My Childhood Friend’s Stock Will Never Fail Chapter 26

The Hell Race had long been infamous for its brutal difficulty.

 

Still, throwing them against dozens of Creatures right from the start was just excessive.

 

If this had been a team made up entirely of C-Ranks, they wouldn’t have stood a chance—they would have had no choice but to run.

 

Fortunately, things are different now.

 

The moment they identified their target, magical power erupted from Gong Taehyun and Choi Junghoon.

 

Bark! Bark! Rrrgh!

 

Clouds of smoke, explosions, and the Creatures’ howls blended together, making the scene feel like a real Gate.

 

Standing in the rear, Jooyoung quickly summoned a gust of wind, dispersing the smoke.

 

As soon as their vision cleared, Gong Taehyun and Choi Junghoon unleashed another surge of magic.

 

But the Creatures, blessed with terrifying vitality, climbed back to their feet and charged toward Yoohee and the rest of the team.

 

They were incomparably faster than the specially manufactured Creatures from the library.

 

“Damn it! Move! Get out of the way!”

 

While fending off the charging Creatures, Gong Taehyun shouted urgently.

 

Choi Aram and Kim Nayoon quickly retreated, calling out to Yoohee.

 

“Junior, over here!”

 

The direction they pointed toward was a large boulder that could serve as cover.

 

I need to hide in the gap between those rocks.

 

That was what she knew she should do.

 

But perhaps because it had been so long since she’d faced a real Creature—

 

—!

 

A flash exploded across her mind.

 

Memories from her previous life surged back without warning.

 

“Son Jian!”

 

Her feet refused to move.

 

“Jian!”

 

A voice, raw with despair.

 

Bloodshot eyes.

 

The greatest tragedy she had ever experienced carved itself back into her mind.

 

The Thirtieth Transmigrator

 

Yoohee’s previous life—when she had lived as Son Jian—had been an ordinary one.

 

She had worked herself to the bone clearing Gates under the title of a C-rank Guide in that cursed world where Creatures poured out endlessly, but it wasn’t all bad.

 

At the 12th Center where Jian worked, everyone—from Uncle Dohwan onward—was warmhearted and easygoing. After all, people always said that even if the work was hard, you could endure it as long as the people were good.

 

“We made it back alive again today!”

 

After returning from a Gate, they would always joke like that to one another.

 

Half joking, half sincere—but none of them had truly been preparing themselves for parting forever.

 

Not until that day came.

 

“Son Jian! Run!”

 

Do Jihwan, her partner, shouted to Jian as she ran ahead.

 

His voice was desperate.

 

His bloodshot eyes never left her until the very end.

 

The emotions Do Jihwan must have felt as he watched her die such a gruesome death weighed heavily on her heart.

 

More than dying itself, that was what frightened her.

 

Knowing that he would have to live on burdened by the guilt of losing his partner right before his eyes.

 

‘Ah…’

 

She didn’t want to remember.

 

Yet those sensations kept tearing through her as vividly as if they had happened only yesterday.

 

The pain she had thought had dulled seeped back into the depths of her chest, forcing her to bite down hard on her lip.

 

“Lim Yoohee!”

 

At that moment, Jooyoung grabbed Yoohee by the shoulders and shook her roughly.

 

Only then did Yoohee snap out of her memories of the past, blinking hard several times.

 

“What are you doing? Hurry over to where the upperclassmen are!”

 

From between the rocks, Choi Aram and Kim Nayoon were looking at Yoohee anxiously.

 

Finally coming back to her senses, Yoohee nodded and ran toward the two of them.

 

“Senior! Why were you just standing there? It was dangerous!”

 

“You scared us! Are you okay?”

 

As Choi Aram and Kim Nayoon pulled her closer, Yoohee smiled apologetically.

 

“I’m okay.”

 

Then she shook her head, completely forcing the memories of her previous life aside.

 

No matter how much she dwelled on them now, nothing would change.

 

“If you want to finish the race, keep your head in the game, Senior. This place isn’t going to go easy on you.”

 

Choi Aram warned in a rather solemn voice.

 

She had already experienced this Race from Hell during her first year, so the advice came from experience.

 

“Yes.”

 

Yoohee answered briefly.

 

Some time later, the violent explosions finally died down, and Gong Taehyun and Choi Joonghoon came running toward the rocks.

 

“Nobody’s hurt, right?”

 

“No… but the ribbon…”

 

Their hands were empty.

 

The confidence in Choi Aram’s eyes wavered as she spoke with Gong Taehyun.

 

Yoohee also looked at the two of them anxiously when suddenly Jooyoung appeared from behind Gong Taehyun.

 

“Hurry!”

 

A red ribbon was clutched in Jooyoung’s hand.

