Chapter 16 – Dungeon Break

Grrrr!

The werewolf that emerged into the human world looked around searching for prey.

Soon, the werewolf that spotted Min Do-jun bared its teeth.

A grinning appearance.

But Min Do-jun was no mere prey.

He was the apex predator at the top of the food chain.

‘Mana Sword.’

Woong!

Min Do-jun’s sword was enveloped in a bluish light.

206 magic power was added to the one-handed sword with an average attack power of 170.

More than double the attack power amplification effect.

On top of that.

‘Lightning Spear. Enchant Sword.’

As the spear of lightning appeared, its attribute transferred to the blade.

Crackle-! Crackle-!

The lightning attribute has no damage increase or decrease against the fire-attribute werewolf.

But Enchant Sword inherently had a 10% damage amplification.

Grooowl!

The werewolf charged with a fierce momentum as if looking down on him.

As Min Do-jun tilted his sword, the lightning spear pierced the werewolf’s eyeball.

Crackle!

Kuheong!

Simultaneously, Min Do-jun who leapt out held his sword vertically.

Slash!

The werewolf’s body was split in half.

It died with just one magic attack and one sword strike.

[Experience +200]

‘Since I killed it outside, it seems the necklace effect doesn’t apply.’

It appeared that the 1.5x experience amplification effect only applied when soloing in dungeons.

‘By the way, the damage is stronger than I thought.’

The damage of the one-handed sword with two buffs was beyond imagination.

One slash was comparable to a magic attack.

‘Insane.’

It could be considered extremely powerful.

Of course, this was possible due to the combination of Min Do-jun’s high strength and magic power, along with his damage amplification trait called Revenge.

Leaving the werewolf that disappeared like smoke behind, Min Do-jun’s gaze turned to the rippling dungeon entrance.

‘Seeing that it turned red, it’s certain that a dungeon break occurred.’

The dungeon entrance is usually blue, but turns purple after entering.

Red meant that a dungeon break was in progress.

Grrrr-

Soon after, a third werewolf appeared from the dungeon entrance.

But that one was no match for Min Do-jun either.

Kyaang!

Leaving the one that turned into a wisp of smoke behind, Min Do-jun stood in front of the entrance.

Tssss-

Just as the fourth werewolf was being summoned.

Slash!

Min Do-jun immediately cut it in half.

‘If I kill them as soon as they come out like this, I can catch them more easily.’

If they had come out all at once, even Min Do-jun would have had a hard time, but since they came out one by one, he could catch them more easily.

Swish!

Slash!

There was no tension in his appearance as he killed them as soon as they appeared.

Now that he had transitioned to a magic swordsman, werewolves were no longer even an after-dinner exercise.

That doesn’t mean dungeon breaks aren’t dangerous though.

‘It’s fortunate that I appeared in time, otherwise there could have been significant casualties.’

Just one tiger loose in a residential area is an enormous threat, imagine if 80 werewolves were scattered about.

It would be no less than a threat comparable to a bomb terror.

‘But why did a dungeon break occur?’

Dungeon breaks are difficult to happen under normal circumstances.

That’s because the soldiers guarding the entrance check the remaining time and call hunter civil servants to prevent it in advance.

Even if there are no soldiers or hunter civil servants, regular hunters should normally appear to clear it.

Once registered in the system, at least one team will come to clear it no matter how remote the location.

‘Yet the fact that no one cleared it means…’

There was a high possibility it wasn’t registered in the system.

‘An unregistered dungeon.’

When a dungeon break occurs, monsters come out and the dungeon disappears.

And a dungeon of the same level is newly created somewhere on Earth.

In other words, one unregistered dungeon is created.

That was an unregistered dungeon.

‘The reason is unknown, but academics say it’s to maintain balance.’

Whether it’s for balance or not, when one dungeon disappears, another is created.

And since it targets the whole world, it’s extensive and the location is random.

The newly created dungeon like that counts down the time until someone clears it.

In other words, if it’s not found, another dungeon break will occur.

A repetition of a vicious cycle.

That’s why there’s a system in the country that gives rewards for reporting unregistered dungeons.

