Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Otherworld Cheat Harem.

Episode 36: Dungeon Revolution (1).

Early morning. Even before the sun had risen, I got up out of habit, washed my face lightly, and ran around the city.

There was a track inside the mansion where I could run lightly, but running on the wide main road was still the best.

Some early risers gave me strange looks, and a passing guard briefly stopped me for questioning.

After finishing my morning jog and sweating, I returned to the mansion and listened to the singing coming from the backyard.

A sound I wouldn’t have heard if it weren’t for the time when the morning sun lifted the curtains, and the dew and birds sang.

Unconsciously, I moved my feet to the backyard. There I found Gahee, whom I hadn’t seen for a long time, passionately singing.

“♬.“

Listening to that singing, I realized that an idol trainee is indeed a trainee. It also became clear how she was able to get a job at a bar so quickly when she fell into this world.

She was a muse. A Prometheus who came to bring songs to this backward otherworld, and a siren who would captivate and destroy all who listened.

“…”

In the middle of her singing, she noticed the presence of an uninvited guest and stopped. After a moment, our eyes met. Gahee glanced at me briefly and then went inside the mansion without a word.

Ever since she moved into this mansion after receiving harsh words from me, she had continued to keep her distance.

Watching her show hostility unilaterally, I sometimes wondered if I should be the one to apologize first.

‘Why should I?’

But my petty pride wouldn’t allow it. Unless someone’s pride broke first, we would continue to run in parallel lines.

“No, what is this…?”

“Amazing.”

“Yeah…”

A week after hunting the dungeon master, we confirmed that our savings were running out, so we came to the dungeon to earn money.

And we were astonished to see the long line in front of the dungeon.

“Line up! Line up!”

“No cutting in line, please!”

“Hey mister, you cut in line, didn’t you? Submit your guild card.”

At the entrance of the dungeon, adventurers were lining up, waiting impatiently for their turn.

Adventurers who hadn’t lined up yet were huddled together, discussing something in temporary tents near the dungeon.

“Warrior! Anyone need a strong warrior?”

“I’m a 1st-rate martial artist guardian! I have a certificate!”

“A genius who mastered beginner magic is on standby at all times…”

‘What is that?’

In a positive light, they seemed like job seekers asserting their value in the job market, but in a negative light, it was like a marketplace.

In Deokgu’s words, they were like players in an MMORPG looking for party members.

Of course, this was a sight I hadn’t seen until recently. I had no idea what changes had occurred in the past few days to cause this.

“Shall we… go in?”

I headed towards the entrance of the dungeon with the kids. I ignored all the lines. As expected, the administrator who saw us immediately rushed over.

“Hold on! You can’t cut in line. Please submit your guild card.”

“Yes, here.”

At the administrator’s request, I handed over the guild card. A silver-plated card of a high-ranking adventurer.

The manager who saw the card immediately straightened his posture and bowed his head.

“Were you a high-ranking adventurer? I apologize for the oversight. I will take you right away.”

“Ah, yes.”

He promptly guided us to the inside of the dungeon. Perhaps it was a rare sight, as the adventurers in line looked at us.

Their eyes were not filled with envy or jealousy. Quite the opposite. They were filled with admiration, awe, and a sense of longing.

The manager led us to the express elevator to the 10th floor. The two soldiers guarding the elevator checked our adventurer cards and allowed us to pass immediately.

The speed of the elevator coming and going was quite fast, so we were able to ascend to the 10th floor without waiting.

Unlike the crowded 1st floor, the 10th floor was somewhat sparse. However, there were still a few people scattered around here.

Seoyoon checked that there was no one around and asked me with an expression of admiration.

“How did you know?”

“Know what?”

“That person would let us go straight.”

“I didn’t know.”

“What?”

“I didn’t know.”

I’m not an omnipotent god, and I didn’t know the dungeon would change like this, so how could I possibly know how they would act?

I just had confidence. Confidence that whatever we did, they couldn’t harm us.

Seoyoon looked at me incredulously after hearing that.

“You know, what percentage of adventurers do you think have experienced leveling up even once?”

“Well… wouldn’t it be about fifty percent?”

“One percent.”

“…One percent?”

Seoyoon calculated in her head for a moment at my words. The top one percent were not people who could be ignored in any field.

“Why on earth? Dungeons make money easily.”

“It’s a problem because they make money easily.”

“Why is that a problem?”

“Don’t you remember when we first went up to the second floor? Whether we caught goblins or King Turtles, it was a one-hit kill, so the profit actually dropped.”

“I remember. That’s when we realized the third floor was the optimal place to make money.”

“Hanyoung is the odd one; that’s what’s normal, actually.”

I said as we ascended to the 11th floor, a zone where the supernatural phenomena of the dungeon were not under my control.

