Chapter 23
Chapter 23
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: 3. The Runner
-----------------------------------------------------------------
However, because their movements were limited to mere checks and because they hadn't seen many wizards, the people who took it for granted that one could reliably finish off a werewolf in a single blow were praising Dong-cheol and Il-woo, who boasted more eye-catching and standout performances than the two.
"Wow, Il-woo, you're amazing too. Would it be okay if I asked about the rank of your dagger throwing?"
"You don't just ask about that kind of thing carelessly."
"S-Sorry. It's just that you threw it so well, unlike that thief from before."
"...It's Low rank. But I've been practicing dagger throwing diligently by throwing knives all the time."
"Ah, but Dong-cheol hyung. How far are you planning to clear the mission?"
"Who knows. Originally, I was just going to catch twenty and bail."
The words "just twenty" might have seemed modest, but no one thought of it that way. Werewolves were plenty strong monsters, after all.
"And the reason the Moonlit Cave Investigation quest is easy is because you can make a quick haul at the beginning and then get out."
That was right.
Sung-hoon had spread the rumors far and wide, but most of it about the Moonlit Cave was true. Catch twenty and fulfill the adventurer condition, and you'd get 100,000 guild and five werewolf hides. Werewolf hide was a high-grade material for making leather armor. It was a solid profit. In a situation where you could grab twenty early on and escape.
They'd already taken down ten. They could finish the mission without issue.
'But that's not what I want.'
What he really wanted wasn't just a few tens of thousands of guild and some werewolf hides. If that was all, it would've been more profitable to do a D-rank mission solo. At the very least, he needed to coax them into Hunter difficulty. Massacre would be even better.
"Hyung, the party's composition is pretty good..."
"Why not just go all the way to Massacre difficulty?"
"What?"
"Isn't Massacre a bit too much? You have to catch a hundred and uncover the secret of the Moonlit Cave."
At Il-woo's sudden suggestion to clear up to Massacre, Dong-cheol and A-yeon looked uneasy. Clearing a mission at the highest level wasn't that easy. The reason the Moonlit Cave was known to be easy was that you didn't encounter werewolves in earnest until you went past the midpoint.
Until then, you just had to watch out for traps and deal with one or two werewolves, which was enough to complete the mission. That gave the C-rank mission a relatively easy feel. For Dong-cheol, who had only satisfied Adventurer up to now and tried Hunter just once, Il-woo's proposal didn't seem all that appealing.
"To be honest, even if we just finish at Adventurer, splitting it five ways doesn't amount to much, right? Might as well do a D-rank mission."
"That's true, but isn't it a bit dangerous?"
"I don't think it'll be that bad. Looking at it, Sung-hoon over there can handle the role of two decent warriors, and Ellie used some powerful magic too. If we're reasonably careful, we can meet the Massacre conditions."
"Still..."
A-yeon was lost in thought, but Dong-cheol seemed unenthused about adventuring and was about to voice his refusal.
"Let's make a big haul. Plus, the secret of the Moonlit Cave is done once you find the moonstone at the deepest part."
"I'm not keen on it. How about just Hunter difficulty?"
"Come on. Here's the deal: out of the Massacre rewards, I'll give up my share of the three Low Enhancement Stones."
"Ho ho."
"Really?!"
Low Enhancement Stones were high-value items worth about 100,000 guild each right now. Voluntarily giving up a share worth a total of 300,000 guild made the others just smile and rejoice, but Sung-hoon didn't let the words pass lightly. People don't give up profits that easily. And yet, he was volunteering to forfeit them?
"Il-woo, why are you so set on completing Massacre mode?"
"Truth is, I'm aiming for my first awakening this time. I want to change to a higher class, and the condition is completing C-rank missions at Massacre difficulty three times or more."
Awakening in The Mission was possible by completing tasks from the Job Change Temple. Awakening missions varied by class, and for the current Thief Il-woo, completing his first awakening would make him a First-Rate Thief, so he'd naturally want it.
