Chapter 239. Gluttony Incident (3)

Snap!

Esther grabbed Haseong's sleeve and stopped him with force, then quickly opened her mouth to explain.

"First of all, I heard this in a rush on my way here, but the Hunter Association has already put in a request to Imabari in Japan. It's an S-rank dispatch request."

"I see."

"To be honest, it's uncertain whether they'll actually come, but at least they made the first move."

The cursed sorcerer with violet hair recalled the past promise made by the Japanese, where they declared on televi sion that if an S-rank gate ever appeared in Korea, the Imabari Guild in Japan would send their top-tier awakened ones without charge.

"Additionally, they've started negotiations with Singapore regarding support from awakened healers and buffers."

"Yes."

"We won't gain anything by rushing..."

"Hunter Seo!"

"Oh! Just in time, they're here."

At that moment, a long-haired individual came running breathlessly toward the gate. An awakened government official with B-rank mana.

"Seonwoo Yeon-ssi! Over here. Here!"

The Searchers joined.

"Okay. Now that we're all here, let's get things organized."

"..."

"Haseong-ssi, our goal for now is not to clear it, but to scout."

"Yes."

"Our priority is to assess the monster population and the dungeon structure, and if possible, hunt any A-rank monsters we come across to prevent a break."

"Understood."

"And the tracking will be based on Neo's team 3."

At the sorcerer's words, Jung Haseong raised an eyebrow, then squinted his eyes as if giving up on something.

"We need to find the stranded people who have a low chance of survival without help first. This is an unavoidable part of the plan."

"I understand."

Clank.

Soon, the harsh sound of sharp metal echoed through the air.

"Then let's hurry with the rescue."

Korea's S-rank hunters continued to go over a few more points related to the rescue plan. Unlike the Kagoshima raid, t his dungeon had a very narrow area. In reality, there was no way to stop the influence of the S-ranks, so it would be di fficult to drag a group of people in... but...

"You don't need to worry about secondary damage."

At that moment, the young hero wielding the Sunset Sword spoke. He candidly revealed the fruits of his training, expl aining that he no longer harmed his allies recklessly. Thanks to that progress, he could now manage collaboration with other S-ranks.

"If a chaotic battle breaks out, that's another story. But now, just using my skill no longer causes burns."

"Oh."

"Besides, Hunter Esther doesn't fight in close range against enemies either... Yes. It's definitely possible."

Jung Haseong showed an unwavering attitude, making his past self-deprecation seem meaningless.

"Trust me and remove your fire-resistance items."

It was a suggestion to maximize hunting speed by equipping gear that boosted one's elemental attack power instead o f defensive items. At that, Esther curved her lips into a faint, amused smile.

"You're so dependable."

But the hero's request didn't end there.

"Hunter Esther. And there's no need for you to worry about the secondary damage issue from your side either."

"What did you say?"

"If the situation becomes difficult, could you please use your awakening ability to subdue the enemies as quickly as p ossible?"

Jung Haseong's expression slowly took on a familiar form.

An A-rank awakened team had gone missing. And due to an abnormal mutation, an S-rank gate had appeared.

...And now, a certain blond man was holding back the collapse with his life.

In the face of this dangerous disaster, the Korean pyromancer quickly regains his form—a machine that maintains a co ol composure, like metal joined together, iron to iron.

He is the hunter with the highest number of gate clears, a so-called "Dungeon-Running Machine," a title that is more th an deserved.

"I have trained and my stamina has greatly increased. No matter what curse you use, I will definitely endure it once, so please proceed accordingly."

The hero's attitude in front of the gate was beyond ordinary composure and was close to madness. Seeing this, Esther nodded, partially understanding the inner anxiety and perfectionism of the other person. Moreover, the desire to save lives, even at the cost of one's own flesh, was something she could relate to as well.

"Alright. I won't regret it later, and I won't complain."

Finally, after checking the condition of their recovery potions, their preparations were complete. The rescue team, con sisting of Jung Haseong, Seo Esther, and the support Seonwoo Yeon, then stepped into the otherworldly passage that emitted an eerie wind sound.

