Chapter 81
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: 79. Bald Head and Divine Sword User
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Shinohara Yuzuki gazed up at the white flames filling the ceiling of the boss room, letting out a sigh of admiration.
"Swinging a sword and white flames come pouring out. Hmm, that's fascinating."
Not just her—the others, excluding the heroine, looked pretty shocked too.
Ping Tao's especially dumbstruck expression was hilariously spot-on.
Rosemary had seen it once before but was surprised again, which made her seem a bit slow on the uptake.
Once the flames died down completely, all that remained on the floor were shards of glass.
"Does this mean we're done?"
"Looks like it. Yeah, everything's cleared. Or rather, it's done."
Choi Sia was the constellation of the Divine Sword. One of her abilities let her detect enemies—even spotting the evil dragon faster than me, somehow.
And with that, the Glass Dungeon was cleared.
In the original story, Lily Guild Master Noah would come to help personally, but the kids here were so outstanding that we handled it without her.
After defeating the Glass Duke boss, the back door slid open.
The exit that opens upon clearing the dungeon. The modern design was proof that the Lily Guild had fully renovated this Glass Dungeon.
As we stepped out, Guild Master Noah was there clapping her hands.
"I never imagined you'd handle it all by yourselves."
"What do you think? Pretty impressive, right?"
Noah must have been quite surprised too. When you thought about it, the Glass Dungeon was tough even for C-rank hunters.
Breaking through the passages was manageable, but entering solo meant unsealing all six paths.
And the boss, the Glass Duke, was on another level entirely. It was only because our lineup was so ridiculously stacked. A standard Class B team probably couldn't have cleared it.
So, I'll graciously grant her the right to praise me specifically.
"Yeah, you were all amazing. Especially Shinohara Kotone, Ping Tao, and Yoo Eun-ha. You three stood out."
Noah looked at the three of us and clapped like a seal again, even harder.
"Just us three?"
"The others are already well-known. I'd seen the team battle footage and community videos for you, Eun-ha, but seeing it in person makes it hard to believe otherwise."
Shinohara Kotone was an unknown retainer of the Shinohara family. Ping Tao might seem like all talk given China's current image. And I was Yoo Jin-seok's little sister, so people could assume I rode his coattails for support.
It was understandable enough.
Still, it rubbed me the wrong way a bit. Was she straight-up dismissing me after I blatantly unleashed those white flames?
"Is that how you're gonna play it?"
I knew exactly why she was acting like this.
This Noah bitch was provoking me.
She must have seen me messing around with the Succubus Queen and wanted a taste of the same treatment.
Otherwise, it made no sense to trust rumors about Reina, Han Su-ji, and Choi Si-woo—kids who hadn't even shown off their skills as much as I had—over them.
"Ah, don't get mad. I just like solid proof, even if it seems that way. Your grades are all top-notch anyway. To Blazing Bat... no, I'll report directly to the dean myself. And word about this Glass Dungeon run will spread to the other guilds soon enough."
"Guild scouting for real now, huh?"
In the original story, plenty of Class A cadets were still around at this point.
The Glass Dungeon was a selective mission among them, with episodes like dealing with Class A's delinquents or clashing with the student council. But ever since the story diverged, the future was unpredictable.
Class 1-A could jump straight to pro hunter work.
Class 2-A might be pretty pissed about that.
"You're all just too talented. Seeing those leftover Group 2 teams hold their own in the passages, I bet mid-tier guilds will snap them up."
"That's a relief."
If they hadn't gotten picked up, it'd be because the story got twisted on my account, and I'd feel bad.
"So, that's it, right?"
"Yeah, that's all for today. Great job, everyone."
Noah said that, turned on her heel, and shot me a wink.
I'd gotten her comm code, but no need to contact her just yet.
I'll hold onto it for now. Getting tangled with a guild master could spell trouble.
"Huh?"
I opened my magitech gear to check Noah's comm code and spotted a message from Yoo Jin-seok.
Hunter Association
The fifth-floor hallway of the Hunter Association, quieter than before after Kim Jae-su's rebellion incident, echoed with the footsteps of a man walking through.
The man walked for a while before opening the door to the innermost president's office.
As the door swung open, a shiny bald-headed man rested his chin on his hand and greeted him.
"Prime Divine Sword User Yoo Jin-seok."
The man was Yoo Jin-seok. He'd taken leave to investigate the Sin Day incidents, flying out to Dokdo to hunt king Dokdo shrimp in the waters off the island.
"Why'd you call me? I was in the middle of pounding those king Dokdo shrimp."
"Come on, what's the rush with those shrimp? It's just shrimp, isn't it?"
Yoo Jin-seok grumbled curtly, and Choi Cheol-sik stared at him in disbelief.
Just shrimp? A prime Divine Sword User with that kind of skill, capable of wiping out hordes of monsters like the sea itself—struggling over mere shrimp?
"They're mana-infused shrimp. You think those are easy to find? Shrimp can actually deal fatal blows to humans, surprisingly."
"Still just shrimp, right?"
What shrimp could fatally wound a person?
"People get infected with marine Vibrio septicemia from shrimp tail stings."
"That's only for folks with weakened immunity eating contaminated seafood. Modern humans with proper mana circulation don't catch that crap anyway. You're dodging the point. How long does it take to catch shrimp?"
