".. uhhh."
A yawn slipped out. Despite blinking frequently, I felt even drowsier. Once I stepped out, I needed to head straight to the hotel and get some good sleep. It shouldn't have been too late.
"The newbie haven't contacted yet."
Perhaps they're busy with their aftercare. Anyway, I just wanted to sleep. Although there were many things to think about, my mind wasn't functioning well right now. Yawning again, I descended from Peace's back. Though Peace had reduced his size, he seemed to sense my fatigue and gently nudged against me without urging me to hold him.
"Um, Ahjush"
Yerim approached, scrutinizing my complexion. I felt sorry for causing her to worry so much. I was about to say that I was just feeling a bit sleepy, but I belatedly noticed Yerim hesitating. She seemed to have something to say... Ah.
"Did you safely receive the Spirit's Egg?"
"Yes!"
Yerim answered with a bright smile as if she had been waiting, but then lowered her voice. It seemed like she felt sorry for being happy when I wasn't feeling well. She didn't need to. Thankfully, it was probably all thanks to Hyuna's intervention.
I didn't want to leave Yerim out, but I also didn't want to expose her to the grim realities. Being young, and witnessing the instability of adults, especially their guardians, wouldn't do any good. Even though Yerim was an S-rank hunter, ordinary kids couldn't do anything, which would only make them more anxious
It's much better for children not to experience the fear of swallowing their fear while keeping an eye on them.
To not exclude her and not make her anxious, I had to do well. But now my heart felt much lighter.
"Thank goodness. Let's take a look. Is it the same here?"
It must have been frustrating to wait until we arrived at the accommodation because there are many eyes outside the dungeon. Curious, I asked, and Yerim excitedly reached into her inventory again and took out the egg. The small oval egg was gently cradled in Yerim's hands, its sapphire color shimmering like waves.
Depending on the direction of the sunlight, it sparkled like a gem made of water. It was really beautiful.
"I had to give all the points, but it wasn't a waste at all."
It was fortunate that she had diligently saved them. Yerim smiled gleefully. In her expectant eyes, I received the egg from her.
[Blue Egg - SSS Grade]
The description of the egg was identical to the red one when Yerin was born.
"The newbie is cheeky. Even though all I did was transfer the acquired item, they took all the points."
"Oh, it was a person who appeared in the point settlement space, not a volleyball."
"Didn't they have dog-like ears?"
"No. It was a woman in a suit. Normally, I wouldn't be able to transfer it like this, but they said it was a special case and took all the points."
"A woman in a suit? Who's that?"
Who was the person who called themselves a woman before? A deer? It seemed like the newbie was too busy to come out, so they did it on their behalf.
"What kind of spirit do you hope for?"
"It just needs to be sturdy and healthy! The stronger, the better. Spirits can disappear if they get too injured, you know. I'll take good care of it, but still."
I remembered Changeling's words about growing as I wished. Changeling's attribute could change itself, and although fundamental changes aren't usually possible, maybe it could provide some positive influence.
...but I don't know how to do it. While petting it a few times, I put the egg in my inventory for now.
"Yoohyun, did you exchange points well too?"
"Yeah. I exchanged them for skills
Although he didn't explain in detail, his expression showed satisfaction. Unlike weapons, skills are something that several S-grade hunters gathered here can't openly talk about.
"But I only got the system window. There wasn't even a woman in a suit or a volleyball."
"Oh, really? Maybe Yerim was a special case who came out personally."
As Yerim and Yoohyun talked about point settlements, Peace nudged me with his front paw as if to say he knew.
- Kiiing!
He spread his wings. It was the skill I used in the world of destruction.
"Peace! Wow, you exchanged points!"
- Grrrk, Kiwoong
"You're smart, too. Well done!"
Indeed, our peace is a genius. He handled all the points himself. Hyuna also said she exchanged points for skills. She smiled, but there was a hint of regret in her expression.
"Why can't Lambda weapons be brought along? Can't they give me some as a bonus?"
On the other hand, Noah couldn't easily speak up for some reason.
"I, too, exchanged for skills."
As she glanced briefly at Yoohyun's direction instead of me... Could it be that she exchanged for a downsizing skill? Of course, downsizing wouldn't be helpful in combat, but choosing what Noah wants, what's best for himself, is the most important.
"Will you show it to me later?"
"Yes..."
he smiled faintly, seeming to think he chose a useless skill. Merely saying it's okay might not be well received, so I wonder how we can utilize the downsizing skill. If he shows me the skill, let's think about it together.
"Sung Hyunjae, why are you so quiet? Didn't you bring anything?"
Let's share if there's something good. When I asked him to hand it over, Sung Hyunjae looked embarrassed.
"Didn't Han Yoojin take everything?"
"Pardon?"
"Even though he gave everything, it's still not enough. What else should I give?"
"No, wait a minute. What's that supposed mean...?"
I couldn't even settle the point settlement yet? When I hurriedly opened the status window, I saw that the P mark at the bottom was still there.
[536,345,700P]
...Insane. Seriously, wait, how much is this?
"W-why do I have so many points?"
"Because of your partner's care."
"But he already came out of that area! No, if you strip the newbie... But why is it with me?"
"Because of the hunt success reward."
What? Wait... Does killing Sung Hyunjae count at the end? If you kill someone, do the points transfer to me? But seriously, this is insane. 500 million points? It seems like I could exchange it for an SS-grade weapon. I need to somehow manipulate or fleece the newbie, otherwise it would be heartbreaking to let it slip away like this. I'm going to agonize over it for at least a week.
