Chapter 14
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Monster Hunt
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(3)
5.
South Hawk's Hall.
Ullan scanned the area around the exam venue upon arriving at his destination. He was searching for the supervisor who would explain the Monster Hunt exam.
That's when someone suddenly called out to him.
"Hey, you there."
A woman in her mid-to-late twenties.
She had deep green hair and bright yellow eyes. She looked at him curiously and asked,
"Why are you walking around bare-chested by yourself?"
"I'm not used to it."
Ullan answered honestly.
There was no reason to hide it anyway.
"Not used to it? Wearing clothes?"
"That's right."
"No, you're not some barbarian from the frontier or anything, so why wouldn't wearing clothes be normal for you..."
"I am."
"...What?"
"I'm from the barbarians."
This was another fact that didn't need hiding.
So he replied matter-of-factly, but the woman looked genuinely flustered, as if she hadn't expected that response.
That's when something caught Ullan's eye.
It was the ID badge hanging around the woman's neck.
[Test Supervisor]
[Stella Natalia]
No wonder she seemed too old for an examinee—she was a supervisor. As Ullan nodded to himself, Stella muttered under her breath,
"Every year during entrance exams, one or two weirdos show up, but this is the first time I've seen a barbarian taking the test."
Her yellow eyes gleamed with faint curiosity.
Stella examined Ullan from head to toe like he was some exotic specimen.
"Anyway, you're here for my exam, right?"
"If it's Monster Hunt, then yes."
"Good. Let me explain."
Stella flashed a grin and turned around.
"Monster Hunt tests whether you have what it takes to fight monsters. It's about seeing if you have talent as a monster hunter."
Arsen Academy trained and produced talents in all sorts of fields—combat, daily life skills, arts, you name it.
Magic was by far the most famous, but they steadily churned out experts in swordsmanship, martial arts, archery, and more.
Monster hunting was one of those fields.
"The test is simple. Take down a monster however you can. The higher the risk level of the monster, the higher your grade."
The tougher it is, the better your score.
And that was the end of the explanation.
"If you get it, take this."
A blue-glowing orb.
It was identical to the one he'd received for the previous Grand Melee exam.
"Be careful not to break the orb. If it shatters, you get an automatic F-grade, no matter how much damage you dealt to the monster."
Stella mimed slitting her throat.
A warning to keep it hidden somewhere safe.
"Any other questions?"
"How do I get an S-grade?"
"Huh? You're aiming for S-grade?"
Her yellow eyes widened slightly.
As if she'd heard something unexpected.
But it was only for a moment. Stella smirked with interest and replied,
"Simple. Beat a 3-star monster in under three minutes."
A 3-star monster. Weaker than an equivalent magic beast, but still not something a lone examinee could handle easily.
It took at least three full-fledged knights to barely take one down.
"Every minute over cuts your grade. For the record, no one's ever gotten an S in my exam."
How about it? Still wanna try?
Stella eyed Ullan as if to say that.
Ullan nodded.
"Sounds straightforward."
"Huh?"
"I'll take the S-grade exam."
Stella stared blankly at his flat response, then burst out laughing.
"You're a straight shooter, huh? Fine, head inside. I'll summon the monster."
At Stella's signal, an assistant supervisor waiting nearby opened the door to the exam arena.
An empty inner space.
As Ullan stepped forward,
"One bit of advice: never let your guard down. There are safety measures, but accidents can happen anytime, anywhere."
"Noted."
"Oh, and this is just personal curiosity."
"...?"
"Why's your stomach glowing blue?"
Her finger pointed at Ullan's abdomen.
He glanced down as well.
A faint blue glow seeped through. Not as bright as before, but visible if you looked closely.
"Because I swallowed the orb."
"...What?"
Stella blinked in disbelief.
Ullan gave her a quick rundown of what had happened earlier. Moments later, she let out an incredulous voice.
"Why the hell did you swallow it?"
"You said breaking it means disqualification. So I put it somewhere safe."
Of course, with Ullan's strength and skill, he could've fought while protecting it.
But it was a hassle. So he swallowed it.
That was the whole reason.
"...Let me give you one more tip for your own good."
Meanwhile, Stella's expression had hardened like stone. After a pause, she offered serious advice.
"Arsen's entrance exam is no joke. Sure, most examinees are pampered flowers, but some risk their lives in these tests."
Casualties happened every year.
Last year alone, there were five deaths and dozens of injuries. Half from bloody clashes between examinees.
"So no more reckless stunts like that. You came all the way from the frontier to the Empire—don't get hurt here..."
She meant it sincerely.
But she couldn't finish. Ullan had casually popped the new orb into his mouth like candy while listening.
No way. He wouldn't, right?
Stella reached out to stop him. But Ullan was much faster.
Gulp!
The orb slid down his throat.
The blue light traced slowly along his esophagus toward his stomach. Stella yelled in disbelief.
"You lunatic! Why'd you swallow that one too?!"
"This is the safest spot."
"You could die if it breaks! If some crazy bastard stabs you..."
"I'll be fine."
His calm voice continued.
Ullan met her eyes steadily and said,
"In all my years, my gut's only been pierced once."
One of the Abyss Lords.
When he fought Giant King Largtan. Aside from that, his stomach had never been holed.
As soon as Ullan finished speaking,
Stella clamped her mouth shut. Partly from the absurd reply, but more from the look in his eyes.
What kind of gaze is that...?
Not the eyes of some examinee. The steady, deep gaze of a seasoned warrior who'd crossed countless battlefields. Calm like someone who'd seen it all.
She shut her mouth without thinking.
"Sigh, I don't know where you crawled out from, but you're the weirdest examinee I've ever seen."
She said it with genuine feeling.
Then she scowled.
