The weekend arrived without any incidents.

Sung Siwoo had been quiet ever since that day.

He looked like he had a lot on his mind. Hopefully, he’d sort himself out soon.

[Your report has been received.]

A response to my report came in.

To be honest, I didn’t expect much to come of it. The school was well aware of these underhanded scouting tactics but usually turned a blind eye.

But that wasn’t something I needed to focus on right now.

This world had a special marketplace used by heroes.

Its name? Auction.

Auction dealt in everything—from monster byproducts to equipment, elixirs, and martial arts manuals.

But today, I wasn’t looking for items.

‘Dungeon.’

Auction had a dedicated tab for dungeons.

When a dungeon was first discovered, the finder could report it to the Association and receive guaranteed ownership rights.

From there, they could either clear it themselves or—

[Goblin Cave]

[Location: Jeongseon, Gangwon Province]

[Seller's Description: Just a regular goblin dungeon.]

[Price: 57,000,000 KRW]

—sell the right to challenge it, like this.

"There it is."

[Skeleton Cave]

[Location: Taebaek, Gangwon Province]

[Seller's Description: Undead-attribute dungeon. A priest is required.]

[Price: 30,000,000 KRW]

It might seem cheap, but this dungeon was garbage.

Even if successfully cleared, Skeleton Cave only dropped bones.

Alchemists might buy them for cheap, but to regular heroes, it was worthless.

And since it was an undead dungeon, hiring a priest was mandatory—doubling the cost.

[Bid]

But I placed a bid.

Because this dungeon was something else entirely.

‘Double Dungeon.’

With the right ritual before entering, it would reveal its true form.

And the rewards inside—

"I have to get this."

The purchase confirmation popped up almost immediately after I bid.

[Seller]: Thank you so much for bidding, Alchemist! Let me know when you plan to clear it!

They must have mistaken me for an alchemist.

Not surprising. Who else would buy this dungeon?

With the purchase complete, I stretched my arms. Now, all that was left was finding a priest.

The moment I had a priest, we’d set off immediately.

Priests were incredibly hard to find.

And because of their job’s rarity, they were notoriously arrogant about reward distribution.

I opened the job board next to the Auction tab.

I was about to post a recruitment notice when I paused.

[1000_y] [Class: Priest] [Status: Seeking employment] [Specialties: Rituals & spells. Full-spectrum support available.]

[♥:92]

A priest was already looking for work.

And they were exactly what I needed.

But they already had nearly 100 offers.

‘Probably impossible.’

I thought about giving up.

But then again, there was no harm in trying.

[belief_]: Hello. Are you available tomorrow? Skeleton Cave near Taebaek, Gangwon Province.

[belief_]: Offering 50 million KRW. Payment upon completion, so no additional profit sharing.

Excluding profit-sharing wasn’t an attractive deal for a priest.

But since the dungeon’s normal rewards were trash, 50 million should be enough to get a taker.

It would probably take some time for a response.

Honestly, they probably wouldn’t even reply.

I posted a job listing in the meantime.

"Priest... as soon as possible... ritual..."

—Ding!

—Ding!

Huh?

I thought it was Sion, but—no.

It was the priest.

[1000_y]: Sounds good.

[1000_y]: Should we leave today?

"Why the rush...?"

Today was too soon.

Tomorrow was better.

[belief_]: No, we’ll leave tomorrow.

[belief_]: By the way, which temple are you affiliated with?

I checked my watch as I asked.

It was odd that they’d responded only to me despite so many offers.

[1000_y]: Arcadia.

"Good."

My suspicions disappeared.

A priest from Arcadia was a guaranteed win.

No need to question it—just be thankful.

[1000_y]: No other priests have contacted you, right?

[1000_y]: If they do, ignore them.

[belief_]: No one else has reached out.

[1000_y]: Then I’ll see you at 8 AM at the hub.

I hadn’t expected to secure a priest this easily.

Some priests focused on clearing simple dungeons to build their resume.

They were probably one of those types.

With the arrangements made, I notified the seller of our planned 8 AM departure and shut my laptop.

Now, I just needed to gather the materials for the ritual.

Nothing complicated.

[Jeong Haein]: Sion, is the old man home right now?

***

Morning arrived the next day.

At 8 AM on Sunday, the portal hub in Taebaek, Gangwon Province, was quiet.

Since dungeons didn’t frequently appear in this region, the atmosphere remained calm and peaceful.

"Over here!"

A seller waved at me from a distance.

He jogged over hastily and extended his hand for a handshake, which I accepted.

"Haha... I wasn’t expecting someone so young."