While I'm at it, I decided to check my inventory. I thought a considerable amount of items would have disappeared.
"Oh... Almost everything is still here."
My inventory was full. There were cookies and bombs purchased with points, as well as items bought or received from the world of destruction. Even the cougar series was there.
"Um, did anyone bring items from the other world?"
"Me!"
Yerim raised her hand eagerly. She must be talking about the spirit's egg. Did everyone else bring everything back? Did they physically go there? Anyway, it's something to be thankful for, so I wanted to take out the items.
[Point needed for real-world application.]
A message window popped up. Ugh, of course, it's not free. While cookies purchased with points came out, items from the world of destruction required points for real-world application. And it was a considerable amount of points.
I decided to put them aside for now and negotiate with the newbie later before making a decision.
"Well, let's go. Everyone must be tired, so let's rest and return home."
As soon as I mentioned returning home, I wanted to go quickly. Maybe it's okay to just rest for about a week without doing anything. I just want to lounge around at home. Eat something delicious. Oh, Chuseok is coming soon.
...It's been a while since I didn't have to spend it alone. I don't even remember what I used to do during Chuseok. Should I wear a hanbok? Well, even if I do, Yerim won't be there. Oh, Noah won't be there either.
Thinking about whether to take a flight for rest, I passed through the dungeon gate. As we crossed the gate, the blue sky came into view.
Wow. Everything around here is in ruins. It's literally a mess.
"...It seems like it's been several years since we entered."
"It's not traces from that long ago, is it? Look over there. That should be no more than a day old."
Yerim muttered in surprise and Hyuna stepped forward. She brushed off the broken parts of the trees with her hand and nodded.
"It's still damp."
"Be careful, there's venom splattered around there. It doesn't seem to have been long."
"That part seems to be the trace of a Monster Halkin. The length of the claw should be at least 10 centimeters. Bipedal, and about three."
"Hyung, be careful. There may be remaining ones around. The ground there hasn't completely dried yet. If that's the case, they couldn't have gone far."
Except for Yerim, who has little experience, everyone quickly grasped the situation. The conclusion was that there had been a massive outbreak of monsters in this area. And they were high-level monsters.
"Surely, when we entered, the A-grade hunters from Amaterasu Guild were supposed to be waiting in the dungeon building. But if there's no one left, it means it's not a normal situation."
It was a situation where they couldn't wait for us to come out. S-grade monsters appeared, and they probably haven't properly handled it yet. If the processing is over, they would have sent someone to greet us, at least.
"Even our phones...probably aren't safe."
Of course, we left them behind. But the safe was gone without a trace. It might be buried somewhere, but it would be difficult to find and it might not work properly.
"...By any chance, did anyone accidentally bring their wallet into the dungeon?"
Everyone remained silent. Yeah, it looks like nobody has their wallet. I thought we could take a break as soon as we got out of the dungeon, but this is unexpected.
"Ahjussi! Me and Noah oppa will look around."
Yerim said as she floated up in the air.
"Yes, please.. Oh, Noah, don't fully transform into a dragon. You might be mistaken for a monster."
"Yes. Be careful too, Yoojin-ssi."
Noah also spread his wings and flew up into the sky. The two of them headed in opposite directions, while we decided to move forward. Peace once again enlarged himself and carried me on his back.
Throughout the journey, there were hardly any intact buildings or asphalt roads. It seemed like large monsters had trampled through mercilessly, leaving behind sporadic destruction.
"...Maybe we shouldn't have sent Yerim."
There were also corpses. If a sudden horde of monsters appeared, it naturally meant there were casualties, but why didn't I think of it sooner?
"Don't worry too much. It's not like it just happened out of nowhere, and Yerim should have anticipated a situation like this. Besides, if she's in the air, she probably won't be able to see more than we can from the ground."
"Well, that's true, but..."
Nearby, many wooden buildings had collapsed, making it impossible to find a intact communication network.
"I personally went in and ate this and that, but everyone must have gone hungry for a few days. Hyuna, are you hungry?"
"My physical condition is the same as when I entered."
How much time has passed? Isn't there a calendar or clock? I stopped Peace in front of a collapsed building that looked like a house.
"Sung Hyunjae. Try using that compass thing again. Against this building. There might be something that indicates the date."
Sung Hyunjae came up to me and took out the Seeker's Chain.
"I have a feeling we're back."
"Why on earth did you use the Seeker's Chain?"
It's ridiculous even if I think about it now.
Even if there are no chains. The golden chain twirled around and electricity flowed over the collapsed building. Then a strong current struck the chain.
Thunk, tap! Thunk!
Various objects made of iron began to stick to the chain. TVs, fans. Oh, it's a cellphone. It probably won't turn on anyway. Among the clutter, I saw a calendar. It was a tear-off calendar where you tear off one sheet every day. It seemed that the ring was attached to the chain.
"It's been two days."
If the calendar owner hadn't forgotten to tear off the days. Then Yerim flew over.
"Ahjussi! There are people gathering over there. They've set up barricades and looked like hunters."
"Really? Good job, Yerim."
After firing a signal flare to call Noah, we moved in the direction Yerim pointed. It wasn't long before we saw the barricades that Yerim mentioned. There were hunters too.
"What happened?"
Everyone didn't look too good. Most of the A~B grade hunters had tired faces with various minor injuries. When I asked through the interpreter item, a hunter answered.
"Suddenly, monsters appeared all over the country."
"All over the country? Did the dungeons all explode simultaneously?"
"Oh, no. They just...appeared."
Just appeared? Could it be the influence of the jellyfish bastards invading the dungeons? ....
Is Korea safe?