043. Dungeon Attack (2)
Coming out of the studio, I went to the official site of the Hunter Association on my smartphone and applied for a party.
“For a party… this should be enough.”
It was a duo party that applied for a party on the site certified by the Hunter Association.
「Looking for a D-class or higher hunter to play a duo at the emergency gate in Jikdong Neighborhood Park in Uijeongbu.」 A
duo party is generally composed of a team focused on talented people.
This is because you need to be skilled enough to divide the ratio of all settlements in half.
It’s more risky than a party with many people, and if the sum doesn’t match, something big could happen…
‘Anyway, it’s better than the 4th floor ordeal.’
At that time, I really grabbed the collar and made my teammates break through the ordeal.
I did, but now if you say you can’t even do a duo in a dungeon like this, that’s a problem.
“If I can’t even break through a D-class dungeon, my level will be the problem.”
For that reason, I applied for a duo party and my application was accepted soon.
The title of C-class hunter registered on the Hunter Association site immediately got an OK sign.
-Hunter Han Seong-yoon, I would appreciate it if you could come to the emergency gate location as quickly as possible.
-I have obtained permission to enter one of the three gates in the park, so all I have to do is come.
-The settlement ratio is half and half, and depending on the situation, special rewards will be given to Hunter Han Seong-yoon.
That was not enough, so he said he would give me special compensation depending on the situation.
Seeing you say that, it seems like you want to somehow get by-products as a duo.
‘The grade is quite high, so it’s comfortable.’
The treatment changed as a higher grade came out than what I originally tried to find.
Soon, I smiled, turned off my smartphone, and caught a taxi on the side of the road.
There was no hesitation as I had to go quickly to the place where the gate occurred.
“Please go near Jikdong Neighborhood Park.”
I was wondering what to do if something useful comes out of the dungeon…
‘There’s no need to worry.’
He would act so that he had no choice but to eat the item unconditionally.
I had a hunch that I would get quite a bit from the emergency gate location.
***
Lee Cheol-won, sitting in a pavilion inside Jikdong Neighborhood Park in Uijeongbu, frowned.
“Wow, that’s crazy. Why are there so many people?”
It has been only an hour since the emergency disaster text message announced the occurrence of the gate.
Even so, more than ten people had already gathered at the place where the gate occurred.
Lee Cheol-won sighed deeply when he saw the hunters, who were unusual just by looking at the equipment worn on the outside.
‘How many hunters are in the crazy neighborhood…’
Originally, the only hunters who are mobilized for emergency gates are those in the vicinity.
I thought that at most two or three teams would gather, but more people gathered than that.
Even with only three gates, I didn’t expect that many hunters would gather.
‘It’s probably because of the Tower of Trials or something, damn it.’
Those who recently visited the Tower of Trials released a lot of low-grade items, making it difficult for lower-level hunters to make money.
Since the items are not paid for, income is not coming out compared to the amount of labor… It
must have been that the lower-level hunters quickly gathered because their eyes were blinded by the occurrence of an emergency gate.
“The world is really coming to an end.”
Even so, Lee Cheol-won did not think of stepping down.
For Lee Cheol-won, a D-class hunter, the occurrence of an emergency gate was nothing short of a jackpot.
This is because it is difficult for him to make a lot of money as a freelancer who usually only goes to places like public dungeons.
The game even got worse because of the items released from places like the Tower of Trials.
‘I heard that I could be forcibly summoned to the Tower of Trials… I need to earn money quickly.’
The world was changing again.
The world was so chaotic that even he, a low-ranking hunter, felt it was unusual.
Rumors circulate that ordinary people can enter the dungeon called the Tower of Trials, or that hunters lose all their powers when summoned to the tower.
Once again, it was clear that the world was changing, as in the days of the cataclysm.
I had to do something just in case the rumor that I lost my power and was summoned to a place called the tower was true.
‘The fortunate thing is that the recruited party members are C-class hunters.’
Well, looking at his career, it seems he hasn’t been active yet…
but he still had the belief that a hunter with a higher rank than himself would do well in whatever he did.
‘At least that’s enough for me to be certain of my combat abilities.’
Unsurprisingly, a hunter with no experience was definitely better than a low-level hunter with experience.
Even if there is a jjambab, it is because the low-level hunter lacks basic power.
On the contrary, it was quite an annoying problem at the duo party to cause a backlash with a halfway experience.
In that case, it is better to organize a party with people of the same level or higher with no experience.
Even if you have experience, not all of them can be treated as the same experience.
At that time, a calm voice suddenly sounded in Lee Cheol-won’s ear.
“Are you Hunter Lee Cheol-won, who recruited the duo party?”
It was the arrival of the new Hunter who had been waiting.
***
Immediately after coming to the emergency gate location, I spoke to the man sitting in the pavilion.
