Chapter 26
“I should stop by Shim Yeong-jin’s place.”
After leaving the commander’s office, Lee Do-jae made his way toward the barracks of the 2nd Division.
He still had some doubts about Kim Hwansu’s reasoning for changing the operational area, which seemed a bit weak. Additionally, a proper handover was needed.
Talking things through would help reveal the exact reason.
Ta-da-da-da—
“A healer?”
A man was sprinting at full speed.
On his forearm was a patch with a cross symbol.
Unlike the ten-shaped mark of the decurion, this cross had different horizontal-to-vertical proportions—indicating he was a healer.
On his other arm was a patch with an unfamiliar unit emblem. Why would a healer from another unit be running so frantically?
“Toward the 2nd Division’s barracks?”
The direction the healer was heading was exactly where Do-jae was going—toward the 2nd Division’s barracks.
With an uneasy feeling, Do-jae quickly followed the healer.
“Uggggh…”
“Argh!”
“AAAAAH!”
For a moment, Do-jae thought he had entered an undead dungeon.
The 2nd Division’s barracks were nothing short of a living hell.
“Please, healer! Start over here!”
“This one’s more urgent! Heal here first, please!”
Everywhere he looked, people were bleeding enough to soak their beds, some missing limbs, others covered head-to-toe in bandages. Not a single person was left unscathed.
The scene was nothing short of horrific.
Because the 2nd and 3rd Divisions were on opposite ends, Do-jae had no idea things had gotten this bad.
“Bring splints and compression bandages!”
He quickly grabbed one of the administrative supply troops running around and shouted orders.
Then he immediately went to a fallen soldier, placed a splint on the dangling arm, and wrapped it with bandages.
For someone like Do-jae, who had often ventured into dungeons without a healer, basic first aid was second nature.
“Commander… of the 3rd Division?”
“Yes, that’s me.”
A 2nd Division soldier, whose voice trembled as if on the verge of tears, called out to Do-jae.
“Am I… going to die?”
For hunters, subjugation troops, or any awakened individuals, death was a familiar concept.
The deaths of monsters and comrades alike were close and constant.
But precisely because they were so familiar with death, hunters and subjugation troops clung all the more fiercely to their own lives.
They knew too well the agony and despair of life slipping away.
“No, you won’t die. I’ll make sure you survive.”
Do-jae smiled brightly and spoke in a reassuring tone.
Those who give up on life are destined to die.
But those who hold on to hope are different.
Do-jae had often witnessed people survive the brink of death if they clung to even the faintest shred of hope.
‘In times like this, I really wish I were a healer.’
It was a thought he had from time to time.
If only he had awakened as a healer.
The faces of his fellow hunters who had died and his sick younger sibling came to mind.
At that moment—
“Over here! This person is about to stop breathing!”
The healer shouted urgently.
Do-jae immediately sprang over to the soldier the healer had pointed out, pressing down on the chest and initiating CPR.
***
After the commotion had subsided.
One member of the subjugation force had tragically died from excessive bleeding, but the remaining soldiers had barely survived the crisis.
‘Where’s Shim Yeong-jin?’
Now that Do-jae had a moment to catch his breath, he finally looked around.
All the other soldiers were present, except Shim Yeong-jin.
‘Don’t tell me…’
The dire conditions of all the 2nd Division members and the considerable amount of time that had passed without a sign of Shim Yeong-jin began to make Do-jae worry about his survival.
Creak—
At that moment, the door to the barracks opened, and Shim Yeong-jin walked in.
Fortunately, he was alive.
‘But why does he look like that?’
Although his clothes were torn and splattered with blood, compared to the others, he seemed relatively uninjured.
However, his hollow, unfocused eyes and his slumped, exhausted posture showed that he wasn’t in great shape either.
Thud—
Shim Yeong-jin barely managed to walk, wobbling as he sat down on the bed.
Do-jae approached him, concerned and wanting to ask what had happened.
“Captain Shim. What on earth…?”
“Hik. Hrk. Hrrrkk.”
The moment Do-jae placed a hand on his shoulder, Shim Yeong-jin burst into tears.
It wasn’t the loud kind of sobbing, but it was undeniably a sorrowful cry.
“Calm down. What happened?”
