The sky was still dark and gloomy.
“Ughahaha~ So sleepy…”
A man who had just stepped out of a tent let out a huge yawn, his mouth stretching wide. He glanced up at the sky, then rubbed around his mouth as he started walking. He staggered slightly, yawning repeatedly—still clearly half-asleep.
The man’s unsteady steps came to a halt at a spot overlooking a deep pit below.
“Hey. Let’s switch shifts already.”
With his eyes half-closed, still drowsy, he looked around. But there was no response. Only the quiet night breeze brushed past him gently. The area was utterly silent.
“…?”
His confused expression lasted only a moment. Suddenly, the sleepiness in his eyes vanished completely. A sharp gleam flashed as he crouched low, scanning his surroundings carefully. The man was an archer by class. A strange feeling crept over him, spreading through his body. Step by slow step, he advanced cautiously, scrutinizing the area.
“Hey. You here to relieve me?”
A faint voice came from below. Though small and distant, the man’s sharpened hearing caught it clearly. He focused his gaze downward and spotted a woman waving at the edge of the pit. She was a familiar comrade. The man sighed in relief and trudged down the hill.
“What are you doing down here? It’s dangerous.”
As he approached, the woman averted her eyes and stared quietly into the pit.
“Just… something felt off.”
“Off?”
“Yeah. I thought I saw something strange… something kept raising its head, then lowering it. Raising it again, then lowering it.”
“What?”
The man’s voice rose sharply. He quickly stepped back a few paces and peered into the pit, but saw nothing. Only pitch-black darkness filled the void.
“There’s nothing here. Maybe you just imagined it?”
The man sounded puzzled. The woman looked apologetic and gently pinched the bridge of her nose.
“Sorry. I actually nodded off for a moment.”
“Hey, come on.”
“But I swear I caught glimpses of something… I wasn’t sure, so I came down to check.”
“You probably just saw things in your sleep. You scared me for nothing.”
“Still, just in case…”
“Enough. Go back inside and get some rest.”
The woman nodded slowly and turned away. The man started to follow but paused, glancing once more into the pit just to be sure.
“By the way, you came alone?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. Hee-young will come later. She looked a bit tired after staying up with Soo-cheol. Heh heh.”
“Is that so? Well, can’t be helped then.”
“Huh? What can’t be helped?”
The man chuckled at his own joke and looked back at the woman. Suddenly, she slid forward swiftly, almost gliding.
“Huh?”
Before he could react, he felt her hands push against his chest. The world tilted, his vision skewing. The last thing he saw was her cold face staring down at him.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
A long scream plunged into the pit. The woman peered down on tiptoe, then calmly turned to gaze up the hill. Moments later, someone appeared suddenly. She raised her hand high.
“Hey. You here to relieve me?”
Ko Yeon-ju looked momentarily puzzled but quickly pointed to someone.
“I’ll choose Da-eun.”
Nam Da-eun. A solid choice. Among the close-combat users in the mercenary group, Nam Da-eun was definitely top-tier. (Of course, excluding myself.) Having fought alongside her in the dragon-sleeping mountain range, she would likely mesh well with the Shadow Queen if she took the swordmaster role.
Nam Da-eun stepped forward with a bright smile. Next, I nodded toward An Sol.
“An Sol, you’re up.”
“Huh…?”
An Sol tilted his head, a question mark floating above it. He scanned the clan members left and right, then left again, then right again, and once more left… Was he seriously messing around?
“Stop it. No more jokes.”
His constant head-turning was starting to look like a tic, so I grabbed his head firmly to steady it. He twisted his neck in frustration but quieted down after a light tap on the forehead. After a moment, I saw the question mark above his head turn into an exclamation point.
“Um, I’ll pick… over there.”
An Sol pointed to none other than Heo Jun-young. He was probably torn between him and Cha So-rim… Well, Heo Jun-young wasn’t a bad choice. In fact, for An Sol, it was pretty good.
“I don’t like calling him out, but I’ll let it slide this time.”
Heo Jun-young walked out calmly and gave An Sol a light smack on the head.
“Hey! What was that for?”
“My name’s Heo Jun-young, not ‘over there.’”
“But you said you’d let it slide!”
“I was going to, but seeing you act all cocky made me want to hit you.”
An Sol let out a frustrated yelp, but I ignored it and turned my attention to Shin Jae-ryong.
“User Shin Jae-ryong. You’re up.”
