Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Witch's Curse
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‘Sorcery?’
Yang Su-hyeok recalled one of the spells from the Huan Continent.
She had called herself a witch, so he figured it was some kind of curse. But it was far too late to dodge.
The range was incredibly vast. He wasn’t some fool or overly sensitive pushover who’d somehow climbed to the rank of instructor.
“There’s no turning back now.”
Shar swung her hand.
A massive gust of wind roared forth, instantly blowing Yang Su-hyeok, Jin Chang-hyeok, and Baek Yi-yeon out of the curse’s range.
Shar herself shot into the air like a bird taking flight.
Jeon Su-jeong’s eyes flickered with unease for a moment.
It was that gap she’d only sensed intuitively until now.
But the difference in power she’d tried to ignore suddenly hit her like a brick.
Damn it.
She gritted her teeth. But she couldn’t back down after coming this far.
That bitch can’t kill me anyway.
She was from the Imugi Guild.
One of the top three guilds in all of Korea.
Someone like Shar, who valued rules and order, wouldn’t want to start a feud with a major guild like that. And her current position would only make it harder for her to act freely.
“Team 3! Team 8 rookies, kill th…”
No, killing them would cross the line.
“Break them! Smash anything you can!”
“B-but…”
Jin Chae-yeon, Kim Cheol-ik, and Lee Jeong-uk stammered, caught off guard by the sudden turn of events.
“Don’t you want to join Imugi?”
Jeon Su-jeong said coldly, turning to them.
Imugi.
As mentioned, it was one of the top three guilds in the entire country.
Its leader, Park Mu-gi, was one of Korea’s rare 12th-rank Hunters with massive global influence. Rumors swirled that he doted on Jeon Su-jeong quite a bit. Whether it was an affair or something else, it was common knowledge among Awakeners that he granted most of her requests.
And these three desperately wanted into Imugi.
They wanted to join a powerhouse guild and rampage freely, just like Jeon Su-jeong.
They just had to look the other way this once.
It wasn’t even killing.
“A leg or an arm each will do.”
Bring back some war spoils.
The general, Jeon Su-jeong, had given the order.
And her three foot soldiers leaped forward to obey.
Poisonous intent gleamed in their eyes.
They’d decided without hesitation to harm others for their own goals—or ideals.
Shar watched the exchange with arms crossed. She even watched them charge.
Is she that relaxed?
Jeon Su-jeong snorted.
“You’ll regret this. Not just because they’re my trainees—they’re actually pretty damn good. Especially that guy. He’s even more special than I thought.”
Jeon Su-jeong shot Shar a gleaming glare and cackled.
Her goal was simply to tie Shar’s feet for a bit.
She’d never expected a warrior like Shar to lose a one-on-one to a witch like her anyway.
She was just shocked the gap was even wider than anticipated.
“How’s it feel watching the trainees you trained yourself get wrecked? Come to think of it, I’ve never seen you really pissed off. Wonder if I will soon?”
Jeon Su-jeong taunted.
A faint smile spread across Shar’s lips as she gazed down imperiously from midair.
“Who knows. I hope it goes your way.”
“You damn bitch!”
The curse’s power exploded outward once more.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ As Shar and Jeon Su-jeong fired the starting shot for their battle, Yang Su-hyeok, Jin Chang-hyeok, and Baek Yi-yeon spotted the three charging at them.
Yang Su-hyeok quickly assessed the situation.
Kim Cheol-ik, wielding a spear, was a frontline fighter type.
The easiest prey for Yang Su-hyeok.
Jin Chae-yeon with her bow was an archer type.
Theoretically, best to take out first.
Then what about Lee Jeong-uk?
Like Team 8’s group, he carried no visible weapon.
From his waddling run alone, he didn’t seem like a physical enhancer.
Healing type like Yi-yeon? Or magic?
Based on the combo, that made sense.
But when Lee Jeong-uk’s clothes tore and his body swelled massively into a monstrous form mid-charge, that thought flew out the window.
“Transmuter!”
Baek Yi-yeon screamed.
Transmuters fundamentally transformed their bodies or tools. Among them, body transmuters like Lee Jeong-uk were overwhelmingly stronger than any low-rank 5th-grade-or-below Awakener could match.
For example, Jin Chang-hyeok could sprout a sword from his fist, making him as wild and powerful as any same-rank Awakener.
The problem was that Lee Jeong-uk’s base mana seemed pretty high too.
His chubby frame ballooned into something that felt like a solid wall.
Purely in terms of Awakener talent, he surpassed even Jin Chang-hyeok.
The darker truth: to reach the threatening ranged attacker Jin Chae-yeon, they’d have to get past that monster first.
“Crazy.”
Jin Chang-hyeok swore.
Even his razor-sharp fist-blade didn’t look like it could pierce Lee Jeong-uk’s thick, tough flesh.
“I’ll take the pig and the bow bitch.”
Yang Su-hyeok finished his calculations.
Unexpected abilities, but no issue.
“How?”
Baek Yi-yeon asked, but there was no time.
“Just hold off the spear guy for a sec. I’ll handle them and join back up.”
Yang Su-hyeok dashed forward.
