"The black portal… I can't even imagine how dangerous it might be…."
Do Deungsoo was also scheduled to enter the Great Dungeon. Seeing his troubled expression, Grace tried her best to offer some consolation.
"Last time, I saw the corpse of Vice Guild Master Do Deungsoo, but this time, I didn't. It's too early to be anxious."
"So, I must have been crushed beyond recognition."
"After someone entered the black portal, Vice Guild Master Do Deungsoo seemed to be about to follow, but perhaps the dream was cut off."
"Entering the black portal is a tragedy in itself. Don't try to comfort me."
Grace closed her mouth. Do Deungsoo forced himself to think positively.
At least, what they had been doing for the past two years wasn't entirely in vain, so there was some achievement.
There had been much debate at first. Could they keep such a critical matter secret from the public, or should they rigorously conceal it? Proposals ranged from sharing the items of various nations and guilds in preparation for the Great Dungeon, accelerating the research on awakening to nurture hunters, to even abandoning Earth and migrating to Mars.
Eventually, they agreed not to disclose it. Time passed in false peace, and before they knew it, it had been two years since the first revelation.
Three months from now, on a certain day in October, a red-black portal would appear in the North Pole.
The return of the Great Dungeon that had terrified everyone ten years ago.
In truth, Do Deungsoo didn't believe the world would fall into panic like it did ten years ago.
With many features such as inventory, the guild system, and dungeon maps now available, things that hadn't existed back then, along with the doubling of S-rank hunters and firepower incomparable to before, humanity had become significantly stronger. In fact, Kwon Jihan had single-handedly cleared an S-rank orange dungeon. Realistically, humanity was much stronger than back then, and people knew it.
'No matter how I think about it, failure seems unlikely.'
Although Do Deungsoo didn't possess high offensive power, he could easily toy with monsters using his highly practical teleportation skill.
The red-black portal's Great Dungeon was one level above the S-rank red dungeon.
Just one level higher.
Common sense, theoretically, and rationally, failure seemed impossible. While it might not be an easy success, the chances of failure were low.
'But then, why did she foresee that future?'
The problem lay in Grace's revelation.
A mountain of hunters' corpses… the exploding Great Dungeon and a destroyed Earth.
A future where they failed to conquer it.
Although they didn't know why they would fail in conquering the red-black dungeon that they had succeeded in conquering ten years ago under much harsher conditions, they had to prepare for that future since an S-rank prophet had seen it.
'I should've stayed out of Seokyoung. If I had joined a minor guild and lived quietly, I wouldn't have been dragged into this Great Dungeon conquest.'
Unfortunately, as the Vice Guild Master of Seokyoung, the strongest hunter guild in the world, bearing the responsibility of humanity, Do Deungsoo was inevitably selected as a member of the Great Dungeon conquest team.
Elite teams from major guilds like Perfect of Seokyoung, Athena of Europae, and Memento Mori of the American S guild were also scheduled to enter, but since those elite teams hadn't been informed yet, Do Deungsoo was in a slightly better situation. At least he could mentally prepare himself.
"Don't worry too much. The fact that the future I saw has changed means that what we've been doing for the past two years hasn't been insignificant. Something we did in those two years must have caused a significant change in the future, do you have any guesses?"
"Well… perhaps it's because of Seo Chaeyoon and the candidates entering the dungeon… I wasn't there at the time because I was conquering another dungeon, but I heard they found a gem in the mud."
"Could it really have been Seo Chaeyoon among them?"
"Whether it was Seo Chaeyoon or not, just finding a strong Awakened who can aid our forces might be enough to change the future. Maybe the person entering the black portal won't be Kwon Jihan…."
Do Deungsoo turned on the U-pad on his wrist, projecting the screen into the air. The photos of seven Seo Chaeyoon candidates appeared. Since La Bijina knew Seo Chaeyoon's face, his plan was to observe any changes in her expression, but she seemed too distracted to focus on the pictures, as if her headache had worsened.
'We won't be able to communicate with her soon.'
Do Deungsoo had to extract any useful information from La Bijina while she still retained some sanity.
"Hunter La Bijina, even if you're bound by a contract, there must be a way to help. No contract in this world is perfect."
"Hmm."
"Think carefully. Seo Chaeyoon's presence ensures Earth's safety. Over a thousand Revengers barely managed to protect it."
Do Deungsoo pleaded with La Bijina. However, her eyes grew increasingly dazed as she listened. Just then, Grace spoke up.
"Hunter La Bijina, please hand over what you prepared."
"What I prepared?"
"The item you said you would give if someone came from Seokyoung."
"Ah, right."
