Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Evil Zone Sweep (10)
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Why was it smiling when it fled? Even Su-ho didn't know. But one thing was clear—that grin had been aimed right at him.
A chill ran down his spine. He rubbed his arms, suddenly prickling with goosebumps, and forced his mouth open.
"Yeah, tell me about it."
An Ji-young muttered dismissively, as if it didn't matter at all.
"Whatever. We'll track it down tomorrow and kill it. End of story."
Su-ho felt a wave of relief watching her declare it so confidently. That lingering, eerie smile from the Vetted Boss finally faded from his mind.
Jin Seong-hyeok.
He reflexively called out the name in his head, then froze. He'd said he wasn't looking for the guy, and here he was, stupidly invoking him anyway.
He held his breath, waiting for what Jin Seong-hyeok might say. But there was nothing. No response at all.
Jin Seong-hyeok?
Still nothing. How could someone be this petty?
You're seriously not gonna say anything?
Even if he didn't need the help, pretending not to be there when he clearly was? It made Su-ho want to shout to the world that the mighty SSS-grade Hunter was narrow-minded as hell.
Jin Seong-hyeok.
No answer again. Frustrated, Su-ho finally let the thought slip out loud.
"I said I wouldn't take your help—who said anything about ignoring you?"
"Huh? Ignoring me?"
Su-ho's head snapped up in surprise. Won Tae-il was standing right there, though he had no idea when he'd arrived.
"Uh, when'd you get here?"
"Just now. Brought you some food."
Tae-il handed over a bag packed with combat rations and asked,
"What were you mumbling about?"
"Oh, nothing. Just talking to myself."
Su-ho took the bag and tore it open. Mystery bibimbap. As he scooped up a spoonful of rice, Tae-il plopped down beside him.
"Today was insane, right? First time I've ever seen monster corpses piled up all the way to the cave entrance."
Tae-il had been to plenty of sites before, but nothing like this. Even for a sweep, it had been a straight-up massacre.
And it wasn't just the cave. The campsite and the path back were littered with the bodies of monsters they'd killed on the way in.
"This has to count as a successful sweep, yeah?"
Tae-il muttered about how they'd have it easy until the monsters respawned. Su-ho shook his head.
"Not yet."
"Huh?"
"We haven't killed the boss."
"The boss? Oh, that Vetted Boss? It'll be fine. The Hunters will take it down tomorrow. I heard An Ji-young say it's probably the final one, so once it's dead, the Evil Zone sweep is done."
That creepy Vetted Boss smile kept flashing in his mind, but Su-ho shoved it away.
Just like Tae-il said, killing the Vetted Boss tomorrow would wrap things up. With Ji-young, Takahiro, Kai Qing, Liu Xian, and Eun-woo—that lineup could definitely handle it. The thought eased Su-ho's mind, but Tae-il tilted his head at him.
"Hey, Cha Su-ho. You feeling okay? You look kinda off."
"Huh?"
"Your face is all red. You got a fever or something?"
Su-ho touched his forehead. Maybe the tension was finally easing now that the sweep was almost over. It felt warm, but he hadn't realized he was actually burning up.
"Hey, you good?"
Su-ho nodded at Tae-il's concern, brushing it off.
"Just a little fever. I'm fine."
Kwon Oh had been hurt way worse—bones showing—and he'd bounced back fine. No need to make a fuss over a mild fever. It didn't even hurt.
"A good night's sleep should fix it."
"Yeah, crash early tonight. Kwon Oh said all the nearby monsters are cleared, so we can relax."
Su-ho nodded. He wolfed down his food and hit the sack early. By evening, the fever seemed to climb higher, but he figured it'd be gone by morning, like nothing happened.
The next day, when Su-ho opened his eyes, he realized how naive that hope had been.
"Cha Su-ho! You okay?!"
His whole body was scorching, his head spinning.
"I'm fine."
As he tried to sit up, a cool hand pressed against his forehead.
"You've got a pretty high fever."
Su-ho's face flushed even hotter at Ji-young's sudden touch.
"Whoa, getting redder."
She withdrew her hand casually and continued.
"The sweep yesterday thinned out the monsters a lot, so we don't all need to go. You stay here..."
The word "stay" jolted him fully awake.
"No, I'm good. I can go."
"Nope, you're staying."
Ji-young's expression was firm.
"We just need to find and kill the final boss. No point pushing it. If you collapse out there from this fever, it'll drag down the other Hunters and Helpers who have to look after you. You wanna be a burden?"
Of course not. Su-ho bit his lip. Seeing that, Ji-young let out a short sigh and patted his shoulder.
"You're enough. With our current numbers. So rest up."
Why now, of all times? Complaining wouldn't change anything. All Su-ho could do was agree.
"...Got it."
"Good. Mino and Tae-il stay too. Hiding that you're scared of the boss hunt? Covering for you is work too."
