The following morning, Eden sat on the couch with his phone in one hand.
A live interview played on the television.
Kael stood in a hospital room.
Bandages covered parts of his torso, but somehow, he still managed to look heroic.
"...and when I arrived at the scene, countless innocent people were in danger!"
Eden stared blankly.
Kael continued.
"I knew I couldn’t stand by!"
’Here we go.’
"I pursued justice!"
’There it is.’
"I fought that monstrous creature with everything I had!"
Eden slowly ate breakfast.
"Yada yada..."
Mihui glanced over from the kitchen.
"What?"
"Nothing."
The interview continued.
Fortunately, Kael didn’t mention Eden.
Or Lucy.
Exactly as promised.
Eden leaned back.
At least he kept his word.
Later that morning, another broadcast interrupted the regular programming.
"Due to yesterday’s Dungeon Break and the extensive damage caused throughout the surrounding district, all nearby schools will remain closed for the next two weeks."
Eden’s eyes widened.
He slowly smiled.
"...Convenient."
Two weeks.
Two weeks to get stronger.
Eden already knew he’d gained an enormous amount of experience from the D+ boss.
Ten entire levels.
His attributes had jumped considerably.
And with Devour as his trump card, he was confident he could handle F-Rank Gates alone.
’At worst, I can make a run for it with my stealth skill.’
There was only one problem.
His license.
Or rather—
His lack of one.
Without an Awakened license, Eden couldn’t legally join Dungeon raid teams.
He couldn’t register for official Gate clearances.
He couldn’t purchase the rights to raid Gates.
But that wasn’t exactly a new problem.
He had dealt with the same thing in his first life.
And he knew exactly where to look.
Less than an hour later, Eden stood beside an abandoned railway.
The old tracks disappeared into overgrown weeds.
Rust-covered signs hung from broken poles.
Nobody came here anymore.
Which was precisely why he had chosen it.
Behind the railway sat an unregistered Gate.
Its surface shimmered faintly in the air.
A pale blue distortion.
An F-Rank Gate.
Eden looked down at himself.
Exercise clothes.
An old, empty college backpack.
Twin daggers in his hands.
He rolled his shoulders.
"Well."
He stepped toward the Gate.
"Let’s see how strong I actually am."
He walked through.
The world changed.
Cold air brushed against his face.
The familiar sensation of crossing a Gate washed over him.
Eden opened his eyes.
A cavern stretched before him.
Dark.
Damp.
Quiet.
Something moved in the distance.
Eden smiled confidently.
The first Abyss Creature charged.
Eden stepped aside.
His dagger flashed.
It died instantly.
He stared at it.
"...That’s it?"
Another creature attacked.
He ducked.
STAB.
Another corpse.
Then another.
Then another.
Within minutes, Eden had already cleared several sections of the dungeon.
His movements were faster than he expected.
His strength was higher.
His body responded better.
All of it was possible thanks to Phase Shift.
Phase Shift was incredible.
He activated it.
Orange Essence spread across his body.
His Agility increased.
His Strength followed.
Eden suddenly disappeared forward.
He punched an Abyss Creature through a stone wall.
He stopped.
Looked at his fist.
Then looked at the hole.
"...I underestimated this skill."
He had thought Phase Shift was simply a decent skill that gave a set boost in attributes.
But it was different.
The skill scaled with him.
The stronger he became, the stronger Phase Shift became.
The higher his attributes, the higher the boost he gets from Phase Shift.
And as someone who could increase his attributes even without leveling up...
Eden was beginning to understand just how terrifying that could become.
He even found himself having to slow down occasionally so he wouldn’t accidentally destroy valuable drops.
By the time he reached the final corridor, Eden had already filled part of his backpack with minor materials and fragments.
He stopped at the entrance to the boss hall.
The atmosphere changed.
Something was waiting inside.
Eden tightened his grip on his twin daggers.
He stepped forward.
The enormous chamber opened before him.
And there they were.
Three creatures.
Three enormous spiders.
Their lower bodies were grotesque masses of chitin and legs.
But their upper bodies—
They were humanoid.
Twisted humanoid torsos grew directly from the spiders’ backs, their limbs hanging unnaturally from pale flesh.
Two stood at the sides.
Larger than anything Eden had fought in the dungeon so far.
’Lackeys.’
And in the center—
The dungeon boss.
The largest of the three.
Its humanoid upper body slowly lifted its head.
Multiple distorted eyes opened.
A mouth stretched across its face.
"...So you’re the boss."
The three monsters stared at him.
The chamber fell silent.
Then the boss moved.
And Eden prepared to fight.
At the very top of the Awakened Association’s headquarters, far above the noise of the city below, stood a single office.
The Chairman’s office.
It was spacious without being excessive, with enormous windows covering one entire wall.
Assistant Manager Choi stood near the window with both hands behind his back.
His tired black eyes were fixed on the streets below.
He had been standing there for several minutes.
He was thinking.
More specifically, he was thinking about the two people sitting behind him.
At the large table in the center of the office sat two of the country’s most powerful Awakeneds.
One was a man.
The other was a woman.
And despite Choi himself being an S-Rank Awakened, he couldn’t help but feel that the difference between them and him was rather unpleasant.
The man sat calmly with his hands resting on the table.
Apollo.
Chairman of the Awakened Association.
He was older than most high-ranking Awakeneds, but age had done little to diminish him.
His dark blue hair was neatly groomed, and his fierce dark blue eyes carried an intensity that made even experienced Awakeneds instinctively straighten their backs.
His enormous frame was perhaps the most noticeable thing about him.
