DEB 119

“I’ll be back. You take care too, brother.”

“Alright.”

Huigang tousled Huiyun’s hair and gave a wave as he got into the car. 

Huiyun watched his brother’s back as he left for work, and only after the sedan vanished from sight did he begin preparing to move to the gate in question. 

Since Vina had already contacted the Bureau in advance, there was no issue heading out immediately.

The Bureau had even arranged a limousine for them, so the ride was unusually comfortable. 

As the scenery sped past outside the black car, someone reached out and took Huiyun’s hand. Just from the way their fingers laced together, Huiyun could tell who it was.

“Ash. Stop clinging to Yasha.”

Vina shot Ash a cold remark for clinging all over Huiyun. 

Far from shrinking back, Ash leaned into Huiyun even more and smiled with drooping eyes.

“Why should I? Yasha said I cou—mmpf!”

His mouth was suddenly stuffed. 

Huiyun gave Moot a grateful glance for shoving a cursed doll into Ash’s mouth right on time.

Since the Bureau had also provided a driver, they weren’t alone in the car. 

It was a reminder that they couldn’t carelessly throw around the name Yasha like usual.

Realizing that a moment too late, Ash spat the doll out and whispered an apology to Huiyun. 

With his brows drooping and a pitiful expression, he looked so pathetic that Vina sneered at him. 

As the chatter in the back grew, Huiyun simply raised a finger to his lips. 

The more they talked, the more suspicious they looked.

…We really need to practice using our cover names.

They had to get used to calling each other by their current identities, and Huiyun himself needed to practice speaking as the civilian Mok Huiyun, not an awakened one, not as Yasha.

If they kept acting like this disorganized mess, their cover would be blown in no time.

Feeling the growing urgency of that need, Huiyun stayed silent until they arrived at the gate. Thankfully, the driver performed his duties professionally and showed no signs of suspicion.

“Please contact this number, and I’ll come pick you up once the gate is cleared.”

After dropping them off safely at the gate, the driver handed over his card. 

Only when the car had fully disappeared from view did Ash let out a deep breath, as though surfacing after being underwater.

“Ugh, I thought I was gonna die not being able to talk. Next time, let’s just go by ourselves, Yasha. That driver made things awkward.”

“On that point, I agree.”

It wasn’t just that they’d never taken a limo before—declining the Bureau’s goodwill felt awkward, so they’d accepted. 

But having to watch their behavior more closely than usual ended up making the comfortable ride more uncomfortable than helpful.

As Huiyun shook his head and turned to the gate, he noticed the red hue of the rift at its entrance. 

It meant someone was currently inside.

“Looks like we still can’t enter yet.”

“Right. Seems like someone’s still alive in there.”

Unless the party inside either lost consciousness or died, the next team couldn’t enter until the raid was called off. 

Since they had to wait for the previous group to return, Huiyun sat on a large rock nearby. 

Verita, panicking, quickly took off his priest robe and laid it down.

“Please sit here, Lord Yasha.”

“You don’t mind it getting dirty?”

“Why should I? It’s not like it’ll stain my faith.”

Verita grinned cheerfully as he patted the robe, urging Huiyun to sit. 

A bold disciple, irreverent and reverent all at once.

Figuring the robe was already dirty, Huiyun sat down on it. 

While they waited, the others began placing bets on when the current raid would be called off.

“I’m betting ten minutes. Look at how the lights are flickering—those people in there are in trouble.”

“Don’t spout nonsense with flimsy reasoning, Ash. It’s the second raid team. Even if they fail, it’ll take at least twenty minutes.”

“I’ll say five minutes.”

Ash, Moot, and Vina huddled together making their bets. 

They might argue a lot, but in moments like these, they were undeniably friends. 

Watching them, Huiyun smiled faintly, briefly wondering if he’d rushed too much.

They could’ve waited for news from the second team before coming. 

But even so, there had been a reason for his urgency.

Lately, he’d come to understand that when his instincts and intuition screamed something, there was usually a good reason. 

He might reflect on it, but he didn’t regret it. 

Regret only comes too late, so there was no point in having it early.

