CHAPTER 158

“…!”

This system window and notification had appeared once before—back in the Muspelheim Dungeon. It was during the time Kang Yoo-hyun received my auxiliary skill twice and clashed with Evan and Baek Si-hoo. The message had likely appeared then because the intense battle between hunters destabilized the dungeon’s connection.

But this time, no battle has even occurred yet. So why is it saying the channel connection is unstable? And what exactly is this “scenario” supposed to mean? I tilted my head, the system notification still ringing in my ears.

[Connection to Channel Svarthalfheim-S666 will be lost shortly.]

[5… 4…]

“W-What’s going on?”

I looked around in confusion. Do-gyul, Eden, and Andrew Bailey—who had also heard the system notification—wore equally bewildered expressions.

【Hmm, I guess this is as far as I go. Still, what a bunch of petty bastards.】

“…!”

Does Fafnir know something? The way he spoke, like he’d been expecting this all along, made me speak up without thinking.

“What on earth is happening?!”

【See you again. Bring the dragons next time.】

“Fafnir…! Ugh…!”

[2… 1…]

As soon as Fafnir finished speaking, the countdown hit zero. In that instant, I felt my body being pulled away somewhere. The world in front of me spun and blurred.

“Hok…!”

When I opened my eyes again, I saw a strangely familiar pile of dirt. At the same time, the musty scent of soil hit my nose, making me frown instinctively.

“Ugh.”

Wait… is this the narrow passage I was in before I fell into Fafnir’s lair? The one the dwarf led me through…?

“Hyung, are you okay?”

“Yi-jin-ah, are you alright?”

“Yeah… I’m fine.”

Thankfully, Do-gyul and Eden were unharmed. Andrew Bailey, too… Huh?

I blinked in surprise because someone completely unexpected was here as well.

“Joshua Lehmann?”

“Ughhh…”

“…”

He actually managed to survive all that. When the ground collapsed as Fafnir transformed into his true form, I had assumed Joshua Lehmann was crushed to death. But this turned out even better. If we didn’t hand this bastard over to Kang Yoo-hyun, we wouldn’t be able to impose proper sanctions on the entire Ur Guild.

Whether the betrayal was solely Joshua Lehmann’s doing as guildmaster, or if other guild members were involved as well, it didn’t matter—what mattered was that the guild acting under the name of the God of Ullr had to be excluded and kept under watch from now on.

Joshua Lehmann was still bound by the item restriction. I nodded, satisfied. Now, all that remained was to regroup with the other hunters on the exploration team and return to the raid team.

“Ah.”

Then what happened to the legendary weapons? I immediately turned my head to look at Do-gyul and Eden.

“You two…”

“Yi-jin-ah, what’s going on? Why are you here?”

"Uh, that's…….”

“You definitely weren’t with the main team. That bastard Kang Yoo-hyun said we might be able to find you somewhere around here…”

“…”

No wonder Eden didn’t make a fuss when he couldn’t find me. So Kang Yoo-hyun gave them that excuse just to shove me onto the exploration team? I clicked my tongue inwardly.

“Sorry. I’ve actually been with you guys all along.”

“What?”

“The collecting team hunter who was carrying a gun when you two first met—that was me.”

“…!”

“Well… that’s how it turned out.”

I scratched the back of my head as I saw the shock on Eden’s face. Thanks to Lee Chae-jin’s potion, I had undergone a complete transformation—my facial features, height, and even my voice were all completely different. No wonder Eden was so startled.

Unlike Sim Dante’s items, which only change your face, this potion did much more. Just one potion turned you into an entirely different person. It was pretty remarkable. Of course, since it’s a high-grade item, it’s not something that can be produced often.

“Why… why didn’t you tell me?!”

“Ah, I said I’m sorry.”

“Do you have any idea how worried I was?!”

“Were you?”

Eden came closer and grabbed my shoulder, shaking me repeatedly. I swayed with his shaking for a moment, but maybe because the system had forcibly dragged me back, my headache only grew worse. Eventually, I pushed his hand away.

"Hey, I have a headache."

“Haa… seriously.”

“…?”

Eden covered his face with his hands and let out a heavy sigh. He shook his head slowly, but there was an unexpected depth of emotion behind it that left me feeling unsettled. I gazed at him in confusion for a moment before looking away.

“…Hyung.”

“Ah, Do-gyul.”

