Chapter 335 (1/2)
『Kim Su-hyeun heads to ‘Chungnam’ dungeon as soon as returning. Are his actions related to his connection to Lee Ju-ho, the new…』
It had been quite a while since a dungeon generated in Cheonan, Chungnam (South Chungcheong) Province. On top of that, it was blue in color. Excluding the indigo color, this type of dungeon carried the highest degree of danger.
Its location was in the middle of the city, not some isolated mountain valley. Since it was right bang in a place where people could easily see it, there should be no reason to not notice this dungeon.
Rather obviously, the citizens expected either the association or the Awakener Authority to step up quickly and raid this dungeon.
But then…
“Hey, isn’t this getting a bit too dangerous?”
“Feels like it’s been a month already…”
Once a dungeon showed up, it was normal to prohibit civilians from entering the one-kilometer range of the portal until the raid was successfully concluded.
However, for some strange reason, the entry prohibition signboard remained in the same spot although the one-month mark was approaching. Meaning, the raid hadn’t finished yet.
Unsurprisingly, the civilians walking past grew increasingly concerned. If something went wrong somewhere and the dungeon became a full-on outbreak, then the city of Cheonan would be leveled flat in no time at all.
“Shouldn’t someone report this to the Authority?”
“I actually called them yesterday. They said not to worry at all.”
“Hey, dude. Why did you call the Authority? You should’ve called the association.”
“I called the association, too.”
“Really? Wait, did they forget about this dungeon, then?”
“How should I know?”
Crowds gathered in one spot and began murmuring to themselves. While that was happening, someone shouted out loudly among them.
“They are here! Awakeners from the Authority have come!”
“Really?”
“Whew! That’s a relief.”
Numerous awakeners, already geared up, had gathered near the dungeon’s vicinity. These awakeners, with the Awakener Authority emblem clearly visible on their attires, began to set up a defensive cordon around the dungeon in a professional and orderly manner.
Restrictions on movements for civilians also got underway. While saying that they needed to widen the prohibited area, they proceeded to evacuate the civilians to an even further-off location.
In the middle of all that, a lone figure stepped forward and headed toward the prohibited area around the dungeon.
“Uh? Excuse me! If you go that way…?”
The man who was trudging toward the dungeon suddenly vanished from view.
The civilian who was urgently moving according to the guidance provided by the Authority-affiliated awakeners could only make a puzzled expression.
“Did I see a ghost or something?”
* * *
Kim Jae-ho was one of the two top awakeners affiliated with the Authority.
He was known as the other S-Rank awakener working for the Authority along with Bak Yun-gyu, and as he managed to reach this rank at a young age, many evaluated him to have a bright future ahead of him.
And he had one role to perform today.
“They want me to stop an outbreak, huh?”
Kim Jae-ho scanned his vicinity and observed that quite a large number of awakeners were present—about two hundred of them, as a matter of fact. Every single one was a B-Rank awakener or higher and also happened to be affiliated with the Authority.
Gathering these many awakeners would have taken the Authority a considerable amount of time and effort, not to mention coordination to match everyone’s schedule. With that alone, Kim Jae-ho was certain of this whole thing not being cooked up in one day.
“Bak Yun-gyu is scheduled to join us a little later…” he thought.
Their role was not to raid but to defend. They must stop the monsters from pouring out from the dungeon and work with Bak Yun-gyu or any other available awakeners from the various guilds to minimize the losses that would arise from the outbreak as much as possible.
“I guess it’s about time they show up.” Kim Jae-ho checked the time with his wristwatch. It said, three o’clock.
If what he had been told was correct, then the people from the association should be arriving right about now.
Sure enough, a man with a familiar face walked up to Kim Jae-ho and asked, “Ah, you guys must be from the Authority?”
Kim Jae-ho’s eyes gleamed brightly at that. He had instantly recognized the man that arrived in a sedan.
“Jung Yoon-ho,” Kim Jae-ho inwardly said.
Indeed, it was none other than Jung Yoon-ho, the retired association chairman and an S-Rank awakener affiliated with the association.
“Ah, hello. Yes, we came to face off against the upcoming dungeon outbreak. We’ve already instructed the evacuation of the civilians, and we are currently on standby until enough personnel arrived to safely pull off the defensive battle.”
“Thank you for responding so quickly.”
“You’re too kind. By the way…” Kim Jae-ho paused and glanced at the other awakeners disembarking from several cars that came along with Jung Yoon-ho. “It seems that no one in the association knew that a dungeon was here?”
“…”
Jung Yoon-ho couldn’t immediately reply. It was an obvious question, after all.
If they knew, they would have never neglected such a dungeon. A blue-colored dungeon would have been set as a priority if they knew of its existence, yet it was still left unattended until now, and that clearly indicated the association’s mistake.
After all, the Awakener Authority was an organization meant to manage the awakeners, not raid dungeons.
Kim Jae-ho continued, “Well, I don’t think there will be a major problem, anyway. Most of the civilians have been evacuated by now, and the Authority has mobilized enough manpower to prepare for the worst.”
“Thank you for your help.”
“I have to say, I do feel that much more confident now that you’re here with us, Mister Jung Yoon-ho. Another S-Rank from our own side is scheduled to arrive pretty soon, so I think the assault will be easier than—”
Giii-iiiing—
The heads of both Kim Jae-ho and Jung Yoon-ho spun toward a certain direction—the dungeon in the distance.
Energy began whipping up into a storm from within the dungeon. Kim Jae-ho nervously swallowed back his saliva and clenched his fists. “So, it’s finally begun.”
“No,” Jung Yoon-ho shook his head after hearing Kim Jae-ho’s voice filled with determination. “It’s the exact opposite.”
“Sorry?”
“It’s not the beginning, but the dungeon’s disappearing instead.”
Tap—
Jung Yoon-ho kicked the ground and leaped up. Seeing how Jung Yoon-ho’s figure rapidly darted toward the dungeon, Kim Jae-ho began chasing after him even before he could think.
The dungeon in question was about one kilometer away from the signs denoting the beginning of the restricted area. It wasn’t that far away, in other words.
Although several buildings obscured it, the dungeon became visible soon enough after they dashed forward quickly for a dozen or so seconds.
“The dungeon, it’s…”
Kim Jae-ho’s eyes opened wider.
A building that was previously dyed in the distinctive blue color had almost fully reverted to its original coloring. The blue light hadn’t fully disappeared yet; it lingered on in a faint and blurry state.
Every single awakener in the world should know what this phenomenon signified.
“The raid…it’s over?”