Chapter 178

The office of the Chairman of the Korean Hunter Association.

Chairman Choi Taeseung wore a grim expression.

It was fine up to the point of sending five of the nation’s rankers to the Russian Dungeon, which had recently been shrouded in suspicion.

[Families of the Missing Cling to a Thread of Hope, “If it’s support from a High Ranker, it’s still a comfort.”]

[Rank 78 Skeleton King, What Will Be the Result of His First Expedition?]

[Additional News! Rank 101 Steel Fist Also Volunteers!]

[Some Voices of Concern Emerge Regarding Mafia-Infested Russia.]

Because of that coverage, public opinion, which had been boiling over, had at least settled down.

“Is it because of ranker Bong Jaeyoung, sir?”

The secretary across from the Chairman asked cautiously, seeing his heavy expression.

“That’s right.”

Choi Taeseung admitted it without hesitation.

“Honestly, I’m very worried.”

Steel Fist was certainly skilled.

But he was like oil that pops and sizzles on its own—never mixing with water.

When he was with others, the negative effects were far greater than the positive ones.

In other words, a symbol of discord.

“We couldn’t help it, could we? When a ranker wants something that badly, how can the Association stop him?”

“Hoo, no matter how much of a ranker he is, a Dungeon is a place where you can’t see an inch ahead.”

It had only been about ten years since the world changed.

Countless Dungeons remained unconquered and unexplored—Dungeons whose grades couldn’t even be measured.

“For humanity to claim they understand all Dungeons is arrogance, a contradiction. That’s why I’m simply worried.”

“Are you worried the two rankers might fight? That because of it, they might not be able to clear the Dungeon, or an accident might happen?”

“It’s not impossible, is it?”

“Yes. In fact, there’s a high probability it could happen.”

The secretary nodded.

Because of Bong Jaeyoung’s personality, there were already more than a handful of rankers who had clashed with him.

“A ranker’s power is beyond what an ordinary person can imagine. An entire city could be blown away from a simple emotional squabble.”

“Recently, the Berserker demolished a building.”

“Hoo, just thinking about that time still makes me dizzy.”

Managing rankers, and cleaning up after them, was the Association’s role.

Choi Taeseung shuddered, recalling the overtime he’d had to pull.

“Whew.”

The secretary let out a sigh.

“Honestly, I don’t understand why the Association keeps trying to care for Bong Jaeyoung.”

“……”

“No matter how much he’s rank 101, from an Association employee’s perspective, he’s just a troublemaker… It would be better if he just naturalized in another country…”

“Watch your mouth.”

Choi Taeseung cut him off.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not that I don’t understand how you feel. But we are public servants.”

The Korean Hunter Association was an institution created under the Hunter Management Department.

It was only called an Association because it was affiliated with the World Hunter Association.

“Steel Fist is a precious national asset. And we, who eat the nation’s bread, must manage the nation’s assets with all our heart and soul…”

The Chairman gazed out the window with a bitter look.

In the dim evening, in the midst of a city packed with moving cars—

Beep! Beep!

The chaotic street felt strangely unsettling to Choi Taeseung.

—

Rustle! Rustle!

“There are some here too!”

“Over here too!”

The survivors in the Dungeon gathered as if it had all been arranged beforehand.

“Damn it, I almost died because of that goddamn fog!”

“What in the world happened? Why is this Dungeon so big and complicated?”

“Hooah, how long has it been since I’ve seen other people. Did we make it out alive?”

“If this many have gathered, and more are still coming, I think we can really survive, right?”

The clearing instantly became noisy and bustling.

Hunters of various grades, porters—

People who had been wandering in that fog for at least a month.

To be precise, it wasn’t fog, but Dokgo’s farts.

“Huh? What’s that over there? Why are people in iron cages…”

Someone pointed at the iron cages, horrified.

Whatever the Russian woman had done while fleeing, the people who had been growling inside the cages were no longer moving.

And with no trace of energy coming from their bodies…

‘Death.’

They were clearly already dead.

“It’s definitely the work of those dog-like Russian mafia bastards!”

“That’s right! My comrades were all captured too! If I didn’t have an escape-related skill, I would’ve ended up like that as well!”

“Oh, what do we do about those poor kids…”

“Evil bastards! Bastards who deserve to be torn to shreds!”

The survivors were furious.

And for good reason.

