I had to stop and think about where exactly things had gone wrong. I was sure I’d stepped down with both feet—but why was I sitting on Baek Tae-beom’s thigh? And in such a prim and proper posture, no less.
As I sat there, visibly confused, Baek Tae-beom spoke calmly.
“Hyung… you fell from the sky.”
“…From the sky?”
“Yeah. And, um…”
All eyes in the café were on us. The air buzzed with murmurs, like everyone had just witnessed something miraculous. Baek Tae-beom’s voice shrank to a whisper.
“…Could you maybe… get off now?”
“…Sorry.”
I awkwardly got off his lap and tried to act natural as I took the seat across from him, pretending not to hear the whispers and stares around us.
“You sure know how to make an entrance, hyung. Every single time. Is that another one of your skills?”
“Ah, well. Something like that.”
Baek Tae-beom didn’t seem the least bit uncomfortable. He even looked impressed. That only made me more embarrassed. I couldn’t exactly explain to him that this was a skill I could only use on him, and that I had nearly seen him completely naked earlier—so I glossed over it.
“But hyung, I still don’t really get what a Constellation is. This morning, while I was changing, it suddenly gave me a Sponsorship—100 Coins. Are they spying on my every move or something?”
“Uh…”
“Is my Constellation some kind of pervert?”
I opened my mouth, then shut it again. Rinse and repeat. I wanted to scream that it wasn’t like that, not at all—but if I admitted I was his Constellation, it would only make things messier.
“…See, a Constellation is kind of like a god?”
“A god?”
“Yeah, like… an omnipotent being that watches over us. That sort of thing. So even if you’re getting dressed, they’re probably not… thinking much of it?”
They’re not. Seriously, they’re not. I absolutely did not admire his naked body. At my words, Baek Tae-beom nodded as if it made sense.
“My Constellation said something like that too. That they’re just watching us because it’s fun… or something.”
“Fun, huh.”
A trace of unease crossed Baek Tae-beom’s face. He’d probably seen the news this morning, too.
Monsters from uncleared dungeons had rampaged through cities, killing people and destroying buildings. The government scrambled to contain the chaos, but there weren’t enough awakened ones to deploy, which led to massive public outrage. Monsters were impossible to defeat with the mainly non-awakened military forces, so the Ministry of Defense was doing everything it could to recruit more awakened individuals.
And it wasn’t just the government. Major corporations were in a frenzy too. Especially Hansung Group, the biggest conglomerate in the country, which was offering better contracts than the government to recruit Hunters and form exclusive partnerships.
Private companies could enter dungeons as long as they got government approval. And in Hansung’s case, they were steadily expanding their power, eventually creating the top-ranked guild in the nation. If I could get in there, it might actually work out well.
Later on, the government would establish the Hunter Association and develop a new ranking system, from F to S-grade. Baek Tae-beom, destined to become an S-grade Hunter, would benefit greatly from joining the mighty Hansung Guild.
But—
“Should I report that I’m awakened?”
Baek Tae-beom asked cautiously. I shook my head.
“It’s too early.”
He wasn’t ready to be tied to anyone yet. Soon, a massive event—the First Monster Calamity—would erupt due to the influx of Hunters concentrated in the capital region. The dungeons in rural areas would remain unconquered because of a lack of manpower, leading to a flood of monsters that ravaged the countryside. Efforts to suppress them would come too late, and with monsters pouring out from dungeons across the country, the capital would fall under siege as well. There wouldn’t be enough skilled Hunters to handle the situation, and most hadn’t yet mastered their abilities.
Countless civilians and even awakened ones would die in the struggle. Monsters would swarm in to feast on the corpses. Seoul would become a blood-soaked war zone. Even the president would end up critically injured.
We had to prepare before all that happened. I could always hide inside the Sanctuary of the Soul, but Baek Tae-beom had a younger sibling.
“It’s not too late to report once things settle down. If you get assigned somewhere too soon, they might throw you into a dangerous dungeon right away. One wrong move, and you could die. Just stay enrolled as a student on leave for now. This’ll probably all settle in a few months anyway. Besides, you’ve got a younger sibling.”
You have to protect your sibling. If your sibling dies, the end of the world will come even faster. I emphasized the word “sibling” deliberately.
“Got it, hyung. You’re seriously reassuring.”
“Reassuring, my ass…”
“My Constellation never says stuff like that.”
Baek Tae-beom chuckled awkwardly.
“Bet they’re listening to all this too, huh?”
‘Yeah, you little punk. I’m listening.’
“Well, probably. But Beom-ah, a Constellation will always be on your side, no matter what. So you don’t need to overthink it.”
“No matter what happens?”
“Yeah, like… Unless they’re seriously messed up, they must’ve made a contract with you because they like you.”
I said it in the most flattering way I could manage. Someday, Baek Tae-beom would come to understand. “You see, Tae-beom, hyung has everything planned out.” “Is that so, hyung?” Something like that. That day would definitely come.
Just then, the table gave a faint tremble. At the same moment we sensed something was off—BOOM! A sudden explosion rang out, and both Baek Tae-beom and I shot to our feet.
We weren’t the only ones alarmed. The people in the café began rising from their seats, murmuring in confusion. The explosion had come from across the street.
“What was that?”
“Let’s go check it out, hyung.”
