Clap, clap, clap-!
An abandoned factory.
This factory, once dedicated to producing paint, had long since turned into a portal factory for summoning orcs from another world.
Among the gates established in Korea by the Blue-eyed Organization, this one ranked among the top ten in scale, serving as a key stronghold.
There stood Dnarr Panijial, a man also known as Elder Ak in Korea, stretching out his arms and clapping enthusiastically.
His gaze was fixed on a handsome man who, feeling the intensity of his stare, was casually fiddling with his phone.
“Hahaha! It’s so good to see you! I’ve wanted to meet you for ages, and finally, here we are! Right?”
“……”
Dnarr, with his exaggerated voice, watched as the man did not respond, noticing the veins on his temples beginning to bulge.
Somehow, from the very first meeting, Dnarr felt like he was losing, and heat began to rise within him.
“Well, well! You’re quite the impressive character. Here I am, right in front of you, and you’re just rudely playing with your phone.”
Dnarr stepped forward, shaking his head left and right, the distance between him and the man shrinking.
“You really do know how to talk. I’m quite surprised by that.”
Jo Gi-man, still sending messages with one hand, raised an eyebrow slightly, as if genuinely astonished by Dnarr.
Dnarr Panijial, the overall head responsible for the mission to summon the Orc Legion from another world.
However, as Jo Gi-man continued to disrupt his work, Dnarr decided to go all out by pre-establishing teleportation portals at several key strongholds after thoroughly analyzing the behavior patterns of this guy.
The cost of using these portals skyrocketed the more numbers involved, and because this damn guy was rampaging all over the world as if it were his home, he had wasted a tremendous amount of mana stones.
Fortunately, he was detected at a factory in Korea, leading to this face-off.
This was actually a trap that Dnarr had never set before, but he seemed to be acting quite differently from his previous encounters.
“Kekekekekek… Hahaha! That’s right. Just as I had imagined.”
Dnarr stretched his arms behind him and continued speaking.
“At first, I was a bit uncertain, but now I’m certain. You know who I am, right? You also know what I intend to do.”
“Oh-ho! Your judgment has improved, I see. I think I’ll give you more time. I’m curious just how far you can surprise me.”
Though he claimed to be surprised, Jo Gi-man’s eyes still radiated boredom. Dnarr found that extremely displeasing.
Isn’t it pathetic for someone who started the trouble to find it uninteresting when they provoke someone?
“I guess you won’t tell me your name, right? Fine. I suppose we don’t need to talk any further.”
Dnarr felt that conversing more would only lead him into Jo Gi-man’s tricks.
He casually took off his robe, tossing it into the void space.
Thud—thud—
As Dnarr twisted his neck left and right, signaling the imminent start of battle, his eyes showed no signs of wavering, indicating that he had no thoughts of losing at this moment.
Jo Gi-man, smirking, thought,
‘How dare you be so confident in front of me… That self-assuredness never changes, huh?’
As he looked at Dnarr, an unexpected appetite began to stir within him.
Gripping his trembling arm, Jo Gi-man momentarily pondered.
‘I shouldn’t eat. I must hold back.’
Dnarr was the most vital person connecting the two worlds.
Thus, if he killed that guy, they’d be able to avoid an invasion from that world for a while.
However, Dnarr’s failure would teach the Great Sorcerer Palkai and the remaining disciples to prepare more meticulously for several years.
In the end, even stronger enemies would come, with the most bothersome among them being the ‘Incarnation of Blue Eyes’ and Orc Legion Commander Por.
‘Por… Damn it. I brought up that filthy bastard’s name.’
The Orc Legion Commander, who had grown over nine years since the encounter where Jo Gi-man had discovered Dnarr’s identity and killed him, was the same one who had humiliatingly lost an arm and fled.
Of course, that was in earlier rounds, and it wouldn’t happen now, but the horrific memories of that time still vividly tormented him.
Neither the Blue-eyed nor his right-hand man Palkai were to blame. It was the experience of being defeated by their feral orc dogs that had made Jo Gi-man wary of making rapid changes.
