"Is it possible for me to go in alone?"
"There's no solo dungeon available today. They're all reserved in advance."
"Even F-rank dungeons? They're not popular, are they?"
"They're not, which makes it even harder to get them on the same day. When enough people don't register, the government takes over before the deadline and sends in non-awakened military forces to clear them."
"You've soloed an S-rank Orange Dungeon before, haven't you?"
"A-rank, S-rank… For those, the government, association, and guilds usually collaborate to select the raid team before they even show up on this app."
Kwon Jihan tapped something on the screen's corner, and a new bulletin board appeared.
[Hamyang C-Grade/0830 (30)/Healers Only]
[Hamyang D-Grade/0830 (28)/Tank and Heal]
[Seocheon F-Grade/0830 (33)/1 DPS, 1 Tank]
[Goheung E-Grade/0830 (29)/Support DPS]
It seemed to be a recruitment board for raid members. Having played online games before, Yoon Seo could roughly guess what the titles meant. For example, [Goheung E-Grade/0830 (29)/Support DPS] meant they were looking for a support-type and a DPS-type hunter to join a raid today, August 30th, for the E-rank Orange Dungeon in Goheung.
"What's the number in parentheses? 29?"
"That's how many days are left before the dungeon explodes or floods. Any place catching your eye?"
"Hmm."
New posts were constantly being updated on the board. Just as Yoon Seo was about to pick the nearest one, he saw something interesting.
[Yeoju DEF/3-Raid Combo+/0830 (20+)/1 Tank, 1 Healer]
"This party seems to be planning to clear D, E, and F-rank dungeons all at once. Let's go for this one."
"Won't you get tired from doing three raids in a row?"
"It's fine. It won't take long with these ranks."
"Alright, I'll register us."
"How do you register? If you show me, I can do it on my own U-Pad."
"I'm registering both of us."
"..."
Is he really planning on coming along? Yoon Seo looked up at Kwon Jihan in surprise. Meanwhile, Riceball, who had finished its meal, was now peeking curiously at the U-Pad. Kwon Jihan moved his fingers, trying to distract Riceball from the device.
"It's far away, so I'll go alone."
"No way."
While playing with Riceball with one hand, Kwon Jihan quickly grabbed the U-Pad with the other.
"It's not even that far. Time will fly by if you color on the way. And to register, you need certification first, and the process is complicated. You wouldn't be able to do it anyway."
"Don't treat me like an old man. If I need to, I'll just ask Guildmaster Yoo Juncheol for help."
"No, don't do that. What am I supposed to do outside if you go alone? It'd be too boring for me."
"You'll be even more bored there. You're not going to do anything. Just stand by with your arms crossed while I try to get used to the dungeon system and regain my combat senses."
"I'm so confident! The protagonist, who's been hiding his power, finally gets his weapon. Watching this from the sidelines is the dream! There's no way I'm missing out on this."
Kwon Jihan's grey eyes sparkled with excitement as he spoke his true feelings, like a child. Yoon Seo chuckled at his expression.
"Fine. Then please handle the registration."
"Got it!"
Kwon Jihan eagerly operated the U-Pad. After completing some complicated registration process Yoon Seo didn't quite understand, they left the restaurant. Soon after, a call came from the person who posted the recruitment. Kwon Jihan answered the phone.
"Hello."
— Ah, hi. I'm the leader of the Yeoju 3-Raid party. You're the ones who signed up, right?
It was a young man's voice.
"Yeah."
— You know that D and E are Navy-level, but F is Orange, right?
"Yeah."
— The information was private, so what's your awakening rank?
As Kwon Jihan's replies shortened, the party leader's tone also became more direct.
"We're both C-rank."
— One of you is DPS, and the other is a tank, right?
"Yeah."
— You saw the loot distribution terms, right? Since we don't have a healer, you'll need to bring your own potions.
"I know. It was in the party notes."
— Don't be late. It's a 3-Raid combo, so if we start late, it'll be a pain.
While Kwon Jihan responded with short, uninterested replies, Yoon Seo's phone started vibrating. He checked the caller ID.
Tae Jaesik
It was probably about the contract.
Yoon Seo distanced himself from Kwon Jihan and answered the call.
"Yes?"
— Hey! Hey, kid. You should've told me as soon as you came to the company. Everyone's talking about you, and me? I can't even mention your name right. Let's hurry and terminate the contract.
"..."
Yoon Seo had a sudden sense of foreboding. If he canceled the contract now, it felt like the rumor that Seo Chaeyoon and Yoon Seo were the same person would spread worldwide in just an hour.
"I'll handle it later. I have a dungeon raid scheduled for today."