Tae-il lit up at the order.
"For real?!"
"You look way too happy."
"Uh... well... haha..."
Ji-young walked past the awkwardly grinning Tae-il toward the Hunters.
[ "We need someone to stay at camp. With only me and Eun-woo left for physical types, I'd like a mental-type to stay." ]
Kai Qing sidled right up to her.
[ "If you're going, I'm going!" ]
With Kai Qing jumping in first, it left Takahiro and Liu Xian.
[ "Let Liu Xian go. I'll stay at camp. Fire's more threatening to monsters than water anyway." ]
It was true—fire was more intimidating to instinct-driven monsters. Takahiro added,
[ "Plus, I'm the only one who can communicate with the Helpers staying behind." ]
With Mino from the same Center, and Su-ho and Tae-il being Korean, Takahiro—who spoke some Korean—was the best fit for camp duty. Ji-young nodded in agreement.
[ "Alright, Takahiro, take care of things. Everyone else, gear up." ]
And so, everyone except Takahiro, Mino, Tae-il, and Su-ho headed into the cave.
In the now-silent campsite, Su-ho leaned against a tree, resting.
"Cha Su-ho, take this."
Tae-il held out a small pill to Su-ho, who was sitting propped against the tree.
"Fever reducer. I always pack emergency meds."
"Thanks."
Su-ho popped it in his mouth and chugged some water. Of all the rotten luck to get sick now. As he sighed self-reproachfully, Tae-il sat beside him.
"Happens after your first campout. Living around monster-infested areas keeps your body tense. Then when it's over, you relax and boom—sick."
Come to think of it, Tae-il had gone on his first site at 14 or 15. Su-ho now realized why he'd prepped cooking supplies and meds—he knew fieldwork inside out.
"How many camps have you even done?"
"Not three hundred, but once a month? It's a lot."
Su-ho felt a strange pang watching Tae-il shrug it off casually.
"You hate monsters that much, and you've camped this much?"
"That's separate."
Separate how? Su-ho was skeptical, but Tae-il stayed calm.
"We're A-grade Helpers. Even if I hate it, someone else might need us desperately... Hunters need us too."
That was the reason he pushed through his monster phobia.
"Honestly, fieldwork scares me too. But think about it—Hunters must be scared shitless. They just don't show it. Probably a sense of duty."
It was a cliché reason, but "sense of duty" strangely resonated in Su-ho's chest.
"Duty?"
"If we don't kill the monsters, no one will. And if they break through..."
Tae-il's face turned serious for a moment.
"Civilians die. We can fight, but they can't. Total wipeout."
Who knew this sunny, carefree guy thought like that? Tae-il looked different as he spoke quietly.
"So... just grit through the fear a bit. Besides, the Hunters we're with are SS-grade! No need to chicken out."
Tae-il grinned mischievously, and Su-ho laughed back.
"I'm not chickening."
"Says the sick guy!"
"You said everyone gets sick after camping."
"Only wimps like us. Hunters like Jin Seong-hyeok don't! Well... he's not here now."
Jin Seong-hyeok. Su-ho's lips pressed thin at the name from Tae-il's mouth. How long was he planning to sulk in silence? The guy was definitely petty.
"Maybe Jin Seong-hyeok Hunter's a huge wimp too."
"Hey, don't talk crazy. How could—huh?!"
Tae-il froze and bowed his head politely.
"Hello. Tae-il, Su-ho."
Takahiro stood there with Mino.
"Mind if I sit?"
Su-ho and Tae-il nodded in unison at his polite request.
"Yeah, sure. Have a seat."
"Thank you."
Even though he was younger, Takahiro never dropped his manners.
How did a guy like that end up under trash like Masa? Su-ho pitied him. Then Mino held something out—a chocolate bar.
"Oh, uh, thanks!"
As Su-ho took it, she offered one to Tae-il. He looked thrilled receiving it from her.
"Arigato! Arigato!"
Mino—and even Takahiro—smiled at Tae-il excitedly mangling Japanese phrases.
"Feeling better?"
Su-ho nodded at Takahiro's halting Korean.
"Yeah, much better. Tae-il gave me some meds, fever's down."
"Glad to hear it."
Had they ever had this much downtime on a site? With just the final boss left, all remaining tension melted away.
Tae-il was already chatting animatedly with Mino using wild body language. What could they even be talking about without a common language? They seemed to be having a blast.
Girls were just great, huh? Su-ho thought, peeling open his chocolate bar while watching Tae-il's excited face.
Crunch, scritch-.
A sound that shouldn't have been there echoed. One that sent goosebumps exploding across his skin.
All four jumped to their feet at once.
A black shadow fell over the clear blue sky. A massive figure with enormous wings diving straight toward Su-ho.
It was the boss monster that had escaped yesterday—the one leading the Vetted horde.