Chapter 25
Chapter 25
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Troll Hunter (11)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Suhyun wasn’t usually one to show his emotions on his face, but things were different now. Drained from using his superpowers and worn out from the fierce battle, he found everything annoying. He spoke to Aida, who was looking at him with an expression full of curiosity.
“I’ve piled the corpses at the entrance to the nearby forest, so you can verify it right away. I’d like to rest before getting into the rest of the story. That alright?”
“Ah? Of, of course. I’ll show you the way.”
She was dying to hear what happened, but Aida wasn’t so rude as to press someone who’d just accomplished the impossible. For now, she led Suhyun to a place where he could rest.
“What happened?!”
“Don’t raise your voice. It’s irritating.”
He usually wore a mask around people, but in urgent or exhausting situations, his true colors showed. Kim Chang-sik didn’t ask any more questions after Suhyun’s words.
“Anything I can do for you?”
“Nice of you to ask, but if anyone tries to bother me, just shoot them all.”
“…Got it.”
Kim Chang-sik nodded with a weary voice. Suhyun went inside and lay down right away. The interior of the elven building was neatly arranged.
* * *
When Suhyun opened his eyes, the first thing he noticed was the sensation on his cheek. Someone was pinching it with their fingers.
“What…?”
Suhyun sat up immediately and swatted the hand away. Even without any hostility, he shouldn’t have missed someone getting this close.
‘I’ve been getting sloppy since coming back. Damn it.’
“Who are you?”
A young elf with a childish face and small build was looking down at him. Her features somewhat resembled Aida’s.
‘Family?’
Suhyun sat up and asked.
“Who are you? Where’d the human who was here go?”
“Erendil. The human who was here went outside to eat.”
The young elf answered his two questions in order. Suhyun nodded.
“Tch. It might be safe here, but they should still keep a lookout…. Mind showing me the way? No, actually, no need to hold hands.”
Erendil had tried to grab Suhyun’s hand and pull him along upon hearing his words. Suhyun let go and gestured for her to lead. As he followed behind her, Suhyun looked around the village. The occasional elf they passed threw glances at the outsider, but there was no fear or terror in their eyes. Merchants had already come and gone several times for trade.
‘Not bad. Clean and….’
Other races’ cultures were often hard for humans to adapt to. In that regard, elven culture was relatively easy to get used to. Aside from their nature affinity, there wasn’t much surprising about it.
Under the shade of a massive tree in the center of the village, he saw elves sitting around. Kim Chang-sik was there too. Suhyun quietly approached and kicked the back of his chair.
“Urk?!”
“You asked seriously what you could do for me, then go eat alone?”
“Ah, no. I figured it’d be fine. Sorry.”
“Jeez….”
Aida, spotting Suhyun, asked in a worried voice.
“You’re awake? Feeling okay?”
“No injuries, so don’t worry. Elf. More importantly, did you check it out?”
“I’m not ‘elf,’ I’m Aida.”
“Ah. My bad. Force of habit…. Right, Aida. Did you confirm it?”
“I did.”
While Suhyun slept soundly, Aida had gone to the forest entrance he mentioned with the tribe’s warriors. Though skeptical at first, she was stunned by the mountain of raptor corpses piled up. That many meant he really had killed them all.
-How long was he in there to wipe out this forest’s raptors?
-….
She’d sensed from the start that he wasn’t an ordinary human, but this exceeded all expectations. Even the finest warrior had limits—no human capable of this could be measured on the same scale. Aida started worrying if trading with Suhyun had been a mistake.
“Good. Then you’ll hand over the white crane grass, right? We’re not exactly free either.”
“Of course. No need to worry. I’m not one to break promises. But why not eat first? You must be hungry after all that running around.”
“You guys are vegetarians. I prefer meat….”
Saying that, Suhyun still took the bowl Aida offered. He crunched on the tangy leaves and asked.
“As much as you’d probably like to hand over the white crane grass and send us out of the village, treating us to a meal like this means you want something, right?”
“!”
Aida’s ears twitched. Suhyun chuckled inwardly. He’d guessed she held a high position in this elven tribe. She was thoughtful and capable, but not just anyone could handle these trades. Still, unexpected situations clearly rattled her.
“What’re you curious about? How I hunted the raptors?”
“I won’t deny it. But if it’s a method that’s hard to share….”
“Nah. It’s not a big deal.”
