Chapter 30: Chapter 30

This was also training! n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Choi Yeonseung nodded joyously. He was going to polish it anyway. It wouldn’t hurt if he was given extra power of existence.

Choi Yeonseung grasped Canean and the hunters in front of him. After figuring them out, he turned to the items they had. In the Abyss, the performance of items was judged through Item Appraisal. Like Level Measurement, it was a popular magic spell!

Choi Yeonseung hadn’t been interested in it since it was a spell similar to Level Measurement. However, since he could see another person’s level without having to use magic, then that should mean he could do the same to items.

‘There aren’t many people with artifacts... Did he say his name is Richard? His belt is an artifact.’

Fortunately, he?felt pretty?good magic power from it. Choi Yeonseung’s eyes shone when he used the same skill as before.

[Belt of Iderron:

Durability: 40/40 ?Defense: 50

Contains the skill 'Iderron's Defense.'

Level Restriction: 100.]

‘These are its stats, huh… Wait. Come to think of it, what about my items?’

Choi Yeonseung didn’t have much, but there were still items he valued. His adamantium and orichalcum kitchenware set!

[Adamantium Frying Pan:

Durability: ∞/∞. Defense: ∞/∞.

Contains the skills?‘Materials' Magic Power Condensation’, ‘Materials’?Magic Power Enhancement’, ‘Seasonings Transformation, ‘Heat Magic Power Conversion’, ‘Magic Power...’

‘......’

A frying pan with all types of skills related to cooking and magic power! Considering its durability, defense, and the number of skills imbued, it could be called one of the best S+ artifacts on Earth. The problem was that it was a frying pan!

‘It doesn’t matter.’

It wasn’t like Choi Yeonseung was going to use it to fight anyway... For as long as it served its purpose well, the frying pan didn’t need to be reforged to a different item. He always thought the dishes he cooked in that frying pan always tasted so good, and he had just discovered why: it had all types of flavor enhancement skills...

[The ‘Dazzling Demon’s Mirror’ dungeon has been cleared!]

[The dungeon is closing soon.]

In the meantime, Odaigon found and obliterated the last group of ghouls. Right after, the dungeon started to shake and collapse starting from its edges.

Dungeon clear!

"Waaaaahhhhh!"

“We cleared it!”

The hunters clenched their fists and cheered. This was the most thrilling moment of every dungeon raid!

“Make sure to pack everything up before you go outside!”

“There are only ghouls. What is there to pack apart from their cores? Do you want to take some ghoul flesh?”

“I’ve got all the cores... Did any items appear?”

“No.”

“Damn. Why did we have to go through all this trouble?”

A dungeon having high difficulty didn’t necessarily mean it would contain good items. A good dungeon would have low difficulty yet excellent rewards!

“We still have the clearance reward, though, don’t we?”

“That depends on whether the team leader will properly distribute it...”

“......”

“D-Distribution is a legitimate right! We worked hard as well! We have the right to a portion of it!”

“You’re all crazy. If the young master takes issue with what happened in the dungeon, then money will be the least of our problems. He’d likely be able to ban us from working as a hunter.”

“That jerk Fred was the problem. He was the first to speak!”

“... How dare you put this on me when we were all in it? Do you think I’ll just stay quiet?”

Fred’s anger caused the other hunters to flinch. It would be difficult for them to stay safe if he turned into a demon

“Ah... No. It isn’t that everything you did was wrong. You were just too hasty. You could’ve been a little bit more patient.”

“Honestly, wouldn’t Cleton, that porter, be the worst among us?”

“That’s right! He’s the reason why we started arguing in the first place.”

The hunters quickly turned their arrows toward Cleton.

“If anyone asks you what happened here, you better give the same answer as us.”

“In any case, I don’t think we’ll be able to stay on the team for long. We’ll definitely be kicked out...”

Fame was also important in the hunter industry. Other clans wouldn’t welcome hunters who caused trouble during a dungeon raid. Besides, the Parker family’s young master was involved in this incident...

“We have to make sure we tempt Odaigon properly.”

