Brother's Return
Awooooo────!!!
Fenrir let out a long howl toward the sky.
In response, howls of “Awoo──!” echoed throughout the forest.
Even a rough count put them at dozens.
Even if only some of them came, in this situation, it would be no different from a disaster.
The Masked Hunter glanced warily at Fenrir and gripped her sword.
She had a bad feeling about this.
“...Everyone, battle formation.”
As raid leader, the Masked Hunter quickly assessed the situation and issued the command.
In truth, taking on Fenrir head-on with their current raid's strength was tantamount to suicide, but she couldn't order a retreat either.
It wasn't some idiotic notion of not fleeing from the enemy in front of them; there simply was no way to escape.
Dozens of wolves were already swarming toward this spot.
Even if they focused solely on retreating, some raid members would surely be sacrificed, and above all, Fenrir wouldn't just let them run.
If the Masked Hunter took on Fenrir herself, they might hold out for a while, but could the rest of the raid break through the wolves' encirclement in that time?
Even if every member excluding her was an A-rank hunter, it was a stretch.
And without the raid's help, she couldn't properly handle Fenrir on her own.
No matter that Fenrir was S-rank like her, there was a difference between an S-rank hunter and an S-rank monster.
Annihilation either way.
If the outcome was the same, it was only natural to fight without regrets until the end.
She decided alone without consulting the raid members, but none objected.
Not even a hint of complaint.
They all trusted and followed her judgment.
If they hadn't believed in her decisions, they couldn't have fought together as comrades for the past two years.
Thus, with the Masked Hunter at the center, the entire Hwayeong raid steeled themselves for death and ignited their resolve.
As hunters, they would not flee, even in defeat.
As wolves began pouring in from all over the forest, the Masked Hunter, who had been quietly watching, made the first move.
Without hesitation, she launched herself at Fenrir.
In the blink of an eye, she closed in right to Fenrir's nose and thrust her sword.
A fleeting moment, too short for most to react—an S-rank hunter's speed.
But her opponent was also an S-rank monster.
Fenrir dodged the flash-like strike with leisure, as if it had anticipated it.
Not just evading, it swung its front paw at the Masked Hunter as she extended her sword.
Whoosh─
The Masked Hunter barely blocked Fenrir's clean counter.
Bang─ An explosive clash of claw and sword rang out, unbelievable in its ferocity, and the shock of the brief exchange sent the Masked Hunter flying back.
Fenrir didn't miss the opening.
“...Yu-i unnie!”
A desperate voice echoed through the clearing, and Yang Yu-i, waiting in position, immediately acted.
As Yang Yu-i extended her hand, a translucent barrier appeared in front of the Masked Hunter.
A barrier skill, said to be as rare as heal skills.
Bang─!!!
A heavy thud came from the barrier clashing with Fenrir's paw.
Fenrir shattered Yang Yu-i's barrier with a single swipe and swung its other paw at the Masked Hunter.
Still airborne from the previous impact, she couldn't dodge.
Just as Fenrir's attack was about to tear her apart, the other raid members stepped in.
They closed in instantly, thrusting their weapons from all sides.
Fenrir let out a short cry amid the flawless encirclement with no room to evade.
“Graaang──!!!”
With a menacing low rumble, a heavy wave of mana erupted from Fenrir.
The raid members charging at it were flung back powerlessly.
“Grrr──.”
Fenrir halted its attack on the Masked Hunter and landed lightly on the ground, growling lowly.
The Masked Hunter, who had also landed lightly, and the raid members gathering around her watched Fenrir briefly.
The short skirmish was over.
The enemy before them was far stronger than they had imagined.
Above all, the wolves slyly encircling them were a heavy burden.
Among them were many higher-grade specimens above E-rank Silent Wolves, and even several B-rank ones.
If they at least had the other hunters assigned to this extermination mission, maybe—but in this situation, they wouldn't last long.
A hopeless scenario with no solutions.
As the Masked Hunter unconsciously bit her lip in the face of the hopeless outlook, Fenrir's short howl signaled the wolves' assault.
The Hwayeong raid gripped their weapons against the tidal wave of wolves.
The start of a one-sided battle with a foreseeable outcome.
* * *
“Hah... huff...!”
The Masked Hunter breathed raggedly.
Her condition was a total mess.
The thick robe she wore above was torn in places, and the gear beneath was badly damaged, exposing her pale skin without mercy.
Scratches covered her everywhere, and worst of all, the plain mask she wore was cracked, no longer functioning properly.
After the full battle began, she had no choice but to tire out.
A state far from normal.
The only silver lining was that none of her comrades had died yet?
Thanks to everyone prioritizing protection of their healer, Yang Yu-i.
But even that had reached its limit.
From the prolonged fight, Yang Yu-i had squeezed out every drop of her mana, and the raid members protecting her were too gravely injured to continue.
The Masked Hunter, in the best shape among them, said it all.
A state tantamount to annihilation, but the Hwayeong raid had fought admirably.
