Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Monster
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Ji-ah, Seol-hwa, Su-ji, Chae-won.
All of them were gathered around the table, their faces tense.
"What is this?"
Baek Seol-hwa looked at the tablet-like device with wonder and asked.
"It's a monster detector."
Seo Chae-won explained it to her.
It was a valuable item.
But Seol-hwa was already Un-ho's woman.
There was no reason to hide it from her.
"S-Such a thing exists?"
"Uncle Un-ho gave it to me."
"M-My husband..."
The world was in a state where such a device shouldn't exist.
This was an astonishing item no matter who looked at it.
Baek Seol-hwa felt her husband becoming more mysterious and wondrous the more she learned about him.
"Two low-rank monsters and one mid-rank monster have been detected. And their movements suggest they're moving as a group."
"What level is that?"
Baek Seol-hwa was curious about the criteria in Seo Chae-won's briefing.
"There are monsters stronger than zombies, right?"
"Yes, I know. Heavenly Sect also hunts those for their cores."
"C-Cores?"
"Yes, they look like blue stones."
"Ah, you mean mana stones."
Seo Chae-won was learning for the first time that mana stones came from hunting monsters.
But she did know that generators ran on mana stones.
Un-ho had given her a few to manage the facilities when he wasn't around.
And the suit's power source was also a mana stone.
Chae-won could somewhat understand why Uncle Un-ho hunted monsters so much.
But where on earth did the mana generators and suits come from?
It was still a mystery.
"Mana stones..."
"That's what Uncle calls them. Anyway, we call those low-rank, and monsters one step stronger than them mid-rank."
"I've seen them before! Those huge mutated zombie dogs, right?!"
Han Su-ji jumped in, recalling the time she was chased by zombies.
"I don't know the exact type. There could be dog-like monsters like the ones Sister Ji-ah and I saw, and Uncle said he's seen cat-like ones too... Mid-rank are supposed to be even stronger than those."
"S-Stronger than those!? Then they're insanely powerful!"
Han Su-ji shouted in shock.
"One step stronger... So something like that existed here too."
To Seo Chae-won, it seemed Baek Seol-hwa had encountered monsters of that level before.
Even low-rank monsters were impossible for ordinary people to face.
She couldn't imagine how terrifying mid-rank ones would be.
"But why are monsters like that coming this way?"
Lee Ji-ah asked worriedly.
Chae-won had heard from Uncle Un-ho that he'd cleared all nearby monsters, so they could relax.
True to his word, they hadn't seen any while living here,
and had been living comfortably.
This was the first time the detector he'd given her had gone off.
"I don't know either. They might just be passing through..."
Chae-won had only detected them; they were still quite far, and she couldn't be sure they were heading straight here.
But they were definitely getting closer bit by bit.
"What do we do? Uncle said not to worry..."
Un-ho had indeed said, as Han Su-ji mentioned, that low-rank monsters wouldn't be a problem.
Chae-won recalled what Uncle Un-ho had told her privately before leaving.
If it's mid-rank or higher...
If there's no choice, then handle it,
but if you have leeway, don't bother engaging and head to the Heavenly Sect.
At the time, he'd said it as if such a thing was unlikely.
But one mid-rank and two low-rank...
According to Uncle, they had to head to the Heavenly Sect without question.
"No. Uncle said if a mid-rank or higher appears, take the kids and go to the Heavenly Sect."
"Heavenly Sect?"
Chae-won's words left everyone puzzled.
There had been conflict with them not long ago,
so telling them to go there didn't make sense.
From the sisters' and Seol-hwa's reactions, Chae-won realized Uncle had only told her this.
He might have thought it unnecessary worry.
But Chae-won felt good knowing he trusted her.
"If it's monsters of that level, then for the children's safety, my husband's judgment seems correct."
Baek Seol-hwa nodded in agreement.
"They're still quite far, but let's grab the kids and move quickly."
"Ugh... Of all times, when oppa's not here..."
Lee Ji-ah made a pouty face as she stood up.
The women quickly moved toward the Heavenly Sect with Chae-young and Hana.
"Huh? They're approaching this way fast."
Chae-won said, checking the detector.
"I-I see them."
Han Su-ji said, looking back.
It was still far, but they were big enough to see with the naked eye.
She could tell at a glance what the mid-rank monster was.
It was about the size of a large dump truck, with a four-legged beast silhouette.
Flanking it were relatively smaller dog-like monsters.
Relatively speaking—they were still outrageously large beasts from a human perspective.
"Eek!!!"
Ji-ah's face went pale upon seeing it.
"W-What's that... Why is it so huge! It looks like a wolf..."
Su-ji was also tense, her face stiff.
"There are no wolves in our country... It's probably a dog."
Chae-won was shocked by the absurd size of the mid-rank dog monster she'd never seen before, but she corrected Su-ji.
"T-That's a dog? Like, a stray that grew that big? Why do people abandon dogs and let things like that roam around?"
But upon seeing the dog-shaped monster, Baek Seol-hwa's eyes calmly sank.
"I didn't expect a Black Wolf-like existence here too."
"Black Wolf?"
To Su-ji's question, Seol-hwa answered.
"It's a monster from Gyeryong Mountain, where the Heavenly Sect is."
The monster dogs seemed to have spotted them and began charging quickly.
Baek Seol-hwa thought as she watched them approach.
'At that speed, they'll catch up in an instant. Can I take it down? The kids' safety comes first.'
