Chapter 49
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: I'm Exhausted
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The headless body plummeted to the ground.
"......"
It was the end of a grueling battle.
"Hoo."
Choi Ki-cheol sheathed his sword, now crusted with dark red disruptor residue, and let out a short breath. Kim Hye-seong also silently slumped down onto the pile of rubble. Even with three S-rank hunters charging in, it had been far from an easy fight.
The White Tiger hunters who had fiercely resisted from the ground suddenly froze in place.
"...Huh?"
The golden aura enveloping their bodies dispersed like smoke. The backlash from forcibly drawing out their power hit them all at once. Accumulated fatigue and injuries overwhelmed them.
"Kuhk!"
"M-My legs... no strength...!"
The hunters collapsed in an instant. But some of them still refused to give up, charging toward the allied hunters.
"They're already at their limit! Subdue them!"
It was the moment the allied hunters moved to block their final resistance.
Fwaaah!
A point in the air warped, and two figures appeared.
"It's over."
It was Yoon Hyun.
He didn't even glance at the White Tiger hunters thrashing in their last desperate struggle. He merely flicked the wrist holding his staff.
Thud.
Mana itself crushed the atmosphere, and the charging hunters vomited blood before collapsing face-first onto the ground.
"Kaaaaak!"
That was the end.
Yoon Hyun, having sorted out the situation, looked far from his usual neat self. His robe was torn in places, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead. At his feet lay Hwang Min-hyuk, completely restrained and unconscious.
"Hunter, this person..."
"Ah. I'll handle him. You wouldn't be able to manage..."
Tzzzt...!
At that moment, a communicator buzzed from Yoon Hyun's pocket as he caught his breath.
- Why aren't you picking up...! Grandpa!
It was an urgent voice.
- Hurry! We need to get to Yuna!
Yoon Hyun's expression hardened. Without a word, he raised his staff and twisted space itself.
White Tiger headquarters, deepest underground level. A massive cavern.
A sensation like space warping passed by, and a horrific scene unfolded before my eyes.
"......!"
The enormous sun branch main body at the center had been severed at the base and toppled over. The dazzling glow visible through the screen had vanished.
And against one wall, Choi Yuna lay collapsed. She seemed to have been flung back by the final explosion and slammed into the wall.
"Snap out of it! Hey! Choi Yuna!"
I rushed over and shook her shoulders. Black veins pulsed along her pale neck.
"Damn."
The final explosion. Disruptor must have seeped into her wounds from that. Time was running out.
I first pulled out a recovery potion and forced it into her mouth.
Sss...
The potion healed her external wounds, but the black energy eating away inside her body remained unchanged.
I immediately turned and approached the fallen sun branch main body. A faint warmth still lingered.
'This'll do.'
I picked up the most promising fragment among the countless pieces and gathered the scattered dirt, dust, and shattered sword shards from the floor.
Then, without hesitation, I bit my finger to draw blood.
"......"
Information from the Alchemy Gallery flashed through my mind.
I mixed my blood and mana with the on-site materials to form a transmutation circle, placing the sun branch fragment in the center.
Swooo...
The transmutation circle began to glow faintly. The energy leaking from the sun branch fragment started circulating inward.
But I couldn't use it like this.
'Too potent.'
Injecting it as is would overwhelm Yuna's body.
"...Fire."
I turned to look at Yoon Hyun.
"Burn this with fire, please. Just the surface, really intensely."
"Got it."
The moment Yoon Hyun raised his staff, someone butt in.
"Ah, let me do it."
"......?"
It was Lee Seol, the S-rank mage I'd only seen on screens. She had sidled up beside me and was peering at the transmutation circle with curious eyes.
Lee Seol grinned and snapped her fingers.
Roooar!
In an instant, powerful yet precisely controlled flames enveloped the sun branch fragment.
Lee Seol's mana control was flawless. The wood charred black on the surface in seconds.
Sizzzz...
Acrid smoke rose, but I could clearly see through it.
"This good?"
"Y-Yes!"
Once the fire died out, the fragment was encased in a charred shell. Inside, a faintly glowing golden crystal remained.
I carefully shattered and removed the shell, extracted the crystal, and ground it into fine powder.
Scrape, scrape...
A clear sound echoed through the underground cavern.
