The Returned Hunter (3)

"Are you okay?"

Pink hair swaying in the wind, a sword and shield stained green with monster blood.

It was exactly the same figure that had appeared before me ten years ago, back when I'd fallen into another world knowing nothing, drawing a bowstring just to survive.

"I'm okay…."

That glass-like face, kind to everyone. There was so much I wanted to say — but the situation was anything but good.

Monsters kept pouring out through the gate without end.

"Shall we pick this conversation up later?"

Yuri turned toward the approaching monsters.

I pulled my mask back on and shifted Aurora, which had been in shotgun form, back into its bow configuration.

"Please hold the aggro. I'll handle the damage."

Yuri's tanking skills back in this era weren't all that great yet.

But I know the Yuri of the future.

With just a few pointers, she'd figure the rest out on her own.

"A pack of orcs is coming up ahead!"

Yuri slammed the shield in her hand into the ground. A dazzling golden pulse rippled outward from where she stood.

"All of you, look at me! Your opponent is me!"

With Yuri's cry, every orc's gaze locked onto her.

It's been a while.

This was the reason every guild had had their eye on Yuri.

Other tanks typically had a taunt skill and a skill that raised their own defense. But Yuri was different. She carried a skill that combined self-buffs, party-wide buffs, and aggro control all in one.

Then….

I drew the bowstring and released.

The arrow flew with a speed unlike before and burst an orc's head open.

Let's see how long the ammo holds out.

Either way, today was meant to end after the tutorial. So I decided to pour everything I had into this fight.

Will the skill activation be the same as I remember?

Aurora had different skills for each mode. Each mode came with skills suited to it, and the bow had the largest arsenal of them all.

"Whew…."

Gathering the mana at my fingertips, I let the string fly.

With a sharp, crackling burst of sound, the arrow that left the string split into ten streaks of light in midair.

The divided arrows began punching into the orcs' vitals.

Heavy, thudding impacts rang out one after another. The orc that had been raising its club to bring it down on Yuri's shield took an arrow through the heart and toppled sideways.

Is it because these are my stats from ten years ago? They're way too weak.

I cleared out every orc around me and turned my gaze toward Yuri.

"Ugh…."

Blocking attacks with her shield and striking back with her sword — the textbook image of a sword-and-board warrior.

"Yuri, don't grip the shield so tight. Loosen your shoulders, and don't take the impact head-on — deflect it, let it slide."

At my voice, Yuri's shoulders flinched. But a moment later, she tilted the angle of her shield just as I'd advised.

Her shield slanted diagonally, and the orc's club slid along its face and skidded off into empty air.

"Oh — so that's how it's done."

Yuri's eyes sparkled, as if something had just clicked.

I loosed an arrow and skewered the head of the orc whose stance had collapsed.

"But don't space out on me."

"Ah! Right!"

Watching her, old memories stirred.

Wait — this was the thing you taught me.

That day she'd said she'd realized something, handed me a wooden sword, and asked for my help.

I still have no idea why she asked an archer of all people.

I had helped her diligently, though. And in the end she'd been overjoyed, saying she'd finally learned to deflect attacks instead of absorbing them.

Focus on the fight first.

I steadied my breathing and scanned our surroundings.

Yuri reset her stance and charged into the orc pack. Following her lead, I changed Aurora's form.

Because right now, I need to smash and blast.

Devastating firepower, fired in full-auto without ever racking a pump.

Shotguns came in more than one variety. The pump-action I'd used earlier had let me fire each shell with deliberate care.

But the situation now was different. Far more orcs were swarming us than before.

And a transformation this minor doesn't eat into a slot.

I called out to Yuri, who was holding back the orc assault with her shield.

"Yuri, one more skill, please."

Yuri nodded and drove her shield into the ground. Light spread out just like before, and the orcs — briefly thrown into disarray — began charging at her once more.

I turned my attention to Aurora and checked the remaining rounds.

Not much left. I'll finish this in thirty.

I gathered mana at my fingertips once more.

A deep breath, the stock seated firm against my shoulder, and I pulled the trigger.

BUDDABUDDABUDDA—!

A thunderous roar that seemed to shake the entire area tore through the field. The fire rate was on another plane entirely from the pump-action, flame spewing from the muzzle without a second's pause.

The orcs at the front line became heaps of gore rolling across the ground before they could even scream.

A short while later, I lifted my finger from the trigger.

Beyond the billowing gunsmoke, green corpses littered the ground.

