Door [2]

"Y'know, I always need to spend extra long healing you, even though I just turned into an A-Rank Hunter. If you weren't… you, this would be annoying," Julie Heyun huffed, pursing her lips. "But you're you, so you're the exception."

Jin-Woo let out a low hum.

"I don't know if that should make me as conflicted as it does," The E-Rank noted, and now it was his turn to purse his lips.

"You basically have a personal A-Rank Healer, I don't get why you'd feel anything except happiness!" Julie let out a small sigh, relaxing her shoulders before locking eyes with her friend. "Jin-Woo, why do you work as a Hunter? Wouldn't a normal desk job or working as a miner be better?"

Julie's hand glowed with a calming light; the main sign of her healing skill being activated. She softly held her hands on her E-Rank friend's various wounds, carefully watching as the injuries repaired themselves under her mana.

"Having a desk job or being a miner, huh?" Jin-Woo repeated her words, debating exactly what he wanted to say to the A-Rank.

Jin-Woo couldn't deny her words, they both made sense, since she didn't know his exact situation. For someone who was paying a steep rent, hospital bill, and had to take care of his younger sister, a desk job just wouldn't work. Jin-Woo wasn't a very skilled young man, so learning and somehow excelling at such a job seemed impossible from his perspective.

Hunting created a somewhat consistent stream of revenue, even if he was constantly putting his life on the line for it.

Being a miner though, could've worked. It would bring in a higher flow of income and he could slowly rise in the ranks if he did well enough. He was a physical Awakened atop of that, so his strength would assist him. All-in-all, being a miner was a smarter idea for the young man.

Unfortunately, he'd botched the first chance he had to be a miner with the Hunters Guild by missing the appointed day.

"Well, I'm just… a fan of fighting monsters. Hunters must hunt and all that jazz," Jin-Woo laughed nervously, beads of sweat rushing down his face. He decided to keep that information to himself, silently thinking that telling Julie about it may make her feel bad.

"Hunters must hunt, huh? Well at the rate you get hurt at, it seems like you're the one who'll be hunted!" Julie huffed, finishing up her healing and slowly rising from her spot. She extended a hand to Jin-Woo despite her comments. He took her help and rose at her side.

Jin-Woo glanced around the dungeon's room, looking at his stronger allies who were easily disposing of the remaining monsters.

The area wasn't too bizarre for a basic dungeon, darkened due to the cavernous location, riddled with pillars, and odd sigils all about. The dungeon's enemies weren't atypical either, form-fitting goblins for a D-Rank dungeon.

"Do you remember exactly how we first met?" Julie questioned, looking over to the shorter man.

"That's… an odd question to ask out of nowhere," Jin-Woo raised his eyebrows, the events of their odd introduction to one another playing within his head. "What's with the sudden question?"

"I'm just… curious. The raid's almost over so I wanted to ask about it," Julie smiled, looking off to her side. "I just wanted to see if you'd remember since it was a few years ago, after all. It was the whole reason I gave you that dagger."

Jin-Woo hummed softly. He debated whether telling Julie the truth or not.

The E-Rank remembered the day clearly, but it was also not a day he remembered too fondly. If they hadn't met in such a way, he could've been on a different path―a better path.

And yet, telling a bare-faced lie didn't seem like the right option either. With a small click of his tongue, the man decided on the best of both worlds.

"How about this? I'll tell you if I remember or not when I become an S-Rank Hunter," Jin-Woo giggled, smiling mischievously.

"Huh?! Why would you make such a big deal out of it?! This isn't the school playground, y'know!" Julie groaned, slumping over. "And just when I thought I'd get some sort of answer out of you. You always manage to avoid my questions one way or another."

Jin-Woo grinned, slashing his dagger through the air, "Don't worry, don't worry. I'll be an S-Rank in absolutely no time."

"Hey, watch how quickly you're moving around! You'll reopen your wounds if you move too fast! You always seem to forget just how much your body hates my healing skills…." Julie sighed, shaking her head tiredly.

Jin-Woo tucked his hand into his pocket, fishing out three small mana crystals, all of them E-Ranked.

'This should barely be enough for this month,' Jin-Woo's eyebrows furrowed before he let out a sigh. 'Still, to risk my life so often for so little is just….'

"Here," Julie dropped a D-Rank mana crystal into Jin-Woo's hand. She winked, grinning, "Consider it as a boost from the first fan of the S-Rank Hunter, Jin-Woo Sung."

