One of Gaeko’s subordinates was embedded in the ground.
The situation unfolded in an instant, and Gaeko could not properly understand what had happened.
A moment earlier, they had arrived at the Ansan Association to find “Jo Myeong-su” from the customer list.
Even if this was the Association, as long as they did not stand out, it would be difficult for anyone to identify them as Villains belonging to the Burang Party.
Just as they were about to scatter and begin acting without fear of being discovered,
a massive impact sound rang out from the direction of the subordinate who had been approaching the Association building, and a cloud of dust rose.
At the sudden situation, everyone nearby, including Gaeko’s group, was bewildered and could not understand what had happened.
Gradually, the dust cloud settled, and the scene inside began to appear.
A subordinate was embedded inside a round pit dug into the ground.
He looked as though he had been attacked by some unknown skill.
Then,
“Brother!!”
The youngest member, upon recognizing the scene, reacted with emotion first.
He immediately shouted and ran toward the pit, and just as he was about to check on the fallen man,
CRAAACK!
This time, a thunderous roar and a cloud of dust erupted from the youngest member.
Once again, he was embedded in the ground and unconscious.
Gaeko froze when he saw that scene.
‘What the hell…… What on earth is happening?!’
A suppression skill? A telekinesis skill?
No, the skill that had struck his subordinates looked like an immense gravity that occurred in an instant.
However, there was no one nearby who seemed to have used a skill…….
Gaeko realized that neither he nor the remaining subordinates had experienced any change yet.
Then,
“There seems to be something installed here! Everyone, do not get close to the Association!”
It seemed the rumors spreading on the internet were true. The rumors that the Association was becoming normal again.
After all, they had somehow installed an automatic protection system.
Judging by the way it had struck the combatant subordinates with precision, they seemed to have fairly detailed information on Burang Party members as well…….
Gaeko had to report this to the organization quickly.
However,
“What is going on? What is that over there?”
The moment he gave his subordinates a look and tried to leave the scene, Association’s Crisis Management Team Leader, appeared first and stopped them.
“Ah, it is nothing.”
As Gaeko tried to hide his face and avoid the situation, Yoo Seonghyeon arrived at the scene, following Jo Myeong-su behind Min Ju-ho.
And at that moment, Gaeko felt fear weighing down on his body.
There had not been any clear sign.
It was truly a survival instinct that activated on its own in his body.
Even if he felt fear, there was nothing he could do.
THUD!
THUD!
THUD!
Three more impacts rang against the ground.
And so, the Burang Party’s Gaeko group collapsed before Min Ju-ho, unable to do anything at all.
[ACDS activated. Unidentified enemies 5 have been subdued.]
At that moment, a passive message was floating before Seonghyeon’s eyes.
However, no matter how he looked at the fallen enemies, no one came to mind.
‘……It feels like something went wrong.’
This was awkward.
They were people he had never even exchanged a word with, yet he had beaten them down with automatic Meteors.
However, Min Ju-ho soon revealed the truth about them.
“This guy…… I recognize his face. He is a Villain belonging to the Burang Party. He operates under the alias Gaeko…….”
“A Villain? Were they trying to carry out a terrorist attack?”
“Yes, most likely. Just how easy did they think we were to deal with……. In any case, we do not know when another skill might occur, so this place seems dangerous. Let us leave this area first.”
Seonghyeon did not bother revealing that he was the source of this incident.
For now, he followed Min Ju-ho’s instructions.
Following the direction guided by the staff, they evacuated, and before long, he was able to leave the Association.
In any case, their conversation was already over, so Seonghyeon decided to go straight home.
‘By the way, automatic defence, Meteor version……. This is seriously broken, is it not?’
An enemy he had clashed with before? An enemy he had damaged once? He did not know exactly how it recognized enemies.
But it was certain that when it came to protection, it was outstanding.
He would not have to worry about being assassinated from now on.
ACDS truly had been the best choice.
***
News traveled quickly, and stories about the Burang Party members arrested in Ansan were already slowly appearing on HunterNet.
[Breaking News) Burang Party members who infiltrated the Ansan Association completely subdued by unidentified skill…….]
