Chapter 127

“Aaaah!”

Taeyang Kang’s scream echoed through the hidden dungeon. With all the powder gone and his senses returned, Taeyang Kang was tearing at his hair and screaming. Cho-i Hyeon chuckled as she watched him.

“No, I said it’s fine.”

“I’m not fine!”

He shouted, his face beet red. Cho-i Hyeon waved her hand as if it was all right, but he didn’t seem to think so. He busily moved around, tearing at his hair, covering his face, and staring blankly into space.

“Stop that and let’s check it out.”

“I just want to leave.”

“No, let’s check it and then leave.”

Cho-i Hyeon showed a hint of annoyance and grabbed his arm. He recoiled in horror and shook off her hand. When Cho-i looked at him as if asking what he was doing, Taeyang Kang asked.

“Don’t I disgust you?”

“No, I said it’s fine.”

“Aren’t you scared of me?”

“No, what is there to be scared of about you?”

“I… that… that…”

“I understand. Let’s stop there.”

Cho-i Hyeon waved her hand once more, and Taeyang Kang covered his face with both hands as if he couldn’t bear it. Cho-i grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and dragged him to a place with leaves and vines. There, a baby was well-wrapped in large petals. It looked like a newborn baby.

“What is this now?”

The baby was sound asleep, breathing softly. It didn’t even make a typical baby’s cry. It didn’t make even a small sound, as if it knew it was a being that shouldn’t be discovered.

“Hey, Taeyang Kang. Get a grip and stand here.” “Why?” “What do you mean, ‘why’?”

This dungeon was meant to give Taeyang Kang something anyway. Therefore, it was Taeyang Kang, not Cho-i Hyeon, who had to deal with this baby. Taeyang Kang frowned upon discovering the baby.

“I can’t do it.” “What are you talking about now?” “It’s a baby.” “It’s still just a monster.” “You yourself got your hand pierced protecting a juvenile monster.” “That’s different from now.”

Cho-i Hyeon looked at Taeyang Kang as if she didn’t understand, and Taeyang Kang frowned as if he, too, had his limits. Honestly, yes, that child strongly resembled a human face. Except for its hair being made of petals, it looked no different from a human child.

“Then what are you going to do?” “I’ll give up on getting something here and leave.” “After all that trouble?” “…That’s true, but.” “After letting it be known you like me?” “Stop saying that.” “You got…!” “Stop!”

Taeyang Kang’s face turned beet red as he covered Cho-i Hyeon’s mouth.

“Anyway, I can’t kill this.”

Taeyang Kang said that, stroking the baby’s head. And then.

“Oh?”

The baby began to glow brightly, its body gradually shrinking until it turned into a round light. Then it elongated vertically again, transforming into a spear. Cho-i Hyeon’s eyes widened as she stared at the spear. The spear, shimmering with green light, exuded its presence in the air.

“Grab that!” “Huh? Oh, alright.”

Taeyang Kang hastily grabbed the spear. The spear then began to freeze little by little, quickly turning blue. Cho-i Hyeon clapped her hands with a surprised look.

“It seems not killing that thing was the correct answer here?” “…Is that how you interpret it?”

Cho-i nodded. And she learned a new fact. That sometimes, acting foolishly could also be the correct answer. The spear in Taeyang Kang’s hand soon had its head completely transform into ice, forming a sharp blade.

“Try swinging it once.” “No… it doesn’t seem to suit me at all.” “No, it’s not. It changed to suit you.”

Taeyang Kang, with an uncertain expression, swung the spear once. Immediately, a blizzard erupted in that spot. Petal-shaped snowflakes instantly swept through.

“Ah!”

Cho-i Hyeon let out a short scream. Taeyang Kang, startled, swung the spear once more to stop the blizzard. The blizzard, made of sharp snowflakes, had already lacerated Cho-i Hyeon’s entire body. Taeyang Kang threw down the spear and approached Cho-i Hyeon.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m not okay, you bastard!”

Cho-i Hyeon shrieked and grabbed his hair. Taeyang Kang yelped as she held onto him, and Cho-i swung him around by his hair before shaking her hands clean.

“Anyway, it was worth it.”

“Ow, that hurts.”

“I pulled it to hurt you.”

Cho-i Hyeon grumbled and watched her body regenerate. As soon as her wounds were completely healed, she turned around. The door leading outside was still open.

“I don’t know how much time has passed, but we should get out quickly.”

“Understood.”

“We need to get out before the dungeon exit closes.”

The two finished conquering the hidden dungeon and stepped outside. But by the time they emerged, it was already…

“Ah, damn it.”

Cho-i Hyeon swore in frustration. The exit was already closed, and the dungeon’s reconstruction was underway. Cho-i Hyeon looked around. In the crumbling white world, only the two of them remained.

