Chapter 179
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 179
Chapter Title: Moss
"Yikes! Ji-yoon, what happened to you?"
Just after Ji-yoon's raid team returned to the guild.
They ran right into Young-jin, who was loitering in the lobby.
"It's a long story. Anyway, where's Do-jae?"
"The boss? No idea. He went out earlier and hasn't come back yet."
"Really? I had something to ask him. Alright, then."
"You guys finished up pretty early, though, didn't you? I thought a high-tier C-rank dungeon would take a while."
"Hehe! It was a piece of cake. More importantly, are you busy?"
"Hmm, I'm free right now. Why?"
Ji-yoon gave him a meaningful smile.
Then, she beckoned for him to follow.
Puzzled, Young-jin trailed after her.
*Whoosh-!*
"What's this about?"
They arrived at the second-floor gym.
Specifically, the large training hall designed for guild members to spar with one another.
Ji-yoon tossed Young-jin a dull-edged sword.
"It's been a while, but let's have a round."
"All of a sudden?"
"Yeah. I want to see how strong I've become."
"Well, I don't mind…"
Two months ago.
Young-jin, Ji-yoon, and the Peppermint Trio underwent a mana re-evaluation.
Young-jin was reclassified as an A-rank Awakened, and Ji-yoon as a C-rank.
Two members of the Peppermint Trio also advanced from E-rank to D-rank, but unfortunately, Park Kyung-min remained an E-rank.
So, while they might have been comparable back in their Chilgok Unit days, it was no exaggeration to say the current gap between Young-jin and Ji-yoon was like that between a child and an adult—no, between a newborn and a professional fighter.
*Voom—.*
*Vooom—!*
Ji-yoon swung the training sword lightly.
The sound of it cutting through the air was far from ordinary.
"What the? You feel a little different…"
"Is this really the time for small talk?"
*Clang—! Swish—.*
*Thud—.*
Ji-yoon rushed forward at incredible speed, her sword clashing with Young-jin's.
Both their blades shattered on impact, the pieces flying off and embedding themselves in the wall.
"Is this for real?"
Young-jin dropped his hilt, flexing his stinging hand.
That last attack. It was only a single exchange, but Young-jin could tell that Ji-yoon was not weaker than him in the slightest.
"Were these things always this easy to break…? Anyway, shall we go bare-handed?"
"W-wait…"
*Swish—.*
*Pow—! Sliiide—.*
Instantly closing the distance, Ji-yoon threw a punch.
Young-jin raised his guard to block, but the immense force sent him sliding backward.
"Ugh! I think it's broken…"
"Huh? Really?"
Flustered, Ji-yoon approached with a worried expression.
Young-jin, pretending to nurse his arm, quickly tried to trip her.
*Thwack—.*
"Huh… what?"
"Young-jin, you…!"
Ji-yoon, who should have fallen, was still standing.
Instead, it was Young-jin who was in pain.
*Wham—!*
*Thud—!*
Ji-yoon immediately launched a counterattack.
Their exchange of blows and blocks continued for dozens of rounds until Young-jin finally threw up his hands in surrender.
"Stop! That's enough! *Huff, huff*."
"So? *Hoo… hoo…*."
A fierce battle that lasted for about ten minutes.
When Ji-yoon got serious, Young-jin had no choice but to do the same, and the two fought hard enough to be drenched in sweat.
"Are you really the same Ji-yoon I knew? How do you have this much power…?"
"Hehe! You'll have to ask Do-jae about that. So, what's the verdict?"
"Verdict? I gave it my all. I used every bit of skill I have."
"Really? Whoa! So does this mean I'm at least on Director Young-jin's level now? I can finally be of help to Do-jae."
Ji-yoon collapsed onto the floor, a refreshed look on her face.
Seeing her, Young-jin realized that she, like him, must have received something from Do-jae.
"Of course, things would have been different if I'd used my Golem Armor!"
