Chapter 16: Mine (1)
When Jin-young withdrew the Sandstorm skill, the swirling sand around him poured down to the floor.
Jeon Yu-hwan’s face crumpled into a tearful expression as he looked at the now chaotic workshop.
He couldn’t even curse or get angry at the person responsible—he just groaned in frustration.
Jin-young used psychokinesis to gather the sand into his hand and immediately stored it in his subspace.
He also returned the wind-scattered furniture and items to their original places.
“T-Thank you. By the way, acquiring a skill… You got really lucky.”
Only now somewhat calmed, Jeon Yu-hwan approached and spoke.
“Did you feel anything strange when I activated the skill?”
“Something strange? Ah, I did sense a bit of the toxicity that comes from contaminated zones.”
“Hm.”
When Jin-young activated the skill, what had filled in for his insufficient mana was none other than the tentacles.
But the mana they emitted was different from normal mana.
It was the polluted mana Jeon Su-yong had used—commonly called black mana.
The only ones who wielded such mana were either those who’d overdosed on Black Rose like Jeon Su-yong, or Mines fully corrupted by Creep.
Of course, Jin-young fell into neither category, so there was no benefit in revealing it in front of others.
‘It’s good that you’re helping, but from now on, only release mana when I want you to.’
『Understood. I listen well.』
As if the tentacles had stopped wriggling, the foreign sensation in Jin-young’s chest faded.
“How’s work been lately?”
“Huh?”
Jeon Yu-hwan blinked in confusion at the sudden question.
“This black market—it’s managed by the Black Society, right?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right.”
The villain organization Black Society managed the Yongsan black market.
Naturally, not many knew that fact, but Jeon Yu-hwan didn’t find it strange at all.
Because the person asking was Jin-young.
“I’ve been feeling uneasy lately—the atmosphere in Black Society seems really off. Though I doubt the sparks will reach me, since all I do is crafting in the black market…”
“If Black Society ever makes unreasonable demands, just go along with them without arguing for now. And make sure to tell me immediately.”
“Yes, understood.”
***
On the weekend, Jin-young visited a contaminated zone.
Not Hongcheon, but the Byeonsan contaminated zone in Buan County.
It was neither too large nor too small, so Hunters occasionally visited to gather materials exclusive to contaminated zones.
Because of that, almost no monsters could be found near the entrance.
But half a year later, for some reason, the zone would suddenly expand, and it remained unrestored even until Jin-young’s transfer to Renard.
He could guess why, but since it hadn’t happened yet, there was no need to worry right now.
Besides, he had come here for a different purpose anyway.
‘Is there nothing to eat here?’
『Tastes bad. Raw.』
The tentacles showed no particular interest in the Creep from the contaminated zone.
They hadn’t reacted last time he visited either, so he wasn’t disappointed.
More importantly, there was one thing he wanted to test using the tentacles’ characteristics.
He had no idea how long it would take to find the target, so he had to move diligently.
To prepare for emergencies, he’d bought an oxygen mask for contaminated zones from the black market and was wearing it.
He’d also worn sturdy boots meant for civil servant Hunters—though he’d been parting the ground to move anyway.
He didn’t deliberately seek out monsters, but he didn’t avoid the ones he encountered either.
After lightly hunting and moving for about two hours,
A black figure appeared in Jin-young’s field of view.
The deeper into the contaminated zone he went, the thicker the Creep toxicity became like fog, making it hard to see clearly from a distance.
‘Is it a Mine?’
『Mine?』
‘The thing similar to the one you first absorbed black mana from.’
Strictly speaking, Jeon Su-yong wasn’t a Mine, but he had wielded black mana like one.
To the tentacles, there wasn’t much difference.
『That thing tastes bad.』
‘If it’s not a Mine, then maybe a Scavenger.’
Scavengers were Hunters who roamed contaminated zones collecting anything that could be sold for money.
In a way, it was even more dangerous than dungeon raids, so they tended to have excellent survival skills.
Using the psionic energy he’d spread around, he could make out the shape—it was definitely human.
The figure was rushing toward Jin-young as if being chased by something.
Finally breaking through the fog, it wasn’t a Mine, but a human.
Their protective suit was torn as if attacked, and the oxygen mask was in tatters.
