NOVEL NEXT 9. When Someone Advises You to Flee in a Disaster Genre, It's Best to Obey
Practical training.
A course where you enter and exit dungeons paired with a mentor.
After the Gate incident, two types of ‘dungeons’ emerged.
First, randomly generated gates. These refer to dungeons that suddenly appear in the midst of populated areas.
Second, a massive tower named ‘Kill Screen’. This tower was said to have been created after Earth’s gamification. Entering the tower allows you to clear special dungeons on each floor, but the difficulty is much higher than gate-generated dungeons, making it unapproachable for anyone but high-level Awakened.
Naturally, training dungeons focused on low-difficulty gate dungeons.
Moreover, to prepare for any accidents, they specially select safe and effective locations among these.
A notably famous one is a dungeon named ‘Mirror’.
Dungeons simply named ‘Mirror’ appeared simultaneously worldwide, and unlike other dungeons, they had unique characteristics.
Namely, no set rank.
And they don’t disappear even after being cleared.
The reason for no set rank is due to the ‘Mirror Dungeon’s’ unique feature of determining the rank based on the entering player.
Upon entering a Mirror Dungeon, the dungeon analyzes the participant’s characteristics and spawns monsters that the participant alone can easily defeat.
Perfect characteristics for training or testing purposes.
Because of this, it was even rumored to be a ‘tutorial’ deliberately arranged by the system in the early days.
The main purpose people use it for now is training and practice… So from a human perspective, it was practically a tutorial.
“So this is the famous Mirror Dungeon I’ve heard about!”
Other trainees were chattering excitedly in groups in front of the entrance. However, Habin frowned alone.
‘If it’s a dungeon that changes according to the participant’s level… What will come out when I enter?’
Stats of 2.1 billion each, an unheard-of X-rank grade, ranking of -1st…
What kind of monster would match this grade?
This wasn’t arrogance or self-consciousness. Just worry. Sincere worry. A 100% pure uneasy feeling.
“I can’t shake this feeling… but just me entering might cause something really bad to happen. This isn’t about pretending to be strong, I genuinely feel like I should skip out right now.”
“Hey, are you thinking about skipping even in this situation?”
Chae Jiseok appeared suddenly, as if he had been waiting.
For safety reasons, the practical training principle is to enter in pairs with a mentor. So this person must enter with Habin too.
‘This isn’t about my safety, but the mentor’s safety.’
And she couldn’t tell anyone about this.
After being lost in thought for a moment, Habin spoke to Chae Jiseok.
“…I’m advising you this because of the thin goodwill we’ve built up, but I recommend you run away while you still can.”
“What do you mean, run away?”
“I warned you in advance.”
The best thing would be for Habin to excuse herself from this place now, but this process was mandatory and skipping it meant retaking the training. Unfortunately, skipping was impossible.
Habin looked at the guidebook indifferently and tried to think positively.
‘Still, they say it comes out at a level players can easily clear, so what could possibly happen? I’ll just clear it as quickly as possible and come out.’
◆◇◆◇◆
“Next is Team 7. Dungeon participants are Chae Jiseok and Hyun Habin. Two people.”
At the instructor’s words, the trainees buzzed with excitement.
“Chae Jiseok!”
“So envious. Being in the same team as Chae Jiseok. They’ll definitely get carried!”
Gazes filled with admiration and jealousy followed Habin.
But Habin’s attention was elsewhere.
‘So far, everyone’s cleared it within an hour at most.’
The participants who had entered the Mirror Dungeon in pairs before them had cleared it quite quickly.
‘Seeing how quickly they clear it, it must really come out at an easy level. Even if it comes out a bit difficult, I can just blame it on SS-rank Chae Jiseok.’
Habin, thinking extremely positively, entered with peace of mind. Just as the dungeon entrance closed and Habin and Jiseok were left alone inside the dungeon.
An unexpected situation that no one could have predicted occurred.
[Checking participant’s rank…]
[Error occurred!! Dungeon limit exceeded!!!]
