The Variant Boss Falls
When the undead had dwindled to less than half—
“Guaaaaah!”
That variant bastard finally charged.
“Be careful! That is the monster we believe to be the root cause of this entire incident!”
Yeah, I figured as much.
【A monster whose mind, energy, and spirit have yet to become one.】
“Say that in plain Korean, would you?”
【It means the creature has obtained power beyond what it can bear.】
“So it’s getting weaker?”
【Because it wields strength greater than its own capacity, it will collapse under its own weight.】
In other words, leave it alone for a week and it would naturally dissipate.
Wow.
That’s actually incredible.
“So I just have to hold out for a week against a power-up monster, huh?”
What a useful strategy guide!
【The thoughts that rattle around inside that iron skull of yours never change.】
Unique Art — Solar Eclipse
Ice Bolt × 4
Modification — Expansion
The variant ghoul that had been panting as it rushed forward toppled over with a heavy thud.
【A useful little parlor trick, magic-wielder.】
Pale light surged up from beneath Sir Isra’s feet.
Body Enhancement → Mana Release
Sir Isra released her compressed mana like a detonation and closed the distance on the fallen variant ghoul with a burst of instantaneous acceleration.
“Guaaaaah!”
Hook-like claws tore wildly through the air.
The flailing looked thoroughly undignified.
【There is no grace in that form.】
I was finally starting to understand what Sir Isra meant by “dignity.”
To possess that kind of power…
and still move so crudely.
Such waste.
Imperial Sword Style — Modified Isra Form
3rd Form — Full Moon
The bone blade carved a perfect circle and sheared off the variant ghoul’s arm.
Ice Bolt
Thud! A mass of ice locked down the variant ghoul’s movement, and—
Slice!
Wherever the bone blade danced, another limb dropped away.
“Guaaah.”
【Does that breath of yours not reek?】
The bone blade punched straight through the crown of its skull.
“……Ugh.”
The variant ghoul’s dying scream was swallowed by the blade.
Level has increased.
【The enemy general is slain!】
Sir Isra held the variant ghoul’s severed head high.
Honestly?
It was a little embarrassing.
Crackle-snap!
The gate that had been stained deep red shifted back to blue, then began to shrink by degrees.
“So it really was the boss.”
Whew.
Thank goodness the situation hadn’t spiraled any further.
In the early stages of a gate break, killing the boss monster alone is enough to resolve the crisis. The real problem comes later—once the gate core dwelling inside the boss fuses with the ley lines and the area begins to turn into another world. At that point, purification can take years.
Right then.
Problem solved.
“Counter-Abnormal Bureau personnel.”
“Y-yes, Hunter-nim.”
“The break is resolved, correct?”
“Yes. We are grateful for your efforts, Hunter-nim.”
Oh, please.
“Efforts” is a bit much. My subordinates did all the actual work.
But there was one point I needed to settle cleanly.
“It seems my contribution to resolving the incident was rather significant.”
“Ah. That is correct. All rights to the monster by-products and the break resolution bounty belong entirely to you, Hunter-nim.”
Oh-ho.
Someone who actually speaks my language.
Time to check the rewards, then.
They say a tiger leaves its pelt when it dies,
and a monster leaves items.
So here’s the question:
What kind of items does a boss monster that forced its own rank-up from D-class drop?
Before confirming the answer—
“Sir. Bring the corpse as well.”
【A corpse that has already become a corpse once cannot be raised again, can it?】
“True, but I want to analyze it.”
Boss Monster Corpse
The original boss had almost certainly been of the zombie lineage. The concept of “predation” must have driven its evolution. If I could break it down, there had to be something useful somewhere.
【As expected of Master!】
“I don’t know if it’ll work yet.”
Stop inflating my ego so much. If this flops, the embarrassment is all mine.
I placed my hand on the [Evolved Predatory Ghoul] whose limbs had all been severed.
Corpse Processing
I wasn’t trying to process the shattered undead into a new servant. Corpse Processing also carried an analysis function.
When I projected my mana inward—
Analyzing undead monster…
Blueprint for specimen — Ghoul has been discovered.
“Huh?”
【What is it?!】
【Are you all right, Master?】
“Hold on.”
Why a ghoul blueprint?
This wasn’t the first undead I had ever analyzed. In five years of grinding E-class gates, I had certainly seen undead before. No—wait. Thinking carefully, this was the first time I had used Corpse Processing on an undead that wasn’t a zombie or skeleton.
