Chapter 127: The Helper

Episode 127

Karen opened his eyes with difficulty and looked up at Kim Jinsung.

“…Potion…”

Kim Jinsung didn’t move a muscle despite hearing his plea.

Seeing this, Karen strained his throat with all his might.

“I… can survive…! Just… trust me… the potion… please…!”

“……”

“Aren’t you… curious… about who… attacked us…?”

“……!”

Kim Jinsung flinched slightly at those words. Seeing a glimmer of hope, Karen pleaded even more desperately.

“If you… want to know… the potion… Or at least… release these shackles… or the mana seal…!”

“That’s not happening.”

Kim Jinsung replied firmly and began to slowly pour the potion into Karen’s mouth.

With each gulp, Kim Jinsung witnessed Karen’s wounds healing at an astonishing rate.

One potion wasn’t enough. He had to use the last emergency potion he had brought before Karen fully recovered.

“Phew…”

Karen, touching his completely regenerated body and checking his senses, looked at Kim Jinsung.

“Thank you. I’m indebted to you again.”

Kim Jinsung stared at Karen without replying.

Noticing Kim Jinsung’s gaze directed at his head, Karen sighed and spoke.

“This is my unique ability. I don’t die immediately even from fatal blows.”

Karen’s answer was as Kim Jinsung had expected.

“Damn it. I didn’t want to show anyone my ability…”

Kim Jinsung asked Karen, who was muttering with a dejected expression,

“So, what’s the identity of those muscleheads who attacked us?”

“…Nature Animal.”

Karen said with a hardened expression.

“They’re the clan that rules the B16 district. Naturally, anyone living in this area would know about them.

They’re notorious for injecting illegal drugs into their bodies to modify their muscles and skin.”

Kim Jinsung nodded.

He could still vividly picture the muscleheads with their incomprehensible physical abilities.

“The Exchange Street we visited is also under the control of Nature Animal. Someone from the exchange office must have reported our visit to the clan.

I was careless, thinking they were a Spanish clan and wouldn’t be related to Triunfo…”

Karen, blaming himself, remembered the wanted poster with his face on it that the Nature Animal master was holding.

He then hardened his expression and abruptly stood up.

“Let’s get back to B15 quickly. This is practically Nature Animal’s home ground. There’s nothing good about staying here for long.”

* * *

Kim Jinsung and Karen quickly moved to the B15 district.

They first stopped at a bank, where they each opened an account and deposited all their money into Kim Jinsung’s account.

Karen then led Kim Jinsung not to a restaurant, but to the most luxurious-looking hotel in the heart of the bustling area.

They checked into a twin-bed room for one night and went straight inside.

“There’s no safer place in the western B district than this hotel.”

Karen explained to Kim Jinsung, who had a puzzled expression, and took a bite of the hamburger he had ordered through room service.

“Because the clan that owns this hotel…”

“Is the Alpha Clan?”

“…You know?”

Kim Jinsung, also taking a bite of his hamburger, replied to the slightly surprised Karen,

“It says ‘Alpha Hotel’ right on the entrance.”

The Alpha Clan.

One of the most powerful clans in the world, let alone the United States, which had the most clans operating in the New Continent.

They had also held the undisputed number one position in the world for a long time.

Antagonizing the Alpha Clan was tantamount to making an enemy of the United States.

“No matter how ruthless the Triunfo guys are, they wouldn’t have the guts to attack this hotel.”

“Still, 1 million Blanc per night is too expensive.”

Kim Jinsung blurted out, remembering the 1 million Blanc he had paid at the front desk.

Karen replied nonchalantly,

“It’s cheaper than your life, isn’t it?”

“It is. The potions I used to save you alone cost 20 million Blanc.”

“……”

Karen suddenly fell silent and focused on eating his hamburger.

Kim Jinsung’s voice continued to reach his ears.

“Plus, if we add the cost of this expensive room you booked without even discussing it…”

“Hey, that’s going too far!”

Kim Jinsung replied to the indignant Karen without batting an eye.

“Then should I add the cost of saving you from Franco?”

“…Wow!”

Karen clicked his tongue and looked at Kim Jinsung with an exasperated expression.

He had thought he was pulling his weight by accompanying Kim Jinsung.

“I’m not kidding, so tell me seriously. How are you going to pay for your life? You’re not thinking of settling it with the money we got from the exchange office, are you?”

“Of course not!”

Karen began to explain what he had been thinking.

“I was actually planning to go to a Demon World Dungeon right after we finish eating.”

Hearing the words ‘Demon World Dungeon’, Kim Jinsung remembered someone he had forgotten about.

‘Come to think of it, I need to see Dantalian again.’

It had only been two days since he had escaped from Colosseum thanks to the Inclusio phenomenon caused by Dantalian’s help.

He had temporarily forgotten about it due to the many events that had unfolded since then.

“Normally, the proper order is to go to a mercenary guild or a quest board, receive a quest with a set reward, and then enter a dungeon.”

