Do Not Eat This

As was all too obvious, waiting around didn't change a damn thing. The orc that tried to flee had its limbs hacked off after a few sword swings, while the larger boss had its head severed and strung on a bag. Everything afterward followed the same pattern. Emerging from the gate on the back mountain, the Earthlings continued extending their reach toward the innocent monsters who were simply enjoying a pleasant picnic.

"Kieeeeeek!"

"Kuaaaaaack!!!"

"Help!!!"

They had simply stepped out of the homes where they lived and thrown together a shantytown. They had only been wandering noisily around the back mountain. Whether the humans knew or cared, the demolition work continued. The monsters were driven from their dwellings, and their belongings were destroyed without mercy. It unfolded like the clearance of a blighted zone, a scene of pure pandemonium. A few monsters charged in protest, only to be cut down effortlessly. Before the sword dance that traced blue arcs, everyone was equal. Within those scholarly flowing currents of water, everyone was unequal.

It might seem like the Earthlings were entirely in the wrong, and in truth they were. The only peculiar detail was that the monsters were no different. This land had originally belonged to entirely different beings, and the academy's true founders had only seized it recently. When one considered that those beings were slightly oversized lizards that flew through the sky and breathed fire, the irony was relentless.

"Where's the boss! Get out here right now!!!"

"Kiek! Kieeeeeek!"

"You bastard, speak up! Want to talk after a beating, or after you die?!"

In any case, the dispute between those claiming ownership of this land ended in victory for the stronger side. And the stronger ones demonstrated what true humiliation really looked like. It wasn't the thick, sticky, vulgar kind ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of humiliation. This was something more political, something that inspired a sense of degradation. It was showing those who had surrendered and lost their will the sight of their own lives being destroyed.

Tragically, the girl who could run through time knew this all too well.

"This won't do. Shannon, flood all those houses over there with water bombs."

"All of them?"

"If that's too much, just smash a few of the bigger ones."

It wasn't simply that she had seen such horrific scenes often and therefore understood them. She knew because she had become an expert through countless practical applications.

"Mari, you seem awfully skilled at this."

"Well, I gave orders like this quite frequently before the regression."

"Ah."

"Of course, I only issued them in Europe and China after liberation, so don't worry about it."

She even drew a bewitching curve with her eyes and smiled playfully. It was truly behavior that deserved a one-way ticket to hell. The small mercy wasn't that no one understood because she was speaking Korean. It was that she had already fallen into hell and Satan had yet to request a return to the mortal realm.

Kang Sian smacked her backside.

"Hik?!"

"Ugh."

He then poured out a torrent of words, telling her not to do that in this life at least. The girl who could run through time could not even utter the words "I can just kill myself" and simply cringed.

This scene felt incredibly bizarre to a third party.

'What the hell are these crazy perverts even talking about with each other?'

None of it made sense. The way they had turned the back mountain into a redevelopment zone, the strange words they exchanged, and even how the woman who appeared to be the legal wife remained quiet in the face of such a violent man. It was clearly Cheon Mari spouting nonsense to snap him back to his senses, but to the porter girl who didn't know that, it looked like domestic violence.

'But wait a second. When they were fighting earlier, wasn't that woman much stronger?'

Thinking back on it now made it feel somewhat repulsive. The sense that they were cleverly revealing their emotions toward each other in front of others with the intent to deceive.

'Ah.'

Since both of them seemed to have terrible personalities, it was entirely possible. They really were a filthy pair.

"Everyone! The boss is hiding over here!"

"Oh, really?"

"Ha, I wondered where the hell this bastard went. He was hiding."

In any case, believing herself the only sane person in this bizarre party, she stared fixedly at their behavior. During that time, the goblin boss hiding in the ruined house was dragged out by Cheon Mari and beheaded.

"I didn't expect to catch four decent prey in just two hours."

"At this rate, we could win with only twelve hours of activity!"

"Still, if we keep catching only easy targets, our ranking might drop. Let's go after ones that look a bit more challenging."

Their capability had been proven through repeated hunts. Even the porter girl, who had viewed them negatively, acknowledged this. However, while similar levels didn't worry her, she couldn't know about higher ones. Declaring they would continue catching bosses was absurd. Generally, the maximum number of bosses a small ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠party could handle was three. Going beyond that usually led to exhaustion or physical strain from overexertion.

It seemed strange that merely three bosses would cause such issues, but... when including the minions surrounding each boss, the numbers were hardly small. For a small party, they were pushing themselves considerably. They simply handled things faster than other parties, which reduced the actual burden.

"Oh, right. We should check what's beyond the gate before coming out."

