“Wow… How am I supposed to use this?”
It was almost as big as a dragon.
Besides, its outward appearance was just a normal cave, but inside, vines sprouted out, and razor-sharp petals formed a structure that attacked.
I had no idea how to make use of it.
“Hey, you—come out here.”
I was hesitant, but in the end, I summoned the spirit.
After that tough battle and the hallucinations that attacked my mind, I couldn’t help but speak harshly.
At my call, a spirit with the same form slowly separated itself from the cave.
Seeing its form, I took a deep breath and looked at the spirit standing right in front of me with troubled eyes.
“I have no idea. I’m sure there’ll be a use for you someday.”
Still, unlike the other spirits that moved like people or animals, this one looked so different that my eyes kept losing focus.
Honestly, it wasn’t a sight I wanted to keep staring at for long.
“Your name is… Tebeo.”
[Thank you, my liege.]
“Alright, get back inside.”
Only after Tebeo concealed its form was I able to catch my breath.
Right then, a welcome status window appeared before my eyes.
[Kill the Dungeon Boss 02! ㄴ .6
10/10
Reward – ㄱ | Zone Skill x1 (Random)]
[Congratulations! <! Quest (.6 Condition Achieved 1 Skill ｌ unlocked at random~.]
[Unlocking]
[Skill ‘Cursed Blade’ has been unlocked]
Cursed Blade referred to a blade made of gathered mana.
Since it was made of mana, it could cut through even the toughest monster flesh, and when stabbed, paralysis would quickly spread from the point of impact—a very useful skill.
If I used this first and then bound the monster with Chains of Darkness, combat would become much easier.
Feeling delighted, I was about to open my status window, when I realized the scenery around me was gradually changing.
I quickly prepared to escape.
As soon as I was completely out of the Dungeon, I dashed away, running faster than ever before, quickly putting distance between myself and where the gate had been.
‘Why are there so many reporters?’
Seeing the number of cameras as I came out, I nearly lost my mind.
Those cameras must be broadcasting my escape live.
As soon as I entered an empty alley, I used Shadow Mimicry to completely hide my form, then headed home.
“Wow.”
I was utterly exhausted.
Maybe it was because I’d spent over a week inside a hallucination, but it felt like I was coming home after a really long time.
I slowly looked around my room.
The bookshelf Ban Eun-hyeol had given me as a gift, a small desk that didn’t match the size of the large bookshelf, the full-length mirror next to it, and the single bed against the opposite wall.
After taking in even the wardrobe across from the bed, I felt at ease.
Had I somehow grown attached to this tiny room?
In my original dimension, the bedroom had a king-size bed so big I couldn’t roll off even if I tried, and there weren’t any other pieces of furniture like a desk.
Thanks to that, the room was spacious, but lying on the bed here felt more comfortable than sleeping there.
Lying on the bed, I pulled the blanket up to my chest, and soon my eyelids began to droop.
Maybe it was because I was so mentally and physically exhausted, but I quickly drifted off to sleep.
***
The Director’s Office at the Dungeon Management Bureau was in an uproar.
“We set the stage so perfectly, and yet we still couldn’t discover Nada’s identity—what are we supposed to do?”
The Director, rubbing his hand over his M-shaped, widely exposed forehead, let out a deep sigh from the bottom of his lungs.
Until now, even though Nada had been hiding his identity, no one had seriously tried to uncover it.
After all, the top-ranked Awakened had deliberately hidden it—how could they possibly find out who he was?
Of course, they had tried to search, but without much expectation.
But then, the higher-ups who could even move the Director with a word had intervened. In several foreign countries, where gates had opened later than in Korea and Awakened had started appearing, each country’s top-ranked Awakened was making a dazzling impression.
Not a single top-ranked Awakened overseas was hiding their identity.
Not a single one.
Only Korea’s top-ranked Awakened was operating with their identity meticulously concealed.
In fact, it was questionable if they were even active at all.
Because of this, it was natural that the pride of the higher-ups was deeply scratched.
Subtle disparaging comments about Korea had even started popping up on overseas sites.
Questions like, “Does a top-ranked Awakened even exist?” and “Is the nation’s number one so weak that the government is hiding them?” were being raised.
Bang—
Frustrated, the Director slammed his palm on the desk, desperately racking his brain for how to report this situation.
This whole incident had been orchestrated by the Director under orders from above.
