Chapter 147
Chapter 147
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 147
Chapter Title: Lizardman Onslaught
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"Still, it's a relief that the entrance is fixed in place."
"Even so, we can't slack on rear guard. It's based on human standards, after all."
As Park Su-chan spoke while heading to the entrance with his hefty shield raised, Jeong-hyeon cautioned him.
Even to his eyes, it didn't look easy for the lizardmen to infiltrate through the dense jungle encircling the clearing like a fence.
At the very least, slipping in submerged out of sight would be even harder.
The roots of the jungle trees were denser below the water than above it.
Plus, if they could come from all directions, they wouldn't have chosen this place as their sanctuary in the first place.
But that was just speculation. He couldn't assume anything until he saw it with his own eyes.
Nothing hurt as much as dismissing an attack route based on assumptions and getting hit from behind.
"I'll handle rear guard with Hunter Choi Ji-hee."
"Yes. I'll keep an eye out."
Healer Yun-ho made the suggestion, and Ji-hee nodded in agreement.
The vanguards who had to clash head-on with enemies up front simply didn't have the bandwidth to watch the rear.
And compared to healer Yun-ho, Ji-hee's role with mana would naturally be more crucial.
"Think of spreading your mana wide under the water to detect them. That should make it easier."
"Got it."
Sensing underwater wasn't easy with physical senses or mana, but she was S-Rank regardless.
Her talent was exceptional, so she'd manage somehow.
Splash—
'Hm?'
At that moment, Jeong-hyeon's senses picked up the monsters' presence.
It wasn't even about presence; the sound of the lizardmen's broad feet slapping the water surface reached them.
It was a bit odd.
No matter how sharp Jeong-hyeon's senses were, weren't the lizardmen being too blatant about it?
This was swamp terrain overwhelmingly in their favor.
If they'd approached submerged, even Jeong-hyeon wouldn't have detected them this quickly.
But his doubts cleared up in the next instant.
Splash— splash— splash— splash— splash—
The lizardmen were confident.
Confident they could overwhelm without worrying about presence.
'Crazy bastards—'
"Everyone, battle stations! They're all coming from the entrance side for now!"
"Huh? What do you—"
"At least fifty of them! Hurry!"
Even for a defense mission, fifty lizardmen in the first wave?
He couldn't even tell if it was fifty or more.
Their furious charge churned the water into a chaotic mess, making it impossible for even Jeong-hyeon to count beyond that.
Ssssh— ssssh—
The distinctive hissing breaths of lizardmen grew louder.
Unaffected by the swamp's sticky mud, their approach speed was beyond imagination.
'Way faster than the ones in regular gates?'
Likely fueled by rage over humans invading their sanctuary.
In that case, the 10-meter-wide entrance was too broad.
Thud—
Jeong-hyeon unslung the mace from his back and planted it in the clearing.
Then he gripped the pickaxe firmly instead.
He'd brought it to use, after all. It'd be a shame to let it sit unused.
'And it's an artifact either way, so it should have something going for it.'
Like it or not, it was an artifact.
Vice Guild measurements showed immeasurable durability and top-tier mana conductivity, so it'd be useful.
He wished it had performed like a sword or mace—at least an axe—but oh well.
"?"
Meanwhile, the party members eyed Jeong-hyeon's unexpected move with confusion.
Sure, he'd mentioned using the pickaxe for hunting before entering the gate, but no one thought he'd actually pull it out here.
Especially after warning of over fifty lizardmen incoming.
The pressure of fifty lizardmen felt by the party was worlds apart from what Jeong-hyeon sensed.
Jeong-hyeon was used to absurd hunts, so he could brush it off as the gate being a gate.
But to the others, it was a massive force that could inflict heavy casualties in the first skirmish.
And Jeong-hyeon shocked them once more.
"W-where are you going?"
"Hm?"
They thought he'd join the vanguard with the pickaxe, but he pushed past Su-chan, heading even further ahead.
Yeon-hee called out in alarm, but he looked back puzzled, as if wondering why she was stopping him.
"If all fifty pile into the entrance, we're dead. Gotta split their aggro up front."
"What are you...?"
It sounded good in theory.
Even with Jeong-hyeon, they only had three vanguards.
Plugging a 10-meter entrance against fifty lizardmen with three wasn't easy.
Not even with S-Rank mage support from behind.
So his plan to draw attention upfront made sense at first glance.
The problem was, it smacked of 'mouth hunting' in layman's terms.
'Taking their eyes upfront? That's suicide no matter how you slice it!'
Even as an S-Rank hunter, Jeong-hyeon was level 5 or below in this gate.
Charging solo with a pickaxe instead of a proper weapon?
If he was that confident, holding the front line with Su-chan would've been standard.