Article repost / At the Association in Ansan…… members of the Burang Party infiltrated…… However, due to the skill of an unidentified Hunter…… arrest was completed perfectly.
Wow, does it not feel like the Association really has normalized properly now?
How many Villains have they already arrested?
-andre: Is this for real?
-Rodin: Looks like they recruited an insane Hunter this time. Look at the scene photos.
└rmswjekd: Agreed. They say the skill crushed them down without any sound.
└Rodin: Is it gravity or something?
└rmswjekd: That is the prevailing theory for now.
-Seolmeng: Even so, it is just a lower-tier version of Meteor Lord.
The internet article one user had scraped described the situation from earlier in detail.
The thunderous roar, the Villains embedded in the ground, and the sunken pits. All of it was exactly as he had seen at the scene.
However, there was no mention of Meteor…….
Thinking it over carefully, Seonghyeon vaguely recalled that he had not seen Meteor fall either.
‘It was definitely the Meteor skill. But how could it not be visible?’
Seonghyeon recalled all the situations where Meteor had changed without a skill level-up.
And what came to mind was the “elixirs.”
When he had consumed the elixirs, their effects had definitely all been absorbed into Meteor.
That meant buffs had an effect on Meteor.
It seemed the armor option “Recognition Interference +60%” was also being applied to Meteor in the same way.
‘Now there is absolutely no way anyone will recognize it.’
The unexpected hiding of Meteor had instead created a better situation.
In truth, ever since Seolmeng recognized him, he had not been able to readily go into dungeons because he thought someone else might find him too.
But if neither his identity nor his skill could be recognized, then all his worries had disappeared.
Seonghyeon immediately called up the System Window.
【Dungeon】 E-Rank
-Enter Dungeon ◀
-Exit Dungeon
‘I should check the equipment’s performance.’
[E-Rank random dungeon transfer in progress…….]
[Transfer to E-2848/E-Rank Monster Defense complete.]
A forest relatively narrow in scale compared to an ordinary dungeon.
No matter where he looked, the competing Hunters he usually saw in other dungeons were nowhere to be found.
It was literally a space for him alone.
‘That is actually better.’
【E-2848/E-Rank Monster Defense】
『Primary Monsters: E-Rank Monsters』
『Boss: X』
『Main Mission: Subjugate E-Rank Monsters (0/100)』
『Progress Requirement: Survive until the final time (0/10 minutes)』
『Time Limit: 00:10:00:00』
***
A Defense Dungeon.
It was a dungeon with a relatively simple mission: subjugate monsters determined according to the rank.
However, among Hunters, it was accepted as the prevailing theory that attempting monster subjugation was suicidal.
[(Information Post) Strategy for Defense Dungeons, the Most Dangerous E-Rank Dungeon]
Author: HunterWiki
Because E-Rank Dungeons open automatically, there are many Hunters who just enter and then die by accident in Defense Dungeons.
A Hunter I knew got cocky and died in a Defense Dungeon, so I am writing a few lines to help.
Defense Dungeons start appearing from E-Rank onward. In this dungeon, the clear is handled individually. This means that even if someone clears it, it does not affect you.
The basic number of monsters that appear is 100. As the rank gets higher, more appear.
The system will tell you the basic clear method is to subjugate all 100 monsters. But this method is absolutely not recommended.
Every species of E-Rank monster appears, and their coordinated attacks are insane…… If you reveal yourself even once, they will not stop rushing you until the time ends.
The key is to survive for the full 10 minutes while hidden. If you are not confident in running away, hide well with your life on the line.
Otherwise, this dungeon will be the last dungeon you ever enter.
For the past few years, Defense Dungeons have had the highest Hunter death rate across all ranks.
※Remember this. If you do not want to die, do not reveal yourself.※
The Defense Dungeon strategy guide was like a textbook that Hunters who reached E-Rank read at least once by default.
After all, during the three or four months it took an F-Rank Hunter to rise to E-Rank, they had plenty of time to gather information.
However, Seonghyeon was a special case who had reached E-Rank in a week.
‘Should I drop it intensively on the place where the monsters come out? Or gather them all in one place and finish them in one shot?’
