After being directly hit by the Spirit Nuke, the Qingzhou Wanshe Research Institute in Shanxi Province turned into a gigantic forest, and for a while, people completely stopped visiting the place.
Legendary first-generation Hunter Yeonseo was not only smashing the physical assets of the San Guild and illegal research institutes not registered with the International Hunter Association, but now she was also politically attacking them as a government spokesperson. In the eyes of the Chinese government, they had no time to worry about a research institute that had been hit by a Spirit Nuke.
“Ugh, what a mess.”
Ultimately, the Chinese government was only able to dispatch public security Hunters after considerable time had passed since the Spirit Nuke explosion.
In fact, this ‘dispatch’ was not a proper one. While the public security Hunters were ordered to assess the damage by the Party, they were not provided any external support due to international pressure. As a result, the Hunters ended up using their private funds to gear up and explore this green hell.
“What can we do? Korea, the Elves, and even American opportunists are putting pressure on our country…”
“Well, the Western imperialist forces are one thing, but why would our Party care about what Korea thinks?”
“Not Korea, but Yeonseo the Hunter.”
“Didn’t that old hag retire? Would it make sense to be afraid of just one retired veteran?”
“Have you heard about the Daren Incident?”
Daren was located to the left in a straight line from Pyongyang.
It was on the eastern edge of Chinese territory.
“Yes, I heard it was a pretty famous incident when a part of the land just disappeared due to an earthquake…”
“That was caused by Yeonseo the Hunter.”
“What…?”
“All military areas, except for civilian zones, and the Party-owned sacrifice research institute were completely erased from Daren due to Yeonseo alone.”
“………….”
“How did that happen…”
“No way that’s true?! No matter how legendary a Hunter she is…”
“I don’t know the details, but I hear the Party apologized to Yeonseo and closed the case. Most of the records of what happened back then are treated as confidential.”
“Ugh, what a disgrace…”
“It’s clear what’s happening here. The Party doesn’t want to acknowledge that they lost to the Elves without a declaration of war, so they’re feeling the pressure. Thanks to that, we funded our protective suits out of our own pockets, didn’t we? I bet the Party messed up back then…”
“Hey comrade, that comment was quite blasphemous. Do you think the whores of that forest are blameless?”
“…I apologize. What I said might have sounded downright unpatriotic.”
“Enough. Just focus on the exploration. We’ve got a mountain of work ahead.”
And so, the public security Hunters stopped their chit-chat and continued their probing through this green hell, now visible from space.
Industrial complexes and research zones were entirely covered by the sprawling forest, but at least one good piece of news was that there had been no discovered hostile entities like monsters or goblins, at least on the surface.
But one couldn’t let their guard down. This area devastated by the Spirit Nuke was completely off-limits to civilians. It was now a realm filled with plants and trees that did not exist on Earth, along with insect species that were impossible to categorize.
Moreover, the Qingzhou Wanshe Research Institute was fundamentally a location that accepted research requests from the Chinese government, the Great Guild, and even international Great Guilds—not to mention contracts from nefarious individuals wanted internationally.
That meant all kinds of hazardous materials were buried underground, and it was plausible they could absorb something strange and mutate. Thus, even public security Hunters with an average rank of B or higher had to proceed cautiously in full protective gear through this green hell.
“Exploration commenced at 11 hours and 21 minutes, 1-41 research sector, confirmed.”
As the public security Hunter finished the report, high-ranking officials dressed in Party uniforms appeared on the holographic screen of the gear.
They were the ones who dispatched the public security Hunters to the lab hit by the Spirit Nuke and those managing the aftermath of this situation.
During the party meeting, they advocated for one-on-one negotiations with the Elves regarding the Daesanrim. When the Elves strongly rejected China’s demands, they insisted on a show of military force. These high-ranking officials were the very same.
Of course, the outcome was such that they couldn’t even properly fight the Elves, and they ended up embarrassing China while the San Guild sent for assistance, suffering hefty losses, and everything from the Qingzhou Wanshe Research Institute to the industrial complex established for the lab got wrecked.
The cleanup crew, formed out of a sense of patriotism and loyalty to the Party, likely had a high chance of facing a purge once this recovery effort was completed, so their faces bore the weight of deep concern.
