“We have reached the boss room. Everyone, good work.”
At Min Hyung-sik's announcement, the party members relaxed.
They lowered their weapons, opened their Inventories, and switched their equipment to Mana Stone mining pickaxes.
'What is this?'
Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon, who were watching from nearby, tilted their heads in confusion.
“Good luck again today, Mr. Siul.”
Park Do-hyun massaged Siul's shoulders encouragingly.
“I'll be back soon.”
Siul gave a calm farewell and entered the boss room alone.
No one tried to stop him.
Instead, they smiled and waved him off.
“Why is he the only one going inside?”
“Exactly. Even Team Leader Min Hyung-sik would have difficulty defeating a Dungeon boss by himself.”
Unlike the concerned Baek Ga-hyeon and Kang Ho-cheol, Min Hyung-sik's team remained cheerful.
“How long do you think it will take this time?”
“Mr. Siul looks like he is in good condition today. I am betting he comes out in thirty minutes.”
“Then I'll go with twenty!”
Their conversation was based entirely on the assumption that Siul would defeat the boss no matter what.
Even the way they casually turned away from the boss room and went off to mine Mana Stones showed their unwavering trust in him.
“This is strange….”
After Min Hyung-sik's team dispersed, Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon approached the now-empty entrance to the boss room.
“What exactly is going on here?”
“I do not understand either. Why is everyone letting only Mr. Kim Siul enter the boss room, and where does Mr. Kim Siul get that kind of confidence?”
The two alternated their gazes between the boss room entrance and the direction Min Hyung-sik's team had disappeared, visibly confused.
“They spoke as though they have already done this several times.”
As Kang Ho-cheol voiced his deduction, Baek Ga-hyeon scrolled through information on a Dungeon-use tablet and nodded.
“There must also be a reason Mr. Kim Siul's Mercenary records keep showing him working with this same team.”
Baek Ga-hyeon put the tablet into her Inventory and narrowed her eyes.
“Let us follow him. I do not think we can infer anything else without seeing it ourselves.”
“Agreed.”
The two tightened their Concealer's Neckties and entered the boss room.
* * *
As befitted the heart of the Graveyard Fortress, the boss room resembled a massive tomb.
Blue moonlight streamed through the open ceiling, and the cracked stone floor was covered with traces of ancient corpses.
And in the middle of it all stood an imposing Skeleton mounted on a horse.
'That must be the boss.'
Siul raised his guard as he stared at the mounted Skeleton.
More precisely, it was a Commander Skeleton riding atop a skeletal structure shaped like a horse.
Its entire body was encased in plate armor, and instead of an empty skull beneath its helmet, blue flames of spirit energy blazed within.
Blue fire also writhed along the long greatsword in its hand, looking as though even the slightest graze would melt flesh away.
'The boss is bad enough, but the surroundings are brutal too.'
Around the Commander Skeleton stood nearly a hundred Skeleton soldiers in orderly formation.
Shield bearers in the front, spear wielders in the middle, archers in the rear.
Rather than a mere gathering of monsters, they resembled an organized military unit.
【Continuous Quest Generated!】
【Eliminate the Threat to Your Life】
Directly eliminate the obstacle threatening your life.
Obstacle Danger Level: 10
Success Reward: 3 Level-Up Points
'If I succeed in this hunt, my Rank will finally rise.'
His Awakening Rank would increase from C-Rank to B-Rank.
Burning with motivation, Siul raised the weapons in both hands.
He held the Tracker's Blade in his left hand and a B-Rank Longsword in his right.
“Come at me, you piles of bones.”
The moment his provocation fell, the Skeleton army moved as one.
“GRAAAARGH!!”
The soldiers locked their shields together, and spearheads rose toward the sky.
'No matter how many of them there are, it ends once I kill the boss. The moment I get an opening, I am going straight for it.'
Siul charged forward, his sharp gaze fixed on the Commander Skeleton.
WHOOSH!
The Tracker's Blade pierced through one of the Skeleton soldiers at the front.
He immediately followed by swinging his longsword and severing the neck bones of another rushing in from the side.
The battle progressed rapidly.
Siul fought skillfully while keeping his eyes constantly trained on the Commander Skeleton.
“He really is fighting alone.”
Behind a stone pillar in one corner of the boss room.
Still invisible, Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon calmly observed Siul's battle.
