Chapter 5

And Cho-i screamed even louder. Then she quickly grinned and said,

“Alright, let’s try again. Answer quickly. You have to understand.”

You told me to understand. Then you should understand too. She sat on the deer’s back, watching it thrash about.

Thump!

“Ugh!”

Having lost their tank and main damage dealer, they could do nothing but dodge the deer’s kicks. Suyeon Park, the swordswoman and sub-dealer, attempted an attack but was repeatedly kicked and only sustained injuries. Suyeon Park grimaced in pain, clutching her chest as if her ribs were broken. Hyeonchan An shouted.

“Save your strength!”

“This is really, uh, ugh. What do we do?”

Suyeon Park asked, her face a mix of annoyance and fear. She had been kicked by the deer once and had blood in her mouth. Hyeonchan went to her side and said,

“I’ll heal you. Let’s have you tank. I have basic attack skills too.”

“B-but I’ve never tanked a boss monster!”

“Is that the problem right now? If we don’t, we’ll all die immediately!”

Suyeon Park’s eyes reddened at his scolding. Hyeonchan ran his hand through his hair in frustration and gritted his teeth, seeing the Deer Knuckle charging towards them again.

“I’ll support you. Just tank well. We can definitely get out of here.”

“Uh, ugh…”

Suyeon Park somehow grabbed her sword. All the pain in her body decreased, as if Hyeonchan had cast a healing skill. The Deer Knuckle that Cho-i was riding kept thrashing as if annoyed that something was on its back, but Cho-i, with surprising skill, managed to cling on.

‘How does a C-Rank hunter handle a C-Rank dungeon boss monster like that?’

Suyeon Park raised her sword. Her hands trembled, making the sword’s tip waver. She sometimes took on the role of tanking, but that was usually only when hunting groups of monsters. She had never drawn the aggro of such a giant monster or stood as a tank. She was basically in a state of ‘lack of experience.’ That chronic problem that all hunters in mid-size guilds have. She was inherently prickly, so her teamwork wasn’t great. If she were B-Rank, she could have joined any major guild, but due to her difficult personality, she was kicked out of one place after another. Eventually, through her connection as Hyeonchan’s classmate, she barely managed to join Hyeonchan’s Uncle’s Guild. Here, her rank was almost the highest, so she could live ostentatiously, but if you asked if she had the corresponding skill, well. Not at all.

“Block it!”

“Ugh!”

The Deer Knuckle charged, and Hyeonchan supported her from behind. She cast her sub-skill, the block skill. But she was soon met with a thud!

“-!”

She was sent flying far away and slammed into the ground. There was a cracking sound from her body as she hit the floor. And her body no longer moved. Hyeonchan was able to roll to the side as she flew, escaping the kick.

“Hah, hah.”

Hyeonchan looked at the monster and felt something was off.

‘This monster, it shouldn’t be this strong?’

And it was the same for Cho-i.

“Why is it so strong?”

A C-Rank boss monster would, at best, be near B-Rank. Even with depleted health and fear, it shouldn’t be able to send a B-Rank hunter flying in one go.

“Inspect.”

The monster Inspect skill that hunters inherently possess. As she spoke, the Deer Knuckle’s stats appeared before her eyes. This skill couldn’t read the stats of monsters with a higher rank than herself. But fortunately, the Deer Knuckle’s system window appeared before her.

[Deer Knuckle (A-rank) Strength 6018 Intelligence 69 Health 8920 Agility 5038…]

“Why is it A-Rank?”

Cho-i grabbed its fur and peered into the system window, regardless of how much more the Deer Knuckle thrashed. Ah, there’s Nara Shim. Cho-i grabbed the Deer Knuckle by the scruff of its neck and spun it. She turned the monster’s direction towards Hyeonchan An, avoiding Nara Shim, and continued reading the system window. And at the end of the system window, she found an unfamiliar phrase.

[Buff Status Blessing of □□□□□]

“What is this?”

Cho-i blinked. This monster was currently under someone’s Blessing. That’s why its rank had increased by half or even half of a half. Basically, a B-Rank cannot withstand an A-Rank in a one-on-one fight. If they were to parry attacks, it would be one thing, but if they tried to tank and directly block, they would inevitably be sent flying like that.

“Fortunately, it’s a bit lower than mine.”

This might be tough, huh? Cho-i stared at it for a moment, then waved her hand to dismiss the system window.

“Ah, I don’t know. Let’s just kill him first and then think.”

Cho-i said, looking down at Hyeonchan An, who was still frantically rolling around.

“Still up for it?”

“Cho-i.”

“Why are you calling?”

“I was wrong.”

At his words, Cho-i briefly pulled Deer Knuckle’s hair. Deer Knuckle, seemingly understanding the signal now, obediently lowered its front hooves.

“What were you wrong about?”

