BCGWR Chapter 10 Part 1

009. Something Irreplaceable 3

He smiled not only at the news camera currently being watched, but also at other channel cameras; it was clear he was doing so knowing Han Ji-su would be watching the news from the hotel.

…

Seeing his relaxed demeanor, as if saying “don’t worry about anything, I’ll be back safely,” Ji-su felt a tremor in his chest and firmly pressed his lips together.

The live broadcast continued, and the raid team gathered around Kang Jae-yoon. Having seemingly finished their briefing, they exchanged a few words, then assembled in front of the Dungeon Gate for a group photo.

Just three years ago, many were reluctant to take photos right before entering a gate, feeling it was like taking a memorial photo, but these days, the atmosphere was one of enjoyment, with people thinking it might be good to capture a potential final moment.

Even just looking at the news screen now, the Awakened, unfazed by the popping flashes, each struck their preferred pose.

The Awakened from the Awakened Association, like civil servants, stood formally, a faint smile on their lips, while Esper Lee Min-jae from Flame Guild was playfully smiling, making the finger gesture often used by his fan club. Beside him, Healer Lee Soo-bin from Peace Guild made a finger heart and waved vigorously, signaling she’d be back soon.

Kang Jae-yoon, without any special actions, simply offered a calm smile. After a brief photo session, the raid team turned towards the dungeon entrance. Espers, Healers, and Guides from Peace Guild, including Kang Jae-yoon, entered first.

Following them, Esper Yeon Seo-jun from the Awakened Association led the sequential entry, and finally, the Flame Guild members entered.

After all raid members had entered, the gate began to shimmer. Ji-su clasped his hands tightly and watched the scene.

‘Please, let nothing happen… Please, let nothing happen… Please… please…’

As Ji-su repeatedly murmured these thoughts in a short span of time, the gate’s shimmering noticeably lessened, and it began to stabilize.

The light gently swirling around the gate was still lime green. Less than a minute later, the field reporter announced that the rank had been confirmed.

-The final measurement results have been confirmed. The final rank of the dungeon that appeared in Taejongdae, Busan, has been confirmed as D-rank.

“Haaah…”

“Chee…”

Ji-su and Toto simultaneously let out deep sighs of relief. Fortunately, there were no unexpected incidents as they had feared.

“Alright, customer~ We’ve arrived. You can get off here~”

“Yes, thank you. Drive safely.”

The voice that came from Han Ji-su’s mouth was a slender woman’s voice.

Thanks to the transformation item that changed his appearance and voice, to ordinary people, Ji-su currently looked like a woman in her mid-twenties, and Toto, peeking his head out from Ji-su’s shirt pocket, would appear to be a long-tailed tit.

While items that changed appearance were numerous, those that also changed the voice were exceedingly rare, making it not an easy item for Ji-su to obtain. Naturally, this item too was a gift from Jae-yoon, who, on his day off, gave it to Ji-su, who was cooped up at home, urging him to ‘please go out once in a while.’

‘…It was so expensive I didn’t want to accept it, but it certainly is convenient to use.’

The place they arrived at after a leisurely taxi ride was a location formerly known as Can Market.

Five years ago, during the Cataclysm, a sinkhole that appeared in the center of the market exploded, turning it into a wasteland. A year later, it was restored as an item market and once again regained its vitality.

Yesterday, as soon as they arrived in Busan, Ji-su had dragged Jae-yoon, who insisted he was fine, on a storm of shopping here. The reason for revisiting today was singular: he had been too focused on Jae-yoon yesterday and hadn’t paid enough attention to Toto.

Ji-su moved towards the section of shops that dealt with taming monster supplies, which he had simply passed by yesterday (making Toto whine ‘Cheee…’ pitifully), and said,

“Toto, Daddy will buy you lots of your favorite treats today.”

“Peep-!”

Turning into an alley from the center of the market, the taming monster supply section came into view.

Items like harnesses made by Espers with blacksmithing skills were mostly visible, and there were also many dungeon-sourced treats and fashion items imported from Japan.

After walking and browsing for a while, they saw a shop selling low-rank monsters. Perhaps it wasn’t a common sight even here, as the shop was swarming with people curious to see the monsters, and seeing this, Ji-su slightly frowned.

A small monster was huddled in what was clearly a cramped glass display. Despite a sign posted that read ‘Do Not Tap’, children kept tapping on the glass, fascinated, and the monster had its back turned, as if to say it had no interest in people.

Thinking it wasn’t a particularly pleasant sight, Ji-su turned around and deliberately headed towards a shop further away.

The place they arrived at after searching for a suitable shop was a specialty snack shop selling various nuts and dried leaves, and the selection was quite diverse.

[Bujeon-dong A-rank Dungeon-sourced Fruit (Macadamia type) 80,000 per 50g]

[Bujeon-dong A-rank Dungeon-sourced Fruit (Raspberry type) 99,000 per 50g]

Right in front of the display shelf, were two of Toto’s favorite staple snacks.

As Ji-su picked up one pre-packaged 50g macadamia and two 50g berry fruits, the shop owner prepared to ring them up, also grabbing a small sample of nuts for service.

“Toto, should we buy this too?”

When Ji-su held up another type of nut, Toto gave a small nod and chirped, “Peep-!”

The shop owner, already aware that Ji-su was an Awakened and thus had an Inventory, smiled kindly and asked for confirmation,

“You won’t be needing a bag, right?”

“Yes. I’ll buy this one too.”

Just as the shop owner, having looked over all the items Ji-su selected, was about to state the total amount, Toto suddenly stiffened his body and cried out, “PEEP-!!!”

“Toto? Why ar—Ugh!”

Ji-su couldn’t even finish his brief question before staggering from a sudden dizziness.

He nearly fell, but managing to regain his balance, Ji-su realized he wasn’t the only one who felt dizzy. The shop owner in front of him was also gripping the counter, bending at the waist with a startled expression.

…

…

“Now…”