Chapter 112

“Wow.”

Hyeon Cho-i said, looking up at the dungeon. Only one place was left.

“But…”

Jihan Kim trailed off. They were currently in front of a dungeon in Yuyeong-dong, Jeollanam-do. After clearing Myoyeong’s Dungeon and Cat’s Tunnel, the only one left was the ‘Tomb Site’ here. As I keep saying, it’s closer to a dog than a cat.

“What on earth is that outfit?”

“Oh.”

Cho-i Hyeon was wearing a cat headband, holding a cat doll, gripping a cat fan, and sporting cat shoes.

“First, I have to try everything I can!”

Cho-i Hyeon clenched her fist. With the second dungeon gone, this seemed to be the last and best chance to challenge Myoyeong’s Hidden Dungeon. Cho-i Hyeon desperately gathered every cat-themed item she could find. She couldn’t bring a real cat; cats were innocent. Anyway, she’d deliberated whether to buy dog items or cat items and decided to go all-in on cats. She hoped it was okay.

“I understand your desperation, but wearing that won’t make a hidden dungeon appear, will it…?”

“You think so too? Should I have worn cat pajamas?”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

Jihan Kim sighed and waved his hand. It was no use. She seemed completely engrossed in it now, and it felt like she wouldn’t listen no matter what he said. The Tomb Site was a B-Rank dungeon, but just like last time, they decided to form a party with S-Rank Yuri Ja, A-Rank Seoyeon Ha, and Geumsin’s Guild Master Jihan Kim and Cho-i Hyeon. If a hidden dungeon truly appeared, even this group might struggle.

‘If a hidden dungeon really appears…’

As they stood before the dungeon, a breeze blew from somewhere. Jihan Kim brushed back his wind-blown hair, looking at the dungeon entrance. Beep- Beep- Beep-

“…What is that now?”

Cho-i Hyeon had a cat-shaped whistle in her mouth. Beep-

“That’s enough. Don’t answer. My head hurts…”

Cho-i Hyeon vigorously blew the whistle one more time. BEEP-!

“Oh, my head…”

Regardless of Jihan Kim’s headache, Cho-i Hyeon pointed her finger at the dungeon entrance. He understood her eagerness to charge in, but unfortunately, the dungeon condition check wasn’t finished yet. After Cho-i Hyeon had been beeping for about ten minutes, the dungeon management team from Geumsin finally gave their approval.

“Let’s go!”

The whistle, by the way, was a necklace. Cho-i Hyeon, hugging her cat doll, was the first to rush in, and the others followed one by one into the dungeon. The usual slight dizziness. And then, opening their eyes to the unfolding landscape of the dungeon.

“First, let’s look for the hidden dungeon.”

“Don’t we have to clear this one first?”

“Last time, in the Angel dungeon, it appeared right on the third try.”

“I see…”

“I don’t know what the criteria was back then.”

Cho-i Hyeon still seemed to be under the influence of cats, as she hadn’t even drawn her sword to explore the dungeon. One might wonder what there was to fear in a B-Rank dungeon.

“Everyone, spread out and search. Hunter Seoyeon Ha, you come with me.”

“Yes, Guild Master.”

Jihan Kim and Seoyeon Ha formed a team and left, while Yuri Ja and Cho-i Hyeon also separated and began exploring the surroundings. The Tomb Site was like a graveyard. Unidentifiable stone slabs and wooden boards were embedded around the circular mounds of graves. Judging by the characters, they seemed to be written with that brush, but they were still unreadable.

“It should be around here.”

Cho-i Hyeon trudged along, holding the cat doll. “Meow!” She then encountered several monsters that sprang out from between the graves. At least here, their cries and appearance seemed somewhat similar to cats. Cho-i Hyeon used the cat doll. “Wham!” She clobbered the monsters. Cotton burst out and scattered. But Cho-i didn’t stop. “Whack! Thump!” The monsters’ blood and flesh scattered in the air along with the cotton. Soon, the cotton, soaked in blood and squishy, began to drop to the ground. The monsters, with their heads and bodies shattered, also fell lifelessly. Cho-i Hyeon made sure to crush their heads with her foot before stopping and looking around.

“Where~ could~ the hidden dungeon~ be~”

She looked around with a monotonous tone, as if searching for socks. But there was no sign of a door. Hmm, Cho-i frowned, thinking, “Did I mess up again?” as she fiddled with the cat headband on her head. If a person showed this much effort, shouldn’t it be proper for it to appear?

“I wonder how the others are doing.”

