Ch.3030. Experiencing Dungeon with a Small Guild

[Day 10]

I was sleeping when Kim Soo-jung woke me up.

“Hey. Hey. Wake up.”

“What is it…”

“We need to go to the dungeon.”

“What dungeon?”

“I told you I got us spots! Get up, you crazy bastard.”

“Ah.”

That’s right.

I was sleeping deeply for the first time in a while, and I didn’t want to get up. Maybe I should just skip it.

“I want to sleep more.”

“Hey, you crazy bastard! I barely managed to get these spots!”

“Ugh.”

I had no choice but to get up because of my crazy little sister who climbed on top of me to torment me.

Well, I was curious about experiencing a real-world dungeon anyway.

“Yaaawn.”

Originally, I was planning to go shopping today for things to take to the Rift Dimension.

Snacks and ramen that Lulu likes, and other convenient items from the real world.

Since I needed to stay until the healing herb sales and auction were completed, I decided to postpone shopping until tomorrow.

After washing my face in the bathroom, I approached Dad who was sitting on the sofa watching the news.

“Oh right. Dad. Please sell this too. I forgot.”

“What is this… huh? A Glass Stone? Where did you get this?”

“Where else? I picked it up in the dungeon.”

“…”

“Glass Stone? Glass Stooone?”

Hearing the sudden commotion, Kim Soo-jung, who was gathering her things in her room, came running out.

She snatched what was in Dad’s hand, checked the item, and covered her mouth with both hands.

“It’s a Glass Stone! A Glass Stone!”

“Is this your first time seeing one?”

“Of course it is. Glass Stone… gasp. Glass Stone!”

The way she stomped her feet and raised her voice was disgusting.

“Give it back, you brat.”

“Dad, can I have this?”

“Your brother gave it to me, so ask him.”

“…Dad…”

She begged Dad through gritted teeth without even looking at me.

She knows.

She doesn’t want to ask me because my answer is obvious.

“Should I give it to you?”

“Brother!”

Knowing this, I dangled the bait, and she took it like a prize catch, grabbing my hands with sparkling eyes.

“Ugh. Are you crazy?”

“I’ll be good. Where did you get it? Hm? Please give it to me. I’m a mage, you know. Brother, I’ll serve you for the rest of my life.”

She doesn’t seem curious about where I got it.

Well, that makes sense.

The Glass Stone is such a famous gem that even I, who plays Farming World, know it’s extremely valuable.

This is truly an “auction-grade” item.

“Buy it yourself.”

“…You bastard. Dad, please give it to me. Okay? Buy it for me.”

“Soo-jung.”

“Yes, Dad.”

“Dad doesn’t have that kind of money.”

“Why not? You invested 100 million won in my brother!”

“That was the company’s investment. This is expensive.”

“I know…”

Seeing her dejected expression after facing reality makes me feel a bit sorry for her.

It’s strange to see this mischievous tomboy, who usually throws tantrums to get whatever she wants from Dad, suddenly restraining herself after recognizing reality.

Well, it is an extremely expensive gem.

She knows it’s not something she can get just by throwing a tantrum.

“How much is this worth?”

So I asked.

Dad answered for me.

“The most recent Glass Stone sold at auction for about 9.8 billion won… and that was a 25% one.”

“…”

“Too bad. If it were 9,800 won, your brother might have generously given it to you as a gift.”

Dad’s hands were trembling.

“We’d need to get it appraised, but… it’s probably worth around 7 billion won. If it’s genuine…”

He chuckles in disbelief as he speaks.

Kim Soo-jung, who’s already a hunter, has verified the item.

There’s no need to distinguish between genuine and fake.

He looked at me like I was crazy for casually taking it out of my pocket and handing it over.

“What on earth have you been doing this past week, you rascal…”

“Just doing my duty as the eldest son of the family.”

I took back the Glass Stone.

“Hmm. I’ll think about it after watching you for a few days.”

“You crazy bastard. You’re not going to give it to me. Don’t mess with me.”

“Oh really? Fine, forget it. Dad, please put this up for auction too.”

“…Dear brother. Why take a crazy girl’s words seriously? Hurry and get ready. I’ll be your reliable guide for today’s dungeon tour.”

“Shall we?”

7 billion won.

It was such an unrealistic number that I didn’t feel much about it.

It’s not like I particularly needed the money.

I’ve barely harvested 0.0000000001% of the Rift Dimension’s resources, yet I’ve earned this much.

Earth money is something I could earn just by breathing and developing the Rift Dimension, so isn’t seeing my sister, who’s been my nemesis for 23 years, act like this more valuable than 7 billion won?

I wasn’t planning to give it to her right away.

