Chapter 112

‘I only need to look as though I’m trying.’

To summarize the situation: yesterday, B- and A-Class Hunters had spent the entire day struggling with the obelisk and failed. This morning, Jung Haseong had attempted to destroy it and met with no success. And now, right before my eyes, Esther had finally admitted defeat.

‘Which angle will look best for the reporters...?’

At this point, even if I failed over and over again, no one would find it strange.

“Let’s see.”

Tap.

I placed my palm against the front of the obelisk.

But the instant I touched the black stone, an unfamiliar sensation ran through me.

‘Ow. That stings.’

I flinched.

It was subtle—far too faint for an ordinary Earthling to notice—but I recognized it at once.

Mana was being drained from me.

‘What is this?’

Strange.

The way it extracted mana resembled the collection of personal identifiers such as fingerprints or blood—something intended to distinguish one individual from another.

“Kiryeo-ssi? What’s wrong?”

And in that moment, the true purpose of the black obelisk became clear.

‘Ah, damn it. It looks exactly like the one from my home world, so I assumed it served the same function...’

This stone was a device used to select the “challengers” who would later enter the dungeon.

‘It’s completely different!’

Until now, I had believed it marked the entrance to a newly forming Gate.

Instead, it gathered information from those who touched it and used that information to choose the dungeon’s participants.

‘Mother...’

Without realizing it, I had brought myself to the brink of being dragged into another dungeon.

Still, I quickly came up with a plan.

If I persuaded enough passersby to touch the obelisk, my individual chances of being chosen would decrease.

“H-hey! Seonwoo Yeon-ssi! Could you come over and try this? The stone feels incredibly solid, and touching it gives you a rather unusual sensation...”

What a perfect example of shamelessness.

Without hesitation, I tried to drag the Association employee standing guard nearby into the lottery with me.

“It’s all right. I already tried touching it earlier.”

Unfortunately, Seonwoo Yeon had already made contact with the obelisk.

Meanwhile, the other staff members had begun discussing whether they should seal off the entire area with a barrier, now that even the S-Class Hunters had failed.

“Wait. Have you called any Hunters with teleportation abilities? Or perhaps you could gather Awakeners capable of manipulating gravity and try lifting it into the air...”

I desperately searched for ways to increase the number of potential victims.

All my efforts, however, ended in failure.

Creak.

Despite speculation that the inscription on the obelisk represented the Earth’s rotational period, the object changed after only twenty-one hours.

“Huh?”

Creak. Creak.

“Wait, this is different...”

Flash!

A burst of light erupted from the cracking obelisk.

Then the selection of challengers began.

“Kyaaa!”

“Huh?”

The next person chosen was none other than the Association employee standing beyond the police line.

Seonwoo Yeon froze when a red pattern appeared above her head.

“Wow.”

I squeezed my eyes shut when I saw the same symbol hovering above me.

A familiar sensation followed.

Teleportation.

‘It feels exactly like the time I pushed Yoonseung aside and was kidnapped into the White Maze instead.’

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a strange place that looked nothing like Korea.

The dim light and weathered brick walls gave the space the appearance of a medieval castle.

Then I examined the group gathered in the center of the room and realized that the challengers had not been selected at random.

That much was obvious from the four people present.

“Whew.”

Me.

Esther.

Seonwoo Yeon.

And...

“...?”

Jung Haseong.

Come to think of it, the Hunters summoned to deal with the obelisk had ranged from B-Class on the first day to S-Class today.

And most of the people gathered here were S-Class.

In other words, the obelisk must have chosen four participants according to the order in which they had interacted with it.

‘Oh. So that’s how it’s going to be this time.’

I calmly analyzed the magic behind the selection process.

Then a low voice came from across the room.

Jung Haseong spoke in bewilderment.

“What the hell is going on? I was in the middle of attacking a completely different Gate...”

“A Gate?”