“…”

Do-gyul’s face looked pretty gloomy, too. I felt sorry for causing him worry, especially since he had come all the way into this dangerous dungeon looking for me. I spoke up awkwardly.

“You must’ve been really worried too, right? I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“…”

“Do-gyul?”

Do-gyul kept his head down and remained silent. I looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“Actually…”

“Hm?”

Do-gyul glanced up nervously before speaking again.

“Actually, I knew it was you, hyung.”

“What?”

“But I pretended not to know because I thought it would make things difficult for you.”

“…!”

So he had known all along. That explained why Do-gyul’s behavior seemed a bit off. Kang Yoo-hyun recognized me through his skill, but how did Do-gyul recognize me? Ah, no way…

"You heard my inner thoughts?"

"Yeah, I’m sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry about."

Do-gyul, who possessed several mental skills, was able to utilize them in various ways once he became accustomed to controlling them. Even before he realized he was a hunter, Do-gyul had always been sensitive to other people’s emotions.

With just a small use of his abilities, he seemed able to see right through what was in someone’s mind. If Do-gyul’s proficiency with mental skills keeps improving, then the only person in the world whose mind he won’t be able to read might be Kang Yoo-hyun.

“It’s okay, Do-gyul-ah. Thanks to you pretending not to know, things actually went smoothly.”

“…Really?”

“Of course.”

When I nodded, Do-gyul’s face finally brightened a little. It would have been a mess if my identity had been publicly revealed there. It was surprising that Kang Yoo-hyun also pretended not to know, but anyway, let’s set aside the protagonist’s incomprehensible behavior for now.

“Hmm, then what should we do now…?”

“Uh, um…”

“…?”

When I turned my head, Andrew Bailey was looking at me hesitantly. I tilted my head as I looked at him.

“What's the matter?”

“That, it’s just that…”

“…?”

What’s wrong with this guy again? I blinked in confusion as Andrew Bailey suddenly squeezed his eyes shut and shouted out loud.

“I’m truly sorry! I didn’t realize you were Hunter Han Yi-jin, and I spoke arrogantly… Please forgive me…!”

“Ah…”

Only then did I recall the time I met Liam White at the dungeon entrance and entered the dungeon together. Unlike Liam White, who happily hung out with me despite not knowing my identity, Andrew Bailey had been suspicious from the start and kept interrogating me. I was a bit flustered back then, but isn’t that kind of reaction only natural? Andrew Bailey was simply doing his job.

“It’s okay. I don’t really take it to heart.”

“Re-really?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m telling you, I am.”

"Phew…”

When I kept insisting it was okay, Andrew Bailey let out a relieved sigh, as if he were finally at ease. To be so restless over something so minor—was he just timid by nature?

He had talked back to Liam White so confidently, so I assumed he was a bold character. I muttered to myself and turned my head again.

“Where’s the exploration team?”

“I’ll find the way!”

Now energized, Andrew Bailey shouted confidently. Strange symbols appeared in his eyes as he activated his detection skill. Before long, he located the exploration team wandering nearby.

“Hunter Han Yi-jin!”

“Ah, well…”

"Are you done playing now?"

“…Huh?”

What did he mean by that? Feeling uneasy, I stared at Liam White. Then he smiled broadly and continued speaking.

“You were deliberately disguising yourself as someone else. Weren’t you just playing around? That’s why I pretended not to know.”

“…”

Liam White knew it was me too? What on earth…

Well, I could understand Kang Yoo-hyun and Do-gyul—but how did Liam White figure it out? Was Lee Chae-jin’s S-grade potion really that easy to see through? Noticing my disbelief, Liam White winked.

“I’m just a bit more sensitive than others.”

“Ha…”

“Anyway, thanks to you, I had a good time too.”

“Haha…”

I nodded blankly at Liam White’s unbelievably flippant comment. This was exactly why I’d been so suspicious of him in the first place—but I guess that’s just his personality. I ended up nodding absentmindedly again.

“By the way…”

“…?”

Liam White’s gaze suddenly turned cold. I glanced over to see what he was looking at and saw that he was staring at Joshua Lehmann, who was tied up.

“I was quite worried, but I’m glad you handled it well.”

“That’s right. Actually, this guy…”

“I know. The guildmaster of the Ur Guild has always seemed a bit suspicious.”

“What did you say?”

My eyes widened at Liam White's unexpected words.

“Joshua Lehmann probably never intended to cooperate with the Alliance from the very beginning.”

“…!”