Chapter 171
Chapter 171
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 171
Chapter Title: Silencing the Sirens
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Thwack-
"Is that everything?"
Jeong-hyeon wiped the single bead of sweat trickling down his forehead with his sleeve and scanned his surroundings.
No need to look far—four people lay side by side in front of him, out cold. No one else was around.
That left only the sirens up on the cliff, belting out their world-shaking songs.
By now, even they had to know their mental attacks didn't work on him. Their once-beautiful voices now carried a hint of desperation.
'This place is a bit odd.'
It was definitely different from a typical gate.
He'd have to clash with them to know just how strong the sirens were, but aside from them, no other monsters showed so much as a glimpse.
And it wasn't like the difficulty was low, either.
Sure, Jeong-hyeon could keep his wits thanks to the Cursed Armor, but how many others could find something like that?
There might be artifacts with mental attack immunity, but most hunters were wide open to it.
They wouldn't even know sirens were here until they walked right in, which could've led to massive casualties.
"In a way, it's a good thing Panser Guild handed this request to me early."
Of course, it was a huge pain for him.
Still, better than clueless hunters charging in and dying.
Anyway, with the party members all knocked out, it was time to scale the cliff.
The roughly 100-meter drop looked dizzying just to gaze up at, pricking at the corner of one's mind—but not for Jeong-hyeon.
Leap.
A light jump sent him soaring over 5 meters up.
'Way easier than riding an Onyx Golem or a mantis.'
He'd scaled plenty of massive monsters to clear gates before.
Climbing a stationary wall? Piece of cake.
'Is the Wall-Climbing trait meant for places like this?'
He was using raw leaping power and agility right now, but the Trait Shop had offered Wall-Climbing traits plenty of times.
He'd dismissed them as useless junk, but they could've come in handy here.
Not worth wasting a slot, though.
Lost in such thoughts, he steadily ascended, and soon Jeong-hyeon was nearly at the top.
"Is that it?"
Near the cliff's peak.
Several holes—each big enough for one person—gaped open where he looked.
They were cleverly hidden behind protruding rocks below, invisible from the base.
The songs tormenting his ears poured straight from those caves.
'Singing from caves... no wonder it carries so far.'
He'd wondered how their voices reached all the way from the distant sea. Natural amplifiers, huh.
Jeong-hyeon grimaced and moved to the nearest hole.
Five voices emanated from it.
They sounded so similar from afar that you'd swear it was one, but up close, he could tell them apart.
At least five sirens inside.
Step.
Having gauged the interior, he leaped sideways onto the protruding rock below the entrance.
Small as it was—barely enough for both feet— it sufficed for him.
Did they sense the intruder?
The raucous singing cut off abruptly.
'Let's see what these things look like.'
Peering in, he saw a surprisingly spacious interior unlike the narrow mouth.
As he leaned in further to check—
"Kyaaak!"
A shrill screech erupted from the left, and something lunged at him.
"Whoa."
He'd poked his head in casually, fully aware, but even if not, Thought Acceleration, A-Rank combat sense, and B-Rank agility would've let him react.
Jeong-hyeon easily dodged the strike aimed at his profile.
Splat.
"Look at you."
It'd ambushed from beside the entrance, so he'd half-considered taking the hit.
But the attack was even weaker than expected.
Definitely not worth a 5-level Mission Gate.
In speed or power, it matched the ghouls from the 'Cursed Castle'—3-level gate trash.
And after whiffing, it flopped face-first, struggling to recover.
'Weird bunch.'
Maybe a weak specimen, but weak enemies were a blessing for Jeong-hyeon.
Pickaxe in right hand, dagger in left, he entered the cave.
"You guys know about noise complaints?"
Time to avenge his eardrums from their concert.
The line oddly reminded him of Won-ho, sprawled outside.
"Kyaaak! Kyaaak!"
"You, stay quiet."
Crack.
The first attacker tried no more, crumpled and screeching threats.
