The Boss Runs Away

As the Stone Golems collapsed in heaps, a series of messages arrived.

Yu-shin’s eyes gleamed at the word Summon Monster. Unlike a Familiar, it had the disadvantage of returning to nature after a certain period, but that was more than enough. It was perfect for running an automated hunting loop.

Meanwhile, Park Sang-ho and the other porters, who had already finished collecting all the orange magic stones, were waiting for Yu-shin.

"It’s only been three days, but the bags are already full. Jeong-gu, your bag is almost full too, right?"

At Park Sang-ho’s words, Jeong-gu replied, "Yes, boss. It’s already packed. I guess an uncleared dungeon really is something ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠else."

Park Sang-ho smiled at Jeong-gu’s remark. He had experienced uncleared dungeons a few times himself, but this was Jeong-gu’s first.

"No, it’s that Hunter Cheon Yu-shin who’s incredible. I’ve been in a few times, but this is the first time I’ve seen a hunter take down monsters so easily."

Everyone’s gaze turned toward Cheon Yu-shin. At that moment, they saw it. The Stone Golems that had crumbled into piles of rocks were regaining their forms and standing up again.

"Uh, what is this? How are they alive?"

"They were definitely dead, weren't they?"

"But something feels strange..."

Unlike the red light that had flickered in their eyes until now, a dark, ink-like glow was shining from them. Then, an astonishing sight unfolded before their eyes. The five Stone Golems knelt on one knee before Yu-shin and bowed their heads. It looked just like a knight’s vow of loyalty.

As they watched the scene, holding their breath, Yu-shin said with a satisfied smile, "Let’s get going."

"W-what is that?" Park Sang-ho asked, pointing at the Stone Golems with a dazed expression.

"These guys? They’re my lackeys."

"La-lackeys?"

Just as Yu-shin was about to open his mouth to explain to the bewildered Park Sang-ho, three more Stone Golems came running from afar.

"Seeing is believing, right?"

At that moment, the kneeling Stone Golems stood up abruptly. They immediately began to fight the Stone Golems rushing toward Yu-shin. It wasn't even a one-on-one fight; with the numerical disadvantage and Cheon Yu-shin’s support fire, the three Stone Golems were taken down in the blink of an eye.

"Whoa. Am I seeing this right?"

"A-are monsters fighting monsters?"

While they were still dumbfounded, Cheon Yu-shin shouted, "Time to collect the magic stones!"

From then on, the hunt was literally automated. They would defeat the Stone Golems, collect the stones, and resurrect the crumbled golems. The five Stone Golems they started with quickly grew to over forty.

How much time had passed? 'Is that the one?'

Four pillars were visible. And standing motionless within them was a single Stone Golem. It looked 1.5 times larger than any of the golems they had hunted so far. What was even more peculiar was the yellow light flickering on its forehead. It looked extraordinary at a glance. Anyone could tell it was a typical boss monster.

At that moment, the Stone Golem’s eyes opened, and it began to charge toward Yu-shin. Yu-shin’s Stone Golems didn't just watch. They rushed at the larger golem without hesitation.

Kuaaaaang! Kwa-ang!

The thunderous sound of stone clashing against stone rang powerfully in Yu-shin’s ears. Park Sang-ho and the others squeezed their eyes shut and covered their ears with both hands, overwhelmed by a battle on a different level than anything they had seen before. Every time the boss golem swung its fist, one of Yu-shin’s golems would collapse to the ground.

The nearly 50 Stone Golems were now reduced to fewer than 20. At this rate, defeat was inevitable. But for some reason, Yu-shin’s expression remained relaxed, even as his golems were turning back into piles of rocks at this very moment.

That was when he spoke. "As expected of a boss monster, you won't go down easily, huh?"

Yu-shin’s hand reached out toward the boss golem. Then—

"Corpse Explosion."

No sooner had Yu-shin’s voice finished than the piles of rocks at the boss golem’s feet began to explode all at once.

Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!

The boss golem staggered from the sudden explosive attack. Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Yu-shin’s golems rushed in all at once and grabbed the boss golem’s arms and legs.

"Nice!"

Yu-shin immediately summoned a Dark Spear and hurled it at the creature. Pa-pa-pat! He focused the attack on the upper body, but it only sparked, failing to deal any significant damage. As if to prove this, the boss golem didn't even pay attention to the Dark Spear, focusing only on tearing off the golems clinging to its limbs. Then, by chance, a Dark Spear struck the yellow light on its forehead.

Yu-shin’s eyes narrowed as the boss ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠golem flinched. 'Could that be the core?'

Yu-shin fired a spear toward that spot as a test. The creature, which had been ignoring his attacks until just a moment ago, blocked the spear with the back of its hand. 'Bingo. That’s the weak point!'

Targeting a weak point that wasn't even hidden was like taking candy from a baby. Dozens of spears flew toward its forehead. The creature began to be pushed back by the golems clinging to it and the relentless barrage of spears. It tried to counterattack in between, but no one could withstand such concentrated fire.

"Kra-ra-ra-ra!"

The yellow light on its forehead flashed. 'Mana?'

Yu-shin’s eyes widened. As soon as the light flashed, a surge of mana energy radiated from the creature in all directions. The Stone Golems within its influence crumbled back into piles of rocks.

