Chapter 209 Anomaly (3)

Translated by: Ddomigan

The structure of the building that encloses the S-rank dungeon gate wasn’t particularly huge, but it could be because of its location that it was built that way. But either way, if an S-rank dungeon were to break out, the building will still collapse in an instant regardless of how strong its walls are. But because of that, Yoojin was able to arrive in front of the gate room shortly after following the passageway.

It seemed a little too quiet beyond the door of the gate room, but it could just be that the soundproofing was really good. As there were no real reasons to deliberate, Yoojin wasted no time in opening the door. The first thing that caught his eye was the interior of the dungeon gate. While in an active state, it shimmered with a faint light.

Around it, there was a storage safe to store personal belongings and recovery items such as potions, beside those were chairs to sit on during the waiting period. And seated on top of one of those chairs, was Sung Hyunjae.

It was just him.

Nobody else was within sight, and any indications of their presence were absent as well. It was unlikely for the others to have vanished like this without a trace, so they were probably still inside the dungeon. …Could Sung Hyunjae have just left the team behind, or was he actually the lone survivor of an encounter with an opponent capable of annihilating his whole team?

Yoojin’s heart was pounding.

“To have come all the way here just to see me. I’m touched.”

Sung Hyunjae blabbered while keeping his composure, he was still turned away, and Yoojin just kept staring at him. His face was as flawless as always. While his hair was a little disheveled, that was the extent of his unsightliness. There didn’t seem to be any signs of injury on his body either.

He didn’t look like someone who had just came out of an S-rank dungeon. As not only did he not reek of blood, his clothes were clean too.

“Did you question whether you came in vain because you saw that I was still in pristine condition? I suppose it’s only worth coming to see people when they are wounded and exhausted.”

Yoojin took a couple of steps towards Sung Hyunjae. After covering some distance, Yoojin stopped his approach. Sung Hyunjae seemed fine on the outside, at least.

“Why are you alone?” Yoojin asked.

Sung Hyunjae turned his head slightly and gazed at Yoojin.

“Why did you come all the way here by yourself?”

Sung Hyunjae’s eyes inspected Yoojin intently, just as how Yoojin had stared at him a moment ago. His drifting gaze settled on the hand that was holding the emergency beacon.

“Did you come here for the young master?” Sung Hyunjae asked.

“Yoohyun is well and waiting outside.”

“I see, so, it’s the little lady.”

“It’s also possible that I came out of genuine concern for my partner, who not only came back from a dungeon conquest earlier than planned, but also personally reported to the guild after the raid’s completion. I’ll pretend that I can’t see anything, so feel free to be deeply moved and shed your tears of emotion.”

“It appears that my partner is a sweet person. Now that you’ve seen me unharmed, you may come running towards me merrily. I will gladly hold you in my arms.”

What was he saying? He probably wouldn’t have said that if it were Yoohyun or Yerim here.

“Anyway, what happened to the people who were left behind? Also…”

Yoojin wanted to ask if anything strange had happened inside the dungeon, but at that moment, the faint sound of metal colliding could be heard. Something had slid under his feet. Before he was even able to curse inwardly, a cold object had wrapped around him. It yanked at him, and Yoojin lost his footing from being pulled forward, but right when he was about to hit the ground, his arms were caught. A set of fingers firmly pressed down against his wrist and Yoojin’s hands were forced open.

The emergency beacon fell from his grip and landed on the ground with a thud. Yoojin had no real intention to use it anyway. The chains crinkled as they fell off at his feet.

Indifferently, Yoojin continued to speak.

“Inside the dungeon… wait, before that, could you break that camera.”

‘And maybe let go of my arms while you’re at it, it’s uncomfortable in many ways,’ He thought to himself.

“What, you left the camera on when you came in?” Sung Hyunjae asked.

“How am I supposed to know whether it was really turned off or not? Shouldn’t Sesung be reliable enough to not have done it? Anyway, I told you to break it, so just do as I say.”

Evelyn did promise to deactivate the cameras, but Yoojin mentioned that he’d break it regardless. It was partly due to the lack of trust he had in those words, but also because it seemed fair for Sesung’s cameras to be destroyed, given that Haeyeon’s were as well.

