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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Reunion in the Dungeon
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＊ ＊ ＊

Se-heon opened his eyes.

His head was throbbing. He was used to migraines, having lived with them for years, but this headache was different. It felt as though someone had slammed a hammer into his skull.

His body ached, too. With that thought, he opened his eyes.

*This must be... a dungeon.*

He had known even before opening his eyes. He remembered being caught in the rift while trying to evacuate people.

He was lying on a dirt floor, the kind found in a forest untouched by human hands. Jagged rocks dug into his back.

Se-heon slowly got up and looked around.

It was a dark forest. It looked similar to the great forests he had visited for a shoot back when he was briefly demoted to the culture team. A cold, damp woodland where the trees grew so densely that the sun barely broke through.

“So it really is a dungeon.”

He muttered to himself for no particular reason. There was no sign of life around him. To be precise, not even the sound of an insect could be heard.

In a normal forest, one would expect to hear the chirping of insects or the scurrying of wild animals.

But this forest was different. Not a breath of wind stirred, and an absolute silence reigned. This profound strangeness only confirmed his certainty that this was a dungeon.

*I'm screwed.*

He had reached the exact same conclusion as Kang Ha-ra. It was only natural. After all, Se-heon was an ordinary civilian.

The world was divided into two: the world of civilians and the world of Hunters.

In the civilian world, he had a body robust enough to be called, in vulgar terms, an alpha male. But in the world of Hunters, he was nothing more than a pathetically weak civilian. In game terms, it was no exaggeration to say he was like a passing NPC.

*First, I need to find a place to hide.*

Se-heon had spent nearly five years in the social affairs department. His debut report had been about a dungeon, and most of his work since had involved covering dungeon-related incidents. As a result, he was well-versed in all things dungeons.

*When a civilian gets caught in a dungeon, they shouldn't act recklessly. They must hide, no matter what.*

He checked himself over. He was still in the same clothes he'd been wearing for the studio shoot. However, his expensive suit was a muddy, disheveled mess, and his glasses had long since shattered. Since he didn't wear them for poor eyesight, it wasn't a problem.

He got up and moved around. It seemed he wasn't seriously injured.

He quickly scanned his surroundings and soon spotted a large rock cliff. To be more precise, it was closer to a pile of boulders from a landslide, a stone tomb of sorts. Among them was a crevice just big enough for one or two people to squeeze into.

But Se-heon didn't move right away. He looked around again.

*Is there no one else here?*

When he was first swept into the rift while evacuating people, he had thought he was a dead man for sure. Being so knowledgeable about dungeons, he knew all too well the fate of civilians who got caught in them.

Hadn't the studio staff tried to flee first? He had seen the look in their eyes as the rift pulled him in.

The staff members, who had avoided the rift only because Se-heon had forced them to the ground, had all just stared at him blankly.

*Damn it.*

Who was it that saved them? He felt a pang of betrayal. But it wasn't as if he couldn't understand. It was common knowledge that being swept into a rift meant death, so no one would have dared to try and save him.

Just like when he was a child.

However.

“Get back!”

There had been someone who shouted that as they grabbed him.

Kang, what was her name again? Anyway, it was the civil servant from the Mapo branch office, whose face was barely visible behind thick glasses and a curtain of hair.

*I was about to tell her to let go, that it was dangerous.*

The vortex of the rift was too strong for him to even open his mouth. Besides, the hand gripping his collar was incredibly strong.

Looking around, he couldn't see her. Had he fallen in alone? If so, that was a huge relief.

Even the staff he saw every day hadn't tried to save him, but she was the only one who had. Even if everyone else had been swept away, he found himself hoping that she, at least, was safe.

*Anyway, I should start worrying about myself now.*

Se-heon rubbed his face with his dry hands.

Then he took out the cell phone rattling in his suit pocket. The phone was surprisingly intact, but of course, it had no signal.

No Service. Instead, a government safety alert had popped up on the screen.

[EMERGENCY ALERT: National Disaster Response Agency / Today 3:40 PM Gate Warning in Yeouido-dong (East Yeouido), Seoul. Evacuate high-risk areas. Refrain from non-essential travel. Please ensure your safety.]

[EMERGENCY ALERT: National Disaster Response Agency / Today 3:40 PM B-Rank Gate has appeared in Yeouido-dong (East Yeouido), Seoul. Evacuate high-risk areas. Refrain from non-essential travel. Please ensure your safety.]

“…”

A B-Rank.

“I'm really going to die…”

His assessment of the situation was swift. It took a full day for a team of S-Rank Hunters to clear a B-Rank dungeon. And to think a B-Rank Gate had opened in Yeouido of all places.

The outside world must be in total chaos.

“Oh my god, they said they were turning off the breaker in the control room for the drama set construction today!”

