Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: Puppet and Thread
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At first, Jeong-hyeon was a bit bewildered when something that hadn't been visible suddenly came into view.
But the more he pondered it, the more plausible it seemed.
The threads were probably manipulating the puppet, and cutting them all would clear the mission.
No one had said as much, but it had to be that way.
'Otherwise, is this honestly a level 5 gate?'
Even as a total newbie entering a mission gate for only the second time, Jeong-hyeon had years of experience surviving on pure instinct.
Even glancing at the other Jeongjin hunters, smashing that puppet head-on couldn't possibly qualify as a level 5 mission.
There had to be some other method of攻略, or it wasn't even remotely feasible.
"Tank for a bit!"
Jeong-hyeon called out to Sun-il once more.
Focusing solely on evasion left no opening to cut those threads.
Sun-il couldn't hold out for long, but even a tiny gap would suffice.
Boom—
"Urgh, I can't hold it for long!"
Sun-il intercepted the axe swinging toward Jeong-hyeon.
Naturally, Jeong-hyeon had no intention of leaving the defense to Sun-il for extended periods.
'Let's see if the dagger can cut it first.'
Slipping behind Sun-il, Jeong-hyeon immediately hurled Black.
Of course, he coated it thickly with mana.
The threads had only become visible after activating Mana Sensitivity, so that approach made sense.
Even a plain throw might sever them, but he needed to maximize the odds in one go—unavoidable.
"Jeong-hyeon, where—"
Jeong-hyeon's Throwing Skill had never disappointed anyone before.
But this time, Junwon and the other hunters' eyes widened in shock.
Jeong-hyeon's dagger didn't just miss—it completely whiffed the puppet.
Of course, it was a disappointing result for Jeong-hyeon too.
He hadn't missed the target, obviously.
Black struck the thread dangling from the puppet's right shoulder precisely.
Yet even mana-infused Black inflicted zero damage on the thread and passed right through.
'Hm?'
But Jeong-hyeon felt puzzlement in a slightly different way than the others.
Black phasing through? That could happen.
The difficulty had spiked without warning, after all.
Expecting the threads to snap that easily was wishful thinking.
But even Junwon failing to grasp his intent was surprising.
"Can't you see the threads?"
"Threads? What threads?"
He even asked Junwon just in case, but the man tilted his head as if he had no idea what Jeong-hyeon was talking about.
'They really can't see this?'
Those four threads were definitely tied to mana.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have been invisible to Jeong-hyeon until now.
The other hunters not seeing them made sense, but why couldn't Junwon, who had higher-level Mana Sensitivity than him?
'Is there some other secret?'
Was he hallucinating?
No, it felt far too vivid and certain.
'Actually, to be precise, it's not seeing—it's feeling them.'
And the deeper his focus, the stronger the sensation grew.
"Watch out!"
As Jeong-hyeon pondered, Sun-il's shout rang out.
Snapping to attention, he saw Sun-il flung several steps back from the puppet's front.
Whoosh—
The axe haft—opposite the blade—was swinging right at Jeong-hyeon's face.
Too late to dodge.
'Damn it—!'
Jeong-hyeon hastily gathered mana into a barrier.
Without Mana Sensitivity active, his skull would've shattered.
But the barrier didn't neutralize the puppet's axe haft entirely.
The impact sent Jeong-hyeon's body flying.
"Jeong-hyeon!"
Junwon's urgent shout exploded, but tinnitus drowned it out.
"Ugh......"
His vision blurred momentarily, his limbs went limp—no strength entered his arms.
'Where am I?'
Shaking his head to refocus, he spotted Sun-il desperately tanking in his stead, far off.
A single blow had hurled Jeong-hyeon to the chessboard's corner.
"You gotta get some toughness traits quick......"
He'd evaded most attacks until now, but taking a direct hit was insanely risky for him.
Head still ringing, he caught his breath, unable to return immediately.
Then, forgotten text entered his view.
"The lives of all subjects depend on the king......"
Did this mean something too?
He'd initially dismissed it as flavor for the "king" game concept.
Implying that if the king died, all hunters would too.
'If that's all, they could've just said it plainly.'
The status window could've conveyed that easily via quest details.
No need to etch it on the wall.
So maybe this phrase was another hint.
In that instant, another suspicious detail flashed through Jeong-hyeon's mind.
"The dagger."
After the puppet king died, two things hadn't vanished from the map.
One was that rampaging melee DPS puppet over there.
The other was—
"That dagger! Pick up the fallen daggers!"
Jeong-hyeon kicked off the ground and dashed.
Sun-il was hanging on somehow, but nearing his limit.