“Aren’t you aware that surveillance cameras these days have become so advanced that a wiretapping device could have been installed and we wouldn’t know.” Yoojin said.

“How about I confirm that for you.”

“Then, I shall thank you for that, ack!”

Electricity surged through Yoojin’s whole body in that instant. Its intensity was no more than a weak static shock, but he couldn’t help but feel disconcerted when the current enveloped his entire body.

“None.”

Sung Hyunjae said after releasing a subtle electric current to scan through the entire room instantaneously. Yoojin wanted to throw a punch at his smug face.

“As someone with good control over their abilities-”

PONG! And the camera exploded.

“…Then, why’d you even bother with that static shock nonsense?”

“Wasn’t it possible that something was hidden under Han Yoojin’s clothing too? Fortunately, it seems to be just a cellphone.”

Yoojin wondered if his phone got bricked again. Since the shock was about the intensity of static electricity, it should be fine. If the shock was able to detect any machinery that’s electrical, then it’s something very convenient.

“Did anything happen in the dungeon?” Yoojin asked.

“You came here because you had a certain suspicion, right? But if it turns out that you barged in here despite nothing being an actual matter, then I might be a little disappointed.”

“What’s there to be disappointed of?”

Sung Hyunjae didn’t give a response, instead he slowly put strength into the hand that’s grasping Yoojin’s wrist. As Sung Hyunjae tightened his grip just gradually enough, it didn’t trigger Grace’s nullification. Ah, yes. Got it. Only then did Yoojin realize it had been stupid of him to rush in alone and confront a high-class hunter that had just returned from a dungeon raid regardless of whether he held a damage nullification item.

Yoojin immediately spoke.

“My brother said that he felt a strange sensation while inside the dungeon, and that’s why he concluded his dungeon raid earlier than planned. Did Sung Hyunjae-ssi go through something similar?”

Yoojin twisted his wrist in discomfort, wordlessly pleading to be let go of.

“And I also came because it concerned my partner.” Yoojin added.

As a partner, Sung Hyunjae was reliable. He was someone who wouldn’t be daunted by anything that would occur in the dungeon, no matter what it was. Upon hearing my words, Sung Hyunjae softened his gaze, and then spoke.

“Did the young master sense a gaze as well?”

“Yes, he did. In fact, he described it as the gaze of someone peeking in the dungeon from the outside.”

“It definitely felt like that.”

Sung Hyunjae nodded slightly. He said that he had also felt a gaze piercing into the dungeon from the outside, but after he got rid of it, the gaze was no longer felt.

He added that he encountered monsters that had not previously appeared on the 2nd floor, and that the distance of the dungeon had noticeably shrunken. Fortunately, the monsters weren’t very strong, but since the change made him concerned, he went ahead of his teammates and cleared the dungeon first.

“What? The properties of the dungeon were altered?”

“Since I’ve taken care of it, the others should return by tomorrow.”

“…Yoohyun had not mention anything about the dungeon being altered.”

Was there a difference between the dungeon’s offensive properties being altered in addition to merely having felt the gaze? Surely, Yerim hadn’t needlessly meddled with the gaze which might have caused changes in the dungeon that delayed her from leaving, right? Sung Hyunjae stated that the dungeon had shrunken, but the opposite could have happened as well.

Yoojin would be rather glad if the dungeon had merely just expanded.

“Did anything happen to my partner?” Sung Hyunjae asked.

“As you can see, I’m perfectly fine. But it seems like I should pay a visit to Volleyball, so I shall take my leave here.”

If Sung Hyunjae were to accompany him, Yoohyun would probably be less opposed to the notion of him visiting Volleyball. ’Since Sung Hyunjae is curious about the gaze, he’ll probably follow along willingly, right?’ Yoojin thought to himself.

“Ah, by any chance, could that gaze be familiar to you? Like maybe it came from Jellyfish?” Yoojin asked.

Unlike Yoohyun, Sung Hyunjae had personally met Jellyfish. Since he was also keen, he might’ve sensed something. In response to Yoojin’s question, Sung Hyunjae seemingly took a moment and searched his memories before ultimately shaking his head.

“The feeling was unfamiliar. I can be certain that it wasn’t Jellyfish nor Volleyball.”

