Originally, the way to complete Jeong Jooil’s endurance quest was to make use of the altar.
In the Catacombs, every ti you moved into a new room, ten or more monsters would appear and chase you. No matter how far you ran, their aggro wouldn’t reset.
That’s why, just like what happened to , you could eventually end up being chased by nearly a hundred monsters at once.
But the mont you discovered and activated an altar, the monsters would fall back into a deathlike slumber, and for the next three minutes, no monsters would appear in any room.
However, once an altar had been activated, it would break and beco unusable. That ant you had to use that three-minute window to find the next one as efficiently as possible.
In other words, the true purpose of the task Jeong Jooil gave us was a tutorial on how to use dungeon gimmicks the ga had prepared.
I hadn’t expected the original 15-minute ga-ti assignnt to beco a 5-hour ordeal, but I wasn’t complaining.
It gave ti to grind levels at my leisure—and even let encounter a Mad Skeleton by pure luck.
“My level jumped all the way to 13…!”
Lumina stared at the air in shock.
‘Do the other characters also see their status displayed like I do?’
For reference, my current level was 12, just one below Lumina’s.
“Yein, what was that monster? How did our levels go up so fast?”
“I don’t know its na. It was my first ti seeing it too. I’d heard it gave a ton of EXP, so I thought it’d be great to run into it—but I didn’t think it’d actually show up.”
I lied, since I couldn’t exactly say I knew it from the ga.
“It was terrifying how it kept crawling even after its legs were gone… I’m just glad we managed to take it down.”
Lumina looked toward the spot where the Mad Skeleton had fallen.
At low levels, the only way to defeat a level 25 Mad Skeleton was by using the altar room.
If you activated the altar just as it entered, it would beco stunned, and its defense would drop.
Keep dealing damage during that window, and eventually, the Mad Skeleton would fall.
It was ant to be a surprise boss—a kind of Easter egg to startle players who tried to cheese the system.
But I always appreciated that even those kinds of Easter eggs had a viable counter-strategy built in.
I walked over to the place where the Mad Skeleton had collapsed.
There, a jet-black gem glowing with a faint blue light lay on the ground.
I bent down to pick it up, and the item’s stats floated into view.
[Corrupted Soul Crystal]
Even after death, the soul found no release. The shattered prison only led to another cage.
It was a strangely poetic item description.
I turned to Lumina.
“Lumina, can I keep this one? I’ll make you so new gear in exchange.”
“Sure, Yein. Do whatever you want.” Lumina smiled brightly, “Honestly, I think you should get all the materials from this practical anyway. I didn’t really do anything.”
“No, Lumina.” I stopped just before heading into the hallway, “Now it’s your turn.”
“Huh?”
Lumina tilted her head in confusion.
After that, I gathered up all the items lying around the corridor.
The narrow hallway was littered with loot dropped from over eighty undead monsters, each of which had been taken down five tis.
In other words, I had defeated around 400 monsters. No wonder the items were piled up.
The most common among them were bone fragnts—standard materials.
I combined those with materials I’d bought from the academy supply shop, like Fla Stones, Magic Steel, and Magic Crystals, and started crafting a new type of item.
“Wow… they’re so pretty.”
Lumina murmured, eyes fixed on what I was holding.
A white ring with a blue gem embedded in it, a necklace made of white beads, and a silver-gray bracelet.
All of them were accessories.
[Craftsman]
With my Craftsman level now at 3, I had unlocked the ability to craft accessories.
In Latessai, accessories were essential for boosting your desired stats.
“Here, Lumina. Take these.”
I handed her two accessories infused with blue light.
[Bone Necklace of Vitality]
A necklace made by shaping bone into beads and stringing them together. At a glance, it could be mistaken for pearls.
HP: 50
MP: 30
[Frostbone Ring]
A magical ring crafted from Frost Stones and bone.
Attack Power: 18–20
Ice Attack Power: 20–25
Frostbite Chance: 15%
In Latessai, if a piece of equipnt’s level exceeded your character’s level, the effectiveness would drop significantly.
So I had factored in both Lumina’s current level—13—and the materials I had on hand to make gear she could use at full strength.
“Th-this is a… a magic item…”
Lumina’s eyes went wide.
“Since it adds ice attack power, you’ll still be able to deal damage to enemies with physical resistance.”
On top of that, the frostbite effect would make battles safer by potentially immobilizing enemies.
“I-Is it really okay for to have this?”
“Of course. I made it for you.”
“Wooooow…!”
Letting out a gasp of awe, Lumina slipped on the ring and necklace, then stared at them in disbelief.
“This is the first ti I’ve ever even touched a magic item… Thank you so much, Yein. I’ll treasure it.”
I could hear how moved she was in her voice, and I nodded in return.
‘HP and MP are the basics. For Lumina, attack power should be the priority. And as for …’
I put on the two bracelets I had left—one on each wrist.
