Chapter 480
Chapter 480
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 480
Chapter Title: 480. Eerie Water Park
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Go-jun! Let’s pull back from here! It’s different from yesterday! The boss monster has changed!”
“...Pull back immediately! The raid on this erosion-type dungeon ends here! The situation has changed! The original boss monster here was a B-rank King Slime! Not that thing! Hurry and fall back!”
But it was already too late.
The monster’s body surged upward from the lake-like swimming pool.
It was a dragon made of water. It didn’t look like it had any intention of letting us go.
……Water Dragon?
I muttered that without thinking, but there was no such monster as a Water Dragon. That meant this was a first-time monster appearing here. It might look like a dragon, but it probably wasn’t a real one.
“N-No way…!”
One of the female hunters gasped in shock. I didn’t know her name, but I knew she had a special tool that could analyze the monster’s status and information. The rest of us hunters perked up our ears, focusing on her words.
Of course, the Water Dragon didn’t wait around for us. Han A-young created a massive ice shield to block its charge. Frost-covered water splashed everywhere.
“It’s a fusion! A fusion of Ghost, Waterman, and King Slime! And at the center… What the hell is that?”
“Probably the dungeon core. The dungeon core was originally inside the King Slime’s body. Who would’ve thought things would go so wrong in just one day…”
Jang Go-jun pulled out his gear for the first time.
Two long sticks. They looked like simple lumps of iron stretched out thin. There were hunters who used staffs, but this didn’t even qualify as a weapon.
However, the sticks soon began to change shape.
A gleam appeared as they transformed into sharp, living twin swords.
Jang Go-jun’s Shapeshift ability.
It was a power that temporarily altered the shape of objects. But it didn’t change their durability. Turning mud into a hammer would still just be a lump of mud in the end.
“Hunters! Listen up! We have no choice but to take it down here! Association members, stand by in case of emergencies! Luckily, this is a water-based area! A-young has the advantage elementally! A-young! Can you freeze it?!”
“I already tried, but I can’t freeze it completely. The best I can do is freeze the surface to slow it down. It has exceptional mana resistance!”
The Water Dragon leaped into the air. Its target was us, who hadn’t settled into combat positions yet.
“Ha-rin!!”
Han A-young shouted. Han Ha-rin bit her lip hard and activated Gravity Manipulation. She shifted the direction of the gravity from downward to sideways. She was redirecting a Water Dragon that must weigh hundreds of tons.
It worked. The Water Dragon flew sideways and crashed into the ground. Jang Go-jun swung his twin swords, infused with sword aura, from atop the monster’s body.
Blood trickled from Han Ha-rin’s nose.
“Senior! Are you okay?!”
I grabbed her staggering arm and supported her.
“...I’m fine. I just overdid it with the ability all at once. I can use it again after a short rest. You do what you need to do.”
“Got it, Senior. I’ll take care of that bastard, so stay back a bit.”
“……Be careful.”
“Yes.”
I gripped my Fire Lotus Sword tightly and charged toward the fallen Water Dragon on the pool floor. It had finally emerged from the lake-like pool. I couldn’t miss this chance.
I probably can’t kill it in one go… but I can at least wound it.
Whoosh! Sword aura blazed to life.
But I never got the chance to swing.
Han A-young conjured a massive ice block from the sky and dropped it on the Water Dragon’s head. The head shattered, water spraying everywhere.
…She made that huge ice block in less than 10 seconds? That’s why she’s an S-rank candidate.
This was the first time I’d seen Han A-young’s power in action, and I truly understood why she was called a future S-rank hunter.
But the fight wasn’t over.
The Water Dragon’s body split into hundreds of 3-meter mini Water Dragons.
“The dungeon core isn’t in the head! One of those has the dungeon core! We have to smash it!”
Han A-young yelled. The hunters charged in, massacring the mini Water Dragons that were fleeing into the pool with splashes.
“Too late! The dungeon core went into the pool!”
The female hunter said. The hunters clicked their tongues and pulled back from the pool. The pool was enemy territory. Falling in by mistake would mean death right there.
The Water Dragon surged up from the pool again. Its shattered head had regenerated, and its size was back to normal.
There were two ways to take it down. One was targeting and destroying the dungeon core. The other was eliminating all the water in this space.
The second one’s impossible.
Rain was still falling from the sky, and water pooled everywhere in the water park. What a ridiculous boss monster.
Weeeeeeng! Weeeeeeng!
The alarm blared, and the hunters’ faces turned pale. We’d heard it several times on the way here. A tsunami was coming.
We’re screwed!
I ran to Han Ha-rin. The situation was the worst. The wave crashing in from afar was over 10 meters high. Han A-young was busy blocking the Water Dragon’s attacks, so running was our best bet.
Send Ha-rin somewhere safe with the spatial movement scroll, then A-young…
Han Ha-rin calmly surveyed the waves closing in from all sides. Her demeanor was completely different from the terrified hunters. She had no intention of running. She was going to fight back.
“Senior Ha-rin!”
“I’ll hold them off.”
Han Ha-rin rose from the ground into the air. Her black hair whipped fiercely.
Then, an earthquake hit.
