Songs in the Void

ICDS Universe, Earth, South Korea, Yeongdeungpo. 

A moment after the group of five, Tatsuo, Sumire, Shin, Yungoong, and Hwaya, were swallowed by the black whirlpool in the Event Dungeon, they appeared in the same place from which they entered. Luckily, Hwaya had already cast her anti-recognition barrier. So, they were not spotted by the members of Guardian. 

"We're back." Yungoong said while looking around at the Yeongdeungpo shopping district. "Coming out to see that nothing happened makes it feel like it was all just a dream." 

"I wish it was just a dream." Hwaya muttered while rubbing the goosebumps on her arms. "But since it's not, I'm gonna have nightmares about those spiders for a long time." 

"Anyway, I think we should get out of here.' Tatsuo said. "Even if we're under Mastiford-San's barrier, they could still find us. I mean, when the---" 

At that moment, before Tatsuo could finish his sentence, the whirling cloud of grey and black fog that acted at the Gate to the Event Dungeon began to dissipate. As it did, the shopping mall that had been swallowed was slowly revealed. 

This naturally caused confusion among the members of Guardian,. And just as Tatsuo was saying, if they did not leave soon, they might be discovered when Guardian's Awakened came forward to investigate. 

"Tatsuo-Ssi is right." Shin said with a nod. "I really don't wanna be found and questioned." 

"It would look really bad for Hwaya-Neesan and Tatsuo-Kun if they were caught, too." Sumire added. "You know, since they were the ones who told everyone to stay away from the Event Dungeons." 

Everyone nodded in agreement with Sumire's assessment. So, they quickly, yet carefully, left the area of the shopping mall, making sure not to run into any of the members of Guardian as they did so. 

Not long later, after making some distance, the group equipped out of their battle attire and into casual clothes. Then, Hwaya lowered her anti-recognition barrier. 

"We made it." Hwaya said in a relieved toen. Then, she looked at Tatsuo, Sumire, Shin, and Yungoong gratefully. "Thanks for listening to my request, Sumire, Tatsuo, Yungoong-Ahjussi, and Yeon Hwawoo. For this, I'll forgive you for not joining my organization." 

"You were still holding that against us?" Shin asked in a dumbfounded tone. 

"Be quiet." Hwaya said sharply while elbowing Shin in the side. 

Despite telling everyone that she was weak in close combat, judging by the expression on Shin's face, everyone could tell that Hwaya's elbow strike hurt him quite a bit. 

After hitting Shin, Hwaya shook hands with Yungoong. 

"The way you charged forward was really cool, Ahjussi.' Hwaya said with a smile. 

"Haha! Thanks, young lady." Yungoong replied with a good natured laugh. "You were really strong, too. Much stronger than I imagined." 

After saying that, Yungoong turned to Tatsuo with a smile still present on his face. 

"So, did you still want to come by to have a spar with my son?" Yungoong asked as he sent a discreet glance at Shin. 

"Sure." Tatsuo replied with a smile of his own. "I've wanted to spar with him ever since I met him eight years ago.' 

"Now that you mention it, you did say that you know each other." Hwaya said with a contemplative expression on her face. "Would it be okay if we came, too?" 

"I don't see why not." Yungoong said cheerfully. "I'm sure my wife would love to have more beautiful young ladies in the house." 

Hearing that, Shin shook his head. However, since he was still acting as Yeon Hwawoo, he could not say anything. 

"Well then, I'm off." Shin said as he turned around to leave. 

Before he could get too far, however, Hwaya grabbed his hand while not looking in his direction. 

"Tha-Tanks for coming, Yeon Hwawoo." Hwaya said quietly. "although you're not as strong as me, you had the strength to back up your arrogance." 

"Yeah." Shin replied with a nod. "You were strong, too. So were you, Minami-Ssi. You're really tough." 

"Thank you, Yeon Hwawoo-San." Sumire replied with a smile. 

"So, why don't you come with us to Yungoong-Ahjussi's place to see the spar. We could all get to know each other better." 

