Damn Hunter Life Chapter 34
About 20 minutes later.
I was lying sprawled out near the gate exit in a mentally frayed state.
‘Thank god I survived without dying…’
What had burst through the earth earlier was a python the size of a house.
Its body that emerged from the ground stretched upward and looked down at me.
The moment its yellow irises savored the sight of well-prepared prey, Myo Cho-hui, who had been hiding, jumped out and swung her crescent blade. She immediately contacted Ja Hyeong-woo, and the two dragged the boss monster deeper into the gate.
‘The fact that Myo Cho-hui used me as bait to lure the boss… well, since I’m not hurt anywhere, there’s no point in complaining about it since I won’t get anything back. Ah shit, whatever.’
The newcomers Won Ha-ri and I were told to wait here until the conquest was finished, so we stayed put obediently.
Though I do think this indefinite waiting is a waste of time.
‘Can’t I just go home first?’
Since I’m already lying down, I desperately want a bed rather than this dirt floor. Whether my clothes get dirty or not, I was lying there rolling around when I felt Won Ha-ri’s sharp gaze.
I pretended not to notice and looked at the elongated egg Won Ha-ri was holding.
“Just put that thing down or something. Why are you holding it like some precious shrine offering?”
A white, glossy egg exactly the size of my head.
While I was being used as bait for Myo Cho-hui’s fishing rod, Won Ha-ri seemed to have been treated as a partner despite being extremely awkward with Ja Hyeong-woo. That meant their team had achieved decent results through diligent searching. Specifically, the boss monster’s egg.
“Cho-hui eonni told me to hold it carefully in my hands. Didn’t you hear anything?”
A clear retort came back.
Won Ha-ri’s shallow trick to deliberately annoy me was obvious. I just twisted my lips into a crooked smile while lying down.
“Ugh.”
Then Won Ha-ri turned her head away as if feeling uncomfortable instead. I glimpsed her lips twisting in distortion.
Anyway, some monsters have vital points or special weaknesses like any living creature, aside from the magic stones embedded in their bodies.
That python’s egg is probably the same. The sole behavioral principle and weakness of a boss monster that attacks humans indiscriminately without any reason.
‘Is it a type where the boss monster’s power weakens when the egg leaves its home base and gets exposed to hunters’ aura?’
And probably, it would also be a point where the boss monster dramatically strengthens. Everything is a double-edged sword after all.
For instance, if the egg breaks, the boss gets enraged.
I suddenly remembered how property damage was frequent in the training room where Won Ha-ri was. It was like that just yesterday too.
Won Ha-ri hasn’t completely mastered power control yet.
After getting up and sitting, I brushed dirt from my hair with my hand while looking at Won Ha-ri. Won Ha-ri flinched and backed away just from me getting that much closer.
“Just give me the egg. I’ll hold it.”
I was about to reach out my hand but stopped – a wise decision.
Just from my words alone, Won Ha-ri was already glaring daggers. If I had extended my hand too, she might have completely lost it. Won Ha-ri hugged the egg tighter and exploded in anger.
“You’re too weak and you’ll drop it!”
“The probability of that is lower than you crushing it by squeezing it right now… Okay, fine. Calm down and tone down your temper. You’re so hot-blooded anyway.”
Ah, saying hot-blooded was a mistake. I carelessly mentioned something I saw in the original…
But it was already too late. Won Ha-ri heard it and spewed out anger until her face turned red.
“You called me hot-blooded? Who made me angry first!”
“Won Ha-ri, it hurts.”
A cutting wind characteristic of metal attribute swirled around Won Ha-ri. I spoke as calmly as possible and raised my palm in front of the kid.
Since metal attribute is inherently specialized for attacks, when a metal attribute successor goes berserk, it’s incomparably more dangerous than when I, with earth attribute, can’t control my emotions.
Fifteen-year-old Won Ha-ri could currently be called a walking storm.
Metal doesn’t even counter earth attribute, but whether I’m weak or Won Ha-ri has tremendous potential, even with some distance between us, my skin stung painfully.
“…Right now? Because of me?”
Did my expression look that pained?
Won Ha-ri’s voice immediately shrank as if frightened. The aura I felt also shrunk along with it.
Just from one word saying it hurt, seeing Won Ha-ri fidget restlessly with a tearful expression toward someone she’d been so annoyed with, I think “as expected.”
‘I’m certain. The reason Won Ha-ri dislikes me isn’t because I’m a scoundrel or because my personality is weird.’
Crack!
At that moment, an extremely ominous sound clearly rang out from where it absolutely shouldn’t.
From the python egg Won Ha-ri held in her arms.
Won Ha-ri, who had turned pale, checked the egg. There was a large crack visible on the surface. Even as I stared with wide eyes, small hairline cracks appeared one after another.
Crack, soon a shell fragment fell off, and the moment a large eyeball visible through the small hole met my eyes.
Screeech—!
Whether it was an auditory hallucination or real, a tremendous ringing sound pierced my ears. Both Won Ha-ri and I grimaced.
[Warning: Gate 187-5’s boss’s reverse scale has been exposed.]
[Warning: Gate 187-5’s boss is enraged.]
[Warning: Gate 187-5’s boss’s grade is temporarily rising.]
Beep beep beep, alarm sounds urgently struck my ears. My heartbeat also rapidly increased.
[The boss monster’s current perceived grade is B-rank.]
