Raid Competition
A raid competition.
When multiple bids come in for the same gate, instead of entrusting the job to a single organization, every party that submitted an application participates in the clear together.
"I know I'm the one who recommended it, but are you sure about this?"
"If you can't avoid it, you might as well charge straight in."
That was the second option President Baek had offered. The moment I heard it, I didn't even need to think — I chose the raid competition.
As expected of my liege!
Those arrogant little pests. This girl will thrash every last one of them.
Heh. That's reassuring.
"You said there's no guarantee Mir will be the only ones, right?"
"Yes. It's still in the realm of possibility."
"Then let's put on a show."
The Mir Guild. Guildmaster Yong Cheonwoo might be a big deal, but the people competing against me would be C-class or D-class at best. From what I'd seen in the sparring matches, they looked manageable enough. Once I promoted to C-class I'd start running into stronger hunters, but that wasn't today's problem.
Hahaha! Whoever it is, I'll cut them down!
Hey. I didn't say kill anyone, buddy.
You iron-skulled oaf. What are you doing swinging a blade right out of the gate?
Whew. Right. Ingrid, thank goodness you're here. My heart can rest a little easier.
Shouldn't we bind them, make them suffer, and kill them slowly?
Hmph. Oppressing the weak runs contrary to chivalry… but they did bare killing intent toward my liege, so I suppose it is acceptable.
Urgh. My common sense is about to collapse.
"Absolutely do not swing a sword or cast magic at any Mir hunter."
Khh. And here I thought this was my chance to prove my loyalty.
To spare such insolent wretches… Master is far too merciful.
Sigh. What am I supposed to do with these walking disasters?
"When's the competition?"
"Tomorrow."
A cave, and a fairly large one. Probably had a similar feel to the E-class gate Cave of Darkness.
Anyway. Manseok Park was right near my parents' place. Once the raid was over, I should stop by and say hello.
"The main monster is the Black Spider."
"Honest gate name, I'll give them that."
Black Spiders. Bodies about three to four meters across. Their main attack patterns were biting, charging, and spitting webs.
"They also cling to walls."
"So they move in three dimensions."
"According to the Rift Authority's intel, it looks like this one's gone uncleared for quite a long time."
Ah. A long-term uncleared gate.
One of the support-team hunters listening to the briefing raised a hand.
"Boss."
"Go ahead."
"If it's been uncleared this long, isn't it dangerous?"
"It is."
"I was just wondering why you'd put in a bid on a place like that."
Now that he mentioned it… the fact that a raid competition had been called meant we'd put in a bid too.
"Because I believe Hunter Park can handle it."
"Ah. Well, yeah."
"And second, after losing out on so many other bids, we got pushed all the way down to Suwon."
This will not do. We really must dispose of them.
Don't you dare.
President Baek glanced at his watch.
PM – 01:35
For an ordinary office worker, that was lunch-and-back-to-work time. For the support team, though, early clock-out the moment a gate clear wrapped was the daily routine.
"Everyone free for the afternoon, right?"
"Yes, Boss."
"You lot need to start prepping for the raid."
Oof. Not overtime, exactly, but still. I felt a twinge of guilt and stole a sideways look at the support team's faces — only to find the opposite of what I expected.
"President Baek, what should we start with?"
"We'll make damn sure everything's ready."
"Hyung-nim, leave it to us and head home already."
Way too fired up! They couldn't even go home, so why were they suddenly bursting with energy?
"We joined the support team, but we've always felt like we weren't earning our keep."
"Hyung-nim's so damn good that all we ever do is briefings."
"Finally we get a chance to actually help!"
"How are we supposed to sit still?"
It wasn't even a rehearsed chorus, yet every line landed like they'd practiced the script. Honestly. Just handling the monster intel and sorting mana stones and corpses was already a huge help to me. I had no idea they'd been carrying that around.
"Don't you worry. I'll drill these guys thoroughly."
President Baek smiled, looking thoroughly pleased. Ugh. That smile was somehow more terrifying.
"Anyway, I'm counting on you."
"Hunter Park, just focus on managing your condition."
"I'll rest tonight. Today I want to shore up our forces a bit."
Remembering the moment that Blue Raptor's claw had glanced off me still made my stomach drop. I also needed to refill the knight-order slot that had opened up. If the Hunter Market had any decent corpses listed, I'd craft another Skeleton Mage while I was at it.
"I'll get ready on my end too."
"Understood."
As I turned to leave after the goodbyes, the memory of facing Guildmaster Yong Cheonwoo at headquarters floated back up.
That fellow who put on such a hearty act, you mean.
"Without you, Sir, I never would have known."
A perfect chance to pay him back!
Leave the vanguard to me.
Both of my retainers spoke with voices full of fighting spirit. Not a shred of doubt among them. No confidence that they might lose, either.
A blue rift stood solidly across the access road into Suwon's Manseok Park — the entrance to the long-uncleared gate known as Black Spider Cave.
"Pass! Pass!"
"Ball's coming!"
The park wrapped around a lake and had any number of sports facilities. A futsal club. Students who lived nearby. All sorts of people using the park without the slightest concern that a gate was sitting right there.
