Boisterous noise enveloped his ears and unfamiliar air flowed into his nostrils. The atmosphere felt completely different from any dungeon he had experienced before. Sensing something odd, Sa-yoon lifted his eyelids as soon as the light that had covered his vision disappeared.

“……”

A vast expanse of brown earth stretching as far as the eye could see, people carrying grains on their heads and shoulders, merchants selling various herbs and ornaments. There was even a man dragging an ill-tempered horse, begging it to go to the stable.

The streets were packed with people dressed in attire far from modern everyday clothes. It was a scene Sa-yoon, who had lived in the 21st century, couldn’t even jokingly call familiar.

“What kind of situation is this now?”

“…It feels like we’ve come to a different world.”

Geon-joo answered his frowning question. Sa-yoon nodded in agreement. It was a bewildering scene. They had clearly entered a dungeon, so why were there humans instead of monsters?

Was it because it was a highest-grade dungeon?

Or was it because it was a hidden dungeon?

“Nothing ever goes smoothly, does it?”

Although he had no information about highest-grade dungeons or hidden dungeons as this was his first time encountering either, it seemed certain that things had become complicated.

Sighing at the thought that a quick dungeon clear was unlikely, he observed the people around him.

Unlike Sa-yoon, who was on guard, the villagers acted naturally without giving his a single glance, as if unaware of his presence. It somehow reminded him of NPCs in a game.

Do they not recognize us until we take specific actions or start moving in earnest?

Forming this hypothesis, Sa-yoon turned around and was startled.

“…Why are you dressed like that?”

Geon-joo, who had been wearing a coat until just now, was suddenly clad in iron armor. When he spoke with a baffled tone, Geon-joo, who had been scanning the surroundings with wary eyes just like him, turned his head. He frowned.

“…Why are you dressed like that, Guild Master?”

What are you talking about?

After this brief exchange, he immediately looked down to examine his own attire. Sa-yoon was dumbfounded to see himself wearing armor not much different from Geon-joo’s.

A dungeon that changes the entrants’ attire?

He had never experienced such a bizarre phenomenon in any dungeon before. Just then, a familiar notification sound rang out with a ‘ding’, and a blue window appeared.

+++

<Welcome to the highest-grade dungeon ‘Destroyed City: Replay’.>

<To clear this hidden dungeon, you must complete one of the following quests:>

-‘Humanity’s Last Line of Defense (Basic)’

-‘The One Who Punished Destruction (Special)’

→ A special route has been granted as a first discoverer’s privilege. The dungeon will be automatically cleared upon completion of either quest.

→ 24 hours in the ‘Destroyed City: Replay’ dungeon is equivalent to 72 hours in reality. Be careful not to stay in the dungeon for too long.

+++

There was a lot of information. Intrigued by the unprecedentedly large dungeon-specific system window, Sa-yoon read through the blue window filled with unfamiliar information.

Judging by the rank of the given quests, the ‘condition selection’ benefit he had heard about upon entry seemed to refer to the second quest.

[Dungeon Quest – ‘Humanity’s Last Line of Defense (Basic)’]

‘In a world on the brink of destruction, Deluth is humanity’s only hope. Achieve victory in one hundred waves.’

Reward: Dungeon Clear

[Dungeon Quest – ‘The One Who Punished Destruction (Special)’]

‘No destruction comes suddenly. Eliminate the source of destruction lurking somewhere in the world.’

Reward: Dungeon Clear

When he pressed the quest list to check the details, a brief explanation unfolded. After double-checking the information to make sure he hadn’t misread anything, Sa-yoon came to a simple conclusion.

“We’re screwed.”

“Pardon?”

“This looks impossible to clear. Want to just build a hut here and live with me forever, pretty one?”

Geon-joo’s expression soured at the extreme proposal. Regardless, Sa-yoon chuckled while looking at the hopeless quest window. Judging by the absurd quests presented, this was certainly a hidden dungeon indeed.

“One hundred times? Is that even an achievable number?”

Even Geon-joo beside him had a history of collapsing in exhaustion after just three waves. There was no way they could endure a hundred waves with someone like him. A hundred times was a daunting number even for Sa-yoon.

