Chapter 80

“Don’t interfere. That’s mine.”

She was the first to appear joyful in front of an S-Rank monster. Zhu Rui and the subordinates stood awkwardly, staring at the island-sized whale. Regardless of its grade, its size was simply too immense. It wasn’t the kind of size that would be affected by a single blow. But Cho-i Hyeon leaped directly onto the whale.

“Ahahaha!”

The scratching voice, combined with laughter, felt like an iron plate piercing their eardrums. At that moment, a massive tail swung towards her. The whale was surprisingly fast for its large size, and a tsunami instantly surged towards Cho-i. When Zhu Rui and the subordinates, soaked with water, opened their eyes, Cho-i Hyeon was gone.

‘Did she fall into the sea?’

It would have been fortunate if she hadn’t been hit by the massive tail. But Cho-i Hyeon not only dodged the tail but also stomped on the tail as it swung through the air, launching herself skyward. If her timing had been even slightly off, every bone in her body would have been shattered. Zhu Rui stood with her mouth agape, simply watching her feat.

“So it has quite a temper, does it? Anyway…”

Anyway, it was just a ruined world. Cho-i Hyeon smiled and raised the only weapon she carried, her shield. It didn’t matter if she didn’t have a sword. Anything held in the entity’s hand could become a weapon. She plunged the edge of her shield down towards the massive whale. Crack, crunch! Whoosh-! Cho-i slid down the body with the blade of her shield embedded. Half of the massive body split open. An enormous amount of blood burst from within the split skin, and the sea turned red. Whoosh-! The whale cried out once more. Then, new streams of water began to appear one by one in the distance.

“Their comrades are starting to arrive!”

Cho-i laughed as she faced the other whales that had gathered in the water before she could finish off the first whale. She saw the whales approaching her with their infinitely deep and dark jaws agape, and she kicked off the water, surging forward. And with just a crumpled shield, she began to slaughter them one by one. Thwack! Rip, tear. Bursting skin, blood flowing onto the seawater. And the whales’ brains and shattered bones floated on the seawater for a moment before sinking. Soon, only the blood-red sea remained before their eyes. Zhu Rui and the subordinates could only stare foolishly at the scene.

“That’s an S-Rank?”

They couldn’t understand. But what unfolded before their eyes was undeniable reality: the tank alone defeating the boss monster and the other monsters that had come to protect it. Cho-i eliminated all the monsters before they could even intervene. Then, avoiding the boss monster’s gaping maw, she stepped on the whale’s corpse and soared into the sky once more. Perched on the boss monster’s forehead, she even had the leisure to look around before waving at Zhu Rui.

“Crazy bitch….”

Zhu Rui whispered unconsciously, and his subordinates nodded as if agreeing. While they stood there foolishly, Cho-i Hyeon raised her shield once again. And. CRUNCH, SQUELCH! BANG! With a mighty sound, she smashed the whale’s forehead. The whale’s desperate cry echoed over the sea, only to be cut short. As the whale seemed to turn belly up, Cho-i leaped high and returned to the cliff. And a large exit appeared on the water’s surface. Now all they had to do was leave. If it weren’t for Cho-i Hyeon blocking their way.

“One, two, three, four, five.”

They didn’t know it, but the Entity had now decided to devour everything except Taehyeok Sa, who was at least a better prey. This world was too fragile and utterly insufficient to stop the approaching Calamity. Cho-i Hyeon, the Entity, looked at Zhu Rui and his subordinates.

“Still some things left to eat?”

Her voice sounded amused. Zhu Rui gripped his sword, a creeping sense of danger rising within him. He didn’t know what this hunter was planning, but the scene of her tearing apart monster flesh suddenly flashed through his mind.

“Everyone, prepare for battle.”

“Huh?”

“Quickly!”

The oppressive feeling that they might become the prey engulfed him. At his command, the organization members quickly formed a formation and drew their weapons. Cho-i Hyeon clapped her hands and laughed.

“Ahahaha!”

And wiped her eyes.

“Yes, that’s how it should be. That’s where the fun is.”

She pressed her foot down hard. A footprint was left on the solid rock of the cliff.

“Struggle all you want.”

Because there was no prey as delicious as this. At the same time, Cho-i Hyeon, the Entity, lunged at them.

***

“…So you’re the only one left.”

“Yes.”

His appearance, as he spoke as if spitting, was a mess. Bite marks were clear on his neck. Cho-i licked her lips. Her mouth was full of the taste of blood, but she couldn’t tell if it was the whale’s blood or human blood. After licking her lips a few times, she felt something strange.

‘Why am I not affected?’

The taste of blood in her mouth should have made her pray that it wasn’t human. But she was excessively unaffected. Even now, looking at the blood-soaked Zhu Rui, she didn’t feel an increase in appetite, but she also didn’t feel terrible about the fact that she was the one who had bitten him.