“But?”

“We both ‘officially’ have no dungeon experience, right?”

Kim Jinsung nodded.

They were both hiding their true identities in the New Continent.

“As rookie hunters, we’ll only be able to get Level 1 Demon World Dungeon quests at the mercenary guild. Or body disposal quests for dungeons below Level 5… Your skills aren’t low enough to apply for body disposal, are they?”

“……”

“Above all, none of those quests pay well. You’ll only earn about 10 million Blanc at most…

Wouldn’t it be better to clear a high-level dungeon that matches your skills and then receive high-difficulty quests that offer generous rewards?”

Karen continued to persuade the silent Kim Jinsung.

“With your skills, you can easily clear a Level 5 Demon World Dungeon or higher alone.

By the way, the level of quests offered to hunters who have cleared Level 5 or higher is completely different from those offered to rookie hunters. The rewards are naturally much higher.

In this city, you’re only considered a proven expert if you’ve cleared a dungeon of Level 5 or higher.”

“What dungeon level do Void and Illusion rifts appear in?”

Kim Jinsung suddenly asked, interrupting Karen’s explanation.

“Void and Illusion? Both of them usually appear in dungeons of Level 10 or higher…”

“Let’s go to Level 10 then.”

Karen’s eyes widened.

“Level 10? Not Level 5?”

“Why?”

“Do you even know how difficult a Level 10 dungeon is?”

“No, not really.”

Karen was dumbfounded by Kim Jinsung’s answer.

“…You don’t seem to value your life. Let me explain. The difficulty of dungeons Level 10 and above is on a completely different level compared to single-digit level dungeons. It’s so difficult that…”

“No need to explain.”

“…What?”

“I’m not going alone. I’ll be accompanied by a reliable helper, so what’s there to be afraid of?”

“……!”

Karen’s expression brightened noticeably.

“Does that mean you’ll release my mana seal in the dungeon…?”

“No.”

“…Then what?”

Kim Jinsung didn’t answer Karen’s question, who had returned to his grumpy expression.

He didn’t want to explain about Dantalian, and even if he did, Karen wouldn’t believe him anyway.

Instead, he stood up and started packing his belongings.

“Let’s get going. We’ve rested enough.”

Karen stuffed the rest of his hamburger into his mouth and also started packing his belongings, thinking to himself,

‘Is he really asking me to be his guide? I haven’t completely mastered Level 10 dungeons myself, so I’m not sure if I can guide him properly…’

As he followed Kim Jinsung out of the hotel room, he prayed inwardly.

He prayed that they would encounter a relatively easy Level 10 dungeon.

* * *

The two took a taxi to the B13 district.

Through the window, which had only shown shabby houses until now, they saw a giant black portal covering the entire ground.

The taxi stopped at a place with a sign that read ‘Level 10 Demon World Dungeon’.

Kim Jinsung and Karen, getting out of the car, were both wearing black masks that completely covered their noses and mouths.

“We weren’t followed, right?”

Karen replied to Kim Jinsung, who was muttering to himself while looking around.

“We should be fine this time. We took a taxi directly from the hotel basement, so even if the Triunfo guys were watching the entrance, it would have been difficult for them to notice us.”

Kim Jinsung nodded at Karen’s words.

Moreover, the taxi windows were heavily tinted, making it almost impossible to see inside from the outside.

“Let’s buy some potions before we go in.”

“No, it’s fine. Let’s save the extra money, just in case.”

“…You’re planning to raid a Level 10 Demon World Dungeon without any potions?”

“Yeah. I can dodge all the enemy attacks, and you won’t die even if you take a fatal blow.”

“…Are you serious? Hey!”

Karen hurriedly followed Kim Jinsung, who was walking straight towards the Level 10 dungeon entrance.

Kim Jinsung, reaching the entrance, saw two Alpha Clan Paladins guarding the dungeon portal.

“Submit your IDs.”

The Paladins said in a businesslike manner to the approaching duo.

They presented their hunter wristbands, and the Paladins scanned the codes inside with their measuring devices to verify their identities.

“Go in.”

The two passed through and stood right in front of the dungeon portal.

Karen, with a nervous expression, looked at Kim Jinsung as they were just a step away from entering the portal.

“Are you really going in like this? I’m telling you again, Level 10 dungeons are incredibly dangerous. It’s a place where even escaping is difficult, let alone clearing it.

Let’s go back and buy some potions first…”

“It’s fine, I have a helper.”

“But how much help can I be with these shackles on…!”

Karen’s frustrated outburst was cut short.

Kim Jinsung, ignoring his words, dragged him into the dungeon portal.

Karen, forced into the dungeon against his will, muttered with a sigh,

“Haa… This is driving me crazy.”

But Kim Jinsung still wasn’t listening to him.

As soon as they entered the dungeon, a loud voice boomed in his head.

[Why are you only returning now!!]

The owner of the furious voice was none other than Dantalian.

—