Chapter 38
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Bounty Hunters
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Jun burned the letter he'd finished reading and headed downstairs.
"What's got the village in such an uproar?"
"Tch, bounty hunters showed up."
"Bounty hunters?"
Of course, Blackout was a place where people lived, so it had its own form of law and order.
That meant major criminals ended up wanted, and the game even had content built around hunting them down.
'Users who role-played as bounty hunters would post brag threads pretty often.'
So what did that have to do with the current situation?
Just as Jun started to wonder.
"Word is, they're not your average hunters. They say they're from the 'Black Guard'."
"...What?"
Jun's face went blank for a moment at those words.
The 'Black Guard' were Blackout's police force.
The difference from bounty hunters? They were a knight order founded by the Imperial Family.
With the imperial name attached, they were naturally insanely strong.
At least within their layer, unbeatable.
It made sense, really.
Imperial knights were optimized for killing humans, trained to the highest degree.
'Aura as standard issue makes them a nightmare. Even the weakest are level 4 at minimum.'
Strengths Aiden hadn't even touched yet.
"So why are they here?"
"Why else? To crack some criminal skulls, obviously."
Colton shrugged like it was no big deal.
At that moment, the murmurs from the village started drawing closer.
And then.
Bang—.
"R-right here, sirs."
A villager opened the inn's door, face tense with nerves.
Behind him came several figures in full plate armor, rare sights on the second layer.
It wasn't surprising they'd come here. This was the only inn in the village.
But their goal wasn't that.
"Are you the ones? The ones who stirred things up in this ashen wasteland?"
A man in his mid-thirties with a neatly trimmed mustache approached Jun.
The insignia on his shoulder marked him as the leader.
"...That's us."
"Mind if I ask your affiliation?"
"Don't really see why I should answer."
Jun's icy reply chilled the air instantly.
It was only natural.
Approaching dungeon delvers like that wasn't exactly polite.
But the man just shrugged it off.
"Came for some help. Oh, and I forgot to introduce myself. Name's Weyrn. Bounty hunter, as you can see."
A former Black Guard should be at least a lesser noble, yet here he was, deferring first.
No point sharpening blades further, so Jun eased his guard.
"Jun, captain of the White Whale Mercenary Corps. This is the Blade Eagle Mercenary Corps, our partners on this job."
"White Whale Mercenary Corps?"
Weyrn stroked his mustache and snapped his fingers.
"The ones who cleared that hidden stage emergence event?"
"Yeah."
Even with Jun's curt response, Weyrn laughed heartily.
"What a coincidence! Pleasure to meet you. I've heard of your exploits."
"... "
"Rumor has it you're backed by the Gilenoi Merchant Guild? That checks out. I had my suspicions when I heard about you."
He was playing all the parts himself.
Curious how far he'd go, Jun just listened.
"Our target's a heretic. Worships Blackout's evil god."
"The Open Heaven Cult?"
"You know them. We'd been tracking their trail, and it led right to that ravine."
Jun fell silent.
He had a hunch. Why the erosionists had appeared in the last dungeon.
The Open Heaven Cult was deeply tied to erosionists in the game's lore.
Coincidence that they'd been nearby when Jun's group encountered the erosion?
"So, what do you want?"
"Your help. I don't think the phenomenon you caused is unrelated to them."
His proposal was simple.
If the Open Heaven Cult was after the hidden dungeon, they'd try to enter.
Ambush and wipe them out then—that was Weyrn's plan.
"No loss for you, I'd say. What do you think?"
They'd grab their wanted criminals and leave.
For Jun's group, bounty hunters handling the cult meant one less worry.
No reason to refuse.
"Gonna discuss with my team real quick."
"Sure. Come to the village head's place when you're done. That's our base."
Weyrn left, his men following.
Jun turned to Aiden and Colton, who'd been waiting quietly.
"You all heard? What's your take?"
"No downside for us. Their background makes them trustworthy enough."
Colton voted yes first.
Ex-Black Guard meant honor-bound knights. Sure, they looked down on mercs, but they fought for the empire, right?
