Chapter 86
Chapter 86
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: [Abyssal Miner] Training and Real Combat
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Thwack! Thud! Crack!
Dull impact sounds echoed a few more times.
But this time, the source of the blows was different from before.
"Urgh..."
"P-Please... spare me..."
The ones groaning on the ground were the thugs who had been surrounding and beating Kyle.
"W-Who the hell are you?!"
In the blink of an eye, only the loudest-mouthed bastard from earlier was left.
The same punk who had picked a fight with me before.
He looked flustered at my sudden appearance.
'You deserve a beating.'
I grabbed him by the collar and slammed a headbutt right into his face.
Thud-!
"Gah..."
His nasal bone crumpled, and blood sprayed out like a fountain.
I stuck to him as he staggered, unleashing a barrage of knee strikes to his gut.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
"S-Spare..."
"Shut up, you punk."
Finally, I swung hard at his face, and his head snapped back as he crashed to the ground.
Clatter, clatter.
A moment later, a few teeth that had flown into the air rained down onto the dirt.
That's gonna cost him in dental bills.
In this medieval fantasy world, money could probably fix broken teeth.
But whether he had that kind of cash was none of my business.
Venting my long-held grudge felt damn good.
In an instant, all seven were sprawled out, filling the clearing with eight sets of pathetic groans.
'Can't just leave without a reward.'
I rifled through the pockets of the fallen thugs.
Enforcing justice is fine, but I deserved compensation for my efforts.
Clink. Clink.
"...Ha."
A sigh escaped me automatically.
All they had were a few coins.
Fifty to two hundred Lumina per guy?
Even all together, it didn't add up to a thousand.
"Hey, if you're gonna live like this, why bother being thugs? Go mine or something, you losers."
Broke-ass punks.
Extorting people but carrying no cash—what's the point?
Wonder where all their shakedown money went.
I pocketed what I'd found and turned to vanish into the darkness.
"W-Wait a second...!"
Someone called out to me, followed by a pained groan.
It was Kyle.
Covered head to toe in dirt and blood, he barely managed to prop himself up.
His handsome face was so swollen now it was unrecognizable.
Ignore him.
Getting more involved would just be a hassle.
I'd already crushed his flag with Luna—my job here was done.
"Wait... Urk...!"
Kyle tried to stand but screamed and collapsed again, clutching his leg and groaning.
His condition looked serious.
He'd taken more of a beating than I'd thought in that short time.
Then again, seven guys with weapons beating and stomping him—how could it not be bad?
'...Hold on.'
Could he even make it home like that?
Stumbling through the alleys and collapsing?
And if Luna, heading home from work, happened to pass by right then?
[Oh my! Kyle!]
All my hard work saving him would be for nothing—he'd end up right back where he started.
I needed to make sure this guy walked home on his own two feet, safe and sound.
That way, he wouldn't run into Luna.
A potion would help, but I didn't have any on me right now.
The ones I'd bought before were only for mine trips, so they were safely stashed in my inn room.
And I wasn't about to trek back there just for them.
So, I'd have to handle this right here.
My healing factor trait, [Blessing of the Earth], couldn't be used on others.
[Physician's Touch] was on cooldown anyway.
Besides, that was for clinging to the thread of life in the dying—not for bruises like these.
'Maybe just some basic first aid and send him off.'
His leg muscles were knotted up, ligaments shocked.
Ease the pain, reduce the swelling, and he'd walk fine.
I had the [Acupuncture] skill—if only I had needles...
'Wait a sec.'
Couldn't I improvise with the [Mana Coating] skill?
Whoosh.
I extended my right index finger and activated Mana Coating.
A bluish energy wrapped around it.
Blunt and finger-shaped, as expected.
'Thinner. Sharper... pointier.'
Tssst.
The mana at my fingertip slowly reshaped.
The blunt energy thinned out, forming a sharp mana needle at the tip.
About five centimeters long.
'Nice, it works.'
Without exceptional talent, manipulating mana this precisely would be impossible.
But I had the [Mana Affinity] trait.
And the [Mana Coating] skill was like a perfect textbook for learning by example.
If I couldn't pull this off, I'd be a disgrace as a hunter.
'A bit more practice, and I might unlock a shape-shifting skill.'
I'd have to train whenever I got the chance.
I approached Kyle and said,
"Stay still."
"Huh? What are you...?"
"Quiet. Stick out that leg."
I pointed at his injured leg, and he obediently extended it.
Such a nice guy—no suspicion at all.
That attitude's gonna get him hurt bad someday.
I scanned the injury using the diagnostic effect of my [Royal Physician] trait.
Torn muscles, twisted bones.
Nerves compressed, causing severe pain.
'Worse than I thought.'
If I'd left him like that, I'd have wasted my effort and failed to avert the event.
'Let's see, acupoints... here they are.'
I located the points around the injury and plunged the needle in.
"Gaaahhh!!"
Kyle let out an unmanly shriek.
Even thinned as much as possible, the low skill proficiency made it thicker than a real metal needle.
Plus, [Mana Coating] was inherently an attack skill.
No wonder it hurt.
But the effect would be solid.
Boosted by [Hand of God (C)] and [Blessing of the Earth], plus [Acupuncture (F)].
"Don't be such a baby."
I mercilessly stabbed the surrounding acupoints, breaking up the clotted blood and realigning the twisted bones.
"Urgh... guh...!"
