Three men were sprinting down a dim, cobblestone passage, their eyes fixed straight ahead.
"What the hell was that thing?!"
"Just keep running! It’s going to catch us!"
"Dammit! We never should have taken that detour!"
Regret gnawed at them as they pushed their bodies to the limit. On their way back from a certain deal, they had stumbled upon a strange, unfamiliar structure. Driven by curiosity, they had wandered inside—a choice that turned out to be their undoing. The mysterious structure was a dungeon. Shortly after entering, they had encountered a monster, and they had been fleeing for their lives ever since.
"There’s the exit!"
"Go! Go!"
"Crap, it's gaining on us!"
Rounding a corner, the men finally saw the exit, where sunlight spilled onto the floor.
But behind them, the intimidating howl of a monster echoed through the corridor. The exit was still some distance away; at this rate, the creature would overtake them before they reached safety. Realizing this, one of the men skidded to a halt. He spun around, leveling his automatic handgun at the darkness.
"Tch! Eat this!"
He pulled the trigger frantically, aiming at the four-legged beast lunging for him. Gunshots thundered against the stone walls, and the bullets struck home.
However...
"Gyaaaah!"
Ignoring its wounds, the monster lunged through the gunfire. Blood sprayed from its neck as it clamped its jaws onto the man's left arm, which he had instinctively thrust out as a shield.
"D-Dammit! Die! Die! Die!"
Enduring the agonizing pain radiating from his arm, the man pressed the muzzle of his handgun against the monster's torso and emptied the magazine. The reports echoed repeatedly through the passage. His companions stopped in their tracks, watching in frozen horror as their friend struggled against the beast.
Finally, after taking every bullet at point-blank range, the monster released its grip. It collapsed onto the man, its life extinguished.
"A-Are you okay?!"
"Barely... Just get this thing off me! It’s heavy!"
"R-Right!"
The other two rushed back, hurriedly shoving the monster's carcass aside.
"Shit, it hurts like hell!"
"We need to stop the bleeding. Hey, get the water!"
"Right!"
They set to work treating the wound as best they could. They washed the bite with their drinking water and used a torn, grimy shirt to create a makeshift pressure bandage.
"Dammit, the wound is deep. We need to get him to a doctor..."
"Yeah, let’s move... Huh?"
As they prepared to hoist their wounded comrade, the monster's corpse began to glow. It vanished in a shimmer of light, leaving behind a fist-sized lump of silver-colored metal.
"...What is this?"
"Hey! What are you doing? Move it!"
"Ah, right. Sorry!"
The man instinctively shoved the metal lump into his pocket, offered his shoulder to his injured companion, and scrambled out of the dungeon.
After reaching the city safely, they dropped their wounded friend off at a back-alley doctor they frequented. Once that was settled, they went to report the results of their deal to the organization's Kingpin, including the story of the strange building.
"You guys... you’re lucky to be alive. That thing is what everyone’s been talking about lately. It’s called a dungeon."
The Kingpin sat behind his desk, exhaling a cloud of cigar smoke. His voice carried a mix of exasperation and genuine interest.
"A... dungeon, sir?"
"Yeah. Take a look at this."
The Kingpin reached over and clicked on the television in the room. The screen displayed news reports about dungeons appearing across the globe. The men stared at the broadcast, and as the gravity of the situation sank in, they began to break out in a cold sweat.
"As you can see, the whole world is obsessed with this right now. It seems that people who rush into dungeons without a plan—like you idiots—have been suffering casualties in the thousands. You were lucky."
"Y-Yes, sir."
"..."
Faced with the Kingpin's terrifyingly calm appraisal, the men could only offer weak, strained responses.
Watching their pathetic display, the Kingpin took another puff of his cigar before getting to the heart of the matter.
"So? What did you bring back from the dungeon?"
"...Huh?"
"Don't 'huh' me. The news just said it, didn't it? You get treasure for killing monsters. If he killed one of those things, he must have found something."
