Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: 7. Threads of Fate (6)
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Just ten minutes.
Shortly after entering, Kang San figured out why isolation incidents happened here.
Hisss, hisss—
"Ten orcs ahead!"
"Get ready!"
Orcs poured in endlessly from all directions.
They seemed to have some unique communication system, pinpointing the humans' location without any special signals. At first, he'd chalked it up to coincidence after a couple encounters, but now he was certain they could track positions precisely.
Boom!
Kim Myung-min took the lead again this time.
He blocked the orc's brutish overhead axe swing, let it slide off the blade, and decapitated the foe.
Splat.
Blood sprayed like a fountain.
In the chaotic melee, Kim Myung-min met each charging orc with cold, gleaming eyes. It was odd, now that he thought about it. Every party absolutely needed a 'Tanker,' yet Kim Myung-min had come out for rescue ops without bringing one. Of course, in a D-rank hunting ground, the lack of a dedicated tanker caused no issues. Kim Myung-min filtered the front line, and Kang Gi-dong handled the second wave—their positioning was so seamless and solid, it spoke to rigorous, ongoing training.
And then.
"Fire Wall."
Whoosh.
Roooar.
From the rearmost position.
Yoon Ji-tae's presence stood out sharply.
He swiftly cast a 4-circle spell, erecting walls of flame exactly where needed.
Kreee!
Kreeeeek!
The orcs screamed.
They collapsed one by one, engulfed in flames, unable to breach the multilayered ironclad barrier. To Kim Myung-min and the team, it was par for the course. Without pausing to marvel or savor the victory, they pressed onward.
The cleanup would be left to the follow-up team.
Their sole goal was rescuing the targets.
Watching it all unfold.
Kang San felt a strange emotion stir.
Kim Myung-min looked like an ordinary office worker—maybe a bit aloof. Yet there he was, leading the charge, drenched in blood. Even if Rangers were promised societal honors and rewards, he had stepped into hell to save others.
It didn't make sense.
Why?
Why did Kim Myung-min and these Rangers choose such hardship and trials for themselves?
It wasn't like they got disproportionate rewards, like he did.
The 'rewards' guaranteed to Rangers were really just semantics—they had the skills to earn far more as hunters. This was pure goodwill. People Kang San had helped hailed him as righteous, but he couldn't accept it, knowing his own motives weren't so pure.
Things were going smoothly.
Until the distress signal from the rescue targets arrived.
Flash, flash—
"We need to pick up the pace."
Kim Myung-min's face twisted.
The device on his belt blinked red repeatedly, signaling the targets were in danger.
Which meant.
They were in peril right now.
As he cleaved the orc in front of him, Kim Myung-min raised his voice.
"Plan C. Breakthrough mode from here on out."
"Got it."
The situation had changed.
Rescue took priority, risks be damned.
Kim Myung-min accelerated.
He bulldozed forward, slashing orcs, while Yoon Ji-tae's spells supported him, clearing the path.
But then.
[Berserker]
[Buff enhancing orc aggression]
"Kraaaargh!"
"Kreeeek!"
The orcs' eyes changed.
Veins bulged and burst, staining them red; even with limbs severed and bodies aflame, they charged madly. This confirmed it. The orcs' disciplined movements stemmed from some undetected presence in the camp—a C-rank Orc Shaman.
The hunting ground's difficulty rating was corrected in that instant.
It buffed orcs and debuffed foes, a disaster for any D-rank party. No wonder it wasn't in the intel—the targets had likely been overwhelmed by buffed orcs before even facing the shaman.
And it wasn't over.
Hisss.
Hisss, hisss—
Orcs popped up on rooftops.
Under the shaman's command, they nocked strongbows and loosed in unison.
Bang bang—
Bang bang bang—
Cannon fire echoed from all sides.
Simultaneous assault.
Charging orcs ahead, dozens of arrows targeting front and rear.
"...Damn."
Yoon Ji-tae gritted his teeth.
A tanker would have made this easy.
But without a pro tanker, he had to protect himself somewhat. He canceled his current spell and reached for Shield—then spotted something unexpected.
Dozens of arrows.
And right in front.
Thwack—
Thwack thwack thwack thwack!
Kang San stood with a single shield, blocking them all.
Kang San knew too.
The Orc Shaman variable, the arrows from all sides.
Kim Myung-min and the Rangers could handle it without issue eventually.
