The moment they stepped through, the world collapsed inwards
Air didn't move it ripped like literally ripped.
One second Ji-hoon's boots were on cracked stone beneath the red gate. The next, the ground was gone. A red vortex swallowed the five of them whole, dragging their bodies through a storm of weightless pressure. His ears rang. His vision blurred.
Then the world snapped back.
They hit the dirt hard.
The air was damp. Heavy. Thick with something that smelled like ash and wet iron. Ji-hoon's eyes adjusted first. Stone ruins stretched into the darkness, old pillars half buried in moss. A blood red sky pulsed overhead, sealed and infinite.
A gate world.
[Welcome to: Red Gate Dungeon][Dungeon Type: Goblin Hive (Evolved Species)][Recommended Level: 12+][Time Limit: 12:00:00][Gate Break Progression: 0%]
A low growl answered the message before the last line faded.
"They're here…." Woo-jin whispered.
Shapes began to move between the broken columns. Not the small, screeching gremlins Ji-hoon had fought before. These ones walked upright with shoulders squared like men. Their skin was ashen gray like the clouds , not green. Their black eyes gleamed with something disturbingly human.
Evolved goblins.
Each one was about the same height as Min-jae. Weapons made of scavenged iron and bone hung at their sides. They didn't charge blindly they formed a semi circle cutting off escape route.
"Shit," Min-jae muttered. "They're organized."
Ji-hoon's system window flickered.
[Threat Detected: Evolved Goblin Scout :Lv. 11][Threat Detected: Evolved Goblin x7 : Lv. 10 /12]
"Levels?" Rina hissed.
"Eleven for the leader," Ji-hoon replied calmly. "The rest around ten."
Woo-jin's face paled. "We're level three and four….."
Sori tightened her grip on her shield. "Doesn't matter. We're here now."
Min-jae spun his spear once. "Heh. Then let's make it count."
Ji-hoon stepped forward before they could. The leader goblin snarled a sound disturbingly close to a word.Its hand went to its jagged blade. Ji-hoon's eyes flashed gold.
[Dragonization: Stage I Eyes Activated][All stats: x2]
The goblin lunged first.Ji-hoon was faster.
He slammed his boot into its stomach with the force of a sledgehammer. The goblin's body folded inward with a sickening crunch, air blasting out of its lungs. It staggered back, howling.
Ji-hoon didn't let it breathe.
The next step was a blur Grudge hissed through the air, ignoring the creature's half raised guard.
The head fell before the body hit the ground.
[Evolved Goblin Scout – Lv. 11 Defeated][EXP Gained.][Level Up: 7 → 8]
The rest of the goblins hesitated. Just for a heartbeat.And that was enough.
"Let's move!" Ji-hoon barked.
The others weren't soldiers, but the shock of seeing him two shot an enemy twice his level snapped them into motion.
Rina vanished from sight, reappearing behind a goblin to drive her twin blades into its back.Sori rushed forward, shield first, slamming into another goblin and throwing it off balance.Min-jae roared, spear thrusting through gray flesh.Woo-jin anchored the battlefield mana circles flared beneath the party's feet, sharpening their movements and dulling incoming hits.
For the first time since awakening, Ji-hoon wasn't alone in the fight.
Goblins screamed. The hive trembled.
Every kill threw numbers into the air:
[Evolved Goblin – Lv. 10 Defeated][EXP Shared.][Ji-hoon Lv. 8 → 9][Rina Lv. 3 → 5][Sori Lv. 4 → 5][Min-jae Lv. 4 → 5][Woo-jin Lv. 3 → 4]
The evolved goblins adapted quickly, their intelligence showing through forming triangles, covering flanks, throwing stones to break formations.
Ji-hoon met their tactics with raw force.
He broke their lines like a storm. A sweeping kick cracked a ribcage. A spear thrust gutted another. His movements were precise, clean, efficient. No wasted steps.
[Dragonization anchor strain: Low]
Minutes bled into chaos.
Woo-jin shouted incantations between clenched teeth, his magic keeping them alive. Min-jae's laugh echoed like someone enjoying the impossible. Rina moved like a shadow, her blades whispering across throats. Sori stood where everyone else could fall solid, unshakable.
[Evolved Goblin – Lv. 12 Defeated][Evolved Goblin – Lv. 10 Defeated][Evolved Goblin – Lv. 11 Defeated][Level Up.]
When the last goblin fell, the air in the dungeon changed. The oppressive humming eased. Ji-hoon's chest heaved, but the weight that had been pressing down on him moments ago was gone.
[Ji-hoon: Lv. 14][Rina: Lv. 8][Sori: Lv. 7][Min-jae: Lv. 8][Woo-jin: Lv. 7]
Rina wiped blood from her cheek with the back of her hand. "Remind me to never stand in front of you."
Min-jae let out a sharp laugh. "What the hell, man. You just kicked a level eleven in half."
Sori nodded, steadying her shield. "We would've died without you."
Woo-jin didn't say anything. But he stared at Ji-hoon a second too long, thoughtful.
Ji-hoon didn't look back at them. His gaze was fixed on the far end of the dungeon.
There were footsteps echoing from deeper within.
Bigger ones.
[Warning: Elite Entity Approaching.][CROWN signature fragment detected.]
His fingers tightened around Grudge.This wasn't over.
A powerful presence was approaching and fast at that fast.