VSP 10

As Sejun used the cold pack to cool his face, he heard a popping sound and the space warped nearby as the dungeon entrance began to open.

The twisted space sucked in everything including light like a black hole, then formed an entrance glowing deep blue.

Hunters who had experienced its interior many times called it a dungeon, but ordinary people more often called it a gate, because to them it felt like an entrance to another dimension.

When Sejun faced this intense blue glow, the word “gate” felt more fitting to him too. Of course, once inside, the thought that it was a dungeon became stronger.

Association staff began moving busily, and the three gathered near the entrance.

“Hey.”

Dohun called Sejun. Honestly, when he first called him, Sejun thought he would apologize.

But that was Sejun thinking too simply about Dohun.

“Don’t act out. If you fool around and die, you’ll just cause trouble for me and Dogyeong. Got it?”

That was obviously not an apology.

“……”

Sejun shut his mouth. He had a record of stepping up when it was unnecessary, only to make trouble and burden other hunters. He really had been a troublemaker.

But shouldn’t you apologize first if you hit someone, you bastard?

For some reason, even saying that felt tiring, so Sejun just stayed silent. If he spoke, they would fight again, Dogyeong would glare at him, and because of his history and reputation, Sejun would end up the sinner. He had been through that too many times not to know.

The author had said it. Seo Sejun was a character created to act out, cause accidents, and get retired like a power-level gauge. He was built that way from the start.

“Let’s go.”

At Dogyeong’s word, the three entered the dungeon entrance at the same time.

With a strange feeling like something soft was passing through their bodies, they stepped inside, and unlike the spring-like weather outside, hot and humid air suddenly hit them.

What greeted them was a huge jungle. The sudden heat and the green jungle that looked like the Amazon felt unreal, but this was a dungeon. A world completely different from outside.

“In this state, we can’t see anything?”

Dohun clicked his tongue. The jungle was so full of trees and bushes, with too much cover, it would be hard to notice if enemies were hiding.

“There’s cover everywhere. We never know what will pop out. It’s better to just look from above.”

When Dogyeong said that, Dohun nodded.

Huh.

Before Sejun could react, the two pushed off the ground and jumped up. Every S-rank hunter had at least one skill that allowed some kind of aerial movement. For Dohun, it was making his body light so he could leap up. For Dogyeong, it was stepping on air itself and standing in the sky.

And Seo Sejun…

“Hey, ahhh…!”

He called them in panic, but the two had already leapt high into the sky, completely ignoring the jungle and going over it.

As if it was obvious everyone would follow. And in fact, among S-rank, there was no one for whom that was impossible.

“Ha, fuck.”

Of course, Sejun could do it too.

As long as he summoned. But Sejun’s biggest problem was the duration of his summons. If he called one out now just to fly, when the actual fight started he would not be able to summon. Then he would be nothing but a bare body S-rank hunter.

“……”

Sejun gulped his saliva and looked at the jungle, where countless unknown monsters would be waiting.

[Looks dangerous.]

“What else can I do?”

If he could not fly, he had no choice but to run. If he stayed here doing nothing, he really would contribute nothing and might not even get rewards.

So with a sigh, Sejun slowly stepped into the jungle.

•••

“Where’s Seo Sejun?”

“He obviously fell behind.”

As they were moving far ahead, Dogyeong suddenly looked back and asked, and Dohun shrugged.

“……”

In Dogyeong’s view, any S-rank hunter should be able to follow. He never cared about whether lower hunters could keep up. But somehow, Sejun had not.

“He couldn’t have followed without using his summons. The problem is, if he uses them just to fly, he won’t be able to do anything in battle.”

They have known each other long enough, Dohun knew the traits of his summons, even exactly how long they could last.

So he could make a fairly objective assessment and knew well what Sejun would choose in this kind of situation.

“Right about now he’s probably running like crazy through the jungle.”

Because all his ability was poured into summons, his own physical skills were only the bare basics of an S-rank.

Dohun smirked as he spoke. Dogyeong stared at him for a moment, then glanced down at the jungle and nodded. It was true that if they matched Sejun’s tempo in a place like this, nothing would work out. But that was one thing, and this was another.

“Lee Dohun.”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t hit him.”

With those words, Dogyeong kicked off the air and jumped. His movement showed he intended to deal with the dungeon’s core monster as fast as possible, and Dohun froze for a second. He could not understand what those words meant.

But soon after, he realized, and his face went stiff with panic.

“No, that earlier thing was really an accident……!”

Even while thinking, Why am I making excuses?, Dohun hurriedly made an excuse and followed after Dogyeong.

Of course, Dogyeong never looked back.

•••

Normally, boss monsters stood out even among mobs. Even if the dungeon would disappear once hunters cleared it, inside that space the boss was still the king.

The way it appeared, its stamina, its stats, everything was overwhelmingly higher than other creatures.

The monsters considered the dungeon’s core, the focus of the raid, were like that too. Hunters just called them bosses for convenience.

From A-rank and above, some even had flashy appearances, with unnecessary entrance scenes like something out of a game. Dropping from the sky, suddenly bursting out from a wall, things like that.

When Dogyeong and Dohun cleared the small monsters, a monster shaped like a huge tree, fitting the jungle theme, began to stir and reveal itself from the deepest part of the dungeon.

It probably intended to appear with a “Kuhaha!” roar.

“Kuh……!”

Crunch.

The problem was it crumbled to dust from a single gesture of Dogyeong’s hand before it could even finish laughing. It could not even deliver its line.

The tree-shaped boss that had been pushing through gaps in the dungeon’s vine-covered walls perished right there, inside the same wall gap it was emerging from.

As the dungeon cleared, a refreshing wind blew, and the heavy, oppressive air that had filled the dungeon disappeared instantly.

For an A-rank boss, it was a pitiful end.

“Haha.”

Dohun, who had been standing with his hands behind his back because he knew Dogyeong would handle it anyway, laughed and clapped.

“Ah, that’s really funny.”

A dungeon boss unable to make even one laugh line before being shattered by a flick of Dogyeong’s hand.

The only thing he had done was clean up the small monsters, but that was normal. A-rank dungeons were originally at a level where one S-rank could handle them alone. This was how easy it was supposed to be.

Since Dogyeong was EX-rank, Dohun had thought there was no reason for him to step in, so he had stood back. But he had not expected the boss would fail to even make a proper appearance.

Dogyeong showed overwhelming might, but he said nothing. He did not boast to Dohun, who was impressed. He just landed silently, tilted his head slightly. Time to leave.

“Honestly, at this level, it should be A-rank or lower handling it. What’s with this special management period?”

Dohun grumbled as he followed Dogyeong. Dogyeong didn’t react, but Dohun kept chattering away.

It really was excessive to have two S-rank in an A-rank dungeon. Like using an ox-cleaver to kill a chicken.

But Ryu Sehyun had said S-rank hunters had to show themselves working hard for a while, so that later the media could not find any angle to criticize them. He had even made the teams himself. They could not refuse.

Like most hunters, Dohun was loyal to Ryu Sehyun. Even that Cha Dogyeong usually accepted whatever Sehyun said. So who was he to object?

As they moved like before, soaring smoothly through the jungle sky, Dogyeong suddenly asked Dohun.

“Where’s Seo Sejun?”

About Seo Sejun, whom they had completely forgotten.