Beast Hunt
To Park Eun-hyeon, there was one hunter who posed the greatest threat, no question about it.
Association President Jeong Beom-ho.
Until recently, he'd been the sole physical S-rank hunter. His already formidable physical prowess, amplified by his special ability, had dragged the stuff of novels—indestructible as diamond—into the real world. No matter what tricks Park Eun-hyeon pulled, he couldn't breach that absurd toughness. Not even a needle could slip through, leaving zero room to probe with his own special ability.
A man he had to avoid at all costs. Probably the only one in the world he couldn't kill.
That was Jeong Beom-ho.
Coming in second was Ha Yeon-ah, now slumped in the corner over there. Without her sister's protection, she was an opponent with a glaringly obvious weakness.
But at this moment...
Park Eun-hyeon wondered if he needed to add one more name to his list of people to avoid.
Boom—
Every time he dodged the swinging spear, the air ripped apart with a deafening roar. After sweeping through space once, the rush of air filling the void felt like a storm.
Park Eun-hyeon grimaced as he scanned his surroundings.
What the hell kind of monster is this guy?
Ha Yeon-ah's blessing had vanished. The little sun she'd conjured had set, and the world was shrouded in the darkness he'd sown.
One effect of his ability—curses—was especially deadly to physical awakeners. They inevitably had lower mana stats than ability users. Sure, they could tank basic elemental powers with their sturdy bodies, but against specialized curses like his or the hypnosis the old mind-bender used to wield, they were more vulnerable than equivalent ability hunters.
The battlefield was already his domain, and the enemy stood smack in the middle of it.
As far as Park Eun-hyeon knew, Seong Ye-han wasn't like Jeong Beom-ho—someone with innate physical strength boosted by a separate special ability. No, he was the type who gained overwhelming physical power directly from his special ability.
So that insane physical performance he was putting on... it should have been eroded by his curse. Chipped away from S-rank levels until he was no match for Park Eun-hyeon.
Without Ha Yeon-ah's blessing, he had no way to resist.
Scraaaape—
The power vibrating through his blade was unmistakably...
How...?
That first clash—the force that hadn't just pushed him back but launched him into the sky—hadn't weakened one bit under his curse. The aftershocks alone ground at his joints like they were wearing away.
Even Park Eun-hyeon, who prided himself on his own physical prowess, felt it.
At this rate, he'd lose.
No meaningful damage exchanged yet, but he couldn't wrest control from Seong Ye-han's storm of attacks. His techniques weren't anything special, but the sheer class difference in raw power, combined with the performance limits of sword versus spear, had him firmly pinned.
Every strike from Seong Ye-han landed like a mountain—heavy, with massive shockwaves that made it feel like fighting a top-tier wind ability user. There were openings, but he couldn't recover his stance fast enough to exploit them before the next blow crumbled it.
Bit by bit, his stamina was being whittled away. Eventually, that spear would skewer him.
Run?
If he really committed to escaping, he could probably slip away somehow. But that would mean abandoning Ha Yeon-ah, finally in his grasp.
And there'd be no second chance like this. After this raid, her sister wouldn't let her out of sight. Unless the paladin dropped dead screaming on the street, anyway.
A massive desire coiled in Park Eun-hyeon's gut.
No one could ignore a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity dangling right in front of them. Even if it came with enormous risk.
Especially if they could overcome that risk.
One hit.
Park Eun-hyeon deflected the thrusting spear tip, eyes gleaming.
Still that same simplistic spear thrust.
Just one hit...
Once. If he could land even a tiny wound...
He didn't know how much resistance this physical awakener had to offset his curse. But a direct injection would be different.
Even Ha Yeon-ah hadn't withstood his curse toxin up close.
Let alone Seong Ye-han...
He felt sensation creeping back into one arm. And the opponent's weapon, screaming and groaning even now—it registered perfectly.
These two would be the key to hunting the brute in front of him.
Easier than I thought?
Seong Ye-han pondered as he freely battered the rippling shadow before him.
At first, when the guy blabbered something and unfurled that black shadow crap around them—whoosh—even Seong Ye-han had flinched like any normal person. But nothing happened to him.
Hell, he wondered if the bastard was just bluffing.
And the resistance at his spear tip felt lighter than expected. The opponent swayed like a reed in a gale, on the verge of snapping any second.
Boom!
Krraaang!
Each weapon clash warped space with a storm, shoving back the shadows to briefly reveal the enemy. A sleek but utterly average-looking guy. Hard to believe this was the infamous outlaw—his face wasn't even memorable.
