Chapter 62

Theresa stepped into Lavre Village with Soso trailing behind her.

“I heard this place was a popular hunting zone, but I didn’t expect it to be this packed.”

Lately, feral spirit-type monsters had been showing up in huge numbers near Lavre Village. That was exactly why the Adventurer’s Guild had marked the area as a recommended extermination zone. When an area got that tag, it meant players would earn more rewards for killing the same number of monsters compared to other places. On top of that, village NPCs were dishing out hunt quests left and right, making it a prime grinding spot among players in the Level 50–60 range for rapid leveling.

“I was planning to come here right after I hit 50, too. I guess he had the same idea.”

Theresa felt oddly proud that she’d thought the same way as Do-Jin. It felt like maybe her scrappy little gaming life was finally starting to shine.

Soso, on the other hand, absolutely hated being in crowded places. “Did we get here too early? It’s loud and packed, and now we’ve gotta wait around in this mess.”

“It’s only about twenty minutes until we’re supposed to meet. Suck it up.” Theresa brushed off her friend’s whining and started wandering around the village, checking things out.

That was when she spotted someone familiar. A figure with a lean, familiar frame and an even more recognizable walk cut directly through the crowd toward them.1

“You’re early!”

Sure enough, the guy in the dark blue hood was none other than Do-Jin.

“Mr. Mage?”

He gave a slight nod and spoke to the two of them. “Let’s go. I’ve already got everything prepped.”

“Wait, what?” Theresa blinked, caught off guard.

“W-wait a sec. Soso and I haven’t even picked up any quests yet. If we just walk around town for a bit, we can grab a couple. Wouldn’t it be better to take those along?”

“There’s no need,” Do-Jin replied flatly. “That’s not why we’re here. I already picked up the quest we need, so we can head out right away.”

Hearing that, Theresa practically gasped.

No way...

She’d just assumed they were gonna farm like everyone else and figured Do-Jin had called them out to do regular grinding in a popular area. But now, he was straight-up ignoring the standard quests.

He’d said it himself. They weren’t here for what everyone else was doing, which could only mean one thing.

It’s happening. It’s fucking happening again!

Theresa thought with glee, her eyes lighting up in anticipation.

***

A few hours before meeting up with Theresa and Soso, Do-Jin had already combed through every corner of Lavre Village.

A boy who couldn’t have been older than six or seven had clung to Do-Jin with wide, pleading eyes. “Adventurer, please... please help us. The forest is full of vicious spirits now, and every time my dad goes out to hunt, my mom stays home crying...”

Do-Jin crouched down and spoke to him. “I came here to figure out what’s going on too. But just wiping out a few spirits isn’t gonna fix the problem. I need to know why this is happening... if only I could find some kind of clue.”

The last part, of course, was meant to sound like he was muttering to himself. It was all an act, one he had already repeated several times by then. He was cycling through NPCs, running the same performance over and over again, hoping to find the one who held the thread he needed.

“I know why it’s happening,” the boy said after a small, hesitant pause.

“You do?”

The boy gave a slow, serious nod.

“Yeah. One night, my dad didn’t come home, so I snuck into the forest to find him. And I saw it. There was this giant, glowing thing writhing in the middle of Lavre Lake. It was underwater, but it was massive. I just know there’s a huge monster hiding down there!”

“Why didn’t you tell anyone else about it?”

“I did. But no one believed me. The next time we went, there was nothing there. But I know what I saw! The grown-ups said it was probably just the moon’s reflection on the lake, but I swear it wasn’t! I really saw something down there!”

That was the conversation that triggered the quest.

[

Investigate the Suspicious Lake

]

Grade: Normal

A boy from Lavre Village claims he saw something massive writhing beneath the lake. It could be connected to the spirit outbreak in Lavre Forest. Investigate the lake and find out what’s going on.

Quests like this, with no listed rewards, were usually a waste of time. Ninety-nine out of a hundred times, they led to complete dead ends. They were just glorified side quests meant to eat up one’s hours. Yet, every so often, one of them turned out to be the golden ticket, and this one was, without a doubt, that kind of quest.

***

The place Do-Jin led the group to was a large lake tucked deep inside the forest.

“Huh? I’m sorry, what did you just say?” Soso was staring at him like he’d lost his mind. “You want the three of us to tie ourselves to this rope, along with that massive rock... and then jump in?”

His plan sounded completely unhinged to the other two.

“We’ll die.”

Of course, Soso’s hesitation was valid. Although VR characters could take more punishment than their real-world bodies, that didn’t mean they were invincible. If someone tied themself to a boulder and dove in, that was a guaranteed death sentence.

Soso was a reasonable person. She knew that kind of thing perfectly well. Which meant there was no way she was going along with it unless she got an explanation that made sense. Her friend, however, was a different story. Theresa had already gone full cultist. At this point, she basically treated everything Do-Jin said like divine revelation.

“Like this, right? This should be enough?” Theresa asked.

She was already halfway through tying the rope around her waist before Do-Jin even finished his sentence.

Soso freaked the hell out the moment she saw her. “What the fuck are you doing?! Have you lost your mind?”

She tried to fight back, but she was only a priest, a support class. Theresa, on the other hand, was a warrior with muscle and speed to back it up.