There was one dungeon gate nearby. Since the boss had been defeated, the gate would disappear before long, but as it was still a dungeon, there ought to be rewards inside.

Kang Sian entered the gate just as he had after catching the three bosses. A few minutes later, he emerged with a brilliant sword in hand, wearing a look of utter disappointment.

"It's just an enchanted sword."

As if it were nothing special. His attitude made the sword seem worthless. In reality, that was far from the truth. The hologram from the hunter watch on Kang Sian's wrist revealed an entirely different story.

A weapon on the level of a mid-rank hunter. Even if it felt like nothing special, the sword Kang Sian currently used—one produced by a 3D printer—was only E-rank. It was an excellent weapon, and being enchanted made it more than worth switching to. Yet Kang Sian shook his head as if it were worthless and stuffed the weapon into the porter's bag.

'What? Isn't this a weapon mid-rank hunters would envy? Why the dissatisfied look?'

Since it was enchanted, it had to be expensive. He should have been pleased, but that attitude was far too strange.

"It looks fine to me. Is it not?"

"It has too many different types of magic on it, so it's too light. A sword should have appropriate weight, but this feels like nothing but fluff."

The response to Shannon's question. It was a roundabout way of saying it didn't suit his taste, which seemed reasonable, but the porter girl had low combat ability. She knew nothing about the preferences ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of combat classes. She simply assumed he was an idiot for not using a good item. She even fantasized about shamelessly asking if he could spare just one. But even she recognized how ridiculous that was, so the thought remained a fantasy.

"Anyway, we need to eat lunch. Let's head down from here, have a meal, digest a bit, and then resume hunting."

Kang Sian led his companions down the mountain without giving them a moment's rest. They could have rested right there, but he insisted on descending. There were trees anyway, so they probably wouldn't be spotted.

'Ugh... It'd be nice if we could stop walking soon...'

The result of the endless movement left the porter girl's body drenched in sweat. Her shirt clung so tightly that her underwear was clearly visible. Whether Kang Sian noticed her condition or not, he kept walking even after they descended the mountain. Rather than simply entering a building near the mountain, he meticulously inspected the interiors.

The time dragged on somewhat. Yet none of the team members complained.

"The weather's gloomy. How about ramen for lunch?"

"...? You brought actual ramen in addition to the combat rations?"

Their casual conversation in the midst of everything only heightened her anxiety. Sure enough, the sudden development struck at the most defenseless moment.

The place the four were heading toward. Suddenly, three people popped out in front of them.

"What, hero candidates?"

Medieval-style combat attire. Weapons held with confidence as if they had been waiting. Steam engines spewing thick smoke with increased output. And expressions smiling slyly as if they had found prey. It was a common ambush. As soon as they heard voices from afar, these were fans who had personally come for a spiritual holy war. Fitting the ambush concept, they charged immediately.

"H-hero candidates?! Everyone, dodge!!!"

Of course, it was only the porter girl who shouted that. The three including Kang Sian glanced at the lightweight steam engines and let out deep sighs.

"Looks like they've got manpower to spare."

"Apparently."

"They'd be better off using that time for more training."

The three casually drew their weapons.

As was typical in fights like this, the victor was decided in under a minute.

"Mmph, mmph!!!"

"Krrgh— krgh!"

One died after being struck in a very unfortunate spot. Two were taken alive. They had only suffered minor ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shield damage. It was a perfect victory for the student party.

"Hmm, it's awkward to deal with them."

"Yeah. It's a bit... tricky figuring out what to do."

"They should've shown up after we ate lunch. Tsk."

The problem was that there was no suitable disposal method. Dragging them around was cumbersome, but killing them outright felt wasteful. If handled well, they could yield significant benefits. How exactly should they proceed? The information aspect felt particularly promising. Some might claim information was unnecessary, but the world wasn't made only of revealed truths. Hidden details could greatly influence future actions. Therefore, the more information, the better. Especially on a competition day like today.

"Hmmm..."

Thus, Cheon Mari—who possessed the worst intellect that could insult even the devil—reached a remarkable conclusion. She carefully whispered it to Kang Sian as if sharing a secret.

"What do you think? We have to eat lunch anyway."

"Well, since it's urgent..."

That was Kang Sian's response. It was reluctant but essentially consent, so they dragged the prisoners into a suitable house. They closed the windows to prevent sound from leaking and drew the curtains to limit the light. The interior became rather dim.

Kang Sian immediately pulled an item from the porter girl's bag.

"If we feed them this, something should come out."

Traditional food had always been an excellent means of conversation.