Still dangling one arm limply. Seong Ye-han nodded in satisfaction at the results of his spear throws. If Park Eun-hyeon could use both arms, it'd be more annoying.
Krraaaaaang—
Greeeeek—
The spear Lee Yun had saved for him was damn satisfying. Sure, it screeched in agony, thrashing about, but it was holding up to his grip strength and power.
Just as Seong Ye-han was getting all hyped up—
Squiiirm—
In the brief gap between strikes, Park Eun-hyeon's shadow rippled, merging with the surroundings. The scattered darkness swallowed him whole.
Seong Ye-han didn't panic at his sudden disappearance. He swung his spear wide. Vanishing or not, the existence of this weird black zone meant the guy was still somewhere in it.
Time for indiscriminate AoE. He lacked fancy special abilities, but that was for weaklings.
True strength made special abilities irrelevant.
Scraaaaaape—
A massive power burst with no set direction. The shockwave rode the wind, exploding outward.
"Ngh—!"
The enemy groaned, unable to endure. Seong Ye-han launched himself toward the sound without hesitation.
"You crazy fucking boar bastard!"
He ignored the furious cursing. So what if a dead man walking spat some trash talk? Especially a bottom-feeding scum like this.
Krraaaang—
The clashes grew fiercer. Seong Ye-han smirked at the intensifying weapon impacts. Louder collisions meant the opponent was struggling more to deflect the power in his spear.
Almost there.
Seong Ye-han swung with the same relentless vigor as the start, a feral grin on his face.
Almost there.
Park Eun-hyeon swallowed a groan, enduring the throbbing pain wracking his body.
Just from the aura in that spear, he could tell how pumped the opponent was.
Made sense. His own infamy was legendary, and the bounty on his head was no joke.
That's why Park Eun-hyeon could smile through the pain.
Cliché as it was, you had to keep a cool head in battle. Get heated, and you'd miss the obvious, seeing only what you wanted.
He'd screamed in agony several times already, watching the opponent's weapon finally start to bend.
No weapon that can contain that much power lasts forever.
Park Eun-hyeon knew how rare S-rank worthy gear was. That spear was made of precious materials, valuable enough for an S-rank to wield somehow.
But limits were limits. Substitutes only went so far.
The dumb boar bastard was rampaging like a beast tasting pleasure for the first time. No need for Park Eun-hyeon to do much—it'd shatter on its own.
His job? Just nudge it along.
A bit more.
Just a little...
Park Eun-hyeon poured strength and mana into his scorching, burning arm and smashed Seong Ye-han's spear.
He'd already recalled the curtain of darkness cloaking him. All that mana gathered to batter the opponent... that spear.
Krraaaaaang—
Crack—
And finally, the rupture he'd craved.
He saw the opponent's eyes widen in shock. Unlike Park Eun-hyeon, who'd braced for it, the enemy's body recoiled.
Park Eun-hyeon gritted his teeth through the reverberations and charged.
The opponent tried to react, but Park Eun-hyeon was a half-beat faster. No—a full beat.
"Kuhaha—!"
Patience was bitter, but the fruit sweet, or so they said.
It'd been ages since he'd faced real crisis and pain like this.
Park Eun-hyeon somehow swung his barely functional arm, slashing with his blade.
It wouldn't connect. Seong Ye-han dodged the strike effortlessly.
For a split second, relief bloomed on the opponent's face.
But that was the feint. Park Eun-hyeon whipped his hitherto limp other hand like lightning.
An injury he'd endured and shown off even in tough spots.
That's why Seong Ye-han's reaction lagged.
Grip—
Finally, his hand touched Seong Ye-han's body.
Spurt—
Park Eun-hyeon's glove. A small, black needle hidden on his pinky pierced the armor effortlessly.
"I've won. You fucking retard... Kuhaha..."
A dark grin spread across his lips.
Now the bastard would crumple to his curse toxin.
And he would finally claim Ha Yeon-ah... the Saintess.
Immense accomplishment stabbed through his nerves like electricity. An intense pleasure that could make him cum hands-free.
Imagining dominating that slutty body at will, his laughter wouldn't stop...
"Kuhuh... Gahk?!"
Park Eun-hyeon felt a rough hand clamping his throat.
His body lifted, defying gravity.
"What the...?!"
He'd clearly stabbed true.
"What're you doing?"
Lowering his gaze with effort, there was Seong Ye-han, staring him down with the same unchanged face.