The Fire Centaur Awakens
Recently, a new routine had taken root in my life.
It was a late night after Kim Na-yeon returned from her expedition, and I was lending my support to her training while listening to the results she had gathered from the dungeon.
“...So, today I nearly conquered the deepest parts of the gate. By tomorrow this time, I’ll be moving on to the full-scale boss raid.”
“Do we still need to set up camp inside the dungeon?”
“Hoo-hoo, when we originally planned the inner raid, we had a proper camping schedule, but the party’s combat strength turned out to be stronger than expected. Besides, the internal environment of the gate itself is pretty stifling. With the round-trip distance so long and progress slower, we decided to rest outside the gate.”
“That’s good to hear. So, tomorrow the dungeon raid will be over?”
“Hmm~ It depends on when we can bring down the boss. Since it seems stronger than anticipated, if we have to retreat, we might even extend the stay by a day.”
I wore a proud smile.
Even though I couldn’t join her for meals, wasn’t it right that I got to see the face of my subordinate once a day?
And Na-yeon had started buying me the food I liked whenever she returned lately.
Today it was strawberry cake, of all things.
The growing body of a young girl demanded sweet things.
Having something sweet on the body made the mood better.
It was a pleasure from a past life that Wiji Yeon had never known for three hundred years.
I nibbled at the cake while asking Na-yeon, who had finished her daily training, “You’ve been buying snacks lately. Making me brush my teeth and snack late at night?”
“I just wanted to express my gratitude in some way.”
“I should save some for Da-yeon too.”
Anyway, we had already eaten dinner, and it was just a piece of strawberry cake. I wouldn’t finish it all anyway.
With a crinkle of the wrapper, I set aside the cake to give to Na-yeon.
I let out a light yawn.
It was that time of night when a child’s body grew sleepy.
“Because of Unnie, Ji-yeon goes to bed this late every day. She won’t grow if she keeps skipping sleep like this.”
“It’s fine. I’ve stayed up several nights training before.”
“...When exactly?”
After exchanging such trivial conversation, I spent another night with Na-yeon.
And the next night.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
“Can’t hold it back anymore.”
On the rooftop of the guild building.
I stood there, facing the night sky, feeling the cold wind.
The outfit I wore on today’s outing was the custom black martial robe tailored for Wiji Yeon.
Underneath I wore a sleeveless shirt, but over it a long robe made it look quite elegant.
It wasn’t the simple design I had wanted. It probably reflected Na-yeon’s taste.
Still, the functionality I had wished for was fine.
Lately I had grown curious while listening to Na-yeon’s descriptions of gate expeditions.
What kind of spirit or demon was it that required such a long time to conquer?
She had said that items obtained from the gate became the main source of income for hunters.
The most representative one was a mineral called Magic Crystal, possessing energy efficiency that far surpassed fossil fuels.
In the past, when the Heavenly Demon Wiji Yeon lived in the Central Plains, there had been monsters like those that never became dragons or gigantic mountain spiders.
They too possessed inner pills that aided in advancing inner energy.
They might also guard enormous treasures or spirit children.
Looking at it this way, the spirits of the Central Plains and the monsters of the gates felt somewhat similar.
“It’s tempting.”
I made my decision.
Tonight, to confirm the growth of my subordinate and also to sneak into the gate Na-yeon was conquering.
Thanks to her recent stories, I already knew roughly how the conquest process went.
I knew the location.
Outside the barrier, east of the city, in the suburban outskirts.
Even if I couldn’t find it, expanding my senses nearby would make it easy to locate.
This would be my first outing since being born in this world.
My power wasn’t yet complete, but having helped Na-yeon’s training lately, I had also assessed the state of my inner energy that I could currently wield.
With the Natural Realm’s mysteries, I could unleash a brief surge of peak-era strength.
Even though the inside of the gate was dangerous, I could pull myself out with ease.
“Don’t go outside the guild building?”
“There’s a scary person who’s been targeting me?”
“You’re a good child, so you’ll listen, right?”
“Too naive, Na-yeon.”
The man called Wiji Yeon was originally willful.
...No, I wasn’t a man right now.
Whatever.
I lightly launched my body off the rooftop of the building.
Heavenly Demon Phantom Steps.
The Heavenly Demon’s divine technique that left no trace, not even a whisper.
In the moonlight casting its shadow over the city, my figure melted into the darkness.
