#1. Dungeon Baby

The environment beneath the surface was far too horrendous for Kim Jin-Woo to adapt to. Despite being born and raised underground, he remained disgusted and afraid of the dark underground world.

He wanted to take revenge on the darkness and the underground duke who had ruined his life, but he chose to run away instead.

But just as he thought his vengeance was out of reach, an opportunity to correct his life fell into his lap.

[Synchronization complete. The Naga’s Labyrinth–the nest of 18,230 snakes–recognizes Kim Jin-Woo as its master.]

***

“Still, I’m her one and only brother. I can’t just turn a blind eye to my sister’s wedding.”

{Even without money, she can still get married based on her background. You don’t have to worry about it.}

“I’ll be criticized if I do that. I’ll handle it, so—”

{Are you planning on entering a labyrinth again? Seriously, if you’re thinking—}

“I’m not! Don’t worry… By the way, I have something to attend to. I’m hanging up.” Kim Jin-Woo hurriedly pressed the ‘end call’ button on his smartphone to avoid listening to the other side’s endless nagging. He could hear ‘Jin-Woo!’ echoing in his ears, but he ignored it.

“Marriage, huh…” he mused.

His sole sibling—his younger sister—was already old enough to be married. Both families had long since decided on a date for their first matrimonial meeting.

Marriage was undoubtedly an occasion to be celebrated, but the situation wasn’t too optimistic for the bride’s side. The groom was an executive of a decent middle-sized company. Kim Jin-Woo was doubtful that his family could match the groom’s status.

Kim Jin-Woo recalled how his father—who usually welcomed him with a smile—recently always had a somber look on his face. He couldn’t help but let out a long sigh.

As a dungeon baby, Kim Jin-Woo had been assigned to his family by the government; regardless, he had long regarded them as his true family members.

He pretended he knew nothing of the matter, but if the status quo wasn’t changed, he might be forced to give his sister away while leaving her empty-handed.

Brrr!

He was so lost in thought that he couldn’t even feel his smartphone vibrating in his hands. When he finally came to his senses, he looked at the words on the screen, and he fell into a daze.

‘Labyrinth Management Office.’ These words were his only link to the labyrinths—places he hadn’t visited for quite some time.

As Kim Jin-Woo had just been contemplating whether to enter the labyrinths once more, he unknowingly pressed the ‘accept’ button. “Hello?” he asked.

{Hello, Mr. Kim Jin-Woo. This is labyrinth manager Moo.}

Kim Jin-Woo had heard the manager’s voice in numerous calls before, so he was familiar with it. At the same time, he could hear the endless nagging of his parents in his head saying, ‘the labyrinths are an absolute no-go.’

In fact, that sentence was the first thing he recalled the moment he heard the manager’s voice. But right now, he was still hoping the manager had called to give him work.

He believed the one thing he could do right now was to explore the underground tunnels. As a dungeon baby, this was the only way he knew how to repay his foster family’s kindness.

Thus, he was anxious as he listened to the manager’s formal greeting. Fortunately, the formalities didn’t last long.

{Actually, Mr. Kim Jin-Woo, we have a job available for you. Are you still not interested in exploring the labyrinth?}

Kim Jin-Woo felt strange. He did wish to do so, but it was difficult to answer, even though the job offer had come in just when he needed it.

The manager seemingly interpreted Kim Jin-Woo’s silence as rejection and began to grumble.

{I wouldn’t have contacted you if our situation weren’t so bad, would I? The government recalled too much manpower, leaving us to die from the lack of workers. I sincerely hope you’ll reconsider this offer of mine.}

Even as he listened to the manager’s words, Kim Jin-Woo could still hear his mother’s pleas… ‘I’ll let you do anything other than explore the labyrinths!’

But her voice soon faded, replaced by the sighs of his sister Hyun-Ji, who was struggling all alone in her matrimonial meeting.

{I understand that your parents are very strict about this matter, but this job isn’t even that dangerous. You will only explore the edges of a relatively safe labyrinth, so if possible…}

“How’s the pay?”

{—Please do… Sorry?} Surprised, the manager stumbled over his words.

“I asked about the pay.”

{Ah, well… It’s 34 million won for two weeks of simple guide work. After deducting the taxes, this and that… The total should be about 1.7 million won a day.}

This rate was pretty low for exploring a labyrinth.

{Well, it’s just until the second floor…}

The manager was about to make excuses, but Kim Jin-Woo cut him off and readily agreed to the terms. In the end, they decided to discuss the specifics in his office.

Kim Jin-Woo was about to hang up when he suddenly remembered something crucial. “How much is the down payment?”

{There was no such thing in the agreement… But, well, if you’re going to take the job then I’ll pay you 10 million won in advance. I’ll approve it with my authority.}

When the call ended, Kim Jin-Woo was left with a dilemma.

The 10 million won would be added to the wedding dowry. At least, he had solved what mattered the most to him. Nonetheless, his expression wasn’t that bright, as his foster parents utterly detested the idea of him entering the labyrinths once more.

“Phew…” Kim Jin-Woo let out a long sigh and mumbled, “Whatever happens, happens.”

***

Many of the defeated masters of the labyrinths had hidden in the deepest recesses of the underground world. But despite their disappearance, there had never been a day of peace within the labyrinths.

The countless treasures and resources found within the labyrinths during the war were far too attractive to the many explorers who had decided to explore the tunnels after the war was over.

To them, the labyrinths were a blessing. But at the same time, they were a curse.

