#53
James had declared that he wouldn’t let the mobs touch even a hair on Seo Yi-young, and he faithfully kept that promise. However, more and more hunters were getting injured. The cover where the rear support hunters had hidden was damaged by the mobs’ attacks.
The combat hunters not only had to attack the mobs but also protect the rear support hunters, and their stamina had fallen considerably compared to the beginning. Even though S-Class hunters’ stamina exceeded that of ordinary people, it wasn’t infinite. Especially in James’s case, he couldn’t attack indefinitely. Books have an end, after all. He had already consumed quite a few pages.
It was time for Seo Yi-young to step up. First, he needed to focus on healing the rear support hunters who had relatively weaker stamina. But he couldn’t leave the combat hunters’ injuries unattended for long either. While healing one person, another hunter would get injured, and while treating them, yet another would fall.
The S-Class hunters with the strongest stamina would naturally be last in line, but to increase hunting efficiency, they should be healed first. His head was starting to ache from these conflicting theories.
“Yi. Heal the other hunters first.”
James’s voice rang out, as if he had read Seo Yi-young’s thoughts.
“I’m tough, you know. Right, weaklings?”
“After we get out of the dungeon, take a punch from this weakling.”
One of the hunters struggling to hold the line still managed to joke back. James smiled gently at Seo Yi-young. There was no need to spell out that he meant for Seo Yi-young to go help the other hunters.
At that moment, an idea flashed in Seo Yi-young’s mind. What if he could heal multiple people at once instead of one at a time? What if he didn’t need to physically touch them to heal?
He couldn’t understand why he hadn’t thought of this before. But such realizations were only possible after the thought occurred. Until then, there hadn’t even been a clue to shift his thinking.
Since he had never tried it before, he didn’t know what would happen. But it was certainly worth attempting. Seo Yi-young began gathering power in both hands. A bright light pooled in his palms, almost blinding to look at.
He needed to spread this power. Applying a concept understood only in theory to a real-life situation came with considerable difficulties. But he couldn’t just give up without trying.
Then he worried about accidentally healing the mobs instead of his allies. The healing ability itself didn’t inherently distinguish between friend and foe. He would need to select his targets carefully, avoiding the many obstacles.
Would that be possible? Could he succeed without any practice? Would he fail to heal at all because he was too worried about messing up?
Seo Yi-young looked at James and spoke.
“Jimmy…! It wouldn’t be a big problem if one or two mobs get healed here, would it?”
Hearing Seo Yi-young’s question, James glanced at him briefly before turning his gaze back to the mobs and answering.
“I don’t know what you’re planning, but okay. No need to worry. Having a few more mobs to kill doesn’t change anything.”
“That’s reassuring.”
After saying that, Seo Yi-young stretched both hands toward the sky. The ball of light rose upward and split into multiple streams like fireworks. Each beam of light descended upon one hunter.
James, who was nearby, reacted immediately.
“Wow.”
His green eyes sparkled as he turned to look at Seo Yi-young. Almost overwhelmingly so.
“That’s amazing, Yi. Wow.”
James’s movements became more energetic as he exclaimed in admiration once more.
As Seo Yi-young had worried, some of the mobs in the path of the light beams were also healed. But James took care of them right away. Pow. BOOM! They exploded with satisfying sounds under James’s attacks.
“Didn’t I tell you not to worry?”
Seo Yi-young couldn’t help but smile at James’s cheeky response.
“Hey, Mr. Seo! I’d like to invite you to dinner!”
“You must come! Don’t go home right away!”
“It’s a formal invitation!”
As Alberto shouted, other hunters chimed in as well.
The mobs didn’t have infinite respawns. There was definitely an end to them. Though it took a long time, thanks to Seo Yi-young’s healing ability, they were able to handle the situation smoothly without major casualties. Only after confirming that no more mobs were approaching could they finally catch their breath. Some people slumped down where they stood, while others looked up at the sky.
“That was really amazing.”
“I’d heard the rumors, but I didn’t know it would be this good.”
“It’s incredible that it restores mana too.”
Seo Yi-young felt somewhat embarrassed by all the admiration and praise. He wondered what expressions they would make if they knew that for a while after learning to use his ability, Seo Yi-young had occasionally fainted from using his powers because he couldn’t properly gauge his remaining mana.
Just then, James grabbed Seo Yi-young’s shoulder.
