Through my blurry vision, I saw my younger brother, turned toward me in his sleep. I sat up and lifted Belare from the head of the bed onto my shoulder, using the Teacher skill. Yerim had already gotten up, leaving only the crumpled blanket behind.

Last night, Seong Hyunjae really did come over to make pancakes, and after a bit of a fuss—but not quite enough to call it confinement—he fell asleep like a good little child right at 10 p.m. He had said he’d be sleeping a lot for a while, and he wasn’t lying. He was so deeply asleep that someone could’ve carried him off and he wouldn’t have noticed. I couldn’t just leave him there, so I brought him back to our house.

There was still a guest room, so I tossed him on the bed, but then Yuhyun came into my bedroom. He said it was because Seong Hyunjae might have another episode like last time. Yerim followed with her pillow and blanket not long after.

So, the three of us ended up sleeping together. Yerim didn’t mind, but Yuhyun was bothered by the fact that there was an unfamiliar S-Rank Awakened in the house. In the end, I had to use a skill to get him to sleep. He couldn’t sleep well outside the house, and even at home, he couldn’t relax if someone else was around. Sensitive, as always.

‘Back then, I had no idea.’

He didn’t sleep well without me, but that was just when he was little. I thought he’d be fine once he got older. I reached out and gently patted his head. Maybe he was half-awake, because Yuhyun opened his eyes slightly. As soon as he saw me, a smile spread across his face.

“…Hyung.”

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah.”

He smiled so happily that even I felt better just looking at him. Still groggy and with messy hair, he looked younger than usual. It brought back memories. If nothing had happened, we could’ve stayed like this.

“Did you have a good dream or something?”

“Just… right now is nice.”

“Yeah. Things have been peaceful these past few days.”

If only it could stay like this, I wouldn’t wish for anything more—but I knew it wasn’t possible. Deep down, I wished Yuhyun could stay unaware of everything. It’d be nice if he could just keep smiling like this. But once his eyes fully recovered, I’d have to tell him about the Black Dragon’s heart shard. He was definitely going to hate it, but I’d have to convince him somehow. And once he found out about Chatterbox, how worried would he be?

And the things that happened before the regression—those, more than anything, I hoped he’d never find out about.

…I wish someone would just fix everything for me and say, “No more worries now!” Where’s a hero when you need one? But instead of a savior of the world, what arrived was a text notification.

[The investigation is complete!]

It was a message from Seok Hayan’s lab. The research team hadn’t taken a break even for Chuseok as they investigated changes in dungeon conditions. The team had many foreigners, and most didn’t celebrate Chuseok, but still, it seemed more like they just gave up their vacations out of academic dedication. Seok Hayan herself had said skipping Chuseok for once was fine and insisted on staying in the lab—until she was forcibly dragged home.

Anyway, it looked like the results were in today. I called immediately, but since Hayan had been forcibly taken home, someone else answered. That person explained the results of the investigation to me.

“So, the dungeon reset speed is the same?”

[Yes. Only the saturation rate has slowed to a third of its previous speed; the reset speed remains unchanged. That means, if needed, we can resume frequent dungeon raids like before. In short, we can concentrate our raiding teams on dungeons with higher byproduct value.]

Not all dungeons are equally valuable. Even among dungeons of the same grade and difficulty, the profit could vary widely. But since we couldn’t allow a dungeon to burst, we had no choice but to clear even the low-profit ones regularly. That’s why there was a law requiring guilds to take on a certain percentage of unpopular dungeons.

But now, we could spend less time on the less valuable dungeons.

[We haven’t confirmed every dungeon in the country yet, but regional surveys have all shown the same result. On the other hand, foreign dungeons seem to be unchanged. We verified Japan’s dungeons with the cooperation of the Amaterasu Guild.]

Shishio even sent a Chuseok gift, didn’t he? I don’t want to see him again, but he is useful. So it’s just our country that changed?

“Understood. Please organize the data for an announcement, but keep it confidential for now.”

[Yes.]

I hung up and paused to think. The fact that dungeons had become more stable was definitely good news. But if it became known that this was happening only in our country, every other nation in the world would turn their eyes toward us.

‘They’ll wonder why, but we can’t exactly tell them.’

“Oh, I raised a magical beast, and it gave our country a special shield~ Haha.” Who would believe that?

‘But how long does that shield even last?’

Did I ever ask? I can’t remember. We can’t just say, “Dungeons are three times safer now!” only to turn around a few days later and go, “Oops, back to normal!”

“Hey, Changeling? Sorry to wake you, but can I ask you just one thing?”

