Chapter 10: Are you here to save me?

The word “rescuer” exists.

Before monsters ran rampant and the shadow of the apocalypse loomed, there were many people who performed such roles.

But monsters were an unimaginable horror.

Ordinary people couldn’t handle them.

Therefore, in situations involving monster threats, rescuers were rare.

High-ranking Hunters had to fill that role, but few would do so without a strong sense of duty.

KOONG.

So everyone had given up.

THUMP.

Believing no one would come for them.

However, whether what appeared was actually a rescuer was another matter entirely.

“H-Holy sh*t, it’s a giant monster!”
“W-We’re dead.”
“We’re not getting out of this alive…!”

Indescribable terror filled the faces of the F-rank Hunters.

Such a giant monster was not a common sight in this field.

For it to intrude into another monster’s territory meant its strength was absolute.

Of course, other monsters could enter goblin territory, but that wasn’t the point.

Because they could gauge the giant monster’s power just by looking at it.

–Kik?

The goblins, who had been mocking the Hunters, turned their attention to the approaching giant monster and stopped laughing.

–Kyaak!

They raised their clubs and shrieked at the giant monster as if protesting.

“W-What’s going on?”

The Hunters looked bewildered.

Monsters rarely showed hostility towards each other.

Just as humans were enemies of monsters, monsters were enemies of humans.

Such a reaction was unfamiliar to the Hunters.

『!#!.』

 

Garbled noises erupted from the giant monster’s mouth.

They couldn’t understand what it was saying, but the Hunters recoiled under the oppressive pressure.

–Kyaak!

But goblins were behind them too.

The Hunters had nowhere to retreat.

They could only watch the unprecedented disaster unfolding before them.

“!”

Then, the greatsword Hunter saw a glimmer of hope.

“O-Over there!”

A gap in the encirclement, created by the approaching giant monster.

The goblins had moved aside to avoid the giant monster’s feet, creating an opening.

“If we can just get through there!”

The path he was referring to was between the giant monster’s legs. There were no goblins there.

“A-Are you crazy?”
“Go through there?!”

Yes, he was crazy.

But….

“It’s a giant monster, so it’ll be slow! Let’s try it!”

He shouted, but no one responded.

Naturally.

Who would dare to run under a giant monster on a whim?

“…Are you all going to die here?”

Still, no one answered the greatsword Hunter.

They were nothing more than terrified civilians now.

“D*mn it!”

But the greatsword Hunter wasn’t going to die here.

“Then I’ll go!”

He ran towards the giant monster.

“I’ll go myself!”
“H-Hey!”

The greatsword Hunter charged towards the giant monster.

The goblins tried to catch him, but he was faster.

‘Just a little further…!’

He finally reached the giant monster, standing between its legs.

WHOOSH!

The giant monster suddenly turned, blocking the path with its foot.

Goblins were chasing him from behind.

A moment of hesitation meant death.

The greatsword Hunter gasped.

WHOOSH!

Then, the giant monster’s tail swung around, casting a shadow over the greatsword Hunter.

---

KWAAAAABOOOOM!

A roar.
Wind.
Dust.

Where the tail had passed, a long crater-like gouge was carved into the ground, resembling the impact of a meteorite.

“He’s crushed!”
“Why did he go?!”

As the other Hunters cried out, Jo Sung-Il, the giant monster, lifted his tail.

“Huh?”

Numerous Hunters gasped.

“H-He’s…?”

The greatsword Hunter.
He was alive.

“H-How….”

He should have been crushed by the tail.

The angle made it inevitable.

Unless the tail was deliberately moved.

“!”

As the greatsword Hunter looked around in surprise, Jo Sung-Il stepped away from him.

THUMP! THUMP!

Where his tail had just passed, goblin corpses lay scattered.

A single attack had sent dozens of goblins to the other side.

–Kik….
–Kiyak!

The goblins, seemingly enraged by the unexpected loss of their comrades, shrieked like agitated monkeys.

“Quiet.”

Jo Sung-Il lifted his foot high and stomped down.

“Shut up!”

KWAAAAABOOOOM!

His foot deeply embedded itself in the ground.

–Kiyack!

The goblins who had thrown themselves away survived, but they were a minority.

The goblins who hadn’t dodged were crushed and killed.

BANG! KABOOM!

The Hunters stared blankly as Jo Sung-Il continued walking, crushing goblins underfoot like insects.

“W-What is….”

Jo Sung-Il shouted at the bewildered Hunters.

“Don’t just stand there! Get out of the way!”

A resounding roar.

He knew they wouldn’t understand him.

But that wasn’t his concern right now.

His threatening roar prompted some Hunters to move.

They likely saw this inter-monster conflict as an opportunity.

That was enough for Jo Sung-Il.

“E-Everyone, get out of the way!”

The Hunters shouted to each other and scrambled to escape.

The goblins shrieked and chased after them.

‘One, two, three, four…. Even if they’re caught by goblins, I won’t reach 30!’

Jo Sung-Il moved swiftly, calculating how many Hunters he needed to save to reach the 30 mentioned in the quest.

GRAB.

Jo Sung-Il picked up a boulder and hurled it at the goblins chasing the Hunters.

KWAAAAAAAAABOOOOM!

Like a meteor strike.

A shockwave erupted where the boulder landed, sending goblins flying in all directions.

–Kiyack!

The goblins now recognized Jo Sung-Il as a true enemy.

They were no match for his size, but the number of goblins flooding the field was vast.

As their leader, the Hobgoblin, raised its club, they swarmed towards Jo Sung-Il.

He estimated there were at least a hundred.

‘Fighting with just my limbs is tiring.’

Jo Sung-Il felt fatigue, but he didn’t complain any further.

He had anticipated this when he accepted the mission to exterminate goblins.

The magazines always described goblins as annoying pests that traveled in packs.

[Countless stars are impressed by your passionate fighting.]
[You have been granted Skill 3.]
[Will you accept this skill?]

Stars? Granted a skill because they were impressed?

Jo Sung-Il was slightly bewildered by the sudden offer, but he wouldn’t refuse help in this situation.

“Let’s see what you got.”

[Accepted.]
[Lost dragon technique, ‘Breath,’ has been added as Skill 3.]

Breath.
Jo Sung-Il’s eyes widened at the term.

“Breath?”

Wasn’t that a signature dragon technique?

It was the perfect skill to incinerate swarming monsters like these goblins, like a flamethrower.

“Can I use it right away?”

There was no response from the blue window.

But he couldn’t waste time hesitating.

Jo Sung-Il opened his mouth wide and envisioned the skill.

He imagined an energy sphere forming in his mouth, preparing the breath.

ZIIIIING.

As he learned from the Hunter magazines, skills could be initiated just by visualizing them.

He felt a surge of energy gathering in his mouth.

A sphere formed, growing larger like a snowball.

‘How much do I need to gather?’

The energy continued to gather without stopping, as if it were limitless.

As he wondered if he should gather it to its maximum capacity, he felt dizzy.

It was as if his blood was being drained. He suddenly felt weak.

[Warning. Body energy decreased by 5%.]

‘It’s using my own energy?!’

It was obvious in hindsight, but he had thought it was a free skill.

Learning once again that nothing in life came without a price, Jo Sung-Il envisioned himself firing the breath.

‘Here we go, you d*mn bugs!’

KWAOOOOOOO!

The concentrated energy sphere stopped gathering and erupted as a beam of light.

KWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABOOOOM!

A blinding white flash engulfed the area as the gathered goblins were caught in the beam.