Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: The Finishing Blow
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Dun let out a hollow chuckle as he gazed at Yi Yuhyeon, who looked utterly terrified. She was such a scaredy-cat.
He'd thought she was this cool person—calm yet warm, dignified even.
Actually, he hadn't thought that much of it. Strip away the nostalgia filter, and she was just a nice, high-status uncle type.
"I think I can handle it."
Yi Yuhyeon tilted her head toward Dun and whispered so the other party members wouldn't hear.
"Yeah."
"I can do it."
"I got it."
"I'll do gre—"
"I'm leaving you behind."
He started getting on her nerves, so he strode ahead purposefully, and she quieted down right away. Convinced she'd be safe sticking by Dun, Yi Yuhyeon refused to stray far from his side.
"Yuhyeon seems really sweet. Keeps talking to the kid so she won't feel left out."
The other players, eager to chat with Yi Yuhyeon, kept glancing back. They seemed to think Dun was holding her back.
"Sweet, my ass. If anyone's sweet, it's me."
Raise her, feed her, tuck her in—huh? Huh?
As Dun grumbled softly in complaint, Yi Yuhyeon let out a low laugh beside him. She nodded like yeah, right, which was pretty damn annoying.
Hand over that "sweet guy" title.
"Everyone, stay sharp. The Remirings are coming."
A player who looked like the tank hushed the party, who had been lightly chatting, and crouched down.
Yi Yuhyeon, spooked again, crept back toward Dun.
"You're strong enough to smash Remirings, so quit acting weak."
She was usually so gung-ho about everything, but now she kept showing this feeble side, and it rubbed him the wrong way.
Dun kicked her away with his foot, sending her a good few steps back.
"......"
Yi Yuhyeon stared blankly at him with wide eyes for a moment before flashing a bright grin, teeth and all.
"......Not sure if I can pull it off, but I'll give it my all."
Bouncing back quick, she pulled a sword from her inventory, gripped it, and assumed a stance.
A bunch of footsteps echoed from deeper in the cave. The Remirings' feet were small, producing light sounds, but with so many, it added up to quite the racket.
[Kieeeek!]
A ear-splitting screech rang out as hordes of Remirings swarmed in.
These slippery, loach-like monsters resembled ducks, their gaping maws lined with dozens of razor-sharp teeth.
[lv.45] Enraged Remiring
[lv.43] Enraged Remiring
Remirings averaged in the 40s level-wise—pretty high considering the players' levels right now. The tensed-up team members started forming ranks.
They must've drilled this a bunch; their formation flowed smooth as water.
The tanks surged forward to absorb the Remirings' attacks, while the damage dealers hung back, guarding the tanks and unleashing ranged strikes.
Assassin-types darted in nimbly, quickly picking off the Remirings supporting from the rear.
Against these moderately dumb Remirings, it was a solid setup with few openings.
Yi Yuhyeon, sword drawn at the back, scratched her head awkwardly when the Remirings heading her way got wiped out before they even reached her.
"Guess I should just support from the rear?"
"You gonna level up like that? Push up front even if they rag on you."
Bad timing on his part. He'd been mulling whether to bail and scout another dungeon when a Remiring lunged at Yi Yuhyeon nearby—figuring she was weak since she lagged behind.
She swallowed hard at the sight of the charging Remirings, then raised her sword.
She looked pretty tense, but she dodged their wing-spread, stinger-shooting attacks with agile grace.
"Whoa......"
She stared blankly at the hundreds of stingers embedded along her evasion path, letting out an impressed murmur. Dodging Dun's attacks versus real combat felt worlds apart.
"Dodging your attacks makes these guys look dead slow."
The Remirings attacking her soon flapped helplessly in her traps—she'd laid them mid-dodge. Their HP started ticking down steadily, and they weakened fast.
Yi Yuhyeon drew her sword and slit their throats clean. Neat moves.
"I've killed a ton, but no level up?"
She tilted her head, having expected a ding after dropping multiple 40s-level mobs, waiting in vain for the silent system alert.
"You've been sparring me this whole time—think Remirings will cut it for levels? Grab the boss here, and you'll level."
"......Can I even take down the boss?"
Dun hated talk like that.
Self-doubt just snowballs into bigger doubts. Better to shake off that shaky mindset ASAP for mental health.
Must be deflated from diving into this scary water-themed spot.
"Hah......"
Dun sighed big, face screaming annoyed as hell. Time to snap her out of that doubt loop.
"......Ah, I'll smash 'em all."
"Yeah."
For some reason, her mind cleared right up. One more weak whimper, and it'd be the Remiring boss or Dun killing her.
While the party hammered the front-line Remirings, Yi Yuhyeon soloed the sneaky rear ambushers.
If teammates turned to check the back, she'd already cleaned house.
"Weird. Why no attacks from the rear?"
"Yuhyeon, no Remirings coming from behind?"
"They did. Handled 'em."
"Oh? Must've been just a few."
