Tentacles shot out long from the tail of the Hellacne and poked at me repeatedly.
I couldn’t believe that so many tentacles could fit on that tail.
—
‘It’s not as hard to dodge as I thought… Is it because I’ve become a small incarnation of Irmana? Or is it thanks to Pawilrun’s teachings?’
Whatever it was, a Water Ball came flying at me again after I dodged dozens of attacks.
‘This is getting a bit dangerous!’
You need space to evade.
When tentacles and magic come flying at you simultaneously, there are limits.
BAM──!
‘Grrrgh!!’
I thought I could withstand a few hits, so I took the magic blow with my armor, then precisely located the creature to activate a chain of water.
SPLASH───!!
───?!!
Taking advantage of the creature’s momentary confusion, I grabbed the chains that wrapped around it with all my might and swung it high into the air.
The heavy weight creaked through my bones, but it was easier to lift underwater.
WHOOSH────!!
– Uwaaaah?!
– What the heck is that? Is it crazy?!
Of course, they’d be shocked as a massive sea serpent leaped out of the water.
As I tossed the creature to the ground, I also flew up after it.
Once I emerged, I first saw the dumbfounded faces of hunters below, gaping up at me.
Seeing a being that could leave even A-rank hunters speechless put me in a good mood and a smile crept onto my face.
Just as I was about to go for a follow-up attack on the Hellacne, an unexpected trait activated.
– [Gem’s Smile] has activated!
‘What…?’
The trait I got from ‘Frizkana’ activated at a completely random timing.
[Gem’s Smile]
– Generates a small gem with a low probability during combat and gifts it to a companion. The gifted companion gains a temporary attack power boost and increases intimacy with you.
– You cannot possess the gem; it is randomly distributed to one of your companions.
What a ridiculous trait to generate a small gem with a low probability, and it finally activated now.
‘I had forgotten about it since there had been no news for so long. It really is a low-probability ability. Still, if this happens during battle, it would be a minus.’
Before my eyes, a dazzling gem shimmered briefly and then completely vanished from sight.
– It has been given to your strongly bonded companion ‘Baek Ah-rin.’
‘Not even letting me touch it! Is the distribution random? I wish it had gone to Yeon-hee first.’
A-rin, who was supposed to receive the mysterious gem, would probably be babbling in confusion.
‘Hmm… Should I look for someone who can delete skills?’
I was starting to think seriously about that.
KIEEEEH!
The immutable truth that gravity exists even in other dimensions brought me back to reality as I saw the Lesser Hellacne falling back into the lake.
– KIEEEEH!!
With its mouth wide open, the sea serpent was falling, seemingly ready to swallow me whole.
The blue aura surrounding its body must have been a protective shield that activates when it comes out of the water.
‘Have this!’
Following Pawilrun’s teachings, I fixed a pivot to stabilize my body and spun to deliver a powerful kick to its enormous head.
[Depth’s Slam]
CRACK──!
With a cracking sound, the Corrupted Lesser Hellacne was sent flying into the distance, smashing into a black wall.
A huge impact echoed through the air.
The Lesser Hellacne, like an eel thrashing on a grill, was desperately trying to get back on its feet.
‘Wow… I just slapped it, yet here I am sending that monster flying so much.’
Even with a protective shield, I couldn’t believe it was something I did.
– Whoa, what?! The Hellacne is coming up?!
– Hit it, hit it!!
– Uwaaaaah!! Let’s go! Hurry!
The hunters reacted pretty quickly.
They were the best hunters who didn’t miss an opportunity.
Over forty high-rank hunters aimed their skills at one target.
But the Lesser Hellacne only allowed ranged skills.
Before the close-range warriors, with their much higher magic density, could reach, it effortlessly climbed up the wall, avoiding lethal injury.
– SSSHHHH── SSSHHHH──
Was it its first time experiencing the fear of death? The Lesser Hellacne’s breathing was ragged.
‘It’s clinging to the wall, huh? Does it have some sort of slime-like [Adhesion] ability? What a versatile creature.’
[Corrupted Green Binding]
──?!!
Before it could even catch its breath, the Lesser Hellacne was wrapped again and pulled down to the ground by an Ent.
This is why support characters with binding abilities are highly regarded.
POOF── POOF──!!
– KIEEEEH!!
Seeing the fleeing creature, the high-rank hunters licked their lips, not willing to pass on the delicious meal.
The beastmen were already in the front line, hacking at the Lesser Hellacne.
“Get fluffy now─!”
POPOPOW─
“Ooh?! Another layer of magic shield has formed?!”
The stability of the Beastman Party increased thanks to the area support skills from the two beastmen. Thanks to this, the Lesser Hellacne’s frantic counterattacks didn’t have much effect.
All sorts of CC skills and DoT damage were gradually eating away at its vitality.
Even so, the thrashing of the heavy creature itself was threatening, and it was only natural that the hunters were sweating from the effort.
A few got sent flying to the entrance from a wildly swung tail.
‘My contribution should be pretty high.’
I was worried, but the beastmen were holding their own rather well.
‘… But it’s still too slow.’
Watching the hunters fight, I felt it was going to take too long, so I decided to intervene again.
[Bloodletting Enhancement]
POOF──!
– KIEEEEH!!
– Recovery +2
– Resistance +1
– Magic +1
Unlike Marshall Dragard, this creature gave me a significant boost in stats.
“It’s drastically weakening!! Just a little more, hang in there!”
Of course, other hunters couldn’t help but feel invigorated seeing the monster weaken, and the spirited fighting of the hunters continued for another twenty minutes.
– Health +1
In the end, I squeezed out the last dregs and absorbed a total of 13 stats.
