The Returned Hunter Has Awakened to a Hidden Class - Chapter 23

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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23

Chapter 23

Golden Tower, Eldorado (1)

[Boss Defeated: Hell’s Gatekeeper Agaress]

[Basement 2nd Floor Clear Complete!]

[Experience Gained: 5,000]

[Coins Gained: 1,000]

[Hidden Quest Achieved!: Clear 2nd Floor within 24 hours!]

[Item Acquired: Golden Tower Eldorado Entry Ticket]

“Ohhh! 5,000 experience?! I finally hit level 20!”

 Park Min-soo clenched his fists and let out a cheer. The euphoria of leveling up sent shivers throughout his body.

“Congratulations. Good thing you listened to me, right?”

“…Hmph!”

 Park Min-soo turned his head away coldly, but a subtle smile spread across his lips.

Swish-

 Park Min-soo tilted his head as he looked at the golden ticket in his hand.

“But what’s this? Eldorado?”

“It’s a complete gambling place.”

 Kim Jun answered calmly.

“Gambling?”

“Golden Tower Eldorado. It’s another tower hidden within the Tower of Trials.”

 Kim Jun pointed to the ticket and continued his explanation.

“It has floors from 1 to 100, and when you clear each floor, three doors appear. You choose one to enter and…”

“And then?”

“The next floor is randomly determined. You could go straight from floor 1 to floor 100, or climb one floor at a time. It’s completely up to luck.”

 Park Min-soo’s eyes widened.

“Ooh! So if you’re lucky, you can go straight to the top?”

“That’s right. But you only get 10 chances total. You have to reach the highest floor possible within those 10 attempts.”

 Listening to Kim Jun’s explanation, Park Min-soo looked at the ticket again. Its golden surface was mysteriously glimmering.

“So that’s why you called it gambling! The rewards must be good if you reach floor 100, right?”

“That’s…”

 Kim Jun couldn’t answer. His previous best record was floor 56.

 Eldorado’s 100th floor was territory unknown even to Kim Jun, the regressor.

“We’ll have to see when we get there.”

“But how do you know all this, hyung?”

 Park Min-soo’s innocent question caught him off guard for a moment, but Kim Jun answered calmly.

“Ah, I have a skill called 「Detection」. I can grasp some information about items.”

 Kim Jun pointed to the golden ticket and explained naturally.

“Basic information about Eldorado is flowing from this ticket. Floor 1 to 100, random movement, 10 chances… things like that.”

“Wow, amazing! There are skills like that too!”

 Park Min-soo nodded in admiration.

 He didn’t seem suspicious at all.

‘Phew…’

 Kim Jun sighed in relief inwardly.

 Park Min-soo’s innocence was sometimes grateful.

 Thanks to his accepting nature without suspicion, he could overcome such crises.

‘But I need to be more careful from now on.’

 Kim Jun steeled himself.

 Of course, his companions including Park Min-soo were all trustworthy. Before regression and now alike.

 However, the fact that he was a regressor could never be revealed.

‘Why I regressed… how they died…’

 Kim Jun’s expression darkened.

 Tragic memories from the past flashed by.

 Those moments when his companions fell one by one.

 The helplessness of being the sole survivor.

‘I don’t want to talk about such things. I can’t talk about them either.’

 He wanted to show them only a hopeful future. Because this time he would definitely protect them all.

*

“Wahaha! Let’s go right in!”

 As soon as they escaped the underground floor and came up to the surface, Park Min-soo suddenly shouted.

“Huh? What?”

 The moment Kim Jun was confused-

Pop-!

 Golden light burst forth and Park Min-soo’s figure disappeared.

“…Geez.”

 Kim Jun laughed helplessly. Park Min-soo had used the ticket immediately.

“I couldn’t even explain properly.”

 Eldorado looked simple but was a place full of traps.

 You had to defeat the boss within a 10-minute time limit on each floor, and failure meant immediate expulsion.

 But he soon shook his head.