With awakening on the line and him giving up rewards, Dong-cheol had no choice but to drop his stubbornness.
"Fine. Let's go for Massacre completion then. But safety first. Sung-hoon, keep up the checks like you've been doing. Ellie, if it looks dangerous, don't hold back on mana—blast them with magic. We can take long rests."
"Got it."
"A-yeon and I have cleared Moonlit Cave at Massacre before, so we can find the way easily. Il-woo, make sure you disarm all the traps properly. Alright, let's go!"
As they wrapped up the brief meeting and stood, Sung-hoon glanced at Il-woo.
'If someone else hadn't said it, I would've suggested going to Massacre myself, but here he's handling it. First awakening, huh. Is that true?'
Whether he knew he was under scrutiny or not, Il-woo diligently handled his tasks afterward. He found every trap without missing one, disarmed them thoroughly, and kept up the checks faithfully.
In the end, they entered the cave depths without any incidents.
Of the four werewolves, Dong-cheol had one, Sung-hoon two, and while Il-woo stalled the last one, Ellie and A-yeon inflicted wounds.
Kwachik!
"Krrraaaang!"
It wasn't good to drag things out too long, so he severed one werewolf's windpipe with a suitable sword technique and stalled another, allowing them to finish off all the werewolves.
While harvesting valuables from the dead werewolves' corpses and resting, Dong-cheol spoke up.
"Alright, next up is something like the midpoint boss of this Moonlit Cave. Anyone know about it?"
"You mean the Black Werewolf?"
"Oh! You know it well."
With Il-woo's response, Dong-cheol felt like he didn't need to explain as much.
"After disarming the next trap, a fairly large chamber will appear. There, five werewolves and one Black Werewolf come out. We can handle the five werewolves, but the Black Werewolf is the problem. That guy's pretty strong."
"How strong?"
"Hard to put in numbers. I fought a Black Werewolf once before. I barely lasted a minute and nearly collapsed. Think of it as strong as three werewolves combined."
"Then I'll take the Black Werewolf."
"Huh? For real?"
At Sung-hoon's quick volunteering, Dong-cheol could only grin widely. Everyone naturally wanted to avoid dangerous fights.
"I don't have skills for lethal blows, but I won't collapse easily either. If it's just holding the Black Werewolf in place, I can manage."
"You're right—you lack the big one-shots, but your stats and skills are top-notch. Good. You take that guy then. Don't think about winning—just check him. Got it?"
"Yes."
He could wipe it out solo if he used skills freely, but the others had no way of knowing that.
"That leaves five werewolves. Say I handle two somehow—how do we deal with the other three? Il-woo, you can't take three, right?"
"I'll handle that with my magic."
Ellie, who had been quiet, raised her arm and voiced her opinion for the first time.
"I'll drop one right as we enter the chamber with my strongest spell. Sung-hoon takes the Black Werewolf, Dong-cheol two, and the remaining two can be me, A-yeon, and Il-woo."
"Ho ho. In that case..."
Reducing one from the start would definitely make the fight easier.
The others agreed it seemed feasible, so Ellie thrust her staff forward and began chanting.
Unlike warriors, wizards truly boasted powerful one-shots. Their physical abilities were extremely low, and chanting took a lot of time, but a completed spell could turn the tide with its might.
Red haze began shimmering in front of Ellie, and soon fist-sized fireballs formed. They grew steadily until they reached the size of a child's head.
"Alright, let's go."
"Wait. It's not done yet."
"Pardon?"
Stopping Dong-cheol, Ellie chanted once more. With each repetition, the heat from the fireballs intensified, and those nearby wiped sweat and stepped back.
Sensing the heat, Sung-hoon looked at Ellie anew and thought.
Mana Reinforcement? This is the real deal.
A skill that further amplified an already-formed spell's power. When most wizards just learned spells and called it a day, having Mana Reinforcement made her worthy of being called a Ranker.
At this level, she could easily pierce Sung-hoon's low-level magic resistance.
"It's complete. Now let's go."