Shuaaah—! Takk, tak tak!
With a chill wind, the city’s night lights blurred past at high speed.
Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, or pushing off the outer walls of buildings.
Techniques that consumed little inner energy could be executed with just the inner energy inside my body.
And the reason I chose the most secretive one, Heavenly Demon Phantom Steps, was to fulfill Na-yeon’s request.
No one in this world could see me right now crossing the city with Phantom Steps.
“Ah.”
Takk.
At that moment, I stopped moving on a building’s rooftop.
I scratched my head lightly and pulled out my smartphone.
“...Which way is east?”
Whatever this navigation app is looking at, I don’t know.
***
“Here.”
“Boss room. And that guy.”
Inside the gate, a vast cave in a burning volcanic zone.
The absolute deepest section.
Holes dotted the walls everywhere.
And in the center, there he was.
A horse-bodied form, easily three meters tall, with a humanoid upper body.
Na-yeon had explained it.
“Mythical species, Fire Centaur. There was a record of a similar B-rank gate boss room sighting in the past.”
“As expected, Academy top student, our Kim Na-yeon. But what is that?”
Healer Kim Hyun-jeong showed a troubled expression.
Gooo.
Around the Centaur, red light spheres the size of people glowed dangerously.
There were about ten of them.
The rookie hunter showed an irritated face.
“Let’s finish it already. It’s just a B-rank gate boss anyway.”
Kim Hyun-jeong chuckled.
Because she could clearly read the rookie’s intentions.
She had wanted to enjoy the pathetic sight of Na-yeon struggling against the power during this gate expedition.
Now that she couldn’t see that, she wanted to end it as quickly as possible.
Actually, with the entire party including the A-rank rookie, it would be more than enough to defeat a B-rank dungeon boss even without the boss information.
Na-yeon’s party of six was also well-balanced in stamina allocation.
As the rookie said, we could start the boss raid right now without a problem.
But for some reason, Na-yeon felt uneasy.
“Wait a moment. Even from the first day, the number of monsters in this B-rank gate seems high. And the red spheres around the Centaur are something we haven’t seen before.”
“She wants us to do a scout first and secure an escape route.”
“Yes. I’ll go in first as the tank and observe the battle flow.”
“Aah, you’re so cautious! Why are they all so careful?”
Whoosh!
Explosive mana burst from the rookie’s entire body.
A rapier-shaped sword appeared alongside the icy chill that seemed to peel away flesh.
The ability of A-rank hunter rookie.
“You said to finish it quickly, didn’t you? I’m enough to handle a B-rank dungeon boss alone. Shall I start first?”
Chwaaak!
And the rookie’s figure shot forward like a streak of light.
“Hey, rookie!”
Whoosh!
An abrupt battle began due to the rookie’s reckless action.
Even the party members hiding behind the rocks at the boss room entrance rushed out after the rookie.
“You stupid...!”
Whoosh!
Na-yeon also hurriedly gathered mana.
With golden light erupting, armor enveloped Na-yeon’s body.
Krrrr!
Kong.
The Centaur’s hands created a spear, recognizing the fast-approaching rookie.
And it swung it powerfully as if to knock the rookie away.
Whoong!
But the rookie was clearly an A-rank hunter.
Even with less experience, the power was real.
The rookie’s figure blurred and vanished from the spear’s trajectory.
Instantly, a freezing stab from behind the Centaur pierced its entire body.
Spapapak! Pa-pa-pak!
The Centaur’s flame protection shattered, and wounds accompanied by statues carved across its body.
Kreeeeng!
Along with that, monsters appeared from the holes drilled on the left and right sides of the cave.
Monsters wrapped in flame, the same kinds we had encountered in the dungeon depths.
Na-yeon calmly ordered while the situation turned urgent.
“I’ll hold back the ones on the left! The others, please take care of the right!”
“Rookie?!?”
“Looks fine so far.”
Na-yeon raised her shield toward the left monsters while simultaneously keeping an eye on the rookie who was attacking the Centaur.
Spot, spot, spot!
The rookie’s swift rapier sliced through the Centaur’s flame protection perfectly.
The Centaur’s spear didn’t even graze the tip of the rookie’s hair.
The rookie’s own body might be high, but the advantage of ice and fire attributes was also there.
“For now it looks okay.”
Na-yeon raised her eyes and looked at the sky.
The red spheres floating above the boss room.
They hadn’t moved at all yet.