But with the lizardmen horde nearly upon them, they couldn't drag him back.
Seeing one of their limited members seemingly lose his mind and charge ahead turned the party's faces ashen.
Step— step—
Jeong-hyeon's strides crossing the swamp at impossible speeds showed no hesitation.
The gap in pressure between him facing fifty lizardmen and the party was huge.
But even bigger was his confidence in his own abilities.
Even Ji-hee wasn't too fazed by his sudden move.
She just looked a bit worried and said,
"If it gets dangerous, come back right away. I'll clear the path for you."
"Of course."
The party overhearing this was dumbfounded.
'Is this how S-Ranks talk?'
Letting him go without stopping him was shocking enough, but clearing a path anytime?
It sounded like they were facing low-level goblins or slimes, not lizardmen.
No—even against those, clearing a path from the rear wasn't easy.
Breaking through magic to pierce a horde of dozens versus surviving amid them.
Both were generally impossible feats not worth debating which was harder.
Splash— splash—
"Hirruk!"
As the party listened to the duo's out-of-touch exchange,
The lizardmen's vanguard finally appeared ahead.
It wielded a unique axe of similar size to a handaxe, with a wavy blade. Spotting Jeong-hyeon and the humans, it let out a bizarre cry.
The signature lizardman battle cry calling allies upon spotting foes.
And trailing it came a number of lizardmen too many to count at a glance.
"Hirruk!"
They screeched at each other.
Splash— splash— splash— splash— splash—
Then charged without question.
'Hmm...'
Jeong-hyeon, now nearly 20 meters ahead of the entrance, faced them.
'Time to go?'
As their charge began, he leaped in too.
"He's insane..."
Su-chan muttered blankly from behind.
Even as a tank, charging head-on into that momentum? Unthinkable.
Jeong-hyeon and the lizardmen closed rapidly, then collided at full speed.
A reckless advance that screamed suicide.
But the next moment—
"Huh?"
The party couldn't believe their eyes.
***
'The key spot's there.'
Jeong-hyeon had been scanning the terrain even before sensing the lizardmen.
The entrance was 10 meters wide—broad.
But the terrain beyond narrowed like a funnel: widening briefly, then tapering to about 3 meters at the end.
'Hold the line out front?'
He considered setting up there but scrapped it.
About 40 meters from entrance to narrow pass.
Easy to block frontal assaults, but a flank from elsewhere could lose the sanctuary while they watched.
Only one way to use the pass.
'Gotta go block it myself.'
Split the party: some on rear watch, some holding front.
That's why he'd pushed forward alone despite the party's protests.
He sensed it was the gate's intent, but with a 5-man limit, it was a cruel choice he couldn't make lightly.
"Hirruk!"
The lizardmen charged him fiercely.
Perfect swamp terrain for them—speed and momentum ferocious.
Their sanctuary invaded, their fury was palpable.
But Jeong-hyeon, with A-Rank body movement trait, had transcended terrain penalties.
'Start with the dagger?'
That was standard combat for him.
He didn't draw it.
Too many for Black alone, and burning other daggers felt wasteful.
Unclear on wave intervals, he hesitated to go all-out.
So he infused neutral magic into the pickaxe in hand.
'Whoa, what?'
The sensation startled him.
Vibrations pulsed through the blade and handle intensely.
Black had similar vibes when enchanted, but size made the difference—this thrill was new.
Artifact was artifact, huh?
'Yeah, you're still just a pickaxe.'
Not enough to sway his low opinion.
But damn, it took enchantment like a champ.
Jeong-hyeon charged the horde.
He aimed to clash at the funnel's narrowest point, and it worked perfectly.
First up: the wavy-axe wielder.
"Hir—"
Crush—
It smashed into the pickaxe blade, temple caved gruesomely, body hurled into a tree.
Instant death.
'What the hell?'
No expectations amplified the surprise.
But no time to inspect.
Ignoring their fallen comrade, the next lunged, jaws wide.
Crude weapons aside, their bite force and teeth were superior arms.
Beyond physical damage, bacterial infection resistant to healing was the real threat.
Like Earth's wild lizards.
Crush—
"Smell this, you!"
If it didn't connect, useless.
Jeong-hyeon swung the pickaxe down powerfully.
True to form, the blade pierced from above through mouth and out below.
Its gaping maw snapped shut pathetically.
Schluck—
A shake, and it pulled free easily.
'This thing's legit...'
Time to rethink pickaxe prejudice.
Not designed as weapon, he figured it'd snag in flesh.
But balance was solid, light for power.
Crucially, enchantment let it extract smoothly.
"Hirruk!"
More lizardmen swarmed—barely a dent in the horde.
Jeong-hyeon grinned at them.
"You're all dead."