Chapter 65 - Pohang (6)
During training in the underground field, Gu Jin-uk had once tossed out an unexpected question.
“What’s your reason for wanting to get stronger?”
“Huh?”
Kim Sun-woo blinked.
Getting stronger was just getting stronger—what kind of reason did one need for that?
“Improvement needs a clear goal. Without a destination, you end up lost.”
“...Ah.”
“Take me, for example. I’m running raids to make enough money that I won’t ever have to hunt again. Once I hit my target amount, I’m retiring from being a hunter. Maybe just some light workouts now and then.”
“Pretty realistic goal.”
“It’s what everyone wants.”
Gu Jin-uk grinned at Kim Sun-woo.
“Some do it for revenge, others for honor, some to prove themselves. Everyone heads into battle for their own reasons.”
“Me... ”
Kim Sun-woo fiddled with his Black Flow Sword.
For the past ten years, he’d hunted to pay off his debts.
Making money wasn’t all that different from Gu Jin-uk’s motive.
But now that all his debts were cleared?
Learning martial arts is just... fun.
He’d lived like a machine, repeating the same routines.
A life with no dreams, no future, nothing.
In the midst of that dryness, discovering his talent for martial arts had been like rain on parched earth.
“Me...”
In the end, Kim Sun-woo couldn’t answer, but Gu Jin-uk clapped him on the shoulder as he pondered.
“Plenty of time. You can figure it out while hunting. That’ll be a goal in itself.”
“...Yeah.”
He replied without much thought.
But now, standing atop the walls overlooking the battlefield, he vaguely understood why he hadn’t quit hunting and kept coming back here.
I want to get stronger.
Stronger, to fight even stronger opponents.
A fighting spirit he hadn’t even known he had welled up from deep in his chest.
He’d always been competitive, hated losing.
But he hadn’t expected it to apply to martial arts too.
“...Human, it’s dangerous. You need to evacuate with your group, now.”
A mackerel in slightly fancier armor than the other soldiers approached Kim Sun-woo. He seemed to be the commander leading the fish on the walls.
“When the Wycon tribe steps in, the walls turn to hell. Get out of here before—”
—BOOM!
Before he could finish, dark shadows surged across the monster-covered battlefield.
The half-human, half-beast monsters in human form, just like Lascael, had emerged.
“Too late, it seems.”
Kim Sun-woo replied to the mackerel commander as he sharply swung his Black Flow Sword.
Clang!
The rebound on the blade was worlds apart from slicing through beasts.
“A human?”
One of the Wycon werewolves leaped straight onto the walls, smirking.
“Lucky me. Human meat suits my taste better than stinky fish.”
Slash!
Claws mimicking wolf talons whipped out viciously.
Not just Kim Sun-woo—the strike gouged deep scars into the wall behind him.
The werewolf licked its claws as his form crumbled.
“Fresh blood after so long...?”
But nothing clung to them.
As it looked up puzzled, Kim Sun-woo’s figure scattered like smoke—then a black sword suddenly erupted from its chest.
Stab—!
A precise heart strike.
The werewolf spewed blood but wildly swung its arm anyway.
“Moves well even with a pierced heart.”
Crunch.
Kim Sun-woo twisted the Black Flow Sword viciously, unleashing sword aura to pulverize its insides.
No regeneration could fix shredded organs.
“Gurk...”
The werewolf spat blood from all orifices with a deflating wheeze and collapsed forward.
Slash.
Even then, Kim Sun-woo bisected it for good measure.
“Not bad.”
Gu Jin-uk watched Kim Sun-woo’s exploits from afar.
Even with his dungeon break heroics, this was his first official mission as a B-rank hunter.
In irregular situations like this, inexperienced hunters could falter.
But Kim Sun-woo held his position steadily, no panic. It was needless worry.
Didn’t expect to get dragged into a monster war, though.
For now, priority was helping the friendly Haesinjeon hold off the Wycon tribe until higher-ups acted...
—BOOM!
One wall section crumbled, crushing fish soldiers.
Amid the rising stench of blood, Gu Jin-uk narrowed his eyes at the debris.
“...That guy.”
Lascael.
The Wycon werewolf the scout team had encountered.
“Hm?”
Lascael sensed Gu Jin-uk and looked up.
Their eyes met, and a thick smile spread across Lascael’s face, like a kid finding a fun toy.
“Smells like that human from before, but he’s still around? Fine by me.”
Thud.
Lascael kicked off lightly and charged Gu Jin-uk.
“Let’s see what you’ve got.”
Slash!
A black hand, inhuman, stretched out.