Recalling the floor director's shriek, Se-heon irritably yanked his tie loose.

Those crazy bastards.

It was common knowledge worldwide that Gates couldn't open in buildings embedded with Magic Stones. Therefore, preserving the Magic Stones, even during simple construction, was an absolute necessity.

But there were still people who removed the Magic Stones while they worked, thinking, *It'll be fine.*

“This damned safety negligence.”

*A Gate won't just open up in the middle of Yeouido, right?* That's what they must have thought. If I ever get out of here, whoever was in charge of that construction is going to…

…is going to…

He sighed. Could he even get out?

There was no one else around. He once again thought of the civil servant who had grabbed his collar.

*If only there was a Hunter here.*

They were always receiving training on dungeons. Surely they would be more accustomed to this than a civilian like him.

Accustomed…

E-Rank…

*No way she'd be accustomed to this.*

Thanks to his dungeon coverage, he knew the ins and outs of the Hunter world.

He knew better than anyone how ill-prepared E-Rank civil servant Hunters were for actual dungeon fieldwork. Besides, an E-Rank was only a hair's breadth away from being a regular civilian.

*It's probably better that I'm alone.*

Se-heon considered it for a moment, but his conclusion remained the same. It was a million times better that he had fallen in by himself. The fewer people who died senselessly in a dungeon, the better.

He took off his suit jacket and stuffed it under a rock. If this was a forest-type dungeon, there would be many animal-type monsters, and they might track him by scent. He also tossed aside his tie and rolled up his sleeves.

“Let's get going.”

He said it as if steeling himself. He was only human, so of course, he was scared. But he couldn't just stand here in the middle of the forest, dumbfounded.

It was then.

*Rustle…*

Se-heon flinched. In the dark forest where not even the sound of a rustling leaf could be heard, the noise was jarringly loud.

*A monster? Did it hear me when I just spoke?*

All the while, the sound of something moving toward him continued. Se-heon slowly backed away. He figured he should at least get into the crevice he'd found earlier.

He was trying to muffle his footsteps so as not to provoke the unknown entity when it happened.

“Oh.”

Se-heon's eyes widened. A person had emerged from between the trees. And it was the very civil servant he had just been thinking of. He felt a reflexive sense of relief, even though he had only met her for the first time today.

“Oh, you're awake?”

And it seemed the other person was just as glad to see him. In the next moment, Se-heon was once again struck by how much of a scumbag he was. Just moments ago, he had been thinking it was better for fewer people to be trapped here.

“Damn it, you stupid bastard. I've dragged someone else's life into this mess again.”

He muttered to himself unconsciously, rubbing his face. It was too quiet for the woman to hear.

The woman in glasses raised an eyebrow and strode toward him.

“Are you all right?”

Se-heon immediately changed his expression.

“I'm fine. What about you?”

“Ah, I'm fine too. You're not hurt, are you?”

“No.”

The woman explained that she had woken up much earlier and had already looked around the area. Her strangely fidgety demeanor was probably because she was scared. Se-heon felt a bit awkward.

“Luckily, I don't have any broken bones or injuries. You…”

“Same here.”

She was in a similar state as him, except for a small tear on the knee of her black slacks.

Se-heon quickly continued.

“More importantly, did you fall in here because of me?”

“Uh, um…”

The woman's eyes darted around. She seemed to be choosing her words carefully. He had half-expected her to grab him by the collar and scream, "I fell in here because of you!" Se-heon quickly bowed his head.

“Thank you.”

“Ah, well… It's not really something to be thankful for…”

The civil servant stammered.

“If you're going to thank me, it should be after we get out of here, and we haven't managed that yet…”

She had a point. Se-heon pursed his lips.

“I don't have to wait until you've saved my life to say thank you.”

“S-Still…”

He was about to ask, *But you got swept in while trying to save me, didn't you?* but shook his head. Right now, surviving together was more important than exchanging pleasantries.

“Did you find anywhere to hide nearby?”

“Uh, no.”

It seemed she had also been scouting the area for a hiding place.

“I couldn't go far.”

It was probably because of him.

“I've also taken a quick look around. If there's nothing else, we should probably hide over there.”

Se-heon pointed to the crevice in the rocks. It looked a little tight for two people, but he thought they could manage if they squeezed in.

The woman hesitated before speaking.

“But…”

“Go on.”

She seemed somewhat uncomfortable.

*Does she not want to go in there?*

It was understandable. They had just met today. It would certainly be awkward to press her body against a man she'd never seen before to fit into a narrow crevice.

But their lives were on the line. Just as he was about to try and persuade her…

“I'm sorry, but what's your name…?”

*An introduction? In the middle of a dungeon? Out of the blue?*