“Well, it should be fine.”

 Park Min-soo looked foolish because of his usual bright and clumsy behavior, but he was a legitimate S-rank Hunter.

 Before the Tower appeared, he was also a veteran who had conquered numerous high-difficulty Gates with Kim Jun.

 Now that he had reached level 20, even more so.

 No matter how weak a tank’s attack power was, he should be able to handle the bosses on Eldorado’s early floors sufficiently.

‘What should I do.’

 Kim Jun checked his own condition.

 Level 50.

 It was a level where 2nd job advancement was possible.

‘According to the original plan, I should go meet Warrior Promotion Officer Valderion…’

 But seeing Park Min-soo changed his mind.

 His body hadn’t fully recovered yet, but Eldorado’s bosses weren’t that strong.

—-

[Skill Information]

-「Black Flame」

– Grade: EX

– Attribute: Fire + Darkness

– Effect: Creates black flames that never extinguish

– Special: Increases all attribute damage

– Stage: 12/1000

—-

 Moreover, since the level of his constantly active 「Black Flame」 had increased, he should be able to clear Eldorado easily.

“Ah, screw it. Should I go in too?”

Pop-!

 Golden light enveloped Kim Jun, and the surrounding scenery changed instantly.

*

Whiiiing-

 Along with an ear-splitting metallic sound, a flashy system window unfolded before his eyes.

[Golden Tower, Eldorado]

[Welcome to Eldorado!]

[Current Location: 1st Floor of Eldorado]

[Objective: Challenge from 1st Floor → 100th Floor]

[Rules: Choose from 3 doors after clearing each floor]

[System: Move to random floors based on chosen door]

[Rewards: Higher floors yield better rewards]

[Chances: Total of 10 challenge attempts (Currently 1/10)]

[Good luck, challenger.]

 A massive circular hall gleaming golden on all sides.

 Beyond the ceiling, an endlessly spiraling staircase was visible. It was a magnificent sight reminiscent of the Tower of Babel.

‘Was it this splendid before my regression?’

 But the admiration was brief, as Kim Jun’s gaze turned forward.

“Kyu?”

“….”

 The boss of Eldorado’s 1st Floor, Rabbit. 

 Literally, just a rabbit. 

 A cute rabbit with white fur, red eyes, and a small body was looking at Kim Jun while tilting its head.

[Eldorado 1st Floor Boss: Pure Rabbit]

[Level: 1]

[Health: 100/100]

[Time Limit: 10 minutes]

Whoosh-

 Black flames erupted from Kim Jun’s body.

“Kyuuuu-!”

 The rabbit bravely charged forward, but as soon as it touched the black flames-

Crackle-

“S-sorry…”

 Kim Jun made a genuinely apologetic expression. It had been such a cute rabbit.

[Eldorado 1st Floor Cleared!]

[Experience Gained: 10]

[Proceed to the next floor.]

 Instantly, three doors appeared ahead.

[Left Door] 

[Central Gate] 

[Right Door] 

[Choose one to enter!]

 The golden Central Gate. 

 The silver left door.

 The bronze right door.

 Kim Jun looked at the three doors and fell into thought.

 His maximum floor reached before regression was the 56th floor. The reward he received then was +5 to his current level.

 Of course, it wasn’t a bad reward, but it wasn’t as much as he had expected.

‘What could be on the 100th Floor?’

 Surely, if he reached the top floor, an unimaginable reward would be waiting.

 Eldorado was a special place that could only be entered once in a lifetime.

‘Let me be careful.’

 Kim Jun fell deep into thought.

 Was there really no other way? Did he have to rely solely on luck?

 ‘Someone else’ would be entering without any hesitation. 

 Was there any point in worrying like this?

“Ah!”

 There was a point. 

“How stupid of me.”

 Kim Jun smacked his forehead. 

“I can just use Ariadne’s Thread.”

—-

[Item Information]

 -Ariadne’s Thread

– Grade: A

– Unique Skill: Guides the wearer to the correct path.

