Chapter 134 - Chapter 134

['Hwashim' has activated the Skill.]

A bright flash of light appeared next to Yoon Seo. Hwashim was fighting as if was the only skill he had, repeatedly using it. It was a skill that temporarily blinded enemies, giving him an opening to attack, and it seemed to have almost no cooldown.

'He's definitely strong for a C-rank.' 

Nearby, Soo Jaehee's and tore through monsters, and Jo Mani's froze dozens of them. Yelena incinerated groups of monsters simultaneously with . "Hero of Africa," Furka Futuru, used to create a territory that restrained many monsters, while "America's Grand Thief," Chris Kyle, swept away enemies with . Hong Euiyoon extinguished the monsters' flames with , Do Deungsoo protected support hunters in the rear with , and the temporary team members—Namgung Simhae, Kim Jinhae, Lee Jungin, and Park Kang—were all holding their own.

"Uaagh!"

[ Durability 20/100]

A B-rank hunter was thrown to the ground after being struck directly by the massive paw of a monster. A hunter impaled by the fire worm's venomous spine quickly withdrew to the rear, while another hunter tried to save a colleague who was being held by the monster, only to be caught as well. Both were unable to use any skills due to their lack of mana, but they managed to counterattack with Park Soobin's timely mana-healing skill.

Even though the team had been carefully selected, with 300 members, this dungeon had regular monsters among them at S-rank, unlike other S-rank dungeons. So, not everyone was fighting at the level of the S-rank hunters and Perfect team members.

Whoosh!

Small fry monsters rushed towards Yoon Seo.

[The Skill has been activated.]

[All monsters within a 40km radius are terrified!]

[Attack and defense of monsters within a 40km radius are greatly reduced!]

While skills, timing, and sequence were planned for the boss fight, no such specific plans were made for minor battles. Since the outcome of the first battle could significantly affect the morale of the team, it seemed best not to hold back on buff skills.

['Kwon Jihan' has activated the Skill.]

Yoon Seo watched Kwon Jihan massacred monsters from the sky. Each time he swung the 'Curse of Darkness,' purchased on the black market, a monster's body was cleaved in half.

Kwon Jihan must have had the same idea.

That's why he fought like that, displaying flashy effects while brandishing his black wings for everyone to see.

Yoon Seo paused in thought and used . His eyes glowed blue.

There was no need to prolong the fight. Finishing it quickly could also be effective for boosting morale.

The blue mana radiating from Yoon Seo's body selectively infiltrated the monsters. The monsters fighting Hwashim, the ones frozen by Jo Mani, and the ones captured by Furka Futuru—all of them had their organs crushed at once by the power that infiltrated their insides.

Kaaargh!

Sssiiiik!

Grk!

The monsters died while letting out agonizing screams, painful even for themselves to hear.

Regardless of their rank—whether A or S—or their distance, even those underground, they all had their bodies explode.

Yoon Seo blocked the splattering organs and blood with a shield, and once everything settled down, he lowered the shield.

"Haah, haah…"

Lawrence, who had been in her spirit-possessed state, returned to her human form, panting. Her partner, also returning from a bat to human form, leaned on her.

Hong Euiyoon, who had been engaged in aerial combat, landed and looked around with a dazed expression.

The look that said, 'What is going on…?' Most of them had similar expressions to Hong Euiyoon's.

Their gazes fell on Seo Chaeyoon, who wore a white mask.

Kwon Jihan deactivated his black wings and landed in front of Yoon Seo with a thud. His face was filled with awe, almost as if he were a drug addict experiencing euphoria, causing Yoon Seo to take a step back in discomfort.

"Hyung, that was amazing. Honestly, we could've just brought in Seo Chaeyoon alone, right?"

"I'm down to 50% mana now."

"Oh dear.."

Using at full power consumes about 30% of mana. But Yoon Seo believed that an overwhelming slaughter in the first fight would be the best course of action.

And apparently, he was right. The dazed expressions of the new Revengers gradually changed to ones of relief and joy.

An overwhelming victory in the first battle.

It would have been nice to win together, but meeting the expectations of those who anticipated something from the name Seo Chaeyoon and reassuring them with overwhelming offensive power was also crucial.

The new Revengers hugged each other and cheered.

[The God of Life is pleased.]

[The God of Death rejoices in the gruesome deaths of the monsters.]

Yoon Seo thought back to ten years ago.

What was it like after winning the first battle?

Back then, they had also won overwhelmingly. Everyone fought in a near-berserk state, consumed by the fiery red rage filling them to their limit, and that fight had also ended in a near massacre.

However, no one cheered afterward.

They had lost too much power right after entering. Despite winning, everyone had the face of defeat.

[Number of Hunters: 301]

The number had not decreased.

