The Dungeon Cleaning Life of a Once Genius Hunter

The accident happened in an instant.

It was the most common dimensional dungeon.

An alien place that wasn’t on Earth, but without traps or complicated paths, it was one of the dungeons with the fewest casualties.

Until they entered the boss room, nothing had changed about that fact.

But then…

“Soyun? What’s wrong, Soyun?!”

Team Leader Park’s urgent voice echoed.

While dismantling the boss monster, Maximum Slime, suddenly, Moon Soyun collapsed.

At first, they thought it was exhaustion. She had been quite tired recently.

But once they checked her condition, they realized the problem was much more serious.

Stiff limbs, lips turning blue, and difficulty breathing.

This was definitely…

“…She touched the slime. She’s poisoned.”

“What?! She was wearing protective gear, it shouldn’t be possible!”

Han Sang-hyeok’s face showed disbelief.

Of course, that didn’t last long.

When they laid Moon Soyun down properly, they immediately noticed that the side of her protective suit was torn.

“Quickly, take her outside! Call for the support team! Junwoo! Help the hunter carry Soyun! Hurry!”

“Hey, Kim Junwoo! What the hell are you doing? Move!!”

The desperate voice of Han Sang-hyeok echoed, but I didn’t move.

“…Teacher?”

Sorry, but even if we take her outside right now, it would be too late.

The poison from the Maximum Slime was deadly. If it had touched her skin directly, the golden time would only be about 5 minutes.

Of course, the support team had antidotes, but it was impossible for them to arrive in 5 minutes, and it was also impossible for us to reach the support team in that time.

Without teleportation, the chances of saving her were…

There was no way. I shook my head in defeat.

Then, Moon Soyun’s face started to lose all color.

As I watched that, a thought popped into my head.

“…The last resort.”

For some reason, the lizard story I always talked about came to mind.

Cutting off the tail.

A method that harms your own body, highly inefficient and extremely costly.

But if it meant saving a life, there was no choice.

…Tch, this isn’t like me.

“Kim Minju.”

“Yes, yes?”

“Take out your sword.”

Kim Minju immediately drew a sword from her inventory. Of course, she had no idea what was going on.

“It’s simple. Just make one swift cut. You can do that, right?”

“…A-Are you talking about Soyun?”

“No. Me.”

Kim Minju’s eyes widened.

She looked confused, not understanding what I meant.

She raised her voice as she put the sword away.

“What… what are you planning to do?!”

“What the hell is this guy talking about?!”

“Junwoo! What’s wrong with you?!”

At the same time, voices of panic rang out from all directions.

Ugh, these frustrating people. I let out a faint sigh.

“Shut up. There’s no time, so hurry up.”

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but… alright.”

Kim Minju seemed to give up on her thoughts and took a stance.

She gripped the sword with a serious look in her eyes for a moment.

“Balmu.”

[Acquired skill: Balmu] [Skill activated]

Wait, I didn’t tell her to use a skill…

Swoosh—

A pain so intense that it made me dizzy seared into my stomach.

Blood erupted like a waterfall, soaking the ground.

[Attack detected towards the caster] [Entering combat mode] [Skill activated] [Acquired skill: Hyper Boost]

My whole body felt like it was burning.

A movement skill that could only be activated during battle.

I had never thought I’d use it while doing cleanup…

“I’ll take Soyun to the support team. See you there.”

“What… what are you saying? Even if you take a taxi from here, it’ll take at least 30 minutes…”

Boom—

Team Leader Park’s voice was no longer heard.

Instead, only the sound of wind tearing through the air reached my ears.

***

“She was saved when you came quickly.”

Association Support Team Medical Center Emergency Room

After finishing the treatment, the medical staff spoke in a calm voice.

At the same time, sighs of relief escaped from various people around the room.

“Fortunately, she regained consciousness right away… After monitoring her progress, it seems she can be discharged soon.”

“Thank you so much!”

Team Leader Park bowed 90 degrees to the young medical staff, who seemed to be about his son’s age.

“Ah, and the other person…”

“Kim Junwoo.”

“Yes, Mr. Kim Junwoo, please stop by the administration department when you leave. For the suturing fee.”

The doctor casually pointed to my abdomen, which was wrapped in bandages.

Seriously, they’re charging for this. How much could a few stitches cost…?

Once the doctor left, we all approached the bed.

Moon Soyun, who had just been on the brink of death, smiled awkwardly.

“Hey, are you trying to make me worry?!”

“You little brat! What kind of thing are you saying to an injured person?”

“Are you alright, Soyun?”

“Of course. I’m fine.”

Moon Soyun smiled brightly.

But regardless of her expression, Han Sang-hyeok was fuming.

“Sigh, damn it. How the hell did the protective suit get torn just from moving your arm a few times?”

“Hey, don’t curse in the hospital.”

“How could you not curse? Seriously, it doesn’t even make sense that we haven’t gotten new suits in over half a year! But hunters get brand new equipment just by asking! What the hell is this?”

“Hey, hey, you little…”

“Am I wrong…?”

At Team Leader Park’s signal, Han Sang-hyeok finally shut up. He then awkwardly glanced at Kim Minju.

“Uh, no… I’m not saying it’s the hunter’s fault or anything…”

“That’s alright.”

Kim Minju replied without even looking at Han Sang-hyeok.

The atmosphere became cold in an instant.

