Chapter 70
Chapter 70
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: 15. The Tenth Trial (1)
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Everyday life means something different to everyone.
For some, it's waking up in the morning for a cup of coffee. For others, it's stretching only when the sun is high in the sky. But for Kim Myung-min, who ran the Ranger unit, the blaring emergency signal had become routine.
"What's the situation?"
[We'll send the file as well, but it's a C-Rank isolation incident. The golden time is about three hours from now. Fortunately, it doesn't seem immediately dangerous, but we can't guarantee the safety of the rescue targets beyond that.]
"Got it. I'll check and mobilize."
Click.
He hung up.
The file confirmed it: a C-Rank hunting ground isolation incident, just as reported.
The site was Moon's Hill, home to werewolves. For the targets' rank, it should've been no issue at all. As always, some variable had cropped up, or complacency had sparked disaster. His team was on full standby. They could deploy in under thirty minutes. But suddenly, Kang San came to mind.
'Time to settle Kang San's position for sure.'
Last mission.
Kang San had shown his stuff.
Even Yoon Ji-tae, who'd been negative at first, acknowledged the man himself. Still, the consensus was he wasn't Ranger material. Rangers risked their lives every time. Even with trusted comrades, lives hung in the balance—you couldn't keep an ambiguous guy like that around forever. Accept him fully, or cut him loose entirely, regrets be damned. As leader, he needed to decide.
Conveniently, the team member in secluded training had returned.
Perfect chance to show Kang San the team's full strength—and introduce him to everyone.
With that in mind.
[Kang San]
Kim Myung-min found the number and hit call.
* * *
Click.
He hung up.
Right after ending the call with Kim Myung-min—no, from the moment he'd shakily answered—Kang San's heart had pounded like mad.
Thump-thump.
"...Fuck."
Join the mission, he said.
Kim Myung-min never pushed, as always. And Kang San desperately wanted to refuse this one. But he couldn't. The moment he'd accepted the Apostle of Azmun trial, he'd lost the right to live by his own choices.
"Urk."
He slammed his forehead to the ground.
Dry heaves kept him from clearing his head.
He knew it himself.
He couldn't refuse.
Couldn't turn back.
His head spun with dizziness, but Kang San gritted his teeth and lifted it.
'No time for this. Kim Myung-min said meet at the rendezvous in one hour. Even a taxi won't leave much prep time. Gotta get there fast to gear up properly.'
No time to dawdle.
Emotional waffling was a luxury. To boost survival odds, every minute counted. The golden time wasn't just for the targets—Kang San had one too. He called a cab, raced to Seoul, and headed straight for the Scroll Store.
"I'll take all of these, those, and everything over there."
"...All of them?"
"Yes. Everything."
The shopkeeper's eyes went wide.
Kang San didn't care. He emptied his wallet—recently rebuilt—on scrolls.
After covering Kim Chun-sik's grandmother's hospital bills, money was tight. But this wasn't the time to nitpick. He could die. What were a few bucks compared to that?
Kim Myung-min had said it.
Just C-Rank.
With the full team mobilized, it wouldn't be tough.
Logically, he wasn't wrong. But Kang San knew it wouldn't play out that way.
Luca Bellino, walking up with those dripping steps.
That look of disgust she'd fixed on him.
As the Tenth Trial described: entering a deathtrap.
He'd bought every scroll, prepped as best he could. But outside the shop, Kang San's heart wouldn't settle.
Thump-thump.
Thump-thump.
Only then did he realize.
His wretched life.
He hadn't endured the endless struggles because he was extraordinary or iron-willed.
Simply.
Because he wanted to live.
Kang San ground his teeth at the grim reality.
* * *
Around that time.
Yoon Ji-tae, a Ranger, asked,
"...That rookie from before's joining too?"
"Just heard from the boss. Said he'll be here in an hour."
"Haa."
Yoon Ji-tae rubbed his face.
Despite the warning last time, the rookie—clueless—had answered the call.
"No idea what his deal is. We're not Rangers for riches or glory. I laid it out clear, and he still signs up. Whatever. Can't figure the boss calling him, or him accepting."