Grrrrrr- Cho-i started thinking as she once again pummeled the monsters emerging from another grave. Hmm, I should find it first. It’s easier to claim items if I’m the first one to enter. She continued to beat the monsters with the now mangled cat doll. “Thump! Crunch! Whack! Slam!” Each time a loud sound echoed, the cotton inside the cat doll turned red and fell to the ground with a thud. The monster’s remnants next to it, whether cotton or flesh, were an added bonus.

“I don’t see anything…”

After dealing with all the monsters, she began to move further forward. Unless the others had also found the hidden dungeon, there would be no other way but to go to the front of the boss monster room. How far did she go? Soon, two familiar figures appeared.

“Hunter Cho-i Hyeon?”

“Oh, we meet here, Guild Master?”

“Even if it seems wide, there’s only one path. We were bound to run into each other eventually.”

“More importantly, did you find anything?”

At that, Jihan Kim shook his head.

“Nothing.”

“Oh, that’s bad.”

“But where’s Yuri Ja?”

“I didn’t see her on the way here?”

“Could it be…?”

Could it be? A quiet cat climbs onto the hearth first. For a moment, she wondered if Yuri Ja had found the hidden dungeon and slipped in alone. But a hidden dungeon is a dangerous place. It was not a place one could enter alone.

“First, I’ll go look for Yuri.”

“Alright, maybe we’ll find the hidden dungeon while looking for her.”

And as fate would have it, they didn’t find Yuri Ja, but instead…

“Is that a hidden dungeon?”

“It looks like it.”

The three found the hidden dungeon. They went back and looked around the graves, and one grave had been dug up. There was clearly a wooden door under the grave, which had obviously been dug up by human hands, and the door was wide open. Yuri Ja was nowhere to be seen nearby.

“So she went in… alone.”

“This is really…”

Jihan Kim held his head. Cho-i Hyeon chuckled, looking at the door embedded below. No wonder I couldn’t find it if it looked like this. How did Yuri Ja find it?

“More importantly, all the effort I put into coming here has paid off!”

“…Was it really because of the Entity?”

“What else could it be? Whether the Yuri Ja hunter causes trouble or gets into trouble, it doesn’t matter, let’s go catch him!”

“Alright. For now, that’s the urgent matter… But that…”

“Let’s go!”

Cho-i Hyeon was still holding the bloody, limp cat doll with all its stuffing gone. And with the Entity in his arms, he darted into the hidden dungeon. Jihan Kim sighed, wrapped his arm around Seoyeon Ha’s waist, and followed her into the hidden dungeon’s entrance.

“This place…”

It looked like a modern temple. Several statues of animals, whether cats, foxes, or dogs, looked down from the floor, and countless candles and incense sticks were burning. In front of them were nine golden bowls, where Yuri Ja stood blankly.

“Hey, you bastard!”

Cho-i Hyeon immediately struck his head with the deflated doll.

“Ow!”

“Who told you to sneak in first? Who?”

“Damn it! Why are you hitting me?!”

“Why am I hitting you? You dare ask why I’m hitting you? Are you so blinded by the item that you can’t hear your own life slipping away?”

Whack! Whack! Whack! Cho-i hit him three times in a row. Yuri Ja yelped, then looked at Jihan Kim, who had just entered, as if asking for help. Jihan Kim chuckled, looking at him with a face that said, “You deserve it.”

“Phew.”

After being thoroughly beaten, Yuri Ja said with a swollen face,

“It was wrong of me to come in first, but I’m telling you, there’s nothing dangerous here.”

“How could you know that from outside?! You only found out there was no danger after you came in!”

As Cho-i Hyeon clicked her tongue, Jihan Kim also nodded.

“You were too reckless this time, Yuri.”

“Yes…”

Yuri Ja replied with pouting lips, as if sulking. After concluding their conversation, the four decided to look around. Seoyeon Ha asked with admiration,

“Such delicate decorations and sculptures, it’s amazing.”

“All hidden dungeons are amazing places, aren’t they?”

Cho-i Hyeon said indifferently, looking at the golden plates. Seoyeon Ha approached and carefully touched the golden plates, but nothing happened.

“Why is there nothing here? This is my first hidden dungeon, but I know the difficulty isn’t normal.”

“This one probably isn’t normal either, is it? Since it looks quiet on the outside, it must be a real headache.”

“Do you think so?”

“Yes. My experience tells me so.”

“Experience?”

Cho-i nodded.

“This is my fourth time in a hidden dungeon.”

“Four times?”

Seoyeon Ha looked at Cho-i in surprise. Cho-i Hyeon made a V-sign with her fingers and said,

“Yes, and I roughly figured out the method here too.”

Cho-i Hyeon drew his sword.