Chapter 29
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: F급 힐러가 SS급 게이트를 공략하는 방법-29화
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Warning
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"Honestly, Ru-ri. Aren't you totally fine now?"
"To tell you the truth... I'm doing amazingly well."
"You two! The director's going to chew you out for this."
"Hmmm."
"Noona! For real, no."
"Hmmm. Well, Seung-woo does scare me a little."
"Professor, the Inex Gate situation hasn't changed at all, right?"
"Exactly. No access, so no way to check. But get this—the great me discovered something utterly astonishing."
"Something astonishing?"
"I've been checking it out myself every night, and here's the crazy part. The pattern changes every single day."
"I-Is that even possible?"
"Remember that gate Ru-ri went into? Professor Kwon said the pattern was different when they entered versus when they cleared it."
"Is that... good news?"
"No. It's terrible news. Every bit of data we've accumulated and cataloged so far is worthless."
"Ah..."
Lee Ru-ri couldn't shake the uneasy feeling as she listened to Yang Jeong-hyun.
The life debt she owed Keres.
The voice that had foretold great chaos when she first approached the Inex Gate.
The conversation-capable monsters, Drayger and Basilahan, she'd encountered by chance after being sucked into a low-rank gate.
For some reason, all these events felt less like isolated incidents and more like pieces tightly interconnected.
'I need to check it out myself. But it's pretty dangerous... I can't drag everyone into this.'
Ru-ri called out to Yang Jeong-hyun with renewed determination, as if making a vow.
"Professor."
"Yeah?"
"About gate patterns. Can even someone clueless like me see them?"
"Why? Gotten interested in that stuff?"
"Y-Yeah!"
At Ru-ri's response, Yang Jeong-hyun swept up a stack of data from one corner of her desk and spread it out wide.
She explained various examples, picking a few.
"See here? If you leak a bit of mana at the gate entrance, it creates waves like this. We classify gate ranks based on those waves. Okay, Ru-ri. Clap your hands together and push hard, like you're pressing your palms."
"Like this?"
"How's it feel?"
"Hmm, both hands are straining, but neither side is giving way...?"
"Exactly. That's the gate control tower's role. It generates waves identical to the gate entrance's using mana stones, pressing them together like palms pushing against each other to hold it shut."
"Aha!"
"Anyway, we have to inject a tiny bit of the same mana into every gate this way, but manpower alone makes it impossible. The good news is the gigantic mana stone from the first gate handles it effortlessly. Without it in this situation? Ugh, too horrifying to even think about."
"So to read these waves..."
"You compare against a ton of accumulated data. No other way."
"Not easy, huh."
"Heading out to investigate the Inex Gate soon. Wanna come?"
At Yang Jeong-hyun's question, Ru-ri turned to Choi Si-jin.
"Ah, Si-jin. Is that okay?"
"I'll extend your outing time. Wait here."
"Grab some coffee on the way back."
While waiting for Choi Si-jin, Ru-ri crammed the gate patterns Yang Jeong-hyun handed her into her memory.
'No matter how I think about it, running into Drayger and Basilahan wasn't coincidence. I'll memorize all these patterns as best I can, and if I get sucked into a boss gate again like before, I'll analyze the pattern right away.'
As she flipped to the last page of the sixth volume of pattern records, Han Seung-woo and Choi Si-jin entered the lab together.
"Going to check gate patterns?"
"Seung-woo's here. Ru-ri got interested, and explaining it after so long was kinda fun."
"How about checking the gate patterns that keep failing too?"
"Ooh, good idea. Coffee?"
"Got enough for everyone!"
Choi Si-jin said, lightly shaking the carrier full of coffee.
Ru-ri asked Han Seung-woo.
"No casualties from those repeatedly failing gates?"
"A few high-rank hunters with serious injuries."
"Ah..."
The four S-rank monsters—the gatekeeper and trick-spawned beasts—from the Olympic Park S-rank gate.
Without her special abilities, the Light Guild members would have suffered unavoidable losses too.
'No matter how much I rack my brain, there's no better way than this. I absolutely won't tolerate anyone around me getting hurt or dying.'
Ru-ri clenched her fist, vowing inwardly.
No sooner had they arrived near Yongsan Station at the S-rank gate one guild kept failing than someone desperately called for help.
"Help!"
The four hurried over to assess the situation.
"Gate's still open! Seung-woo, check the gate status first!"
Yang Jeong-hyun shouted while supporting a hunter bleeding profusely.
Han Seung-woo rushed to the gate entrance.
Meanwhile, Choi Si-jin quickly contacted the hospital, and Ru-ri scanned the surroundings.
"Over there!"
Ru-ri spotted something and dashed over.
She'd found more hunters.
The one barely conscious had called out to Ru-ri's group for help.
"You okay?"
Ru-ri shook the fallen hunters, but they were all unconscious.
"Inside the gate... more guildmates... ugh!"
The hunter who'd called for help gasped before passing out.