There were no more Stone Golems left standing on two legs for Yu-shin. "Kra-ra-ra-ra-ra!" Sensing this, the creature let out a roar as well. It sounded like a roar of victory. Yu-shin chuckled at the sight.

"You little brat, you're going to make my ears bleed."

Yu-shin spread his hands wide. "But what do you do? I can just bring them back to life."

A Familiar cannot be re-summoned within 24 hours of being killed. But monsters raised through Summon are different. As long as his Magi allows it, summons can be resurrected infinitely. Just like this.

Rumble, rumble.

Yu-shin’s destroyed Stone Golems began to stand up again. At that sight, the light on the boss golem’s forehead began to shine even more intensely. It felt like it was about to show off some new technique. 'Oh yeah, go ahead. Show me something fun.'

Just as expectation filled Yu-shin’s eyes, the creature moved. But...

"...What?"

A look of absurdity appeared on Yu-shin’s face. Kim Sang-ho and the others were the same.

"I-is that boss monster running away right now?"

"I-it looks like it? We aren't dreaming, are we?"

"Have you ever heard of a boss monster running away from a hunter?"

"N-no, I haven't..."

Yu-shin’s gaze was fixed in vain on the back of the boss golem, which was fleeing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on its magnificent two legs. 'What the hell? What is that bastard?'

The absurdity lasted only a moment before Yu-shin’s face twisted violently. He had no intention of letting the boss monster he had already caught slip away.

Kwa-ang!

As Yu-shin’s knees bent, his body shot forward like an arrow.

#

The Stone Golem from earlier was nothing compared to this one. The golem, easily 1.5 times larger, was charging forward, crushing the trees that obstructed its path. Kim Yoon-ho and his attack team gulped at its massive size and terrifying appearance.

'S-shit. What kind of D-class is this!'

Wasn't this going too far? Conflict flickered in Kim Yoon-ho’s eyes for a moment. The attack team members were all terrified and had lost their will to fight, and the porters were already in despair.

Kim Yoon-ho slammed his shield into the ground. "Everyone, get a grip! You bastards! It’s just one monster! We can do this! Everyone, take combat formation and wait for it to come!"

At Kim Yoon-ho’s shout, the team members hurriedly scrambled to their positions as if they had just come to their senses. "Y-yeah! They say if you keep your wits about you, you can survive even if a tiger drags you away! Let's pull ourselves together, just like the leader said!"

The more experienced attack team members were encouraging the others, trying to revive their will to fight. But...

'We can never win.'

Kim Yoon-ho was coolly assessing the team’s strength from the very back. That Stone Golem was definitely not a regular monster. He didn't know how it happened, but it was either a boss monster or something on that level. They couldn't even handle a regular Stone Golem, and now they were supposed to fight a boss-level one and win? That was nonsense.

Leaving behind those who were burning with the will to fight against the charging golem, Kim Yoon-ho secretly slipped out of the battlefield.

The attack team members, unaware of this fact, shouted urgently as the golem got closer. "Leader! Give us orders!"

"Hurry, Leader!"

A few members looked for Kim Yoon-ho, but they couldn't see him. There was no one where Kim Yoon-ho had been standing.

"W-what!"

"Where did he go!"

"Crazy, did he run away?"

"No way. The leader wouldn't do that!"

"Th-that son of a bitch!"

"Fuck! The leader ran away?!"

With the golem in front and Kim Yoon-ho gone behind them, the attack team members began to panic one by one. It was already too late to run.

"Kra-ra-ra-ra!"

As their complexions turned white as a sheet, the charging golem let out a roar.

"Sh-shit. I'm going to die here."

"I knew I didn't want to come in here."

The ground shook as the creature’s footsteps approached rapidly. Seeing it up close, they knew. They felt it. Even if they blocked with shields, thrust with swords, and fired magic, the creature would just deflect it all. Anticipating the pain that was about to come, everyone squeezed their eyes shut.

Now, the sound of the creature’s footsteps could be heard right beside them. It wasn't an exaggeration. It was really right beside them. But...

'Why does the sound seem to be getting further away?'

'Did I already die?'

'Why doesn't it hurt?'

There was no pain, and the noise was also fading away rapidly. Understanding the situation that they couldn't grasp while their eyes were closed, one or two began to open their tightly shut eyes. And they saw it. The back of the Stone Golem, which was running somewhere in a hurry.

It looked just like...

"Does it look like it's running away to you, too?"

"D-does it look like that to you?"

"I think so too..."

The attack team ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stared at the Stone Golem with dazed expressions, caught between relief at having survived and confusion. That was when—

"Hey, you bastard! Give me the items!"

What was it this time? At the sudden shout of a young man, the attack team’s gaze turned back. More precisely, toward the direction where the Stone Golem had appeared. And they saw him. Cheon Yu-shin, the hunter from the other team that had been separated from them.

"Heeey! Stop right there! If I catch you, you're dead!"

Cheon Yu-shin zoomed past the attack team. By now, the attack team’s heads had also turned in the direction where Cheon Yu-shin had disappeared.

"W-what is this situation?"

"It couldn't be that the Stone Golem is running away from him, could it?"

"Hahaha, don't be ridiculous..."

But no one could deny it. Unless they had lost their minds from the fear of death, the scene they had just witnessed... Cheon Yu-shin was chasing the Stone Golem, and the Stone Golem was running away from Cheon Yu-shin. Their heads were filled with nothing but questions.

'What on earth is this situation?'