23. Training Dungeon (1)
I could see the blue sky outside the window. A white sea of clouds stretched to the side.
A sight somehow familiar to the eye.
When I was a mercenary in my previous life, it was a sight I saw every time I got on a plane to carry out a mission, so it would be natural if it was natural, but now I was on a train.
The official name is Endurance.
Alien Sky Train.
It was the first time I had been on the train since being expelled, so it had been a decade since I had been on this train.
As I recalled the memories of that time when I was sent back to the ground after half a year, I made a resolution once again.
I will make sure that such an unsavory thing will never happen in this life.
expulsion,
The death of a close friend,
Even the end of the world.
He regained his composure after achieving a new mental unification, saying that he would make sure that he would never lose to anyone.
I wiped my face once with my hand and put the women in the seat in front of me into my field of vision.
“It’s a pity that there is no in-flight meal.”
Chun Yu-ha, the future head of the Chunma Shinkyo Church.
The red-haired woman was mad at the fact that the train was flying in the sky, but soon got tired of it, and she was blaming the poor in-flight service with a sullen face.
“It can’t be helped because the boarding time is short. Even now, while eating hard, there are a lot of complaints.”
The green-haired elf, Eleanor Andersen, lashed out at her best friend with a snarky tone.
However, the corner of her mouth that rose subtly showed that it was a joke that could only be possible because they were close friends.
Chun Yu-ha also didn’t seem to care about that tone at all.
He was only engrossed in chewing on the muffins he had received from the flight attendants.
‘No, is that just mindless?’
Around the time I expressed regret for the image of the Heavenly Demon Goddess, which had begun to be devalued in my head,
While chewing on the muffin, Cheon Yu-ha brought up the topic she was talking about earlier.
It was the story of a weekend volunteer service outside of her, and a drive in the country.
“Borrowing your inner skills, did that professor come up with such a great invention? I heard that the shaman’s level is excellent, but it seems that was true.”
Chun Yu-ha, who had not experienced the object, tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
It was hard to believe just hearing the word.
It was an amazing technology that even I, who had experienced it decades later, had never experienced before.
It was a truly new technology that even I, who had survived the Great War, was unaware of.
‘Is this also the part where the future has changed?’
I don’t think I’ve done much, but the future has changed arbitrarily.
The damn butterfly effect. I must have had an influence somewhere else.
Even so, I wondered if inventions were made so quickly,
“Surprisingly, that pumpkin-headed professor might be the genius of the century.”
“Well, whether it’s martial arts or magic, if you get a chance, you can take a step forward, so it’s the same with technology.”
Chun Yu-ha nodded, probably understanding my words.
Eleanor pricked up her distinctive pointed ears, but did not show much reaction.
Even though he bit his candid lips, as if he wanted to say something.
‘He’s really dishonest.’
Anyway, that’s how we continued a trivial conversation with Chun Yu-ha as the relay.
He seemed quite busy while eating muffins and reacting to the conversation material the celestial elf and I threw around, but that didn’t last long either.
rattle,
Finally the train reached the ground.
***
The city of skyscrapers, Seoul.
It was not a space reserved for a duel in the hall, but a city that existed right in front of you.
The capital of the country that developed by receiving and consuming the Congo water from the leading edge floating around the East Sea.
It is a high-tech place to be selected as one of the world’s top 10 cities, but as the people who came together were children of the world’s most prestigious families, they did not look surprised.
“Where is Gyeongbokgung Palace? Do you have time to go!”
It was a story when Chun Yu-ha, who was making a fuss again, was excluded.
Shaking my head, I looked at the scenery of the city, which was like my hometown where I lived before.
The length of stay is not long, but it is a town where you can buy a house.
‘It’s peaceful.’
The traffic-congested roads and the air full of fine dust were far from relaxing and pleasant, but it felt peaceful to me nonetheless.
After the Great War broke out, I couldn’t even see this kind of scenery properly.
For some reason, I felt like I was becoming sentimental today, but I decided to stop.
There was no more time to stop.
As well as being stuck in the past, it was also time to actually move from place to place.
