And it wasn’t only Han Jaeyeong who was curious about Jeong Daon at the moment.
“Hey, hey. You go ask her about incantation magic.”
“No, uh…
you
ask her. Why are you making me do it?”
Of course, unlike Han Jaeyeong, their curiosity wasn’t about her as a person, but purely about magic. Even the members of the HP Guild, people famous for having little interest in others, were whispering among themselves as they watched the rumored Jeong Daon. That was only natural. A video of Jeong Daon using magic had recently gone viral not just within Korea’s mage community, but worldwide. In some communities filled with jealousy and inferiority complexes, there were even people insisting it was a fake created using AI technology.
It wasn’t an unreasonable claim. Jeong Daon’s appearance and the sheer power of her magic directly contradicted the common sense mages had built up over the years. It was nothing less than the emergence of a genius who shattered all conventions.
And with that genius standing right in front of them, there was no way naturally curious mages would stay quiet.
“Guildmaster, Guildmaster.” One of the mages who had been huddled together watching from behind tugged on Han Jaeyeong’s sleeve. “Could you talk to her for us? Ask her to try using incantation magic… no, it doesn’t even have to be incantation magic. A low-circle spell would be fine.”
It was easy to understand why the guild members were acting this way. Using incantation magic alone was astonishing, but the truly shocking part of Jeong Daon’s magic lay somewhere even more fundamental.
“I really want to see how she handles her mana.”
Most mages were impressed simply by incantation magic, but those skilled enough to belong to the HP Guild focused on a different point. For example, if a first-circle spell requires 10 units of mana, most mages would need to input around 12. That’s because mana is lost as it passes through the mage’s internal mana circuits.
But Jeong Daon was different.
There was a story circulating almost like an urban legend about how, during the Eunpyeong District Dungeon Break, Jeong Daon had modified a healing magic circle on the spot. By now, the fact that Jeong Daon was a once-in-a-century genius was indisputable, but using healing magic immediately after awakening was a separate matter entirely.
Healing magic circles require far more precise mana control than ordinary attack magic. And mana control is usually something developed through training, making it especially difficult for a mage who has only just awakened.
“Please ask her how she controls her mana, okay?”
“Well… I don’t think she’ll answer.”
“Oh, come on. She’s one of our guild members now—”
“I understand the curiosity, but for now, focus on clearing the dungeon in front of us.”
“Focus or not, this is just a C-rank dungeon. I could clear it with my eyes closed.”
Shin Jieum, who had been scouting the junkyard alone, approached and spoke up. "You never know."
At that, the guild member who had been pestering Han Jaeyeong fell silent.
Ignoring the others, Shin Jieum kicked aside the trash scattered on the ground. “Take a look here.”
Beneath it, a patch of sticky mud was revealed. It must not have been long since it rained. And on the still-damp ground—
“Footprints?”
“And quite a lot of them. Looks like someone hurriedly collapsed the piles of trash to cover the tracks.”
Erasing traces.
The situation was starting to get interesting. Why would someone go to the trouble of hiding their tracks in a dungeon that had been used as nothing more than a dumping ground?
“And, Guildmaster,” Shin Jieum whispered in a low voice. “I’ve got a bad feeling.”
“I understand.” Han Jaeyeong nodded at the sudden seriousness in Shin Jieum’s expression.
Among swordsmen, Yu Hanul’s presence was overwhelming, but Shin Jieum was also a seasoned veteran with five years of experience. And a swordsman’s instincts were not something to dismiss lightly. At this point, there was a strong possibility that this place was not an ordinary C-rank dungeon.
Meanwhile, Won Deokcheol, unaware of their conversation, gestured toward Han Jaeyeong and the rest of the guild members. “Alright, let’s hurry this way!” The direction he gestured toward was the exact opposite of where the footprints Shin Jieum had just discovered were leading.
"No," Han Jaeyeong cut him off with a smile. “Since we’re already here, I’d like to take a better look around this area.”
“E–excuse me?! Why would you bother with a place like this trash heap…?”
“Well, that’s my choice, isn’t it? We already paid for the raid permit.”
“I mean, that may be so, but…” Won Deokcheol spoke in visible confusion. “There are dungeon safety regulations. We don’t have much time we’re allowed to stay.”
“Is that so? But have those safety regulations actually been followed?”
