38

Chapter 38: Return to the Surface

Subin climbed steadily through the crystal tunnel, leaving the deepest part of the Stone Guardian Ruins behind.

The pressure gradually decreased with every step. The overwhelming mana that had surrounded him near the reservoir became manageable, and his breathing returned to normal.

He had spent several hours underground.

Yet it felt like much longer.

His body was tired, but his mind was filled with new understanding.

Natural Flow.

Precision.

Mana compression.

The relationship between stability and movement.

And, most importantly, the strange reaction of Simple Edge.

He pulled the sword from his waist while walking.

The blade looked exactly as it had before.

Simple.

Plain.

Almost ordinary.

But the system now displayed something different.

[Simple Edge]

[Grade: Unknown]

[Attack Power: Unknown]

[Special Effects: Unknown]

[Potential: Awakening]

[Synchronization: 99.9%]

Subin stared at the final number.

"One tenth of a percent."

He had never encountered anything like it.

Every other weapon had provided clear information.

Attack power.

Durability.

Special effects.

Compatibility.

Simple Edge provided almost nothing.

And yet it had the highest compatibility of any sword he had ever touched.

Subin returned it to its sheath.

"I'll figure you out eventually."

He continued upward.

After another twenty minutes, the crystal tunnel connected to the natural mana valley.

The difference was immediately obvious.

The environmental mana had fallen from more than ninety percent to around sixty percent.

Subin's body relaxed.

He crossed the valley without stopping.

The Crystal Horn Beast was gone.

Only fragments of crystal and a few marks remained where they had fought.

Subin glanced toward the massive crystal mountain.

It was still absorbing and compressing mana.

The repaired stabilization pillar beneath the reservoir was continuing to function.

The dungeon was healthier than when he had found it.

Subin felt a small sense of satisfaction.

He wasn't sure why.

Perhaps because he had finally begun seeing dungeons as more than places to kill monsters.

They were living systems.

Complex environments that developed naturally.

If he understood them properly, he could use them without destroying them.

That would be useful in the future.

He continued upward.

Several hours later, Subin reached the upper section of the dungeon.

The environment became familiar again.

Stone walls.

Ancient ruins.

Mana crystals embedded in the floor.

He passed the Imperial Palace and the armory.

Nothing had changed.

The defeated Imperial Sword Master Projection had not returned.

The Imperial Sword Formation remained inactive.

Subin walked through the armory one final time.

Thousands of weapons remained in their places.

He stopped before the seven special swords.

The Imperial Dawn Sword.

Heaven Splitter.

Frost Emperor's Blade.

Night Crescent.

Mountain King's Greatsword.

Phantom Edge.

And the empty pedestal where Simple Edge had rested.

Subin smiled faintly.

"I chose correctly."

He had no desire to replace his sword simply because another weapon had better listed statistics.

A weapon wasn't valuable only because of numbers.

Compatibility mattered.

Understanding mattered.

The swordsman mattered most.

Subin continued toward the exit.

As he approached the upper floors, monsters began appearing again.

A group of Stone Soldiers emerged from a ruined corridor.

[Stone Soldier — Level 20]

There were six of them.

Subin didn't even stop walking.

One sword movement.

The first soldier's arm was cut.

A second movement.

The next two collapsed.

The remaining three attacked together.

Subin shifted his feet.

Natural Flow carried his body between them.

His sword moved continuously.

Silver Flow.

Three clean cuts.

The soldiers shattered.

Subin continued walking.

He didn't feel excitement from defeating them anymore.

That realization made him pause.

A month ago, killing a Level 5 monster had been an extraordinary event.

Now Level 20 monsters were barely obstacles.

His growth had been rapid.

Perhaps too rapid.

Subin understood that if he continued improving at this pace, ordinary dungeon monsters would soon stop providing meaningful training.

He needed stronger opponents.

Not merely stronger enemies.

Better swordsmen.

That thought stayed with him as he climbed.

Eventually, he reached the fifth floor.

Then the fourth.

Then the third.

By the time he reached the second floor, the dungeon felt almost ordinary.

At the first floor, he encountered a group of newly spawned Stone Guardians.

Their levels were between 15 and 17.

Subin walked past them.

None attacked.

The creatures seemed to sense the difference in strength.

Subin didn't pursue them.

He had no reason to kill monsters that weren't obstructing him.

Finally, the dungeon entrance appeared.

Sunlight entered through the massive opening.

Subin stepped outside.

For the first time in days, he felt the warmth of the real world.

He stood there for several seconds.

Then he smiled.

"Fresh air."

It was strangely refreshing.

He looked back at the dungeon.

The Stone Guardian Ruins had seemed enormous when he first entered.

Now he knew that even the sections he had explored were only part of its total structure.

There were still many unexplored areas.

But he wasn't going back immediately.

He needed to return to civilization.

He needed food.

Information.

And perhaps most importantly, he needed to sell the materials he had collected.

Subin opened his storage.

The list was enormous.

Mana stones.

Monster cores.

Crystal materials.

Rare weapons.

Epic weapons.

The Legendary mana crystal.

Blackwater Serpent Core had already been consumed during the weapon refinement.

But even without it, his collection was enough to make the Association's trading department extremely interested.

He checked his communication device.

There were dozens of notifications.

Missed calls.

Messages.

Association alerts.

Family messages.

Subin immediately opened the family messages.

His mother's message was the first.

