Chapter 28
After putting one mana stone into his bag, Chaeho set down the tool he had been about to use on the next one.
Before continuing, there was something else he needed to do.
He took his smartphone out of his pocket and opened the camera app.
Through the lens, the vein of ore shimmering with blue light and the chunks of collapsed rock scattered across the floor were captured in a single frame.
Click.
Since he had turned off silent mode, the crisp shutter sound echoed through the quiet cavern.
Chaeho changed the angle several times and took multiple pictures of the entire cave wall.
Then he carefully photographed the remains of the golem's mana core lying on the ground, along with the surrounding terrain.
Only amateurs blindly rushed in just because they saw piles of money lying in front of them.
It'll be a pain if the Association starts saying something different later.
Loot discovered in an unregistered hidden area was given priority ownership to the person who discovered it.
However, if the discovery process couldn't be clearly proven, ownership disputes could arise. In some cases, hunters even ended up paying unfairly high taxes.
During his years working as a porter, Chaeho had heard countless stories of other people's failures.
Those stories were exactly what had made him so thorough.
Once he finished taking pictures, he pulled out the recording terminal issued by the Association and scanned his current coordinates and environmental information.
Only after the screen displayed a notification confirming that the data had been transmitted did Chaeho put the terminal away and roll his sleeves back up.
He opened the special storage case and placed it on the floor.
Then he took out the mana stone he had already mined from his bag and carefully transferred it inside.
The small mining tool he had set aside returned to his hand.
"I can keep digging along this side."
Starting from the spot where he had removed the first stone, Chaeho carefully dug along the edge of the wall.
Using too much force could crack a high-purity mana stone.
It was delicate work he had watched countless times over the shoulders of hunters during his porter days—and something he had personally done more times than he could count.
He worked the tool into a soft gap between the soil and rock, then used it like a lever.
A brilliant blue mana stone popped free.
Chaeho wiped the dirt and dust from its surface with the edge of his clothes before carefully placing it inside the special storage case.
The work continued for quite some time.
His bag gradually became heavier.
By the time the once-empty storage case was filled with blue light, the cave wall had already returned to its original dark color.
Chaeho stood up and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
A faint passage leading even deeper inside could be seen ahead.
However, he shook his head without hesitation.
His bag was already full, and he had consumed a fair amount of stamina.
If he became greedy and pushed farther, some unexpected variable could easily catch him off guard.
His goal had always been the same.
Returning safely.
"Let's head back."
Chaeho tightened the straps of his bag and turned around.
He retraced his steps toward the official dungeon route.
Thanks to his heightened senses, he quickly noticed the presence of lower-ranked monsters hiding nearby.
Kiiiik!
A swarm of cave bats hanging from the ceiling screeched sharply as they swooped down at him.
Chaeho didn't even feel the need to draw his sword.
He pulled the small dagger from his waist and casually struck them down.
The creatures crashed to the ground with their dying cries.
The lower C-rank monsters wandering around the official boss room weren't any different.
Compared to the razor-sharp concentration required to exploit the Stone Armor Golem's weakness, dealing with beast-type monsters that charged in predictable patterns was nothing more than a warm-up.
With minimal movement, Chaeho cleared the path and finally began walking toward the dungeon exit.
Without suffering a single serious injury, his first solo C-rank dungeon raid had come to an end.
It was a victory achieved entirely through his own judgment and control.
The Association's settlement center was as noisy as ever.
The smell of sweat from hunters who had just emerged from dungeons mixed with the frantic sounds of employees flipping through paperwork.
Chaeho took a number and quietly sat in the waiting area.
It wasn't long before his number appeared on the electronic display.
"Hunter Lee Chaeho, please proceed to Counter Three."
Chaeho picked up his heavy bag and approached the counter.
The employee checked the Association terminal and identification card Chaeho handed over with practiced movements.
"A solo C-rank dungeon raid, I see. Good work. Please place the loot you'd like to sell on the table."
Chaeho opened his bag and first took out the materials harvested from ordinary monsters.
The employee quickly scanned the barcodes, weighed the materials, and filled out the paperwork.
Finally, Chaeho reached deep into his bag and placed the special storage case on the table.
"These are mana stones I collected from an unregistered hidden area."
The employee looked up.
"A hidden area? You transmitted the information through the recording terminal, right?"
"Yes. I sent the photographs as well."
Without thinking much of it, the employee opened the lid of the storage case.
And at that moment—
His hand froze in midair.
A soft blue glow spread across the inside of the counter.
The employee's eyes locked onto the brilliant stones.
Their clear, luminous color was completely different from the ordinary low-grade mana stones that usually passed through his hands.
"Uh... one moment, please."
The employee hurriedly picked up the intercom and contacted the appraisal room.
"Appraiser Kim, I think you need to come out to the counter."
A short while later, a middle-aged appraiser wearing thick glasses walked out with an annoyed expression.
"What is it? Can't you see I'm busy?"