【Perhaps it is because you already possessed the blueprints for those particular undead?】
“Oh.”
That… actually made sense!
【Then analyzing other undead would allow you to seize their blueprints as well.】
“Probably.”
Just like the Armed Zombie Warrior—I could invent entirely new concepts, or reverse-engineer existing undead structures to expand my library of recipes.
Which meant I might find a way to remodel Ingrid soon enough.
【Truly?!】
“C-class gates will have even more undead.”
【Yay! Thank you, Master!】
I hadn’t even started digging yet and she was already this excited.
I had planned on a light analysis and calling it done, but no—this was too good to leave.
I pulled thread and needle from my subspace carrier.
Swish-swish—
I quickly stitched the torso, arms, and legs back together. Since I wasn’t creating an undead—merely reconnecting the pieces—the work finished in under a minute. The higher Strength stat made the labor noticeably smoother.
1/10 → 2/10
Following the Electric Warrior, this was the second corpse stored. I would take my time analyzing it properly once I got back to the workshop.
【Now confirm your rewards.】
“Right. Almost forgot.”
I had been so absorbed in analyzing the Evolved Predatory Ghoul that the loot had completely slipped my mind.
The bastard had dropped two items.
◈ Durability: 80/80
◈ A ring that accumulates life force. Stored vitality can be used to heal a target.
◈ Accumulated Vitality — 82%
◈ Built-in skill: Vitality Recovery
One full grade above Magic!
All right.
I’ll believe you.
You really were a C-class boss monster.
【But with only a single option, is it not a dud?】
“We have to check the performance of the built-in skill first.”
A skill that restored a target using stored vitality. Now that I had an independent healing spell, operating without a dedicated supporter would become much easier.
【Master. May I make a suggestion?】
“Go ahead.”
【Would you please use Vitality Recovery on the damaged Armed Zombie Warrior?】
Healing spells were normally toxic to undead, weren’t they?
Well, if it broke a little more I could just fix it later.
Just a little.
I poured the vitality stored in the ring.
Accumulated Vitality: 82% → 75%
Green light seeped into the damaged areas.
“Huh?”
The wounds that should have widened instead knit themselves shut and recovered cleanly—exactly as if a proper healing spell had taken hold.
【Fortunately, it is just as I expected.】
“How does that work?”
【The healing mechanism of that ring differs from a supporter’s. If one must compare it to something, it is closer to a vampire’s blood-drain.】
An item that restored even undead.
This was genuinely rare.
“I picked up something precious in an unexpected place.”
My class was Necrosmith. Repairing damaged undead required manual work. On a chaotic battlefield I had zero means of restoring my subordinates mid-fight.
With this ring…
I no longer needed to worry so much about them being wrecked during combat.
“Do I have to offer my own vitality like I’m donating blood?”
【There is no need to harm your precious body.】
A skeletal finger pointed toward the Counter-Abnormal Bureau hunters.
【You saved their lives. Simply ask them to offer vitality with joyful hearts.】
Yeah, no.
Accumulating vitality isn’t a blood drive.
Once I entered a gate, I would just capture monsters alive whenever I had a spare moment and store them. Hopefully the vitality accumulation efficiency would be decent.
The second reward was a skill book.
◈ Durability: 1/1
◈ A book containing the skill [Underhanded Ambush], which erases presence before closing in for an attack.
A warrior-class exclusive skill. Since the book itself was Rare grade, learning it would yield at least a C-class skill.
【A cowardly technique that violates the code of chivalry.】
“If I sell the skill book as-is, I can get at least a hundred million for it.”
【Oh-ho. How splendid.】
A high sale price worked just fine for me.
Otherwise…
Should I just learn it myself?
Thanks to the Heavenly Martial Body, I could acquire warrior-line skills without issue. And the Imperial Sword Style wasn’t exactly suited for ambushes anyway.
【Gah! The lord I serve, resorting to ambush?! That cannot be allowed!】
Insanely picky, this one.
I’d put it on hold for now. Selling it was fine; learning it would also be useful.
What about the remaining monster by-products?
While I was pondering it I casually asked, and the answer came immediately.
“Hunter-nim, the Counter-Abnormal Bureau will handle those for you.”
“Oh, really?”
“There is no separate fee, and we will also process the tax deductions.”
“Please don’t sell the ghoul corpses—send them to me.”
