42. I'll Pray for Your Soul.
The goblins' response was faster and more aggressive than expected.
"Guild master, the goblins are clustered up tight right in front of the road."
Kang Moo-hyuk moved forward to verify the tense hunter's report.
The goblins had formed a tight phalanx, blocking the narrow pass.
Like a proper army.
Kang Moo-hyuk glanced to both sides.
The right was high ground, the left low. It wasn't enough of a terrain difference to seriously hinder hunters with their superhuman physiques.
Besides, the goblins' formation was perfect for flanking maneuvers.
This is too obvious. It's like they're begging us to come at them.
A blatant trap, daring them to take the bait.
It didn't seem like they cared if Kang Moo-hyuk noticed.
The Great Mother was probably hiding her controlled monsters somewhere nearby.
"What now? Do we attack?"
With Joo Se-ah pulling back the top hunters—who served as de facto line leaders—the chain of command naturally shifted to Kang Moo-hyuk.
Curiously, none of the factions had brought along a clear second-in-command.
Whether it stemmed from power struggles or trust issues, it worked in Kang Moo-hyuk's favor.
"No. We hold position until they come to us."
The main force's job was to draw attention, after all.
As long as they bought time for Joo Se-ah to take out the Goblin Great Mother, that was enough. If the monsters just sat tight, it was even better—thanks for the help.
The wildcard is that goblin unit outside the village. Will they return to bolster defenses, or hit us from behind?
Kang Moo-hyuk figured the latter.
The Great Mother would see this main force as the biggest threat right now.
They've probably calculated that stalling buys them the advantage. So they might opt to eliminate the threat with a partial force instead.
The most efficient play would be a rear ambush for a pincer attack.
And conveniently, there were goblin riders outside the village. Plenty of mobility there.
They were probably charging like mad from behind right about now.
But that's within expectations, so no worries. We've prepared for it.
For the moment, focus on the goblin unit ahead.
Kang Moo-hyuk checked the time on his wristwatch.
About time to start. No comms reach that far, so the hostages are in the guild master's hands. Hope the casualties are light.
Kang Moo-hyuk harbored no illusions about rescuing every hostage unharmed.
He was more proactive than any hunter when it came to saving lives, but he faced reality more squarely than anyone.
That applied to how he viewed himself, too.
That's my weakness. Talking sacrifice without shedding blood myself. If the hunters buy into that point, it'll smooth the path ahead.
Keeping his non-hunter status under wraps was what let him stand before them.
Ironically, his lack of awakening had become a weapon in its own way.
Kang Moo-hyuk kept repeating this to himself, eyes fixed forward without wavering.
Beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep!
His wristwatch alarm blared. At the same moment, Joo Se-ah moved.
"Let's go."
He scanned the hunters following her.
Jang Deok-gu, who'd been with her for years; No Song-rin, still cooperating grudgingly under Kang Moo-hyuk's influence; Do Kyung-hoon, still bristling with resentment; and Baek Hyeong-gyu, the skilled neutral holdout from the guild's minority faction. Five in total, forming the party.
All of them at least A- rank elites.
Two tanks, two melee DPS, one ranged DPS. Shame about no support or mages.
Jang Deok-gu grimaced at the party comp.
Those missing roles were notoriously hard to climb to A-rank, and recruiting them into Iron Will Guild right now was like chasing stars.
Mages especially were practically extinct.
Even big guilds had to nurture promising talents with magic affinities just to net one or two.
The guild's future hinged on filling those gaps.
Even if we clear the goblins clean, the road ahead looks rough.
He glanced at Joo Se-ah's back as she led the way.
Jang Deok-gu recalled her words from when she was young.
-I'm gonna kill every monster. So no one has to die.
What a brutal path she's chosen.
Back then, he'd dismissed it as youthful bravado.
Now she was knocking on S-rank's door.
But even S-rank might not make it possible. Could be outright impossible.
The higher the rank, the more dedicated to hunting, the clearer it became: she couldn't do it alone.