“Huff… huff…”
They were barely maintaining breathing with mana, but their face was deathly pale, clearly at their limit.
“A Scavenger?”
Jin-young asked, but the Scavenger rolled their eyes, quickly scanning him.
Then they aimed a rifle and shouted,
“Hand over that oxygen mask—now!”
“……”
“You think I won’t shoot? Hurry up… huh?”
The rifle in their hand floated out of their grasp into the air.
The Scavenger made futile grabs at empty space with a dumbfounded expression.
Jin-young pulled the rifle over with psychokinesis and examined it from various angles.
“You were wandering the deep zone with a toy like this?”
“You… who the hell are— guh…”
The Scavenger’s breathing grew ragged, and they accidentally inhaled some of the toxicity.
Jin-young watched quietly, then took a spare oxygen mask from his subspace and fitted it onto them.
“Haaah…”
The panting Scavenger finally caught his breath and looked at Jin-young.
“You don’t seem like a solo Scavenger. Which group are you with?”
“…No affiliation. Just a bunch of Scavengers who took the same job and teamed up.”
The man, who had barely survived, had no choice but to answer.
“What kind of job?”
“Pollutium mining.”
Pollutium.
A mineral that only formed in contaminated zones. Refined Pollutium ranked among the most expensive dungeon materials.
It could only be obtained in contaminated zones—and even there, it was extremely hard to find, making it highly scarce.
Refining it into usable form was difficult, and the yield was poor.
Once refined, Pollutium was used in crafting Hunter equipment and artifacts.
Adding even a small amount dramatically increased durability and amplified artifact effects.
“Who gave you the job?”
The Scavenger looked into Jin-young’s eyes.
Even though his life had been saved, revealing everything was dangerous.
He had no choice but to mix in a little lie.
“It was from Crystal Gui— Haaah!”
Before he could finish, his eyes bulged, and his breathing stopped.
Jin-young had blocked his movements with psychokinesis and yanked off the oxygen mask.
He could have filtered the toxicity with released mana like before, but in an emergency, that wasn’t easy.
At the entrance where toxicity was mild, maybe—but here the fog was thick enough that removing the mask without proper preparation was suicide.
Jin-young calmly put the mask back on the man’s face and said,
“Again.”
“Huff… huff… It was Dark Horse’s request.”
The man had no choice but to raise both hands in surrender at Jin-young’s ruthlessness.
“Besides you, where are the others?”
“…Seven of us came in together. Three suddenly broke off from the route. The rest scattered after a monster attack.”
“What grade were the monsters?”
“At least 4th-grade. We need to get out fast…”
Jin-young found the three Scavengers who had suddenly disappeared suspicious.
He could also sense presences deeper in.
“Alright. Let’s move.”
“Hoo… Good call. I swear I’ll repay this fav—”
The hope in the man’s eyes quickly turned to despair.
***
“This should be deep enough.”
“Check the surroundings for monsters.”
The three Scavengers whispered to each other while staying on high alert.
The dense Creep toxic fog was rapidly depleting their oxygen.
“First time going this deep—scared shitless.”
“Just plant this and we’re done. Don’t worry.”
One of the Scavengers pulled a translucent blue stone from his bag.
It was large enough to require both arms to hold, but surprisingly light—probably under 1 kilogram.
“Why do we have to plant a Manastone this deep? Dark Horse… those bastards must be hiding something.”
“Who cares? Just do the job. Finish this and we can retire for life.”
“Yeah, this concentration should be enough.”
They searched for a good spot to place the Manastone.
Manastones were minerals found in dungeons—literally stones containing mana.
Unlike magic stones, Hunters couldn’t absorb them directly into their bodies.
However, those with exceptional mana manipulation could harness the mana emanating from them.
Manastones were most commonly used in power plants—one large one could supply electricity to the entire country for a month.
They were also used in Hunter equipment and artifact crafting, and major corporations were actively researching ways to integrate them into various industries.
The Scavengers had no idea what Dark Horse planned to do with this Manastone request.
“This spot looks good.”
One placed the Manastone on the Creep.
Immediately, the Creep began climbing up the stone.
The erosion had begun.
“Oh, it’s working.”
“So that’s why they wanted it planted so deep?”
In areas near the entrance where toxicity was weak, the Manastone’s mana was too strong for erosion to take hold.
