I Stole the Number One Ranker’s Soul - Chapter 1

Clank, clank.

Hearing those distant sounds, I crouched down as much as I could. Fortunately, as I hid in the shadow of s rock while holding my breath, the noise grew more and more distant.

I carefully poked my head out and looked around.

I saw a monster walking in the obscure shadows.

I didn’t know the details, but judging from its six legs with metal ends, it seems to be a chungwang.

If they notice me, they’ll chop me up with those legs and chew me slowly.

That’s why the bodies of hunters who failed to attack chungwang dungeons were never found.

Goosebumps covered my body as the monster slowly turned around and left.

First of all, I think I’ll be able to live for the time being.

For the time being.

My life may have been salvaged right now, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m in the worst situation.

To be honest, I don’t know what’s going on right now.

It’s been a while since I woke up in this place.

But I still can’t find a solution.

I have to do something to resolve this.

I can’t see ahead of me nor behind me, what the hell should I do with this depressing future?

One thing I’m sure of is that I’m inside of a dungeon.

The place where hunters go to attack.

But I’m not a hunter, so why am I in a dungeon swarmed with monsters?

No matter how much I think back, I’ve never even entered a dungeon.

In the first place, it’s impossible for me to enter a dungeon.

Civilians who aren’t hunters aren’t allowed access to dungeons.

I’m just an office worker working at one of those hunter-civilian brokerage companies that began to pop up after the dungeon invasion.

Mainly, my job consisted of appeasing mannerless combat hunters or taking care of documents I have to submit to the government.

‘We’ll also take good care of hunters affiliated with us next year’, I’d say and treat them to lunch to extend the contract.

To humour the hunters, to humour them, humour them……

Thinking about the company made me feel worse.

Of course, I habitually shouted that I didn’t want to go to work but I didn’t mean it like this!

I worked till my bones were broken… no, even if it breaks my heart to humour them and to pay the monthly rent for my semi-basement room, I wasn’t pessimistic to the point I wanted to die.

No matter how many times I recalled my memories, I was certain I had returned home and laid on my bed.

I wasn’t kidnapped by someone on the way here and thrown into a dungeon.

Undeniably, I went home and laid down.

Should I just set two alarms or one more?

‘If I sleep ten more minutes after waking, I’ll feel tired’, I also remember fiddling with my phone while worrying.

Clearly, I fell asleep on my blanket but when I woke up, I was in a dungeon.

Truthfully, I thought I was dreaming at first, but after a few minutes, I realized this was my reality.

This humidity, this air.

Everything was much too vivid to be considered just a dream. In the end, there was only one conclusion.

Somehow, I was moved into a dungeon while sleeping.

I thought about the possibility of someone kidnapping me because they wanted to kill me, but I don’t think that’s it.

First of all, it’s way too cumbersome.

If they wanted to kill me, it’d be cheaper and easier to toss me somewhere in the sea at night.

How much does it cost to enter a dungeon?

Plus, I don’t think I’ve wronged someone to the point they’d want to kill me with this much effort.

I’m just someone who recently entered society and is too busy working hard to have the time to make someone resent me.

I’ve lived so carefully I’d even apologize to a telephone pole if I bumped into it.

‘I apologize, I was pushed by the wind while walking’, I’d bow.

Truthfully, that was my actual story.

I drank a lot at the get-together that day.

Anyway.

All dungeon entrances in the Republic of Korea are controlled by the government, the number of people entering is also strictly managed.

If someone kidnapped me and nudged me into the dungeon, it wouldn’t be possible for them to not be caught.

And if it wasn’t a kidnapping, the choices left are……

Ah, I really hoped it wasn’t this but it seems like it.

But is it possible?

There hasn’t been a case where people were entangled.

Irregular ruptures.

As soon as I thought of those words, I almost broke into tears.

I can’t.

Suppress it, if I make a noise now, I’ll die.

But, ha.

Really, dying because I was entangled in an irregular rupture in my sleep.

‘Dungeons’ go beyond dimensions and invade our world.

Because of that, unpredictable variables were sometimes caused by the slightest of wavers or fluctuations.

Irregular ruptures were one of them.

In an area other than the dungeon entrance, a small rupture would happen for a short period of time.

Most of them just caused unusual energy wavelengths and ended without a hitch.

But every once in a while, objects nearby would get sucked into the dungeon.

So far, it has only happened twice throughout the entire world.

I heard that both cases ended with a ruptured drain pipe.

But unfortunately, I was entangled in the first human sucking incident.

I shouldn’t have saved money by getting a semi-basement room.

Even if I regret it late, it’s too late.

I’m in a dungeon. I was lucky enough to avoid the gaze of the monsters living here a few times, but it’s only a matter of time.

Noncombatant civilian + alone + dungeon=death.

It’s an extremely reasonable formula.

Despite that formula, I managed to stay alive for quite some time now.

I didn’t know exactly but it seems like the chungwang monsters were the type to walk around without paying too much attention to sound.

And when it walked, it made loud noises.

It was harder not to hear it when you’re on edge.

However, it didn’t change the fact my life could be lost at any moment.

