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Episode 3
This is a large-scale dungeon located on Jeju Island.
Behind the trembling Kang Hyun-woo, Basil and Orcatan were laughing as if they’d pulled off something great.
No matter how much he was acting, Han Do-yoon couldn’t laugh.
If this guy was here, it meant S-rank Hunter Kang Hyun-woo was also here.
An S-rank Hunter is a national treasure by their very existence.
Was he already dead?
If so, 100% reinforcements would come from the Association or other guilds.
“‘Within the next few days.'”
Or, he might be hiding somewhere, watching for an opportunity.
Han Do-yoon looked at Orcatan and spoke.
“Wasn’t there someone stronger than this guy?”
Orcatan’s shoulder bones jolted in surprise.
“How did you know that? As expected, you are our Lord!”
Beck Sang-hyun’s muttering served as an answer.
“That bastard, running away alone with a Return Scroll. If I could just get outside, I’d definitely kill him.”
“He escaped with peculiar magic, so there was nothing we could do. My apologies. I should have caught him, but as you know, I am weak against magic.”
Besides, if an S-rank had escaped, they wouldn’t immediately launch another raid.
He had gained time.
Still, the Jeju Island dungeon was an S-rank dungeon the whole world was watching.
They would form another raid party in the near future.
If Kang Hyun-woo was strong enough to escape, then the Four Guardian Kings were considerably powerful.
If he could resurrect the low-level and rare monsters, it might be doable.
As if sharing his thoughts, the system displayed this message:
【Next Dungeon Level-Up: Three D-Grade Cores】
Han Do-yoon descended the steps and stood before Beck Sang-hyun.
“‘Do you want to live?'”
The man nodded his head frantically.
Suddenly, memories of his time with him surfaced.
It was when they were working on a project together. They had been at a club drinking once, and Han Do-yoon had stopped him from trying to do something vile to a heavily intoxicated actress.
It turned out that club was run by a thug friend of his, and such acts seemed to be more than a one-time thing.
Han Do-yoon knew well. He was trash worse than most criminals, dabbling in all sorts of illegal activities.
However, Han Do-yoon, who was closer to an ordinary person, had no way to stop it.
He had often thought about beating him to death.
But actually killing him felt repulsive on a human level.
Yet, just letting him go free was also unreasonable.
His subordinates were watching.
There was no justification. He had no choice but to take appropriate measures.
“‘Even if I like humans, did you think I’d be satisfied with just this?'”
If this guy threw just one punch, his jaw would be sent flying.
But he wasn’t the type to have that kind of guts.
Han Do-yoon pulled out the dagger he had hidden in his clothes for self-defense.
“Even so, the act of carelessly setting foot in my domain must be punished accordingly.”
This wasn’t human revenge.
It was an action taken because he was the Boss.
“‘He’s the type to act without fear, as if he’s something special.'”
He steadied his breathing and narrowed his eyes. In that moment, Han Do-yoon aura changed.
He couldn’t perfectly imitate the Lord. But he had experience playing a serial killer.
Coincidentally, it was a role he had played in a project with Beck Sang-hyun.
A human with no emotions, living only to taste the pleasure of murder.
Han Do-yoon lifted the corner of his mouth like a madman.
He dredged up the uncomfortable feelings buried deep within.
Murderous intent, hatred, disgust stabbed at his throat.
“‘What benefit do I get from sparing you?'”
As he asked, he stabbed the dagger into his shoulder as if it were truly nothing.
“Ugh.”
Beck Sang-hyun frowned, enduring the pain.
“Is there something you desire?”
“That’s for you to figure out.”
Their eyes met. Seeing Han Do-yoon empty eyes beyond the mask, he got chills.
Could such a being truly want anything?
Those were dead eyes with no interest in anything.
Ah, one thing these creatures were obsessed with came to mind.
“‘Do you desire humans?'”
Han Do-yoon was somewhat impressed by that question. All this serial killer wanted was slaughter.
Other monsters would be the same, I guess. He’s quick to grasp the situation, being an actor.
