Chapter 95. The Noob I'm Raising (Revised)
Chapter 95. The Noob I'm Raising (Revised)
[Revision Complete]
Lee Chae-hyun's eyes widened as she looked at me.
Then she tilted her head, pointing her finger back and forth between herself and the monster.
"Huh? That one? Me?"
I smirked and put my hands in my pockets.
"Chairman, I'm E-rank, remember?"
"You handled that One-Horned Cat well just now."
I nodded, looking at Lee Chae-hyun.
"I'll make sure you survive."
She would never die.
She could get hurt enough to feel like dying, but...
"*Sniffle*..."
Now she gripped the dagger, her face on the verge of tears.
She bit her lip, tightened her grip on the dagger, and forced her trembling legs to steady.
"Ha... Haa... I-I can do this..."
[There are things in the world that can't be done with willpower alone, damn...]
[What if our Chae-hyun gets hurt like this?]
[Getting hurt isn't the problem here...?]
The viewers expressed their concern.
Of course, I didn't expect her to take it down easily either.
I was just curious to see how she would handle a monster vastly stronger than herself.
─ Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
The monster strode over and brought its massive fist straight down.
─ BOOM!!!
"Kyaaak!"
The ground split and dust erupted.
Lee Chae-hyun narrowly rolled to the side, screaming.
But then she realized.
'It's slower than I thought...? Of course, one hit would still be fatal...'
The monster became enraged that its attack had missed.
─ Whoosh! Whoosh! Wham!
Its fists swung fiercely like iron maces.
She took a deep breath and dodged the fists step by step.
─ Stab! Stab!
She spun and cut its side, then backstepped and stabbed its calf.
'My attacks were too shallow...!'
To land a fatal blow, she had to aim for the heart or the neck.
But as if by instinct, the beast guarded its heart and neck above all.
[No but it looks like she's stabbing with a toothpick]
[The weight class difference is too severe]
[Mosquito damage lololol]
Her attacks were slow, but they dealt damage bit by bit.
She became increasingly calm, and began to circle around the monster, observing its movements.
"...Oh, she's quite calm, isn't she?"
"Indeed... Her style is completely different from Hero's."
But at that moment.
─ WHACK!!!
The monster suddenly swung its arm sideways.
The moment her focus wavered, the attack landed.
"Kyaak!?"
─ Crack!
She hastily raised her arm to block, but the blow's force, amplified by the weight difference, sent her flying.
Her body flew through the air and tumbled several meters.
[Wtf, what was that sound just now?]
[Sounded like bones breaking?]
"Cough... Ugh... My ribs... Chairman, I think my ribs are broken...?"
Her face covered in dust, tears welling in her eyes, she gasped for breath.
But a strangely aggrieved smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
Laila approached the sprawled Lee Chae-hyun.
A soft stream of golden light flowed over her body, and her wounds began to heal.
"Phaaah..."
As her wounds healed, the pain crushing her chest seemed to vanish, and her breathing eased.
"Manager, good work."
I was about to wrap things up, but she raised her arm to stop me.
"Chairman, I... I want to try a little more."
She wanted to try more?
The lack of proper weaponry, her poor mana control.
She should have realized it clearly...
[Chae-hyun, you don't go to the hospital only when you're dead...]
[This bastard was gasping with broken ribs just a second ago fuck]
[This is really crazy lololol]
But despite those worries, Lee Chae-hyun grinned.
"When I'm really in danger... you'll help me, right?"
"...Of course."
"And Miss Laila will heal me so I don't die, right?"
"...Yes."
Lee Chae-hyun steadied her stance again.
Tremendous pain followed, but at least she wouldn't die.
She had chosen the most brutal, yet most certain method.
"I thought her style was different from Hero's... but it looks like it isn't."
A tactic of trading flesh for bone.
─ Slash! Swish! Stab!
The small dagger failed to deal a fatal wound.
But the small wounds accumulated, dulling the monster's movements.
A mixture of fatigue, anger, and confusion flashed in the monster's eyes.
─ Grrrr...
"Haaah..."
─ Thud...
One of its massive knees pressed into the ground.
As the 3-meter giant lowered itself, its gaze became level with Lee Chae-hyun's.
She did not miss that moment.
"Hyaaahp!!!"
Ignoring her broken arm, she gripped the blade in her remaining hand.
And then, limping, she lunged at the monster.
─ Stab!
