance.
“We’re starting.”
As soon as the man was done speaking, a blue light radiated from the equipment, and soon, the dungeon entrance collapsed. This was the process of erasing the dungeon from existence—before a dungeon break occurred.
If left as it was, the mana that constituted the dungeon would destabilize, causing a dungeon break. The result? An explosion. The power of the explosion varied by dungeon, but in the past, there had been dungeon breaks that wiped out entire cities.
It takes 15 days, or a fortnight, for a dungeon to break after it forms. In the case of this dungeon, less than 30 minutes remained.
‘Do-jae…’
Eun-hee looked over the documents. They contained Lee Do-jae’s ID photo and brief personal information.
‘How do I break the news…?’
A sense of discomfort welled up inside her. Given the nature of her job, she had to deliver death notices often. Even with her experience, meeting bereaved families never got easier.
‘He said he had a younger sibling…’
Eun-hee, known for her sociable nature, had maintained good relationships with the temporary hunters. Among them, she had particularly taken note of a man who, despite being an F-rank hunter, consistently participated in dungeon raids. That man was none other than Lee Do-jae.
‘I should’ve talked to him more.’
At first, she thought an F-rank hunter like him would soon die in a dungeon. Because of that, she hadn’t gotten attached.
Hunters are always close to death, so it’s hard to get attached to others. But Do-jae had managed to survive, and it had already been years since she got to know him. Though they hadn’t had any deep conversations, they occasionally exchanged a few words.
Now that Do-jae was dead, she felt a strange sadness.
‘Weaker than me, yet…’
In truth, Eun-hee was a strong hunter. Yet, she had joined the External Support Department. She feared monsters and the sight of blood. Although combat is an inevitable part of a hunter’s life, she had transferred to the mainly administrative External Support team to avoid it.
That’s why she had taken an interest in the weakest—Do-jae.
‘That kind of determination… I could never have it.’
Eun-hee knew herself well. Born into a harmonious family and living a life without much hardship, she awakened to her abilities and even gained powerful skills. Having lived without much struggle, she had inevitably become a coward.
“Assistant Manager? Are we leaving?”
Thump—
Eun-hee steps on a burned-out cigarette butt.
“He’s dead now anyway. Even though I’m in an administrative position, I’m still a hunter. I need to stay composed about someone’s death.”
“Let’s go.”
—
At that moment.
Do-jae woke up in an unfamiliar place.
“Ugh…”
Simultaneously, an excruciating pain hit his chest. Grabbing his heart, he collapsed. Fortunately, after a brief moment, the pain vanished as suddenly as it had come.
“What was that?”
Do-jae tugged at his collar. Something felt off about his chest today. And there, sitting where his heart should be, was something that made him question his eyes. (t/l: IRONMAN??!!?!)
It was the magic stone that had emitted that intense light.
“Why is the magic stone here?”
He was utterly shocked. The magic stone had fused with his skin, as if it had always been a part of him. It was embedded in his flesh like a fingernail attached to a fingertip.
Scratch, scratch—
He tried scratching the magic stone off. But no matter what he did, it wouldn’t budge. All he succeeded in doing was leaving red scratch marks on his skin.
In the end, Do-jae gave up trying to remove the stone and decided to focus on assessing his situation first.
‘I blacked out again.’
Do-jae had lost consciousness twice in a short span of time. He wondered if his brain was malfunctioning, so he reached up to check his head. Fortunately, there was no blood this time.
‘Last time, it was a cave, and now it’s a desert.’
A vast wilderness stretched out before him. In the distance, he could see mountains. There were only sporadically scattered tall trees and large rocks.
‘Nothing.’
After surveying the area for a while, he found no trace of human activity. No roads, no signs, no man-made objects of any kind. In the end, he climbed onto a flat rock to sit.
And what does any modern person do in such a situation?
[5G]
‘Looks like this place is also a dungeon.’
There was still no signal on his smartphone.
A strange environment, an unfamiliar place. Even so, Do-jae calmly reviewed the situation. Remaining cool-headed and acting rationally was the best an F-rank hunter could do.
‘That strange temple, the vibrating magic stone and armor. And what was that thing?’
Just before he blacked out, he had squinted at something transparent and square. It resembled a hologram, an image that still lingered in his mind.
‘It said something about a quest, right?’
When it comes to quests, only one thing comes to mind: tasks given to players in games.
‘I wish I could read it again.’
But he didn’t know how to bring that hologram back. To his surprise, it turned out to be simpler than he thought.
“Quest. Show quest. Quest progress. Quest details?”
The hologram from earlier popped back up before his eyes.
Clichés always worked like magic.
[Quest]
Category: Main
Details: A trial has begun to see if you truly possess the qualifications. Survive within the time limit. (Progress: 0.22%)
Time limit: 6 hours (Remaining time: 5 hours, 58 minutes, 12 seconds)
Reward: Pocket Dimension
Failure: Destruction of the Golem’s Heart
“Oh…!”
It was the kind of holographic window that anyone who had played an RPG game would have seen before—a status window.
Do-jae spent some time examining the status window.
‘It seems like only I can see this.’
The window was fixed in place, unaffected by his field of vision. It would stay open until he verbally closed it.
He’d never heard of any hunter having access to such a thing, so this must be something only visible to him.
Could this be a reawakening?
Reawakening, also known as dual awakening, is a phenomenon experienced by only a very small number of people in the world.
Those who have undergone a reawakening have all ascended to the rank of S-Class Hunters, also known as transcendent beings.
The reason South Korea has significant influence over the world today is due to the five S-Class Hunters, two of whom are reawakened.