***

The dungeon they entered. It would later come to be known as the [Six-Legged Corridor], Korea's first S-rank gate. Th is place was originally an A-rank dungeon called the [Rotating Heaven Labyrinth], but due to a mutation incident, its int erior had already been altered.

"The path has edges. It's completely different from the Rotating Heaven Labyrinth, which was circular like a spinning d isc."

However, since the structure was simple, it didn't feel all that unfamiliar.

Swoosh.

Then, Seonwoo Yeon activated her skill, [Searcher]. The civil servant with black hair focused all her mind, recalling th e characteristics of the person she was trying to find.

"..."

Seonwoo Yeon suddenly raised her head and pointed to somewhere in the dungeon. Immediately after, a scream-like shout escaped from the mouth of the association staff member.

"I found it! Hunter Ahn Yoonseung is alive. He's about 600 meters away from here and continues to move."

[Searcher] activated successfully! At the good news, Esther quietly let out a small cheer inside. They couldn't expect t o be full from the first bite, but still—at least the person they were trying to save was alive.

"Moreover, if a defensive Hunter is alive, the chances of the whole team surviving are high. Hunter Ahn Yoonseung is someone who is always true to his duties!"

The conversation ended there. The awakened rescue team that entered the dungeon wasted no time and began their work. It seemed that the words of a certain S-rank, who had said they would clear the path, were not a lie. Indeed, the inside of the dungeon had surprisingly few obstacles.

"Even the monsters that are occasionally discovered are at most A-rank..."

It was then. Among them, Jung Haseong, who had the best hearing, suddenly stopped walking.

Without a word, he showed the back of his clenched fist. Stop.

He pointed with his index finger, then spread his two fingers into a V shape and bent them once.

"— There's one monster over there."

The industry hand signals with warning meaning.

"If Hunter Jung Haseong went out of his way to warn us in advance, it seems like an S-rank monster has appeared..."

Slowly.

Seonwoo Yeon, understanding the intent, holds her breath and distances herself from the people in front of her. Howe ver, in less than a few seconds, a sense of fear that made his entire body muscles tremble was transmitted to this blac k-haired weakling.

— Purrrrr...

The sound of crying can be heard. This is an S-rank regular monster that appeared in this abnormal mutation gate, a 120cm long reptile with a very sleek silhouette, unlike the dragons that appeared in the Japanese archipelago. In fact, i t was a much weaker creature compared to the Black Dragon.

Slippy.

A certain creature, clinging upside down to the dungeon wall, extended its purple tongue and licked its own eyeball. It seemed as though it was clearing the glass to get a better view.

"It has six legs."

They had discovered a beast that, aside from having slightly more limbs, was very similar to the large armored lizards of Earth. The Pyromancer and the Cursed Sorcerer exchanged glances, looking at each other. According to what they had agreed on before entering this dungeon, they were supposed to avoid direct combat with S-rank monsters as mu ch as possible.

But this time, there was no choice. In some cases, the lizard had been lucky enough to wander down a different path, allowing others to pass through safely. However, as seen now, that S-rank monster had changed its mind and position ed itself directly in their line of sight. Therefore...

Nod.

At Esther's nod, Jung Haseong swiftly launched a surprise attack. A spear of fire materialized in the air. Concentrating his magic power into a single line to prevent heat from leaking out, the blue-it spears of flame rained down upon the li zard like a torrential downpour. The S-rank monster, perhaps sensing the impending danger, recognized the use of m agic the moment it was summoned. However, despite its sharp instincts, it couldn't avoid all of the fiery spears.

"Kaaaaggh!"

Jung Haseong was able to damage the monster's right legs as he had intended. Furthermore, as soon as the Pyroman cer robbed the enemy of its mobility, Seo Esther immediately followed up with a barrage of curses.

Sizzle.

With the painful sound of inflammation boiling over, the two hunters began to hunt the beast in unison. As they used t heir awakened abilities to continue their first battle with the S-rank monster,

Click.

From deep within the dungeon, the sound of a lever being pulled down echoed.

.

.

.

It's done! It's done! As expected, I'm truly a genius who only comes around once in a thousand years! The short limbs of a small animal wrapped around the thick lever in front, pulling it down with the weight of its body.

Click!