"Ah, what a mess! No one's conscious at all!"
Yang Jeong-hyun grumbled.
Even so, she and Choi Si-jin moved the unconscious hunters aside and monitored them until the ambulance arrived.
Ru-ri guarded the gate entrance just in case, while Han Seung-woo contacted HQ to request permission for other guild members to enter.
After a short wait, clearance came from HQ.
Han Seung-woo issued urgent orders.
"Choi Si-jin, call in every high-rank hunter who can get here now."
"Got it!"
"Seung-woo! Let me go in first!"
"No. Too dangerous."
"But the people inside..."
Han Seung-woo sighed deeply after glancing at Ru-ri's expression.
"Ha... Who can break Ru-ri's stubbornness? Safety first. Got it? I'll gather a team and follow right away. If things get dicey before we arrive, run out immediately."
"Yes!"
Han Seung-woo urged Choi Si-jin on as he watched her boldly stride into the gate without hesitation.
"Where are they at?"
"Ten minutes out!"
The two kept their eyes glued to the gate entrance Ru-ri had entered.
Inside the gate.
"Sa... save... me..."
"As I thought!"
She hadn't walked more than a few steps inside when a voice gasped as if on the verge of death.
"You okay?"
The man Ru-ri hurriedly propped up had one arm severed and had apparently crawled to the entrance, dragging his shoulder.
"Ugh..."
He weakly pointed deeper into the gate before blacking out.
"Means there are more."
Ru-ri scattered poison needles here and there for now.
No info popped up, so no monsters nearby.
She placed both hands over the unconscious man to heal; his HP gauge appeared.
His HP was barely clinging to 30%.
Gripping the Stone Cube tight, she cast Heal, and his HP slowly filled.
With Seung-woo's reinforcements coming soon, she could leave the rear to them. She propped the man straight against the gate wall.
Then she cautiously advanced deeper.
—Oh dear.
"Who's there?"
—Troublesome.
"Who are you."
Something with a creepy, dark, ominous aura crept right up behind Ru-ri's back.
She whipped around, swinging her sword to create distance.
—That's cheating. Hurry and stab me.
A chilling, familiar voice.
"You?"
She quickly reached out to check the monster's info.
[SS ― Keres's Remnant : Current Favor <3>]
"Ke... res...? Or not? Remnant? Who are you?"
She thought she'd created distance, but the monster called Keres's Remnant had closed in behind her again somehow, whispering in her ear.
—The scent of death clings thickly to you.
"Back off. Answer my questions."
—It's been dreadfully boring without you. Have you gotten a bit stronger now?
Keres's Remnant attacked Ru-ri swiftly, leaving no room to react.
Since she'd been watching its movements closely, she barely dodged.
—Impressive. Strike me first. I must drink your blood right now.
"In your dreams. You can't kill me anyway until I whittle down your HP."
—Kuhahahahaha!
As Ru-ri bluffed boldly, Keres's Remnant burst into hearty laughter.
"I've got a ton of questions."
—You're alive without dying, so that's enough. Impressively, you've even internalized my essence. On my way to warn those pathetic vermin, meeting you brings me joy. I'll give you a special gift.
"Pass. You think almost dying from your 'gifts' once or twice is new to me? I refuse."
—Kuhahaha! Smells like intruders. Pity, but let's leave it for next time.
"Hey!"
Ru-ri yelled at Keres's Remnant as it scattered like smoke.
"Ah, slipped away again."
She scanned where Keres's Remnant had vanished, but no trace remained.
Vwooooooom!
"What?"
A sudden massive gust slammed into her with ferocious force, pinning her to the wall.
The wind was so strong she stuck flat against it.
Bracing her body with all her strength, she strained to stand straight and figure out the wind's source.
She tried leaping into the air to test Double Jump, but nothing.
This gate blocked Double Jump too.
Whoosh, vwooooooom!
"Keres, this what you call a gift?"
The wind's source was undoubtedly the monster Keres's Remnant had left behind.
Ru-ri strained to hold on while reaching out to check its info.
[S ― Green Lindbru : Current Favor <0>]
'Ha, looks like the people here got taken out by Keres's Remnant, and now we've gotta deal with this fake dragon knockoff?'
Just staying upright was exhausting; she needed something to block the wind for an attack.
Pondering usable skills in this pinch, one flashed in her mind.
"Rock!"
A skill she'd once gotten from a goblin chief.
It summoned rocks of varying sizes based on mana input—never thought it'd come in handy like this.
She caught her breath behind the rock wall she'd conjured when Han Seung-woo came rushing in at blinding speed.
"Ru-ri! You okay?!"
"Seung-woo! Over here, behind this rock!"
"Saw the injured at the entrance."
"Details later. First, how do we handle that fake dragon?"
"Insane wind. Not easy to approach."
"You two! All good?!"
The guildmates from before followed, calling out.
"Yeah! This rock wall'll crumble soon. I'll draw its attention."
"Too dangerous."
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