The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices
Chapter 45

EP45. You Have to Pay The Price of Your Decision

Early in the morning, Kang Jin-soo stepped outside. After walking for a while, he turned his head to look around. Confirming there was nothing, he entered a secluded alley.

“It’s been a while, Mr. Government Official.”

Two men appeared in front of Kang Jin-soo as he entered the alley. One was a tall man, and the other had a rugged face with scars, giving off a fierce vibe.

“Ah, Tae-hoon. You came early.”

Kang Jin-soo greeted the scarred man with a slight smile. He also exchanged brief greetings with the person who came with him.

The scarred man’s name was Ji Tae-hoon, a hunter. The person accompanying him was his cherished son, who, like his father, was also a hunter.

“So, what’s the rush? You called us out in such a hurry.”

As the greetings concluded, Ji Tae-hoon got straight to the point. Kang Jin-soo had contacted them first, leading to this meeting.

“Judging by your expression, it seems this isn’t good news again, huh? Hehe.”

Ji Tae-hoon emphasized the phrase ‘again’, revealing a scarred grin. It was a grin that added a savage touch to his already rugged face.

He was currently an active C-rank hunter, affiliated with a guild. However, the guild he belonged to was far from legitimate.

The guild Ji Tae-hoon was associated with was the Black Sun Guild. Despite the name, it wasn’t officially recognized. Nevertheless, the guild operated smoothly because many people sought the services they provided.

Ji Tae-hoon had entrusted his son to this unconventional guild. Having experienced a rough life even before the world changed, he had lived through events similar to those in the present. His rough experiences had landed him in a relatively influential position within the Black Sun Guild.

The world had changed drastically, and there were no longer genuinely strong individuals. The one who survived was the strong one. This realization had guided Tae-hoon through the upheavals.

However, as time passed, he learned that surviving alone wasn’t everything. The presence of his son became crucial.

Born late, his son, Ji Seong-min, was an F-rank hunter. While E-rank existed above F-rank, Tae-hoon mentioned D-rank. He requested a two-step promotion.

In reality, E-rank held little significance. Freshmen entering the Hunter Academy were immediately assigned an E-rank, making the difference between E and F practically negligible. However, his son’s fragile spirit struggled with the idea of promotion to E-rank, often experiencing setbacks.

Tae-hoon always worried about his son. Therefore, this was not a mere request but a desperate plea. If Kang Jin-soo successfully completed the task, Tae-hoon wanted his son promoted to D-rank. D-rank was the minimum qualification to support a government hunter.

It was more than a request; it was almost a veiled threat. Kang Jin-soo was well aware of this.

“I always have predictable requests. Well, if things go well this time, I’ll do my best.”

The desired response came from Kang Jin-soo’s mouth. From his position, finding an easy way to raise another person’s hunter rank was difficult, almost impossible. However, in this case, there was a reliable figure behind him, Kim Soo-Ho.

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Who was Kim Soo-Ho?

Looks like the one leading the top guild in our country, the Sacred Guild, is none other than him. Such a great fellow is both his academy classmate.

“Kim Soo-Ho also wants to step on Lee Kang-hyun after a long time.”

In a word, Kim Soo-Ho is undoubtedly behind this whole affair. If things go well, adjusting the rank should be easily achievable. Sᴇaʀᴄh the N0vᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

“It’s something I’ve always done. So, are you going to take the job?”

When Kang Jin-soo confidently responded, Tae-hoon finally smiled. Though he hadn’t heard the details yet, it was bound to be something similar to what he usually dealt with.

“Refreshing. Well, let’s hear what it’s about.”

From now on, their private conversation was about to begin.

Tae-hoon headed to the dungeon with his son to carry out the request Kang Jin-soo had mentioned.

“By the way, the opponent is just an F-rank hunter.”

Ji Tae-hoon clicked his tongue.

He had asked to raise his son’s rank once before, and he expected an answer that he couldn’t do it himself. However, Kang Jin-soo’s response was that if he completed the task successfully, he would raise his son’s rank as well.

How difficult could the task be? For a moment, that thought crossed his mind. However, when he looked into the details of the request, the target was just an F-rank hunter.

Moreover, there was no need to kill, he could cut off limbs as long as he inflicted maximum pain and brought the person back alive.

Additionally, once the job was done, they would handle the aftermath.

‘Is it really this easy?’

He double-checked if what he heard was accurate.

In response, Kang Jin-soo nodded and even requested to capture the target’s suffering on video.

‘This guy must be insane.’

Even though he accepted such a request, Tae-hoon had no words to say. Why would someone hold such a grudge to make such a request against an F-rank hunter?

Well, did an F-rank hunter even have the opportunity to create an enemy? Of course, it wasn’t a difficult task, and naturally, he accepted it.

If he could successfully complete this job, his son’s rank would rise. Who would refuse that?

‘He mentioned it was in the Orc Dungeon, right?’

Kang Jin-soo, who entrusted the task to him, was a hunter working at the Awakener Center. Although he held a low rank, being a government official had its advantages. One of them was being able to know where the subject of the request was located.

“Entering the dungeon so early. He’s a diligent one.”

He liked diligent people. However, this time, he felt sorry for the wrong person. Nevertheless, as he had received a request himself, he had no choice but to continue.

As they entered the dungeon, Tae-hoon checked his equipment once again.

First, he checked his son’s gear and then his own. After finishing the final check, Tae-hoon entered the dungeon.

