Chapter 103  

“I’m sorry. I don’t know anything about that clan.”

“That’s ridiculous! Unless you’ve lived in the Abyss... Gasp. You’re that Korean hunter, aren’t you? The martial artist!”

The hunter slapped his knee upon seeing Choi Yeonseung’s face. He thought he recognized this person from somewhere. It was the hunter who dealt with the breach in Las Vegas. His performance was amazing, but using martial arts in this era was just as noteworthy. Thus, the memory of him remained strong in the hunter’s mind.

“Why did you learn martial arts?”

“... Think carefully about who gave you water before you start this.”

“Ah. No. I’m sorry... I didn’t mean anything bad. I’m just curious...”

The New York Fires hunters had discussed it while watching the video. If he had such abilities, why did he learn martial arts instead of magic?

“This isn’t the time to talk about that. What happened?”

“What happened? Can’t you roughly guess?”

The New York Fires hunter coughed several times before providing an explanation. They got dispersed the moment they entered, and while looking for his companions, a monster attacked him! He lost his weapon and even broke his leg as a result. Hence, he could only lie there in agony. He was hoping other hunters would help him.

“This is the first time I’ve ever seen such a monster. It had two heads, looked like a dog, and suddenly disappeared and appeared.”

“Ah. That’s the?two-headed?chaos?dog. It has the ability to teleport backward, so it’s annoying when first meeting it. They like shiny things, which is why they aim for your equipment first.”

“... ? ? The?Icarus clan?knows?about such a monster?”

The hunter was surprised. Information about monsters and dungeons was one of a clan’s weapons. Although the Icarus clan was an ace clan supported by Dragon Hwang, the New York Fires?was also a large clan supported by several powerful companies. Icarus knew a monster that the New York Fires had never seen before?

“Oops. The New York Fires?lacks?information.”

Choi Yeonseung had been wandering around the Abyss for over 10,000 years. Naturally, he had already seen it before. However, Choi Yeonseung was shameless.

You don’t even know that?

“Ah... No. Our clan isn’t lacking in intelligence.”

“If you don’t know what it was, then you’re simply not good enough.”

Flustered, the hunter changed the subject. This wasn’t important right now. “Did you see the New York Fires preparing to send a rescue team outside?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Shit...!” The hunter cursed. He had expected it, but it was now clear that those outside didn’t fully understand the situation. Once inside the dungeon, there was no way to know what was going on outside. His clanmates that had entered the dungeon had either collapsed from injuries like him or couldn’t afford to help. There was nothing he could do unless additional rescuers came from outside.

“Hmm. It can’t be helped.”

The hunter flinched as Choi Yeonseung moved closer to him.

“D...Don’t tell me...!”

“?” Choi Yeonseung was puzzled. “What are you saying?”

“You want to kill me and take what I have...!”

“... That’s quite the delusion.”

“What else are you trying to do, then?”

“I’m trying to heal your wounds.”

“Stop talking nonsense!”

The hunter exclaimed, seemingly finding the situation absurd. No idiot would heal hunters from other clans in a dungeon. Even if they had the capacity to do so, it was better to save their magic power and use it on a hunter of their own clan. If another clan’s hunter was injured and collapsed in the dungeon, everyone would just leave them behind. No one would curse them for that.

Choi Yeonseung was the first person he had met who tried to heal a hunter from another clan. It was too suspicious!

“Think about it carefully! I don’t have any equipment right now! A monster had taken it away!”

“No, you bastard.” Angered, Choi Yeonseung hit the hunter on the back of the head.

Bam!

"Eek?!” magic

The hunter blinked at the movement of Choi Yeonseung’s speed made the hunter blink. The latter seemed to have approached instantly.

W-What?! Was that martial arts?

“Why are you freaking out even though I’m trying to heal you? I’ll hit you every time you say something, so shut up.”

“......”

He didn’t?know about anything?else, but Choi Yeonseung was good at threatening others. The overwhelmed hunter kept his mouth shut and trembled. Scary...!

“It was like this in South Korea. If we see a fallen hunter in a dungeon, we treat them. Americans are so heartless.”

… This was the first time he had heard of that.

The hunter cocked his head. He had met Korean hunters, and they were just as selfish. When was it like this...

“You have a broken bone here. I’ll set it in place first.”

“Uweeeek!”

His healing skills aside, learning martial arts had increased his understanding of the human anatomy. He had perfect knowledge of muscles and bones.

...Of course, this didn’t eliminate the pain of setting the bones.

‘Ah. Come to think of it, I could’ve used Pressure Point Attack.’

It would’ve been better to?use Pressure?Point Attack, which knocked his target out or numbed them. However, Choi Yeonseung decided to skip Pressure Point Attack. The man he was helping treated him as a robber. He should endure the pain!

“Umm. I’ll use healing magic now.”

“!”

Choi Yeonseung knowing how to use healing magic was a very surprising fact. He was a martial artist yet knew healing magic?

“I’m a bit bad at magic and have to concentrate, so you should shut up.”

“? ? ?!”

The hunter panicked.

N... No...! Y-You shouldn’t use healing magic if you’re bad at it, you crazy bastard!

Unlike other magic, healing magic was just an attack spell if used incorrectly.

“Here I go. Goddess’ Medical Treatment!”

Fortunately, Choi Yeonseung’s 5th-circle magic, which he had received from the goddess, worked brilliantly. It?was excessive for this type of wound, though.

