WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ My Girlfriend Returned as a Dragon ◈

Chapter 31: The Dragon Sword Garden

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[Would you be interested in joining a guild?]

[Yuna said she'd look into a guild for you, hyungnim.]

It was an unexpected proposal.

A guild?

Back when I was an ordinary D-rank Hunter, I would have readily agreed.

But now that so much had changed since reuniting with Sia, I had no particular need for a guild.

In fact, given my current situation, it might bring more disadvantages than benefits.

Still, I was curious why Yuna had suddenly made such an offer, so I called Junhwi right away.

[Hyungnim, aren’t you on a date? You could’ve called me later.]

“Ah, my girlfriend had somewhere else to be. I just saw her off.”

I gave him a vague excuse.

[Ah, I see... Oh, right, hyungnim. You saw the message I sent, right?]

“Yeah. That’s why I called. A guild? Why bring up a guild all of a sudden?”

[That’s exactly what it says. Yuna didn’t have your number, so she only asked me to pass it along.]

“I see. But why would she suddenly offer to find a guild for me? Does anything come to mind, Junhwi?”

[Who knows? Maybe she wants to take better care of someone she knows after seeing them again for the first time in a while?]

It did not seem like Junhwi had heard anything from Yuna about her reasons either.

That only made me more curious.

If it had been a favor from Junhwi’s sister, I might have understood, but Junhwi did not know anything about it either.

It was not as though Yuna had seen me perform in a Gate.

Was she always this meddlesome?

Why was Yuna trying to introduce me to a guild?

“Could you tell Yuna that I appreciate her concern, but I’m not planning on joining a guild right now?”

[Uh, hyungnim, don’t you have Yuna’s number? She said she gave you her business card.]

“Well, I do, but I gave it to my girlfriend.”

I added that I did not want Sia to feel uncomfortable if I contacted Yuna for any reason.

[...Still, wouldn’t one phone call be okay? If she’s offering to introduce you to a guild, she must think highly of you. And you said you’ve known each other since kindergarten.]

“That’s exactly why I don’t think it would be okay.”

Thinking of how extremely sensitive Sia had been to every little thing Yuna did, I felt like there could not be any connection between us whatsoever.

If even the slightest connection formed...

I could not guarantee what would happen.

[Then I’ll pass it along for you. Oh, hyungnim, this is something else, but are you interested in Dungeon Gates?]

A Dungeon Gate.

Generally, Gates could be divided into three major types.

The most common were ordinary Gates, cleared by killing every monster inside.

Next were Dungeon Gates, each with different concepts and clearing requirements. Even after being cleared, they could be challenged repeatedly at fixed intervals.

Lastly, there were Extra Gates, which could not be classified into either of those types.

Dungeon Gates, the kind Junhwi mentioned, were relatively safe compared to other Gates, making them good for gaining combat experience.

Since they could be cleared repeatedly at regular intervals, there were almost no unexpected variables as long as you learned their patterns.

But because of those very traits, most Dungeon Gates were monopolized by large guilds that purchased the right to raid them for training Hunters.

In other words, someone like me, who had never belonged to a guild, naturally had never had a chance to enter a Dungeon Gate.

“Why bring up Dungeon Gates all of a sudden?”

[My sister’s guild is raiding one of its Dungeon Gates tomorrow. There’s no limit on the number of people, so if you’re okay with it, I can ask my sister.]

Joining a Dungeon Gate raid.

For someone without a guild, it was definitely a good opportunity.

I had been looking for a Gate to visit tomorrow anyway.

The timing could not have been better.

“I’d appreciate that. Thanks for thinking of me.”

[It’s nothing. You saved my life, hyungnim. I’ll text you the exact time, location, and name of the Gate.]

Not long after we hung up, Junhwi sent me a message with the Gate’s information.

