So I was curious about Ilseom’s reaction.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
– Seems like one of the monsters that supposedly occupies the depths of the hidden dungeon is that guy over there.
One of the minions following Hyeon Joong-seob caught my ear immediately.
“One of the monsters? So you’re telling me there are more like him? I don’t sense any stronger aura coming from the gate yet.”
– Looks like it. Ahem- We should have seized the ‘Ice Tower’ much earlier… If we had actively rushed to break that resurrection ability, it might have been different.
– That’s right, Guild Leader!!
– How can we call such brutal barbarians human like us! Your brother’s complacent judgment has once again led to an unfortunate outcome.
– That’s absolutely right!!
“Ice Tower? So that’s the main hub? By the way, Hyeon Joong-seob seems quite displeased with Uncle Joong-gil. Almost like he’s trying to make sure everyone around hears him?”
I didn’t know if this was their political maneuvering or what, but as someone who had a good relationship with Uncle Joong-gil, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about it.
– It seems that Instructor Hyeon will be joining soon; how about waiting just a bit…
At that moment, among Ilseom’s hunters, ‘Do-yeon’, the most talented after Hyeon Il-hwan, subtly approached Hyeon Joong-seob and offered her opinion, but it ended up irritating him more.
– Foolish words! If we can’t even overcome a crisis like this, how can we call ourselves warriors!! It’s not like we were heavily injured, so there’s no need to be discouraged! Don’t stop; push forward!!
– W-Well, still, it might be better to join up and solidify things—
– Shut up! I’ll take the lead. Everyone, follow me!!
– Yess─!!
Hyeon Joong-seob jumped back into battle with his men, and I moved beside my companions, keeping a watchful eye on them.
“If I face that monster again, this time I’ll support from a distance. Stealing the reward will be impossible, but I need to rake in tons of experience points.”
I had no intention of directly facing such a monster head-on. If it endangered my companions, I would consider risking my life, but for now, when I didn’t know what else might emerge from the gate, it was best to be as cautious as possible.
Clang- Hang─!!
“Let’s stick close!!”
My companions, including Yeon-hee, seemed to be fired up seeing the fleeing enemies, their bodies brimming with energy.
“No need to rush. Slowly.”
But I restrained them, adjusting our pace.
After all, we had to deal with the mountain of monsters before we could move forward. Dungeon breaks weren’t a sprint; they were a marathon.
*
Had it been about an hour since I officially joined the battlefield?
It felt like our party had already taken down hundreds of monsters. Of course, among them were also the asymbiotic species from another world.
And now we had reached the spot where the leader of the asymbiotic species was clashing with Hyeon Joong-seob’s crew. They had just begun the second round, so it was time for me to look for a chance to attack.
Boom─!
“Ugh- These spirits don’t die at all. How disgusting.”
Noh Ha-yoon stomped on a spirit wriggling like a worm, squishing it while scowling.
Once we defeat the asymbiotic species, the spirit controlling them, ‘Crystalride’, would slowly crawl out. If you crushed them, they would dissipate into a hazy ghost and vanish somewhere.
“No kill message showing up.”
“Indeed, it seems that way.”
As Hyeon Joong-seob said, they were beings that could not be easily killed. That’s probably why even Hyeon Joong-gil hadn’t attempted to conquer the tower.
‘There must be a different condition.’
Of course, the asymbiotic species was different from spirits. Just like us, they would cease to exist if decapitated or mortally wounded.
However, the unfortunate part was that even if we killed them, ‘thieving’ wouldn’t activate.
In other words, they didn’t count as monsters.
Still, we’d occasionally find packages containing Frizkana crystals and mana stones on them, so it wasn’t a complete loss.
In one package, there were more than ten Frizkana crystals along with Blood Mosquito’s blood stones. Truly, it was like nothing less than a golden kobold.
‘So then, is banishing these spirits all we can do? We can’t kill them?’
(The concrete main body of Crystalride exists separately in its own world. They would be as good as immortal unless that is dealt with.)
‘That’s totally overpowered. They control their host remotely while keeping themselves safe.’
