Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: 1-3. The King of Hyenas Heading to the Four Limbs
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We split up the team.
I sent two-thirds of them deeper into the forest to handle the preliminary work. The remaining third would stay here and help lure in the one-eyed giants.
Hyenas don’t bunch up or flock together—they scatter. It was definitely a hassle, but as long as the monster aphids’ secretions held their effect, we’d be fine.
In this line of work, you run into far more dangerous situations than this one all the time.
This was just one more like all the others, and failure would bring only one outcome.
Death.
The guest that always lurked by our side, impatiently waiting.
“They’re working hard, those bastards.”
I watched the one-eyed giants as they began setting up camp in earnest.
The sun wouldn’t set for a few more hours, but they were already bustling about. Smart fellows.
The one-eyed giants gathered stones, piled them up to make a fire pit, and pulled out their food.
I had no idea what the meat was.
Nor did I want to know.
“Everyone ready?”
The five team members beside me nodded.
I left one behind and sent two each to circle around left and right. Then I stepped forward with just that one.
“Don’t chicken out—shoot straight, you hear?”
“Yes, sir.”
It was the rookie.
I planned to give this kid a hell of an experience today.
“Steel yourself. One slip-up, and those giants will chew you up. No joke—they’ll chomp you down nice and crunchy.”
“That’s pretty scary.”
I clapped the frozen rookie on the shoulder.
“Conquer your fear. It’s like a plague. It doesn’t just hurt you—it spreads to everyone around.”
“To the others?”
“Yeah. The faster your heart races, the quicker fear spreads. So if you overcome it, you’re protecting all your comrades around you.”
The rookie looked puzzled, so I explained further.
“There’s this theory about plagues called herd immunity. The more people who get vaccinated, the lower the infection rate for the whole group.”
“That makes sense—the more who get it, the more it drops, right?”
“Exactly. But it’s not that simple. Those vaccinated don’t just avoid infection—they don’t spread it to others either. So the vaccinated become a barrier, shielding the unvaccinated from the virus.”
“Ah….”
The rookie’s face lit up with understanding.
I glanced at the team members ready to maneuver stealthily on both flanks and continued.
“If you don’t freak out here, you protect the right and left teams from the disease of fear. But if you piss yourself or bolt, things go sideways. They’ll think something’s wrong and break protocol.”
Even veteran hyenas couldn’t help but flinch against Rank 5 monsters. That meant we had to be their shield on this risky mission.
“Straighten your shoulders. Got it?”
“Yes, sir. I’ll plant that rocket right in there.”
“Target?”
“Not the enemies—their camp.”
“Good.”
One-eyed giants were Rank 5 monsters. They had cores called mana stones inside them, which also generated a barrier.
No matter how much hell our hyenas raised, we couldn’t hurt them. So the real target was the camp they’d so painstakingly built.
Our goal was to piss off those two one-eyed giants deep.
Of course, in my case, pulling out the Solar Deity Shield from my subspace pocket changed everything—but that was a secret. Sui-El had warned that unleashing its power would drag everyone around me into the mess, though I didn’t fully get it. Still, I wasn’t ignoring her advice, so I’d wait until after splitting from the team to use it.
Kururung?
The two one-eyed giants, nearly done flattening their campsite, spotted us emerging from the forest and tensed up.
Why would such mighty Rank 5 monsters tense at the sight of two puny things like us? Simple.
They’d tangled with hunters before.
Most monsters couldn’t tell hunters apart from us hyenas.
So they tensed first and asked questions later.
But if you’ve got no substance, it shows quick. They’d act wary at first, but once they sized us up, they’d catch on. That’s when our camouflage fails, and they realize the mantis is actually a mantis-eater.
Krrrng!
The two one-eyed giants rose, grabbing their massive clubs.
“Alright, let’s do this. Rookie, give ’em a good one.”
We instantly pulled disposable rocket launchers from our subspace pockets and shouldered them.
Krrrng!
The one-eyed giants sensed the attack and charged.
But rockets are faster than you’d think.
