Lee Pyeong-hwa, suddenly taken aback by the serious atmosphere, alternated glances between the two of us.
"Why, why is this happening? Is it because there’s no one around?"
Even if I wanted to explain, I didn't know how to do so.
Han Jae-young's face turned serious.
"If this is the case, we’ve been stranded in a random dinsion... the premise is collapsing. Even if the accident was intentional, how exactly did they move us to this dinsion?"
"Huh? What do you an by that...?"
"And if it was a fixed dinsion we were moved to, there must have been a purpose, but the purpose is unclear."
As I listened to Han Jae-young's words, I gazed at the village scene.
It was a nightmare-like landscape.
In the Yeongjong Island dungeon from earlier, I saw a scene similar to my past life.
At that ti, I thought it was a landscape deliberately created by my past life’s sibling to tornt .
—Welco ho, my little sister.
...However, it seed that the malice in that letter was far deeper than I imagined.
I closed my eyes tightly for a mont and then opened them again.
"You seem to have so idea, Jeong Da-on."
And Han Jae-young, annoyingly quick to pick up on things.
I only showed a slight sign of disturbance, yet he was quick to seize the opportunity.
"No, I was just lost in thought. Wondering if there's another strange person around, like last ti."
"Definitely, that is a concern..."
After eyeing suspiciously for a mont, Han Jae-young noticed Lee Pyeong-hwa’s confused expression and clicked his tongue softly.
"Just in case, let’s search the area a bit more. We won't be able to progress any further today."
"Alright."
I revived the experience from last ti and searched the old well and other corners, but there was no real gain.
‘If Leo were here, the search would be easier.’
Since our souls are fundantally the sa, even though the dinsion is different, summoning him wouldn't be a problem. But considering Jeong Da-jeong’s safety, I can’t call him recklessly.
Reluctantly, I had no choice but to do it myself.
As I searched the village, the day quickly drew to a close.
The village, which had long been abandoned, looked even more ominous as the red sunset light fell over it.
Lee Pyeong-hwa, looking slightly frightened, asked,
"It seems like people lived here... but where did they all go? Did so epidemic spread and they left or...?"
"We have the purification stone, so that’s fine. It may look a little grueso, but it’s better to rest in a place with at least a roof. Let’s rest here today."
Despite Han Jae-young having brought a tent, it couldn’t block all the cold winds, and sleeping in it would easily drain our stamina.
Almost all the houses were in a state of ruin, but there were a few with intact fras.
We picked the most intact house and unpacked inside.
Although we unpacked, it was just the cumberso military gear.
It’s strange, but being stranded in military uniforms was actually a blessing.
The military uniforms given to special ability users are particularly sturdy and made with camouflage, optimized for exploring such dinsions.
We finished a simple al with preserved food.
It was convenient as there was no need to heat it, but the taste was really awful. It filled us up but didn’t satisfy us.
"Tomorrow, we’ll have to catch so birds."
"It might be better not to waste energy on that. Do you know how to cook? Without salt or pepper, catching sothing won’t do much..."
After finishing the tasteless al and chatting idly with Han Jae-young, it happened.
Rustling!
A tension ran through our bodies.
The three of us stared at each other.
That sound wasn’t made by any of us here.
It wasn’t a sound a bird we had seen so far would make, either.
It was clearly the sound of cloth rubbing together, as if soone was moving.
Han Jae-young mouthed the question.
'It was outside the house, right?'
I nodded and gestured for Lee Pyeong-hwa to step back.
The sound clearly ca from sowhere in the village, not from inside the house.
Whoosh!
Han Jae-young’s arm was suddenly surrounded by magic.
He crouched down and peeked out through the slightly opened door.
"...Huh?"
But then, Han Jae-young uttered an astonished sound.
And I, who had been looking out the window, was also taken aback.
The scene felt extrely surreal.
A red sunset light cast over a village that had crumbled with ti, abandoned and forgotten.
And through the village, a man was walking in.
His hair, appearing red due to the sunset, was originally white.
"Yoo Han-ul?"
At the sound of my voice, the man reacted as expected.
Recognizing us, Yoo Han-ul opened his eyes wide in disbelief.
"...Da-on?"
And in that mont...
The system recognizes ‘Dinsion Stranded’ as a condition.
The system has recognized the user, ‘Jeong Da-on’.
The system is preparing a guide for the user.
The system recognized .
"Wow."
It seed like Han Jae-young saw the system ssage too, and let out a relieved sigh.
"I have no idea what’s going on, but at least we’re out of the stranded state, so that’s a relief."
