Chapter 51 – Ghost Island

There are only six Ghost Islands in the world.

These hidden dungeons exist solely in Asia, including Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pakistan, and Mongolia.

But why did I come to Japan instead of going elsewhere?

It’s not just because it’s close.

‘It’s because Clark will appear in Japan.’

There is a named boss called Clark on Ghost Island.

This creature, which exists as a single entity, appears as if on a tour, moving between the six Ghost Islands.

‘People might think it appears randomly…’

But the truth, which was revealed later, was different.

Clark moves in a clockwise direction.

And it appears once every two months.

‘Now is the time for it to pass through Japan.’

It will likely stay in Japan until next month before moving to the Philippines.

Of course, only Min Do-jun, who has returned from the future, knows this information.

‘They probably haven’t even found Ghost Island yet.’

Since there are only six dungeons worldwide, it wasn’t easy to find them.

‘Anyway, now is the perfect time to attack.’

The best time to capture Clark is when Ghost Island is still unknown.

Min Do-jun took his vacation because of Ghost Island.

‘I’ve also reached the entry level of 750 and have gotten stronger after acquiring new traits.’

Although it’s said that it’s difficult to defeat Clark unless you’re at least level 1,500, Min Do-jun was confident.

He had easily dealt with hunters at level 1,200 before.

‘My current level is beyond even my own measurement.’

While he didn’t know exactly how strong he had become, he would soon find out when facing Clark.

‘First things first, I need to enter the hidden dungeon without being noticed by others.’

[Dear passengers. We will soon be arriving at Narita Airport.]

Min Do-jun leisurely got off the plane.

‘It’s only 2 PM.’

Since he planned to act at night, there was still plenty of time left.

After passing through immigration and retrieving his luggage, Min Do-jun hailed an airport taxi.

‘That driver looks like he thinks I’m Korean.’

The taxi driver thought as he looked at Min Do-jun and spoke in Japanese.

“Where would you like to go?”

“Please take me to Chiba Prefecture.”

The taxi driver, who had been planning to overcharge him if he were Korean, was secretly surprised by his fluent Japanese.

“Why aren’t we leaving yet?”

“Oh! Yes! I’ll depart right away!”

The driver was so startled by Min Do-jun’s fluent pronunciation that he stepped on the accelerator in confusion.

Min Do-jun smirked internally at the suspicious behavior.

‘Did he think I couldn’t speak Japanese?’

In fact, Min Do-jun was a man who could speak five languages.

‘I’ve mastered Japanese, English, Chinese, and Russian.’

Having traveled through dungeons for ten years and frequently meeting foreign hunters made him realize the necessity of learning these languages.

“We’ve arrived, sir.”

After getting out at his destination and pulling his luggage behind him, Min Do-jun casually walked around until he found a nearby inn and entered it without much thought.

“Do you have a room available for one night?”

“Yes! Right this way.”

The innkeeper led him to a room with a delighted expression as if there were many vacancies available.

Satisfied with the relatively clean room, Min Do-jun unpacked his things and went outside again.

He strolled leisurely as if taking a walk and ate at a nearby restaurant before continuing his walk again.

He walked around to familiarize himself with the area and conduct some preliminary scouting before nightfall.

‘There it is.’

What Min Do-jun discovered while walking was an old abandoned hotel—a perfect place for haunted house experiences and where the hidden dungeon was located.

‘That’s definitely it.’

Comparing it with photos from his map search earlier, Min Do-jun nodded in confirmation and passed by without hesitation.

‘I’ll come back at night.’

There was no point in entering now since the dungeon wouldn’t be accessible anyway. The entrance to Ghost Island only opened at midnight due to its peculiar nature.

After returning to his lodging and resting for a while longer, it soon became 10 PM.

‘I guess I should start walking now.’

If he started walking now at a leisurely pace, he would arrive at the abandoned hotel just around midnight.

With that thought in mind, Min Do-jun left his lodging as if going for a casual stroll.