Now for the final step. I poured the golden powder into a flask.
Then, cupping the flask, I slowly began manipulating my mana.
'Just a bit more... just...'
The moment I focused all my nerves.
Fwaaaaaah—!
The transparent liquid turned a brilliant golden hue in an instant.
"Done!"
I rushed to Yuna with the completed golden neutralizer and carefully poured it into her mouth with trembling hands.
The effect was immediate.
Ssss...
The black veins corrupting her body visibly faded. Her ragged breathing steadied, and color slowly returned to her pale face.
"......"
I grabbed Yuna's wrist and checked her mana flow.
'Not fully recovered.'
The disruptor was gone, but fine cracks remained in her already damaged mana circuits. A slight drop in ability? Still, it should be fixable later.
"Phew."
The crisis was averted. As the tension released, strength drained from my entire body.
At that moment, a massive shadow loomed over me.
I flinched and looked up to see Choi Ki-cheol gazing down at me. His expression was complex—relief, awe, and something more intricate.
He slowly, deeply bowed his head.
An S-rank hunter bowing to someone was unthinkable. Especially the leader of White Night Guild.
"...Thank you."
His voice was polite and grave.
"This debt, White Night pledges to repay in full."
I had no idea what to say and just awkwardly nodded.
Only now did I have the leisure to look around. All the S-rank hunters were focused on me. Their intense gazes made me shrink involuntarily.
Especially.
"That just now!"
Lee Seol approached with sparkling eyes. Her face brimmed with scholarly curiosity.
"How did you do that? No set formula, no proper magic circle? Teach me! Teach me too!"
Why is she suddenly like this?
My mind went blank. This was too much for a total nerd like me.
"I-I'm not that great at..."
I stammered incoherently.
"J-Just... by feel..."
"By feel? Do you like sweets? There's a cafe with a great view on the top floor of the Magic Tower. We could sit down and talk properly..."
Then Yoon Hyun quickly intervened, blocking her.
"Lee Seol. The kid looks exhausted. Questions later."
"Showing something like that and saying later?! Boo! That's not fair!"
"Act your age."
"W-Wait a sec...!"
Her grumbling voice faded away. Grandpa had dragged her off somewhere else.
"......"
It felt like a storm had just blown through.
A few days passed.
The workshop had regained its peace, but outside, the fall of White Tiger Guild and its aftermath kept things noisy.
[Next up. Amid the shock to hunter society from White Tiger Guild's atrocities, interest is hot on the key figure who resolved the incident.]
The TV in one corner of the workshop blared related news nonstop.
[Experts unanimously emphasize Rabbitfoot Company's role. Without Rabbitfoot's potions, this suppression operation would have been impossible...]
My company's name was everywhere, no matter the channel.
"......"
CEO Seo Yi-hyun said she'd handle the rest. Yeah, she'll manage fine.
I turned off the TV and headed back to the workshop.
In the center lay the sun branch main body recovered from the site. Figuring out how to replant and study it was my current headache.
"...The growing environment's the issue."
"Our gate floor's rock, can't plant there. No light either."
Chun-sik said while tapping on the tablet. What to do? White Tiger had fixed gates too—maybe ask for one?
I was mulling that over when.
Bang!
The workshop door flew open with a loud noise.
"Huh?"
No one was due.
Yuna was still recovering, and no one else could enter without permission.
"Hi!"
Before I could turn, a voice came from the side.
"...Gah!"
A woman with long brown hair, slightly taller than me, in bright casual clothes. Lee Seol waved cheerfully with a big smile.
"L-Lee Seol?"
Yoon Hyun followed into the workshop with a troubled expression. He sighed softly and said to me,
"I tried telling her it was a nuisance... couldn't stop her. Even if I try like last time, she clings with her mana locked tight..."
Lee Seol ignored him and slowly approached me, stiff as a board.
"......?"
Then, without hesitation, she hugged me tight. A soft, fragrant scent washed over me.
"Hik...!"
What the hell. My brain short-circuited in this unexpected situation. I could barely breathe.
"I held back back then because of the mood!"
Lee Seol stroked my dazed head and laughed happily.
"To think the guy who turned the world upside down is this cute..."
"........."
"Heh heh..."
Ah. Already exhausted. Way too much.