Chapter 14
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Rookie Heroes
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Whether it was the effect of the scolding or the booze and after-party, the team's performance noticeably improved starting with the next battle. And in a good way. Trash mobs were cleared at a rapid pace, and soon the second Grade 2 monster appeared before the group. Combat began immediately.
"A-ahhh! I'm gonna die!"
"Don't exaggerate! Good! You're doing great! Yeah! That's how you block it!"
Oh Hyun-ah's shield intercepted the trajectory of the Grade 2 monster's attack. As a result, the monster couldn't fully extend its strike and had to pull back its weapon.
Minguk didn't hold back his praise for Hyun-ah's performance. It was a perfectly timed parry. Defending like that significantly reduced the damage taken from the monster.
It was one of the most basic techniques a tank had to use, but among GGW's tank heroes, only those born with high talent could properly utilize parries. The rest had to learn it through grueling training and experience—very few heroes could use it right from the start.
'Talent monster.'
In that regard, Oh Hyun-ah's skills were outstanding enough to not suit the title of a Grade 1 hero who had only recently awakened her mana. Sure, she hated pain to an extreme for a tank, and she chattered endlessly enough to scatter her focus, but she never crossed the line.
The monster, whose attack had been blocked, charged at the tank Hyun-ah once more. And Hyun-ah responded textbook-style to the enemy's assault. She deflected the blow, then swung her weapon at the enemy's weak point.
Kaang! Kang!
A few blows were exchanged, and once Minguk confirmed Hyun-ah's health dropping, he restored her stamina with a healing spell. Then he swung his staff to disrupt the monster's movements. Since it was just a Grade 2—not even Grade 3—he had plenty of leeway.
"Iyaaap!!!"
"For our after-party!"
The dealer line—Aashlyn, Lin Sha, and Choi Yuna—charged in with loud battle cries. As their weapons swung, the Grade 2 monster's health drained away rapidly. As expected from aspiring heroes gunning for raid qualifications, Grade 2 monsters were a breeze for them.
However, easy foes meant meager rewards. All they got were junk items worth about 40 dollars at best.
"What're we eating for the after-party? Beef? Pork?"
"P, not F. What's 'fork' supposed to mean? Stab pork with forks?"
"Y-yeah. That's exactly what I meant. You nailed it."
Lin Sha, her face flushed from the slip-up pointed out by Ashlyn, stammered her response. She snuck a glance at Minguk. Yuna stifled her laughter with giggles. Hyun-ah, who had been listening to Lin Sha's question with a serious expression, finally spoke up.
"I don't think the type of meat matters much. To me, meat is righteous just by existing. But if I had to pick, pork. It's cheap, so we can drink more."
"Sounds good. I love booze too. Especially with good company."
It was Ashlyn speaking. Her eyes met Hyun-ah's, creating a strange tension, but raid leader Minguk missed it entirely as he was focused on devising orders for tackling the Dark Kalu. Only Lin Sha and Yuna shook their heads at the two's battle of wills.
The Dark Kalu required the raid leader and healer's contributions to exceed 90%, just as the strategy guide described.
The raid leader had to make precise calls, and the healer had to cast recovery spells on the exact right targets. Even a minor mistake would lead straight to team wipes.
And Minguk was a raid leader who had made a global name for himself in GGW, paired with a healer of equally stellar skill.
- Kraaaaaargh!
The Dark Kalu's Dark Roar plunged everyone into an unable-to-act state. Then came a massive shockwave, and party members' health began plummeting below 10%. Minguk snapped out of the debuff first and immediately began casting a heal. Target: Hyun-ah.
'Blanket healing for AoE damage? That's rookie stuff.'
Area heals restored less than single-target ones and took longer to cast. Which meant the tank would go without healing in the meantime.
There was a term in the game: heal priority. It varied by situation, but only one person—the tank—would be taking hits from the monster. As long as the dealers weren't being careless, there was no need to rush heals on them.
The tank, however, needed enough health to withstand the next monster attack. If the tank died, the raid ended.
Hwaaaak!
Confirming Hyun-ah's health restored by the warm glow of mana, Minguk swiftly followed up with an AoE heal. Hand seals formed naturally, and everyone's health began ticking up bit by bit. His casting was flawless.
"Heals coming in right on cue? Our raid leader's skills are insane!"
"Way more reliable than when I was doing ranged DPS."
Everyone marveled at how smoothly Minguk navigated what could be called a crisis moment.
