Chapter 201
Chapter 201
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 201
Chapter Title: Ji-myeong's Bewilderment
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 201
Ji-myeong was utterly bewildered.
What had his mindset been when he first entered this gate?
'I'll prove that I'm just as helpful as Jeong-hyeon!'
Of course, he couldn't have even entered a level 6 gate without Jeong-hyeon's help.
But that determination had been his last pillar of support and driving force.
He had felt himself grow ridiculously strong upon reaching level 7, and he had plenty of confidence.
But the Hob Goblins on the first floor?
He had just stood by in a daze, ending up doing little more than cleanup.
'No more holding back!'
At the stairs leading to the second floor, Ji-myeong clenched his fist.
He had been momentarily flustered by Jeong-hyeon and Ye-rin's unexpected skills, but he vowed not to let it happen again.
And just as Hwi-gon had predicted, on the second floor.
Around sixty Nagran Orcs—the representative breed of level 6 orcs—were already waiting in formation.
Ji-myeong had hunted Nagran Orcs until he was sick of them.
He knew their combat tendencies inside out, exactly where to strike to expose their weaknesses.
"This time, I'll take the lea—"
That's why he boldly drew his sword, intending to declare he'd take the vanguard.
Jeong-hyeon would surely follow up his remote magic attack with a charge, just like before.
It had to be that way.
*Swish—*
"Queek—?"
"?"
A Nagran Orc with a dagger embedded in its forehead collapsed flat.
"I'm going first this time! Attack like before once I break through!"
At the same time, Jeong-hyeon charged toward the orc pack.
'No, wait a second!'
These weren't some random mobs—they were Nagran Orcs.
Not armored like Hob Goblins, but their sheer weight was easily three times that.
Who in their right mind charges head-on at monsters like that?
*Boom—crash!*
But Jeong-hyeon tore through the orcs like a wolf plunging into a flock of sheep.
His dagger didn't fly as spectacularly as it had against the goblins, but every swing of the pickaxe guaranteed one or two kills.
While Ji-myeong stood frozen, watching this reality-defying strategy.
*Tap-tap—*
"Gu Ji-myeong Hunter, shouldn't you join the attack?"
"Ah, ah! Yes!"
Even Ye-rin and Won-ho had beaten him to it.
In the end, the second floor offered Ji-myeong almost no chance to shine, just like the first.
"Ah, I kinda owe these guys one, so..."
After the battle, Jeong-hyeon scratched the back of his head with a sheepish grin and said this.
Apparently, the ones who killed his parents during the Great Cataclysm were Nagran Orcs.
'Parents' enemies... can't really argue with that...'
Pulling out the family revenge card was a dirty cheat.
Anyway, Ji-myeong could only pin his hopes on the next floor again.
'Next floor, for sure!'
On the third floor, he'd charge ahead of everyone, no mercy.
Meanwhile, as Ji-myeong sharpened his blade of vengeance(?), Jeong-hyeon casually remarked.
"Gu Ji-myeong Hunter, feel free to fight as you please without minding us. You seem a bit passive because the party vibe feels unfamiliar."
It was the epitome of salt-rubbing.
Who was making him miss his chances every time?
Ji-myeong masked his rage with a smiling face and replied.
"Yes, then I'll definitely take point on the next floor."
"Of course."
Good, he even got Jeong-hyeon's firm agreement.
The first two floors were whatever, but in a mission tower, high-floor performance was what mattered most.
He'd crush Jeong-hyeon's arrogance properly on the third floor!
With that eager resolve, Ji-myeong ascended to the third floor first.
But he froze upon seeing the monsters there.
Jeong-hyeon, following behind, asked with feigned surprise.
"Uh... you really going first?"
Hearing that, Ji-myeong wanted to cry.
And understandably so—the third floor was a vast space, like an open field, much wider than the first two.
"Ruuuooooh!"
Ten Royal Erkes were bellowing thunderously.
Erke.
Simply put, they were massive monsters resembling turtles covered head to toe in armor-like shells.
Unlike turtles, though, they had a huge bone sphere like a flail on their tails, which they used to fight by ramming or swinging.
Normal Erkes were level 4 monsters, but prefixing "Royal" turned them into something entirely different.
Their size nearly doubled, and their shells turned golden.
'The world is so unfair.'
He'd rolled around plenty in level 6 gates, so he had faced them before.
But their nickname was "melee DPS eraser."
You shouldn't even think about engaging with a sword, let alone a blunt weapon.
The hunters ascending behind him looked equally troubled.
The standard strategy for Royal Erkes was for tanks to draw aggro upfront using terrain, while pouring firepower into predetermined zones.
But this party's firepower?
Excluding flame mage Seung-jun, it was Jeong-hyeon's throwing skill.
'Throwing skill won't cut it.'
Jeong-hyeon's throws packed insane destructive power somehow, but nothing compared to Royal Erkes' defense.
"Royal Erkes are classified as large monsters, characterized by group charges. Especially their tails add about 3 meters to the danger radius on both sides..."
Even in this situation, Hwi-gon droned on about Erke trivia.
Everyone already knew it, but it wasn't wrong.
In other words.
"Ruuuooooh!"
*Thud—thud—*
"Scatter!"
They were stuck facing a full charge from ten Royal Erkes in an open space with zero obstacles.
At Jeong-hyeon's warning, the party scattered in all directions.