Kyle foamed at the mouth, screaming, but I ignored him and continued the treatment.
What's good for you is always bitter.
This was absolutely not sadistic torture on my part.
Poke, poke, poke.
After several stabs and massages, I finished up.
Poke.
"Gaaahhh!"
Finally, I jabbed the pain-blocking acupoint.
"Alright, get up."
"Hah, hah... but my leg..."
"Just stand already."
"Huh? Oh?"
The guy who couldn't even stand a moment ago was now on his feet, fine as could be.
Not fully healed, but good enough to walk.
"Oh... the pain's so much lighter."
Amazed, Kyle prodded his leg and tapped the ground with his toes.
First-timers with anesthesia always did that—gonna wreck his leg if he's not careful.
"It's just basic first aid, so head home and get proper treatment. Pain's only blocked for now. Go to a clinic tomorrow, no excuses."
"Ah, pain block. Like magic? And it still hurt that much even with that..."
"...Yeah."
"B-But who are you? At least tell me your name..."
"Don't get the wrong idea. This wasn't for you—it bugged me, that's all. And don't go blabbing about me. I hate hassle."
I replied coldly, turned, and finally headed back to the inn.
The next morning, I woke up, washed, and got ready.
Work clothes on, then layered with leather armor.
Potions and [Bloodcalling Morningstar] on my belt, plus a sack for ore and my [Black Iron Pickaxe].
'Alone, I'd stash the Morningstar and pickaxe in inventory, skip the potions...'
But today, I was going to the mine with Erika.
Potions weren't for me, but she'd need them if things went south.
No plans to go deep today, but better safe than sorry.
I met Erika outside the inn.
She looked even prettier today—was it just my imagination?
"Lee Jun! Good morning!"
"Yeah, morning. Sleep well?"
"Yes! I dreamed of you and slept like a baby."
Every line from her was pure gold.
We walked side by side to the mine.
Just colleagues yesterday morning—today, a couple holding hands.
I could feel the miners glancing our way.
As we walked, I casually asked what I'd been wondering.
"By the way, Erika, where are you staying?"
"Me? At a boarding house on the village outskirts. An old lady lives there alone, and she had a spare room."
"Oh yeah? I searched the whole village looking for you yesterday."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Even asked Luna at the guild, but she wouldn't tell me. Personal info or whatever."
"Ah... sorry. I should've told you sooner."
Erika looked apologetic.
"Nah, it's fine. Got to sightsee the village thanks to it."
"Hehe, now you know, so come visit anytime."
"That okay? Won't the old lady mind?"
"It's fine! She's a bit hard of hearing... And if I explain, she'll understand."
Oh ho. Interesting intel.
Hard-of-hearing landlady—might not notice a late-night visit.
Of course, as someone aiming for wholesome relations, that wouldn't happen.
But good to note.
Chatting away, we soon reached the first-floor tunnel.
Our destination wasn't here, so we headed straight to the second floor.
Squish, squish.
Green jelly blobs appeared before us.
The mascots of the mine's first floor.
Long time no see—they looked even cuter.
"Puu?"
They rubbed against me happily, as if greeting an old friend.
Always adorable, they made me smile just looking at them.
But.
"Bye now."
Splat-!
My Morningstar showed no mercy.
"Kiiing!"
With a cute squeal, the slime burst, spitting out a moss stone.
I scooped it up and tossed it in the sack.
Meanwhile, Erika seemed to be watching me carefully.
"What's up, Erika? Something to say?"
"Lee Jun, why do you kill the moss slimes like that? I've been wondering since last time."
"Last time?"
"When we went to get Hakuna Kirimaru—you killed every slime in sight. Even hunted down the distant ones."
Did I?
Not important, so I forgot.
I opened the sack and showed her the moss stones inside.
"These come out."
"Moss stones? What's that for? I thought it was just junk..."
"Well... useful somehow. Don't know how yet."
"...Huh?"
"For real. Just a hunch? Feels like they'll be handy later. These things always pay off big."
"Pfft! Lee Jun, you're... unpredictable. Thought there was some grand reason, but it's just instinct? I figured another motive."
"Another motive?"
"You're a dimension-traveler. Maybe in another world, moss stones do something epic? Like saving the planet?"
"That's a stretch. Still, they must have some hidden use we don't know yet."
"Hope so."
Erika giggled.
To others, it might seem silly, but in the original story, it was a dangling plot thread never resolved—a MacGuffin even I didn't know about.
Just mentions of "hoard them, it'll be good," so I collected diligently.
Who knows?
Might save the world with my moss stones someday.
We massacred slimes and cleared the first floor.
Soon, the path to the second floor.
"Alright, careful from here. Second floor has real monsters. Not like slimes or kobolds—whole different league."
"Got it."
Erika shed her playfulness, nodding seriously, hand poised on [Hakuna Kirimaru]'s hilt.
Good stance.
Today's goal: help Erika gain combat experience and grow.
Last time solo, I struggled on floor six.
I'd grown a lot since.
Now, I could probably handle up to early eighth, maybe ninth alone.
But clearing the tenth-floor boss room solo? No way.
So, level up Erika and push together.
Tenth floor has a teleport stone—once cleared, direct from entrance to tenth.
Had to break through.
That'd make commuting to seventh for succubus hunts easier.
Direct to tenth, backtrack to seventh.
Vs. slogging from first to seventh both ways.
Obvious which was better.
"Listen up, Erika..."
I began briefing her on second-floor intel.