A gate was discovered on a remote hill in Gyeonggi Province.
The initial reporter was Detective Oh Cheol-jung, who was searching for clues in a nearby murder case.
He was the police officer who had conducted a random search of Shinnoda’s group.
The following day, he chased after them, looking for footprints and other traces, as they were suspicious in many ways.
However, soon their tracks disappeared, leaving only the gate standing there.
Oh Cheol-jung reported this fact to the administration.
It wasn’t long before many people gathered.
Heroes, police, journalists.
But, the strength of the heroes was severely lacking in preparation for the worst-case scenario.
The TV channels interrupted their programming to report the breaking news.
<This is breaking news! A gate has been discovered on a remote hill in Gyeonggi Province. The gate is currently closed, but it appears that someone has already entered.>
Journalists pressed Detective Oh Cheol-jung for information, and with the upper authority’s permission, he released limited details.
<According to witness testimonies, the Awakened One, who is believed to have entered the gate, is a student of the Academy. The authorities have issued an evacuation advisory for the Gyeonggi area. Nearby residents are urged to evacuate immediately.>
In the newsroom, a former C-class Hunter was consulted as an expert.
“Academy students entered the gate, correct? Even though they have weapons, they’re still students. What’s the expert opinion?”
The expert sighed before speaking.
“According to the measurements, it’s a D-class Dungeon. It’s difficult to judge a dungeon solely by rank. Experience is crucial.”
“So you’re saying it will be hard to clear the dungeon? Were they too reckless?”
“Based on confirmed information, they are first-year students, so they likely have little dungeon experience. Typically, it’s challenging to clear such dungeons, and it seems they overestimated their capabilities.”
The news portrayed the situation as dire, implying they were in a critical state and that the gate might collapse at any moment, causing a disaster.
The internet news comment sections were rife with trolls.
<Aren't Academies supposed to be top-notch? That's old news. I stopped paying attention since the 54th generation.>
Reply<What are you even doing? Old news?>
Reply<I’m a solid company's CEO, grow up.;>
Reply<Oh! CEO checking comments at 2 PM?>
<All of you are nuisances, making it seem like the gate will collapse.>
<They've been walking around with swords causing trouble anyway; they deserve it.>
<Are you all getting beaten by Academy students? Why so angry?>
Reply<You want to be an Academy student next?>
Indeed, the situation was perilous. If they were annihilated inside the gate, it would collapse and release a massive number of monsters.
Since it was in such a remote rural area, all the available heroes were gathered, but there were only three at most.
The people gathered in front of the gate displayed clear signs of unease.
‘I hear reinforcements are coming from Seoul, but it’ll take at least an hour.’
‘If this thing explodes, we’re done. They didn’t even learn how to fight monsters!’
‘I regret being a hero now. We can neither flee nor fight. We’re about to die.’
Even these three heroes, rated C and D, didn’t have impressive combat abilities.
Suddenly, the gate wavered.
The black void expanded, growing larger.
The gate grew large enough to accommodate a big truck.
“Ugh…”
The heroes panicked and retreated from the gate.
Their display was pathetic.
Their actions were broadcast live on the news.
Viewers were deeply disappointed by their amateurish display, and they voiced their opinions in the real-time chat.
<What is the point of them?>
<These are supposed to be heroes?;>
<While Dark Knight is treated like a villain, tax money goes to these losers. Is this the right world?>
A humanoid figure appeared from the gate.
A man clad in sleek red body armor.
Holding a spear in one hand, he confidently walked out.
“Wh-who are you!”
Shinnoda remembered the suspicious individuals from the gate yesterday and, deciding to assess the situation, stepped forward.
Since brute force could handle nearly any trap or problem.
The heroes drew their weapons and readied themselves.
‘A humanoid monster!’
They were terrified.
Typically, humanoid monsters were powerful, at least B-class.
They would be at a hopeless disadvantage if it was real.
The situation was tense.
Live viewing audiences also tensed up, even though they were unfamiliar with the genre, sensing the knight’s considerable strength.
<What is that?>
<Some kind of S-class monster?>
<Wow>
<RIP>
The knight looked around and smirked.
“It seems there’s been some misunderstanding…”
Then others from his group came out, and with Lee Sang-hyun and Park Hayeon’s persuasion, the situation was resolved.
Shinnoda deactivated his ‘Polymorph’ and sighed.
‘I should’ve just deactivated it and come out. Almost caused unnecessary fighting.’
He finally took a break after roughly understanding the nature of the dungeon.
Needless to say, the heroes facing off against the knight sighed in relief.
The chat exploded.
<You guys are students? I thought they were either monsters or veteran hunters.>
<Knight vibes. This kid will probably make it to A-class hero someday, right?>
<Not reckless at all. The expert said it would be hard to clear it, but they look very relaxed.>
Just a while ago, everyone was criticizing Academy students for being nuisances, but now they’ve flipped, singing praises.
Shinnoda and his group merely received a light reprimand and were released.
As Awakened Ones, they had the right to enter dungeons, and there were other cases of high school hunters anyway.