Simultaneously, the third hunting ground’s owner, the ‘Corrupted Lesser Hellacne’, stuck out its long tongue and passed away.
WHOOOOSH──!
– You have defeated the Hellacne species monster for the first time!
– Trait [Thievery] has activated.
– You have acquired the skill [Water Ball]!
– You have acquired the trait [Hydro Protection]!
– Achievement [Pioneer] has activated!
– All attributes increase by 2!
Water Ball
– Creates a sphere of moderate power for throwing using water as a medium.
– When there is insufficient water, mana consumption increases to double.
Hydro Protection
– A water-attribute shield that is automatically generated when you’ve been submerged for a long time and come out.
– The shield corresponds to 20% of your max health.
I gained two abilities from the Hellacne!
That was a significant harvest without much threat.
‘Why doesn’t Water Ball combine? Is it too low-level of a spell for that?’
Still, the newly acquired shield trait was quite useful.
Of course, it had the condition of activating only after being submerged for a long time, but it wasn’t bad.
– …….
‘Hmm?’
I felt like I heard Goddess Irmana’s laughter from afar.
‘Shouldn’t I be sad for defeating a water-attribute monster?’
I tilted my head, but nodded as I saw a new message.
– You have acquired a supreme Mana Stone!
– You have acquired a rare Water Rune!
– You have acquired a rare Water Rune!
– You have acquired a rare Water Rune!
‘Whoa… Three rare runes?! Jackpot!’
Even though Hunters dealing with water are fewer, making attribute runes the cheapest of all, it’s still a rare grade.
Water Rune (Rare)
– Water attribute skill attack power +89
The best value among them is +89.
‘I need to test this out.’
I was curious about the kind of powerful magic I’d be able to cast if I swapped out runes right before using a skill.
WHOOSH──!
As the tail part of the Hellacne that was clinging to the wall fell to the ground, the hunters who participated in the boss battle roared in unison.
– WOOOAAAAH!!
‘Feels like a primitive tribe.’
At moments like this, there’s no denying the savagery.
“No serious injuries at all! We haven’t had that in a while.”
“I’m more surprised that it was caught in under thirty minutes. What on earth happened today?”
“But who is the one with contribution rank 1?”
‘That’s me. So all of this is mine.’
For regular monsters, you only need to cut off the token to submit at the office near the gate, but when it comes to creatures like Hellacne that have high-value byproducts, it’s a different story.
It’s standard practice to take the most valuable parts in order of contribution, but since there’s a limit to the capacity of the storage space for high contributors, in cases of large species, an equal distribution usually happens.
‘But I’m different.’
Since I had already transformed the appearance significantly, there was no reason not to be greedy.
WHOOSH───
──?!!
In an instant, the corpse of the Lesser Hellacne vanished.
Only the runes and Mana Stones dropped by contribution floated in the air.
Suddenly, the hunters present froze, as if they had agreed silently.
Because the massive creature, when sucked into the storage, could only be sensed in the direction it was moving.
– Full-plate armor, that guy… he’s a storage ability user.
– Wow… He’s going to eat all of that in one go? Where’s his conscience?
The hunters stared at me with a look of disbelief as I swallowed the massive monster.
“What, what are you?! Isn’t this a bit too much without any talk?!”
“Even for a storage ability user, how can he just swallow a monster of that size?!”
“Wait, even if they got contribution rank 1, isn’t this too much?! We shouldn’t be so entitled!”
Naturally, complaints erupted from all around.
‘Entitlement? Entitlement…’
I pondered deeply.
The hunters had been on defensive since the unexpected counterattack of the Lesser Hellacne.
I was the one who retrieved the Hellacne that had hidden under the lake.
And I was also the one who dealt the decisive blow and depleted it through bloodletting.
‘… It’s like I set the table and spoon-fed them. I feel no guilt whatsoever.’
I waved my hands dismissively as if to dispel the complaints.
Seeing that, the beastmen appeared even more at a loss and gestured to the other hunters.
‘Those who do not work shall not eat. You all will have to be satisfied with the experience points gained.’
With the kindness I had shown to the beastmen over the past few days, I felt I had done more than enough. As the saying goes, it’s better to have some than none, right? The same goes for giving.
The hunters who had been looking at me with piercing eyes shuffled away like soulless dolls toward the exit.
I was the monster who had lifted the Hellacne alone and kicked it against the wall.
The hunters who had witnessed that wouldn’t dare raise further complaints.
“……”
The beastmen were somewhat flustered by my firmness, but they still followed behind me.
When we stepped outside, we walked to a quiet place where no one was around.
[Camouflage]
──?!
Right after the boss battle ended, over five beastmen sensed my change the moment I activated camouflage.
But that didn’t matter.
It was time for us to part ways.
‘I’ve been away from Yeon-hee for too long.’
And the next area would again involve underwater battles, which would be burdensome for me to enter right now.
I cast a slow gaze over the flushed faces of the beastmen, still buzzing from the aftereffects of the battle.
Even if I had set the table, suppressing the giant creature’s thrash when it counter-attacked wasn’t an easy task.
I understood why they felt greatly encouraged about clearing the mission.
‘Especially Ho-yeol…’
He was the one who had been maintaining his composure until now, and now he was shouting in joy towards the sky.
– Kreeeeeeeh!! Kwahaha!!
We’re still in the dungeon, and he should keep it down just in case the Hellacne hears him.
While I didn’t entirely capture it with my own skills, I’d certainly like to think that I was lucky to meet someone like me, and ‘Sang-gun’ would understand that.
‘There’s a saying that no hunter can defeat a lucky one in a dungeon.’
After all, in this world, luck is also considered a skill.
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