Somehow Familiar (3)

‘A future-city-style dungeon, huh.’

If it was a city-type dungeon, it usually meant mechanical monsters, experimental chimera subjects, or zombies. This dungeon was no exception—every confirmed sighting fell within that range.

‘Mostly mechanical types with some zombies……. And the entire field is a debuff zone.’

Some dungeons had fields where the entire area was a debuff zone. According to the records, this one was particularly troublesome for disease-type debuffs.

‘If you breathe the air raw for too long, you get rot, bleeding……. Anyway, you either take physical damage or get hit with disease-type debuffs, right.’

After analyzing the monster types and the field’s properties, it felt like a world where some kind of zombie virus had run rampant.

‘Maybe it really is a world that vanished that way. Well…… that’s not what matters right now.’

She shoved the stray thought aside and returned to the immediate problem. Right now, figuring out how to handle the debuff field mattered more.

She checked the terminal’s input again. The strategy team had already been formed by the Ten Thousand Swords Guild.

‘Aside from the healer and supporter included in the advance party, they’re also planning to add three more dedicated supporters…….’

Supporters dedicated to group-wide immunity and protection skills to endure the debuff field were included. On top of that, they even had escorts assigned to protect those supporters.

Judging by the lineup, this run seemed aimed at being as safe as possible, even if it took longer.

‘Well, the time limit seemed pretty long, so it’s not a bad approach.’

But even with multiple supporters, she still needed some personal items of her own.

A dungeon was the kind of place where anything could happen.

‘The problem is whether I actually have those kinds of items…….’

She opened the item list stored inside Infinite Corridor and scanned through it.

All kinds of equipment, various potions purchased from Hyeonju, skill cards gathered through different routes, special items from spoils and quest rewards— there was such a wide range of items saved that anyone else would click their tongue and ask why she carried everything under the sun.

‘At least I’ve got one respiratory-protection item.’

Among her gear, she did have something like a gas mask. It was equipment that filtered, to some extent, debuffs triggered by inhalation.

‘It’s a pretty decent piece of gear, but the problem is whether it’ll last until the clear. It has a capacity limit for what it can filter.’

It would be great if the clear ended quickly, but that was unlikely.

For one, the field itself was vast. And because it was a debuff-field dungeon, it wasn’t easy to split up personnel.

You couldn’t freely divide and regroup, yet you still had to search a huge area. Naturally, the clear time would have to run long.

‘And buff-type skill cards aren’t exactly easy to get.’

Disposable skill cards did show up on the Interstellar Network market from time to time. But the odds that the exact card she wanted would be listed at the right moment were low.

That was how player-to-player marketplaces always were.

‘And whatever the administrators list is random every time, too.’

More than anything, the biggest problem with the Network market was that you could only buy items using Ghost Coins.

For Hyeonseong, who already struggled just to cover the monthly Network usage fee, market purchases were a luxury of luxuries.

‘Still, I do need something right now…….’

Since it was urgent, she had no choice. She steeled herself and decided to search anyway.

But even after searching with determination, the result was another bust.

She looked for disposable skill cards related to constant debuff blocking or immunity, but there were none. The only things listed were items for learning skills permanently.

She then searched for more gear like gas masks. A few usable options did appear—this time, the problem was the price.

‘300 Ghost Coins? Are you insane?’

Hyeonseong grimaced when she saw that the cheapest item cost the same as this month’s usage fee.

She didn’t even have 300 Ghost Coins on hand, so how was she supposed to buy anything?

‘Sigh. That’s just how life is.’

Looking for anything on the market was hopeless. Hyeonseong dismissed the market screen.

‘……I’ll just have to buy more potions from Hyeonju.’

There was no way to procure truly useful items right now. Stocking up on antidote potions for when debuffs hit was the best she could do.

‘I’ll have to stay as close to the supporters as possible later. Then the only thing left is preparing for the mechanical monsters…….’

She checked the info again on the hunter-only terminal.

‘This side’s already covered with dedicated personnel, too.’

They had measures prepared both to defend against the futuristic weapons used by mechanical monsters and to weaken the mechanical monsters themselves.

Everyone else was assigned in a standard formation to hunt monsters and gather resources.

‘So overall, the lineup is safety-first.’

She checked the registered info one last time. Nothing else seemed worth noting.

‘The newly added monster info is still within what I expected.’

Hyeonseong tossed the hunter terminal into Infinite Corridor. Any further planning would have to wait until after she entered the dungeon.

‘Before I leave, I should buy more potions from Hyeonju.’

She had already used up all the vouchers she’d received last time as an errand fee. It stung to spend cash, but there was no helping it.

You didn’t skimp on the price of your life.

After closing even the item list within Infinite Corridor, Hyeonseong stood and got ready to go out.

After buying the potions she needed at Hyeonju’s workshop, Hyeonseong headed straight for the Gwanak District Office. It was much earlier than the agreed meeting time, but she had a reason to arrive early.

‘Will Mr. Kwon Seojin come early, too?’