[We’ll leave from the front gate of the Maple Guild headquarters at exactly 10 a.m. tomorrow. The Dungeon Gate we’re raiding is called Dragon Sword Garden. The raid leader hasn’t been decided yet, but I’ll send you their contact information as soon as it is.]

I understood everything except for one thing.

“Huh?”

Something caught my attention.

Unlike other Gates, Dungeon Gates did not disappear after being cleared, so each one was given a name that reflected its internal characteristics.

But this Gate was called Dragon Sword Garden.

As someone with a dragon for a girlfriend who aimed to freely wield a dragon’s power, it felt like an awfully strange coincidence.

Why did this Dungeon Gate have to be called Dragon Sword Garden?

Those five characters, Dragon Sword Garden, would not leave my mind for the rest of the day.

* * *

The next day.

Before heading to the Gate raid, I visited Rokan’s lair.

There was no special reason. I simply wanted to pay my respects as his granddaughter’s boyfriend and have breakfast with him.

I also wanted to ask him about the Dungeon Gate I would be visiting today.

“Rokan, I’m here.”

“Welcome. What is that in your hand?”

“Red ginseng extract. You always seem to do so much for me.”

I remembered how tired he had looked after making the control device last time, and I had been worried about him.

I did not know whether something like this would help a dragon, but it was only proper to show my gratitude somehow.

“Oh, thank you.”

“And this is a packed meal. If you haven’t eaten yet, I thought we could have breakfast together.”

“Sounds good.”

As we ate and chatted about small things, I naturally brought up the Dungeon Gate I would be visiting today.

“I heard the Dungeon Gate I’m going to today is called Dragon Sword Garden. Have you ever heard of it?”

“It is the first I have heard of it. You Hunters are the ones interested in Gates. I have no particular interest in such places.”

I had thought he would at least have heard the name, so it was unexpected.

Seeing my reaction, Rokan nodded as though he understood why I had asked.

“You must have hoped to find a clue.”

“Yes.”

“Unfortunately, I do not know anything about it at the moment either. If you record a video later, we can discuss it together then.”

It could not be helped.

Still, if I recorded a video, there might be something useful in it.

The chances were slim, but I might find a tiny clue about the power I possessed.

Just as we finished eating and I was about to head to the meeting place, Sia called me by video.

[Oppa, good morning! What? Are you at Grandpa’s lair?]

Sia seemed slightly surprised that I was with Rokan at this hour.

“Yeah. I thought it would be nice to have breakfast with your grandfather.”

“Oh, it’s Shasha.”

Rokan also greeted his granddaughter warmly.

[Seeing this makes me think you and I really are alike, oppa. Actually, I was planning to visit your parents today too.]

“My parents?”

[Yeah. It seems like it’ll be difficult for us to visit them together for a while, so I decided to go by myself.]

Sia held up a large bundle of gifts she had bought for my parents.

It might have felt awkward or uncomfortable for Sia to visit my parents alone without me, but I could only feel grateful.

[Oh, and oppa. You said you were going to a Gate today, right?]

“Yeah, at ten. I’ll call you after I get back.”

[Okay! Let’s talk again later!]

Since we were short on time, we ended our morning call quickly.

“Then I’ll contact you again soon.”

After leaving the lair, I headed for the front gate of the Maple Guild headquarters, our meeting place.

It was nearly time, so it seemed that almost everyone had already gathered.

As I looked around, a man approached me.

“Are you Yoon Minjun?”

“Yes.”

“I’m Oh Taeseong, the leader for this raid. Nice to meet you.”

Perhaps because he was the leader, but he clearly had a different presence from the other Hunters gathered here.

He was large, and he had a very masculine appearance as well.

“I’ve heard a lot about you from my girlfriend’s brother. He said you saved his life.”

“Your girlfriend’s brother?”

“Junhwi’s sister is my girlfriend.”

Ah.

He was Jiyoon’s boyfriend.

I had not heard that she had a boyfriend.

No wonder I had been wondering how an outsider like me could join a raid in a guild-owned Dungeon Gate.

