Solo Resurrection

Unlike the outside where birdsong could be heard, the air in the Badass Guild office was heavy.

Kang Hyeon was frowning deeply as if dissatisfied with something, and Han Jae-moon was cowering beside him.

“Not only is it a closed dungeon, but it’s also a maze-type dungeon?”

At Kang Hyeon’s sharp tone, Han Jae-moon cautiously nodded.

“Why did you choose such a troublesome place?”

“Well… Team Leader Shin Tae-gil strongly recommended it…”

“He did? Why?”

“He said that the dungeon’s bounty has increased a lot because the core removal has never been accomplished yet…”

Han Jae-moon’s drawing tone further provoked Kang Hyeon’s anger, but the content was quite intriguing.

“They haven’t even removed the normal core yet?”

“No…”

It had been over a month since the B-rank dungeon appeared.

The top 10 guilds had already succeeded in conquering the normal core, and guilds like Dangun Guild and Immortal Guild had even finished conquering the main core.

Even if not the top 10 guilds, many mid-sized guilds had also started tackling B-rank dungeons.

“And yet nobody has cleared it…”

Kang Hyeon, stroking his chin, grinned.

“So how much is the bounty?”

If a dungeon’s core is not removed within a certain time, the door opens and monsters pour out.

Naturally, as that period approaches, the bounty increases.

Currently, the bounty for conquering a B-rank dungeon is 300 million for the normal core and 2 billion for the main core.

Kang Hyeon was quite expectant, thinking it might have increased by at least 1.5 times.

“10 billion for the normal core. 4 billion for the main core… However, we need to be cautious as there might not be a normal core at all, like in the Forest of Benandi…”

“That’s enough.”

Kang Hyeon nodded as if he didn’t need to hear anymore.

“That’s the one, no doubt. 4 billion… Crazy!”

The fact that it was a place no one had conquered had long been erased from his mind.

‘Team Leader Shin Tae-gil must have had something in mind when he recommended it. And when it comes to a small elite team, who else but us?’

His self-rationalization was faster than anyone else’s.

4 billion. Although the value of money had decreased due to the large amount of money circulating among ability users, it was still an enormous sum.

“With that money, we won’t have to worry even if we don’t have income from selling magic stones for a while. Hehehe.”

It was a good opportunity to fill the money leaking out to the research institute.

Kang Hyeon smiled maliciously with eyes brimming with desire.

“Sigh… To think I ended up under such a materialistic guild leader…”

Yoon Na-rae, watching him from the side, sighed and shook her head.

“What? Materialistic!? You dare say that when you’re not contributing anything to the guild?”

“Why am I not contributing!?”

“You’re also participating in this conquest, Yoon Na-rae.”

“Why should I…”

“An Yu-seong is participating too.”

At the mention of An Yu-seong’s participation, Yoon Na-rae’s face, which had been looking like she’d eaten a pile of dung, instantly brightened.

“Let’s go!”

“Sigh… To think I brought such a materialistic person into the guild…”

Kang Hyeon shook his head.

“Anyway, the reward this time is unexpectedly lucrative. That means the risk is probably greater too.”

“…”

“It’s not like we have no experience with B-rank dungeons, but this is our first time conquering a main core. Moreover, it’s a dungeon that has never been conquered before.”

“Yes.”

Everyone nodded seriously at Kang Hyeon’s words.

“What’s the difference? Let’s do it as we always do. We’ll sweep through the normal core in one go and clear the main core too.”

“…”

“When we’re done, we’ll have a beef feast!”

“Woah!”

Shin Seong-a raised her fist and responded energetically to Kang Hyeon’s words.

An Yu-seong was smiling gently, and Yoon Na-rae was busy looking at An Yu-seong.

‘That’s a relief. Maybe this will align well with what I’m planning to do. Hehe…’

Meanwhile, Kang Hyeon secretly smiled, thinking about what was about to unfold.

***

Ippotranslation

***

B-rank dungeon, Veil of the Maze.

It’s a dungeon that gained considerable fame not long after its appearance.

“Of course, that fame is more of an infamy…”

“But it’s famous anyway, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s fine.”

Kang Hyeon smiled as if there was no problem with Shin Seong-a’s words.

“What kind of confidence is this…”

Yoon Na-rae looked at Kang Hyeon with an incredulous expression.

