Chapter 58
“Benefactor of the Rock Tribe! Will this be enough?”
One of the dwarf council members spoke with confidence.
Behind him stood a mountain of ore.
And they were still groaning under the weight, hauling more by the cartload.
“…Wait, you mined all this already?”
I asked, genuinely stunned.
“Hmph! We prepared everything we could. Most of the tribe helped with the mining.”
He grinned.
Their current task was simple: mining ore and transferring it all into my bag.
My bag—an S-rank subspace—was enormous.
Even after packing all of it in, it looked like half the space was still left.
“We’re fine with it, so take as much as you can carry. Titan Mine’s resources are endless. They’ll regenerate over time. Besides, we can’t even process it all yet.”
“Wow, I really appreciate it.”
The dwarves were just honoring a promise, but I was still moved.
Soon they’d be swinging their hammers again, and yet they were offering up such precious materials so freely.
And that wasn’t the only touching moment.
“Benefactor.”
“The elves will join in too.”
“Our Forest Tribe would also like to show our gratitude. You said you needed textile materials before, didn’t you? We’ve gathered some.”
Behind the hardworking dwarves—
The elves arrived with carts full of spider silk, cocoons, fur, and more.
So much that the end of the line couldn’t be seen.
“…This doesn’t look like ‘some.’”
“How could we lose to the Rock Tribe? The whole tribe worked together to collect it.”
Their eyes radiated sincerity.
Which meant—
They gathered it of their own will, not because Eldrin told them to.
“Haha, impressive.”
The old man, who had been summoned, watched with a chuckle.
Genuinely impressed.
“Even in a dungeon, you’re squeezing every drop of value. That’s something I should learn from.”
“…Was that a compliment?”
“Of course it is. My disciple, do you know the greatest source of growth and strength for a person?”
“What is it?”
“Greed. And your greed—no, your endless ambition—is enough to make even the heavens flinch in fear. As your master, how could I not be proud?”
“…”
Sounds like a compliment… but also kinda insulting.
“But still, what they’re doing for you—it’s sincere. After all, they’ve gained peace at such a small price.”
“Well, sounds like a win-win, doesn’t it?”
“Exactly. That makes it a justified kind of greed. In any case.”
The old man smiled.
“I’ve roughly assessed Eldrin’s archery. Not quite at my level, but with some refinement, she’ll regain her original form. Dmir? Well, he’s not under my jurisdiction.”
With the dragon’s defeat, both Eldrin and Dmir had completed their awakenings.
They were now ordinary skeletons again.
But because they had fully awakened, their souls remained inside the bones.
To put it simply, it was like Sunny’s condition.
[Your reward has arrived!]
The basic dungeon rewards followed a similar pattern to those from the Ancient Desert.
[Skill +2]
[Strength +1]
[Agility +1]
[Health +1]
…
Each skeleton’s stats received significant boosts.
Next up:
[The leader of the Forest Tribe, ‘Eldrin,’ recognizes you as her true master.]
[The leader of the Rock Tribe, ‘Dmir,’ recognizes you as his true master.]
[All stats +10.]
Both Dmir and Eldrin acknowledged me as their master.
[‘Eldrin’s’ memories and will have been inherited by ‘Bone Three.’]
[‘Bone Three’ has been renamed to ‘Eldrin.’]
[‘Dmir’s’ memories and will have been inherited by ‘Bone Six.’]
[‘Bone Six’ has been renamed to ‘Dmir.’]
I didn’t know why the assignments were random.
But now it was certain.
Each of my skeletons had been a major figure in a past life.
And by resolving their lingering regrets, they naturally became mine.
In other words, I had to resolve the regrets of ten such individuals.
How did I know?
Because a new key item had appeared.
[Your reward has arrived!]
[Congratulations!]
[You’ve acquired the item ‘Officer Who Cries for Peace’ (S-rank).]
‘Ding!’
[This item is tied to your class.]
‘Officer Who Cries for Peace?’
I touched the horn-shaped item in my hand.
[Item: Officer Who Cries for Peace]
[Rank: S]
[Type: Key Item]
[Description: The root that can uncover the secrets of a hidden ruin.]
[Effect 1: Unlocks the dungeon ‘Rise and Fall.’]
[Effect 2: Bound to Hunter ‘Joo Donghoon.’]
[Effect 3: Usable only by A-rank Hunters or higher.]
“So it’s A-rank now.”
I was still B-rank, so I couldn’t enter right away.
Honestly.
Even if I could, I wouldn’t go immediately.
After a run like that, you need rest and recovery—physically and mentally.
‘Who’s next, I wonder?’
Bone One? Bone Four? Bone Five?
I had no clue about the order.
The only certainty was that I wouldn’t know until I entered.
“That’s the end of the rewards.”
There were no special rewards for clearing an ‘Unmeasurable’ stage.
Seems you only get achievement rewards once.
“Hurry up! Don’t make the benefactor wait!”
“Let’s not fall behind the dwarves, elves!”
Both tribes were still working hard to pack everything into the bag.
[00:60:00]
[Time remaining until the dragon is fully sealed.]
Roughly one hour left until the dungeon was fully cleared.
Once the timer hit zero, I’d be returned to Earth.
‘Let’s check on Eldrin and Dmir’s stats.’
Whoosh!
I swung my staff and summoned them both.
Now I could casually call them “these guys.”
Because that’s what they wanted.
“Outs—I mean, my master. It is an honor to serve the benefactor of our tribe.”
At the moment the quest was cleared, even the proud Eldrin knelt before me.