[Fin%al raᅟᅡnk! : SSS2S2SS2…..]
“……”
“What’s this? The rank… Why are there so many S’s…”
It seemed Chae Jiseok had seen the same window. As he slowly turned to look at Habin.
[Rank determination complete. Summoning monsters matching the participant’s level.]
[…A large number of ‘Nameless Creations’ have been summoned!]
Ding ding! The notification window rang cheerfully.
Rumble.
As soon as the notification was confirmed, the ground shook violently. The sky inside the dungeon instantly turned dark.
Kieeeeee-
Ash-colored creatures swarming like clouds from beyond the horizon. All with bizarrely twisted limbs.
The endless parade of monsters was truly hell on earth. Habin muttered in an annoyed tone.
“…They said it was tutorial level. They said it would come out at a level you could clear in one go.”
The state of the tutorial…?
Kieeeeek-
The monsters that spotted them began to charge. Chae Jiseok beside her muttered in a heavy voice.
“Hyun Habin, step back. These guys…”
I can’t see their health bars.
It was a trembling voice unbecoming of an SS-rank ranker.
◆◇◆◇◆
Kieeee-
The number of monsters was incalculable. Black clouds covering the horizon.
Is this what it would feel like if true ‘destruction’ came? Chae Jiseok swallowed hard and opened his mouth.
“Hyun Habin, for now, you should leave the dungeon…”
[You cannot exit until the dungeon is cleared.]
As soon as his words fell, the notification window blinked as if it had been waiting.
“That can’t be…!”
Originally, Mirror Dungeons were widely used for training because participants could leave at any time. Being unable to exit until clearing was a phenomenon only seen in occasional SS-rank special gates.
Chae Jiseok gripped his weapon with a grim face. A golden dagger shone in his hand.
Chae Jiseok’s job was ‘Thief of the Sun’. A unique rare job, the only one of its kind in the world.
Swoosh.
Golden flashes of light rained down on the monsters before them. However.
Kieee!
There was no effect. Seeing the monster horde neither weakened nor slowed down at all, Chae Jiseok’s eyes filled with shock.
‘Do attacks really not work?’
Strictly speaking, Chae Jiseok wasn’t an attack-specialized class. Classified as an assassin class, he specialized in agility and stealth, along with information gathering, rather than combat.
While it was difficult to fully exert his strength in an all-out battle, his attack power was still unmatched anywhere, enough to be ranked among rankers.
‘Is it because they don’t have health bars?’
He stared intently above the monsters’ heads with a serious expression.
Health bars. A function that shows, like in a game, how much damage needs to be dealt to take down an opponent.
Although Earth had been gamified, not everyone could see health bars. If anyone could see them, they would have all fainted the moment they looked above Habin’s head.
This was the effect of Chae Jiseok’s special skill,
Kieeee!
And these monsters called ‘Nameless Creations’ didn’t show those health bars.
‘This is really…’
Attacks don’t work, and their numbers are endless.
How… how do you break through this?
[The constellation ‘Nearest Light’ sighs.]
A faint indirect message barely heard.
Even his constellation had given up?
Chae Jiseok faced, for the first time, a wall that seemed absolutely impenetrable. He had overcome countless hardships on his way to becoming a ranker, but never had he felt this hopeless.
“Ha……”
It wouldn’t be strange to die at any moment. Chae Jiseok truly felt death approaching for the first time in a long while.
Kieee!
Clang! Clang!
With attacks not working, all he could do was defend. He knew it was a fight with no chance of winning. But he couldn’t retreat.
If it was just him dying here, that would be one thing.
But there was one more person left behind.
…And that was a new trainee he had brought.
Blocking the jaws of monsters that had suddenly approached, Chae Jiseok bit his lip.
“……”
This situation was, in a way, entirely his fault.
Hyun Habin hadn’t been eager to enter this dungeon from the start. It was he who had brought her along, treating it as playing hooky.
