[ Chirp (2) ]
Screech.
I quietly opened the door and slipped into the hallway. The surveillance cameras on the dormitory floor were still only at the entrance, and since my room was tucked away down the corridor, I could move without being seen by anyone, thanks to the bend in the hallway.
After checking my surroundings once more, I pulled my cap down low and maximized the Lizard on the Wall skill.
Originally, it was just a D-rank skill with minimal effect, but now things were different. The special skill for concealing myself had quadrupled its effect. Even an A-rank would have a hard time noticing me unless they were paying close attention.
Still, just to be sure, I had tested it the night before.
Hiding silently in the corner of the hallway with Lizard on the Wall active, none of the A-rank hunters coming and going in the dorm had noticed me.
‘Yerim’s gone to the Association, so I just need to avoid my little brother.’
If I get caught, so what? Like Seong Hyunjae said, I can push the limits a little more. I’m not doing anything bad, and if Yuhyun catches me sneaking out, what can he really do? Lock me up again like before?
Unless it’s before the negotiations regarding Monster Mounts, even Haeyeon’s guild leader can’t just do as he pleases with me now. He’ll probably just give me some nagging, complaining that he doesn’t trust me, and act all disappointed, thinking I’m hiding something…
Still, I’d better avoid getting caught—it’s just a hassle.
When I headed towards the elevator, I saw one of Haeyeon’s A-rank hunters sitting by, reading a book. I quietly positioned myself in a corner, keeping an eye on her.
The emergency stairwell door was locked, and moving the elevator randomly would look suspicious. So, I had no choice but to wait—for the lunch delivery person.
Since I came out around lunchtime, it didn’t take long for the elevator to arrive. A cafeteria worker handed the hunter her lunch. I used that moment to slip into the elevator.
“You’ve worked hard. Enjoy your meal.”
The cafeteria worker got back on the elevator. There was a surveillance camera inside, so while the worker was pressing the button for the cafeteria floor and covering the panel, I extended a tendril to discreetly press the first floor button. Luckily, when someone presses a floor, the corresponding light comes on, so it just looked like the worker had accidentally pressed the wrong button.
When I got off at the first floor, there was a glass door between the lobby and the hallway. This was the tricky part. I had no choice but to wait for someone to pass through.
‘As long as Yuhyun doesn’t show up.’
Please don’t come, stay busy at work. If I wait too long, Yerim might come back. I really need someone to come or go soon.
Thankfully, it wasn’t long before one of Haeyeon’s B-rank hunters approached. As soon as security opened the glass door for them, I quickly slipped out. Even though there was an A-rank stationed at the security room, it seemed they hadn’t noticed anything unusual with all the people coming and going from the lobby.
‘Without special skills, even an A-rank or S-rank would have a hard time sneaking in unnoticed.’
Concealment-type special skills are incredibly rare. The only publicly known person with a perfect stealth skill is Goblin. Typically, only monsters possess such skills, and Goblin isn’t human either, so it might be a compatibility issue. Even if someone did have such a skill, they wouldn’t likely advertise it.
After safely leaving the building, I walked for about ten minutes. Then, I canceled the skill between the buildings, bought a pair of sunglasses from a nearby shop to hide my face, and caught a taxi.
Before long, I arrived at the F-rank dungeon, a small building tucked away behind a larger one. It looked like it had originally been a small parking lot. Considering how hard it is to get proper rewards from F-rank dungeons, the building’s owner sure was lucky not to have it appear inside.
Approaching the specially-reinforced building, I entered the code I had received earlier into the keypad next to the door and scanned the chip on my hunter license. The door opened, and I walked through a short hallway until I reached a gate, standing alone in the empty room. While they respected my request for privacy, I knew the surveillance cameras were still running. They were probably tracking the number of people who entered too.
Entry logs are kept for at least a month, just in case. No one will check them, though.
‘Well, let’s head in.’
It might just be an F-rank dungeon, but going in alone still feels strange. Without wasting time, I stepped through the blue gate.
-Screech! Screeech!
The air shifted abruptly. From amidst the dense trees, I could hear the cries of some unknown beast.