There was a brief whoosh, and their precious campsite blew sky-high.
Kwaaaaaang!
Their faces turned to pure dismay as their hard work went up in one hit.
“Krahahahaha!”
Their expressions were so hilarious I threw my head back laughing.
A stone shard flew my way, so I sidestepped.
The rookie laughed too, just like we’d planned. His acting was amateurish—not real laughter like mine. But it worked like a charm.
The two one-eyed giants were charging us with faces red-hot with rage.
“Run!”
We bolted straight into the forest.
One-eyed giants weren’t fast runners. Clumsy for their size, they matched a grown man’s sprint at best. We slipped into the woods before they could grab us.
Krrrng!
The pissed-off giants smashed the ground with their clubs, throwing a tantrum. They kicked up dirt and hurled stones into the forest wildly. Pointless. We were already hidden behind the foliage.
“Krahahahaha!”
My laughter echoed out, and their faces twisted in fury. Still, they didn’t dare enter the danger-filled forest.
Even monsters not authorized to live there like the monster aphids faced extreme peril inside. So they just howled like enraged chimps.
This level of provocation wouldn’t cut it.
Soon, they kicked at innocent rocks and trudged back, assuming we’d fled deep into the woods.
“Rookie, let’s go. Now it gets real.”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
We crept along the forest edge, still concealed. Then we saw the one-eyed giants howling in near-agony.
“Hahaha!”
Laughter burst out again.
The flanking team had done their job perfectly. While we kept the giants occupied, they’d snuck back to the camp and dumped sewer worm shit from their subspace pockets onto the giants’ food.
Sewer worm dung was the foulest shit imaginable, with a stench beyond rivals. Sprinkling that on their precious meal? The one-eyed giants’ rage pierced the heavens.
The dumb brutes tore up the area, hunting for the culprits they thought had fled.
“We’re back.”
In the chaos, the four flanking hyenas returned.
They brought a massive hunk of meat too—some monster’s thigh, big enough for two men. A colossal chicken leg.
“Well done. Head to the rendezvous point and wait.”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
I grabbed one end of the thigh—what had been the giants’ rations—with the rookie and stepped out of the forest. Just a few meters, enough to bolt if needed.
“Hey! You one-eyed freaks!”
I yelled, drawing the gazes of the giants smashing everything nearby. They looked shocked to see me back after thinking I’d run.
Then their single eyes widened at their food in front of me.
Krrrng! Kuwaek!
Now they got it—I was the one who’d messed with their grub.
Typical one-eyed giants: slow on the uptake, dim-witted.
I made a show of tearing into their food right in front of them.
“You little shits! Your dinner’s in good hands with big bro here!”
I shouted and, with the rookie, hoisted the thigh and hauled it into the forest.
That did it—the one-eyed giants exploded.
Simple minds, primal instincts. Gluttony beyond imagination. We’d crapped on their food and run off with the rest? Unbearable.
Sure, they hated entering the forest, but they were Rank 5 monsters. They could uproot most carnivorous plants there.
“Rookie, run.”
We ditched the thigh in the underbrush and sprinted the preset route.
Far enough to keep distance, close enough to stay in sight.
Kuaaaang!
The enraged giants’ roars thundered.
The moment they charged into the forest clubs raised, it was like an explosion.
Crunch—massive leaves snapped, dirt and rocks flew everywhere.
They bulldozed the forest entrance we’d been peeking from and barreled in.
“Uwaaaah! Team Leader!”
“If you don’t wanna die, run!”
The rookie screamed like he was done for, but I burst out laughing for some reason. Ten years as a hyena had cracked my mind—this was hilarious.
Mighty monsters humiliated by worthless hyenas.
I’d always loved this.
The underdog turning the tables despite the power gap.
“Hahaha!”
I ran laughing, ignoring the rookie’s crazy-person stare. We hit the first trap.
“Rookie! Duck!”
As we slid low, a heavy whoosh rang out—buwoong!
It was a massive plant stalk, fixed like a loaded catapult. The deputy leader had pulled it down, wired it taut.
