One Fatal Chance
Kim Jun had to get up!
Even that fierce resolve seemed to fail to reach his arms or legs.
The beast that had roared loud enough to make the air tremble was approaching.
It was a true one-shot.
Just a single attack had reduced him to this state.
All the pride in the skills he'd honed and the experience he'd built up shattered into pieces.
He had to get stronger.
Much stronger!
Thud. Thud. The heavy footsteps drew closer.
Unable to even lift his head, Kim Jun could only sense through the weight of those sounds how little time he had left in this life—how it was all ending like this.
No!
He couldn't give up like this.
Kim Jun began testing if his body was completely paralyzed or if he could at least twitch a finger.
Fortunately, he could wiggle his left pinky. Focusing his mind there allowed him to bend his wrist slightly as well.
In that moment, he remembered the White Spear tucked in his pocket.
If his pinky could just reach it—if he could manage that much—the paralysis might lift.
The problem was time.
Kim Jun felt like the beast would stomp him flat and rake out his guts with its claws any second now.
Then, a small thunk sounded, followed by the rattle of a pebble rolling away.
"You bastard bear! Over here, right here! Captain's here, so come on quick! Hey!"
Jeong Myeong-ho, throwing another stone.
A noble act of courage, desperately buying even a little time.
Thud. Thud.
The footsteps receded into the distance.
They were heading toward Jeong Myeong-ho.
With his arms and legs injured, Jeong Myeong-ho couldn't run.
Hurry!
At that instant, his pinky slipped into his pocket, and his fingernail brushed the White Spear.
A cool, refreshing energy flowed into his body.
His fingers broke free of the paralysis first.
Then his arm, his shoulder, and rapidly his entire body regained mobility.
Standing up, Kim Jun spotted the massive silhouette lumbering toward Jeong Myeong-ho.
There was only one chance.
Fail, and both he and Jeong Myeong-ho would die.
Kim Jun realized the fatal mistake he'd made.
It looked so much like a bear that he'd rashly assumed its heart was in the left chest.
As he advanced, he summoned the Cheonroegeom.
Gripping the Cheonroegeom, Kim Jun didn't rely on his eyes. Instead, he probed the beast with his sixth sense—his spatial sense.
The enormous body brimmed with overwhelming power.
"Damn, I should have seen it sooner!"
Its center was... the abdomen.
Kim Jun unleashed the power gathered in his legs in one explosive burst. Propelled by the might of Jungchwi, he focused his spatial sense. Not his eyes, but his spatial sense to strike the vital point.
He charged faster than ever before, yet somehow it felt slower.
Was time... slowing down?
No!
Kim Jun realized his focus had reached its absolute peak.
Only one chance.
He had to make it count.
Suddenly, he could see the bone structure beneath the beast's thick fur, as if peering through an X-ray.
Its skeletal frame was definitely different from any ordinary mammal.
The bones encased the torso like armor. They interlocked and supported one another in three layers. That was why even the Cheonroegeom hadn't pierced through.
The impulse to give up washed over him again.
It was far too strong to face alone.
Kim Jun sneered at the feeling.
The emotion trying to drag him down... was just another monster.
Maybe even more terrifying than the one ahead.
Better to fight to the end than surrender and die.
Whether he struggled or not, death was the same outcome! Ever since he'd resolved to become a carrier, Kim Jun had always lived by that mindset.
And it wouldn't change now.
Then, he noticed tiny gaps in the armor-like bones encasing the body—gaps that connected inward.
If he thrust Yeon Yeop precisely into that gap and poured in the Cheonroe Heart Technique... he might have a shot at victory.
Kim Jun zeroed in on it.
The gap grew larger in his perception.
The Cheonroegeom scorched through the fur and sank into the hide. As the blade tip forced its way to the center of the gap, cracks spiderwebbed out, spreading in all directions.
Crack.
One layer of bone shattered.
The inner layer crumbled. Even the final bone shielding its organs... exploded into fragments.
