When Minsu Stops, the Monsters Stop Too
There was no way to avoid the Hunter Management Bureau's forced assignment.
In the end, I stood in front of the D-class dungeon Gale Canyon in Capital Zone 4, my shoulders aching under a 40-kilogram backpack.
My body was still worn out from the night shift at Saebyeok 25 convenience store.
A chill leaked from the canyon entrance, brushing my calves.
The backpack straps dug even deeper into my stiff shoulders from the all-nighter.
My mouth was parched.
My palms were slick with sweat inside the straps.
The wind howling from deep inside the canyon tore through the air like a human scream.
"Hunter Kang Minsu! Please take good care of us today!"
The D-class hunters in my party stood in a neat line, greeting me with booming voices.
The burly tank who seemed to be the leader bowed deeply, almost uncomfortably polite.
"N-no, wait. I'm just a porter, like I said. Please treat me casually."
"Haha! We'll keep your legendary F-class disguise airtight. We'll treat you like a porter, nice and easy!"
My desperate plea fell on deaf ears once again.
The party's eyes gleamed with the fanatic devotion reserved for a transcendent being hiding their power.
I let out a deep sigh and hung my head.
No matter what I said, they'd twist it to fit their narrative.
[Current Viewers: 13,420]
The blue window floating in the corner of my vision had already surpassed ten thousand before we even entered the dungeon.
Thanks to the massive ripple from yesterday's stream, viewers were hyped, eagerly awaiting what insane feat I'd pull off today.
That anticipation pressed down on my shoulders like a heavy weight, thickening the air around me.
'Please, just let me survive the day unscathed.'
I steadied my trembling legs as best I could and took my place at the very back of the party.
True to its name, Gale Canyon was hemmed in by narrow, steep rock walls.
Sharp winds whistled through, sounding like ghosts wailing.
The path was a straight, narrow corridor with no room to dodge left or right.
"Maintain formation! Eyes sharp on the front!"
The party leader raised his massive shield and shouted.
The swordsman and mage stuck close behind him.
I trailed at least ten meters back, calculating my escape route just in case.
That's when we reached about the middle of the canyon.
Rumble rumble rumble—!
The ground suddenly vibrated like mad.
At the same time, dust erupted like a storm from the darkness on the far side.
"Multiple contacts ahead! Monster horde incoming!"
The mage yelled urgently after securing his view.
Bursting through the dust were horned boars—charge-type monsters—with massive horns on their heads.
Not just one or two, but easily over thirty of them.
"W-what the hell! How many are there?!"
"Shields up! We have to hold!"
The party leader's face went pale as he shouted.
It was an overwhelming number for a D-class party to tank head-on.
And with the narrow canyon, there was nowhere to evade.
If they charged like this, the whole party would be pulverized into meat shields.
"Eek...!"
My heart plummeted at the sight.
I had to run.
Turn back and bolt no matter what.
That's what my head screamed, but my body wouldn't obey.
My legs had gone completely limp.
'No, no, no!'
My feet stuck to the ground like they were glued with super glue.
Extreme terror seized my whole body, turning my muscles to stone.
I gripped the backpack straps tight, squeezed my eyes shut, and froze in place.
Even then, I could see the numbers spiking.
Would they stop if I stopped? Or would I die first?
It wasn't like I wanted to test it—my legs just wouldn't move.
I didn't want to know the result.
I couldn't even breathe.
Ah, so this is how I die.
This time, it's really over.
But right then, the blue window flashed like crazy.
[Viewers' overwhelming anticipation converges in one place.]
[Current Viewers: 18,990]
Those eighteen thousand viewers mistook my terror-frozen pose for them waiting for something big.
With the viewer count skyrocketing, the air around me grew explosively heavy.
Whummm—!
A ringing in my ears like the air itself screaming, and an invisible, massive pressure filled the narrow canyon, stretching toward the front.
It was like a transparent iron wall had slammed down right in the middle of the canyon.
"Kweeeek?!"
The lead horned boar, charging like a maniac, bounced back at five meters from me, as if smashing into an unseen wall.
The dozens behind it met the same fate.
Screeech—!
A horrific scraping sound echoed through the canyon as claws raked the ground.
They slammed into the invisible wall ahead of me, screeching to a halt all at once like hitting the brakes.
The ones from behind crashed into the stopped leaders' rears, tumbling into a chaotic heap.
"Kwek... Oink oink..."
The thirty horned boars that had been about to demolish the canyon froze like statues in just one second.
They flattened themselves prone, trembling as they stared my way.
Some foamed at the mouth; others collapsed, legs giving out.
Before the thick, heavy silence in the air, the low-rank monsters' will to fight had evaporated completely.
"..."
An unbelievable silence blanketed the canyon.
The party members gawked, eyes wide, alternating between the frozen horde and my back.
I still had my eyes squeezed shut, trembling, unable to breathe.
'Why doesn't it hurt? Didn't they hit me?'
When I cautiously cracked my eyes open, the boars lay meekly sprawled before me.
The party leader slowly lowered his shield, muttering in a dazed voice.
"Just now... what the hell happened...?"
The mage gulped, pointing at me with a shaking finger.
"The moment Hunter Kang Minsu stopped... all the monsters froze."
"It was like a line was drawn right where he stopped... they couldn't cross it."
Awe beyond shock bloomed on the party's faces.
The leader sheathed his sword, approached me, and grabbed my shoulder in ecstatic gratitude.
I flinched at the touch again.
*Please, no praise—just back off.*
"Mr. Kang Minsu! That stop line just now... incredible! No cast motion, no chant, and the monsters yielded first!"
"Huh? A skill?"
I looked up at the leader in confusion.
"No, I didn't do anything? I just froze because I was too scared to move my legs..."
A warm smile spread across the leader's face at my honest confession.
He patted my shoulder a couple times and nodded.
"Haha, no need to explain. We saw the line ourselves. The monsters learned with their bodies where to stop."
"No, really, my legs just locked up!"
"Got it, got it. No need for you to step in, Minsu-ssi. We'll handle the frozen ones!"
The party members marched confidently toward the cowering boars.
A one-sided massacre began against monsters too terrified to resist.
"I said no... I can't act like that..."
I pressed my forehead and let out a deep sigh.
Now, no matter what I said or how I looked, it'd all be consumed as perfect transcendent concept acting.
I slumped down onto the rocky ground in resignation.
I hadn't slept a wink after the convenience store night shift, and after that extreme terror and tension, all my energy drained away.
While the party gleefully slaughtered the monsters, I leaned against my backpack and started dozing off.
'So sleepy... so tired...'
As the tension eased, sleep crashed over me like a wave.
My eyelids grew hot.
My jaw dropped on its own.
A yawn welled up.
I didn't even have the strength to stifle it.
Finally.