“That’s right. He lost his memories...”

The hunters had been talking to?Odaigon?since earlier. Since he had lost his memory, going back to Earth should be hard. He’d need help after he had been examined. Since he saved their lives, they would help him. Of course, their words were just loud noises from Odaigon’s perspective. The hunters didn’t even grasp the subject and just kept slandering Choi Yeonseung.

‘I must not kill them. I must not kill them. I must not kill them.’

Odaigon endured as much as possible with patience befitting the goblin king!

***

When they exited the dungeon, the barren landscape of the Nevada desert and the groups of people gathered nearby came into view.

“?”

Choi Yeonseung was puzzled. They came out through the door they had entered after clearing the dungeon. There were supposed to be a few public servants near the door. However, there were too many people there.

‘Reporters and... Who are those people? Did they come from a company?’

There was no way they knew in advance that Choi Yeonseung and Odaigon had returned, and the dungeon team could’ve been trapped for a long time. Taking those into consideration, there were too many people.

‘Ah. I see.’

“Does that man come from a well-known family?” Choi Yeonseung asked while pointing to Richard. Canean nodded in surprise.

“How did you know?”

“There’s no way this many people would wait for the return of missing hunters.”

Choi Yeonseung was cool-headed. There was one B-grade hunter, and the rest were C-grade. Having more hunters was better, but that didn't mean they couldn't be replaced, especially if they were low-rated. There was no reason to this much fuss just because a few people were trapped in a dungeon.

“!!!!”

“They’re back! The door is open! They’ve cleared it!”

“H-How many people are there? How many died? Is the Parker family’s young master alive?”

“One, two, three... Wait. Their number has increased?”

The reporters whispered among each other. The fact that the youngest son of the Parker family was trapped in the dungeon had become a topic of conversation. Moreover, if he died, it would become an ever hotter topic. Therefore, the reporters were waiting like hyenas seeking prey. Wasn’t the death of a celebrity always a profitable article?

“What? Didn’t they say that the dungeon’s rating increased? How did they get out alive?”

“And why did their number increase…?”

There was no way the hunters couldn’t hear the reporters’ whispers. They murmured with sullen faces.

“These sons of a b■tches...”

“Put up with it. Causing a scene here wouldn’t benefit us.”

Fortunately, they didn’t have to put up with it for long. People in suits soon arrived and stood in front of the reporters.

“W-What is it?”

“Stop recording. If you don’t, we will take legal action.”

“W-We are reporters! We have the right to report on the news!”

“We’ve been paid. We don’t have the right to hit you in the head, but we will hit you. I’ll give you three seconds to put away your cameras.”

‘I like those guys.’

Choi Yeonseung was impressed by the tone of the men in suits. They were like paid professionals! However, the reporters didn’t back down so easily.

“We?can't go back empty-handed! We just have to not take photos of the Parker family’s young master, right? Then how about we exclude the young master from the photos?”

“... We’ll accept this compromise.”

The reporters aimed their cameras at the other hunters and tried to take photos of them. It was a pity that they couldn’t take photos of the Parker family’s young master, but photographing the sneaky and guilty hunters should still be good enough.

“Whoa. My hand slipped.”

Choi Yeonseung didn't wander around the Abyss for thousands of years just to stand around and watch a reporter sell his photos. He grabbed a camera and threw it to the ground!

“?!!!”

“W-What? Are you crazy?!”

“Whoa. I can’t understand you. English is hard.”

“You are speaking English right now!”

“I can’t understand you because I got lost in the Abyss.”

Choi Yeonseung continued to talk as he grabbed another reporter’s camera and threw it. The reporters were stunned.

“T-This jerk... I’m going to sue you! I’ll sue you!”

“You're making it hard for me to understand you. What do you mean by the word ‘sue’?”

“I will legally end you!”

“I think you have to acknowledge that I’m mentally and physically weak right now since I got lost in the Abyss.”

Choi Yeonseung was teasing the reporters when Richard stepped in with a cold expression.

“The cameras will be paid for by the Parker family. Get lost.”