Young-jin declared in a confident voice.
He had grown much more accustomed to the Golem Armor.
He could now manipulate the chains with greater dexterity, which allowed him to learn various unconventional attacks.
Moreover, wearing the Golem Armor not only boosted his physical abilities but also amplified his mana, allowing him to wield far more overwhelming power than he could now.
"Oh? Is that so."
"What's with that reaction?"
"What about my reaction? Hehe! But did you know? You said you didn't use the power of your Golem Armor, but the same goes for me."
"What…? That wasn't your full strength?"
"Of course not. I haven't even shown you half of my power."
Young-jin looked completely stunned.
In terms of pure skill within the Guardian Guild, he was either second or third.
First place was, of course, the S-rank hunter Do-jae, while he and Eun-hee vied for second and third.
He had never had a chance to properly fight Eun-hee, so he didn't know the true difference in their strength, but they were always neck and neck in the guild rankings.
In his own mind, Young-jin even thought he was ahead of Eun-hee.
But now, Ji-yoon had suddenly shot up the ranks.
In terms of administrative work, Young-jin handled most of it, but in leadership, Ji-yoon surpassed him.
And now that Ji-yoon was his equal?
Or perhaps even his superior?
Young-jin began to feel anxious as his position was threatened.
*Fwump—!*
"Where are you going?"
Ji-yoon asked, wiping away her sweat.
Young-jin replied curtly.
"To train!"
***
Late evening.
Though twilight had fallen outside, here, inside the dungeon, it was as bright as day.
*Clatter—!*
As Young-jin extended his hand, a long iron chain shot out.
The chain impaled six monsters before returning to him.
‘This isn't really helping.’
Young-jin flicked the blood from his chain.
The six monsters he had killed in a single blow were Grade 4.
Most hunters wouldn't even dare to imagine killing six Grade 4 monsters at once.
Even so, Young-jin was disappointed.
‘My techniques are improving one by one, but my mana has barely increased.’
Should he call it a massage, or torture?
After receiving Do-jae's mana-infusion technique, he had felt his mana grow day by day.
On top of that, when he obtained the Chain Golem Armor, Young-jin felt like he had stepped into a new world.
However, ever since Do-jae's treatments ended, his total mana had plateaued.
In a way, just being able to experience that process was an immeasurable stroke of luck, but having tasted rapid growth, Young-jin found his current stagnation frustrating.
"Tch! I feel bad asking the boss for help again… I should probably go visit my uncle soon."
Young-jin balled up his chains, forming a thick iron club.
By infusing mana into the magic stone that served as the core of the Chain Golem Armor, he could extend the chains indefinitely.
Of course, the durability of the chains was also proportional to the mana infused.
"When you're stressed, nothing beats a good thrashing!"
*Whack—!*
Young-jin swung his arm with all his might, delivering a volley of blows.
A monster resembling a Triceratops with three massive horns was knocked unconscious after just a few hits.
*Thwack—.*
*Wham-wham—!*
As if to release his pent-up stress, Young-jin swung the chain club with wild abandon.
After rampaging and hunting monsters for a while, he suddenly froze.
*Clank—.*
The club unraveled, and the chains returned to Young-jin.
He stood still for a few seconds.
*Clang—!*
Young-jin shot a chain toward a dense thicket of grass and trees.
*Crack—!*
*Clang—!*
The chain tore through the trees and made the sound of striking metal.
Young-jin retracted the chain and turned toward the source of the sound.
"Kehehe. How did you know?"
A strange figure appeared, their face covered by a mask.
Young-jin instinctively knew this person had come to kill him.
The fact that they concealed their entire body to hide their identity.
The fact that they had been watching him with a concealed presence.
And on top of that, there were no signs of them having fought any monsters.
"How did I know? Because you idiots couldn't properly hide your bloodlust."
"Big Brother, this is always your problem. You can't hide your excitement at important moments, can you?"
