128

Chapter 128 — The First International Mission

The international exchange had been running for several days when the atmosphere inside the Association changed. The casual training sessions and controlled battles had gradually turned into something more serious as the participants became familiar with one another's abilities. They had learned how Daniel distributed defensive force, how Amelia adjusted her shooting angles, how Elena shaped ice through mana, how Liu Wei controlled the rhythm of a sword exchange, and how Ethan could alter the length and structure of his mana sword according to the situation. Subin had spent much of the time observing rather than trying to dominate every exercise, and that had allowed him to understand something he had rarely considered before: strength became much more useful when the people around it could be trusted.

That morning, Director Kang summoned the senior participants to the main conference room.

Subin entered with Yerin and found the others already there. Min-seok was speaking quietly with Daniel, while Ara and Elena were studying a map projected across one of the screens. Jae-hyun stood near the back with his arms folded, and Liu Wei and Ethan were discussing something about swordsmanship.

Director Kang waited until everyone had taken their seats.

"We have received a request from the European Awakener Federation."

The map changed.

A region in northern Italy appeared on the screen.

"The dungeon I mentioned previously has changed classification."

Ethan's expression became serious.

"How?"

"Originally A-rank."

Director Kang enlarged the area.

"It is now classified as A+."

The room became quiet.

"Mana density increased by approximately twenty-seven percent in forty-eight hours. Three internal zones have also changed their structure, and two teams sent inside for reconnaissance were forced to withdraw."

Min-seok leaned forward.

"Any casualties?"

"Four injured. No deaths."

Yerin looked at the map.

"Monster levels?"

"Initial readings were between eighty and one hundred ten. Current readings fluctuate between ninety-five and one hundred thirty."

Ara frowned.

"That's a significant increase."

"Yes."

Director Kang looked around the room.

"The European Federation has requested a joint team because several of their local A-rankers are already occupied with other dungeon activity."

Ethan nodded slowly.

"I know the region."

Subin looked at him.

"What is unusual about it?"

"The dungeon doesn't have a single stable entrance."

Ethan pointed toward the map.

"There are several access points beneath an old mountain tunnel system. The internal structure changes depending on which entrance you use. The European teams initially thought they were separate dungeon branches, but they eventually realized they were connected."

Subin studied the map.

"Similar to Kazakhstan?"

"Not exactly," Ethan replied. "Kazakhstan was an environmental mana network. This is more like a dungeon that keeps rearranging its internal pathways."

Subin nodded.

"Then we shouldn't assume the same rules."

Director Kang smiled.

"That's why you're going."

Min-seok immediately looked at him.

"Who's going?"

"The joint team will consist of Subin, Yerin, Min-seok, Ara, Jae-hyun, Ethan, and Amelia."

Yerin nodded.

"Any local members?"

"Two European A-rankers will join you. Their names are Marco Bellini and Sofia Ricci."

Ethan added, "I've trained with both."

"Good," Director Kang said. "Then you can help coordinate the local team."

Jae-hyun looked at Subin.

"Another international dungeon."

Subin nodded.

"It should be interesting."

Min-seok smiled.

"Finally."

Ara rolled her eyes.

"You've been waiting for this."

"Of course."

Director Kang continued with the details. "This is not an attempt to conquer the dungeon. Your first objective is to determine why its structure is changing and whether the changes are dangerous to the surrounding region. If the dungeon becomes unstable, withdraw."

Min-seok frowned.

"So we're investigating again."

Subin looked at him.

"That's what we did in Kazakhstan."

"Yes, but this time there are monsters."

"There were monsters in Kazakhstan."

"Not enough."

Everyone laughed.

The team departed two days later.

The flight to Italy was long enough for the participants to settle into a relaxed routine. Yerin sat beside Subin, while Min-seok and Jae-hyun were seated across the aisle. Ethan spent most of the journey reviewing dungeon reports, and Amelia was studying maps.