“Hey now, I don’t tolerate questioning the guild leader’s choices.”

“…”

“If you’re upset, I told you to defeat me and become the guild leader, didn’t I?”

“It’s too dirty and unfair, so I won’t.”

Ignoring Yoon Na-rae’s grumbling, Kang Hyeon took out his equipment.

Kang Hyeon’s face was flushed with excitement as he picked up what looked like an ordinary camera.

“Everyone, take a look at this.”

“What is it?”

“What else? It’s a camera. And one that can be stored in the inventory!”

“Ah, yes…”

“A camera that can be stored in the inventory, isn’t that revolutionary? And it can even be used inside the dungeon!”

“Tsk tsk, they’ve been filming with those abroad for a while now…”

Kang Hyeon frowned sharply at Yoon Na-rae’s retort.

“Shut up!”

“Tch…”

Meanwhile, Shin Seong-a approached and carefully touched the camera.

“Is this the item you mentioned bringing from the research institute last time?”

“That’s right. This will be our breadwinner from now on.”

“Breadwinner…?”

“Yes. We’re going to do YouTube with this!”

YouTube.

The world’s largest video sharing service.

Some ability users were already operating personal channels using their fame, but Kang Hyeon’s idea was a bit different.

“We’re going to produce dungeon conquest videos with this.”

“Hmph, there’s no way that would work…”

“Sounds interesting, doesn’t it?”

At An Yu-seong’s words that it sounded interesting, Yoon Na-rae hastily nodded.

“It will work. Looks good.”

After glaring at Yoon Na-rae for a moment, Kang Hyeon continued.

“Not just dungeon conquests, but also strategies for each monster and dungeon information. We’ll systematically spread it all.”

“Hmm…”

“This is not just for us, but also linked with the research institute, and the government is investing in this project, so we need to do it very seriously and properly.”

“As expected of you, Kang Hyeon.”

Kang Hyeon smiled with satisfaction at Shin Seong-a’s heartfelt flattery.

“Well then, shall we begin?”

***

Ippotranslation

***

Jo Woon-seong, the guild leader of the Golden Beast Guild, kicked the wall in extreme agitation.

“Fuck!”

It had been ten days since they entered the B-rank dungeon, Veil of the Maze.

They hadn’t even discovered the normal core they had initially planned for, and now they had come in so deep that they had forgotten the way out.

And the wall that Jo Woon-seong had just kicked was the one he had marked when passing by yesterday.

“Guild leader. We’ve been here before too.”

“I know that already. Shut up!”

“…”

There are many reasons why the Veil of the Maze has such a bad reputation, but the biggest reason is that it’s an undead dungeon.

Generally, there’s no food in undead dungeons. And the water and food an individual can carry in their backpack is limited.

It’s already easy to get lost in a maze-type dungeon, but not being able to find food forces a time attack situation.

“It’s over. We’re all going to die.”

“We shouldn’t have blindly listened to a guild leader obsessed with fame…”

“What did you say?!”

The guild’s situation was at its worst.

Undead monsters appearing at random times.

Traps scattered everywhere.

The only small comfort, if it could be called that, was that they now had plenty of food since many members had died in battle.

“You all agreed to come, and now you’re talking nonsense?!”

“Didn’t you say we could definitely clear it, Guild Leader?”

“What happened to that map you said you bought with the guild’s operating funds?”

“T-that…”

Guild Leader Jo Woon-seong could only hesitate, unable to answer.

He had known that the ‘expensive map’ was a fraud since the beginning of their conquest.

-Something’s wrong with the map…?

The entrance to the dungeon was certainly accurate.

For three days, there was no problem with the map.

But on the fourth day.

When they arrived at the normal core marked on the map, there was nothing there.

-We’ve spent so much money on this conquest, we can’t leave without gaining anything.

In the end, Jo Woon-seong moved to an even deeper part of the dungeon not marked on the map.

It was an action he would never have taken if he had known this would happen, but it was already done.

The wrong decision made in a moment of greed was now pushing the entire Golden Beast Guild to the edge of a cliff.

Perhaps the map seller had anticipated this situation and sold him the map.

After all, no conquest team that had gone deep into the Veil of the Maze had survived until now.

“Guild Leader. We need to turn back now!”

“How are we going to go back? That man who calls himself the guild leader has already lost his way! How are we supposed to go back?!”