Squelch!
The Cheonroegeom reached the beast's core.
And without stopping, it pierced straight through the belly and out the other side.
The giant black bear stood frozen.
Its eyes glared at Kim Jun with terrifying ferocity. Its forepaw twitched again. If that hit his head, he'd be unrecognizable.
Did I fail?
Kim Jun squeezed his eyes shut.
In that instant, the beast tilted forward and collapsed in ultra-slow motion, like a slo-mo video.
Boom!
As the massive body hit the ground, time snapped back to normal... flowing fast once more.
Only then did Kim Jun realize how heavily he was panting, how desperately his body gulped air.
Tears streamed from Jeong Myeong-ho's dazed eyes, trickling down his cheeks.
Seeing a grown man cry made laughter burst from Kim Jun. He just couldn't hold it back.
Jeong Myeong-ho hastily wiped his eyes with his sleeve, looking embarrassed.
"Got some dust in my eye."
"Must've been a lot of it."
Kim Jun turned and walked toward the fallen black bear.
His excitement gradually subsided.
He reached into the dead beast's body. Thanks to his spatial sense, he located the small core hidden deep inside. The thought of collecting these and feeding them to Jeong Myeong-ho thrilled him.
After all, he'd pulled aggro so perfectly and caused all this trouble—he wouldn't refuse to eat them.
"Huh?"
Inside the giant black bear's body... besides the core, there was something else.
He wiped the blood on his thigh, revealing a round glass vial.
Kim Jun picked up the dozens of tiny cores and the glass vial, then headed back to Jeong Myeong-ho.
He examined the cores with his spatial sense; most felt similar to those from raptor saurs. There might be some side effects, but they'd help recovery far more.
Jeong Myeong-ho recoiled at the sight of the cores, but under Kim Jun's steady gaze, he sighed deeply and swallowed them.
"What's that?"
Jeong Myeong-ho eyed the vial curiously.
Kim Jun explained he'd pulled it from the black bear's body. Jeong Myeong-ho's eyes went wide as he inspected it closely.
"This is a potion! A blue label one!"
Kim Jun had to clap a hand over Jeong Myeong-ho's excited shout. If another horde showed up, he might kill Jeong Myeong-ho first.
As Jeong Myeong-ho nodded slowly, Kim Jun stepped back and glanced at the vial.
"It's a potion. See here? It says 'Made in Japan.' This is made by Ono Jiro, one of the world's top potion makers. And a blue label at that!"
Kim Jun examined the vial more closely.
Jeong Myeong-ho was right.
Ono Jiro had crafted it, complete with serial number 777. Among potions, this was a healing one—for bodily recovery.
Why was an item maker's potion... inside that black bear?
A few possibilities came to mind, but he didn't dwell on them. No need to dig now.
"Do you drink this? Or rub it on?"
"Either works."
With that, Kim Jun gripped the vial and twisted off the cap. A fresh summer grass scent wafted out.
"What're you doing?"
"Drink it. Rub half on the wounds."
"You're crazy? This is a blue label! Made by Ono Jiro himself! You know how much this sells for? Auction it, and it'd fetch as much as a decent dungeon item. Drink it? No way. I won't."
Kim Jun didn't want to waste time arguing.
He punched Jeong Myeong-ho in the gut.
Half the potion poured into the guy's open mouth; the rest he smeared on his arms and legs.
He tossed the empty vial into the darkness.
Something miraculous happened.
Bubbles frothed from the wounds where poison had eaten away even the flesh, and fresh skin sprouted almost instantly. He wouldn't move normally yet, but Jeong Myeong-ho could probably stagger along.
His arms underwent the same change.
Jeong Myeong-ho glared at Kim Jun.
"You just used a dungeon item. That potion's basically one."
"Boosted our odds."
"...By how much?"
"Tenfold."
Jeong Myeong-ho fell silent.
Moments later, Kim Jun hoisted the captain onto his back and started running.