“Yi. Won’t you come to my side? Come on. I’ll make sure you won’t regret it.”
“Excuse me?”
Seo Yi-young’s eyes widened at the sudden proposition.
“Jimmy. What are you doing?”
“He’s been triggered, that guy.”
Jeers could be heard from all around.
“If you talk to our company, we can help with immigration too. You might be under an exclusive contract, but I’ll do my best to work something out. We’ll provide full support in America too. Hm? Yi, please.”
His earnest and intense manner, with those green eyes sparkling, was almost overwhelming. It looked almost like a desperate marriage proposal. Now Seo Yi-young understood why the other hunters were teasing him. He would have felt like teasing James too—if it weren’t happening to him.
“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s get back in formation.”
The situation was resolved thanks to Alberto’s intervention.
They had to continue moving without rest to clear the dungeon. They needed to deal with the boss mob quickly. Since there were no landmarks to gauge how far they had come, one of the rear support hunters used their ability to create markers on the floor that wouldn’t be affected by the dungeon’s influence. As they advanced, they faced a couple more waves of the same mobs.
Seo Yi-young also healed himself to ensure his mana wouldn’t run out while using his abilities. He was also getting better at group healing with practice. Becoming more skilled was good, but it also proved how annoying the mobs were. How much further did they need to go before reaching the boss mob? They seemed to have come quite deep already.
But there was one thing that bothered him. This dungeon didn’t just have two types of mobs.
In the report Seo Yi-young had received—
Thud.
BOOM.
Thud.
The ground shook.
“…Wow.”
Someone’s quiet exclamation of awe could be heard. Seo Yi-young felt exactly the same way.
“I was thinking of visiting the Bronx Zoo someday, but I guess I don’t need to anymore.”
Someone’s muttering made another person chuckle. What reflected in Seo Yi-young’s eyes were giant rhinoceroses, hippopotamuses, leopards, and a group of cheetahs. There seemed to be at least 50 of them. These were the very mobs reported to have taken out half of the previous raid team.
The small creatures they had dealt with until now had been tricky enough, not to mention these beasts. Moreover, different types required different tactics, but they had to face them all at once. Seo Yi-young swallowed nervously.
Although they resembled real animals quite closely, he didn’t feel much hesitation. He had already faced humanoid mobs before. In the midst of all this, the hippo slowly walking on its short legs looked somewhat comically out of place. It seemed Seo Yi-young wasn’t the only one who thought so.
“I understand the others, but a hippo?”
“Does it look funny to you? Unlike its appearance, it’s one of the most dangerous animals in the world with its vicious temperament. Brooks, you’d die from just one charge.”
“Oh my, how scary.”
Is that true? He couldn’t know for sure. But they wouldn’t tell such a cheap lie at a time like this.
The mobs spread out widely and began surrounding the hunters. James, Alberto, and the other hunters readied their formation. The letters James had conjured swayed and rippled in the air.
“Kaheung!”
As one leopard roared with its mouth wide open, a crackling shockwave was released.
“Wow. What’s this now?”
Someone laughed in disbelief. Among them was a black leopard that showed longer claws than the other creatures and lowered its body. It looked like a pre-attack stance.
“Hmm. Looks like the Black Panther.”
Their ability to maintain humor even in this situation was truly admirable. And as silence fell, the air felt heavy, pressing down on their bodies. The standoff with the mobs created an extreme tension where it seemed like even a falling needle would make a sound.
“Well then, hunters.”
And Alberto broke that silence.
“Everyone, assemble!”
“Wow, Al! I was going to say that line.”
“Give it up.”
A black man with short hair spoke with a regretful voice, and another hunter next to him chided him. Standing beside Seo Yi-young was James, who had never left his side. It was his intention to provide close protection for the most important healer. While Seo Yi-young was grateful, he also felt guilty.
No matter what anyone said, he couldn’t shake the feeling of being a burden. At times like this, he couldn’t help but wish he were a combat hunter who could attack rather than just a healer with a supporting role, even if he was S-Class.
Seo Yi-young healed the hunters who looked in danger while not forgetting to heal himself as well. He couldn’t focus solely on healing others without knowing his limits and end up collapsing himself. That wouldn’t just result in disappointment—it would be the end.
He healed a hunter who was sent flying by a hippo’s body slam and crashed to the ground, as well as another hunter whose flesh was torn by a leopard’s teeth.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