That revealed Colton's naivety, like Aiden's.
'Quit the honorable Black Guard to bounty hunt? Why trust that?'
They'd be seen as 'nobles who sold their honor for coin' in noble society.
Jun looked to Aiden.
"Hm... Logically, their help is good. But blind trust? No."
Aiden had seen nobles' dark sides up close in the palace.
Take the help, but stay vigilant—that was his advice.
Finally, Jun turned to Maya.
She was temp, but worth hearing—especially as an erosionist foe.
"My instincts say no."
"Huh? Instincts? Well..."
Colton reacted first.
He knew her skills, but bad vibes out of nowhere?
Mercs lived on the edge, so superstitions hit hard.
"But with Leader, it'll be okay."
"What..."
Bad instincts, fine—but Jun makes it okay?
No convincing that, from Colton's view.
Still, he knew Jun decided.
"How you wanna play it?"
"Like you said, no need to fight their targets. But like Aiden said, no full trust. Stay cautious."
"Got it. I'll tell the team."
And so, the unexpected bounty hunter alliance formed.
The hidden piece activation loomed.
Jun's group and the bounty hunters arrived at the dungeon entrance on schedule.
"Thanks for accepting our proposal."
"We thank you. Cleared monsters the whole way—made it easy."
Jun's light reply made Weyrn shrug.
"Leadership's always tough. I get our uninvited presence irks you."
"... "
"That's why I'm grateful. Those targets matter to us too."
"We want one thing: keep our combat power intact and kill them."
"Naturally."
Weyrn eyed the light pillar rising from the ravine.
Dimmer now after a week—sign the entrance would open soon.
Meanwhile, Jun kept scanning with detection magic.
The Open Heaven Cult had anti-detection artifacts too—nothing pinged.
'Not useless, though.'
Second-layer artifacts had limits.
Close enough, Jun would sense them.
Like spotting the Markner siblings during the boss fight.
How much time passed?
As the pillar nearly faded.
"Finally showing up."
His scan hooked something—reward for persistence.
The group readied for battle at his words.
Open Heaven Cult sounded religious, but their appearance screamed anything but.
"He who opens the heavens watches us."
"Behold the pillar! As it fades, so opens the stagnant world for us!"
Fifteen in dark cloaks, black bandages masking faces.
Each wore a dark-red orb necklace, like Colton's [Lantern of Holy Flame]—field effect resistance.
'High caliber.'
Their auras were no joke.
Colton and his mercs couldn't hold them briefly.
"Draw!"
The ex-Black Guard bounty hunters unsheathed without hesitation.
Sword-and-shield formation like a tight net, blocking entry.
Jun began chanting; his group formed up.
"Don't interfere—preserve yourselves!"
One hunter shouted, and battle erupted.
Ex-knights clashed with swords, spears, daggers, curse magic.
Cult aura users charged front.
But hunters' superior skill held; numbers couldn't break them.
Shields blocked, then murderous counters.
Cult didn't just take it.
Corpse Explosion
Explodes a corpse, scattering flesh and bone.
Boom—!
A beheaded cultist's body swelled and detonated with a roar.
Flesh and bone pelted hunters like shrapnel.
Curse of Weakness
"Urgh... Damn heretics!"
The bloodiest hunter slowed visibly.
Sacrificing a corpse spread thin; focusing one was smart.
"Focus defense!"
"Hold the line!"
One gap rippled huge—elite units couldn't afford slips.
Tatata!
As the line buckled, Aiden leaped into the air.
Spare sword in hand.
It slashed air, embedding in the cult's center.
"...?!"
No hits.
Aimed at anyone?
Missing all, ignored.
The floating sword and thunderhead above? Ignored.
Multiple Chant
Attribute: Metal
Variant: Thundercloud
Zzzzt, zzzzzzt—
A bolt struck between the cultists.
Destructive lightning hammered the metal sword.
Rumble, KABOOM!
The sky's wrath echoed far, leaving silence.
Living as the Mage of the Hero Party Chapter 39