“His movements are not bad.”
“True. But….”
Kang Ho-cheol's eyes followed the Tracker's Blade flying through the air.
“It is his equipment carrying him.”
“I agree. His judgment in battle is quick, but his actual movements when responding are not particularly sharp.”
No sooner had they delivered that cold assessment than the Commander Skeleton urged its mount into a charge.
The skeletal horse kicked off the floor and accelerated, while the Commander Skeleton swung its greatsword in a wide arc that split the air.
Siul tried to dodge quickly, but—
SWISH—!
“Urgh…!”
The Commander Skeleton's blade tore through Siul's side.
A horrifying amount of blood sprayed into the air.
Clutching his flank, Siul rolled across the floor.
At the sight, Kang Ho-cheol immediately concluded,
“That is his limit.”
Baek Ga-hyeon thought the same.
'Is that really the extent of his ability?'
She was somewhat disappointed.
He had admirable courage, but not enough skill to justify entering a boss room alone while leaving his teammates behind.
“Let us save him. If he dies here, we lose our lead regarding that rift.”
“Stay here, Senior. I will do it.”
Baek Ga-hyeon placed a hand on her necktie, preparing to release her invisibility.
But then she stopped.
'……What is that?'
Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon's expressions stiffened at the same time.
They could see Siul rising among the Skeleton soldiers.
What was truly bizarre was that his body looked completely unharmed.
'What happened to the wound?'
The torn flesh had knitted back together.
A moment ago, he had appeared to be suffering from potentially fatal blood loss, yet now not even a trace of blood remained on his body.
'How is that possible?'
Siul had returned to his original condition in an instant.
Kang Ho-cheol stared in confusion before his eyes suddenly twitched.
“High-Speed Healing?”
Baek Ga-hyeon turned toward him.
“You think what we just saw was healing?”
“I do not believe it either, but can you think of another explanation?”
“……No.”
Kim Siul must possess a Trait that allowed him to heal his body at tremendous speed.
That was how he had demonstrated such absurd regenerative ability.
It was the only hypothesis the two of them could reach through ordinary reasoning.
The possibility of actual immortality never even crossed their minds.
“Incredible. I have seen Hunters with all kinds of healing Traits, but never anyone who could restore their body that quickly. And that was a fatal wound.”
The two Special Hunters were not the only ones stunned.
The Skeleton soldiers faltered in confusion and stopped moving for an instant, while even the blue flame inside the Commander Skeleton's helmet flickered.
That was the moment.
“Thanks for the opening.”
Siul's relaxed voice rang out quietly.
A dagger shot from his fingertips immediately afterward.
WHOOSH!
The Tracker's Blade struck dead center in the Commander Skeleton's helmet.
Neither the soldiers' shields nor their swords meant anything after they had let their guard down.
The blue flame inside the helmet went dark, and both mount and rider collapsed.
THUD!
The sound of the Commander Skeleton's body striking the floor echoed through the boss room, followed by complete silence.
Even Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon found themselves unable to speak.
【Quest Complete!】
【You have successfully eliminated an enemy threatening your life by exploiting its weakness.】
【You are awarded 3 Level-Up Points.】
【Awakening Rank Increase Condition Met!】
【You have reached 10 Level-Up Points. Your Awakening Rank will increase.】
Messages appeared one after another in Siul's vision.
'There.'
Siul lowered his weapons with a smile.
Then he happily accepted the change about to occur within him.
“…!!”
Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon's legs trembled slightly.
'What is this energy…?!'
'Unknown Mana is erupting from Mr. Kim Siul's body…!'
As S-Rank Hunters, both possessed exceptional Mana-sensing abilities.
They could feel against their skin that power exceeding Siul's previous Mana level was now surging from his body.
【Increase Complete: C-Rank → B-Rank】
“Phew.”
Siul let out a refreshed breath.
Once the Reawakening was complete, his body felt light and overflowing with vitality.
It fascinated him to realize that B-Rank Awakened normally lived with this much energy.
On top of that, reaching B-Rank had unlocked additional Skills.
『 Earth Split 』 ― Skill
Smash the ground to inflict damage and confusion on enemies.
『 Footprint Mine 』 ― Skill
Plant a trigger device in your footprint to damage enemies.
'An attack Skill and a trap-type Skill. Nice.'
