Chapter 100

The Rakshasa Temple’s terrorist attack had finally begun.

Its scale, however, exceeded anything I had imagined.

No matter how much potential for growth the boss possessed, who could have predicted that it would reach S-Class?

—Sssrrr...

The moment I saw the monster engulfing the high-rise building, I squeezed my eyes shut.

.

.

.

Tap, tap, tap.

The instant I confirmed the appearance of the fully grown Imoogi, I left the association.

I needed to reach a safe area as quickly as possible.

‘I have to get out of this city!’

But when I stepped outside, the area around the association’s main entrance had already descended into chaos.

“Please remain orderly!”

“No, why won’t you let us inside?!”

“What is that S-Class monster?”

“Bring out the president of the association!”

It seemed the nearby residents had panicked after hearing that an S-Class monster had appeared.

Seonwoo Yeon stopped for a moment and stared at the crowd gathered outside the main gate.

“I-It looks like they were frightened by the monster and came to the association.”

“Why here, of all places?”

“Because so many Hunters come and go here. But the association has announced several times that this is not an official shelter, so they shouldn’t be doing this...!”

What good were rules during an S-Class dungeon break?

Even now, residents were surging toward the walls, attempting to climb over them.

Honestly, even if I managed to force my way through the crowd and get outside, I doubted I would find any real solution there.

—Boom! Boooom!

—Baaang!

—Wuuuung—!

With the roads in that condition, finding an empty taxi would be impossible anyway.

‘Oh dear.’

‘Right. Seonwoo Yeon is a fairly high-ranking Hunter. Maybe staying close to her will improve my chances of survival.’

That plan lasted all of five seconds.

“Huh?”

The Imoogi, which had been far in the distance, suddenly began soaring toward us on the wind.

“...It can fly?”

One by one, the citizens pressed against the main gate fell silent.

The sight of a gigantic creature, utterly beyond human scale, twisting through the air as it approached was like something from a nightmare.

—Krrrrng...

Before long, a small rain cloud gathered overhead.

As the cloud blotted out the sun, the Imoogi opened its mouth wide and released its first cry.

—Sssshaaaaak!

“Kyaaaak!”

“Aaaaah!”

“D-Don’t push...!”

“Run!”

Rumble.

The citizens gathered along the wall all fled at once.

But their speed could not compare to the Imoogi’s.

Despite its enormous body, it reached the association building in only nine seconds.

“Ugh!”

Boom, boom, boom!

The monster landed flat against the wide-open grounds in front of the building.

The force of its arrival shattered the road, and a storm of dust swept through the area, making it impossible to see.

“Cough, cough!”

“Mom! Mooom!”

“Kyaaaak!”

The association’s front yard descended into complete chaos.

Even in that situation, however, Seonwoo Yeon did not panic.

She immediately did what she had to do.

A barrier rose in front of the citizens, blocking the rubble sent flying by the Imoogi’s landing.

“Everyone, please remain calm!”

Seonwoo Yeon used wind magic to clear away the debris and began evacuating the civilians in an orderly manner.

Unfortunately, that was a terrible decision for Seonwoo Yeon herself.

The pitch-black beast had come here because it had sensed the mana of the Awakened.

Its prey.

“Sssshr...”

The crouching [Inevitable Malice] suddenly reacted to a Hunter’s mana and raised its head.

Then it lunged straight at Seonwoo Yeon.

“Shaaaaaak!”

But it was fine.

The Imoogi was not the only one who rushed toward the black-haired Awakened.

“Hey!”

“Gasp!”

Thud!

I kicked off the ground and grabbed her arm, yanking her aside.

The Imoogi’s teeth narrowly missed Seonwoo Yeon.

“Are you all right?”

“T-Thank you!”

An F-Class Hunter like me had just barely evaded an S-Class attack.

At last, my three-hundred-million-won investment was proving its worth.

[Hermes’ Shoes]

[Grade: Unique]

[Description: Shoes imbued with wind-attribute magic. Wearing them greatly increases movement speed.]

As expected, there was no magical item better suited to evasion.

“It’s admirable to help others, but remember to protect yourself too.”

“Ah, yes...!”

Seonwoo Yeon pressed a hand to her chest, still shaken.

While she caught her breath, other Awakened individuals began gathering around her.

“Why is it so huge?!”

“Does anyone have a barrier skill?”

“Let’s at least try to knock it unconscious!”

The Hunters inside the association quickly began responding to the boss’s unexpected appearance.

Unfortunately, ordinary attacks no longer worked against an Imoogi that had evolved into an S-Class monster.

It even deflected most of the attacks launched by elite Hunters of A-Class rank.

“I-It didn’t even leave a scratch...?”

Bang!

An A-Class Hunter’s spear shattered helplessly against the serpent’s scales.

By that point, I had already concluded that they had no chance of winning and was preparing to flee.

Then something unexpected happened.

Srrrk.

“What is that?”

A purple symbol appeared above the A-Class Hunter’s head.

“Is it some kind of curse?”

“Someone try to remove the status effect!”

“I’ll give it a shot.”

The other Hunters clearly had no idea what the symbol meant.

I, however, understood the situation perfectly.

[Inevitable Malice] was the boss of the Reservoir Dungeon, originally an A-Class gate.

“No! Don’t try to dispel it!”

The Imoogi’s primary attack pattern.

It marked a specific target.

That purple symbol, crudely referred to as a ‘Jing,’ could not be erased by any skill.

Not that the mark itself caused any direct harm.

Why would the Imoogi use marking magic that inflicted no damage?

Its purpose lay elsewhere.

“It’s a targeting mark!”

That symbol identified the Imoogi’s highest-priority prey.

“What?”

The A-Class Hunter flinched at my shout and looked upward.

But it was already too late.

“Aaaah!”

“Ugh! Everyone, get back!”

“How could this...!”

A moment later, the enormous monster swallowed the struggling A-Class Hunter whole.

‘I never imagined an A-Class Hunter could be killed like that without even having the chance to fight back...!’

The difference in power was absolute.

But the desperate situation did not end there.

As I had said, that purple mark was the Imoogi’s unique method of selecting prey.

“...”

After finishing its first victim, the Imoogi licked its lips and placed another purple mark on its next target.

And who was the second target?

“No way.”

I slowly raised my gaze and looked above my head.

There it was.

A vivid fluorescent-purple symbol, so bright it almost hurt to look at.

“...”

Damn it.

I was screwed again.

‘Kyaaaaaaa!’

Of all the people it could have chosen, that vicious serpent had selected a weak F-Class Hunter like me as its next meal.

“Ssshrrrr...”

The black calamity known as [Inevitable Malice] lowered its body and fixed its gaze in my direction.

A suffocating silence settled over the area.

An A-Class Hunter had died in a single strike.

None of the other Awakened dared to step forward.

“Hunter Kim Kiryeo!”

And yet, amid all of this, Seonwoo Yeon alone moved in front of me, attempting to block the Imoogi’s path.

For a brief moment, I was touched.

“Seonwoo Yeon-ssi...”

However...

No matter how moving the gesture was, this was the point at which we needed to act according to reality.

I was a strict scholar who valued reason above emotion.

Yes.

Because I was a magician.

“Move.”

“What?”

I pushed the association employee aside.

“And unless you want to die, stay out of the Imoogi’s path.”

“Kyaaaaaaaa!”

At that exact moment, the Imoogi launched itself forward at tremendous speed.

As its fangs closed in on me, I activated an item from my pocket.

===================

☆ pixywiki

Item Name: Twin Guardian Angels

Acquisition Location: White Maze (EX)

Category: Equipment

Description: A bracelet-shaped item capable of blocking all damage twice.

===================

The Twin Guardian Angels activated.

As I had observed before, the defensive power of this item was so extraordinary that it produced an additional effect.

Clang!

The boss’s weapon was destroyed.

The Imoogi attempted to sink its fangs into me, but instead found itself in trouble.

Its teeth struck the item’s hardened protective barrier, and the impact rebounded against it.

“Kaaaaaak!”

The moment I confirmed that the Imoogi’s left fang had shattered, I sprinted away at full speed.

***

“Huff, huff!”

Even if that monster swallowed me whole, a single-use shield would never be enough to save me.

That was why I had used the item offensively instead.

My plan was to exploit the brief opening and put as much distance between us as possible.

But what was the point of creating distance?

Naturally, I had a destination in mind.

And it {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} was nearby.

‘Let’s go home!’

Wasn’t there a barrier surrounding the infinite power core in Kim Kiryeo’s studio?

‘Once I get inside that barrier, it should withstand even an S-Class opponent for a while. Then I can wait for Esther to arrive...!’

I intended to return home and catch my breath.

However, my plan overlooked one crucial detail.

The Imoogi’s exceptional tracking ability.

“Ugh!”

I caught my breath at the sinister mana pressing against the back of my head.

Ordinarily, breaking a tooth would cause enough pain to disorient a creature.

There was no way it should have recovered and resumed the chase this quickly.

‘Someone save the F-Class!’

Shrrrrrr...

[Inevitable Malice] followed close behind, releasing a horrifying breath.

“You damned reptile!”

The good news was that I had anticipated a situation like this and purchased equipment to improve my speed in advance...

“Keugh!”

But even the finest equipment had its limits.

With lungs ruined by years of heavy smoking and this worthless body, I could not keep running for long.

In the end, my stamina gave out before I even reached home.

“Ugh!”

Why had Kim Kiryeo needed to smoke in the first place?

No, more importantly, why had I ended up in this body?

I cursed under my breath while gasping for air.

Then the Imoogi made the situation even worse.

I had never imagined that the serpent would use such an intelligent tactic to prevent its prey from escaping.

—Thud!

It slammed its tail against the ground.

The carefully paved asphalt split apart in a grotesque pattern.

With the road torn open beneath their feet, no human could possibly maintain their balance.

Thump!

My trembling fingers had been moving across my phone screen, trying to call Esther.

Then I fell.

‘Damn it!’

I had fallen at a time like this.

Did anyone understand how disastrous it was to stumble when an S-Class monster was directly behind you?

Cold sweat broke out across my entire body.

This was only the second time in my life that falling had inspired such intense fear.

The first had been during my encounter with the Beginner Killer Gun.

‘I’m finished.’

And just as I had feared, by the time I struggled back to my feet, the Imoogi had already closed most of the distance.

“Kyaaaaa!”

The black monster filled the sky as it roared and charged.

‘Is this where my life ends...?’

But then, amid the monster’s roar, another sound suddenly intruded.

Wuuuuuung.

A faint vibration accompanied the noise.

Could that be...

The sound of an engine?

‘What engine?’

Finding the source was not difficult.

A moment later, a motorcycle shot out of a side alley with a deafening roar.

The mysterious rider drove straight onto the main road and grabbed me.

“Ugh!”

Wuuuuuung!

Thanks to the rider, I narrowly escaped the Imoogi’s attack.

‘Huh?’

I examined the rider’s Awakening value and widened my eyes.

That overwhelming concentration of internal mana could only belong to an S-Class Hunter.

“Why were you wandering around outside in the middle of all this chaos?”

Then Kang Changho’s relaxed voice drifted back from the front seat.