‘Is this the hunter who said he was looking for a duo party?’
It was certain that he pointed to a specific place and said he would wait.
And that guess was right on point.
“Yes, Lee Cheol-won is correct, but if that’s the case…”
“I am Han Seong-yoon.”
“Ah nice to meet you. You seem to be quite promising, and it’s an honor to meet you.”
“Not quite like that. From the looks of it, you seem to have quite a bit of experience.
After exchanging formal greetings, I took a peek at Lee Cheol-won’s whereabouts.
It was a piece of equipment based on greaves with a lion’s face engraved on the spear and emitting cool air.
It was well maintained to the point where you could see right through that it was a pretty good item.
‘The item level is better than I thought.’
Perhaps he saved the duo with unfounded confidence, but the armament itself was pretty good.
Most of the items had an appearance that would be E-class or higher, so I felt trustworthy.
‘I don’t know about the detailed effect of the item or something like that.’
It was easy to figure out that they had enough energy to enter the D-class dungeon as a duo.
Feeling somewhat satisfied, Lee Cheol-won opened his mouth.
“As you may have known beforehand, there are a total of three gates created in this park. We’re going to enter the second of them. Permission to enter was obtained in advance. Probably, other teams besides us will not enter.”
“Hmm… that’s nice. But do you know why there are no other teams?”
“It’s more dangerous than other gates and the inside is narrow, so it’s difficult to fight properly if there are many people inside, so a party of three or four couldn’t even dare to enter.”
Most of the hunters gathered around belonged to a party full of people.
In other words, it meant going into a duo party and becoming a monopoly of the two.
‘I guess that’s why the number of items I can get increases as well.’
After listening to the explanation, I was still, so Lee Cheol-won continued.
“Yes, but I’m also D-class, and Hunter Han Seong-yoon is also C-class, so it’s worth trying.”
The tone seemed to suggest that if you were going back, think carefully about the reward, but…
“I see. It’s definitely worth doing.”
Since I had been aiming for such a reward from the beginning, I had no intention of going back.
‘There’s no better opportunity than this to prepare for the 8th floor ordeal.’
It was only natural that he had come to grow through his newly acquired abilities.
“We don’t have much time, so let’s go through the gate first. The settlement distribution will be half and half, which is the standard for a duo party, and if you wish, you can nominate and collect items under mutual agreement.”
At that, I nodded slightly and replied.
“All right.”
Well, there was nothing to doubt because it was all according to the standard.
“Then it’s a party formation. Please take good care of me, Hunter Han Seong-yoon.”
After saying that, Cheolwon Lee smiled and held out his empty left hand to me.
“Yes, I would also like to ask for your support.”
Soon, I held Lee Cheol-won’s hand and smiled lightly.
Now it was time to start clearing the first dungeon as a Hunter.
***
Ugh…!
The moment I entered the gate in the center of the park, the scenery changed.
Of course, the phenomenon itself was not so surprising.
It was one of the phenomena experienced at the Tower of Trials.
also.
I knew that inside the gate, a new space disconnected from reality was created.
It is often said that a space in the form of a meadow, wilderness, or cave appears….
It just happened to be a cave this time.
“Cave-type dungeons aren’t very compatible with melee types… but it’s a waste.”
Lee Cheol-won frowned as he looked around the narrow cave.
It also meant that it was difficult to fight in the cave because of the richness of the weapon… but
rather than that, it was a tone that seemed to be a disappointment in a different sense.
“Certainly, it’s a bit narrow for the two of us to fight together, right?”
I also agreed with Cheolwon Lee and started to understand the surrounding environment.
It might be enough for two to walk side by side in a narrow, damp cave, but it’s hard to fight together.
I’m holding a melee sword that’s not very long, and Lee Cheol-won’s spear is specialized for stabbing…
‘It’s a small space for the two of us to use weapons together.’
Of course, since I hadn’t entered the gate yet, I didn’t know the space in front of me.
Most dungeons are even more so because the space changes as you go deeper.
Perhaps when you reach the center, the space will be considerably larger than it is now.
However, just because the space may soon expand doesn’t mean you should be vigilant.
‘Even at the beginning, monsters exist.’
They say there aren’t many monsters at the beginning, but…
Whether it’s the Tower of Trials or a dungeon, there’s nothing that can be said to be ‘unconditional’.
Perhaps even at the beginning, a threatening monster could emerge.
“For now, let’s move forward with caution.”
Soon, I slowly raised my sword and invited Cheolwon Lee to move.
Well, it’s an awkward environment for fighting each other, but nothing happens if you don’t move.
Cheolwon Lee nodded his head with a bewildered expression as if he had come to his senses.
“Oh let’s do that. Just follow it while paying attention to make sure there is nothing around.”