His job was to guide us to the dungeon entrance.

He wouldn’t be coming along beyond that point.

Even if he wanted to, I wouldn’t have allowed it.

"By the way, where’s the priest?"

"They’ll be here soon."

The scheduled time was now.

The next portal activation was in about ten seconds.

They’d probably be coming through that.

—Whooooom

A hum resonated as the portal activated.

And standing within it was a familiar face.

With neatly combed hair held in place by a headband, she stood beside an older priest.

Cheon Yeoul...?

I had to blink.

"Have you been waiting long? ...Oh my."

Cheon Yeoul smiled softly as she approached me.

"What a coincidence. I didn’t expect you to be here."

Her companion, the priest, bowed his head in greeting.

Wiping the sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief, he spoke.

"I apologize... The Saint Candidate suddenly announced she was heading into a dungeon, so I had to confirm it myself."

"But since she’ll be accompanied by a fellow Gaon cadet... I can return without worries."

I understood.

Cheon Yeoul was an extremely important figure in Arcadia.

If she went dungeon-diving, she was usually accompanied by a top-tier support team.

But now, she was clearing Skeleton Cave with some no-name guy? It made sense they’d send someone to check.

I gave her a once-over before nodding.

‘This is good.’

Cheon Yeoul was an exceptionally skilled priest.

On top of that, sacred rituals were her specialty.

And besides—one of this dungeon’s rewards was already meant for her.

"...Let’s head out."

Just as I turned to lead the way, the seller hesitantly spoke up.

"Um... this is Skeleton Cave, right?"

"Yes."

I answered firmly, but he still looked hesitant.

"This place most likely has nothing special... If this was a mistake, I can offer a refund—"

At least he was an honest seller.

I acknowledged his sincerity with a nod.

"It’s fine. Just lead the way."

The seller sighed in exasperation before nodding.

"Alright... Follow me. It won’t take long by car."

And so, we followed the seller toward the dungeon entrance.

Only the two of us—me and Cheon Yeoul.

The older priest had left.

"The Priest Commander, huh."

"Yeah."

That priest held a high-ranking position.

What the hell was he doing all the way out here?

I stopped thinking about it.

"We’re here."

The seller brought the vehicle to a stop and gestured toward the dungeon entrance.

After winding through mountain paths several times, we had reached a deep, remote location.

But the entrance... was pitifully unimpressive.

The seller scratched his head.

"Hah... I warned you. No refunds now."

"Yeah."

I answered casually and approached the shimmering, wave-like entrance of the dungeon.

Opening my crossbody bag, I took out the necessary materials.

‘High-grade Holy Water.’

A rare item, even among temples.

I stole it from the old man’s stash. Thanks, old man.

Without hesitation, I poured the holy water onto the ground.

Ripples of brilliant light spread outward.

"How many levels of sacred rituals can you perform?"

I asked Cheon Yeoul as I continued pouring.

"Hmm... As many as you want?"

...What kind of answer is that?

Rituals had levels ranging from 1 to 9.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Level 1 was beginner-tier. Level 9 was divine-level—essentially unreachable.

Level 8 was considered the realistic peak.

A typical adult priest could perform up to Level 3.

This would °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° be a bit of a stretch.

"Can you handle Level 3?"

Ideally, I’d like it to be higher.

But she was still a student.

However, upon hearing my question, Cheon Yeoul only smiled and stepped closer.

Then, she whispered softly into my ear.

"You can be honest. I’ll do everything for you."

As soon as she finished speaking, she took a few steps back.

She clasped her hands together and closed her eyes.

—Whisper whisper...

The moment her lips began moving, the holy water I had poured flared with radiant light.

The light was blinding.

I had spread the holy water in a wide pattern, forming a type of magic circle. And now, that very formation was glowing with overwhelming intensity.

"...Sio...calo...."

With her final incantation, Cheon Yeoul completed the sacred ritual.

For a moment, silence.

We waited for a few seconds—

And then, an unbelievable surge of mana erupted from the dungeon entrance.

—Aaaaaeeeeeeeng!

A piercing alarm blared in the distance.

It was an automatic security alert, triggered when a certain threshold of mana was released.

Which meant the Association would be arriving soon.

"Let’s go."

"Okay."

Cheon Yeoul calmly responded and followed me inside.

The seller, on the other hand, stood frozen, mouth agape.

His face was a mess of confusion and shock.

"It’s a double dungeon."

I answered simply as I walked past him.

"If the Association arrives, explain the situation."

With that, I stepped into the dungeon—Cheon Yeoul right behind me.