The words that followed were truly unbelievable.
“‘If I get out of here, I’ll bring you more humans. Men, women, even children are possible. I’m really good at tricking people into coming. I’ve probably handed over over a hundred humans that way.'”
No matter how important his life was, for a human hailed as a hero outside to spout such nonsense…
He twisted the dagger stuck in his shoulder slightly.
“Ugh!”
Savoring the scream, he lovingly gazed at the teary eyes.
Feel the fear.
Compared to what the people you tormented went through, this is nothing.
Simultaneously, to appear as a cruel boss to his subordinates, there wasn’t a hint of hesitation in his movements.
Beck Sang-hyun’s lips trembled and his pupils shook.
It was the face of a human gripped by terror.
“Throw this guy in a prison cell.”
“We don’t have a prison, though.”
“If you don’t have one, you make one, right?”
Basil flinched in surprise and bowed his head.
“As it happens, there’s unused space in the basement. I’ll make one there.”
Despair settled in Beck Sang-hyun’s eyes.
“‘This is the punishment I’m giving you. But I won’t kill you, so don’t worry.'”
Han Do-yoon turned and headed back towards the throne.
At that moment, Beck Sang-hyun sprang up.
“You son of a bitch! If I just kill you, it’s over, right?”
He had some fighting skills from commissions.
Stripped of all equipment and bare-bodied, he threw a punch at Han Do-yoon.
“How foolish.”
With those monsters on either side staring holes into your every move…
‘I was clearly trying to spare you…?’
Beck Sang-hyun’s outstretched arm flew through the air and fell to the floor.
“Ugh!”
Baek Sang-hyun wailed, squeezing out tears and snot. Han Do-yoon curled the corner of his mouth in a slight smirk.
“You.”
Seeing that smile, Bedk Sang-hyun remembered Han Do-yoon.
The acting skills he could never beat, and the attitude of acting dignified despite being a nobody.
“‘Attempting to lay a hand on my Lord’s precious body is unforgivable. Please grant permission for his disposal.'”
Orcatan, along with all the gatekeepers, wore the same expression.
Now he couldn’t even refuse.
“Do as you wish.”
“Ah.”
“What a shame. If you had stayed still, you would have lived. See, this is why you shouldn’t do useless things.”
Those words were also deeply etched in Beck Sang-hyun’s mind.
It was something Han Do-yoon had said in the past while grabbing Beck Sang-hyun’s arm.
‘Han Do-yoon.’
He couldn’t bring himself to utter that name aloud.
Scratch.
Because his vision twisted.
“‘You never intended to spare me from the start.'”
His face showed no regret at all. He looked purely as if he had enjoyed playing with him.
Seeing that expression, Basil and Orcatan marveled at the pure evil.
“Our Lord probably intended to keep the human in prison and torment him painfully. Now I truly feel our Lord’s return.”
“So that’s what it was? I made a mistake!”
Sorry, but it was all an act.
Still, it seems the serial killer’s actions resembled the Lord’s.
【Lord’s Script Completion: 8%】
The completion rate was still low since he only had information about the Lord from this sword, but…
【As acting completion increases, you can acquire the target’s skills.】
【Synchronized with Levatein. Can now wield Black Fire when using it.】
“‘I can see the path I need to take.'”
Then, Ellis, who had been quietly observing, cautiously opened her mouth.
“I have stored that human’s equipment.”
Come to think of it, he had almost forgotten the most important thing.
The reason hunters enter dungeons.
“‘Where did you put it?'”
Ellis, with her petite body, effortlessly carried the heavy armor as she moved.
Her pale skin glowed faintly under the luminescent stones, and her figure clad in a black rose-petal-like dress showed off just the right volume.
Rose-petal-like red lips and an enchanting face.
She was beautiful enough to go outside right now and become a celebrity.
She opened the door to the first room on the left and entered.
‘Wow.’
A gasp of admiration escaped reflexively. Because the gold, silver, and jewels shone brighter than the luminescent stones.
‘How much is all that worth?’
“By any chance, is there something you need?”
Ellis asked.