A gate filled with Ma Stones had appeared in Busan for the first time ever, so using that as an excuse, he sent all the Awakened ranked in the top 10 to Busan.
Then, while they were in Busan, he secretly picked a gate and disguised it as a grade-5 gate.
If it was later revealed not to be grade-5, they could just claim it was a mistake in the measurement or an error in the device.
He’d had Ihwan lying in wait where the gate was, and planned to confirm Nada’s identity as soon as the news broke about the grade-5 gate opening.
“I figured Nada would definitely show up at the grade-5 gate, but still…”
As expected of the top rank, I suppose. Even Ihwan couldn’t get close enough to learn his identity, let alone see his face—he was that quick and elusive.
“With my abilities, I couldn’t catch Nada. I couldn’t get any information about Nada at all. I’m sorry.”
Ihwan spoke in a voice devoid of emotion.
In truth, Ihwan had been very dissatisfied with this operation from the start.
Did they really need to pull off such a nationwide charade just to uncover Nada’s identity?
No Awakened would dare enter a grade-5 gate, so if someone did, it was safe to assume it was Nada.
The gate was originally grade-4, so if someone closed it and came out, they could be sure it was Nada.
As expected, Nada appeared, and after quite some time, emerged after closing the gate.
And before Ihwan could do anything, he concealed his form.
He’d chased after the rapidly fleeing figure, but had no idea where he’d disappeared to.
It was enough to make anyone believe in ghosts.
‘I should have at least given a warning.’
Even if he did learn Nada’s identity, he’d planned to keep it a secret.
He also wanted to warn Nada to be careful, since the higher-ups might try something else to uncover his identity.
But not only had he failed to learn the identity, he hadn’t even managed to speak to him before losing him.
The Director and Ihwan both let out sighs of their own.
It seemed they would need to come up with a different plan.
***
“Yawn—”
After a good sleep, I stretched and looked out the window.
It must have gotten quite late, as it was already dark outside.
When I opened the door and went out to the living room, I saw some familiar faces.
“Mom, Dad.”
“You’re finally up? Goodness, you slept so deeply. We couldn’t even wake you up for dinner.”
“Did you stay up all night studying for exams again? How can you sleep so much?”
As I let the words “Mom” and “Dad” slip out, their worried nagging started up.
I couldn’t help but smile.
“Hurry up and eat. You must be starving.”
“Yes!”
Now, I liked home-cooked meals more than spicy tteokbokki.
As I was eating, my parents started talking about how my image had been on the news while I was asleep.
“By the way, do you know what happened while you were sleeping? Apparently, Nada revealed their appearance.”
“Who would have thought the hooded girl was Nada?”
“I had a feeling it might be.”
I ate in silence, listening to my parents’ conversation.
Honestly, wearing the hooded girl outfit out there had been a rather impulsive decision.
If I couldn’t return to my original dimension, I figured I might as well become a hero like the first time I possessed someone.
My face was hidden so thoroughly that no one would recognize me, so just revealing my identity through my outfit didn’t seem like a big deal.
“I really can’t live my whole life in hiding.”
Shaking my head, I finished my last bite and stood up, just as my photo appeared on the TV, catching my attention.
[If you look at the size of the hands, they’re quite small. The body is small too. You can’t see the hair, but judging from the small feet, it’s more likely a woman than a man.]
The broadcast was analyzing my physique.
Thankfully, I’d hidden myself so thoroughly that nothing but my build and the size of my hands and feet would be revealed.
I lost interest in the TV and went back to my room.
There was something I hadn’t talked about with the spirits yet.
I wanted to know what they had experienced while I was hallucinating—whether they saw the same visions as I did.
[Oh? I had spicy tteokbokki too!]
[Me too! I got to stand in the snow and get hit by cold snowflakes!]
[In the Dungeon, I saw those guys we used to see all the time, and your friends too, my liege.]
Listening to Bishap, Red, and Shahin, it seemed they’d all seen the same hallucinations.
If I’d been the only one to experience all that time alone, I would have felt unbearably lonely, so it was a relief.
The sensations and loneliness I felt in the hallucination—back in the place I used to live—were something I’d never forget.
To feel that way in the place I’d longed so much to return to…
I also remembered the moment, at the end, when instead of the familiar street at dawn, I’d held the hands of Yeonhamyeon and Ban Eun-hyeol.
At that moment, my phone vibrated, and the name ‘Ban Eun-hyeol’ appeared on the screen.