Seoul Station’s Necromancer – Chapter 34

 

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Chapter 34 – Dungeon Reset (2)

“Can anyone attempt it?”

“What?  No way .  It is very dangerous to attempt a newly formed Dungeon . Usually the guild takes care of these kinds of jobs… . ”

“Does the guild have a monopoly over it?”

That wasn’t entirely true . There were autonomous Roused teams, and there were several instances where these teams were able to possess a Dungeon . However, most of the undisclosed Dungeons were taken by the guilds, who possessed Roused teams specialized in raiding Dungeons .

“Will I be able to attempt it or not?”

“…… . ”

Minchan thought about what he would say several times before he finally spoke .

“You will be able to . However, the opportunity will only be available after the Dungeon Energy is measured . ”

“Jeez .  Just give me an explanation without holding anything back . ”

Minchan had no choice, but to answer him .

“After the Dungeon Energy is measured, there is a restriction by rank on who could attempt the Dungeon . If it is a 4 star then you have to be Rank C . If it is 5 stars then Rank B . Only an A rank had the right to attempt a 6 star .

Woojin had a interested expression on his face .

“Aren’t I a Rank C? Then I’ll have the qualification if the Dungeon turns out to be a 4 star . What’s next?”

“The Roused are given a chance depending on the order they arrive in . If the first challengers fails, only the teams with superior ranked forces are qualified to go next . If there are a lot of competitors, then the order is chosen through lottery . ”

“Ho-oh?”

When he heard this, Woojin turned to Sunggoo .

“Let’s go Sunggoo!”

“Yes?”

“It’s first come, first served . Hurry up and run . ”

“Yes, sir!”

Woojin cut across the intersection, and Sunggoo quickly followed after him .

“W…wait a moment . ”

How could he be so reckless? The Dungeons weren’t a joke . How could he attempt a dungeon with no information…

“Uh? Now that I think about it…”

Didn’t he do that just yesterday? He went into a 4 star Dungeon without any information . The person running in front of his eyes had a clear time comparable to someone with information .

“Huh . Still… . ”

Woojin looked excited as he ran . He looked like a shopper attacking the food section of a mart during a close out sale .

“I don’t get why he is so excited . ”

Jung-minchan shook his head from side to side . Kim-haemin laughed as he walked next to to Jung-minchan .

“Haha . Isn’t it entertaining to look at Mr . Woojin?”

“Yes . It seems he has no fear . ”

“Eh . Maybe he has very little knowledge about the high rank Dungeons??”

“That… . ”

Minchan felt like it was the opposite . However, he decided not to voice his opinion . Didn’t Woojin register as a Roused only couple days ago? It hadn’t even been a week .

Jung-minchan’s intuition was talking to him . It was saying Woojin wasn’t attacking the Dungeons without knowing anything .

‘Where did a guy like that pop out from?’

He really was like a being from an unknown star . For the past couple days, this person was firmly entrenched inside Jung-minchan’s head . Other Roused didn’t even catch his eyes .
He was pouring all of his effort in scouting only Kang-woojin .

*

The Seoul National University station’s 6th exit was very busy from people coming and going . The Dungeon Reset always starts because someone had died .

“Aigo . Junggook hyung-nim . ”

In front of the Dungeon, a manager of a team was crying out loud . It seemed his team had been raiding the Dungeon, and they had been wiped out . The sadness seemed to be isolated . The public employees dispatched by the Management Bureau were busily moving around .

A truck with Dungeon Management Bureau mark drove up . After an introduction, the truck was directed towards the Dungeon entrance .

After parking the rear of the truck near the entrance, the truck’s roof opened up . A satellite antenna looking machine was revealed from the inside .

“It is a Dungeon Energy measuring instrument . One can find out the general size of the Dungeon with it . ”

He didn’t know when Jung-minchan had caught up, but he gave a polite explanation from next to Woojin .

“You will be able to go in if it is a 4 star . ”

“Did you write down your name on the registry?”

“I did . ”

Woojin had already written his name in the application registry being held by the Dungeon Management Bureau employee . He wast he first one to do so .

“If it’s 4 star or below then it is mine . ”

“Ha ha . It will be yours by regulation, but I would recommend taking a team of Roused… . Our Hammer guild has many capable Roused who will be able to keep pace with you . If you join our guild, we could even make you a leader of a team . . ”

“Ah, I already have one underling . ”

“…?”

Woojin focused his gaze on the monitor attached next to the machine .

812837128

The numbers repeatedly fluctuated up and down, and it made one’s eyes dizzy .

“Bloodstones worth about 50 thousand dollars is used to operate it once . ”

“Huh . It uses a filthy amount of it . ”

“Yes . There are smaller energy measuring equipment, and it is used to measure the energy of all the high rank Roused . ”

Woojin’s head turned towards Minchan .

“They didn’t use it to measure me . ”

“The measurement equipment can’t be used on all the Roused . One use expends $2000 worth of Bloodstones . ”

“Bloodstone are used everywhere . ”

“Please let us gather some of the data on your energy measurement next time . If I have the measured value then Woojin-nim could receive a Rank befitting your ability . ”

“Well, maybe later . ”

While he was talking with Minchan, the measuring equipment’s number was becoming fixed .

