The Dungeon Cleaning Life of a Once Genius Hunter

It’s hell.

After three consecutive “bad luck days,” today I even had to work an early morning shift.

“Haahm…”

In front of the dungeon entrance, I couldn’t stop yawning, my mouth gaping wide open.

The current time was 5:30 a.m.

Roughly… I’d say I got about two hours of sleep.

No matter how much of a workhorse they treat this team as, there are limits. I’m not a machine.

Even back when I was a hunter, I didn’t have a schedule this tight.

At least back then, I’d rest for a week after a single raid. Physically, it was far more manageable.

“Damn, why didn’t they just call us after they were done? How much longer is this going to take?”

Han Sang-hyuk’s voice was full of irritation.

Already short on patience, he had been fidgeting restlessly for some time now.

“Well, you know how it is. When have we ever worked on a schedule that was convenient for us? If they’re late, they’re late. Nothing we can do about it.”

“Ugh, they don’t even consider the people waiting. If they at least apologized for being late, I could let it slide.”

Han Sang-hyuk grumbled.

It was understandable—after all, the scheduled raid time had already passed by an hour.

Of course, I was annoyed too, but I was too tired to express it outwardly.

“Haahm…”

“You must be really tired,” Moon So-yeon said with a small smile as she watched me yawn.

“Well… you seem to be holding up fine, though.”

“Oh, I’m pretty resilient. This much is nothing for me.”

“…Is that so?”

“Of course!”

Liar.

The dark circles under her eyes had deepened since last week. Her hands trembled slightly, and she kept touching her forehead as if she was dizzy.

She was pretending to be fine, but honestly, it was a miracle she was still standing.

Well, she’s probably in her early twenties at most.

This level of workload isn’t something you can sustain with youth and stamina alone.

“Still, take it easy when you can.”

“Huh? Oh… sure, I will.”

I had casually tossed out the suggestion, but her reply sounded hesitant and awkward.

Then silence fell again.

Everyone seemed too drained to bother talking.

“…They’re finally coming out.”

After a grueling hour and a half, the operations team finally emerged from the dungeon.

“Ah, damn it…”

At the same time, my eyes narrowed sharply.

Kim Min-joo.

That woman had shown up again.

Damn it. How can one person bring so much bad luck?

“….”

I bit my lip, glaring at her with all the contempt I could muster.

This time, though, Kim Min-joo didn’t look away.

Instead, she met my gaze head-on, as if challenging me. Her expression said, “If you’ve got a problem, say it to my face.”

For a moment, we exchanged these hostile stares.

“Tch.”

Kim Min-joo clicked her tongue and turned away first.

She started walking quickly, rolling her right shoulder as if loosening it up.

…That woman, as I thought.

My eyes naturally drifted toward her shoulder.

Should I tell her?

…No.

Just thinking about what happened back then still makes my blood boil.

Why should I care about her? She can deal with it herself.

I’ll just keep quiet and let it go. No need to get tangled up with her and ruin my day.

Repeating this to myself, I turned away as well.

***

Dimension Management Association, Seoul Headquarters.

Hunter Support Team – Ward 302 for Severe Injuries.

After knocking a couple of times, I opened the door to the room.

“…Hello.”

Kim Min-joo noticed me and gave a small bow.

Even though she was injured, the fact that she didn’t bother getting up from her bed despite a superior entering the room irked me.

But fine, I’ll be the bigger person here.

“So, how’s your condition?”

“I just finished surgery recently, so I’m not sure yet.”

“A torn ligament?”

“Not exactly… More like, the inflammation was left untreated for so long that my rotator cuff deteriorated.”

I clicked my tongue in disapproval.

How does someone let inflammation get so bad that their muscle deteriorates? Especially someone who uses a sword for a living.

“That’s why I kept saying you should strengthen your left-hand grip. Swinging your sword recklessly with just brute force is why your shoulder’s wrecked.”

Kim Min-joo let out a dry laugh.

“Then why didn’t you say so earlier?”

“…What’s with that tone? You think I’m saying this because I don’t care? I’m saying this because it’s unfortunate. Unfortunate.”

I couldn’t help but raise my voice slightly.

But Kim Min-joo didn’t reply.

I looked at her for a moment, then sighed and pulled a few sheets of paper from my inner pocket.

“Anyway, you can’t continue as a hunter in this condition. That’s the association’s opinion, too.”

“…What are you saying?”

“It’s time to retire.”

I tossed the papers onto her lap.

She stared at them blankly, her eyes hollow.

“This isn’t right…”

She finally spoke, her tone filled with disbelief.

“This kind of injury is nothing. It won’t stop me from working! You know that, too! I even have a rank evaluation coming up in a few days…”

“What nonsense are you spouting? The decision’s already been made. Just accept it.”

“…”

“Tch. This is why you should’ve spoken up when it started hurting. Why’d you keep quiet and let it get worse?”

Kim Min-joo, who had been staring directly at me, slowly lowered her head.

“Speak up…?”

Her voice was tight, strained.

“Yeah, you idiot. You think I wouldn’t understand if you told me you were in pain—”

“I did. Of course, I did. I told you, multiple times! Remember when I said I needed to get a detailed checkup through the support team? What did you say back then? You told me nobody here is free from pain and to just get on with my work!”

Her voice grew louder with each word, and my brows furrowed deeper in response.

“And who do you think I’ve been enduring this for? Who do you think made me end up like this? And now you’re telling me I’m no longer useful, so I should just quit?”

“Don’t you dare blame me for this! Was I the one who wrecked your shoulder? Your body is your responsibility! What kind of idiot takes orders literally without using their brain?”

Kim Min-joo faltered for a moment, as if at a loss for words.