“Haa… But can we even find our way back out?”
One Scavenger pulled a compass from his pocket to check.
It wasn’t an ordinary compass—it was an artifact made for Hunters: a “Return Compass.”
The needle pointed only toward a specific mana beacon installed at the starting point, allowing safe return by following the direction.
“Damn it. We’re too deep—the needle’s spinning like crazy.”
The needle couldn’t find direction and spun wildly.
The artifact had a drawback: it failed when too far from the beacon or when surrounded by heavy mana interference.
“Could be the fog. Let’s just find where it thins out.”
“What if we go even deeper?”
“Then stay here and become a Mine. I’ll get out before my oxygen tank runs dry.”
“Fuck…”
The Scavengers had no choice but to start moving again.
If they took the wrong direction, they might end up even deeper in the contaminated zone and encounter powerful Mines or boss monsters.
But if death was inevitable either way, they figured it was better to at least try something than give up.
Besides, anyone gutsy enough to enter a contaminated zone in the first place didn’t hesitate long.
After walking for a while,
“Isn’t that a person up ahead?”
One Scavenger with better visibility pointed to the right and whispered.
The other two turned their heads and spotted a faint silhouette.
It looked human at a glance, but approaching it recklessly would be madness.
It could be one of their missing comrades, but the odds were higher that it was something dangerous.
“It’s not a Mine, right?”
“Hey, don’t jinx it.”
“Let’s just head the other way.”
As the three whispered and started turning left,
Crunch!
The Creep on the ground opened like a mouth and swallowed the Scavenger’s feet.
“What the—!”
The Scavenger whose feet were suddenly trapped cried out in panic.
Creep didn’t usually move this fast or aggressively, so there was no time to react.
The other two quickly backed away from their bound companion.
“Hey! Help me!”
As the trapped Scavenger begged, one turned back.
But he immediately regretted it.
A human figure completely covered in pitch-black Creep grabbed the Scavenger’s head with both hands.
It really was a Mine.
In all his time roaming contaminated zones, he’d only seen a Mine once—from very far away. He’d spotted something suspicious and immediately fled.
This was the first time facing one up close.
The Scavenger with his head and feet gripped drew two daggers, infused them with mana, and swung and stabbed wildly.
But the Mine took no damage.
The stab and slash wounds closed instantly thanks to the Creep.
After struggling for a while, the Scavenger went limp, his entire body soon covered in Creep.
“……”
The second Scavenger froze, staring at the Mine.
Even as it approached, he couldn’t move a muscle.
Only the third Scavenger bolted away in a panic.
“Damn it!”
But he froze too upon seeing two figures approaching from the opposite direction.
He quickly realized they weren’t Mines—they were people.
A man and woman in black suits with red ties.
He had no idea why people were here, but with his judgment clouded, he shouted,
“H-Help! There’s a Mine…!”
Crunch!
The horrific sound from behind made the last Scavenger shut his mouth instinctively.
The second one had been taken too.
At that moment, the woman spoke in a cold voice.
“Measured danger level: 2nd-grade. An unwinnable opponent. We should retreat.”
The man accompanying her spotted the Manastone at the Mine’s feet and hardened his face.
“Wait. The target is right there. I’ll draw the Mine’s attention—retrieve it.”
“But—”
“Never forget our top priority: the safety of the nation and its citizens.”
The moment he finished speaking, the man kicked off the ground.
Thud—
He swung his longsword toward the Mine.
Even though the distance between them was considerable, he didn’t care.
Slaaaash—
A crescent-shaped sword wave tore through the air as it flew.
Just before the sword wave hit the Mine,
Splatter-splatter-splatter!
A mass of Creep surged up in front of it and swallowed the sword wave whole.
In the meantime, the woman slipped past the Mine’s line of sight and approached the Manastone.
The moment she picked it up,
Slaaaash!
The Creep opened its maw to swallow her arms.
The next instant,
Crackle-crackle-crackle—
Lightning erupted from both her hands, pushing back and tearing apart the Creep.
But it was only a temporary measure.
The Creep quickly regenerated and targeted her again.
With no choice, she retreated backward.
She briefly turned to check on her partner.
For the first time, the woman—who had maintained absolute calm—widened her eyes.
“No!”
Creep had latched onto the man’s right arm.