At the sound of this noise, one of the ominous traps set in the dungeon lost its form and collapsed. Over here, I had be en using the corpse of an A-rank monster I had personally taken down to continue advancing toward my objective.

"Kekekeke."

To be precise, I had shut down the consciousness of the incapacitated body (Kim Giryeo) and was now mentally contr olling a new corpse as a temporary golem. The amphibious body I had obtained was small in terms of limbs, but still ca pable of performing many tasks. As seen, it could manipulate the dungeon's structures and disable traps. Now, all that was left was to complete the final task using this deceased body.

"There it is."

As the low vantage point shifted, the monster in question was finally spotted. A medium-to-large-sized reptile, its bod y entirely covered in sand-colored scales. This was the S-rank boss monster of the dungeon, and Ahn Yoonseung's th e biggest threat to the nearby Ahn Yoonseung team. I knew this from observing them steadily since entering the dung eon, as the monster had been following the human scent left by Yoonseung's team, relentlessly chasing after them.

"This body has somewhat short limbs, but I like the fact that there are many of them."

Sluggishly

I diligently moved the legs of the amphibian that I had found and captured.

"Now that I think about it, humans really don't have enough arms, do they? If they had about four, it would've been per fect. Then they could open a paper book with two hands while brushing their teeth... Well, anyway."

Then, after getting into the right distance, I began the planned action.

"Hey! Stonehead!"

Jump!

I jumped up with all my might and slammed my body into the side of the S-rank monster.

"Attack!"

In Earth's language, this action would roughly be called "drawing aggro."

As I mentioned earlier, this is the mid-to-late section of the dungeon. In other words, it's the area where Ahn Yoonseu ng's team, who got stranded, is wandering. However, my main body is currently incapacitated due to a trap, so the onl y remaining option is to buy time with actions like this until the real S-rank individuals arrive.

"Prrr."

After taking about two body slams, the problematic S-rank monster finally lifts its heavy backside.

Whirr!

The dungeon boss, changing its posture, used its long tongue to gently push me away, as if telling me to stop. But I ig nored it and continued my irritating actions. Then, a few seconds later, the monster finally started showing the respon se I was aiming for. It fully rose and charged at me.

"Kaaaaggh!"

Right. As soon as I got the monster's attention, I swiftly moved my short legs and ran down the corridor to the right. If t his had been a normal fight in the natural world, this body would have been caught by the S-rank monster long ago. B ut now, it was under the control of an alien archmage with exceptionally powerful corpse manipulation abilities.

Thud!

I quickly predicted the location where the attack would pour in with my unique magic detection and rolled my b ody. And the more nimbly I dodged, the faster the distance between the S-rank monster and Ahn Yoonseung's t eam grew. The provocation strategy had worked.

I rolled the legs of the corpse I had taken over and ran in a zigzag pattern. Behind me, the dungeon boss snorted in fr ustration, seemingly enraged by the elusive instigator it just couldn't catch. Now all I had to do was shift my center of gravity and nimbly round the corner ahead.

It was working. That's when a noise that I shouldn't have heard suddenly hit my mind.

Aaaah!

This wasn't a sound that the current 'me' heard directly. Due to my extreme lack of magic power, I had only managed t o cast a low grade golem control spell, and as a result, I was barely able to make use of the various senses of this six- legged amphibian.

Then.

"Huh?"

The human scream echoing in my head right now... Doesn't that mean it's information coming from the main body, wh ere some faint sensory feeling still remains?

***

Approximately 11 minutes after the rescue team, consisting of Esther, Jung Haseong, and Seonwoo Yeon, entered.

Tat, tak, tak.

Thanks to the excellent work of a skilled appraiser who had deactivated all the traps in advance, they were able to con tinue their progress without any obstacles.

But eventually, they reached the center of the dungeon. There, the rescue team witnessed an unbelievable sight. At th e end of the long corridor, where deep marks from fierce battles were scattered, they found a familiar-looking awaken ed individual.

Leaning against the wall, the figure of the hunter sat with his head lowered in silence. As the damaged suit's rips expo sed crushed muscles and blood-soaked bones, Seonwoo Yeon couldn't help but let out a sharp scream.

"Aaaack!"

It was the moment when Kim Giryeo's body finally encountered the real S-rank individuals safely.