“Hmm…”
Shin Jae-ryong looked over the clan members with interest. Jin Soo-hyun raised both hands as if begging to be chosen. Helena exposed her cleavage and licked her lips. An Sol was trying desperately to rush forward but was blocked by Heo Jun-young’s hand, flailing helplessly.
I buried my face in my hands. What on earth is wrong with these guys?
Then—
“I’ll choose An Hyun.”
“…What?”
I lowered my hands, thinking I must have misheard. Everyone else looked just as surprised. Even An Hyun’s eyes went wide. It wasn’t that An Hyun was lacking—there were plenty of clan members with better stats.
“Yes. I’ll call on Hyun.”
But Shin Jae-ryong smiled quietly and spoke calmly. I immediately opened my mouth.
“I’ll give you one more chance to change your pick.”
“Hyung! What do you mean by that?”
An Hyun rushed out, desperate to switch. I stared at him silently, and Shin Jae-ryong shook his head firmly—an unspoken refusal to change his choice. An Hyun, huh.
“Hyung.”
“Yeah?”
“I’ll really do my best. I don’t know if I can be much help to you, but I’ll try my hardest.”
“…?”
An Hyun gave me a heated look, as if he knew something. What’s with him?
I sighed and had no choice but to accept. After all, An Hyun was at least an above-average user, and I doubted Shin Jae-ryong picked him without reason. They’d known each other a long time, so their teamwork might be solid.
After sending the others away, I gathered the chosen members and began explaining the details of the sinkhole operation.
How much time had passed?
A cold drop of water trickled down onto the man’s forehead. He furrowed his brow—he was coming to. Without opening his eyes, he reached out and felt something hard yet soft. Then pain surged through his body.
“Ugh…”
He groaned softly and forced his eyes open. The first thing he saw was a flickering torch mounted on the wall.
“Oh, you’re awake now?”
A harsh metallic voice grated on his ears. His heart sank. Swallowing a groan, he slowly sat up. Reflexively, he reached around but found nothing to hold onto. Only then did he realize he was completely naked.
“You’re lucky. I happened to be near the pit. If I’d just passed by, I might never have seen you. Forever gone. Heh heh heh.”
The man slowly turned his head toward the voice and gasped. Sitting on what looked like a chair was a bizarre figure staring back at him.
He wasn’t exactly normal. His visible skin was covered in black tattoos, making him look like a monster. His eyes flashed wildly like a mad beast. Yet, somehow, the man felt a strange familiarity.
The strange man stood up and approached slowly.
“By the way, how’s your body? Hyung-sik, you were out cold for quite a while.”
Hearing the name Hyung-sik, the man’s eyes flashed with shock.
“…You, you!”
“Huh? What’s with you all of a sudden?”
“Hyun-ho? Isn’t that you, Hyun-ho?”
“…Hoo.”
A small exhale. The strange man called Hyun-ho twisted his lips into a grotesque smile—not quite a smile, really. But he chuckled and clapped Hyung-sik on the shoulder.
“Of course. I knew you’d recognize me. Worth the effort to save you.”
“What did you say? But I’m sure Hyunho—three years ago…”
“He went missing during the assault on the Steel Mountain Range. But that doesn’t mean he’s dead, right? Hehehe!”
“No, no! You’re a monster, aren’t you? You ate Hyunho and are just wearing a human mask!”
At that, Hyunho let out another impressed sigh.
“Wow~ You’ve already figured that out? Seems like you’re quite a capable user.”
“You monster!”
“But—”
“…!”
Ignoring Hyungsik’s shout, Hyunho instead helped him to his feet. His whole body screamed in pain from the fall, but the shock he felt now was far greater. Hyungsik, forgetting even the pain, stared at Hyunho. The careful way he helped him up, gently tapping his shoulder—there was no hint of hostility. Only a familiar, welcoming presence.
“Don’t worry. I’m not the kind of monster you think I am.”
“W-what?”
“Well, to be honest, I’m not completely unaffected. But my identity is still the same Joo Hyunho from when we first entered the Whole Plain together. Exactly the same. Hehehe.”
“…”
“Anyway, it looks like you’ve come to your senses. So first things first, we need to report this. Let’s get out of here. No matter how bad things are, you want to live, don’t you?”
“R-report?”
Hyungsik asked, bewildered. His face was blank. He’d just woken up, and a flood of unbelievable information hit him all at once—he couldn’t process it.
But Hyunho had already turned and was heading for the door. Only then did Hyungsik start to notice his surroundings, walking slowly and glancing around.
Silence stretched between them.
Hyungsik thought to himself: The one thing he was sure of was that they had fallen into a pit. So this must be underground, beneath the earth.
