Chapter 194: Tsukushima Satomi (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 194: Tsukushima Satomi (2)
“Call me as soon as you get back to Korea.”
Park Su-jin, who had only been granted two days by the Male Protagonist, spoke while lingeringly stroking my vest, clearly reluctant to leave.
Just look at how supple her face is after sucking up so much of my essence over the past few days.
Luckily, she had visited while Black Unicorn was on break, and she was leaving now after enjoying herself day and night.
Since today was also a dungeon raid day for us, she stroked my costume with a suggestive expression.
“Go already, you pervert. We’re busy.”
“Make sure you protect our Purple Condensed Milk properly. If it looks like he’s going to get hurt, you’d better step in and die in his place.”
“I’ll protect him even if you don’t tell me to, so just get lost already.”
As Kwon Ye-jin grumbled, Park Su-jin let out a smirk and finally pulled her wandering hand away from my chest.
“I’m leaving Jane with you, so take good care of her. I think I’ll do some shopping in Tokyo before I head out.”
Su-jin turned around coolly, waving a hand over her head as she climbed into a luxury sedan.
Not that the car can even leave Chiba anyway.
After Park Su-jin and Kang Hye-in left, we set out for our dungeon raid.
“How many today, Master?”
“Three, same as usual.”
“Huh? That’s unexpected. Since the rank went down, I thought you’d bring in a couple more.”
What do you take me for?
If there’s time left, we might do more, but I don’t overextend us by taking on too many dungeons at once.
“Instead, these are a bit longer. Even if they are only B-1 rank.”
“We were doing B-1s a week ago, too.”
When Kwon Ye-jin talked back, Anna smiled brightly and stretched her arms out wide.
“Because we’re Black Unicorn!”
I patted the energetic Anna on the head and headed toward the dungeon with the field team that had been waiting.
“Thank you for your hard work for Japan again today.”
While we rode in the car together, Atsuko greeted us and briefed us on the dungeon we were about to enter.
I had already checked everything thoroughly, but it was good to hear the Japan Association’s perspective as well.
Lee Yuna listened to Atsuko’s explanation, then glanced at me and let out a small chuckle.
Yeah, I have no intention of ignoring them, but my analytical skills are better.
Having compared my dungeon analysis with the Japan Association’s capabilities, Lee Yuna looked at me with admiration.
It’s not like I spent my time in the military just digging holes.
Plus, I’ve reached the level cap on seven different alt accounts using my teammates' IDs in the game, so it’s safe to say there’s almost nothing I don’t know.
Except for the errors.
I didn’t realize the world-building the developers added to make it feel more "fantasy" would trip me up like this.
I haven’t been caught yet, but I feel like if I let my guard down, I’ll get hit hard.
I could reach A-rank just through dungeon merits alone, but taking only the safe path might cause problems later. Once the Dungeon Impact is over, I should focus on clearing out errors and villains.
It’ll be easier to gain experience now while our skills are far superior to our current rank.
When we arrived at the dungeon, the Self-Defense Force officer guarding the entrance saluted me.
No, wait—he was aiming that salute at Satomi.
It looked like he was saluting me, but his eyes were fixed precisely on Satomi behind me.
I don’t know if she’s dead or alive to them, but it seems her parents have quite a bit of influence in Japan.
Satomi’s eyes wavered for a moment, but she quickly looked away, pretending not to notice.
The officer didn’t say anything to her either and simply shook my hand.
He gave the usual speech—thanking us for helping Japan, expressing gratitude for our grace—similar to the conversations I’d had with the soldiers guarding other entrances. We then gathered our gear and prepared for the raid.
While preparing, Satomi’s eyes met mine; her gaze flickered momentarily before she turned her head.
Don’t be like that.
It’s never good for party members to doubt each other or have things weighing on their minds.
As I watched her face, which looked uncharacteristically pensive, a soldier approached and handed me some documents.
Something about using our raid for promotional purposes.
Apparently, the records of this raid would be received from Square Garden and distributed throughout Japan.
We had already discussed this, and there was nothing to hide, so I signed the papers and entered the dungeon.
“It’s toasty in here.”
Kwon Ye-jin laughed casually as she looked at the dungeon, which resembled Earth on the brink of the apocalypse.
With the crimson sky, volcanoes erupting in the distance, and lava filling the ground, we would have been drenched in sweat immediately if our costumes didn't regulate our temperature.
