He accepted the mission at the ter, then spoke with the receptionist, who informed him that a teleporter located within the Academy could transport him to a distant city he dungeon. From there, he would o travel a short distao reach his destination.

  After thanking the receptionist, Mikael left the building and made his way toward the tral se of the Academy, which en to all years. While walking through the on area, he noticed other students with various numbers of lines on their uniform badges, ranging from one like his to four. This reminded him, ‘Ah, right. I fot that today is the day when students from other years are allowed to i with the first years.’

  Recalling this, he wao sigh but restrained himself. ‘I’m definitely going to get into a fight! If winning the entrance exam as a oner didn’t already provoke some nobles, being close to Amelia will definitely ehem... But holy, they be as angry as they want. The fact is, Amelia and I have a e, and soon, she’ll be mine!’

  As this thought crossed his mind, a pyful yet charming smile spread across his face. ‘Mine?’ he mused. ‘Since when did I bee this possessive? And not just possessive—my personality has shifted signifitly since I joihe Records.’ He paused for a moment, refleg on this realization before cluding,

  ‘No, shifted isn’t the right word. It’s more like I’m finally allowing myself to embrace who I truly am. Back when I was leading the gang, I couldn’t afford to be pyful or eve my guard down. I had to stay serious and stantly vigint against sudden ambushes. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have survived long enough to withe day the Records ected with Earth.’

  Finishing his introspeikael arrived in front of a stunning marble building with a sign reading Teleportation Hall. Without hesitatioepped inside.

  The interior of the building acious, with a tral ter surrounded by numerous small rooms beled "Teleportation Room." The pce bustled with activity, as a high number of people moved about, giving it a lively atmosphere. Mikael followed the signs on the walls until he reached an unoccupied teleportation room. He figured the panel beside the door, seleg his destination: Adresia City. The cost was 500 credits for the teleportation, plus another 500 for the return trip.

  ‘If the month hadn’t just started, I wouldn’t have had enough credits for this teleportation. I would’ve o pick a closer dungeon…’ he thought, but he didn’t dwell on it. He paid the required fee, and the door opeo let him inside.

  The room was extremely small, ner than 4 square meters, with a glowing blue magical circle inscribed on the floor. Mikael stepped into the circle and immediately felt an invisible forvelop him, rendering him immobile.

  Instinctively, he wao resist, his aura almost fring by reflex, but he mao suppress the impulse, knowing this art of the teleportation process. He stood still and waited as the suppressive fortensified, making it a colossal effort even to stir his aura.

  At the peak of the pressure, his surroundings shifted abruptly, plunging him into darkness. After a few seds, he felt solid grouh his feet again. Looking around, he saw a room identical to the one he had just left. For a moment, he wondered if the teleportation had failed.

  To firm, he stepped out of the room and into a hall that resembled the o the Academy, though much smaller and nearly empty. A loionist sat at the ter, and no other people were in sight.

  Seeing the different enviro, Mikael firmed that he had indeed been teleported. He approached the receptionist and inquired about the location of the Shadow Hunter dungeon. After receiving all the necessary informatiohanked him ahe building.

  He found himself in a bustling city filled with the chatter of people and the loud roar of speeding cars. Mikael strolled through the streets at a leisurely pace, taking this brief moment to rex before hours—or possibly days—of fighting monsters.

  After a pleasant hour of walking, he finally reached the city outskirts. Oside, he stopped zing around and began sprinting at high speed.

  “Swish! Swish!” The wind howled past him as he dashed forward.

  He tinued running until he arrived at an isoted pin. In the middle of the area stood a 3-meter-high stone wall inscribed with magical runes. At the entrawo guards stood watch, while a sign on the wall read Shadow Hunter Dungeon.

  As Mikael approached, one of the guards called out, “Halt!”

  Mikael stopped immediately, not wanting to cause trouble.

  “You’re a student at tral Academy, right?” the guard asked, eyeing Mikael’s uniform.

  He nodded silently.

  “Alright, I’ll o see your student ID before letting you through,” the guard said.

  Mikael raised his wrist, revealing the teologically advanced bracelet that dispyed his student ID. The guard exami briefly before nodding in approval. “Everything checks out. Yood to go. Happy dungeon diving!” He hesitated for a moment before adding, “And stay vigint—this dungeon is dangerous.”

  Mikael offered a polite reply. “Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.”

  Walking past the guards, he ehe enclosed area. Inside, a swirling blue portal floated at the ter. Sing his surroundings, Mikael noticed fewer than ten people present, all of whom seemed to be veteran hunters.

  His arrival caught their attention. It was rare for a newer to attempt this dungeon, and his distinctive Academy uniform only made him stand out more.

  Just as he prepared to ehe portal, a gruff voiterrupted him. “Kiddo, you shouldn’t try this dungeon. It’s a damn nightmare. Pick a different one!”

  Mikael turo see a middle-aged man with a heavy beard, a muscur build, and a massive broadsword strapped to his back. Despite the man’s imposing appearance, his tone carried genuine .

  Though slightly a being interrupted, Mikael maintained his posure. “I’ve already prepared and done my resear this dungeon. I’ll be fine,” he said fidently.

  The man didn’t seem vinced but could do nothing more to dissuade him. With a resigned sigh, he said, “Alright, just be cautious of ued attacks.”