"Thank goodness!"
Lee Pyeong-hwa looked like she was about to cry.
After all, not only had there been an accident in the military, but now it was a dinsion stranding.
For a 20-year-old newly awakened Hunter, it must have been too big of an issue to handle.
"So, now if we fulfill the clear conditions, we can go back to Korea, right? That’s such a relief!"
Lee Pyeong-hwa said, looking at Yoo Han-ul with sparkling eyes.
It was almost the gaze of soone looking at a hero.
After all, as a citizen of Korea, it was impossible not to know Yoo Han-ul.
"Thank you, Yoo Han-ul Hunter! Did you co to rescue us?"
At those words, Yoo Han-ul looked at and Han Jae-young alternately with a confused expression.
It was clear that he had no idea what was going on.
Contrary to popular belief, Yoo Han-ul was not an omnipotent hero.
"Hm, what do you an? Why is Han Jae-young Hunter here... Da-on, aren't you in basic military training? Stranded? What’s going on?"
As expected.
Yoo Han-ul seed to have 'accidentally' ended up in this dinsion.
I glanced briefly at the system.
The system welcos the user, ‘Jeong Da-on’.
The system activates the quest, ‘You’ll be blessed if you do good deeds’.
As the cursed collar was reattached once again...
The system is collecting information on the unidentified dinsion.
The system has successfully detected the ‘Soul Core’.
As expected.
The system passed on the information about the ‘Soul Core’ to Yoo Han-ul.
And with that system ssage, it seed that the Soul Core also existed in this dinsion.
‘This is bad.’
My ominous suspicions seed to be getting closer to the truth.
"Don’t even get started. Do you know what happened?"
While I was lost in thought reading the system ssages, Han Jae-young began explaining the situation to Yoo Han-ul.
When Yoo Han-ul heard that the trainee Lee Seung-hee went berserk from illegal drug use, his expression darkened.
"To think such drugs made it into the military... there's a level of negligence here."
"I agree. There are many other issues too."
Saying that, Han Jae-young glanced at .
"Thankfully, it’s only been three days since the stranding. At this point, it's more like camping than a real stranding."
"This doesn’t sound that simple."
"So? While we're in this situation, how did Yoo Han-ul Hunter end up here? The system ssage didn’t appear, so I thought it was an unidentified dinsion. Is it connected to Earth?"
At Han Jae-young’s question, Yoo Han-ul’s expression beca ambiguous.
Why is he looking like that?
"Well, I ca here while clearing a newly discovered dungeon."
"Hm... Where was this dungeon?"
"This dungeon... was discovered near Manhattan, New York."
"What?"
Han Jae-young frowned.
"Why were you in New York? Did the governnt let you travel abroad?"
"I’m a citizen with free will, you know."
"You're not just any citizen, you’re Yoo Han-ul. Why New York? Even if, hypothetically, you went to New York, why are you tackling dungeons in another country?"
It was natural for Han Jae-young to be so puzzled.
It wasn’t that Yoo Han-ul couldn’t travel, but being an S-rank Hunter, the conditions for him to go abroad were quite strict.
It was impossible for Yoo Han-ul to be sent outside of Korea without an official reason.
I looked Yoo Han-ul up and down.
"Are you sure you’re not an imposter?"
"Uh, huh?"
"Yeah? Hmm... there’s a possibility."
Yoo Han-ul, receiving our sharp looks, awkwardly laughed.
"What kind of idea is that?"
"It could be a doppelgänger. Maybe it’s modeled after the strongest person we know."
"That makes sense, that makes sense."
"You two... seem to get along better than I thought. Hmm, what should we do? Want to hold hands or sothing?"
Saying that, Yoo Han-ul suddenly extended his hand.
It was likely an invitation to check for magic.
Good opportunity.
"Sure."
I grabbed Yoo Han-ul’s outstretched hand.
I could feel the definite warmth from his calloused, hard hand.
Additionally, I could feel the huge flow of magic underneath his skin.
At first, I held his hand to check if he was real, but once I held it, I was more surprised.
Yoo Han-ul’s magic circuits were... too much.
‘Isn’t this a monster?’
In order to generate an aura, one has to accumulate magic inside their body.
I knew that, but this was different.
Yoo Han-ul’s body seed to possess enough magic to easily destroy a small planet like Earth.
No wonder the system designated him as a ‘Hero.’
‘I’m not sure I could win even if I fought him with my real power.’
No matter how much Yoo Han-ul was a hero in his past life, he wasn’t that much older than ‘Jeong Da-on.’
