Chapter 28

Translator: Roshi

The man with the fox’s tail calmly explained.

"Help you, what do you mean?"

“Just as I said. Our Hoik Guild has a dungeon we’re trying to clear. It’s an A-rank dungeon. But this dungeon is particularly troublesome. Three expedition teams have already gone missing.”

“Three teams?”

“Hwangung, Cheongrang, and… Baekho Team. These three.”

Upon hearing the team names, Ahn Soo-hwa pressed her lips together.

Those three were veteran teams of Hoik Guild and its main force.

In particular, Baekho Team was composed entirely of A-rank and above hunters, Hoik’s ace team.

And yet, all those teams had gone missing.

It was surprising that things had been quiet until now.

“We’ve kept it under wraps so far, but today, a family member of one of our hunters caused a commotion here in the lobby, so the situation will blow up soon.”

“It was only a matter of time before this happened.”

“That’s why I came to ask for help before that. Please rescue our hunters.”

The fox man bowed his head.

And the tiger man did the same.

Hoik Guild was a rival to Taegeuk Guild, large enough to stand on equal footing.

They were competitors, yet here they were, bowing their heads and asking their rival guild leader for help.

“If you can rescue our hunters, we will transfer ownership of the dungeon to Taegeuk.”

“That is good news, but… if Hoik has suffered this much damage, we might also…”

“That person is the new hunter who cleared an S-rank dungeon alone, right?”

At the fox man’s words, all eyes turned to Do-yoon.

Ahn Soo-hwa also looked at him, as if asking what he would do.

It was his turn to step forward.

“I have a condition.”

“Please name any condition. If it’s within our power, we will comply.”

It was an almost shocking offer.

From Ahn Soo-hwa’s perspective, it was enough to make her suspicious that this might be a trap set by Hoik Guild.

In response, Do-yoon calmly stated his request. "Please look after the kids."

"Pardon?"

"From what I can see, you don't seem to be human."

Flinch!

Do-yoon had sensed something while looking at Ahn Soo-hwa and the others.

Only he and Hanuri could see the two men’s tails.

To Ahn Soo-hwa and the others, it only seemed like Hanuri was pretending to have a tail that wasn’t there, just playing around.

Go Du-ri obviously looked like a tiger, and Kim A-rang unmistakably resembled a fox, leading to misunderstandings.

But to Do-yoon and Hanuri’s eyes, it was clear.

Those two were not human.

So, he subtly probed them.

“How did he know we were disguised?”

“You idiot! Why would you say we’re disguised?!”

“Well, he already figured it out…”

“It could have been a bluff! That’s why I keep telling you to just shut up when we’re talking… Hoo…”

It was a big catch.

His pride, which had been wounded by the mermaid incident, was slightly restored.

The tiger and the fox were whispering at first but soon began bickering aloud.

But.

“Disguised? What does that mean?”

Do-yoon had assumed they were beastkin, but it seemed to be something different.

Regardless, what mattered now was,

“Ahem. So, your condition is that we take care of a child? That’s easy enough. Is it that little one?”

“Hanuri is not a little kid!”

Already smaller than her peers because she hadn’t been eating well at the hospital, Hanuri bristled at being called little.

But Kim A-rang didn’t seem to care and immediately agreed.

“Fine. Taking care of a kid is no problem. She does seem a bit unusual, but that’s not an issue.”

“Oh, not Hanuri. There are others who need to be looked after separately.”

“Huh? Not her?”

To clarify for the puzzled Kim A-rang, Do-yoon called for the ones who needed care.

Park Ki-ho entered, looking like a tattered mess except for his white spirit-formed helmet.

In his hands were Kkoma and Kkomi. Kkyup!

Kkyuung!

“These ones.”

“…?”

Kim A-rang and Go Du-ri were momentarily speechless at the unexpected sight.

Regardless of their reaction,

“You only need to take care of them occasionally when I can’t bring them along.”

Do-yoon lifted Kkoma and Kkomi and placed one in each of their arms.

"Ah, by the way, lightning might occasionally strike..."

Rumble!

Flash!!

Before Do-yoon could even finish his warning, a small bolt of lightning struck Go Du-ri, who was holding Kkoma.

The Golden Cloud Bear, which controlled the weather,

The Bear Siblings, who had grown rapidly due to Hanuri’s influence, were still unable to properly control their powers.

As a result, incidents like this occasionally(?) happened.

Sizzle!

Fortunately(?), the lightning was still weak, so it only slightly singed the hair on Go Du-ri’s head.

‘Looks like he’s pretty tough, so this is perfect.’

Do-yoon smiled in satisfaction as he watched smoke rise from Go Du-ri’s head.

Now, he wouldn’t have to worry about Kkoma and Kkomi when he had to leave the house.