“Oh my. No wonder Haseong-ssi has blood all over him.”

The black-haired S-Class Hunter immediately raised his watch.

[Unidentified Gate]

[Description: No information available.]

[Rank: EX]

Blue letters appeared in the air.

I had definitely seen a display like this before.

“EX-Class?”

“It must have been that stone! It suddenly cracked and emitted light just before we were dragged here!”

“Were we chosen because we touched it...?”

“I never touched the stone directly. I only attacked it from a distance with my skill.”

The Hunters briefly exchanged theories about how they had been brought here.

Then Seonwoo Yeon stared at the others and suddenly spoke.

“W-wait a moment. Everyone...”

Her pupils trembled.

“Could it be that... everyone here is S-Class?”

Only after saying it aloud did she fully grasp the situation.

“Everyone except me?”

This was unprecedented.

By Korean standards, it was a national emergency: three of the country’s four S-Class Hunters had vanished at the same time.

“And the only one left outside is that useless Kang Changho!”

Esther shouted the moment she realized it.

But her outburst did not last long.

Her attention shifted to the condition of the Awakener beside her.

“Oh my goodness! Look how pale this employee is. She must be feeling sick because of us!”

Seonwoo Yeon pressed her lips together, her face drained of color.

Enduring the mana of even one S-Class Hunter was difficult enough.

With two top-tier Awakeners suddenly gathered nearby, she had probably been overwhelmed.

‘How did an innocent B-Class like her end up here...?’

Still, the most pitiful person in this room was unquestionably me.

I was a wolf in sheep’s clothing—an F-Class sitting at the very bottom of Hunter society.

‘This is all my fault.’

Yes.

This was precisely the kind of “involuntary Gate entry” listed as an exception in my contract with Kang Changho.

I had been trapped inside an EX-Rank Gate with a team full of monsters.

‘I never should have tried to look strong.’

None of this had been my choice.

***

At the same time, the outside world had fallen into chaos.

At approximately four in the afternoon GMT, large numbers of Hunters began disappearing.

In some regions, even obelisks that had never been touched directly started dragging random civilians inside.

“An ordinary person was taken into a Gate?”

“We’ve received a report from the United Kingdom. A D-Class appraiser was among those selected...”

“South Korea is in turmoil after the simultaneous disappearance of several high-ranking Awakeners...!”

The International Cooperation Agency declared the situation critical and immediately began tracking and categorizing the newly formed EX-Rank Gate.

It was officially named the Labyrinth of the 13th Month.

[Unidentified Gate]

[Description: No information available.]

Meanwhile, the raiders trapped inside the dungeon received no such updates.

They could do nothing but confront the unknown.

‘The first- and second-ranked Hunters are on the same team. Unless the dungeon forces them to become enemies, there could hardly be a better lineup.’

Kiryeo, however, did not appear particularly shaken.

He surveyed the area.

A vast hall.

Numerous iron doors positioned at short intervals.

And another stone monument standing in the center.

“Isn’t that the same kind of stone that appeared in front of the market?”

While Seonwoo Yeon caught her breath in a corner, Jung Haseong and Esther examined the black monument.

[Stop! No more than two people may enter each room. Collect the keys. Time limit: 86164.]

Hmm.

For some reason, the grammar engraved on the stone seemed slightly unnatural.

“Could the keys mentioned here be hidden inside those iron doors?”

“I’m not sure.”

“And only two people are allowed to enter each room?”

“That would be the most natural interpretation.”

After a brief discussion, the S-Class Hunters decided to proceed.

The time limit was one concern.

Hunger was another.

They were still living beings, after all.

“We can’t afford to stand around wasting time~”

“Agreed.”

“How about sending two people ahead as a reconnaissance team? The other two can remain in the hall.”

While Esther and Haseong discussed the plan, Kiryeo moved toward the person resting in the corner.

“Are you feeling any better?”

Seonwoo Yeon quietly nodded.

