Seong-jun stepped through the portal and entered the dungeon.
Fwaaaaah!
The interior of the dungeon was in the form of a cave.
“I guess it’s a cave-type dungeon.”
Just then, a notification sound rang in Seong-jun’s ears.
[You have entered the EX-Rank Dungeon: Resting Place of Ermia Jeylin.]
[As the first entrant, benefits are granted.]
[Rewards will be upgraded.]
An EX-Rank dungeon?
“Cough! What? An EX-Rank dungeon? Isn’t S-rank the highest existing grade? Don’t tell me EX-rank is a lower grade than F-rank? Ah, no. That can’t be it. Ha!”
In all his time active as a hunter, this was the first time he had ever heard of a grade called EX-Rank.
Whether it was Awakened individuals or dungeons, S-rank had always been the peak.
Still, it wasn’t as if it could be a dungeon of a lower grade than F-rank.
At least as far as he knew, the unit of EX-Rank meant a top-tier level even higher than S-rank.
After scanning his surroundings for a moment, Seong-jun began to cast buffs on himself.
“If even a single monster appears, it’ll be instant death. I don’t know if it’ll help, but I should at least put some buffs on just in case I have to run away.”
‘Wind Walk, Blessing of Protection, Blessing of Resistance, Blessing of Strength, Blessing of Vitality.’
He used every buff skill at his disposal: Wind Walk to speed up his steps, Blessing of Protection to increase his physical defense, Blessing of Resistance to raise his elemental resistance, Blessing of Strength to boost his power, and finally, Blessing of Vitality to increase his health and endurance.
And then.
Clack—
He pulled out the wand he usually used.
Wands fundamentally came with options that reduced cooldown times, so most supporters used wands for the sake of rapid buffing.
Of course, even with the wand out, this was an EX-Rank dungeon; if even a single normal monster appeared, he would be a dead man.
Seong-jun began to walk deeper into the cave with his wand held ready.
“For now, let’s move carefully while staying alert.”
Seong-jun moved cautiously, his grip tight on the wand.
Thump. Thump.
Even though he was walking as quietly as possible, perhaps because he was walking alone through an empty cave, the sound of his footsteps felt loud.
‘Anyway, I feel like I’ve come in pretty far, but there’s nothing here. Could it be that there are no monsters?’
He felt like he had traveled quite deep into the cave, yet he hadn’t seen a single monster yet.
‘Are there really no monsters? In that case, should I move a bit faster?’
The fact that not a single monster had appeared during his journey thus far meant there was a high probability that the dungeon interior was empty.
Therefore, Seong-jun increased his movement speed slightly.
By the time roughly an hour had passed since he entered the dungeon.
“Is this the end?”
After looking around various parts of the cave, Seong-jun finally reached the deepest part—the end of the cave.
“Well, it seems certain that there aren’t any monsters.”
Since he hadn’t seen even the shadow of a monster the entire way here, Seong-jun was convinced the dungeon was empty.
As Seong-jun examined the deepest part of the dungeon, something caught his eye.
“Eh? That is…”
Having discovered something in a corner, Seong-jun carefully moved his feet.
Upon getting closer to confirm, Seong-jun’s eyes widened.
“Gasp! W-what! A-a skeleton?”
Human bones were visible inside clothes that were on the verge of crumbling into rags.
At that moment, the voice he had heard before entering the dungeon spoke again.
-Come closer.
Seong-jun was the only living person here.
That meant the owner of this voice was the skeleton right in front of him.
Although the voice told him to come closer, Seong-jun didn’t move immediately and simply stared at the skeleton.
Then, just in case, he cast a skill.
‘I wonder if this will work on the dead? Deep Analysis.’
When he cast Deep Analysis, information about the target appeared before his eyes.
[Analysis Results]
Hermia Jaylin: [EX-Rank Saintess]
Average Stats: [EX]
Combat Style: [Enhances the abilities of allies to make them fight, and depending on the situation, devastates enemies with powerful Divine Magic.]