* * *

Senzaki Ryoji is a haunted house exploration BJ (broadcast jockey) who has been gaining popularity on YouTube lately. 

“Hello! This is BJ Ryoji! Today we’ll be exploring an abandoned hotel located in Chiba Prefecture. There was even a murder here five years ago. Will we be able to see any ghosts here? Let’s go check it out!”

Holding his selfie stick confidently in hand, Ryoji walked straight into the entrance without hesitation. 

Despite there being no trace of light inside, there wasn’t even a hint of fear on his face. 

‘There’s no such thing as ghosts anyway.’

He was already famous for having nerves of steel. 

He had visited every haunted place imaginable in search of ghosts…

Even horror movies didn’t faze him. 

‘Honestly, ghosts in horror movies don’t even feel like real ghosts.’ 

The fake ghosts shown in horror movies didn’t give him even the slightest chill. 

That’s why he had started doing haunted house explorations—to feel some real fear…

‘But haunted houses aren’t much either.’ 

Nothing could stir fear in someone with nerves as strong as his. 

Still, since it had become a way to make money, he continued creating content centered around visiting haunted places like this one. 

“This place is pretty clean for an abandoned hotel.” 

His fearless behavior—wandering through dark hallways and entering hotel rooms as if they were his own—was something only someone with nerves of steel could do. 

“Hehehehe! Come out already, ghosts!” 

He even made ghostly sounds on purpose as if thirsting for their appearance. 

But this boldness was precisely what made his broadcasts appealing and why viewers kept watching. 

“I came here specifically at midnight when ghosts are supposed to be active but haven’t seen anything yet. It’s not scary at all.” 

As he continued exploring every nook and cranny of the building…

“Huh?”

Something moved down the hallway.

“Did you all see that? Didn’t something like a human figure appear over there?”

As Ryoji, who was live streaming, looked at the chat window, messages started pouring in.

└Whoa, that’s a real ghost!

└I saw it too! It was definitely a human figure!

└Wow, so creepy!

└Ryoji! Did you finally meet a ghost? Congrats!

‘So, I wasn’t seeing things.’

Ryoji swallowed dryly.

For the first time in a while, tension surged through his entire body.

“Everyone, I’m going to be the first BJ to capture a ghost on video. Since this is a live broadcast, remember that there’s no room for manipulation!”

Ryoji, uncharacteristically cautious, slowly approached the end of the hallway where he had seen the ghost.

‘It definitely went into that room at the end.’

According to the hotel’s layout, there was only one room at the end of the hallway.

If there was a ghost, it could only be there.

“Could it really be here?”

With anticipation building up, Ryoji peeked into the room.

But no ghost was in sight.

“Hmm, did I imagine it?”

Just as he tilted his head in confusion—

[ROAAAR!]

A ghost-like figure suddenly appeared right in front of him.

“WAAAHHH!”

Startled out of his wits, Ryoji dropped his selfie stick and fell backward with a thud.

Then, from somewhere, a shadowy figure slowly emerged.

Its face was obscured by darkness, but it was unmistakably a ghost.

“G-Ghost…”

Leaving only those words behind, Ryoji fainted on the spot.

* * *

‘Did he just faint?’

Min Do-jun shook his head as he looked at the unconscious Ryoji.

He had only intended to scare him off and send him packing but ended up making him faint by accident.

‘Well, that works out even better for me.’

If someone saw him entering the hidden dungeon, it would undoubtedly lead to troublesome situations.

‘I almost got into big trouble.’

Min Do-jun had come to this abandoned hotel to enter the hidden dungeon and had sensed Ryoji’s presence early on.

‘How could I not notice when he’s making such a racket?’

Talking into his selfie stick as if having a conversation—it was obvious to anyone that he was a YouTuber.

‘From what I heard, he came here for some haunted house experience…’

Min Do-jun picked up the fallen selfie stick and turned off Ryoji’s smartphone.

‘It was dark enough that my face probably wasn’t caught on camera.’