Even Kkomi and Kkoma didn’t seem to mind the two and quietly(?) remained in their arms.

At that moment,

Before the conditions could become even more detailed, Ahn Soo-hwa intervened.

“We can adjust the conditions later. Let’s discuss the situation first. Are the missing hunters still alive?”

“All the hunters are alive.”

“How do you know that?”

“That’s something I can only say is a Hoik secret. But one thing’s for sure, they’re all alive.”

“Then shouldn’t you just clear the dungeon?”

“We want to, but we don’t know the clear conditions. That’s why we’re asking for help from someone who managed to clear the supposedly impossible S-rank Water Maze Dungeon.”

Despite Ahn Soo-hwa’s sharp words, Kim A-rang remained calm as he answered.

Then, he handed over a bundle of papers.

“This is all the information we’ve gathered on the dungeon so far.”

“Dungeon information…”

***

After Do-yoon left with Hanuri, carrying the bundle of dungeon information,

“Is it really okay for them to just enter like that?”

Go Du-ri, who remained in the office, asked with uncertainty.

“Well… I think they’ll be fine. He entered the S-rank dungeon just like that too.”

“Oh?”

“Still… an A-rank dungeon that even S-rank hunter Go Du-ri couldn’t handle, huh?”

“Ugh, it’s a headache. It’s all because of that damn rat-like bastard… If it were just about breaking and smashing things, it would’ve been easy.”

Go Du-ri shook his head as if it was truly troubling.

Seeing his reaction, Ahn Soo-hwa’s eyes gleamed as if she had found prey.

“Well then, how about we draft a proper contract?”

“Huh? I thought this was settled with taking care of these two?”

Go Du-ri lifted Kkoma and Kkomi as he spoke, but

“That’s just part of the deal. You weren’t really thinking of just grabbing that and running, were you? That would be a problem… After all, our hunter is taking on a dungeon that even S-rank hunter Go Du-ri couldn’t handle. Naturally, there should be appropriate compensation.”

“Discuss the details with me. Representative-nim, just focus on watching over them.”

At Ahn Soo-hwa’s sly, snake-like demeanor, the fox stepped in from their side.

If Taegeuk had the Fire Witch, Hoik had the Enchanting Fox.

“Urgh! These damn bear cubs! Where is all this lightning coming from?! Huh?! Rain?! It’s raining! But why only on me?!”

Go Du-ri, now holding both Kkomi and Kkoma, was making a commotion, but the others ignored him.

Meanwhile,

Do-yoon and Hanuri, holding the bundle of papers, appeared inside the dungeon.

“It’s kinda hot.”

Swoosh.

A wave of scorching wind blew past, and with a single motion of his hand, Do-yoon made the surrounding temperature drop dramatically.

“Wow! Dad, how did you do that?”

“This? Hmm…”

Do-yoon hesitated to answer Hanuri’s question.

If he simply said “I just willed it to happen”, he felt like he would fall into an endless pit of “Why?” questions.

“Hmm? Hanuri, look over there.”

Instead of answering, he decided to divert her attention.

“Ah! Spicy Chicken!”

“Spicy… chicken. Pfft!”

At Hanuri’s exclamation, her gaze shifting exactly as he intended, Do-yoon couldn’t help but laugh.

Just as described in the dungeon information, the monsters were visible right from the entrance.

Red Horn.

As the name suggested, they were chickens with red horns.

Because of these creatures, people jokingly referred to this place as the Phoenix’s Nest.

The dungeon’s terrain was a vast, endless grassland, picturesque and wide.

Scattered boulders dotted the landscape, and the Red Horns darted across them, looking like flaming chickens.

Despite their unimpressive appearance, they were C-rank monsters.

And this dungeon was packed with them, covering the area from the entrance onward.

‘Let’s see…’

Do-yoon carefully reviewed the dungeon information.

The immediate objective of coming here was… rescuing the missing hunters.

Though he had another, real purpose.

‘While collecting Red Horn eggs, an anomaly was detected. All the Red Horn eggs were stolen. During the investigation to determine the cause, several hunters went missing… I see.’

After that, the hunters continued to disappear one by one.

‘Well, Red Horn eggs are delicious.’

That was Do-yoon’s true reason for agreeing to the deal so quickly.

The Red Horn eggs.

“Yap!”

While Do-yoon was briefly distracted, Hanuri suddenly dashed forward, trying to chase a Red Horn.

But there was no way a C-rank monster would let itself be caught by a mere child.

Flap!

“Ah!”

Instead, she only ended up getting teased.

As the Red Horn flapped its wings, flames erupted, engulfing Hanuri.

At that moment,

Wuuung!

The trolls, Ddugi and Chuchu, hanging around Hanuri’s neck, vibrated and generated a protective shield, blocking the flames.

‘As expected.’