Though they were unlicensed aspiring heroes, this wasn't their first time facing dungeon monsters with a 5-man party. They'd synced up with plenty of healers before. But none compared to Minguk.
To be precise, it had only been two days since Minguk switched to healer. Yet his performance was good enough to lead a raid's healing corps without issue. And he was calling orders too.
"Choi Yuna, Dark Orb! Oh, line's coming too. Dodge just the orb and stay within range of me!"
"Got it...!"
After quickly applying a HoT (a heal that restored small amounts of health periodically over time) on Hyun-ah, Minguk chained heals toward Yuna, who had taken Dark Orb damage.
Yuna's rapidly depleting health visibly recovered. Lin Sha's attack hammered the Kalu next, severing the Dark Line, and Yuna stabilized.
"Nice! Keep it up just like that!"
Minguk shouted to his teammates battling the Kalu.
With the healer's role over 90%, as long as he didn't mess up, the monster was easy pickings. Meaning they could clear the dungeon using just one Revival Stone.
'Sucks to waste 100 million, but...'
He couldn't risk not using it for unforeseen accidents. Even so, using no more Revival Stones made this strategy a success. The Dark Kalu was a Grade 3 monster required for the Raid Qualification Exam.
"Lin Sha! Interrupt!"
"Oh Hyun-ah! Roar ready!!! Use Damage Reduction if you can!"
Minguk issued nonstop orders while checking his mana and casting heals. Meanwhile, the Kalu's health ticked down steadily.
Beep!
▶ Cleared "Dark Forest".
▶ 0.6 Achievement Points awarded to Hero Pad.
▶ Hero Compendium count has been updated.
"Yes!"
"One-try! One-try!!!"
It was just a C-2 level dungeon, but it included a Grade 3 monster. Clearing it perfectly without a single sacrifice had everyone buzzing with excitement.
"So, four more to go?"
"Seven if we're counting Yuna."
Minguk replied to Lin Sha's mutter. As teammates, he intended to meet the raid exam quals for Yuna too, even if it meant pushing hard.
"Gonna be tough."
"We still have five days after today. We've taken down three Grade 3s in two days—if we keep grinding dungeons nonstop, we can do it."
"You sure? Calling orders isn't easy."
"Well..."
Minguk shrugged at Lin Sha's worried tone.
In GGW, he'd done dozens, hundreds of tries per day against insanely tough monsters. To him, this level of raid was child's play. Exaggerating a bit, he could do it while slurping instant noodles.
Turning his head, Minguk caught sight of Hyun-ah celebrating the raid success. She more than deserved the joy after tanking so hard. As he watched her, their eyes met for a moment.
"......"
He swallowed involuntarily. Hyun-ah made a kissing gesture toward him, her tongue teasing her upper lip. It was a sexy move that tugged at any man's heartstrings. Memories of last night and this morning flooded back.
'Tonight too...'
Hyun-ah's stunning figure and sultry moans filled his mind. And her caresses? The only word was heavenly.
And if things went well, he could enjoy it again tonight. Plus, it was after-party night. With booze's help... A lecherous smile crept onto Minguk's face.
The items from the Dark Forest's Grade 3 monster, the Dark Kalu, were tank gloves with Gear Score 75, healer shoes of the same score, and a C-rank Skill Stone.
"I'll put these up for auction right away, then."
After discussing with the team, they decided to auction the tank gloves and C-rank Skill Stone. Hyun-ah already had better gear as the tank, and no need for the stone.
Minguk bought the Gear Score 75 healer shoes. Selling one Revival Stone covered it easily.
It was below the Score 80 needed for the raid exam, but better than his current Score 48 gear. He'd fill gaps with other pieces. Now that he knew Revival Stone prices, money wasn't an issue.
'No need for top-tier gear right away, though.'
Auctions weren't the only option. Gear prices skyrocketed exponentially with score.
"Great work. Clearing it this fast—your skills are impressive."
The highest-ranking soldier guarding the Dark Forest entrance addressed Minguk. Maybe because they'd cleared it? The dungeon timer needle pointed at 1. Lin Sha sounded disappointed.
"Aw... Not at twelve."
"That would've been nice, but... Dungeons don't vanish that easily. Still, thanks to you, one worry's off my mind. Well done, heroes."
The female soldier smiled. Apparently, dungeons sometimes disappeared completely after clears. At any rate, Dark Forest was done. Minguk pocketed the 1,000-dollar bounty and turned to his team.
"So, anyone know a good meat joint?"