More precisely, the aftermath of Han Ha-rin’s ability caused the quake.
…Gravity is going wild.
Some things lightened, some grew heavier, some pulled right, some upward. As gravity rampaged, the 10-meter tsunami shattered before it could reach us.
An invisible storm of gravity was tearing the wave apart.
In the end, the tsunami never reached us, and Han Ha-rin, who had pushed her ability beyond its limits, fell. I caught her.
Ha-rin went this far… I can’t run away like a coward.
I carried her to the female hunter—the only one who could locate the dungeon core.
“Excuse me. Help me out here.”
“Ah, yes. I’ll take care of Ha-rin, right? I’ll protect her. You protected us, so I can’t just leave her. My ability specializes in defense, so I’m confident.”
“I’d appreciate that too… but you know where the dungeon core is, right?”
“...Give me a moment. I’ll check. I need to concentrate, so protect me.”
“Yes. I’ll guard you for sure.”
She put on thick-rimmed glasses from her pocket and stared at the Water Dragon. The lenses glowed blue.
About 50 seconds later, she shouted loud enough for all the hunters to hear.
“The dungeon core is near its tail! The tail’s inside the pool!”
The hunters’ faces twisted. The Water Dragon’s body was transparent, making it hard to tell where the tail was. Hitting the core from range would be nearly impossible. To smash the core, we’d have to enter the pool—the enemy’s domain.
“Thank you. Take care of Senior Ha-rin.”
“Wait! You’re going in alone?! It’s dangerous! Wait for another chance like before when it comes out of the pool!”
“A-young noona or Jang Go-jun won’t last that long. If we’re not abandoning and running, we fight now.”
The hunters’ expressions turned grim. Most were C-rank, so they must feel powerless.
“Standing around will just get us killed. Let’s move. I’ll go into the pool with Yu-jin. Anyone else coming with us?”
“……I can’t stand just taking it. I’m in.”
“Honestly, I’d rather snipe from afar… but here we are.”
“I’ll provide cover from range. An archer like me can’t go in. Leave the cover fire to me.”
The hunters got to their roles. I was impressed by their disciplined coordination. As expected from Suwol Guild hunters.
I ran across the pool surface with Gong Ji-young toward the Water Dragon. Its terror came from its massive size-granted power and endless regeneration as long as water was present.
A-young and Go-jun are drawing its attention well. If I just dodge its sudden moves…!
As I got closer, I could see the tail’s shape inside the pool. It wasn’t stationary—it was constantly moving, revealing its form.
And inside the tail, a blue crystal! That had to be the dungeon core.
“That’s the dungeon core!”
“Ji-young!”
“Yes! I’ll smash it!”
Her fist slammed down toward the water where the tail was.
Kwaaaaang!
The shockwave spread through the entire pool, water erupting. But the tail was only slightly crushed, and the core was intact.
“I underestimated it because it’s water… Its durability is insane… Like this, we… Yu-jin?!”
I ignited my sword aura and thrust at the dungeon core. But it mocked me, sliding from the tail toward the body.
Damn it. It can move? No way the core has a will of its own, right?
No. It didn’t feel like that. It was instinctive movement, no doubt.
“Yu-jin! Dodge!”
An arm extended from the Water Dragon’s body, swiping at Gong Ji-young and me.
Gong Ji-young jumped and dodged easily, but I, focused on the core, was a bit slow.
Split second!
I leaped up along the slowed arm. The unexpected footing gave me another shot at the core.
Puk!
My Fire Lotus Sword pierced in. It barely grazed the dungeon core.
Thunderstrike!!
Red lightning branched out inside its body.
Got it!
It hit, but only shattered part of the core. The core floated higher. I clicked my tongue, stepping up its body and jumping higher.
Arms surged from both sides toward me.
“Thanks. Coming down would’ve been tough… You pulled the dungeon core up for me.”
Jang Go-jun, who had morphed his aura-infused twin swords into a greatsword, sliced the arms and swung horizontally at the core.
“Damn! Missed…!”
The body was cut, but the core remained. Before it could reconnect, I dove inside.
Thanks to Water Blessing, I can breathe in here. Thought it was useless at first… but it’s totally OP.
Of course, it wasn’t peaceful inside. Crushing pressure bore down. Breathing was possible, but lasting long was impossible.
Trying to crush me with water pressure… You think I’ll just sit still?!
I kicked off the water and surged up.
The red blade tip targeted the core. Water hands tugged at me, but my sword already impaled it.
Pajik!
The core vanished, turning into a magic stone bigger than my head. The Water Dragon’s form reverted to ordinary water and fell.
I fell too. About 20 meters, but below was the pool, and I’m a hunter. Mana reinforcement made a dive like this no problem.
As I fell, I looked at the water park. The dark clouds cleared from the sky, and the deformed structures returned to normal.
The killing blow is always the most thrilling!
Splash!
???
After reporting to the Association, we divided the rewards.
I earned about 3 billion for my contributions.
Less than I expected, but unavoidable. Most monsters didn’t drop valuable byproducts. Take the Water Dragon—it was hard work for nothing. Its body was just plain water.
Fuck. If an A-rank boss byproduct had dropped, we’d have made at least double even split.