Chapter Text
Hello to all those reading. Hope you enjoy this story idea I have. Not sure how great it's gonna be compared to other stories, but I think it's a neat idea. Let me know what you think when you're done reading and I'll try and get the next chapter out as soon as possible.
Cha Hae-In wasn't sure how she ended up where she was.
One minute, she had been enjoying her day off the best she could by having a relaxing walk around town. Now, she was in an area of it she never intended to be in. That was mostly due to the incident earlier, when she had stopped a pair of thieves on a bike from stealing a woman's purse.
She hadn't broken a sweat stopping them, but had when the people around her realised who she was.
Hae-In hated being an S Rank hunter. When she had awakened, everything had changed for her. She had only gotten assessed out of curiosity and the next thing she knew, she was on the news as Korea's ninth S Rank.
She would have been fine as an A, B or C Rank hunter. But instead, she had become a world famous S and now everyone who saw her wanted her to sign an autograph or take a picture with her. Something she wasn't comfortable with. So when the people around her started doing just that, her fight or flight response had kicked in.
Since she couldn't hurt anyone, she was forced to flee. And that had caused her to take to the rooftops and run until she found an empty street she could jump down into without attracting any attention. But now she was in an area of the city she barely ever went to. And she had no idea what she should do now.
She sighed and simply walked down the street, heading in the direction that would get her home fastest. The last thing she needed was to get swarmed again. Especially if other hunters were in the mix.
As she walked, she reached into her pocket for her handkerchief. She would need it, in case she ran into an awakened.
That was the thing she hated most about being an S Rank. As soon as she awakened, it was like the world around her had been bathed in garbage. She had always had a sensitive nose, but awakening had turned it up to eleven. Whenever she was around or in an area of mana, it took all her will power not to throw up. Of course, this made hunting a difficult task. Being around Hunters and magic beasts was a nightmare for her.
However, Hae-In refused to let that stop her. She was an S Rank and refused to let that power go to waste. Even if she hated it, she knew she had a duty to use her powers to help those in need.
That was why, when she suddenly picked up on a horrible smell, she didn't stop and go the other way. "A Gate?" She frowned, the smell lingering in the air. "Doesn't smell that bad. Must be E Rank." Despite there being no real danger, she couldn't just leave. E Rank or not, a Gate was still a Gate. If even one monster got out, it could do a lot of damage.
As such, she slowly made her way towards it. But when she did, she sensed something.
It wasn't a smell like she normally used to figure out a situation. Instead, it was a gut feeling. Something inside her, told the young woman that something very bad was happening. And this made her move a little faster than she normally would. And when she finally arrived on the scene, she was able to see what was happening.
The first thing she spotted was the Gate. A large blue swirling light, which led to some other dimension. It had appeared inside a construction yard, surrounded by piles and scaffolding. But that wasn't what made her worry.
What made her worry were the individuals currently outside the Gate, looking terrified. Three men and two women, one of which was unconscious on the floor. Another was on the phone and when she got closer, she heard him say something about the Association. No doubt, the Hunters Association. Which meant this was something big.
Then, she noticed another of the hunters currently on the ground. One whose left arm was gone, likely taken in a fight against a magic beast. One who she actually knew. "Master Song!" She cried, catching the attention of everyone there.
"Hunter Cha?" The one armed man asked, as she raced over to him. Song Chi-Yul was a C Rank hunter and master swordsman, who had taught Hae-In everything she knew about fighting with a blade. Alas, he was actually a Mage Hunter and all those sword skills were pretty much useless against the magic beast. "What are you doing here?"
"I was nearby and I sensed the Gate. I was just coming to see what was happening when I saw you all." She looked around, seeing the haunted expressions on everyone's faces. Something horrible had happened here and she knew it wasn't just a bad run in with a magic beast. "What's going on?" She looked down at the unconscious woman, "is she okay?"
"She's fine," Chi-Yul replied. "I had to knock her out to get her out of there." He then looked at her seriously. "Hae-In, please. You have to help Jin-Woo."
"Jin-Woo?"
"He's still in the dungeon," Chi-Yul explained. "He...he stayed behind so we could all escape. But...he can't get out of there alone. Please."
"Are you insane?" One of the other hunters cried, "you saw those things in there. Hunter Cha's strong, but I don't even think she would be able to take them all down. Besides, there's no way Jin-Woo's still alive. He's..." He held his tongue, obviously not wanting to say anything else. Hae-In was curious about what he was going to say next.
"We're alive right now because of him," Chi-Yul exclaimed. "He figured out the riddles and gave us the opening to leave. We can't just leave him alone in there."
