Kim Hojun breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short-lived.
The trainees explained the situation that had occurred after they had fallen.
“So, he suddenly acted like that?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“…”
Under normal circumstances, he would have been kicked out of the training camp without any objections.
There was nothing as suicidal as moving alone in a dungeon raid.
However, this situation was inevitable.
The instructors, who were supposed to protect the trainees safely, had lost consciousness first.
“I’ll get up now and find trainee Kim Minjun.”
“Instructor! Over there!”
“What is it?”
Upon hearing a trainee’s shout, the instructors naturally turned their gaze behind them.
“What the heck is that….”
“Is that a hound?”
“Yes, but… it’s much bigger.”
A trainee with a calm expression was walking towards them.
Seeing Kim Minjun carrying a hound on his shoulder, the instructors doubted whether they were hallucinating.
“Did that crazy bastard catch that big thing all by himself?”
“If the hounds earlier were lightweights, then that one’s definitely a heavyweight.”
“I don’t know what’s what anymore.”
The other trainees felt the same way.
Kim Minjun had shown overwhelming performance during training, but they thought it was just training.
“The entrance is open. It’s best to leave immediately.”
“Did you catch that hound by yourself?”
“Yes, I caught it alone.”
Corporal Kim Hojun nodded at Kim Minjun’s answer and sent the trainees out first.
“Kim Minjun. Report today’s events in detail to the platoon leader.”
“Understood.”
“Report everything you’ve experienced without leaving anything out. There’s no excuse for this incident. It’s unacceptable that we fainted and left the trainees behind.”
Very occasionally, among the excellent trainees, some managed to handle a hound independently.
If counted by classes, about one or two out of every 30 classes.
Of course, there had never been a trainee who killed a hound as big as this one before.
If it weren’t for him, we’d all be dead.
A great disaster would have nearly occurred if Kim Minjun hadn’t been on the 30th team.
A hound of that size wouldn’t stand a chance against any number of trainees.
But… what on earth was that earlier?
Kim Hojun shifted his gaze to the hound’s headless corpse.
Inside the dungeon, he suddenly lost consciousness.
It couldn’t have been the hound’s ability.
Damn it. I have to report first. I’m done sleeping for today.
The instructors left the dungeon first, and Kim Minjun followed behind.
Ding
“What’s that?”
A message appeared before his eyes.
[An error has been fixed.]
Error?
What error are they talking about?
Kim Minjun frowned at the unhelpful message.
“The fucked up system is a problem both in the other world and here.”
Ding
Did it understand his words?
With the notification sound, the status window he could not see suddenly appeared.
[Kim Minjun
The founder of the “Seria-noona is my favorite character” church.
Strength: 60
Agility: 60
Stamina: 60
Mana: 10
Owned Skill: Corruption (E)]
“Something seems a bit off.”
A status window that showed no level, only stats and a single skill.
Kim Minjun checked the phrase “Seria-noona” and hit his forehead.
“Why does such a thing show up in the status window?”
Seria-noona is my favorite character… and the group I created for fun.
It was a mechanism set up to get rid of the fanatics who stalked me like a stalker when I reached the peak of being a dark mage.
Putting my Dungeon Power Fighter character’s name on them to let them taste a bit of bitterness was a mistake, but they actually liked it.
“I’ve become a lot weaker.”
He had used most of the mana within his body when returning from Isgard.
On top of that, he had anticipated a decrease in stats due to the dimensional travel penalty, but he didn’t expect it to be this low.
“With these stats… let’s see. I can easily surpass a sergeant, but….”
The skills that once filled the status window were now reduced to just one.
“Is it because my mana stat is 10? What can I do with just Corruption?”
On top of all that, his mana stat and the Corruption rank had hit rock bottom.
With that skill level, using Corruption on a hunter would only cause a minor stomachache at best.
“If this were a novel, it’d be titled A Dark Mage’s Life Starting from Level 1.”
Compared to his fellow trainees, Kim Minjun had monstrous stats indeed.
The average stats of trainees at the end of training were mainly in the late 10s to early 20s.
But even with these stats, he was far from achieving his goal.
“I’ve reached max level in another world once. I wonder if I can do it here too.”
Wait for me, Dungeon Power Fighter company.
For the delayed development of “New Play” caused by the appearance of monsters, I’ll quickly regain my strength.
***
That day.
The Hunter Army training center was turned upside down.
The last team, Team 30, entered, and the dungeon was closed.
On top of that, a trainee alone had dealt with a monster that even the instructors struggled with.
Originally, when the final training ended, trainees would be promoted to the rank of private.
Afterward, they would have a simple discharge ceremony and have free time until they received their unit assignment.
However, for this group of trainees, that didn’t happen.
“Ah. Our group is cursed.”
“Why did such a crazy thing happen in the last training?”
Now promoted to private, the trainees started to grumble one after another.
They were waiting inside the administration room, still dressed in combat uniforms.
“Did you see Kim Minjun? He caught the hound all by himself.”
“Ah, you mean the one he carried on his shoulder?”
“Is it true that two instructors were frothing at the mouth and passed out?”