The duo locked eyes, sharp goldens meeting gentle blues. Jin-Woo's disbelieving gaze met Julie's reassuring one, and after a few moments, the former gave into the latter.

"You're insane, but fine, I'll hold onto it for now," Jin-Woo resigned, holding his hands up with a sigh.

"Ah, hey, Jin-Woo, about the voting from earlier?" Julie began. "Did you―"

"Hey, I found another path here!" Kim Sang-Shik shouted, gaining the attention of his allies.

Just as he said, there was a large stone corridor leading deeper inside of the D-Rank dungeon.

"Huh. I could've sworn this wasn't here before," Song Chi-Yul clicked his tongue, running his hand over his greying stubble. "It looks like the mysterious Dual Dungeon really does exist, mysterious appearing entrances and all."

A swirl of flames sparked to life above the palm of Song's hand. With a small toss, the flame flew down the hallway going on, and on, and on.

Song nodded to himself before turning to his peers.

"Alright, as we all know, the dungeon won't close until the boss is beaten. We've got a choice to make here. We could either contact the Hunters Association or continue ourselves," Song began, and the group started to whisper among themselves, beginning to understand his words. Despite that, he continued, "The Association will probably get their residing S-Rank to check this out, and our profits would drop dramatically. I wish for us to all go and kill the boss, but it'll be dangerous. Because of that, I think taking another vote would be a good idea."

"I vote to continue," Kim smiled. His fluffy-haired friend, Park Gi-Sool, agreed with him. Several votes were shot out after them. Six to continue, and seven to leave.

"I don't think it'd be smart to go. Sorry, but I'd rather leave," Julie shook her head softly.

"Eight on eight, huh? Mr. Sung, you're our last vote. How will you vote, Mr. Sung?" Song Chi-Yul asked, a serious expression on his face.

Jin-Woo could feel the weight of the others' expectations beginning to rest on his shoulders. To continue or to flee, to advance or to escape, that was the responsibility which rested atop of his shoulders.

And after a moment of silence, the E-Rank's voice pierced through the silence.

"We should continue!"

Jin-Woo heard a small sigh from Julie, but beyond that there was no sounds of complaining or disapproval. With Jin-Woo's vote in, the group continued down the stone corridor.

Though Jin-Woo and Julie were in the middle of the pack at first, they fell to the back over the 30 minutes spent walking through the corridor. The silence settling between them felt oddly unfinished, bitter patches of awkwardness stopping them from beginning a conversation. Gladly, Julie broke through the silence.

"Earlier, why didn't you vote for yourself?" Julie suddenly spoke, prompting Jin-Woo with an intriguing question.

He'd only received a single vote, which was Julie's rather than his own.

"Well, I just thought that Song would be a better leader anyways. Several other people thought the same thing too," Jin-Woo glanced over to Julie, his eyes suddenly widening.

Utter rage yet frightening serenity was settled on her face.

"You are simultaneously the most amazing and frustrating person I know; you know that, right?" Julie sighed, rubbing her temples to prevent an incoming migraine.

"I…. thanks?" Jin-Woo furrowed his eyebrows before raising them high and bringing them back down again. "I feel like you constantly place me in between the absolute best or the absolute worst, so I guess that's halfway decent?"

"Halfway decent?" Julie repeated, giggling into her hand. She let out a satisfied sigh before pointing at Jin-Woo's black dagger. "Hey, do you know why I gave that to you?"

Jin-Woo looked at the dagger within his hand, absentmindedly checking both sides for any scratches.

"Well, earlier you said it was to 'defend myself,'" He remembered, gently pulling a finger across the black blade. "Is there another reason you gave it to me?"

"I wanted to give you something dangerous enough to hurt the people around you. That way, you'd have to trust yourself more," Julie admitted, giving Jin-Woo a heart-thumping smile.

"Huh? I totally trust myself!"

"Sure, you trust yourself enough to not vote for yourself!" Julie huffed, her nose flaring up.

"Well, I don't trust myself for that, but I have good reasons too! Would you trust yourself to fly a plane?" Jin-Woo asked, but Julie couldn't even stumble out an answer. "See, I'm making a good point!"

"Shuddup!" Julie giggled.

A new silence came over the duo, this time, it was peaceful.

"Hey, Jin-Woo?"

"Yeah, Julie?"

"Despite the eerie mana around you, you're nice to be around."

"…Thanks."

Just as their exchange finished, the group suddenly stopped.

"Two options?" Song Chi-Yul let out a low hum.