That's when she turned to guild power.
But guilds weren't the bastions of justice she'd imagined.
Power-hungry, profit-driven machines.
Her ideals faded inside them.
So she left. Tried building her own guild she could lead.
Even that proved tough, forcing her to bow to the father she'd despised.
But the guild she got...
Taeseong was a dead end from the start. Blocked on all sides.
By the time she realized it, she was isolated.
No advance, no retreat.
In an industry ruled by politics and vested interests over skill and will, Joo Se-ah had no room to breathe.
Then Kang Moo-hyuk appeared.
Like he was giving her one last shot.
Jang Deok-gu didn't fully like the guy, but he respected his skills as a leader.
That's why she's even more fired up. With the board set this far, if the hunters drop the ball where it counts, it's game over—dreams be damned.
Jang Deok-gu's thoughts cut short.
Joo Se-ah suddenly accelerated, leaping up the ridge.
She slammed down on the hillside overlooking the road. BOOM—a cliffside collapsed in a thunderous roar.
Goblins burst from the revealed hole.
Joo Se-ah smashed their skulls with her flashing knuckle-dusters.
It happened in a blink—no one could intervene. No one needed to.
Weak fodder compared to the party's power.
But more than that...
What tank moves like that? Even nearing S-rank, that's reaction speed above mine.
Do Kyung-hoon, a melee DPS built for agility, was stunned.
Who'd peg Joo Se-ah as a tank?
Tier guild records were confidential, so outsiders only knew the publicized highlights. But this confirmed her ace status even in Slayer.
Unlike Do Kyung-hoon, who was just awed, No Song-rin felt a chill down his spine.
If I'd bolted instead of taking the leader's offer back then... gulp. Wouldn't have collected my bones.
He'd never thought his feet slow—until now. No confidence he could outrun her.
She was tank-fast in the most un-tank way.
Even as their minds wandered, Joo Se-ah pressed on without pause.
She didn't hunt every hidden goblin—just those in the way or showing aggression.
Even that was over in flashes, letting them blaze through the mountain road.
"As expected, the west side's lightly defended."
Reaching Sanjeong Lake's outskirts, sentry posts dotted the area.
Crude setups marking goblin tribe signs on existing structures with woven branches, but armed with bows and axes, they looked decently equipped.
The party emerged, and alarm gongs and flutes blared from all directions.
Goblin shrieks of "KYEEK-KYEEK!" echoed like full alert.
"Bigger scale than I thought."
Joo Se-ah eyed the charging, weapon-wielding goblins before issuing orders.
"Hunter Jang Deok-gu. Pin down the rest for sure."
Even seeing more goblins than anticipated, she stuck to the plan. Do Kyung-hoon couldn't hold back.
"Too many. Looks like plenty of evolved variants too. No AoE skills means we'll tire out fighting them head-on. Even A-ranks have stamina and mana limits, guild master."
"How long you need?"
Jang Deok-gu ignored Do Kyung-hoon and spoke up.
"Don't need much. Five minutes. Plenty to smash the goblin mom's head."
"Huh? That's not a pad lip?"
Baek Hyeong-gyu, silent till now, piped up.
All eyes turned to him. Flustered, he scratched his head and clammed up.
It was a joke that didn't land like one, but it gave Joo Se-ah a breather.
She hadn't overexerted, but the breakthrough had taken serious effort.
Proof: the party's breathing was ragged—hers aside.
They recovered quick, but stamina-drained.
Just keeping up with near-S-rank Joo Se-ah had been taxing.
Noticing late, Joo Se-ah didn't scrap the plan.
"Then, I'm counting on you."
Jang Deok-gu nodded, drawing the weapon from his back.
"Leave it to me."
《Humans invade our nest. No mercy.》
The Goblin Great Mother summoned the elite goblins left in the village.
The humans' momentum was unnervingly fierce.
She recalled the human who'd hunted the Watusi Snake.
If her guess was right, the goblin village faced a dire crisis.
