* * *

It felt as if he were plummeting endlessly into a deep, dark abyss.

“How much longer is this going to last?”

Doyoung tightly closed his eyes against the disorienting sensation of falling.

When he cautiously opened them again, he realized—somewhat belatedly—that his feet were now firmly on the ground.

The strange, weightless feeling of being in zero gravity only to be abruptly grounded made his body waver.

Inevitably, his knees gave way, and he collapsed onto the floor.

“Hah…”

A sigh escaped his lips as he scanned his surroundings in disbelief.

The terrorists who had entered ahead of him were all standing upright without issue.

“Well, if nothing else, they must be certain by now that I’m utterly useless in combat.”

Though he tried to console himself, the sting to his pride was undeniable.

Once the notorious leader of a band of villains, Doyoung couldn’t help but feel a bruise to his ego in this situation.

“Even so…”

He had been diligently taking the new drug that Sarah had provided and consistently working on his physical training.

How had it come to this?

“Good thing Beom Sinje isn’t here to see this.”

If he had been, he would have lectured Doyoung endlessly about his weakness.

Not that such a situation would have even arisen with Beom Sinje present.

Unconsciously, Doyoung’s thoughts wandered back to Beom Sinje.

He let out another deep sigh, not realizing how naturally his mind gravitated toward him.

“Stand up.”

The masked man, who had been speaking English until now, issued a command in Korean.

Doyoung looked up at him briefly, then dusted himself off and rose to his feet.

Thankfully, the awkward sensation from earlier had subsided.

Doyoung took a moment to survey his surroundings.

“Hm…”

Vast grasslands stretched endlessly before him.

The sky was a muted gray, and there was nothing in sight to obstruct his view—nor any place to hide or take cover.

What did catch his eye were the massive craters, overturned soil, destroyed piles of rubble, and scattered monster corpses.

It was clearly the aftermath of a fierce battle.

“Just as I thought.”

His guess had been right.

Doyoung vividly remembered the description of this particular S-rank dungeon from the original story.

How could he not?

“The author went into excruciating detail to showcase Beom Sinje’s full capabilities.”

The extent of effort put into such unnecessary settings was almost incomprehensible.

The researcher-turned-writer had poured their heart and soul into this chapter, seemingly to magnify the grandeur of Beom Sinje wielding Levatein.

However, the buildup to that moment had been so dull that it tempted readers to skim through it.

Doyoung had only forced himself to read it thoroughly because of his affection for his favorite character—and it was now paying off.

“If I’d skimmed it like other readers, I’d probably be confused right now.”

After all, this was not the typical dungeon landscape one would imagine but rather something resembling the Mongolian steppes.

“Move.”

The terrorists began advancing.

Doyoung followed silently, scrutinizing their surroundings.

Dead monsters appeared sporadically, but thankfully, there was no sign of any guild members among the casualties.

“That’s a relief.”

If anyone had been gravely injured, word would have reached the outside.

The absence of such news suggested that, while the battle might have been tough, the dungeon was being cleared methodically.

Of course, considering Beom Sinje’s involvement, such results were to be expected.

“Still, for an S-rank dungeon, they seem to be handling it quite efficiently.”

Their progress was so smooth that Doyoung couldn’t help but feel a faint sense of pride, as if he were somehow responsible for it.

◇◆◇◆◇

「Impressive. Not a single casualty. I thought a new guild like this would be full of amateurs, but I guess not.」

「They’ve got two S-rank hunters, after all. Their guild leader is estimated to rank within the top ten globally. This much is expected.」

「I’d love to face them! Just to see how strong they really are!」

Around the world, hunters’ abilities were frequently compared and ranked.

Rankings were determined not only by their stats and dungeon contributions but also by their track record in one-on-one battles.

Beom Sinje, an extraordinary esper, had set new records from the moment of his awakening.

His prowess was undeniable, earning him recognition as an elite hunter.

However, his official ranking remained uncertain due to his government-affiliated background, which limited his opportunities to duel with other hunters, especially international ones.

「Why is the guild leader’s rank only an estimate?」

「They refuse to undergo detailed evaluations or engage in direct combat.」

「Hah, playing it safe, huh.」

Naturally.

Any hunter worth their salt would conceal at least 30% of their abilities, especially unique skills, saving them for critical moments.

Someone as astute as Beom Sinje would never reveal his hand in duels.

Besides, his focus lay on defeating monsters, not sparring with other hunters.

“Well… maybe not?”

Doyoung recalled how Beom Sinje had eagerly accepted his silly bets in the past.

He remembered the time he brought Beom Sinje home, and the man, who had been just an ordinary individual then, had tirelessly indulged in various sports for hours.

It had been a pretense, of course—a way for Doyoung to coax him into doing chores.

Still, the persistence Beom Sinje had shown was admirable, even amusing.

“He might not think it’s worth his time.”

That was likely the closest answer.

While sports were mere games, duels with hunters were a different matter entirely, with real risks of severe injury.

「Hey, you. What’s your guild leader like? Is he strong?」

The terrorist in the skeleton mask turned to Doyoung with the question, ignoring the fluorescent-masked colleague who gave him a warning look.

There’s always someone oblivious to their surroundings, it seemed.

「Shut up.」

The leader in the plaster mask silenced him coldly.

It was clear he was in charge, though the skeleton-masked terrorist shrugged his shoulders, showing no effort to hide his dissatisfaction.

“The hierarchy isn’t firm here.”

Doyoung also noticed subtle signs of rivalry and tension among them.

The skeleton mask openly expressed his discontent, while the fluorescent mask nervously glanced around, and the other terrorists seemed indifferent.

“This could be easier than I thought.”

A team divided is vulnerable to manipulation.

And what better place for an “incident” to occur than within the chaos of a dungeon?

“Time to see if I’ve still got it.”

As a faint, meaningful smile crossed Doyoung’s lips, the terrorists—too absorbed in their own discord—failed to notice.

The group continued marching.

「This area’s clear. Nothing left behind.」

「S-rank dungeons aren’t so bad after all. Flying monsters are a bit tricky, but they’re small enough to kill with a few shots.」

They were mistaken.

This spot was merely the habitat of the initial monsters, before the dungeon’s transformation.

The higher-ranked species would likely appear elsewhere.

「If it’s this easy, we could’ve cleared it from the start.」

「Our mission isn’t to clear the dungeon.」

The skeleton mask’s reckless nature was becoming evident—or perhaps he simply lacked caution.

「Shut up.」

Once again, the plaster mask intervened. Sparks of tension flew between the two.

It was clear that relations within the group were worse than they appeared.

* * *