I was genuinely considering whether to give it to her after seeing how she behaves.

Kim Soo-jung knew this, but unable to give up on the allure of the Glass Stone, she diligently attended to me with that sliver of hope.

“Let’s go, dear brother.”

It’s the inevitable fate of a mage.

Even if not a mage, any hunter would consider a Glass Stone an essential item to have.

Moreover, when used as an accessory, multiple Glass Stones can be worn simultaneously, making more always better.

That’s why they sell for tens of billions at auctions.

After all, a 20% increase in skill effect is essentially the same as becoming 20% stronger.

At least I won’t be bored until I return to the Rift Dimension.

As soon as Kim Soo-jung went downstairs, she quickly started the car and drove it to the entrance.

“Get in, dear brother.”

“That ‘dear brother’ stuff is disgusting, so drop it.”

“Get in, oppa.”

“‘Oppa’ is a bit disgusting too.”

“Get in… ti…”

“Ti?”

“Time might be running out, so please get in quickly.”

Her temperamental nature hasn’t gone anywhere.

Her mask starts to crack when I tease her a little.

I got in the back seat, leaving Kim Soo-jung to suppress her anger as she started driving.

The dungeon we were going to was quite far from home.

After driving for about an hour to somewhere in Gyeonggi Province, we arrived at a dungeon where people had gathered.

“Hello.”

That tomboy Kim Soo-jung disappeared as soon as she got out of the car, running to greet the gathered people politely. It gave me a strange, touching feeling as her brother.

Is this what it feels like to see your little sister engaging in social life?

“Oh, Soo-jung, hi!”

“You’re here? Looking pretty as always!”

Most of the hunters gathered were men.

There were a few women too, but they didn’t look like hunters.

Entering a dungeon isn’t like a game where you just shout “Looking for dungeon party~” and form a group on the spot.

Although dungeons are relatively accessible, they’re dangerous, so you need to report the date, time, dungeon type, and number of people to the Hunter Association in detail. When entering, an employee from the Hunter Association verifies that the reported information is correct.

There are hunters who ignore all this and go in for illegal hunting, but in our small country, they tend to get caught easily. Getting caught means immediate revocation of your hunter license and living as an illegal hunter for the rest of your life, so unless you’re truly desperate, you don’t do such things.

That’s why staff members are needed in addition to the hunters entering the dungeon.

They prepare necessary items for dungeon entry and check and manage the dungeon’s resources after the hunt is over.

For convenience, most modern “guilds” are essentially businesses.

They’re actually registered as companies and operate as such.

If hunters are field employees, the civilians who handle the cleanup are office workers.

That’s also why less than half of the approximately 15 people gathered here were hunters.

“Didn’t you say you were bringing your brother today? Is that him?”

“Ah, yes. This is my brother. Please take care of him.”

“Oh, your brother is handsome too! You two look alike.”

“Thank you.”

I got out of the car late and followed Kim Soo-jung, and men in their 30s and 40s started flirting with her while looking at me.

Kim Soo-jung, smiling and responding enthusiastically, seemed nothing like the cat-like tomboy I knew at home.

I nodded vaguely in response to their attention.

“Hello.”

“I heard you just awakened? You’re lucky. Having a pretty and capable sister means you get to start with a C-rank dungeon right away.”

“Yes.”

Among them, a particularly slit-eyed, pot-bellied middle-aged man kept patting my shoulder.

He clearly had an unpleasant face, but I didn’t want to ruin Kim Soo-jung’s work life, so I just smiled it off.

“Soo-jung, I found a nice pasta place. Want to go there together after the dungeon today?”

“Ah… with everyone?”

“No, just you and me. Hehe.”

“…Let’s talk about it after we’re done.”

“Sure, sure. You know your oppa really pulled strings with the guild master to get your brother into this party, right?”

“Yes… thank you.”

That expression—eyes smiling but mouth serious.

Is this typical workplace life?

It seems a bit disgusting though, since Kim Soo-jung is 23, and that leering middle-aged man is clearly in his mid-40s at best.

He must be skilled; even without checking his farming window, judging by how he talks and how others treat him, he seems to be the most powerful person here.

In fact, he was a hunter with A-rank tanker abilities.

The surrounding hunters matched his vibe, passing time with unfunny jokes.

When it was time to enter the dungeon, about seven hunters including myself went in.

“Today too, oppa will protect you, so our Soo-jung can deal damage however she wants. You know oppa likes it when you go hard, right?”

“…”

I came without much expectation, but within 30 minutes, my mind changed.

This seemed much more fun than shopping.

And my prediction was proven correct just 10 minutes after entering the dungeon.