Now it was time for real action. Even as he walked inside, he kept checking if his son was following well. His son had a very delicate nature. However, he believed that as long as he continued to accompany him, his son would eventually fulfill his role as a hunter.

Waiting for that day, he continued to accompany his son like this. A few minutes had passed since they walked together. He could see the figure of another person in the distance.

Stopping a bit away, Tae-hoon injected mana into his eyes.

As he infused mana, the distant target looked as if it were nearby.

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‘……’

The opponent’s name was Lee Kang-hyun. He heard that he was an F-rank hunter, and his specialty was a necromancer.

According to what he heard from Kang Jin-soo, he always had a skeleton by his side.

The person he was observing from a distance also seemed to have something like a summon next to him.

The summon was covered in a robe and mask, making it impossible to confirm exactly what it was. However, it didn’t matter.

‘As expected, it’s a skeleton, just like I heard.’

Perhaps that guy also concealed his true abilities by dressing his summon like that. Necromancer isn’t a highly acclaimed specialization because it allows the summoning and manipulation of an undead legion.

It may sound good in theory, but in reality, it was often overlooked. No matter how skilled a necromancer was, there was a clear limit to the undead they could summon. As the rank of the undead increased, the number they could command quickly reached its limit.

Currently, even for a stable performance, C-rank undead were the highest. Beyond that, it became difficult to maintain. There was also a significant problem. Most notably, necromancers exposed themselves to danger as their summon fought.

This was a persistent issue for all summoners, as no matter how powerful the summon was, eliminating the summoner rendered it meaningless.

Well, unless they had a lot of money and were highly concerned about their equipment, otherwise, the summoner was vulnerable.

‘His equipment level seems low, and there shouldn’t be any major problems.’

The opponent wasn’t exceptionally skilled, merely an F-rank hunter with just an F-rank skeleton. There didn’t seem to be any significant variables.

‘It’s at a level of being a free meal.’

His initial wariness gradually faded. Tae-hoon just needed to decide how to deal with him. However, it was still strange that an F-rank hunter ended up in a D-rank Orc Dungeon.

Though it wasn’t a significant issue.

Some hunters occasionally came to collect the spoils of monsters hunted by others. Maybe that guy was doing the same.

‘Why are there so many orc corpses here, though?’

Orc corpses were scattered all over the dungeon.

‘Hmm.’

Just by looking at the visible orc corpses, their numbers were staggering. Someone must have come and killed them first.

It was unimaginable that the F-rank hunter in front of him and his summoned skeleton had hunted orcs. It seemed that several parties had entered before.

‘Let’s observe a bit more.’

Even if it was a free mission, it was better to be careful. Tae-hoon continued to observe the opponent.

No matter how much he watched, there was nothing different.

He couldn’t see the opponent hunting.

‘Well, he can’t hunt orcs.’

Instead, he seemed relaxed, checking his smartphone.

‘What’s going on?’

It was too leisurely for him to come into a dungeon that didn’t match his rank and be so relaxed. After a short while, he moved from his spot. He went outside the dungeon. Tae-hoon also followed him, taking care of his son.

Soon, Lee Kang-hyun entered another dungeon.

‘A skeleton dungeon?’

It was even an F-rank dungeon. A dungeon where only skeletons appeared, without dangerous entities.

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Now, he had finally come to an appropriate dungeon for his rank. Tae-hoon felt that an opportunity had presented itself. If it was an F-rank dungeon, he wouldn’t need to worry about surrounding monsters.

He just had to deal with the opponent. Now, it was time to execute the plan.

Tae-hoon entered the dungeon boldly with his son. He intended to subdue the opponent openly. And as soon as he entered the dungeon, Tae-hoon saw it.

The fact that Lee Kang-hyun was looking at him.

‘Huh?’

There was a moment of confusion. A danger alarm rang in his head. His body immediately reacted, raising his weapon.

– Thump! –

He felt pain in his side.

“Ah, Dad…?”

And a surprised voice from his son behind him. Tae-hoon turned his head, enduring the pain.

There was a familiar presence. The summon of the guy he had seen earlier. A black robe and mask suited it eerily well. And a black, gleaming sword was visible.

“Ugh…”

The black sword accurately pierced through his side, and blood flowed profusely, as if the sword itself coveted the blood, overflowing like a torrent.

“Look… please listen to me.”

Tae-hoon raised his hand towards his opponent. The summon the opponent controlled was by no means a simple skeleton. Just by looking at it, it was definitely not an F-rank hunter. He could only think about being reversed in the situation. However, he had to say something.

“I didn’t have any intention to harm you…”

He continued speaking while enduring the pain.

“I only took the request… really, that’s it.”

Then, he desperately pleaded.

“I beg you like this. Please spare my son.”

He meant sparing his son’s life. The bleeding was severe, and he needed immediate treatment, but he didn’t think his opponent would provide it.

He had no chance of survival himself, so he wanted to save his son at least. In response, Lee Kang-hyun smiled. Simultaneously, the sword that had pierced his side was pulled out.

“Kuk.”

The pain increased.

It was strange, the pain was so intense that he thought he might die soon. If he could end it here, at least that would be fortunate.

Simultaneously, the sound of the sword piercing something else echoed.

“?”

He didn’t have time to think about what the sound was.

“Kwaaaah!”

His son, Ji Seong-min, started screaming.

The sword that had pierced him earlier was now thrust into his son. Tae-hoon trembled and turned around.

There, he witnessed the sight of the sword piercing between his son’s legs.

Hope you enjoy the chapter, if you wish to support me or read advance chapter you can do it Here

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