(But whatever you gain, you also lose something. They are pathetic beings that can’t perform any actions without a host. They’ll likely be trapped somewhere forever.)
‘Pitiful? Please. The asymbiotic species are ultimately sentient beings too, and it’s pathetic to take away their free will and control them for life, right?’
(There are different worldviews that differ from the norms of this world. They must have their circumstances as well.)
‘Seriously…’
I was conversing with ‘Ran,’ who had settled on my shoulder while gathering magic power. It had been clinging to Yeon-hee lately, so I wondered what was up.
‘Is it really feasible?’
(I calculate it will work.)
Having witnessed how my Fire Shot was blocked by the leader of the asymbiotic species, Ran suggested a way to overcome it.
‘You’re going to shoot?’
(Ready.)
A massive aura of flame gathered at my fingertip, and with Ran’s wind attribute added, a small sphere began to spin wildly.
Then, at a certain moment, only one flame shaped like fire slowly rose, but due to spinning so fast, it seemed to be a phenomenon caused by that speed.
‘Wow… That pressure is incredible.’
[Fire Shot – Dance of the Wind]
──────────────
With a sound that could rip through ears, the fire shot flew across the ground.
Boom───!!
Hyeon Joong-seob and Park Jin-gon’s coordinated attack was effortlessly received by the asymbiotic species’ head, which was knocked sideways from the blow.
Bang bang bang───!!
Hyeon Joong-seob and Park Jin-gon, locked in a fierce melee, flinched and looked around, surprised by the massive explosion and the disappearing asymbiotic species.
[Dark Illusion]
[Stealth]
But I killed my presence immediately, hiding among the monsters while recovering my magic power.
Yet I couldn’t suppress my excited heart.
“Haha, not only did the destructive power increase, but the bullet’s speed became absurdly fast, and that monster couldn’t even react!”
Of course, they were in battle against strong opponents, so their attention was elsewhere, but even so, it exhibited amazing performance.
(How’s that?)
‘Ran, you’re the best spirit I’ve ever seen.’
(Cough- Finally, you notice my true value.)
‘How many more times can you do that?’
(Let’s see how far I can push it.)
‘Alright, let’s keep firing and raise that proficiency.’
With a goal in mind, I charged ahead to take down more monsters.
– You have defeated Frizkana!
– You have obtained Frizkana’s ice crystal!
‘It’s nice that ice crystals drop from regular monsters too. I’ve seen a fair number of Blood Mosquito mutants as well.’
Since I already had Killbard’s recipe, I just needed to find a reliable alchemist, and I would soon be able to produce potions.
[Ughh… Khaaaaa…!!]
‘Oh no, that’s scary. Based on their screams, they are definitely monsters. Ugh—’
The leader of the asymbiotic species, who got hit by my Fire Shot, was no longer calm; he was frantically searching for me.
But that was only for a moment.
– Where do you think you’re looking, you filthy monster!!
– Gale Storm─!!
Swoosh──!!
“Wow— the coordinated attack of two S-rank hunters is terrifying.”
For the first time, the asymbiotic species’ leader showed signs of struggling under Hyeon Joong-seob and Park Jin-gon’s powerful cooperation.
It hadn’t behaved like that until now, but it seemed that allowing me to fire that shot was a significant factor.
‘I don’t think the armor dealt significant damage, but did I manage to inflict harm during that brief moment?’
In any case, it was distracted, unable to focus solely on the melee combat.
And just like that, I waited for my chance and activated my skill again.
[Fire Shot – Dance of the Wind]
──────────────
[…!!]
This time, it seemed the leader was quite tense and didn’t get hit by my Fire Shot, but incoming attacks from the sides became burdensome.
Swish——
Thud——!
[Ugh!!]
In attempting to block the Fire Shot, the leader of the asymbiotic species made its first mistake, allowing Park Jin-gon and Hyeon Joong-seob to attack for the first time.
“Ugh…!!”
“Freezing…! Damn!”
But the expressions of the two successful attackers twisted in pain, causing them to stagger back instead.