Later, rumors spread around school that Shinnoda had reached B-rank, organized his expeditionary team, and cleared the dungeon.
Unfortunately, Shinnoda and his group received a five-day suspension.
The principal addressed Shinnoda separately.
“Remarkable individuals like you are always welcome. But, given the breach of school regulations, and considering the possible future nuisances caused by individuals seeking fame in dungeons, I couldn’t exempt you this time without an example. No personal feelings involved.”
“Understood…”
Shinnoda acknowledged it.
Indeed, most Academy students, being Awakened Ones, tend to have strong egos and suffer from protagonist syndrome. If they went around adventuring in dungeons like him, it might cause a major disaster if they failed to clear one.
‘So, I have some time now. I should go look for those kids before they turn into villains.’
He recalled the original story.
Now was the time when some people could be saved and wouldn’t become villains later.
He wasn’t sure where they were but, with some free time, intended to search for them.
*
Kang You-jin was cleaning up a puddle of blood in a lavish house.
He worked for a specialized cleaning company, mainly dealing with death scenes.
Today’s job was clearing up the aftermath of a burglary-murder scene at a rich family’s home.
As he bent over to clean up blood that had seeped under the table, he spotted a black orb.
Kang You-jin picked it up and wiped it clean.
‘This looks like a Growth Orb.’
He was once an Awakened One and graduated top of his class from the Academy.
There was a reason why someone like him was now working as a cleaner.
The K Pharmaceutical Villain was the turning point.
Not long after being taken down by the Dark Knight, the government announced new regulations.
Expanded criteria for combat ineligibility.
Mandatory electronic ankle monitors for those classified as high-risk candidates for失控.
Kang You-jin, a possessor of the ‘Necromancy’ skill, had a skill that was slightly different from that of a Necromancer.
He hadn’t failed the combat ineligibility test, so after excelling in the Academy, becoming a hero seemed like the natural progression.
He was even in the contract negotiation stages with a prominent hero management firm.
However, new laws were enacted, causing his life to plunge into chaos.
“Let’s treat this contract as though it never existed.”
The management abruptly canceled the contract.
“Why?”
The reason was simple.
“It seems you’re not updated on the news. Necromancy has been classified as combat-ineligible. You can no longer engage in combat, Mr. Kang.”
“What?”
On that day, Kang You-jin went from being a promising youth with an excellent Academy graduation, to a useless person.
An electronic ankle monitor was also fitted to his leg.
At first, his classmates showed sympathy and visited a few times, but they soon stopped contacting him.
‘Shit… guess I’m not needed anymore.’
He was furious but powerless.
Kang You-jin thought to himself.
‘Necromancy, it’s different from Necromancer magic! They should do their research before drafting laws!’
Certainly, as a kind of dark magic, it was risky, but it was manageable.
That’s why he hadn’t been classified as combat-ineligible in the first place.
For some time, he secluded himself at home, living like a shut-in.
Whenever there was a family gathering, relatives would unintentionally rub salt into his wounds.
“When are you debuting as a hero, You-jin?”
“…”
“Ah, right, wasn’t it revealed that you’re combat-ineligible now? Tough break.”
“Yes…”
“Then you need to start preparing something else. How about preparing for government exams? You can’t be doing nothing forever.”
Kang You-jin ran out onto the street, furious.
‘Shit…’
He thought he might go insane and end up killing someone.
Being a C-class Awakened One, killing a few ordinary people would be like wringing the neck of a chicken.
Suddenly, an old boarding house caught his eye.
A police car and a delivery van marked ‘Specialized Cleaning’ were parked in front.
“What’s this?”
As he approached the boarding house, Kang You-jin sensed the energy of a soul.
His skill, ‘Necromancy,’ involved channeling the strong power of a possessed soul within his body, so sensing souls was basic.
‘Looks like someone died.’
Kang You-jin considered working for this cleaning company.
His ‘Necromancy’ skill gained proficiency when in close proximity to corpses and souls.
‘Might as well work here until the law changes. I need to earn money somehow…’
That’s how he ended up working for the specialized cleaning company.
One day, while working as a cleaner, he stumbled upon a black ‘Growth Orb’ radiating an eerie force.
Any normal Awakened One would avoid touching such an object.
Kang You-jin, feeling disillusioned with life and seeing no problem with dying, consumed it with a mindset of “Whatever happens, happens.”
A translucent window appeared before him.
<< Skill Obtained >>
————<Skill>————
◈ Name
Seed of Evil
◈ Rank
000 F
◈ Description
Suffer and hate.
You will grow stronger.
Additional stats: 0
———————————–
“What a ridiculous skill.”
Kang You-jin was annoyed.
Though he took it with a reckless mindset, the feeling of receiving no reward annoyed him.
At that moment, the skill level increased.
047 F.
“Huh?”
He noticed that his additional stats had also changed.
Additional stats: 47.
‘Could it be…’
Kang You-jin quickly understood the skill mechanism.
Originally, this skill was meant for Yongcheonhwa, but changes in history orchestrated by Shinnoda led to it being given to someone completely different.