Bbi bbi, beeek .

The cutting edge machine that looked like a monster let out an analog sound as it yielded the result .

Rank 5 star .

Disappointment flashed through Woojin’s eyes . Minchan was relieved . If it was 4 star then the possibility of Woojin soloing the Dungeon would have been high .

Then Woojin’s worth would have been displayed to everyone here . There was a world of difference between the difficulty of clearing an already assaulted Mine, and an undisclosed Dungeon .

“Ooh-wah . It’s team Vermillion . ”

“Huh? Where?”

One of the 4 great attack teams of the Hwarang guild showed up . When team Vermillion appeared, everyone’s attention became focused on them . The crowd of reporters in the area started to press their camera shutters to capture their image .

Lee-yunhwee was the leader, and she was a Rank A Roused . The rest of Vermillion team consisted of 10 people, and they were all Rank B Roused .

“Uh-ooh . It seems we will lose the Dungeon to the Hwarang . ”

“Chet . We can’t do anything about it . ”

The Reset Dungeon was a first come, first served in its order of opportunity given . This was why the Guild headquarters, and their offices were located near the subway stations .

The Hammer guild’s headquarters was only 2 stations down from the Sahdahng station . As it so happens, Team Vermillion was nearby, so the they were the first to arrive .

Even a broadcasting van had suddenly showed up, and they were filming the Vermillion team . There were still a lot of interest in the formation of new Dungeons, and the first attack on a Dungeon .
If the attack fails, the Dungeon would soon become the seed for destruction .

“Yes . I am here at the newly Reset Seoul National University Station’s 6th exit . Hwarang guild’s Vermillon team is getting ready to…”

The announcer spoke a prepared statement towards the camera .  Sunggoo was watching them when he felt a chill .  He turned his head around .

“Uh? Where did Woojin hyung-nim go?”

Sunggoo started looking around . Minchan became surprised, and he also started to look around his surrounding . Woojin wasn’t too far away . He was snooping around with an curiosity-filled expression on his face .

“Eee-yah . So this is a measurement equipment?”

“Please don’t get close to it . ”

“Please get out the way . You will get hurt . ”

“Ah . I just want to look at it . Let me look at it . ”

The public employee in charge of the Dungeon Energy measurement equipment was irritated by Woojin . During all of this, the security personnel ran in to separate Woojin from the machine .

“Uh uh? Stop pushing me . ”

The security personnel’s hands pushed against Woojin, and he didn’t resist against it . He stumbled and he fell . Then he rolled down the stairway of the Dungeon’s entrance .

“Uh uh?”

While the surrounding people was frozen in shock, Woojin kept rolling his body down into the Dungeon entrance, and he slipped through . The speed of the roll was way too fast to say it was a spontaneous accident… .

‘D…did he purposefully break into it?’

Even Sunggoo didn’t know what to think . This was a 5 star Dungeon . No matter how much confidence Woojin had, he wouldn’t be reckless enough to solo a 5 star Dungeon .

“This is serious! Someone went in . ”

“It’s a scoop!”

The reporters, and the cameras used for broadcasting immediately filmed the entrance of the Dungeon .

“This is terrible . There was an accident where a person fell into the Dungeon by accident . An unprecedented event has happened . Currently, we are trying to ascertain the identity of the Roused, and more information is coming in… . ”

Sunggoo, Minchan and Haemin were all frozen, and they were looking at the Dungeon entrance with despairing gazes .

“Hul . ”

Sunggoo made a sound as if he was dumbfounded . Minchan and Haemin sighed as if they had bee unfrozen from ice .

“Team leader . Isn’t it impossible for Mr Woojin to solo a 5 star Dungeon by himself?”

“Whew . Even a Rank A Roused have a hard time soloing a 5 star Dungeon… . ”

The highest measured Dungeon to date were 6 star Dungeons .
Those Dungeons didn’t reset often . Even if it did, the guilds and the government pulled all their resources together . They would attempt it after making a team of the best Roused in the country .

At that point, it wasn’t just a Dungeon . It was a life and death battle to prevent a catastrophe . Still, there were numerous instances where the Dungeon Break of the 6 star Dungeons couldn’t be prevented .

Realistically, the 5 star Dungeons were the highest rank Dungeons a guild could monopolized .
Any Dungeons with Artifacts had a different degree of danger when one faced the monsters .
The minimum rank to attempt it was Rank B . Normally an A Rank leader takes a B rank team to attempt this type of a Dungeon . Basically, the elite teams of the guilds attempted it .

There were only two successfully attacked 6 star Mines in Seoul . Moreover, there were only eight 5 star Dungeons .

Even the Vermillion team became nervous before attacking a 5 star Dungeon yet one Roused went into the Dungeon by accident?
He was 100% dead .

The Vermillion’ leader, Lee-yunhwee frowned .