Yi Yuhyeon shrugged as she wiped Remiring goo from Dun's hair with her collar.
"Dungeon clear's too easy, right? Way easier than expected."
"Yeah. Was hyped 'cause it's hidden."
The front Remirings thinned out enough that assaults slowed. None coming from behind anymore.
They pressed deeper into the now-empty cave.
The further in, the fewer monsters. People murmured, staying vigilant as they advanced.
As subtle tension hung in the air, Dun shattered it with a dry tone.
"Whoa, boss room."
He pointed at it with a finger. The party freaking out and tensing up was starting to bore him.
Pitch-black surroundings made the Remiring boss room a pain to spot.
Remirings could cloak their whole turf, so most folks missed boss rooms easy.
But hint at its existence, and they'd find it quick.
That was the limit of the Remiring territory stealth skill.
Annoying. If not for these dawdling party members, he'd have cleared with Yuhyeon ages ago. They kept grinding his gears.
Like when the dash button glitches in a game.
As Dun leaked the boss's trail, the party turned to where he pointed.
"Gasp, new room here!"
"Big entrance—gotta be the boss room?"
"Alright, almost done. Everyone gear up and let's go!"
Phew, finally.
Dun grabbed Yi Yuhyeon's collar as she swung her sword at empty air and yanked her along.
[C-Grade Quest: Land the Finishing Blow on Boss]
Content: Land the finishing blow on the boss Remiring, no matter what.
Reward: 300 exp
Refuse: Soul Contract Penalty
Fail: Dun's Dislike, Harsh Training
"You land the last hit. Otherwise, no point coming here. Got it?"
He whispered low enough for just her ears.
He leaked a hint of killing intent, and Yi Yuhyeon stiffened, nodding firmly.
No need to walk further once at the boss room, so Dun paused, hand on the wall, bending to catch his ragged breath.
"Already tired?"
"Yeah."
"Beat the boss quick, and I'll carry you back."
Dun's stiff expression softened a bit at that.
[Me too...... carry you.......]
"You're too slow. No."
[......Hng.]
The Poopy stuck to Dun's head turned blue, melting gooily down to his shoulder. Poopy was 90s level, so tough to kill, but just in case, Dun scooped it into a prepared vial.
Poopy's sad face smooshed against the glass as it slimed into its portable home.
Step into the boss room, and bam—massive Remiring right there. It knew they were coming; boss attack hit instant.
[Kuweeeek!!!]
Boss monster Remirina, clutching her eggs, roared soon after. As her huge wings flared wide, hundreds of stingers shot out.
[Boss Monster] Remirina
Level: 63
Yi Yuhyeon whipped a shield from her inventory and wrapped it around Dun.
It turned porcupine in seconds. From behind it, she busily crafted anti-monster items.
"Damn, these stingers hurt like hell! Watch out, everyone!"
A player who'd failed to fully dodge Remirina's assault yanked needles from his arm, yelling. Casual gamers barely felt pain, so even injured, his face didn't scream agony.
One wing flap from Remirina, and formation crumbled. Fierce winds shoved them back.
Magic bounced back on the gales, swords barely scratched.
"Reform!!! Mages, defensive spells! No wind-blockers?"
"None! What now?"
"When it pauses wingbeats, everyone rush the boss!"
The sword-wielding tank charged. Couldn't tank endless winds, so Remirina halted flaps, wings drooping.
"Now!"
The leader-type pointed with his sword, and melee players closed in tight. Rear support jobs and mages boosted their defense and attack on the spot.
Attacks landed, if only briefly.
Kueeek!
Kuweeeek!
Remirina's eggs hatched one by one, shielding their queen. Bigger and higher-level than the outer Remirings. While she rested, they flapped wings en masse, scrambling ranks again.
Seizing the chaos, Remirina and Remirings unleashed more stingers—hundreds flying thick and fast.
"Someone do something! My HP's tanking! Healer!"
"I'm busy self-healing!"
Total pandemonium. One stinger packed a punch; multiples were fatal.
Dun gathered the ones that pinged harmlessly off his skin. Got tedious, so he had Poopy collect. It slimed around, stockpiling them internally before dumping the lot on him.
Stashing Poopy's haul in his inventory on the sly, Dun watched Yi Yuhyeon suddenly kick off the ground and blitz forward.
"Agh! My HP's gone! HP crit!"
The tank, legs needled where shield missed, collapsed powerless. Stared at incoming doom with resignation.
"If I die soon, eat my items good and give 'em back!"
"We're all dying here? This boss is nuts!"
"Argh! Shoulda brought more peeps for the strat—such a waste!"
Right as group wipe loomed—
Someone zipped around Remirina at unbelievable speed, using an on-the-spot gadget to snap her wings and bind 'em tight.
As she thrashed to shake him off, he rebounded her body to slam her down.
Yi Yuhyeon mounted her head in a flash and drove his blade into the nape killspot.
Blue blood sprayed like a fountain, drenching him.