Chapter 7
“I’ll speak for everyone.”
The one who stepped forward to address Kang Sunwook was a man.
Tap!
He touched the blue name tag hanging from his waist.
“As you can see, I’m a B-rank hunter. Among the survivors here, I’m one of the higher ranks.”
At his words, everyone fell silent.
Me, Kang Sunwook, and the survivors all naturally focused on him.
“Whew.”
He took a deep breath, paused, and continued.
“This place… it’s hell, plain and simple. I’ve been a hunter for a while, but I’ve never seen a dungeon this bizarre.”
“A bizarre dungeon?”
“Yes, look. There’s no exit.”
“Hmm, true.”
Guide Kang Sunwook nodded.
Even to a professional, this place was clearly strange.
“No matter which way you go from the starting point, you always end up in front of this ‘door.’ This damned cave funnels everyone right here.”
Kang Sunwook frowned, but the man continued his explanation unfazed.
“After that, you’re completely trapped by the energy. We ran out of food and water ages ago. In the end, the only thing we can do is… yeah, go into that ‘door’ and take our chances. That’s it.”
These people had chosen a deadly challenge over starving to death.
The survivors, looking grim, began to chime in.
“That’s right. We were really hungry. We just wanted to live. If there’d been bats in here, we’d have eaten them raw.”
Starvation.
“To survive, we all had to go into the ‘door’ together.”
Survival instinct.
“But… the clear condition is impossible. There’s no way to handle it.”
“Exactly… White-Haired Old Man with Deep Regret…? That guy’s insane. There’s just no way to win. D-ranks, C-ranks, B-ranks… in front of that old man, we were just babies.”
Despair.
“Thank you for coming.”
“A-rank hunter, thank you so much. You can get us out of this hell, right?”
And finally, a spark of hope.
That desperate look filled the eyes of the previously lifeless survivors.
It was as if, after a grueling struggle to survive, they’d been ready to give up—right until we arrived.
“……”
I couldn’t help but taste bitterness in my mouth.
Is this the true face of dungeons, hidden behind the glamour of the ‘Rankers’?
‘But.’
I had one question.
“Excuse me, but…”
So I asked right away.
“The old man? I mean, if the boss is that strong, how is everyone still alive?”
It was strange.
What kind of dungeon boss lets challengers live?
They said they went into the door.
Did he personally kick them out?
“Good question.”
The B-rank hunter gave a faint smile and nodded.
“I get it. That was my first question too when I joined the later group.”
The man spoke.
“Amazingly, the old man doesn’t kill anyone. He just accepts challengers. Then he puts you through a kind of test.”
“A test?”
“I don’t know the details. He just overwhelms you in the most painful, miserable way, then clicks his tongue, says you’re not worth anything, and tosses you out.”
The man’s expression turned haunted.
His body even shuddered.
Huh, just imagining it seemed painful.
But he still doesn’t kill you?
“……”
I couldn’t wrap my head around the B-rank man’s explanation.
What kind of dungeon is this?
“It’s weird, right? But think about it. ‘Old man’ just means a person. In fact, this is the first time the dungeon boss turned out to be a human after the world changed.”
“So, not a dwarf or elf or something, but definitely human, right?”
“Yes, for sure. He might be a little senile, though.”
“……”
The boss is actually a real human?
Does that make sense?
Kang Sunwook and I watched him in silence for a moment.
I closed my eyes.
‘Whatever the case.’
We’re trapped here now too.
To find the exit, we have to open that ‘door’ and clear the mission.
‘I can’t say I have much faith in Kang Sunwook.’
He’s specialized in pathfinding, true to his epithet.
But just watching him shrink back from the energy coming from the ‘door’ made it clear he wasn’t going to clear the dungeon.
So, what should I do?
I furrowed my brow, deep in thought—
“Kang Sunwook?”
But I didn’t have to think for long.
From the distance.
The Ranker, Ki Soyul, was approaching.
—
“Hmm… All right.”
After hearing Kang Sunwook’s summary, Ki Soyul nodded simply.
“Let’s just go in. Judging by the energy, it doesn’t seem like these survivors are doppelgangers or a trap. The system says there’s a mission here too. The energy’s a little rough, but… we can’t just sit around, can we?”
No point overthinking.
Might as well just go for it.
That was her way.
And then.
“Wow!”
“We’re saved! Three A-ranks and an S-rank!”
“S-rank, seriously?”
“I’m so moved. The Parang Guild? I swear I’ll bow toward Parang’s headquarters every morning for the rest of my life. Don’t stop me.”
At her confident words, the survivors burst into cheers.
The mood was totally different from when they’d just seen Kang Sunwook and me.
‘Well.’
No A-rank can compare to the presence of an S-rank.
Especially a Ranker in the world’s top 1,000.
Even I felt a little fired up by her presence.
“The porter and survivors will stay here. We’ll handle it.”
It was a reassuring statement.
Even setting aside whether they’d succeed.
Assuming the man’s story was true, it didn’t really matter if they failed.
The boss didn’t kill people.
Sooner or later, Parang’s main team and more elite rescuers would show up anyway.
She was the only sister of the renowned archer Ki Parang.
No way Ki Parang would sit still if his sister went missing.
“All right, we’re going. Get ready.”