Managing to prevent dungeon breaks from occurring was more important than anything.

Of course, no matter how well it’s managed, it’s all for naught if dungeons move over from other countries.

‘Come to think of it, was it around this time?’

Ten years ago, there was a dungeon break in a remote countryside.

‘I guess this was that place.’

It was an incident that caused quite a stir for a while, with hundreds of casualties due to werewolves at the time.

‘Then those students were lives that should have died back then…’

Slash!

Min Do-jun, who was killing the eighth werewolf, turned around.

The students were watching his battle with sparkling eyes from a distance.

“Wow. So cool.”

“I never thought I’d see a hunter hunting in person.”

To the two students, Min Do-jun’s appearance was no different from a hero in a movie.

“Look at him tearing apart the werewolf.”

“Crazy. He’s really something.”

That werewolf that made them tremble seemed less than a puppy in front of Min Do-jun.

“What level do you think that hunter is?”

“Seeing how he kills werewolves in two hits, he must be at least C-rank, right?”

“Anyway, this is definitely worth recording!”

“Ah! What have I been doing until now?”

The students hurriedly took out their smartphones to record the battle scene.

Crackle!

Swish!

Slash!

Regardless, Min Do-jun focused solely on slaughtering werewolves.

‘That makes 80.’

By the time he killed the last one, no more werewolves appeared.

‘It’s over.’

Although they appeared one by one, killing all 80 was by no means an easy task.

Nevertheless, there was no sign of strain on Min Do-jun’s face.

That’s when.

“Is this the place?”

Turning around, he saw hunters and police officers who had been dispatched after receiving a report running towards them.

“There really is a dungeon here?”

“But where are the werewolves?”

No werewolves could be seen anywhere around.

Of course, that was natural.

Min Do-jun had killed them all and turned them into smoke.

Then a man with a sturdy build approached Min Do-jun.

He was a civil servant hunter who had been dispatched along with the police.

“Hello, I’m Hunter Do Kyung-won from the Gongju branch.”

‘He’s strong.’

Min Do-jun could tell at a glance that Do Kyung-won’s level was high.

The hunter equipment he was wearing could only be used by those above level 1,000.

“I came after receiving a report that a dungeon break occurred, but it seems you’re doing the job I should be doing. How many have you caught?”

“I caught them all.”

“What?”

Do Kyung-won showed a slightly surprised expression.

“All 80 of them?”

“That’s right.”

“Are you sure you caught them all without missing any?”

“I counted as I caught them, so I’m certain. I just caught the 80th werewolf a moment ago, so the dungeon should disappear soon.”

It was as Min Do-jun said.

Whoosh-

Not long after, the dungeon entrance disappeared conspicuously.

Do Kyung-won had a dazed expression at that sight.

“Seeing that the dungeon disappeared, it’s certain that 80 came out, but…”

There was no way to know if the hunter in front of him had missed any.

“Are you sure you didn’t miss even one?”

“Yes.”

Do Kyung-won pondered for a moment, albeit briefly.

‘Can I trust him?’

If even one had entered the city, there would be no small number of casualties.

‘Well, we’ve sent out search helicopters, so we’ll know if we wait, but…’

If there are werewolves nearby, we need to search right now.

At that moment, it was the watching students who lent strength to Min Do-jun’s words.

“This hunter caught all the werewolves that came out of there!”

“That’s right. We watched from beginning to end!”

“Look! Here’s the evidence!”

What the students held out were videos of the battle scene.

“Haha.”

The people watching the videos let out empty laughs.

Min Do-jun’s battle was that overwhelming.

Among them, the most surprised was Do Kyung-won.

‘What on earth is this person?’

Min Do-jun’s battle was not just amazing, but shocking.

‘He uses sword and magic simultaneously?’

No one in the world uses sword and magic concurrently.

It’s inefficient and the damage doesn’t come out.

‘But he’s this strong?’

To kill a werewolf in two hits, one’s combat power must exceed at least 10,000.

This level is comparable to level 350.

‘Moreover, it’s not just high damage. He’s accurately hitting the eyes with magic.’