“Pardon?” Won Deokcheol’s eyes widened. He looked genuinely taken aback, as if he had never heard such a thing before.
While Won Deokcheol stood frozen, unable to grasp the situation, Hunter Lee Yunho, who had been silent until now, crossed his arms and looked at Han Jaeyeong. “What kind of accusation is that?”
“An accusation? There’s evidence right here.” As she spoke, Shin Jieum nodded toward the rock crab still scuttling around nearby and kicked aside another pile of trash.
Startled, Won Deokcheol shouted, “What do you think you’re doing?! Are you threatening us right now?”
“A threat? I’m talking about the footprints here.”
“…Pardon?” Apparently, he hadn’t even considered that they would uncover footprints by clearing the trash in such a short time. For a moment, Won Deokcheol’s expression went blank. “Well, uh… they must be footprints left by Hunters who came here before.”
“They’re far too fresh for that. I’d say they’re less than 24 hours old.”
“That’s…problematic.” Han Jaeyeong backed up Shin Jieum’s words. “We rented this raid permit from your guild. If there are other people inside, that changes things.”
“No, that doesn’t make any sense… There’s no way that could be the case!”
“Well, who knows? Maybe you sold permits for this time slot to multiple parties…” Han Jaeyeong deliberately let their sentence trail off. “…or perhaps you’ve hidden something inside the dungeon.”
“Wh–what?” Won Deokcheol looked utterly dumbfounded. “Guildmaster Han Jaeyeong, I think there’s been a misunderstanding. You may be an S-rank Hunter, but our guild isn’t big enough to pull off some kind of conspiracy. Our annual net profit isn’t even a billion won, so how could we—”
“Most of that comes from government subsidies for waste disposal, doesn’t it? I’m aware of that,” Han Jaeyeong cut him off with a smile. Judging by the fact that they hadn’t felt any particular flow of mana when they shook hands, the man was practically a civilian. “In any case, since we’ve purchased the raid permit, deciding where to go inside is up to our guild. We’ll be heading that way.”
As they said this and gestured to their guild members, one of them, who had been standing awkwardly to the side, not daring to interrupt, pulled an item out of the inventory window.
Thud.
Two off-road vehicles appeared.
Seeing that, Won Deokcheol was horrified. “N–no, you can’t just bring vehicles in here without any prior agreement…!”
Ordinarily, everyday objects couldn’t be stored as items in an inventory. However, by using components produced inside dungeons, objects could be converted into item form and stored. They were more than ten times as expensive as normal vehicles.
“Judging by the fact that you even brought vehicles, you came fully prepared.” Lee Yunho, who had accompanied Won Deokcheol and remained silent until now, finally spoke. “Is it really acceptable to throw your weight around like this just because we’re a small guild? We’ll definitely take this public.”
“Go ahead.”
When Han Jaeyeong replied so calmly, Lee Yunho hesitated. “…What?”
“I said, take it public. I’m simply trying to investigate a guild that appears not to have followed safety regulations. That’s practically a civic duty.”
“You’re still making baseless accusations—!”
“Well, in any case, there’s no need to convince you. We’ve already received authorization, so let’s move on. Everyone, get in the vehicles.”
The moment Han Jaeyeong said that—
Snap!
Someone kicked off the ground and lunged forward. Because Han Jaeyeong had been focused solely on Lee Yunho, their reaction was a split second too late.
But there was someone present who could react faster than Han Jaeyeong in the first place.
Clang!
A small awl-like spike was knocked aside by a longsword and flew far away, burying itself among the piles of trash.
“Ugh…!”
Won Deokcheol’s face turned bright red as he charged at the vehicle’s wheel with an awl in hand.
“I honestly don’t know what you think you’re doing right in front of me.” Shin Jieum stared at Won Deokcheol as if he were pathetic. “You think slashing a tire or two is going to stop us?”
“This dungeon’s ownership clearly belongs to Shining! You have to follow the contract terms! I’ll sue, yes, I’ll sue you!” His face flushed crimson as he shouted at the top of his lungs. Anyone could tell he’d been caught hiding something.
Watching the farce from a distance, the HP Guild members murmured among themselves.
“I thought our guildmaster was just being capricious…but maybe there really
is
something here.”
“But in a pile of trash like this, could there seriously be— guh!”
“H–hey, what’s wrong?!”
“Why all of a sudden?”
One of the guild members began twisting violently, her voice choking. White foam started forming around her mouth.
