I Became a Childhood Friend of the Middle Boss

Chapter 55

Rank 2 monster, Leader Ghost Rabbit.

It was appearing not only where Dogyunwoo was but also in the forests around the Mirage Hotel.

The evaluators watched examinees fiercely battling the Leader Ghost Rabbit by moving their screen eyes.

[You have excellent muscles! It must be evidence of hard training.]

[Kwaaah!]

[But my muscles won’t lose either! It’s worth watching this fight!]

Yonghaerang of the Medical Dragon School.

He, holding a knuckle-shaped device, fearlessly rushed at the creature, unleashing a barrage of punches.

[Come on!]

[Kwaaah!]

[Pasha! That’s spirit! Determination!]

Like reaching into a bonfire to pick up chestnuts.

Yonghaerang’s fists moved so fast that the screen couldn’t keep up.

The Leader Ghost Rabbit’s fists were the same.

“Passion… overflows, yes…”

“This year, the Medical Dragon School seems particularly fierce.”

“It feels like we’re watching the strongest in the world fighting, doesn’t it?”

“Is that so?”

“I think I understand how you feel. I get it as a fellow man.”

“But you’re a woman, Instructor.”

“Where do men and women matter among men? A man is a man.”

“Oh, yes…”

There was something about the battle of Yonghaerang that ignited a fire in people’s hearts.

So much so that when they came to their senses, the exam control room was filled with heat, sweat dripping down the evaluators’ necks.

“Let’s move on to the next examinee.”

“Oh…”

The evaluators, not accustomed to the heat, quickly switched the screen.

As the evaluators watched Yonghaerang finally defeat the Chief Ghost Rabbit, they sighed as if feeling regret.

But that was only for a moment…

[When the Muscle Rabbit charged with its protective color… It’s truly horrifying just to think about it. Oh, gives me goosebumps.]

Their attention shifted to Minarin of Mado Village that appeared on the screen.

The Chief Ghost Rabbit was lying nearby.

“What on earth… did it do?”

“I know, right.”

Had it been set on fire?

The Chief Ghost Rabbit had lost its white fur and turned into a charred lump.

Smoke was rising around its body.

[Phew, it’s quite a task to retrieve the magic stone.]

Minarin poked the corpse with her staff and retrieved the magic stone.

At that moment, examinees were approaching her from the edge of the screen.

She noticed their presence.

“I should run away quickly.”

“Those examinees could have killed me too, right? It’s not easy to escape.”

“But I can’t pick up the magic stones dropped by the ghosts who appeared with him.”

Contrary to the evaluators’ expectations…

[Hmm…]

Minarin glanced around the examinees and tapped the ground with her staff.

The magic stones, including the one in her hand, floated up from the ground.

“If you can take it, go ahead.”

[…]

“I, will take it from Minarin.”

Hmph, making a sound.

Min Arin provoked the examinees.

She engaged in battle with the examinees while floating her marble in the air.

The result was her victory.

[Hmph, it’s nothing special.]

Min Arin, holding the examinees’ marbles, moved on her staff.

The marbles followed her.

“It’s so neat the way she manipulates them.”

“The firepower is strong too. Impressive.”

“If she can transport marbles like that, she can save herself the trouble of exchanging chips like other examinees.”

The evaluators did not express any disagreement with Min Arin’s skills.

The screen transitioned at that moment.

[Kwaaah!]

“I’ll handle the attacks, so please deal with the leader!”

Unlike Do Gyunwoo, Yong Haerang, and Min Arin, those appearing on the screen were in a party facing the entity.

Among them, a woman standing at the back of the party caught the evaluators’ attention.

“That examinee is…”

“I’ll cast a buff for increased attack power!”

A blonde with braided hair, blue eyes.

A female examinee with an exotic appearance was assisting the examinees with magic using a scepter in her hand.

“I’ve heard rumors that the Princess of the Grace Empire supported us, could she be that examinee?”

“What’s her… I mean, her title?”

“Is it necessary to address her so formally? Her imperial ranking isn’t that high, and if she enters the Diamond Academy, she’ll become our student.”

