Chapter 27
Chapter 27
Breaking News) Dungeon Break in the Heart of Gwanghwamun
Content: None
Crazy... is this the beginning of the apocalypse?
Honestly, once the dungeon break happened, it kind of felt like a semi-apocalypse.
Korea managed to clean it up quickly though.
But that's just the capital region. If a dungeon breaks in a sparsely populated area, it might take a week or more to clear.
Anyway, the dungeon break happening right in the middle of Gwanghwamun is unprecedented.
And it's not even the weekend when there’s little foot traffic, but a weekday... this is a disaster for office workers.
I think this is the first time since Yoo Han-ul stopped a dungeon break a few years ago.
That was a major disaster with huge casualties...
Still, Gwanghwamun is an area with a high concentration of hunters, right? There's a central management agency, so it should be suppressed quickly, right?
The live feed from the scene says it’s a 2nd-tier dungeon and a barrier has formed, preventing the rescue team from entering.
What the heck does that mean?
Has this ever happened before?
I’m a current core researcher. In theory, this could happen. The core material that forms during a 2nd-tier dungeon break pulls the original dimension into the area. If the core’s tension is artificially amplified, the range of reality affected by it becomes stronger, which could temporarily cause dimensional separation. This was just recently published in an American journal, and it’s being verified. I suspect that’s what’s happening here.
So you're saying this was intentionally triggered?
I'm not sure yet, but based on my observations, it’s hard to imagine this happening without some external intervention.
Why even research something like this?
If we could control the core tension artificially, it would have endless potential uses. If we had control over it, this dungeon break could have been neutralized immediately.
Can someone explain this in simpler terms?
In short, this dungeon break... might have been intentionally triggered by someone.
What are you basing this on? Are you really a Harvard professor? Should I believe you?
That’s nonsense. If this were true, the government would’ve announced it.
There's no way the public would be given this kind of information.
I’m the one who posted about the core. If you search for it on international journal sites, it’s all there. It’s in English, though.
If it’s true, this is huge... but still... could it really be?
But right now, it’s more important to rescue the trapped people, not figure out the cause.
Since the monsters can’t get out of the barrier, that’s somewhat positive, right?
How can you think that’s positive when there are people trapped inside?
It’s better than having Gwanghwamun become filled with monsters.
Please... my family’s a government worker, and they’re working there. I haven’t heard from them, and I’m freaking out.
That’s so terrifying...
It’ll be fine. They’ll clear it soon.
Hey, do you remember today was the day rookie hunters were supposed to register? I heard there were a lot of rookie hunters at the central agency... now parents are going crazy trying to reach them.
Does that mean Jung Da-on is there?
Why is Jung Da-on suddenly involved?
Jung Da-on lives in Eunpyeong-gu, so she probably went to the local agency.
S-rank and higher hunters must register at the central agency, so Da-on must be there too.
Are you sure?
If this is true, Da-on’s only been awakened for a few days, and now she’s already experienced two dungeon breaks?
Damn, what’s going on? She’s getting all the bad luck.
Want to watch this video? There’s an ex-S-rank hunter YouTuber in the U.S. who was live streaming, and when he heard about the news in Korea, he immediately said, "Someone triggered this dungeon break to target Jung Da-on."
The retired guy? He only got S-rank potential, but as a current hunter, he barely reached C-rank. It’s not worth listening to, he’s just a wreck.
The U.S. loves conspiracy theories.
How would you even trigger a dungeon break intentionally? That sounds impossible.
If you read the comment above, it sounds possible.
This needs verification. It’s not certain, and how can you believe some random story online?
Someone find the international journal websites.
With such a big lead, I’d expect Rabbit to be burning up with this, anyone seen any related posts?
I live in the U.S., and I occasionally check Rabbit. This is just speculation—there’s no actual evidence. Besides, making an item to adjust core tension would cost a fortune. It hasn’t even reached the commercialization stage.
Oh, really?
So you mean it’s possible to make if you throw enough money at it?
Right now, people might be dying, and you want to talk about this conspiracy stuff?
...
...
Breaking news: Dungeon Break cleared!!
It took 4 hours and 28 minutes.
Injuries are still being assessed, but there seem to be fatalities.
My condolences to the deceased.
Damn, Yoo Han-ul and Han Jae-young were inside that building?
Then why did it take 4 hours and 28 minutes? Something’s off.
Did an S-rank monster show up?
We had two of Korea’s best hunters, and it still took 4 hours. That’s strange.
Do you think a dungeon just gets cleared immediately by high-level hunters?
Two days ago, Yoo Han-ul went into a dungeon and got pushed back immediately.
Han Jae-young said there were a lot of special circumstances this time, and since it’s classified, he’ll give a detailed briefing later.
