Chapter Thirty-Three — That is correct. I have been waiting for you, the world's weakest hunter.
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[Player Stats have automatically returned to normal.]
The system's voice chimed in his mind, crisp and impersonal. A friendly little notification, as if it were just letting him know his laundry was done, not that his body had finished reconstituting itself after a forced emergency extraction.
(Sung Jin-Woo) was back. He was in a dungeon chamber, one he'd just cleared moments before. The last echoes of combat—the crunch of broken monster bones, the dissipating hiss of summoned shadows—had faded. His shadow soldiers, their summoning duration ended, melted back into the dark pool at his feet with soft, slurping schlup sounds. No fanfare, no goodbye. Just efficient, spectral recycling.
He walked to a large, flat-topped rock at the chamber's edge and sat down. The stone was cold and gritty against his palms.
Thump.
The sound of his body hitting the rock was solid,final. He let out a long, slow breath that fogged slightly in the chill dungeon air.
"Damn it. This definitely didn't happen."
The words were quiet,spoken to the empty, dank chamber. Its walls, covered in eerie, faintly glowing moss, were his only audience.
He had failed.
This was the first time he hadtruly failed since becoming a Player. The thought was a bitter pill, scraping its way down his throat. He had started to believe he was untouchable. That the pathetic loser he once was—the one who got pushed around, the one who struggled to pay his sister's hospital bills—was gone forever, buried under levels and stats and an army of darkness.
He had changed so much in just a few months, more than in any other period of his life. And now this. A forced retreat. Not even a tactical withdrawal. A system-mandated bailout.
"System. Show me the quests. Are there any quests that can raise my stats more?"
His voice was flat,demanding. A week. His level had finally risen after more than a week of grueling, non-stop dungeon dives, following his… extraction from that fight. The system had described it as a "necessary protocol" executed when a Player reached a high level and faced a "lethal determination event" during an active quest.
In return for saving his hide, it had removed the quest it had offered him before the fight.
[Eliminate the target. High chance to convert target into a shadow.]
That person with the strange eyes… (Uchiha Sasuke). He had multiple abilities. He could clone himself. That wasn't all: flight, lightning control, transformation, and he could also release compressed gravitational forces.
The final attack. Its effect was still seared into (Jin-Woo)'s mind. A blow that had completely destroyed the very space around it, expanding outwards. It had annihilated and fragmented everything within kilometers. Not just that—the echoes of the triple attack he'd launched with his shadow, (Igris) the Dragon Knight, and his strongest knight (Kaisel)… Even after all that, he hadn't been able to win that fight. He had used his potions, his healing draughts, everything in his inventory.
"How can he be that strong? Is he a hunter too? But even the National Rank hunters, even the strongest American hunter, aren't on that level…"
While he was trying to review these matters for the thousandth time, the system's voice chimed again. A digital screen materialized in his vision with a soft ping.
[A new quest has been issued by the System.]
"A new quest? And what is it?"
[Quest: Go to the Double Dungeon once more and meet the Architect.]
"What? Meet the Architect? Who is that?"
(Sung Jin-Woo) didn't know what the System meant at this moment. Was there a person he was supposed to meet? Or was it a new type of target? Did this mean he had to eliminate the 'Architect' to gain additional levels? All these questions swirled, a noisy tempest in his head. But the System, in its infinite, frustrating wisdom, did not answer them.
In the end, he sighed—a heavy, weary sound that echoed faintly in the cavern.
Huuuuhhhhh.
He decided it was better to just execute this quest. Since it could increase his stats and power, it would help him get revenge on that… (Uchiha Sasuke). He'd finally learned the name. In truth, at the beginning, he hadn't focused on it. But since he had become a serious enemy, it was better to increase his power before searching for his father.
He had tried contacting the Korean Hunter Associations, specifically the Chairman, (Go Gun-Hee). Furthermore, (Cha Hae-In) had sent information to the Chairman and then relayed it back to him.
Through this method, the information reached him: his father was still missing. It seemed as if he was capable of hiding from organizations and associations from all over the world. In the end, (Jin-Woo) still had a great desire to see his father again, despite not knowing the reason that made him disappear. Was it because he was trapped in that damnable gate all these years?
Once again, I could only feel that the information I have is not enough.
"It doesn't matter. Any of this. I just need to complete the System's quest first. After that, I'll focus on finding my father. And if that Japanese hunter stands in my way again… I'll take care of him myself."
His stats had increased significantly after entering many gates and also executing System quests. Furthermore, he now possessed confidence in fighting that Japanese hunter again. He even had an idea of a method to win against that hunter. He had begun to understand his capabilities and comprehend his strategy. For him, victory now depended largely on having enough power to achieve an overwhelming victory against that hunter.