No one wants it to take that long. Catching mana-possessed Dokdo shrimp was tough. He couldn't just burn down the whole coastal area, so he hunted them one by one, diving into the sea himself.
"Like I said, mana-infused shrimp. They're sneaky little bastards. Apparently, their bodies are super healthy. Taste great too. That's why I took extra care to catch them alive for cooking—made me late."
"You need to get any healthier?"
Anyone who could control mana properly wouldn't have health issues. Especially not Yoo Jin-seok, who'd held the title of humanity's strongest just a few years back.
"It's for Eun-ha. For Eun-ha. Here, check it out. Caught one at least."
"Shrimp get this big normally?"
What kind of shrimp was the size of a person?
Good thing it was knocked out—otherwise, it'd be a real hassle with that size.
"That's why they're dangerous. Get stung by that tail, and you're dead instantly. They even leap out of the waters off Dokdo. A surprise attack like that would be bad news."
"Good for a girl, huh?"
"I've been hopping dungeons investigating Sin Day for a while now, barely seeing my sister. Gotta give her a proper gift. Heard it's great for women's beauty. Makes breasts bigger too, apparently."
Yoo Jin-seok mumbled sheepishly as he said it.
But Choi Cheol-sik, hearing it, was dumbfounded.
There were limits to little sister doting. What did Yoo Eun-ha need bigger breasts for?
"No, I know it sounds weird, but does it even matter? Eun-ha's are already plenty big, far as I know."
It sounded like harassment, but they really were.
"Wanna die? These taste good too."
"Sigh. You've gone full little sister simp."
Little sister simp? Only someone without an adorable sister like mine could say that so casually—that bald guy.
Yoo Jin-seok bristled for a second but held back.
The guy was balding and scatterbrained, but whatever.
"Let's get to the point. You always drag out the intro."
"Ah, right. Put Sin Day on hold for now. Shinohara in Japan seems to be helping with it. Priority is digging into this woman called Baekhwa first."
Shinohara. If the Japanese prime minister was backing it, maybe, but Shinohara was trustworthy. They always played the diplomatic game carefully for their country.
"That one in the quarantine zone?"
"Yep. Sent Kim Ji-hye, but she just slaughtered villains and came back. Can't do anything else, that girl."
"Classic Ji-hye."
Kim Ji-hye had been an idiot who avoided theory even as a cadet.
Most top hunter hopefuls had mana-enhanced brains as a baseline.
A little study, and they'd memorize hunter theory no problem. But Kim Ji-hye had just swung bats like a brute all these years.
Still, put a bat in her hands, and she was unstoppable—that's why Yoo Jin-seok saw it positively.
"So, go with her and look into Baekhwa. Probably in Incheon somewhere."
"She's already handling villains for us—do I drag her in if I find her?"
Baekhwa the streamer was doing his job, which made Yoo Jin-seok feel guilty.
Who could've guessed remnants of the Black God Cult—once the biggest power purged during the quarantine zone subjugation—still lingered?
"No, her being in the quarantine zone is the problem itself. Plus, thanks to Baekhwa, the internet's been roasting the Blue House and Hunter Association lately. Take a look."
Streamer Living in Quarantine Zone Slays Villains—What Are the Government and Hunter Association Doing?
Hero of the Quarantine Zone Survivors! Baekhwa! Who Is She?
Don't Forget the Great Cataclysm, Government and Hunter Association.
The media always bashed the Hunter Association and Blue House, sure, but at this level, Baekhwa had become a major online influencer in opposition.
Meanwhile, trust in the Hunter Association and Blue House was tanking.
Especially reading the front pages—President Ha Jung-seok and Choi Cheol-sik's names popped up too.
Made sense. Baekhwa rescuing survivors trapped in the quarantine zone versus Choi Cheol-sik and Ha Jung-seok holed up in the Hunter Association and Blue House.
Anyone could see who was more righteous.
The media hyped it up for clicks, sure, but overall, Baekhwa came out ahead.
Choi Cheol-sik showed other papers too, brushing those aside.
Where Are the Survivors Baekhwa Rescued?
Possibility of Human-Habitable Zones in Quarantine Area.
S-Rank Hunter Lee Heung-bu: 'Quarantine Zone Has Ample Potential for Residential Areas...'
Even talk of habitable zones in the quarantine area.
They had to track down Baekhwa somehow.
"Hunter Association's image is totally shredded."
"That's why—recruit her if you can. Anyway, find her and bring her in. Even if survivors are holding out there, it won't last. We need to provide support. As you know, no external aid gets into the quarantine zone. China and Japan are busy with their own eroded territories anyway."
Hard to imagine survivors barricaded from villains achieving any production in that eroded zone.
So where was Baekhwa feeding them all from?
"Got it. I'll give it a shot."
"Kim Ji-hye'll be waiting at the south wall checkpoint at 10 PM. Contact via magitech if you find anything."
"Yes. Gotta see Eun-ha first though."
Been a while since they'd met. Eun-ha didn't exactly welcome him with open arms, but he was her big brother. A big brother had to look out for his little sister, right?
"Always the little sister simp."
"It's about time I did."
Prime Divine Sword User Yoo Jin-seok. The man who'd neglected family before was now a full-blown little sister simp.