Clang clang clang──!!
Their movements slowed dramatically, and they found themselves surrounded by other asymbiotic species, while the Ilseom Guild and reinforcements rushed in to block their attacks, leading to a chaotic battle.
Eventually, the confrontation between the leaders of both sides seemed to reach a temporary stalemate, while I quietly increased the distance and focused on gathering materials for Killbard.
‘No need to rush. Long-term battle, long-term battle.’
Even now, monsters were flooding in from the gate.
While our side wasn’t quite at that level, reinforcements were continuously coming in.
Before I knew it, the place where Ilseom’s main base was located had transformed into a massive battlefield, saturated with a thick stench of blood.
‘The chief is recovering. Since they don’t have significant destructive abilities like a fatal move from Hyeon Il-hwan, the battle is stretching longer.’
Among the reinforcements, probably the strongest was Park Jin-gon, who had just hit S-rank.
Ultimately, the high-ranking members of the Ilseom Guild had to play a decisive role.
“Huh…?!”
‘Huh…?’
But while I was weaving through the battlefield alone, I spotted a familiar face.
It was Mi-yeon, a shadow organization member from the Ilseom Guild, who had previously been following us.
She was the woman whom I had caught while she was tailing us, leading her to the church for a pledge to make her obey my commands. After a long time of silence, she finally revealed her face again.
I had told her to gather information related to Ilseom, but she had gone ghost on me.
‘But her reaction seems a bit strange? She shouldn’t know my original form?’
The woman looked like she’d taken a beating from monsters, her leather armor in tatters, and as she spotted me, she tilted her head in confusion.
I quickly approached her and locked eyes.
“Oh, so you’re Lee Yeon-hee’s summoned creature… I thought, phew—”
The woman shook her head for a moment, trying to get her bearings.
‘Something about her eyes seems off. This doesn’t feel like when I used to give her commands? Looks like the charm has worn off? I mean, what I did wasn’t even a skill or anything.’
It seemed she had revealed what she had under oath to Ilseom. It had been a long time since I thought Ilseom was pretty capable. Still, there was no way she could spill the beans about me. The power of the pledge is absolute, after all.
‘I can’t use her. I didn’t expect anything, but still.’
I scooped Mi-yeon up and moved away from the center of the battlefield.
“Ahh!”
‘Still, letting you die would be a bit harsh. Why’s a girl who should be on a reconnaissance mission here?’
I figured it might be because of me, so I would offer a little kindness. But this would probably be the last time.
“Ahh, thank you! But I have to return to the fight—”
‘Come on, why don’t you just withdraw from Ilseom and run through the Intermediate Dungeon instead? But hey, do as you wish.’
I left ‘Mi-yeon,’ who was looking at me with intense eyes, and rejoined the battlefield.
Then, after about another twenty minutes passed.
– We have established contact with Instructor Hyeon!
– Hold on just a bit longer!!
Word of Hyeon Il-hwan’s return spread through the battlefield, rejuvenating the movements of the hunters.
Surprisingly, the dungeon break was still ongoing, and Hyeon Joong-seob and Park Jin-gon had failed to take down the leader of the asymbiotic species.
‘Is it too much for melee hunters…? Even with the vice guild leader of Ilseom in action, they can’t kill it?’
They had to land a powerful blow and finish it off, but perhaps their combined attack power was just a bit lacking to take down that monster.
“Ugh… damn it!”
‘So in the end, they’ll resort to taking Killbard?’
Hyeon Joong-seob and his subordinates seemed to have reached their limits; they were pulling something from their space and stuffing it in their mouths.
Hyeon Joong-seob consumed three Killbards at once.
‘Is it safe to consume three at once? I wonder if the side effects are low or if it’s just that he’s gotten used to it and is indifferent now. Either way, it looks like he intends to finish it this time. Alright, let’s wrap this up quickly.’
Seeing Hyeon Joong-seob’s combat power skyrocketing after taking the Killbards, it felt like this time they would surely finish it off.
‘Should have eaten that sooner.’
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