The man suddenly remembered the weight in his pocket. He reached in and pulled out the metal lump, placing it on the Kingpin's desk with trembling hands.
"Ah, um... this is it. I don't know what it is, but it appeared after the monster vanished."
"Hmm? This...? Wait, what?!"
The Kingpin leaned in for a closer look and let out a shout of surprise so sharp he nearly fell out of his chair.
"W-What is it, sir?!"
"You morons! This is a solid lump of platinum!"
"Platinum... Platinum?!"
"...What?!"
The men nearly leaped back in shock, their eyes fixed on the silver lump on the desk.
"At this size and weight... it’s easily worth over a hundred thousand dollars."
"No way!"
"I-Is that true, boss?"
"Yeah. Why the hell would I lie about something like this?"
With the Kingpin’s confirmation, the men could only blink in disbelief, staring at the small fortune on the desk. Meanwhile, the Kingpin’s mind was already racing. He puffed on his cigar, letting out a low hum as he calculated the possibilities.
Then...
"...Hey. Do you remember where that dungeon was?"
"Eh? Ah, yes. Roughly..."
"Where?"
"Ah, um... around here, I think."
The man used his finger to trace a circle on a map provided by the Kingpin, indicating the general area.
"...And the exact location? Can you pinpoint it?"
"Um, sorry. I think I’d remember the spot if we were actually there, but..."
"Fine. Get ready. We’re taking a crew and heading to that dungeon right now!"
"What?! Immediately?!"
"Yes. Now move!"
"Y-Yes, sir!"
Barking orders, the Kingpin watched them scramble out of the room. He then picked up his desk phone and dialed a subordinate.
"It’s me. Find the owner of the XXX Mountain Forest Area. What? Why? To buy it, obviously....Yeah, that’s right. Start with a legal offer....And if they refuse? You know the drill. If they won't sell, handle it the usual way....Good. I’m counting on you."
He hung up the phone and leaned back in his chair, savoring his cigar.
"This is an investment... no, a speculation. Either way, it’s not a bad gamble."
Looking down at the lump of platinum, the Kingpin let a dark, predatory smile spread across his face.
Under the cover of darkness, men carrying heavy packs lay flat in the thicket, hiding from the sweeping searchlight of a patrol vehicle as they watched the fence line.
"It’s no good. The Border Patrol is too tight. Our usual routes are blocked."
"Seriously, ever since these dungeons popped up, border security has been a nightmare. It’s killing business."
"Yeah... nothing for it. Let's pull back and report to the Kingpin."
"Got it."
The men abandoned their crossing and withdrew into the shadows before the security units could spot them.
"I see. So crossing the border is a no-go for now."
"Yes, sir. Likely due to the dungeons, the security at the border has become incredibly strict. Even if we tried to overwhelm them with a swarm of amateurs, I doubt anyone would make it through. We’d just lose product to the authorities."
"I understand. We’ll suspend deliveries for the time being. They can’t maintain that level of security forever. We’ll wait for things to cool down before we resume operations."
The Kingpin made the call to halt distribution without hesitation.
"Understood. So, in the meantime, shall we proceed with the other plan?"
"Yeah. In the dungeon we secured, have the men focus on learning magic and getting their level up."
"Understood. I look forward to seeing the results in a few months."
"Right. And make sure you’re collecting the dungeon usage fee—or more accurately, the tribute."
"Don't worry, boss. We’re taking a cut of the drop items as payment in kind."
The Kingpin nodded in satisfaction, but added a final warning.
"I’ll leave the details to you. Just make sure you maintain the right balance."
"I know. We can't have the underlings getting ideas of rebellion once they have a bit of power."
"Exactly. And tell our direct subordinates to get their levels up as quickly as possible."
"Yes, sir."
With a short nod, the man left the room. Once he was alone, the Kingpin lit a fresh cigar.
"Just as I thought, the border is a fortress right now. It’ll be at least six months before we can move product again, I’d wager."
He puffed on the cigar while checking a calendar on the wall.