[Bone Bracelet of Protection]
A sturdy bone bracelet reinforced with Magic Steel. Its broad surface can even be used to deflect attacks.
Defense: 15
With that, my total defense from armor, greaves, shield, and two accessories had reached 110.
‘With this much defense, I shouldn’t be getting one-shot in a low-level dungeon.’
Even with my level boosted, my stats were so low that I desperately needed gear support.
When I looked at Lumina again, she was still admiring the ring and necklace.
“Oh, right.”
While checking her equipnt, I realized I had forgotten sothing and quickly crafted another item—once again using bones.
“Lumina. Take this too.”
“Ah…”
Pulled from her trance, Lumina took the item I handed her, looking completely caught off guard.
[Bloody Bone Dagger]
A dagger crafted from ground monster bones. The magic-infused bone is harder than ordinary tal.
Attack Power: 65–88
Defense: 15
Critical Hit Chance: 12%
Critical Damage Boost: 10%
Bleed Chance: 30%
Bleed caused continuous damage over ti to monsters like beasts or beastn.
While it wasn’t useful in undead-heavy Catacombs, it would co in handy in future dungeons.
As expected of a magic item, its stats—from attack to critical damage—surpassed the old Red Iron Dagger by far.
“It’s a better weapon than the Red Iron Dagger I gave you before, so it should co in handy.”
After saying that, I pointed to Lumina’s waist.
“Now hand over the Red Iron Dagger. I’ll dispose of it.”
And at that mont, Lumina’s expression froze.
“D-Dispose of it…?”
“Yeah. You've got a better weapon now, so you don’t need the old one.”
“Th-That’s…”
Lumina looked back and forth between the Red Iron Dagger at her waist and the bone dagger I had just given her, then took a small step back.
When I gave her a puzzled look, she slowly opened her mouth.
“S-Sorry… It was the first weapon you ever made for , so when you said you were going to throw it away, I just…”
Her voice trembled with emotion, soft and moist in my ears once again.
“But… you gave it to in the first place… so I guess I shouldn’t act selfishly. Here.”
Lumina gave a bitter smile and held out the Red Iron Dagger.
“…You can keep it.”
“Huh!?”
Her eyes widened in surprise.
I had just gotten higher-level materials from the recent hunt anyway. Even if I dismantled the Red Iron Dagger, it was a low-level item and wouldn’t give much EXP.
“It’s really okay?”
I nodded.
“Thank you, Yein! I’ll treasure it!”
Lumina’s face instantly brightened as she hugged the dagger tightly against her chest like it was a beloved doll.
I couldn’t understand the attachnt, but if she liked it that much, I supposed it didn’t matter.
“Lumina, now try hunting the undead in this dungeon with that new bone dagger.”
“Okay! I can use Stealth again, so—”
“No. Don’t use Stealth.”
“Huh?”
“You’ve leveled up a lot. You should be able to handle it. I’ll support you from behind and pull you out if anything goes wrong.”
Lumina looked a little anxious at first, but then she gently ran her hands over the bone dagger and leather gear I’d given her.
“Alright. I’ll give it a try, Yein.”
“Great. Let’s go.”
Together, we stepped out of the altar room and headed to the next chamber.
“I’m starting it now.”
I grabbed one of the few Spike Bombs I had left and signaled. Lumina nodded in response.
I threw the bomb into the corridor just beyond the door, and monsters ca pouring out of the shattered stone coffins.
“Hoo… hoo… huff!”
Lumina took a deep breath—then charged forward.
I kept my grip tight on another Spike Bomb, ready to throw it at any mont as I watched over her.
The undead turned toward Lumina as she rushed at them.
“Aaaahhh!!”
Lumina let out a cry—whether it was a battle shout or a scream was hard to tell—as she lunged in with her white dagger and dove straight into the middle of the monsters.
The outco was exactly what I’d expected.
She cut through the monsters with ease, moving faster than they could react.
Every ti her dagger slashed, frost scattered in the air—thanks to the ring that granted Ice Elental Attack.
Even with a D-grade Constitution, Lumina was already level 13.
The recomnded level for the first floor of the Catacombs was between 4 and 7.
And now she was ard with gear that exceeded that level range. The monsters were no match for her.
‘Looks like she won’t need any help at all.’
I stood back with a satisfied smile, watching Lumina fight.
Before I knew it, the tension had faded from her expression as she beca completely absorbed in the battle.
After that, we—well, Lumina, really—stayed in one room and kept repeating the sa process: wait for about twenty monsters to respawn, then take them out, then wait again.
It took almost an hour.
‘Now that she’s in the double digits, it’s taking more ti. And since this is real ti, not ga ti, it feels even longer.’
Back in the ga, a quick hunt would pass an entire day or night cycle, but here it felt completely different.
‘Still, thanks to Lumina, I haven’t had to use any of my resources.’
I’d used a lot of Spike Bombs during the corridor luring and the Mad Skeleton battle.
