The Invisible Guardian and the S-Rank Stalker
"Are you okay?"
"What happened?!"
The two of them came running at the sound of the monster bear crashing to the ground. I glanced around. I figured it was probably Kang A-jin who'd flung that talisman at the monster bear, but with no sign of her, there was no way to confirm. The stealth technique she used was different from Kim Eun-bi's—enough to completely fool even an S-rank like Kim Seol-bi.
Just how long has she been tailing me?
A chill ran down my spine. If she'd followed me into a dungeon, she must've been lurking around Kim Seol-bi's house too.
You have acquired the skill Sorcery Interpretation.
"Ah......"
Well, that sealed it. No escaping this one. Kang A-jin was definitely here. At the very least, she'd clearly been the one to take down the monster bear.
"Oh my!"
"Eek!"
Kim Seol-bi and Kim Eun-bi, who'd been rushing over in surprise, suddenly froze. Kim Seol-bi covered her face—though her fingers were spread wide enough to peek through—and Kim Eun-bi just gaped, lips flapping soundlessly.
I wondered what was wrong at first, then realized my fly was wide open. And not just that—my dick was hanging out too.
"Ah, sorry!"
I quickly tucked myself away. Only then did Kim Seol-bi ask,
"What exactly happened?"
"I was taking a piss, and this guy......" I pointed at the fallen monster bear.
"Oh my! A monster bear on the first floor? Is that normal around here?"
"How should I know?"
Kim Seol-bi glanced at Kim Eun-bi, but she snapped back curtly. Hard to believe these two used to be so close, like sisters. An S-rank like Kim Seol-bi had no reason to raid a D-rank dungeon, and Kim Eun-bi was too newly awakened to know monster habits well. I suspected this was some kind of anomaly too. Dungeons usually got tougher the deeper you went, so this bear must've wandered up for some reason.
Kim Seol-bi peered down at the monster bear's corpse, her expression puzzled.
"Did you take it down, Sung-gi?"
Half the body was charred, and deep gashes marred it everywhere. Obviously not my doing. She seemed suspicious of that detail. If she knew Kang A-jin had been here—if she still was—I had no idea how she'd react. Just having Kim Seol-bi and Kim Eun-bi with me was suffocating enough; adding another would be...
As that thought crossed my mind, Kim Seol-bi said,
"You're amazing! You've gotten so strong, Sung-gi!"
Her pure delight showed she hadn't even considered Kang A-jin as the killer. Of course not—that was the logical conclusion. With no other hunters around, it had to be me.
"Haha, thanks."
"This is......"
Kim Eun-bi, inspecting the corpse, asked,
"You have a fire skill too, oppa?"
She knew I could use Hand Blade Cut, the ability I'd copied from Kim Seol-bi. You could maybe stretch it to say I'd sliced open its torso with that, but the burns? No explaining those.
"Ah...... I panicked and thrust my hand out, and fire just came out......"
Lame excuse, even to my ears.
"Whoa, oppa, your potential is seriously insane."
"Yeah, Sung-gi really does seem like a multi-class type."
These women bought it hook, line, and sinker. The situation left no room for doubt that I'd killed the bear, but it was also their rock-solid trust in me. They'd probably believe anything I said.
Lucky, I guess......
It was advantageous, sure, but I was still on edge. Because of that one presence lingering in the air.
Why the hell is she stalking me?!
# After that, the hunt went smoothly. Maybe because I'd gotten into danger once, their protectiveness ramped up. When I said I needed to piss again midway, both followed me. They turned away, but I could feel their stares burning into my back—couldn't even pee straight.
Anyway, with an S-rank, an A-rank, and a D-rank, clearing the dungeon was a breeze. Obviously.
Midway, Kim Eun-bi had begged,
"Oppa! Can you show me the fire thing again?"
Like I could. I faked the motion and told her,
"Must've been a fluke. Doesn't work. Haha......"
"It worked once, so you'll get the hang of it easier next time. We'll keep raiding until then."
Kim Seol-bi chimed in. To her, dungeon raids were like picnics. Fair enough. But she didn't need to grind low-rank dungeons like this. She was just helping me grow faster.
"Thanks, Seol-bi."
The words slipped out, and I felt a massive wave of discomfort from my left. Kim Eun-bi looked on the verge of tears.
"Thanks, Eun-bi too."
"Haha, no problem~ oppa."
Her aura vanished like magic. We cleared the dungeon in three or four hours. Kim Seol-bi and Kim Eun-bi were fast movers by nature, and my legs had sped up since hitting D-rank. We skipped monsters we could just bypass, only killing those in our path—made it quick.
On the deepest part of the final floor, a family of monster bears appeared—four of them. Kim Seol-bi swept the space once, and their heads came off easy. The rough-looking daddy bear, still barely breathing, got finished by Kim Eun-bi.
"Good work."
"Tired, oppa?"
"Nah, what'd I even do?"
We exited in high spirits. We'd burned a ton of stamina, and it was late, so we were starving. Talk naturally turned to food.
Kim Eun-bi showed zero signs of splitting off. Had they agreed on that during their girl talk last night? Kim Seol-bi didn't seem to mind either.
Kim Eun-bi held all the mana crystals we'd gotten. She'd shown off her palm-pull technique again today. I tried it—crystals twitched but wouldn't come to hand. I could copy Kim Seol-bi's skills since I'd inherited her power, but my level was too low. Kim Eun-bi didn't even try, so probably couldn't. Not every hunter had it. Maybe all S-ranks could, though.
Mindful of Kim Eun-bi, Kim Seol-bi didn't hand all the crystals to me like last time. She didn't need D-rank dungeon loot to live comfortably, but Kim Eun-bi, freshly awakened, did. She'd be set for life soon enough, but nowhere near Kim Seol-bi's wealth.
I figured Kim Seol-bi would handle the crystals later and divvy them up.
Heading to the Dungeon Management Office, we stumbled on a weird scene. A middle-aged guy in his 50s groveling before a young man. The young guy was sharply dressed, handsome—mid-to-late 20s maybe? The groveler seemed like the office director, and the young one a hunter.
B-rank?
A-ranks rarely hit D-rank dungeons. And for a C-rank or lower, the director was way too servile. He might bow to lower ranks sometimes, but not like this. The young guy was smirking—not the face of someone demanding an apology over something bad.
"Huh?"
Kim Seol-bi spotted the man and stopped.
"Huh?"
Kim Eun-bi halted too. Kim Seol-bi had sunglasses and a mask, but Kim Eun-bi looked seriously pissed at the guy. I realized they knew him. But why the disgust? Even for an acquaintance?
The man, half-listening to the director's ingratiating chatter, turned our way. His face lit up. I'd seen that face a lot somewhere.
"Seol-bi!"
Kim Seol-bi sighed deeply. The director, glancing between them, jolted in shock.
"Th-that's......!"
I whispered to Kim Eun-bi beside me,
"Who's that guy?"
"Park Hyun-jun."
Park Hyun-jun? Then it clicked—that's why he looked familiar. One of Korea's ten S-rank hunters. But why a D-rank dungeon? I suspected Kim Seol-bi's discomfort held the answer.