Key Skills: [God’s Wrath / Radiant Wind]
Reliability: 40
Mental State: [Having endured for hundreds of years alone while alive, and with another several hundred years passing after her death, her now-faint Residual Thoughts desperately hope to have one last conversation with someone.]
Fortunately, Deep Analysis worked properly.
Furthermore, he was able to understand why this dungeon was EX-Rank.
The grade of the skeleton right in front of him was indeed EX-Rank.
‘She was in this cave alone for hundreds of years? And that’s why she desperately wants to talk to someone? Well, I don’t know exactly what the situation is, but I can’t just go back now after coming all this way.’
He had thought about just turning back, but leaving now would be far too hollow an ending.
Thus, Seong-jun decided to move forward even if it meant risking danger.
Step.
As he took a step forward.
Woooooooong!
A soft light began to radiate from the skeleton.
And then.
Fwaaaaah!
A faint spiritual body appeared before Seong-jun.
-Welcome. I have been waiting for you.
Even though she was merely a spirit, her appearance was beautiful beyond words.
It was to the point where one might call her an angel rather than a human.
“W-who are you?”
When Seong-jun asked cautiously, Hermia’s Residual Thoughts spoke with a smile.
-I am the Saintess of the Holy Order that serves the Goddess of Light, Hemeias. My name is Hermia Jaylin.
“Hemeias? Holy Order?”
-Ah!
This world is a different dimension from the one I was in, isn’t it?
The Holy Order was the one and only religion of the Mosran Continent, an order serving the Goddess of Light, Hemeias, and I was the Saintess revered by everyone there.
At Hermia’s words, Seong-jun tilted his head.
“Mosran Continent? Wait! Does that mean the places appearing as dungeons here are connected to the Mosran Continent?”
-That’s right.
To be precise, you should consider them connected to the Forest of Darkness, which occupies a third of the Mosran Continent.
Of course, this is just my speculation and it might not be exact, but it seems certain if you look at this place alone.
However, I don’t know if your world is connected only to our world, or if it’s connected to other dimensions as well.
It had been a little over ten years since dungeons and Awakened individuals first appeared.
However, during that time, it had never been revealed why dungeons appeared or where they were connected to.
In other words, Seong-jun was the first person to learn that dungeons were connected to the Forest of Darkness on the Mosran Continent.
“I see. But why would a Saintess be here…?”
-It’s a bit of a long story, but I still have time, so I will tell you.
What happened was…
Hermia’s Residual Thoughts began to explain the circumstances of how she came to be here.
It started from the moment monsters poured out of the Forest of Darkness, to how every kingdom on the continent stepped forward to form the Alliance Forces to subjugate them.
They succeeded in exterminating all the monsters, but they didn’t stop there and attempted to conquer the Forest of Darkness itself.
“So the Alliance Forces were wiped out, and only you, the Saintess, survived?”
-I don’t know if I was the only survivor or if there were others.
However, it is certain that something massive and irresistible is interfering with the Forest of Darkness.
And because of that ‘something,’ I became trapped here.
Shortly after Hermia hid herself in the cave to escape the monsters, a change began.
The entrance of the cave was blocked by a translucent veil, and it could not be pierced by any Divine Magic she possessed.
And so, trapped alone in the cave, she began to scheme for a way to escape.
Of course, all those attempts ended in failure.
“Your rank was listed as EX-Rank. Are you saying you couldn’t escape this place even with such incredible power?”
People said that even S-ranks were beings beyond the heavens.
Furthermore, it wasn’t SS or SSS, but a staggering EX-Rank.
-A short while after I was trapped, I heard a strange voice.
Along with the statement that this cave had been named the ‘D-Rank Dungeon: Orc Warchief’s Secret Vault,’ Orcs suddenly began to appear.
Naturally, I wiped them all out, and when I eliminated the last Orc, the name of the dungeon changed along with a voice saying I had become the boss of this dungeon.
Simultaneously, the dungeon’s rank changed from D to S.
In other words, at the time she entered the cave, she was S-rank according to the standards of this place.
-To escape, I refined myself.
As a result, my divine power grew significantly, and I was able to learn all sorts of new abilities.
Perhaps because of that, my visible rank rose from S to SS, and then from SS to SSS.