"Chae-won, take the kids to the Heavenly Sect first and request help."
"Huh? B-But..."
Chae-won hesitated at Seol-hwa's words but realized she was the weakest fighter.
No, with her size, she was no different from the kids.
She bit her lip unconsciously from the helplessness.
But this wasn't the time for such luxuries.
"Sigh... Got it. Be careful."
After sending Chae-won off, the remaining three stopped running and took positions.
As the massive monster dogs drew closer, tension filled Ji-ah and Su-ji's faces.
"I'll take the big one. You two handle the other two."
Baek Seol-hwa said calmly, as if resolved.
"A-Alone?! W-Will you be okay?"
Ji-ah asked worriedly.
"I've experienced that level of strength before, so it'll be easier to deal with."
Su-ji asked in surprise at Seol-hwa's words.
"You've fought something like that before?!"
"Yes. Before coming here, there was a monster called Black Wolf on Gyeryong Mountain that felt similar."
Truthfully, Baek Seol-hwa had never fought it herself.
Her grandfather and father had.
But she didn't want to worry them.
"Ah, so the Black Wolf was that big too. We can really trust you?"
It was an absurdly huge monster.
No matter what Seol-hwa said, Su-ji and Ji-ah couldn't help but worry.
"Yes."
Seol-hwa figured that since her martial arts had improved vastly since then, she could at least stall it even if she couldn't kill it.
The three closed the distance rapidly.
To keep them from chasing the kids to the Heavenly Sect, the women confronted the monster dogs.
The lead low-rank monster dog charged first.
Ji-ah extended her hand and unleashed telekinesis.
The two charging monsters suddenly halted.
"Q-Quickly..."
At Ji-ah's urging, Baek Seol-hwa dashed between the two stopped monster dogs,
and leaped toward the massive one lagging leisurely behind.
Su-ji charged at the monster dog Ji-ah had stopped, wielding a large hammer.
"Hah!!"
The hammer Su-ji swung smashed into the stopped monster dog's head.
-Thud!
-Yelp!
"I-It didn't die?!"
Han Su-ji was flustered that it was still alive despite her hard swing.
"Unnie, once more!!"
Ji-ah shouted urgently.
She was sweating profusely from holding two at bay.
"O-Okay! Hah!"
Su-ji swung with all her might again at the stationary dog's head.
Missing a still target would be idiotic.
-Crunch!
Her full-powered strike shattered its head, and one slumped lifelessly.
Han Su-ji moved to the other stopped monster dog.
With focus on one, Ji-ah looked more stable.
This was as good as won.
With some breathing room, Su-ji glanced worriedly at Seol-hwa.
She was fighting the giant monster dog ferociously, not yielding an inch.
It was strength incomparable to her own.
Amazed by the wondrous sight, she raised her hammer.
"Hup!!"
And brought it down with full force on the telekinetically held monster dog's head.
-Crunch!
"Whew, done."
It ended simpler than expected.
Ji-ah's ability was more impressive than thought.
Alone, she couldn't have taken two.
"Good job, unnie."
"You made it easy. But over there..."
In Su-ji's eyes, she saw a slender sword-wielding woman locked in equal combat with the giant monster.
Her movements were too fast to follow.
Su-ji realized she'd just get in the way if she joined.
"Should I use my power now?"
Having dealt with the two,
Ji-ah rolled up her sleeves confidently.
"B-Be careful."
"It's not dangerous. I can just use my ability from afar."
Baek Seol-hwa truly felt how much her martial arts had advanced.
Back on Gyeryong Mountain, direct confrontation was unthinkable...
Now, facing something near Black Wolf level felt manageable.
'At this rate, even Black Wolf...'
Seol-hwa planned to one day raise her skills enough to slay the Black Wolf, her father's enemy.
"Seol-hwa!"
The lead wife's shout.
She'd already finished the two behind.
Faster than expected.
As the lead wife exerted her power, the monster dog's movements slowed markedly.
"H-Huh? It's not stopping?!"
The lead wife had tried to bind it with her ability but panicked when it didn't work.
"This is enough."
Seol-hwa's eyes glowed golden.
Her sword, infused with golden sword energy, sliced the slowed monster's foreleg.
The blade cut through hide, blood spraying.
But Seol-hwa wasn't satisfied.
'Too shallow.'
It hadn't reached the bone.
Not easy after all.
But Baek Seol-hwa spun and thrust at the monster's eye.
It barely dodged by leaping back, nearly pierced.
Seeing that, Baek Seol-hwa was certain Ji-ah's help would let them finish it.
But the monster dog licked its wounded leg and slowly eyed Baek Seol-hwa and Ji-ah without charging.
"Eek!!"
Ji-ah shuddered at the monster's gaze, feeling a chill.
Baek Seol-hwa stepped in front of Ji-ah in case.
Suddenly, the monster dog turned and fled.
"Huh? It's running away?!"
Han Su-ji shouted in bewilderment.
It was a four-legged beast.
Not fatally wounded, they couldn't pursue.
"Whew... That look felt like it was sizing us up like people."
Ji-ah said, patting her chest.
But Baek Seol-hwa's expression turned grave.
Ji-ah asked her.
"Seol-hwa, what's wrong?"
"N-Nothing. Just reminded me of the past..."
Heavenly Sect warriors were arriving belatedly, likely summoned by Chae-won.