Lee Jeong-uk’s charging speed was picking up.
The impact of collision scaled with speed and mass. For Yang Su-hyeok, whose inner power was still limited, smashing into that speeding wall of bulk was the last thing he wanted.
“Kahahaha! Come on! Come get some!”
“I’ll beat you into paste!”
Lee Jeong-uk bellowed at Yang Su-hyeok with booming laughter.
He oozed confidence, but sadly, he’d picked the wrong opponent.
Dodging Lee Jeong-uk’s body slam by a hair’s breadth, Yang Su-hyeok lightly clenched his fist.
Up close, the stench of thick flesh hit him.
His inner power surged from his lower dantian, racing through his shoulder and arm like a galloping steed. It gathered in the tiny gap of his slightly cocked fist.
Crunch-!
The punch, infused with explosive body power from his waist, slammed into Lee Jeong-uk’s side.
Iron Palm Strike, Soaring Fist.
Soaring Fist was one of Iron Palm Strike’s higher-difficulty techniques.
The theory was simple: approach fluidly, then unleash your full-body power at point-blank range. It sounded easy, but exploding all your strength in that split-second, split-distance was anything but.
But succeed, and even barehanded, without inner power, you could shatter rock.
This was the famed inch-force technique.
Yang Su-hyeok demonstrated it perfectly—and added inner power on top.
Bang-!
A sharp explosive sound echoed, like pounding a gym sandbag.
“Urgh?!”
Lee Jeong-uk let out a bizarre groan as his body staggered sideways.
“Aaaagh-!”
Blood spurted from his nose alongside a scream, his face flushing red.
His bloated flesh deflated like a punctured balloon.
“It hurts! Hurts, hurts! Aaagh!”
Ignoring Lee Jeong-uk rolling on the ground in agony, Yang Su-hyeok turned to Jin Chae-yeon, who stared in shock while nocking an arrow.
Twang-!
An arrow shot desperately toward him.
Not an arm or shoulder this time.
Straight for the forehead center—a killing shot. Yang Su-hyeok saw it crystal clear.
Fast, but straight-line.
As he’d said before, one-directional attacks posed no threat to him.
Just one step.
The arrow whistled past his nose in that razor-thin gap. Yang Su-hyeok channeled inner power into his legs.
Crack-!
The ground shattered as his foot launched.
“Kyaaah-!”
Jin Chae-yeon shrieked in terror at his arrow-like speed, backpedaling.
Her hands scrambled for the next arrow but only fumbled the quiver.
“That’s three shots already, right?”
Yang Su-hyeok’s voice whispered in her ear.
The number of arrows she’d fired at his group.
She knew.
But she shook her head.
“N-no, it’s not.”
Denying it in hopes of mercy.
Wishing the facts would vanish like a lie.
Yang Su-hyeok had no intention of going easy just because she was a woman.
On the Huan Continent, the saying went: beware women, children, and elders most.
They were that dangerous—how could he underestimate her?
“This one’s for Chang-hyeok.”
Yang Su-hyeok’s body spun half a turn in place.
Like a whirlwind.
Retreating Wind Kick, Gale Wind.
Even as she twisted away to dodge and rummaged her quiver, a crunch echoed from Jin Chae-yeon’s right shoulder blade.
“Aaaagh-!”
She screamed.
Desperate to live, she tried fleeing Yang Su-hyeok, but it was futile.
Like a slithering serpent riding the air, his hand grabbed her collar and slammed her to the ground.
Not a formal technique.
A grappling hand method to snatch and subdue foes in an instant.
Pinned to the ground, Jin Chae-yeon tried rising amid the pain, but Yang Su-hyeok was already there.
“N-no. I didn’t mean to…”
Half-collapsed, she looked up with teary eyes, shaking her head.
Still denying.
“You tried to kill me.”
“It wasn’t on purpose, it was a mistake…”
A mistake. Sure, that could happen.
Anyone might accidentally nail an arrow dead-center between someone’s eyes.
But Yang Su-hyeok wasn’t the noble type to buy that.
“This one’s called Explosive Palm.”
His palm lightly touched the trembling, huddled Jin Chae-yeon’s abdomen.
Iron Palm Strike’s Explosive Palm erupted, flipping her guts inside out.
“Urk-!”
She doubled over, vomiting up her stomach’s contents.
Soon she was rolling on the ground, tears streaming.
“Sniff, it hurts, hurts, hurts! Waaah.”
Yang Su-hyeok stepped up as she bawled, snot and tears mixing. He raised his arm. She flinched instinctively and cried out.
“P-please, spare me! Anything… just don’t kill me!”
Slap-!
A crisp smack across the cheek knocked out the wailing Jin Chae-yeon.
“Not killing you. Don’t freak. I’m not some murderer.”
Tsking lightly at her unconscious form, Yang Su-hyeok’s gaze shifted to the last man standing: Kim Cheol-ik.
The already bad 2-on-1 had turned disastrous with his allies down. Panicking, his limbs flailed wildly.
Jin Chang-hyeok eyed the opening and thrust his blade for the heart.
Yang Su-hyeok hurriedly shoved the strike aside.