With this, the number of Skills Siul possessed had risen to three.
It gave him an even greater sense of accomplishment than watching his financial assets increase.
“…….”
Meanwhile, Kang Ho-cheol and Baek Ga-hyeon were completely dumbfounded.
“Did you feel that just now?”
“Yes. Definitely.”
Their expressions turned extremely serious.
“His Mana surged dramatically.”
“Was he hiding his true power all along?”
BUZZ—.
At that moment, Baek Ga-hyeon's electronic watch vibrated.
It was a message from the security team.
「 Dungeon clear complete. The Gate will close once the raid team exits the Dungeon. Please evacuate immediately. 」
“We should leave for now. We can continue the investigation another time….”
“No.”
Kang Ho-cheol cut her off firmly.
“This has become far too interesting to stop here.”
“What? What do you mean….”
In an instant, Kang Ho-cheol released Mana with a murderous expression.
Baek Ga-hyeon immediately realized what he intended to do and recoiled in alarm.
【The Trait ‘Summon Dead’ activates.】
CRACK—.
The shattered bones of the Commander Skeleton began fitting themselves back together.
Inside the helmet, where the blue flame had gone dark, an eerie green fire ignited.
The flame soon breathed vitality back into the corpse.
“……?”
Sensing a chill, Siul turned around.
“W-What the hell?!”
The Commander Skeleton, which had unquestionably died, suddenly stood back up as though nothing had happened.
Startled, Siul checked the Quest Window.
It still displayed the Quest as completed.
And yet the Commander Skeleton had done more than merely rise.
It had remounted its horse and was already prepared to resume combat.
“Senior… you do realize this is the kind of thing that gets us ordered to write an incident report, right?”
At Baek Ga-hyeon's question, Kang Ho-cheol merely smiled without concern.
“We have been following him around all this time. We might as well verify things properly before leaving. I want to know whether he really defeated the boss through his own ability.”
Kang Ho-cheol possessed a Trait that allowed him to resurrect dead monsters and command them as his summons.
He could summon up to ten dead beings of his own Rank or lower, and each retained the combat ability it possessed in life.
Because of this ability, he had earned a particular nickname.
'Necromancer Kang Ho-cheol. Why are you living up to that infamous nickname here of all places…?'
Baek Ga-hyeon pressed a hand to her forehead.
At that moment, the revived Commander Skeleton raised its sword.
The Skeleton soldiers that had fallen to their knees lifted their heads in response.
“GRAAAARGH!!”
As though witnessing the return of a god, the Skeleton soldiers erupted into frenzy and brandished their weapons.
Siul, on the other hand, was utterly confused.
'How did a dead boss come back to life…?!'
That alone was enough to make his head ache.
But then Siul noticed another strange phenomenon.
'Huh?'
Above the Commander Skeleton's head.
The transparent number visible only to Siul had changed.
【Danger Level: 5】
'Why is it 5? A B-Rank Monster should be 10.'
Siul looked around and flinched again.
The Skeleton soldiers that had displayed a Danger Level of 7 moments ago had changed as well.
【Danger Level: 2】
“…….”
Siul's mind began racing.
He did not know why the boss had revived.
But he thought he understood why the monsters' Danger Levels had changed.
“The standard for Danger Level… was me?”
It answered a question that had bothered him throughout his Continuous Quests.
Despite the existence of established Ranks from F to SSS, he had never understood why the System bothered introducing an entirely separate scale called Danger Level.
It could simply have said something like, ‘Defeat a B-Rank enemy.’
But Danger Level was not merely a numerical representation of how strong a living creature was.
'It measures how dangerous that enemy is to me.'
When Siul had been C-Rank, a B-Rank Monster had possessed a Danger Level of 10.
Now that he had Reawakened as B-Rank, that same level of Monster was only a 5.
From now on, he would probably need to encounter at least an A-Rank Monster to see a Danger Level of 10.
“No wonder I thought the missions were getting too easy.”
Siul let out a dry laugh before adjusting his grip on the dagger.
“The boss suddenly comes back to life, the flame inside your helmet changes to green, and I have no idea what any of this means.”
Siul glared down at the Commander Skeleton and poured out his Mana.
The density of that Mana was clearly different from when he had first fought the Commander Skeleton.
“But I am not interested in you anymore now that you cannot give me any points, so stop bothering me and die quickly.”