I took off my hat, hung it by the string around my neck, and slung it over my back. I also removed my sunglasses. Against the monsters here, my bare hands should be enough. Though I considered pulling out some equipment, I already had on the Black Fairy Earring, so I just added a bracelet that boosted strength. Since the earring only boosted essence, it wasn’t particularly useful here, and I couldn’t be bothered to gear up fully.
‘Maybe I should stock up on more equipment that increases proportional stats.’
This situation could arise again. There are only a few targets for the keyword effect right now, but as I continue to raise more monsters, there’s always a chance of an unlucky accident. Hopefully, it won’t happen, but I have to be prepared.
Rustle.
I sensed movement in the trees above. Soon, a green-tinted face poked through the leaves.
-Screeech! Screeech!
It was a moss monkey. I aimed Extending Tendrils at the monster.
-Screech!
Being an F-rank dungeon monster, it didn’t stand a chance and collapsed without any resistance, though it was still alive. It had even gotten caught on a branch, so it didn’t fall.
Looks like Extending Tendrils works better here than Claw Slash. The trees around me were over 10 meters tall, but they grew thinner as they went up, meaning the heavy-bodied monkeys could only roam the lower, thicker branches. The tendrils had enough reach.
If all else failed, I could always throw a rock. I picked one up and coated it lightly with venom as a test before throwing it.
Thud!
With a dull sound, the monkey that had been hanging on the branch dropped to the ground. High stats are great. Normally, I wouldn’t have the strength to knock it down in one shot.
Whether it was from the rock to the head or the poison seeping in, the moss monkey soon died.
‘Should I bother looking for a mana stone or not?’
I really don’t want to rummage through its corpse. Before the regression, I wouldn’t have complained, but now, it just feels like a hassle. Plus, I don’t want to get my clothes dirty.
‘Still no word?’
I checked my status window several times, but there was no change. Another moss monkey approached, so I snapped its neck with Extending Tendrils.
‘…Seriously, is that it? Just a confirmation and nothing more?’
On one hand, it was a relief, but on the other hand, it was kind of annoying.
Then, it happened. Finally, a message window popped up.
[┖¶ π┣Z □┻Λ ○┣ ┗┃□]
…Uh, yes? No? Are you talking to me? Are you saying it’s not my fault? What nonsense is this all of a sudden?
Then, another message appeared. This time, it was legible.
[Wish Stone ? Mythical-grade
Grants one wish of the user’s choice.]
It was the item description for a Wish Stone. But why now…?
Wait a minute. There are only two lines. There should be three.
…Fuck.
“You said you can’t bring back the dead!”
Didn’t you? Are you telling me the system creator lied? Was it possible all along? What?
“Damn it, I knew something was off when you can turn back time but couldn’t bring back one dead person…”
I’ve been tricked, haven’t I?
I got angry for a moment, but I quickly calmed down.
Honestly, the current situation is much better than just reviving Yuhyun at that time. Not just for me, but overall.
The fact that Seok Hayan’s research is being distributed fairly means this world will be much safer than it was five years from now. Plus, with Monster Mounts, things will definitely turn out better than the chaotic future that was supposed to happen.
So, it’s not like I really mind being tricked.
‘…But it wasn’t my fault.’
The reason I went back in time was that the system creator deceived me, so it’s not my fault.
Which means…
‘…Could it be that something’s going to go wrong because of the regression?’
Is there some kind of problem I should be saying “Oh, this is my fault” about? Is that why they’re telling me this? How considerate.
So what’s the problem, then?
I waited a moment, but no more messages appeared. Time to sum it up.
I was tricked by the system creator into going back in time. The system creator knows about my pre-regression life. Something is going to go wrong because of the regression.
That’s basically it.
Also, when the system creator sends me messages unrelated to the system itself, they can’t use proper letters. I suspected as much when the text was vertical.
Inside the dungeon, the restrictions are a bit looser, but they can still only send indirect messages. If they try to communicate directly, we get glitches like last time.
Anyway.
“So what kind of problem is going to come up? Can you just tell me clearly?”
It’s driving me nuts. Then, another message window appeared.
[☞’≠’☜ ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ(._. )]
You might as well draw a picture. Are you saying your mouth is sealed and you can’t talk?
“I don’t care if it causes some glitches like last time, just tell me already!”
