CH 3

Black hair that looks brown in the light. Red eyes that shine from beneath a strong brow bone.

Like the protagonist, he was an instant attention grabber. Han Cha-soo’s heart sank. Unlike the others, he was not shocked by Jung Yi-heon’s appearance.

‘…torturing me like this, with this face.’

The moment their eyes met, the story of the original film came to mind. The death of his beloved brother.

“Ugh….”

Even though he’s not blackened now, so he’s probably a sweet and gentle character who could be called a hogu, I was still reluctant.

Han Cha-soo slowly took a step away from him.

Meanwhile, Baek-sun was barking like a puppy, happy to see the guild leader.

”Shouldn’t you be heading down to Jeju Island right away? Why are you hanging around here?”

“Even if you don’t make such a fuss, I’m not going to ruin Baek-sun’s holiday. Rather, why did you come from the manufacturing team?”

Jung Yi-heon naturally turned his head to look at Han Cha-soo. He wasn’t going to move until he got an answer.

Han Cha-soo swallowed a sigh and bowed his head.

“I’m Han Cha-soo, Potion Making Team 1. I volunteered when I heard that the ingredients for the new potion I’m researching were found in the Frostgiant Dungeon.”

Jung Yi-heon’s eyebrows twitched as he showed his hand full of boxes.

“New research ingredients?”

“Yes. It’s a sample that needs to be harvested and medicated immediately, so I was forced to participate. Don’t worry, I’ll be careful not to trip up the raiding team.”

Han Cha-soo said and bowed his head once more.

‘If you’ve done this much, just move on.’

Right now, all he wanted to do was get it over with and leave.

“Isn’t it great, Guild Leader? I’ve never seen someone so motivated in the manufacturing team before.”

“I see.”

Jung Yi-heon’s red eyes flashed with interest.

“I didn’t realise there was such a person in our guild.”

It was a compliment on paper, but the way he mumbled it was somehow meaningful.

The nape of his neck prickled. Han Cha-soo glanced up, then dropped his gaze back on the floor.

Dark red eyes were staring at him. The look of interest was overwhelming.

‘You’re crazy.’

Swallowing a sigh that threatened to burst out, Han Cha-soo feigned ignorance.

Does he already know what this body has done?

Otherwise, his gaze was too heavy to understand.

‘Even if you’re a sweetheart, an S-class is still an S-class.

For some reason, a cold sweat ran down the back of my neck, reminding me of torture scenes in novels.

Fortunately, Yi-Heon’s attention was soon drawn away.

“I see, I’m relieved to hear that a potion maker will be joining the support team. Please do your best in today’s strategy.”

“Yes, sir….”

Having a crafter who can brew potions on the fly makes the game much easier.

Jung Yi-heon’s face softened as if he was pleased that his brother’s raid had become easier.

‘It’s really a huge blow for your brother…. I didn’t want to feel it like this.’

He had a lot of affection for his brother because he was in a hurry.

Han Cha-soo nodded, trying to hide his cold eyes. Baek-sun was once again clinging to him.

“Then say goodbye to the guild leader. We’ll go and get our equipment first!”

“Alright then, let’s go.”

Not wanting to be caught by Jung Yi-heon again, Han Cha-soo quickly left with Baek-sun.

‘Ah, I just want to get this over with and leave.’

Han Cha-soo shifted his footsteps, following the voice that told the auxiliary to gather.

It felt like something sharp was poking him in the back, but it was probably just the sensation of detachment.

He turned his head to look at the limousine bus as it drove away.

The Vice Guild Leader was now approaching, arms crossed, tongue clicked.

“If anyone saw you, they’d think you left a five-year-old behind.”

“That’s how he looks to me.”

The Vice Guild Leader shook his head as Jung Yi-heon gently retorted.

“If you’re done seeing him leaving, let’s get ready. The other guilds are starting to ask if we’re campaigning.”

Jung Yi-heon listened to the vice guild leader grumble for a while.

Then he looked in the direction the bus had disappeared and spat.

“Do you remember the people from Potion Manufacturing Team 1?”

“Manufacturing Team 1? I know Lim and a few of the researchers.”

The Vice Guild Leader tilted his head as if to ask why that was suddenly a question.

“What’s with the sudden question. Are you changing the subject?”

His eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at Jung Yi-heon.

Jung Yi-heon said as he took a step.

“Someone named Han Cha-soo applied for the assistant team today.”

