This weekend's S-rank Yellow Dungeon raid was originally set to have 10 hunters from Seokyoung, 50 from Rainbow, and 34 from five other guilds, totaling 94 hunters. However, with the urgent addition of 2 hunters from Seokyoung, the total has now risen to 96.
In high-level dungeons, it's common for members to change or for more participants to be added before a raid, so those present weren't overly surprised. But when S-rank hunter Kwon Jihan (along with one other) appeared in the briefing room, everyone's jaws dropped.
"Wha—Kwon Jihan?"
"Whoa, it's Hunter Kwon Jihan!"
"I can't believe it's Kwon Jihan…!"
Someone knocked over a chair in shock, while another sprayed their drink in disbelief. Even the vice guild master of Rainbow, Jo Mani, adjusted his glasses in surprise. Only the hunters from Seokyoung remained quiet, having heard beforehand that Kwon Jihan would be bringing a plus one. They didn't know that his companion was Seo Chaeyoon; they just recognized him as Yoon Seo, who had made an impressive showing in the temporary team and was now part of the Perfect 2 team.
Yoon Seo was officially part of Team 1, but to avoid raising suspicions about who Seo Chaeyoon was during this buzzing time, he was listed under Team 2.
"Hyung, sit here."
Ignoring the reactions of the crowd, Kwon Jihan stretched out his arm to guide the person beside him. The newcomer, looking somewhat dismayed, sat down in the empty spot. He was quite strikingly handsome, with a blue bird perched on his head.
Who exactly is this beauty accompanying Kwon Jihan? Why is Kwon treating him so respectfully, calling him "hyung"? And why is there a bird on his head?
Naturally, they wanted to check the beauty's system profile.
['Yeo Imdae' has activated the
['Yeo Imdae' is viewing your
['Kwon Talia' has activated the
['Kwon Talia' is viewing your
Yoon Seo ignored the flood of Insight skill notifications. Those checking his false profile seemed to lose interest, possibly assuming he was added for resource collection. He was used to this by now.
Yoon Seo contemplated whether to participate in the S-rank Yellow Dungeon raid as Seo Chaeyoon or Yoon Seo, ultimately opting for the latter. Attending as Seo Chaeyoon would have attracted even more attention, making this the wiser choice.
"What's up? Aren't we starting the briefing?"
As Kwon Jihan sat beside Yoon Seo, he asked the team manager. The manager quickly stood up, seeming nervous in front of Kwon Jihan.
"Uh, let me begin the briefing for this weekend's S-rank raid…"
The manager stumbled over his words, clearly anxious.
Beep!
As the briefing commenced and a translucent 3D screen appeared on the table, Riceball flapped around curiously. Yoon Seo quickly covered the small bird with his hands to shield it from the hologram. Riceball pecked at his fingers as if to say, "Let me go," but Yoon Seo pretended to release it, instead handing it over to Kwon Jihan. Kwon accepted it without a hint of surprise. Riceball expressed its dissatisfaction with a series of chirps on Kwon's large palm.
"What a racket. Is this a zoo or what?"
The vice guild master of Rainbow finally spoke up.
['Jo Mani' has used the 'Stethoscope' Item.]
['Jo Mani' is viewing your
['Jo Mani' has used the 'Ice Wreath' Item.]
['Jo Mani' is viewing your
Throughout the briefing, the vice guild master of Rainbow relentlessly employed Insight items, seemingly sensing that Yoon Seo's system profile was fake.
'It's the Rainbow Guild…'
Yoon Seo personally didn't have a good impression of the Rainbow Guild. They were the guild that most mistreated civilians while setting up and maintaining shield traps.
Jo Mani was the vice guild master, the head of that rotten group.
[The
[Encyclopedia of People: Jo Mani, 45 years old, Male
Rank: S
(Increased stats from item 'Mythical Flame')
(Increased defense from item 'Gray Wolf Leather')
(Shortened skill cooldown from item 'Enemy's Icicle')
Traits: King of Glaciers
(Protected by the God of Winter)
(Protected by the God of Glacier)
Skills:
Special Skills:
∗Additional statues can only be viewed in dungeons.]
The vice guild master of Rainbow was an S-rank hunter with quite impressive skills, but he was more known for his arrogance, sensitivity, and irritable nature. While he didn't commit major crimes, he often engaged in petty illegal activities.