Whether it was the Dungeon’s effect or someone’s malice, they were people who’d been forced to waste an immense amount of time.

And they were people who had lost comrades.

– “Kid.”

“Yes, Elder.”

– “It’s as they say. They remotely detonated the Dokgo. The moment the Dokgo that has encroached upon the brain gives up on life, the human host loses their life along with it.”

“That’s a truly horrifying method.”

I frowned.

“How can they treat human lives so carelessly?”

My blood boiled.

Even if these people had nothing to do with me—if someone felt nothing after seeing something this gruesome, wouldn’t that make them a psychopath?

‘Gotham.’

So this is all their doing?

– “You will be angry. You will be furious. But you must endure.”

“Why?”

– “If they’re using the same method as the man I mentioned, Dang Hwi-pyeong, you could end up in a bad situation if you rush in recklessly. I was like that in the past.”

“You, Elder?”

My eyes widened.

I couldn’t easily picture the Elder being put on the back foot.

– “Well, back then, I hadn’t yet perfected the Ten Thousand Arts. Anyway. Dang Hwi-pyeong isn’t only proficient in Dokgo, but also in formations.”

“Formations…?”

– “Using the surrounding terrain to create special effects. That thing spread out with Dokgo’s farts is also one of the formations he uses.”

“……”

But the one thing I was most curious about—

Why was that Dang Hwi-pyeong guy here?

Wasn’t that bastard already dead in the Elder’s world?

‘Don’t tell me.’

Is it similar to the relationship between me and the Elder?

Suddenly, I thought of Gotham’s high ranker.

World rank 69, Bug King Andrey.

What if the man named Dang Hwi-pyeong was also lingering around him like a ghost?

‘It’s not impossible.’

That was the truth.

With so many hunters in the world, wouldn’t it be stranger if I were the only one with a helper?

Of course, it was just a guess for now.

“Anyway, what should we do then?”

– “Just wait exactly one week.”

“……Wait?”

– “Heh heh heh. You’ll know when you see. There’s a very simple way to unravel the formation that bastard laid out.”

“……?”

– “Ah, and it’ll be good news for you too, kid.”

“Good news for me?”

– “First, go up to a high place and look around in all directions.”

“Yep.”

Swoosh!

Following the Elder’s words, I climbed to the top of the tallest tree.

– “Do you see it? Your Toxin Mist is trapped inside the formation that bastard, Dang Hwi-pyeong, created.”

“What’s so good about that?”

– “You brat! Look again carefully. Isn’t your Toxin Mist growing beyond imagination?”

“……”

Huh?

It really was.

I knew it had been getting bigger, but—

‘Somehow.’

It was growing excessively.

Enough to fill this vast area in a donut-like shape.

And the energy I could feel as well—

It was vaster, thicker.

– “It’s clumping together, bound by the formation. Because of that, it’s absorbing all the Dokgo gases Dang Hwi-pyeong controls. Leave it like that for about a week. Fusion takes time.”

“Oho, then I can just go and absorb it again afterward?”

– “Heh heh heh. I knew you’d say that, you brat.”

Heh.

The growth of my Toxin Mist.

If so, was the brilliant method the Elder mentioned hidden inside that Toxin Mist?

‘Whatever.’

I’ve never lost anything by listening to the Elder, so I’d listen for now.

—

The survivors were diverse.

A few Koreans who had been rumored in the news as missing were visible.

There were even about five rankers.

‘No wonder.’

So they weren’t absent from the media because they were dead—they’d been trapped somewhere like this.

“What should we do now?”

“Looking around, it seems the way out is blocked! The poison fog has spread, and it feels like I’ll melt just by getting close to it!”

The survivors—roughly a hundred of them—began chattering.

“You!”

Someone pointed at me and shouted.

“Yes?”

“Since the other rankers are all gathered around you, you must be the leader of the rescue team. Please say a word!”

A word, huh.

No reason I couldn’t.

Thud.

Nodding, I stepped forward.

“……”

Just that alone quieted the chaotic atmosphere.

Feeling all eyes on me, I spoke calmly.

“All of you will wait here for one week. After that, I will clear the exit blocked by the poison fog, and then you can leave the Dungeon one by one.”

It was two sentences, not exactly one word.

But it was simple.

Wait.

Then when an exit appears, leave.

That was the greatest favor—and interference—I was willing to offer.