Mom: Where are you? You said you were entering the dungeon, but it's been several days. Call me when you see this.

Then another.

Mom: Your father says you are probably fine, but I am still worried.

Subin sighed.

"I should have called."

He immediately contacted his mother.

The call connected after several rings.

"Subin?"

Her voice was tense.

"I'm fine, Mom."

There was a long pause.

Then came the expected response.

"You call that fine? You disappeared into a C-rank dungeon for days!"

Subin rubbed his forehead.

"I was exploring the deeper areas. I lost track of time."

His mother continued scolding him for several minutes.

Subin listened quietly.

Eventually, her voice softened.

"Just come home safely."

"I will."

After ending the call, Subin contacted the Association.

Kang Min-jae answered.

"Subin?"

"Yes."

"Where are you?"

"Outside the Stone Guardian Ruins."

There was silence.

Then Min-jae's voice became noticeably sharper.

"You're outside?"

"Yes."

"You cleared the dungeon?"

"Most of it."

"Most?"

Subin thought about the underground valley, the mana reservoir, the crystal mountain and the unexplored lower regions.

"I explored deeper areas that weren't included in the Association's map."

Min-jae was silent again.

Then he asked carefully, "Did you encounter anything dangerous?"

"Several B-rank monsters."

"Several?"

Subin realized that he was probably making the conversation worse.

"Nothing I couldn't handle."

Min-jae sighed.

"You're becoming increasingly difficult to evaluate."

Subin smiled.

"Can I sell some materials?"

That immediately changed the conversation.

"What materials?"

"Monster cores, mana crystals, crystal armor, horns, and some dungeon equipment."

"How much?"

Subin opened his storage.

He hadn't counted everything.

"A lot."

Min-jae laughed.

"Fine. Bring everything to the Association. We'll arrange a proper appraisal."

Subin agreed.

Before ending the call, Min-jae added, "And Subin."

"Yes?"

"You've been inside that dungeon for several days. Don't enter another one immediately."

Subin looked toward the horizon.

"I'll consider it."

"That's not what I asked."

Subin laughed.

"I'll rest."

"Good."

The call ended.

Subin started walking toward the nearest transportation point.

His clothes were dirty.

His hair was disheveled.

His equipment showed signs of battle.

But his expression was relaxed.

As he walked, he opened his status.

[Name: Subin Vans]

[Class: Sword God]

[Level: 34]

[Strength: 61]

[Agility: 60]

[Vitality: 55]

[Intelligence: 30]

[Mana: 26]

[Unassigned Attribute Points: 20]

He had gained two levels since entering the deepest region.

The twenty unassigned points came from his recent level increases.

Subin considered his distribution.

His physical attributes were already considerably higher than those of ordinary C-rank Awakeners.

His Mana attribute was still relatively low.

But he didn't want to pour all his points into mana.

His path was swordsmanship.

Mana existed to support his sword.

After thinking for a moment, he allocated:

Strength +5

Agility +5

Vitality +4

Intelligence +3

Mana +3

His status changed.

Strength: 66

Agility: 65

Vitality: 59

Intelligence: 33

Mana: 29

He closed the window.

His body immediately felt slightly stronger.

Not dramatically.

But enough to notice.

Then another notification appeared.

[Sword God Foundation: 35%]

[Personal Sword Path: 24%]

[Sword Intent Comprehension: 24%]

Subin smiled.

Those numbers mattered more to him than his level.

He had begun to understand the difference between becoming stronger and becoming a better swordsman.

Leveling gave him power.

Sword comprehension gave him direction.

And the second was becoming increasingly important.

By evening, Subin finally reached the city.

The streets were crowded.

Awakeners moved everywhere.

Some wore armor.

Some carried bows.

Others carried staffs, spears, shields or strange weapons.

Mana had changed society dramatically.

People who had once lived ordinary lives now possessed abilities capable of killing monsters.

Businesses had changed.

Transportation had changed.

Security had changed.

Even ordinary people were learning how to identify monsters and avoid dangerous areas.

Subin walked through the city unnoticed.

His C-rank badge attracted some attention, but not enough to cause a disturbance.

He reached the Awakener Association building.

The moment he entered, several people recognized him.

"Isn't that Subin Vans?"

"The Sword God?"

"He solo-cleared Stone Guardian Ruins, didn't he?"

"I heard he defeated a Level 35 projection."

"He's only Level 34?"

The whispers spread.

Subin ignored them.

He walked toward the trading department.

Kang Min-jae was already waiting.

He looked at Subin's equipment.

Then at the storage containers.

Then back at Subin.

"You really did bring a lot."

Subin nodded.

"I'll let the appraisers handle it."

Min-jae smiled.

"Good. Because I'm beginning to think your definition of 'a lot' is different from everyone else's."

Subin placed the first container on the counter.

Then the second.

Then the third.

The appraisers opened them.

Their expressions slowly changed.

Rare crystal.

Rare+ armor.

Epic monster cores.

Dense mana crystals.

And materials they had never seen before.

The trading hall gradually became quieter.

One researcher carefully lifted a crystal fragment.

"Where did you get this?"

"Deep inside the dungeon."

"How deep?"

Subin thought about the natural mana valley.

"Deeper than the official map."

The researcher looked at him.

"How deep?"

Subin smiled.

"Very."

Min-jae sighed.

The appraisal process had only just begun.

And Subin had a feeling that his peaceful return to civilization was about to become considerably less peaceful.