Lucky.

That left roughly two full magazines by standard assault rifle measures. Just then, Yuri's voice came from behind me.

"That was incredible! Was that a skill just now? Or an item effect?"

Unable to hide her excitement, Yuri came running to my side.

Even back then, I remembered vividly how she'd marveled at Aurora.

There was so much I wanted to talk about — but the gate hadn't closed yet.

"It's not over."

The gate hadn't closed. The instant that thought crossed my mind, something far bigger than before came walking out of it.

Unlike the green orcs, it radiated a crimson aura and stood two to three times their size.

"A High Orc."

And unlike the crude, makeshift weapons the others carried, this one gripped an axe with a properly honed edge.

Yuri looked at it and said to me,

"I don't think that's something we can handle in our current state. Shouldn't we fall back for a moment and wait for reinforcements?"

Ordinarily, Yuri's judgment would be right. And in the past, that's exactly what we had done.

But this time was different.

"There's still buff time left, so I think it's doable."

Behind me, I could hear Yuri shouting at me to stop, to come back.

But I deliberately ignored her and kept walking.

If this game truly was the place I had returned from — if what hung in my hand really was Aurora —

then it was possible.

GRAAAAGH—!

"One thing I'll never get used to — orcs are loud."

I pulled off my mask and drew a deep breath, then sent every drop of mana in my body rushing out.

From my dantian to my heart, from my heart to my whole body — and when the mana finally coursed through every inch of me, I murmured softly:

Silver light erupted from Aurora.

The High Orc squeezed its eyes shut against the brilliance and flailed its axe wildly.

A technique that emptied Aurora's entire magazine and poured it all into a single target. Because it burned through every ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠last round, it had always been something I saved for the very, very end of a fight.

And that moment was now.

"Sorry, but this is my solo encore time."

Aurora reshaped itself, the barrel shortening. I dove into the High Orc's chest and squeezed the trigger.

The blistering rate of fire shredded the very air before the muzzle. Under the torrent of rounds, the creature's thick leather armor and flesh were ripped apart like ragcloth.

It writhed in agony, jaws stretching wide to scream —

"Quiet."

I kicked off the ground and leapt, jamming the barrel straight into its open mouth.

BOOM—!

With a muffled blast, the creature's head snapped backward. Riding the recoil, I launched myself into the air.

The distance opened up.

Mid-flight, Aurora reassembled itself in my hands. The barrel stretched long, and a scope materialized before my eye.

Through the crosshairs, the creature's brow came into view.

The instant sight and brow aligned on a single line —

I pulled the trigger.

CRACK—!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

A single silver round tore through the air.

I immediately switched Aurora's form again.

"Finished."

I gathered every remaining round into a single arrow.

And released the string.

A colossal arrow of light left Aurora and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠drove forward, grinding everything in its path to powder —

and the High Orc was no exception.

"Whew… doing this after so long is kicking my ass."

No idea why they'd implemented fatigue of all things, but I wiped the sweat streaming down my forehead.

Then a familiar blue window floated up before my eyes.

The reaction from everyone watching was electric. In a game with such erratic updates, all the veterans ever did was min-max builds or babysit newbies.

And now that newbie was showing them scenes no one had ever witnessed before.

And there was plenty being said about the avatar too.

Others were already rooting for Seolhwa's official debut.

While the chat amused itself, a line of text appeared on the screen.

The reactions of everyone who saw it split cleanly down the middle.

And as Seolhwa stared at the rewards, a small smile played at the corner of her lips.

I didn't expect to earn this so soon. The extra slots on top of it, no less.

Just as Seolhwa closed the system window and moved to put her mask back on, a voice called up from below.

"Excuse me! Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhe—… oh. You're not."

Yuri slung her shield across her back and came up to Seolhwa.

"Yes, I'm fine."

Seolhwa smiled as if to say there was nothing to worry about.

"Do you have any idea how scared I was when you just charged at that High Orc alone?!"

Seolhwa gave an awkward laugh at that.

"Well, it all worked out in the end, so isn't that what counts?"

Yuri let out a sigh.

"It counts because you didn't die."

"That's thanks to you tanking the aggro so well, Yuri."

Seolhwa took a step closer and looked Yuri dead in the eyes.

"This is a problem, though — if we mesh this well. After fighting alongside you, I don't think I'll be able to sync up with any other tank."

Yuri flushed, embarrassed, and turned her gaze away.

"…Did I ever tell you my name?"