《Prepare.》
Her grating voice issued the command, and goblins dragged in the hostages.
Humans shackled at hands and feet, collared like dogs.
Do Dae-su's group and the tourists.
Hunters walked out with some composure, but civilian tourists crawled, sobbing.
Legs buckling, goblins yanked their leash-ropes like dogs, dragging them.
"Ughhh. N-no, don't wanna die."
"Please spare us. Just let us live..."
The hostages were finally dumped before the Great Mother.
Do Dae-su knelt, staring up at the massive goblin looming over him.
What the hell is this? Never seen it before. Not in any compendium.
At least three meters tall, bulky build. Puffed cheeks like a pufferfish stuffed with food, fur on its head unlike typical goblins. Long braided hair and garb suggested female.
Female goblin as the top dog here? A Warhead maybe?
The goblin tribe's overlord Warhead.
No sightings, so guesswork from hearsay.
No. Totally different.
Gates were unknown realms. Monsters from them, unknowns. Hunters fought the unknown.
Hunters felt fear against the unknown.
They could enter gates, hunt monsters, because predecessors stripped the mystery away.
Knowledge killed fear.
Unknowns weren't the toughest for nothing.
An already terrifying monster without intel became unknown horror.
Do Dae-su trembled in incomprehensible dread.
《Quiet.》
The Great Mother bellowed at the humans' cries, unable to endure.
Humans ignorant of goblin tongue convulsed at the monster's roar.
The Great Mother grimaced, signaling with a hand.
A nearby goblin soldier seized a human man's head.
"Argh!"
The man was gripped by the Great Mother's hand. Sticky fluids oozed from her grasp.
"P-please, spare m—glurk!"
The Great Mother drew a dagger, slashing the begging man's throat.
Blood gushed like in a movie.
She hoisted him up, pressing her mouth to the wound.
Sucking greedily from the bleeding gash—it was grotesque, unreal.
Even stout hunters recoiled.
A blood-drenched, blood-drinking goblin?
Was it even a goblin?
"Not goblins—vampires?"
The unexpected voice turned heads.
A woman holding writhing goblins by their lolling tongues.
She crushed their throats and flung them aside—chilling even to fellow humans.
Do Dae-su recognized her: Joo Se-ah.
Famous as she was.
Tourists screamed in recognition, pleas pouring out.
"S-save us! Money, whatever you want!"
"Hunter Joo! M-my dad's at the Blue House! I'll put in a good word, please..."
Grasping at their sole lifeline, it was understandable.
But Do Dae-su was dumbfounded watching clients treat her like a neighborhood hunter.
Do they think Joo Se-ah's some local hunter? Someone even their folks wouldn't mess with.
Elites and chaebol didn't defer to hunters out of social status.
It was raw power that gave them pause.
Heroes to civilians, but latent terrorists to the powerful—hunters could unleash violence anytime.
Third-world collapses under hunters were history lessons.
These spoiled brats were barking up the wrong tree.
Of course, Do Dae-su—acquainted with hunter power dynamics—misjudged top-ranks too.
Upper hunters weren't as reckless as he feared.
Whatever the hostages thought, Joo Se-ah looked troubled.
Hostages? Didn't see that coming.
Can I save them?
Taking out the Great Mother wasn't the issue.
Goblins held each hostage tight—rushing in blindly meant guaranteed deaths.
Save who I can.
A core hunter academy principle.
Hunters were hailed as saviors and heroes, but far from perfect.
Trying to save everyone could get you killed—or doom them all.
Select and focus.
Cruel to the humans involved, agonizing for hunters too.
Joo Se-ah hesitated no more.
Mana shimmered on her knuckle-dusters.
She looked at Do Dae-su.
"You there. I'll save you, no worries."
"Th-thank you."
"Might get banged up a bit, but I'll do my best."
"Yes. Please."
"Hey, if things go south and you die anyway, I'll pray for your soul."
"Yes. No prob—wait, what?!"
In a flash, Joo Se-ah vanished.