Levelling Up In An Exclusive Dungeon

It was painful to see household items being destroyed, but they were just things that could easily be replaced with money.

Thinking of it as having saved his life at the expense of the furniture, it could be considered a bargain.

“Uh… how long are we going to keep our eyes closed?”

“We have to wait a little longer.”

Kang Jin-hyuk didn’t allow Lee Hyena to open her eyes, wanting to avoid being discovered regarding the dungeon.

Lee Hyena assumed it was because of the smoke from the smoke grenades and obediently followed his instructions.

“Where the hell did they go?!”

“Since there’s no trace of them going outside, they must still be here! Search everywhere!”

The Titan hunters desperately scoured the house but couldn’t locate Kang Jin-hyuk and his group.

Whenever they opened a door, it led to nothing but a regular attic.

The dungeon was a place where only Kang Jin-hyuk could come and go freely.

“Why is it so quiet outside? Is something going on?”

At Lee Hyena’s question, Kang Jin-hyuk tilted his head slightly.

“Quiet? Don’t you hear what those people outside are shouting?”

“I don’t hear anything at all.”

Even outside, the Titan hunters were still shouting loudly.

It was strange that anyone wouldn’t be able to hear such a ruckus unless they were deaf.

‘Could it be that I’m the only one who can see outside from here?’

Just as the monsters were oblivious to the world outside, this ability also appeared to be unique to Kang Jin-hyuk.

He could not figure out why this power had manifested in him.

Lucia had explained that the mage who sent the dungeon into this world had targeted him as the coordinate, but for some reason, Kang Jin-hyuk could not relate to that fact.

Was that really all there was to it?

‘…Thinking about it now won’t change anything.’

Kang Jin-hyuk knew little about Lucia’s world or what that magic entailed.

No matter how hard he tried with that limited knowledge, it was unlikely that an answer would come.

For now, the best course of action was to enjoy the benefits he had been given.

While Kang Jin-hyuk sank into thought, the Titan hunters resorted to extreme measures.

Since they could not find anything even after rummaging through every corner, they decided to seal up every nook and cranny that led outside.

“Don’t let a single ant escape!”

“Cover every broken window with metal plates!”

As they sealed off windows and door cracks with blue tape, only one hunter remained inside.

Wearing a gas mask, this hunter held a scroll in one hand and an unknown capsule in the other.

“Dispersion!”

Shouting like it was a battle cry, the hunter threw the capsule to the ground, shattering it.

Then he immediately tore apart the scroll.

From the looks of it, it was the type of scroll used for returning.

“What was that just now?”

Kang Jin-hyuk, sitting in the dungeon, focused on the item visible beyond the attic.

From the broken capsule, green smoke slowly oozed out, quickly filling the entire house.

Whatever it was, it certainly felt like something dangerous.

“Is it poison gas, perhaps?”

It was suspicious that all the Titan hunters who had originally crowded the house were now gone without exception.

The hunter who had thrown the capsule was wearing a gas mask, making it nearly 99% certain that was the case.

To confirm the last 1% of his intuition, Kang Jin-hyuk turned to Lee Hyena and asked,

“Say, secretary. Does Titan use poison gas?”

“No. Biochemical weapons are strictly prohibited for possession and manufacture due to the potential harm to civilians.”

Hearing her explanation, Kang Jin-hyuk lost all hope.

‘Then what was that thrown into my home?’

It was clear that it didn’t resemble any air freshener.

Kang Jin-hyuk rose to verify its nature.

“Please stay right here for a minute.”

“Wait, where are you going?”

“I just have a little experiment to conduct, so don’t worry and wait.”

Entering the dungeon, Kang Jin-hyuk glanced around.

Not far from the entrance, he spotted several goblins and his eyes sparkled like a ginseng foragers.

“They say even dog droppings are useless unless used as medicine, yet you guys are so easy to find.”

Praising the goblins, Kang Jin-hyuk brutally beat them to death.

Out of the goblins with their heads splattered, only one remained unscathed.

Watching more than four of its companions die without offering any resistance, this goblin lost all fighting spirit.

Although it was slightly pitiful to see it crouch and whimper, he could not afford to spare any pity at the moment.

“I’m sorry, but my safety comes before your life, so there’s no helping it.”

Just like a hunter with no guilt for each animal they kill, Kang Jin-hyuk seized the goblin by the nape of its neck without an ounce of compassion.

“Kyiiik! Kyiik!”

The goblin desperately thrashed about with all its might.

However, Kang Jin-hyuk’s grip on its body did not budge, no matter how hard it struggled.

Lee Hyena, who had remained crouched at the dungeon entrance, was startled when she heard the goblin’s cries and the approaching footsteps.

“Did you really catch a monster?”

“I just found a few nearby and caught one.”

“Is there even time for that? What if you get tracked down…?”

“It was absolutely necessary.”

Kang Jin-hyuk took the goblin’s neck and approached the dungeon entrance closely.

‘Lucia was also able to exit when she held my hand. This one should be the same.’

Or not.

With a nonchalant attitude, Kang Jin-hyuk flung the goblin he was holding without much thought.

After safely passing through the boundary between the dungeon and the attic, the goblin collapsed onto the floor of Kang Jin-hyuk’s house.

