Chapter 15

“What the heck is going on here?!”

“Can’t… can’t make a call?!”

“In a dungeon, what kind of call are you talking about?!”

“Huh, no hunters around?! Hunter?!”

Chaos ensues—absolute pandemonium.

Citizens one and all spiral into confusion over the sudden situation.

Some are screaming their heads off.

Others look pale with despair etched on their faces.

And there are those who faint in tears.

Of course, not everyone reacts this way.

A-rank Hunter Kim Ji-a calmly assesses her surroundings.

The dungeon interior stretches endlessly, walls and floors as far as the eye can see.

Fortunately, torches flicker on various pillars, but that’s it.

‘No exit in sight. And the mana concentration is… not normal.’

Having cleared countless dungeons, she draws a conclusion.

This is a special one-way entrance dungeon. You gotta defeat the boss to get out.

“Everyone, please pay attention!”

Ji-a taps the trembling Si-yoon on the shoulder and shouts loudly.

“I’m A-rank Hunter Kim Ji-a! Please listen to me, everyone!”

Her cry gradually quiets the chaos.

The weight of an A-rank title alone commands respect.

“Heaven help us… we’re saved!”

“Thank goodness there’s an A-rank hunter!”

People gather around Ji-a.

She surveys the area then calls out,

“Are there any other hunters besides me?”

“I-I’m a hunter…”

“I’m C-rank…”

Out of dozens of people, only two respond.

Two measly C-rank hunters.

Still, Ji-a feels slightly reassured.

Considering the hunter population, even this is a stroke of luck.

After calming the citizens, she quietly converses with the two hunters.

“Both of you aren’t E-rank so you must have decent combat experience, right?”

“W-well yeah, but…”

“Isn’t this at least B-rank or higher?”

The two hunters shiver violently.

Ji-a thinks for a moment before nodding.

“There’s no point lying since the truth will come out soon.”

“My guess is this is an A-rank dungeon. This intense mana concentration is something I’ve never felt before, even in other A-rank dungeons.”

“Gyaaah!”

“We’re dead…”

The two hunters turn ghostly pale in terror.

Ji-a realizes she needs to boost their morale.

“I’m here too, you know.”

Their eyes turn toward her.

With a determined expression, she declares,

“I’ll handle most of the monsters. You two just focus on any stragglers I miss.”

“T-that much we can probably manage…”

“M-maybe it’s doable…”

Ji-a nods encouragingly.

“If we hold out, backup will surely arrive. If we keep our ground, the civilians will be safe too. Stand tall. Don’t tremble. Can you do it?”

“W-we’ll try our best!”

“I’ll give it a shot…”

The hunters’ expressions improve somewhat.

Ji-a breathes a quiet sigh of relief inside.

But it’s too early to relax.

As far as she knows, all S-rank hunters in Korea are out on missions.

If this really is an A-rank dungeon…

Guild alliances will be necessary.

At least six A-rank hunters need to be deployed.

Special dungeons, especially one-way dungeons, are very picky about entry.

In other words, backup might take a while.

‘This is bad…’

She bites her lower lip.

Can I really handle this?

Do I have what it takes to survive?

I’ll need to cover the workload of at least four people…

But I have to.

There’s no choice.

“Everyone, the terrain isn’t good here. Let’s move to somewhere more defensible than this wide-open space.”

“But shouldn’t we stay put for backup?”

“Trust my judgment for now.”

“Ah, understood.”

It’s true moving too far isn’t wise.

But Ji-a alone can only cover one direction.

They need to find a location where at least some sides are blocked.

Praying there’s such a spot nearby, Ji-a leads the group in motion.

—

Meanwhile…

“Eh… wha… what should I do…”

Following Ji-a’s lead, Si-yoon struggles with inner conflict.

Sister Ji-a says she’ll hold out until reinforcements arrive.

She asks everyone to stay calm and follow her guidance.

Because of this, the citizens feel reassured and obediently follow instructions.

‘Does sister really think we’ll be okay?’

To Si-yoon, Sister Ji-a seems incredibly dependable.