Han Do-yoon, who had unconsciously picked up a gold coin or two, hid his startled feelings and spoke.
“I need usable weapons. Artifacts would be even better.”
Han Do-yoon skill, [Adaptation], which he received upon becoming a hunter.
As you know, while it allows you to use most weapons, it doesn’t bring out good effects.
But there was one exception.
Artifacts imbued with magic were different.
They had usage limits, and high-grade ones could even strain the body.
But their performance was certain.
Well.
Their prices were horrifying, so he couldn’t even dream of them outside.
The moment he held the expectation, ‘A dungeon of this scale must have a few, right?’
“Here they are. If you tell me specifically what you need, I will look for more.”
Ellis knelt down and dropped the armful of artifacts she was carrying.
Clatter clatter clatter.
A sound like rain falling.
Ah.
Huh?
That’s how many there were.
S-Grade Artifact: Ring of Distortion
A-Grade Artifacts: Orb of Truth, Blood Pact, etc.
B-Grade Artifacts: Ring of Flames, Ring of Folding, etc.
More than ten items.
Even the best grade was S.
“‘Ring of Distortion.'”
“That artifact has its location fixed to this place. Its only flaw is that it cannot be changed.”
“‘Ring of Folding.'”
“You can put items into the subspace within the ring.”
When he picked up an artifact, Ellis explained mechanically.
“I think this is the first time I’ve seen my Lord show interest in artifacts.”
“Is that so?”
“You said borrowing the power of tools is something only the weak do.”
‘That weakling is me.’
“My thoughts have changed. Letting good items rot is a foolish act.”
“Is that so?”
“How do you use this one?”
“‘Blood Pact.'”
“Shall I show you?”
For a moment, Ellis’s red eyes seemed to deepen.
“It’s not dangerous, is it?”
“No.”
It was a ring set with rubies. Ellis slipped this ring onto Han Do-yoon left ring finger.
Then she bit her own thumb and dripped blood onto the ring.
‘This seems ominous.’
“It’s done.”
Contrary to his worries, nothing happened.
“What is this?”
“It’s an artifact that allows me to occasionally assist you, my Lord.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes!”
Ellis answered with a bright smile.
Her pale face and red lips made for a beautiful yet eerie smile.
He averted his gaze and didn’t ask further.
“‘Helping me’ probably has a good meaning, anyway.”
He needed to finish up quickly and get outside.
He was curious about what happened to the escaped Kang Hyun-woo, and he was worried about the other team members he came with today.
Still, he couldn’t resist free item farming.
As he put items into the Ring of Folding on his left middle finger, he said.
“Could you bring me more?”
“Understood.”
The items he ended up taking were as follows:
Right wrist: ‘Ring of Distortion’.
Left hand: ‘Blood Pact’ and ‘Ring of Folding’.
Inside the Ring of Folding: Ten C to B-grade artifacts, the sword that was the Proof of the Sovereign, and one S-grade artifact just in case, even though he probably wouldn’t need it.
Anyway, D-grade cores would be in D-grade dungeons.
He didn’t need artifacts that were too powerful yet. They’d just take up space and be hard to retrieve.
Returning to the main point.
There were a total of two portals to exit the Dark Divine Palace.
Busan and Jeju Island.
Han Do-yoon headed for the Busan-side portal. He swallowed nervously, wondering if he might get caught.
It was a needless worry.
The Boss leaving his post caused zero sense of incongruity. Thanks to the previous guy roaming around so much, it seemed like a familiar sight.
Anyway.
“‘Shocking Breaking News. 【White Tiger】 Guild Leader Kang Hyun-woo escaped alone.'”
“‘All squad members deceased.'”
“‘Plans for reinforcements fully suspended. Must re-plan operation from scratch—'”
The news was pouring out articles like that.
“Doyoon?”
It was also then that he was found by his team members who had been guarding the dungeon entrance all night.
By Irina, her eyes glistening with tears, and—
“See! I told you I’d be alive!”
He waved the Dimensional Pouch towards Park Geon-woo , who was shouting.
