Chapter 59: Dungeon attack becomes a political war (1)
The announcement was a little too unexpected, so I found myself getting way more occupied.
Our guild mother, Lee Sang-hee, was in charge of educating our party about the exploration, and what was left of our spare time was spent trying to achieve our daily tasks.
The sad fact stood - our party had zero experience when it came to hunting or dungeon explorations. We could have said that the tutorial dungeon gave us some notion, but survival dungeons wouldn’t be considered as experience by other people.
In other words, our party had skipped the typical beginner’s growth process. They had chosen for us to enter an advanced type dungeon without stopping to consider our experience.
Of course, it might have been possible for people to overlook this as we had been quite the popular party in Lindel, but we all knew within ourselves that we were still newbies to this sort of thing.
This was why we tried our absolute best to pile up as much basic dungeon knowledge as we could before the due date came.
When a party moved together, the best practice would be to practice formation to prevent the weakening of defenses and memorize monsters’ types and characteristics.
In short, we were cramming both mental and physical training in preparation for the dungeon exploration. Thus, we were receiving special attention from the Blue Guild. Every member wanted to make sure we were in tip-top shape so as not to get left behind.
‘I don’t know if we’ll be able to do this successfully, but…’
We were indeed very lucky to have been given a chance to join a joint exploration this quickly, considering that we were newbies. It also felt weird to move with parties from other guilds, but looking from a different perspective, it meant that our safety was guaranteed. Plus, we would also learn a thing or two by watching their formations and react to certain situations within the dungeon.
However, that didn’t mean I was underestimating my party. In actuality, our fellow guilds’ levels weren’t that high compared to ours. It was just the experience in dungeons that separated us from each other.
In short, we were still very lucky to be given this opportunity.
“By the way… Are you really going to take Kim Ye-ri with us?”
“Yeah. It may be dangerous, but it will be a great experience for her. Being young and new to this sort of thing is both an advantage and a disadvantage.”
“I see.”
It was quite surprising that Kim Hyunsung had also chosen to take Kim Ye-ri with us. However, I knew that he must have decided to do so for a reason. Kim Hyunsung wasn’t the type to take a risk when he knew that it might put the whole team in danger, after all.
In any case, our party rushed to complete our preparations before the due date came.
Kim Hyunsung was the one who was particularly a.s.signed to attend the meetings outside, and it was through this that I could feel that our first expedition as the Blue Guild’s Seventh Division Party was fast approaching.
Finally, the day of the dungeon exploration came.
“Deokgu, have you packed everything that we need to bring?”
“Of course. Well, some of the guild members already packed their luggage in advance…”
“Miss Hee-young, can you check if there is anything still missing? I’m also not sure if the others are in good shape to move.”
“Yes, Kiyoung.”
“Jung Hayan, please make sure all the food, drinking water, and potions are ready to go.”
“Yes, oppa.”
In truth, I was the busiest. I was the one pulling strings behind the scenes, making sure everyone would be properly prepared in time for the exploration. I didn’t want to inconvenience Kim Hyunsung by having him think of everything, after all.
It was crucial for someone to be in charge of all the basic needs. This included checking the necessary supplies, preparing for the expedition in advance, etc.
In other words, I took care of the less fun parts that came with planning for a guild expedition.
‘I will prepare everything, Hyunsung. You don’t need to worry.’
As expected, Kim Hyunsung was very appreciative of the way I had stepped in to handle things. It was important for me to show that I was still worth the investment. I might be lacking in power or growth potential, but at least he would see me as someone useful to have around.
“Make sure you don’t leave out any equipment. Hayan, when you’re done, bring the equipment you decided to rent from the guild warehouse…”
“Yes, oppa.”
“Don’t forget to bring the arrows along for Ye-ri.”
“Yes, of course!”
I might be busy, but it was also important for me to look busier. As it was my first expedition, I had to make sure I made my position within the party clear in advance.
If the party’s father were Kim Hyunsung, then the party’s mother would be me, Lee Kiyoung.
It wasn’t all that hard to do. All I had to do was check the list for anything we might be missing, and make sure that the preparations were all in place.
When I saw Kim Hyunsung come into sight, whistling, and in a good mood, I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I think I’m somewhat ready. You should also check yourself before we go, Hyunsung.”
“Don’t worry, Kiyoung, I’m okay. There will be no other problem. Another party will be waiting outside. Let’s start soon.”
“Yeah.”
This tedious job felt less ha.s.sling when I knew that the leader trusted me enough to take care of this sort of thing. I couldn’t help but let a smile overtake my features.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, sure.”
As we headed outside, we could see unfamiliar faces waiting. They had all their attention on us, presumably trying to size us up.
“Oh, that’s Sun Hee-young, am I right?”
“Isn’t that the party that the Blue Guild decided to a.s.sign?”
“Well, I can understand why they had to get them at an expensive price. You can see their potential even by just looking at them.”
“I kind of feel jealous. Their starting line is different from ours…”
“They haven’t even shown their true abilities yet…”
“Isn’t that the whole reason for the hunt?”
“So, does that mean we’ll have to support them?”
Amidst all the looks we were receiving, one expression in familiar stood out - the expression of jealousy.
We had rented equipment from the guild warehouse, but the difference was that the ones we were given were of good quality. Most of the equipment our would-be expedition members were wearing were worn-out and dull-looking in comparison.
I couldn’t blame them. If I were in their shoes, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from comparing, either.
One could see it just by looking at Park Deokgu.
Instead of the fragile wooden shield that he used back in the tutorial, he was now holding an iron-encrusted shield that not only looked pretty good but also had higher defense stats compared to regular type shields. He was also wearing chain armor instead of the customary leather armor that was normally used for shoelaces.