“Damn it, do I have to summon that guy again?”

Cho-i Hyeon prepared to summon ‘the Entity.’ Then, a thought suddenly struck her, and she looked at Taeyang Kang. Taeyang Kang stood with the spear he had just acquired in his hand, and he also looked quite flustered.

“Hey.”

“What?”

“Can you summon the blizzard you called earlier again?”

“I could, but… why?”

“We need to break the dungeon core.”

“Dungeon core? What’s that?”

“I’ll explain it when we get out.”

“But if you use that, you might get hurt.”

“Your surroundings seemed safe, though.”

“Right?”

“Then I just need to stick close to you.”

Saying that, Cho-i Hyeon wrapped her arms around Taeyang Kang’s waist, and Taeyang Kang stiffened. Cho-i Hyeon playfully poked his waist and said,

“You were hugging me like that earlier, so don’t stiffen up over something like this. Hurry up and conjure that blizzard.”

“Uh, ah, okay.”

He stammered and then swung his spear once. Then, a blizzard began to rage inside the dungeon, which was crumbling into white and then reconstructing itself. It suddenly seemed that a white blizzard against a white background wouldn’t be very visible, but beneath the white blizzard were countless Black Shadows. And then. Clang! Something shattered. Cho-i Hyeon clenched her fist and shouted, “Yes!” Taeyang Kang, who was next to her, looked down at Cho-i Hyeon at the sound of something breaking, but Cho-i Hyeon was only looking around, realizing the core had been destroyed.

“The dungeon is collapsing.”

“The dungeon?”

Taeyang Kang looked at Cho-i Hyeon with a puzzled expression, but she still didn’t explain anything to him. It also meant she didn’t want to explain everything now, as she would have to do it all over again once they were out.

“I can see outside.”

Taeyang Kang, who had been looking down at Cho-i Hyeon and then given up on getting an explanation, suddenly looked forward and spoke. Cho-i Hyeon then smiled brightly at him.

“You severed this dungeon.”

“I did?”

“Yes, you did.”

“What is the core you’re talking about?”

“The Legacy that forms the dungeon. Its will.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“I didn’t expect you to understand either.”

If she hadn’t had such a thing inside her body, she would never have understood it either. Cho-i Hyeon took her hand off his waist and watched the dungeon collapse.

“Beautiful.”

“…Right.”

Taeyang Kang agreed with her. It was because the sight of the dungeon collapsing and the sky outside becoming visible was more beautiful than anything else. Taeyang Kang watched the scene and put his arm around Cho-i Hyeon’s shoulder, who was standing close by. Cho-i Hyeon looked up at him with a ‘what are you doing’ expression, but he didn’t loosen his grip.

“I thought I’d get caught up…”

“You’re so boring.”

She didn’t pull away from Taeyang Kang’s arm and watched the dungeon collapse beside him. She also saw the Paehyeok dungeon management team, who were waiting outside, looking flustered. The entity was so funny that she burst out laughing. Taeyang Kang looked down at her intently. Cho-i Hyeon’s laughter was more beautiful to him than the sight of the crumbling dungeon.

‘Beautiful.’

He didn’t say it out loud. Even though his feelings were already known, he didn’t want to bring them up again in a way that would be burdensome. That’s how the two of them cleared the third dungeon and returned safely.

* * *

[Taeyang Kang, short-term contract with Paehyeok!]
[SS-Rank hunter Taeyang Kang! Breaks through a hidden dungeon!]
[What items did Taeyang Kang obtain from the hidden dungeon?]

Numerous articles flooded the portal sites. The news that Taeyang Kang had signed a contract with Paehyeok, and that he had broken through a hidden dungeon to obtain new items, began to spread like wildfire.

“He caused quite a stir as soon as he arrived.”

“Thanks to Hunter Cho-i Hyeon.”

“See, he said it’s thanks to me.”

Cho-i Hyeon puffed out her chest, showing off. But Taehyeok Sa completely ignored her and looked at Taeyang Kang. Taeyang Kang frowned and pulled Cho-i Hyeon’s shoulder, bringing her closer to his side.

“If it weren’t for Cho-i Hyeon, I wouldn’t have gotten that item there.”

“When did the two of you get so close again?”

Taehyeok Sa asked, sounding annoyed. Cho-i Hyeon stuck out her tongue and wrapped her arms around Taeyang Kang’s waist.

“When you weren’t looking.”

Taeyang Kang’s body stiffened again. It was always like that when Cho-i Hyeon got close to him. She snorted as if she found it funny. When he was the one pulling her close.

“So, when’s the press conference?”

“Today at 4 PM.”

Taeyang Kang asked.

“I didn’t hear about it.”

“Of course not. It was just decided.”

“What’s the purpose of the press conference?”

“To make sure the information Cho-i Hyeon spread is recognized as true.”