Episode 12: Dungeon (1)
The weekend arrived without much incident.
Sung Siwoo had been quiet since that day.
He seemed to have a lot on his mind. Hopefully, he could sort things out soon.
[A report from Jeong Haein has been received.]
A response to the report had also arrived. Honestly, there was a high chance nothing significant would come of it. Schools often turned a blind eye to such underhanded methods.
But that wasn’t something to worry about right now.
In this world, there’s a marketplace used by heroes. It’s called the “Auction.”
At the Auction, everything from monster by-products to equipment, elixirs, and secret manuals is sold. However, what I was looking for today wasn’t any of those items.
“Dungeon.”
The Auction has a dedicated tab just for dungeons.
When someone discovers a dungeon, they can report it to the association and immediately have their rights to it secured.
They can then either conquer it themselves or—
[Goblin Lair]
[Location: Jeongseon, Gangwon Province]
[Seller’s Description: A typical goblin dungeon.]
[Price: 57,000,000 KRW]
—sell the rights to conquer the dungeon, just like this.
“Here it is.”
[Skeleton Lair]
[Location: Taebaek, Gangwon Province]
[Seller’s Description: An undead-attribute dungeon. A priest is required.]
[Price: 30,000,000 KRW]
The price might seem low, but the truth is, this dungeon is trash.
Even if you successfully clear the Skeleton Lair, the only reward you get is bones.
Alchemists might buy them cheaply, but for most heroes, they’re just dead weight.
On top of that, since it’s an undead dungeon, you’d need a priest, which means double the labor costs.
[Bid]
Still, I placed a bid.
The truth about this place was different.
‘Double Dungeon.’
If you perform a specific ritual before entering, the dungeon reveals its true nature.
And the rewards from this dungeon are…
“I must get them, no matter what.”
Not long after I pressed the bid button, the purchase was confirmed.
[Seller]: Thank you so much for bidding, Alchemist! Please let me know when you’re ready to conquer the dungeon!
It seemed they mistook me for an alchemist.
Well, it made sense—who would buy a dungeon like this otherwise?
As soon as I completed the purchase, I stretched. Now, all that was left was to find a priest.
It was best to head out as soon as I found one, as priests were notoriously hard to recruit.
On top of that, their profession made them arrogant, so negotiating reward distribution required special care.
I opened the recruitment board next to the Auction.
I was about to post a job notice when I paused.
[1000_y]
[Class: Priest]
[Current Status: Seeking Work]
[Details: Skilled in rituals and incantations. Capable of comprehensive care.]
[♥: 92]
There was a priest looking for work.
Not only were they a priest, but their skills perfectly matched what I needed.
However, it seemed nearly 100 people had already reached out to them.
‘This one might be difficult.’
I considered giving up but decided to give it a shot anyway—nothing ventured, nothing gained.
[belief_]: Hello. Are you available tomorrow? The location is Skeleton Lair near Taebaek, Gangwon Province.
[belief_]: I’ll pay 50 million KRW. Payment will be made after the conquest, so there’s no reward distribution.
Excluding reward distribution wasn’t exactly favorable for priests. However, given the low rewards of this dungeon, 50 million KRW should be enticing enough.
It would probably take some time to get a reply—if they even responded at all.
In the meantime, I posted a job notice.
“Priest… as soon as possible… ritual….”
Ding! Ding!
Huh?
I thought it might be Sion, but it was the priest.
[1000_y]: Sure.
[1000_y]: Shall we leave today?
“Why the rush?”
Today seemed a bit too soon. Tomorrow would be better.
[belief_]: No, let’s leave tomorrow.
[belief_]: By the way, which temple are you affiliated with?
I checked my watch while asking, slightly suspicious.
It was strange that they replied to me when so many others had already reached out.
[1000_y]: Arcadia.
“Good.”
My suspicions were resolved.
When it comes to priests, Arcadia is a guarantee of reliability. I could only be grateful.
[1000_y]: By the way, you haven’t contacted any other priests, have you? If you have, cancel them all.
[belief_]: I haven’t contacted anyone else.
[1000_y]: Then I’ll see you at the hub at 8 AM tomorrow.
I hadn’t expected to find a priest so easily… I was lucky.
I’d heard that some priests focus on easy dungeons to build their experience, and it seemed like they were one of those.
With that settled, I notified the seller of the meeting time—8 AM tomorrow—and closed my laptop.
Now, all that was left was to gather the materials for the ritual. It wasn’t a complicated preparation.
[Jeong Haein]: Sion, is the old man home right now?
***
The next morning arrived.
At 8 AM on Sunday, the portal hub in Taebaek, Gangwon Province, was quiet.
Since dungeons didn’t occur frequently in the area, it usually maintained a calm atmosphere.
“Over here!”
In the distance, the seller was waving his hand.
He ran over quickly, extending his hand for a handshake, which I accepted.