Soon, the blackout curtain enclosed us. A familiar, almost peaceful darkness came.

“After hunting for a long time and building up skill… even if you go up to the second or third floor, the profits don’t increase; they hit rock bottom.”

In that sense, the second floor was quite malicious. The King Turtle, with a shell much harder than a goblin’s, appeared.

In the time it took to hunt one King Turtle on the second floor, you could hunt five or six goblins.

Skipping the second floor? Even if you reached the third floor without proper growth, it would be the same. Hunting would only become increasingly difficult.

“So, the ones who made it up to the tenth floor aren’t here for money.”

“…Then why did they come up?”

“They’re adventurers seeking dreams.”

I didn’t understand why adventurers monopolized and hid information after leveling up, but once I leveled up, I understood completely.

Whether you hide the information or not, those who would level up would level up. Those who aimed for a few paltry gold coins could never rise to the top.

The only ones who rose to the top were adventurers hungry for dreams and challenges, not just money.

“Of course, the time it takes depends on innate talent or background… but basically, those who have leveled up are the ones who will continue to attack the dungeon. Unlike other adventurers who are crowded below the 10th floor.”

“So… unlike the other adventurers who only chase money, we’re actually conquering the dungeon, and that’s why the guild treats us differently?”

“You understood well.”

Saying that, I drew my sword. Thump, thump. The nightmare of the 11th floor approached. A gigantic bear. A bear with red fur raised its body.

“Who the hell would want to fight a monster like this?”

I gripped my sword. Swords weren’t originally made for fighting monsters like this. That was why I never learned any proper sword techniques for hunting beasts.

What was needed now was not swordsmanship. Against a beast that moved by instinct, what was required was pure wisdom or brute strength.

“Hooo…”

I exhaled. Steam escaped from every pore of my body. Like a thermal power plant, I generated intense heat from within.

Heat soon became energy. Energy was vitality, and it transformed into the brute strength that overwhelmed monsters.

“Roar!”

The Scarlet Bear stood on two feet and puffed up its body. An instinctive action to intimidate its opponent.

Naturally, such instinctive actions had many gaps. Especially because it was a beast relying on its flimsy physique.

The heat generated within my body transferred directly to the sword. The sword, having absorbed the heat, turned a bright red in an instant.

In this darkness, the glowing red sword drew considerable attention. Even a mindless beast would notice it.

The Scarlet Bear sensed something amiss and swung its arm, but the strike descending from above was far too late.

Blazing Dragon Strike.

A dragon sliced through the beast’s belly skin. Not a single drop of blood flowed through the split skin.

Moments later, a mana stone clattered to the ground where the Scarlet Bear had fallen. While I was briefly lost in admiration of my own impressive feat, Seoyoon, who had been watching, chimed in.

“How tacky.”

“…What is?”

“You took way too long. And what’s with Blazing Dragon Strike? Are you a kid?”

“No, did I say that out loud…?”

While I was touching my lips in embarrassment, feeling shy, another Scarlet Bear appeared. However, my reaction was delayed due to the shame.

“Like this.”

Seoyoon didn’t miss the gap. With a light gesture of her hand, a massive square block of ice fell. The Scarlet Bear, crushed under the overwhelming mass, was pinned to the ground.

Above the head of the trapped beast, a one-ton ice spear swiftly descended, piercing the head of the Scarlet Bear.

Thud, thud, after a few strikes to the head, it soon died, leaving only a mana stone behind.

It was a hunting method that was far quicker and more efficient than mine.

“This is how you do it.”

She said, looking at me as if I were pathetic. I memorized that face. After all, with how she used her abilities, she was definitely going to invite me to her room tonight.

I swore that I would definitely take revenge at that time.

The changes in the dungeon altered many things. It made the mages, who were holed up in their rooms poring over grimoires, start moving, and made the rangers, who only operated in the forests and armies, take up their bows and seek out the dungeon.

Thus, paradoxically, the dungeon became even safer. Until then, dungeons were ruthless and lawless ecosystems of darkness.

Once you entered, no one could see you until you emerged, the surroundings were always shrouded in darkness, and you never knew when a monster might jump out from that darkness… wasn’t it the perfect place to be used for crime?

But what about the dungeon now? Adventurers were everywhere. The view was wide open, making it easy to prevent ambushes, and with so many eyes watching, there was no risk of a party member stabbing you and running away.

If the previous dungeon emphasized trust and credibility, now they valued skill.

Masters who hesitated due to a lack of trustworthy companions were beginning to appear one by one, and even unfamiliar farmers newly arrived from the countryside easily found parties to join and venture into dungeons.

Just as the Industrial Revolution both eliminated and created numerous jobs for workers.

The Dungeon Revolution was the same.