This really was Korea, where family, school, and hometown connections mattered.

“Junhwi wanted to repay you somehow, so I offered to help too.”

“Thank you.”

“You saved Junhwi’s life. If there’s anything I can do to help, I should help. Oh, we’ve been talking among ourselves for too long.”

Perhaps noticing the other guild members waiting behind him, Taeseong briefly introduced them to me one by one.

Most of them were one or two years older than me, and aside from Taeseong and one or two others, they were all D-rank.

I had worried a little that they might feel awkward around me or subtly exclude me because I was an outsider with no guild, but they all welcomed me kindly.

“Nice to meet you, Minjun!”

“Junhwi has told us a lot about you!”

“I was drinking with Junhwi the other day, and he spent over an hour talking about you.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. I was curious what you were like, so I’m really glad to meet you.”

After exchanging greetings in the friendly atmosphere, we got into the vehicles.

It was about a thirty-minute drive from the Maple Guild headquarters to the Dungeon Gate.

“Minjun, has Junhwi told you anything about the Gate we’re visiting today?”

“He only told me the name. I did not hear any details about what kind of Gate it is.”

Perhaps because it was guild property, no information came up even when I searched online.

“Then have you ever taken part in a Dungeon Gate raid?”

“No. I learned about Dungeon Gates at the Academy, but...”

“Then let me give you a brief explanation.”

Taeseong, the leader of the raid team and Jiyoon’s boyfriend, gave me a quick briefing on the Gate we would be raiding today.

First, he said that even the environment of a Dungeon Gate felt very different from an ordinary Gate.

For example, the terrain of Dragon Sword Garden was a flat plain filled with countless sword hilts sticking out of the ground like gravestones.

Also, unlike ordinary Gates, whose clearing condition was simply eliminating every monster inside, Dungeon Gates each had different requirements.

I remembered learning that in theory class at the Academy.

“For the Dragon Sword Garden we’re going to raid, the clearing condition is to survive for three hours after entering the Gate.”

“That’s all?”

“Yes.”

“...It sounds easier than I expected.”

As though it were a familiar reaction, Taeseong let out a hearty laugh.

“Juwon here said exactly the same thing as you, Minjun, without changing a single word.”

Taeseong pointed at a Hunter sitting behind me.

The Hunter called Juwon waved a hand, seemingly embarrassed by the memory.

“That was ages ago, hyung. Anyway, it won’t be as easy as you think. It may only be three hours, but the monsters keep coming without stopping.”

Taeseong added that while it was difficult, it was not impossible to endure.

We discussed Dungeon Gates for a while, but it felt like I was forgetting something important...

Oh, right.

“But Taeseong, why is this Dungeon Gate called Dragon Sword Garden?”

I had heard that the inside of the Gate was filled with sword hilts.

But they could have called it Sword Garden. Why Dragon Sword Garden?

Rokan had previously told me that no sword related to dragons, including the Dragon Bone Sword, had ever officially been revealed to the world.

At my question, Taeseong answered.

“It was named after a map from a game our Guild Master plays.”

“...Excuse me?”

My mind went blank at his answer, but Taeseong grinned and waved a hand as though it were a joke.

“I’m kidding.”

That startled me.

He had said it with such a serious expression that I thought it was true for a moment.

“There is a large statue in the center of the dungeon. It is shaped like a dragon coiling around a sword.”

Taeseong continued his explanation.

“And beneath that statue, there is writing that appears to come from the outside world.”

I had never seen it myself, but I seemed to remember hearing that things like this sometimes happened in Dungeon Gates.

“Have those words been deciphered?”

“Not all of them. As far as I know, only one sentence has been deciphered.”

“What sentence was it?”

At my question, Oh Taeseong took out his phone, searched for something, and read the deciphered line to me.

“‘The great emperor who united the continent with a sword imbued with a dragon’s protection rests here forever.’”

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