Ara eventually moved to the seat behind Subin.

"Do you ever sleep?"

"Sometimes."

"That's not an answer."

Yerin laughed.

"He says that whenever someone asks him about sleep."

Subin looked at her.

"Because I do sleep."

"How many hours?"

"Enough."

Ara sighed.

"You two are becoming impossible."

Min-seok overheard the conversation.

"They've always been like this."

Yerin turned around.

"Don't you have something else to do?"

"No."

The flight continued with occasional conversations about the upcoming operation.

Jae-hyun spent several hours studying the European dungeon's recorded combat footage.

"I think the dungeon responds to movement."

Subin looked at him.

"Why?"

"The pathways changed after teams moved through them. Not immediately, but within several minutes."

Ethan nodded.

"That's what we noticed."

Subin considered it.

"Then the environment may be responding to mana."

Jae-hyun looked at him.

"That's what I thought."

Their conversation ended there, but Subin kept the idea in mind.

The team arrived in northern Italy that evening.

Marco Bellini and Sofia Ricci met them at the local command center.

Marco was a broad-shouldered A-rank warrior who had awakened seven months earlier after working for years as a mountain rescue specialist. His ability enhanced physical strength and allowed him to reinforce his body with dense mana.

Sofia was an A-rank wind user who had previously worked as a professional climber. Her ability allowed her to manipulate air currents around her body and create concentrated bursts of wind.

After introductions, Marco shook Min-seok's hand.

"I've heard about you."

Min-seok grinned.

"Good things?"

"Mostly."

"That's enough."

Sofia smiled when she met Yerin.

"You're the spear user."

"Yes."

"I watched your national evaluation."

Yerin looked slightly surprised.

"You did?"

"Several matches."

Sofia looked toward Subin.

"And you must be Subin."

Subin nodded.

She studied him for a moment.

"You don't look like someone who became famous so quickly."

Min-seok laughed.

"That's because he never looks impressed by anything."

Subin ignored him.

The following morning, the team reached the dungeon entrance.

The entrance itself was located inside an enormous underground cavern beneath the mountain. Stone walls surrounded the area, but unlike a normal dungeon entrance, there was no glowing gate. Instead, several dark passages extended in different directions.

Marco pointed toward them.

"Three main routes were confirmed yesterday."

"Yesterday?" Jae-hyun asked.

Marco nodded.

"Today there are four."

Subin looked at the fourth passage.

"Was that there before?"

"No."

The team entered through the newest passage.

The environment changed almost immediately.

The air became warmer.

The stone walls became damp.

Small streams of water appeared along the floor.

Then the temperature dropped again.

Yerin looked around.

"Rapid environmental change."

Subin nodded.

They continued carefully.

The first monsters appeared after approximately ten minutes.

A group of stone-backed lizards emerged from the darkness.

Their levels ranged from ninety-two to ninety-eight.

Marco stepped forward.

"Formation."

The team moved together.

The lizards attacked quickly, but this time the group didn't rely solely on Subin. Marco and Takumi weren't present, so Yerin took the front with Jae-hyun while Min-seok attacked from the side. Ethan moved between the two lines, while Amelia remained at distance.

Subin watched.

The formation worked.

He waited until one of the lizards attempted to retreat before moving.

His sword passed through its defensive mana.

The creature disappeared.

The others were quickly defeated.

Marco looked at Subin.

"That was efficient."

Subin nodded.

"We should keep moving."

They advanced deeper.

After another fifteen minutes, the corridor split.

Then it split again.

The team marked the paths before choosing one.

Several minutes later, they returned to the same chamber from another direction.

Jae-hyun frowned.

"We've been here."

Marco checked the markings.

"Yes."

Subin looked at the walls.

"They're different."

Everyone turned toward him.

"What?" Yerin asked.

Subin pointed toward a crack in the stone.

"When we passed this area earlier, that crack wasn't there."

Sofia examined it.

