Twenty-four hours later, it was suspected that the E-rank dungeon in Chuncheon would open with S-rank difficulty, or perhaps even higher.
All the most renowned Hunters in Korea were waiting there.
Not only that, but top-ranked Hunters from around the world were also making their way to Korea. An S-rank dungeon was known as a great calamity. If a dungeon of even greater difficulty appeared, the risk of annihilation would not be limited to just the Korean Peninsula.
In addition, because Korea was a country that could be wiped out in just a single day, the government itself had offered various terms and conditions to them.
That’s why, right now, the world’s most famous Hunters, each with their own purposes, were gathering one after another in Korea.
Every Hunter was on edge.
“The gate will open soon! Only twelve hours remain!”
“Where’s the operations commander?”
“I heard the Guild Master of Swordwind Guild is on his way!”
While all the Hunters were assembling, preparing their gear and planning operations—
Boom, boom, boom—!!
The dungeon shook violently.
And then, a system message appeared.
[S+ rank dungeon has been cleared!]
It was a notice that the E-rank dungeon had turned into an S+ rank dungeon, and that it had been cleared.
“…What the hell?”
The Hunters encircling the mountain with the dungeon tilted their heads in confusion. They weren’t sure if the system message they saw was real.
How could a dungeon that hadn’t even opened yet be cleared?
“Who cleared it?”
The Hunter Association President, present on-site, waited for the next system message.
He was waiting for the system message announcing the top contributor.
Countless people in front of the dungeon were curious to know who the top contributor was. From the Hunters who’d come from Japan and China, to the S-rank Hunters from America who had just arrived.
[Top Contributor ― Anonymous]
“…Shit!”
By now, most of the world’s Hunters knew about the Anonymous Hunter. However, aside from the existence of the ‘Anonymous Hunter’, they didn’t know any information—no face, name, age, or gender.
But there was one thing the system confirmed for them.
That this Hunter was stronger than anyone else.
They’d cleared an A-rank dungeon in under five minutes, destroyed a villainous Guild, and had even appeared wearing a mask to show the world incredible skills.
There was also proof that this Hunter had solo-cleared an S-rank dungeon.
And now… they’d cleared a dungeon before it even opened, and it was an S+ rank at that.
“A hidden stage, huh.”
An S-rank Hunter from America muttered quietly. He was a Hunter who’d experienced a hidden stage himself. Back when he was a B-rank Hunter, he had once entered a B-rank dungeon with ten companions.
That B-rank dungeon became a hidden stage, transformed into an A-rank dungeon, and only he had survived.
He’d become an S-rank Hunter thanks to the reward he’d obtained back then.
‘…Did they enter an E-rank dungeon by chance, trigger a hidden stage, and then solo-clear an S+ rank dungeon?’
Just how strong could they be?
He couldn’t even begin to imagine.
The Hunters waiting in front of the dungeon felt a stronger emotion than relief at having survived.
It was fear.
A boundless fear. They knew nothing about the Hunter who had single-handedly cleared a calamity-level dungeon.
Not knowing who that Hunter was meant they couldn’t bring them into their own faction. And if that Hunter already belonged to another group? If that faction wanted, humanity itself could walk the path of tragedy.
All the Hunters present began contacting their own Guilds. They were being ordered to find the Anonymous Hunter no matter what.
Hunter Associations from every country were desperate to find the Anonymous Hunter, and Korea’s Hunter Association was no different.
“If the dungeon’s been cleared, someone will come out of the entrance! Wait and see!”
At someone’s shout, everyone surged toward the dungeon entrance like ants.
(Anonymous 1): …What are they doing?
(Father of Crops): Hilarious.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): Waiting for someone who’s already out. Ridiculous.
Jinwoo had already left the dungeon. He didn’t exit through the dungeon entrance. As soon as he cleared the hidden stage, he’d been teleported to the summit of a mountain far from the dungeon.
He watched the Hunters from atop the mountain, then used his Stealth skill.
Concealing his presence, he slowly made his way to an unremarkable spot and headed for the camping car where Eric, Byeol, and the spirits were waiting.
Far away from the dungeon, at a park.
At that very moment—
Suyeon was also descending the mountain with the other Hunters. Some insisted on searching around the dungeon just in case, but she—who had only come to check on Jinwoo’s condition and ended up preparing for battle—just wanted to rest.
She didn’t even care about the Anonymous Hunter at that moment. So much had happened today, she just wanted to rush home and relax.
‘Now that I know Jinwoo and Byeol are safe, I just want to go home.’
She smiled as she looked at Jinwoo’s text message. It was a photo of Byeol grinning widely in front of the park. A photo meant to reassure her they were safe.
Seeing Byeol’s smile made Suyeon unconsciously smile herself.
‘Now that I think about it, a lot happened today.’
She’d come to Chuncheon to gather herbs to treat her digestive troubles, only to have her efforts fail, then happened to meet Jinwoo and was able to cure her illness completely. Meeting him and the adorable Byeol, who always gave off a mysterious vibe, had put her in a good mood, and she’d been able to eat her fill of delicious food for the first time in a while.
‘…Yeah, before I go home, I should stop by and see Byeol.’
