The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 141: Chapter 141: Entering the Dungeon

Ares returned to the waiting area after completing his assessment.

Ji-won was still sitting where he had left him, occasionally glancing toward the assessment rooms as he waited. The moment he noticed Ares approaching, he stood from his seat.

"Tae-ho, how did it go?"

He walked over with a curious expression.

"What rank did you get?"

Ares didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he took out the card he had just received and handed it to Ji-won.

Ji-won’s eyes moved across the card.

Then stopped.

"E-rank?"

His expression changed instantly.

"That’s impossible."

He looked at Ares, then back at the card.

"The healing magic you used earlier wasn’t ordinary healing magic. There’s no way someone who can use magic like that should be classified as E-rank."

He turned the card over as though expecting to find something wrong with it.

"Could there have been an error during the assessment?"

"There wasn’t."

Ares calmly took the card back.

"Don’t think about it too much."

Ji-won stared at him for another moment before sighing.

"You’re surprisingly calm about this."

"I don’t really have a reason to worry about it."

Ares slipped the card into his pocket.

"By the way, are there any Gates we can hunt?"

Ji-won blinked.

"Gates?"

"Yes."

Ares looked around the busy hall.

"Oh, there are plenty of E-rank Gates available for independent Awakeners. They’re generally open to non-guild members, especially E-rank Awakeners."

Ji-won nodded.

"Since the monsters inside are considered low-level, the government allows independent Awakeners to enter them as long as they follow the regulations."

He paused and looked Ares up and down.

"But where’s your weapon?"

Ares glanced at him.

"Weapon?"

"You’re planning to enter a Gate dressed like that without carrying anything?"

Ji-won pointed toward Ares’ clothes.

"You don’t even have a sword, dagger, or anything else."

"Don’t worry about that."

Ares gave him a calm look.

"I can fight without a weapon."

Ji-won stared at him.

"R-really?"

"Yeah."

There was no hesitation in Ares’ answer.

Ji-won wasn’t entirely convinced, but after remembering what had happened earlier, he eventually decided not to argue.

"Alright."

He sighed.

"But we’re only going to the shallow section."

"The shallow section?"

"Most E-rank Gates aren’t particularly dangerous near the entrance, but that doesn’t mean you should wander too deep without knowing what you’re doing."

Ji-won adjusted the strap of his equipment.

"We’ll stay close to the entrance, clear whatever monsters we can find there, collect their magic stones, and leave."

Ares nodded.

"That works."

---

It took them some time to reach the Gate.

The entrance had been established on an open section of land surrounded by temporary barriers and several government vehicles. A large number of people had gathered around the area, most of them clearly Awakeners preparing to enter.

Some stood in groups of three or four, checking their equipment and discussing their plans before entering.

Others were alone.

A few appeared to be experienced hunters, judging by the condition of their armor and weapons, while others looked like newly awakened individuals who were still unfamiliar with the process.

At the center of the restricted area stood the Gate.

Unlike the strange, unstable portals Ares had encountered in the past, this one was almost perfectly uniform.

A vast blue surface floated vertically within a reinforced frame, its color resembling clear water illuminated from within. The surface occasionally rippled despite there being no wind, creating the strange impression that an enormous body of water was standing upright in the middle of the field.

The edges of the Gate remained perfectly still.

No sound came from it.

Yet everyone nearby knew what existed on the other side.

A dungeon.

Ji-won stopped in front of the entrance.

"This is it."

He looked toward Ares.

"Are you really sure you’ll be okay with this, Tae-ho?"

"It’s fine."

Ares glanced at the blue Gate.

"As I said, I can fight bare-handed."

Ji-won hesitated.

He clearly wanted to say something else, but eventually decided against it.

"Then let’s go."

They passed through the security checkpoint and approached the Gate.

One of the officials checked their identification cards before allowing them to enter.

A moment later, Ji-won stepped through the blue surface.

Ares followed.

The instant his body passed through the Gate, the sensation of space shifting around him disappeared.

