Chapter 64
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Taking a Breather
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"Do you have a bit of a grasp on the situation now? If we're going to have a proper talk, you need to calm that rage of yours and settle down a little."
―Hmph.
Kaiza slowly turned to gaze at the Drayger and the Bewitched Draygers.
―Is there no helping it.
Kaiza swung the whip he held into the air, making it vanish.
"I'm the only human who can talk to you. I want to hear your story."
―How am I supposed to trust your word that you won't attack again?
"Drayger, come down."
At Lee Ru-ri's command, the Drayger obediently descended to the ground and wrapped its tail around her protectively, ready for any sudden move from Kaiza.
She sent back the Bewitched Draygers that had been waiting for attack orders.
Then, the blazing mane along Kaiza's back shifted in an instant to a sea-blue hue, rippling gently.
―The place where I belong is not here. It should be a spot in the eternal resting ground, the deep abyss of the ocean floor.
"Then why did you end up here?"
―I do not know. Some force dragged me here against my will, and then the humans began attacking me mercilessly.
"Ah... That's kind of like the task humans have—to close the door to this space we're in right now?"
―Task?
"In your terms, a mission or fate... something like that?"
―I only wish to return to the place where I slumbered.
"Drayger, if we form a contract, the contractor can send you back to where you were, right?"
―Yes.
"Kaiza, if you make a contract with me, I'll send you back to where you belong."
―And the price?
"Hmm... Occasionally help me out when I call? Something like that?"
―The same as why that one appeared here?
"Exactly. What do you say?"
The Drayger, who had been listening quietly to their exchange, spoke up to Kaiza.
―But first, something to confirm. Those with names have wills. What is yours?
―I see.
Kaiza gazed steadily at Lee Ru-ri.
You have acquired Furious Kaiza's Gift. Would you like to check it? Y/N
"Thank you."
You have acquired the new skill <Whip of Fury>.
―I am the guardian of the cursed icy sea. My will is solely to ensure that curse remains forever sealed in the abyss. Nothing more.
Kaiza leaned quietly against the wall and closed his eyes.
As she cautiously activated Aura of Submission, Kaiza's favorability rose.
"But who on earth brought Kaiza here, anyway?"
―Perhaps asking the Lord would be quickest.
"Kaiza, do you remember nothing at all?"
―Nothing. I was simply swept up in an endless surge of fury and attacked everything in sight.
As they chatted back and forth, Kaiza's favorability filled up completely.
Furious Kaiza's favorability has increased by 10,000,000.
Total accumulated favorability with the target: 10,000,000.
Summon contract limit has been lifted.
"Kaiza, are you ready?"
―Yes.
Lee Ru-ri took a deep breath, steadied the flow of her mana, and shouted.
"Manifest!"
A thick scent of the sea emanated from Kaiza's body.
His sea-blue mane transformed, now shimmering with the subtle green sparkle of stars in a deep night sky.
The crude armor that had barely covered his muscular frame had changed into sleek, flexible black plating.
"Whoa, you look awesome now."
Kaiza, staring at her with intensified azure eyes, finally spoke.
―I sense your will.
"See? You should've listened to me sooner."
―Now I can finally enter a deep slumber again.
"Sleeping too soundly might be a problem. You have to help me out when I'm in danger, just like Drayger did."
―Hahahahaha!
Both the Drayger and Kaiza burst into laughter at Lee Ru-ri's words.
"Alright, time to send you back. Zan Yerk said that even after you return, you'll still hear my voice. Right, Drayger?"
―Yes. Sometimes it's annoyingly loud.
"Hey! How much do I even talk? That's too much."
―Until we meet again, then.
Lee Ru-ri sent Kaiza and the Drayger back, then hurried out of the gate.
"Ru-ri!"
Baek Eun-an came running up, her face full of worry.
"Auntie. You were worried, huh?"
"Haa... We were debating whether to go in after you because it was taking so long. What happened inside? Are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine. A tricky quasi-boss popped up and gave me a bit of trouble, that's all."
"Thank goodness. We asked around about this gate, and they said it had the highest casualties."
"Yeah, I bet. But we cleared it, so let's get the sign-off quick and move on!"
After finishing the clear certification, Lee Ru-ri got into the car, and Baek Eun-an handed her some kimbap and coffee.
"You must be hungry. Eat slowly."
"Yeah, I was so starving I thought I'd pass out."
Lee Ru-ri wolfed down the kimbap and chugged the coffee in one go.
"Now, the remaining gates..."
"Two in Busan, three in Ulsan, and that's it."
"Hmm, I wanted to wrap up faster... The travel time is killer."
"I sometimes imagine how nice it would be if we could use magic for instant teleportation."
"Right? Hunters have this special constitution for handling mana, and skills powered by mana aren't really different from magic, but I've never seen a hunter who can teleport."
What others tossed out as a joke somehow made Lee Ru-ri feel like she could actually acquire a teleportation skill.
'Teleportation, huh...'
She stared out the car window, lost in thought.
'Among the monsters I've faced so far, there were definitely some that used teleportation. Why didn't I think of that? Once this is over, I'll smash through gates across the country with Zan Ying and hunt down any monsters with teleport skills.'
Her full stomach made her body feel heavy, and sleep came rushing in.