“Han Cha-soo? Who is that… Ah!”

The Vice Guildmaster’s eyes widened. He turned to Jung Yi-heon as if to ask if it was true.

“That pair of dorky glasses he always uses to bump into you in the canteen?”

“Yeah.”

He was bare faced today, though he didn’t know where he’d thrown those ugly glasses away.

“We’ll see what he’s thinking.”

Jung Yi-heon muttered, putting the red orb back in his hand.

The limousine bus stopped at Yasan on the outskirts of Seoul. Han Cha-soo looked out the window curiously and followed the people off the bus.

“Do you want to go eat ribs after we’re done?”

“No thanks. I have to go home today. My mum’s been asking me why I’ve been so absent.”

It was a relaxed and peaceful conversation.

Team 1 was busy laughing and rubbing shoulders with each other without any tension.

Han Cha-soo, who was wondering why they were so demoralised, soon realised.

‘Oh, they don’t know.’

The frost giant’s runaway was just as unbelievable.

It had never happened before. No wonder they were unprepared.

Han Cha-soo was lost in thought as he stood at the head of the procession moving through the dungeon.

As he walked, Baek-sun, who had gone to the support team, kept glancing in his direction, but he couldn’t make out what he was saying.

Han Cha-soo decided to ask him later and turned away. Ahead of him, he saw a man leading a group of people.

He was well-built, fairly tall, and a little slimmer than his brother.

He was an A-ranked Hunter of the Fire class and the leader of today’s raiding party.

I even tried my luck with him against the Frost Giant’s rampage. A raid leader’s defences would be more reliable than those of a B-class producer.

But I soon abandoned that plan.

‘I need to keep a low profile until I leave.’

After all, the goal is to save face, not clear the dungeon.

A potion maker who hasn’t even been in the dungeon is suddenly predicting the future of the dungeon and giving warning.

It’s like he’s telling everyone to be suspicious and wary.

‘If you do anything wrong, you could be accused of being a spy.’

Even if you don’t, you could be accused of having some sort of precognitive skill, or of gaining information about the dungeon through other means.

This was unacceptable to Han Cha-soo, whose goal was to leave and disappear as quietly as possible.

He flicked his finger to open his inventory.

Colourful reagents clinked and announced their presence.

It had been in the box that the trainer had brought with Baek-sun.

Han Cha-soo’s eyes shone coldly as he looked at the colourful reagent vials.

‘In any case, we only need to save Jung Seo-heon.’

Then I can leave.

While I was gathering my will to leave, I reached the bottom of the mountain.

In the middle of a clearing, artificially created by cutting down trees, I could see the entrance to the gate, glowing green.

‘Green, not orange, so I guess they didn’t expect a rampage.’

There are many ways to measure the level of danger in a dungeon, but to simplify, there are three main colours.

Red, yellow, and green.

Green is for dungeons with little to no risk of runaways. It was also a mark of safety among the resident dungeons.

Boom!

Not long after arriving, the first team entered the Frost Giant Dungeon smoothly.

It was a dungeon I’d been to many times before, so I wasn’t nervous.

We made our way through the snowy fields and through the coniferous forest to the Frost Giant’s lair.

“What is that?”

At first, I thought it was a mountain peak jutting out of the coniferous forest.

But as their ears twitched at the slightest whisper, they realised it was a monster.

A monster with a massive physique, whose glowing eyes could be clearly seen even from this far away.

“Crazy…!”

Along with someone’s cursing, an earth-shaking roar pierced their eardrums.

Kyauuuuu-!

A rippling sound that shook the air.

A swarm of furry giants well over thirty metres long followed.

“Hey, run.”

“Everyone, fall back!”

With an earthquake shaking the ground, the people rushed out in unison.

But their escape was soon blocked by a giant barrier.

Whirring-!

“Blizzard?”

Jeong Seo-heon looked up and saw a peculiar-looking frost giant.

It wore a necklace lined with skulls and wielded a crystal staff.

“There’s a shaman among the frost giants?!”

With a horrified cry, Blizzard swept through the group.

“Argh!”

“Everyone dodge!”

Argh-

With a grisly sound, sharp ice dug through their armour and I heard.

[The frenzied Frostgiant Shaman casts ‘Blizzard’ ]

[Blizzard’s chill penetrates your entire body! ]

[Your body temperature drops! ]

[Your body temperature drops! ]

[Your body temperature drops! ]

The warning message flashed before my eyes.