“Deploying drones. Activating glider heat sensors, connecting communications. Location-based system is live. Transmitting data.”
Hearing Ryu Ji-hye’s voice over the comms, I put on my goggles.
Information from the drones and gliders appeared as augmented reality through the lenses.
Anna picked up a sniper rifle larger than her own body and handed it to me.
It was the custom sniper rifle Poltsmith had made specifically for me.
If the elder Michelle had made it, she might have been able to miniaturize it like a standard sniper rifle, but it seems the elder hasn't watched many movies featuring snipers yet.
Anyway, I’ve only used it a few times, but it’s come in handy.
It’s massive, looking like something that should be mounted on a battleship, and the sci-fi design makes Anna absolutely love it.
Even now, her eyes sparkled with admiration as she looked up at me with the cannon-like rifle slung over my shoulder.
“Augmented reality and communication delay are zero. Good luck today.”
I acknowledged Ryu Ji-hye’s encouragement and looked at the party members.
“The tactics are as we discussed. Yuna will take the lead as the operator. Ayeong, your attribute is at a disadvantage here, so don't overdo it. Focus on supporting Ye-jin on the frontline.”
“Got it.”
“The main attackers are Hornet and me. Don’t forget the attackers' advantage and follow Ye-jin’s lead on the front.”
“Understood, Captain.”
“See you in a bit, Leader.”
The members of Black Unicorn set off ahead of me.
I used the drones for primary monster detection and my Mana Detection to pinpoint their exact locations.
“Eight monsters. We’ll start by taking out four with initial sniper shots. Hornet, make sure you finish off at least one.”
When I relayed this over the comms, Hornet replied with a hint of annoyance in her voice.
“Why do you get three and I only get one?”
Because you can’t do long-range sniping.
However, she insisted she could take out more, seemingly having some pride as a long-range attacker.
I usually don’t compromise on tactics, but since this was a sign of her showing initiative in the party, I decided to trust her.
“Fine, let’s take out two each. I’ll start the first strike as planned. When their attention is drawn to me, finish yours off cleanly and pull back.”
“I’ll get it done even if you don’t tell me, so don’t worry.”
With Hornet’s mobility, it was certainly possible.
The monsters in this dungeon were covered in magma, making them tricky opponents for melee attackers.
That was why, despite the erosion being quite advanced, the assigned hero parties had hesitated to raid it, allowing me to take it for ourselves.
They were a type of golem, so you just had to destroy the core, but attacking a body surrounded by magma wasn't as easy as it sounded.
At least for melee attackers.
I entered the core locations I found with Mana Detection into the pad.
“Activating tracking. Inputting identified golem core locations, outputting to AR.”
Ryu Ji-hye broadcasted to everyone.
As soon as she finished speaking, the golem cores were highlighted in the goggles we had prepared for this dungeon.
“Don’t just rush in because you can see the cores. Yeon-woo and Hornet are the main attackers for now.”
I heard Lee Yuna giving orders over the open channel.
As expected, she’s doing well.
“Commencing combat.”
I announced over the comms and pulled the trigger at the same time.
Boom—!
With a sound like a cannon firing, a bullet no different from a shell was launched, piercing through a monster’s core.
Since the mass is large, it holds a lot of mana, which is a plus.
Feeling grateful to Poltsmith for the simple yet guaranteed performance, I fired another shot at a monster looking my way.
Boom—!
Just as the other monsters were about to charge, Hornet, who had been hiding, approached by sliding low across the ground.
Kicking off compressed air as she ran, she approached the monsters as if glued to the terrain. She precisely destroyed a core, then turned and shattered the core of another monster that was looking back.
“…”
Even though I hadn't given the order to retreat yet, Hornet took out only two as previously agreed and immediately pulled back.
That was a bit unexpected.
I thought she would have tried to kill one more even if it meant overextending herself, but she was following my orders perfectly.
As the monsters turned to chase the retreating Hornet, I fired once more.
Boom—!
The mana-saturated bullet pierced through a monster’s back and embedded itself in the ground.
Sssssss—!
The ground where the bullet struck froze instantly, but it immediately began to melt, creating a cloud of steam in the vicinity.
“Stopping tracking. Transmitting heat source data to AR.”
Immediately after Ryu Ji-hye spoke, red markers detecting the monsters' temperatures appeared on the goggles.