Even if it had been recorded, Min Do-jun wasn’t worried. He had worn a mask just in case to cover his face.

‘I need to get into the dungeon before he wakes up.’

The hidden dungeon’s entrance was located in none other than the room at the end of the hallway in this abandoned hotel.

‘They said the entrance is somewhere in this room…’

Since Min Do-jun didn’t know its exact location either, he began searching every corner of the room.

But no notification about discovering the hidden dungeon appeared yet.

‘Maybe…’

Min Do-jun jumped up and touched the ceiling.

And then—

[You have discovered a Hidden Dungeon!]

A notification popped up.

[Chiba Prefecture Ghost Island Dungeon (Hidden)]

– Difficulty: B  

– Player Limit: 1  

– Entry Level Requirement: Level 750 or higher  

– Dungeon Objective: None  

– Failure Penalty: None  

– Time Limit: 6 hours  

– Dungeon Break Possibility: None  

– Remaining Entry Attempts: 3

‘No wonder no one has found this place yet.’

If it could only be discovered at midnight and its entrance was located on the ceiling, it would be difficult for anyone to find it.

‘Looks like I’m the first one to discover this portal.’

The portal to hidden dungeons remains invisible until someone discovers it. Once discovered, it becomes visible to others as well.

Thus, Min Do-jun locked the door so no one else could enter while he was inside. If he entered now and left Ryoji passed out in the hallway, there was a chance that Ryoji might see the portal upon waking up.

‘The fact that there are still 3 entry attempts left means no one else has entered yet.’

Ghost Island dungeons typically allow for three entry attempts. If someone else had already discovered and entered it before him, that number would have decreased accordingly.

‘Not that one person can enter multiple times anyway.’

Now that he knew where the entrance was, there were no more obstacles in his way.

With a leap towards the now semi-transparent ceiling portal—Min Do-jun disappeared from sight.

* * *

Thud—

As soon as Min Do-jun landed on solid ground after passing through the ceiling portal, his surroundings changed completely.

‘So this is Ghost Island—the place I’ve only heard about?’

He found himself standing in a dense forest shrouded in deep darkness. 

The only light available came from the moon above; otherwise, everything around him felt cold and eerie. 

In the distance, he could hear waves crashing against some unseen shore. 

The reason this place was called Ghost Island? Simple—it was literally an island. 

‘This place is pretty spooky.’

Though Min Do-jun had never been here before, he knew well how to conquer it thanks to prior knowledge. 

Without hesitation, he moved forward into the forest. 

And then—

[You are the first player to enter Ghost Island.]

[As a reward for being first, your stats will increase by 20% while inside Ghost Island.]

‘Was there always such a perk? Not bad at all.’

Though limited to Ghost Island alone, once he cleared this place successfully, there would be no need for him to return anyway. 

Fwoosh—

Using Fire Blast as an impromptu torchlight, Min Do-jun ventured deeper into the forest. 

He also applied buffs ahead of time so that he would be ready for anything. 

‘This may be a hidden dungeon but don’t underestimate it.’

Most hidden dungeons were designed for solo players and thus had relatively low difficulty levels. They were often considered bonus dungeons with great rewards but minimal risk. 

However—Ghost Island was different. 

High risk—high reward. 

Its difficulty level was high but so were its rewards. 

‘The fact that there’s even a named boss here sets it apart from other hidden dungeons.’

Aside from having no specific objective or failure penalty listed—Ghost Island functioned much like any regular dungeon. This meant that if Min Do-jun wasn’t careful—he could very well die here at the hands of some monstrous creature lurking within. 

Thus—despite being confident—he maintained some level of caution as he pressed forward through unfamiliar territory where danger could strike at any moment. 

After all—he still didn’t know how strong these creatures were going to be…

‘I might even need your help this time around too.’  

[Woof!]  

‘Come to think of it—the enemies here are supposed to be ghosts…’

Would Awoo even be able to see them?

As these trivial thoughts crossed his mind—

Heeheeheehee—

A chilling wail echoed through the air…