Chapter 205: Back to the Dungeon
Several days had passed since Sora’s stream.
The headquarters had settled into a rhythm.
Researchers moved between offices carrying reports. Attendants came and went with case files. The reception area stayed busy, but not chaotic. The Abyss Watchers had become part of the city’s routine, the way a bridge becomes part of a river.
Kai walked through the building.
Nobody rushed over asking for orders.
Nobody stopped him with an emergency.
The Lead Attendant was already reviewing a case with two new recruits. Lily was correcting reports from the second training cohort, red pen moving fast. Elden had an entire wall covered with revised investigation procedures. Mira was speaking with two guild representatives about cooperation documentation, her voice even and unhurried.
Everyone was busy.
Everyone knew what they were doing.
Kai quietly smiled.
For the first time...
The organization didn’t need him every hour of the day.
As he reached the entrance, Raze looked up from a report.
"Heading somewhere?"
Kai nodded.
"Thinking about it."
Raze smirked.
"I’ll tell Lily you’re finally taking a day off."
Kai laughed.
"I didn’t realize I needed permission."
"You don’t."
Raze leaned back in his chair.
"But I’m still happy to see it."
...
Outside the headquarters, Kai found Sera sitting on the stone steps. She had a Hunter Association report open on her lap, though she wasn’t really reading it. The morning sun had found her instead.
She looked up the moment he approached.
"You’ve got that look."
Kai raised an eyebrow.
"What look?"
"The one that says you’re pretending to think about work."
Kai sat beside her.
"I was thinking about work."
"No."
She closed the report.
"You were thinking about dungeons."
Kai stared at her for a second.
"...Was I that obvious?"
She laughed.
"Only to me."
A comfortable silence settled between them. People passed along the street. Merchants opened their shops. Hunters headed toward the city gates, gear rattling, voices loud in the specific way of people who had somewhere to be.
Sera spoke again.
"It’s been what..."
She counted quietly.
"Almost a month?"
Kai thought about it.
"Since we’ve gone into a dungeon together."
She nodded.
"We’ve been busy building something."
Kai looked back toward the headquarters.
"We have."
Another silence. Then Sera smiled, the kind that always arrived a half second before she’d already decided something.
"So..."
She stood.
"Let’s go remind ourselves why we became hunters."
Kai stood as well.
"I was hoping you’d say that."
...
The Hunter Association was quieter than usual. Most hunters had already accepted assignments for the day, and the ones still around moved with the loose, unbothered pace of people who weren’t in a hurry.
The receptionist recognized Kai immediately.
"Commander Kai."
Kai smiled.
"Just Kai is fine."
She laughed, a little awkwardly.
"I’ll... try."
She pulled up the available dungeon list. A projection bloomed above the counter, six entries wide. Rock canyons. Ancient ruins. Frozen caverns. Poison swamps. Kai scanned them without much interest until one entry stopped his eyes.
Verdant Abyss.
Classification: Dense Forest.
Estimated Monster Count: Extremely High.
Average Completion Time: Three days.
Successful Clear Rate: Thirty-eight percent.
Remarks: Large monster population. Complex terrain. Poor visibility.
The receptionist followed his gaze and her expression changed slightly.
"I’d recommend one of the others."
Kai tilted his head.
"Why?"
She pointed at the statistics, one line at a time.
"Most hunters avoid Verdant Abyss."
"The monsters travel in groups."
"Tracking is difficult."
"Visibility is terrible."
Kai kept reading. Then he smiled.
"I’ll take this one."
The receptionist blinked.
"...Really?"
Sera laughed beside him.
"I knew he’d pick that one."
Kai handed over his Hunter ID.
"If everyone avoids it..."
"...it’s probably the best place to train."
The receptionist sighed, though there was a smile buried somewhere in it.
"I was afraid you’d say that."
...
They packed lightly.
Healing supplies. Food. Extra mana potions. Replacement weapon maintenance kits.
Nothing excessive.
No expedition wagons. No research equipment. No communication teams.
Just the two of them.
As they walked toward the city gate, Sera looked around, taking stock of everything that wasn’t there.
"No Soldiers."
Kai nodded.
"No Attendants."
"No Researchers."
"No paperwork."
Kai laughed.
"I think I finally understand what Raze meant."
"What?"
"When he said I needed a day off."
She glanced sideways at him.
"This is your version of a vacation?"
Kai looked toward the forest beyond the walls, the tree line dark green against the morning haze.
"It is."
She shook her head, though she was smiling.
"I don’t think you’re normal."
"I’ve been told that."
He adjusted the strap on his pack.
"More than once."
...
Several guards greeted Kai as they passed through the gate checkpoint. One of them smiled.
"Back to dungeon clearing?"
Kai nodded.
"Been too long."
The guard laughed.
"Mythal’s been quieter lately."
Kai glanced back toward the city, the Abyss Watcher headquarters just visible above the rooftops.
"It’ll stay that way."
The guard followed his gaze, taking in the building for a moment.
"I think it will."
It wasn’t because Kai was staying.
It was because the people inside knew exactly what to do.
Kai smiled.
That was enough.
...
By midday, they reached the Verdant Abyss Gate. A massive emerald portal floated between two ancient trees, its light rippling slowly, like something breathing.
Hunters nearby immediately recognized Kai. None of them approached. They simply watched, the way people watch something they’ve heard about but never expected to see up close.
One of them whispered.
"He’s actually going in."
Another replied.
"Poor monsters."
Sera laughed under her breath.
"They’re getting confident."
Kai smiled.
"They’re not wrong."
The two of them stopped before the Gate. Sera looked at the swirling green light, something almost nostalgic crossing her face.
"It really has been a while."
Kai nodded.
"It has."
She looked at him.
"Ready?"
Kai stepped forward.
"Always."
The familiar pull of space wrapped around them, and the world dissolved into emerald light.
[Entering Dungeon...]
[Dungeon: Verdant Abyss]
[Rank: B]
The light faded.
A humid breeze brushed across Kai’s face. Massive trees stretched toward the sky, their canopy so thick that the sunlight arrived in broken pieces. Somewhere deep in the forest, a monster roared, low and distant, the sound rolling through the trees like it belonged there.
Kai smiled.
"We’re back."