Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: Unyielding Tenacity
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Even if she knew nothing about magic, Rose's sheer grit was on par with any A-Rank Hunter, so she refused to change her fighting style right up to the end.
She'd sprint away to create distance, then only creep closer once the ogre tired out and unleash her spells. For all its pitiful inefficiency, she showed outright revulsion at the idea of closing in to fight a monster hand-to-hand.
It worked two or three times, but her stamina gave out, and her pace slowed to a crawl.
"Hek... Hek..."
The gap between the exhausted Rose and the ogre steadily shrank.
The pissed-off ogre swung its club down at Rose's head.
"Kyaaak!"
Drained of stamina, Rose couldn't even think to dodge the incoming club—she just screamed.
Paak!
I fired aura from my hand like a bullet, blasting off the ogre's head and its club in one go.
The club shattered, sending a shard into Rose's forehead. Blood trickled down.
"Five minutes' rest."
"You... crazy bastard! I almost died!"
I watched silently as she clutched her forehead and spewed curses. To me, it just sounded like some neighborhood mutt yapping.
"If a young woman's face gets scarred, you gonna take responsibility for that?! You psychopath bastard! Say something!"
She ranted on for a good while, but when I just stared back without a word, she finally gave up in frustration and plopped down on the ground to catch her breath.
Rest over, Sanghun dragged in another ogre. Rose's style hadn't budged, and neither had my approach.
"Bro, what're you doing with her? Having a stubbornness contest?"
"She keeps that up as a hunter, she gonna live long?"
"...I get what you're saying, but you think a girl that bullheaded's gonna change?"
"She'll change if she doesn't wanna die."
Jeong Mingi Hunter had given everything—his life, his future—to protect the country in both my past and present lives. I owed him big time. Turning his daughter into a proper hunter was a small price to pay that debt.
Rose pushed herself past her limits until her guts twisted, and she vomited.
"All done puking? Sanghun, fetch the next one."
Rose didn't even have the energy left to curse me or shoot glares anymore. Yesul kept closing in to heal her or dab water on her lips, but she barely reacted.
Yesul looked dissatisfied too, but after overhearing me and Sanghun, she kept quiet.
* * *
We cleared the gate over two days, and Sanghun dropped the ragged-looking Rose off at Rose Guild.
"Daddy! That bastard!"
Less than half a day later, she dragged Jeong Mingi Hunter right to me.
"Lee Jiseok Hunter, what's this nonsense about you assaulting and abusing my daughter? It ain't true, right?"
He looked pissed as a father should, but his face didn't scream outright suspicion—he knew Rose pulled this kind of stunt with him all the time.
"If the training your daughter went through counts as assault, then it's assault. Abuse? Sure, abuse. Yeah, I did it."
"...Huh?"
I owned up without hesitation, leaving both Jeong Mingi Hunter and Rose looking stunned.
"You told me to train her."
"Th-that's... true."
"You sent her my way knowing her personality, didn't you? If a talking-to would've fixed her, you wouldn't have bothered. Training's tough? Long as her limbs stay attached, it's fine. Might as well keep her for a full month now."
"Ah... no way! You still can't treat a girl that rough!"
"Jeong Mingi Hunter. You really gonna keep shoving her into hunter life like this? She hits the gates in that state, she'll be dead in a few years—or worse, get someone else killed by her screw-ups. That what you wanna see?"
Jeong Mingi Hunter clamped his mouth shut.
"Ah... Daddy! I'm Rose! Your one and only daughter! You're handing me back to that bastard?"
"Then quit being a hunter. Problem solved—no more Lee Jiseok Hunter."
"...That's bullshit! I wanna be a hunter!"
"Think it over. Save the kid and take the hate? Or play good dad and ship her off to die?"
"...Take good care of her."
Jeong Mingi Hunter mulled it over, then gave up with a sigh and turned to leave.
"Daddy! No!"
I pried Rose off his arm when she grabbed it.
"Ow! Hurts! It hurts!"
"Quit whining, hunter."
"Daddy!!! Daddy!!!"
"Still got the lungs for screaming, huh? Back into the gate. Undead this time?"
"No! I hate it!!!"
I hauled the shrieking Rose into the gate. No need for anyone else this round—just us two.
"But why the hell do you hate close combat that much? You've got the speed, the reflexes—it's perfect for you."
I perched on a rock and asked Rose, who lay sprawled on the ground.
"..."
"Don't wanna talk? Fine. We'll just keep grinding gates like this. You and me."
Rose craned her neck up from the ground, shot me an irritated look.
"Daddy... always came home beat to hell when I was little."
"Jeong Mingi Hunter?"
"Yeah. He wasn't S-Rank from day one. But to kill every bastard who murdered Mom, he'd throw himself into fights without a care."
"Hm..."
Jeong Mingi Hunter's wife got caught in a gate break not long after Rose was born. Clutching her baby girl, she ran, but a monster horde closed in. She shoved Rose in a car, then screamed her lungs out to lure them away.