“Ha…”
Do-jae calmed his excitement and began to read the quest details carefully.
Whether it’s a reawakening or something else, knowing the content of the quest comes first.
“True qualification, Golem’s Heart…”
The phrasing was mysterious.
What kind of qualification is being tested, and what is this Golem’s Heart that is supposed to be destroyed?
Moreover, the reward is an ‘Extra-dimensional Space.’
Is it referring to an inventory?
One thing was clear.
“Survive.”
What he needs to survive from, he did not know.
A barren, desolate plain.
This arid and lifeless land showed no signs of any living creatures.
Yet, the time limit was 6 hours.
Even an ordinary person should be able to survive for 6 hours.
“Do I just need to endure?”
A tinge of anxiety overwhelmed him.
Do-jae’s temples throbbed.
Is it really just about spending 6 hours?
And what happens after the 6 hours is over, he did not know.
“I guess I’ll find out in time.”
There was no conclusion to be drawn from worrying about it.
After all, he was in a position where even the quest screen was incomprehensible.
In that case, he should quickly move on from the headache and think about something else.
And naturally, his thoughts turned to the game.
‘If there’s a quest, shouldn’t there be information about me as well?’
When it comes to important elements in a game, an information screen is a must.
One cannot play a game without knowing their character’s abilities.
Moreover, in today’s game market, where combat power is everything, an information screen is essential for comparing oneself with others.
Thus, Do-jae recalled the information screen.
“My information, check information…”
Pop.
A new status screen appeared before his eyes.
The word ‘Check’ seemed to be some kind of signal for it to appear.
[Information]
Name: Lee Do-jae
Level: 1
Title: Golem Mage
Health: 1000 / Mana: 100
[Stats]
Strength: 10 / Stamina: 10 / Agility: 10 / Mental: 10 / Resistance: 10
(Points: 0)
[Skills]
Passive: Golem’s Heart Lvl Max
Active: Golem Summon Lvl 1
‘As expected.’
As anticipated, the information screen containing various stats appeared.
It was amazing how a person’s abilities were quantified in this way.
The first thing that caught his eye was the title.
‘Golem Mage…’
Golems.
A type of monster.
An inanimate entity that moves by receiving mana from mana stones.
They are often found in dungeons, and if a golem appears, there’s a high chance that treasure will be nearby.
Because of this, golems are considered a boon among hunters.
‘If I’m a Golem Mage, does that mean I control golems?’
There are hunters who handle or control certain beings.
For example, tamers who tame monsters, or necromancers who raise the dead.
Since awakened individuals have a wide range of abilities, many hunters have unique skills.
However, a hunter who summons golems?
He had never heard of such a hunter in his entire career.
‘Health and Mana are obvious. Strength, Stamina, Agility… Mental, Resistance?’
Health and Mana were straightforward.
When the numbers drop to 0, death occurs.
Strength, Stamina, and Agility were also familiar concepts.
Strength means pure physical power, Stamina is the endurance to maintain that power, and Agility represents speed.
However, Mental and Resistance were a bit unclear.
Mental seemed to be related to Mana.
Since Mana is a force separate from the physical.
Resistance was completely elusive.
Purely based on the meaning of the word, it could be interpreted as resistance or defiance against some force.
‘I guess I’ll understand if I raise the points.’
It’s obvious.
Level and Points.
Connecting these two terms, it’s easy to infer that points are given whenever leveling up.
How many points are given and what effects each point has, will be learned later.
‘Golem’s Heart and Golem Summon skills.’
These were the important parts.
The abilities of awakened individuals are also referred to as skills.
However, awakened individuals cannot view their status screens.
Instead, skills are engraved in their minds upon awakening.
Yet, for some reason, he could not understand anything about the skills like other awakened individuals.
“Skill, Golem’s Heart Check.”
When in doubt, find out immediately.
[Skill]
Skill Name: Golem’s Heart
Level: Max
Type: Passive
Description: The Golem’s Heart is the most important core that activates the golem. If the Golem’s Heart is destroyed by a strong physical impact or if all mana is depleted, it will be destroyed. If the Golem’s Heart is destroyed, you will meet your death.
Effect: None
Mana Consumption: None
‘This is what it’s talking about.’
Do-jae looked at his chest again.
The spot where the heart should be.
Right above it was a mana stone embedded.
Tap tap.
He lightly tapped it with his finger.
Since it was called a heart, it felt unsettling.
“Skill, Golem Summon Check.”
[Skill]
Skill Name: Golem Summon
Level: 1
Type: Active
Description: Summons a golem. Summoning a golem requires a central core and materials to form the exterior. The golem is affected by the skill level.
Effect: None
Mana Consumption: 10
‘Anyway, let’s focus on the quest for now.’
The quest mentioned that the heart would be stolen.
Whether it’s his heart or the Golem’s Heart, if it’s taken, he dies.
And he must spend the 6 hours here.
‘But it said to survive.’
The quest asked him to survive, not just to spend the time limit.
There must be something else.
And then.
As if to prove that Do-jae’s thoughts were correct, a sharp whistling sound echoed.
Whoosh-!
A strong wind brushed over his head.
Followed by an unpleasant scream.
“Kiiiaaaak!”
Looking up at the sky, Do-jae immediately recognized the source of the sound.
“Harpy!”
A monster with the body of a large bird and the face of a person.
With a protruding beak and a gaping, jagged mouth, it emitted a sharp sound.
The grotesque creature, terrifying to the point of inducing chills, circled the sky, targeting Do-jae.
‘It’s telling me to survive from the monster.’
“Recalling the quest details, Do-jae braced himself and clenched his teeth.”
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