Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Hunter Mobile Training - 2
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“Everyone, rise and shine! Get up and put on your gas masks within three minutes!”
The object dropping from the sky was a single small olive-drab box.
It bore the Hunter Army emblem along with a skull marking, so it was clearly something dropped by the unit.
“Kim Min-jun! You put on your gas mask too and wake up the platoon members!”
“Corporal Kim Min-jun. Understood!”
The rare toxic gas that sometimes occurred in variable-type dungeons.
The box contained a specially engineered gas modified to be harmless to the human body.
“Everyone, get up and put on your gas masks!”
Smack! Clap!
“Wh-what! What’s going on!”
“Put on your gas masks right now!”
“Crazy! What the hell!”
“It’s an emergency! Special gas will be dispersed any moment!”
“Special gas? On the first day of training?”
Kim Min-jun rushed into the tent and slapped his seniors hard across the cheeks.
It was a bit rough, but time was of the essence.
Just as Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min had said, the entire platoon needed to don their gas masks within three minutes.
“Lights! Someone turn on the lights!”
“Hey! How much time left!”
“Less than two minutes!”
“If you inhale the special gas, you’ll be out of it! Everyone, stay sharp!”
“Yes, sir!”
The current time was 4 a.m.
The corporals and sergeants scrambled to put on their gas masks, but the privates and privates first class couldn’t manage it.
Pulling out and donning a gas mask in pitch darkness was no easy task.
“Ugh! The strap’s tangled here!”
“Stay calm! The more you flail, the more it tangles! Hold still!”
Kim Min-jun calmed the platoon members while helping the panicking juniors.
Pssshhhhh—
The moment the last Hunter donned his gas mask, the dropped box began dispersing the special gas.
Yellowish smoke.
The effect of the special gas was similar to the CS gas used by regular forces.
It made breathing feel impossible without actually killing you—that kind of state.
‘The problem is it’s over ten times more irritating than CS gas.’
Even a single whiff of the special gas would leave you coughing for half a day or more.
Completing mobile training after inhaling it would be brutally tough.
Of course, Kim Min-jun was the exception, as the magi in his body automatically neutralized it.
“Everyone has donned their gas masks!”
“Everyone, break down the tents and get out of here immediately!”
“Understood!”
Following Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min’s orders, the platoon quickly dismantled the tents and evacuated the area.
Only after moving for over thirty minutes did they receive the signal that it was safe to remove their gas masks.
“Phew…!”
“Waking up to this bullshit.”
“Almost got wrecked for real.”
The Hunters finally peeled off their gas masks with relieved expressions.
“Corporal Kim Min-jun, thank you so much. If it weren’t for you, we would’ve sucked in a ton of that gas. My strap got tangled midway…”
“Damn, my cheek still stings. I’m terrible at waking up, but you saved my ass.”
The seniors approached him, thanking him for saving them.
“Corporal Kim Min-jun. You spotted it quick. We got lucky.”
“Lucky my ass. Waking up at dawn from sleep and getting a gas mask on in three minutes? That’s insanely hard.”
“Not a single one in the platoon inhaled gas. Well done.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Normally, when gas was dispersed without warning, over 30% of a platoon failed to don their masks in time and ended up inhaling it.
And that directly affected their performance scores.
“Kim Min-jun.”
“Corporal Kim Min-jun!”
“You detected the special gas faster than the platoon leader. Good work.”
“Thank you, sir!”
Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min praised Kim Min-jun without reservation.
His response had been that flawless.
“Everyone, keep moving like this! I’ll give you a break midway!”
“Yes, sir!”
The platoon continued along the mountain path.
“Cough! Cough!”
“Gack! Hack!”
Along the mountain trails they passed, Hunters were coughing in agony.
They were the ones who hadn’t reacted in time to the special gas and had inhaled it.
“That platoon over there got hit hard. They’re way behind.”
“We’re 2nd Platoon… so yeah.”
“If we’d inhaled that, we’d be coughing all day. Just hearing it is nightmare fuel.”
“Who was that? Who’s making that coughing noise!”
“You idiot! The platoon leader will hear. Shut up.”
Special gas dispersal at dawn on the first day of training.
Indeed.
Just as Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min had explained, the training intensity was ramping up considerably.
“It’s the second day of training, so… what did we do on day two?”
“How the hell would I know what happened four years ago, you psycho.”
As the sergeants grumbled in conversation.
“Platoon leader! Casualty ahead!”
An officer with “Injured” written on his body was visible.
“So that’s what the platoon leader meant by various scenarios?”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.”
From the second day of Hunter mobile training onward, officers acting as casualties were stationed at intervals along the route.
The Hunters had to care for these casualties and reach the destination.
This was a new element not present in the previous mobile training.
“Prepare the stretcher!”
“Understood!”
At Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min’s order, the Hunters pulled out a stretcher and brought it to the casualty.
“We’ll get you now!”
“Uh, yeah. Looks like that platoon handled the special gas well? Who’s your platoon leader?”
The officer’s eyes lit up at the sight of platoon members showing no symptoms.
They were acting as casualties but also serving as training supervisors.
“Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min!”
“We dropped gas on purpose at dawn, and you handled it perfectly. No one here inhaled it?”
“Yes, sir!”
“Good. Keep it up.”
“Understood!”