"Mom died 'cause of me, and Dad came home busted up every single day. All my fault."
As a kid, Rose watched her dad trudge in covered in blood from his rampages—and blamed herself. No wonder the trauma stuck.
"Dad felt guilty for ignoring me when I was small, so now he takes my side on everything."
"Must've been rough."
"Then I awakened. Finally, I could help Dad. But my magic's total garbage. And close range? Those memories of Dad soaked in blood... my body just locks up."
"Then quit being a hunter."
"No way. This is my chance to actually help him."
Yeah, starting to get this kid now.
"But why you gotta be such a rude bitch to everyone?"
"When did I?"
Ah, guess that's just baked in.
"Got it. Still dead set on being a hunter?"
"Damn right."
"Easy fix, then."
I mopped up the remaining monsters, cleared the gate, and headed to the hospital.
"Oh? Oppa, what's up?"
Nayoung, mid-treatment on mana poisoning patients, lit up when she saw me.
"Brought a patient."
"Huh?"
I laid out the whole story for Nayoung, who looked baffled.
"Trauma that deep? Hypnosis should shake off the aversion without much fuss."
My Mind Control skill had reached mastery levels where I could pull off requests like this. Lately, for practice, I'd been devouring psychiatry and psychology books as a hobby. Tomes so thick and fine-printed you could club someone with 'em—doubted they were fun reads, but once she tuned in, she tuned out everything else, even me.
"You sure this'll be okay? This?"
Rose eyed me and Nayoung with worried eyes.
"Shut it. You ever hear of hypnosis therapy? It's like that."
Nayoung laid a hand on Rose's head and focused.
Rose slipped into hypnosis, her hand flopping loose.
"Not scary at all. Your father's image isn't one of suffering in battle—it's the proud victor. You have the talent. Monsters won't lay a finger on you."
Nayoung whispered softly, then pulled her hand away.
"That's it? This'll actually work?"
Rose blinked awake, no memory she'd even been under.
* * *
Hypnosis was a success.
Rose stuck around till the end of the attack, then hit back with magic.
Rose arched her waist to dodge the ogre's club swing. Then, right hand gloved up in Jaein's custom gear, she snapped a short punch into empty air—fireball rocketed from her fist straight to the ogre's head. The glove worked like a staff, boosting her magic efficiency and response time.
Kwang!
The ogre's head charred black as it toppled backward.
Before, she'd fire max power from afar, but it'd lose punch in transit. Up close like this? She dialed back the output and still packed plenty of wallop. One-shot, ogre or not.
"Aja!"
Buzzing with excitement, Rose hopped in place and threw a backflip.
"Where's the mage in that? Magic boxer? Nah, battle mage fits better."
Sanghun remarked, watching Rose.
"Class changed anyway. Battle Mage now."
"That even possible? Thought classes locked in once picked."
"Happens sometimes. Jaein switched too. Elementalist to Elemental Smith."
"Huh... news to me."
Class changes weren't common, but they happened. Wonder why mine never showed.
* * *
"What, that mug at twenty-five? You eat something bad or what?"
Rose straight-up pointed and laughed at the faces of her reformed Rose Guild party members, now scaled to match her skill.
The hunter on the receiving end knew she was Jeong Mingi Hunter's daughter—no comeback, just an awkward grin.
"Lee Jiseok Hunter, the kid... manners still in the toilet, huh?"
Jeong Mingi Hunter kneaded his brow hard.
"Handle that at home. Got her pulling her weight as a hunter now, drilled in the party basics too. She won't catch flak anywhere as a pro."
"Urgh..."
"You spoiled her rotten. Doesn't even clock her own behavior as a problem—that's bad news."
"Uh... what about Bae Nayoung Hunter's psych treatment?"
"Won't touch the core personality. Too risky if it goes sideways."
"Sigh... Twenty years as a dad, and it never gets easier."
"Hang in there. Humanity lessons? Hit up counseling, shop around slow."
"Yeah, thanks."
Jeong Mingi Hunter gripped my hand tight.
* * *
Back from Tellus, I handled odd jobs, trained Rose, and coasted through a pretty peaceful month. Snuck in polishing what I'd learned from Eres on the side.
Siphoned subtle life force from nature, breathed it into Mom and the aunts. These days, wrinkles were vanishing, muscle mass piling on. Visibly a good ten years younger.
Made a habit of scanning surroundings with life force even day-to-day. After staring down countless folks' life forces, each felt unique—like fingerprints. Familiar faces? No sweat distinguishing.
Last up, drilled the boost technique to amp stats with life force. Boost cap stayed stuck at 40%, sadly, but entry speed from baseline halved.
"Hm..."
I flipped open my notebook of this life's to-do list. Never figured I'd hit this strong this quick. Time to revisit the stuff I'd scratched off.
Sensed Nayoung coming, snapped it shut.
"Oppa, whatcha up to?"
"Ah, y'know... thinking of heading overseas."
"Overseas why?"
If I spilled about my past life, Nayoung'd buy it no questions asked. But was that smart?