“…I can still do it. A few days of rehab and—”

“And who’s supposed to do the work while you’re rehabbing? What exactly can you do with a busted shoulder? You’re an inspector, for crying out loud! If you’re that desperate to stay in the association, then go join the janitorial team or something!”

“You call that a solution…?”

“Hey, watch your tone.”

Her attitude was crossing the line.

But it seemed Kim Min-joo was determined to push my buttons.

“Have you ever thought of me as a colleague, Team Leader?”

“…What?”

“Sorry. That was a stupid question. Of course, to you, I was just a tool to be used and discarded.”

She sneered.

Her expression finally made my long-held irritation explode.

“You know what? I’ve never liked you. Always ignoring orders, acting high and mighty. You think you can talk back just because I let a few things slide?”

“You’re right. At least I just disliked you. But you… You never even considered those under you as people, did you?”

I narrowed my eyes at her.

She nodded in response.

“Yeah, you’ve always looked at us like that. Still do, even now. Calling me a cripple, a parasite, saying I belong in the janitorial team. At this point, I don’t care what you say anymore. So, please…”

Silence.

There was no need for me to say anything else.

“In your next life, I hope you’re born a decent human being. You piece of trash.”

Smack—

***

Thinking back now, I might’ve said something I shouldn’t have.

“Your ligament would’ve been a hindrance not only to the operations team but even to the cleaning team.”

‘But… she said she had told me about it…’

I rewound the events in my mind, going back to that time.

The first thing that surfaced was confusion.

Honestly, I had no recollection of it.

If I told her not to fake an illness and just get on with work, it must’ve been something I said offhandedly.

No—if I’m being honest, I probably didn’t care at all.

Tch, she would’ve gone far if it hadn’t been for that injury. Who’d have guessed it started back then?

‘Hah, damn it…’

I raked my hand through my hair in irritation.

Then, I turned around and called out to her as she walked away in the distance.

“Hey.”

“…Yes?”

“Work on your left-hand grip.”

“…What did you say?”

Her reply made it clear she thought I was spouting nonsense.

“When you grip your sword, you rely too much on your right hand, which puts unnecessary strain on your shoulder. Your left hand needs to support more of the weight to reduce the load on your body. Plus, balanced strength between both hands helps you generate more power.”

“…”

“Anyway… maybe get checked by the support team or something. If you want a long career as a hunter.”

“Ah, sure.”

She looked indifferent, clearly dismissing me.

That look said it all—probably thinking, Who does a janitor think he is to lecture me?

Well, if she didn’t listen to me back when I was her team leader, there’s no way she’d listen to me now.

“Whatever. I’m sure the great hunter will figure it out.”

I’d said my piece. That was enough.

I had no intention of getting involved any further.

Grabbing my worn-out protective gear, I headed for the dungeon.

***

Kim Min-joo returned to the association headquarters, her head bowed, her expression unusually serious.

She was replaying what had just happened after the operation.

The man who had suddenly offered her unsolicited advice…

She’d seen the dungeon cleaning team a few times before, but this was her first encounter with him.

Well, technically her second, if she counted the time he glared at her as if he wanted to kill her.

A man who showed hostility without reason, gave ridiculous advice, and even spoke informally to someone he’d just met.

If this had been any other time, she would’ve easily brushed off such an annoying busybody.

She definitely would’ve.

‘Maybe get checked by the support team.’

But there was something about his words that made them hard to ignore.

It wasn’t just idle talk—he seemed to know something.

And truthfully, her shoulder had been feeling off lately. It wasn’t exactly painful, but it felt weaker somehow.

She’d dismissed it, thinking it wasn’t a big deal and wouldn’t affect her operations.

“Kim Min-joo, Hunter? Please come this way.”

“Ah, yes.”

The call from a support team nurse interrupted her thoughts.

After completing a quick examination, she waited for the results, standing up when her name was called again.

This was her first visit to the support team’s medical center in nearly two years.

Not because of him, of course.

She was just due for a checkup. That’s all.

It wasn’t like his words had made her come here.

Even knowing no one would call her out on it, her pride refused to admit otherwise.

‘It’s probably nothing serious. Maybe just some muscle tension.’

Entering the consultation room, she didn’t think much of it.

“It’s a good thing you came for a checkup. There’s some inflammation in your right shoulder. It’s not severe, but if left untreated, it could’ve turned into something serious.”

“…Excuse me?”

The doctor’s response caught her off guard.

“I’ll prescribe a few days’ worth of anti-inflammatory medication, but honestly, the medication isn’t the most important thing. What you really need is posture correction. If you look here, your overall balance is off. Continuing like this will put constant strain on your shoulder.”

“Posture correction…?”

“Yes. I recommend strengthening your left-hand grip. That’ll help even out the strain.”

Kim Min-joo’s eyebrow twitched.

“By the way, how did you know to get this checked out? You wouldn’t have felt much pain yet.”

“I just thought it was about time…”

“Really? You’re three years away from your next regular checkup.”

“…Someone suggested I should.”

“Who was it? A fortune teller? Did you get your fortune read?”

“No, it wasn’t that.”

Kim Min-joo hesitated.

She didn’t know how to explain it herself.

“If you’d waited until it started hurting, it might’ve been too late. Sure, we can operate, but rehab alone would take months. And honestly, this industry doesn’t wait for anyone to recover. Even with rehab, you’d never be the same.”

“…That makes sense.”

“Whatever the case, you should thank whoever told you. It’s rare these days for someone to care enough to point things like this out.”

The doctor spoke nonchalantly.

But Kim Min-joo couldn’t brush it off.

It wasn’t just a random comment—the doctor’s words matched exactly what he had said.

‘…Who is that guy, really?’

Her thoughts grew increasingly tangled.