He couldn’t even look back. He didn’t know how long he could hold out.
…He didn’t know what words to say either.
Tell her to run away? When she couldn’t escape?
Then say sorry? What use would such an apology be now?
Clang!
A monster he failed to block knocked his weapon far away. Finally, it approached and opened its pitch-black maw. Just as his hands were slipping with sweat in the face of utter despair.
Swoosh-
Ki, kiee…?
The monster before his eyes was cut in half.
Thud thud thud.
The monsters without health bars, the ones immune to damage, crumbled to ash and scattered.
“…See, I warned you to run away.”
A voice mixed with a sigh was heard beside him.
Hyun Habin.
The A-rank new trainee he had been protecting.
Ignoring Chae Jiseok’s blank stare, she dusted off the monster remains on her sword with a tap tap.
◆◇◆◇◆
‘…Wow, it really is tutorial level. It came out perfectly matched.’
When Chae Jiseok first said “there are no health bars,” Habin opened her skill window with a blank expression.
An act of deceiving the system’s judgment. Ignore one of the target’s stats of your choice. (Usable once per day)
Opponents without health bars.
However, if you use
At this point, isn’t it like they kindly laid out the red carpet for you to use it while doing the tutorial?
If this were a game, it would be natural for a cute icon to pop up saying “This is how you use this!”
But.
‘Sigh, what should I do about this?’
The reason Habin hesitated despite the feast laid out before her was just one.
Clang! Clang!
It was because of Chae Jiseok, who was now facing off against the monsters in front of her.
‘There’s a witness right there…’
If she swept away all the monsters here, Chae Jiseok would surely find it suspicious.
‘No, from the moment this kind of dungeon appeared, it was already suspicious. My image is already ruined. Ruined for sure!’
[What are you doing! Attack quickly! That human will die at this rate!]
Ahezar shouted urgently. Habin raised her head. Pushed back by the monsters that had suddenly approached, Chae Jiseok was stumbling backward.
“Ugh…”
Habin felt a subtle sense of dissonance watching his movements.
Swish, swish.
His arms and legs were scratched by the monsters’ claws, creating wounds. Sometimes he deliberately blocked the wrong places, accepting injuries.
Inefficient movements.
It didn’t take long for Habin to realize the reason.
He was prioritizing her protection.
[Huh.]
Ahezar seemed to have noticed it too, sighing.
Habin frowned. This wasn’t a calculation to look good to her again. Who would think of such things in the face of clear mortal danger? There wouldn’t even have been time for such thoughts.
‘Probably that’s…’
It must be a habit he originally possessed.
A habit born from his consideration and sense of responsibility, always protecting the weak first.
Even if it wasn’t here, every time he faced countless other dungeons, Chae Jiseok would have consistently shown this attitude. Trying to protect his companions, willing to sacrifice himself.
Habin finally sighed. She opened her skill window again.
You can ignore one of the opponent’s stats. Do you want to designate a stat?
“…Stat designation, enemy’s health.”
Reflected. From now on, the health stat of all entities you face will be ignored.
(Time remaining until skill effect disappears: 23:59:58)
‘And next is…’
She had so many cards to play that it was difficult to check them all at once. Among them was this:
Removes the restriction on one of your currently inactive stats. (Usable once per day)
The fact that it was deactivated meant there was a way to unleash it.
“Deactivation release, target stat is agility.”
Reflected. From now on, your agility stat will be considered 2.14 billion.
(Time remaining until skill effect disappears: 23:59:58)
“Finally, activate trait
Reflected. From now on, all of Ahezar’s skills will be summoned.
Having finished her preparations, Habin stretched her body with a crack crack.
“Since it’s come to this, let’s end it quickly and…”
[Oh! Finally! Are you revealing your power!]
“…Anyway, let’s finish quickly and use the remaining time to silence the witness.”
[?]
[Silence? You’re going to silence him?]
Thwack!
Habin didn’t answer. Having finally made her decision, she stomped the ground.