A Beast's Gaze
"No, no matter how I think about it, this doesn't feel right~?"
In the deep jungle where no signs of life could be felt, Kwon Yooseok muttered to himself, leaning back against a tree trunk all alone. He was trying his best to keep a calm, nonchalant expression like always, but the corner of his mouth trembled at this ridiculous situation—left behind as bait in an unfamiliar environment.
When had he, ranked 10th in the world, ever had to play the role of bait?
Yet after leaving Kwon Yooseok alone in the jungle, Seoya had taken the other survivors and gone far away. Far enough that the animals couldn't detect her presence. Which meant Kwon Yooseok was now essentially stranded in the heart of enemy territory.
Of course, as a rank 10 Hunter, he could handle any monsters below S-rank without issue.
He hadn't expected the world rank 0 to be this headstrong.
"Skill, Thousand-Mile Eye."
As Kwon Yooseok activated the skill, one of the eyes he'd planted beforehand projected something into the air. It was Seoya with the survivors.
Seoya stood alone amid the anxious survivors, wearing her usual indifferent, sulky expression. She couldn't see him, so she'd shown a bit of displeasure, probably thinking his planted eyes were surveillance when he said he'd keep watch.
But if an S-rank appeared and Seoya rushed over here, he'd use this eye to monitor whether the unprotected survivors were safe.
"Really, she's so different from the type I imagined...."
From photos alone, he'd assumed that despite her immense power, she had a gentle, easily swayed personality. That's what Pyeon Sihu, the BlackPen guild master, had said when passing on info about her.
But he hadn't expected her to be this straightforward and strong-willed.
Putting my life on the line like it's her call... No matter how I think about it.
Kwon Yooseok let out a sigh, then straightened up as he sensed presences approaching. The moment Seoya left, signs of life had started popping up from all directions, as if they'd been waiting.
"Hah, yeah. Knew it...."
No wonder monsters hadn't shown up much. They'd been hiding out of fear of one single presence.
As long as the boss isn't S-rank, no problem....
In the all-green jungle, yellow glints began flickering here and there.
Krrr....
As four-legged beasts swarmed toward him, Kwon Yooseok gripped his pocket knife tightly, preparing his skill, and curled his lips into a grin.
The rank 0 who suddenly appeared and shattered the dungeon's ecosystem. And now, the four-legged beasts that had been suppressed beneath her emerged.
"Haa, haa...."
He might act chill in chat, but his stamina was running low. Kwon Yooseok wiped the sweat from his forehead and scanned the monster corpses scattered around.
All B-rank or below. Since this is a B-rank dungeon, even with rank 0 inside, no anomalies—just the usual B-rank and lower mobs.
Contrary to Seoya's warning about possible S-ranks, nothing like that seemed likely.
Jungle dungeons are such a pain.
No matter how many he killed, more kept coming.
"Status window."
"Can't take me one-on-one, so they swarm...."
Kwon Yooseok muttered, noting his HP and mental strength had taken a hit. Mental strength drained automatically when killing monsters, which was annoying as hell.
Of course, calling Seoya would wipe them out effortlessly, but he still had some pride left.
And it's not impossible right now anyway.
At that thought, the suddenly darkening sky made him look up.
"That's...."
The upright figure blotted out the sky, casting its shadow over the entire jungle, plunging it into darkness.
"What the hell is that...?"
Even Kwon Yooseok, who prided himself on knowing every existing monster's name, had never seen this one. A bad feeling crept in, and he narrowed his eyes at it.
Seoya was right. This was a B-rank dungeon when we entered, but the moment rewards upgraded to S-rank for her, it stopped being normal.
The monster's form was too grotesque to describe with anything he knew.
Given its size, Seoya was surely seeing it too right now.
Dodging a fangbeak bird diving at his head with ease, Kwon Yooseok realized he needed to clear these mobs fast and regroup with Seoya.
Yeah, these small fries are nothing anyway....
"Skill, Don't Believe What You See."
Don't Believe What You See
The world he saw shattered like fragmented glass, shards turning into daggers that stabbed into the monsters' eyes.
Kieeek-!
As the monsters screamed, Kwon Yooseok stared at them with not a shred of pity.
To him, the world was just a painting. His skill shattered it into pieces, voids filling with pure darkness.
MP 51 / 128
HP 42 / 99
Mental Strength 17 / 121
"Damn it."
His mental strength plummeted after soloing dozens of B-ranks. Clutching his throbbing forehead, he swallowed a curse. Side effect kicking in—the world's colors were jumbling up.
He bolted toward Seoya without bothering with the pursuing monsters anymore. Killing trash now was inefficient; just take out the boss.
Dashing desperately, he messaged her.
The massive thing casting shadows over the entire jungle. Back turned to Kwon Yooseok, so he couldn't see its front....
Something's off with this dungeon.
Even from the back, he sensed the anomaly. Its form was unlike anything he'd seen.
Legs like slimy, elongated octopus tentacles—only two, yet firmly planted. Reddish hue with fluorescent green insect-like spots, rough fur bristling on the surface. Round body, no arms, enormous size visible from anywhere in the jungle.
Does a monster like that even exist?
Shivering at the grotesque unknown, Kwon Yooseok gritted his teeth, fleeing the chasing B-ranks while checking chat.
Glancing back, the pursuing monsters were still there.
Damn, colors are all messed up....
Mental strength nearly depleted— the jungle looked purple to him now. Trees pink, rocks red, ponds yellow.... A dizzying mess.
As Kwon Yooseok started to reply, a faint vibration made him stop running. Something massive with huge presence was heading this way.
Then, the vibration stopped.
"Ah."
Navy-blue hair fluttered lightly as someone landed softly on the ground.
"Duck!"
In an instant, a small figure shot high into the sky. As her body launched powerfully into the air, a blue aura from somewhere shredded the bird monsters mid-flight, sending them crashing down.
In that moment, Kwon Yooseok observed every monster's reaction.
A leopard that had seemed hesitant to attack fled swiftly; monkeys standing watch scrambled up trees in a flash; a snake slithering on the ground burrowed into the earth and vanished.
Even with his depleted mental strength blurring colors, he saw the monsters fleeing.
"...Yeah, this is it...."
Turning to Seoya, who had landed behind him, Kwon Yooseok grinned.
A chaotic world of jumbled colors. And in it, only beastly eyes gleamed bright yellow.
The one clear, unmistakable color even in his half-broken mind.
Staring straight into Seoya's eyes, Kwon Yooseok murmured,
"You're a beast, aren't you."