Capitalist Monster Hunter - Chapter 16

16: The First Dungeon Exploration of the Unique F-Rank Hunter (1)

Why dungeons appear and how monsters inside keep regenerating isn’t fully understood yet.

What is known, however, is that if the monsters in a dungeon aren’t dealt with periodically, they’ll eventually spill out into the real world.

The first monster break was believed to have happened for this reason, according to scholars.

Dungeons are broadly divided into three types:

First, there are the “Persistent Dungeons.” Most dungeons fall under this category. These dungeons don’t disappear even if all monsters inside are wiped out. Monsters also keep spawning regularly, making them an ongoing resource.

Persistent dungeons are the primary source of income for hunters. By hunting monsters, hunters collect valuable materials, magical stones, or rare items like monster cores.

The materials harvested from monsters can be processed into weapons, armor, medicines, and more, while magical stones and cores serve as alternative energy sources.

Thus, hunters frequently enter Persistent Dungeons to hunt monsters.

The second type is the “Hidden Dungeon.” As the name suggests, these are concealed and hard to find.

Hidden Dungeons are typically located within Persistent Dungeons, but no one knows when or where they might appear. They can only be found by sheer luck.

Hidden Dungeons house powerful monsters but also contain rare and valuable items, making them highly sought after by hunters.

These dungeons disappear once all the monsters are defeated or certain conditions are met, essentially making them one-time-use dungeons. This also explains their immense value.

Lastly, the third type is the “Raid Dungeon.” These are the most dangerous type of dungeons.

Raid Dungeons appear suddenly, much like Hidden Dungeons, and also vanish once cleared.

However, their scale is on a whole different level. Raid Dungeons are massive, and the monsters inside are overwhelmingly strong.

As a result, hunters rarely venture into them unless they’re part of a large guild or a party of experienced A-rank or S-rank hunters with thorough plans and preparation.

Even so, many hunters lose their lives in Raid Dungeons.

Raid Dungeons are often referred to as the leading cause of hunter fatalities.

Yet, despite their high death toll, the rewards for clearing a Raid Dungeon are beyond imagination. It’s no surprise that guilds and hunters risk their lives to challenge these high-risk, high-reward dungeons.

And now, the dungeon Yu-Seong was heading into was a Persistent Dungeon—an F-rank one called “The Frail Goblin Village.”

Truthfully, very few people bother with F-rank dungeons. Even beginner hunters typically go for E-rank dungeons since F-rank ones are neither lucrative nor challenging.

Perhaps that’s why only one bored administrative officer was stationed near the Frail Goblin Village.

The officer was so uninterested in their duty that they were glued to their phone, barely sparing a glance at the dungeon gate.

Yu-Seong approached the distracted officer.

Sensing his presence, the officer lazily looked up.

“What do you want?”

“I’m here to enter the dungeon.”

“Oh, right… uh, can I see your hunter license?”

Scratching their head as if annoyed, the officer extended their hand. Yu-Seong handed over his license.

“All right, you’re good to go,” the officer mumbled after a quick glance at the license before returning to their phone.

“Wow… this job’s a scam. They get paid for this?” Yu-Seong thought to himself.

He couldn’t help but feel that the Hunter Administration Office was the ultimate cushy job.

Yu-Seong stood before the shimmering dungeon gate, which flickered with irregular waves of light.

“All right, let’s do this.”

And so, Yu-seong’s first dungeon exploration began.

“This is… a dungeon?”

Before him was a vast, barren wasteland. It looked like something straight out of a documentary, resembling Australia’s famous Outback.

“They said Persistent Dungeons aren’t big, but this looks huge.”

The wasteland stretched endlessly into the horizon.

The Frail Goblin Village was infamous even among F-rank dungeons for its vast, empty size.

If this dungeon were E-rank, beginner hunters might have found it worth visiting. But since it was F-rank, it was dismissed as a “useless, oversized, trash dungeon.”

On the other hand, E-rank dungeons like the “Tiny Ant Nest” were compact and straightforward, making them popular among low-level hunters.