Well, I guess they think they’ve offended an active hunter…

Judging by their expressions, that guy is probably just thinking about something else right now.

“Anyway, take this opportunity to rest up. I’ll make sure the work injury report is filed.”

“…Should I? Work injury?”

“Of course! You got hurt while working! Don’t think about anything else and…”

“Uh, Junwoo? Where are you going?”

Moon Soyun interrupted Team Leader Park’s words and spoke to me.

“Just getting some fresh air.”

I gave a vague answer and left the hospital room.

The corridor was bustling with medical staff going back and forth.

My steps as I crossed the hallway felt lighter than ever.

‘This… it’s going better than I thought.’

I couldn’t hold back a smile.

This is the perfect opportunity.

The perfect chance for the release.

[Upward Fire – Release Conditions: Dungeon Cleanup Team Budget Expansion]
Due to budget shortages, the equipment had become outdated.

The safety of the cleanup team had always been a ticking time bomb.

Now that a team member had been injured, it was the perfect time to propose expanding the budget.

If I push this accident, they’ll have no choice but to provide support for the sake of the team’s image.

Hehehe…

With this, I’ve already unlocked two skills.

At this rate, it won’t be long before I say goodbye to the cleanup team.

***

“What the hell is that guy…”

Han Sang-hyeok scowled and glared at the closed door with a thud.

“He seemed really upset. Do you think there’s something wrong?”

“Of course he’s pissed off.”

“Ah, I guess I caused too much trouble…”

“That’s not it. You got injured, didn’t you?”

Team Leader Park shook his head at Moon Soyun’s self-blame.

“That guy, even though he looks like a bad person, he’s someone who really cares about his teammates. You can tell just by looking at him.”

Team Leader Park’s confident expression.

Kim Minju stared at him silently.

“Really cares about his teammates, huh…”

As expected, if it’s that person…

Kim Minju muttered to herself as her gaze shifted to the firmly closed door.

“By the way, that guy… the more I think about it, the more mysterious he seems. Should I say he’s amazing or crazy?”

“…Why? Did something happen?”

Moon Soyun asked, confused, not understanding what was being said.

“Ah, you don’t remember, huh. That guy saved you. And he even used a skill!”

“J-Junwoo did that?”

“Yeah! I haven’t been doing cleaning for long, but he’s the first cleaner I’ve seen who used a skill…”

“Junwoo saved me?! Oh no, I didn’t even know… I didn’t even say thank you…”

Han Sang-hyeok’s mouth shut tightly.

It seemed that the whole skill thing hadn’t even registered in his mind.

“By the way, Kim Minju Hunter.”

At that moment, Team Leader Park subtly turned his head toward Kim Minju.

“Yes?”

“What do you think about Junwoo?”

“Well, I think he’s a good person, but his face isn’t really my type…”

“No, no, I meant as a hunter. What do you think of him as a hunter?”

“…Ah.”

Kim Minju’s face slightly flushed.

But she quickly continued as if nothing happened.

“As a hunter…”

“That guy, honestly, he’s too good to be here. You know what I mean, right? He seems to know more about dungeon and monster information and strategies than most hunters…”

“Are you suggesting transferring him to the operations team?”

“Yes. I know it’s hard, but if there’s even a slight chance…”

Kim Minju nodded.

Even without Team Leader Park saying it, she already knew.

Just from what they’d seen so far, Kim Junwoo being transferred to a new team wasn’t just a possibility — it was very likely.

“He’s definitely better in terms of experience and skill compared to most hunters. I can vouch for that. But the problem is…”

“Is there… a problem?”

“Yes. The fact that he’s in the cleaning team is the problem.”

Before Kim Minju could finish, Han Sang-hyeok stood up abruptly.

“Wait, Hunter, are you saying it’s a problem that he’s in the cleaning team? Are you saying that if you’re in the cleaning team, you can’t move up?”

“That’s not it. It’s actually the opposite.”

“…What?”

“Mr. Junwoo’s true abilities… even I can’t fully gauge them. He’s definitely much better than a low-tier B-rank like me. He probably knows his own strength better than anyone else. But still, he chose the cleaning team over the operations team. What do you think that means?”

“Does that mean… he wants to do this job?”

“Yes. I can’t think of anything else.”

Kim Minju looked around at the team members.

It seemed that everyone was shocked by this unexpected revelation.

Who in their right mind would want to do cleaning work?

Even a passerby without a job would turn it down.

Let alone Kim Junwoo, who has the skills to be a hunter right now.

For someone like that to stay in the cleaning team voluntarily…

The team members were caught between shock and admiration, overwhelmed by the mixture of emotions.

“Mr. Junwoo is incredibly skilled, but he probably doesn’t want to climb up through the association or the hunter hierarchy. Or maybe he just prefers the cleaning team over a place where there’s no camaraderie.”

“If that’s the case… it would be hard to recommend him recklessly.”

“Yes. If he joined the operations team, he’d definitely become a top-tier hunter… but unless he wants that, we can’t force him. Bringing it up might even be rude.”

“Then we have no choice. We’ll have to keep this a secret from Junwoo.”

“Yes. I think that’s for the best.”

The atmosphere became somber.

In the midst of this, Han Sang-hyeok, who had been deep in thought, cautiously spoke up.

“By the way, just a thought… If that guy really cares about his teammates… he’s not going to the association to complain, is he…?”

Everyone’s eyes widened.