Ten years had passed, and only now could Yoon Seo finally… smile.

***

After the first battle, they fought three more times, and after five additional hours of preparing to spend the night, sounded from two locations. The new Revengers divided into teams as planned.

A total of three teams.

Teams 1 and 2 headed toward the east and west, where the had gone off, while Team 3 remained on standby in the center. They decided that the third boss monster would be reported immediately upon discovery.

Teams 2 and 3 evenly distributed their power, but Team 1 consisted only of Kwon Jihan and Seo Chaeyoon. At first, they considered separating Kwon Jihan and Seo Chaeyoon, but they decided it would be quicker to have them together to quickly defeat the boss and assist the other teams.

Before they parted ways, Yoon Seo cast on all 298 members. After that, his remaining mana dropped to 20%.

As they flew toward the location where the had sounded, Yoon Seo spoke to Kwon Jihan.

"I'm currently at 0.2 servings. Just so you know."

"Are you low on mana?"

"Yeah."

"First, take some medicine."

Kwon Jihan halted in mid-air. Yoon Seo thought about saying he didn't need it, but then remembered he had received Cheongsimhwan before entering, so he chewed on it. The specially-made mask could only open and close at the mouth area, but since it was just him and Kwon Jihan, he had removed the mask.

"Let's go."

The two set off east again. At this speed, they would encounter the boss monster in about an hour. Considering that monsters would likely interfere along the way, it would take two hours. would finish in two hours. After that, Jo Mani from Team 2 would use to freeze the lava, but its range would be narrower than that of , so Kwon Jihan and Yoon Seo would have to endure the lava zone until they entered the area. They needed to deal with it as quickly as possible.

Kaaargh!

Kraak!

Giant birds with wide beaks and poisonous claws appeared. There were hundreds of them at a glance. Yoon Seo grasped the Existing Spirit and in both hands. He could handle this level of monsters with martial arts without using any skills.

This time, Kwon Jihan, wielding the Cold Wind, rushed in first. He flapped his wings to blow away the poisonous mist emitted by the monsters and swiftly cut the necks of the approaching monsters. Yoon Seo took care of the monsters targeting Kwon Jihan from behind. The two of them stood back to back.

[The God of Life wishes to capture this moment in a photograph.]

A photograph? What kind of world do the guardian gods live in that they can take pictures?

Kaaargh!

Kraak!

As they dealt with the monsters letting out their terrible cries, Yoon Seo voiced the discomfort he had felt throughout.

"Hunter Kwon Jihan, do you really think the cell were counted?"

"It seems so. The Gaia system must have been updated without us knowing. Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense."

Kwon Jihan used to freeze the monsters solid, then slashed through their bodies in a single blow as he responded.

"Even if Galaxaia sneaks in with a transparent skill, it shouldn't be able to avoid . But since it can't be seen by , it must be a fetus."

"What you were going to say earlier wasn't about that, was it?"

"..."

'I have a guess. If there's someone in the dungeon…'

Just then, their conversation was interrupted by a couple revealing they were pregnant.

When Yoon Seo pointed that out, Kwon Jihan hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"This is just my thought, so keep it to yourself."

"Sure."

"What if there are other people in the dungeon besides us…"

"..."

"People… might have snuck in without our knowledge…?"

Even while Yoon Seo was slaughtering the monsters that charged at him, he looked at Kwon Jihan with a bewildered expression.

"Who just said that even if they sneaked in with a transparent skill, it wouldn't be detected by ?"

"Hmm. With traits like 'the Tanned One' being possible, there's a chance that a skill exists which can deceive the senses of S-rank hunters. If that's the case, it's likely Galaxaia. They'll probably interfere with us clearing the dungeon. Others might be making similar speculations, so we should discuss it after defeating the boss."

Kwon Jihan nodded seriously as he spoke.

"...."

Yoon Seo glanced at Kwon Jihan's expression and threw the , piercing through three monsters at once. Kwon Jihan was also busy slaughtering monsters beside him.

After that, there were no words exchanged between the two until the battle was over.

Kraaa!

As the last monster let out its final breath, Yoon Seo released the and spoke first.

"Honestly, tell me. The guess you really made wasn't this, was it? Why are you hesitating to speak, which isn't like you?"

Kwon Jihan turned to Yoon Seo, his expression flustered.

"How did you know?"

As Yoon Seo had said, Kwon Jihan's real speculation was not this.

What he truly thought was that it wasn't someone who snuck in ahead of them… but perhaps someone who had not come out for the past ten years.

This impossible speculation arose because a certain name floated to his mind.

Lee Kangjin.

A hunter who had claimed to have unfinished business ten years ago, sent his companions out first, and never came out. He was the one who possessed and . And he was someone whose fate had never been confirmed by anyone.