“Sniff. Do-jae… the squad members….”
“The squad members are almost all fine.”
“Because of me….”
Shim Yeong-jin showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.
Seeing this, Do-jae gently led him outside.
Bzzzt—.
He opened up his subspace and pulled out a bottle of water, handing it to Shim Yeong-jin.
It was still cold, just as it had been in the refrigerator.
Gulp—.
“It’s all my fault.”
“Tell me.”
Do-jae waited patiently for Shim Yeong-jin to start talking.
After a long moment of hesitation, Shim Yeong-jin finally spoke.
“So….”
This was the situation Shim Yeong-jin found himself in.
Squad 2 had gone out on a subjugation mission.
Just as they had been doing for the past few days, the squad was keeping their distance from Shim Yeong-jin while hunting monsters.
The younger members of Squad 2 hadn’t liked Shim Yeong-jin from the start, considering him immature and annoying, and today was no different.
On top of that, Shim Yeong-jin didn’t like the fact that they were subtly looking down on him, so he spent his time alone, thinking it was just as well.
He had no passion for the subjugation mission. Since he had no desire to work hard, he thought it was fine to spend time by himself.
But that mindset led to trouble.
According to the mission plan, there was a zone they were not supposed to cross, but Shim Yeong-jin, who hadn’t even bothered to look at the mission map, had crossed into it.
“The Mountain of Hwain’s….”
Three species divided the area.
Squad 3 was tasked with handling Red Orcs, Squad 4 with Death Ents, and the final group—Hwain.
Shim Yeong-jin had wandered into the edge of the mountains where the Hwain lived.
Originally, Squad 2’s job was to patrol the outskirts of the Hwain’s territory, hunting stray monsters that lingered nearby.
So, what are Hwain?
[Hwain]
A Grade 5 humanoid monster.
It might sound odd to refer to something that looks human as a monster, but since all creatures that come from dungeons are collectively called monsters, even human-like beings are referred to as such.
True to their name, Hwain had skin the color of dark ash, as if smeared with gray dust, and their eyes had no whites, making them look eerie.
Not only did their skin color make them hard to spot, but they were also incredibly agile, living deep within the mountains.
Each one of them was as strong as a C-rank awakener, but they never paid any attention to humans unless their territory was violated.
Because of this, Squad 2 was only tasked with reconnaissance; subjugating Hwain was something only captains and higher-ups dealt with.
“They suddenly appeared, and I almost died, but the squad members saved me….”
Having intruded into Hwain territory, Shim Yeong-jin became prey.
In an instant, Hwain surrounded him, and it wouldn’t have been surprising if he had died right then and there.
At that moment, the entire Squad 2 appeared to rescue him, and a fierce battle ensued.
But the Hwain were far too powerful.
Although the squad managed to inflict some damage, there was no way Squad 2 alone could handle them.
Shim Yeong-jin barely regained his senses after all his superior weapons and armor were reduced to useless scrap, and only then did the squad manage to escape.
The fact that all 11 members of Squad 2 made it back to camp alive was nothing short of a miracle.
“What should I do… because of me… sob….”
After finishing his story, Shim Yeong-jin began crying again.
Do-jae looked at the fragile young man quietly.
‘So, he’s been pretending to be tough all this time. The shock must be immense since he’s so inexperienced.’
No matter how irresponsible Shim Yeong-jin had been, this incident would have planted a deep sense of guilt in his heart.
Though Shim Yeong-jin had lived like a young master, pampered by his wealthy mother and his uncle, the vice guild master of a top-tier guild, there was no one to rely on in this remote area.
Pat pat.
Do-jae gently patted Shim Yeong-jin’s back as he watched him crumble, something he had seen happen several times before.
For quite some time after, Shim Yeong-jin continued to sob quietly.
***
The next day.
After switching areas with the 2nd Division, the first subjugation operation began.
“You all saw the 2nd Division, right? I don’t want us ending up like them.”
Do-jae sternly addressed the gathered members.
Though he trusted they would handle it well, he wanted to instill a sense of urgency.
However, he could only sigh in frustration.
As expected, there was no sense of danger among them.
— “Aww, captain, people die every day. We’re not shaken by that.”