“Hyung?”

“I’m just curious. You’re sweet, right? Just wake up for a second, okay?”

I tapped the wound on my chest as I spoke, and before long, a silvery dragon with a hint of pink shimmered into view.

-Yaaawn, uuuu…

Her eyes barely opened, her face screaming with drowsiness, and her wings drooped listlessly.

“Aigo, I’m so sleepy. Sorry. The saturation rate of Korean dungeons has slowed down—do you know how long that’ll last? Just tell me that, then go back to sleep.”

-Mmm, if no one touches it, a hundred years? Even if someone tries to weaken it, it’ll last ten years, Daddy.

Ten years… well, that should be enough time to wrap things up. I patted Changeling on the head, praising her for being such a good girl. Just then, the door burst open.

“A strange voice—huh?”

Yerim’s eyes went wide when she saw Changeling.

“So cute! Is that the fairy dragon? She’s so pretty! Can I hold her? She looks squishy!”

As Yerim approached, Changeling burrowed into my arms.

-Daddy, I’m going back to sleep. Even if you call, I probably won’t wake up…

“Okay, okay. Sleep tight. Thanks.”

Changeling let out a big yawn, flashing her tiny teeth and red tongue, then disappeared. Yerim looked at the empty space with deep regret.

“Fairy wings are a must, after all.”

Was she talking about the Water Spirit? I’d better contact BunnyBunnyBear Company in advance.

“Yuhyun, you heard the call, right? I think we need to discuss this. Is Guild Leader Seoseong awake?”

“He’s making breakfast right now.”

He’s paying back the favor for putting him to sleep. I got up, washed up, and changed clothes. Just as I was about to head out—

“…Yuhyun, your hand.”

“Huh? Uh?”

Yuhyun flinched and quickly hid his hands behind his back. Hold on, hey.

“You didn’t wash properly, did you! Don’t tell me you too, Yerim—Yerim!”

“I rinsed with water! I even washed my face with soap. Not with my hands, but like this, just using water to make a little soap mix.”

“No! Wash properly, properly! Don’t tell me you didn’t wash your hands properly even last night?”

It was too dark to see well, but now the problem was clear—pen marks were still boldly visible on their palms. Yuhyun’s read: Haeyeon Guild Leader, Han Yuhyun. Yerim’s: Ruler of Water, Park Yerim. Last night, they had looked really dejected after seeing Seong Hyunjae’s palm, so I wrote those titles for them.

Of course, I hadn’t left anyone else out. For Myungwoo: Master of the Golden Forge, Yu Myungwoo. For Noah: Golden Dragon, Noah. For Hyunah: Breaker Guild Leader, Moon Hyunah. Lastly, Chief Song declined, but Seong Hyunjae said something ridiculous like, “If only Chief Song Taewon is left out, it might hurt his feelings and lead to disaster,” and so Chief Song Taewon had to return with his name on his palm too.

Anyway, writing on palms is fine—but why don’t they wash them?

“To the bathroom. Now, Han Yuhyun.”

“But Hyung, it’s a waste.”

“It’s not. I can write it again anytime, so # Nоvеlight # wash it! Yerim, you too!”

Honestly, these kids. After making sure they washed properly, I headed to the kitchen. Peace was sitting in front of the kitchen door like a guard, and for some reason, Chirp was once again perched on top of Seong Hyunjae’s head. Must be the height thing. Although he never climbed on Yuhyun’s head… Maybe he just thinks it’s fine to sit on Seong Hyunjae.

-Kkyaang!

I petted Peace as he greeted me and walked over to Seong Hyunjae.

“Mm, good morning.”

“Your vision seems to have recovered a bit more. That’s a relief.”

“Thanks to you, your eyes are safe too.”

“If you want—”

“No need.”

Seriously, no need. If I had something like that, I bet the Crescent Moon would appear in the middle of the night and grab me by the ankle saying, “Give me back my Little Moon eyes.”

“Yuhyun won’t touch anything you made anyway, so I’ll help.”

“I wonder if I’ll get kicked out for making Han Yujin work.”

“Don’t be dramatic.”

His demeanor was just like always. Just like before we entered the Forest of the Black Cow dungeon. I wanted to ask what he was thinking, what he planned to do next—but instead, I just cracked some eggs.

“If it’s something important, contact me once you’re fully stabilized.”

I needed to talk to him about what happened before the regression—and about the Crescent Moon. What were we supposed to do about her? That was the real problem. Just thinking about it made me irritated all over again. Maybe they were having a meeting right now to decide what to do with our world. And here I was, stuck waiting for a verdict when we hadn’t done anything wrong. I know life’s unfair, but I still hate it.

