Chapter 26
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Divide and Conquer (2)
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The top guild hunters stared at Kang Sa-hu and his group in stunned silence, their faces blank after the sudden saviors who had just rescued them from certain death.
Even with their resolve to fight to the death, they had struggled to take down a single one of those monstrous trolls.
Watching eight of the terrifying trolls drop dead in an instant was a sight too unbelievable, even as eyewitnesses.
Especially since seven of them—excluding the one stripped to bones by the massive dog—had died screaming in abject terror, as if trapped in some nightmare.
Their gazes toward Kang Sa-hu and his team mixed relief with a primal fear of the unknown.
"Y-you..."
A hunter, half out of his mind, opened his mouth to question Kim Ho-myeong and Kang Ji-ye when Bae Deok-ho appeared behind them.
"How's the situation?"
"Lots of serious injuries."
Kang Ji-ye gave a swift reply after scanning the wounded, just as Kang Sa-hu had instructed her to do upon arrival among the hunters.
Fortunately, though they had faced trolls—monsters beyond spec—the guild's coordination had allowed a solid response.
Thanks to Kim Ho-myeong and Kang Ji-ye intervening right before fatalities occurred, there were no deaths.
"Lucky break. Good!"
Bae Deok-ho signaled to Kang Sa-hu with a hand gesture that there were no casualties.
Kang Sa-hu nodded, converted the trolls into soul cores, pocketed them, then rode his Giant Hound up the cliff and vanished.
"You're from the Cheokgang Guild, right? Where's your guild master?"
Kim Ho-myeong asked the hunters, twisting their expressions.
"...We don't know."
No hunter could bring themselves to admit aloud, even in shame, that he'd fled.
But the perceptive Kim Ho-myeong didn't press and continued casually.
"You all did great holding out. We're moving out soon, so anyone with serious leg injuries, raise your hand."
"M-moving? There might still be trolls around."
"Yes. We've scouted the terrain here. Head that way, and you'll link up with the other hunters. Better than getting cornered by trolls if they show up here."
His crisp response sparked murmurs among the Cheokgang hunters as they exchanged opinions, but it died down quickly.
"Got it."
Kang Ji-ye treated the severely injured, while Bae Deok-ho rode a Giant Hound up to the cliff top to stand guard.
Despite their grand title of guild, the Cheokgang hunters eyed Kang Sa-hu's smaller, far more powerful and organized team with envy.
Riding his Giant Hound like the wind, Kang Sa-hu raced to aid other hunters.
His eyes narrowed as he scanned the printed list of participants.
"Cheokgang Guild saved, Daehan Guild's with Lieutenant Han Si-yeon..."
Confirming Dragon Guild was the last one he needed to rescue, he extended his senses to track the Giant Hounds' movements.
Lieutenant Han Si-yeon was still searching for Daehan Guild, while the pre-rescued Cheokgang was heading to the rendezvous.
If trolls appeared, the Giant Hounds would isolate them per his prior orders for divide-and-conquer tactics—calm handling would ensure victory.
The Giant Hound, bounding swiftly on its long legs, suddenly sniffed and veered direction.
Its restored sense of smell, enhanced by devouring, picked up even the faint blood scent rising from the sheer cliffs below.
Kang Sa-hu prepared the Necromancer combo of Fear Imprint and Soul Destruction he'd used on the Cheokgang hunters.
"Argh! Don't run! Fight, you bastards—!"
"Damn it! After all that fighting, only five kills?!"
Spotting the screaming hunters below, Kang Sa-hu commanded his Giant Hound to draw all eyes.
The Hound inhaled deeply.
Wooooooo—!
Its long howl yanked every gaze—from trolls and hunters alike—toward Kang Sa-hu.
Targeting the startled trolls, he unleashed Fear Imprint.
Fear Imprint
"Krk, krktaka?! Aaaagh!"
"Kwaaaah!"
The afflicted trolls writhed on the ground, shrieking.
Without pause, he chained into Soul Destruction, shredding their souls amid their panic until terror itself vanished.
Skill 1 - Soul Core Creation is activated.
Next, applying Soul Core Creation to the soulless, helpless trolls transformed them without resistance.
Normally limited to souls and corpses of the dead, but his prior experience showed total soul erasure worked too.
