Chapter 39

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Translator: 8uhl

Chapter: 39

Chapter Title: Madness Unleashed

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"Kwak Min-ho Hunter."

"Yes?"

"Do you have any other skills for Rose, by chance?"

When I asked him outright, Kwak Min-ho Hunter's eyes widened as he glanced down at Rose.

"Ah, there's one mental skill, but..."

Mental skill?

I snuck a peek at Rose, and it was glaring right at me with those blood-red eyes.

'What the hell.'

So prickly. Anyway, maybe I can use that mental skill to give Rose a sense of accomplishment.

"Have you never tried it even once?"

"Yeah. It hasn't been long since it unlocked... and it's kind of scary."

'Kwak Min-ho, you idiot.'

Rose's frustrated voice rang in my ears. If Rose was saying that, it probably wasn't as dangerous as Kwak Min-ho thought.

"I see the gate!"

'Already?!'

The gate we'd opened earlier was right where Song Yun Hunter was pointing. I still had three summons left to win over.

The sudden directive's timer was ticking down too...

'Gotta make the most of this boss fight.'

"Then we'll have Nokdu handle the luring, and Hoyangi, Dushim, and I will attack."

"What about Deokbae and Rose?"

"Wahaha! Our Deokbae doesn't have any attack skills!"

Song Yun Hunter laughed heartily as he patted Deokbae's head.

"Deokbae has healing skills and enhancement skills! Y'know, like buffs in a game!"

'Aigoo, my big bro. Riding me like a plane again.'

Deokbae looked tough on the outside, but he was pretty shy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠deep down.

Maybe getting a little hurt on purpose and letting Deokbae heal me isn't a bad idea.

"Um... Kwak Min-ho Hunter."

"Yes?"

"Could you tell me about that mental skill Rose has?"

Kwak Min-ho Hunter hesitated for a moment before covering one of Rose's ears with his hand and whispering.

"It's a skill that drives living beings mad until they destroy themselves..."

"Whoa..."

"I've never used it for fear it might affect allies too."

It sounded terrifying from the description alone. I could see why he hadn't used it.

'My owner's such a coward, it's driving me nuts. I've told him a million times that skill only targets the ones I choose, damn it.'

Rose huffed in frustration, and Kwak Min-ho Hunter flinched, pulling his hand away from her ear.

Since the skill's owner herself was saying it, it was trustworthy info. I looked up at Kwak Min-ho Hunter and spoke slowly toward his anxious eyes.

"Ask Rose directly."

"Rose?"

"You've spent time together. You should be able to understand how she expresses herself."

Kwak Min-ho Hunter and Rose locked eyes.

"...Rose, is it okay to try that mental skill? You'd be safe if we use it, right?"

'Well said! Of course! That coffee tree bastard's getting wrecked today.'

Her gruff tone didn't match her cute actions. Rose perked up her ears and sparkled her eyes at Kwak Min-ho Hunter. After staring into them for a while, he seemed to sense something and nodded with resolve.

"Everyone! Can our Rose try her new skill?"

"Skill?"

"It drives enemies mad, and I want to test it on the boss monster."

"Ooh! Sounds good!"

Kim Hyun-wook Hunter was more excited than anyone, raising his hand high, while Song Yun Hunter and Kim Min-sook Hunter smiled faintly as if to say go ahead.

"Then I'll touch the gate."

"Be careful, Shin Ji-ui Hunter. It bursts right out of the ground the moment you do."

'Perfect, thank you.'

It was a chance to owe Deokbae and shower him with praise.

I bowed slightly to Kim Min-sook Hunter and stepped toward the gate.

'One, two.'

Thud.

I counted in my head, took a deep breath, and placed both hands on the gate.

Boom!!

"Ugh!"

"Shin Ji-ui Hunter?!"

A thick tree vine shot up from underground, grazing my arm deeper than expected. I'd only planned for a scratch, but the monster was faster than I thought.

Awoooo!

Nokdu rammed the vine then bit my collar and pulled me back.

"Are you okay?!"

"Yeah, just a scrape."

I looked up at the boss monster that had spawned in front of the gate. The massive tree whipped its vines around threateningly, occasionally spitting out bean-like projectiles.

Rose had called it a coffee tree earlier, and it sure looked like one.

"Rose, let's go!"

Kwak Min-ho Hunter shouted. Rose leaped forward as if she'd been waiting, and right in front of the coffee tree, she started spewing thick black smoke from her body.

"Is that Rose's new skill?"

"Yeah. Inhaling the smoke drives you mad, but I'm not sure if it'll work on a tree."

Kwak Min-ho Hunter watched tensely.

Pssshhh.

The smoke enveloped the coffee tree completely, and its movements slowed. Then, as Rose emerged leisurely from the smoke and landed...

Crunch!

The coffee tree's vine pierced right through its own trunk.

"Whoa!"

"Ooh!"

Kim Hyun-wook Hunter and Song Yun Hunter voiced their amazement aloud, and I stared in awe at Rose's majestic display.

Bam, bam.

The skill had landed better than expected; the coffee tree was busy tearing itself apart.

"Good job, Rose!"

'Ahh~ Feels good. Finally using this skill properly.'