La Bijina groaned, her face contorted with pain. If she had prepared something, why hadn't she given it earlier? Do Deungsoo waited anxiously.
"Just mentioning Seo Chaeyoon's name puts a strain on my body, and even attempting to talk about that person feels like being hammered in the head. But at least I can do this much."
Fortunately, La Bijina still had enough mental strength to pull something from beneath the table, a metal safe with a lock. She pressed a button on the safe, opening the door to reveal the contents to Do Deungsoo.
"An item…?"
It was a dagger with a faintly glowing blue jewel embedded in its hilt. It lacked a scabbard, and the blade appeared worn. Although it seemed ordinary at first glance, its ominous aura immediately told Do Deungsoo that this was no ordinary weapon.
He used the Gaia system to check the item.
['Existing Spirit'
Rank: S
This powerful weapon is meant solely for you. It can transform into any form you desire without restriction.
* Current form: Dagger
* Bound state
* Inactive state]
Do Deungsoo's eyes widened in shock. He spoke in a trembling voice.
"This is… surely…."
Both La Bijina and Grace nodded.
It was the weapon Seo Chaeyoon had used ten years ago.
***
"A weapon?"
Yoon Seo asked, widening his eyes in surprise. Park Soobin smiled and nodded.
"Of course, Yoon Seo. You need a weapon now. Since you're joining Perfect Team 1, you should also get sturdy, stylish armor. Honestly, the clothes you wore last time… felt like something from ten years ago."
"...."
"Oh, but it did suit you. People probably thought, 'Wow, he's so confident in his looks that he doesn't even care what he wears.'"
"Maybe I'll wear a tracksuit next time."
"I'm not joking, Yoon Seo. Perfect will only be going to S-rank dungeons from now on. You need proper hunter gear and items for that."
Park Soobin feigned a solemn expression.
He had volunteered to guide Yoon Seo through Seokyoung's building as he prepared to join Perfect Team 1. Since it was the tallest building in all of Asia and quite complex, he decided to show only the places hunters would frequently visit. The first stop was the item production department on the 150th to 160th floors.
"S-rank items are on the 159th and 160th floors. You don't need to bother with other places."
Inside the elevator, Park Soobin pressed the button for the 159th floor, prompting Yoon Seo to sigh.
"Park Soobin, I'm B-rank."
"Stop pretending. I know you're not. I'm not C-rank, and you're definitely not B-rank."
Park Soobin spoke softly. Yoon Seo shot him a look of disbelief, as if saying, You're really confident about admitting you've been deceiving me all this time. Noticing that Yoon Seo wasn't too angry, Park Soobin shrugged slightly.
"Sure, I deceived you, but you also lied about your rank. Let's call it even. Instead, let's promise not to lie anymore from now on. How about that?"
"You think that's the same? You've been spying on me for a whole year. Stalking is a crime, you know."
"Go ahead and report our guild master. I was only following orders."
"Oh, so if your guild master told you to kill someone, would you do it?"
"Ah, we've arrived."
Just then, the elevator doors opened, and Park Soobin quickly stepped out. Yoon Seo trudged after him.
"Let's start by looking at the weapons."
Several people in the weapon manufacturing department recognized Park Soobin and greeted him. He waved back and led Yoon Seo further inside. After scanning his guild member ID three more times, they finally arrived at the weapon display room.
"All of these are S-rank. Amazing, right?"
The room was about 40 pyeong in size, and there were a total of 16 weapons. Considering that the price of a single S-rank weapon started at 5 billion won, stealing just one and running away would be enough to set someone up for life.
"Are they all free?"
"They're available for free rental, of course."
"Rental?"
"Yes, Seokyoung has a system where they lend weapons to affiliated hunters. A contract is signed, and the guild covers all repair costs. Even if the weapon gets completely destroyed, as long as it wasn't intentional, you won't be held liable. So don't worry."
"I thought they'd be generous and just give them to hunters outright. What a disappointment."
"Oh, you can also purchase them at a 20% discount. If you find something you like, I can buy it for you."
Yoon Seo raised an eyebrow at the offer to buy an item worth billions. Park Soobin smiled faintly.
"I feel guilty for deceiving you for a year."
"Even with the discount, they're still worth billions."
"I make good money. You'll probably start earning more than me soon, though."
Park Soobin quickly added.
"I really want to get along well with you, Yoon Seo. Even though it was a guild order, I was essentially a con artist stalker, and I want to make amends somehow…."
Yoon Seo stared at Park Soobin for a moment. His eyes were gentle, and without the use of any skills, Yoon Seo could sense the sincerity in his words.