Chapter 53
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Resurrection, Santa Maria
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Crack!
But the breeze only dug about two-thirds into its neck before stopping. It was a fatal blow, but the thing was still alive, writhing around.
Hiss—
With a deflating sound, Lee Chun-bae pulled out the Breeze. Blood poured down like a waterfall, but at the same time, the wound began to heal.
‘Just die already, you cockroach bastard!’
I yanked hard on the sling strap to keep the wound from closing. Lee Chun-bae desperately pressed his head down to seal the injury.
Grrrind—
A tug-of-war between the puller and the pusher.
The balance slowly tipped toward the pusher.
‘I can’t let this chance slip!’
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t overpower Lee Chun-bae, who had just advanced to 4-star.
‘Damn it, not enough strength.’
That’s when it happened.
[Level Up!]
[Upgrade Complete!]
[You have reached Rank 3.]
[Cha In-hyeok. Lv 21. (0.1%)] [Mana 11/33]
[Strength 62, Agility 62, Vitality 53, Intelligence 50]
[Unallocated Stat Points: 13]
‘Level up? Why? Oh!’
It must’ve been that my minions repelling the intruders had filled up the missing experience.
‘Think later—boost strength first.’
I dumped all unallocated stat points into Strength and pulled the sling strap with everything I had.
The wound, which had been starting to knit back together, ripped open again with a ‘zzzt!’ sound.
“Gr, grrrk!”
With the sound of air escaping from the pool of blood, the strength drained from Lee Chun-bae’s hands.
‘Now!’
Leaning against Lee Chun-bae’s back, I flipped his head over my shoulder like a judo throw.
“Uwaaaah!!”
Splash!
His head tore off, blood spraying out like a fountain. The massive three-meter body finally collapsed, lifeless.
Thud!
[Level Up!]
[Cha In-hyeok. Lv 22. (17.9%)] [Mana 14/36]
[Strength 75, Agility 62, Vitality 53, Intelligence 50]
[Unallocated Stat Points: 13]
“Whew. That was close.”
I staggered to my feet. Assistant Instructor Song and the Instructor were approaching from afar.
‘Whoa! Are they coming to heal me?’
Panicking, I touched my cheek where Lee Chun-bae had stabbed me—and surprisingly, there was no pain. Just smooth flesh.
‘Right! Super Regeneration!’
Thanks to the Super Regeneration skill I gained from taking the baby naga into my bloodline, the wound had healed perfectly. Though as a side effect, I felt more exhausted than usual.
[Super Regeneration (Healing Factor, D-Grade): Natural healing rate increases dramatically. Even severed body parts regenerate bones, muscles, and organs. However, decapitation prevents regeneration, and Vitality penalties apply based on recovery amount.]
[Recovery Amount 5.7%]
[Vitality 50(-5.7%)]
Fortunately, since the injury wasn’t severe, the penalty wasn’t too bad.
“You two. You alright?”
“I’m fine, so please check on the Branch Manager. He’s been exposed to the paralyzing poison for quite a while.”
I sent the Instructor to the Branch Manager and talked with Assistant Instructor Song.
“You sure you’re really okay? Nowhere hurts?”
“Yeah. Totally fine. See? Good as new.”
A healing ability no human could have. It might’ve been off-putting, but Assistant Instructor Song just sighed in relief.
‘Assistant Instructor Song really is on my side.’
Having someone unconditionally in your corner, no matter the situation, was incredibly reassuring.
‘Now, how do I clean this up?’
All the hunters on site were staring at me, faces saying, ‘Where’d this guy come from?’
“Whew. You actually managed to decapitate him. Impressive.”
Branch Manager Kang Seong-yoon, now freed from paralysis, approached and spoke to me. Thankfully, both he and the Instructor regarded me favorably.
“Don’t you think it’s time to reveal who you are? You’re the biggest hero of this incident. The media will be curious too.”
“Huh? The media? That’s a bit...”
“Sorry, but due to circumstances, he can’t disclose his identity. Please understand.”
As I hesitated, Assistant Instructor Song stepped in.
“Then at least tell us your name. We won’t tell the media. By the way, earlier it sounded like a Japanese name—are you Japanese?”
“Not exactly...”
“As I said, his identity can’t be revealed due to circumstances. But I’ll vouch for him.”
Assistant Instructor Song Hye-rin answered again.
“Assistant Instructor Song?”
At the Instructor’s question, Assistant Instructor Song shook her head.
“No. This is as Guild Master of the Santa Maria Guild.”
Assistant Instructor Song turned to me and winked.
“He’s the Vice-Master of the resurrected Santa Maria Guild.”
* * *
“Sorry. I made it up on the spot, but I worry I went too far on my own.”
Assistant Instructor Song scratched her cheek, glancing at me.
“Not at all. If anything, it worked out perfectly thanks to you.”
People were so shocked by the news of Santa Maria Guild’s resurrection that they didn’t pry into my identity.
They probably mistook me for one of the guild’s surviving members.
“But a guild all of a sudden...? What’s going on?”
“Actually, I’ve been thinking about it since that day. I don’t want to waste away as an assistant instructor anymore.”
Assistant Instructor Song stretched with a refreshed expression.
“And there are a lot of people suffering from guilt like Uncle Go from the forge. So I figured I’d try gathering the old guild members again.”
Word was, Uncle Go from the forge, Uncle Jang from the leather workshop, and others had already agreed to join.
She was still looking for the rest and recruiting new members, including promoting to this year’s academy graduates.
“What about money? Running a guild takes more than a few bucks.”
