Chapter 22 – A Sinister Smile

Frоm thе dеpths of thе Dungеоn, а Мonster wielding а shоrt speаr apреаrеd.

It hаd а lizard-like аppеаranсе аnd wаlkеd on twо legs.

Тhe momеnt hе sаw its fоrm, Masаo undеrstood the gар between them.

(Тhеre’s absolutely nо wаy I can win.)

It was cоmрletelу beуоnd his аbilitу to contend with.

Нe cоuld sее a future whеrе hе would be killеd in the blink of аn eye.

Evеn if hе tried to run, hе wоuldn’t get аway.

Нe would surelу be stаbbеd by a spear frоm behind immеdiаtеly.

Нis heart fеlt likе it wаs being swallоwed bу fеаr.

It wаs thе neхt mоmеnt.

――Stab!!

Whеn hе realized it, Yuki was standing before the Lizardman.

The Dagger gripped in his hand was plunged deep into its chest.

(W-when did he…)

Masao thought he had been watching the entire scene.

But he had been completely unable to perceive Yuki’s movements.

He hadn’t just failed to see him approach; he hadn’t even realized he had moved at all.

While Masao stood there stunned, the Lizardman pitched forward and collapsed onto the ground.

With just a single strike, Yuki had reaped the Monster’s life.

“…Amazing.”

No other words came to mind.

It was said there were ten Hunter Ranks in total, and with each Rank, combat power changed dramatically.

For example, it was said it would take ten F-Rank Hunters to subdue a single E-Rank Hunter.

Masao was currently G-Rank, but he couldn’t imagine even a hundred of himself being able to subdue Yuki.

Furthermore, judging by how he had overwhelmed the Lizardman, he was likely at least D-Rank.

(Is Mr. Yuki a Veteran Hunter!?)

They say you can’t judge a book by its cover, but he had never imagined it would be to this extent.

Asuto, sheathing his Dagger, immediately began walking deeper in.

“M-Mr. Yuki. What about the Magic Stone? You could Sell it for a pretty good price, you know?”

“Yeah. But if I wait around for it to turn into a Magic Stone, the Monster might Respawn.”

“Respawn…?”

“It’s when a defeated Monster revives.”

“I-is that so?”

“It doesn’t Respawn immediately, but if the Subjugation takes too long, you could get attacked from behind, you know?”

“Eep…”

A Lizardman sneaking up from behind while Yuki was fighting.

He could imagine the moment that attack pierced his chest with an unnervingly vivid clarity.

(Why did I imagine it so clearly…?)

It was a grotesque scene he would never normally think about.

Masao cursed his own vivid imagination.

“This time, I didn’t come here to earn money. It’s a waste, but let’s hurry ahead.”

“Y-yes!”

From there, Yuki’s triumphant advance began.

Lizardmen were terrifying. If Masao fought one, he’d be killed without being able to lift a hand or foot.

Yet, even such Lizardmen couldn’t lay a single finger on Yuki.

(Amazing…)

With this, they could definitely get their hands on the Dreamdrop.

That prediction became reality.

The moment they arrived at the innermost room of the Dungeon, Yuki launched an attack on the Boss.

The Boss was a Lizardman about twice the size of the others.

The instant Masao saw its sharp eyes, his breath caught.

It was the same feeling as the moment you jump off a bungee platform and realize there’s no bungee cord.

――Death.

Just from being glared at, he was reminded of death.

Cold sweat trickled down his back.

Against such a Boss, Yuki moved with grace.

He didn’t allow a single attack from the opponent, continuously unleashing fatal blows one after another.

It wasn’t an opponent he could defeat in one hit like the regular Monsters, of course.

But Yuki steadily whittled away at the creature’s life force.

And then,

――Thud.

The massive body of the Boss Lizardman finally fell prostrate to the ground.

Watching Yuki shake the blood off his Dagger and sheathe it, Masao’s heart raced.

(So cool…)

“Hey, Masao.”

“Eeek!?”

Suddenly called by Aim, Masao was so startled he felt his heart might leap out of his mouth.

“W-what is it, Mr. Aim?”

“That big brother is super strong, huh?”

“Y-yeah.”

“Thanks to him, we got the Dreamdrop!”

“Yeah!”

With this, his mother could be saved.

Relieved to have averted the worst possible future, Masao let out a sigh of relief.

There were definitely gods in this world, who extended a helping hand when you were truly in trouble.

This series of encounters felt miraculous enough to make him believe that.

If he hadn’t Awakened as a Hunter, he wouldn’t have heard about the Dreamdrop from Aim.

If he hadn’t moved to secure the Dreamdrop, he wouldn’t have met Yuki Asuto.

“God… thank you.”

He didn’t know which god it was, but Masao clasped his hands together in gratitude to whatever force had drawn this fate to him.

Beside him, Aim smiled.

But was it just his imagination? For an instant—just the briefest moment—it looked as if a terrifyingly evil smile had appeared…