And so did the boisterous Dmir.
“I, Dmir, also recognize you as my master. So please, speak casually with me.”
His speech was still very dwarven and serious, but his respect was clear.
Thud!
Dmir set down his bone hammer.
Then walked over and kneeled beside Eldrin, folding his short legs.
A gesture of full devotion.
I accepted it with ease.
It might feel awkward at first, but I was going to be commanding them anyway.
“Alright. I’ll be counting on you.”
That was my first formal greeting to the two of them.
Their profiles had changed drastically.
‘Let’s start with Eldrin.’
[Name: Eldrin]
[Energy: 200/200]
[Unique Trait: Great Skeleton]
[Class: Archer]
[Rank: B]
[Strength: 40] [Agility: 42] [Health: 37] [Mana: 35] [Skill: 42]
[Skills]
‘ Intermediate Rapid Shot (Lv.6)
‘ Hundred-League Sight (Lv.1)
‘ Venom Arrow (Lv.1)
‘ Moonlight Barrage (Lv.1)
‘ Ritual of Invocation (Lv.1)
‘ Skeleton Summon (Lv.Max)
‘Damn.’
I admired her silently.
The old ‘Sight Boost’ skill had evolved into ‘Hundred-League Sight.’
‘Poison Arrow’ had become ‘Venom Arrow.’
Two new skills had appeared:
‘Moonlight Barrage’ — where arrows fall like a rain of death beneath the moonlight.
‘Ritual of Invocation’ — similar to a ritual spell where you sacrifice something to gain a result.
If my guess is right, that one’s insanely broken.
After all, it was used to seal the great dragon.
‘Next up, Dmir…’
[Name: Dmir]
[Energy: 200/200]
[Unique Trait: Great Skeleton]
[Class: Blacksmith]
[Rank: B]
[Strength: 32] [Agility: 30] [Health: 30] [Mana: 30] [Skill: 40]
[Skills]
‘ Intermediate Forging (Lv.4)
‘ Intermediate Weaving (Lv.4)
‘ Intermediate Item Crafting (Lv.6)
‘ Intermediate Alchemy (Lv.3)
‘ Skeleton Summon (Lv.Max)
Dmir hadn’t gained any new skills.
Just a level-up by two across the board.
But Dmir’s real value didn’t lie in skills.
He had been considered a god of blacksmiths in his world.
His knowledge alone would bring insane production potential.
I’d seen it with my own eyes—I was sure of it.
‘I just need to boost his mastery quickly.’
That wouldn’t be hard.
With all these materials lying around, he’d hit advanced level in no time.
While I admired the stat windows—
The two tribes finished packing everything up.
“Benefactor, here you go.”
“We’re done.”
The two tribe leaders handed me the bag and bowed their heads.
Thud.
I slung it over my shoulder.
Thanks to the subspace, the weight was manageable.
[Time remaining – 00:00:20]
Only twenty seconds left.
It was really time to go.
What was this bittersweet feeling?
Did I really get attached in such a short time?
“I wish prosperity to the two united tribes.”
Adios.
I saluted them with my right hand.
“……”
Both tribes bowed deeply in silence as I slowly faded from view.
[Congratulations!]
[You have completely cleared the stage!]
And then—
A beam of pure white light shot skyward—
And the world trembled.
—
“Mmm, nice.”
I sniffed the air as I landed in the clearing.
Ah, the scent of Earth.
The smell of exhaust leaking through the forest. Even the harmful fine dust in the air.
“Khhh.”
Familiarity really is the best.
To sum it up, this dungeon was a jackpot.
I’d grown a ton—no need to say it twice.
I’d reached B-rank.
Secured a mountain of materials.
And my skeletons were steadily regaining their former selves.
‘Still, I’ve got a ton left to do.’
The path to becoming a Ranker was steep.
One thousand Rankers.
All of them S-rank.
A group selected from the very best of the best.
“Whew.”
I clicked my tongue.
If what I’d just gone through was this intense, how crazy are those monsters?
Still, no need to rush.
Honestly, it hadn’t even been six months since I properly awakened my powers.
I was climbing insanely fast.
“Yeah. Good job, Joo Donghoon.”
Step, step.
I gave myself a pat on the back and headed straight home.
Today, I was going to completely veg out.
I was mentally exhausted.
I wanted to crush a cup of ramen and sleep for 12 hours straight.
Clunk!
That was the plan—until I opened the basement door.
“What the hell?”
I frowned.
The stench I could forgive, but—
It looked like someone had dropped a bomb in here.
“What the…?”
The windows were shattered. The mattress was ripped in half.
The desk and furniture were overturned, and tools were scattered everywhere.
It looked like I’d been robbed.
But the most absurd part—
“Money?”
Bundles of fifty-thousand won bills were scattered all over the floor.
A rough count put it at around 4–5 million won.
‘Money, huh.’
Who the hell did this?
As I looked around—
“Huh?”
Something caught my eye.
A piece of paper stuck to the back of the door.
Curious, I stepped closer and read it.
> [Hey, Joo Donghoon. Nice to meet you. Bit of a rough first impression, huh? But I left payment, so I hope you understand. And I suggest you don’t report this. Otherwise, I can’t guarantee your safety.
>
> Anyway. If you’re pissed about this little party, be a man and come find me.
>
> I put together a humble little Hunter gathering.
> Everyone there is dying to meet you.
>
> Location’s below.]
> Shin Jongoh.
“…”
Shin Jongoh?
Who the hell is this bastard?