Gu Jin-uk drew his blade in a flash, thrusting like lightning—but it didn’t fell the foe as easily as beasts.
Clang!
The unfamiliar shock furrowed his brow.
But without flinching, he unleashed full power in a barrage, no hesitation.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Speed unfit for his massive frame.
Ferociously hammering Lascael with eerie momentum, Gu Jin-uk paused at the cratered wall.
“Hmph.”
Lascael, blocking every strike with one hand, looked bored.
“That other human—what was it, Kim Sun-woo? He had some spirit. You’re just soft, no fun.”
His black hand bore no scratches despite the onslaught.
“Ah, there he is. Stuck around instead of running. Allied with Haesinjeon? That’d be entertaining.”
“...No one sent me.”
Gu Jin-uk blocked Lascael, who looked ready to bolt for Kim Sun-woo.
“I’m your opponent.”
“Can’t even match my size, and no self-awareness?”
Shrrr.
Ash-gray fur sprouted on Lascael’s hand.
Unlike other werewolves, only partial transformation—he flexed casually and thrust at Gu Jin-uk.
Crack!
“...!!”
One blow.
Lascael’s hand shattered Gu Jin-uk’s massive blade.
Eyes wide at the scattering fragments, but as a seasoned B-rank hunter, he didn’t freeze.
He tossed the hilt, drew a short wakizashi from his waist, and targeted Lascael’s legs.
Can’t win on power? Go for speed...
“Pathetic.”
Thud.
Lascael dodged effortlessly and stomped Gu Jin-uk’s chest.
—BOOM!
His body rocketed back, smashing into the wall.
Armor and buffs shattered instantly, caving in his chest.
“...Urk.”
Blood surged up.
Shallow, ragged breaths—lungs severely damaged.
Unable to last even one exchange, Gu Jin-uk lifted his ashen face, watching Lascael approach slowly.
Damn it.
Miscalculated his power.
Fought Kim Sun-woo, scouts survived—thought B-rank dungeon boss level.
This was A-rank elite monster.
Something only the guild master could handle solo.
“Wonder if he’ll like your head as a gift? Can’t have him running like last time. Tricky movements make him hard to chase.”
Lascael reached for Gu Jin-uk’s neck.
Planning to rip it off and present it to Kim Sun-woo like a bouquet.
But just then—
—Rumble!
A massive thunderclap, and a bolt from the sky.
Lascael withdrew, raising his arm to block.
Crackle!
Fierce shock made his fur stand. Tingling surged through his nerves, awakening them.
Fresh stimulation for one long confined to his tribe’s cradle.
A deeper smile formed as he eyed Kim Sun-woo atop the watchtower.
“Meet again. Won’t run scared this time, right?”
“...”
Kim Sun-woo gazed down from the watchtower.
While hunting wall-climbing werewolves, he’d sensed a familiar presence.
Lascael, guarding the battlefield’s edge, had reached here.
And...
He spotted Gu Jin-uk buried in rubble, unable to rise.
Heavy injuries, couldn’t even move.
Stronger than expected.
Click.
Kim Sun-woo gripped his Black Flow Sword tightly.
He knew Gu Jin-uk’s toughness from endless underground sessions.
Tough as nails, stamina and grit that even tired him out.
Yet beaten this badly.
Shrrr.
White sword aura aligned sharply along the blade.
Since reaching Sword Gang realm, handling sword aura had changed.
Even unconsciously, the flickering, flame-like irregularity stabilized into uniform shape.
Not as sharp or solid as Sword Gang.
But denser, tighter—now he understood why Baek Ryuk Geom wrote that forced meridian breakthroughs would lead to natural mastery.
First...
Pry him away from Gu Jin-uk.
Fish soldiers could handle treatment.
Thud!
Kim Sun-woo leaped from the watchtower, charging straight at Lascael.
Aiming to drag him off the wall into the battlefield below.
But Lascael read it, kicking up lightly.
Hummm!
Vast mana gathered in his hand.
He whipped at empty air, unleashing dozens of strikes toward the wall.
BOOMMM!
To crumble a section, letting his forces flood Haesinjeon easily.
Kim Sun-woo below swung upward.
White Flow Sword Technique, Second Form
Absolute Shadow Chaos Flow
Whoosh!
A rising vortex from the ground nullified the meteor shower.
Confirming his attack futile, Lascael landed lightly at the wall’s edge, yellow eyes on Kim Sun-woo.
“Got a proposal.”
He licked dry lips, eyes greedy.
“Join the Wycon tribe. Do that, and I’ll spare you in this war.”