Initially, Yu-Seong had considered heading to the Tiny Ant Nest. However, lacking any proper skills or abilities, he decided to start with an F-rank dungeon that even civilians could clear with caution.

“All right, time to gear up.”

Yu-Seong opened his inventory and equipped his combat armor. Thanks to the system, equipping the armor was instantaneous and hassle-free.

[Combat Armor equipped.]

Although he had other gear donated to him, Yu-Seong trusted the advanced tech of combat armor over generic low-tier equipment.

Next, he retrieved his weapon—Weaponator.

“Hey, transform into a weapon. You understand me, right?”

Understanding his command, the Weaponator shifted into a long sword adorned with strange engravings along its blade.

“These are rune letters,” said a familiar voice.

“Hey, when did you get here?” Yu-seong turned to see Titania fluttering nearby.

“I can freely travel between this world and the next, remember? I came as soon as I heard you entered a dungeon.”

“Good. Stick with me and be my guide.”

“Got it!”

With Titania accompanying him, Yu-seong began his exploration.

After walking for some time, Yu-Seong finally located the goblin village.

“There it is.”

“Eve, it’s your turn.”

[Understood.]

Eve activated a drone equipped with scanning capabilities, sending it soaring above the village.

[Detected 142 lifeforms in the area.]

“142? That’s a lot for an F-rank dungeon. I’ll just take out the boss and leave. Eve, send me the goblins’ locations.”

Eve transmitted the data, and a minimap displaying the goblins’ positions appeared in Yu-seong’s field of vision.

“That’s neat. Normally, you’d need to learn a skill for a minimap function like this,” Titania commented, impressed.

Yu-Seong realized that the system’s influence had modified his gear, allowing it to replicate certain skills.

“This works out for me.”

It made his job significantly easier. However, he knew he couldn’t linger—his combat armor consumed a lot of energy, and recharging it in his world was both time-consuming and expensive.

“I can’t afford that kind of electricity bill.”

With that, Yu-Seong quickly moved to engage the nearest goblin.

A scrawny goblin with sharp claws was digging into the dirt in the middle of the wasteland. Yu-Seong had no idea what the creature was trying to accomplish, but it was an easy target.

Approaching silently, Yu-seong swung his sword.

Squish!

“Grahk…!”

The blade sliced cleanly through the goblin’s fragile body, crimson blood dripping down the runic blade.

“Ugh…”

The sensation of cutting through flesh was far from pleasant. Unlike shooting or using an energy blade, this was visceral and unsettling.

“I really respect butchers and slaughterhouse workers…”

Killing even a hostile monster felt uncomfortable. How much harder must it be to take the life of an innocent animal?

As Yu-Seong reflected on this, a notification popped up before him:

[You have learned Basic Swordsmanship.]

“Basic Swordsmanship?”

Yuseong opened the system window. As he did, the section labeled “Skills” began blinking. When he touched it, a new window popped up.

[Samsae Sword Technique: Lv 1 / 0.01%]
Description: It’s unclear who created this sword technique, but it’s considered third-rate.

[Samsae Internal Energy Technique: Lv 1 / 0%]
Description: It’s unclear who created this internal energy technique, but it’s treated as third-rate.

[Basic Swordsmanship: Lv 1 / 0.01%]
Description: Better than nothing, but a crude technique without finesse or skill. Even a monk swinging a stick might do better.

“Samsae Sword Technique and Samsae Internal Energy Technique… aren’t those the books I read before?”

The skills window displayed the techniques he had read about in the hospital. Below them was a newly acquired skill, “Basic Swordsmanship.”

Each skill was listed with a level and proficiency percentage, just like a game.

“They weren’t kidding when they said this was a system—it’s like a straight-up RPG.”

While Yuseong was checking out his skills, a notification for a sponsorship message popped up.

[The War Junkie has sponsored you with 1,000 points.]

[Message from War Junkie: Yo, hunter, are you dumb? Did you trade your gun for some candy? Why the hell are you running around with a sword?]

The War Junkie had thrown some shade while tossing over 1,000 points. Reading the message, Yuseong was a bit taken aback.

“What? I got the Weapon Eater, the top-tier weapon, and you expect me not to use it?”