  Mikael nodded, dismissing the enter as he made his two E rank swords appear in his hands using the small ste ring on his hand. Coating himself in aura aending aura threads to his swords, he stepped forward aered the swirling blue portal.

  He was instantly struck by the damp, musty st of an abandoned building. Sing his surroundings, he realized he was in an unnaturally dark room where an ordinary human wouldn’t even be able to see a meter ahead.

  The pce resembled the interior of a dipidated manor—or at least what was left of it. Amidst the surrounding darkness, Mikael’s enhanced vision revealed rotting wood everywhere, cobwebs hanging in thick clusters, and a pervasive silehat created an intensely creepy atmosphere.

  ‘Is this a dungeon or the opening se of a horror movie?’ he thought, letting out a small, nervous chuckle. He tightened his grip on his swords as he carefully observed his surroundings. The aura coating his body emitted a faint glow, making him stand out starkly in the oppressive darkness. Fully aware of how visible he was, he braced himself for an immi attack.

  He maintaihis teance for what felt like ay. When no attack came, he cautiously began to move, the creaking of the wooden floor beh his feet being his stant panion.

  Suddenly, he felt something approag from his right. He instinctively leaned bad retreated just in time to avoid a dark mass that seemed to grow even bcker against the surrounding gloom. Without knowily what was attag him, he sshed his sword through the air, the aura illuminating the space around him.

  He felt the bde pass through something—a dark, viscous substahat didn’t feel like air but cked the solidity of flesh.

  A bone-chilling scream pierced the silence, sending shivers down Mikael’s spine as he instinctively backed away, readying himself for the strike.

  [E Rank Monster Wraith killed: 6K XP received x1]

  “Ghosts? Are you kidding me? Now I’m a freaking ghostbuster,” he muttered to himself, trying to ugh off the fear g at him.

  Despite his attempt at humor, Mikael remained on high alert, his eyes darting around as he prepared for another assault. Soon, faint dark shapes began to verge around him, likely drawn by the wraith’s scream.

  In the dense darkness, spotting the wraiths proved difficult. They were shadows within shadows, almost indistinguishable from their surroundings. Log onto what he guessed were the two closest figures, Mikael used the aura threads to guide his swords, sshing at the shapes from a distance.

  One of the shadows let out a pierg shriek as it was torn apart, firming it was a wraith. The other turned out to be nothing more than an ordinary shadow, disappearing harmlessly.

  Recalling his swords, Mikael suddenly sensed an attack from his left. He crouched just in time and shed out with an aura-coated kick, eg with the wraith and sending it flying. However, this one did the deathly scream that typically apanied a wraith’s demise.

  Gripping his swords tightly, Mikael plunged into the fray. He sshed through the swarm of ghosts surrounding him. While wraiths were retively fragile a down with a single ssh, their speed and ability to blend into the darkness made them incredibly challenging to detect. As a result, Mikael found himself repeatedly ambushed.

  Despite the relentless attacks, there was a silver lining: his sixth sense was improving rapidly, sharpening with each ambush, and the experience points kept rolling in. What had initially been a nerve-wrag ordeal was now exhirating. The fear that had gripped him earlier was gone, repced by the sheer thrill of ghost-sying.

  Sadly, all good things must e to an end, and soon enough, Mikael had exterminated all the attag wraiths. Still on edge, he remained vigint, sing his surroundings for any further threats. None came.

  “Ahh... Ahh...” he panted, more from the mental strain of stant vigind surprise attacks than from physical exhaustion. After catg his breath, he began colleg small, dark pearls dropped by some of the wraiths as they dissolved into the shadows upoh. These were monster cores—E rank Darkness Cores. Satisfied with his haul, he resumed his cautious jourhrough the abandoned mansion.

  Exiting the rge hall, he stepped into a decrepit corridor, the eerie ambiance making every creak of the floorboards feel magnified.

  “Crack.”

  The sharp sou a jolt through him. Without hesitation, he sshed toward the source of the noise.

  “g.”

  His bde cshed with metal cws, log them in a stalemate. The creature that attacked him was humanoid in shape, but the simirities ehere. Its skin was deathly pale, stretched taut as though devoid of blood. Its hunched back gave it a menag posture, and long, metallic cws extended from its fingers. It gri him with a wide, toothy smile, sending chills down his spine.

  Instinctively, Mikael took a step back, his body reag before his mind could catch up.

  Realizing his moment of hesitation, he prepared tage, but the monster had already sensed his fear. It sshed horizontally with its free hand, aiming to cut him in half.

  Mikael steeled his nerves, raising his sed sword to intercept the attack.

  When the cws and bde collided, he quickly created a thin aura thread, attag it to the monster’s shoulder and maniputing it with precision.

  “Thud.”

  The creature’s arm fell to the ground with a heavy thump, severed by its own cw. The sudden move had caught it off guard, and it failed to rea time, injuring itself.

  “ROOOAAA—”

  Its pained scream tly cut off as Mikael seized the opening to decapitate it in one swift motion.

  [E+ Rae Monster Ghoul killed: 25K XP received x1]

  Breathing heavily, Mikael k beside the fallen ghoul and used his sword to cut open its chest, searg for a core. Finding nothing, he stood and tinued down the eerie corridor, his steps apanied by the occasional creak of the wooden floor.