At the end of the long hallway were two doors, one black and one white, both covered in odd symbols. They each looked like doors to a king's chambers, but somehow looked different from one another at the same time.

"Let's look around a little bit!" Song yelled, and the group did as he asked.

Everything looked as it should, but there was a large statue of an angel on the far right of the two doors. It was holding a stone tablet with various runic symbols on it.

"Hey, Song! Check this out," Kim Sang-Shik shouted to Song, causing him to approach his raid member. He squinted his eyes and began tracing an interested finger over the runic symbols, reading it.

"One path of light. One path of darkness. Only those who are chosen can enter," Song began, humming softly. "The weak and the strong will be the chosen ones who enter the chambers to the Kartenon Temple. The strong must move alone, but the weak may move with two others."

Song's words caused whispers to travel through the group of Hunters. A few glancing looks fell onto Jin-Woo, but none of them lingered for long. It didn't matter, he noticed them.

He could feel his heart get caught in his throat, but before anything else could happen, he felt Julie's hand softly press up against his fist, which he didn't know he had ever began clenching.

"Well, if we're going on rank alone, I think we all know who the strongest and the weakest are," Kim Sang-Shik clicked his tongue, and before he could continue, Jin-Woo and Julie walked up to the front.

"Yeah, yeah," Jin-Woo spoke with faux confidence, trying to ignore the stares burning into the back of his head. "If we're speaking of pure ranking, it would fall on us."

"Wait, if we're thinking realistically, sending two of our raid members into the infamous Dual Dungeon is a poor decision. Before, we voted on the assumption that all of us would be moving as one. Now that this decision lies on you two alone, do you still want to continue?" Song Chi-Yul asked the two Hunters, worry seeping into his words.

The responsibility he felt over his allies was reassuring to Jin-Woo.

'Well, even if we wanted to leave, could we really say no with all these Hunters breathing down our necks? I'm already despised, no reason to give them another reason,' Jin-Woo mentally sighed, his head falling to the ground as he failed his attempt to ignore the burning gazes.

"I'll be honest, this doesn't look too good for either of us. I'm just a Healer with no weapon skills to speak of, and Jin-Woo is…." Julie's voice wavered, and Jin-Woo slouched with a sigh.

'Well, if you're gonna deny them, I guess I should just join you,' Jin-Woo pursed his lips, raising his head to look at the nearby Hunters.

"She makes a really good point. More money or not, it would be a shame if our new A-Rank Healer passed away in a dungeon like this one," Jin-Woo chuckled nervously, but surprisingly, his words seemed to reach the hearts of his peers.

"He makes a good point. Miss Heyun is an amazing Hunter, maybe a few extra bucks isn't worth it."

"True, could we really put her into such a perilous situation after all she's done for us?"

"Sung is… whatever, but Julie is valuable. I think we should turn back."

As the Hunters were all starting to agree about turning back, there was another voice, clearly farther down the hallway they'd walked down to arrive at the two doors.

"Aren't Hunters meant to hunt? Jin-Woo Sung, surely even you know that," A man's voice mocked, shooting through the darkness with a confidence few people within Korea could truly feel.

Gasps flew from the mouths of the Hunters, surprise and shock rising to their faces.

"What's an S-Rank doing in a place like this one?!"

"Not just an S-Rank, it's Alnair!

"Wait, maybe he's here to help us out! Make way!"

The Hunters parted for Alnair, and he walked through with a devilish grin on his face. He cracked his neck before he walked up to the white door and laid a firm hand on it. The door shook and slowly opened, revealing a dark path inside.

"I don't care about what you guys want, I'm going in for my own reasons, to Hunt," Alnair looked down at Jin-Woo, smirking. The E-Rank Hunter was looking at his feet, clenching his jaw and fists. "Too bad the World's Weakest Hunter couldn't do the same. At this rate, you'll be the one who's hunted. I'm moving forward, see ya."

The S-Rank laughed as he walked deeper into the dungeon, waving his hand as the door slowly closed behind him. Soon enough, it was shut, with no one trying to stop it.

Silence settled over the group before several Hunters let out sighs of relief.

"I thought we were goners there."

"Well, who wouldn't think that with a monster like him walking through here?!"

"I guess we should be turning back, right?"

"Jin-Woo?" Julie softly laid her hand on his shoulder, giving him a warm smile. "We should get out of here. Leaving this dungeon to an S-Rank is probably for the best."

Song nodded softly, "I agree. Though he's certainly not popular, Alnair's never failed a raid that he's participated in."