Ultimately, I reached the grade known as EX.
My power at that time became strong enough to wipe out the Forest of Darkness alone, but unfortunately, I couldn’t inflict even a single scratch on the translucent veil blocking the cave entrance.
‘EX-Rank’ was just a word, but if an EX-Rank appeared in the modern world, they would be called a Transcendent who surpassed human limits.
Perhaps they would even be called a god.
Yet, despite possessing such earth-shattering power, she couldn’t escape this place.
“So, in the end, did you die of old age here?”
Seong-jun thought that perhaps the Saintess named Hermia had eventually died of old age alone in the cave because she couldn’t escape.
-No.
As this place became a dungeon and I became its boss, I ceased to be bound by time.
I did not age no matter how many years passed.
I took my own life.
That was it.
Hermia hadn’t died of old age; she had ended her life by her own will.
“By yourself?”
-I might not know about monsters, but I am human.
You probably don’t know the pain of enduring hundreds of years alone.
No matter how great one’s power is, as long as one is human, it wasn’t easy to endure those long years alone.
Eventually, I judged that the only way to escape this pain was to take my own life.
But that wasn’t the end.
Even after death, I was bound here in the form of Residual Thoughts and could not leave.
She thought it would be over if she died, but unfortunately, it wasn’t.
After enduring hundreds of years, she took her own life, but she was forced to endure another several hundred years bound here as Residual Thoughts.
“It must have been an incredible amount of pain that I can’t even imagine. But there’s something I’m curious about. If you are the boss of this dungeon, do I have to fight and defeat you to clear it? Or is there another clear condition?”
He wasn’t going to leave empty-handed; to get even one thing out of this place, he eventually had to clear the dungeon.
The problem was what the clear condition was.
Whether it was winning a fight against the Saintess, or if there was some other condition.
If it was the former, Seong-jun planned to cleanly give up and leave the dungeon.
How could a mere F-rank supporter defeat an EX-Rank boss?
Hermia’s Residual Thoughts smiled at Seong-jun’s question.
-There is no need to fight me.
However, I will tell you the dungeon’s clear condition after we talk.
It has been 600 years. 300 years alive. 300 years dead.
After being alone for all that time, I desperately craved conversation with someone.
Even if it’s just for a moment, would you be my conversation partner?
Her mental state through Deep Analysis had clearly stated she was desperate for conversation.
Perhaps that was why Seong-jun nodded his head.
“I will. But I don’t think I can keep you company for too long. I have a dungeon raid scheduled early in the morning, so I have to leave.”
It was already past 1:00 AM.
Since the dungeon raid was scheduled for 9:00 AM, he had to wake up and prepare by at least 7:00 AM, so the time he could allocate to Hermia wasn’t very generous.
-Don’t worry.
I won’t hold you for too long.
Well, what should we start with?
Ah!
There were things that annoyed me while I was active as a Saintess.
Those things were…
Perhaps because she had to endure a total of 600 years alone, including the time after she took her life, she began to pour out the words she had bottled up as soon as she had someone to talk to.
And Seong-jun quietly listened to her words.
Before he knew it, three hours had passed since he started talking with Hermia.
Hermia, who had poured out her stories as if performing an exorcism on her pent-up emotions, spent the subsequent time asking things she was curious about or answering Seong-jun’s questions.
After continuing the conversation without rest for a full three hours, Hermia eventually wore a refreshed expression.
-Ah, I feel like I’ve finally released some of what was built up.
You said your name was Seong-jun?
Thank you.
Thanks to you, the knot in my heart has loosened a little.
Seong-jun smiled as he looked at Hermia.
“Is that so? I’m glad to hear the knot has loosened, even if just a little. However, it’s time for me to go now. As I mentioned earlier, I have an early morning schedule. If it’s alright, could you tell me the dungeon clear condition now?”
Actually, though he was smiling as if nothing was wrong, Seong-jun was starting to get annoyed after listening to Hermia’s stories for three hours while being tired.
Therefore, he planned to hear the clear condition now, and if he judged it was a situation he couldn’t handle, he would give up and leave.
