The Otherworldly Magic Swordsman Who Disciplines the Hunter World Chapter 40

Julian nodded submissively at the threat that if he acted up one more time, Gong Siyoung would personally give him a scolding more painful than any monster could.

“Let’s clear this as quickly as possible and get out. Let’s hurry.”

Gong Siyoung did not let go of his hand until the end. Following the two men in the lead, the rest of the group moved their feet awkwardly.

“How is it now?”

Light spread from Gu Jayoung’s palm. The warmth radiating from her touched Julian’s chest. He remained silent until the cluster of light vanished, then slowly shook his head.

“It’s the same.”

“Hmm… that’s strange… This shouldn’t be happening.”

It was already the fifth time. Even though she had repeatedly used her healing skill five times, Julian felt no difference at all.

The abrasions were healed immediately, but the nausea and dizziness persisted. Since the symptoms weren’t visible wounds and there was no status window, it was even harder to grasp the situation.

Just as she was debating whether to use a higher-grade skill even if it meant overexerting herself, Julian let go of Gu Jayoung’s hand first.

“I’m fine, so don’t push yourself any further.”

She had been repeating the healing skill as soon as they escaped the field filled with thunderbolts. Having used her skills continuously, fatigue had surely accumulated.

In a situation where they didn’t know how long the raid would last, stamina distribution was essential. It wasn’t a serious injury, so he couldn’t trouble her any more than this.

“But still…”

“I’m really okay.”

Julian tapped Gu Jayoung on the shoulder. At his smiling face telling her not to worry, she reluctantly lowered her hands.

“If your condition gets even stranger, call me right away. That’s what I’m here for.”

“Yeah, I got it. Thanks, Jayoung.”

At his pure, bright smile, Gu Jayoung gave a small smile back. The two looked at each other warmly.

Before they could even fully enjoy the heartwarming moment of restored humanity, a gloomy mumbling was heard from the side.

“…Jayoung?”

Gu Jayoung’s shoulders flinched as if she had seen a ghost. Standing right next to Julian, Gong Siyoung mumbled again.

“Jayoung…?”

“…What, why are you calling me, Hunter Siyoung?”

Her eyes trembled slightly. She had an expression that completely failed to understand why Gong Siyoung was saying her name. Her face was full of confusion, like someone who had heard something they shouldn’t have.

Before the gaze filled with doubt and fear could land, Gong Siyoung feigned innocence.

“No, it’s nothing.”

His attitude was matter-of-fact, as if it truly were no big deal.

Before her name could be called again, Gu Jayoung took the lead as if running away. Approaching Woo Yujin, she rubbed her arms where goosebumps had broken out.

“Let’s move busily so we don’t fall behind.”

Because they had stopped for treatment, a slight distance had opened up from the rest of the group. At Gong Siyoung’s remark, Julian also hurriedly increased his speed.

After passing the black field where thunderbolts struck, a parched land filled with red stones appeared before their eyes. A brilliant blue sky stretched out endlessly. It was a change so dramatic that it was hard to believe they were inside the same dungeon.

The Belvoids that had been lingering around the barrier for a long time had also vanished. It was because the monsters, keenly aware of the change in environment, did not advance any further.

Whatever the reason, it was a relief to be rid of those monsters with the rolling eyeballs. Myeong Haejin warned that they shouldn’t let their guard down, but so far, no notable anomalies had occurred.

“It’s fascinating no matter how many times I see it.”

Even though there was no sun, everywhere was bright. It was easy to see why the Belvoids didn’t follow.

Even if they cleared the dungeon, they would have to pass through the black field again to return. For the Belvoids, they just had to sit and wait for their prey to return, so there was no need to chase them into a region disadvantageous to themselves.

“Can you still not see the status window or whatever?”

“It’s the same.”

Gong Siyoung cast his gaze into the air. According to him, the status window had been consistent ever since they passed through the gate.

While error windows didn’t pop up repeatedly like last time, the blue warning text remained unchanged.

[ Limited Use: 01:23:22 until ‘Limbo’ Reset ]

“We’ll know what ‘reset’ means in an hour.”

Gong Siyoung’s goal was to clear this dungeon and return safely within that time. Since the restrictions on movement were lifted thanks to leaving the lightning zone, there was no need to stall any longer.

He rolled his eyes to glance sideways at Julian. Seeing him in a bright place, Julian’s condition finally became clear. Saying he was hurting wasn’t an excuse. Julian’s face, which usually had a healthy color, was now deathly pale.

Looking closely, the warning signs were vivid. The way he repeatedly furrowed his brows was one thing, and though he seemed unaware of it himself, his expression was not good.

Why had he been enduring it alone all this time without saying a word? Was it to make the observer’s insides turn with frustration?

‘Just what kind of examination did he get for him to be like that?’

