About 20 Minutes Later
The Hunters Guild team reached the scene. Both Min-Jae and Cha Hae-In, along with their team, walked toward the location.
They found the Hunter Association's Chief Inspector, Woo Jin-Chul, already present with seven more Hunter Association special hunters—some up to A-Rank, but most below that.
"Hunter Cha Hae-In and Hunter Cha Min-Jae," he addressed them both with professional respect. They nodded and looked past him toward the school.
"The magical energy I'm sensing is very overwhelming," Min-Jae muttered.
"We don't have time. I think we should go in already," Woo Jin-Chul said, but Min-Jae stopped them.
"Wait." He raised a hand. "The magical energy I'm sensing is at a different level. Anyone below A-Rank should stay here. I recommend only the S-Ranks and a few A-Ranks join."
The hunters who were to be left behind showed clear dissatisfaction. A ripple of comments and whispers went through them, but Min-Jae just walked ahead. Cha Hae-In followed, shaking her head slightly, and Woo Jin-Chul came after with the A-Ranks from the Hunters Guild.
---
As they entered, the gate appeared normal, and even the inside of the dungeon looked ordinary at first glance.
"Chief Inspector Woo Jin-Chul, can you give a brief of what happened?" Min-Jae asked as they walked.
"I'm not entirely sure. This gate was originally purchased by the Dragons Guild. But after getting through the dungeon, they found a room with a huge door they couldn't open. Then, according to them, Sung Jin-Woo arrived and opened it instantly without any problem. He later told them to inform the Hunter Association about a Double Dungeon." Woo Jin-Chul explained the whole scenario as briefly as possible.
'Double Dungeon and Sung Jin-Woo?' Min-Jae thought for a second. 'Wait, he got his power from a Double Dungeon. So it might be related to his abilities for sure. Plus, if this is about his system and his power, should outsiders interfere in this?'
'Ah, I'm gutted. I should have watched the remaining episodes. But even if I did, I don't think this timeline has been covered yet, even in the second season of the anime. I would've needed to read the light novel or the manhwa of Solo Leveling.'
"Are you thinking about something?" Cha Hae-In asked Min-Jae. He looked a bit tense. Though his eyes were covered by his blindfold, she could sense the tension.
"Nope. I was just thinking about why Sung Jin-Woo is here at a Double Dungeon when it wasn't even his guild's raid or anything," Min-Jae said. Woo Jin-Chul nodded, his thoughts apparently similar to Min-Jae's.
---
Soon, after walking for some time through the dungeon, they entered a hallway that was nothing like the rest of the dungeon they'd walked through. The architecture was completely different—ancient, foreboding, ornate.
And it immediately reminded Min-Jae of the Double Dungeon from the first season. The similarities were vividly clear.
After a long walk, they came in front of the large door the Dragons Guild hunters had mentioned to Woo Jin-Chul—the same kind of door shown in the Double Dungeon that Min-Jae had watched in the anime.
He walked forward and pushed it open.
As he did, his eyes immediately recognized the place, though it was much different now than what had been shown in the anime.
The place was in ruins. Most of the statues that had been shown standing around were destroyed. By the look of it, Min-Jae guessed it had to be Sung Jin-Woo's work.
"What is this? I don't remember inviting humans."
As they walked inside, a voice echoed through the massive chamber from a statue at the far end of the room. All the hunters froze.
The statue had a creepy smile carved into its stone face, and its eyes—red and white—glowed unnaturally. The large statue's body was twisted and unnatural.
'Even in the anime, they focused a lot on this statue,' Min-Jae thought.
"Ah, I understand. It's another external affair," the statue spoke again.
"Is the statue actually speaking?" one of the hunters whispered.
"What the hell is going on here?" another muttered.
Murmurs rippled through the group. They were completely confused by the scene unfolding before them—something they wouldn't have believed in their lifetime if they hadn't experienced it themselves.
'Where is Sung Jin-Woo then?' Min-Jae thought, scanning the room. His eyes finally landed on a figure standing still far inside the room, in a small crater created in the ground—probably from a fight that had taken place before they arrived.
"Hush..." The statue raised its stone hand to its mouth and gestured for the murmuring hunters to stay silent. "You will interrupt the king's slumber."
"King..." one of the A-Rank hunters from the Hunters Guild's main team said, noticing Sung Jin-Woo as well. "Hunter Sung Jin-Woo... What is he doing over there?" He took a step forward, clearly intending to walk over to Jin-Woo.
But before he could take his second step, a striking slash was released by the statue, aimed directly at him. It would have torn him apart—
But Min-Jae was quick. He used telekinesis to deflect the slash, sending it crashing into the far wall instead.
"I see. There is an otherworldly presence among the humans," the statue spoke, most likely referring to Min-Jae. "You will make fine offerings for the king."
"Thanks, Hunter Min-Jae," the hunter said, breathing hard.
'What should I do?' Min-Jae thought, analyzing the situation. 'He's referring to Sung Jin-Woo as the king? No... the presence of Sung Jin-Woo has changed quite a lot from the last time I sensed it. This is a difficult situation.'
Min-Jae thought through all the possibilities he could muster with the limited knowledge of the Solo Leveling universe he had—from watching nineteen episodes total and being in this universe for only a short time.
But his gap in knowledge of the full lore and the situation at hand was becoming painfully evident.