* * *
In the ensuing chaos, the Chunho Guild stepped up.
Partnering with other guilds, they narrowly resolved the dungeon overflow, but at great cost—most of their guild members either perished or became incapacitated.
Public sentiment turned cruel.
Rumors spread that Beom Sinje had sacrificed his guild members to save himself.
Combined with the fallout from a prior S-rank dungeon incident, harsher judgments were passed, leaving deep scars.
‘In the end, there was no one who truly trusted and understood me.’
Doyoung could still recall the bitter monologue Beom Sinje had uttered amidst the ruins of the devastated city.
“Never. I won’t let that happen.”
Although he didn’t know what happened to Beom Sinje afterward—having been thrust into this world—he was determined to prevent his favorite character from facing such torment.
As he mulled over his thoughts, Doyoung’s phone vibrated, displaying an incoming call.
“Yeo Giwon? What’s up?”
“Hyung! Beom Sinje’s acting weird.”
“What?”
“He suddenly got a report about the Dungeon Ecology whatever and insisted on posting an official statement right away. He just released it…”
“An official statement?”
What was going on?
Switching to speaker mode, Doyoung grabbed his laptop from the table and accessed the Chunho Guild’s official website.
There, as Yeo Giwon had said, was the statement.
[Chunho Guild formally declares that the Dungeon Ecology Research Institute has no connection to Antithesis.
The Institute is an external entity obstructing domestic guild activities.
This matter is for the government and domestic guilds to address.
We urge caution in jumping to conclusions.
Chunho Guild will actively counteract the illegal actions of the Dungeon Ecology Research Institute that endanger citizens and disrupt domestic guild operations.
We also aim to dispel longstanding misunderstandings regarding Antithesis.]
“What the…”
Reading the statement, Doyoung’s eyes flickered momentarily.
◇◆◇◆◇
The announcement posted on the official Chunho Guild website caused an uproar. Not only was the online community buzzing, but within hours, the news was plastered across all major media outlets.
[Am I seeing this right? OˍO Even after double-checking, this doesn’t make sense. Why is Chunho suddenly talking about Antithesis?;;;
└ They’re saying it’s because Dungeon Life’s Society keeps acting like a knockoff version of Antithesis.
└ What’s Dungeon Life’s Society, lmao? Is that the name of a fish? Lol. But honestly, they were kinda suspicious; I mean, why crash someone else’s dungeon and wreak havoc out of nowhere?
└ Their excuse was even more ridiculous. Who do they think they are to “study the ecosystem” of someone else’s dungeon? zzz.
└ But why is Beom Sinje suddenly defending Antithesis? He claims he wants to clear up misunderstandings… but about what?
└ It’s been weird since Chunho moved their guild headquarters to Antithesis’ base. Why would they go there after demolishing the place?
└ Exactly. Chunho is the one who wrecked that place, yet they moved their HQ there? It’s suspicious as hell.]
The part that stirred the most controversy was Chunho Guild’s claim that they would resolve the suspicions surrounding Antithesis.
“Why the hell isn’t this guy answering his phone?”
Doyoung glared at his phone screen with sharp, piercing eyes.
He hadn’t just been passively monitoring the online reactions—he’d been trying incessantly to get in touch with Beom Sinje.
But the calls never connected and kept going to voicemail.
Stranger still, at a time like this, his messenger should’ve been blowing up, yet it remained eerily quiet.
In cases like this, wasn’t it usual for guild members to contact him in a frenzy?
“This feels ominous… Why is everyone so quiet?”
Sure, he’d been cooped up at home for the past week recovering, so he didn’t have much firsthand information.
Still, the complete radio silence was deeply unsettling.
‘If Beom Sinje won’t answer, I’ll have to find another way.’
Frustrated by the unanswered calls, Doyoung decided to call Yeo Giwon, who had relayed the news to him earlier.
- Hyung, did you see the announcement?
“I did. How’s the guild handling it?”
- Handling it? It’s chaos. People are saying it’s because the guild leader doesn’t have a secretary to rein him in. Did anyone from the guild contact you?
“Not yet.”
- Not surprising. No guild member’s gutsy enough to call when the leader’s throwing out threats like that.
It seemed Beom Sinje was the reason his messenger had been so quiet.
Just as Doyoung was about to probe further, Yeo Giwon spoke again.
- Anyway, I just got to the officetel. Hunter Park Chanoh should be there, right? Let him in—otherwise, we won’t be able to keep things under control.
“He’s here? At my place?”
- Yeah, he’s already in the elevator.
Hearing that, Doyoung immediately walked to the front door and opened it.
Standing in the hallway, staring at his smartphone, was Park Chano.
“Hunter Park Chano, come in. Let’s have some coffee.”
“Ah, Mr. Secretary. Actually, I was about to tell you—I’ve been called back to the guild by the guild leader.”
“To the guild?”
It was unexpected enough that Yeo Giwon was visiting, but now Park Chanoh leaving abruptly only added to the oddity.
“He asked me to bring a change of clothes.”
“Really? Well, come in first.”
As Doyoung stepped aside from the door, Park Chanoh gave a polite nod and brushed past him.
Doyoung quickly checked the elevator display.
As if on cue, the doors opened with a cheerful ding.
“Oh, hyung! You were waiting for me?”
Instead of answering, Doyoung glanced over his shoulder, checking to see if Park Chanoh was still there.
Thankfully, he’d already disappeared into the dressing room.
Relieved, Doyoung promptly closed the front door.
“What’s so urgent that you came all the way here?”
“I figured it’d be impossible to explain everything over the phone. If Beom Sinje lets anything slip, people might grab him by the collar on the spot. So, what do you think about the announcement? Doesn’t it feel like something’s off with Beom Sinje?”
“Yeah. Did you hear why he posted it?”
“It’s a long story. Let’s talk inside.”
Yeo Giwon scratched his head, gesturing towards the door with his eyes.
It wasn’t a conversation to be had in the hallway.
Without argument, Doyoung unlocked the door and led the way inside, with Yeo Giwon following closely behind.
“Where’s Hunter Park Chanoh?”
When the person who should have been visible wasn’t, Yeo Giwon looked around in confusion.
“He said the guild leader asked him to bring a change of clothes. You don’t know anything about that?”
“Clothes?”
Judging by his puzzled expression, Yeo Giwon seemed just as unaware.
Doyoung frowned.
What kind of situation would require Beom Sinje to change clothes after heading to work in the morning?
“Oh, Team Leader Ye.”
At that moment, Park Chanoh emerged from the living room, carrying a suit case, and paused when he saw Yeo Giwon.
However, he didn’t look particularly surprised.
“Hunter Park Chano, what’s that?”
Although he had been told the gist of the situation, Yeo Giwon eyed the suitcase with curiosity.
It was Doyoung, however, who felt even more intrigued.
For some reason, Park Chano’s gaze flitted toward him, almost as if seeking permission, before he spoke.
“Well, I didn’t get the full details either, but it seems someone threw paint balloons at the guild leader…”
“What?”
Doyoung’s eyes widened.
He’d expected some kind of explanation, but this was far beyond what he’d imagined.
“You’re saying it was a paint attack?”
“I wouldn’t call it an attack exactly…”
Beom Sinje was an elite hunter—was it even possible for ordinary people to harm him?
* * *
