BRH 13

“!”

Ha Do-heon sensed a presence in the distance, and the moment he realized it, he knew someone was standing in front of him. The other person seemed to have a high-speed movement skill. One that could move several meters in the blink of an eye.

“Huk… Run away.”

The man’s slumped back looked strangely familiar. Ha Do-heon unconsciously shut his mouth and stopped. The man, facing the Gate where the Boss would appear, shouted again at Ha Do-heon.

“Run away! If you go now, you can live, huk….”

His body faltered, and he ended up sitting down, supporting himself on the floor. It was a young man wearing a hat. He desperately looked back at Ha Do-heon. He had been wearing a hat until now, so he hadn’t noticed, but the man’s face, when he took off his hat, was more youthful than he had vaguely imagined. The weariness of a fresh graduate who had just turned twenty was all over his face like a stain.

He wondered why he was so concerned about a guy he just met….

“Quickly…. Run away. I’ll buy some time somehow-!”

Ha Do-heon choked on the emotion that rose from within him at that moment. He felt a jolt, as if he had been hit in the head with a hammer. As soon as he saw his face, he knew.

‘Team leader… you alone… must… live.’

The memory of being scorched by fire resurfaced from the ashes. Ha Do-heon’s eyes contorted.

Ha Do-heon’s memory and mind had deteriorated. Trapped in the Yakum Dungeon, wandering countless times, his mind had been worn away.

Therefore-

‘You, live.’

‘Who here has a longer lifespan than Team leader, tch….’

‘Just tell them we fought well here when you get out of the Dungeon. That’s all we need.’

He finally remembered those poignant words.

He had struggled to hold onto his fading memories, determined not to forget the faces of his comrades who had been with him in the Yakum Dungeon. But in the end, he couldn’t hold onto the memories that slipped away like sand. So he had forgotten.

‘…It’s you guys.’

The Hunter who had survived with Ha Do-heon until the very end was the one standing before him. He was a member of the Weird Unit that Ha Do-heon had formed, and a later support Hunter. He was three years younger than Ha Do-heon, and his rank had been upgraded to A-rank after being infected with a Weird Cell.

Tight-

‘I said I’d find you all and repay your kindness when I got back… and I forgot this….’

If it hadn’t been for their sacrifice, there would be no Korea, and no Ha Do-heon as he was now.

One more reason why Ha Do-heon had returned, one more reason why he had decided to live, came to mind.

Do-heon clenched his fist and tried to swallow his emotions. He felt uplifted, and his heart felt fluffy.

“What’s your name?”

The man’s eyes widened as if he couldn’t understand Ha Do-heon’s actions of asking for his name in this situation. But after seeing him standing there blankly, he unconsciously answered.

“…Song Woo-yeop.”

“I remember… Ah, Song Woo-yeop-ssi.”

Song Woo-yeop. Yes, that was his name. Do-heon tapped Song Woo-yeop on the shoulder and smiled gently. Song Woo-yeop’s shoulders stiffened at the sight of the smile. The Boss of the Dungeon was coming out to kill them, but there wasn’t even a hint of fear on the man’s face.

Song Woo-yeop couldn’t understand this situation. How could he be so calm? How could he smile in the face of death? Unlike Song Woo-yeop, he didn’t even have a slight tremor.

“Just, please sleep for a moment.”

“Yes?”

What else could he do in this situation? Ha Do-heon spread his hand like a knife-.

And with the utmost care, with only human strength, he gently struck his head.

Thwack-!

With the sound of a watermelon breaking, Song Woo-yeop’s pupils slowly rolled upwards. Ha Do-heon caught his limp body with one hand and supported him.

-Creak! Creeeak!

Glancing back, Lime, who had half-emerged from the entrance, was rushing over in a fluster. It must have been counting heads and realized one was missing, so it had rushed over in a panic. It let out an internal scream when it saw the man in Ha Do-heon’s arms.

“Lime, please take care of this friend. Stay back as much as possible.”

Throb!

Lime nodded its head vigorously and transformed into a human form, carrying Song Woo-yeop on its shoulder and wriggling backwards.

Thump- Thump!

The monster, having forcibly extracted itself from the Double Dungeon, was now stretching its body. It was a Scorpion Monster four times larger than other individuals. There was one more unique feature. Unlike the minions, who were mostly male, it was female, and there was a grotesque crown on its head.

Ha Do-heon slowly rotated his wrist and pulled out a discarded spear nearby. It must have belonged to someone who had dropped it while fighting.

“It’s you. Scorpion Queen.”

The leader of the scorpions was a female who acted as queen and managed the organization systematically, like a hyena. There was no doubt that it was the Boss of the Double Dungeon.

