Chapter 119

As Taehyeok Sa said, the wicked axolotl-like lizards were flicking their long tongues at the people. The entities with dark crimson skin and red horns crawled disgustingly across the floor. They were quite fast, too.
Boom-!
Then Cho-i Hyeon landed on top of a crawling monster. With a crash, the floor shattered, and the sound of the monster’s bones breaking was heard. Its guts were splattered all over the place around its burst body.

“Taehyeok Sa!”

“I know!”

Taehyeok Sa used Telekinesis to lift the monsters Cho-i Hyeon had brought so far. The monsters instantly contorted in mid-air. Snap, crackle, the cries of the things being crushed alive continued.
Screech-!
Putting aside whether an axolotl could make a sound, it wasn’t a pleasant one. When the guts exploded above her head and rained down, Cho-i grumbled in annoyance and moved away from the spot.

“Do you want your car’s passenger seat to be covered in blood?”

“I’ll just get a new car.”

“You damn self-made businessman.”

Cho-i brushed off the blood splattered all over her body and looked around again. Having slaughtered countless monsters, it seemed she only needed to deal with the stragglers. However, there might be some who sensed danger and hid themselves.

“I think I need to use Shout to pull aggro occasionally.”

“Let’s try to find them with our eyes first. That skill sounds more like a monster than a human, so it might actually cause people more anxiety.”

“How annoying.”

Cho-i Hyeon slung her sword over her shoulder and began to inspect the surroundings, walking leisurely. Taehyeok Sa, who had been floating in the air, descended and stood beside her. Unlike the blood-soaked Cho-i, Taehyeok Sa was spotless. A somewhat sulky Cho-i rubbed her bloodied arm on his suit.

“What’s this you’re doing now?”

“Couple item, you idiot.”

“……”

Taehyeok Sa began to walk alongside her, his one arm now bloodied. There were no longer any people who looked like civilians around. Although, he could vaguely see people moving in the distance.

“Looks like a hunter from another area.”

“How long has it been since the last dungeon break?”

“Well, it’s been a while. It’s been well-managed until now.”

“Aren’t there a lot of incidents like this lately? Like dungeon ranks suddenly increasing…”

“That means it’s about time for things to start breaking out.”

“Oh, this is a headache.”

Cho-i Hyeon scratched her head. As her blood-matted hair became a tangled mess, Taehyeok Sa clicked his tongue and calmly smoothed her hair with his hand. Cho-i Hyeon left her hair to be brushed and asked,

“Should we shorten the dungeon clearing cycle?”

“It would probably be safer to do so. Other guilds must have noticed by now that the dungeons are acting strangely.”

“Typical Korea. The land of ‘hurry-hurry’.”

“That’s different.”

Taehyeok Sa withdrew his hand. His hand was now covered in blood, but he nonchalantly shoved it into his pocket. Cho-i Hyeon chuckled as she watched him, then immediately ran off at a growling sound from somewhere.

“Huh?”

Then she stopped in her tracks and blinked. It was a monster, but it seemed to be a baby. The small lizard, looking like a baby axolotl, was baring its teeth and purring. Cho-i Hyeon picked up the entity with one hand.

“Hey! Look at this!”

“It’s dangerous, put it down.”

“Dangerous, my ass.”

When Cho-i Hyeon picked it up by the body, the juvenile monster resisted and bit Cho-i Hyeon’s hand. But it didn’t even leave a scratch. Taehyeok Sa, seeing that, raised an eyebrow for a moment.

“Now that I think about it…”

“Why?”

“Did you say that killing a hunter raises your stats?”

Cho-i Hyeon grinned at Taehyeok Sa at those words.

“So it was pretty good.”

“You don’t seem to be SS-Rank yet…”

“Not yet. More than that, it’s cuter than I thought. Should I raise it?”

“You don’t raise monsters.”

“How do you know? Have you tried?”

“I haven’t tried, but…”

Normally, you wouldn’t think that. Taehyeok Sa stared at Cho-i Hyeon, but she didn’t seem to have any intention of letting go of the juvenile monster, which was about two spans long, in her hand.

“…If you’re going to take it, hide it well.”

“Okay~”

Cho-i put the juvenile monster inside her clothes for now. After all, biting her flesh didn’t even leave a mark… Huh? My bra strap broke. You bastard. While Cho-i took out the monster again and tied it tightly with her belt, she heard someone approaching. Cho-i Hyeon focused only on the monster, assuming Taehyeok Sa would handle it, and Taehyeok Sa glanced at her, then turned his head towards the sound of footsteps.

“…So you were in Korea?”

Taehyeok Sa spoke to the person who approached them, and the other person didn’t answer. But perhaps they nodded, as Taehyeok Sa soon spoke again.

“When did you come in? I didn’t hear any news of you entering.”

“Not long ago.”

“Did you smuggle yourself in again with bad habits?”

“Perhaps?”

“What do you mean, perhaps? It’s obvious.”