“Yes. Thanks to everyone being considerate, I’m recovering quickly...”

The Association employee was gradually adjusting to the magical pressure around her.

Kim Kiryeo calmly explained the Gate’s restrictions, the plan the others had proposed, and several related details.

“Ah... thank you.”

Was this the difference between top-tier Hunters and ordinary Awakeners?

Seonwoo Yeon found herself admiring his composure despite their sudden abduction.

What was more, although Kim Kiryeo was supposedly an S-Class Hunter, he remained so perfectly controlled that she could not sense even the faintest trace of mana when he approached.

‘He’s the only one I can breathe around...’

As expected, he remained reliable even in a situation like this.

At least, that was what Seonwoo Yeon thought for a moment.

“If we have to divide into teams of two, how should we arrange them?”

A little later, the four Awakeners gathered in the center of the hall to discuss the team composition.

Kim Kiryeo then made his position perfectly clear.

He insisted that the pairs should be himself with Esther, and Jung Haseong with Seonwoo Yeon.

Given the many incidents between the highest-ranked Hunter and Korea’s newly registered fourth S-Class, his desire to avoid Jung Haseong was understandable.

The problem was how he treated the B-Class employee.

Seonwoo Yeon clearly wished to remain with the Hunter around whom she felt more comfortable.

But Kiryeo could not allow that.

‘Pairing an S-Class fraud with a B-Class is a little too much, isn’t it?’

In truth, being paired with Seonwoo Yeon would create the worst possible combination.

“How about assigning the employee to the highest-ranked Hunter?”

“Yes?”

“Jung Haseong has the most experience with Gate raids among us. That means he is likely the best person to handle unexpected situations.”

“...”

“In circumstances like these, it would be safer to trust the Hunter with the strongest record.”

Kiryeo continued persuading them with desperate determination.

Before long, everyone agreed.

After all, the teams could always be rearranged later depending on how the raid progressed.

“I understand.”

“Please take care of me.”

“Yes!”

And so, following the Gate’s rules, the four challengers divided themselves into two teams.

At last, the raid on the Labyrinth of the 13th Month began.

‘Phew. That nearly became a disaster.’

The F-Class Hunter sighed in relief as soon as the partners were decided.

National hero?

That meant nothing to him.

Whether it was Korea’s first-ranked or second-ranked Hunter did not matter.

As long as someone powerful enough to protect him remained nearby, he was satisfied.

‘If I’m alone in a room with Esther, I’ll just need to invent every possible excuse to avoid fighting.’

Hohoho.

Kim Kiryeo cheerfully constructed his plan.

It was an idiotic plan.

Click!

No matter how pleased he was to have secured an S-Class partner, he should not have forgotten that they were inside a dangerous otherworldly dungeon.

“Huh?”

“Hmm?”

Click?

The Hunters turned sharply toward the sound beneath their feet.

But it was already too late.

Jung Haseong, who had been walking at the front, had stepped on a trap.

Worse, it was a magical device that the Earthlings had no way of countering.

“No, what kind of dungeon starts with a trick like this...?!”

With Kiryeo’s indignant shout, the two Hunters caught inside the magic circle vanished instantly.

***

Thud.

When Kiryeo opened his eyes, a grim scene greeted him.

The room was only about three pyeong in size, with a narrow barrier of iron bars across the front.

While the previous area had resembled an old medieval castle, this place looked like a prison buried deep beneath it.

“Cough.”

Kim Kiryeo pushed himself to his feet, bitterly regretting his momentary carelessness.

But he had not yet reached the worst part.

The trap had confined two people together in an isolated space.

“...”

“...”

Kiryeo slowly met the eyes of the young man standing beside him.

“Ah. Hello.”

He completely forgot his intention to seize the initiative and instead greeted Haseong with perfect politeness.

Well-done.

Medium.

Rare.

Why, at a moment like this, was his brain producing words like those?