[Was the 1-41 area where the Clitus Dragon’s head was stored? Is recovery possible?]
“It’s presumed to be impossible.”
With that remark, the camera attached to the public security Hunters revealed the area where the research lab used to stand, now overrun with trees and vines.
The head of the Clitus Dragon, which should have been carefully preserved behind reinforced glass, had turned into mulch made up of roots, flowers, and moss.
It seemed that the life force originally absorbed in the first wave of the Spirit Nuke also included the Clitus Dragon’s head.
“The Clitus Dragon’s head, the seed that consumed the sun, the skeleton army, and even the weapon technology that was in progress has all been treated as living beings and seems to have lost their life force.”
[………Sigh]
[What do we do?]
[What to do? We have to keep exploring.]
[But if we don’t find anything, our position will get even worse. Especially, they said we must find the research documents from the San Guild…]
[I know! But didn’t you say recovery is impossible?]
[Listen Hunter, continuing with this attitude will not end well. The Party wants results. If this keeps happening, they will be very disappointed in you comrades…]
Damn it.
Every single monster material is buried under roots and turned into mulch, while some areas are outright inaccessible due to the overgrown density. Results? Ha!
Sigh The high-ranking members of the Party initiate all of this while it’s the lower-ranked members who have to bleed for it. No matter how loyal the public security Hunters felt, it was unavoidable to feel disillusioned with the higher-ups.
The public security Hunter put the speaker at a safe distance and, just as the tedious desk conversation seemed to be coming to a close, appropriately fastened the camera back onto his uniform.
“Alright, the personnel for the 2nd and 3rd research sectors and industrial areas will be here soon; we’ll head down to the underground sectors. It’s likely to be less damaged compared to above ground.”
[Hmm, got it.]
[Underground… we have no choice but to pin our hopes there.]
[You must find something! No, at least bring back confirmation that some of the assets can be recovered before you come back!]
“…I will do my best. And the survivors…”
[Survivors are not important! Just continue the asset recovery exploration!]
“Understood…”
Damn these people.
The public security Hunters grumbled but had no other option. To disobey the Party’s orders would mean death or exile.
A short while later, about a dozen public security Hunters gathered their skills and began to penetrate the thick forest while heading underground.
Yet, even after burning the trees with fire or freezing the vines with ice, and cutting through everything with blades of wind, the path downward remained dense with foliage.
“Damn it! What is this struggle…”
“I’ve run out of mana. Can someone take over for a bit?”
“Alright, comrade.”
“Let’s keep pushing just a little longer. We’re almost there.”
“…Everything is full of trees here; how could going underground make a difference?”
“Plants grow slower with less sunlight, right? It’s obvious that underground has less sunlight, so there should be fewer plants.”
“…I suppose you’re right?”
But bad thoughts tend to come true.
The situation underground was far worse, including lukewarm marshlands and humidity, leading to even more rampant greenery compared to above ground.
“It seems like the trees down here are bigger than up top.”
“Isn’t a lack of sunlight supposed to mean less growth? Why are the things down here larger than above?”
The terrifying aspect of the Spirit Nuke was not only that it was a passing phenomenon.
It continued to sustain itself, devouring the original terrain and native organisms, crafting its own expansive forest.
Naturally, this vast forest itself was a living entity, and even at this moment, it wasn’t ceasing to grow.
“Hey comrade, let’s check the list provided by the Party. Is there anything notable underground?”
“Notable… let’s see. Honestly, everything seems notable, which is kind of scary. [Queen Karakura’s corpse], [Swamp Scorpion eggs], [Lich]…”
“What?! A Lich?!”
“Why is a Lich here?!”
“Don’t worry. It’s a Lich contracted with the Party. They share knowledge on how to control the undead and, in return, they somehow receive live humans from the Party for experiments. It’s presumed it died from the Spirit Nuke while it was performing biological experiments underground.”
That made some of the public security Hunters grimace.
They had heard that this was a state secret zone, but it was far darker and more dangerous than they had imagined.
That secret was likely buried under the roots, flowers, and vines, where it couldn’t even see the light.
“We’ve arrived.”
“…Ugh, just as I thought, here too…”
Instead of being welcomed by an underground research complex built with immense capital, the Hunters despaired at the sight of an area packed with even more dense and steep foliage than above ground.