"Sorry, but I've got something to do." Shin declined. "Plus, I need to go to New Moon to sell that spider corpse and mana stone." 

"Hey, don't sell the stone." Tatsuo said. "I'll buy it from you. Just name the price." 

Hearing that, Shin turned around to look at Tatsuo. 

"I'll buy for ten percent more than New Moon." Tatsuo added, trying to sweeten the deal. 

"How much is it even worth?" Shin asked. "This is my first time getting such a big haul, after all." 

Instead of replying immediately, Tatsuo turned to Sumire and Hwaya, who had been active as Awakened for longer than he had. 

"If converted to won, it should be about three hundred sixty million. (approx. 270,000 USD)" Hwaya replied after thinking for a moment. 

Hearing that, Shin's eyes opened wide in surprise. Then, he lowered his head in thought. 

"Three hundred sixty million… Plus ten percent… that should be…" Shin muttered to himself. A moment later, he raised his head with a smile on his face as he continued. "Three hundred ninety-six million!" 

"You should be able to get the same amount for the body, too." Especially since it's in such good condition." 

"I'm not buying the body, though." Tatsuo replied. "since I already have Arachne's corpse. By the way, how much would that be since I have to give all of you your share?" 

With that, the group discussed the price for the Arachne corpse and mana stone. Then, it was decided that Tatsuo would pay each of them twenty percent of the total. However, that amount was cut in half for Hwaya, who told Tatsuo to keep it as her payment for the [Dargon Skin] accessory he was going to make for her. 

Hwaya also mentioned that she would have the two mana stones she promised by the end of the day. So, Tatsuo decided that when he, Sumire, and Hwaya returned to Lana's house, he would make Hwaya's accessory. He would have to make Sumire's after they returned to Japan, since he did not have enough parts of the [Lizard Knight Set] to do [Skill Extraction] a third time. 

"Alright, I'm fine with that." Tatsuo said with a nod. "Just give me a few minutes, I'll be right back." 

In the next instant, Tatsuo opened the door to the Dungeon and entered. That left the other four standing there, not knowing what to say. 

"Is he… going to exchange Gold?" Hwaya asked. 

"Probably." Shin replied. "Since he uses all the materials he collects, I doubt he's got the money to pay us in a bank account." 

"That makes sense." Hwaya replied with a nod. 

Like that, the four chatted casually while waiting for Tatsuo to return. And after only a few minutes, he did exactly that. 

As it turns out, the Dungeon's Floor Shop had the function of exchanging Gold for each world's currency. Though, worlds who have been in contact with the Dungeon for long enough usually change their currency to match that of the Dungeon, provided they have enough Gold deposits on their world, that is. 

"Alright, I've got yen for Sumire-San, won for Yeon-San and Kang-Ojisan, and British pounds for Mastiford-San." Tatsuo said as he started handing out stacks of money to the other four. "Make sure to count it just to make sure." 

With that, all the money matters were settled. Then, after a round of farewells, Shin finally took his leave, heading back to New Moon, which he had visited earlier in the day to get registered, to sell the spider corpse in his [Inventory]. Meanwhile, Yungoong led Tatsuo, Sumire, and Hwaya towards a parking lot to pick up his car. 

When they arrived at the parking lot, the group, with Yungoong climbing into the driver's seat, piled into a Hyundai Equus. Then, they drove off, heading to the Kang family's home in Seoul. 

ICDS Universe, Earth, South Korea, Seoul. 

About fifteen minutes later, Yungoong pulled into his house's driveway. Then, he, Tatsuo, Sumire, and Hwaya got out of the car. 

"Wow! This is a really nice house." Sumire said while looking at the two-story home in front of her. 

"Haha! I bought it with the money I earned as a Dungeon Explorer." Yungoong replied happily. "Anyway, let's go inside. I'll introduce you to my family." 

With that said, Yungoong took the lead and entered his house. 

"I'm home!" Yungoong shouted as he entered. 

"Father, you're back." Yua, Yungoong's sixteen year old daughter, said in reply. However, her tone did not sound too happy. 