Lee Cheol-won then took the lead and said so.
‘…No, I wanted to be at the forefront.’
I wanted to take advantage of this and that ability, so I tried to be in the lead, but I missed the timing.
I felt regret at the moment, but Lee Cheol-won is also a hunter with experience in dungeon raids.
‘Even though it’s regrettable, it would be right to give Lee Cheol-won the lead now.’
I also heard that the true hunt begins in the heart of the dungeon.
Even if you’re still in such a hurry and don’t want to fight, you still have plenty of opportunities.
It’s important to check the newly acquired abilities, but…
‘It would be okay to find out how a skilled hunter behaves.’
With that thought in mind, I followed Cheol-Won Lee and entered the cave.
And that was the moment.
“Keeeeeee…”
Cheolwon Lee half-opened his eyes at the low cry that slowly approached from the front.
“Hmm, Lizard Man… This opponent is not very good.”
Lizard Man.
Overall, it was a D-class monster in human form resembling a reptile.
However, if there is something unusual, it is that they use skilled weapon skills unlike goblins or orcs.
‘I heard that all Lizard Men are proficient in weapon skills.’
It was also a monster known for possessing skills using high-level weapon skills.
“Kie eh ke eh eh.”
The lizard man slowly approached with a long spear in his glistening eyes.
“Weapons skills are also tricky, but this is tricky because it’s a long spear.”
“It would be better for one person to fight than two to fight.”
“Yes, fortunately, my spear is longer and richer, so I will be the opponent.”
“…let it be.”
I thought about it for a while, but there was only one enemy.
Considering the monster to be caught later, it would be right to yield to Lee Cheol-won for now.
It is also an opportunity to see for yourself how to deal with it appropriately as you have a wealth of experience.
Having judged that, I stepped back…
“…?”
No, I was trying to back off.
Until Lee Cheol-won hesitated and had a snowball fight while aiming at Lizard Man.
‘What the hell…’
I thought it would be settled at once, but the two engage in a war of nerves while looking into their eyes.
A situation where they are going through an invisible battle while mixing fakes as if they are going to stab a window.
I know that you use careful movements to get a sure blow.
But I didn’t give up the lead just to see a fight like this.
It was not very good to spend my time in reality, which was only three days, in this way.
It’s not enough even if you’re engrossed in attacking the gate.
‘It would be difficult if I couldn’t catch the lizard man from the beginning and the attack slowed down.’
The emergency gate location is different from normal dungeons in many ways.
In order to prevent the monsters from coming out of the gate right now, they just gather hunters and have them hunt.
If time passes, the Hunter Association will decide whether to block the gate or make it a common dungeon.
Perhaps hunters directly under the Hunter Association will come and clear the gate soon.
It is safe to say that the time limit applies not only to staying in reality, but also to the use of this dungeon.
If that’s the case…
‘I can’t take more time.’
In the end, I had no choice but to change my course of action in order to clear the dungeon quickly.
In the direction of directly dealing with the enemy without watching the skilled hunter’s fight.
“For a moment, I will help too.”
As much as the brief thought, the action was swift.
Immediately after spitting out the words in passing, I moved my body quickly.
bang!
The moment he nervously kicked off the floor and ran forward, Lee Cheol-won was shocked.
“This crazy…! Everyone come back right away-!”
Perhaps Lee Cheol-won was quite taken aback by my sudden action, but…
“Instantaneous acceleration.”
Then, the moment I opened my mouth briefly.
「The skill ‘Instantaneous Acceleration’ is activated.」
Cheol-Won Lee’s urgent cry soon cut off.
Chow-!
“…uh?”
The explosively increased speed could not be matched by the Lizardman, who was only a D-class monster.
A sword attack with a skill based on high stats is…
ok.
“It’s done.”
It was enough to drop the Lizard Man’s head to the ground at once.
‘They weren’t particularly strong just because they were monsters in the dungeon.’
Rather, I wonder if it is weaker than the monster from the Tower of Trials.
Even though it’s the same D-class monster, I thought it was a little ambiguous for some reason, but that’s not the point.
Soon I opened my mouth, shaking off the blood from the blade on the floor.
“I was in a hurry, so I would appreciate it if you could understand.”
“Ah yes… I understand this. It could be.”
Lee Cheol-won nodded his head like a man who had gone crazy.
It was as if he didn’t understand the current situation, but…
That’s why now is the right moment to convince Lee Cheol-won.
“Oh, and there’s something I’d like to suggest… can I?”
“It’s all natural. Say anything.”
At that, I smiled and put into my mouth what I had been thinking about for a while.
“From now on, I want to be at the forefront.”
I couldn’t use all the time left to clear the dungeon.
It’s time to finish the slow attack and gradually speed up the progress.