Whether there was still some power left, certain light bulbs half-buried in roots still gleamed, and bizarre glowbug-like entities floated through the air illuminating the darkness, creating a stunning scene.
The problem was that the beauty was only superficial. The exploration faced delays, with no progress being made as their morale lowered.
Times they also found the bodies of those who looked like researchers or guards turned into compost in this green hell.
“Those higher-ups might keep harassing us like this, but how in the hell are we going to escape this green hell where we can’t even see an inch ahead…?”
“Wait.”
“What is it?”
At that moment, a Hunter with a gauge suddenly announced and the group halted.
“What’s wrong? Is there something wrong with the gauge…?”
“This isn’t Earth.”
“What?”
“This is a Dungeon. A gate has opened here.”
“….!”
At those words, all the public security Hunters tensed up immediately.
Some drew their weapons, while others gulped down mana potions they had brought along for emergencies, preparing themselves for immediate combat.
“Whether the research lab was working on gates or dungeons from the beginning, or if a dungeon happened to form here after the Elves’ Spirit Nuke went off, we don’t know.”
“Perhaps that Spirit Nuke has the ability to induce a gate.”
“Damn forest whores…!”
“Anything could happen from here on out. Maintain formation and advance.”
Thus, the public security Hunters, trained as a solid unit, began to navigate through the dense forest, maintaining a tight formation.
As the gauge indicated, upon passing through certain sections, the woods that had once filled every inch around them gradually began to fade away.
Of course, they were still deep inside the sprawling forest.
However, the strange unidentified lights around increased in number, and the chaotic, denser thickets began to transform into a more spacious tourist-like forest.
After about 10 minutes of advancing, it became so that they wouldn’t even need to cut down trees to make their way through the forest.
“Oh, I know this dungeon.”
“You know it?”
“It’s the fairy cave that appeared near Qingdao four years ago. I can tell for sure by the lights.”
“A Fairy Cave? Is that the one I’m thinking of?”
“Definitely. It’s an F-grade dungeon that’s widespread across the globe. As the name suggests, tiny fairies about the size of a human palm show up in there, and there are various types of fairies.”
“These fairies can’t communicate and have no intelligence, simply flying about like fluff. And then there are harmless fairies that can communicate simply with humans but possess no combat abilities.”
“The scariest would be the ‘Tooth Fairy’, known for having sharp teeth, but even they get fatally injured by a civilian’s punch.”
“Look over there, something that looks like a fairy.”
“Hmm, it does.”
In the direction the Hunter pointed, a tiny fairy with delicate wings of light was visible.
Her eyes sparkled like black gemstones, and her body resembled a miniature version of a human female, albeit without any clothing, which created a somewhat alluring atmosphere.
“Hmm, I didn’t know such a fairy existed.”
“I’ve never seen that kind of fairy before… It must belong to the butterfly fairy category since it has wings like a butterfly.”
“Or is it a moth?”
“Well, they’re quite similar.”
Whether butterfly fairy or moth fairy, both were completely harmless to humans.
The fairy observed the public security Hunters curiously before quickly disappearing amid the trees.
Some reacted with mild regret at the beautiful fairy vanishing.
It was a truly enchanting sight to see one freely gliding through the air without fluttering its wings, and the fairy itself had a beauty that felt somewhat healing.
“Alright, if it’s a dungeon where fairies live, it should have a low danger level. Let’s continue the exploration.”
“Yes, yes, understood.”
As the leader of the public security Hunters spoke, the ranks were rearranged once again.
With the danger level confirmed to be low, they decided to lower their guard and focus on the exploration.
While it had been confirmed that the underground area of the lab had turned into a dungeon, the internal facilities were in peculiar harmony with the fairy forest.
However, they gradually began to realize something strange.
Most notably, the same spaces seemed to repeat endlessly.
There were indeed glimpses of lab equipment, bulbs, pristine lab wallpaper, and machine-like hallways visible, but the space felt bizarrely expanded manyfold.
While saying it was a mixture of the lab and the forest felt very odd, it was as though all the structures and spaces of the underground lab merged with the forest, multiplying the area by dozens.
“It feels like we’re only seeing the same scenery we’ve seen before…”
“Totally…”
Even as they felt they were going deeper, the scenery remained unchanged.