Moreover, at the end of that round, seeing the Incarnation sent down by the Blue-eyed from a distance, Jo Gi-man decided to flee, concluding that he simply could not match up to it. He ended up being hunted down for several weeks and killed.
That monster was someone with whom even Jo Gi-man could not guarantee victory, so giving the Blue-eyed organization time to regain strength and recreate him was unacceptable.
The Great Sorcerer Palkai and his ace disciple Dnarr also held secret intentions to check the Blue-eyed, so it would be best to keep him alive until the right moment arrived.
‘I need to handle this lightly.’
Resolute, Jo Gi-man took up his stance, waiting for an attack.
And as Dnarr observed Jo Gi-man in a state of complete vulnerability, his wariness heightened considerably.
Whoooosh—
The sacred magical aura emanating from him would be overwhelming even for considerable powerhouses, yet Jo Gi-man showed no signs of being affected at all.
Wasn’t he, without a doubt, a monster of malevolent disposition? It was strange.
‘Is this it…? Perhaps today could be my last.’
Despite having such premonitions about the creature before him, Dnarr’s movements did not falter.
Aside from his master, Dnarr was the strongest paladin on the continent, who had never experienced defeat.
Crack—crack—
And as he witnessed the face of the opponent he would face transforming into that of a horrifying evil dragon, Dnarr felt assured.
‘If I can capture that brat, our plan will be complete.’
Today, I shall fulfill the continent’s desire to revive the fallen.
With that determination, Dnarr gently rested his fist on his chest, soon vanishing from sight only to reappear behind Jo Gi-man, several meters away.
“Hmm… Attacking from behind…”
Jo Gi-man’s eyebrows twitched at the unfamiliar pattern.
Typically, he’d lead with an honest strength battle and reveal his true nature halfway through, but…
After easily deflecting Dnarr’s advance, Jo Gi-man grimaced in pain as wings began to tear out from his back.
Flap—
Soon, a massive wing, several dozen times larger than Jo Gi-man himself, burst forth from his flesh, showcasing its might.
“Oh, God…”
Dnarr whispered a prayer upon witnessing the emergence of evil.
Good and evil.
From the perspective of magical disposition, it was an incredibly clear clash.
It was clear that battles between the strongest of each world would continue until the sun completely sank.
Thud—
Dnarr was defeated.
Jo Gi-man looked down at the unconscious Dnarr, contemplating whether to plant something in him, but then shook his head.
‘He’s not someone who would fall for that anyway.’
Having tried and failed numerous times already. In the last round, he had vowed not to indulge in foolish acts.
Dnarr was cherished by the god he served, to the extent that he could hardly hold all the affection bestowed upon him.
Thus, he could entirely exclude anything even slightly infused with the power of the Seven-headed Dragon.
“Hah— it’s a bit warm.”
He hadn’t even sweated a drop against the initial Awakened ‘Shayna Laine,’ but fighting Dnarr, especially under the condition of not killing him, was certainly no easy task.
Crack—
Jo Gi-man’s long, thick tail extended behind him, providing a fragmentary glimpse of how much power he had drawn from the Seven-headed Dragon.
He sent a text to Jung Joo-in to clean up the area around the factory and when he looked back down, Dnarr had vanished into thin air.
“That sly bastard.”
Though Jo Gi-man pretended not to notice Dnarr’s tricks during their battle, he shook his head disapprovingly and exited the now-ruined factory.
Inside the barrier, far from the factory, Jo Gi-man sat in the backseat of a luxurious sedan, casually reading the materials handed over by Lee Yeon-hee the previous day.
“Nargul’s dungeon is shut down… It’s getting more and more ridiculous.”
It appeared that Yeon-hee had once again made a significant contribution.
However, considering the hastening clock, it remained within the realm of expectations.
“I need to do better.”
Though there didn’t seem to be any special information worthy of note…
The composition of summoned creatures had changed considerably, but in fact, the numbers had drastically decreased compared to the previous rounds.
One peculiar detail was that the shabby skeleton soldier he initially summoned was still in use.
“He managed to pull that low-potential guy up?”