“What happens if the second team actually manages to clear the gate?”

As they stayed alert, Hyeon asked the question.

“That would be fortunate.”

Even if their trip had been for nothing, a gate that required this many of them was a serious threat. 

It would be better if such danger didn’t exist in the first place. 

However, judging by how things were unfolding, that “what if” seemed unlikely.

The red light of the gate was fading. It happened about ten minutes into their wait.

“See? What’d I tell you? That light was acting weird.”

Ash, smug, took his winnings from Vina and Moot.

“…This isn’t a time to be happy, Ash. The gate’s light going out means…”

“The second team probably got wiped out too.”

Verita drew his guardian sword, following Zenith’s grim words. 

The others swiftly entered combat mode. 

Huiyun drank a mana resistance potion and moved to the center of the group, giving the order to enter.

“Don’t let your guard down. If both teams were wiped out, there’s got to be a trap.”

So that’s why I felt like coming right away.

In the end, what he feared had come true.

Sensing it would be no ordinary situation, he warned the others. 

They nodded. Moot, checking the gate level with a curious expression, confirmed that the rating had not changed from the mid-high level listed in the Bureau’s records.

“Interesting. I heard the second raid team had five A-ranks and five B-ranks. And even they all died… or maybe they didn’t die at all.”

“Yeah.”

Huiyun nodded, agreeing with Moot’s theory. 

Even with traps, for two entire teams to be wiped out in a mid-high gate didn’t make sense.

So whatever happened inside that gate must be one of two things.

Either the entire raid team fell into a state of unconsciousness due to an overwhelmingly powerful monster…

“…Or a passage to the Demon Realm has been opened.”

Or they disappeared somewhere within the gate entirely.

“Well, maybe we’ll find the mastermind behind this sooner than expected.”

Hyeon clenched his fist with delight at the mention of the Demon Realm.

“It’s too early to jump to conclusions. It’s still just speculation at this point.”

In the end, the truth would only be revealed once they stepped inside.

Resolved, Huiyun finished his final checks and entered the gate with his disciples. The air changed. Thick mana clung to his skin. A moment later, a system window popped up, announcing the successful entry of Huiyun, Hyeon, and the rest of the group.

[You have entered the mid-high-level gate, “Roham’s Underground Dungeon.]

[Mid-High-Level Gate – Roham’s Underground Dungeon]

Description: Roham, a servant of a baronial family, created this underground dungeon to perform a certain ritual. Investigate the dungeon, uncover the ritual he intended to conduct, and destroy the altar.

Warning: Watch out for traps! In Roham’s dungeon, it may be easier to find places with traps than those without!

“…What the heck? This is an investigation-type gate?” 

Ash said, baffled after reading the description window.

An investigation-type gate. 

A gate without monsters, where one must uncover and solve the mystery tied to the gate itself, clearing it once the conditions are met.

Since there are no monsters, these gates are usually less dangerous than others. 

The main concerns are traps and the fact that you can’t leave until the investigation is complete. 

But for two teams to have failed here? 

That was suspicious, and deeply unsettling.

“Maybe this ritual mentioned is meant to open a passage to the Demon Realm.”

“Or maybe the previous two teams were already offered up as sacrifices for the ritual.”

Vina said it in a disturbingly casual tone. 

It was a grim thought, but not an impossible one. 

Using sacrificial offerings in rituals was an age-old tradition rooted in many ancient evils.

Such things weren’t exactly rare in old records, so Huiyun agreed. As he examined the dim space lit only by scattered torches, fitting for an underground dungeon, he cautiously took a step forward.

“Let’s start investigat—” clank.

…Hm?

He hadn’t even finished the sentence when the sound of chains echoed from somewhere.

At the exact moment Huiyun turned in alarm—

BOOM!

A thunderous crash erupted as the ground beneath Ash collapsed with a heavy thud.

“You’ve got to be kidding me! YASHAAAAAA!”

Ash, caught in a trap triggered by Huiyun’s step, screamed as he plunged downward. 

Hic! 

Huiyun clapped a hand over his mouth to muffle the hiccup that burst out and blinked slowly.

…D-Did I do that?