“Hey!
Hey!
Minji! Stay with me!”
“There weren’t even any monsters, why would this suddenly—”
“She’s been poisoned.”
At those words, the surroundings fell silent. Everyone turned to look at the speaker, Lee Yunho.
“This is what happens when you rely too much on magic.” He shook a small pouch he’d been hiding in his sleeve. “I poisoned her. A special concoction I made myself. Ordinary healing magic will only make it worse, so I wouldn’t recommend trying.”
Judging by his confidence, this clearly wasn’t his first time. The moment the mages realized what was happening, curses erupted from the previously quiet group.
“Ah, damn it! That bastard’s an alchemist!”
“These guys really lose their minds over every little thing. Quit screwing around and hand over the antidote!”
Alchemist. It wasn’t an officially registered class in the system, just a term people used. In the past, it referred to those who tried to create gold. Now, it described people who crafted items using dungeon byproducts. The key difference between alchemists and crafting-type mages was that, unlike mages, alchemists couldn’t directly manipulate mana. Because of that, there was a deep-rooted rivalry between the two.
To mages, alchemical items were little more than children’s toys. To alchemists, mages were elitists who refused to acknowledge their work.
And since the HP Guild specialized in item crafting, they were frequent targets of alchemists’ hostility.
There wasn’t any alchemist listed in Shining Guild’s records.
Had they deliberately planted one here from the start? If so, this situation was far bigger than expected.
“…Why didn’t you stop him from poisoning her?”
At Han Jaeyeong’s words, Shin Jieum snapped irritably, “Why are you asking
me
that? Didn’t you see me break Won Deokcheol’s wrist just now? I don’t have two bodies. If anything, why did
you
miss that there was an alchemist involved when you investigated Shining?” She glared at Lee Yunho, sword in hand. “Well, don’t worry. If I keep beating him, he won’t last long without handing over the antidote.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
“I was just about to beat him to a pulp— huh?”
Han Jaeyeong and Shin Jieum turned their heads at the same time. Jeong Daon had placed her hand gently on the collapsed mage’s neck.
“W–wait!”
Was she about to use a detoxification magic circle? It was a very mage-like response, but she had to be stopped. Han Jaeyeong moved toward her. “You shouldn’t underestimate an alchemist’s poison. If you’re careless, the toxicity could worsen— huh?”
Whoosh.
A wind stirred.
No, this wasn’t wind, but the flow of mana. Mana lingering in the area gathered at Jeong Daon’s fingertips as if pulled by a magnet, instantly forming a small magic circle. Glowing mana danced like musical notes, weaving complex formulas into the air.
Everyone forgot the situation entirely, staring in stunned silence.
“Urgh!” The fallen guild member rolled over weakly and vomited onto the ground, expelling a small amount of liquid. It all happened in the blink of an eye.
The guild member coughed and cursed, “Hack, cough… damn it, that alchemist bastard.”
“H-hey… Hunter Yu Minji, are you okay? Don’t overdo it—”
“I’m fine. It’s completely neutralized.”
At those words, everyone’s gaze snapped to Jeong Daon.
“Th-that’s impossible.”
“H-how did you detoxify it? Minji, does it really feel gone?”
And honestly, Han Jaeyeong was shocked too. They’d expected Jeong Daon to show her abilities in the dungeon, but not like this. Using detoxification magic itself wasn’t surprising; every mage here could use a detox circle. The problem was
how
she’d neutralized a poison she’d never seen before, instantly.
Detoxification required understanding how the poison spread and unraveling that mechanism in reverse. Without knowledge of the poison itself, detox magic was useless, and poisons created by alchemists, who lacked raw mana and compensated with ingenuity, were especially persistent. They were harder to neutralize precisely because each carried its maker’s unique signature.
So how had she purified it so quickly?
“N-no way… how did you undo it in one go…?!”
The one who found this hardest to believe was Lee Yunho himself. His face drained pale as he stumbled backward.
But before he could even attempt to flee—
Thud!
A black object shot toward his head like a cannonball, slamming him into the ground.
“Aaagh!”
As he rolled across the trash heap, a black summoned beast stood proudly atop him, tail raised high. Then Jeong Daon spoke quietly.
“Looks like there’s one more thing I need to find in this dungeon.”
Her eyes seemed to burn with a dark flame.
“Where did you learn how to make this poison?”