Ranker’s Return

Hyeonu was vigilant toward the group of players that had suddenly appeared.

“The Pioneer Guild?”

It was the identity of those who appeared before Hyeonu. After hearing the name, he saw some familiar faces. The eccentric Ket was someone every player in Arena knew about. His actions were enough to make people call him eccentric.

“What can I do for you?”

It was natural to ask this question. Few people in Arena had good intentions. In particular, the more their level went up, the worse they became. It was because they knew how much money could be made in Arena. However, it was different when the other party was the Pioneer Guild.

“Do you have something you need from me?” Hyeonu asked politely. They were literally rich. Those who made money with money were different from the players who sold their consciences for money.

“Can I ask what brings you to Frozen Canyon?” Ket asked.

Asu added on, “We’re looking for an orc. It is the one posted about to the community.”

He had changed his attitude. Asu was smiling now, unlike his previous annoyed expression.

‘OMG! It is Alley Leader!’

Alley Leader was right in front of him. Being with him in Arena would obviously be fantastic. If so, some contact should be made.

“Oh, I’m also looking for that orc. There is a quest.”

Hyeonu’s answer gave joy to Asu. ‘Yes!!’

The words he wanted to hear came out of Hyeonu’s mouth. So, Asu suggested, “Why don’t we look for him together? We’ve already been looking for a week.”

“A week? What happened?”

‘Do they have a quest?’ This idea came to Hyeonu’s mind.

They wouldn’t be searching for Cancun for a week for nothing. At least, that was if they were normal people. Ket was an eccentric whose way of thinking went beyond Hyeonu’s mind.

“No? I just wanted to see him again. He is interesting.” Ket smiled. It was a smile that showed the purity of a child who had just been born.

“Then I will get in touch if I find the orc. My name is Gang Hyeonu.”

Five new friends were added to Hyeonu’s friend window.

***

Hyeonu didn’t leave immediately after adding all of the Pioneer Guild members as friends. He wanted to see the skills of the Pioneer Guild, one of Arena’s most famous guilds.

“They are well matched.”

The Pioneer Guild members didn’t speak much. They were all doing their work quietly. Among them, Ket—who attracted the aggro of the snow giants—and Asu—who performed magic at the right time—were in the spotlight.

‘A professional team would fit together more tightly than that,’ Hyeonu had this thought and felt compelled to hunt. It reminded him of a name he couldn’t say.

“Then I’m going now. If you find him, please contact me.”

The Pioneer Guild had tried to catch Hyeonu, but Hyeonu turned down the offer. He made an excuse that he was busy, but he was actually frustrated. Hyeonu knew that he couldn’t rest if he wanted to take revenge on Jung Hanbaek, who had good teammates.

Thus, he couldn’t help being anxious. He had no time to play around like this. At this moment, Hyeonu heard a loud noise that shook his mind.

‘It’s close.’

Hyeonu instinctively started to search for the source of the noise.

‘It isn’t magic.’

It didn’t come from snow giants or glacier trolls. Neither was this the magic he saw from Asu. Power wasn’t a problem. There was no magician in Arena who would cast this magic in front of a tanker. If so, there was only one remaining possibility—a boss monster.

“Tang-E, come out.”

***

Hyeonu found the source of the noise and saw a huge giant. At first glance, it was at least five or six meters tall. In front of the giant, there was an orc—who was small enough to look shabby—fighting back against it.

“Tang-E, is that Cancun?” Hyeonu pointed to the orc who was fighting well against the giant that was more than twice his size.

“That’s right. That ugly guy is Cancun,” Tang-E admitted it.

Hyeonu heard this and got ready to take part in the battle. “Give me a buff. I will help your friend.”

“Thank you, Master dude. You must be sure to help that ugly guy from the other ugly guy.”

[You have received Bear’s Momentum.]

[Physique has increased.]

[Strength has increased.]

[You have received the Forest’s Blessing.]

[Defense has increased.]

[Health will continue to recover.]

Tang-E was a bear who knew loyalty.

***

Cancun, who had been fighting for his life against the Snowy Giant Captain, was amazed to see a human suddenly get involved in the battle.

“Eh?”

He wasn’t surprised because it was a human. Rather, Cancun was surprised to see the necklace the human was wearing around his neck.

“That necklace...” Cancun started to say.

However, the giant captain didn’t give Cancun room to speak. It aimed at this moment and swung its stick like lightning. Proving that a monster’s child was still a monster, Cancun easily dodged the giant captain’s severe attack.

“You! Do you know that bear? Your little bear friend of Bung Bung Island.”

“Eh? You know him? He is my dearest friend.”

Cancun was once again surprised. This person had his uncle’s necklace and knew his best friend, ‘that guy’ of Bung Bung Island.

“I don’t know how you know him, but I’ll ask once I kill this guy.”

After Cancun’s words, Hyeonu thought of a way to defeat the giant captain, ‘We have to block his movements. Aim for the knees and ankles.’

This giant was just a punching sandbag once it couldn’t move. A huge sword energy was emitted from Hyeonu’s single-edged sword. The blue sword energy hit the giant captain’s left ankle.