She usually left early to prepare anyway, but the thought of meeting the man everyone was talking about made it impossible for her to sit still. She wanted to see, at the very least, what the guy looked like.

Of course, even if they met, she probably wouldn’t see the man’s real bare face because of items or skills. Still, the important thing was that she would meet Kwon Seojin herself.

Soon, the subway train Hyeonseong was on reached her destination. The moment she got off, she headed outside.

Once she emerged from the station, she saw something like a long slit split open in the direction of the district office.

‘Stuff like this always looks more brutal in person.’

A long fissure stretching from the ground all the way up toward the sky.

A dungeon’s recommended rank and the size of its entrance weren’t always proportional. But this fissure looked, to anyone, like the entrance to an A-rank dungeon.

‘More importantly, is anyone else here early?’

After confirming the dungeon entrance location, Hyeonseong started walking toward the Gwanak District Office.

A lot of people had gathered around the entrance. Everyone immediately visible was an unawakened civilian—spectators who had come to gawk at the entrance and the hunters.

‘What is there to look at every single time that they keep coming out like this?’

Pulling down the brim of the hat she was wearing, Hyeonseong slipped past the crowd.

Only after passing the spectators did she finally see the people she was looking for. Spotting seven Ten Thousand Swords Guild members, Hyeonseong walked over.

“Oh? Hyeonseong—”

One of the guild members reflexively tried to greet her, but Hyeonseong immediately raised her index finger in a silent hush gesture.

‘What good comes from my name being called out here?’

She wanted to stay quiet until they entered the dungeon. Seeing her intent, the guild member promptly shut their mouth.

“You came out early again today.”

Another guild member spoke to her.

“There are a lot of things to check before going in. More importantly……”

Hyeonseong scanned the surroundings. Among the gathering spot for the strategy team, she spotted one unfamiliar person—someone not from the Ten Thousand Swords Guild.

“Is that him?”

Hyeonseong fixed her gaze on the unfamiliar man as she asked.

“Ah, yes. The gatherer you recruited. I checked the info—he’s the real deal.”

“Come to think of it, isn’t he the owner of that popular channel these days? The name and rank match exactly.”

Another guild member joined in. No one questioned it, which suggested they all knew Kwon Seojin’s channel.

“Well, we’ll know once we watch him. For now, I should at least say hello.”

Hyeonseong walked naturally toward the unfamiliar man. As if sensing someone approaching, the man turned his head.

‘His vibe really is… weirdly vague.’

Seeing Kwon Seojin head-on, it really was hard to describe him.

A face that wouldn’t leave any impression if you turned away.

Unless he was born with some strange constitution, it felt artificial—like he was deliberately blurring his presence.

“You’re Kwon Seojin, right?”

Having confirmed the impression, Hyeonseong spoke first.

“Ah, yes. But your name is……?”

Kwon Seojin asked with wide eyes.

‘……What?’

Hyeonseong’s eye twitched. It was because of the expression Kwon Seojin had just made.

At a glance, it looked like the normal puzzlement of seeing a stranger for the first time. But if you looked closer, there was something subtly off.

‘It feels oddly exaggerated.’

“Um……?”

When Hyeonseong didn’t answer, Kwon Seojin asked again.

“Ah, I’m Ye Hyeonseong.”

Hyeonseong introduced herself belatedly.

“Ye Hyeonseong, then…….”

“I’m probably not someone Kwon Seojin would recognize, yeah.”

Hyeonseong shrugged. There was no need to show her face. In Korea, there was only one hunter active under that name.

“Ahh, really? Really……”

It looked like Kwon Seojin was about to say the name out loud. Hyeonseong hurriedly lifted her index finger again, signaling him to keep it down.

Luckily, Kwon Seojin took the hint and closed his mouth.

“What a coincidence. I’d been wanting to meet you at least once, Ms. Ye Hyeonseong.”

“……Me? Not Hyeonyeong?”

Hyeonseong frowned slightly at the unexpected remark.

“Yes. You, Ms. Ye Hyeonseong. Of course I’d like to meet Guildmaster Ye Hyeonyeong too, but.”

Kwon Seojin smiled awkwardly. Seeing that, Hyeonseong could only frown even more.

‘The Hyeonyeong part feels like he just tacked it on out of politeness.’

When he mentioned Hyeonyeong, Kwon Seojin’s voice didn’t sound particularly sincere.

If Hyeonseong wasn’t mistaken, the only person Kwon Seojin actually wanted to meet was her.

“Wow. What a coincidence. I’ve been wanting to meet you too, Mr. Kwon Seojin.”

Hyeonseong replied with a smile.

“Huh? Me?”

Kwon Seojin asked with a confused look.

“Your channel’s really famous these days. I watched one—your clear method was pretty ingenious.”

At the polite add-on, Kwon Seojin’s eyes widened. This time, he looked genuinely surprised.

“You really think so too, Ms. Ye Hyeonseong?”

Kwon Seojin asked.

“Of course. It’s not common to see someone clear dungeons by using every weird thing under the sun like that, you know?”