“Retreating for now. Hornet, Ayeong, lure the enemies.”
Following Lee Yuna’s command, Hornet and Kim A-young fired long-range attacks to lure the monsters whose vision was obscured.
While the retreating party repositioned themselves, I picked off the monsters emerging from the steam one by one.
The battle ended after Hornet took down one and I took down three.
“Heat sources confirmed clear. No monsters detected.”
My Mana Detection didn't pick up any monsters nearby either.
“I like how easy this is, but I feel like I’m not doing anything.”
Having cleared the monsters so easily, Kwon Ye-jin spoke with a wry smile.
“It’s because Yeon-woo’s tactics are perfect. Let’s just be happy we can handle Meltrocks this easily.”
“I know that, but I feel like I’ve become a background character or something.”
“Did you sleep during the briefing? Keep saving your mana. Your time to shine is during the boss fight, Ye-jin.”
“Yes, yes. I know~”
Lee Yuna and Kwon Ye-jin bickered as they usually did.
Since it was an open-type dungeon, we continued moving around and taking down groups of monsters until the eruption conditions were met, and the volcano finally blew.
Once a certain number of monsters are defeated, the volcano explodes and the boss appears.
“I’m joining up.”
After sending the transmission, I looked down to put the sniper rifle away and saw a pile of shell casings large enough to fit around my thigh.
When am I going to clean all this up?
The ammo is all supplied by Poltsmith, so it doesn't matter, but since I’m using it for free, I have to at least pretend to collect them so I don't feel guilty.
Wiping away the uncomfortable feeling of leaving trash at a tourist site, I left the sniper rifle near the entrance and joined the party.
The crimson sky turned black, deepening into a blood-like hue. The lava spewing from the volcano gathered in one spot and transformed into a massive Meltrock.
For the record, its name is just "Large Meltrock."
There isn't much difference other than the fact that its core is split into several pieces.
The problem is that it rampages with that massive size.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
Upon arrival, I buffed the party members and gave instructions.
“Kwon Ye-jin, Kim A-young, move forward. Form the ranks as we practiced.”
“Okay, Master! Finally, I get to do some work!”
Kwon Ye-jin ran forward with her shield, and Kim A-young followed behind her.
Anna, Satomi, and Hornet, standing in the second line, kept a slight distance from the two and prepared to attack.
Lee Yuna fired arrows at the ground to cool the burning terrain, while I fired into the sky, knocking away the fireballs erupting from the Meltrock’s body.
“I missed a few!”
“Transmitting data.”
When I missed a few fireballs because there were too many, Ryu Ji-hye input the data into the members' goggles.
It was an environment designed to torment heroes—fireballs falling from the sky, scorching geothermal heat—but with Lee Yuna and me providing full support, the other members were able to run wild to their hearts' content.
As Kwon Ye-jin blocked a massive fist head-on and brought it to a halt, Kim A-young blasted it with cold air to hold back the heat.
In that gap, Satomi approached the arm and took a drawing stance.
Satomi’s eyes turned fierce as she took a deep, heavy breath, as if she were sucking in all the surrounding air.
Wonmyeong-ryu: Great Ship Cutter
As her blade moved, the Meltrock’s wrist—the size of a large truck—was severed clean off.
Whoa—that’s some insane power.
There’s a reason Japanese melee attackers are famous.
I had told her to cut the arm, but I didn't expect her to slice through it in a single blow.
As the wrist was severed by her battōjutsu, I immediately fired, marking the location of the core within the severed limb.
Anna and Hornet rushed in to destroy the core, and the wrist lost its form, turning back into lava.
Thwip—!
Lee Yuna’s arrow struck, and cold air swirled in all directions, causing the lava to harden instantly.
With Lee Yuna removing all obstacles on the ground and me handling everything in the sky, the Black Unicorn members continued to carve up the Meltrock’s body and destroy its cores.
“Kuaaaaaagh!”
When Satomi sliced through the final core, the Meltrock let out a massive roar and collapsed, melting away.
Heat that even our costumes' functions couldn't fully block radiated outward, and we retreated.
“I feel this every time, but entering a dungeon with Master is just too easy. I’m going to get fat at this rate.”
Kwon Ye-jin joked with a smirk.
“Let’s clear more so you don’t get fat.”
“Ah, that’s not what I meant.”
Having finished one raid, we continued our unstoppable momentum, destroying the dungeon before moving on to the next.