Had they possessed spirits, attacking souls would have been impossible.
Knowing gate monsters lacked spirits, Kang Sa-hu had devised this.
"Wh-what? Where'd all the trolls go?"
The hunters gaped at the vanishing live trolls—and even the five corpses they'd barely slain at great cost.
The Giant Hound landed lightly before them, Kang Sa-hu aboard, descending the cliff.
"Everyone okay?"
One stepped forward at his question.
"Yes, thanks to you, Hunter. Truly grateful."
The woman bowed deeply at 90 degrees to Kang Sa-hu.
He returned the gesture.
Lifting her head, she met his eyes.
"I'm Maeng Yu-na, leader of Dragon Guild. May I have your name, Hunter?"
"Kang Sa-hu. Pleased to meet you, Maeng Yu-na Hunter."
His name rang no bells from top hunters, military lists, or anywhere.
Then it clicked: the five-person hunter group joining gate hunts.
"Ah, you're from that group of five?"
"Yes."
She nodded calmly at his matter-of-fact reply, but inside, she reeled.
'Thought they were just cocky low-rank Awakeners relying on grades, but a powerhouse like this...'
Higher awakening ranks meant stronger skills and physiques, sure.
But judging solely by that was foolish.
Her own B-rank guild had members outshining average A-ranks in combat sense and skills.
'My mistake.'
She'd dismissed them inwardly—highest A-rank, rest B—but now berated her hasty judgment.
"We've introduced ourselves, so shall we move? We should regroup with the others."
Maeng Yu-na agreed.
"But in this vast place, how do we find the others without running into trolls...?"
"No worries there. My teammates are with the other guilds already—we're all meeting at one spot."
"P-pardon?"
While they'd been trapped fighting for survival, he'd already mapped everyone and planned convergence.
Suspicious he might be toying with her, Maeng Yu-na stared.
"...?"
But his steady, guileless gaze flushed her face red.
'Doubting our rescuer.'
Embarrassed, she hurriedly directed her guild to prepare.
Soon, composed Dragon Guild set off.
Kang Sa-hu led atop his Giant Hound; beside him walked Maeng Yu-na.
"Um, Hunter Kang Sa-hu. If I may ask, what's your class? I'll go first: I got the hidden class Half-Human Half-Dragon."
He tilted his head at "Half-Human Half-Dragon."
Recalling Lieutenant Han Si-yeon's Dragonkin hidden class.
'Guess you need a hidden class to lead a group.'
Dismissing the stray thought, he answered.
"I'm a Necromancer. Not sure on rank."
"Necromancer... I see."
She gulped, eyeing the Giant Hound's menacing aura.
'Necromancers are so shady... easy betrayers... W-wait, is he lulling us to feed us to that beast?!'
As negative Necromancer stereotypes flooded her mind, Kang Sa-hu sensed an anomaly in his aura range.
He whipped his head skyward; Maeng Yu-na flinched.
'N-no way...?'
"Wh-what's wrong, Sa-hu?"
Unlikely, but had he read her rude thoughts? She steadied her voice.
But unlike before, Kang Sa-hu stared gravely at the sky, ignoring her.
'Does he have a mind-reading skill?!'
Maeng Yu-na sweated bullets.
"S-Sa-hu, I didn't mean anything by that—no, those thoughts..."
"Maeng Yu-na Hunter. Can your guild proceed to the rendezvous from here on your own?"
Her eyes widened at the unexpected question.
Realizing his odd behavior wasn't about her, her face hardened too.
"Something happen?"
"Seems like it."
His grim nod drew a heavy one from her.
"Understood. We'll make it on our own—you handle what you must."
Kang Sa-hu nodded, urging his Giant Hound up the cliff.
Dragon Guild hunters gasped in awe and shock at the spider-lizard-like vertical climb.
Atop the cliff, heart pounding, Kang Sa-hu scanned around.
"No way... it can't be..."
His uncharacteristic mutter—hoping he'd misseen—betrayed his shock.
Eyes blazing, he swept the area with blue-green aura.
Then, spotting something, his eyes bulged in horror.
Unbelievable events unfolded.
Spirits—presumably of dead hunters.
Spirits that should linger briefly in corpses before quietly departing this world.
Now surged upward like lanterns in a typhoon, precarious at terrifying speed.