Khunak and Robern simultaneously shifted their gaze to the orb.
The orb turned green.
This was the signal for mission completion.
Khunak’s sword tip lowered. Robern sheathed his sword and extended his hand.
With a swoosh, a cloak flew and draped over his shoulders.
The cloak’s string tied itself into a neat knot, showcasing an astonishing display of how delicately he controlled mana.
“B-rank is no joke.”
With that, he smiled lightly at Khunak.
“Then, I’ll go first. Why don’t you take care of that contamination before coming over?”
Robern said that and crossed the boundary of the dungeon first.
Khunak gritted his teeth and tried to control his cursed sword.
It was getting harder day by day.
His mind grew hazy. What frightened him the most was the thought of losing control, going berserk, and turning into a monster.
He struggled but finally managed to sheath the cursed sword. Carefully, Khunak crossed the boundary.
❖ ❖ ❖
When the dungeon core was removed, everything in the dungeon changed.
In the cave, crystallized sugar and various plants rapidly grew.
“Wow…”
Doah held the dungeon core and looked around.
The area was suddenly filled with glowing moss, and rather large trees grew.
Abundant plants, which could be used as herbs, thrived, and a spring started flowing from the crevices of the rocks.
Crystals of all kinds sprouted everywhere.
Rare minerals, including crystallized sugar as large as her forearm, were present.
“Amazing.”
Doah stared at the dungeon core in her hand.
The A-rank dungeon core was about the size of an apple.
‘It’s big and heavy.’
She could feel the swirling energy inside.
Carefully, she placed the dungeon core into her pocket and hugged Sea King tightly.
“You’ve worked so hard. Thank you, Sea King.”
Regaining her senses, she felt Sea King persistently licking her hand and cheek.
Her entire body tingled before the sensations gradually returned.
If the dungeon core wasn’t removed, the monsters would continue to spawn.
Doah didn’t even think of looking at her own body; instead, she scanned her surroundings.
The dungeon core was embedded on a low pedestal that had appeared out of nowhere, glowing softly.
Wondering how to remove it, she touched the core, and it popped out easily.
At the same time, energy from the dimensional rift, no longer supplied to the core, exploded in all directions, transforming the dungeon.
‘Mission Complete!’
Doah silently celebrated with a triumphant pose, lifting the core high.
She then retrieved the small cabin.
Knowing how valuable it was, she resolved never to lose it.
She eagerly began collecting items.
Doah meticulously examined the ground, looking for anything useful.
“Ah, there it is!”
The items dropped by the Skeleton General and Skeleton Mage looked expensive.
Above all, the head of the bone dragon was still intact.
“Dragon teeth must be valuable too, right?”
Although there was no dragon hide or scales, wouldn’t the bones also fetch a high price?
Upon closer inspection, the giant bones were not just plain white. When light hit them, they emitted a rainbow-like glow.
Thinking she should get them appraised later, Doah first picked up the items scattered on the ground.
“Crystallized sugar! I’m taking this too.”
Would she need a pickaxe for this?
While Doah was struggling to break the sugar with the side of her hand, an incredulous voice called out from behind.
“Does every B-rank have a hobby of smashing sugar?”
“Robern?”
Startled, Doah turned to look at him.
“What? How did you get here?”
“There’s no place I can’t go.”
He said this as he looked around.
“Why are you breaking the sugar?”
“Because I need sugar.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to ask the guild to collect it later?”
When Doah turned to him, saying, ‘The guild?’ Robern frowned.
“Is your brain also B-rank? Surely, you don’t plan to leave this dungeon unattended or handle it on your own.”
“Uh…”
“So your brain really is B-rank. If you leave it to the guild, they’ll take care of everything for you.”
“Then what about the sugar…?”
“They’ll give you the main items you need, and anything unnecessary will be auctioned off.”
“I’ll leave it to the guild.”
Muttering, Doah looked around.
She still wanted to gather the precious herbs and the golden spring water flowing nearby.
Taking out her herbalist set, Doah quickly collected the materials.
“Would you sell this to me?”
Robern asked while caressing one of the dragon’s fangs.
Doa stuck out her tongue.
“Buy it at the auction later.”
“Tsk.”
Robern raised his hands in mock defeat and squinted at Doah.
“B-rank, your body—”
“Miss Doah!”
Khunak came rushing in, almost rolling.
“Ah, Khunak.”
Doah raised her hand, but Khunak pulled her into a tight hug.
“Urk—”
For a moment, she couldn’t breathe.
