Covering Tracks in the Carnage
Rookie: Baek Jaesung 33
The other members of Kim Seonuk's party came to their senses. Their faces were all grim.
This was the first time they'd been attacked by Demonics. Being targeted by fellow dungeon hunters inside a dungeon was the kind of experience that could leave a lifelong scar.
Dungeon hunters were fundamentally fighters against monsters. You might grow numb to comrades dying as you gained experience, but getting murdered by another person was something entirely different. Dying to a monster was, strictly speaking, more like an industrial accident.
"Ugh... look at that corpse...."
Kim Seyoung, another woman in Kim Seonuk's party, pointed at the pulverized body. It was Han Siyoung, whom Kim Seonuk had turned into a mung-bean pancake. The corpse, bearing the full brunt of his rage, was so horrific it radiated malice just from looking at it.
Kim Seonuk frowned and turned away as he gazed at his own handiwork. He'd done it himself, but apparently it wasn't a sight he wanted to linger on.
"Who did this?"
Kim Seyoung's gaze turned to me. I gave a light smile and shrugged. Her face twisted like she'd seen a ghost, and she instinctively took a step back from me.
"Fitting end for Demonics like them, don't you think?"
I said, looking at Jang Hana. Her expression was far more composed now than when she'd first woken up. Even though she hadn't been taken all the way, she'd suffered terribly at their hands, yet she seemed surprisingly calm.
Probably the sight of those irreparably mangled trash heaps was helping heal her mind. People praised mercy and forgiveness as the ultimate virtues, but for a victim's psychological recovery, nothing beat revenge.
"Hmm... so, what now?"
Kim Seonuk said with a troubled look. It didn't seem like a question expecting an answer, but I replied anyway.
"By the book, we should head out and report this. But that'd drag us into a mess of hassle."
Back when I'd dealt with those Demonics in the devil's basement, I'd deliberately left one alive as proof. Once captured, proving they were Demonics wasn't hard—the Hunter Association had plenty of lie-detection methods.
But getting statements from corpses wasn't easy, even for the Association. If we reported self-defense and that we'd killed them, we'd become the investigation targets. They'd probably hit us with rigorous lie-detection scans, wasting a ton of time.
Of course, it was undeniable fact they were Demonics and that they'd attacked us first. The odds of us getting pinned with blame were near zero. But I hated wasting precious time. Best to slip away cleanly.
Do Byeongseok was the Demonic clan's leader. With the boss dead, the Exster Clan would crumble naturally. No loose ends to worry about.
"Mm... I see."
Kim Seonuk glanced back and forth between me and Jang Hana with a subtle expression. Guessing his thoughts wasn't hard. He was agonizing over how to handle this—whether to report it to the Hunter Association or not.
By the book, reporting was right. And given how straight-laced Kim Seonuk had been so far, the odds were high he'd do just that.
But he couldn't decide. Figuring out why was easy too.
Probably because of Jang Hana.
Kim Seonuk thought Jang Hana had been raped by Do Byeongseok's crew. Reporting to the Association meant he'd have to testify about his girlfriend's humiliation. That would burden him—and her—even more.
No matter if it was cops or Association investigators, airing your own dirty laundry was mortifying. It was one reason sex crime reports lagged behind others.
The rapists who'd tried for Jang Hana had gotten their due. Not a single survivor in Do Byeongseok's party.
And their ends were all gruesome, utter ruin. They'd writhed in agony and despair till the last breath. Revenge more perfect than that didn't exist.
So Kim Seonuk agonized even more. Reporting to the Association would just mean paperwork—no further action on dead men, not even from them.
This is getting fun.
Kim Seonuk's dilemma cracked me up. I hadn't orchestrated it just to put him in this spot—my lust had driven that. But seeing this upstanding guy tormented because of me was hilarious from my angle.
Come to think of it, without me, this bastard would've been dead already.
Not just him—his whole party. They all owed me their lives.
And Jang Hana was repaying that debt with her body on their behalf. Perfect give and take. Ideal.
Sudden mischief struck. I sidled up to Jang Hana. She was wearing Kim Seonuk's jeans, hems folded up since they were too long.
She looked oddly erotic in the mismatched clothes. Like seeing your girl in nothing but an oversized shirt with sleeves dangling.
I groped her firm ass. The moment my hand met that plump flesh, she flinched and turned to me. She mouthed at me.
-Don't.
I mouthed back.
-No.
Jang Hana shot a panicked glance at Kim Seonuk, who was lost in thought.
Showing such an opening right in front of me. Like he was begging me to fuck his girl.
I exploited the gap he'd handed me, fondling her ass to my heart's content. Neither Kim Seonuk nor the others caught my handiwork. Fucking thrilling.