Both Myeong Haejin and Julian were tight-lipped about the examination. Even though it was a situation where they could have answered what grade he received, even regarding that, they both kept their mouths shut as if they had made a pact.

Since the two who knew the answer wouldn’t speak, Gong Siyoung felt like he was going to die of frustration.

Why am I really so annoyed? Is it because Julian was struggling on his own? Is it because I’m worried his struggle will cause a nuisance to the other team members? Or is it because they only withheld the grade talk from me?

It was truly ridiculous. Like this, wouldn’t it look like I’m jealous? It wasn’t like that at all. Absolutely, definitely not.

It wasn’t that I was displeased because he casually called Gu Jayoung by her name just because she healed him once, and it was even less because my mood was ruined by them having a secret only Myeong Haejin knew.

Just how great a secret is it that they went to the Bureau for an examination? How close are they supposed to be? The person who fed him, let him sleep, and waited on him is someone else, so just what kind of grand friendship did they share?

The more he thought about it, the more everything annoyed him. This dungeon, the status window, the monsters—he didn’t like a single thing.

“Shall we have a little talk for a moment?”

Myeong Haejin, who was walking ahead, turned around. Facing the group huddled together, he cleared his throat, “hum-hum.”

Gong Siyoung slightly blocked him as he approached Julian’s side. After locking eyes with Gong Siyoung for a moment, Myeong Haejin smiled broadly without saying much.

“I thought we should finish the talk we couldn’t conclude earlier. We can’t have misunderstandings arise because our coordination is off like before. We can’t afford to have our combat power disrupted when we don’t know how much longer we’ll be wandering here.”

It seemed he intended to bring up the conversation that had fizzled out. Everyone nodded at his suggestion that it would be good to go over things at least once before meeting the boss monster.

“Since we’ve coordinated with each other so often, I thought it was unnecessary… but I didn’t think about hyung. Since he doesn’t have a status window, why don’t we do introductions one by one to check our combat capabilities?”

“Oh! I’m in!”

Woo Yujin was the first to raise his hand. Facing the frivolous man, Gu Jayoung and Myeong Haejin clapped their hands.

Gong Siyoung was the only one with a rotten expression at the suddenly started introduction time. Everything was already annoying enough to kill him, and now they were asking for introductions.

Leaving him to debate whether to just flip everything over, Woo Yujin brightly began his introduction. His cheeks were flushed red, as if he found the current situation fun.

“Greetings! I am A-Class Hunter Woo Yujin, a member of the Yeollak Guild! My position is tank and dealer, and my primary weapon is a chainsaw. As you know, my strength is that I’m sturdy! Besides that, I have two A-Class skills, ‘Kickback’ and ‘Smash’! For minor ones, I have a few B-Class and C-Class, but they are almost all offensive types.”

Gu Jayoung let out a whistle. She naturally cut off Woo Yujin’s words while pretending to react and took the baton. She turned her head as if failing to see Woo Yujin appealing that he still had more to say.

“I am A-Class Hunter Gu Jayoung of the Yeollak Guild. I’m a healer, but I also get kills. I get more kills.”

Her official position was healer, but in reality, Gu Jayoung was treated as combat personnel. Almost all of her unique skills were offensive, and she herself was more interested in kills than healing.

What kind of healer has a skill named ‘Assassin’? Gu Jayoung was even quite proud of that skill of hers.

“I understand healer, but what do dealer and tank mean?”

Julian, who had been listening to the explanation, tilted his head. He thought he had heard it during the briefing, but perhaps because it went in one ear and out the other, he didn’t particularly remember. Tactfully, he guessed it was related to combat ability, but he wasn’t sure if that was correct.

At Julian’s question, Myeong Haejin continued like a private tutor.

“When we raid a dungeon, we usually form a team before entering. An ideal composition is one healer, two dealers, one tank, and one supporter—five people in total.”

At those words, Julian made a very puzzled expression. It was obvious he wouldn’t understand if it was explained in a complicated way. Leaving out unnecessary details, Myeong Haejin chose words that were as easy to understand as possible.

“Dealer refers to an offensive hunter. Depending on the attack characteristics, they are divided into long-range dealers and close-range dealers. Literally, it’s a position whose main focus is attacking monsters. A tank is… well, to explain it simply, it’s like a shield. Someone who draws the monster’s attacks and buys time until the other hunters can manage their health and skills?”

This system hadn’t existed from the beginning. It was closer to something that arose as hunters adapted to dungeons in various ways after awakening, just as status windows evolved.

In that regard, there was a clear difference from Julian’s world. There, they didn’t have standards for dividing or performing positions.

Traits were often mixed and matched according to an individual’s stats. Because dividing them was meaningless.

In any case, the goal was to survive, and other standards besides that weren’t very important.