A desperate flight for survival.
"What kind of bullshit gate is thiiiiis!"
Ji-myeong's anguished cry went unheard amid the Royal Erkes' deafening roars.
As he shouted, a wave of Royal Erkes swept perilously close behind him.
The wind pressure from their massive bulk battered his back.
After dodging the first charge.
Ji-myeong gripped his drawn sword tighter to keep hold of it.
'How long are you going to keep running, Gu Ji-myeong!'
He boldly turned.
The one that had chased him couldn't stop and barreled on ahead.
Large monsters' weakness was their sluggish agility matching their bulk.
He had to close in before it accelerated fully.
The hard shell would resist his blade, but the face was vulnerable enough.
Lucky eye strikes could be lethal.
The tail attack pattern when closing in was tricky, but Ji-myeong could handle it.
'I have to be useful somehow.'
Ye-rin had an even worse matchup with her unarmed fighting style.
Jeong-hyeon probably hadn't faced Royal Erkes properly yet.
In times like this, he—who had the most experience—had to pull his weight.
*Grip—*
But upon turning.
"......?"
He couldn't believe his eyes.
***
"Scatter!"
Spotting the Royal Erkes' charge, Jeong-hyeon immediately ordered dispersal.
"Uwaaak! Royal Erkes..."
He even had to grab Hwi-gon, who was still yapping instead of focusing.
*Groooar—*
But a single foreseen obstacle like that posed no issue to Jeong-hyeon.
Even a tank-like charge couldn't faze him; he dodged with ease.
"Grab Seung-jun and fall back to the stairs, quick!"
"But the charging power of ten Royal Erkes is something even an unidentified American S-Rank Hunter—"
"Keep talking if you want my pickaxe instead of the boss's fist."
Hwi-gon glanced at the pickaxe in Jeong-hyeon's hand and bolted with Seung-jun in tow without another word.
'Why's that guy so nimble?'
Jeong-hyeon had told him to grab Seung-jun, but Hwi-gon's speed was surprisingly decent.
Did A-Rank healing traits boost physical stats that much, or was Hwi-gon just unique? Who knew.
Either way, he probably could've survived fine without rescue.
All talk, but he'd lived this long for a reason.
Even a deadweight didn't snag VP of KP Guild by luck.
"Roooar!"
*Groooar—*
Meanwhile, as Jeong-hyeon pondered, the Royal Erkes targeted him.
Probably because he'd led the ascent—four out of ten had aggro on him.
'Even better!'
Might actually be ideal.
Jeong-hyeon switched the pickaxe to his left hand and focused on the nearest charging Royal Erke.
How did that bulk move so fast? Meaningless question in a gate.
Gates were hotbeds of impossibilities anyway.
And for impossibilities, nothing topped Jeong-hyeon himself.
*Groooar—*
Vibrations intensified through his toes.
The Erke's massive body closed in.
Calmly waiting until the last possible second, just before its huge head collided.
"Hup."
*Whoosh—*
Jeong-hyeon launched sideways.
Precisely far enough to avoid its foot.
He then grabbed the spot he'd eyed: where the shell began near the neck.
Fast as the Royal Erke was, it was child's play against Jeong-hyeon's maxed Thought Acceleration.
Plus, since level 5 gates, he'd grown addicted to tackling large—even boss—monsters.
Lately, lacking big game had left him itchy.
*Leap—*
Grabbing the neck nape, he used the momentum to vault high.
'Whew, quite the sight.'
From above, he saw party members dodging every which way amid the chaotic charges.
Did life-or-death battles look different from afar?
Anyway, the four Royal Erkes charging at him somehow ghosted past each other without colliding.
'They don't friendly-fire, huh?'
Confirming that, Jeong-hyeon infused neutral magic into the pickaxe.
'Harad delivers, as expected.'
Long since he'd started using Harad, its performance only impressed more.
Not just amplifying power, but insanely condensing it.
[Graceful Magic Enchantment (B) proficiency level increased from 3 to 4.]
'Level up, nice!'
Perfect timing—his enchantment trait leveled up too.
He felt the neutral magic's quality on the pickaxe improve noticeably.
And with that unexpected boost, the now-far-stronger pickaxe.
"Eat this!"
*Crash—*
Slammed powerfully into the Royal Erke's head.
But they earned the "melee DPS eraser" nickname for a reason.
"Huh?"
Jeong-hyeon tilted his head.
Full leaping power, plus Harad and proficiency-up effects in one blow.
Yet the feedback through his hands felt oddly off.
Like a normal person weakly smacking a rock.
Visually, the occiput showed no blood, no dent—just fine.
"Roooaaar!"
Still, the shock landed; the ambushed Royal Erke halved its speed, bellowing in pain.
It shook its short neck dizzily.
But that was it.
*Thud—thud—*
Regaining senses, the Erke—with Jeong-hyeon riding it—ignored the intruder, shaking violently to dislodge him instead of accelerating.
"What a thick skull."
*Whish—*
Even swung its tail threateningly.
But Jeong-hyeon wasn't green enough to eat a back attack like that.
Ducking low to evade the tail, he grinned.
"Attacks not working?"
It happened sometimes.
His response was always the same.
'Then hit till they do.'
Challenge ignited after so long—Jeong-hyeon gripped the pickaxe harder.
Pickaxes were optimized for breaking ground, after all.