Moreover, the skeleton seemed to have taken on a path reminiscent of a sorcerer, as it was noted to utilize Fireball and levitation magic. It was indicated that its combat power was somewhat in line with its class.
“The power of Fireball is devastating… Fuhuhuhu— this is a masterpiece, isn’t it?”
Surely, it must be a Fireball the size of a basketball, yet it was oddly thick, possibly due to it being such a rare specimen of a skeleton.
He had merely instructed for the facts to be conveyed, yet it seemed Jung Joo-in’s execution wasn’t entirely flawless.
“A dagger…?”
A skeleton soldier using a dagger? A pairing of a sorcerer and thief class… This was rather unusual.
“Has he developed a hobby for decorating his first summoned creature? Interesting.”
Without a doubt, Lee Yeon-hee had likely prioritized developing the skeleton soldier at the expense of other summoned creatures.
For reasons unbeknownst to him, she was possibly taking such illogical actions—having crossed over the threshold where the caustic acid rendered her beautiful face grotesque, thus triggering a unique point.
‘Lee Yeon-hee… She ought to be more careful with every choice she makes. Tsk, tsk—’
One fragment he had been concerned about was implausibly growing inefficiently, while unexpectedly, situations brewed with a different intensity in other regions, as if striving to balance each other.
“That’s good. I will opt out of that ridiculous tournament in April.”
“…… I will adjust the schedule.”
After giving instructions to his subordinates, Jung Joo-in, who had just hopped into the passenger seat, remained diligently fulfilling Jo Gi-man’s wishes.
As Jo Gi-man gently swept his face, returning to its original state, he instructed the driver to head to their usual spot.
Rumble, rumble, rumble—
“Phew— have I endured too much? It’s time for some enjoyment.”
Unable to consume the top-tier Dnarr, he recalled the delicacies stored in his secret space, grasping his trembling arm.
* * *
Having cleared the week-long survival game, we were immediately bombarded with interview requests the moment we stepped out of the gate.
However, the people affiliated with the White Alliance, as if under an agreement, zipped their lips, causing the journalists to swarm over to other survivors.
Hunters could have felt regret over the media’s loss of interest, yet those who had cleared the hidden dungeon and acquired artifacts were visibly beaming with smiles.
Noh Ha-yoon surprisingly greeted everyone coolly once outside the gate, choosing to part ways with us immediately, largely due to the high-rank hunters who had come to welcome her.
Yeom Tae-seok also bid farewell, expressing a strong desire to team up again while handing over a business card before disappearing.
Bae Joo-ah and Baek Ah-rin, for some reason, were massaging Yeon-hee’s arms and legs as she sat resting, passionately warning her not to accept contact from anyone else in the party.
“Think of what happened with Lee Young-chul. You can’t just accept anyone.”
“Exactly! Unless they’re as capable as Noh Ha-yoon!”
Though he never planned to accept anyone, it was clear they intended to avoid unnecessarily sharing the rewards by referencing the killer Lee Young-chul as a standard.
‘How many hunters can reach Noh Ha-yoon’s level anyway… Seriously.’
However, such behavior wasn’t unpleasant and instead provided a reassuring feeling.
Chasing monetary gains is a universal trait among all hunters, and the concerns raised by them were indeed valid.
Afterward, an array of strange things attached themselves to Yeon-hee.
A cable broadcasting company wanted to feature her on a program that organized meetings between beautiful female hunters and high-rank hunters, and others directly proposed photoshoots.
“Uh, no…!”
Though she stuttered her words, the strong resolve in Yeon-hee’s response caused many who had aggressively pursued her to quickly back off.
Additionally, as I began to formally escort her, those daring enough to approach disappeared entirely, allowing the brief commotion to conclude.
‘If this is what D-rank is like already… We’re in trouble.’
I too felt a tinge of anxiety.
Yeon-hee was too absurdly beautiful! No matter how much she was hidden, her allure simply would not be masked!
“Ugh…”
Yeon-hee leaned on me as if she lacked the strength to stand, and our party, after summarizing the overall situation to the dungeon management staff, headed home.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