— Huh? Today? What dungeon? Perfect has a briefing on Wednesday.
"I'm planning to dive into dungeons frequently for a while to get used to the system and stretch my body. I'm hanging up."
— Hey, wait. Don't hang up! Just a sec—!
Yoon Seo mercilessly ended the call.
Tae Jaesik didn't call back. As Yoon Seo sighed in relief, Kwon Jihan, who had already finished his call, asked from behind.
"That was Tae Jaesik?"
"Yes."
"Yeah, it's best to keep him under a gag order forever. As soon as it came out that you're Seo Chaeyoon, he immediately started blabbing that you had a Gaia skill. We should've accounted for that and made a contract from the start that said 'no revealing anything about Seo Chaeyoon and Yoon Seo.'"
Yoon Seo nodded silently.
The two left the restaurant and headed down to the parking lot. This time, Riceball was sitting on top of Kwon Jihan's head. Strangely enough, they didn't run into anyone on the way to the car. In the morning, there had been so many people coming and going…
Yoon Seo felt it was a shame that no one else had the chance to witness Kwon Jihan looking so cute.
"Hunter Kwon Jihan, stop for a second."
"Okay."
Just before getting in the car, Yoon Seo stopped him. He stepped back a bit and took out his phone to snap a few pictures. Click, click. Kwon Jihan, with the tiny bird on his head, looked both cool and adorable, smiling at the camera. Only after taking a few shots did they get into the car. Kwon Jihan didn't ask why Yoon Seo took the pictures or what he planned to do with them, and Yoon Seo felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.
***
[Soo Jaehee] Hyungs, you're going into a dungeon this weekend, right? S-rank Yellow.
[Soo Jaehee] I know it's probably a piece of cake for you guys, but what about the dungeon being briefed on Wednesday?
[Soo Jaehee] You're not going to that one? ㅠ
[Yoon Seo] I'm going to both. I need to regain my combat sense, so I'll be entering dungeons frequently from now on.
[Soo Jaehee] Damn, that's hardcore.
[Park Soobin] Are you sure you'll be okay? You've got a healing resistance, Yoon Seo.
[Yoon Seo] As long as I finish before my mana runs out, it'll be fine.
[Soo Jaehee] So cool.
[Park Soobin] It's finally starting to feel real that you're coming back…
[Hong Euiyoon] What? Where are you going? Why didn't you tell me? I wanna go too!
[Soo Jaehee] I want to go too, but I'm holding back…ㅠㅠ
[Hong Euiyoon] Damn it, I'm going too!
[Hong Euiyoon] Everyone already knows you've awakened your spirit.
[Hong Euiyoon] I want to see it, I swear. I want to see Seo Chaeyoon's spirit in action!
Hong Euiyoon
Eventually, Hong Euiyoon called. Why did he even give him his number? As Yoon Seo regretted it and hesitated to answer, Kwon Jihan nudged his shoulder.
"Hyung, I think those are the people."
The two arrived early at the meeting spot, parked the car, and waited for the rest of the party members to arrive while coloring. Kwon Jihan pointed out a group of people who were noisily approaching. Judging by their various items and gear, it was obvious that they were Awakened.
"Let's get out."
"Yes."
Yoon Seo put away his phone and instead took out a pair of rimless glasses, putting them on. Kwon Jihan carefully closed his coloring book and put on a hat. Both the glasses and hat were disguise items.
Beep.
Riceball noticed they were about to leave and quickly climbed onto Yoon Seo's head.
"Sticky Rice, we'll be back. Switch to power-saving mode."
"Yes, be safe. Riceball, take care of the master. Master's companion, please look after him too."
Beep!
"Don't worry. I'll make sure hyung doesn't get a scratch."
Kwon Jihan got out of the car first and held the door open for Yoon Seo. It seemed the party members had spotted them, as they stopped walking and turned to face them.
['Kim Changseok' has used the 'Future Glasses' Item.]
['Kim Changseok' is viewing your
['Oh Yeji' has activated the
['Oh Yeji' is viewing your
The party members, having checked Yoon Seo's profile, approached and extended their hands.
"Hello, you're early. I'm the leader, Kim Changseok."
"Hello."
Yoon Seo didn't shake his hand, only offering a polite nod.
There were two men and two women. Three of them seemed around the same age as Kwon Jihan, while one looked closer to Yoon Seo's age.
Using the
"It would've been tough for just the four of us to do a three-chain dungeon, but we're lucky you both joined. Yoon Seo, we're the same age, so let's get along today."
"Yes."
"I've never met someone with the
Oh Yeji seemed quite friendly after seeing Yoon Seo's skill.