Khunak froze. His hand had come into contact with an arrow shaft.
Slowly, he let go of Doah.
It was a wonder she was standing there like nothing was wrong.
Why was she standing as if she couldn’t feel anything?
Three or four arrows were stuck in her back.
If she had been moving around like this, the muscles in her back would have been wrecked.
Moreover, there were cuts on her limbs, and her shoulder…
“Miss Doah, are you alright…?”
Bewildered, Doah examined her body.
Moments later, she looked at her shoulder and gasped. The damage was far worse than she realized.
Looking closely now, her shoulder seemed completely crushed.
‘I had pain perception turned off, so I didn’t realize it!’
A chill ran down her spine.
Doah stammered as she spoke.
“Uh, it’s because I took pain-relieving medicine, so I didn’t notice.”
For a moment, both Robern and Khunak stiffened.
Doah was the one who felt more confused by their reaction.
“I’ll be fine if I use a potion.”
As she hurriedly took out a potion with her other hand, Robern remarked,
“Is every B-rank into chewing cheap hallucinogens instead of using good potions? Unbelievable.”
“It’s not a hallucinogen—”
“Miss Doah, please lie down. We need to remove the arrows first.”
Hearing the restrained tone in Khunak’s voice, Doah obediently lay down.
“If you still have that hallucinogen, you might want to chew some more. It’ll hurt when we twist the arrowheads out.”
Robern spoke in a tone that was hard to discern as sarcastic or not, while Khunak handed her a leather dagger sheath.
It felt inappropriate to refuse, so Doah bit into the sheath without protest.
Soon after, she felt the dagger cutting into her back and the arrowheads being pulled out.
Seeing Doah not even flinch, Robern clicked his tongue.
“You must have taken quite a lot. Are you still numb?”
Doah wanted to retort, but the sheath in her mouth made it impossible.
Next, she felt potions being applied. One by one, her other wounds were treated in the same way.
Khunak kindly explained that her shoulder was shattered.
‘So I swung that huge sword with a shoulder like this?’
Most likely, the bone had been crushed, but the mana remained in its place and substituted its role.
As Doah dazedly contemplated this, Khunak poured potion over her wounds and added,
“The potion will heal even the exposed bones.”
Her injuries slowly began to heal.
‘Turn pain perception back on.’
Finally, Doah reactivated her pain perception.
The recovery pain hit her hard. It hurt so much that tears welled up in her eyes.
As Doah squirmed in pain, both men finally seemed relieved.
Doah’s green eyes filled with tears, and a single drop rolled down her cheek.
“That’s a relief.”
Khunak gently wiped the tear away.
“It really hurts.”
“It seems your senses are returning. Is the hallucinogen wearing off?”
Robern commented coolly.
Doah had no energy to argue. She simply realized how exhausting physical pain could be.
Khunak asked her,
“Are there any other injuries?”
“Ah, no. I’m fine… It’s just the recovery pain.”
Khunak offered her his back.
“Please climb on.”
“I want to say I can walk, but I’ll just take you up on that offer.”
Her whole body ached so much that she would likely cry if she tried walking.
Doah climbed onto Khunak’s back.
“Ah…”
Khunak’s back was wide, warm, and comforting.
‘Now that I think about it, it’s been a long time since someone carried me like this.’
“Khunak.”
“Yes.”
“Thank you.”
“…It’s nothing.”
Doah let out a sigh.
‘I managed to solo this dungeon, but it was beyond my actual skill.’
Honestly, she had relied on the help of items.
As she looked at Khunak, Doah glanced back at Robern.
‘Could these two be capable? No, let’s say I became this strong after a hundred years of training. But these two? How is it even possible?’
They were said to be geniuses among geniuses, but wasn’t this a bit much?
Aren’t they the ones out of the norm here?
I’m just an honest, hard-working individual.
She grumbled quietly to herself.
“Miss Doah, are you alright?”
Still, Khunak’s voice filled with concern for her made Doah feel better.
Her body still ached, but she was okay.
Resting her cheek against Khunak’s back, Doah murmured,
“I’m fine. Can we go outside now? I miss the sunlight so much.”
Hearing her words, Khunak smiled.
“Of course. Let’s head out.”
❖ ❖ ❖
[The Arrival of a Super Rookie]
[Rebellion of the B-rank]
[Solo raid at A-rank Dungeon?!]
Gran was abuzz with excitement over the monstrous rookie’s arrival.
For starters, Yan was the loudest of them all.