"You're right."

Ethan looked at the corridor behind them.

"Then the dungeon changed while we were inside."

Subin nodded.

"That's why the teams couldn't map it."

They didn't continue immediately.

Instead, they spent several minutes observing the environment.

Nothing happened.

Then a low vibration passed through the floor.

The walls shifted.

A section of stone slid sideways.

A new passage opened.

At the same time, the corridor behind them closed.

Min-seok sighed.

"I don't like this dungeon."

Ara smiled.

"You're allowed to admit that."

"I don't like admitting anything."

Subin looked into the new passage.

"Let's go."

They moved forward.

The passage eventually opened into a large chamber containing a cluster of mana crystals.

The crystals weren't storing mana in the same way as the Kazakhstan network. They were releasing small amounts of energy into the surrounding environment.

Sofia approached one carefully.

"These weren't here yesterday."

Ethan frowned.

"That's impossible."

"Why?"

"Because the previous team surveyed this chamber."

Subin examined the crystals.

"They're growing."

Marco looked at him.

"Like plants?"

"Not exactly."

Subin touched the ground beside one of them.

The mana concentration was increasing.

"The dungeon is responding to the mana we've released."

Yerin understood immediately.

"Our own abilities are changing the environment."

"Possibly."

Jae-hyun looked around.

"Then every battle makes the dungeon different."

Subin nodded.

"That's why we shouldn't fight unnecessarily."

Min-seok looked disappointed.

"We just got here."

Yerin smiled.

"You'll survive."

They continued without engaging the nearby monsters.

That decision proved useful.

After another twenty minutes, they reached a chamber where the mana density suddenly dropped.

At its center was a massive stone platform.

No monsters guarded it.

No treasure was visible.

But several channels ran across the floor, carrying mana from one side of the chamber to another.

Subin stepped closer.

"This is a circulation point."

Ethan looked at him.

"Like Kazakhstan?"

"Similar principle."

Subin studied the channels.

"But smaller."

Jae-hyun crouched beside one of the channels.

"Where does the mana go?"

"Everywhere."

Subin looked toward the surrounding walls.

"The dungeon is distributing it through the entire structure."

Marco frowned.

"Then why is the dungeon changing?"

Subin didn't immediately answer.

He studied the flow.

Then he noticed something.

The mana wasn't simply circulating.

It was responding to the team's movements.

Whenever someone used mana, the flow adjusted slightly.

"The dungeon is learning."

No one spoke for several seconds.

Subin continued.

"Not thinking. Not like a person. It's responding to repeated changes."

Yerin nodded.

"So the more we fight, the more it adapts."

"Yes."

Director Kang's warning suddenly seemed more important.

This wasn't a dungeon they should conquer through brute force.

The team decided to withdraw.

They had collected enough information for the first operation, and continuing deeper without understanding the dungeon would only increase the risk.

The return journey was surprisingly uneventful.

By the time they reached the surface, the dungeon entrance had already changed again.

The passage they had entered through was gone.

A new one had appeared several meters away.

Marco stared at it.

"That's going to make mapping difficult."

Subin looked at the new entrance.

"It doesn't matter."

Everyone looked toward him.

"Why?"

"Because the map isn't the dungeon."

Subin turned away.

"The dungeon is changing."

Ethan smiled.

"Then we'll have to change with it."

Yerin walked beside Subin as the team returned to the command center.

"You didn't seem disappointed about leaving."

"There was nothing more to learn today."

She smiled.

"You're becoming patient."

"I'm learning."

"From dungeons?"

Subin looked at her.

"From people."

Yerin smiled.

The first international dungeon mission had ended without a major battle, but it had given the team something more valuable than another collection of monster cores.

They had discovered a dungeon that adapted to the people inside it.

And unlike the Kazakhstan network, this phenomenon was directly connected to dungeon behavior.

The next investigation would require a different approach.

Not more strength.

Better cooperation.