One pickaxe swing silenced it.
Now Jeong-hyeon got a good look at a siren.
First time hearing or seeing one—and it was grotesque.
Harpies were human-sized with human heads and torsos, bird limbs. Sirens? Human heads, but bird bodies from the neck down.
Half a harpy's size.
Sharp fangs and blood-red eyes gave it a creepy vibe despite the form.
How did that produce such beautiful songs? Baffling.
Four more huddled against the far wall, minus the dead one.
"Kyaaak, kyaaak!"
Extreme wariness at the intruder in their nest. Ignore the freakish looks, and they seemed like prey, not predators.
The roles reversed.
Not that it stirred pity in Jeong-hyeon.
Had he ever seen a monster spare a cornered human? Maybe then.
Thud.
Short, dull thuds echoed four times.
Now, only Jeong-hyeon's breathing filled the cave.
He exhaled and glanced at the ceiling.
A hole like the entrance's—person-sized for ventilation or light.
'All caves like this?'
Cliff-scaling wasn't hard for him, but it was a hassle.
Worse if a foothold crumbled.
He enchanted the pickaxe with neutral magic.
Then,
Boom—boom—
Each swing widened the hole to triple size.
Neutral magic alone shattered golem mana metals.
Add Blunt Technique, and a pickaxe was made for digging.
Satisfied with the expanded exit, he leaped through.
The clifftop was flat ground dotted with small trees, just as viewed from below.
And riddled with holes, as expected.
"Noise complaints are non-negotiable."
His wicked grin coincided with the sirens' songs seeming quieter.
***
A moment later.
'These guys are total pushovers.'
Jeong-hyeon felt oddly deflated.
Sirens were weaker than he'd imagined—way weaker.
Combat-wise, below ghouls.
Their best was a desperate body-slam ambush; miss, and they flailed on the ground screeching.
Even when he dropped from a ceiling hole, they panicked and scattered.
A monster fleeing a human—first time.
Strange feeling.
Crack.
"Anyway, last one?"
He killed the final siren shrieking amid its comrades' corpses and checked around.
No more songs.
"Tch, now the annoying part."
But he frowned.
He'd slain most sirens.
One fled through an entrance during the chaos.
Its clumsy reflexes made survival from that height doubtful, but wings flapping let it escape.
Waddling gait—could catch it after a day's sleep.
Island limited escape routes.
Still a hassle.
At least no more speaker-blasting noise. That improved his mood.
"Hup."
Task done, Jeong-hyeon—ever the rest-now-work-later type—leaped off the cliff.
He hit ground in seconds.
"Ugh..."
Won-ho groaned, stirring from unconsciousness.
The others followed.
Jeong-hyeon, planning to chase the last siren, adjusted.
"Feeling better?"
No more singing meant mental effects gone.
'If not, knock 'em out again.'
Party sleeping soundly while he slaved? Not fun.
Grip tightening on pickaxe—not hand this time—betrayed his mood.
"Uh... where are we?"
Luckily, Won-ho seemed recovered.
Who it was lucky for? Debatable.
He didn't recall waking in this forest mid-gate.
"Siren Island."
"Sirens...?"
"Wait, those sirens from Greek-Roman myth?"
Wind mage Kim Byeong-ju caught on quick.
Jeong-hyeon nodded.
"Yeah, those. What's your last memory?"
The three, rising groggily together, stammered explanations.
A beautiful song from the ship—then blank.
"This is the island Park Sang-hee first spotted. You followed the sirens' song here."
"So Hunter Han Jeong-hyeon...?"
"Yeah, I took care of all the sirens."
You guys were the real problem.
He wanted to say it but held back.
Even so, the party struggled to process.
"How?"
Sirens were famous, sure—but as gate monsters? New.
And him staying sane, killing them all?
Unbelievable.
They looked curious, but he kept it brief.
"Long story short, with the pickaxe."
"?"
That only deepened the mystery.