If Park Deokgu’s strength stat had only been a little higher, he would have also been able to wear a whole body-plated armor.
None of us were wearing any hero-grade equipment, but we weren’t using items that screamed ‘beginner,’ either.
As we slowly approached them, I couldn’t help but notice each guild’s emblem imprinted on their respective members.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too.”
Having met several times in advance, the party leaders were well-acquainted with each other.
Another notable thing to observe was that one of the Red Mercenary Guild members looked at our party with a favorable expression.
‘Oh? He seems interesting.’
“Nice to meet you. I am Choi Young-ki of the Red Mercenary Guild. I heard a lot about you from the master.”
“Ah, it’s nice to meet you. I am Kiyoung Lee.”
Of course, it was only natural for Cha Hee-ra to employ people who would report back to her about my current standing and how this expedition would go. The Red Mercenary Guilds were very easy to distinguish, as they were all wearing red.
Meanwhile, one of the other men who were busy greeting Jung Hayan looked like the Magic Guild members. He was wearing a badge that looked like a magic circle, and he had already struck up a conversation with her, seemingly having a lot of questions he wanted to ask.
Those who went to greet Kim Hyunsung, in particular, were the members of the Black Swan Guild. As expected, they were wearing their guild badge. Their party consisted of five women and one man.
‘Ah, so the rumors are true.’
Most members of the Black Swan Guild were said to be women. There were little differences, but they formed quite the formidable party.
Since there were so many guilds, each with their respective parties, it was hard to greet everyone successfully. Of course, the most popular person in the entire crowd would be our very own priest, Sun Hee-young.
“You finally decided to go active.”
“Yeah. Some things happened, and I found myself joining Blue Guild. Please take good care of me, everyone.”
“Having you as part of this team is very rea.s.suring, haha.”
“Oh, no. In fact, I am not familiar with the ins and outs of the dungeon, so I don’t think I’ll be of much help. I’ll still try my best, regardless!”
“Yes, sure. Then let’s go as soon as we’re ready.”
Due to the atmosphere, the Red Mercenary’s Choi Young-ki decided to lead this expedition. Seeing as he had the best stats and came from the best guild among every guild present, it was completely understandable for him to do so.
Though he did not have hero-grade stats, he had put a lot of effort into trying to make sure his stats were as high as possible.
To me, it felt like Park Deokgu had a higher potential rate, and if Park Deokgu were to train without giving up continuously, he would probably grow to be as strong as Choi Young-ki, if not even stronger.
“It’s a great honor to see the rumored party in person, Mr. Hyunsung.”
“No, we are the lucky ones. This is also my first expedition. I came with the mindset to learn before anything else.”
“Hahaha. In fact, I was also one of the ones who watched your demonstration before. My goodness… I really thought of you as a genius. Your excessive humility is poisonous.”
“Thank you so much for watching me.”
“I just had to. Even Miss Jung Hayan showed great potential.”
Choi Young-ki exhibited quite a pleasant personality. His other party members were the same for the most part. Meanwhile, the Magic Guild struck me as the quiet type.
I didn’t know what the Black Swan Guild people were thinking, but they didn’t seem to be wary of us.
However, this didn’t mean that we were completely free from judgments. Our judgment came in the form of Kim Ye-ri. After all, she was still just a child.
It was then that one of the people from the Black Swan Guild spoke.
“We didn’t hear anything about you bringing young children to the expedition, Mr. Hyunsung.”
“He will not interfere. Before being a child, she is also a talented archer. I will make sure she isn’t a nuisance to the expedition.”
“Still…”
“I’ll take care of her.”
“What…”
I knew tension would be inevitable between guilds. We just needed to give them an opening to take. However, we couldn’t just back down from the taunts either. We needed to a.s.sess them first to see where we would end up standing.
I had already looked at everyone’s stats from the first moment that I laid my eyes on them, but I thought I had to look at them one more time. Thus, I slowly activated my ability.
[Check player Yura Jung’s status window and potential.]
[Name-Jung Yura]
[t.i.tle-None. You should try a little more.]
[Age-29]
[Propensity-Calculating Strategist]
[Job-a.s.sa.s.sination Thief-Rare Grade]
[Job Effect-Acquisition of basic archery knowledge]
[Occupational Effect-Acquisition of basic dagger skills]
[Occupational Effect-Acquisition of basic trapping knowledge]
[Job Effect-Acquisition of Basic a.s.sa.s.sination Knowledge]
[Capacity]
[Strength -41/Growth limit: Hero or higher]
[Agility-55/Growth limit: Hero or higher]
[Health -43/Growth limit: Hero or less]
[Intellect -40/Growth limit: Rare or less]
Only
[Durability-20/Growth limit: Rare or higher]
[Luck -23/Growth limit: Rare or less]
[Holy-43/Growth limit: Hero or higher]
[Overall Review - Has the stats and potential to be useful as an a.s.sa.s.sin. It is noticeable that the disposition, occupation, and stats are very well matched. Must have the talent to grow smoothly. If you a.s.sume that she gets a legendary item or job, she is a talent who can grow explosively. However, her personality doesn’t look as good. Of course, compared to player Lee Kiyoung, she still looks like a saint.]
‘Ah, so she’s okay.’
I’ve seen so many monster-like stats, so hers weren’t all that impressive, but her possible growth rate still showed much promise. It also looked like she was doing a very good job as an a.s.sa.s.sin.
From an in-depth a.s.sessment, I could guess her role to center around trap dismantling or rear disturbance. Therefore, I could understand the snarky tone. Her responsibility was also to make sure that we wouldn’t be ambushed or caught off-guard. This also meant ensuring that there were no possibly weak links in the party.
“We aren’t here to look after you…” A voice muttered from behind.