“Don’t worry. Think about it. Do you really think Mr. Mage came all the way here just to kill himself? Obviously there’s a reason, so we just follow his lead,” Theresa countered.

“If someone ties themself to a rock and jumps into a lake, they die! That’s just common fucking sense! Let go of me!”

“It’s fine. We’re tied together anyway, so even underwater, we won’t get separated.”

While the two were still arguing, Do-Jin spoke up. “Don’t worry. The rope’s just to help us reach the bottom faster. Once we’re down there, cut it and follow me.”

Now that she was basically being dragged into an underwater trip while tied to her friend, Soso blurted out in a panic, “And what if we die? Are you sure this is safe?!”

Do-Jin hesitated for a fraction of a second before responding, “It’s safe.”

“You paused! Don’t give me that ‘it’s safe’ bullshit when you clearly hesitated!”

“Sometimes, you gotta take risks if you want a big payoff.”

“You just said it was safe!” Soso was visibly panicking now, shaking her head like crazy.

That was when Theresa made her move. “I’ll make a deal. If you come with us, I won’t bitch at you on weekends anymore. You can come over and hang out without me nagging.”

That did it. Soso froze, looking torn. Theresa took advantage of the silence and looked at Do-Jin. “She’s in. Let’s go.”

He stared back at the two of them and thought,

What a weird duo.

Putting the thought aside, he readied himself to dive in.

Three people and one giant rock, all tied together, plunged straight into the lake. The cold water swallowed them instantly, the light above scattering as they sank deeper and deeper. Lavre Lake was not just wide. It was deep, and if Do-Jin had not had unusually high Stamina stats for a mage, his lungs might not have lasted.

We’re almost there.

The lakebed was cloaked in shadows, but thanks to Silent Night, Do-Jin didn’t need light magic to see a thing. The rock was the first to hit bottom with a muffled thud. Theresa, the one supposed to cut the rope, was fumbling hard and couldn’t move properly.

I guess she doesn’t have any underwater movement skills. No wonder she’s struggling

, Do-Jin thought.

A thin gust of wind shot forward from Do-Jin’s hand. It was drastically weaker underwater, but still strong enough to slice through the rope.

There’s no way she’s getting anywhere on her own. I guess I’ll have to drag them all.

Do-Jin fully activated his Magic Circuits and summoned some wind to propel them. As a silent, invisible current of water was generated behind them, the trio shot through the water. The rapid acceleration and deceleration repeated over and over as he maneuvered them toward their destination, one spell at a time.

That’s the spot.

For someone like Do-Jin, who could see even in darkness, navigating the lake was no big deal. After pushing forward at high speed for a bit, he spotted what he was looking for: an underwater cave. He dove into it without hesitation.

With a few more bursts of wind aimed at the cave floor, they were finally able to surface inside a damp chamber with actually breathable air. Though it was damp and stuffy, at least they’d all made it in one piece.

They had arrived at an undiscovered, hidden dungeon named Lavre Lake Underwater Cave.

***

The cave was filled with glowing blue stalactites and crystals that lit up the walls. Looking down, Do-Jin noticed that the water went up all the way to their shins. The shimmering light that reflected off the surface became brighter as system messages appeared.

[You are the first to discover Hidden Dungeon Lavre Lake Underwater Cave.]

[As a reward for first discovery and first entry, Strength and Intelligence have each increased by 5.]

[A one-time EXP bonus has been granted to the first entry party.]

[A one-time item drop rate bonus has been granted to the first entry party.]

[These bonuses will remain active for up to 5 days.]

Even Theresa, who’d been coughing up lake water and trying to catch her breath, widened her eyes when she saw them.

Holy shit... no, this is next-level.

Once again, she found herself completely floored by Do-Jin. Stumbling across a new dungeon alone would’ve been amazing, but on top of that, all the bonuses that came with it were just pure god-tier luck.

There was one message that popped up for Do-Jin alone.

[“Investigate the Suspicious Lake: Normal” has been upgraded to “The Secret Beneath the Lake: Hidden.”]

[

Quest

]

The Secret Beneath the Lake

Grade: Hidden

A mysterious underwater cave brimming with spirit energy has been discovered beneath the lake. Uncovering its secrets may lead to a way to stop the incidents happening on the surface.

Reward: EXP, Gold, ???

In his previous life, this had just been a basic quest to help players locate and enter the dungeon. This time, because he was the first to discover it, that same quest had evolved into a hidden-tier mission.

“Stay sharp. We’re already inside the dungeon, so be ready to fight,” Do-Jin reminded them.

He reached into his inventory and handed Theresa the S-rank weapon he’d prepped earlier, Axe of the Thunderstruck Tree.

“Wait, what’s this?”

The handoff was so casual, so natural, that Theresa took the axe without even thinking and immediately let out a startled squeak when she realized what it was.

“This is an S-rank item! I can’t take this! No way, this is way too much!”

Do-Jin looked at her like she was the weird one. “Who said I was giving it to you? I’m loaning it to you. You’re using it to hunt.”

He said it flatly, leaving no room for argument. Theresa glanced away, her face burning with embarrassment.

“A-anyway, just focus and listen. I’ll lay out the plan from here.”

He pointed toward a specific part of the cave where a collapsed cluster of massive stalactites jutted out from the cave floor, forming a sort of island.

“That’s where we’re setting up.”