Timed for the giants’ charge, he released it.
Chwaaak!
The whip-like stalk cracked right across a giant’s face.
Kraaang!
A short yelp, and the three-meter brute toppled backward in shock.
“Krahahahaha!”
It was so funny I couldn’t stop roaring. Better than any slapstick comedy.
Even the pale-faced rookie cracked up.
The attack couldn’t really hurt them, of course. Rank 5 barriers shrugged off a plant stalk. It was all to enrage them.
“One-eyed retards! Over here!”
No talking, but they got it and charged again.
Two more traps followed.
One was vines at ankle height for giants. Both tumbled spectacularly.
I did something insanely risky with the fallen ones. I pissed right on one frowning face.
“How’s that? Feeling awake now?”
One furious giant swiped at me, but I dodged nimbly. It couldn’t hold back and pounded the ground face-down in rage.
The next trap: a carnivorous plant thicket.
We got free pass as aphid-treated, but the giants were shredded.
They ripped and snapped plants in a frenzy but tired out.
Most carnivores just wore them down—no real damage. But some Rank 6+ with mana stones ignored barriers.
Mana stone monsters could hit other mana stone monsters.
“You shits giving up after coming this far?”
The final lure was too dangerous, so I went solo. Even our ace team couldn’t handle it—they’d peeled off and hidden. I sent the rookie away while the giants dawdled.
I gorged greedily on food in front of the exhausted giants.
Gluttons by nature, starving after the breakthrough. Time to make them crave me.
Kuaang!
Seeing tasty eats sparked their greed.
I spun and bolted. Finally, the forest clearing—Gomora Excent territory. I crossed a toppled stalk like a cloud bridge.
Wide enough for giants to climb.
Krrng!
Wary of the unstable footing, they hesitated.
But one stepped up, and soon both closed in tight. They had no clue what Gomora Excent was. From Southeast Asian folklore, Gomorrah was a giant flower demon. Excent was the discoverer’s nickname post-world change.
Hence the weird name.
Obscure even to monster researchers—how would forest-shallow one-eyed giants know?
Kurung!
I reached the stalk’s end; they were an arm’s reach away.
Krung!
As one reached for me, the stalk signaled.
This toppled stalk was baited trap. Lured by fruit at the tip, careless monsters climbed. Shake and drop when they wise up.
“The bait that lured you this time? Turns out it was me.”
I plucked and munched a hanging fruit. Tart and delicious. The massive stalk quaked; the giants’ faces went slack as they fell.
No proper screams.
I went airborne too, but had a way.
Kaang!
Iron wire shot from my left hand.
Ziiing!
A motor reeled it fast; I glided briefly to safety.
Kuaaaa! Kaaang! Krrung!
Gomora Excent’s leaves rippled like waves. Small ones flew. Down below, unseen carnage.
Two giant monsters in a meat grinder. Near-screams echoed, then silence.
“Done.”
As I prayed for their souls and turned, the Gomora Excent shuddered violently.
Keoeok!
A burp-like rumble, and something rocketed up.
What the—?
It whistled high, vanished to a dot, then plummeted.
Piuuuu—
“Eek!”
Straight at me—I dodged back.
Thud! A shiny rugby-ball thing slammed into the dirt.
“What the hell?”
Curious, I approached. A Rank 5 core—mana stone.
“Holy shit. Jackpot. Can’t digest cores?”
Monsters often targeted others’ cores to grow. But Gomora Excent spat it out.
Weird—I profited, but something that big should handle mana stones.
And right in front of me? Suspicious.
Payment for bait?
“Nah, no way.”
Shook off the thought, pocketed it.
Scanner: one 1.2 billion, one 800 million. Total 2 billion.
I glanced around, stashed both mana stones quick in my subspace pocket.
Team was holed up at rally point. Deputy wouldn’t come unless I was late.
No witnesses.
“Wheee—.”
Whistling casually, I strolled to the rally.
They say hogging it all gives you indigestion.
What can you do? As a greedy hyena, I like the bloat.
If it bugs you, step up and be team leader.