Plus, perhaps thanks to my nervousness, my clothes were soaked in a cold sweat and my throat dry because of thirst.

I couldn’t believe that I felt hungry.

Hungry when I was this nervous.

At this rate, if the chungwang happened to pass by……

Anyhow, it’s only a matter of time before I die.

Now that it’s like this, I have no choice but to look towards the false rumours circulating around this industry.

It’s only been five years since dungeons invaded our world and information about them was revealed.

It’s been two years since this system has been ceased and truthfully, there were still many unknown sections and loopholes that the law could not reach.

Groundless rumours broke out like mould.

From the absurd rumour that if you played music to water an item will come out to saying there’s a higher possibility of awakening as a hunter if you’re in a life crisis situation.

These were various things that were possible but difficult to test out.

But false rumours were false rumours.

If everyone who killed themselves to become hunters actually awakened, wouldn’t it be established as a theory?

Such things weren’t false rumours.

Of course, the percentage of hunters who awakened while being in a life crisis situation was high.

But it didn’t seem to be related at all.

However, risking your life for such slim chances is stupid.

If it weren’t for this situation, I would’ve never done it.

I could hear the sound of the chungwang’s footsteps moving in the distance.

Clank, clank, the sound of iron against stone.

It appeared regularly, so it might be on patrol.

I held my breath and braced myself.

When the chungwang comes near, I’ll jump out from behind this rock and fight it.

If I overcome the death crisis, I’ll awaken as a hunter and survive.

Clank, clank.

The sound was nearing.

From far away to closer to a little closer to a very short distance from me.

I stopped breathing and peeped over the boulder.

Two sharp front legs reminding me of a praying mantis.

Huge abdomens resembling an ant and blade-like steel legs.

Since it was far away I didn’t realize but I think it’s almost twice my size.

Six legs that moved in perfect order and greasy-looking joints.

The moment I saw those blades reflected in the thin light, I froze.

I’m scared.

Too scared. I can’t move.

I felt like if I breathed my neck would fly away at once.

Fighting that thing? How?

I’d be happy just to be able to flee.

In the end, I stayed frozen and waited for the chungwang to pass by.

I couldn’t even dream of showing up in front of it, let alone fight it.

Just imagining it made me want to faint.

Yeah, my life crisis will come for me even if I don’t search for it.

Then, I’ll awaken as a hunter or something.

I was thinking about that but couldn’t even imagine awakening as a combat hunter and confidently fighting that scary chungwang.

I heard that combat hunters instinctively fought monsters when they saw them and then they awakened.

How do I do that?

How can they face a monster like that while being human?

There’s a better chance of winning a battle against an excavator while fighting with your bare hands.

Maybe it was because I was bringing death upon myself, but I felt my body loosen up after the chungwang passed by.

After a while, both my hair and clothes were soaked with cold sweat.

I still had more sweat to sweat.

Yeah, let’s not rush too much, I’ll die anyway.

I confirmed that I didn’t have the courage to jump in front of the passing chungwang.

Then, I only have one option left.

I don’t know how much longer I have left to live, so let’s find something to eat.

There were strange plants everywhere emitting dim light.

Thanks to them, I was able to identify the approaching form of the chungwang in this cave-like dungeon with no fluorescent light.

Earlier, I saw a chungwang chewing on one of these plants.

It seems like it’s edible.

Of course, just because it’s harmless to the chungwang does not mean it’s harmless to me, but there must be some kind of use.

Now that I think about it, it’s a dungeon byproduct.

It’s expensive.

When I looked around with the intention of collecting, I recognized quite a few of them.

It was a bit strange to see them so lush and overgrown since I’ve only seen the ones hunters tore and put up on the market.

Still, dungeon plants weren’t difficult to sort because a lot of them had unique appearances.

Fortunately, most of the plants here were not toxic.

I think these are used as some kind of potion ingredient.

Its name, was it Evitanis?

Its petals were connected like a bellflower and it had the form of a gamopetalous flower.

Its colours ranged from white to lilac to pink.

It looked like the ones I’ve seen, so it’s probably the right plant.

I saw one of its petals being sold for 100,000 won in the hunter market.

That was the price of matsutake mushrooms.

The fact it was blooming here like this, that’s why hunters have a lot of money.

If I tear them out and manage to survive, I’ll be able to quit the company right away.

In a bitter mood, I grabbed the evitanis’ stem.

I was going to tear it out, mend it and then make it edible.

But as soon as I plucked it, a light alarm rang in my ears.

[Special item has been obtained by a non-awakener.]

[Qualification: ‘The dungeon’s only non-awakener’ achieved!]

[Qualification: ‘Outside life entering the dungeon alone’ achieved!]

[Qualification: ‘First entrance to incomplete dungeon’ achieved!]

[Qualification: ‘Special item acquisition’ achieved!]

[Special Qualification: ‘Impossible coincidental occurrence’ achieved!]

What?

[Special awakening qualifications achieved.]

[The system is assigning special awakening resources.]

[Hidden skill, 〈Nothing, Something〉 has been unlocked.]

Looks like there’s no way to die.

Mom, I awakened.