Hyeonchan An knelt on the floor, clenching his fists. In his current state, there was no other way. With two dealers dead and only a buffer and a healer remaining, what could he possibly do? Hyeonchan had also checked the monster’s rank. He couldn’t see its stats, which meant it was higher than him. At this point, apologizing to Cho-i and asking for help was his priority.

‘Seeing her handle that so easily… ‘

She definitely got a hidden item from a hidden dungeon. Hyeonchan thought so. And his prediction was correct. The problem was that the way she got the item was beyond his common sense.

‘Her attitude probably changed so much because of the Entity as well.’

That’s why he, being complacent, could only interpret it that way and was begging her for forgiveness. He thought that if he even knelt, she would forgive him, that her true nature wouldn’t disappear.

“Leaving you behind.”

“And?”

“And… closing the door on you.”

“And?”

“…Forcing you to understand.”

“And?”

“…I was just wrong about everything.”

“This is your problem. Do you really not know why I’m angry?”

Cho-i briefly showed her old expression with a slightly sunken face. That dull and timid face that Hyeonchan knew so well. Hyeonchan briefly felt hope looking at that expression. But then, that expression twisted, and her mouth opened.

“Your very existence is the problem, you son of a bitch.”

Deer Knuckle raised its front hoof.

“Oh.”

Thump! And it fell on him. Snap, crunch. His body was crushed. A twisted arm was visible under the deer’s hoof. Blood oozed out, soaking the dirt. Cho-i laughed to herself, looking at the Entity, then felt a blank stare on her and said, “

What are you staring at?”

She leaped down from the deer. And she walked towards her. Towards Nara Shim, that girl.

“Are you waiting for your turn?”

“W-will you save me if I beg?”

“Did you see what just happened to Hyeonchan An?”

“…”

“Why are you silent?”

Cho-i knew that she had agreed to abandon her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have disappeared without a trace. However, she was one of the more conscientious ones. She didn’t seem to have any intention of closing the door. Cho-i remembered Nara Shim trying to stop the others at the end. Cho-i grinned and asked,

“Should I save you?”

“Huh? Oh, y-yes, save me.”

Cho-i looked at the Deer Knuckle lurking behind her. Why isn’t it attacking? While it’s true that monsters generally have a hierarchy and sometimes don’t attack those of a higher rank, the difference between that monster and herself was not so significant as to make it impossible. Since it was just standing there, she turned her head to look at Nara Shim.

“Then you have to listen to me from now on.”

“Yes, mm-hmm. Of course.”

Nara Shim nodded.

“I’m saving you because you were the only one who tried to stop them from closing the door.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Let’s not forget our humanity, okay?”

Nara Shim swallowed the words that she felt Cho-i was the one who had lost her humanity the most. Even if she seemed a bit foolish, she wasn’t completely stupid. Just like she pretended to back down in front of Hyeonchan An who was threatening her.

“But if you go out there,”

“Uh, mm-hmm.”

“And run your mouth,”

Cho-i raised her sword. Then she aimed it at the lurking Deer Knuckle. And immediately, she leaped. She jumped high, aiming for the Entity’s neck. Will it work? I don’t know. Cho-i held the sword straight and *CRACK!* she struck the Entity’s neck. Perhaps due to the Deer Knuckle’s rank, the Entity didn’t die in one hit and began to thrash its head. Cho-i grabbed the Entity’s fur and twisted the hilt of the sword. Then she brought the sword down again towards the Entity’s skull. *CRUNCH! STAB!* The sensation of breaking the skull and piercing the brain was vividly felt at her fingertips. Cho-i felt that this wasn’t enough and twisted the blade. With a grinding sound, the thrashing feet soon stopped, and the large body fell. *THUD!* Cho-i jumped off it and flicked her sword clean.

“It died easier than I thought?”

Cho-i tilted her head and then used Inspect again.

[Deer Knuckle (B-rank) Strength 6211 Intelligence 65 Health 7989 Accuracy 3178…]

“Why is it suddenly B-rank?”

Cho-i blinked, then looked at the window below again. She noticed that the unknown Blessing that was there earlier had disappeared. Cho-i looked at Nara Shim in bewilderment, but Nara Shim only had wide eyes. She smiled shyly and said,

“It just ended up this way.”

She placed a hand on one cheek and blinked.

“Anyway, if you go around running your mouth, I’ll make you like this.”

She smiled broadly.

“Let’s be careful.”

Nara Shim nodded frantically. Cho-i smiled brightly and approached Nara Shim, taking one of her hands firmly in both of hers.

“We’re in this together.”

“T-together.”

“Yes.”

“If you blab outside, you’ll die.”

“Yes, mm-hmm.”

“Come on, let’s go.”

As the boss monster fell, an exit opened behind it. Cho-i quickly walked towards the exit first. Then, as if she had forgotten, she spoke to Nara Shim.

“Oh, right. Get the items. Let’s split them in half when we get out.”