"Well, it’s fine. I have other ways to make money."
He opened his desk drawer and looked at the items his dungeon-exploring subordinates had paid as tribute. There were glass vials filled with liquids, ancient-looking scrolls, and small, shimmering gemstones.
"...It seems the return on my investment will come sooner than I expected."
With a cold, confident smile, the Kingpin closed the drawer.
Elsewhere, men were swinging pickaxes and shovels with unnatural speed, digging deep into the earth. Even the hard-packed soil yielded like soft pudding under their enhanced strength.
"I can't believe we used the dungeon to level up just to end up digging holes."
"Stop complaining. This is work. Once this tunnel is done, moving product will be a cakewalk."
"Yeah, but still... must be nice for you, being able to use magic."
"Right man for the right job, that’s all."
The man shoveling dirt into a trolley looked with envy at his partner, who was using magic to reinforce and pave the tunnel walls into a smooth semi-circle.
"Hey, you shouldn't talk. Thanks to that Weapon Enhancement skill of yours, your attack power is higher than anyone else at your level. That shovel is just a cheap piece of junk, right? Normally, you couldn't tear through bedrock like this with a retail tool."
"Well, I guess you’ve got a point."
"Exactly. We're almost at the end. Let's finish this up so we can go get a drink."
"...Fine."
Feeling somewhat mollified, the man gripped his shovel and resumed his work. His partner continued his magical reinforcement, securing the tunnel with timber as they went.
Three days later, the tunnel they had spent half a month excavating was officially completed.
About twenty men and women of various ages, all carrying light luggage, moved quickly through the long, illuminated underground tunnel.
The man leading the group glanced back and barked at those who were starting to stray from the line.
"Stay in a single file on the right side! Move it! Once we reach the other side, get into the vehicles exactly as instructed!"
He led them out of the tunnel and into a small warehouse packed with cardboard boxes. Once the last person was through, the leader placed a heavy lid over the tunnel entrance and expertly camouflaged it.
"That’s that. Alright, let’s move. Everyone get into your assigned trucks."
He split the group up, hiding several people inside large boxes meant for refrigerators and washing machines. They were loaded onto cargo trucks alongside genuine appliances to complete the disguise.
A few minutes later, the trucks pulled out of the warehouse.
However...
"Stop! Police! We’re conducting an inspection!"
The trucks were stopped almost immediately by police who had been lying in wait. Multiple patrol cars swarmed the area, officers stepping out with rifles leveled at the vehicles.
The leader, who had been driving one of the trucks, realized resistance was futile. He stepped out with his hands raised and was immediately forced to the ground and restrained.
"We found them! These are the illegals from the tip!"
"Sir, we’ve found it here, too! A massive stash of narcotics hidden inside the appliances!"
"Understood."
The Commander in charge of the operation nodded grimly as he listened to his subordinates' reports.
"You certainly made us work for this. Now, you’re going to tell us everything—the routes, the names, the whole damn works."
"..."
The Commander stood over the restrained man, his eyes cold and unforgiving.
The trucks were seized, and a subsequent search of the warehouse revealed the existence of the underground tunnel.
Back at the headquarters, the Kingpin received the news with a sour expression.
"So, Tunnel A has been taken down."
"Yes, sir. It seems one of the people we moved was picked up for staying illegally. During the interrogation, they let the existence of the tunnel slip."
"Tch! What happened to the idiot who leaked it?"
"He’d already been deported, so I handled him internally."
The man reported the "disposal" in a flat, clinical tone. The Kingpin exhaled a long trail of smoke, forced to calm his rising temper.
"...Fine. It’s not like we only have one tunnel. What about the others?"
"Following this incident, we’re being extra thorough with the re-camouflaging."
"Good. We’d better start digging some new ones too."
"Yes, sir. You can never have too many backups."
"See to it."
"Understood."
After the subordinate left, the Kingpin leaned back, staring at the ceiling.
"Not so much cat-and-mouse as it is whack-a-mole... and I’m starting to lose my sense of humor."