He opened his eyes.

A cave stretched before them.

The walls were made of dark stone, with faint blue light coming from several crystals embedded throughout the ceiling and walls. The path extended deeper into the dungeon, disappearing around a series of natural bends.

The air was cold and slightly damp.

Their footsteps echoed through the passage.

Ares looked around quietly.

I’ve entered dungeons before.

But this feels different.

The structure was similar to what he already knew, yet there was something strangely artificial about the dungeon itself, as though the entire environment had been formed according to a fixed structure rather than naturally created.

Ji-won adjusted his grip on his dagger.

"Stay close."

Ares glanced at him.

"What kind of monsters are inside?"

Ji-won looked surprised.

"You don’t know?"

"No."

Ji-won thought about it for a moment before answering.

"There are only two types of monsters in this particular E-rank Gate."

He raised two fingers.

"Goblins and kobolds."

"Goblins and kobolds?"

"Yes."

Ji-won nodded.

"Both are considered low-rank monsters, so they aren’t usually a major threat to experienced Awakeners."

He lowered his hand.

"But don’t underestimate them just because they’re classified as low rank. They aren’t ordinary monsters. Goblins and kobolds are intelligent enough to use weapons, work together, and take advantage of an opponent’s mistakes."

Ares listened quietly.

"If we clear the dungeon, will the Gate disappear?"

Ji-won immediately shook his head.

"N-no. That’s impossible for only the two of us."

"Why?"

"Because we can’t actually clear this one completely."

He looked deeper into the dungeon.

"An E-rank Gate like this usually requires several D-rank Awakeners working together before the dungeon can be completely cleared. Even if the monsters are weak individually, there are too many of them, and the deeper sections become considerably more dangerous."

Ji-won tightened his grip on his dagger.

"And goblins and kobolds aren’t as harmless as people think. They’re fast, they’re aggressive, and they know how to use weapons.

Ares nodded.

"I see."

They continued walking.

The cave became narrower as they moved deeper.

Their footsteps echoed through the passage.

Then Ji-won suddenly stopped.

Ares looked ahead.

Something was moving in the darkness.

A small figure slowly emerged from behind a large rock.

Green skin.

A crude piece of armor.

A short sword in one hand.

The creature noticed them.

Its eyes widened.

"Goblin."

Ji-won’s voice immediately became serious.

His hand tightened around his dagger.

The goblin lowered its body.

Then it charged.

Ares stepped forward.

"Tae-ho, wait here."

Ji-won moved past him.

Ares stopped.

Ji-won raised his dagger.

The goblin swung its sword.

CLANG!

Ji-won blocked.

The force pushed him backward several steps.

He quickly recovered and slashed toward the goblin’s shoulder.

The creature twisted away.

His dagger only grazed its arm.

The goblin immediately counterattacked.

Ji-won raised his weapon.

CLANG!

The sword collided with the dagger.

Ji-won’s expression tightened.

The goblin was fast.

Much faster than Ares had expected from something classified as an E-rank monster.

Ji-won stepped backward.

The goblin followed.

Another slash.

Ji-won dodged.

Another.

He blocked.

The goblin suddenly changed its angle and swung toward his side.

Ji-won barely moved out of the way.

The blade passed across his clothes.

A shallow cut appeared along his side.

Ares watched silently.

So this is how he normally fights.

Ji-won was clearly skilled enough to survive, but his movements were inefficient. He relied heavily on his dagger to block attacks instead of controlling the distance between himself and the monster.

The goblin attacked again.

Ji-won raised his dagger.

CLANG!

The impact forced him to one knee.

The goblin raised its sword.

Ji-won rolled away just before the blade struck the ground.

BOOM!

Stone fragments scattered.

Ji-won quickly got back to his feet.

Ares frowned slightly.

"Are you sure you don’t want my help?"

Ji-won didn’t look back.

"Don’t worry."

He tightened his grip on the dagger.

"I think I can beat it."

The goblin charged again.