Crazy, I clicked my tongue inside my mouth. A B-rank boss?
While all successors are basically classified as S-rank, whether one or two successors can handle a B-rank boss is a different matter. From my perspective having read the original, if the battle combination and attributes aren’t advantageous, it would be a bit difficult.
‘Even in an enraged state? Then I’m not even sure if Myo Cho-hui and Ja Hyeong-woo, who’s a healer, can handle it together.’
But if that boss monster shakes off those two experienced fighters and comes charging at full speed through underground tunnels toward us beginners…?
The ground bounced so much we couldn’t sit still. It felt like a magnitude 5.0 earthquake had occurred. At least there were no trees or structures around to fall… but the problem was the pure white gate exit behind us.
‘With this level of earthquake, there would be impact reaching outside—!’
Oh no. Coming to my senses, I finally crawled on my knees to Won Ha-ri, who was spacing out, and snatched the egg away.
I hastily summoned the sword Jin Seol-woon gave me and stabbed the egg deeply, but with my strength the blade didn’t go all the way in, making the monster inside screech.
Won Ha-ri, still looking dazed, came over and gripped my sword handle. Not even realizing her hand was overlapping mine, she pushed it in deeply in that state. With that monstrous strength, the monster’s movement stopped.
But the approaching ground tremors didn’t disappear.
Won Ha-ri couldn’t pull herself together and muttered while pale and shaken.
“Cho-hui eonni said if the egg breaks, the boss monster would get angry and head that way, so I should hold it carefully… but I couldn’t control my strength…”
Rumble! The vibration intensified and the giant python crawling underground approached very close.
The ground split. Its body shot up as if to pierce the sky. The eyes looking down at Won Ha-ri and me were bright red. The hissing tongue sound was sharp.
Emergency communication connected.
[“Gyeon Gang-hyeon! Did the boss go your way? Absolutely don’t fight it! Rather, go outside! Don’t even think about dealing with it!”]
Amid Ja Hyeong-woo’s shouting, between Won Ha-ri and me, Won Ha-ri moved first.
With a face about to shed tears at any moment, Won Ha-ri stood up straight instead of collapsing. Even while trembling, she stood properly, took a stance, and drew her sword. She had her back to me.
“Stay behind me. If it comes closer, I’ll somehow—”
“No, you move aside.”
I stepped aside from Won Ha-ri and came forward.
If something like that gets close, both Won Ha-ri and I will be torn to shreds before we can even swing a sword once. We need to resolve this while there’s distance.
But Won Ha-ri doesn’t have the archery skills to shoot that thing…
I took the bow Won Ha-ri was carrying. As soon as it came into my hands, my arm immediately bent downward deeply.
Ah… it’s incredibly heavy.
[<Grave of the Dead (Earth Attribute)> skill is activating.]
A bow too heavy to hold with both hands. Using the Grave of the Dead skill to forcibly increase my strength, I lifted it to eye level.
‘The heavier it is, the more reliable the performance will be.’
Ignoring Won Ha-ri’s blank stare, I nocked an arrow and drew the bowstring. But my body swayed too much from the gusts. I couldn’t aim at all.
“Won Ha-ri, hold me around the waist from behind.”
“I, I should.”
“Hurry!”
For the first time, I raised my voice at Won Ha-ri. When the shout struck like lightning, Won Ha-ri was startled and wrapped her arms around my waist.
The target was the magic stone embedded in the python’s forehead that I’d seen when I was used as bait earlier.
I was lucky. The weakness, the magic stone, was in a position visible on the outside.
Hisss!
A giant python that looked like something from fairy tales raised its head and charged. Its thin tongue flickered, targeting me.
The hand holding the bow trembled slightly. I gripped it even tighter.
If I don’t kill it, the entrance will be breached. Citizens will see that thing.
There’s no time to pick up and shoot a second arrow, and the opportunity is this one shot in my hand.
In a time shorter than 3 seconds, everything depends on this one shot.
‘Aim properly. Absolutely cannot waver.’
Commanding myself, I use the skill as if drawn to it.
==
<Boundary Between Life and Death (Earth Attribute)>
Description: Temporarily cuts off biological signals and conceals like the dead.
==
I didn’t use the skill’s concealment function. All I needed was the stillness and silence close to death.
My vision quietly settles. The surrounding noise also subsides. The bow’s trembling disappears as if my breathing stopped.
I felt Won Ha-ri’s arms stiffen.
Wind struck my face, making my eyes sting. From concentrating, my eyes became bloodshot.
While intensely meeting the python’s gaze, I released my hand. The arrow imbued with earth’s energy shot out from my hand.
Direct hit on the magic stone in the center of its forehead.
Screeeeech—!
The monster let out a death-throe-like roar. A fierce shock wave covered the entire area like a real bomb had exploded.
“…!”
My vision went black for a moment then returned.
Won Ha-ri opened her tightly shut eyes and discovered me collapsed on top of her. She started to move to push me off, then suddenly stopped.
Seeing my back with clothes torn and tattered from the shock wave over her shoulder.
She probably couldn’t have realized. That I hadn’t fallen on her, but reflexively turned around in an instant to protect Won Ha-ri from the impact.
I coughed and raised my head. I checked if Won Ha-ri was okay.
And I was momentarily dumbfounded.
Won Ha-ri shed a tear from her eye.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