‘Of course, they’re food.’

The voice in her head spoke again. Cho-i didn’t panic this time and replied inwardly.

‘You’re inside me.’

There was no answer. It could have been because the answer was too obvious, or perhaps it was just too lazy to respond. It had been chattering loudly in her head the entire time she listened to Zhu Rui’s story. What the boss monster’s flesh tasted like, and those who had attacked her… Ah, Cho-i no longer wanted to think about it. Her mind was cluttered.

“First, let’s grab the items and leave.”

“Is the Entity the only thing we have to talk about right now?”

“Ah. Right. My apologies.”

Cho-i apologized to him, too casually. At her remark, Zhu Rui gritted his teeth, and Cho-i Hyeon tilted her head.

“Isn’t that an overly emotional reaction for someone who thought nothing of throwing people into a dungeon? Weren’t you prepared to die when you came in here?”

“The Entity and this are different. If it weren’t for you, my subordinates would never have died.”

“Do you really think so? Bringing B-Ranks into an S-Rank dungeon, unless they’re A-Ranks, means you plan to use them as shields to die.”

“……”

Zhu Rui couldn’t answer. Because her words were correct. The most important thing was the survival of S-Rank Zhu Rui. As for the other guild members, it was good if they lived, and if not, then not. Their job was to protect Zhu Rui with their lives in dangerous moments.

“If they died protecting you, would that be your fault?”

“It’s different.”

“Yes, to be honest, it’s a bit different. But in the end, those people were killed by monsters. I wasn’t myself then.”

“You’ve been saying things I don’t understand since earlier. If that wasn’t you, then what was it?”

“I’ve been hearing that story since earlier, and it’s a bit annoying.”

Cho-i tapped her chin with her fingertips, like someone deep in thought.

“First, it said it would eat males like a madman if I stuck my head out, and now it’s imitating me as if it has reason.”

Cho-i called to the Entity in her mind once more.

‘What’s your game?’

But the Entity remained silent. Cho-i sighed and reached out her hand to Zhu Rui. It was the most consideration she could offer him, who seemed to be struggling to even stand properly.

“Let’s go. If we spend any more time here, the gate might close.”

Zhu Rui seemed to agree with her words and finally gritted his teeth and took her hand. Cho-i helped Zhu Rui stand properly, then gathered the items. Whale Skin Tissue, Whale Tail, magic stone, and Whale Horn came out, but nothing immediately usable as a weapon appeared. Cho-i then tucked Zhu Rui under her arm.

“Going?”

She leaped toward the exit that had opened on the surface of the water. Without even a splash, they were swallowed by the exit and soon found themselves floating under the sea, where they had entered. Cho-i thought, ‘Oh, right. I can’t swim,’ and sank further. The injured Zhu Rui, with a look that was beyond pathetic and rather annoyed, pulled Cho-i’s body closer. Then he slowly began to swim towards the shore. By the time Cho-i and Zhu Rui emerged from the sea, the sun had already set.

“Where’s Hyori Hyeon?”

“She’s probably at the accommodation she booked in advance.”

“Haha, it feels like we’re on a trip, I like it.”

“……”

Zhu Rui fell silent. It was good that he had calmed the dungeon that seemed about to explode, but the damage was much greater than expected. He had lost all the syndicate members he brought. Losing the A-Rank healer, in particular, was a huge blow to them. Whether Cho-i Hyeon knew it or not, she came out of the water and offered her hand to Zhu Rui again, but Zhu Rui pretended not to notice it and came ashore by himself. Cho-i’s eyes widened, and she waved her hand in the air a few times before retracting it and saying,

“Are you still holding onto it?”

“It’s strange. Would you feel good about someone who killed your comrades?”

“You didn’t think of them as comrades.”

“……”

Zhu Rui was speechless. If it weren’t for the Entity, he should have been angry, but as she said, within the organization, the members were nothing more or less than expendable. The A-Rank healer they lost this time was just a pity. He didn’t even feel any sadness about it.

“I don’t go in thinking of my comrades as shields. I am the shield.”

“…Why are you saying that?”

“I want to tell you to get angry if you want to get angry, but you’re just being a little irritable right now. Doesn’t that mean they only occupy that much space inside you?”

Zhu Rui didn’t answer, and then the voice echoed in his head once more.

‘They were terrible prey.’ ‘Could you not interfere at a time like this?’

Cho-i couldn’t distinguish if the voice in her head was from the thing inside her stomach or if she had gone completely insane. What did it matter which one it was? She had thought her life was finally looking up, so being ruined by mental illness was something she had expected. The world had never been on her side, not even once. She brought up something she had once said to Gihyeon Park again. Because the Entity was the only line that could describe her life.

“Okay, let’s go to the accommodation or whatever it is. It’s cold.”