-I should.
Thanks to you, I’ve cleared my pent-up emotions and can close my eyes in peace.
Having said that, Hermia slowly raised her hand.
Then.
Woooooooong!
Clusters of light began to gather above her hand, radiating a brilliant glow.
Fwaaaaah!
Soon, a sphere the size of a large candy was created.
-Eat this.
Then the dungeon will be cleared.
What on earth was he supposed to be eating?
“W-what is that?”
-It is the essence containing everything I am.
Mana can be stored in the body through the concept of circles, and Aura through the concept of Aura Holes.
But unlike those, divine power must be borrowed from a god every time it is used.
That’s why I researched ways to store divine power inside the body while being trapped here for a long time, and as a result, I was able to create a Holy Heart.
The reason I was able to surpass my innate talent and reach EX-Rank was also because of this Holy Heart.
The problem is that because of this Holy Heart, I ended up in a situation where I couldn’t die even when I died.
The reason the dungeon was maintained even after she took her own life.
It was because of the Holy Heart.
For some reason, the Holy Heart did not disappear and was maintained even after her death; thus, the dungeon judged that she could still function as a boss.
As a result, her soul could not find rest and was bound to the dungeon along with the Holy Heart in the form of Residual Thoughts.
“Are you saying that if I eat that, the dungeon will be cleared?”
-That’s right. If you eat this, everything I possessed will be transferred to you.
Then I will lose all my power, and naturally, the dungeon will judge that I can no longer play the role of the boss.
The situation where Hermia could no longer play the role of the boss.
That situation itself meant clearing the dungeon.
In other words, by handing over the essence containing all of herself to Seong-jun, Hermia would gain the eternal rest she desired, and Seong-jun would gain the miraculous opportunity to obtain the EX-Rank power contained within her essence.
That meant there was an incredible amount of power inside, so…
“Is it okay for you to just give away the essence containing everything you have to just anyone?”
At Seong-jun’s question, Hermia smiled.
-You are not an evil person.
You aren’t exactly a righteous person either, though.
But do you know this?
Righteous people have stronger convictions than others, and the moment those convictions veer in a wrong direction, they turn into villains more wicked than any other.
Of course, the person themselves would think the atrocities they commit are justice.
That’s why an ordinary person like you is more suitable to handle this power.
Having conviction is good, but depending on the situation, one must also know how to break their own conviction.
However, those with strong convictions, rather than breaking them, judge the situation to be wrong and try to change the situation itself to fit their own convictions.
The problem is that they regard the grievances of others that occur in the process of protecting those convictions as unavoidable sacrifices.
And Hermia had seen no small number of such cases.
Those who called themselves heroes, packaging the deaths of weak and ordinary people as unavoidable sacrifices and using that as a stepping stone to maintain their convictions.
“I see. I understand. Well, as for me, I’m obviously more than happy to gain EX-Rank power.”
Having said that, Seong-jun received the essence.
“But… if I eat this, will I be able to use all the power immediately?”
At Seong-jun’s question, Hermia answered kindly.
-If you did that, your body wouldn’t be able to endure it.
Most of the power will likely be sealed, and it will be opened bit by bit according to your level.
It was EX-Rank power.
It was truly an enormous amount of power that would be hard to handle with Seong-jun’s current body.
Therefore, most of the power of the essence would be sealed and would slowly unlock within a range that didn’t strain Seong-jun’s body.
Of course, the end result would be a guaranteed EX-Rank.
—
I Became an EX-Rank All-rounder Priest Chapter 2
E-book Publication Date: 2025.11.14
Author: Kim Hyeon-jun
Publisher: Heo Heung-beom, Park Geon-won
Publishing House: Poten
Address: [04783] 10th Floor, 8 Yeonmujang 11-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul
Phone: 02-6320-8500
Fax: 02-6320-8585
ISBN: 9791175302167
Price: Not for sale
c Kim Hyeon-jun 2025
This e-book is a work protected by copyright law.
This e-book was published by contract with the author, and unauthorized reproduction, duplication, distribution, and sharing are prohibited without the written consent of both parties.