Stirring (3)
Generally, the core of a dungeon can be considered its heart.
In other words, if the core is destroyed, the dungeon is also destroyed, gradually losing its form and disappearing.
Because of this, the dungeon provides itself with a guardian to protect its core.
That is the boss monster that typically exists in dungeons.
"But Erosion Dungeons are different."
Unlike regular dungeons, erosion Dungeons gradually transform a certain region into their own ecosystem.
Monsters are born, magic stones appear, and the land spews out demonic energy.
To stop this, just as with regular dungeons, the core must be destroyed.
The problem is that this core is completely different from that of a normal dungeon.
"The dungeon core first fuses with the being it touches. And it becomes the 'boss monster' like in a normal dungeon. In other words, the core itself is the boss of this dungeon."
At my explanation, Soo-ah's face turned aghast.
It was clear that only a very few people in modern times would know this.
From the beginning, except for a handful that appeared in the early days, 'Erosion Dungeons' were quickly subjugated, and their occurrence was much rarer.
The reason for this, as I mentioned before, is that Erosion Dungeons cannot form on their own unless demons are involved.
"Is that... is that even possible? Then... the core doesn't just stay in its original place?"
"Correct. Of course it moves around. And as the core-turned-boss monster moves, the region of the Erosion Dungeon expands as well. Have you heard of the Five Great Demonic Zones? The reason the entire Sahara Desert became a massive dungeon was because the boss monster moved actively, and humanity realized it too late."
In that sense, the current situation was quite a headache.
Recalling Ah-yeon's urgent words, it seemed certain that Ji Yeon-hwa was the one who came into contact with the core.
'Why did Ji Yeon-hwa come in contact with the core?'
With that level of skill, she should know about the Erosion Dungeon... No, perhaps she didn't know about the core. After all, by the time an Erosion Dungeon is discovered, the boss monster has already formed, so there's a good chance she never learned how a boss monster is made.
'If we can't stop this properly, the shoot is out the window, isn't it?'
In truth, putting filming aside, significant casualties could occur.
I realized now wasn't the time to worry about the mission.
【Ah-yeon, do any of the other Hunters know about this?】
【Hunter Baek Hojun and I know. And the film crew seems to have noticed that Ji Yeon-hwa is acting differently from before. But... 】
【They haven't decided what to do yet?】
【Yeah, that's pretty much the feeling.】
At the very least, this meant that Ji Yeon-hwa, presumed to have fused with the core, was heading toward the film crew.
It would have been urgent if she was going after the other Hunters, but since Ah-yeon and Baek Hojun were with the film crew, and there were other mentor-level Hunters there, surely they could handle one Ji Yeon-hwa?
'Though, this is an S-rank-level Hunter who's been eroded, so it might be a bit much.'
Those who are eroded typically become abnormally powerful.
If Ji Yeon-hwa really was eroded, she had to possess strength surpassing S-rank.
'How much time until the mission is over?'
According to what Baek Hojun said at the beginning, we needed to reach the destination within ten hours.
About four hours had passed so far, so there was still a fairly comfortable margin.
'... Let's think positively.'
If I could use this well, maybe I could bring forward Soo-ah's awakening.
When else would such a formidable enemy appear?
"Soo-ah-ssi, I'm sorry to ask, but could you accompany me for a moment?"
"... Is this by any chance related to the Erosion Dungeon you just mentioned?"
"Yes."
Soo-ah had to know how important this mission was.
That's why it was hard to suggest this recklessly.
If she refused, I would just go on my own...
"Alright. What do you need me to do?"
Unexpectedly, Soo-ah accepted my request readily.
"Are you really okay with this? If something goes wrong, you may not be able to complete the third mission properly."
"Yes, the shoot isn't the issue now, is it? Besides, even if my Super Hunter K results aren't very good, I should be able to work at Unique...that's enough for me."
She said this with a gentle smile, looking utterly unconcerned.
She still lacked confidence, but her ability to express herself had clearly improved compared to before.
"Then let's go."
"W-wait. You still haven't told me what I need to do..."
"The thing you do best, Soo-ah-ssi."
If Soo-ah's ability was what I thought it was...