Two more strange figures appeared behind the first.
Judging by their voices, one was a woman, the other a man.
"My dear siblings, how can I stay calm when I'm this excited? It's been a while since we've hunted an A-rank, hasn't it? *Hoo, hoo…*."
The first man to appear ripped off his mask.
A scar ran from his mouth, splitting his cheek all the way up to his eye.
It was a scar that made him look exceptionally cruel.
"Who are you people?"
Young-jin asked, his tension ratcheting up.
The scarred man replied with a sly grin.
"Us? If you must know, we're the greatest assas—"
*Thud—.*
"You idiot, does he have to answer just because someone asks?"
"Big Brother, I know you're excited… but this goes against our code… Sis, I'm just going to cover my ears."
The masked woman jabbed the scarred man in the ribs.
The shorter man behind them also shook his head.
"What does it matter? He's a dead man anyway. Our analysis is done, so it's fine to let him know who we are, right? Hey, Shim Young-jin. You've probably heard of us, right? The greatest organization of assassins in all of Korea, Moss."
Moss.
They were a group that operated so deep in the shadows that ordinary people wouldn't even know they existed.
No, even most hunters were unaware of Moss.
Moss moved strictly according to money and justification, only taking on requests related to corporations, so it was rare for an outsider to even hear their name.
"I know of you…"
But Young-jin knew about Moss.
Despite everything, he was the fourth son of a corporate chairman.
And a son from a family with a complicated history at that.
"Then you know what you have to do now, right?"
The scarred man began to draw out his mana.
Young-jin, in turn, equipped his Chain Golem Armor.
His opponents knew he was an A-rank hunter.
True to their reputation as Moss, they would have done their research thoroughly.
Young-jin bit his lip and poured mana into the golem's core.
"Let's go, my siblings!"
*Shing—!*
At the scarred man's cry, the three of them surrounded Young-jin.
Then, without a signal, they all began their attack.
*Swish—.*
*Stab—.*
The first strike came from the scarred man.
His attack with a short, hand-span-long blade wasn't particularly remarkable, but it was too fast for even Young-jin's eyes to follow.
It was as if he was teleporting, popping up on the right one moment and the left the next.
What was truly incredible was that despite his erratic movements, his path never once overlapped with the other two.
*Shink—!*
*Clang—!*
The second, the masked woman, used a three-section staff.
It was a weapon he'd never seen before, one that strangely sprouted a spear-like tip with every attack.
Moreover, the woman was incredibly skilled; every time the spear tip struck his Chain Golem Armor, it would dent the armor and pierce his flesh.
"Big Brother, Sis…"
The last one, the youngest man, muttered in a low voice.
At his words, the first and second assassins backed away.
Sensing something was wrong, Young-jin unfurled his chains to attack, but the three of them just dodged, refusing to come closer.
"Hah…"
In that moment, Young-jin's head spun.
His vision blurred, and he began to feel nauseous.
Seizing the opportunity, the three launched an all-out assault on him.
*Clang—.*
*Tang—.*
Despite his dizziness, Young-jin barely managed to defend himself.
But as time went on, his vision grew hazier, and he could no longer think clearly.
"Did you know? You can die from oxygen, too…"
"Oxygen…"
Seeing multiple images of the third assassin's face, Young-jin fell to his knees.
Oxygen toxicity.
It was a condition caused by continuously inhaling high concentrations of oxygen.
His mind in a haze, Young-jin was finally unable to maintain his Chain Golem Armor, and it unraveled.
*Slash—!*
The scarred man lunged, stabbing his dagger toward Young-jin's heart.
*Clang—!*
Even while gasping for breath, Young-jin managed to bat the dagger away with a chain.
After that, though he was practically unconscious, the chains moved on their own, protecting him.
*Flick—.*
The youngest struck a match.
"Hold on, Big Brother."
The youngest tossed the fiercely burning match at Young-jin.
*Fwoosh—!*