Not a single waver in her steely gaze.

Standing firm like a rock.

Like a hero straight out of a movie.

But precisely because of that, Si-yoon grows anxious.

It feels like Sister is trying too hard to appear strong.

Si-yoon hesitates over whether to activate the accessory given by Si-hyun.

What if this place really is dangerous?

Would calling in another person put them at risk?

Is it right to bring someone else, even Sister, into such a perilous situation?

Si-yoon doesn’t know how strong her sister really is.

She’s heard tales about the hero party defeating the Demon King, but hasn’t experienced her power firsthand.

All she knows is that Sister easily beat a C-rank stalker.

That they went through a C-rank dungeon together and had fun chatting afterward.

Just that much.

Nothing more.

So she can’t decide rashly.

Si-yoon looks ahead.

“Whewww…”

Sister Ji-a has already begun fighting.

The two men who claimed to be hunters stand in front of the civilians.

They’re visibly shaking.

Completely unlike Sister Ji-a, they’re utterly unconvincing.

“Oh no!”

A massive humanoid monster ignores Sister and charges toward them.

“Aaaaah!”

“Someone stop that thing!”

Terrified citizens scream.

But the two hunters standing guard freeze up like statues, unable to move.

Then suddenly,

“RAAAHHH!”

A long spear pierces the monster’s back, sending it crashing to the ground.

Only now do the frozen hunters snap out of it and unleash skills upon the downed monster.

Its agonized cries echo throughout.

Si-yoon turns her gaze from the scene to Sister.

Seemingly prepared, she pulls out a new spear and continues fighting.

But…

“S-she’s hurt!”

Sister Ji-a’s back bears deep claw marks, blood streaming down.

Si-yoon begins to cry.

Si-hyun is precious, yes, but so is Sister Ji-a.

Watching Sister struggle painfully in battle…

It feels like her own pain.

Unable to bear it any longer, Si-yoon activates the bracelet.

Whether this decision is right or wrong, she doesn’t know.

Emotionally driven, Si-yoon decides to trust her big sister.

The reliable older brother who always protected her after their parents passed.

The beautiful older sister who defeated stalkers.

The Holy Maiden of the Demon King-slaying Hero Party.

Si-yoon knows little about hunters and dungeons beyond basic knowledge.

But she remembers one thing Sister emphasized:

No matter what happens, she’ll come to help.

Now, that’s all she has left to believe in.

“Guh…”

Ji-a adds a long gash to her left arm but manages to defeat all the monsters.

For now, the immediate threat is gone, but the dungeon’s assault has only just begun.

—

“Haa… haa…”

Leaning on her spear, Ji-a exhales deeply.

Just as expected, this is definitely an A-rank dungeon.

Minotaurs, Ogres…

Powerful monsters swarm endlessly.

Even Ji-a, accustomed to solo combat, can’t emerge unscathed.

Especially with the added burden of protecting civilians.

When things get dangerous, retreating isn’t even an option anymore.

Ji-a starts doubting if she can truly endure.

“No, I can’t think like that.”

If she falls now,

Everyone here is doomed.

Outside, preparations may be underway, but it’s possible they’ve already written off the civilians.

Still, she can’t give up.

Sister Si-yoon is here too.

“I’ll protect everyone until backup arrives.”

She pulls out a potion from her inventory and drinks it after checking her status screen.

Too expensive to stock up on, but now’s not the time to be frugal.

Absolutely, absolutely must save everyone.

Every time fellow hunters or acquaintances fell in battle,

Ji-a made a solemn vow to herself:

To grow stronger and prevent deaths.

Though she eventually started fighting alone because she couldn’t bear seeing others die,

That goal hasn’t changed.

Consider this a test.

Am I becoming the person I aspire to be?

Sister Si-yoon, the two hunters, the civilians…

She’ll protect them all.

Even if it means burning herself to ashes.

Ji-a faces the next wave of incoming monsters.

“Bring it onnnn!”

With a mighty roar to steel her own courage, she pushes off the ground.