"Combat."
Soo-ah could become the key card to deal with the eroded Ji Yeon-hwa.
***
From a young age, she was called a prodigy of magic.
No one could catch up to her.
She was told she was the one who would lead the Korean magic world.
Those words became her foundation.
Her pride.
But at some point, people stopped calling her a prodigy.
Because a girl appeared who was given the title of Great Mage before she turned twenty.
At first, it was admiration.
A sense that it was amazing for someone so young to attain the Great Mage's qualification.
Then came desire.
From childhood until now, past thirty, she had dedicated her life to magic.
She did not want to fall behind a girl ten years her junior.
With her own pride as a prodigy, she thought she could do it.
Thus, desire became craving.
She began to feel inadequate in the talent she'd always considered prodigious.
For the first time, she realized she was falling behind and losing.
'And, resentment.'
Some things are simply impossible.
It didn't take long to realize that.
Resentment turned to despair, and it was not long before society's interest, which once praised her as a prodigy, flowed entirely to Shin Ah-yeon. Admiration, desire, craving, resentment, despair. For years, all those feelings were solely focused on one person.
Then news came that all of Shin Ah-yeon's mana hall was destroyed.
To be honest, she felt joy.
If only Shin Ah-yeon disappeared, she could become the best again, as in the past.
But in the three years since Shin Ah-yeon vanished, people could not forget her.
If Shin Ah-yeon were here, the Korean magic community wouldn't be ignored like this.
The pride in being one of the few countries with a Great Mage.
All that had vanished, and so people paid little attention to Ji Yeon-hwa.
'Ah, I should become Shin Ah-yeon.'
She realized that.
So, she tried every means to become Shin Ah-yeon.
She learned of the ultimate magic stone in that process.
If absorbed, it was a panacea that would heighten one's sensitivity to magic power and increase the size of one's mana halls.
After absorbing it, Ji Yeon-hwa's skills improved by leaps and bounds.
Just like when she first learned magic.
Maybe that's why she became more obsessed with it.
As if she had become a genius again.
And so.
"Hu, hunter Yeon-hwa? W-what's going on all of a sudden?!"
At a familiar voice, she looked straight ahead.
'Who was that...'
A familiar face. But she couldn't quite recall.
Ju Ji-sang, that's what they used to call him—if she remembered right.
"Move."
"I-I'll move, S-so just, please release this!"
"Release? Release what?"
At that, she turned her eyes to where Ju Ji-sang's gaze was fixed.
There, black, branch-like things extended from her own shadow and were binding Ju Ji-sang's ankles.
'Did I do that?'
Why? For what reason?
She couldn't figure it out.
'Where was I even going in the first place?'
It felt like she had been heading toward someone.
Her instincts screamed that she had to keep moving, but more than that, she wanted to meet someone.
Who was it?
Who was she looking for?
"Move."
"W-wait! Why are you acting this way! I'll move right away if you just let go of this...!"
"If you don't want to move, I can't help it."
Scarlet flames began to blaze along Ji Yeon-hwa's shadow.
The flames burned the black branches holding Ju Ji-sang's ankles and spread to his feet.
Scritch!!
The moment the black flames touched his ankles, a sword strike surrounded by blue fire sliced through it.
As soon as the black fire met the blue, it sputtered out and scattered into the air.
"What the..."
Ji Yeon-hwa looked at the person who had just cut through her 'magic'.
Another familiar woman.
But, like Ju Ji-sang, she couldn't remember well.
To her, she was just a 'familiar woman'.
'Lee Soo...ah? I think that was the name.'
Nothing more, nothing less.
But.
She clearly remembered the man standing behind that woman.
"You."
Shin Ah-yeon's manager.
Yes, Shin Ah-yeon. Shin Ah-yeon's manager.
"Where is she?"
At Ji Yeon-hwa's chilly voice, the air grew heavy.
As if the surroundings' "ecosystem" was under her control, everything resonated with her emotions.
"Who do you mean?"
Despite that, Jung-woo asked calmly.
"That woman."
"So, who?"
"Shin... Ah-yeon, right. Shin Ah-yeon. Where is Shin Ah-yeon? You know, don't you?"