Even sitting down, Apollo looked like a wall.
Years of fighting had built a body that seemed almost unnatural for someone his age.
Yet his demeanor was calm.
Almost gentle.
That calmness was arguably more intimidating than anger.
Across from him sat another monster.
Luna.
Guildmaster of the Gatewalkers.
One of the Four Major Guilds.
And one of the youngest S-Rank Awakeneds in the world.
She was tall, her long purple hair falling naturally around her shoulders. Her dark cyan eyes were sharp and attentive, and the confident posture she maintained made it immediately obvious that she wasn’t someone accustomed to being ordered around.
The Gatewalkers were famous for their combat strength.
But that wasn’t what had made them one of the Four Major Guilds.
Information had.
The guild possessed an enormous network of informants, scouts, investigators, and Awakeneds scattered throughout the country.
If someone wanted information—
They went to Gatewalkers.
Choi glanced at Luna.
’An S-Rank who reached this level at such a young age.’
Then he looked toward Apollo.
’And him...’
He sighed internally.
’I’m an S-Rank too, but compared to these two?’
He didn’t finish the thought.
There was no point.
Then another name entered his mind.
’Neville.’
Choi’s expression remained unchanged.
But internally, he almost laughed.
’Actually...’
’Even these two together would probably be easy work for him.’
Neville.
The Association’s Sword.
Leader of Silver Wing, the Association’s main strike force.
The strongest combatant under the Association’s direct command.
Choi had seen all three of them fight.
Apollo was terrifying.
Luna was terrifying.
But Neville?
He was something else entirely.
Monsters are still monsters.
Choi looked away.
But Neville is the kind of monster that hunts other monsters.
"Assistant Manager Choi?"
Luna’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
Choi blinked.
He hadn’t realized he had been staring at nothing.
"Yes?"
"You’ve been awfully quiet."
"I’m listening."
Apollo gave a quiet chuckle.
"Let him think. He’s usually the one keeping all of us informed."
Choi adjusted his posture.
"Thank you, Chairman."
Apollo turned his attention toward Luna.
"Regardless, thank you for coming, Luna."
He spoke calmly.
"I know how busy you must be."
Luna crossed one leg over the other.
"It’s fine. You said it was important."
"It is."
Apollo’s expression became slightly more serious.
"I wanted to ask whether you have any new information regarding Crimson-Crow."
The atmosphere changed.
Just slightly.
But enough.
Luna’s relaxed expression disappeared.
"Crimson-Crow."
She repeated the name quietly.
Even saying it seemed to carry weight.
From the outside, Crimson-Crow appeared to be one of the largest guilds in the country.
Large enough to rival the Four Major Guilds.
They had influence.
Money.
Connections.
Resources.
But that was only what appeared on the surface.
The reality was considerably darker.
Crimson-Crow wasn’t truly a guild.
Not anymore.
It was a criminal organization.
A gathering place for hundreds of Rogues.
People who used their Awakened abilities for murder, extortion, smuggling, assassination, and countless other crimes.
And unlike ordinary criminal organizations, Crimson-Crow possessed enough power to make even the Association hesitate.
Luna reached into the folder beside her.
She pulled out several documents.
"These are their most recent movements."
She slid them across the table.
Apollo picked them up.
He began reading.
Page after page.
Reports.
Names.
Locations.
Transactions.
Witness statements.
Patterns.
Apollo’s expression slowly became colder.
Choi watched silently.
Luna leaned back.
"They’ve been moving people around the city for several weeks."
"How many?"
"We don’t have an exact number."
"I figured."
"They’re careful."
Apollo continued reading.
"Assassinations?"
"Several attempts."
"Targets?"
"Mostly lower-profile Awakeneds. People connected to Association investigations."
Apollo turned another page.
Then stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
Choi immediately noticed.
"What is it?"
Apollo didn’t answer immediately.
He looked at the document again.
Then placed it flat on the table.
His finger rested on a particular name.
Kael.
Apollo’s expression hardened.
"So they really did plan to assassinate Kael."
Luna nodded.
"Yes."
Choi’s brows lowered.
"The attack at the Dungeon Break..."
"Wasn’t random," Luna replied.
A brief silence followed.
Apollo leaned back.
That explained several things.
The Rogue.
The timing.
The attack itself.
Kael hadn’t simply encountered an opportunistic criminal.
He had been a target.
"Do we know why?" Apollo asked.
"Not yet."
Luna’s answer was immediate.
"We know Crimson-Crow wanted him dead. We don’t know who ordered it, or why."
Apollo tapped his fingers against the table.
"Any connection to the recent disturbances?"
Luna shook her head.
"Nothing concrete."
"Then we don’t assume one."
"Agreed."
Choi listened carefully.
That was the problem with Crimson-Crow.
There were too many pieces.
Too many unexplained incidents.
And whenever they thought they had found a pattern—
Something else appeared.
Apollo closed the folder.
"Keep investigating."
Luna nodded.
"I will."
"And if you find anything that connects them to another organization..."
"I’ll tell you."
Apollo smiled faintly.
"Good."
Luna stood.
"Then I suppose that’s all."
Choi watched her leave.
The door closed.
The room became quiet again.
Apollo stared at the folder.
"Choi."
"Yes?"
"Something is changing."
Choi’s eyes narrowed.
"Crimson-Crow?"
"Not only them."
Apollo looked toward the city outside.
"Recently, we’ve seen too many incidents that don’t fit the usual pattern."
Choi remained silent.
Apollo finally stood.
"We need more information."
Choi nodded.
"Understood."