I was still in front of the gate, and I had Lizard on the Wall active at full power. Unless a Lautitars or something popped out, I could get out without a problem.
After I shouted, another message popped up after a moment.
[Oh, my dear, don’t be mad. We understand your frustration. Yes, we’d love to explain everything, but we can’t. To have a direct conversation, sacrifices must be made. Preparations are needed too. Last time, it was a rookie. Only your time was reversed. The dungeons are separate. We’re trying to delay their progress. The more interference, the quicker things will be exposed. More information revealed. Dangerous. Proper. Preparation. One week. Dungeon.]
A flood of messages came in. Wait, slow down. What?
Only our side had time rewound, and the dungeons are separate. So, they should still be the same difficulty and quantity as five years from now, but they’re trying to slow things down.
…Are you saying the dungeon difficulty is going to increase faster than before the regression? What the hell? And what’s this about being exposed? Is there something else out there?
It seems I need to prepare and come back to the dungeon in a week. But in a week, the Blessing’s duration will be over. I already told Yuhyun that I wanted to run a dungeon, so I could just ask him again.
At that moment, the message window began to shake and distort. I guess they were really pushing it to send me this.
Even the surroundings started to shimmer, like a heat haze in midsummer. It feels like something big is about to appear.
Luckily, the gate was still inactive, so I could leave without using a gate stone.
Thud.
Something white and round fell from the sky. It rolled on the ground like a little rice cake, then flipped over and opened its beak wide.
-Chirp!
…What is this? It’s cute.
-Chirp!
It chirped again. Its two legs dangled in the air, flailing. Covered in soft, fluffy down like a dandelion seed, it had beady black eyes and a tiny yellow beak and feet… A baby bird? It was only about the size of two fists put together. No matter how I looked at it, it seemed completely harmless.
-Chirp chirp!
Flap flap.
…Damn, look at those tiny wings. What the hell is this thing? Did that really just appear? No, it can’t be. Did it fall from a nest up in a tree?
Baffled, I activated the Promising Talent skill.
[□□□□□ ? □□□ (Ethereal Being)
Current Stat Grade: F
Potential Stat Growth: □
Optimized Initial Skills:
□□□□□□ To be acquired after growth
□□□□□□ To be acquired after growth
□□□□□□ To be acquired after growth
□□□□□□ To be acquired after growth
□□□□□□ To be acquired after growth
※□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□]
…It really is a glitch, isn’t it? Right now, it’s just an F-rank baby, and that’s all the information I can get. But judging by the number of optimized initial skills, this definitely isn’t an ordinary monster. It has five of them.
Even Peace and Yerim, who can grow to A~S rank, only have three or four skills. It looks like this little guy’s rank is S? Though I can’t guarantee that just based on the number of boxes.
‘…What should I do?’
Can I really leave a glitch monster like this alone? But killing it… I don’t know, it just feels wrong.
While I was hesitating, the baby bird managed to get on its feet and waddled around the bushes. Since I was using Lizard on the Wall, it hadn’t noticed me. Instead, it found the dead moss monkey and started waddling toward it.
-Chirp chirp chirp chirp.
It chirped, talking to itself, and was about to peck at the corpse. Wait! That thing is poisoned! If it touches it, it’ll die instantly with its F-rank stats!
“No!”
-Chirp?
I ran over and grabbed it before it could get close. It froze in surprise for a second, then started flapping its tiny wings furiously.
-Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!
“It’s okay, I won’t hurt you.”
I quickly deactivated Lizard on the Wall and calmed it down. Luckily, it didn’t seem to be poisoned. Its black beady eyes blinked up at me.
-Chirp!
“Yeah, yeah. You’re a good little bird. Chirp.”
It was so soft and warm. So cute. What should I do? Should I just take it with me? At this size, I could easily hide it in my jacket.
If someone asks where I found it… I’ll just say I picked it up. Yeah, that’ll work. I’ll just stick to that story.
“Want a mana stone? You hungry? Though a C-rank stone might be too much for an F-rank body.”
It might be dangerous. But I don’t have any F-rank mana stones. Well, I do… Looking up, I saw another moss monkey peeking out from the branches.
I guess I’ll have to catch this one without using poison. Just wait a moment, little birdie. I’ll prepare your meal.
–TL Notes–
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