"Of course."
Jung-woo nodded lightly.
Ji Yeon-hwa didn't like Jung-woo's attitude, but she didn't care, so she continued.
"Where."
"Behind you."
"...?!"
KWAANG!!
A furious explosion struck Ji Yeon-hwa's back.
Even so, Ji Yeon-hwa only staggered back a few steps, without much damage.
"Haaa!!"
At the same time, dozens of blades enveloped in pure white light fell vertically.
They slashed through the black shadows encasing Ji Yeon-hwa, but didn't even leave a scratch.
'... Oh.'
That was the highest firepower Shin Ah-yeon could unleash for now.
And even with the sword strike of S-rank Hunter Baek Hojun, all he could do was destroy some of the shadows encasing Ji Yeon-hwa—no significant damage was dealt.
'This is really tough.'
Clearly, Ji Yeon-hwa's power was the real thing.
She truly was a mage approaching S-rank.
Given more time, she probably had enough strength to reach S-rank several times over, and now, fused with the core, that strength had increased several levels.
S-rank over—the phrase wasn't just a guess, it was a fact.
"Hunter Ju Ji-sang! What are you doing? Are you just going to stand there?!"
"N-no!"
Since Ji Yeon-hwa was heading toward where the film crew was, Jung-woo, with Ah-yeon and Baek Hojun's help, immediately blocked Ji Yeon-hwa's path before any harm could occur.
He hadn't expected Ju Ji-sang to run into Ji Yeon-hwa in the process, but since there was no damage, that was fine.
"Oppa, but I don't think I can handle this. That was a spell filled with all my recent annoyance and it didn't even leave a scratch."
"What circle are you at now?"
"Still 6th-circle."
If she had reached 7th-circle, she'd have more powerful attack magic, but it was clear that at 6th-circle, she couldn't inflict any real damage to Ji Yeon-hwa in this state.
"Shin, Ah-yeon. Yeah, Shin Ah-yeon. It is you. So you did come here."
Ji Yeon-hwa was now half-insane.
Out of her mouth now came only words related to Ah-yeon.
"W-why is she like that? She always started fights herself, so why is she acting like this?"
"How should I know?"
From the first time he'd seen her, Ji Yeon-hwa was strangely obsessed with Ah-yeon.
Jung-woo could only guess that obsession had become even bigger through fusion with the core.
"What should we do?!"
Hojun held his sword upright, wary of Ji Yeon-hwa, and asked Jung-woo.
Jung-woo, on the other hand, was dumbfounded.
"Hunter Baek Hojun, you could easily handle her, couldn't you?"
"Yes, I can fight her, but I can't save her."
"Save her? That thing?"
"Huh?"
Only then did Hojun turn to Jung-woo with a puzzled look, as if he'd caught the odd nuance in Jung-woo's words.
"... Shin Ah-yeon-nim said Manager Park would know a way to save her."
"Huh?"
Jung-woo had only come to block Ji Yeon-hwa—not to save her.
At Jung-woo's reaction, Ah-yeon grabbed Jung-woo's sleeve in dismay.
"Huh? You don't know? I thought you'd obviously know this!"
I hadn't expected the downside of always pretending to know everything to catch up to me like this.
"... Well, it's not that I don't know at all."
"R-really? See, I knew you'd know."
"There's no way to save her."
"?"
I pointed at Ji Yeon-hwa.
If you meant dealing with someone in that state, I could say I had an answer.
But it wasn't a method to 'save' Ji Yeon-hwa, as Baek Hojun had just mentioned.
"A being fused with the core loses reason and becomes a demon."
Why can Erosion Dungeons only arise when demons are involved?
The answer is simple.
The dungeon core is the 'heart of a demon'.
In other words, absorbing the dungeon core means becoming one with a demon's heart.
Simply put, it's the same as becoming a demon.
But the human body and mind cannot withstand a demon's power.
So, a person who accepts the heart becomes a massacre-driven monster, endlessly expanding its territory as an invasion weapon.
"To separate it from the dungeon core and return them to being human—there is no way to do that, as far as I know."
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Damn, even Jung-woo doesn't know. Hmm.
【(⩌_⩌ )】