"Uh, Jaesung-ssi. Mind if we talk for a sec?"
Kim Seonuk looked up and said. I smoothly withdrew from Jang Hana's ass and nodded. I could guess what he wanted.
"Sure."
We stepped away from the group—just far enough for sightlines but whispers inaudible. The moment we were alone, he spoke.
"Whew. My head's a mess. Never thought it'd turn out like this.... Jaesung-ssi, your arm okay?"
"Ah, yeah. Lucky they had an antidote. Truly a blessing in disguise. This is what they mean by 'fortune from misfortune.'"
I flexed my right arm freely. His face lit up.
He thought my arm got wrecked because of him. More precisely, because Jang Hana stole my antidote. All staged by me, of course.
"Glad to hear it. You subdued them with one arm out?"
"Got lucky."
"Hard to chalk it up to luck. Anyway, relief. I was worried it'd be permanent."
He repeated "relief" like a mantra. Get to the point already.
"Ahem! Jaesung-ssi. About what happened here... do we have to talk about it outside?"
Spot on prediction. I feigned confusion and asked back.
"Why?"
"Well... you know...."
I'd already seen Jang Hana's mess. He knew I knew, but voicing his girlfriend's shame was awkward—he trailed off, unfinished words circling his lips.
"Because of Hana-ssi?"
Once I prompted, he nodded.
"Yes. Exactly. You saw it too—Hana was... kuh!"
Recalling her dripping white cum, fury twisted his face.
He couldn't regain composure easily. His bitten lip showed raw anger mixed with self-loathing. Must've stung bad.
I waited calmly for him to collect himself.
"Haa...! Haa...! Sorry. Keep showing you ugly sides."
"I get it. After that? Natural."
His expression softened a bit. Hilarious. No clue the guy in front of him had fucked his girl.
"Lucky to meet someone as good as you, Jaesung-ssi. Haa... why'd this happen?"
"That's why it's tough for us. Civvies only see the glamour of dungeon hunters. But dungeons are full of misfortune and tragedy like this. This isn't my first Demonic run-in."
"Years in dungeons, and they're my first. Was I lucky?"
He unloaded all his anguish on me. Listening to a guy's woes was annoying, but I empathized—after taking his girl, this was the least.
"Anyway, I'd prefer this stays buried. If word got out about Hana-ssi.... Can't even think it."
"Association investigations don't leak to the public, I think."
"But even telling anyone sucks. Hana'd feel the same. Poor Hana...! Kuhk! If only I'd been stronger...."
He teared up. Dude crying....
"Got it. I'll keep quiet outside too. No hobby digging up bad memories."
"R-Really!? Thank you! Jaesung-ssi!"
He bowed repeatedly. We rejoined the group. They were handling bodies—stripping clothes to bait monsters, looting valuables from packs.
"Doing this makes us look like the Demonics."
"Yeah."
"This is how they end up. We nearly died."
Kim Seonuk quietly urged his crew to wrap it up. They didn't know about Jang Hana's ordeal—he hadn't told even them.
While he persuaded them, I kneaded her ass. Slipped inside her pants to finger her pussy too. The coarse pubes felt nice. Dried cum clung to them—my fresh load from moments ago.
"H-Hey, stop...."
Her voice lacked strength. I ignored her, enjoying the play.
We returned to the blocked passage in the common chamber. Breaking through was faster than searching for a path. Do Byeongseok's push to find a way was just to isolate us for PK—not cleanup.
"I'll handle it."
I gathered mana. The bright light illuminating the dark cave grew in size and intensity. The others averted their eyes. The glow on my hand resembled the sun itself.
Holy Missile
I charged mana for five minutes and fired the Holy Missile. The light projectile pierced the blocked cave wall, exploding with deafening noise and massive shockwaves.
The others turned away, plugged ears, shielding from the blast. The boulder pile blocking us flew like hit by dynamite.
"It's through!"
The passage to the other side opened. No unexpected cracks in the dungeon, thankfully. Sujin and the crew, waiting in the chamber, approached with joyful faces.
"Jaesungie~!"
We'd barely been apart, but she hugged me like days had passed. Hwang Minjun, who'd been with my girls, approached Kim Seonuk with regret.
"Already done? Dreams and reality differ. Nothing happened...."
"Us too.... nothing much."
Kim Seonuk answered uncomfortably. We'd agreed not to mention Do Byeongseok's party to the others.
"Huh? Where'd those guys go?"
At Hwang Minjun's prodding, Kim Seonuk replied calmly.
"Said it was urgent, went ahead straight on."
"What? No loyalty."
Hwang Minjun trashed the crew already in hell.