Chapter 114

At Yuri Ja’s words, Cho-i Hyeon laughed heartily and held up two fingers as if to poke out his eyes.

“No way, I set the table, and you’re going to eat it all up?”

“D-do I look like such a heartless person?”

“Do you think you can be heartless in front of a hidden item?”

Cho-i immediately picked up her blood-stained sword. Then, she walked around the platform where the dishes were placed and stood at the path leading behind it. The path was made of ordinary stone pavement, and all the Stone Statues had their eyes closed, so nothing seemed dangerous.

“I’m going first.”

“Suddenly, without any preparation?”

“What do you mean, no preparation? Don’t you remember I just didn’t die?”

“Ah, ha, well, that’s true…”

Seoyeon Ha trailed off. Cho-i smiled faintly and slowly stepped onto the stone path. She expected to hear a click, but the stone path was just an ordinary stone path. Cho-i let out a small gasp of admiration and began to walk on the stone path. Nothing hindered her. As if showing mercy to the one who offered the correct sacrifice.

“Guild Master, should we go too?”

Jihan Kim slowly shook his head.

“Don’t bother, what can we take from someone who doesn’t even die?”

“That’s true, but…”

“What kind of item does he even have that makes him not die?”

“We don’t know that either.”

“Taehyeok Sa probably knows… I’ll have to contact him soon.”

“Are you still coveting it?”

“……”

Jihan Kim’s lips moved, then he nodded.

“How can I not covet it? He’s a talent who can clear an S-Rank dungeon alone and even find a dungeon core. And he doesn’t even die? The guild that has him will probably become the best guild in the world.”

“But Paehyeok got him first.”

“That’s what I regret. It should have been us…”

Jihan Kim bit his thumbnail with a clicking sound. Yuri Ja came over and gently pulled his hand away.

At that moment, Cho-i stood right in front of the box. The red box had a handle and was designed to open from both sides. She opened the handle. Whoosh-!

“Ah! Damn it! You startled me!”

She fell backward on her butt from a hand that suddenly shot out. The furry hand held a necklace made of small, black beads. She carefully took the necklace from the hand. Then, the hand went back into the box and quietly closed the lid. Cho-i Hyeon stared blankly at the necklace in her hand and then examined the item.

[Nine Lives of the Cat Emperor]

“…Nine lives?”

Cho-i Hyeon’s face immediately flushed.

“She must be crazy, nine lives…!”

With an ecstatic expression, she quickly placed the necklace into her item window. As she stepped on the stone floor to return the way she came, there was a whoosh, then a thud. A loud sound echoed.

“……What could that sound be?”

Cho-i Hyeon looked around with a somewhat annoyed expression. As expected, the Stone Statues, which had been with their eyes closed, once again opened their eyes and were staring at Cho-i Hyeon. Was this their way of telling her to leave some lives behind here in exchange for one hundred and nine lives? You insane bastards. The Stone Statue instantly reached out its foot towards her. Crash!

“Whoa!”

She moved to the left to avoid the foot, but another Stone Statue stood to her left. Cho-i dodged that Stone Statue as well and charged forward, and the Stone Statue’s attack landed on the foot of another Stone Statue.

“Ahahaha, serves you right!”

She laughed as she looked back, not seeing the large hand that was bringing down a fist from in front of her.

“Ah, damn it. I’m so screwed…”

Crash! Crack! Ugh! Her entire body was shattered. Her bones were crushed, her head broken, and blood, brains, and bones that had pierced through her skin were all mangled. Even in that state, she twitched. Her breath hadn’t completely stopped yet. But the twitching stopped for only a moment, and then her entire body began to regenerate once again.

“You sons of bitches…”

Cho-i Hyeon lifted her head and glared at the Stone Statue that had crushed her. She pulled out her shield and brandished her sword, grinding her teeth.

“I’ll grind you all to dust, you bastards.”

She then took her sword and leaped high. Crack! Clang! With that sound, one of the Stone Statues’ heads flew off. Though tough, it wasn’t so tough that an S-Rank like Cho-i Hyeon couldn’t cut it. She stepped on the falling head and climbed onto another one’s head. Then she brought her sword straight down. Rip-! Bang! As the head split in half, its body also collapsed. Cho-i leaped onto another Stone Statue again, but was sent flying into a wall by a hand swung by one of the remaining Stone Statues.

“Gasp!”

Bang! And a fist came flying down at her. She couldn’t collect herself with the sensation of her entire body being broken and bursting. But Cho-i Hyeon laughed once more just before her breath stopped, and with a thud, she fell to the ground, beginning to regenerate again. This body is good, indeed. No, sometimes it’s like a dog. She thought this as she regenerated.

Jihan Kim’s party was contemplating whether they should help Cho-i Hyeon.

“Shouldn’t we help her?”