“I’m watching with both eyes open, so don’t leave. Now, follow the teacher in a single file.”
The name of the lecture, the ecology of dungeons and demons.
Originally, it was a theoretical lecture on Wednesdays and Thursdays, but this time it was an experiential learning to explore the dungeon directly.
It was because even if there were all sorts of things, I couldn’t find anything like a dungeon.
Instead, it was to explore dungeons within the territory of South Korea.
‘Training dungeon.’
However, it was not to experience the naturally occurring dungeon itself.
There were too many unexpected elements for that, and the leadership itself was difficult.
It was a refurbished dungeon that had been cleared with special treatment, leaving its function intact.
A space created so that they can manage themselves while fully experiencing the dangers of the dungeon.
A group of cadets, led by a professor, soon entered a building in the city center.
A building with an exterior that would be perfect for use as a museum or memorial.
After passing the strict boundary from the entrance, a place with open space appeared.
A hemispherical lobby.
In the middle was a cluster of twinkling lights.
The so-called ‘portal’, the only entrance to the dungeon.
It was a notorious training dungeon where beginners would inevitably suffer.
Before letting the cadets enter the place, the professor of ecology once again pointed out the typical characteristics of the monsters, such as the behavior patterns of the monsters and the traps installed on the walls and floors, which he had been informed about in the previous lecture.
Then, for the last time, he spat out a remark to motivate the cadets.
“Now, there is an injury involved in this experiential learning. Thankfully, up to third place. I will provide you with the elixir made at Hestia Workshop.”
After saying that, the professor soon added the obvious saying that safety is more important than breaking records, but he didn’t care about that.
‘Third? No, unconditionally first place.’
There were things he coveted at Hestia Workshop, famous for manufacturing elixirs, but his desire to compete was greater than that.
… … This is because the me in my previous life died perfectly in this dungeon.
‘Was it third or fourth from the back?’
My poor skills at the time also played a role, and other cadets had experienced dungeons with family members at least once, but that was the first time for me.
Yes, there were a lot of excuses.
And the justifications that I was able to give at that time were useless to me now.
It’s been a long time since I got out of my ugly skills, and there was a history of going through countless dungeons that were so diverse and like sh*t.
There was no need to make any more excuses.
The only goal is to be number one.
I was thinking of doing it first.
That is the perfect strategy.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who thought that way.
“Look, Kang-jun.”
When I turned my head at the sudden call, I saw a soldier with glowing eyes.
He is famous as the Heavenly Demon of the future and the minor leader of the Heavenly Demonic Religion, but even without that, he is already a genius with the nickname Wu Dragon.
Chun Yu-ha calmly raised the corner of his mouth and held out his hand to me.
“I’m bored with just playing, so why don’t you make a bet on who will pass first?”
It was a sound to compete with the game with the attack record.
Her voice was as light as ever, but the strength and determination in her gaze were serious.
This guy was seriously thinking of defeating me.
From nob le mt l. co m
Looking down at Chun Yu-ha’s hand, I smiled the same way and held her hand tightly.
“Ok, fine.”
I bet on myself.
***
After waiting for my turn, I entered the dungeon.
As I crossed the portal, I felt a sense of floating for a moment, and when I came to my senses, it was a cave.
A rock cave with no one around, with only one way to go.
By the time I recognized all the scenery around me, a message appeared in one corner of my field of vision.
[You have entered the ‘Training Dungeon’. ]
A colleague I worked with in the past said it resembled a VR game.
It’s like a game message.
At the time, I didn’t really know what the game system was like because I didn’t have enough time in my life, but I understood one of them.
There is a goal in the process of playing the game.
It was the same with dungeons.
[ Reach the exit before anyone else. ]
“I love how simple it is.”
This is why when I worked as a mercenary in the past, I liked raiding dungeons the most.
They didn’t have to kill people, and they didn’t have to repay them for destroying public property in the city.
“How long did it take before?”
Did you escape in about an hour?
Recalling the memory, I nodded and set a specific goal.
“Ten minutes.”
No more time was needed.