“Money’s no issue—we’ve got plenty. I kept the guild funds intact, thinking oppa might come back someday. But I’m done waiting.”
“Then...”
“I’ll go find him myself. You’re looking for your mom too, right? I’ll come along.”
“What? No way. It’s too dangerous.”
“No way? Hmm. You think you’re in a position to refuse? What if I spill your secrets to everyone?”
Assistant Instructor Song grinned slyly and continued.
“Hehe. I know you’re an otaku. Still wearing that character T-shirt under your uniform, aren’t you?”
“Gasp! How’d you...?”
“After watching you so long, it’d be weirder if I didn’t know. So drop any plans to leave me behind. Unless you want ‘otaku’ shouted from the rooftops.”
“No! Please, not that!”
It hit me then. The secrets I needed to hide weren’t just Half-Human Half-Demon. Being an otaku was fatal to social life too.
“Promise to take me, and I’ll keep your secrets.”
“Sigh. Fine.”
I gave in to her terms. I joined the guild, and we’d explore the Otherworld together later.
‘No, should I call her Guild Master now?’
I’d figure out titles later. For now, time for some R&R.
Assistant Instructor Song was busy registering the guild and gathering members, so I’d use the spare mana to recruit new minions.
‘At this point, I could form a full raid with orcs.’
The level up gave me some mana leeway. Enough for about ten orcs easily.
Grouping them to raid the western goblin village meant I could collect goblin essence shards without lifting a finger.
‘Already Lv 22. Clearing goblin villages won’t give much EXP anymore.’
Bickering over goblin chieftains was just a time sink now. Best to handle it with minions if possible.
Strike while the iron’s hot—I headed back to the Demon King’s Castle and assembled the raid. Ten orcs and five hobgoblin throwers.
“Alright. Let’s go.”
I led the raid straight to a nearby goblin village.
“Form ranks.”
Orcs armed with training double-headed axes and naginatas lined the front, hobgoblin throwers on the flanks.
“Throw!”
The battle started with goblin volleys.
Thud! Thump-thump!
I lightly lured goblins with slingshot shots, and when a good number gathered, I ordered the orcs.
“Now! Charge!”
Ten orcs charging at once was a sight to behold.
Boom!
Mid-charge goblins flew like bowling pins, and enraged hobgoblins couldn’t withstand the impact, getting trampled flat.
“B-bound...”
The goblin chieftain tried to cast Bind, but a steel ball interrupted—Gobling’s handiwork.
‘Doing better than expected?’
Blocking the chieftain’s spells dropped the difficulty big time.
“Ch, cheat...”
The goblin chieftain breathed his last with those words. A missed slingshot let him use Wooden Snake once, but it wasn’t enough to kill an orc.
“Still, need better spell disruption. Throwers have limits, so add another succubus.”
Thus, the Goblin Chieftain Expedition Team was complete.
I tested leaving command to the succubus and Gobling. Succubus scouted paths, Gobling led the raid.
They fumbled at first but adapted quickly, thanks to high Intelligence boosting learning.
“Good. I can trust them with this. Gobling!”
“Bling?”
“You’re one of the Demon King’s Castle Four Heavenly Kings starting today. The Lightning Gobling!”
“Th, thanks.”
“Huh?”
“You, cool. Mas, ter.”
Gobling forced a grin. Where’d he learn the thumbs-up?
* * *
After the incident, All-Kill Guild disbanded completely. Guild Master Lee Chun-bae was dead, executives gone—natural outcome.
Lower members vanished, fearing blame. Lee Joo-hyuk among them.
‘That guy seemed suspicious too...’
Lee Joo-hyuk with the stone golem racial skill, Lee Chun-bae turning lizardman. Definitely connected.
But no way to track him now. Focus on graduating academy for the time being.
Easier said than done.
“As you all know, with all gates closed, practical training here is impossible.”
The Instructor grimaced, dividing us up. He hadn’t expected every gate in Yangyang to shut.
“Plus, with numbers so low, sparring’s out...”
Fifty left from tough training and feeling behind, thirty missing from All-Kill internship.
Only about twenty remained. Classes couldn’t proceed properly.
“Sorry, but remaining training will be elsewhere. Apologies.”
Academy brass hunted for blame while splitting survivors—two or three per nearby academy.
Silver lining: Jin-hyuk hyung and I went to Hwangsung together.
“Ugh. What a mess. Transferring mid-way—if those locals haze us, what then?”
Jin-hyuk hyung fretted while packing.
“Nah, trainees hazing? Quit worrying and pack.”
“R-right?”
Unfortunately, it wasn’t baseless.
“You the guys from Yangyang?”
We were greeted by a dozen trainees radiating menace.
Jin-hyuk hyung instinctively stepped back at their vibe, leaving me in front.
“Yeah?”
“Nothing big. You joined mid-term, probably don’t know the vibe.”
“...Offering to help?”
“Something like that. Don’t want you overstepping and getting hurt. Right?”
I could guess why. Top ranks set, newbies joining late—nerves.
‘No need to fight. 1-star gates are pointless now anyway.’
Didn’t know Jin-hyuk hyung’s thoughts, but I had no desire for trouble. I nodded meekly.
“I’m pretty quiet.”
“Heh. Reasonable guy. Hope the one behind is too.”
“I-I’m quiet too.”
Jin-hyuk hyung looked wronged but bowed obediently, outnumbered and outmatched by top-rankers.
“Fine. Keep it low-key and go. Don’t get greedy and hurt.”
That was the plan. As long as they didn’t cross the line first.