episode_0043

Clang!

Ching!

Kakang!

In the dark forest filled with darkness, the sharp metallic sounds reverberated.

Pyodokju and the two thieves.

The three of them were engaged in a fierce battle, fighting against a horde of over 50 undead creatures.

“Ikik! Jegiral! Jegiral! Get out of here!”

The orange-haired figure, filled with fear, swung his fists wildly.

The incomplete dispersal of the crimson magic soon created a violent blow.

A derivative skill of [Combat].

While it was good to defeat the enemies with [Combo], he consumed too much magic due to overwhelming fear.

Shuk!

“Ah!”

In the end, he failed to properly defend against the attack of a skeleton, and his side was cut.

Watching this, the green-haired figure raised his voice towards Pyodokju with anger.

“What the hell is going on! You said the plan was foolproof! Do something about it!”

“Don’t shout and make a rational judgment! It’s just a minor setback!”

“Just a minor setback!?”

Dodging the approaching zombie’s claws, the green-haired figure vented his frustration with an [Edge Strike].

Pyodokju just kept talking without doing much.

“There may be many of them, but they’re just low-level undead. We’ll defeat these guys, chase down those two, and take them out. It’s a simple matter!”

“Th-this…damn it…”

And so, the three of them continued their relentless battle.

Meanwhile, at the same time.

At the same place.

Two figures were looking down at them from a high cliff.

One was a cute and lovely cat-like girl who was said to bring healing just by looking at her, and the other was a handsome man who brought a different kind of healing.

Of course, it was Mahana and Yuseha.

Mahana, with a bowed head, muttered with a pale face, “Th-this…it was really…dangerous.”

Yuseha, with his arms crossed, nodded slowly. “Indeed. Facing that number of undead and then fighting those three…we must have been prepared for total annihilation.”

Yuseha spoke coldly, but deep down, he was just trying to show off in front of Mahana.

‘These damn fools…’

Seriously, I thought we were screwed.

‘Damn it, is it really necessary to hunt undead mobs with demon stones where cute newbies roam?’

This is a behavior of rejecting newbies!

If this was ‘Gosla,’ I would have gone to the forums immediately and cursed them for their rude behavior.

“…It’s because of me.”

“Huh?”

Turning his head at the sudden words, Mahana pointed to the two thieves.

“…I don’t know what they did to wait here, but they must have a grudge against me. Because of me…Seha was almost in danger.”

With a hint of apology, Mahana choked up.

‘Mew, mew…’ she whimpered, her large pupils filled with tears.

Feeling a pang in my heart, I reassured her by stroking her head, indicating that everything was okay.

“Well, that may have been the trigger, but strictly speaking, it was probably because of me.”

“…Mew?”

“Do you see that woman with silver hair? Look at the tattoo on her shoulder. It’s a bat spewing fire. Those are the Class Hunters.”

“Mew!? W-wait, the infamous human trafficking gang?”

“That’s right.”

“W-why would they…Seha?”

I nodded towards the pale-faced Mahana.

‘Probably one of their employees sold my information.’

Honestly.

Looking back, I was incredibly lucky.

Even now, I feel like luck was on my side.

I figured out their plan about five minutes after entering the .

I realized that the dungeon grade of this place had been adjusted by Meonyangi’s explanation, and although it was very unlikely, I imagined the worst-case scenario.

‘…What if high-level undead come out on the unexplored route?’

The probability was not high, but occasionally, due to adjustments, monsters that roamed around would launch attacks.

If it were a different dungeon, it wouldn’t have been a big deal.

But this place had a significant gap compared to the regular route.

In case we were unlucky enough to encounter a , I prepared myself for total annihilation and released [Unprecedented Perception] to its maximum level, taking into account the possibility of feeling nauseous.

‘…Thinking about it again, it was damn annoying.’

The feeling that spread like a blazing wildfire, full of vitality, allowed me to expand the range quite a bit.

Thanks to that, I could detect unexpected individuals.

“Assassins, a duo.”

I realized that the two individuals were observing us from the bushes.

They were probably lurking and waiting in advance.

I didn’t know how they managed to sneak in.

‘So, I kept my guard up.’

I first wrote down on Meonyangi’s soft palm that someone was there, and then continued to focus on sensing.

In case of any unforeseen events, I entrusted most of the fighting to Meonyangi.

While Meonyangi had mostly exposed themselves to the duo, I still hadn’t revealed myself.

Through persistent patience, I discovered one unexpected fact.