Because she had just gotten off the phone with Shin a few minutes ago, Yua knew that Shin was not with her father. So, she did not call for him immediately. Instead, she wanted to see the people that Shin told her would be coming back with her father. Or rather, she wanted to see Sumire and Hwaya, to assess their threat-level. 

A moment later, with a somewhat gloomy expression on her face, Yua walked into the foyer. Then, she scanned the guests. However, she did not pay much attention to Tatsuo. Instead, she closely scrutinized Sumire and Hwaya. And when she saw how big their breasts were, she frowned and looked down at her own. 

"Hmph!" Yua snorted. Then, she walked away. "Oppa is stupid." 

That display left Sumire and Hwaya confused. Meanwhile, Yungoong could only smile wryly. Tatsuo, on the other hand, raised his right hand to his chin while he fell deep in thought. 

'Well, she really is as cute as Kang-San always said in the novel.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'But she's way too far off the bro-con deep end.' 

"Tatsuo-Kun, are you okay?" Sumire, who noticed Tatsuo's contemplative expression, asked in a concerned toen. 

"Ah! She's a bro-con, isn't she?" Tatsuo exclaimed as if he just had an epiphany. 

"*Cough* *Cough*" Yungoong began to cough and choke on his own saliva after hearing that. 

Meanwhile, Yua, who had not walked too far, almost tripped over her own feet. Then, after regaining her balance, she looked back with a surprised, yet panicked, expression on her face. And for the first time, she took a serious look at Tatsuo, who she had completely dismissed because he was a man that was not her brother. 

Seeing Tatsuo's brown skin, purple-tinted, black hair, stupidly handsome face, and athletic build, Yua was amazed. A moment later, however, she forcefully shook her head and turned around with a blush on her face. 

"No, Oppa is the only man Yua needs." Yua muttered as she walked away even faster than before. "Even if he is the most handsome guy I've ever seen, I'm only here for Oppa." 

"Yup, definitely a bro-con." Tatsuo said with a nod and a proud smile on his face. 

That only caused Sumire and Hwaya to look at Tatsuo weirdly. Meanwhile, Yungoong had no idea what to say. 

"Well, even if she is, at least she isn't blind." Hwaya said. "Regardless of anything, Tatsuo is one of the most handsome guys I've ever seen, too." 

"Uh huh." Sumire added with a strong nod. "The most handsome one I've ever seen." 

Immediately afterwards, Sumire blushed up to her ears after realizing what she said. At the same time, Hwaya smiled teasingly at her. 

"Oh, really?" Tatsuo asked with a grin on his face. "I appreciate the compliment, Sumire-San. You're really beautiful, too." 

After saying that, Tatsuo, Yungoong, and Hwaya would have sworn that steam was about to shoot out of Sumire's ears and the top of her head. So, they decided they would stop teasing her before she fainted thanks to a spike in her blood pressure. 

Just then, Yungoong's wife entered the foyer with a strange expression on her face. 

"Dear, what happened to Yua?" Mrs. Kang asked. "She's all red. But she won't tell me about it." 

No one really wanted to answer that question. So, Yungoong and Hwaya looked away. Meanwhile, Sumire was still too embarrassed to raise her head. The only one left, Tatsuo, only smiled as innocently as he could. 

Seeing Tatsuo's handsome face, Mrs. kang's eyes lit up. Then, she linked Yua's fiercely blushing face with the handsome young man in front of her. Finally, she smiled brightly after seeing the opportunity to stop her son and daughter from crossing a line that siblings should never cross. 

"Oh, I see we have guests." Mrs. kang said with a smile. "Dear, mind introducing us?" 

"Sure, but where is Shin?" Yungoong asked as he changed into a pair of house slippers. 

"Oh, Yua said he was going to buy some fried chicken." Mrs. Kang replied. "He should be back before too long, though. OH! I'll tell her to call him and let him know he should bring more back." 

With that, Mrs. Kang turned around to do just what she said. Meanwhile, the others finished changing their shoes before following Yungoong into the house.