Do-yoon had been ready to step in if necessary.

But there was no need.

In the Demonic Realm, trolls were also known as Guardians.

A C-rank monster wouldn’t be a problem for them.

“Yap yap! Stay right there!”

Feeling reassured, he didn’t stop Hanuri from running around.

The Red Horns flapped and caused fires to erupt all over, but for Hanuri, it was nothing more than a warm breeze.

And,

‘Good thing I didn’t bring the bear cubs.’

If the Bear Siblings had been here, this place would have turned into absolute chaos.

Feeling relieved, Do-yoon continued searching for Red Horn nests.

Thanks to Hanuri stirring things up, empty nests were scattered everywhere.

‘No eggs in sight.’

Just as the information stated, there were no eggs to be found.

If that was the case,

Srrrk!

Do-yoon’s shadow stretched out, scanning the area around the nests.

‘This side has Red Horns, and that side has… Blue Horns?’

Four types of monsters had been discovered in this dungeon.

Red, Blue, Black, and one more, Rainbow.

The Red and Blue Horns were C-rank, the Black Horn was B-rank, and the Rainbow Horn, at A-rank, was the reason this dungeon was classified as A-rank.

‘There really isn’t a single egg.’

That was the conclusion of his shadow search.

He had expected it, but still, he couldn’t help feeling disappointed.

As he was trying to shake off that disappointment, Hanuri excitedly called out to him.

“Hehe! Daddy, look at this! Hanuri is the boss!”

“…Huh?”

Stopping his search, Do-yoon turned to look, and was stunned.

Just moments ago, the Red Horns had been trying to avoid Hanuri.

But now, they were following her in a neat line.

The Red Horns were known for their bad tempers, even avoiding their own kind, and yet…

They were now swarming around Hanuri like a flock of red clouds.

‘No way… are all the ones here like that?’

He felt a slight sense of concern but dismissed it.

The Rainbow Horn was an A-rank, aggressive,

“…Huh?”

Just as he was denying the thought, he caught sight of colorful feathers shimmering among the red cloud.

It was a Rainbow Horn.

It shouldn’t have been here, as this wasn’t its designated territory.

“Huh? Whoa! Daddy! Look! A cool friend! It’s rainbow-colored!”

It seemed Do-yoon had underestimated Hanuri’s affinity ability.

Now that he looked closer, chickens from all over the field were gathering, regardless of their color.

Since this was the Red Horns’ territory, the red ones had simply blended in more.

But as more of them flocked over, the red cloud was turning more colorful.

At this rate, she’d end up befriending every monster here.

“…Huh?”

At that moment,

Something caught Do-yoon’s eye.

A shadow without an owner.

A shadow was supposed to have something casting it, yet this one floated there as if it belonged to an invisible sphere.

That shadow slowly circled around Hanuri, and then,

As if waiting for the perfect opportunity.

It pounced in an instant.

Srrk!

Even the trolls’ protection was useless this time.

Hanuri vanished.

***

- We are now in front of an A-rank dungeon where multiple hunters from Hoik Guild have gone missing.

- The disappearance of Hoik Guild’s hunters came to light earlier today after a commotion in Taegeuk Guild’s lobby.

- Hoik Guild’s representative, Go Du-ri, has only stated that they are conducting a rescue mission with Taegeuk Guild but has provided no further details.

- It is unclear exactly how the rescue operation is being carried ou- Wait!?

- Wh-What is that!?

- Dungeon Break!?

- Monsters are pouring out of the dungeon!

The broadcast was being streamed live from a safe distance near the dungeon entrance.

Reporters and cameramen were delivering updates when the incident occurred.

Monsters began surging out from the dungeon entrance.

The shocked crowd scrambled to flee in confusion.

- W-We need to evacuate!?

- Wait! Look over there!

- What is that? Why are monsters and humans together?

At someone’s exclamation, the professional cameramen instinctively turned their cameras back toward the scene, momentarily forgetting to flee.

The news anchors, caught in the moment, began firing off commentary.

- That’s Taegeuk’s new S-rank hunter!

- And there’s the baby angel!

- So the one who helped was someone from Taegeuk Guild!?

- But what’s with the monsters? They’re all… alive!?

Shock turned into confusion, and confusion into curiosity.

Meanwhile, Do-yoon calmly walked forward, holding Hanuri’s hand.

Following behind them were the previously missing hunters.

The crowd erupted into murmurs, but Do-yoon himself was completely unbothered.

‘Tonight’s dinner is chicken.’

His thoughts were entirely about dinner.

No eggs?

Then chicken it is.

Do-yoon grinned as he glanced at the invisible thing clenched in his other hand,

It wasn’t the eggs he had hoped for, but the results were still satisfying.

And the veteran cameramen didn’t miss a single moment of it.