But those weren’t free.
Getting the materials to craft bombs required either purchasing from instructors or spending money—there was always a cost.
anwhile, Lumina was defeating the monsters with just basic attacks—no Stealth, no Skill Gems.
The aggro was focused entirely on her. All I had to do was stand and watch.
I didn’t even need to use more bombs or the potions I’d brought along.
‘Still… she moves impressively well.’
Watching her fight, I realized how amazing a Hunter with magic truly was.
No matter how much she ran, dodged, or swung her dagger, Lumina didn’t seem to get tired at all.
‘When I played the ga, I always wondered how characters could keep moving nonstop… Seeing it in real life, it’s almost eerie.’
Now that I thought about it, I hadn’t felt tired either, despite running through multiple rooms earlier.
Even though I was breathing hard, my body felt perfectly fine—it was a strange and magical sensation.
[Your Hunter Level has increased.]
“Oh.”
With that last wave, I had reached level 15.
Lumina had already hit level 15 before .
“Lumina! We’re good now!”
“Okay!”
She nodded and swiftly sliced down the two monsters in front of her in one clean motion.
“Let’s go take down the boss.”
“Got it!”
Oh wow—her voice was brimming with confidence.
After cutting down hundreds of monsters for two hours, she really had beco a proper Hunter.
Using the clues around the corridor and doors, I led Lumina to the boss room.
The boss of Catacombs Floor 1 was the Poison Mummy—a mummy wrapped in purple bandages.
It released poisonous gas, so bringing an antidote was mandatory—
Slice.
“Graaahhh…”
The boss monster was cut diagonally from shoulder to waist and collapsed without much resistance.
“Ah! Yein! It dropped an item!”
Lumina shouted brightly as her Stealth wore off.
“…Haha.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
All that effort to gear her up and level her… it had paid off.
“Nice job. Let’s head to the second floor.”
“Huh? The second floor?”
Lumina blinked in confusion.
“Our assignnt was to survive five hours on the first floor, right?”
“Yeah, but even after defeating the boss, monsters still spawn endlessly on the first floor. On the second floor, they don’t appear unless you trigger specific traps.”
Each new floor had its own dungeon gimmick.
“So we just go up to the second floor, chill there for a bit, and co back down to the first floor when the ti’s almost up and exit through the return portal. Since this place is an isolated dungeon, no one’s monitoring us anyway. Let’s go take a nap or sothing.”
“B-But…”
“It’s fine. The bla’s on Jeong Jooil for not coming in to check on us.”
I gave her a playful grin.
Eventually, Lumina let out a small laugh and nodded.
“Well, but still…”
Just as we were about to take the portal to the second floor, Lumina hesitated and spoke.
“Ye-Yein, how do you know so much about dungeons? I looked stuff up online too, but I couldn’t find anything about what we saw today.”
I fell silent for a mont.
I’d expected this question to co up eventually.
According to the internet here, basic dungeon info was publicly available, but anything detailed required guild mbership or connections.
So it was only natural that Lumina would wonder where I was getting my intel.
“Well, actually…”
“Y-Yeah?”
“You can’t tell anyone about this…”
“O-Okay…”
Even though there was no one else around, I leaned in and whispered dramatically, and Lumina leaned forward, her face tense.
“I know a guy who’s super knowledgeable about dungeons.”
“!”
Her eyes went wide.
“He goes by Hunter H. He’s kind of a legendary source of information. I t him online by chance, and we beca friends. Thanks to him, I’ve learned a lot.”
“Wow… so you’ve got connections like that…”
Her eyes sparkled with admiration.
I held a finger to my lips and said,
“He doesn’t like to be known. But you’re my precious teammate, so I told you.”
“Precious…!”
Her eyes widened again, then her lips curled into a smile.
“Okay! I’ll never tell anyone about Hunter H!”
“Thanks. I appreciate it, Lumina.”
I smiled back.
For the record, H’s full na was Hong Heecheol.
“Let’s head to the second floor.”
“Okay!”
As soon as we arrived on the second floor, we collapsed onto the wide open floor and took a break.
We even got a nap in before an alarm went off.
“Yaaawn.”
Lumina stretched and yawned.
I checked my smartwatch.
6:31 p.m.
It had been five hours and one minute since we’d entered the dungeon.
We returned to the boss room on the first floor and stepped into the return portal. Outside, a deep sunset blanketed the sky.
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
Lumina and I both spoke at the sa ti.
“Where is everybody?”
She looked around in confusion.
There were no students. No instructors. No bus.
“……”
I checked my watch again.
6:33 p.m.
It had been five hours and three minutes since we entered the dungeon.
Then, Jeong Jooil’s voice echoed in my head, “I don’t expect incompetent Hunter trainees like you to last the full five hours. Just co back right away. I don’t want to bother waiting around that long.”
‘Don’t tell … that bastard abandoned us?’
My head went numb.
(End of Chapter)
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