“And this is not Korea.”

“It’s not Korea, but Hwan, Won, Do, Shi.”

“Her name is here. If you remove the middle names… it’s Lisa Grace.”

Appearing in this world at the time of the Great Upheaval 200 years ago, Grace, the imperial family from the otherworld, appeared with the World Tree.

The evaluators pondered how to treat her while observing the imperial family from that world.

“Her skills aren’t bad, though.”

“Compared to the disciples of the Ten Families, she lacks impact.”

“It can’t be helped. Unlike those who have been training tirelessly since childhood to become Hunters, she grew up in a greenhouse.”

“Why on earth would she want to become a Hunter? She could just live comfortably in the imperial position.”

“That’s true.”

“There must be a good reason for that. The reason to become a hunter.”

◈

At that moment.

The young sky perched on a tree caught the falling bundle.

“Oocha!”

Truly…

Docenwoo’s idea was truly ingenious.

He never expected this plan to work.

After checking the mana stone inside the bundle, Young Sky let out a bitter smile.

It was then that the sound was heard.

“It’s here! It fell this way!”

“It must be around here!”

Students passed below the tree.

It seemed like examinees who had been observing the situation from afar were now searching for the bundle to snatch it.

“Hmm, what should I do….”

If he stayed here any longer, they would surely discover his location.

He had to move to avoid being caught.

However, Young Sky had to keep accepting the bundle sent by Goeunbi.

Each time he accepted it, they would chase after him, increasing in numbers.

“I have to deal with this first and then leave.”

In that case, it would be better to reduce their numbers before it became too many.

Moreover, they probably had chips or mana stones.

Already burdened with collecting the chips of three people, if he could obtain theirs, the burden would lessen.

Having made that decision, she deliberately revealed her presence.

Yaaah!

Young Sky spread her mana throughout her body.

The examinees who were searching the surroundings felt that energy and rushed towards her.

“It’s here.”

“It’s over there!”

“There’s only one opponent!”

The examinees shouted.

Young Sky looked down at them with a nonchalant gaze.

In no time, she leaped off the branch like a rabbit.

Her bright blue hair swayed as she landed gracefully.

“Here she comes!”

“She’s coming on her own.”

“Her exam ticket is black! Be careful!”

Wearing shorts underneath, she didn’t worry about revealing her skirt.

The sky above watched over the examinees below.

Whoosh!

At that moment, someone triggered magic.

A fireball was descending.

Heat engulfed the surroundings in an instant.

She remained unfazed.

“Device on.”

Gripping tightly to prevent the bundle from falling.

As it fell from the tree, she infused mana into the metal plate held in her right hand.

The metal plate, now recognizing the activation command, restored the device to its original form.

She swung a massive iron hammer with all her might, larger than her own height.

───!!

The fireball exploded.

Embers scattered, engulfing her.

However, wearing a shield around her body, she remained unscathed.

In no time, she broke through the flames, standing on the ground.

“Huh…?”

“Fall, they fall!”

The faces of the examinees were visible.

She deactivated the device.

“Device off.”

The iron hammer transformed back into the metal plate.

Though the weight of the device remained the same, with the disappearance of the large iron hammer, she could easily adjust her falling posture.

From the position of swinging the hammer, she pulled the hand holding the device behind her shoulder.

“Device on.”

…!

The metal plate reverted to the iron hammer.

Naturally assuming a striking position, she swung the iron hammer towards them with force.

Crack!

Examinees struck directly by the hammer collapsed along with the crumbling ground.

Sand and smoke obscured the surroundings.

“Ugh….”

Amidst the suffering moans of the examinees within, without hesitation, she relentlessly wielded the iron hammer, pinpointing their positions with the detection spell.

The examinees, trapped in the sand and smoke, had no choice but to fall prey to the sudden appearance of the iron hammer.

The rabbit hunt is not fun at all.

Rabbits, being highly vigilant, are a challenge to approach, and their small size and agility make chasing them difficult.

Moreover, they are not just simple rabbits; they are monsters capable of concealing their presence, using camouflage to block physical attacks.

While there was nothing he couldn’t handle, he didn’t want to wander through the forest day and night just to hunt rabbits that didn’t provoke him in any way.

It was a waste of time.

Furthermore, to capture a Sweet Room, he had to hunt dozens, if not hundreds, of rabbits through simple calculations.

“No, I hate it. It’s not fun at all. I didn’t sign up to hunt rabbits here. I applied because they said there would be plenty of fun once I entered the Academy. I’ve killed Ghost Rabbits to the point of getting bored when they were in my family…”

Of course, there are various types of Ghost Rabbits, including monsters belonging to the upper ranks.

A 2nd rank monster, the Ghost Rabbit Boss.

It would surely pique his interest and provide adequate stimulation.

However, it was a monster that only appeared under specific conditions.

Waiting quietly for a creature that could appear anytime, anywhere was not in his nature.

So…

“Thanks! I’ll make sure to use the mana stones and chips you’ve collected well!”

“Ugh….”

“G-Give it back…”

“Ah, that was fun!”

Somewhere in the forest.

Yeong-sung Namga’s Nam Yoori launched a surprise attack on the examinees hunting Ghost Rabbits in a party.

Although the examinees tried to resist her using numerical superiority, it was futile.

She overwhelmed the situation by transforming her body or wielding a giant scythe.

“Device off.”

Nam Yoori reverted the oversized scythe back into a metal baton.

Putting it in her back pocket, she rummaged through the pockets of the fallen examinees.

Humming a tune.

“Found it! You’ve gathered quite a lot, huh?”

If she continued to plunder chips like this, it would be less effort to secure a higher-grade room.

After checking the loot, Nam Yoori smiled brightly.

“That’s ours, give it back…”

“I don’t want to. It’s mine now.”

“Please…”

“Are you begging me now?”

“…”.

“Don’t ever beg me. I really hate that.”

The bright smile vanished from her face.

Nam Yoori’s expression turned stern.

Her seemingly affectionate words carried a warning.

Intuitively sensing it, the examinee no longer pleaded with her and instead cast his gaze down.

Finally, Nam Yoori regained her momentum.

“If you want it back, then take it from me with your own strength. I’ll be waiting!”

Turning her face as if flipping over the palm of her hand, Nam Yoori bid farewell to the test-takers who couldn’t contain their bodies.

She left to attack other test-takers.

Crack!

“Hmm?”

At that moment, a light flashed from one side.

Nam Yoori, who had stopped in her tracks, turned her head towards the flashing light.

“….”

Someone adorned with a blue current was facing off against the leader Ghost Rabbit.

“Impressive.”

Although he pierced the leader Ghost Rabbit’s abdomen, he brought him down with a single strike.

Not stopping there, the main character continued to single-handedly bring down the test-takers gathered around.

Nam Yoori was impressed by his skills.

She didn’t know who he was.

But every time he wielded his sword, she could infer his identity from the scattering blue current.

“A practitioner of the Divine Sword School.”

Yekroe, the pinnacle of swordsmanship in the Divine Sword School.

Witnessing Yekroe for the first time, Nam Yoori involuntarily averted her gaze.

“If he has a black test badge….”

Nam Yoori also had keen ears.

Among the test-takers with black test badges, there was only one practitioner of the Divine Sword School.

“He’s Rabbit.”

Rabbit, Dogyunwoo.

A lion unable to even hunt a single rabbit.

His story was famous.

“He doesn’t look like it at all….”

Recalling his story, Nam Yoori murmured quietly.

From her perspective, the one toying with the test-takers single-handedly didn’t seem like a mere rabbit.

If that’s considered a rabbit….

“A mutant?”

Undoubtedly a mutant rabbit.

Not a feeble rabbit, but a swift, lion-like rabbit.

“It would be more fun to play with him!”

It would be far more stimulating than hunting boring rabbits.

Thrilling.

To the point of feeling alive.

It was a moment when Nam Yoori became interested.

Her violet eyes sparkled.