Ji-won dodged to the side.

Its sword passed close to his shoulder.

He attempted to counterattack.

The goblin moved first.

Its elbow struck his chest.

THUD!

Ji-won staggered backward.

The goblin immediately followed with another slash.

Ji-won blocked.

The impact drove him farther back.

His breathing became heavier.

Ares watched without intervening.

Ji-won suddenly lowered his stance.

"No."

He tightened his grip.

"I need to do this."

The goblin rushed toward him.

Ji-won stepped forward.

"For my father."

His dagger met the goblin’s sword.

CLANG!

He pushed the blade aside.

The goblin attempted to recover.

Ji-won moved inside its guard.

His dagger struck its shoulder.

SHK!

The goblin roared.

Ji-won didn’t stop.

He stepped around its side and struck again.

The goblin twisted away.

The dagger missed its chest by a few centimeters.

The creature retaliated.

Its sword cut across Ji-won’s arm.

Blood appeared.

Ji-won gritted his teeth.

But he didn’t retreat.

He drove his shoulder into the goblin’s chest.

Both of them stumbled.

Ji-won nearly fell.

The goblin raised its sword.

Ji-won caught its wrist.

For a moment, the two struggled.

The goblin’s strength was greater than he expected.

His arms trembled.

His injured body was already beginning to weaken.

Yet Ji-won refused to let go.

"Not yet..."

He pushed harder.

The goblin’s arm moved away from him.

Ji-won twisted its wrist.

The sword dropped.

CLANG!

The goblin looked down.

Ji-won didn’t waste the opportunity.

He drove his dagger forward.

SHRAK!

The blade pierced the goblin’s chest.

The creature froze.

Ji-won pushed once more.

Then pulled the dagger free.

The goblin staggered backward.

Its knees gave out.

It collapsed onto the cave floor.

Silence returned.

Ji-won stood over it, breathing heavily.

Ares looked at the corpse.

Why does it take this long to kill a single goblin?

He looked at Ji-won’s bloodied arm and bruised face.

So that’s why he kept getting covered in bruises and wounds.

Ares walked toward him.

Ji-won looked up.

"It’s embarrassing to admit, but..."

He glanced toward the dead goblin.

"Yes. This is usually how my hunts go."

Ares stopped in front of him.

He raised one hand.

"Hold still."

Ji-won blinked.

"What?"

Ares placed his hand near the injured arm.

"Heal."

A warm light appeared.

The wound slowly closed.

The cut across Ji-won’s arm disappeared first, followed by the bruises covering his body. The swelling around his face faded, and the pain that had been lingering in his muscles disappeared as though it had never existed.

Ji-won’s eyes widened.

"Holy..."

He looked at his arm.

"It’s completely healed."

He turned toward Ares.

"Thank you, Tae-ho. With this, I can keep fighting again."

He looked toward the goblin’s corpse.

"But before that, we should take out its magic stone."

"Magic stone?"

Ji-won nodded.

"Yes. Monsters have a magic stone inside their bodies. It’s a condensed source of magical energy, and it’s one of the main reasons people hunt monsters in the first place."

He crouched beside the corpse.

"The stronger the monster, the more valuable the magic stone usually is."

Ares looked at the body.

So it’s basically a monster core.

Ji-won pulled out his dagger again.

He carefully cut into the goblin’s chest and opened the corrupted flesh.

After searching through the body for a moment, his fingers finally touched something hard.

"There."

He pulled it free.

A small crystal rested in his palm.

It was only about the size of a fingernail, with a faint green color that seemed to glow weakly from within. Its surface was irregular but naturally crystalline, and a tiny amount of magical energy could be felt radiating from it.

Ares looked at it.

This is my first time seeing one.

I never really encountered goblins in the other world. They were so weak that there was usually no reason to pay attention to them.

Ji-won carefully placed the magic stone into a small pouch attached to his belt.

"There."

He stood and wiped his hand.

"One down."

He looked farther into the cave.

"Let’s keep moving."

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