Truthfully, Kwon Seojin’s strategy wasn’t that ingenious. It was the kind of approach Hyeonseong herself could think up.

But it wasn’t polite to say that to someone you’d just met, so she fed him a suitably flattering line.

“Wow…… It’s an honor hearing you say that, Ms. Ye Hyeonseong.”

Kwon Seojin said, his voice truly astonished.

“Come on, no need to call it an honor. It’s just something you heard from someone like me.”

Faced with a reaction far bigger than expected, Hyeonseong stepped back with visible discomfort.

‘Honestly, it almost feels like he’s messing with me.’

“Ah, sorry if I made you uncomfortable. But are you going into today’s dungeon too, Hyeonseong?”

Kwon Seojin smoothly changed the subject.

“Yes. As the porter—and the shot-caller.”

The way he’d already started calling her so familiarly bothered Hyeonseong, but she decided not to point it out.

“Shot-caller?”

Kwon Seojin stared again with surprised eyes.

“Yes.”

“I see.”

A short answer met a short answer. The conversation stopped there.

“……You’re not finding that strange?”

Hyeonseong narrowed her brows slightly. The obvious question she expected didn’t come.

“I’m just a temporary outsider joining in. If the raid team says that’s how it is, then that’s how it is. And……”

Mid-sentence, Kwon Seojin’s gaze subtly changed. It was a look like he could see right through things.

“I’ve heard some things lately. Apparently, there’ve been quite a few times recently when you handled calls for Ten Thousand Swords. So I just assumed it would be like that again.”

Kwon Seojin shrugged lightly.

“That’s already going around outside the guild? Interesting.”

Hyeonseong responded in an intentionally exaggerated tone. As far as she knew, that kind of talk barely circulated.

‘It comes up inside Ten Thousand Swords, sure, but outside communities? It’s hardly mentioned.’

“Yeah, apparently. I heard you’re good at calling shots…….”

“Well, I just got lucky.”

The words were clearly praise, yet they didn’t quite sound like praise. Without thinking, Hyeonseong replied in a curt voice.

“They say luck is a kind of skill too. Anyway, today’s dungeon looks pretty tricky, so take good care of us.”

Whether he noticed Hyeonseong’s irritation or not, Kwon Seojin responded with a playful tone.

“Ah, sure. I hope you’ll do your best too, Mr. Kwon Seojin. Gathering work—despite how it looks—isn’t exactly an easy job. You know that.”

Hyeonseong answered lightly as well.

“Of course. In a dungeon clear, what position is ever unimportant?”

“Looks like we agree on that.”

It felt like a good point to wrap up. Hyeonseong decided to keep a little distance from Kwon Seojin for now.

‘From here on, I’ll figure it out once we’re inside the dungeon.’

When Hyeonseong offered a natural closing line, Kwon Seojin didn’t press further. And since the other guild members scheduled for the run arrived right then, attention naturally shifted toward them.

After finishing the conversation, Hyeonseong chatted with the other guild members and checked their strength for today.

First, the team composition matched the roster registered on the terminal exactly. That meant no sudden strategy changes and no one unexpectedly unable to participate.

Next, she checked each member’s condition. Their physical and mental state, as well as their equipment, were all normal.

‘All the prep is solid. So the only issue left is…….’

Their side’s readiness was fine. Still, an anxious variable remained—one Hyeonseong couldn’t control.

‘……Those bastards.’

Hyeonseong’s eyes moved to the messages that had started popping up one after another. As always, the Constellations were beginning to make their presence known through messages.

‘That one’s the biggest problem, especially.’

Hyeonseong glared at the message from ‘Hands Faster Than Eyes.’

After unexpectedly extracting a huge reward once, the Constellation hadn’t made any major moves for a while. At most, it would occasionally tease or pick fights via messages.

But that quiet behavior had to have a limit. Hyeonseong knew its habits well.

‘She’s about due to get twitchy and not be able to stand it anymore. And even if it’s not her…….’

The problem wasn’t only ‘Hands Faster Than Eyes.’ Constellations as a whole were untrustworthy creatures.

‘Hands Faster Than Eyes’ was particularly frequent about bringing down disasters disguised as quests, but it wasn’t as if other Constellations never did it.

If they got bored while watching, or if the scene they wanted didn’t play out, other Constellations could easily pull something similar.

‘The problem is, it’s not like I can prepare for this just because I want to.’

There were only two choices.

Pray that nothing happened.

Or accept that whatever would happen would happen, and deal with it when it did.

Hyeonseong’s choice was, naturally, the latter.

‘It’s not like they’d listen even if I begged them to stay still. Anyway, it’s about time, right?’

She checked the time. In five minutes, it would be 2 p.m. They would soon depart.

As if everyone had checked the time too, the team members performed a final inspection of their weapons and skills.

After finishing the final check quickly, they gathered into formation. Starting with the swordsman and warrior at the very front, followed by the supporter dedicated to immunity buffs, the strategy team began entering the dungeon.