As much as one knows, one sees, and Do Kyung-won could discern that the hunter before him was quite skilled in technical aspects as well.

‘At least a C-rank hunter, or higher.’

Do Kyung-won’s gaze towards Min Do-jun changed.

‘Such a master wouldn’t lie.’

Although the video was taken from the 10th werewolf onwards, it could be confirmed that Min Do-jun had killed most of them.

“I understand. I’ll believe your words, hunter.”

“I appreciate your trust, but if you feel even slightly uneasy, you can search if you want. Well, there won’t be any werewolves roaming around though.”

“No, if you say you caught them all, there’s no need for wasted effort.”

Min Do-jun tilted his head.

For some reason, this hunter named Do Kyung-won was trusting him.

“Anyway, thank you for stopping the dungeon break on my behalf.”

As Do Kyung-won bowed, Min Do-jun waved his hands.

“It’s nothing. I just happened to stop it by chance while passing by.”

“Still, if you hadn’t stopped it in time, there would have been hundreds of casualties. The nearby residents owe their lives to you, hunter.”

“That’s right! We could have been in big trouble too!”

“Yes, thank you for saving our lives, hunter!”

As Do Kyung-won and the students expressed their gratitude, Min Do-jun awkwardly touched his hair.

‘I really just stopped it by chance…’

Min Do-jun came here solely because of the hidden dungeon.

He had no intention of stopping the dungeon break from the start.

‘But I don’t have time for this.’

There was a time limit on the hidden dungeon Min Do-jun was looking for.

‘If I don’t go quickly, the dungeon will close.’

Min Do-jun removed his equipment and prepared to leave.

“Where are you going?”

“I’ve finished what I needed to do, so there’s no reason to stay any longer. Well then, I’ll be going.”

“Wait, just a moment!”

Do Kyung-won held back Min Do-jun who was about to leave.

“You can’t just leave like this. You need to receive the reward.”

“Reward?”

“Since you stopped the dungeon break, there will be a reward from the country. If you’re not busy, why don’t you come with us to receive it…”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s not a small amount that can be easily passed up. In the case of a werewolf dungeon, 200 million won is given for reporting an unregistered dungeon, but for someone who directly stopped it, up to 2 billion won is given.”

Hearing the amount, Min Do-jun’s eyes widened.

The middle school students listening were the same.

“Then, do we get 200 million?”

“Th-that’s amazing!”

Seeing their reactions, Do Kyung-won shook his head.

“Wake up, kids. If you wanted to report it, you should have done so before the dungeon break occurred.”

“Th-then we don’t get anything?”

“That’s right.”

“Ah…”

Although the students wouldn’t receive anything, it was different for Min Do-jun.

‘2 billion won is certainly not a small amount.’

That much would be tempting even for hunters who earn well.

‘Come to think of it, I think I read in a news article that there’s a reward for stopping dungeon breaks.’

He had never received it before, but he remembered reading it in a news article.

‘That’s fortunate.’

Although it wasn’t an action done with the reward in mind, there was no reason to refuse if the country was giving it.

Of course, he didn’t intend to receive it right away.

The hidden dungeon was the priority right now.

“Can I receive it later? I don’t have time today.”

“Ah, if that’s the case, could you show me your hunter registration card?”

When he handed over the registration card from his inventory, Do Kyung-won looked at it once and returned it.

“Confirmed. And this is my business card. When you have time, please contact me and we’ll proceed with the reward payment process.”

“Alright. Then, I’ll be going.”

Min Do-jun left without any lingering attachment.

Not long after he left.

“Hunter Do Kyung-won!”

A police officer approached and reported.

“We searched the surrounding area with helicopters, but no werewolves have been seen so far.”

“As expected! That hunter’s words were true.”

Do Kyung-won nodded as if it had been an unnecessary worry.

Then, out of curiosity, he spoke the command word.

‘Ranking window.’

And he searched for Min Do-jun’s name that he had just learned.

“Huh?”

“What’s wrong?”

The police officer was puzzled by Do Kyung-won’s surprised appearance.

“His level… was 150?”

For Do Kyung-won, who thought it would be at least 350, it was a shocking number.