Lee Ru-ri leaned against Baek Eun-an and fell into a sweet, deep sleep all the way to Busan.
"Ru-ri, we're here. You must be exhausted."
"Auntie... Already?"
"Yeah. Want to rest today?"
"I'm okay. I'll grab a coffee first and head out."
"Sounds good?"
Lee Ru-ri's group stopped at a nearby café, ordered coffee, and chatted idly.
"But Ru-ri, honestly, you're not C-rank, are you?"
"Ha, hahaha! I am C-rank! You saw the re-exam!"
"We did see it, but it still feels off. The master told us not to follow you into gates... You're hiding something, right?"
"N-no, nothing like that! I'm just dark-attribute ranged wizard, so it's a bit easier for me than most! Ha, hahaha. I've finished mine! Let's clear this gate quick and move to the next!"
Lee Ru-ri fumbled awkwardly and bolted up. Since everyone was more tired than curious, they reluctantly headed to the gate.
In the remaining gates, they smoothly took down the quasi-bosses with Zan Ying's help, and she learned that Superhuman Strength's max level was 5 as its level rose.
After clearing the final gate, Lee Ru-ri asked the group.
"If you're tired, should we crash here tonight before heading back?"
"Let's see... It's a weekday, no traffic, so if we floor it, four hours tops. Let's go now."
"You sure?"
"Better to rest properly back home. Let's roll out."
Dragging their weary bodies, Lee Ru-ri's group completed their mission after four days and returned to guild HQ.
Everyone collapsed into bed like the dead as soon as they arrived.
The next day.
Knock knock.
"Ru-ri, Seung-woo's here."
"Just... a bit longer..."
"The sun's high in the sky."
"......"
"Ru-ri? You have to go to the gate."
"Gate!"
Lee Ru-ri shot up at the word "gate."
"Jumping up like that just hearing 'gate'—Ru-ri, you're addicted at this point. For real."
"Seung-woo, I haven't even washed my face, and you just barge into a lady's room like this?"
Han Seung-woo gave her an exasperated look, then sat on the sofa and sent her a message.
[Message with attached file]
Opening the file, she saw a rather large sum listed.
"This is the revenue from the gates you cleared. That's enough to run this building for three months. And you did it solo... Everyone had thoughtful looks during the meeting."
"You entrusted it to me, so I just worked hard."
"The problem is, it seems to have reached the Chairman's ears. We picked people with tight lips, but there must've been a looser one."
"Hmm."
Baek Eun-an, who had been listening quietly, paled and asked Han Seung-woo.
"Th-then what happens to our Ru-ri now?"
"We protect her. They'll pull out all the stops, no holds barred, to snag her from an unexpected angle. Ru-ri, from now on, you move only with a team."
"Won't that be a huge burden on everyone else...?"
"They'll be compensated accordingly, so no worries."
Baek Eun-an continued as if something occurred to her.
"Um, actually, there was one person who kept prying about Ru-ri while we were out."
"Who?"
"Yang Gong-min."
"I put him on the team just in case, and sure enough. I'll handle it. How about you two go shopping for gear before the Inex Gate raid?"
Someone chimed in abruptly.
"Me too! I wanna go!"
"We can swing by the shop too. I'll call Young-man."
It was Yang Jeong-hyun and Jin Mi-seon.
Ham Dae-hee and Kim Tae-woong followed behind.
"Then, shall we all go shopping for the first time in ages?"
After getting ready for their outing, Lee Ru-ri's group headed to Yongsan Lounge.
"Lounge first, then the purchase center at HQ!"
"Teacher, you seem super excited."
"It's been forever, and Ru-ri brought back a ton of cash, so we're living the high life."
"Ru-ri, you have no idea how dumbfounded everyone was at the meeting."
"Nah, you teachers could've done the same."
"We'd have cleared it, sure. But not in just four days round trip."
Buzzing with excitement from the rare outing, they entered the lounge noisily.
They first checked the new arrivals at the weapon shop near the entrance.
"The Association not hogging high-grade materials has really boosted trading, huh?"
"Huh?"
"Ru-ri, what's up?"
"I need to go in there."
"Yeah, let's check it out."
Lee Ru-ri dashed to the shop entrance first.
The clerk recognized her instantly and greeted her warmly.
"Welcome! Oh, Healer! Long time no see."
Lee Ru-ri handed over her hunter ID and said.
"Show me the S-rank materials posted outside."
"Ah, the same kind you bought before?"
"Right. Ru-ri, you have a history of buying S-rank mats? That's why we checked with the Association back then."
The clerk brought out a shimmering material from the warehouse.
"Here you go."
"Can you contact me whenever more of this type comes in?"
"Pardon? You want to keep stocking up?"
"Yes."
"Got it. Lee Ru-ri... Huh? You switched positions to wizard? Then healer weapon materials would be useless to you."
"Don't ask why, just please."
Jin Mi-seon, who had entered late, widened her eyes at the clerk.
"Kid, if she wants it, give it. What's with all the questions?"
"Ah! Boss Jin? It's been ages! Okay, no need to get mad. I'll call right away. Payment..."
Yang Jeong-hyun jumped in quickly.
"Bill it to Light Guild."
"Hey, Teacher. I have plenty of money too."
"Master's orders! On to the next shop!"