“!!!”

The hunter felt it as well. The magic power contained in that spell was very powerful.

[’Goddess’ Medical Treatment’ has healed a person who has been incapacitated.]

[You are being worshipped! The power of your existence has risen!]

[The power of ‘Goddess’ Medical Treatment’ has become stronger.]

‘High-tier healing magic!’

Rather than low-tier healing magic, he chose to use this on a hunter he had never met before from another clan?

This hunter...

He seems so strange that it’s hard to understand him. I am impressed and excited...

Thanks to that, the hunter involuntarily said, “... Are you a pushover? ”

“Is this bastard crazy?”

Angered, Choi Yeonseung beat the hunter up.

“Ah! Aaack! Aaaack! No! I meant it in a good way! A good way! Really!” the hunter hastily exclaimed as he was being beaten.

“You’re talking nonsense. I’m not beating you out of good intentions. Why are you making lame excuses?”

Being called a pushover after he treated this hunter’s injuries enraged Choi Yeonseung. However, continuing would waste the healing spell, so he didn’t hit the hunter to the point of injuring him. One of the advantages of martial arts was being able to inflict pain on others without injuring them.

“I... I really meant it in a good way... I said it out of gratitude...”

“As you should. In any case, you’re fully healed now, right? If so, then you’re on your own. I have to find my clan members.”

Choi Yeonseung shook off his hands and stood up. Despite having just been beaten, the hunter looked at Choi Yeonseung with respect and gratitude. This person really healed him without any malicious intent! He couldn’t believe it. There was actually someone like him among the hunters.

“Can... Can I go with you?”

“After you treated me like a robber?”

“... I apologize for that. However, I entered the dungeon before you did. I have a lot of useful information.”

“You didn’t even know the monster, though?”

“I might not know anything about the monsters, but I’m familiar with the terrain...”

“Hmm...”

This hunter was Arenas, a C+ New York Fires hunter. It had been a while since he was treated like this. Even if Choi Yeonseung was a B-grade hunter... Choi Yeonseung did save his life, however, so Arenas held back.

“Let me return the favor.”

“You’ll probably have trouble doing that.”

“......”

***

Choi Yeonseung decided to take Arenas with him for now. Too many hunters crowding in one place would cause the monsters to attack them. There were just two of them, though, so they should be fine. Moreover, he’d also be getting intel from his new companion.

“First of all, this Sanctuary of Defeat and Sloth is extremely wide.”

The dungeon was in the form of a field surrounded by several forests. Monster-infested forests dotted all over the place on a field so wide that the end couldn’t be seen!

“Considering there were no special clearance conditions when entering, we just have to kill the boss monster.”

“Don’t talk as if you know everything.”

“... However, upon keen observation, I kept seeing magic being used over there.”

Arenas pointed in a direction. If they were currently in the outskirts, which had relatively fewer forests, the place he pointed to was the center since it had more forests! While Arenas was lying down, he witnessed magic erupting from within it over and over again. The surviving hunters were clearly fighting on that side.

“Wouldn’t the hunters have gone over there?”

“I see.”

Arenas’ claim made sense. Choi Yeonseung decided to move in that direction. There were only two of them, but they were strong enough to deal with the monsters.

‘Ah. Now that I remember it, I can talk to?Odaigon.’

Choi Yeonseung was a constellation, and?Odaigon?was his household member. Constellations couldn’t see into a dungeon, but they could if they entered it as well. Constellations normally didn’t enter dungeons, though.

-Odaigon.

-Master!

-Are you okay?

-Yes! I’ve found all the hunters!

-What? Already?

Choi Yeonseung was shocked. He knew that?Odaigon?was a master of goblin magic. Nevertheless, it was hard to believe that he had already found all the Icarus clan hunters. Was that possible?

-I didn’t trust them, so I secretly engraved?mark magic?on the luggage they were carrying.

-Odaigon...

Odaigon?engraved a mark on their luggage to suppress them if they tried to betray Choi Yeonseung! The marks were magic mines that could explode instantly. Following the magic power that the marks exuded allowed him to locate them immediately.

-You didn’t engrave one on me?

-I didn’t, master! I’m sorry!

-No. Don’t apologize. I understand.

Choi Yeonseung didn’t want to use his power of existence or make a loud noise with martial arts to indicate his location. There was supposed to be a hunter who had signed with an evil god constellation among them. Attracting the attention of a lot of monsters wasn’t the brightest idea right now. Communicating in this way should be enough to regroup anyway.

-I am moving inside the forest now. If everything’s going well, bring the kids over. Don’t argue.

-Yes! I won’t argue with them!

Odaigon finished speaking and looked around.

… What if?they had already argued?

***

-Why are you alone? Where is Choi Yeonseung?

-Is that my fault?

-Why are you alone? Where is Choi Yeonseung?

-You... Isn’t this too much, friend?

-Why are you alone...

-Shut up. Be quiet.

Finding each other was great and all, but every time they found someone, Odaigon would say, ‘Why are you alone? Where is Choi Yeonseung?’ This caused the hunters to glare at?Odaigon.

Odaigon coughed once. These people were uncivilized, but he had to obey his master’s command.

“...Let’s reconcile,” he said.

The reactions were intense.

“Get lost.”

“You ask for that now?”

“If only Choi Yeonseung was here.”

Thanks to?Odaigon, the stock price of Choi Yeonseung went up.