— “Yeah, everyone here is risking their lives. We’re no different.”
Jang Pil-ho and Lee Ji-woong spoke up.
True to their reputation as the most mischievous of the 3rd Division, they didn’t hesitate to speak their minds.
“Just be cautious, for my sake at least,” Do-jae urged with a sigh.
But Jang Pil-ho and Lee Ji-woong continued to whisper and snicker.
— “Captain, we’ve been together as the 3rd Division for quite some time now. Don’t worry. Even the youngest, Ji-woong, has been with us for six months.”
— “Yeah, we’ll handle it with care!”
“Pil-ho, Ji-woong, quiet down. The captain’s talking,” Son Jeong-gyu interrupted, silencing them in an instant.
After the 2nd Division’s disaster, Son Jeong-gyu had been put on a special one-week probation before being allowed to participate in the subjugation.
The eldest and strongest member, Son Jeong-gyu, was always respectful. His first impression had been a bit of method acting—he’d done a few bit parts as an actor in his younger days.
Thanks to his impressive physique and looks, he’d been cast in roles like gangsters and thugs. Apparently, he’d learned to use those skills well here.
“Thanks. Now, as I was saying, we’ve been assigned this region for subjugation. I don’t want anyone crossing into the territory of the Hwain monsters. Our goal is to reduce the surrounding monster population as much as possible, so they don’t waste manpower during the Hwain subjugation. Understood?”
— “Yes, sir!”
Do-jae felt sorry for the 2nd Division, but the change of region was beneficial for him.
The Red Orc region was where those monsters had wiped out nearly all the other nearby creatures, so there weren’t many left.
But this place was pure wilderness.
From F-rank to C-rank monsters, and even 5th-rank monsters like Hwain, could appear frequently.
Before the operation, Do-jae assigned teams as he had before.
“This time, we’ll split into two teams of five. Jun-seo and Eun-taek will remain as the team leaders.”
As soon as Do-jae finished speaking, Kang Eun-taek raised his hand with a question.
— “What about you, captain? Shouldn’t you be leading a team?”
It wasn’t just Kang Eun-taek who looked puzzled. The others were curious why, now with 11 members including Son Jeong-gyu, Do-jae was only organizing two teams of five.
“I’m sitting this one out.”
— “Huh? Again? Is it okay for a captain to do that?”
Song Ji-yoon asked, her expression full of disappointment.
“As captain, it’s fine.”
— “But it’ll be dangerous…”
“I’ll be fine.”
— “No, I don’t mean your skills, I’m talking about us!” Song Ji-yoon pouted as she pointed to herself.
This region wasn’t like Area 7, with only Red Orcs. Unexpected monsters could appear here.
If a boss-level monster showed up, they wouldn’t be able to handle it on their own.
But Do-jae, fully aware of that, pulled out two golems from his subspace.
“We’ll be fine. I’m assigning these guys to you.”
Having fought alongside them during the Red Orc hunt, these golems had leveled up significantly.
They were now more than twice as strong as before.
In fact, they were likely on par with Son Jeong-gyu.
Even if a Hwain appeared, one—or possibly two—members would be able to handle it.
Additionally, the golems were linked to Do-jae via mana, so he’d be alerted if anything happened, meaning there was no need to worry.
— “Alright. If the captain says so, we’ll go along with it,” Song Ji-yoon nodded, though her lips remained pursed in frustration.
— “Uh…”
— “Yes? Ji-woong, what is it? You want to be in the same team as your ‘noona’ (older sister)?”
— “Ugh, no!” Lee Ji-woong, who had been acting a bit shifty since the golems appeared, quickly turned his head when Song Ji-yoon gave him a suspicious look.
“I won’t be more than 4 kilometers (2.5 miles appx.) away. If you stray beyond that, the golems will notify me.”
Do-jae estimated it would take him around five minutes to sprint 4 kilometers at full speed, maybe faster if nothing got in his way.
“Since we’re splitting up this time, team leaders, keep me updated regularly. Now, move out!”
At Do-jae’s command, Kang Eun-taek and Kim Jun-seo led their teams in their assigned directions.
Do-jae also headed toward his designated path, thinking to himself.
‘I need to complete my quest too, don’t I?’
—
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