There was another person besides the two thieves, whose presence was more obscure…

It seemed like they were considered to be of a higher caliber.

It was easier for me to perceive them since they moved and caught my eye.

From then on, everything happened swiftly.

The trio officially started their attack.

And suddenly, a group of undead appeared.

Observing their movements clearly aimed at us, I saw through their plan.

‘They were planning to distract us with the undead horde and then ambush us.’

Initially, I thought about escaping.

But soon, I changed my mind.

‘…Is it really necessary?’

Now that I understood everything, I wasn’t afraid of their plan anymore.

Once I escaped this place, it would take at least a week before I had to face another test.

‘I can’t let that happen.’

So, I lured the pursuing undead group into a trap.

If they had been more cautious, they wouldn’t have fallen for it so easily.

But hunters are not good at realizing when they are being hunted.

I exploited that flaw beautifully, and that’s how things turned out.

Now, the only variable left was the skill of that .

Watching them fight from below the cliff, I was convinced.

‘I can win.’

It might have been difficult in perfect condition, but now, after fighting the undead, it was more than manageable.

‘I’ll be out of here soon.’

Alright, shall we start moving?

“Meonya, let’s go!”

“Okay!”

This is the beginning of our counterattack!

* * *

Clang―!

A heavy metallic sound reverberated through the cave.

‘…Damn it!’

The hunter who had come to hunt cursed inwardly.

Why did it have to turn out like this?

What went wrong?

Did those trashy duo betray me?

‘…No, they wouldn’t have had the chance to do that in the first place.’

Stay calm.

Right now, I needed to break through the undead encirclement and escape.

“Kwaaah!”

Swish―!

She swiftly decapitated the approaching zombie and quickly analyzed the situation.

‘Thank goodness, the gathered ones included, their level isn’t that high.’

But who knows how long this will last.

Undead are inherently sensitive to the activities of the living.

And they are also sensitive to the dead finding peace.

Thanks to these characteristics, there was a tendency for the support troops to quickly gather.

This means that if you spend time, there is a 100% chance that an undead of Dura Han’s level will appear.

“…But there are too many to charge in blindly.”

Literally a situation with no answer.

At that moment of contemplation, the green-haired figure fighting covered in sweat cursed.

“Damn it, damn it! Hey, you! Do something! Sprinkle that fancy powder or something!”

Foolish…

He probably said it wouldn’t work.

Even biting his tongue was temporary.

A brilliant idea flashed through the paranoid mind.

Standing discreetly behind the green and orange heads, he spoke in a nuanced way, giving instructions.

“There is a way.”

“What is it! Hurry up and tell us!”

“It’s probably going to be like that anyway.”

Quickly brushed off the green head’s back.

‘What?!’ he exclaimed as he fell alongside the orange head.

“You guys are just bait.”

Before the words could finish, the undead rushed towards the duo.

“You, you… you son of a b****!!!”

“Ah! Don’t bite me!! Don’t bite!!”

Alright, thanks to them, the encirclement loosened.

With strength in both legs, Paranoid ran without looking back.

“…Oh s***!”

Paranoid continued to curse.

Fortunately, time was gained, but the situation remained unfavorable.

For now, the focus was on getting out and preserving life.

As he ran.

Paranoid noticed something flashing before his eyes.

He quickly turned his body.

Feeling a sharp sensation as it grazed his cheek.

‘…A dagger!?’

The thrown object appeared as if it had been awaited – Mahana.

With eyes burning with anger, she grabbed a large shield and assumed a combat stance.

Then Yusehaga appeared.

Hiding behind the shield and bowing at the waist, he assumed the [Ryucham] posture.

‘Damn it…’

Paranoid gritted his teeth.

The situation was very bad.

Having wasted three hours wandering around and using too much strength and mana fighting the undead horde.

He must escape somehow…

‘No, wait. This is actually an opportunity.’

He corrected his thinking.

Just as there is a saying that crisis is an opportunity, here he would kill the dirty little undead, subdue the man, and kidnap him.

“If that’s the case, no problem at all!”

The moment the contemplative swordsman slowly gripped his hilt.

“Kweeeeek!”

“…What?!”

Suddenly, a fierce weasel leaped out from the bushes.

Perhaps persistently tracking him, the creature’s legs were covered in dirt.

Swish!

The swordsman swiftly sliced through.

He inwardly cursed.

Thud!

Not missing a brief but crucial gap, the vigilant warrior charged forward.

Click! Shivers ran down the swordsman’s spine as he faced the half-revealed blade.

“Oh no…”

You son of a bitch!!!