But he seems perfectly fine?
It seemed like Leo looked like a cat to anyone who saw him. I glanced at Leo. Just a moment ago, Leo had bared his teeth and threatened Da-jeong, but now he was looking at me expectantly, as if seeking praise.
“Ugh!”
It was an absurd thought.
Leo, who had just been hit, looked confused.
Why was I hit?
“Da-on! How could you hit the cat?!”
Da-jeong gasped and tried to pull Leo away from me, but Leo showed his teeth again. It was clear he couldn’t tolerate anyone touching him, so I kicked Leo once more.
“Grrrr... Ugh!”
Why?!
“Take care of him. He’s your priority.”
Leo gave me an incredulous look.
What are you talking about?
“Did your intelligence degrade to the point you can’t understand orders?”
“Meow...”
Having received both physical and mental shocks, Leo drooped his shoulders.
The sight must have looked so pathetic that Da-jeong’s eyes widened in anger.
“Jung Da-on! What are you doing to the cat...?!”
“Don’t be deceived by appearances. This thing’s a monster.”
Da-jeong froze in shock.
“A... a monster? This?”
“Yeah, like the summons in the game you play. That’s what he is.”
“So this cat is your familiar, Da-on?”
“That’s the best way to describe it right now.”
In traditional magical theory, summoned beings based on summoning contracts differ greatly from subordinates created from scratch. However, to the untrained eye, there’s no significant difference.
“Just be careful. If you show him any openings, he’ll bite.”
Though he looks like a kitten, he’s a dangerous C-rank monster capable of handling monsters with a single swipe of his paw. Someone like Da-jeong, an ordinary person, would be gravely injured from a simple swipe. That’s why I had to make sure to establish hierarchy, even if it seemed harsh.
Actually, unlike normal subordinates, familiars are unique life forms with their own soul.
I created Leo because I was tired of giving direct orders, but I didn’t expect it to turn out this way.
“By the way, Da-jeong.”
Da-jeong hesitated before speaking.
“Da-on, you’ve only just awakened three days ago, right? But you summoned this familiar? Isn’t that really difficult? Does this even make sense?”
It was a reasonable question. Honestly, it was an absurd thing to do. Da-jeong, being an ordinary person living in a modern society during the great dungeon era, probably found this situation far from normal.
But who was I?
I shamelessly nodded.
“I guess I’m a special genius. I even got S-rank in the Awakening Test.”
“Yeah, but... wait, even if you’re S-rank, how does this make sense...”
“Who cares about common sense? This happened, didn’t it? Right, Leo?”
“Grrr... Grrr...”
What’s going on here?
Leo, feeling my frustration, lowered his ears and slouched down.
“Meow...”
Da-jeong tilted her head, looking perplexed.
“Is that so? But still...”
“I’ve already named him. Leo. Can’t just abandon him, can I?”
“You didn’t mean to abandon him, right? Da-on, are you talking nonsense again?”
“Grrrr!”
Leo growled and showed his teeth at Da-jeong, who was angry with me. I gave Leo’s back a light pat.
“See? He understands you’re mad.”
“No, what I meant is...”
“Hey, over there, the hero sister!”
Luckily for me, the scene was chaotic. A child, waiting longer than the others for their parents, waved their hand at me.
“Hero sister, hi! Super cat, hello!”
“Hero sister?”
“Looks like you made a mistake.”
Without even waving back, I ignored the child, but the kid kept trying to wave, determined to get my attention. It was a loud cry from the parent who had had a long day, but it didn’t matter.
“Alright, say goodbye to the sister before you leave!”
“Be quiet outside!”
The kid had a strong voice. Maybe they hadn’t learned public manners yet, or maybe they just really wanted to say goodbye.
‘At least there were no casualties among the children’s parents.’
I had sacrificed my body to save them, but if the kids had lost their parents, it would have been bitter.
"Breaking News: A 2nd-tier Dungeon Break occurred in the heart of Seoul. This is the first time a dungeon break has formed a barrier preventing external interference, causing an unprecedented shock. Let’s listen to the rescue team’s live interview..."
From afar, the media was interviewing, cameras rolling.
Da-jeong sighed.
She seemed like she had more to say but, sensing the chaos of the scene, figured it wasn’t the time.
“Well, at least you’re not seriously injured. But really, what the heck is going on? If this keeps happening, how are we supposed to live in peace? I still need to figure out how to avoid mandatory service...”
“So, Da-jeong.”
“You should say ‘oppa’.”
“Right, oppa.”
If I had a real emergency with my living family, it would be much worse than any grand quest to save the world or the strange encounter with my past life.
I said seriously,
“We need to move.”
I have to hide my current family, no matter where.
FVN