“Kyiik?”

The goblin, confused and not understanding what had just happened, showed a blank expression as it caught its breath.

But the moment it inhaled, something changed.

“Kyieeeeeek!!”

With the breath came excruciating pain, as if its body were being torn apart from within.

Screaming only caused it to inhale more deeply, thus amplifying its agony.

Within just three seconds, the goblin gushed forth blood from every orifice, including its eyes, nose, and mouth, and fell to the ground dead.

Seven seconds later, it finally ceased to twitch.

Although it was about the height of a young child, the fact that he dispatched a single goblin in just seven seconds allowed him to grasp how deadly the poison gas that had been sprayed into his home truly was.

“It seems Titan has developed a few forms of poison gas without your knowledge.”

“No way! That can’t be!”

Lee Hyena denied this vehemently, her eyes widening.

But all around her, only a single wall stood tall.

Unlike Kang Jin-hyuk, she couldn’t check the outside.

“W-Where am I? What’s this wall?”

“I’ll explain later. First, take a look at this.”

Kang Jin-hyuk placed his hand on Lee Hyena’s shoulder.

Soon, the scene beyond the wall that had previously obstructed her view began to unfold.

“Oh my!”

Faced with the surprising sight, Lee Hyena was taken aback by the green smoke filling the house and the corpse of the goblin lying there.

“AHHHH!”

The corpse of the goblin, covered in welts all over its body, presented a sight too gruesome for a typical office worker to endure.

Seeing her reaction, Kang Jin-hyuk pulled his hand away from her shoulder.

Thanks to the wall blocking the view, Lee Hyena had time to collect herself.

“W-What the hell was that? Is that… your house?”

“Just now, everyone rushed outside, but one hunter stayed back and threw the capsule. After that, the house ended up like this.”

“H-How can that be…?”

As the personal secretary to the guild leader of a large guild, Lee Hyena was well aware of the forbidden items that hunters must not dare touch.

What had been sprayed throughout Kang Jin-hyuk’s house was certainly at the top of that list.

“That’s synthesized poison gas, which includes basilisks’ poison and arachne’s venom among other toxic substances. I’m positive.”

In that brief moment, Lee Hyena had recognized the peculiar color patterns that had appeared on the goblin.

That pattern was undoubtedly a hazardous reaction she was well acquainted with.

“It seems that the attempt to poison Seoh was not the only reason for smuggling basilisk venom.”

“Then why on earth would they use such a dangerous substance for?”

“What do you think the purpose of using poison gas is?”

The advantage of poison gas lies in its ability to quickly annihilate a large number of foes.

Given the current tensions between guilds, the intent behind creating such a substance was clear.

“Crazy bastards.”

Even after Kang Jin-hyuk had insulted her guild to her face, Lee Hyena couldn’t argue back.

To her, it was indeed behavior that crossed the line.

“Using such poison gas means it wouldn’t be detected right away?”

“No… The terrifying aspect of this poison is that after ten minutes, all traces of it would vanish from the body.”

“There’s no way such a poison exists in this world.”

“It didn’t exist until the monsters appeared.”

As Lee Hyena had mentioned, many changes had occurred since the appearance of monsters.

New materials were discovered that had never been seen in the realm of science, flipping the world upside down.

Similarly, the introduction of new energy resources brought chaos just a few years earlier.

“Shit.”

Kang Jin-hyuk watched as the goblin, which had been covered in welts, returned to its original form, unscathed, before his own eyes.

The poison hadn’t just cleared out of its body but even wiped away all evidence of its use.

There probably couldn’t be a weapon better suited for a perfect crime.

“This isn’t something you can just blame on the Tyrants.”

“…You’re right. We’re all on the same level.”

Lee Hyena had no words of excuse.

Even if it weren’t something that had passed through her hands, she could not say that her guild bore no responsibility for the wrongdoing.

Lee Hyena had the opportunity and ability to gather information and prevent this.

Yet she had let that slip away, resulting in the current crisis.

As the secretary to the guild leader, she keenly recognized that she had failed to fulfill her duty.

“Kang Jin-hyuk…No, Kang Jin-hyuk-nim.”

“Yes?”

When Lee Hyena suddenly addressed him with a higher titre, a sense of foreboding washed over Kang Jin-hyuk.

Such indications usually signified desperate requests.

Just as he had anticipated, Lee Hyena bowed deeply, almost to the ground, as she pleaded for help.

“I’m begging you. Please help us.”

“No, what can I possibly do alone…?”

Only moments ago, he had been overpowered by an S-rank hunter.

Although he had dealt a blow with his enchanted abilities, there were no guarantees it would work again.

To be honest, he felt incapable of resolving the crisis facing Titan with his current level of power.

However, before he knew it, Kang Jin-hyuk’s eyes were drawn to Lee Hyena’s trembling shoulders and the unconscious Seo Sang-ho lying on the floor.

How many people could the betrayed guild members trust?

It was fair to assume that no one would be able to provide any reassurance.

‘I really am a fool.’

Although he realized this choice was foolish, a deep sigh escaped him.

Still, he wouldn’t retract a decision he had made once.

“Alright, let’s try to do something about it.”

There were still some cards left to play in Kang Jin-hyuk’s hand for a wager.