She plunged the dagger deep into the nape of the monster's neck.
─ Grrrk...
The monster, with the blade lodged in its throat, flailed its arms.
Soon, the light faded from its eyes and it collapsed forward.
"Huff... Huff... Chairman, I caught it..."
Lee Chae-hyun also lost her strength and fell backwards.
She lay flat on the ground, gasping roughly.
Her appearance was a mess of dust and blood, and her whole body was covered in wounds.
"Miss Chae-hyun, you worked hard."
As Laila healed her, Lee Chae-hyun closed her eyes and fell asleep.
[Wow, this is legendary;;]
[For real, she's hunting with her life on the line lolol]
[Well done]
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 100,000 Watts! ]
- Hero you bastard, buy her a meal with this later;;
"We'll finish up the raid here, go home, and turn the stream back on."
Amidst the congratulations of the viewers, Lee Chae-hyun's gate debut came to an end.
---
We quietly looked down at the sleeping Lee Chae-hyun.
"Hero."
"Hm?"
"Miss Chae-hyun is really working hard."
I nodded at Laila's words.
Even to my eyes, she had overworked her body to the point of strain.
'Of course, Laila heals her... but mental fatigue was a different matter.'
─ Rip...!
With my bare hands, I tore open the abdomen of the monster Lee Chae-hyun had caught.
As naturally as tearing paper, I rummaged through the innards with both hands and picked out the valuable parts.
"Will you take them with you?"
"For now, this is money too. Since our Manager caught it herself, I should hand them over."
"Still, you seem quite proud?"
"After all, this is my first time training someone, right?"
We stored the monster's blood, heart, and other important parts in the special containers we had brought.
After fully dismantling the carcass, we sat on a nearby rock and took a quiet rest.
"Mmm..."
Just as I was thinking it was time to head out of the gate, Lee Chae-hyun's eyelids fluttered open.
"Ah, Chairman..."
"Good work."
After opening her eyes, Lee Chae-hyun remembered something and bolted upright.
"Ah!"
"What?"
"The monster, before it decays...!"
"We took care of everything, so don't worry."
I pointed to the spot next to where Lee Chae-hyun was lying.
There, the special containers holding the monster's valuable parts were neatly stacked.
"Now that you're up, let's head out."
Laila supported her, and I gathered the luggage.
"We need to go home quickly..."
The moment the gate opened.
─ Click! Click! Click!
As if they had been waiting just for us to come out, the area in front of the gate was packed with people.
The moment we emerged, they all started clicking their shutters in unison.
"Just one shot looking this way, please!"
"Is it true that the Unknown Hunters are personally mentoring Lee Chae-hyun?"
"If possible... Hunter Lee Chae-hyun, could we hear your thoughts on being trained directly by the Unknowns?"
The atmosphere was calmer than I expected.
The reporters were excited, but they didn't crowd us rudely.
They knew the significance of this incredible scene.
"One moment."
The two strongest Unknown Hunters, the only ones in the entire world.
Lee Chae-hyun, personally mentored by those two.
And this Lee Chae-hyun was currently E-rank, the very definition of weakest.
At the sudden barrage of shutter clicks, Lee Chae-hyun froze as if startled.
Beside her, Laila spoke in a comforting voice.
"Miss Chae-hyun, you can answer, or you don't have to. Do whatever you're comfortable with."
But Lee Chae-hyun carefully stepped forward.
She caught her breath and carefully opened her mouth to answer the reporters' questions.
"Uh... The training... was a little tough, but I learned a lot. A mere E-rank like me caught a C-rank monster, after all."
Lee Chae-hyun gulped and continued.
"In the past, I just wished I could even awaken... but now, I'm greedy to see just how far I can grow."
"We understand this was your first real battle. Were there any difficulties?"
"Hmm... Our Chairman drives people way too hard..."
At those words, soft laughter and admiration rippled through the reporters.
The reporters were also sensitive to trends, so they had all watched my stream.
They all understood what Lee Chae-hyun was saying.
The reporters' questions continued, but I slowly raised one hand to pause them.
"As you know, our manager is very tired from her first real battle."
The reporters understood the implication and readily stepped back, clearing a path.
And that day, similar headlines started to appear one after another.
[ A Promising Rookie Directly Mentored by the Unknown Hunters? ]
[ Lee Chae-hyun, E-rank but How Far Will She Go? ]