Jin-Woo's hand gripped the blade of his gifted dagger. Alnair's words rung through his mind on repeat, as if they were taunting him personally.

''I'm moving forward'? Has it really been so long that I've been left behind? Am I really gonna let him walk away and get that much more ahead of me?' Jin-Woo looked up from his feet, taking a step towards the black door. 'No, I can't let him leave me behind anymore!'

"That tablet said that the strongest and the weakest need to enter, didn't it?" Jin-Woo asked Song, receiving a methodical nod from the older man. "Is there anything to say Alnair'd make it out fine if I don't go in?"

"Ah, I didn't realize that!" Julie gasped holding a hand over her mouth, and whispers raced over the group.

"Still, he's proven to be able to handle himself. Getting a few extra mana crystals would be worth it if we were all risking things together, but that isn't the case anymore. Don't throw away your life for this!" Song firmly grabbed onto Jin-Woo's shoulders, meeting his golden eyes with a serious gaze.

"If Alnair dies because of my choice to leave, Korea'd be losing another S-Rank Hunter. I can't let that happen," Jin-Woo observed, shaking his head. "So, I'm going in there."

Song looked at Jin-Woo for a few long moments before slowly nodding and letting him go.

"Okay, but you aren't going alone. I may only be a C-Rank, but even I'd help with whatever may show up in there," Song spoke, and just before Jin-Woo could reply, someone yelled out, sounding enraged.

"Wait, if you both go in, you'd get the biggest portion of the money, right?!"

The man's words rung out for a moment, and the cave fell silent. An odd feeling settled into the air before the group pushed forward and began clawing their way for Jin-Woo's attention.

"Hey, I'm a D-Rank Swordsman! Surely, we can get through the dungeon together!"

"I'm a D-Rank Tank! I'll keep you safe 'til the end!"

"I'm a C-Rank Mage, I'll burn our enemies to a crisp!"

The comments came one after another without any sign of stopping before a voice cracked through all the madness like a sharp whip.

"Stop it! Trampling over one another is ridiculous!" Julie shrieked, suddenly pulling the Hunters back down to reality. "Jin-Woo, I'll go with you."

"But… why do you get to go?" A timid sounding Hunter questioned, his voice just loud enough to reach Julie's ears.

"I'm going because I can heal him! If we take things slow and steady, we can both survive. I will give up every single mana crystal I earn as well, if that makes you all happy!" Julie yelled before slowly sighing. She turned to Jin-Woo with a serious look on her face. "For now, we need to go ahead."

"I'd think I'd be the person with the choice…." Jin-Woo slumped, meeting Julie's somewhat embarrassed gaze. "Still, I'd choose you anyways, so I guess it doesn't matter much."

"What about the other person then?" Park Gi-Sool, Kim's fluffy-haired friend, questioned, and right before it seemed like the ravenous Hunters were about to claw at one another again, Song spoke up.

"Kim Sang-Shik, would you mind going with them?" Song asked, bowing to his peer. "I'd like to go myself, but I need to watch after the rest of the raid group. Can I trust you to go in my stead?"

There was a moment of silence, and after a small sigh, Kim laughed heartily, a smile on his face.

"Of course, I'll go! We can't have our very own A-Rank go without protection now, can we?" He asked, receiving a surprisingly excited number of roars from the other Hunters. After they all calmed, Kim stood at Julie's side, holding his steel sword in one hand.

"Mister Song, will you bring everyone back out of the Gate?" Julie asked, receiving a soft nod from her elder peer.

"Yes, Miss Julie, I'll make sure it's handled. Both of you just make sure to make it out alive!" Song turned away from the duo, pointing back down the tunnel. "Let's leave this to these three!"

Jin-Woo softly laid a hand onto the black door, causing it to open just as Alnair's door did mere moments earlier.

'I won't fall behind, Alnair! I'll catch up to you!' Jin-Woo swore to himself as he, Julie, and Kim Sang-Shik walked through the dark doorway. As the black entrance closed behind them, they spoke to one another.

"Have you ever noticed how Mr. Song always says Miss Julie instead of Miss Heyun?" Jin-Woo asked, scratching the side of his head.

"Y'know, I've never actually mentioned it to anyone else, but yeah, I noticed," Julie nodded, letting out a small giggle.

"Gah, the old man's going senile," Kim chuckled, shaking his head.

Song suddenly spun on his heel, pumping a fist into the air.

"I'm not senile, you old coot! That goes for you too, you brats!"

The trio laughed as the black door shut behind them.