“Ohh!” The giant captain gave a low scream, indicating that Hyeonu’s attack worked properly. Cancun didn’t miss this moment and added another hit. He grasped Hyeonu’s intentions and aimed at the giant’s right ankle. It made the sound of a bomb exploding. The result was explosive. The giant’s other ankle exploded like a drum.

“Hit!” Unable to move, the giant captain made its final struggle. It abandoned its stick and swung its fists. However, Hyeonu and Cancun couldn’t be hit by such shabby attacks. They both avoided the giant captain’s fists. Then they struck the giant captain again.

“Ohh...” Finally, the Snow Giant Captain died. 

[The Snow Giant Captain has been killed.]

[Experience has been acquired.]

[You have leveled up.]

[All health and magic power have been restored.]

“Cancuuuuuun!!!” After seeing the fall of the giant captain, Tang-E rushed toward Hyeonu and Cancun.

Cancun hugged Tang-E and asked in a sweet tone, “Have you been well?”

“It has been a while. Why did you leave your home? The old man is very concerned.”

“It is a matter of circumstances. Of course, the training was hard, but I also had something to look for.”

According to Cancun’s words, he hadn’t left his home simply out of fear of Raccoon.

‘I don’t think he is that weak in comparison to Dakan,’ Hyeonu thought.

Based on the combat power Cancun showed fighting the Snow Giant Captain, it was hard to think he had fled out of fear of training hard.

“It is your choice if you want to go back or not. However, Raccoon wanted me to pass on a message. Your home is here in the Black Forest, the Meadow Wolf Tribe,” Hyeonu interjected in the conversation between the two of them.

[Tell Cancun about Raccoon 1/1.]

[Raccoon’s Message has been cleared.]

[Return to Raccoon and receive the reward.]

‘The reward is with Raccoon. I’ll have to stop by soon.’

“I want to return to the tribe, but I still have work to do.” Cancun shook his head. He couldn’t return to the tribe yet. There was a place he had to find which existed somewhere in the canyon.

“This way, Father won’t find out the state of my body.” Cancun took off his fur. “Ugh.”

“What’s wrong with your body?”

There was a reason why Cancun was wearing fur. It was because his body was hideous. Half his body was in a withered state. It was in a seriously bad condition when compared to the other places with strong muscles.

“Don’t tell me...?” Tang-E’s voice trailed off. It seemed that he had guessed something.

“Yes, I was cursed. It is a terrible curse. The vitality of my body is disappearing. I am blocking the process through magic power, but it seems there isn’t much time left.”

“Then what are you going to do?” Hyeonu asked after hearing Cancun’s words.

Arena was a game, not reality. The fact that there was a curse meant there was a way to release it.

“I have to break the curse. The black magician cursed me and fled just before he was killed. I arrived here in search of the magic power remnants. His dungeon is here. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be moving around here.” Cancun’s words were logical, unlike those of other orcs.

Hyeonu couldn’t help nodding. “Wait, do you remember someone who gave you food a while ago?”

“Ah, that human? Why are you asking?”

“That person wants to see you again.”

“Then call him. What’s the problem?”

“Understood.”

Cancun readily allowed Hyeonu to call Ket.

-To Ket: It is Alley Leader. I found the orc.

-From Ket: Really? Where should I go?

Ket’s excitement could be felt from his whisper to Hyeonu.

‘Is it that good to meet Cancun?’

Hyeonu couldn’t possibly understand it from his position. Then again, if it made sense, Ket wouldn’t be called eccentric.

-To Ket: We’re in the middle of the snow giants canyon. It is visible from the hill.

-From Ket: I’ll arrive soon.

***

“What? He was found?”

“He is in the giant habitat.”

“Yaho! Now we can go somewhere else.”

Once it was said that Cancun was found, the Pioneer Guild members liked the fact even more than Ket. There was hope. If they met Cancun, then they could leave for another area.

“Let’s go. Alley Leader is waiting.”

***

“Do you know if there is a dungeon near here?” Hyeonu approached the other guild members and asked while Ket and Cancun were meeting in the canyon. “In particular, a place where the undead appears or a magician is the boss?”

“I don’t know if there is such a place. Please wait a minute,” Asu said and then started to send whispers somewhere.

After a while, he finished whispering and came up to Hyeonu. “I found it. Not far from here, there is a dungeon where a lich appears as the boss.”

“Are you okay telling me this information without payment?”

The location of dungeons in Arena was information. The information would become money. The price would be terrible, especially for a dungeon in Frozen Canyon. Moreover, places not known to the large guilds were even more expensive.

“Isn’t it already a big business if Alley Leader owes us something?” Asu laughed.

He thought this would help continue their relationship with Hyeonu.

“If you think so... I’ll accept it willingly.”

***

‘Arena is a game.’

At least, Hyeonu thought so. Cancun came here to find the black magician. However, none of the monsters in Frozen Canyon used magic. The story was different if it were an instance dungeon. That’s why he had asked the Pioneer Guild if they knew any instance dungeons.

“Cancun! I found it—the place where the black magician is hiding,” Hyeonu called out to Cancun.

Now was the time to sweep away the curse of the black magician.