Chapter 129 – Shadow of the Desert

The “Shadow of the Desert” was considered one of the easier S-rank dungeons.

The fact that hunters could enter from level 2,000 alone was proof of that.

But it was still an S-rank dungeon—not something to be taken lightly.

‘But…’

The party members who had just entered showed no signs of tension.

‘What’s with this atmosphere?’

Instead, they were grinning like children who had just received a gift.

And for good reason—they had just unlocked an achievement.

[Achievement – The Mark of a True Hunter]
– Condition: Enter an S-rank dungeon for the first time.
– Reward: +2 Stat Points

All twenty members had received it.

It was practically like gaining two free levels at once—no wonder they were happy.

Only Min Do-jun remained expressionless.

Not because the reward was insignificant.

‘Getting stat points is good, but they’re too relaxed…’

He didn’t like how carefree the party was acting.

‘The moment we stepped into this dungeon, we entered a battlefield where bullets could rain down at any second. They shouldn’t let their guard down.’

As if to prove his point, the hunters now stood in the middle of a vast desert—the dungeon’s primary terrain and the nesting ground of monsters.

‘An attack could come at any moment.’

Especially from Sand Worms, which slithered beneath the sand and struck without warning.

‘Yet they’ve all lowered their weapons just because they got an achievement.’

Min Do-jun could stay alert at all times, but the others? Not so much.

‘Maybe they’re less tense because there are more people than usual.’

But the moment they stepped through the portal, they should have steeled themselves.

‘The most dangerous moments are when you’re relaxed like this.’

Sure enough—

His Presence Detection and Killing Intent Sense traits picked up a monster.

‘It’s within 30 meters.’

His gaze locked onto the target.

The sand was shifting—even though there was no wind.

‘That means…’

A Sand Worm was burrowing beneath them.

“Watch out!”

The moment Min Do-jun shouted—

Whoosh!

A Sand Worm erupted from the sand and swallowed a hunter whole.

“Aaaagh!”

As the monster tried to retreat underground with its prey—

Whiiiiing—!

Careful not to hit the swallowed hunter, Min Do-jun unleashed a Gust Blade.

Schlik!

The Sand Worm split into three pieces, leaving behind experience points.

[EXP +55,200] (Contribution: 100%)

‘Its health must be low if it died in one hit.’

Ambush predators like this were easy to kill—if you avoided their surprise attacks.

Sssss—

The bisected Sand Worm dissipated into smoke, revealing the hunter it had swallowed.

But it was too late—their body had already melted into a grotesque mess.

‘Once exposed to a Sand Worm’s digestive acids, that’s inevitable.’

Defensive stats only applied to equipped gear.

No matter how expensive your A-rank armor was, unprotected areas were still vulnerable.

And when your entire body was submerged in acid? There was no surviving that.

‘The moment they were swallowed, they were already dead.’

This was exactly why he warned against complacency.

‘My fears just became reality.’

Min Do-jun closed his eyes briefly, silently praying for the deceased.

The rest of the party, however, had no time for mourning.

“W-what just happened?!”

“A monster just popped out of nowhere…!”

“That guy… he’s dead.”

The sudden breach of peace left everyone stunned.

Oh Yoon-sik, who had been happily allocating his stat points, was no exception.

‘What the hell is this?! Right from the start?!’

He rushed to the fallen hunter’s side.

They looked dead, but he had to check.

“Damn it…!”

A pulse check confirmed the worst.

And to make matters worse—

‘He was our team’s support!’

Of all people, it had to be one of the few supports in his group.

“Tch…”

Suppressing his frustration, Oh Yoon-sik scanned the party.

The cheerful atmosphere from earlier had turned funeral-like.

‘This makes me look like a bad leader.’

Before entering, he had promised—

‘Not a single casualty. A flawless clear.’

And now, that promise was broken before they even began.

If he didn’t handle this well, he’d lose their trust entirely.

“My apologies, everyone. As the leader, I should have been more vigilant. This accident…”

In situations like this, a swift apology and regrouping were key.

“Sand Worms are ambush predators. We should have been on guard from the start…”

“Wait, who killed the Sand Worm?”

“Someone reacted before any of us could.”

“The way it was sliced by wind magic… must’ve been a mage?”

Ignoring Oh Yoon-sik’s words, the party buzzed with speculation.

Gritting his teeth, he spoke up.

“Who was it that killed the Sand Worm?”

“It was me.”

Oh Yoon-sik turned—and his eyes widened.

‘The deadweight Magic Swordsman?’

The hunter he had deemed the weakest in the party was raising his hand.

“You’re saying you killed it?”

“Yes.”

Min Do-jun answered flatly, but Oh Yoon-sik’s disbelief remained.

‘A level 2,008 Magic Swordsman one-shot it with magic?’

Even a pure mage would struggle to do that—how could a hybrid class pull it off?

‘Was the Sand Worm’s health lower than I thought?’

As a level 2,786 mage, that was the only explanation he could think of.