Unable to watch TV, chatting was the only source of enjoyment for the newly promoted privates.
“I think Kim Minjun will make sergeant within two years.”
“No way. No matter how good he is, the promotion test is very tough. Most hunters were discharged as corporals even after serving their full five years.”
“Only for the ones without talent. I’ve seen a hunter discharged as private first class.”
While they discussed Kim Minjun…
“Salute! Private Kim Minjun reporting!”
Kim Minjun was facing the battalion commander.
…What’s going on here?
An officer was receiving a reprimand next to the battalion commander, and it turned out to be the platoon leader.
“You can leave now.”
“Yes! Salute!”
The platoon leader quickly rose from his bowing position at the battalion commander’s words and left the room.
Although he hadn’t done anything wrong, he felt somewhat guilty.
“The platoon leader is to blame for not properly inspecting the dungeon. Don’t you think?”
“Private Kim Minjun! Yes, sir! That’s correct!”
Kim Minjun agreed with the battalion commander’s words for now.
No one could have possibly known about the variable in the dungeon.
Unless it was during his prime as a dark mage.
Is this really the army?
Feeling sorry for the innocent platoon leader was only for a moment.
“Would you like a cup of coffee?”
“Yes! Thank you very much.”
The battalion commander handed Kim Minjun a can of coffee.
“Sit down and relax. I’m truly grateful to you.”
Despite the battalion commander’s words, Kim Minjun maintained an upright posture in his chair.
For a private to lean back in front of a lieutenant colonel would be too much.
“If it weren’t for you, the trainees could have really been killed. I heard the instructors couldn’t handle it either?”
“The instructors suddenly showed seizure symptoms, so I had to act alone! I apologize!”
“Apologize for what? I’m actually contemplating what kind of reward to give you.”
The battalion commander showed his white teeth and smiled happily.
If a single trainee at the Hunter Army Training Center was seriously injured, his promotion would be in jeopardy.
Not only that, but the bloodthirsty reporters would have pounced on the story.
That guy shouldn’t be sent to a regular unit.
When he saw the dead body of the hound with his own eyes.
Battalion Commander Choi Seungbeom felt Kim Minjun should be assigned to a frontline unit.
To send such talent to a regular unit would be a national loss.
Certainly, they said they needed reinforcement in Gangwon Province.
Choi Seungbeom sorted out the areas with frequent monster appearances among the units densely packed with dungeons.
This is the perfect place.
After carefully examining the map for a while, Choi Seungbeom shifted his gaze to Kim Minjun with a determined expression.
“I have a proposal for you. Would you like to hear it?”
“Yes!”
“I heard from the platoon leader that your training performance is excellent.”
The battalion commander’s proposal was this: If he joined the Hunter Army unit in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, he would immediately allow Kim Minjun to take the promotion test.
“Privates can’t take the promotion test for one year. But it’s different if there’s a special case.”
In other words, if he went to the frontline unit in Cheorwon, he wouldn’t have to wait a year to take the promotion test.
Really… this is an insane exception!
If it were other hunters, they would have cursed under their breath.
But Kim Minjun was an exception.
He didn’t care where he went as long as he could quickly climb the ranks.
Although the pass rate for the promotion test was less than 5% for privates, what did that matter to him?
So what if the promotion test is difficult?
While an ordinary hunter would have despaired, for Kim Minjun, this was a golden opportunity!
Every soldier had a one-year private life but could skip that process.
I have to accept this.
He heard that there were two promotion tests a year.
The higher the rank, the broader the scope of activities, so he had to go.
“I understand. I will do so.”
“Refreshing, isn’t it? You’re a true soldier, my friend. I’ll put in a good word for you at the base, so don’t worry too much.”
It was the moment when a trip to the frontline military base in Cheorwon, which Hunters detest, was decided.
**
Time passed, and the day for the privates to depart for their bases approached.
The recruits finished packing their belongings and quietly waited for their superior officers to greet them.
“You’re seriously the craziest person I’ve ever met.”
“I knew it since the day he played Dungeon Power Fighter. I told you, there’s no one decent among those who play it.”
“Come on, do you know how awesome Dungeon Power Fighter is?”
Upon confirming that Kim Minjun, who graduated first from training, had chosen Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, as his base, his fellow recruits couldn’t hide their astonishment.
Of all the many bases, why on earth did he choose Cheorwon, Gangwon Province?
And with a training record of being first in his class?
“You guys wouldn’t understand. I have an awesome life goal. All of this is for that.”
Kim Minjun waved his hands dismissively at his fellow recruits, telling them to leave quickly.
“What is it, then? Something like achieving 100 max levels in Dungeon Power Fighter?”
“I hit 30 just last night. That would be too easy.”
“Wow, you’re insane.”
Leaving behind the words, “We’ll never forget someone like you,” the recruits left for their bases one by one.
Before long, Kim Minjun was the only one left in the training center’s living quarters.
“What’s taking them so long? Why are they so late?”
He never thought he would be the one waiting for the longest, even though the training center was in Gangwon Province.
“Private Kim Minjun.”
An hour later, a superior officer driving a military vehicle finally appeared.