Ki Soyul tied her hair back.
Checked her daggers and fastened throwing knives to her belt.
The other A-rank hunters also prepared with determined looks.
“The old man’s supposed to test you, right? Let’s see if we can pass.”
“Ugh, just hearing about it makes it sound brutal. Wonder what the reward’ll be?”
They confidently opened the door and went in.
But before long—
“Argh!”
“It hurts! Damn, it hurts!”
The A-rank hunters came flying out, covered in bruises—
“……?”
Crash!
Even Ranker Ki Soyul was sent flying, slamming into the cave wall, blood everywhere.
And the fearsome ‘door’ closed quietly, like nothing had happened.
‘Are you kidding me?’
My jaw dropped.
A Ranker.
The idol of all hunters, my ultimate goal.
And she’d been taken out in under ten minutes…
Compared to their earlier confidence, they now looked utterly pathetic.
Even the survivors who’d been so hopeful were left in shock.
As for Ki Soyul…
“He said I’m not worthy? No way.”
She muttered with a deeply frustrated look.
Then she looked at me.
“Porter.”
“…Yes?”
“Hand me a high-grade potion from my bag. I’m going in again.”
Is this girl serious?
She got beaten up like that and wants to go again?
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, the survivors were right. The old man didn’t kill me. He just beat me up and threw me out.”
“So?”
“I’m stubborn now. Let’s see if I’m worthy or not.”
Worthy.
So he’s testing whether you’re a suitable candidate?
Usually, that’s something a master does when picking a disciple.
‘In that case…’
Does the old man’s “Han” mean he never found someone with talent?
“Anyway, hurry up.”
“Yes… Please be careful.”
I handed her the potion.
And so began her reckless challenge.
A marathon of endless attempts.
—
Time passed.
“Huff, huff!”
It was obvious why she was a Ranker.
Ki Soyul’s tenacity was incredible.
The other A-rank hunters shook their heads and gave up.
“Damn it, this is infuriating.”
But she just pushed herself harder.
Her clothes were already in tatters, but she didn’t care.
“What’s the problem? What’s not good enough?”
“This dirty old man. I thought he only had sword skills, but he’s good with a spear too? Bring it on.”
A day passed, then two, then three, then four.
Her attempts never stopped.
“Aaaargh!”
“Who are you, old man? You use magic too? How are we supposed to beat this?”
Even a Ranker—a combat Ranker, no less—couldn’t do anything in this dungeon.
“……”
I shook my head.
Did it really not matter if she failed?
Actually, no.
This was a big problem.
Even if Ki Parang came to rescue her, it’d still be trouble.
I’d never met him, but—
The gap between her and the old man seemed huge.
I could sense it.
Even if two, no, five Rankers tried, they wouldn’t be able to beat him.
So is this dungeon SS-rank?
“All right. I’ll admit it.”
She nodded.
“The old man is strong. Really strong. But as long as I’m alive, I’ll keep trying.”
The fighting spirit in Ki Soyul’s eyes hadn’t faded.
“Wow…”
I was genuinely impressed.
Is this what it means to have a Ranker’s mindset?
Do you need this kind of obsession to make the world’s top 1,000?
Honestly, I was jealous.
A dungeon where you can train endlessly without worrying about dying.
Is this the kind of fortuitous opportunity Dark Lord talked about?
But as more time passed.
Problems started to show.
“…Is time in the dungeon different from outside? Why isn’t the rescue team coming?”
“Hey, Sunwook? We’re running out of emergency rations. We’re splitting them up and rationing, but it’s nowhere near enough.”
“It feels like… it’s already been over two weeks, right?”
“I’m exhausted. I can’t stand this anymore.”
The longer we failed to clear the dungeon, the more the survivors began to suffer.
“We’re dead. We were always doomed. Sob, sob…”
One of the lower-ranked hunters even broke down crying.
And not just them.
‘I’m frustrated too.’
Even as a porter, I came into this dungeon to grow.
I’d been training my skeletons when I could.
Maybe I should’ve spent that time running other dungeons instead.
And honestly, I was scared.
What if we really do end up trapped here?
If the food runs out and the rescue team never comes, will we just starve to death?
“That can’t happen.”
I clenched my fists.
Then I approached Ki Soyul as she was taking a break.
When I thought about it, all the hunters here—
Had gone into the ‘door’ and come back out.
‘Except me.’
It was too unfair not to try.
Opportunities should be equal.
Just because she’s a Ranker, doesn’t mean she should monopolize the chance.
Especially since she still hasn’t cleared it, even after all this time.
‘And—however slim the chance—it might be me the old man’s looking for.’
“…?”
Ki Soyul looked puzzled as I approached.
Like she was wondering why the porter was bothering her.
She did look exhausted.
I bit my lip and spoke.
“Ki Soyul.”
“Yes, what is it, porter?”
“I think I need to give it a try too.”
“…What?”
At my declaration.
A strange silence fell over the open area.
Thank you for picking this up. I’ve been missing it ever since reaper was shut down
thanks for picking this up. this is the only series i read in reaperscans. sadly the site was taken down
Hey, are you really translating this novel yourself, or is it some MTL or AI thing? I will decide whether to start reading it based on that.
It isn’t AI from what I can tell