Just then, Cho-i Hyeon, who had successfully tied up the juvenile monster, looked up. The first thing she saw was jet-black hair. The hair, perhaps darker than Taehyeok Sa’s, was an abyssal black that didn’t even reflect light. And beneath it, dark eyes shone ominously.

Cho-i Hyeon peeked out from behind Taehyeok Sa and looked at the other person. They seemed to be someone Taehyeok Sa knew, but Cho-i Hyeon had no such person in her mind.

“Who is it?”

“Taeyang Kang.”

“His hair isn’t red?”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s a name that sounds like he’d have red hair.”

“Unfortunately, it’s not.”

“Hello?”

Cho-i Hyeon greeted Taeyang Kang. Taeyang Kang then looked at Taehyeok Sa with a ‘what is this’ expression, and Taehyeok Sa pushed her forward slightly and said,

“Cho-i Hyeon. She’s currently the star hunter of our guild.”

“Ah, I think I’ve seen her.”

Cho-i Hyeon was holding the tightly bound juvenile monster in both hands, and it didn’t seem to please Taeyang Kang, as his brow naturally furrowed. Cho-i Hyeon continued to look at him, holding the still-growling monster in her arms.

‘Since it’s Taeyang Kang, will he use fire?’

“More importantly, what’s that monster?”

“This isn’t a monster?”

“Then what is it?”

“Hmm, a pet?”

When Taeyang Kang looked at Taehyeok Sa with a face expecting an explanation, Taehyeok Sa shrugged his shoulders. It meant for him to figure it out himself.

“Does it make sense to raise a monster as a pet?”

“What’s wrong with it? Have you tried?”

“The very act of attempting it is problematic.”

“So, have you tried? I don’t listen to anyone who hasn’t.”

“You’re impossible to talk to.”

“What are you talking about, you stubborn blockhead?”

Then Taeyang Kang lightly raised one hand. As Cho-i stared at his hand, she soon saw small fragments gathering above it. Crack- Thud- What formed on his hand was a pure white icicle. Cho-i Hyeon was flustered.

“Why is it Ice when it’s Taeyang Kang? I can’t accept it!”

“What are you talking about again? Put down the monster.”

“No way. Since when did you get to order me around?”

As soon as Cho-i Hyeon finished speaking, the icicle that had formed on his hand was shot straight at the monster in Cho-i’s arms. Cho-i Hyeon blinked and blocked the Entity with one hand. His body was lightly pushed back, but it wasn’t impossible to block.

‘My stats haven’t increased that much, but it’s still helpful?’

However, he couldn’t help that the icicle had pierced his hand. Cho-i Hyeon looked closely at the icicle that had gone through the back of his hand.

“What are you doing?”

Taehyeok Sa clicked his tongue and pulled out the icicle.

“Ow! That hurts!”

“Why do things that hurt? You should have dodged.”

“If I dodge, I lose my dignity.”

“…Seriously.”

Taehyeok Sa pulled Cho-i Hyeon’s hand and looked at the hole pierced in the center of her palm. The wound was already slowly regenerating. Taehyeok Sa clicked his tongue and blocked Cho-i’s front.

“What is it?”

“You shouldn’t fight during a dungeon break.”

“Hmm.”

Cho-i Hyeon made a thoughtful expression. No matter what, I got hit once, so ending it here feels a bit off, doesn’t it? That was the look on her face. Taehyeok Sa didn’t even need to turn around to know what kind of face she was making.

“Just bear with it.”

“Cho-i doesn’t bear with it.”

“Why are you suddenly speaking in the third person?”

Cho-i Hyeon tapped Taehyeok Sa’s back. When he turned around, Cho-i handed the juvenile monster she had tied up to Taehyeok Sa and stepped forward again.

“Hey!”

“What?”

“Are you good at fighting?”

“What?”

“I am.”

With those words, Cho-i Hyeon lunged at Taeyang Kang. Cho-i’s fist headed for Taeyang Kang’s face. Wham! Thwack! Taeyang Kang immediately blocked the punch. Cho-i Hyeon looked at her trembling arm. Taeyang Kang seemed to think Cho-i Hyeon was quite strong, as he frowned even more, and Cho-i grinned, shook off the grabbed fist. And then.

[Sanity Paralysis is cast!]

She spun around and delivered a low kick. Taeyang Kang, who had received the punch and thought she wasn’t strong enough to beat him, took the low kick directly. Wham-! With a loud sound, Taeyang Kang’s eyes widened. At the same time, his body began to sway. Cho-i Hyeon giggled and backed away, and he slumped to the ground.

“Idiot!”

Cho-i Hyeon chuckled and approached Taehyeok Sa, taking back the juvenile monster he was holding. Then she held up the juvenile monster, which was still purring and gnawing at the belt, and spun around in place.

“Sigh….”

Taehyeok Sa sighed as he watched Taeyang Kang sit there foolishly, staring at Cho-i. How was he supposed to explain this? He used Telekinesis to help Taeyang Kang up. It was obvious his shinbone was broken, just like his had been.