“Chet . It’s just a delay . We’ll be able to enter soon, so be ready . Don’t relax yet . ”
“Yes, team leader . ”

There was only one reason why a barrier would re-open again . It happened when the Roused, who entered, died .
Lee-yunhwee thought this would happen after a brief amount of time .

Sunggoo felt the sky turn yellow when he thought about Woojin dying .

“H…hyung-nim… . ”

Everyone thought the barrier would disintegrate after a brief moment, but the barrier was still being maintained . Lunch passed by, and it was time for dinner . Then the sun descended, and the barrier hadn’t disappeared yet .

*

“Uh? It’s Woojin oppa . ”

Soongmi’s eyes turned round as she watched the tv .  Suddenly, Woojin oppa’s face was plastered all over the news .

“Heh heh . He’s so handsome . Uh uh?”

Soongmi was fawning over Woojin’s appearance when she finally was aghast at the content of the news . She ran into the kitchen .

“Madam! Something terrible had happened . Woojin oppa fell into a Dungeon . ”

“What are you talking about?”

“Eeeeng? Mrs . Lee’s son fell in?”

The kitchen ladies ran as if they were were on fire, and they all directed their gaze towards the tv .  The news were replaying a video taken by someone’s hand phone . Woojin was having an argument near the Dungeon entrance . He was pushed by the security personnel, and he rolled down the stairs of the Dungeon . The news kept replaying the video .

[Victim Mr Kang was a Rank C Roused, and he has experienced a Dungeon only 4 times… . However, it has been 8 hours since he first entered the Dungeon . This means 32 hours has passed inside the Dungeon . All the experts agree this is close to a miracle… The Roused Mr Kang will soon reach his limit…]

Lee-soogyong lost the strength in her legs as she watched the news . She plopped down on the floor .

“W…Woojin . ”

“Aigo . What are you going to do, Mrs . Lee . ”

“Why would he go to such a dangerous place…”

She couldn’t hear her fellow ladies’ comforting words, or Soongmi sobbing . Sadness welled up inside Lee-soogyong, and it felt like she couldn’t breath .

“Woojin’s father . Please look over our Woojin . Please . ”

Lee-soogyong let out tears filled with sadness, and the atmosphere inside the restaurant became heavy .

*

*The scene of the accident at the Seoul National University Station’s 6th exit*

The barrier was activated over 9 hr and 12 mins ago . The Vermillion team, several employees from the Hwarang guild, reporters from the news station and several bystanders were still present near the Dungeon .
Minchan, Sunggoo and Haemin were identified as Woojin’s companion, so they were allowed to wait near the Dungeon Entrance . They were monitored as they waited for Woojin .

“Ah . He is surviving for an annoyingly long time . He should just give up now . ”

Someone from the Vermillion team spoke up, and Sunggoo got angry .

“He isn’t just surviving! My hyung-nim is in the process of conquering it!”

“Huh . That son of a **** is Rank C, so how would he conquer it? He is probably hiding as he barely extends his life line . ”

Sunggoo was about to stand up, but Minchan held Sunggoo back .

“Endure it, Mr Sunggoo . ”

“He is recklessly speaking when he has no idea what he is talking about . ”

“We will keep faith as we wait for him . ”

“Whew . ”

“Mr . Sunggoo should know since you’ve seen him in action? Is it possible for him to do this?”

“Of course . ”

Sunggo was filled with conviction . Woojin hadn’t even been pushed hard in the 4 star Dungeon . Woojin was thrown into a Dungeon without any preparation, but he had his sub-dimension .

“Please talk to us a little bit . What is Mr . Woojin’s ability? It says on the file he could only summon a single Skeleton… . ”

“I can’t tell you anything . ”

Sunggoo clamped his mouth shut, and Minchan clicked his tongue inside . This young man was very stubborn . He had stealthily asked Sunggoo some questions, but Sunggoo wouldn’t tell him anything .

“Let’s have dinner . ”

It was already late, and they were hungry . The jajangmyun was delivered to them . When Sunggoo received the food, his eyes suddenly misted up .

‘Hyung-nim is having a hard time inside, but I’m here…’

“Mr . Sunggoo . Eat . Let’s eat then wait . The average capture time of a new 5 star Dungeon is 12 hours . ”

It would be two days worth of time inside the Dungeon . Moreover, Woojin might take longer than the average time . If he failed, they wouldn’t be able to see him ever again…

He felt guilty, but he couldn’t help being hungry .  Sunggoo ripped open the seran wrap on the jajangmyun, then he stirred it around .

It happened when he put the chopstick to his mouth .

Choo-choo-choot .

The barrier disappeared, and Woojin popped out . He was walking up the stairs .

“Ooh-uhng, Uhhng-nim . ”

Sunggoo wasn’t chewing the jajangmyung nor was he spitting it out . Woojin grinned when he saw this .

“Did you also order mine ?”

“Ooh-ung ooh-ung . ”

Sunggoo forcefully swallowed the jajangmyun, then he ran towards Woojin . All the cameras were focused on Woojin .