"Bringing animals to the S-rank Yellow Dungeon briefing? Is Seokyoung always this reckless?"
"I'm sorry."
Yoon Seo quickly apologized, recognizing that bringing an animal to the briefing was inappropriate, regardless of Jo Mani's irritation. But Jo Mani's eyes widened.
"Wait a minute. Why does the bird have a system profile? Is this… an item?"
['Super Cute Bird'
Rank: C
A super cute bird. Chirps adorably. Has no particular stats, just cuteness. It will become your family.]
This was Riceball's system profile, which was now visible to Jo Mani and the other hunters.
"I've never seen an item like this. It looks alive, but it's neither a summoned creature nor a fantasy item. Where on earth did you get it?"
"I got an egg from a treasure chest when I soloed an S-rank Orange Dungeon, and it hatched from there."
The one who answered was Kwon Jihan. He and Yoon Seo had prepared a story that no one could verify on their way here.
The Rainbow guild master narrowed his eyes at Kwon Jihan.
"You got an egg from a treasure chest? So this cute little bluebird is yours?"
"Yep, it's mine."
"But it seems to prefer Yoon Seo here."
"It's because Yoon Seo and I are really close. Usually, a pet tends to bond more with the owner's family than with the owner. Sometimes they follow the person their owner loves the most. That's just how it is."
Yoon Seo nodded at Kwon Jihan's words.
That's true. Pets often do bond more with the owner's family than with the owner.
And it was indeed accurate to say that they shared a special bond.
I had even heard stories about Kwon Jihan from his childhood. I had also opened up about my will. We truly are close.
"…Wha—what…?"
Jo Mani and the others were visibly shocked. Yoon Seo was unaware that they interpreted "a special bond" differently.
"We'll manage Riceball so it doesn't disrupt the briefing, so let's continue."
Peep.
When my name was called, Riceball tilted its head and looked up at Kwon Jihan. He smiled and gently stroked Riceball's wing and back with his thumb and index finger. Satisfied with the attention, Riceball plopped down onto his palm, clearly enjoying the petting. Even though they had just met today, they looked incredibly comfortable with each other, resembling a true owner-pet relationship to outside observers.
"Then, I'll restart the briefing."
While the connection between Kwon Jihan and the 'special' beauty, as well as the bird-like item, was interesting, the most pressing concern was the life-threatening dungeon raid ahead. They redirected their focus back to the briefing.
***
After the briefing ended, Jo Mani attempted to start another argument, but Kwon Jihan and Yoon Seo slipped away to the cafeteria.
Sitting down with plates piled high with well-cooked beef, Riceball showed interest. Although it didn't need to eat food, it always seemed curious whenever Yoon Seo had something to munch on.
"Seems like you want some. Can birds eat beef?"
"It's probably fine since it's eaten monster meat before. Even in the major dungeon, it wanted to share in what I was eating."
"..."
There were restaurants that only served monster meat now, but ten years ago, anyone who suggested eating monsters was considered insane. It wasn't just a fringe opinion; consuming monster meat was almost universally seen as a mad act. However, the Revengers had to eat monster meat to survive. Even then, they needed to use purification skills to digest it, so in the later stages, they often couldn't even manage that.
Yoon Seo had mentioned this casually while explaining the strategies for major dungeons, but Kwon Jihan fell silent, visibly affected by it.
Yoon Seo took a few pieces of beef and offered them to Riceball. The little creature pecked at it curiously and, finding it to its liking, began to eat eagerly.
As the meal wrapped up, Kwon Jihan spoke up.
"Since we're here, let's do some training. You mentioned needing to find a clue."
"I prefer practical training."
"Then how about we hit a low-level dungeon for a bit and head home right after?"
"Can we leave right away?"
"Of course."
Kwon Jihan pulled out his U-Pad and projected the screen into the air.
Opening the 'HunterNet,' an app exclusive to awakened ones, Kwon Jihan immediately accessed the full map. The map of the Korean Peninsula displayed the locations, occurrence times, and deadlines of dungeon portals in South Korea. There were still 83 dungeons that hadn't closed their recruitment for raids. Most S, A, and B ranks were filled, but many C-rank and below, especially yellow dungeons, still had plenty of openings.