Rose seemed satisfied too, her red eyes sparkling even brighter as she gazed at Kwak Min-ho Hunter.

Thud!!

"Wait, danger...!"

"Nokdu!"

"Hoyangi!"

Suddenly, a thick vine hurtled toward Rose, and Kim Hyun-wook Hunter and I called our summons at the same time.

Kyaao!!

Hoyangi pinned the vine with his massive paw just as Nokdu grabbed Rose by the scruff and leaped into the air. Nokdu quickly put distance between them, safely depositing Rose on Kwak Min-ho Hunter's hand before standing beside Hoyangi.

"Dushim!"

Piyoooo!!

A razor-sharp wind sliced through the air with a piercing cry. The leaf-scented gale pierced the coffee tree's openings.

Whoosh.

Hoyangi followed with a burst of fire from his mouth. The flames, fueled by the wind, devoured the coffee tree even faster and fiercer. It was soon engulfed, crumbling to ash without a proper fight.

"Isn't an A-rank overpowering a C-rank boss a bit much?"

"Dushim went easy. Rose basically finished it."

Kim Min-sook Hunter grinned and glanced at Rose in Kwak Min-ho Hunter's arms. Suddenly the center of attention, Kwak Min-ho Hunter's ears turned red.

"It's thanks to Shin Ji-ui Hunter. I might've shelved this skill forever otherwise."

'Exactly. That kid's pretty good.'

Despite the snarky mouth, it was praise. As I smiled down at Rose, a status window popped up.

'Honestly grateful to that tiger kid and the white dog too.'

Things were looking up with Hoyangi as well.

The smooth progress on the sudden directive eased my tension bit by bit.

"By the way, Shin Ji-ui Hunter... how's your arm wound?"

"Ah."

No wonder it was throbbing.

I'd been so focused on Rose that I'd forgotten about the gash. Slipping off my jacket revealed a long vertical tear on my right arm, with blood trickling from the edges.

"Deokbae?"

Song Yun Hunter tapped Deokbae's back. Deokbae finally hopped off his shoulder and flapped over to my arm.

'Aish, sis. Mind if I get a little personal?'

After his folksy quip, Deokbae laid his long tongue on my wound.

"Eek."

It stung with each lap, but it worked wonders. Fresh skin budded between the parted flesh, and the blood droplets scabbed over, dropping to the ground.

"Healed in seconds!"

"Hahaha! Our Deokbae's got skills!"

"Healing skills are rare enough, but on a summon... so cool."

I stared at Deokbae extra enthusiastically, and he started rolling his big eyes bashfully.

'Staring so intensely. Embarrassing...'

'Not feeling bad at all! Take care of our big bro for me, sis!'

Nice—even Deokbae had warmed up to me. I scratched his neck gently, and he finished healing my wound with a few more licks before hopping back to Song Yun Hunter's shoulder.

"Whoa! An item!"

"Really?"

"Wow, it's been forever since this dungeon dropped one~"

That's when Kim Hyun-wook Hunter pulled a small coffee cup from under the coffee tree's remains, drawing Song Yun Hunter and Kwak Min-ho Hunter over.

"Shin Ji-ui Hunter."

As the guys chattered excitedly, Kim Min-sook Hunter grabbed my shoulder. Turning, I met her calm gaze—and Dushim's golden eyes, so like hers.

"Sorry."

"Huh? What?"

"Truth is, when you first said you wanted to join the clan, I was a bit suspicious."

Kim Min-sook Hunter forced a small smile.

"Like, how much does this girl really know about summons? Something like that."

"Ah..."

"I'm old, you see. Got some pointless pride and ego."

She was Korea's first summoning skill user, after all. It made sense.

"But I was wrong. You understand summons well and know how to use them strategically."

Kim Min-sook Hunter pressed her forehead to Dushim's and added,

"And Dushim told me. That you can read the summons' hearts."

"R-Really?"

It was just flattery, but it made me stutter guiltily. Undeterred, she continued with a faint smile.

"Hunters with A-rank or higher summoning skills can talk directly to their summons. Trust me on this."

"I see..."

"Anyway."

Thud.

She clasped my hand.

"Welcome to Clan 'Miracle', Shin Ji-ui Hunter."

'Huh?'

The status window appeared suddenly. Startled, I looked at Dushim—his jewel-like eyes stared straight through me. I couldn't hear his thoughts, but that steadfast gaze told me he trusted me.

It really was a massive jump. Progress shot to 60% in an instant, and Nokdu—who'd only come up to my calf—was now as tall as my thigh.

Nokdu's growth brought me a step closer to saving the world.

"Shin Ji-ui Hunter?"

"Ah, likewise—looking forward to working with you!"

I hurriedly replied to Kim Min-sook Hunter with a grin. Pleased, she patted my shoulder a couple times before heading to the others.

'Ended up joining the clan by accident.'

It was a somewhat selfish choice to grow Nokdu faster, but I'd earned trust from Kim Min-sook Hunter, the others, and even the summons.

'I like these guys! Wanna fight alongside them!'

Nokdu, who looked like a puppy just minutes ago, now gazed up at me with a more wolfish face.

'Nokdu likes them too, so guess I gotta put effort into clan life.'

Feeling a new sense of belonging, I ruffled Nokdu's head vigorously.