For one, it wasn’t Jellyfish. That’s a relief. Then, it’s very possible for it to be one of the Immoral People Sung Hyunjae did not know about. Could the dungeon error have been thrown in again by mistake?

When Sung Hyunjae stood up from his seat, Yoojin followed suit and adjusted his posture. As his wrist was still being held, Yoojin looked at Sung Hyungjae and tried expressing his slight puzzlement, but Sung Hyunjae’s attention was already fixed elsewhere. His eyes were focused on the emergency beacon that had fallen on the floor.

“Don’t-”

THUMP, Sung Hyunjae triggered the emergency beacon’s button with his heel. Hey!

“I was curious.”

“Would it have killed you to just ask?!”

Not even a five-year-old would touch everything that piqued their interest! ‘Wipe that innocent smile off your face, damn it!’ Yoojin cursed silently. Honestly, it might’ve been his fault for having accepted the emergency beacon in the first place. But, could Evelyn have already known this would happen? Before Yoojin could finish that thought, Sung Hyunjae pulled him into his embrace and the golden chains coiled around them.

Woo-oo-oong-

An unsettling vibration could be felt through the thick layers of walls the gate room was encased in. And then…

Kwa-gwa-kwang!

Like an explosion, the surroundings shattered, and debris shot everywhere. The incoming pieces of wreckage from the walls and buildings were repelled and pulverized by the chains. As Yoojin’s eyes opened dazedly, a semi-transparent barrier surrounding the spot where the dungeon building used to be came into his sight.

“That lad…” Sung Hyunjae uttered.

“So, this is Evelyn’s skill. Her role is to trap the target and launch concentrated firepower, I see.”

So, it turns out Evelyn really did have the skills to back up her bold claim of being able to blow things to smithereens without damaging its surrounding area. The scattered pieces of debris collided with the barrier and rained down. The dungeon building which had been built as sturdy as an air-raid shelter had been reduced into nothing but rubble.

The buildings on both sides of the street, as well as those across the road, were still perfectly intact and glimmering, which made the surreal scene even more jarring. When the barrier dispelled, the murmurs of amazement from the crowd could be heard. Although Evelyn may seem calm and rational, the fact that she didn’t even hesitate to unleash a destructive skill in the middle of a downtown area, proved that she truly was an S-class…

The situation brought Song Taewon to mind. Yoojin briefly wondered whether it had been fortunate or unfortunate that Song Taewon was occupied in a dungeon raid right now.

“You must have had quite some fun attacking a fellow guild member. That’s enough now.” Sung Hyunjae said.

And then, the embarrassment began to settle in. Normally, Yoojin could only hear and see so much while moving about with his current stats, but where he was now was the busy part of town, and he was the center of attention. Feelings of shame washed over him in waves. The members of Sesung Guild and the Association staff had set up barricades to obscure the view from the ground, but even so, everything would still be visible on the higher floors of the buildings.

…Ugh, this was seriously so embarrassing.

“Let me go, please.”

Yoojin swallowed his curses as to not upset Sung Hyunjae, but by then, Yoohyun was already leaping through the wreckage and making his way towards him. As Yoohyun arrived in front of Sung Hyunjae while atop the rubble, he reached out his hand.

“Give him back.”

Sung Hyunjae gazed at Yoohyun momentarily before obliging and handing Yoojin over to him. ‘No, but, how about just putting me down?’ Yoojin thought to himself. And before he knew it, the reporters approached them, and the sound of the cameras went off. Ahh…!

“Yoohyun, put me down quick.”

“Are you alright, hyung?”

“I’m fine. The Sesung guild leader triggered the emergency beacon intentionally.”

Yoojin was having second thoughts about trusting a person who seemed to be the kind to eagerly press a nuclear missile button just because he felt like it. Although Yoojin did his best to protect the world, he wouldn’t be surprised if that damned human suddenly decides to destroy it out of boredom.

“Anyhow, Sung Hyunjae-ssi said he felt the same gaze. So, I think we should look into the dungeon after all.”

Yoojin whispered to Yoohyun before turning around. From a distance away, Yoojin saw Evelyn waving at him with a gentle smile. Just by her appearance, one would assume that she was a kind teacher who had simply greeted a student she stumbled upon. One really shouldn’t be fooled by appearances.

