From that viewpoint, the key points to be aware of seem to be:
“Water and darkness.”
Preparing based on those keywords should suffice.
I may not say it out loud, but as long as I have the necessary keywords to prepare for…
‘There’s nothing my cooking can’t handle.’
***
“Expedition preparations are complete.”
“That was pretty quick, considering it was a sudden mobilization.”
The importance of the dungeon was something everyone agreed on.
Overshadowing even the headquarters’ discussions, the decision was made – our unit’s next destination would be Chuncheon.
Once the decision was reached, the time required for expedition preparations became surprisingly short.
To be honest, I was a little surprised.
This dungeon expedition was fundamentally driven by the rescue request of that collapsed man.
‘These guys, they seemed pretty callous about non-unit members, but they’re being this altruistic.’
It was heartwarming to see them so diligently fulfilling their duty as soldiers to protect the people.
However…
“Those guys seem excited about the dungeon raid.”
Min-jae hyung commented as he observed them.
“What do you mean?”
“Remember the last dungeon raid? Most of the squad members who participated grew significantly.”
That was true.
Even though I monopolized most of the experience points from the dungeon raid, the other squad members also leveled up at least once due to the abundant monsters we hunted.
“The ones who missed out were really disappointed.”
“So that’s why they’re in such a hurry…”
“It’s become a world where the stronger you are, the better off you are. I don’t like it, but if the dungeon offers such rewards, it’s natural to get excited.”
“….”
It had nothing to do with altruism or anything like that.
‘Who can I blame? It’s probably my cooking that’s influenced this situation.’
I should be satisfied that the squad members are ambitious.
Even with the direct route provided by the railroad.
The distance to Chuncheon was not exactly short.
Since it’s not a distance we can easily cover, we needed to split our forces.
“Don’t worry and go ahead. Didn’t I mention before? I used to manage a tailor shop before.”
“Isn’t that a bit different?”
“It’s just a way of saying.”
While on the expedition.
The legion’s management was left to Lee Sang-ah, the only non-combat officer.
Even though managing a tailor shop was a joke, she was experienced as a leader of a survivor group.
As an officer capable of communication through guild messages.
She was trustworthy enough.
There wouldn’t be many left in the unit besides the non-combat awakened.
But even the non-combat awakened had decent combat abilities.
After all, I am one of them too.
“There are barriers built by engineers around the base. You’re leaving the tank behind since it consumes too much fuel, right? Considering the defense facilities, there shouldn’t be any major issues.”
“That’s a relief.”
“If there’s any issue…”
Lee Sang-ah sighed softly.
What could be the problem?
“The soldiers will be upset that they can’t eat your cooking, Commander.”
“Ahh.”
That’s a problem I can’t solve.
“There’s plenty of combat rations I’ve prepared.”
“Yes, but it’s not the same as having your freshly made food.”
She shrugged as she spoke.
“Logically, going on the expedition should be harder, but the soldiers staying behind seem more upset. It really tells the importance of food and its correlation with morale.”
What can we do?
They’ll have to endure until another [Chef] awakened joins us.
The rest of the squad gathered the necessary supplies and set off.
Our route was the previously secured subway tracks.
Unlike the roads clogged with wrecked vehicles, the tracks offered a straight, clear path.
It was a rarely occupied area to begin with.
Aside from one incident where zombies crawled out of a derailed train, we moved without major issues.
“The subway is quite safe.”
“The tracks on the surface are a problem, but if we can reinforce the walls there, it might become a secure supply route.”
Listening to the engineers on the expedition, we continued our journey.
After passing one station.
We were heading towards the next, Chuncheon Station, when—
“Stop, stop!”
The vanguard signaled us to halt.
“What’s going on?”
“You need to see for yourself.”
The spot where the soldiers signaled the stop.
It was the section where the subway transitioned to the surface.
As we emerged to the surface.
In the distance.
We saw a massive wall.
“…?”
“What’s that?”
Normally, we would be starting to see the landscape of Chuncheon City by now.
However, what lay before our eyes was something completely alien.
It was as if someone had drawn a line and painted a different picture on each side of it.
Two entirely different landscapes coexisted seamlessly.
“…What on earth is that?”
One side presented a familiar scene.
But the other side, where the Chuncheon Cityscape should have been, was a completely different scenery.
Despite it being broad daylight, that area was as dark as night.
‘It’s like someone pulled a black curtain across it.’
This black curtain seemed almost transparent.
Inside, we could see water up to a person’s chest level, undulating gently.
Yet, the water did not spill out beyond that space.
Upon closer inspection, water was continuously pouring down from the walls of buildings.
Like waterfalls.
This scene…
I had heard about it recently.
“Abstract, my foot.”
The landscape Taejun had described.
It was recreated exactly as he had seen it.
“It wasn’t abstract at all…”
[A dungeon has been discovered!]
[Eroded World – Dasmur]