Right or wrong, he had no time to second-guess.
Black infused with mana had already failed against the threads. Even if they were the key, he had no other way to cut them.
"Dagger? Oh!"
Junwon was too busy with his magic duel.
Ji-woon, hearing Jeong-hyeon, scanned around and hurriedly scooped up the four daggers on the ground.
'Four threads, four daggers!'
Coincidentally, the numbers matched perfectly.
"Hold on just a bit longer—a little more!"
The issue was whether Sun-il could last until Jeong-hyeon reached Ji-woon.
If Sun-il fell, could Ga-yoon—who lacked agility or toughness traits—withstand even one hit?
He'd have to tank himself then, but he lacked confidence in dodging those terrifying attacks while precisely sniping near-invisible threads with Throwing Skill.
"Hurry...... do something!"
Fortunately, Sun-il gritted his teeth, enduring blow after blow.
His arms trembled slightly.
Boom—
"You damn monster!"
Ga-yoon now targeted the puppet's arms, delaying its attack rhythm and weakening the force.
They could buy a little time, at least.
The chessboard side was barely 100m.
At Jeong-hyeon's speed, end-to-end took seconds—but urgency stretched it eternally.
"Here!"
Finally close enough, Ji-woon tossed a dagger lightly to save even a fraction of a second.
Exactly what Jeong-hyeon hoped for.
'Focus, focus!'
With numbers matching perfectly, one miss would be fatal.
Jeong-hyeon gripped the blade tip and glared at the puppet.
A crude, not particularly sharp blade.
And the thin thread stretching skyward from its right arm.
His slowing breaths halted abruptly.
Then.
Swoosh—
Mana-coated dagger left his hand, streaking toward the thread.
With Thought Acceleration, Jeong-hyeon could count the crude dagger's spins frame-by-frame as it slowly approached.
But time never stopped.
It merely crawled.
Snap.
The instant the blade touched the thread.
A clear snap echoed in Jeong-hyeon's ears as the faintly glowing thread severed.
"Got it!"
Jeong-hyeon's fist clenched.
His hunch was right.
The lives of all subjects depend on the king.
The dagger left by the king.
Whatever grudge kept it rampaging, the quest was clear.
That was the king's dagger, meant to end it.
Severed thread: the puppet's right arm hung limp, unmoving.
"Huh, what?"
Sun-il, who'd endured full-power two-handed axe swings, finally caught a breather.
Of course, Jeong-hyeon had no plans to stop.
Snap— snap—
Threads snapped one by one.
Left arm severed: no more axe attacks.
Right leg gone: it could barely stand.
"What the hell are you doing?"
To those blind to the threads—unlike Jeong-hyeon—it was baffling.
The daggers missed absurdly, yet each throw crippled a limb.
'Last one?'
Ignoring Ji-woon's question, Jeong-hyeon grabbed the final dagger for the left leg thread.
Sever that, and it was done.
He was sick of puppets.
Unlike a Demi Drake with usable hide, he just wanted to neutralize it fast and clear.
But the cornered puppet's aura turned ominous, like a final spasm.
"Just die already!"
Spotting it, Jeong-hyeon shouted and threw.
Screech—
Even with only its left leg thread left, the puppet completed its last spell instantly.
Jeong-hyeon's guess was right: its magic was inferior to the mage puppet's due to melee duties.
No more physical attacks possible, Ga-yoon had relaxed slightly—behind her, terrifying mana coalesced.
Junwon and Jeong-hyeon yelled simultaneously.
"Dodge!"
"Huh?"
Ga-yoon, clueless, just tilted her head.
Only then did she sense the massive killing intent behind her and turn—
Too late at point-blank.
Snap—
The dagger severed the final thread.
The puppet's glowing red eyes faded.
But the completed spell didn't vanish.
'This crazy bastard goes out swinging—'
Swallowing curses, Jeong-hyeon and Junwon acted in sync.
Nothing else mattered now.
Except the Mana Strike forming behind Ga-yoon.
Pure instinct: they erected barriers.
'One won't cut it—'
Yet despair crept in too.
Better if it'd targeted Sun-il.
He was the tank; his shield would've mitigated.
Targeting Ga-yoon instead screamed "take one with me."
Boom—
A roar, and Ga-yoon rocketed like a cannonball—silent.
"Ga-yoon!"
All hunters rushed to where she landed.
She'd flown far, slammed a wall, then crumpled.
Sun-il flipped her over; she vomited blood.
"Cough!"
Severe impact, but alive.
Jeong-hyeon and the others sighed in relief.
Only then could Jeong-hyeon finally glance at the notification windows before him.