She was also thinking of bringing a gift for Jinwoo while she was at it. If she bought some bread from a famous bakery nearby, Byeol would be happy.
There would be no end to repaying all the kindness she’d received. She intended to start repaying it little by little with such small gifts.
At that moment—
Flaash—!!
Lost in thought and trailing behind the other Hunters, Suyeon noticed something glowing nearby.
Walking alone down the mountain, she approached the bushes as if entranced, and discovered something.
[C-rank Item, Secret Key]
— Description: A key that can open a mysterious box.
— Note: Useless unless you have a secret box.
— Effect: ???
A C-rank item, Secret Key.
It looked like an ordinary key with no special power. But as an A-rank Hunter who had seen a fair share of things, Suyeon instinctively realized that holding onto a key-type item like this would surely come in handy.
The key was useless without a box, but if you found a box, it would serve a purpose.
If she held onto it, some opportunity for profit would arise one way or another.
There were more key-type items like this in the world than one might think.
‘If it’s C-rank, even if I find the box, it won’t contain anything major…’
Sometimes, Hunters who enjoyed gambling collected only these keys and boxes. In other words, if she held onto it, she could probably sell it at auction for a good price.
‘Why is this here? Did someone drop it? Or is it one of those items that sometimes pops out of dungeons?’
She wasn’t sure yet, but for now, she carefully pocketed the key and started down the mountain again.
*****
I arrived at the park and told Eric everything that had happened so far. Byeol and the spirits just seemed excited that I’d come back, running around the park.
“…You have achieved something remarkable, my lord.”
“It was tougher than I expected.”
As a regular Hunter, it really had been overwhelming.
(Anonymous 1): Are all the regular Hunters dead or what?
(Listener of Cheongha): There’s such a thing as too much humility, Jinwoo. You’re nowhere near ordinary anymore.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): How could an ordinary Hunter converse with the Constellations?
‘Well, that’s true.’
Yeah, I’m an incredible Hunter! Might as well boast about it while I can.
“Have you checked your reward?”
“Not yet. I wanted to check it together with everyone here.”
(Anonymous 1): Open it already! The suspense is killing me!
(God of Rain and Sunlight): Seriously, do you want to see me lose my mind?
(Listen of Cheongha): Descendant, I’m curious too.
(Returnee from the Demon World): It’s sure to be an amazing item. Jinwoo, as you said, you accomplished something hardly anyone could.
That’s right, aside from clearing the hidden quest, I’d achieved a hidden achievement, so there’d be plenty of items to receive.
First, I checked the achievement.
[Mythic Achievement, ‘Demon King’ has been acquired!]
— Effect: All stats increase fivefold when fighting demons.
— Effect: New stat acquired: Demonic Energy.
— Effect: All stats increased threefold.
‘…This is insane.’
(Returnee from the Demon World): So you’ve become the Demon King, Jinwoo. You’ve already surpassed the wall of ordinary Hunters.
(Anonymous 1): This is insane, my little Jinwoo is now a Demon King.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): That bastard’s going to become a Constellation at this rate!
…Let’s set aside my confusion for now.
I’d cleared the hidden sub-quest by fighting the demons of the Demon World without the help of any Constellations.
Without further ado, I checked the rest of the rewards.
[??? Rank Item, Mysterious Box has been acquired!]
— Description: A box that can be opened with the Secret Key.
— Note: Can only be opened with the C-rank item, Secret Key. It cannot be opened with any other key.
‘What’s this now?’
The reward wasn’t as impressive as I’d hoped.
And since I didn’t have the key, it was nothing more than a collectible.
(Anonymous 1): What a crap system.
(God of Rain and Sunlight): After all that effort, to get an item like that? I’m going mad.
(Returnee from the Demon World): …This is absurd.
(Listen of Cheongha): This is infuriating.
(Father of Crops): Well, there’s still the main reward, right?
(Endless Waiting): I dare say, maybe the key will come from the main reward?
(Liberated Swordsman): …! That’s possible!
(Last Blacksmith): Right, the key will probably appear.
That must be it, right?
Watching the Constellations’ chat, I began to feel hopeful. Key, come to me. I braced myself and prepared to open the main reward.
At that moment—
“Jinwoo!”
A familiar face came running from the entrance to the park.
“Suyeon!”
Byeol dashed over. The person running toward us was none other than Suyeon.
(Anonymous 1): Seriously, what is this?
(God of Rain and Sunlight): Ugh, we have to open the main reward but why is she here now?
(Anonymous 1): Kick her out!
(Listen of Cheongha): …But she ran all the way here to make sure Jinwoo was safe and even sent him a text. How can we kick her out?
(Father of Crops): Trash, Anonymous.
Just then, Eric noticed something.
“My lord, in that woman’s hand… isn’t that a key?”
Suyeon was holding a key.
“Jinwoo! Are you really okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. Thank you for worrying.”
“Haha, that’s all I needed to hear. I picked this up while I was checking if you were okay. Isn’t it interesting?”
What she handed me… was none other than the Secret Key.
(Anonymous 1): …Don’t kick her out! Worship her! Worship Suyeon at once!!