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In a deep, forgotten dungeon, a spatial gate opened.
VWOOOORP.
The sound was a distortion of reality itself, a tear in the fabric of the world that hummed with unstable energy. From it stepped the future Shadow Monarch.
He looked at all these murals, the ancient, worn carvings on the walls depicting forgotten battles and monstrous forms. And then at the gate itself. The old gate.
The very same gate he had entered when he was a weak hunter.
His body tensed slightly, muscles coiling instinctively. The memory was a phantom pain—the fear, the helplessness, the certainty of death. But soon, he let out a sigh, the tension bleeding out with the exhale.
Huff.
"Was this place chosen because the System is connected to it? I thought this gate had been cleared a long time ago."
His voice was low,bouncing off the damp stone. He had no desire to return to this place, this tomb of his former weakness. But if gaining power again was tied to this location… it was a good opportunity for him to overcome the past.
After he entered, he noticed something immediately. The magical energy in this place was lower than it had been before. Much lower. His sensing ability and intelligence were now high enough to know the difference instinctively. It felt… drained. Empty. Like a battery left out in the rain.
But he didn't care. He began to walk.
Click. Clack.
His boots made precise,echoing sounds on the uneven stone floor.
There weren't many monsters that could approach him now. His very aura likely scared off the weaker ones, sending them skittering into deeper shadows with terrified scrabbling noises. But even as he walked, he noticed the absence of any kind of monster or defense mechanism. No traps sprung. No ambushes. Just endless, silent, dark corridors.
"This is strange. Why would the System make me come here? It doesn't seem like there are many monsters to increase my power. Is there some mistake, I wonder?"
He asked himself this question,but in the end, he had no answer either. Information was exceedingly scarce.
But in the end, as he walked through this dark tunnel, he reached the door.
The same door he had entered when he was dying for the first time in his life.
But in the end, he had become a Player. He had managed to rise to a National Rank—the rank that made him a National Level Hunter in Korea. He hadn't cared about those titles at the time. But now, he needed this title if he was going to search for his father in the future.
"I've come to you again. I suppose you and I are connected, aren't we?"
He said these words with clear sarcasm while placing his hand on the cold,ornate surface of the door.
He pushed.
The door opened with extreme ease.
Creeeeeeak…
The pressure of force (Sung Jin-Woo) applied was minimal. Yet the massive, stone door, which should have weighed tons, moved smoothly, almost gliding on unseen hinges. The lack of resistance was unnerving.
When the door opened, (Sung Jin-Woo) looked inside.
And saw the giant statue.
The one that was smiling, as if it had been waiting for him.
The eyes of the Shadow Monarch contracted slightly, a micro-expression of surprise and heightened alertness. But it was soon replaced by a deep, chilling calm. Magical energy began to rise from his body in visible, dark tendrils that snaked around his arms and legs.
[Dark Reinforcement activated. Stats increased by 30%.]
The power-up was instantaneous,a comforting, familiar surge of cold strength.
"We meet again. You feel like you've been waiting for me, don't you?"
(Jin-Woo)said, his voice now devoid of the earlier sarcasm, replaced by a monotone that was more threatening than any shout.
The statue… moved.
It wasn't a sudden lunge. It was a slow, grinding shift. A deep, resonant GRRRRROAN of stone sliding against stone filled the chamber, causing fine dust to puff down from the ceiling. It seemed to be trying to change its posture into a more comfortable one, as if it had been stuck in that smiling pose for an eternity.
Then, the eyes that had been fixed and stony became red. Two points of hellish light ignited in the statue's face with a faint fzzzt of activating energy.
A sound like the grinding of ancient, rusted machinery emanated from it.
K-chunk. K-chunk. Whirrrrr…
Then, a terrifying voice came out of the stone mouth of the statue, which was vibrating with a horrifying smile.
(That is correct. I have been waiting for you, the world's weakest hunter. I have been waiting for this moment for a long, long time.)
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End of Chapter.
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Talk about a walk down memory lane! And not the good kind.
Jin-Woo's back at the scene of his original "almost-game-over," having a chat with a creepy, smiling statue that probably doesn't have his best interests at heart. His stats are back, his ego is bruised, and he's got a mysterious appointment with "the Architect." Meanwhile, Sasuke is probably still brooding in his hotel room, and Thomas Andre is polishing his whiskey glasses.
What do you think the Architect is? A system admin? The dungeon's original builder? A very talkative piece of furniture? And what deal is it going to offer our favorite shadow-summoner?
Let me know your thoughts, predictions, and favorite ominous statue descriptions in the comments below! Your engagement is the real loot drop here.