Yuhyun came out of the bathroom and offered to help, saying “I’ll do it,” but I told him to just sit down. He worked through Chuseok, so he should at least be served breakfast. Once the table was set, I pointed out which dishes Seong Hyunjae had made. As expected, Yuhyun didn’t touch any of them.

“Before you head back to your guild, we need to have a brief discussion.”

As breakfast was wrapping up, I set my phone on the table and made a video call to Moon Hyunah. She picked up shortly after.

[What is it, Director Han? Did Seong Hyunjae cause trouble?]

“No, more importantly—is anyone else there with you?”

[I just got to the guild. Hold on.]

The camera angle shifted, and soon Moon Hyunah reappeared.

[All clear. No one can hear us.]

With that confirmation, I got to the point.

“There’s been a change in the dungeons. Only in Korea.”

I relayed everything I had heard from the lab. Both Seong Hyunjae and Moon Hyunah listened intently, their expressions serious.

“The likely cause is what happened in the Forest of the Black Cow dungeon. Japan suffered heavy damage, whereas our country not only avoided that but also experienced a safer transformation of the dungeons themselves.”

I kept the fact that Changeling was the cause a secret.

“According to the fairy dragon, the effect will last at least ten years, possibly up to a hundred.”

[That’s quite a long time.]

“Then first, we’ll need to reclassify the guild-assigned dungeons. The raid teams will have to be reorganized as well.”

“If this gets out, the backlash will be significant.”

“I’m sure it will. But we won’t be able to keep it hidden for long anyway.”

The saturation status of a dungeon could be identified by the color of the gate, so eventually, people would notice. In that case, it was better to prepare and then make an official announcement.

“It’s already been some time, so it would be best to announce it quickly. I’m thinking of heading to the Association this afternoon for a discussion and decision—how about that?”

[If I bought stocks now, they’d probably double… but I’d get caught, huh. There’ll be a lot of talk overseas. People were already questioning whether too many S-Rank Hunters were gathering in Korea lately.]

“Really? Even though we lost two.”

[Hunter Yerim and Hunter Kim Seonghan both recently became S-Ranks. No Plus-Minus Zero anymore, and then three more S-Ranks arrived from abroad. Liette hasn’t officially transferred, but she’s been staying here continuously.]

“We’ve got two S-Rank monster mounts, and Comet’s not even done growing yet. It’s only natural people would talk. And if word gets out that our dungeons have become safer too, there’s a high chance we’ll face pressure.”

…So annoying. Why are they after other countries’ talents? Sure, Korea had a high number of S-Rank Hunters compared to population, but still.

“Regardless, it’s not something we can keep postponing. We’ll need to be cautious after the announcement.”

Even if countries tried to pressure us, it wasn’t like they could put leashes on S-Rank Hunters and drag them away. If anyone openly tried to pick a fight, we could just say we won’t raise any more monster mounts or sell stamina potions.

Moon Hyunah, and even Seong Hyunjae, said there were a lot of things they needed to prepare in advance and returned to the Sesung Guild. Yuhyun was no different. Since we had decided to make the announcement the following day, we had to act all the more quickly.

Of course, I was the exception.

“Hey, Hamin. Did the gifts get delivered alright?”

[Of course they did.]

I sent Chuseok gifts to people I was indebted to. Even to those who had shown me kindness before the regression. I didn’t reveal my identity—just enclosed a letter saying, “You helped me in the past.” Which was true enough. For me, it was-the past, and I really had received their help.

“And send me the research data, too.”

[Minui will bring it over. Is our Geumdong still not here yet?]

“With all the chaos lately, who knows. I’ll let you know the moment I hear anything.”

After hanging up, I let out a long breath. Once the holidays were over, I’d have to go visit. Saying “I used to live nearby” like I did with Myungwoo and Yerim probably wouldn’t work this time. An anonymous recommendation would be a better excuse.

Before long, Kim Minui came by and delivered the documents. I looked over the familiar yet younger faces inside the files, silently repeating what I wanted to say over and over in my mind.

That afternoon, a meeting was held at the Hunter Association. Representatives from Haeyeon, Sesung, Breaker, and Hanshin gathered, along with members of the Association and the government. Naturally, the director of the Awakened Management Bureau was also present.

Many things were discussed, but everyone agreed on one point—it couldn’t be hidden for long. And so, as expected, the announcement about the changes in the dungeons was scheduled for the following evening.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep