NOVEL NEXT Chapter 56
Chapter 56. Goemi (3)
“Go ahead and shoot.”
“R-really?”
Yoo Ji-han watched as the Goemi, whose legs had been completely sliced off by his sword, twitched on the ground.
It looked fine except for the legs, but it couldn’t move even a single step.
Won Yeong-guk aimed his gun at the creature.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three bullets shot from the muzzle with a flash.
Due to the tension, the first shot hit its tough head and bounced off.
But the remaining bullets lodged perfectly between the Goemi’s head and chest.
The trembling Goemi soon lost its spark and breathed its last.
Kim Si-hu, watching from the side, clapped his hands.
“You’re doing great! Have you done this before?”
“It’s my first time hunting a monster!”
Won Yeong-guk had finally achieved his long-desired goal of hunting a monster.
Everyone gets a bit jittery during their first experience.
He was scared while seeing the monster up close yet thought it was great to be here today.
“Let’s head straight to the real thing.”
“Yes!”
They increased their speed and searched the mountain here and there.
Yoo Ji-han generously sprinkled light brown powder around.
Whenever they found one Goemi, at least three more were found in a similar spot.
Thanks to that, they managed to hunt at least ten Goemi in a single day.
“Thanks for tomorrow as well.”
“Yes!”
Thus, the successful hunting continued.
It was now the fifth day since Sweet Fun had come to Gye-yang Mountain.
Won Yeong-guk, who had been there first, ran towards the direction Yoo Ji-han and Kim Si-hu were coming from.
“Good day to you again!”
With his energetic greeting, Yoo Ji-han smiled back.
“Your voice seems lively today.”
“It seems I’m having a good experience thanks to you!”
How many people in the world get a chance to hunt monsters unless they were heroes?
Won Yeong-guk, who received such an opportunity, had a sparkle in his eyes.
There were hardly any joyful moments during his nearly two years of military service.
‘Did I catch about 14 on average each day?’
Yoo Ji-han recalled the Goemi they had hunted over the past few days.
It was more of a hassle looking for the corpses on the mountain than the actual hunting.
The reason they could hunt more than ten was thanks to the Goemi’s transformation powder and the support role taken on by Won Yeong-guk.
“Let’s stretch a bit before we go in.”
Yoo Ji-han casually stretched his shoulders and looked around.
Familiar faces from several days of traveling through Gye-yang Mountain could be seen.
But then, some unfamiliar heroes were staring at Yoo Ji-han.
“Is that him?”
“I think that’s the one.”
They seemed to have some business with him.
They approached Yoo Ji-han, who was stretching.
“You’re Sweet Fun, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“See? I told you.”
They looked like they had found the person they were looking for.
One man looked Yoo Ji-han up and down and said, “You made Kyung-jin look like a fool, didn’t you?”
“Kyung-jin?”
“Moon Kyung-jin. Don’t you know him?”
“Are you talking about Moon Kyung-jin from the Knife Guild?”
“Who else would it be?”
They were acquaintances of the Knife Guild hero, Moon Kyung-jin.
Having heard that he lost his legs and fingers, they had come looking for Yoo Ji-han.
When the Knife Guild was mentioned, Yoo Ji-han spoke with a somewhat cold tone.
“What happened to Moon Kyung-jin is of no concern to us.”
“That’s just your opinion. Our thoughts differ a bit.”
“How could you know what happened when you weren’t there?”
“Who would confess to being the culprit?”
“That applies to Moon Kyung-jin as well, you know.”
While it’s good that the guild names were starting to get recognized through knights or other media, having strangers confront him wasn’t exactly positive.
As the approaching group radiated a strange atmosphere, Kim Si-hu, holding a staff, stepped beside Yoo Ji-han.
“What’s going on?”
“And you are?”
“I’m the Guild Master of Sweet Fun.”
“Then you must be the one Kyung-jin mentioned.”
“From how you talk, I figured as much.”
All eyes were on Yoo Ji-han.
Feeling the gaze of everyone, Yoo Ji-han inwardly scoffed.
He couldn’t believe they would respond with such childish and trivial methods.
He addressed the heroes looking at him.
“You are friends of Moon Kyung-jin, right?”
“And what’s it to you?”
“Whatever you want, just know that the Hero Department is already mediating between the two guilds.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. But someone we knew died, so we need to address this.”
“I heard he has quite the big personality.”
“Do you think he can continue being a hero like that?”
“…….”
At the very least, I think I’ve been a hero longer than you.
Yoo Ji-han pondered as he observed their attire.
Their gear was new, still showing no sign of wear or age.
And since they had come to Gye-yang Mountain, they were indeed a rank 4 party like Sweet Fun.
Listening to their complaints was utterly amusing for Yoo Ji-han.
“Did he tell you to come find me?”
“…….”
“How did you know we were here? Are you stalkers or something?”
“Stalkers? What the—!”
“Instead of wasting time here, why don’t you go visit Kyung-jin? His legs were chewed by that giant cat monster, and he must be in pain.”
As Yoo Ji-han casually poked fun, the heroes frowned.
However, they didn’t try to fight or create more trouble since the Hero Department staff gathered at Gye-yang Mountain were watching them.
‘They really are a matching lot…’
Moon Kyung-jin’s friends weren’t any different from him.
If they were to rush in recklessly like before, Yoo Ji-han would just calmly respond.
“Hey, soldier guy!”
“……?”