At the major’s continued praise, the platoon leader’s mouth curved into a slight smile.
‘Min-jun. Well done.’
Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min, in a good mood for the moment, gave Kim Min-jun a thumbs-up.
‘He’s in a good mood.’
It was an unexpected gesture mid-training.
“Then we’ll head out!”
“Uh, yeah. It’s only day two, so keep pushing.”
“Yes, sir!”
After a quick check of the casualty’s condition, two Hunters shared the load and began transport.
“Change formation!”
“Yes, sir!”
They didn’t forget to adjust formation in preparation for monster attacks.
“Platoon leader! Monster at 200 meters to the rear!”
As the terrain grew steeper during the march, the unit released monsters.
Soccer-ball-shaped monsters—Dark Balls.
“Move the casualty to the front first! Everyone else, maintain formation and prepare to fire!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Understood!”
Dark Balls latched onto designated targets and sucked blood like mosquitoes.
Once attached, it was hard to pry them off without considerable strength.
Thus, the best counter was to blast them with mana rounds from a distance before they got close.
“Everyone, prepare to fire!”
“Ready to fire!”
Kim Cheol-min quickly assessed the situation and gave the firing order.
“Commence firing!”
Boom!
The Hunters took positions and began pouring mana rounds into the approaching Dark Balls from afar.
“Ugh!”
“Aim steadily!”
Firing in rough, sloped terrain made their stances unstable.
Naturally, their mana round accuracy suffered.
Even with a full platoon firing, they only took down about fifteen Dark Balls.
That was only thanks to Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min’s fire support.
Thud! Thunk!
“Eek!”
“Hey! Block it with your rifle at least!”
“Getting bitten by those is hell!”
The remaining eight were now right up close, baring their sharp teeth at the Hunters.
“Platoon leader! At this rate, we’ll have casualties! Let me provide support!”
Meanwhile.
Kim Min-jun, carrying the stretcher, asked the platoon leader for permission.
The Hunters were barely holding off the Dark Balls, but casualties could happen at this rate.
‘No casualties allowed. Not even one.’
With me here, our platoon gets full marks, no question!
Kim Min-jun’s eyes burned with determination.
“Dark Balls attached to rifles need to be removed. It’s tough without serious strength. Don’t do it if you can’t.”
Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min looked at his face for a moment before responding.
It was an invitation to go ahead if he was confident.
“Yes, sir! Understood!”
Permission granted.
Kim Min-jun leaped high to the rear of the formation.
“Huh? What, what’s that?”
The officer on the stretcher panicked at the sight of his back.
Even with heavy gear, he could jump that high.
‘To respond perfectly, that’s the right move.’
But how often could anyone respond perfectly in this training?
The intensity was especially high this time.
In other words, it was designed for casualties to occur.
‘I’ll watch and see if the platoon leader’s judgment holds.’
The officer sat up to observe how things played out.
“Argh! You little shit! Get off!”
Thud! Thunk!
The Dark Balls clung to the Hunters’ rifles without budging.
Dealing with them like this wasn’t too hard, but carelessly firing risked damaging the weapons.
Maintaining weapon condition was also part of the scoring.
The best the Hunters could do was wait for the Dark Balls to tire out.
“Stay put! I’ll handle it!”
“Huh? Min-jun?”
“Hey! Mess up the rifle and it breaks! You’ll get chewed out later!”
Instead of replying, Kim Min-jun thrust his hand into a Dark Ball’s mouth.
And then…
Fling! Whoosh!
He ripped it off lightly like tossing trash and hurled it away.
“Uh…”
“Huh?”
The rest followed suit.
“Everyone, get it together!”
“Finish off the ones that got thrown!”
Boom!
Seizing the moment, two Hunters blasted mana rounds at the Dark Balls.
Sergeant Lee Seung-ho and Corporal Kim Kwang-sik.
“Dark Balls eliminated!”
Thanks to Kim Min-jun’s teamwork with the two, the remaining monsters were cleanly finished.
“Everyone, check your rifles! Report any malfunctions to the platoon leader immediately!”
“No issues!”
Kim Min-jun’s swift action meant not a single damaged rifle.
Clap clap clap clap—
“Wow. I’m just the casualty and supervisor, but I can’t not applaud that.”
Once the situation ended, the officer clapped, praising the excellent response.
“But it’s only day two. Don’t let your guard down till the end.”
“Understood!”
“Yes, sir!”
After a brief regroup, the platoon set off.
As Kim Min-jun moved to the front of the formation, someone patted his shoulder in passing.
It was Sergeant Lee Seung-ho.
“Keep it up like that. Good work.”
“Corporal Kim Min-jun. Thank you.”
He said his piece coolly and moved on to check the other platoon members.
‘Typical sergeant—handles himself.’
Kim Min-jun smirked at Lee Seung-ho’s profile.
**
Time passed, and the training entered its third day.
They’d managed the first two days somehow, but day three was hell.
Monsters attacked relentlessly around the clock, draining the Hunters’ stamina.
They’d already gone through over ten engagements.
“Ugh… I’m dying. Gonna collapse.”
“This is insane. Why’s the training this brutal?”
Fatigue was plain on the platoon members’ faces.
But their moment of relaxation didn’t last.
“Everyone, halt!”
Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min spotted something and signaled.