The air was thick with dampness. It felt like walking through a long tunnel, but it was so dark he could barely see. The cold earth pressed against his feet. Looking up, he saw the ceiling carved into a rounded shape, with bulging veins snaking across it like some grotesque pattern.
But that wasn’t all. As they stepped out of an unknown entrance, a long cavern stretched ahead, and an overwhelming sense of disgust crept over him. A nauseating stench—almost metallic—pricked his nostrils.
He had no idea what any of this meant.
In this place, Hyungsik had only one person to rely on.
“Are you… really Hyunho?”
“Why? You want me to tell you about the time you got caught peeing on someone’s car as a kid before you’ll believe me?”
Hyunho’s mocking voice came from ahead.
Then, suddenly—
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
A piercing scream echoed through the tunnel, right beside them.
Hyunho stopped dead in his tracks.
“Don’t look. Just ignore it and come. There’s nothing good to see.”
For the first time, his voice dropped low, a quiet warning. But Hyungsik had already summoned his magic, heightening his senses. Hyunho clicked his tongue.
The dim tunnel became clearer. Instinctively, Hyungsik scanned the area. He saw an entrance similar to the one they’d come through, with iron bars firmly set in place. And when he looked inside the cell beyond, he involuntarily gasped.
Snap!
“Gyaaah! Gyaaaah!”
Inside, a man lay naked on the floor, just like Hyungsik. Four others surrounded him, each grabbing an arm or a leg, pulling with all their might.
Then—
Crack!
Blood splattered everywhere. The force was so brutal that the flesh stretched and tore, exposing raw muscle beneath. Red muscle was shredded, white bone snapped mercilessly. Eventually, the man’s limbs were severed, his body trembling on the floor. No more screams came.
But it didn’t end there. The four, having divided the limbs among themselves, licked their lips as if still hungry. They slit open his abdomen and plunged their heads inside, slurping up blood and organs.
“Ah…”
Hyungsik collapsed to his knees. A woman nearby, who had been quietly clutching her chest, glanced over and her eyes gleamed wildly when she saw him. Hyungsik felt like his soul was about to leave his body.
Then—
“I told you not to look.”
Hyunho quickly grabbed Hyungsik’s neck and started dragging him away at a brisk pace.
“Th-that was… what…?”
“He’s useless now. Males are worthless anyway. Once they’ve served their purpose, they’re just food.”
“W-what did you just say? Are you serious—”
“Hey, hey! Calm down! Don’t shout!”
Hyungsik sprang up, swinging his hands as if to grab Hyunho’s collar, but only air was caught. Hyunho had already stepped back a few paces, sighing and shrugging.
“Don’t get too angry. I’m not in a position to do much here either. Honestly, it was a huge effort just to bring you along.”
Hyungsik’s fist, raised to strike, faltered. Hyunho smiled faintly and pulled him along.
“Let’s go.”
“Damn it! Where are you always trying to take me? Do you even know where we are? What’s going on? I don’t know anything right now!”
“I get it. But just come with me. You’ll understand once we get there. We’re almost there anyway.”
“Joo Hyunho!”
“Quiet. If those guys come rushing back, I don’t know what’ll happen to me either.”
“…”
Hyungsik fell silent. The image of the man, limbs torn apart and wailing in agony, haunted him. If he had to die, he wanted it to be quick and clean—not like that.
After a moment, Hyunho resumed walking. Hyungsik stood dazed for a moment before following, as if in a trance.
Hyunho’s claim that they were almost there was no lie. After about ten more minutes, another entrance appeared. Hyunho stepped inside and raised his hand.
The only odd thing was that while the rest of the tunnels remained pitch black, this entrance was bathed in a faint, murky light.
“Welcome to the King’s Den.”
As Hyungsik followed inside, Hyunho raised both arms in greeting.
“King’s… Den…?”
Hyungsik asked, stunned. But Hyunho said nothing, only smiled slyly and pointed up at the ceiling. Slowly, Hyungsik lifted his gaze.
The first thing he saw was a tangle of filthy, matted hair hanging down. Then, a pair of eyes rolled back.
Hyungsik tilted his head further, hardly daring to believe what he was seeing.
And there they were.
Not just one, but several naked women.
Bound by their limbs, they dangled from the ceiling, suspended in midair.
---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=
If this chapter made you uncomfortable, I strongly recommend skipping the beginning of the next chapter. It’s even more disturbing than what you just read. *The perspective will shift to Munyang, so you can start reading again from there.
P.S. Please try to remember the characters Hyunho and Hyungsik!