It should be around rank 5. Not particularly strong. Compared to the great disaster that would come in the future.

“Let’s finish this quickly. I’m in a bit of a hurry.”

Screeeeeech-!

The monster lowered its body and swung its tail. The poison on the stinger filled the area like flames. The ground caved in and melted here and there along with the poisonous gas.

But Ha Do-heon.

‘It wasn’t a complete waste. I finally met them.’

Was smiling. His eyes crinkled, and he seemed happier than ever.

He had finally met them. Along with his lost memories. His heart pounded with overwhelming emotion. His hand gripping the spear tightened with elation.

Screeeeeech!

The thick tail plunged down towards Ha Do-heon’s head. Ha Do-heon reflexively jumped up. His body floated so high that it almost touched the ceiling. And crack, his body began to transform.

[Weird Cell Open 3%.]

Lime, who had taken the survivor outside the Boss Room, looked up. It took in the wondrous sight.

Crack-.

Ha Do-heon’s hand transformed. Bones protruded from each joint. The bones also stood out firmly above the cervical and spinal vertebrae. Bizarre patterns appeared all over his body, and his pupils, which had been blacker than night, turned blue.

Ha Do-heon’s arm was pulled back forcefully. The part holding the spear. Lime gaped and followed his figure with innocent eyes like a child.

The spear was thrust powerfully to the ground. At that moment, there was no one who could keep up with that speed.

Even Lime couldn’t. All that was reflected in its clear eyes was an explosive light. And the sight of the Dungeon being shattered and split apart.

Kwaaaaaang–

And a deafening roar swallowed the entire Dungeon. Feeling as if it had gone blind for a moment, Lime rubbed its eyes. But a black dot emerged in the pure white background.

The moment it saw Ha Do-heon, it gaped and smiled again.

It was like a star in a world where black and white were reversed.

***

That day, an unprecedented Energy Source was detected in a rank 5 Upgraded Dungeon near Munryeong Mountain in Namyangju. Hunters from the Hunter Management Bureau, who were breaking through the blocked entrance to identify the cause of the Upgraded Dungeon, witnessed the Dungeon entrance shaking violently and prohibited access for a while.

The vibrations emanating from the Dungeon entrance extended to the vicinity of Munryeong Mountain, and the Meteorological Administration even issued a disaster warning for a time. Immediately after the earthquake stopped, the Hunters hurried to resume work, but they had to stop in their tracks, stunned.

The Dungeon entrance was gradually dyed blue. It was a signal that the Dungeon had been cleared!

“But wasn’t Moon Tae-yi-ssi supposed to come?”

“Is that what matters now?! A rank 5 Dungeon has been cleared!”

“Prepare for everyone to enter! Deploy the rescue team, and prioritize rescuing survivors when entering the Dungeon!”

The Team leader in charge of the Hunter Management Bureau quickly dispatched a rescue team. The rescue team, who hurriedly entered the Dungeon, found a large number of survivors collapsed in the innermost cave only after searching every corner of the cave.

“Get the survivors out first.”

The people who saw the survivors being carried out on the backs of rescuers were once again dumbfounded.

Is this… possible?

Everyone survived. 13 Hunters who entered the rank 2 Dungeon, 5 work team members. A total of 18 people, all returned alive from the rank 5 Dungeon without any major injuries.

“Ambulance, stretcher here first! It looks like there are some Hunters who have been poisoned among the survivors!”

The sound of ambulance sirens echoed among the bustling people. Reporters also smelled the scent and flocked like bees. In a situation that resembled a war zone, the person in charge of the Hunter Management Bureau received a report from a Hunter who had surveyed the Dungeon with a hardened face.

The man quickly entered the Dungeon and moved to the place presumed to be the Boss Room.

But what they saw there was-.

“……”

“……”

A ‘trace’ as if an entire space had been carved out. A crater of dozens of meters. A trace of a huge explosion with no trace of corpses. No, could this really be defined as a simple explosion?

“Uh, look over there!”

At that time, a Hunter pointed inside the crater while examining it. A faintly shimmering spear was stuck in the crater of dozens of meters. Even though it was half-melted and not even in complete shape, people felt chills down their spines.

Just in case. If, by any chance, there was someone who wielded that.

“…Collect it and try to extract fingerprints. Who knows, there might be some DNA left.”

The Hunter Management Bureau official relaxed his hardened expression and quickly urged. The person in charge, who had been blankly examining the destroyed interior of the Dungeon, belatedly came to his senses and ordered the Hunter to collect the weapon.

“Yes, first… let’s take it to the lab and investigate it. Let’s collect the weapon stuck there.”

While the Hunters were busy investigating the scene and collecting weapons, the survivors were being steadily rescued and moved outside.