Yan told everyone that Doah had entered an A-rank dungeon alone.
He even subtly organized a betting pool.
At first, it didn’t gain much traction.
No one was betting on Doah coming back alive.
Everyone unanimously agreed that it was reckless.
“Come on, Guildmaster. How can a B-rank rookie solo an A-rank dungeon?”
“It’s just a shame, wasting a life like that.”
“Where did this A-rank dungeon even pop up?”
They were full of doubts.
The turning point was Emperor Robern.
Robern casually said, “I’ll bet on the B-rank returning,” and laid down a hundred gold coins.
He added,
“That B-rank? She’s vouched for by the cursed sword.”
The guild exploded into a frenzy.
Rumors about Doah spread like wildfire.
“She’s from the southern continent.”
“Azure Nazac, they say.”
“No, not just any Azure Nazac. But THE REAL! Azure Nazac!”
“What are the odds?”
As the betting pool heated up, so did the money flowing into it, and the entire Gran, a city that loved adventurers, became electrified.
Some even approached Khunak to extract information.
It became a common topic in taverns.
If people ran out of things to talk about, they would spend an hour debating, “Will that B-rank succeed?”
In the midst of all this uproar:
“Is it really Kim Doah? Azure Nazac?”
Even the secret chambers of the Information Guild were filled with a cold excitement.
“Yes, it’s confirmed. Registered with the guild.”
“Ha, so it’s true. It’s really true.”
“What should we do?”
“What do you think? We give the client their answer.”
The guildmaster smirked.
“Contact the Elmond Duke House.”
“Yes, sir.”
After his subordinate saluted and left, the Information Guildmaster leaned back, interlocking his fingers behind his head.
‘Who would’ve thought this commission would actually come to fruition?’
The Elmond Duke House was renowned across the continent for its wealth but was more famously known among the people for a different incident.
The former duke’s romantic scandal.
Among the three great families of the World Tree, one family caused a continental uproar by abducting and marrying the daughter of another.
Despite furious protests from the bride’s family—enough to spit fire and scream their eyes out—the Elmond Duke House didn’t even blink.
‘What was the bride’s name again…? It was a flower name.’
The guildmaster tilted his head.
One would think an information guildmaster would have an excellent memory, but the sheer influx of information meant he quickly discarded irrelevant details.
‘Anyway.’
The important matter wasn’t that story.
The Elmond family had discreetly requested a commission.
Their request was simple: to be informed of anyone who matched these three criteria:
1. Green eyes.
2. Kim Doah.
3. Female.
The reward for this commission was set exceptionally high.
The request had no expiration date, leading to massive ongoing additional fees.
‘And now she appears as this famous figure.’
Feeling as if he were earning free money, the guildmaster decided to include additional details about Doah in his report, sending it as a bonus.
Roughly a month after adventurers left for the dungeon as part of the exploration guild’s assignment, Doah succeeded in clearing it.
Her claim of taking one month had drawn a crowd to the adventurer’s guild on the very day.
This was because the adventurer’s guild provided real-time updates on whether a dungeon had been cleared.
But as the 35th day passed and the dungeon’s status light remained yellow, the waiting crowd began to lose hope and left in disappointment.
“She must’ve died.”
“B-rank? Seriously.”
“That was pure arrogance.”
“Well, what’s the payout for failure?”
“Wait a second, give it another day or two. There can be slight discrepancies, right? It’s not like the bet had a fixed date.”
“What, are we supposed to wait indefinitely then?”
Gran’s residents shook their heads, pitying the reckless rookie, mourning her loss, and even mocking her.
The initial disappointment passed, and the next day—
Doah emerged victorious.
The reversal generated just as much excitement as the prior deflation.
Everywhere—in squares, shops, taverns, restaurants, and streets—
“Did you hear about it?!”
People raised their voices.
Her subsequent withdrawal to a manor for recovery only intensified the buzz.
“They say two S-rankers escorted her back.”
“Incredible.”
“Well, if she’s from the southern continent, that makes sense. Have you ever seen someone from there who didn’t become famous?”
Daily attempts were made to uncover even a shred of information about the super rookie.
Lines formed at the adventurer’s guild, with people persistently seeking confirmation.
Yan, in particular, broke out in cold sweat as he fended off market vendors and council members trying to invite Doah for meetings.
“She’s still recovering.”
“She’s not well.”
In response, people insisted, “Then we’ll visit her,” “We’ll send flowers,” or “Can’t we at least write her a letter?”