However—

“That poison, you can handle it?”

“How can we believe that?”

With this many people, of course there were those who doubted.

Just then, Kwon Soye, who had been quiet, stepped forward.

“This person is the recently incorporated rank 78 ranker, the Skeleton King! He’s more than skilled enough!”

“……Rank 78? Skeleton King?”

“A, a high ranker?”

“Was there such a person among the high rankers?”

“I’ve never heard that title before.”

Of course, they wouldn’t recognize me.

It had only been a few days since I became a ranker, and these people had been drifting here for at least a month.

Especially, the few S-rank hunters among the survivors stepped forward.

“So you’re telling us to just twiddle our thumbs here for a week and then leave?”

“That’s right! We’ve suffered so much here. Are you doing this because you’re afraid we’ll take a share of the rewards?”

Hmm.

Now that they were safe, was greed rearing its head?

“I can’t leave like this! I won’t be satisfied until I tear those dog-like bastards who killed my comrades to shreds!”

Ah.

That, I could acknowledge.

If he wanted revenge, there was no reason for me to stop him.

Thus, the survivors split into three groups.

1. I will fight and obtain rewards.

2. I want revenge.

3. I’m exhausted and want to get out quickly.

Thud!

Someone stomped hard on the ground.

World rank 101, Steel Fist Bong Jaeyoung.

“Everyone, listen!”

He shouted.

“I am the world rank 101 hunter, Steel Fist!”

At his introduction, a few people reacted.

Among them were rankers.

“Oh, Steel Fist? I know Steel Fist.”

“He’s famous. I knew him as a pretty skilled Korean ranker.”

“Right, wasn’t he that martial artist whose whole body is stronger than steel?”

A reputation built over time.

At the survivors’ recognition, a satisfied smile spread across Bong Jaeyoung’s face.

“I cannot agree with the Skeleton King’s words! To wait quietly and then run away? Is that something to say to hunters like us, who live and breathe Dungeons?”

This time, he stared at me.

“That…!”

Im Sujin, provoked, tried to step forward, but—

Snap!

I raised my arm.

No need to waste energy on something like that.

The survivors also looked at Bong Jaeyoung with curious expressions.

He opened his mouth again.

“I admit the Skeleton King is strong. He’s a high ranker in name and in reality, and though it was a brief battle, I could certainly feel his momentum. However!”

“……”

“He’s still a greenhorn with little experience as a ranker despite his strength, and also a coward. With such a strong force gathered here, the only thing he says is to run away? Don’t make me laugh! You all have suffered! You have the right to fight together and claim your rewards, and you are not cowards who run away from mere mafia! Am I wrong?”

At Bong Jaeyoung’s cry, several survivors responded.

“Mmm! That’s right!”

“Yeah, honestly, with this many hunters, it’s worth a shot, right? There are rankers too!”

“I don’t want to just go back either. I have to get something out of this!”

At the positive reaction, Bong Jaeyoung’s shoulders puffed up.

“Therefore, those who want to charge into the center, follow me!”

Whoosh!

Bong Jaeyoung turned his back.

“As for the cowards who want to run, stay or go, do as you please!”

“……”

Without any prior discussion, at his maverick behavior, Ki Soyul closed her eyes and shook her head.

“What should we do?”

“Mmm.”

Kwon Soye and Im Sujin also looked at me with helpless expressions.

‘What do you mean, what should we do.’

Pfft.

I laughed.

‘There’s a misunderstanding here.’

I had not even a shred of intention to persuade the survivors.

I had no motive or reason to do so.

“This is all I can say to you.”

So I decided to add a few more words.

“This is a Dungeon. And you are all hunters who have entered this Dungeon. That means every judgment is yours to make. Naturally, the responsibility that follows is also yours to bear. I’m simply saying that, in my opinion, it seems better to wait than to act now.”

You don’t believe me?

Then leave.

I won’t stop you.

‘To be honest.’

There was also something I couldn’t really say.

– “Heh heh heh, that’s right.”

The Elder, having read my thoughts, laughed with interest.

– “Even if you were one of them, you wouldn’t have run away. You would’ve rushed in, calling it a fortuitous encounter. Recklessly, in anyone’s eyes.”

Exactly.

Since I couldn’t do that myself, how could I recommend it to someone else?

That was why I had no right to say anything to them.