Therefore, while other Hunters searched for hiding places,
he did not even think of hiding and was absorbed in his own strategy.
Without moving a single step from the place where he had been summoned.
[E-2848/E-Rank Monster Defense dungeon is starting.]
Before long, the system announcing the start of the dungeon appeared.
At the same time, Seonghyeon focused his mind and took his stance.
‘Where is it? The place where they are summoned?’
Just as things seemed relatively quiet, the space distorted.
Like when the Defense Battle had appeared not long ago, the air seemed to tear open, and a Gate opened.
Grrrrr—
From beyond it, the voice of some unknown monster leaked out.
‘Oh, so they come out of Gates.’
Seonghyeon immediately looked at the portal and prepared his skill.
[Objective Setting]
……
001. Other Location (Set Viewpoint) ◀
002. Saved Target (None)
Since there were no monsters being recognized by the skill yet, only Set Viewpoint or Saved Target were possible.
The moment the monster swarm came out, he intended to drop Meteor immediately.
However,
‘Huh? What is this?’
Seonghyeon noticed the spaces distorting beside the Gate.
Everywhere around the Gate that he could see.
Aside from that, everywhere Seonghyeon’s eyes moved began distorting.
Then, in an instant, numerous Gates, exactly one hundred of them, covered the inside of the dungeon.
And likewise, the cries of unknown monsters began leaking out.
Bark, bark!
Grrrrrk—
Hiss—
Neigh!
At that sight, Seonghyeon could roughly guess something.
The one hundred monsters would appear simultaneously from each scattered Gate…….
“Kugh, what a damned situation…….”
At this rate, he would have to designate targets, creating a delay for each shot of Meteor.
While he was flustered by the unexpected situation, monsters finally began appearing from the Gates.
And in that brief instant, he saw a cave in the rocky area that was barely large enough for one person to enter.
In the end, it was do-or-die. Since he had come to test his protective gear anyway, there was no need to hold back.
He thought of a strategy: enter the cave, draw the monsters’ aggro, and drop Meteor in front of the cave where the monsters gathered.
The shock wave should be covered by his defence…….
Seonghyeon ran toward the rocky area at high speed.
But then,
THUD!
KABABABABABABOOM!
Before he could even enter the rock cave, dozens of collision sounds rang through the dungeon.
As if there had been a monster right nearby, an explosion occurred right in front of him as well.
He had clearly not used his skill yet.
The 100 monsters that had emerged from the Gates and were emitting hostility were all cleaned up before he could even use his strategy.
[ACDS activated. Enemy monsters 100 have been eliminated.]
He properly understood the situation only after the passive System Window appeared.
‘Ah, right. Monsters are enemies too…….’
Because the passive had dealt with Burang Party members, he had only thought its targets were people.
Fortunately, the passive recognized even monsters as enemies.
【E-2848/E-Rank Monster Defense】 Cleared
『E-Rank Monsters Subjugated (100/100)』
-Contribution Rate 100% ‘I Am Meteor’
『Time Taken: 00:00:15:32』
-Shortest Record Updated ‘I Am Meteor’
And so, he was able to clear a dungeon that usually took ten minutes to escape in fifteen seconds, taking first place.
[Meteor (EX), level has increased.]
[Meteor (EX), please select a Level 9 trait.]
Size Increase: Diameter 10 cm
Speed Increase: 5 km/s
Composition Change: Tungsten Meteorite
The reward he obtained was a skill level-up.
This time as well, the choices did not seem all that different.
So he was about to choose size, which seemed the best among them.
Then, with a flashy effect, an effect he had never seen before appeared on the selection window.
[Lucky Choice! By the power of the Mysterious, you obtain all traits.]
『Meteor (EX)』
Level: 9 (1▲)
Details: ……
Skill Mechanism:
……
Material – Tungsten Meteorite
Diameter – 40 cm (10 cm▲)
Speed – 15 km/s (5 km/s▲)
Traits – Precision, Long-Range Sniping, Plunder, Spirit Form
Passive – ACDS
‘Uh…… Uhh. Is it allowed to become this strong?’
It was the moment he wondered if he needed to get even more defence options.