I already possessed blueprints for the Zombie Warrior, Skeleton Mage, and Soldier. The ghouls needed further analysis.
“Um, Hunter-nim. May we verify your license for a moment?”
“Of course.”
“Ah, thank you. It’s procedure—please understand.”
Why was this guy so overly deferential? Anyone watching would think I was about to eat him.
【He knows well what courtesy toward one’s lord looks like.】
【Perhaps we should ask for just a little vitality? He seems the type who would gladly give it.】
Cut it out.
Enough with the vitality talk.
“Then am I free to leave?”
“Declaration of situation resolution is—ack!”
The hunter standing behind him started to say something and then yelped.
The hunter who had been getting pummeled by ghouls earlier spoke with urgent haste.
“Of course! The nation will remember your dedication, Hunter-nim.”
I don’t know about “dedication.” They’ll probably just remember the taxes on my income.
“Then keep up the good work.”
⊳ Tempest Knight Order — Unsummoned
⊳ Solar Eclipse Witch Order — Unsummoned
I recalled every subordinate. The two souls from other worlds were drawn into the Death Space, and I left the site where the break had occurred.
As Minho’s figure grew more distant, the Counter-Abnormal Bureau team remained behind.
The hunter who had been cut off mid-sentence finally exploded with dissatisfaction.
“Protocol is to remain on standby until the situation is officially closed!”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“So why did you step on my foot, Deputy?”
“That man is D-class.”
“What?”
“He really is D-class. I saw the license.”
Hunter licenses were linked to the status window. Once a promotion examination was passed, the rank displayed on the license updated automatically.
“A D-class hunter soloed a C-class boss monster?”
“If my eyes weren’t lying, that’s exactly what happened.”
One of the Counter-Abnormal Bureau hunters muttered, “Insane.”
It was an improper remark, yet no one corrected him. Every hunter present shared the exact same thought.
Thup-thup-thup-thup—!
The sound of rotors thundered overhead.
A helicopter stamped with the Rift Bureau emblem. Anti-gravity magic etched into its frame allowed it to fly on minimal lift, making it capable of deploying even into narrow alleys or dense city streets—a dedicated transport for the Bureau.
Kuuung!
A hunter dropped from several dozen meters without any protective gear and surveyed the surroundings.
Kim Seongwoo stepped forward to meet the newcomer.
“Deputy Kim Seongwoo, Counter-Abnormal Bureau 3rd Division.”
“1st Division, Jeon Hyeyeon. Status report?”
Hup.
Kim Seongwoo swallowed a quiet groan.
Division Chief Jeon Hyeyeon.
In pure combat power she ranked second only to Director Jeong Seungil of the Counter-Abnormal Bureau. It was frequently said that if Jeong Seungil had not refused the Director’s seat in order to keep working the field, she would have held the position long ago.
“We have eliminated the variant boss monster that caused the break.”
“Your team did? Impressive.”
“Ah—no. It was a hunter named Park Minho.”
Kim Seongwoo gave a concise summary of everything that had just occurred.
“So it really was him.”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind. You handled it well.”
Jeon Hyeyeon said nothing further. Kim Seongwoo moved on to the next procedural steps.
“Our team will patrol the surrounding area.”
“1st Division has already deployed additional personnel, so there’s no need to rush.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
After watching the hunters head out on patrol, Jeon Hyeyeon let out a quiet sigh.
To think I would encounter traces of the hunter the Director spoke of right here.
A shame.
If only she had deployed a little earlier, she might have seen the S-rank promotee that Director Jeong Seungil had mentioned with her own eyes.
Deputy Kim didn’t commit any discourtesy, I hope?
Director Jeong seemed content merely to secure external cooperation rather than full recruitment. Her own thoughts, however, differed slightly.
To reinforce the Counter-Abnormal Bureau’s combat strength, they needed to bring talented hunters in.
Passing the examination and then taking down a variant C-class boss monster in a single week…
If that person had not been Minho, she would have dismissed the report as a lie.
Could she herself have managed it?
No.
Impossible.
Even if a D-class hunter cleared gates every single day, reaching level 100 was out of the question. At best they would sit around level 60. A level-60 build going one-on-one against a C-class boss monster? Jumping into a river would offer better odds of survival.
What could I offer to make him want to join the Counter-Abnormal Bureau?
Jeon Hyeyeon hummed thoughtfully and sank into contemplation.