There wouldn’t have been much ti to accumulate power, so how did such a monster co into being?
Having finished my scan quickly, I let go of his hand, and Yoo Han-ul awkwardly smiled.
"I didn’t an to make you inspect so thoroughly."
"You told to check if you were real."
"Hm, right. I’m glad you feel reassured."
I hadn’t actually been that uneasy.
No matter how much of a doppelgänger it was, it made no sense for an S-rank Hunter like Yoo Han-ul to be imitated so perfectly.
I just needed an excuse to check his full power.
Yoo Han-ul was definitely the most reliable asset in the current situation.
"So, why did you go to New York?"
"Well, it’s confidential."
Lee Pyeong-hwa raised her hand awkwardly with an uncomfortable expression.
"Should I leave?"
"Acting alone in this situation is dangerous... There’s no choice. The relevant parties are here, after all."
Yoo Han-ul wrinkled his nose as he spoke.
"I requested an investigation into the leak of the ‘Smoke’ item from the World Hunter Association."
This referred to the item that had caused trouble during the Gwanghwamun Dungeon Break, which disabled the magic circuits of all Hunters here.
I rembered it was invented in the United States.
"If that item keeps circulating, it’s a problem for all Hunters, not just . It’s too easily disabling."
"Huh, that’s bold."
Han Jae-young seed impressed.
"So, did you throw the docunts in front of the Association Chairman?"
At the follow-up question, Yoo Han-ul shook his head.
"Of course not. Estella wouldn’t tolerate such an attack."
Estella.
That na, frequently ntioned on the news, I knew very well.
The head of the World Hunter Association.
And once regarded as the strongest Hunter.
An S-rank Hunter from the United States, about sixty years old.
Her achievents were so nurous it was almost tireso to list them.
So much so that there was often debate online about who would win if Estella and Yoo Han-ul faced off.
Koreans, considering Estella’s age of sixty, often said Yoo Han-ul would win, but that wasn’t true.
The strength of Hunters is not necessarily proportional to their physical age.
Even now, if she didn’t have the strength, she wouldn’t be the head of the Hunter Association.
Hunters, in the end, are as strong as their own egos, and Estella was no exception.
"However, I did protest, asking if she made the item, she should take responsibility."
"So what did she say?"
"She said she would investigate where it leaked from and send the results."
"She sure knows how to talk."
Han Jae-young scoffed.
"Even so, if it was soone inside the Association, it’s clear they’ll cover it up."
"I think so too. But action must be taken, or else nothing will change."
I didn’t know Estella well, but it was clear Han Jae-young was suspicious of her, and even Yoo Han-ul didn’t seem entirely comfortable with her.
‘I would like to et her in person at least once.’
I had an ability to pierce through soone's soul.
If the other person had been reincarnated, I was confident I would recognize them in person.
If there was an ‘enemy of mankind’ in one of these two organizations—the Central Administrative Office or the Hunter Association—then Estella, the association's chairperson, would definitely be a suspect.
"So, that still doesn’t explain why Yoo Han-ul is tackling a dungeon in New York?"
"...There’s not a huge reason. I was getting a bit of side-eye staying in the Association, so I figured while I was here, I’d train my body and clear an uncaptured dungeon. That’s all."
He said that, but probably ca here because of the information the system had given about the Soul Core.
Han Jae-young, unaware of that fact, clicked his tongue.
"I can’t believe it, being so nice. What good are you doing in another country?"
"It’s not as simple as that... Wait."
Yoo Han-ul suddenly stopped talking.
Rustling!
And in the brief silence, another sound ca.
It was the sa sound we had heard before encountering Yoo Han-ul.
‘Wasn’t that sound made by Yoo Han-ul?’
The timing was so perfect, it made sense that we thought the sound had co from him.
But no.
Swoosh!
Yoo Han-ul silently drew his sword.
Then...
Puff!
The sound of light, quick footsteps echoed.
"Stop right there!"
Behind the crumbling house.
Soone was running away after seeing Yoo Han-ul's drawn sword.
The sound alone suggested they were quite agile, but...
I reached out.
Crack!
Crash!
"You’re being too violent!"
"It’s better than letting them escape."
If they ran into the alley, it would be troubleso.
So I chose to demolish the house where the unknown person was hiding.
The already crumbling house was blown away with just a weak spell.
Then, as the wall flew away, standing before the sword-wielding Yoo Han-ul was...
"...A child?"
Behind the wall, crouching down, was a little child dressed in rags.
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