“Haha… I didn’t expect you to be this young.”
His role was to guide us to the entrance of the dungeon. Beyond that, he wouldn’t be accompanying us.
Even if he had offered, I would’ve refused.
“By the way, where’s the priest?”
“They’ll be here soon.”
It was the appointed time, with about 10 seconds left until the next portal activation.
I figured they’d probably arrive through that portal.
Vwooooom.
With a low hum, the portal activated.
And standing there was a familiar face.
Her neatly combed hair was held back with a headband, and she stood beside an older priest.
‘Cheon Yeoul…?’
I couldn’t believe my eyes.
“Have you been waiting long? Oh, my.”
Cheon Yeoul smiled faintly and walked toward me.
“What a coincidence. I didn’t expect it to be you.”
Her companion, the older priest, bowed slightly to me in greeting.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief and spoke.
“I apologize… The Saintess Candidate suddenly decided to go on a dungeon expedition, so I had to confirm it personally.
But since she’s with a fellow student from Gaon, I can leave with peace of mind.”
I understood. Cheon Yeoul was an incredibly important figure in Arcadia.
Whenever she went on a dungeon expedition, it was common for her to have a luxurious team of support.
Yet here she was, about to raid the Skeleton Lair with some unknown guy. It made sense they came to check.
I glanced at her again and nodded.
‘This is good.’
Yes, very good.
Cheon Yeoul was an undeniably skilled priest, and holy rituals were her area of expertise.
Besides, one of the rewards from this dungeon was something I had already intended to allocate to her.
“…Shall we get going?”
As I turned to head toward the dungeon, the seller hesitantly spoke up.
“Excuse me… this is the Skeleton Lair, right?”
“Yes.”
I answered firmly, but he still looked uneasy as he continued.
“There’s a high chance this dungeon has nothing noteworthy… If there’s been a misunderstanding, I can offer a refund….”
He was surprisingly honest for a seller.
I nodded at his sincere demeanor and replied.
“It’s fine. Please lead the way.”
The seller sighed and nodded, then began guiding us.
“Alright… this way. It won’t take long to reach the entrance by car.”
Following his lead, we headed toward the dungeon entrance.
It was just me and Cheon Yeoul—our team consisted of only two people. The other priest had returned.
“He’s the Head Priest.”
“Got it.”
The priest with the pleasant demeanor held the title of Head Priest.
Why on earth did he come all the way here…?
I decided to stop overthinking it.
“We’ve arrived.”
The seller stopped the vehicle and pointed toward the dungeon entrance.
After winding through several mountain roads and venturing deep into the wilderness, the entrance appeared—but it looked pitifully shabby.
Scratching his head, the seller spoke.
“Ha… I really did warn you. There’s no refund at this point.”
“Yes.”
I responded and stood before the shimmering, rippling dungeon entrance.
Opening my crossbody bag, I pulled out the items I had prepared.
“Highest grade holy water.”
This was a rare item, highly sought after by temples.
I had stolen it from the old man’s stash. Thanks, old man.
Without hesitation, I generously poured the holy water onto the ground.
Ripples of radiant light spread outward.
“How high of a rank can you manage with holy rituals?”
While focusing on pouring, I asked Cheon Yeoul.
“Hmm… as high as you want?”
…What kind of answer is that?
Holy rituals are ranked from 1 to 9. Rank 1 is for beginners, while rank 9 is considered divine territory.
In practice, rank 8 is the highest achievable.
A typical adult priest could usually handle up to rank 3.
It might be cutting it close, but…
“Can you manage rank 3?”
Ideally, I’d prefer something higher, but she was still a student.
However, Cheon Yeoul smiled at my question, approached me, and whispered softly in my ear.
“You can be honest with me. I’ll do whatever you need.”
After speaking, she took a few steps back.
Clasping her hands together, she closed her eyes.
As her lips began moving rapidly, the holy water I had poured started to shine.
The light was blinding.
I had spread the holy water in a wide pattern, forming a kind of magic circle. The circle was now glowing with immense intensity.
“…Sio…calo…”
With her final incantation, the holy ritual was complete.
A moment of silence followed.
After a few seconds of waiting, an overwhelming surge of magical energy erupted from the dungeon entrance.
WEEEEEEEENG!
A piercing alarm rang out from the distance, slicing through the air.
It was a security alert, automatically triggered when a certain level of magical energy was released.
This meant the association would be here soon—it was only a matter of time.
“Let’s go in.”
“Alright.”
Cheon Yeoul calmly answered, walking behind me.
Meanwhile, the seller stood frozen, staring at us with his mouth agape.
His face was a mix of confusion and shock.
“This is a Double dungeon.”
I explained simply as I passed him.
“When the association arrives, please explain the situation to them.”
With that, I stepped into the dungeon with Cheon Yeoul.