Resurrection Chapter 25 - Hyung, are you okay?

“Alright, I get it. There won’t be any more of this. I’ll tell you before I go anywhere. Good enough?”

Only then did Heesoo hyung nod with satisfaction, adding, “So, did you take care of what you went out for?”

I lied, “Yeah, it’s handled.”

I didn’t even find Yoon Younghyun yesterday and just wasted time with some random guy. Thinking back, the nonsense that tiger-mouthed punk Min Gongchan spouted was absurd.

“Seo Heesoo, that crazy bastard, will destroy the world.”

Calling Heesoo hyung a crazy bastard was already ridiculous. Who’s the one spewing crazy talk, calling someone else a crazy bastard? What a lunatic.

I tried to calm my frustration and forget Min Gongchan’s words. Meanwhile, Heesoo hyung looked around and said, “From the lack of suspicious signs, it seems Yoon Younghyun hasn’t been careless with his words.”

Early in the morning, Dungeon 77, classified as S-rank, was quiet. Compared to other dungeons, that is. As always, food carts selling coffee, kimbap, and toast were open for business.

There was even something resembling a commercial area, thanks to S-rank dungeons having cheaper land prices. With fewer visitors and less foot traffic, only porters aiming for a big haul and alchemists selling high-end goods lingered.

They’ve got some guts, huh.

What if a monster break happens?

Well, in reality, lower-tier dungeons were more dangerous during a monster break. When chaos erupted, the weaker monsters came out first. They were numerous and moved in packs, causing significant damage outside the dungeon.

Sure, magical beasts or giants caused greater harm, but stronger monsters usually took longer to emerge. Hunters typically dealt with them before that happened. It was only in the old days, when monster break preparations were lacking, that 5-star or higher monsters rampaged outside.

Anyway, overall, the area around the dungeon was calm, with no suspicious signs. I’d deliberately shown my face in case any troublemakers were around, but it was dead quiet.

Looks like even Yoon Younghyun had enough sense not to blab recklessly.

If it weren’t for the nonsense Min Gongchan spewed yesterday, it would’ve been a refreshing morning.

Grumbling, I bought another coffee to fill my tumbler. By then, Heesoo hyung had finished his coffee, so I grabbed my gear and stood up. “Shall we get going? The sun’s about to rise.”

Dungeon entrances typically opened at sunrise and closed at sunset. You’d think they ran on solar energy, but they operated the same in cloudy or rainy weather, so that didn’t seem to be the case.

Anyway, planning to enter as soon as the sun rose, I started moving when someone approached. It was one of the porters who’d been glancing at us. A scruffy, bearded man reeking of cigarettes blocked our path and spoke. “Hello! Are you heading into the dungeon?”

I quickly replied, “We don’t need a porter.”

“Come on, you’ll need one. Your gear already looks heavy—how are you going to carry monster byproducts?”

“We’re not going hunting. We’re training.”

“Same thing! You’re entering the dungeon to gain real combat experience, right? That means you’ll be killing monsters. Just a few steps in, and you’ll find black-star monsters everywhere. Mostly large ones, with tons of byproducts! You gonna leave all that behind? You’ll regret it.”

“No, we’re good.”

I brushed off the man, inwardly shaking my head. Following us into an S-rank dungeon, where even most hunters hesitated? His guts must’ve been recycled already.

That’s how dungeons work. The greater the risk, the bigger the reward. You could run E or F-rank low-tier dungeons forever and barely scrape by.

In that case, a single S-rank dungeon run might be worth it. If it went well, you could earn enough to live comfortably for life, so he probably ditched his sense of fear to tag along.

Ignoring the persistent man, I walked on. Heesoo hyung followed. Just when I thought he’d given up, the man suddenly grabbed Heesoo hyung. “Wait a sec!”

Heesoo hyung turned to him, and the man’s eyes widened. “Could… could you be Mr. Seo Heesoo?”

I wanted to tell him to ignore the guy, but Heesoo hyung answered readily, “That’s right.”

The man’s face lit up, and he abruptly dropped to his knees. “I’ve been to so many dungeons and never met you, but to run into you here! It’s an honor! If it’s okay, could you give me just one blessing?”

Heesoo hyung looked troubled. “I’m sorry, but I’m no longer a holy warrior. My blessing wouldn’t…”

“I know that, but you’re still Mr. Seo Heesoo, right? Please, I beg you. Even just placing your hand on my head would do. Just one blessing.”

Watching the scene, I felt a bitter taste. Back when he was a holy warrior, Heesoo hyung’s blessings were famously potent. Crowds flocked for them, delaying his dungeon entries.

I thought that wouldn’t happen now that he wasn’t a holy warrior, but seeing someone still seeking his blessing stirred complex feelings.

If I felt this way, how much worse must it be for Heesoo hyung?

He looked uncomfortable but couldn’t refuse the man kneeling and pleading earnestly. Finally, he placed his hand on the man’s matted hair. “I don’t know if a berserker’s blessing will work, but I sincerely wish for your safety.”

“Thank you! Thank you!”

Other porters, watching the blessing, rushed over. They scrambled to kneel before Heesoo hyung. Without a hint of annoyance, he blessed each one individually.

Most were scarred and dirty from their grueling work as porters. Many hunters treated them like cattle, but Heesoo hyung never did. He always blessed porters before hunters and never abandoned them in crises.

“I’ll say again, I’m no longer a holy warrior, so my blessings don’t carry much weight. If possible, don’t stay here—go to safer dungeons.”

The porters were deeply grateful for his advice. Some even teared up. One, turning to leave, said to Heesoo hyung, “We’re so glad you’re back. Even if you’re not a holy warrior, you’re still our guardian.”

Non-awakened porters had no gods to serve. No transcendent being protected them. The only one who cared for their safety was Heesoo hyung, the former holy warrior.

Half-jokingly, porters called Seo Heesoo their guardian. He used to find such praise burdensome, but now he bowed slightly to them.

As they saw us off, Heesoo hyung moved toward the dungeon opening at dawn, and I followed.

👑

South Korea has roughly 700 dungeons.

Of those, only about 4–5%, or around 30, are classified as S-rank.

Besides S-rank, there were plenty of dungeons deemed too dangerous and sealed by the government, but S-rank dungeons were the most perilous hunters could enter.

Dungeon ranks are typically set based on the activity zone, tailored to hunters’ levels. The activity zone is roughly a 30km radius from the entrance. A dungeon safe for a solo A-rank hunter is C-rank. One safe for multiple A-rank hunters is B-rank. A dungeon unsafe even for A-rank hunters, but good for quick experience and leveling, is A-rank.

To gain experience, a dungeon above your rank is ideal. But most avoid dungeons above their rank, as safety isn’t guaranteed—survival is. They’re so deadly that people steer clear.

S-rank dungeons are mostly tackled by official raid teams. For formal raids, battalion or division-sized groups make it feasible. Even then, spot-clearing is rare; most just hunt or farm lightly and leave.

Naturally, just Heesoo hyung and I entering an S-rank dungeon was incredibly risky. Gaining experience was the goal, and expecting more was unreasonable.

I packed light, focusing on training. I brought only emergency rations, no camping gear, planning to hunt near the entrance for half a day.

“No surprise for an S-rank dungeon—it’s super creepy.”

I clicked my tongue, scanning the surroundings.