“Ahhh! I don’t want to die like this!”

The guild fell into complete panic.

Guild members frantically pounded on the walls, but it was useless.

“Damn it! Why is this so hard!”

“Let me out, please!”

-Bang, bang!

The black, thick walls that made up the Veil of the Maze were not of a nature that could be destroyed.

The guild members knew through several attempts that it was impossible, but those who had fallen into complete panic had forgotten even that memory.

-Bang, bang!

“Everyone be quiet!”

At that moment, Jo Woon-seong, who had been standing still, shouted.

“You be quiet!”

“Do you still think you’re the guild leader?!”

“I said shut up!”

Finally, unable to bear it anymore, Jo Woon-seong drew his sword.

“…”

Jo Woon-seong’s power was overwhelming even within the Golden Beast Guild.

Originally, he had even passed the entrance exam for the Dangun Guild, so he was on a different level from ordinary ability users.

When he drew his sword, the guild members had no choice but to close their mouths.

“Everyone, calm down and listen. Don’t you hear something?”

At Jo Woon-seong’s serious words, the guild members began to listen quietly.

-Thud… Thud…

The sound of something breaking could be heard from afar.

That sound was gradually getting closer.

As they focused, they could even feel the vibration of the ground that they hadn’t noticed before.

“I-is it a horde of monsters?”

“It must be a large monster… This is the end!”

“Who’s the one screaming?!”

The guild members fell back into panic, thinking it was the movement of a large-scale or giant monster.

“No! It’s getting closer!”

“Ugh… I want to live. I can’t die like this!”

“Where is there to escape to here?!”

Meanwhile, the sound had already reached right in front of them.

“It’s too late…”

-Crash!

Just as everyone was giving up. With a tremendous roar, the wall collapsed and a cloud of dust rose.

“Cough, cough!”

“See. I told you I heard something.”

“As expected of you, Mr. Kang Hyeon.”

The Golden Beast Guild members’ eyes widened at the unfamiliar voices coming through the dust.

“Are they human?”

“Didn’t they just say Kang Hyeon?”

“What are you talking about? Is it possible for a human to break through a dungeon wall…?”

Soon, as the dust settled, the identity of the figures that appeared was revealed.

“Yes. We are human.”

Of course, it was Kang Hyeon and the Badass Guild members, smiling broadly.

“It really is Kang Hyeon!”

“Crazy, did they break through this?”

“It’s the Badass Guild. We’re saved now!”

The faces of the Golden Beast Guild members brightened with relief, and they chattered frantically.

“Now, everyone calm down. You need help, right?”

“Yes. That’s right!”

“Please save us!”

“Who’s the guild leader here?”

At Kang Hyeon’s words, the Golden Beast Guild’s leader, Jo Woon-seong, stepped forward.

“I’m the guild leader.”

“We’re going to help you from now on, but we need to do some filming in return. Is that okay?”

“Huh…?”

Jo Woon-seong wore a dumbfounded expression at the sudden mention of filming.

“Filming…?”

“Yes.”

“As long as you save us, anything is fine. Once we’re out of the dungeon, we’ll do interviews or whatever you want.”

“No, that’s not it. We’re going to film inside here.”

“Huh…?”

Kang Hyeon held up a camera towards Jo Woon-seong, who was wearing a stupid expression.

“Ah! That expression is very good.”

“Um… What is this…?”

“And this is a token of appreciation for cooperating with the filming.”

Saying this, Kang Hyeon took something out of his inventory.

“A hamburger…?”

As incomprehensible situations continued to unfold, Jo Woon-seong looked like he was about to cry.

“You must be tired of eating tasteless preserved food in the dungeon all this time? Here, take this fresh hamburger that’s tasty, good for your health, and can be preserved semi-permanently in the inventory.”

“Uh…”

“It’s an amazing hamburger that might even have the effect of increasing magical power.”

Kang Hyeon said with a very serious expression.

Overwhelmed by his intensity, Jo Woon-seong took the hamburger and took a big bite.

As he chewed the hamburger, Jo Woon-seong’s expression quickly crumpled.

“Ugh… It tastes bad…”

At that moment, Jo Woon-seong looked up and met Kang Hyeon’s eyes.

Those eyes were blazing like a grim reaper risen from hell.

“Ah… It’s delicious…?”