Regular intervals saw trees and roots, along with unidentified flora chewing through the lab.
The remains of either the humans or life forms that used to exist were found partly buried beneath the ground, feeding off them with roots growing into their bodies.
“How deep is the underground area of the Qingzhou Wanshe Research Institute?”
“I’m not sure of the exact depth… but they say it’s about ten floors below ground.”
“………”
At that statement, the expression on the public security Hunter leader’s face hardened instantly.
“We’re going back, right now…!”
“Yes? But the Party said not to return until we recover assets…”
“Look at the depth we’ve come down…!”
“Yes?”
At the leader’s command, the public security Hunters manipulated their protective gear’s holograms to check their current depth.
[Oxygen levels – Adequate]
[Pressure – Adequate]
[Mana levels – High (Civilians cannot survive)]
[Toxicity – Mild]
[Depth – 1.8 km below sea level]
“….!”
The moment they saw 1.8 km listed, a chill raced down the spines of the public security Hunters.
They hadn’t realized they had come down this far, and at this depth, the ground or mantle should’ve already been exposed.
Even 1.8 km underground, the repetitive lab and green hell existed solely as anomalous factors and peculiar gimmicks.
Moreover, the public security Hunters were on average B-rated.
Despite a mental barrier that surpassed average, they hadn’t even realized how deep they had descended, and the most frightening part was that even at such depths, this place appeared remarkably well-suited for life.
It was undoubtedly an unusual situation.
“Immediately go back….!”
[Don’t!]
“W-Who?!”
The leader summoned mana and drew his sword.
He felt deceived.
They must have been misled into a complacent state after hearing it was a dungeon filled with fairies.
The area, thought to be dark, began filling with light.
The source of that light was the fairies.
Harmless, yet emanating a strangely alluring aura, numerous nude fairies began to emerge as if they had always been there, appearing from the floor, ceiling, and the air around.
“All combat formations now! We’re going to get consumed by this dungeon!”
“……”
“What are you doing? Answer me…?!”
Looking behind, the leader let the sword he held fall, without even realizing it.
No one could reply to the leader’s words.
And rightly so…
[Ssshh…]
[Ssshh…]
[Grr…]
[Ugh, grrr…]
All the public security Hunters were no longer in a state of being alive.
Some had roots and flowers growing from within the protective barrier.
Some had roots popping out of their eyes and nostrils, half-demolishing their faces.
Some had flesh entirely turned into nutrients and were being sucked dry by unidentified plants.
And among those, there was exactly one that still looked intact.
He was entranced by the numerous fairies beyond the protective barrier.
All the fairies were smiling with enchanting and whimsical grins, and one fairy approached the Hunter.
[Come here.]
“Urr…”
Under the fairy’s allure, the Hunter unknowingly opened the protective barrier.
[Smooch.]
The fairy leaned over the open barrier and gifted a kiss to the human.
It would be the final kiss of his life.
“Gah…!?”
With roots and seeds filling his throat, his vocal cords rapidly deteriorated, and the Hunter could not even scream.
The plants that grew by feeding off his body rapidly consumed him, enveloping him.
His eyes, shriveling from lack of nutrients, dropped out from their places, replaced by radiant blooms sprouting in their stead.
The most horrifying aspect was that during all this, the Hunter did not collapse.
In fact, it looked as if he continued walking around as if saying, “What are you stopping for? We should continue exploring.”
“Th-this is…”
The leader could not even think to pick up his sword at the gruesome sight.
Just moments earlier, he thought he was having a normal conversation with his fellow public security Hunters, but now, what in the world was happening?!
[I am….]
“…..!!”
And then the leader felt the delicate touch of a slender arm wrapping around his neck.
It felt gentle yet soft, even through the protective gear.
It was no fairy.
It was something human-sized.
And then, enormous wings spread open.
Not a butterfly, but the wings of a stunning white moth.
“Ugh…!”
In that instant, the leader could no longer see ahead.
His face was covered by the flowers that had grown over his eyes.
Writhing tendrils sprouted from his nails, and roots climbed his spine, anchoring him to the ground so he could not fall.
[I want…. one….]
The last voice he heard was a clear yet piercingly sad female voice that penetrated his brain.