 

While Gong Taehyun and Choi Joonghoon had been suppressing the Creatures, Jooyoung had used his wind-element mana to loosen the ribbon tied around the alpha Creature’s neck and retrieve it.

 

‘Nam Jooyoung… you’re actually useful?’

 

Yoohee found herself seeing him in a new light.

 

The Race of Death wasn’t about killing the Creatures.

 

All they had to do was retrieve the red ribbons.

 

For this particular test, Jooyoung’s wind magic was surprisingly valuable.

 

“Ahem… W-why are you looking at me like that?”

 

“You’re reliable, partner.”

 

“Really? Haha, thanks.”

 

Jooyoung grinned brightly, completely sincere.

 

“You can count on me from here on out!”

 

“…Yeah. I’ll be counting on you.”

 

Telling a little white lie, Yoohee continued the race with the group.

 

The second ribbon was located inside the nest of an eagle-like Creature.

 

They almost ran into trouble because of the Creature guarding the nest, but Yoohee happened to have the perfect item.

 

Pyiyak’s ring.

 

Using one of Pyiyak’s basic skills, Overwhelming Dominion, she drastically reduced the Creature’s attack and defense.

 

As a result, they were able to defeat the bird-type Creature with ease.

 

“Doesn’t it feel like this Creature suddenly became way weaker?”

 

“Yeah… Maybe it’s just my imagination.”

 

Watching Gong Taehyun and Choi Joonghoon exchange uncertain looks, Yoohee silently offered her gratitude to the Chick God.

 

After all, Pyiyak clearly seemed to be blessed by the god of chicks.

 

During the races that followed, she also used Pyiyak’s skills Vermilion Bird’s Roar and Heaven’s Blessing once each.

 

The Creatures suddenly fell into confusion as a group, while Gong Taehyun’s and Choi Joonghoon’s defenses greatly increased, allowing them to collect the ribbons without much difficulty.

 

Well, to be fair, Jooyoung’s wind magic did contribute too.

 

“How many ribbons do we have now?”

 

About two and a half hours had passed since the exam began.

 

Jooyoung was holding four ribbons.

 

“I think that’s all of them.”

 

After defeating the final wild dog-like Creature and taking its ribbon, there were no more signs indicating ribbon locations, nor were there any more Creature attacks.

 

The forest had become peaceful.

 

Yet no matter how long they walked, they couldn’t find the finish point.

 

“Doesn’t it feel like we’ve been passing the same place over and over?”

 

“But the arrows are pointing this way.”

 

The directional arrows the academy had placed to prevent students from getting lost clearly pointed to the right.

 

But just as Choi Aram had said, the scenery kept repeating itself.

 

“We have to reach the finish before the time limit…”

 

They had collected every ribbon, yet couldn’t find the destination.

 

As precious time slipped away, Choi Joonghoon finally spoke up.

 

“Should we split up and search? Let’s meet back here in ten minutes.”

 

Now that they had all the ribbons, the chance of running into Creatures was low.

 

So they decided to split into pairs and search the surrounding area.

 

Yoohee entered the left path together with Jooyoung.

 

“I think we’ve been down this road before.”

 

Jooyoung muttered as they passed a familiar hollow tree.

 

Yoohee nodded in agreement.

 

“Hey, Jooyoung…”

 

She was about to stop him because it felt like they were retracing their steps.

 

But just then, the ring on Yoohee’s finger suddenly began vibrating.

 

‘Huh?’

 

If the ring was vibrating, that meant Pyiyak Ring’s passive skill had activated.

 

Which meant…

 

There was danger nearby.

 

Grrrr…

 

A chilling growl echoed through the forest, enough to make the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

 

Moments later, two wild dog Creatures emerged from the bushes, drool dripping from their mouths.

 

Apparently, these two had survived after the others had been defeated.

 

“J-Jooyoung.”

 

Instinctively, Yoohee grabbed the hem of Jooyoung’s clothes.

 

But she couldn’t help feeling uneasy.

 

“Can you handle them?”

 

“O-Of course I can!”

 

Jooyoung declared confidently, despite looking anything but confident.

 

Still, he was the only Esper Yoohee could rely on right now.

 

As she cautiously stepped back, Jooyoung gathered his courage and unleashed his mana.

 

Whoooosh!

 

A powerful gust scattered Yoohee’s hair.

 

Surely, that attack must have dealt serious damage to the Creatures.

 

Thinking so, she opened her eyes.

 

The Creatures had merely crouched for a moment.

 

Their tough hides didn’t even have a single scratch.

 

Jooyoung stared in disbelief and stammered,

 

“M-My ultimate attack…!”

 

That was your ultimate attack?!