—-

 Ariadne’s Thread was a mysterious item that accurately guided the wearer to the optimal path not only in simple labyrinths but also in the Tower of Trials, and even in reality.

 Naturally, its effect would be activated in Eldorado as well.

“Why didn’t I think of this…”

 Kim Jun smiled bitterly.

 To make an excuse, when he first entered Eldorado before his regression, it was shortly after Han Su-in’s death.

 Kim Jun at that time was completely broken.

 The guilt of failing to protect the most precious person. The emptiness that made everything feel meaningless.

 All those emotions were weighing down on Kim Jun.

 He couldn’t taste food even when eating, and was tormented by nightmares even when sleeping.

 Those were days when just getting through each day was overwhelming.

 He had no leisure to contemplate optimal choices in places like Eldorado.

 He simply mechanically chose doors that appeared before him, fighting bosses with the mindset that dying would be fine.

“Phew.”

 Kim Jun, having composed himself, opened his subspace pocket and took out Ariadne’s Thread.

“Guide me to the 100th Floor.”

 The thread spun around here and there, then fixed its gaze on one place. 

 The Central Gate. 

“Good.”

 Kim Jun confidently opened the central door and entered. 

[Entered 4th Floor of Eldorado!]

[4th Floor of Eldorado Boss: Corrupted Mandrake]

[Level: 4]

[Health: 400/400]

[Time Limit: 10 minutes]

“Only the 4th floor?”

 Kim Jun showed a momentarily disappointed expression.

 He had asked to be guided to the 100th Floor, but it was only the 4th floor.

 But he soon shook his head.

‘No. Ariadne’s Thread has never been wrong.’

 Recalling his pre-regression experience made him even more certain.

 Surely, when starting from the 2nd floor, it seemed unremarkable, but he had the experience of leaping straight to the 30th floor at the very next checkpoint.

 It seemed there was likely a hidden strategy that required meeting specific sequences and conditions to reach the 100th floor summit, rather than simply climbing floors one by one.

‘After all, it’s an item that presents the optimal route to the final destination.’

“Kiiiiiiiek!”

 Just then, a sharp scream came from ahead.

 A massive plant-type monster was pulling its roots from the ground and approaching Kim Jun.

 It was a Corrupted Mandrake, its entire body stained with purple poison.

“Noisy.”

 When Kim Jun glared at it, the Mandrake seemed to sense the threat and frantically shot poisonous thorns.

“Kiiiiiii!”

Swish swish swish swish-!

 Dozens of thorns flew toward Kim Jun, but he leisurely stepped aside.

Thud thud-

 The thorns fell to the floor where Kim Jun had been standing. It was a more powerless attack than expected.

“Just with something like this?”

 Kim Jun shook his head in disappointment and walked toward the Mandrake.

 There was no need to use any special skills.

 Just one fist.

Thump-!

 With one ordinary punch, the Mandrake’s body was completely shattered.

[4th Floor of Eldorado Clear!]

[Experience Gained: 40]

[Please move to the next floor.]

 Three doors appeared again. 

 And when he opened the left door that Ariadne’s Thread had guided him to, 

[Entered 9th Floor of Eldorado!]

[9th Floor of Eldorado Boss: Enraged Crystal Golem]

[Level: 9]

[Health: 900/900]

[Time Limit: 10 minutes]

 He had entered the 9th Floor. 

 1st Floor, 4th Floor, 9th Floor. 

‘The climbing range is lower than I thought.’

 Kim Jun thought as he looked at the massive crystal golem standing before him.

‘1, 4, 9… seems like there might be some pattern?’

 An arrangement of numbers that seemed to have some rule. 

 He felt like he was on the verge of understanding. 

‘…’

 But Kim Jun was terrible at math. 

“I’ll just push through for now.”

“Guoooooo!”

Thwack!

 A simple side kick.

 The golem’s massive body crashed into the wall and shattered into pieces.

[9th Floor of Eldorado Clear!]

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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