“I think so too. But there’s no opening to intervene…”

“Even so, just leaving her like that is a bit…”

Yuri Ja, who had once been helped by Cho-i Hyeon, said in a low voice. Jihan Kim’s eyes widened, then he stroked Yuri Ja’s head. Yes, she had become a decent person after being helped. That was the meaning.

“Then, shall we go help?”

“Sounds good!”

“Seoyeon Ha hunter, could you stand here and just send us some healing skills?”

“Ah, understood!”

And so, Jihan Kim and Yuri Ja began to take on the Stone Statues one by one while Cho-i’s body was regenerating. As the Stone Statues’ attention shifted, Cho-i Hyeon was finally able to catch her breath.

“Ah! If you were going to help, you should have helped sooner!”

“I thought you were doing it all yourself!”

“Even if I help, there’s no item for you!”

“Who’s taking it?!
“Aren’t you doing this to take it?”

“No, I’m not!”

Yuri Ja and Cho-i Hyeon were still bickering, and Jihan Kim smiled faintly as he completely destroyed the head of one Stone Statue. Bang! With a loud noise, the head shattered, and the massive body fell backward. Thud! Dust scattered in all directions.

“Alright, we don’t have time for chitchat, so let’s quickly finish up and leave.”

“Understood.”

Thus, the battle of the three began, and it was resolved faster than expected. It was something Cho-i Hyeon could handle alone, but with two S-Ranks joining, it ended even more quickly. During dangerous moments, Cho-i Hyeon would kick the Stone Statue, taking attacks in their place. Cho-i shouted,

“Don’t zone out, move, you idiot!”

Yuri Ja answered urgently.

“I know!”

“Yuri Ja! Don’t get swayed by what she says!”

“Alright!”

It was a very unique feeling to have someone who pushed them aside and got crushed in their place during danger, come back to life and call them an idiot. A feeling of not knowing whether to be grateful, sad, or angry. Does one of the Paehyeok Guild Members always feel this way?
Just then.
Boom-! Bang!
With a loud noise, the last Stone Statue collapsed. Cho-i Hyeon had slashed it so much with her sword that its entire body shattered into pieces, raising a hazy dust. Cho-i Hyeon immediately ran past the vessel and tucked Seoyeon Ha under her arm.

“I hate the sight of you! Hurry up and come out!”

“Oh!”

“Alright!”

Thus, the four of them were able to safely exit the hidden dungeon. There didn’t seem to be any major injuries, except for Cho-i Hyeon’s chest, which was soaked with blood.

“Whew.”

Cho-i let out a deep sigh after leaving the hidden dungeon, then grinned.

“I think I got what I wanted.”

“Congratulations.”

“What kind of item is it?”

When Jihan Kim asked, Cho-i Hyeon wiggled her finger and said,

“It’s a secret.”

“Aw.”

“Isn’t it similar to Myoyeong’s Nine Lives anyway?”

“It’s similar. But it’s on a different level.”

“I guess it gives you a hundred lives or something?”

Then Cho-i Hyeon looked at Jihan Kim as if she had seen a ghost.

“You’re really a psychic.”

“Hmm, if it’s real, that would be amazing. To be able to avoid dying over a hundred times… if something like that came out, all the Hunters in the world would be desperate to get it.”

“Is that so?”

As Cho-i Hyeon tilted her head, Jihan Kim sighed and said,

“Of course, Hunter Cho-i Hyeon wouldn’t need it. Because she doesn’t die.”

“True. Ah, I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“It doesn’t seem to have a limit… anyway, there’s something like that.”

Cho-i waved her hand as if annoyed. They looked displeased, but knowing that they shouldn’t pry into someone else’s secrets, they nodded.

“Tell me when we get closer next time.”

“I don’t know if we’ll get any closer.”

“First, let’s clear the dungeon and get out.”

“I did all the work inside, so you guys will do well here, right?”

Yuri Ja sighed and nodded.

“Yes, yes. Rest as much as you want.”

“But that guy has been speaking informally to me for a while now. Hey, how old are you?”

“I’m twenty-nine.”

“You’re older than me. Sorry.”

Cho-i Hyeon chuckled and waved his hand.

“Then, big brother, fighting!”

“Damn it…”

Yuri Ja shivered, feeling goosebumps all over his body. Cho-i Hyeon giggled, looking at the Entity. So the four of them went straight to where the boss monster was. Perhaps because they had just come out of the hidden dungeon, the already easy B-Rank monster seemed even easier.

[Four-Tailed Myo (B-rank)]

“Wow, they’re still insisting it’s a cat even here. Wait a minute.”

Cho-i Hyeon fumbled with his body, making a terrible expression.

“Why, what’s wrong, Hunter Cho-i!”

“What? Is something wrong?”

“Could it be that your body is acting strange? Of course, your body would be strange after dying that much!”

Then Cho-i Hyeon shouted.

“My cat doll…!”

“……”

“……”

“……”