Indeed, Kim Myung-min stayed calm.
He methodically felled the berserk orcs, utterly confident no arrow would touch Yoon Ji-tae. This was within expectations. Yoon Ji-tae hustled to cast Shield to meet them, but Kang San knew it was time to act.
Hadn't Kim Myung-min said it?
The targets were in danger.
His passive observation in pursuit of answers couldn't risk them.
No way.
He stepped up.
Ignoring Yoon Ji-tae's flustered gaze, he took the arrow storm on his body.
Iron Body
Clang.
Clang clang clang!
Massive impacts hit.
But with Guardian's Will boosting defense, and Iron Body focused on the shield, Kang San endured. That was just the start. Spotting the Orc Shaman beyond the archers chanting, Kang San bellowed.
"I'll cover you from now on! Focus solely on attacking!"
"You...!"
Trust between them was still nil.
Hesitation flickered on Yoon Ji-tae's face, but as a Ranger, pride didn't blind him.
Rescue targets came first.
Ready to Shield at any moment, he poured into offense.
"Thirty seconds. Just hold for thirty."
Whoosh—
Mana swirled fiercely.
Kang San stood before him, eyeing the next arrow barrage.
I can block this.
Orc archers were E-rank.
Their ranged attacks bumped threat to D-rank, but nothing Kang San's current power couldn't handle. He needed perfect defense for Yoon Ji-tae. Plus, brace for new ground threats.
Clang—
Clang clang clang!
He blocked.
Arrows sniping Yoon Ji-tae hit the shield; strays he deflected. Like an iron fortress. No matter how arrows rained from all sides, those behind the walls were safe. Not one reached Yoon Ji-tae.
That must've done it.
Yoon Ji-tae's expression softened a bit.
With budding trust in Kang San, he ditched Shield for pure offense.
"Wind Blade."
Flash.
Yoon Ji-tae glared.
As his gaze locked on the archers, slashing winds swept the rooftops.
Shwick.
Shwick shwick!
Kyaaak!
Blood sprayed.
That was when it began.
Yoon Ji-tae's presence swelled.
Just how destructive a protected mage could be.
His explosive spells swept orcs away in seconds.
The mission was done.
The exhausted rescues bowed repeatedly, overflowing with gratitude.
"Thank you so much."
"Without you Rangers, we wouldn't have made it back alive."
Haggard faces.
Terror-stricken eyes.
As rescuers helped them up, Kang San's gaze wavered.
The actual rescue had been straightforward.
A brief crisis, but once Yoon Ji-tae unleashed full magic, wiping the shaman and all was trivial. Kim Myung-min and Kang Gi-dong let zero orcs through the front. Rear flankers? Kang San stopped them cold.
Solid defense.
Path cleared in a flash.
Spotting the attacked targets, the mission ended.
"What happened?"
Kim Myung-min asked.
The rescues explained.
The crisis stemmed from an undetected 'Orc Shaman' per scouting intel. As expected. The shaman made orcs disciplined and enabled sudden ambushes like Kang San's experience. They fled to survive, hid, endured—until scent-sensitive orcs sniffed them out, plunging them into peril again.
When found.
They'd been on death's doorstep.
Having survived, they could only bow and thank profusely.
...An unexpected variable.
The whole ordeal.
Kim Myung-min called it commonplace.
Scouting was human work; beyond the Backside World, who knew what variables lurked? Like the sudden shaman, or Kang San's ant nest drop.
Variables weren't just for the unlucky like him—they were accidents anyone could face.
That's the world. Even if an A-rank drops from the sky and kills someone, or a traffic accident claims a life, people accept it as unavoidable. A world where anyone, not just me, could die anytime, anywhere. So if variables might hit, would people prefer traveling with someone utterly reliable, or sticking to the safe norm?
A choice.
The former invited risk; the latter might fail against real threats.
Neither clearly right.
These rescues had just hit a 'common variable' like his ant nest. With capable company, they might've handled it. But unable, they teetered on the brink—luckily saved by Rangers. Yet the world doesn't always time rescues perfectly. If Rangers had arrived later, they'd have paid with惨 deaths for failing the variable.
Complicated.
Witnessing Rangers' dedication and sacrifice firsthand, he couldn't settle on an answer rashly.
Then.
"Kang San. Mind a quick word?"
Yoon Ji-tae.
He looked at Kang San with a softened expression.