* * *
[Hunter Park Chanoh will remain to provide support.]
Even amidst the commotion, Beom Sinje issued his orders calmly.
[We’ll convene tomorrow. This meeting is adjourned.]
As the meeting concluded, the bewildered guild members began to log off one by one.
There was no time to complain about not being selected.
While their deep trust in their guild leader played a role, only Beom Sinje, Doyoung, Yeo Giwon, and Kim Jinsoo remained in the virtual meeting room.
[Hunter Kim Jinsoo, you’ve been specially recommended by Doyoung-hyung for this mission. Fulfill your role to the best of your ability.]
In truth, Beom Sinje still wasn’t fully convinced of his abilities.
What he did appreciate, however, was the fact that Kim Jinsoo had tracked down the global research labs and pinpointed their main base.
As soon as Beom Sinje received the data, he shared it with guild leaders worldwide.
It was their responsibility to handle it, after all.
[Of course, Guild Leader!]
He shouted so forcefully that the speakers blared loudly.
Doyoung chuckled and turned off the screen first.
Beom Sinje also closed the window and looked at Doyoung again.
What caught his eye was Doyoung smiling contentedly.
Right, now Doyoung was by his side. He no longer needed the reckless thought of having to shoulder everything alone.
The next day, the Chunho Guild moved to the Dungeon Ecology Research Institute in Gyeonggi Province.
The area was packed with reporters, citizens who had heard the rumors, and police forces trying to control the crowd.
“At this point, it should be a clear enough threat to them.”
Doyoung quickly checked the community responses and remarked briefly after surveying the surroundings.
Sure enough, news of the Chunho Guild’s arrival at the Dungeon Ecology Research Institute was already being uploaded in real time online.
Today, they needed to make it clear that no one—no matter the faction—could come and try to make a move.
“Still, just to be safe, be careful, Guild Master.”
After handing out medical supplies to the guild members, Doyoung turned to Beom Sinje and cast an enhancement ability on him with a cautionary note.
“Don’t worry.”
After all, he was a top-tier hunter.
Moreover, the summoner Song Jihee was on standby, ready to withdraw if necessary.
Additionally, Kim Jinsoo and Lee Jihoon had already completed an internal reconnaissance of the research institute.
He knew there was no real risk, so why was his mind so unsettled?
“We’re entering!”
The guild members, led by the guild master, entered the research institute.
Just a few minutes later…
Boom! Crack!
A tremendous explosion rang out, and the research institute immediately collapsed.
The thick mist and swirling dust quickly obscured everything from view.
Doyoung couldn’t grasp what had just happened.
It felt like a stone was lodged in his throat.
His airway felt constricted, each breath a struggle.
His ears were blocked, and everything around him seemed distorted, as if reality itself were warping.
For a moment, it felt like time had stopped.
Crash!
Another deafening explosion rang out, and a section of the building collapsed.
“Beom Sinje!”
A scream-like cry tore from Doyoung’s throat as he tried to rush forward, only to be stopped by guild members blocking his way.
“Move!”
He shouted, but Song Jihee shook her head resolutely.
“It’s too dangerous!”
“Get out of my way!”
“No, I can’t let you through!”
The tension between Doyoung and the guild members grew taut until Song Jihee sighed deeply and spoke.
“Secretary, please calm down. We need to assess the situation first.”
Her words, spoken with lips bitten in worry, didn’t reach Doyoung, whose focus was entirely on the research lab, where dust and black smoke were still billowing.
“Beom Sinje!”
Doyoung shoved one of the guild members aside and took another step forward.
“Beom Sinje, answer me!”
His voice, hoarse and desperate, called out the name as if he were coughing up blood.
He shouted again and again, hoping for a response, but none came.
The guild members, alarmed, apologized as they grabbed hold of him.
Doyoung struggled fiercely, but they were just as desperate, making it impossible for him to break free.
The chaotic scene was captured on the cameras of reporters and civilians at the site, spreading rapidly.
Eventually, Doyoung’s strength gave out, and he stopped.
His face was filled with nothing but guilt.
‘Why wasn’t I more cautious? Why was I so complacent?’
They’d even received a formal declaration of war.
He had assumed they would retreat without a plan, and this complacency had led to the current disaster.
It was a foolish regret, utterly baseless.
Doyoung and Beom Sinje had been as thorough as they could in searching the lab.
Even Kim Jinsoo had accompanied them for the investigation.
They had found nothing amiss, which was why the guild leader and the other members had entered the building.
Yet now, faced with the fear of losing someone so precious, all his thoughts turned into self-recrimination.
“Beom Sinje!”
When the anxiety first struck, he should have double-checked.
The consequences of his complacency were too severe, and Doyoung could only blame himself.
“How foolish… I couldn’t even check that properly.”
He bit down hard on his lip.
The pale skin, already bloodless, cracked, and a droplet of blood appeared.
His breaths came ragged and shallow, his chest heaving.
The terror of not knowing the fate of the person who had given him a reason to exist in this world was unbearable.
“Huff… Huff… Huff…”
Doyoung collapsed to his knees on the ground, unable to keep standing.
Song Jihee approached him cautiously.
She, too, was struggling to grasp the situation, her mind clouded with uncertainty.
The guild leader was inside the collapsed research lab, and there was no way to confirm his condition.
She couldn’t think of a solution to this disaster.
But watching Doyoung, pale and trembling as he tried to move toward the ruins, she couldn’t tear her eyes away.
More than anything, the only person who could resolve this chaotic situation was the man now crying out for Beom Sinje.
“Please drink some water. You’re going to collapse first at this rate.”
Doyoung took the bottle from Song Jihee’s hand and drank.
His lips and throat stung sharply, his body trembling uncontrollably.
But as the cold water slid down his throat, his numbed mind began to clear.
He finally took in the sight of the wrecked building before him.
Entering it was out of the question.
Even getting close seemed impossible.
At a time like this, another method was necessary.
Since Lee Jihoon had gone in with Beom Sinje, only one option remained.
“Hunter Kim Jinsoo.”
Doyoung’s hoarse voice called for Kim Jinsoo, who was still dazed by the unfolding chaos.
“Yes, yes! I’m here!”
Kim Jinsoo stumbled over, unable to hide his confusion at the dire situation.
“Can you send the robots to search inside the lab again?”
It wasn’t a request; it was an order.
Kim Jinsoo swallowed hard and quickly rummaged through his bag.
Inside were four small robots, the same type he had once used when Doyoung was captured and dragged into a dungeon by terrorists.
“All four at once?”
Earlier, he had used only one with Lee Jihoon’s assistance. But searching for someone required all of them.
“Please.”
With Doyoung’s approval, Kim Jinsoo prepared to send the robots into the lab. But before he could, the ground trembled again.
Crash!
Another section of the already unstable structure crumbled. Doyoung clenched his teeth tightly.
“Damn it!”
* * *