“Could you lend me some time, Mr. Partner?”

“Isn’t it too cruel to overwork someone that just came back from a dungeon raid?”

“My bad, I was inconsiderate of your age. If you plan to retire soon, then I shall take good care of Sesung as its business partner in your stead.”

Although it was just a joke, the thought of it was still tempting. It could be something like when a party suffers an unexpected accident or withdraws from the front line, the other partner may take over their business. ’Shouldn’t we actually write up a contract like that?’ Yoohyun wondered.

In the end, Sung Hyunjae willingly agreed to accompany them instead of fussing about it. He must’ve been curious as well. Right after, the party made arrangements and went in a low-rank dungeon.

[Honey!]

As soon as they entered the snow-covered forest, Newbie bounced in front of Yoojin with its round body.

[M-More time, please just give me some more time!]

Newbie bawled as if he were an employee of a black company being forced to work overtime out of pressure on the deadline. Yoojin wasn’t even here for that, but it seems Newbie had been unnecessarily distressed.

“I’m not here for that today. These two felt a gaze in the dungeons, do you know anything about it?”

[Ah, that’s right!]

Newbie, in its volleyball form, shook as if it was nodding.

[There were a series of interferences in the dungeons that were entered by Chain, Honey’s brother and the one that possesses Water Droplet’s powers-]

“Yerim? What happened to her?!”

So, Yerim did encounter those strange occurrences! When Yoojin frantically tried to grab Volleyball, it slipped away. The Volleyball’s reflexes has grown accustomed to this movement of his.

[I’ve checked on her, and not much happened. Although the dungeons were distorted due to the interference, its anomalies are still at the level that can be dealt with by S-class awakeners.]

“Are you sure?”

[Yes, I am! Umm, would you like to confirm it yourself? But in return, the thing that Honey requested will have to be granted a little more time.]

“Let me check on her.”

Yoojin briefly wondered whether the delay of the dungeon’s creation had been caused by issues with the item rewards promised. Anyhow, what’s most important now is that the kid is safe. A moment after Volleyball went silent, a text window appeared in front of Yoojin.

[It’s su— delic—s, right u-nies?

O-, Blue! -ey, don’t c-me -ver here cove–d in blood!]

The scattered pieces of texts in their conversation appeared briefly before vanishing right after. It seemed like they were eating dried rations while resting. Those definitely tasted bad.

[I was able to show this much since it relates to Honey.]

Yoojin let out a sigh of relief. It appears that neither Blue nor the other team members were in any sort of trouble. He was truly glad that they were safe.

“Do you know what caused it?”

[Nope. I’m certain someone interfered with the dungeons, but unfortunately, I wasn’t able to catch the culprit. It’s also possible that someone from our side caused the interference, but if that’s not it then…]

“It wasn’t Jellyfish.”

[Is that so?]

“Yes, I’m sure. But, if Yoohyun, Yerim and Sung Hyunjae had all been probed at, then it might have something to do with me. Then, Wouldn’t that meant there will be issues?”

Volleyball rolled around at Yoojin’s question.

[No, there won’t! It’s not easy to interfere in a dungeon. Sure, it might not be impossible, but as you know, it still takes a lot of effort. Normally at the most, its either that the dungeon properties would get modified, or that S-class monsters would get sent in, but that’s about it.]

“But didn’t that lizard owner drop an SS-class monster once.”

[That’s because his skill itself was special. But I know for a fact that Jellyfish doesn’t have it. Jellyfish is only able to inflict significant harm by borrowing the body of an S-class awakener from Honey’s world that it’s formed a contract with.]

This was the reason why Yoojin had been advising himself to be more cautious of S-class hunters rather than dungeons. But that said, the probability of an S-class awakener signing himself away like what Choi Sukwon did was extremely low.

[But just in case, I’ll take care of it so you can get out of here right away. I’ll look into it a bit more, so for the time being, be sure to be accompany by several S-class awakeners when you enter a dungeon, Honey!]

While cautioning Yoojin to be careful until it was safe, Newbie made a separate gate for him to exit through. After Yoojin informed Yoohyun and Sung Hyunjae of everything Newbie had told him, they left the dungeon together.

And on the next day, Yerim succeeded in clearing the dungeon safely.