“No, this isn’t something that we can let slide...”

Rather than answering, Richard gestured with his chin to the men behind him. The men then stepped forward and grabbed the reporters’ shoulders.

“Look. It’s best for you all to back off. The Parker family’s lawyers are worse than ours.”

“What is this... Do you think hunters are above the rest of us? Do you want to be featured in an article?”

“You’ll see! You better be careful!”

The reporters hurriedly retreated. Choi Yeonseung whistled while watching the scene.

“Thank you for your help.”

“... I am just paying back what I received.”’

“So the grace of saving your life is just worth this much?”

“I’ll keep making it up to you.”

“I was just kidding, but I’d gladly be compensated.”

That was it for their conversation. The surprised public servants were running over.

“How did you clear it?”

***

The hunters were split up into two. The hunters of the?Ganes?team explained the situation.

-Hundreds of ghouls... Um. It isn’t an A-grade dungeon, but... I think it should be at least a B-grade.

-No, there were at least hundreds of ghouls! We almost died!

-You don’t appear to have defeated them yourselves.

-...You’re right, but...

-F-grade monsters like ghouls often weaken over time. I’m sure you’re also well aware that a dungeon’s rank is determined by the strength of the boss monster in it. No matter how many ghouls there are...

-Groan...

-In any case, you worked hard. Congratulations on your safe return.

Meanwhile, Choi Yeonseung and?Odaigon?were taken for physical examination and testing.

“You are extremely healthy. This is amazing. I’ve never seen such a perfect physique. It’s as if your body is god-given.”

“All I could do in the Abyss was work out.”

“On top of that, you seem to be in your right mind. You’re very lucky.”

Choi Yeonseung testified that he had endured for decades in the corner of a quiet realm. Surprisingly, people didn’t doubt it. The fact that Choi Yeonseung was alive was proof of it. If he stayed in an area full of strong monsters, he wouldn’t have been able to safely return.

“Well, thirty years have passed here... You’ll likely have some trouble adjusting. If you want to immigrate, then we’ll help you.”

“I’ll think about it first before deciding.”

“Is that so? If so, then...”

The doctor carefully examined Choi Yeonseung and recorded his testimony. He glanced to the side and saw people from the government clinging to?Odaigon?and making suggestions.

-It’s unfortunate that you’ve lost your memory, but you can get citizenship from Dragon Industry...

-Dragon Industry is one of the strongest clans in the United States...

-There will be huge benefits...

“?”

Choi Yeonseung thought something was strange. Why did they keep saying ‘Dragon Industry,’ a name he had never heard of before, rather than the US government? Looking closely, the government officials were wearing marks that read ‘Dragon Industry.’

“Wait. Who are they? Aren’t they public servants?”

“Huh? They are.”

“They said they’re?from Dragon?Industry. What is that place?”

“Ahh... I’m sorry. I should’ve explained that to you earlier,” the public servant said with a smile.

“This place near L.A. is under the Dragon Industry's jurisdiction.”

“? ?”

“That’s why we handle matters like this instead of the government.”

“... Why?”

“W-Why?”

The public servant looked flustered, perhaps because the answer seemed too obvious to him. However, that only made Choi Yeonseung find this situation even more absurd. Why was a company he had never heard of working in the government’s stead?

“Um. Hunter Choi Yeonseung. Didn’t millions of people die in the great invasion? Ever since then, the hunter clans have stepped up.”

After the great invasion, the hunters’ power rose enormously, allowing them to start acting as kings around the world. Even the relatively intact United States couldn’t escape from it. Large-scale US clans extorted enormous power from the government in exchange for risking their lives. They gained the power to act at will in their cities or states and became a type of clan state!

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the clans had great power in their region. In fact, in cities like Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago, the clans reigned as kings. They elected public servants, made judgments, passed?laws...

The public servant continued like everything he was saying was nothing out of the ordinary.

“It is the clans’ hard work that protects us from monsters.”

“... I see.”

Choi Yeonseung had to admit that the world he knew had changed too much.

Did Korean clans also set up states and pretend to be kings?