Baek Tae-beom spoke urgently.
The building hit by the explosion was a shopping complex directly across from us. Oddly enough, there was no visible fire or smoke. The entrance, which resembled the mouth of a cave, had been blown wide open—and a man dressed in black was standing guard in front of it.
Another man stood just a few meters away, stomping his feet in panic.
“My sister’s in there!”
“Civilians are prohibited from entering. I can’t let you through.”
“Fuck off! Who the hell are you to stop me?! Get out of the way!”
The young man tried to throw a punch at the man in black several times, but he was swiftly subdued and pinned to the ground. Seeing that, Baek Tae-beom dashed over in shock.
“Are you okay?”
“Damn it… ugh, sob… ngh…”
The man broke down in sobs, weeping in Baek Tae-beom’s arms. Watching the scene with sympathy, Baek Tae-beom turned to the man in black with a hardened expression.
“What’s going on here?”
“A dungeon fissure has formed. Civilians are not allowed to enter.”
“A fissure?”
“The sign of a dungeon forming.”
As he spoke, the man pulled out a Dungeon Detection Radar from within his coat. It looked similar to the ones Kim Yong-tae and Yoo Jin-woo had, but this one was clearly of a more advanced make.
Its signal was pointed unmistakably at the building, flashing red as if to broadcast a clear danger warning.
But who was this guy?
There was something eerily familiar about him. I opened up his profile.
[Accessing individual’s information.]
[Lee Myung-won of the Black Sound]
[Title: Black Sound
Status: Cannot be verified.
Contracted Constellation: One More Dazzling Than the Sun
Coins Held: Cannot be verified.
Skills: [Intuition] [Hand of Sunlight] [For the Sake of Radiance]
This is an Awakened contracted with a high-tier Constellation. Caution is advised.]
And the moment I accessed the information, Lee Myung-won whipped his head around to stare directly at me.
“…What did you just do?”
“Huh?”
“You… did something, didn’t you?”
“I didn’t do anything.”
I played dumb without missing a beat.
“Strange…”
Ignoring his mumbling, I flexed my fingers discreetly, tension tightening in my gut. No wonder he seemed familiar—he was a character from The Apocalypse Chronicles of Another World.
Not just any character, either. He was the second-in-command of the Hansung Guild, and one of the main allies of the protagonist, Kang Si-hoo. So what the hell was he doing here?
‘Did he sense me just now because of the skill [Intuition]?’
While I was keeping an eye on Lee Myung-won’s status, Baek Tae-beom, who was supporting the sobbing young man, stepped forward.
“Then please let us go in.”
“Are you Awakened?”
“Yes.”
Lee Myung-won hesitated for a brief moment, lips parting as if to say something, then shook his head.
“I still can’t allow it.”
“Why not? We’re not civilians.”
“That’s… regardless, it’s not permitted.”
“Hey. The guy said his sister’s trapped in there. Right now.”
“We’ve already requested support. Please wait just a little longer.”
Baek Tae-beom clenched his fists, his expression darkening with anger. Sensing that things were about to escalate, I quickly reached out and grabbed the hem of Lee Myung-won’s coat.
“What do you think you’re—!”
“You’re not with the government, are you? You’re from the Hansung Group.”
“…How did you know that?”
Lee Myung-won instantly shook off my hand, turning to glare at me with heightened suspicion.
[The Constellation, ‘One More Dazzling Than the Sun,’ is watching you.]
My body briefly stiffened from the pressure, but I kept my tone casual.
“I’ve already run into Awakened from the government before.”
At my lie, I saw a flicker of doubt in Lee Myung-won’s eyes.
“If you’re not with the government and you’re a corporate agent trying to monopolize a dungeon like this, that’s just going to damage your image, isn’t it?”
“Monopolize? Is that what you’re accusing me of?”
The crowd of bystanders, drawn in by the earlier explosion, was growing thicker by the minute.
“If you’re really concerned about public safety…”
“Then why are you refusing to let us through even after we revealed we’re Awakened? If you’re not stalling to secure exclusive access to dungeon rewards, this just seems irresponsibly lax given that lives might be at stake.”
“Irresponsibly lax? What do you mean by that…?”
Lee Myung-won frowned, glancing uneasily at the murmuring crowd nearby.
“I don’t even know what your skill level is. How can I let you go in?”
“Then you can come with us. Your name?”
“…Lee Myung-won.”
“Right. Mr. Lee Myung-won, that man’s sister is trapped in there. There could be more people inside. Time is critical—don’t you think standing around like this is the wrong call?”
I spoke slowly and deliberately, trying to reason with him.
“If you’re not trying to monopolize dungeon rewards, then the right thing to do is go in with us. I’m sure there are others here to guard the entrance, aren’t there? I doubt you came here alone.”
“……”
“We’re not here for anything else. We’re trying to save lives. Isn’t that enough?”
Lee Myung-won stared silently at me for a moment before pulling a radio from his coat. He muttered a few coded words into it, and soon, other men in black began approaching from nearby.
The reason I was pushing this hard wasn’t just out of some feeble sense of sympathy. Baek Tae-beom might not know it, but if this was that dungeon, then I had to get in—no matter what.
That item—the one Lee Myung-won had in the original Apocalypse Chronicles of Another World.
I had to get my hands on it.