The labyrinth masters had admitted defeat, but the innumerable under-beasts from beneath had gone out of control with the loss of their masters. They too roamed the labyrinths en masse.

Even during the war, humans had always found it hard to fight in the dark and narrow passageways. The rock-hard skin of the under-beasts had also been a huge headache to those who challenged the dark tunnels.

Blinded by greed, many lost their lives after underestimating the labyrinths.

Eventually, though, labyrinth exploration soon peaked in popularity when the soldiers who had participated in the war became explorers afterward. In time, labyrinth exploration became a very dangerous, yet high income dream job.

The dungeon babies, who had just begun to adapt to society on the surface, were on a different league when it came to exploring the dark passageways of the labyrinths.

Their physical strength was at a superhuman level, and they also held mysterious, marvelous powers, perhaps because they had grown up drinking the milk of beasts instead of their mothers’ milk.

Kim Jin-Woo was one of them.

If only his foster parents hadn’t discouraged him from entering the dangerous labyrinth…

If only his father’s business hadn’t encountered the obstacles that had caused the decline of their family’s financial situation…

“We have called each other every now and then, but this is the first time we’ve seen each other in person.”

…Kim Jin-Woo wouldn’t have had to meet the balding manager Moo in the flesh.

“I’ve heard about your situation. Your father’s business doesn’t seem to be doing well. It’s sad to hear that when there’s an occasion to celebrate in your family.”

His words were neither kind nor malicious, but Kim Jin-Woo didn’t mind. He was here to discuss work, not to talk about family matters.

“As I mentioned previously, you will be guiding the client through the labyrinth located on the second floor. We’re expecting that the job will last two weeks, including travel back and forth… Should there be any delay, you will be compensated at 150% of the discussed pay,” the manager explained.

“Will it be dangerous?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“Well, as you already know, in this country of ours, no labyrinth is particularly dangerous at or above the second floor. Still, you have to keep an eye out for any underbeasts you might encounter…” The manager paused before continuing, “To be honest, we have a separate team dedicated to handling them, so you shouldn’t even worry about it.”

From the manager’s story, it seemed he really did wish to employ Kim Jin-Woo as a mere guide. It made sense; one couldn’t usually employ a dungeon baby for less than 2 million won a day, so the job couldn’t be that difficult to accomplish.

“This is all I can tell you for now; you can discuss the rest with the client.” The manager appeared to be asking for Kim Jin-Woo’s opinion, but he spoke as if he already knew what Kim Jin-Woo would say.

The manager must have done his research when Kim Jin-Woo was on his way here. In fact, he might have called Kim Jin-Woo knowing his financial situation wasn’t too great. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have proposed such low pay despite the relatively low difficulty of the task.

Kim Jin-Woo nodded firmly as he looked at the manager’s unctuous face. The manager slicked his nonexistent hair to one side and grinned wide.

***

Kim Jin-Woo did feel ripped off, but his private contacts revealed that the other dungeon babies were being paid absurdly poorly for their services nowadays.

After all, it had been ten years since the war ended. It would be strange if the average explorer were still ignorant of the dangers of the labyrinths. Thus, there was no reason to employ the dungeon babies unless someone wanted to venture out beyond the fifth floor.

Kim Jin-Woo withdrew 10 million won from his pay and 5 million won from his deposit. He then returned to his family’s home after much hesitation.

“Why didn’t you tell us you were coming?” Despite the sharp tone in her voice, his mother joyfully welcomed him back.

“Is Father back yet?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“He seems to be busy nowadays. He’s always late.”

Kim Jin-Woo looked at his mother with a complicated expression on his face. This mother of his truly refused to make him worry until the end. If not for his sister Kim Hyun-Ji, he would have remained ignorant about their financial difficulties.

“You’re back, Oppa?” Kim Hyun-Ji, who had once treated him like a monster and avoided him when he was young, was now welcoming him home with a smile.

“Let me talk to Hyun-Ji for a moment,” Kim Jin-Woo told his mother.

“You’ll have dinner before leaving, right? I’ll prepare the food, so come and eat when you’re done.”

“I’ll eat with Father when he comes back.”

When Kim Jin-Woo implied that he wouldn’t eat without his father, his mother smiled brightly. Although they weren’t blood-related, she was overflowing with affection toward him.

Touched by the sentiment, Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t endure it and decided to bring his sister into a separate room. “Take it,” he said, passing her the money he had withdrawn earlier. “Add this to your wedding dowry. I’ll give you some more later.”

Kim Hyun-Ji’s eyes widened. Her shock only intensified after she was done counting the notes. She wanted to return them to him, but Kim Jin-Woo remained insistent—he wanted her to accept the money.

“Don’t be discouraged by our family’s financial situation…” Kim Jin-Woo said.

Kim Hyun-Ji wore a bitter expression upon hearing his words. In the end, she embraced him, and the warmth of her affection touched Kim Jin-Woo’s heart.

This was enough…

Kim Jin-Woo thus gathered his courage and informed his parents about his return to the labyrinths.

As expected, though, he had to endure their scolding for a long time.

>The client wants to meet you this week. What do you think? Should I pass her your contact details?

A pale-faced Kim Jin-Woo woke up to the manager’s message in the aftermath of his parents’ scolding the previous night. Seeing the message, he sobered up and immediately replied.

>Okay. The contact number is 010-XXXX-XXXX and the client’s name is Jang Yoon-Joo. She’s the Program Director (PD) of the YBS current affairs education program, so leave her a text if she doesn’t answer your call. She’ll get back to you as soon as she can.