Surprisingly, Suhyun opened up easily. Of course, he had his reasons. Hunting raptors like he did relied more on raw ability than tricks or knowledge. Even if he told them, they couldn’t replicate it right away. Sharing that info while staying on good terms with the local elves was a win-win.
“…More importantly, can you get this elf off me?”
Suhyun, about to start explaining, pointed to the elf climbing onto his back and hanging on.
“Oh, dear. Erendil, don’t do that. Come over here.”
“Little sister?”
“Yes. Sorry about this. Erendil, come here, I said!”
Suhyun slowly pried Erendil off like a leech and sat her down beside him. Then he held her firmly so she couldn’t move.
“She really takes to humans, huh? That’s unusual.”
“No, she doesn’t usually like humans. Erendil!”
Aida raised her voice, but Suhyun waved it off. It wasn’t a real bother anyway. He didn’t want to waste time on this.
“Just talk like this. You’re curious how I hunted the raptors?”
Aida nodded.
“Then let me ask you this instead. Why are raptors hard to hunt?”
“They’re cunning, agile, and persistent. Isn’t that obvious?”
Plains didn’t mean no cover. There were forests and terrain undulations. Plenty for raptors to hide in.
They swarm weak prey and flee strong foes without hesitation. Knowing when to run was a rare strength among monsters.
“So their habit of fleeing when things look bad is the issue. Make it so they can’t run, and you’re set.”
“?”
“Everyone has a weakness. No exceptions.”
Truth be told, in his past life, Suhyun had been more of an exterminator than a hunter. Rather than picking off monsters one by one for profit, he often cleared them out entirely for the safety of travelers in the area.
For someone like him, monsters that relied on wits and tenacity over physical prowess—like raptors—made for ideal prey. If they tried competing that way, they’d never beat Suhyun.
Suhyun entered the forest first. It was prime raptor territory, with trees and bushes providing cover.
Then he waited patiently. In this line of work, the wait before the fight mattered more than the fight itself. The impatient never won.
Eventually, what he wanted appeared: a baby raptor.
“Chase a baby raptor, and you’ll find the others. They live in packs. Eggs too.”
“Then what? You killed them all?”
Suhyun shook his head at Kim Chang-sik’s question.
“That wouldn’t work. You half-kill them all and gather them in one spot. So their cries reach the others.”
“…!”
“In most cases they’d run, but not when their young are attacked. After that, it was just a fight. You know how to handle raptors, so no need to explain that part, right?”
Aida nodded with a stunned expression. It was a method she’d never considered. Yet the human before her spoke casually while eating, as if it were nothing.
And it wasn’t just the clever idea that amazed her. Suhyun had brushed it off easily, but handling that many gathered raptors wasn’t ordinary. Weakened or not, monsters were monsters. She couldn’t believe he’d taken on a frenzied raptor pack alone.
“Anyway, that’s how I took care of them. This is surprisingly good. Can I get another bowl?”
“Ah? Sure. Hold on.”
While Aida got up to fetch more food, Suhyun asked Erendil.
“By the way, why do you keep clinging to me?”
“You smell like blood.”
“You sound just like your sister. Shouldn’t a blood scent make you back off?”
“I like the smell of blood.”
“An elf with unique tastes.”
It made sense she’d smell blood on him. Many elves had keen senses. To them, Suhyun probably reeked of it. But liking it? That was an outlier. A peculiar preference he couldn’t wrap his head around.
“So, what now?”
“We grab the white crane grass and head back. No time to stick around for more hunting.”
“Oh, right. Why do you need the white crane grass anyway?”
“Personal reasons. Why? You need some?”
“Nah. What would I do with it? Don’t even know what it’s for.”
Given the ordeal Suhyun went through to get it, Kim Chang-sik could guess it wasn’t some common herb. But he said nothing. He was starting to realize what kind of person Suhyun was.
Beyond his monstrous abilities—which Kim Chang-sik couldn’t even compare to—his caliber was on another level. Having rolled around in the military himself, Kim Chang-sik knew the type. Guys like that climbed much higher.
When such a person treated you kindly, you kept proper boundaries. Get greedy because they seemed nice or approachable, and you’d get cut down cold.
This white crane grass business was all Suhyun’s doing. Kim Chang-sik had no claim to any share.
‘Better not get greedy. Might not even break even.’
As Kim Chang-sik thought that, Aida returned with more food and a small box. Plain and unadorned but finely crafted, Suhyun knew the white crane grass was inside.