Ultimately, taking a step back, they called out to Won Yeong-guk, who had been waiting beside Yoo Ji-han and Kim Si-hu.
They knew he was moving with Yoo Ji-han’s party.
“You’re with these two, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Why not join us instead?”
“Excuse me?”
Won Yeong-guk looked greatly surprised by the sudden proposal.
The warrior, who looked like the party leader, scanned Yoo Ji-han and Kim Si-hu.
“We’ve got a tanker, a healer… everything you need except for this pathetic 2-man party.”
“I’ll let the Hero Department know, so come with us. We’ll show you something great.”
“That…”
“Do you know how rare this experience is?”
“Have you ever felt the effects of buffs or healing magic? Your body will feel completely light!”
Whoosh!
A mage showed off their magic, letting it burst forth on purpose for him to see.
They were enticing Won Yeong-guk with experiences that ordinary people couldn’t usually have.
But after a moment of consideration, Won Yeong-guk said, “I’m sorry.”
“…Are you really rejecting us?”
“Since I’ve already started with these people, I’ll stick with them until the end.”
“Ha! Do you even know what kind of opportunity this is?”
“To pass up a chance that may not come again in your lifetime…”
“Don’t regret it!”
With nothing to gain, they huffed and disappeared into the MA area.
Yoo Ji-han approached Won Yeong-guk.
“Are you sure you don’t want to follow them?”
“Yes.”
“It could be much safer than sticking with us.”
“I’ve already made my decision.”
In retrospect, it wasn’t a big deal…
Yoo Ji-han and Kim Si-hu felt a bit moved by him staying with the party.
Kim Si-hu took out a cup and thermos from his bag.
“Yeong-guk, try this.”
“What is it?”
“It’s something good for you. Probably.”
Pouring a bit into the cup was water brewed from Lucky Whisker and White Umbrella ingredients.
It was a small token of gratitude for him staying with the party.
Won Yeong-guk downed the water in one go.
“How is it?”
“Salty and bitter.”
“As expected…”
His review of the drink was hardly different from that of the other two.
Just because an ordinary person drank it didn’t make it taste any special.
*
On a street where stray cats had all turned into giant cat monsters.
“Nyaa—”
A white-furred giant cat monster sauntered leisurely along a wall made of red bricks.
This place, declared an MA and prohibited to ordinary people, was a playground for monsters.
No matter how loudly they meowed, there was no one to get annoyed, and when hungry, they would steal food from convenience stores or nearby houses.
Compared to their former lives as stray cats, it was a much more affluent life!
Much better than dodging terrifying cars on the road.
Paba-bak!
But the peaceful life of the giant cat monster ended with an arrow in its head.
What reflected in the eyes of the falling creature was a woman and something huge, similar yet different from them.
“Hu…”
Min Yu-ri approached the fallen giant cat monster, who had been struck by a magic arrow.
Though the tremors had ceased, the warmth still lingered in the creature’s body.
Blood flowed from the large hole left in its forehead, where magic had dispersed.
With very familiar movements, she took out a healing substance for monsters.
Pouring it into the wound, the bleeding immediately stopped.
“Chilla.”
Chilla, burdened with a huge bundle, stepped forward.
As it lifted the giant cat monster’s body over its head, it vanished comfortably into the bundle.
It looked as easy as throwing a basketball.
Min Yu-ri then narrowed her eyes and said, “I told you not to toss it in so carelessly.”
“Chick!”
Having become too skilled at handling giant cats, Chilla had developed a knack for collecting the corpses.
Sighing, Min Yu-ri grabbed another giant cat monster’s body herself.
However, just as she was about to pack it away…
“…….”
She stopped, staring at the face of the giant cat monster, its red tongue hanging out.
A moment later, a feeling of emptiness rose within her.
‘What’s the point?’
The meaningless repetition as always.
Would capturing these giant cats lead her to a clue that could wake So-yeon?
At first, she thought so, driven by a strong thirst for revenge against the giant cats.
But now, having repeated this for years…
After killing thousands, perhaps even ten thousand, her initial vengeful spirit had faded.
‘I don’t need money.’
From the repeated hunts, she had earned enough to cover her family’s living expenses and her sister’s hospital bills.
Not knowing when something would happen to her, she had even left several years’ worth of hospital fees to the hospital where Min So-yeon was admitted.
“Ha…”
Min Yu-ri released the giant cat monster’s corpse she had been holding.
It fell lifelessly to the ground.
‘Do I really need to find another way?’
She felt a sense of lethargy slowly spreading through her whole body.
Just a few weeks ago, she wouldn’t have fallen into such thoughts.
But since meeting Yoo Ji-han and Kim Si-hu in the MA, the frequency of her conflicting thoughts had increased.
“I need to catch more giant cats.”
If they hadn’t been there, she wouldn’t be having such dilemmas.
She would have spent the time killing her sister’s enemy as usual.
But now, she had been affected by a few words from Yoo Ji-han.
She had become so tangled up that she didn’t even know her own heart anymore.
“…….”
Chilla stared at Min Yu-ri intently.
Being the tamer, she knew that it cared about her.
“What do you think?”
“…Chick?”
Chilla tilted its head, not understanding the question.
It couldn’t easily grasp sentences that were so packed with meaning.
Lost in thought, Min Yu-ri eventually shook her head.
And then, she wandered the street in search of another giant cat.
At the very least, while immersed in battle, no other thoughts would intrude.