After a long battle, they had thinned the wolves' numbers considerably and taken down several high-rank specimens.
More than what six people could achieve.
But as always, the process didn't matter.
More wolves remained than they'd felled, and crucially, their leader was unscathed.
Blood trickled from one side of her head, making her squint one eye as the Masked Hunter silently stared ahead.
Fenrir gazed back mutely.
Not a single wound, not even a sign of fatigue—a pristine state.
In stark contrast to her own battered form.
...Is this the end?
Sensing her end in Fenrir's leisurely gaze, the Masked Hunter blinked slowly at the thoughts surfacing unbidden.
She became a hunter to find her missing older brother, but she knew the risks.
She was well aware she might die before finding him.
She had resolved herself from the moment she first entered the labyrinth.
But with death staring her down, she realized her resolve hadn't truly been resolve.
I'm scared...
Maybe she had known all along.
That her brother was dead.
She just couldn't accept it alone.
Her father and mother had accepted it, but she alone refused.
What if she had accepted his death sooner?
What if she had believed those around her saying her brother was gone?
Would things have been different?
Her father had said her brother was a fool.
An idiot son he could hardly believe was his.
Clinging to a sliver of hope and foolishly losing his life in the labyrinth.
She had no retort then, but now she had an answer.
Her brother was undeniably her brother.
Because both he and she were fools like no other.
The Masked Hunter, Yu Hwa-yeong, still couldn't accept even as Fenrir strode right up to her.
She refused to acknowledge it.
Her brother's death.
Grrr───
A low growl reached her ears.
Desperate voices from behind urged her to run.
At the faint, echoing pleas, Yu Hwa-yeong blinked slowly.
Fenrir's massive face right before her felt like a dream.
...Can I finally meet brother now?
The one who gave her warmth in their suffocatingly cold home.
A being as precious as her life.
Recalling her brother's face one last time, Yu Hwa-yeong quietly gazed at the sharp fangs approaching.
And...
Bang───!!!
A heavy impact rang out.
At the sudden noise, Yu Hwa-yeong, who had been blankly awaiting death, snapped her eyes open.
A man now stood silently before her.
A bit fierce and sharp-featured, but strikingly like her brother.
The man she had briefly encountered before appeared before her.
Yu Hwa-yeong stared, entranced, at his crimson eyes gazing at her.
“...Brother?”
The two stared at each other in silence for a moment.
After a brief quiet, Yu Hwa-yeong unwittingly spoke.
The man frowned slightly at her entranced whisper.
“...Hwa-yeong?”
The name from his lips was unmistakably hers.
Her expression shifted in an instant at his tentative utterance.
Shock, joy, delight, longing, anger, sorrow, happiness.
Her face twisted with emotions too varied for words—neither laughing nor crying.
After the whirlwind of feelings, Yu Hwa-yeong finally glared at the man with a contorted face.
A low voice leaked from her.
“...You're brother, right?”
As if surging up, her voice thick with tears, the man clamped his mouth shut.
After hesitating, lips twitching as if searching for words, he finally nodded.
Tears finally streamed down Yu Hwa-yeong's cheeks.
“Hic...! Sniff...!”
Forgetting her surroundings at reuniting with her brother after three years, she began to sob.
The man could only panic at his sister's state.
As if he never imagined meeting here, like this.
As the bewildered man cautiously reached to comfort his crying sister,
“Graaaang───!!!”
A furious wolf's roar shook the forest.
The eardrum-shattering rage halted the man mid-reach toward his sister.
He glanced at her, then at Fenrir rising.
With a soft sigh, he patted Yu Hwa-yeong's head lightly.
“We'll talk after it's over.”
His gruff but gentle voice made the tearful, head-bowed Yu Hwa-yeong look up hastily.
Before she could protest, her brother had already turned and strode toward Fenrir.
“B-Brother─!!!”
Fear of losing her long-lost brother to an S-rank area boss after just reuniting.
Yu Hwa-yeong desperately reached for her receding brother's back.
She wanted to stand and stop him, but her exhausted body refused.
“Brother...! Brother!!! No─! Nooo──!!!”
She could only pitifully stretch out her hand, screaming hoarsely.
But her brother ignored her pleas, walking steadfastly toward Fenrir.
“Ah... Ahh...! N-No...! No...! Please...!”
[It's fine.]
A serene, beautiful voice reached the pitifully calling Yu Hwa-yeong.
At the smooth, jade-like tone, she whipped her head around to find a stunning white-haired beauty beside her.
The woman who had been with her brother before.
[Don't worry. My husband is strong.]
As if to reassure her, before Yu Hwa-yeong could grasp the gentle words,
Her brother showed it through action, no explanation needed.
“Yelp─!!!”
Thwack─
With a short thud, the S-rank area boss Fenrir flew pathetically into the forest beyond.
At the unbelievable sight, Yu Hwa-yeong stared blankly as her brother vanished into the same direction.
What on earth just happened?
Her mind couldn't comprehend the scene before her.