Their talk.
A burly man listening nearby chimed in.
"That rookie's really that bad?"
The man was their main tanker.
Joo Seok-hoon.
He'd skipped the last op for secluded training.
Yoon Ji-tae looked up at him.
"...Nah. Decent guy, skills way above his rank. But you know as well as I do—that makes him less fit here. We've seen too many good folks die just 'cause they're good. And as a tanker? Odds are he'll burn out before he grows."
"I know. That's why I went through hell myself."
All of them.
Shared the same pain.
That incident where they lost a teammate—Kim Myung-min got sidelined briefly, Joo Seok-hoon took the blame and secluded. He'd had a round, friendly face before; now, lean and sharp-edged.
So he agreed.
Yoon Ji-tae's negativity was, paradoxically, because he liked Kang San.
No guarantee the rookie would get time to grow. Not for Rangers.
Joo Seok-hoon eyed Kim Myung-min from afar.
"...If it's unavoidable, hope he's as good a guy as you say."
* * *
Exactly one hour later.
Kang San arrived.
Nods to familiar faces, quick intros to the rest.
Like last time, pre-mission chatter was limited.
Kim Myung-min cut to it.
"Op site's C-Rank Moon's Hill. Werewolves—also C-Rank—but low numbers keep it rated there. Targets requested rescue after unexpected injuries; they've holed up safely. Still, situations change, so we move fast. Questions?"
Whoosh.
Kang San raised his hand.
Surprised looks all around.
Kim Myung-min nodded him on. Kang San spoke.
"What if the werewolf count's higher than intel?"
"Not an issue. Our current force can handle numerical variance."
Kim Myung-min usually used honorifics with Kang San.
But this was briefing as leader—not just for him, but everyone. The questioner happened to be Kang San.
As Kim Myung-min said.
Just C-Rank, after all.
With three B-Ranks, numbers weren't a problem.
Yet Kang San pressed.
"But what if it's a variable we can't handle? Any past incidents on Moon's Hill that screamed danger? This op might be riskier than it looks. Not doubting the team, but if it hits, we need reserves ready. And..."
"That's enough."
He cut in.
Kim Myung-min's tone chilled.
"No mission's perfectly prepped. Rangers move sudden and swift—we pick the best option on the fly. Not carelessness. We protect ourselves, so if variables hit, we adapt for max survival. But excessive worry? That dooms the targets."
Dilemma.
Ranger safety mattered.
But overprepping variables meant no rescues.
Hence the firm response.
Even Kim Myung-min, favorable to Kang San, couldn't indulge pre-mission whining.
Truth was different, though.
Kang San knew.
This mission.
An unhandleable variable was coming.
But no way to convince within reason.
With golden time ticking, his unsupported claims rang hollow. He backed off. Kim Myung-min wasn't lax—full prep done pre-arrival. No room for "more."
Kim Myung-min said,
"We enter the op zone in three minutes."
* * *
Minor hiccup.
Could've ended as nothing. But as Kim Myung-min finished, Yoon Ji-tae approached.
"If you're that scared, bail now."
"..."
Kang San met his eyes silently.
Yoon Ji-tae didn't stop.
"I told you last time, clear as day. How dangerous this is. Fussing over 'excessive variables'? Shouldn't have joined. Should've heeded my advice, realized it's beyond you. Someone so worried—what possessed you to sign on?"
Clash of perspectives.
Kang San had his reasons, but Yoon Ji-tae—blind to truth—had every right to fume.
Kang San's question barrage.
Morale-killer.
Rangers had aced countless ops under Kim Myung-min. A subpar rookie yapping variables? Annoying, naturally. They knew it. But speed demanded focus—they'd learned that the hard way.
"...I overstepped. Sorry."
"Not too late. If you value your neck even a bit, tell the boss you're out."
Yoon Ji-tae turned sharply.
Did he know?
Kang San treasured his life.
Didn't want the risk.
Yet couldn't walk. Not for their duty-bound sense of mission.
'As expected. No prep for variables? Only way's to clash head-on.'
No alternatives.
Kang San gritted his teeth, following Yoon Ji-tae's back.