"If you're about to die in there, scream for mercy right away. I'll take it as forfeit and unsummon the monster."
"Appreciate the kindness."
"Kindness my ass—get moving if you heard me!"
With an irritated shout,
She headed straight for the exam arena. Stella climbed onto the platform, and Ullan moved to the battlefield.
The arena was quite spacious.
One side held an assortment of gear: longswords and shields, axes, hammers, spears, bows, ropes, iron nets, and more.
Ullan picked hand axes.
He could wield the others too, but these felt most natural. As he lightly swung the axes in each hand,
Stella's voice echoed through the arena.
"We will now begin examinee Ullan Bator's Monster Hunt exam."
As her businesslike tone cut off, a massive magic circle etched itself into the floor ahead. Ullan stared at it blankly.
A normal hunter would've sought cover first. Check the monster, find the optimal strategy.
But Ullan was different.
Monsters all have similar weak points.
Head or heart.
Smash one, and most die.
Easier than magic beasts, which required carving out the mana core.
No need to hide.
So Ullan just watched the glowing white magic circle. In that instant, a huge shadow blanketed the arena.
Thud! Boom!
Earth-shaking heavy footsteps.
Soon, a massive monster appeared.
A large reptile covered in scales. The oddity: two heads.
Twin-Headed Dragon.
A dragon with two heads, literally.
Though "dragon" was just in the name.
Real dragons were far bigger and stronger.
To Ullan, who'd actually fought one, this was just a freak lizard.
But then,
The platform grew chaotic.
"Wh-what? Why the Twin-Headed Dragon...!"
"Something's wrong with the magic circle!"
"Send it back now!"
"Trying!"
As if panicked by the Twin-Headed Dragon's summoning.
Ullan, meanwhile, remained unfazed. He had only one job here.
Fwoosh!
In the blink of an eye, he kicked off the ground.
Spirit infused his axes, turning them red-hot. The Twin-Headed Dragon noticed his approach and roared.
"Grraaaah!"
"Kyarrk!"
It bared savage fangs, poised to snap him up.
But that was its mistake.
It should've lunged immediately. That might've delayed Ullan, let it live a bit longer.
Too late now.
Splat! Crunch!
A strike without hesitation.
Its head flew as the axes crossed swiftly.
The remaining head tried to recoil in panic, but it was far too late.
Ullan's axes were faster.
Rrip! Thwack!
The second head hit the floor.
Black-red blood gushed as it died. Ullan turned from the now-headless meat lump.
To check the results.
6.
Meanwhile,
Stella couldn't collect her thoughts.
Two reasons.
First: the summoning circle glitched, calling a 5-star Twin-Headed Dragon instead of 3-star.
A 5-star was beyond any examinee. Stella had planned to rush in, buy time while canceling the summon.
To protect Ullan.
But then...
The Twin-Headed Dragon fell in a blink.
To the very examinee she'd meant to protect: Ullan.
Boom!
The headless body crashed, shaking the floor. The assistant supervisors snapped to, mumbling dazedly.
"U-Ullan Bator."
"Time to end of exam..."
They couldn't finish.
It was that unbelievable. But they'd seen it—no cheating.
Soon, the score appeared.
Ullan Bator, 13 seconds! S-GRADE!
The timer starts the moment the monster appears. Meaning: slain in 13 seconds.
No examinee in Arsen history had scored like that in Monster Hunt.
Ullan, checking the result, turned away without lingering. Off to the next venue.
But then,
Someone blocked his path.
"Y-you-you!"
Stella.
She jabbed a finger at him, face incredulous as she yelled,
"What are you? No, seriously, who the hell are you?!"
"Ullan."
"Not your name! What do you do?!"
"Warrior of the northern plains."
The conversation wasn't going anywhere.
But that didn't matter.
Whatever Ullan was, Stella knew what she wanted to say.
"Wanna be a hunter?"
"No."
"You've got monster hunter talent! I'll train you right. Come on, what do you say?!"
Stella shoved her face close.
Eyes sparkling like stars. Desperate to recruit him. Ullan shook his head without looking away.
"I'm not hunter material."
Hunters hid their presence, knew the woods inside out, studied prey meticulously.
Ullan could manage that much.
Just didn't suit his style.
Easier to swing an axe and smash heads than sneak around scouting weak points.
He meant to refuse, but Stella clung doggedly.
"Supervisor, the next examinee..."
"Shut it! You think I care right now?!"
She even ditched her supervisor duties.
Can you blame her? To Stella, Ullan was prime talent she had to snag.
Clean movements, no wasted motion. Unshakable judgment. Terrifying power and skill!
Feats needing years of experience, done effortlessly. If not talent, what was?
Add hunter skills, and he'd be the ultimate monster hunter!
Stella was convinced.
"I won't force you now. But after enrolling, take my class once. You'll want to then!"
What confidence.
Ullan chuckled.
"If you insist that much, I'll drop by."
"For real? Promise?!"
"Got it. Now move."
"Yes! Even if it's full, I'll save you a spot. You better come! Got it?!"
Only then did she step aside, waving until he left.
Leaving South Hawk's Hall,
Ullan checked his next destination.
Last exam...
The magic specialty test Dermore Count recommended: Mana Detection. Truth be told, Ullan knew zilch about magic. Not even the basics.
Count said it's not much different from hunting magic beasts.
Then he had this in the bag.
To Ullan, magic beasts were just slightly more annoying monsters.
Starts at 2 p.m.
Two hours left.
As he pondered what to do,
A bell tolled in the distance. Lunchtime chime. It jogged a forgotten memory.
"Meet at the fountain after your exams!"
Before parting with Noa.
Yeah, they'd promised that.
His stomach was rumbling anyway. Eat first, then finish the tests.
Decision made, Ullan turned.
5. Entrance Exam