Chapter 37
Chapter 37
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: True Detective
Chapter: ?
Chapter Title: Halkas is Too Scary
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Halkas was too scary.
Contract Hunter.
It was the job title given to hunters who were said to possess the most bizarre abilities among the twenty-five classified hunter professions.
The terms of the contracts and the ways they were formed varied wildly.
However, to use their abilities, they had to strictly adhere to the "binding" they had made with themselves. Only when such a fair contract was fulfilled could they unleash 100% of their true power. It was a hunter job group with those unique traits.
It was also the hunter bloodline of the Distinct Wang Clan, which had been passed down in Korea for four hundred years.
"I'm a Contract Hunter... My ability activates only after I verbally state two conditions and both are fulfilled, forcing the third condition to come true without fail."
"...And just why exactly are you telling me all this?"
"Because revealing the details of my contract fairly to the target is also part of the conditions for activating a Contract Hunter's ability."
Wang Sunja glanced back at Lee Miran, the princess pinned to the ground with her face buried in the dirt, completely motionless as per the contract's terms, before turning to Yongchan right beside her.
"So that's why Princess Lee Miran was wary of you?"
"Heh heh."
"She must have heard about your ability at some point in the past."
"Exactly. It was precisely twenty years ago, wasn't it? At the princess's birthday banquet, I had the chance to reveal my ability. I never dreamed it would come back to bite me like this."
Twenty years ago.
Back when Princess Lee Miran hadn't even reached adulthood yet.
At that time, she was far more consumed by inferiority and resentment toward her older sister, Lee Gok, than she was now.
Was that why?
"Hey, Clan Head Wang Sunja."
"Yes, Princess Lee Miran."
"You're a Contract Hunter, right? Could you show me that ability of yours?"
"My... ability?"
"Yeah. The descriptions in the books feel kind of vague and detached. I need to see it firsthand to really get it."
"...If that's what you wish, then I shall."
The second heir, who had burned her sister's birthday gift like a poisoned apple.
She desired nothing but power and knowledge.
In a way, wasn't this incident the inevitable backlash of endless human greed finally catching fire?
...Wang Sunja thought to herself but kept it locked away, not voicing it aloud.
Because pointing it out would just make the princess, whom she hadn't seen in ages, feel even more pitiful.
"By the way, were you acquainted with Princess Lee Miran, Hyunjun?"
"...You talk like you know me."
"Well, I did a little background check using my clan's resources. ...Not that I found much beyond your name."
"Even someone like me has ties to the Supreme Lee Clan."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. And you're messing with me? Can you handle the fallout?"
The opponent was the head of a hunter clan.
A monster with at least A-rank hunter level strength.
Kim Yongchan judged her to be on par with Lee Gok, who had fought alongside him before—or possibly even stronger.
So, if he couldn't avoid or enjoy it, he'd block it head-on!
It was a bit cheap, but for now, he'd borrow the Supreme Lee Clan's name, trusting in Lee Gok and Seolgi.
'No matter how distinctive the Wang Clan is, it's nothing compared to the Supreme Lee Clan—barely a drop in the bucket.'
To compare it to medieval times: a count versus an emperor.
Or in Joseon terms: a yangban versus royalty.
She had already crossed the line hard by slamming one of their princesses into the dirt, but Yongchan figured there might still be room for mercy if he could talk her down.
"If word of this gets out, it'll be a real disaster. Why not surrender now while you can?"
But.
"You're right. If the Supreme Lee Clan hears I've done this, it really could... spark a 'war' between clans."
"...! Then!"
"Yes, exactly as you're thinking, Hyunjun."
"You've thought this through wel—"
"Which means as long as this doesn't leak out, we're golden, right?"
"......Pardon?"
"Fail, and it's war! Succeed, and it's home free!"
No witnesses, and 'massacre' becomes 'assassination'.
No one would be left alive here anyway—what was the problem? Clan Head Wang Sunja replied as if it were obvious.
As Yongchan caught sight of the beautiful Halkas flashing that grin, a chill ran through him, every hair on his body standing on end.
"For Princess Lee Miran, I can just cast a suggestion spell while she's out cold. She'll go back with her mind wiped blank about today's events."
Step by step.
"The slave hunters live by trust, so their lips are sealed—no worries there..."
Step by step.
"And the most important one, Hyunjun, will spend the rest of his life in blissful luxury at our Distinct Wang Clan's estate. So, what's the issue?"
Step step step step.
Clan Head Wang Sunja's crotch had been soaking wet for quite some time.
A river one shouldn't cross?
How could she call herself a true woman warrior if she feared such things?
"Heh heh heh... So, Hyunjun, why don't you start by stripping off that cumbersome armor."
"Damn it..."
"That way, I can inspect you thoroughly before handing that body over to my daughters."
Kim Yongchan began backing away as the clan head approached.
Then, reaching the lake's edge with nowhere left to retreat, he finally drew his twin pistols and pulled the triggers the moment she closed in.
Bang bang bang!
First condition.
...Cleared.
"?!"
Even faster than that, Wang Sunja seized Yongchan from behind, ready to clear the second condition as well.
"2. Lift Yongchan up."
She was already drooling top and bottom at the thought of stripping off his full-body Armament skill first.
"Nerve Enhancement Module..."
ON.
Her eyes shifted from delight to bewilderment in less than a second.
"...Huh?"
Something was off.
He'd been right there in front of her?
The man's back, which she should have grabbed under the armpits and hoisted up, vanished in the blink of an eye.