Magic Swordsmen had to distribute stats evenly, leaving their magic power lacking. Killing a monster with a single spell should’ve been impossible.

Oh Yoon-sik patted Min Do-jun’s shoulder.

“Good reaction time. Too bad you couldn’t save the support.”

“……”

Ignoring the lack of response, Oh Yoon-sik addressed the party.

“Losing someone right at the start is regrettable, but let this be a lesson! We can’t afford to stop now. For the sake of our fallen comrade—we move forward!”

With that, he took the lead.

No one cheered, but they followed silently.

Weapons drawn, eyes sharp—the mood had shifted entirely.

The death had reminded them: this was no joke.

Sssss—

Spotting shifting sand, Oh Yoon-sik yelled.

“Sand Worm! Watch your feet!”

Whoosh!

Thanks to the warning, the party dodged in time.

The Sand Worm burst from the ground—only to bite empty air.

As it tried to retreat—

‘Oh no, you don’t!’

Oh Yoon-sik’s staff glowed.

Gust of Wind!

A raging blast of wind tore into the monster.

Or so he thought.

‘It’s… not dead?’

The attack only grazed it.

The Sand Worm writhed, still trying to burrow back down.

“Attack!”

Slash! Slash!

The other hunters finished it off, but Oh Yoon-sik was shaken.

‘I’m an Archmage, and even I couldn’t kill it in one hit. How did he…?’

He stared at Min Do-jun, baffled.

‘Did he dump everything into magic power?’

Even if he had, Sand Worms weren’t that weak.

Now that he’d fought one himself, he knew.

‘Was I seeing things? How did he one-shot it?’

No answers came, but the battle pressed on.

“Keep advancing!”

Oh Yoon-sik led the party deeper into the desert.

Whoosh!

Sand Worms occasionally attacked, but—

Slash!

The hunters, now alert, cut them down before they could strike.

“Good! That’s how you handle them. Don’t hesitate—attack on sight!”

True to their A-rank status, the party showcased flashy skills, slaughtering Sand Worms left and right.

The monsters couldn’t even ambush them anymore—they died the moment they surfaced.

Sometimes, three would emerge at once, but their fate remained unchanged.

‘This is practically a competition.’

To earn even a sliver of EXP, hunters had to attack desperately.

The D-team, in particular, was the most frantic.

And for good reason.

‘If this keeps up, we’ll get nothing.’

The Magic Swordsman in their group was hogging all the kills.

“Here it comes!”

Sand shifted beneath D-team’s feet.

While the others dodged, Min Do-jun raised his sword—ready to strike the moment it emerged.

And then—

Whoosh! Schlik!

The Sand Worm split vertically the instant it surfaced.

Even as it writhed, he delivered a finishing blow.

[EXP +55,200] (Contribution: 100%)

‘Guess I can’t one-shot them with normal attacks yet.’

But once his Battle Frenzy stacks built up, that might change.

Wiping monster fluids from his blade, Min Do-jun resumed scanning the desert—unaware of his teammates’ stunned expressions.

After four hours of fighting—

“Hah… hah…”

The party’s breathing grew ragged.

The desert’s scorching heat and relentless sun had taken their toll.

Walking on sand drained stamina faster than solid ground.

Their clothes were drenched in sweat.

“Leader… let’s rest.”

“Alright. Five minutes.”

“Five?! Make it thirty!”

Even A-rank hunters struggled in the desert.

And this wasn’t just any desert—it was a dungeon.

‘No wonder the clear condition is survival.’

The objective was simple: last 48 hours.

But without food or water, two days here were brutal.

‘Especially while fighting monsters.’

Their throats were already parched.

Min Do-jun, with his high stamina and regeneration from kills, was holding up better—but even he doubted he could last two full days.

‘This is why attribute resistance potions are essential.’

A potion that boosted fire resistance by 50% for 24 hours would be a lifesaver.

Of course, the others knew this too.

“Everyone’s wearing resistance gear, right?”

“Fire resistance?”

“Yeah.”

They had all prepared, equipping gear with fire resistance.

“Then why is it still so hard?”

“Our gear should give over 20% resistance…”

But gear alone couldn’t match the 50% boost from potions.

‘The 20% is the only reason we’ve lasted this long. Without it, three hours would’ve been impossible.’

Min Do-jun considered using his potion but held back.

‘It only lasts 24 hours. Too early to use it now.’

Even without it, his resistance was high.

‘20% from Flame Resistance, 5% from Minor Resistance, 15% from Intermediate Resistance.’

Three traits dedicated to resistance.

‘Plus, the Trinity Effect adds another 20%.’

Four layers of damage reduction.

‘With resistance calculated multiplicatively, it’s effectively around 50%.’

Practically the same as using a potion.

Yet he had still brought one.

‘For the boss, I’ll need even more.’

He needed to push his resistance further.

‘I’ll save the potion until before the sub-dungeon.’

Just then—

“F-found it!”

Oh Yoon-sik, who had been scanning the horizon, suddenly pointed and shouted.

“An oasis!”

They had discovered the sub-dungeon.