"I know that," a hunter in a blue leather jacket stated. "But the Hunters Association is already on its way. The White Tiger Guild is also close. They'll be here...soon."
"But not soon enough," Chi-Yul growled. But then he sighed, "but you're right. I can't ask Hae-In to go in alone."
"No," Hae-In got up, "I'll go. I can't just sit around waiting for the others to arrive." She noticed a sword on the ground and picked it up, "I'm borrowing this." Chi-Yul nodded, as she turned towards the Gate.
Chi-Yul was about to say something, but she shot forward before he could. It wasn't until she was inside that she realised he was likely about to tell her what to expect, but she didn't have time to let him fill her in. She had to try and save this hunter before it was too late.
"This is an E Rank Dungeon. So what could possibly be in here, that might make them think I'd be in danger?" She frowned, fearing she might have just stepped into a world of trouble. However, she had to act fast.
She moved as fast as her legs could carry her, the S Rank's speed being one of her greatest advantages. She made her way through the dungeon until she found the area where the boss was likely meant to be. And there, she found another hole in the wall.
The room had been made out of bricks, but a section of the wall had broken apart. Doing so revealed the entrance to another tunnel. One which seemed a lot less well made. Instead of looking like a natural cave system, this tunnel looked like something had dug into it.
Hae-In quickly pulled a hair tie out of her pocket and pushed her hair up out of the way, knowing she would need to be able to see in order to fight. Once done, she charged forward into the tunnel. Her sword was ready for anything and her eyes were constantly scanning the area.
But the issue was light. The cave was so dark, she could barely see a thing. Luckily, her perception was high enough that she could tell when a wall was coming or not. Soon, she found the passageway began to move downwards. She didn't know what to expect, but she could sense she was getting close.
And after another minute of running, she finally reached what appeared to be a dead end.
It looked like whatever had dug this tunnel, just stopped and gave up. The place was dimly lit and barely large enough for a person to stand in. But there was someone there. A male hunter that looked like he had been through hell.
"Are you okay?" She cried, rushing over to him. But when she got in close, something happened that took her completely by surprise. "He...he doesn't stink?" True enough, the young man didn't smell. The horrible stench that all hunters produced, wasn't coming from this individual. In that, it was quite the opposite. "He actually smells...nice..."
She kept staring at him for a moment, her attention on his young and immature face.
He couldn't have been more than twenty years old at the most, a teenager if anything. Staring at him, Hae-In couldn't believe her sensei had left such a young boy to defend himself.
She took another sniff, letting the nice scent flow into her nose, causing a calming sense to wash over her. "Is it because his Rank is so low?" She shook her head, knowing that couldn't be it. She might not have been around a lot of E Ranks, but she had smelled them before. And they had all smelt just as terrible, though not to the same extent that S Ranks and other high levels smell.
She sighed, wishing she could stay in that moment forever. "Wait!" Her eyes widened, her face going red. "What am I doing? We're in the middle of a dungeon and I'm just sitting here!" She looked down at him again, remembering the state he was supposed to be in. "Is he alive?" She moved closer and saw his chest moving up and down, so he was still breathing.
She then checked him over for any signs of injury, but he seemed perfectly fine. His clothes were a wreck and covered in blood, but he didn't have a scratch on him. "What's going on?" She checked the whole in his jacket and shirt, showing his bare abdomen. If she didn't know any better, it looked like he had been impaled. But someone seemed to have healed him.
"How? Did one of the others heal him before they left? No. Even if they did, he must have gotten hurt again after they left. Why else would he be unconscious. But...how can he not have a scratch on him?"
This whole situation was making Hae-In's head spin. This boy was left in a dungeon, which apparently still had monsters in it, with no weapons that she could see and no way to escape. His clothes gave the impression he had suffered serious injury, but he wasn't even bruised. And then there was his scent. No matter what, a hunter was supposed to radiate mana. And she couldn't stand that smell. Yes, this boy seemed perfectly fine.
"What is going on?" She wanted answers, but she couldn't get them there. She would need to talk to one of the other survivors and to do that, she needed to get this boy out of there. Even if he wasn't injured, he was still unconscious and that could be serious.
As such, she quickly shifted him around. It wasn't easy, but she eventually managed to hoist him up onto her back. With his light weight frame and her S Rank strength, carrying him was no issue. So she quickly had him lifted up and began to carry him back towards the Gate, Chi-Yul's sword still in her hand in case anything unexpected happened.
But as she walked back up the tunnel, she glanced back at the hunter she had found. "Jin-Woo. Who are you?"