Instead, she felt a light tap on her shoulder.
Turning around revealed—
Crack!
"Guh?"
The person who'd been in front of her just moments ago.
The one she'd leaped behind—now leaping behind her in turn, countering in an absurd reversal.
'I've... been flanked?'
The first fist slammed into her face, and before she could even turn, Clan Head Wang Sunja was trapped in a barrage of gut punches.
Pow pow pow pow pow!
Who knew boosting his strength stat would pay off like this.
It was his first time punching a woman, but Kim Yongchan felt zero regret.
If anything, now that it had come to this, he amped up the speed on his thrusting arms, unleashing iron-fisted punches like a gatling gun.
"Machine Gun Gatling!"
As if his arms had multiplied, he hammered away with full force.
[Machine Gun Gatling]
[Rapid-fire punches / Continuous damage / Low cooldown]
"Not bad... but this won't cut it!"
Even so, she adapted quickly, grabbing both of Yongchan's arms while her back was turned.
He felt a flash of terror at her insane reflexes.
Slash!
"Gah?!"
"Huh?"
In that instant, as if to say don't touch what's mine.
"Blood Spear - Blood Lancer."
⟨ Blood Lancer ⟩
A red blade of blood pierced right into Clan Head Wang Sunja's solar plexus as she turned her head.
Startled, Yongchan whipped around to see where the blood weapon had come from.
"Huff, huff...!"
"Princess Lee Miran!"
"Fuck... Not even a bloodbath day, and you make me feel like total shit."
There stood the princess, her skull sealed back up at an absurd regeneration speed, turning her murderous glare on Clan Head Wang Sunja.
"Princess Lee Miran?! You're awake already?"
"Yeah, Clan Head. You've crossed the line... and then some."
"How...? I smashed your head wide open. Recovery should've taken at least a day."
By the rules of a Contract Hunter's ability, she should have been retired, unable to rise.
But Clan Head Wang Sunja knew only half the story.
"Right. Twenty years ago."
"...!"
"If this were me back when we first met, yeah, my head might've taken until tomorrow to slowly knit back together."
"Then my contract condition was..."
"Fulfilled, wasn't it? My head exploded once, just like you said, and I 'retired.' This is after that, so your ability worked fine."
Impossible.
She'd heard this C-rank had that level of regeneration? It was at least A-rank, no question.
"You think a virgin hymen that regenerates makes me a pussy?"
...But that was it.
"...Heh, heh heh!"
"What's so funny?"
"Even so, what can you do right now, Princess?"
"......"
"At best, you're a meat shield taking my hits. Nothing more, nothing less."
Wang Sunja had been briefly flustered, but she soon yanked the blood spear from her solar plexus—barely a scratch on an A-rank hunter's bones—and laughed leisurely, realizing the gap between them.
"Even your last-ditch sneak attack was just enough to graze me."
"So?"
"Heh. Trying to act tough? It's pointless. You're leagues weaker than me—that fact won't change."
Regenerate all she wanted; knock her out again, then cast memory manipulation during the gap.
With that in mind, Clan Head Wang Sunja no longer saw the princess as a threat.
Above all, the one she needed to focus on was behind her, not in front.
"Hyunjun..."
Lick.
"That punch earlier... honestly, not bad."
"......Pardon?"
"But you kept aiming for the face... This time, how about hitting right here, in front of my womb, just like before?"
After taking that many hits.
No damage—in fact, cradling her throbbing lower belly with a blissful expression. That was Clan Head Halkas.
Yongchan felt an indescribable chill at her reaction.
"And... if your hands get bored at night, you can stick it in the backdoor too, no problem..."
"Ah, enough already?!"
We're screwed.
He'd finally gotten a new skill and boosted his stats big time, but the opponent was overwhelmingly stronger.
"Let a storm of blood blades pour down!"
In that moment, Princess Lee Miran levitated the pool of her own blood into the air, turning the sky blood-red.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh—!
A rain of blood blades poured down like a shower.
They hit Yongchan's body as harmless liquid and slid off—but for one person alone.
Only on Clan Head Wang Sunja did they transform into razor-sharp edges that could slice steel, raining down endlessly.
Well, even so...
"A final act of defiance, Princess?"
It couldn't wound an A-rank hunter's body...
Sneer.
"Heh."
"Hm?"
That was the point.
Using that to make the overwhelming powerhouse drop her guard.
"Raaargh!"
"Wha?!"
The hidden card of Yongchan's group, who had stayed silent until now, transformed into a color identical to the red blood.
"Get away from my master!"
"S-Slime?!"
The slime girl slipped through the blood shower undetected, closing right up to Clan Head Wang Sunja.
Limea grabbed the gray-skinned Halkas tight.
"I-It won't come off?!"
The clan head flailed her arms wildly to shake off the slime, but...
"Won't let go...?"
This texture.
No idea how, but it was slipperier than the lube she used before masturbating.
Flailing about in that impossible slime grip, she ended up covered in stickiness, lost her balance like a klutz, and tumbled into the blood puddle.
"...! Now's our chance! Master! And the tiny human smaller than me!"
"Uh, huh?"
"Don't call me a brat?!"
Just as planned.
Having created an opening on the strongest enemy, even if momentary, Limea grabbed the hands of Princess Lee Miran rushing over and Yongchan beside her, one in each grasp.
"Let's get out of here!"
And with that, she plunged straight into the lake connected to the 12th layer, exactly as they had plotted beforehand.