"Look at them, living so carefree."
Displeasure surfaced in Min Taesu's eyes. A Mir Guild hunter, and one who had recently grasped the technique of Mana Release. One exam at Seungcheon Tower and he'd be locked in as B-class — a talent. He'd posted the best results among the rookies, and Mir had been pouring support into him for it.
Min Taesu pursed his lips.
They don't even realize they get to live this peaceful life because of hunters.
A gate right in their faces, and they were just enjoying their ordinary day. Impossible without hunters doing the work.
That's right. It's possible because chosen people like me exist.
He was different from the complacent masses soaking in their daily routines. An awakened, chosen existence who could feel mana. Among hunters, he was already confirmed as top one percent — one of the nation's top-five guild talents.
And this isn't where it ends.
Min Taesu had ambition. Not content to stop at being an outstanding Mir rookie, he would climb higher — someday become S-class and hold the entire Republic of Korea in his grip.
It wasn't baseless ambition, either. A hunter locked in for B-class only half a year after awakening was rare even inside Mir. Guildmaster Yong Cheonwoo and a handful of A-class hunters, maybe.
I can do it too.
Past A-class, all the way to S-class. Hell — why not beyond that? Once he reached those heights, even those commoners out there kicking a ball around would be falling over themselves to cheer for him.
Heheh. The rosy future made him grin without meaning to.
"Preparations are complete."
A man's voice yanked Min Taesu back to reality. Tch. He'd been in such a good mood, too. He frowned at the hunter who'd spoiled it.
"Ah. Right."
"Park Minho is dangerous, Raid Captain."
A man in full plate mail spoke with an expressionless face. Jang Minseok — the hunter who'd been taken apart at Mir Guild headquarters without landing a single finger on Minho.
"Advice from a man who's made a habit of losing."
"……"
Grit. Jang Minseok ground his teeth. He'd once been called one of Mir's promising rookies himself, but after losing to Minho, guild support had dried up. That was why this raid competition mattered so much to him. The deal was simple: beat Minho, and the guild would start backing him again. So he swallowed his pride and pressed on.
"I got arrogant too. And I lost."
"I'll keep it in mind."
Min Taesu beamed.
"Ah, and since I'm the raid captain, drop the formalities, yeah?"
"As you wish."
"Next time, don't go handing out advice above your station."
Jang Minseok's face flushed red, then purple. Of all the timing — the day Minho had beaten him senseless was the same day Min Taesu had awakened Mana Release mid-raid. The day their fortunes split.
Son of a bitch.
Jang Minseok clamped his mouth shut. If he opened it even a crack, the curses itching in his throat would spill right out.
"Go get ready."
"……Yes."
"And don't get careless and screw up this time."
Min Taesu threw Jang Minseok's own words straight back at him, then waved him off with a dismissive flick of the hand. But Jang Minseok just stood there staring blankly.
"What are you doing? Aren't you going to prep?"
"It's Park Minho."
"Oh. The main character finally makes his entrance."
Min Taesu swaggered toward Minho with a strut.
A park not far from my parents' house. Even after a few years away, the roads still felt familiar — aside from all the extra hunters, anyway.
"I heard other guilds showed up besides Mir?"
"Those hunters? Every last one of them is Mir."
Three oversized trailers parked along the roadside. Five meal trucks. President Baek's little coffee cart looked downright pathetic next to them. And the hunters? The gate maxed out at thirty entries, but there had to be close to fifty hunters here.
"Keeping reserves on a raid team is standard practice."
"Ah, I see."
"They've also got healers on standby."
The trailers were loaded with gear stamped with Mir's mark. So the "national top five" label wasn't just empty talk.
"Chilseong's scale is even bigger than Mir's."
"Oh — is that so?"
"Not that it has anything to do with me anymore."
I didn't bring that up. Mmph.
"Hweeeeh. Talk about demoralizing."
"We're betting everything on you, hyung-nim."
"You said you beat them easy in the sparring matches."
"Wait, really?"
Weird. I never told the support team that.
"I gave them a heads-up. For morale."
"Next time, clear it with me first before you go talking."
"My apologies."
"No — I wasn't fishing for an apology."
It was just a little embarrassing. I was slowly getting used to praise, sure, but hearing personal results from a sparring match broadcast like a brag still made me squirm.
Thud— thud—
A group of hunters approached from the opposite side. The one in front wore an exaggerated grin.
"The Necromancer of Guui-dong! What an honor to meet you like this."
"You're with Mir Guild, I take it?"
"Min Taesu. I'm serving as raid captain for this competition."
He was smiling, all right, but the ugly emotion swimming in his eyes was impossible to hide. The senses sharpened by Heavenly Martial Body were a real inconvenience at times like this.
Talent always draws envy and jealousy.
Once we're inside the gate, may I at least take one of his fingers?
Whoa. Whoa. We didn't come here to kill each other. Remember — the real competition is the monsters and the gate.
I stuck out my hand like nothing was wrong.
"May your gate clear go smoothly."
"And may the Necromancer of Guui-dong return safely as well."
We shook. Then I walked past Min Taesu like I had nothing more to say to him.
All right. Let's do this, Mir Guild boys.