It was essentially an impossible condition to meet. It was practically telling them to live in the dungeon.

Then, the only option left was…

“The One Who Punished Destruction.”

Sa-yoon softly recited the phrase that sounded vaguely familiar. Without any proper detailed explanation, it just said to eliminate the source of destruction lurking somewhere, making it impossible to know who they were supposed to kill.

Do they need to defeat a specific monster?

Or is there some kind of magic stone hidden in the world?

Or a person? Maybe a god? Or something else…

There were dozens of possibilities that came to mind immediately. Compared to the given information, the range of potential targets for the source was far too broad.

There were two quests to choose from, but neither was appealing.

The former was physically demanding and time-consuming, while the latter had an unpredictable timeframe due to the unknown target.

Dungeons were different from gates.

Once you entered a dungeon, there was no way out until you cleared it, no matter what you tried, rendering even the useful return stones useless. So to get out, they had to clear one of these two quests, but the given quests were in such a state. It was unlucky from the start.

“Of all the dungeons to enter, we had to come to this one.”

He felt tired already without having done anything. As he was feeling irritated by the oncoming headache, Geon-joo, who had been lost in thought while looking at the system window, spoke up.

“It seems we’ve entered a virtual world, right?”

“Probably. More precisely, it looks like we’ve come to a world on the brink of destruction.”

The dungeon name itself was ‘Destroyed City: Replay’. However, the expressions of the people walking on the streets seemed far from destruction, so it was natural to conclude that this was the world before the destruction began.

While pressing his temples and exhaling a long breath, Geon-joo, who had finished observing the people, awkwardly adjusted the armor he was wearing. Clearly showing his unfamiliarity, he looked at the castle visible in the distance. Sa-yoon’s gaze, which had been watching Geon-joo, also turned towards the castle.

The castle, significantly taller than the other low-rise buildings, seemed to be built quite solidly. As he was making this assessment internally, Geon-joo suddenly grabbed a passing pedestrian. It happened before he could stop him.

“Excuse me. Could you tell me what that castle over there is?”

“Castle? What castle are you suddenly talking about… Oh, do you mean the Lord’s Castle?”

“Lord’s Castle?”

Geon-joo asked with a puzzled face. It was an expression of genuine confusion, without any exaggeration. The man caught by Geon-joo expressed his bewilderment at that incredibly innocent face.

“Where on earth did you come from that you don’t even know the Lord’s Castle? That’s the Lord’s castle. Judging by your appearance, you look like mercenaries. If you’re here to volunteer for monster extermination, head to the Lord’s Castle. I heard the Lord recently called for mercenaries, so that’s probably where you want to go.”

The man, looking dumbfounded, kindly answered even what Geon-joo hadn’t asked. At the man’s response, Sa-yoon and Geon-joo’s gazes simultaneously turned to each other. Sa-yoon nodded at Geon-joo, who had efficiently gathered information on his own. Only then did Geon-joo release the man.

“Not knowing the castle. Did you come from somewhere even more rural than Belfia territory?”

The man muttered to himself, tilting his head briefly, before briskly walking on his way. Sa-yoon watched his retreating figure and mulled over his words.

“It’s just like a game.”

“Pardon?”

“This current situation, I mean.”

Receiving a quest, meeting people to confirm information about the world, and being told what to do next felt exactly like progressing through a game story. Geon-joo, who apparently hadn’t played this type of game before, tilted his head with an uncomprehending expression. Sa-yoon patted Geon-joo’s shoulder, conveying that it wasn’t something to worry about.

“Shall we go straight to the castle then?”

“Wait. We should find out a bit more about where we are first.”

The man from earlier had referred to them as mercenaries. Based on that, it seemed the role the system had assigned to him and Geon-joo in this world was that of ‘mercenaries volunteering for extermination’ as the man had mentioned.

In that case, shouldn’t they faithfully act the part of mercenaries?

Grabbing Geon-joo, who was looking at him with anxious eyes as if worried he might cause some trouble again, Sa-yoon raised the corners of his mouth and searched for a nearby tavern.