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Chapter 62
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All the hunters stared cautiously at the chimera.
Since this was a double dungeon,
it wasn’t safe to assume that massive monster was merely an A-rank.
Dungeons were unpredictable places where anything could happen,
so there was even a possibility that this creature was the boss of the double dungeon.
Thus, the hunters did not let their guard down.
The chimera’s body, including its tail, fully emerged from the gate.
It had the massive torso of a lion, a grotesque back with a goat’s head,
and a snake-shaped tail that swayed ominously.
Most unsettling of all was,
“There are two heads in the front?”
“And one of them looks disturbingly human.”
One head was that of a lion,
but next to it was an unnaturally elongated neck with a human-like head attached.
Its enormous mouth, stretching to its ears, and sharp teeth radiated a menacing presence.
Even hunters accustomed to encountering various monsters instinctively grimaced at its appearance.
“But doesn’t that human head look kind of familiar…?”
“Don’t talk nonsense! Like you’ve seen something like that before.”
“R-Right? Haha… Yeah, you’re probably right.”
Some hunters exchanged tense whispers.
Meanwhile,
the goat head of the chimera began to glow with a purple hue in its eyes.
Exuding a foreboding aura, it started preparing a large-scale spell.
At the same time, the snake tail spread a toxic mist around the chimera.
“Are the defensive spells ready?”
“Yes, ready to go!”
“Prepared!”
At Yeo Do-hyung’s shout, the rear-guard hunters responded energetically.
In that instant,
“Baa-a-a-a-a-a——!”
The goat head let out a loud wail toward the sky.
At the same time, blinding lightning bolts shot down toward the hunters, threatening to tear everything apart.
Boom!
Crash! Crash!
But the hunters weren’t so easily subdued.
They deployed defensive spells at precisely the right moment.
Blue protective barriers formed, dulling the power of the lightning and scattering it into the air.
However, it wasn’t flawless.
Sizzle.
Bang—!
The last bolt of lightning shattered the protective barrier as it dispersed.
It was a near miss, barely holding off the attack.
Yeo Do-hyung frowned.
Defensive magic wasn’t his specialty, and he had been conserving his mana.
But the barrier’s strength had been precariously insufficient.
What’s more, as Hunter Kim Ji-a had warned, the chimera’s attacks weren’t over yet.
Hiss——
“Cough, cough!”
The snake head continued spreading its toxic mist.
As a result, the melee-type hunters began to succumb to the poison.
If the battle dragged on, all the hunters would become poisoned.
The mist’s spread was that severe.
‘At least the good news is…’
The lion head and human head were straightforward.
Their only tactic was biting with sharp teeth.
Of course, being bitten would be dangerous, but they were less problematic than the goat and snake heads.
Watching the situation closely, Yeo Do-hyung quickly made a decision.
“Take out the snake head first, then the goat head!”
“Understood!”
“Ga-eul! Focus on purifying the poison!”
“Y-Yes, got it!”
He gave clear instructions to the hunters about their priorities,
and also conveyed tasks to the supporter from the Dawn Guild.
Yeo Do-hyung then turned his gaze back to the chimera.
It was a formidable enemy, but one he deemed beatable.
He had made countless assessments throughout his life as a hunter, and he wasn’t wrong.
But the problem was,
‘We haven’t even entered the double dungeon yet.’
If this creature wasn’t the boss, they might have to face something even stronger.
Thus, they couldn’t afford to use up too many resources here.
Hoping for the rear guard to arrive soon, he focused on the battle.
***
Ji-a, who was guarding the rear guard hunters, calmly surveyed the battlefield.
As expected of the vanguard, no one had joined lightly.
Everyone was focused and steadily working on the chimera’s strategy.
However, as time passed, they still hadn’t managed to sever the snake tail’s head.
Coming to a conclusion, Ji-a approached Yeo Do-hyung and spoke.
“Do-hyung.”
“Yes?”
“I don’t think there’s a reason for me to stay back here. I’ll move to the tail.”
“Hmm…”
Do-hyung glanced back at the supporter.
She trembled more visibly now that her escort was leaving, but she didn’t stop Ji-a.
Though often whiny and childish,
she had made the decision herself, befitting a Dawn Guild elite.
She must have realized that it wasn’t the time to waste manpower on guard duty.
“Please take care of it. But if something unexpected happens, come back immediately.”
“Understood.”
Ji-a nodded.
Thud!
She pushed off the ground and sprinted forward.
As Ji-a moved at high speed, a trail of icy blue light flowed from her spear.
It was her new weapon, crafted from a drake’s mana stone, which she had hunted with Si-hyun.
The chimera’s grotesque human head turned to stare at the approaching Ji-a.
As if intending to swallow her whole,
its long tongue flicked, and its massive mouth opened wide.
“Ka-a-ack!”
Thwack!
Ji-a twisted her body lightly, evading the chimera’s fangs.
The sound of teeth snapping on empty air echoed loudly.
Without losing momentum, Ji-a crouched low and dashed forward.
Her legs tensed as she gained speed.
The cold air from her spear froze the surroundings, leaving a blue trail in its wake.
With agile movements, Ji-a swiftly passed the chimera’s massive body.
Reaching the tail in one leap, she pushed off the ground and jumped high.
‘Here it is!’
From midair, Ji-a swung her spear in a large arc above her head, aiming precisely for the snake head.
The moment the spear’s frost-coated tip began to glow!
“Kyaaaah—!”
With a long gash and a spray of blood, the snake head let out a painful scream.
As Ji-a slowly landed on the ground, shards of ice scattered around her.
Just as the snake had poisoned hunters with its venom, Ji-a’s spear began to slow the snake’s movements.
Thud!
Landing smoothly, Ji-a adjusted her posture.
“Hoho! Well done, young lady!”
“Thank you!”
The master of the Knight Guild praised Ji-a with a satisfied smile.
Immediately, as if unwilling to be outdone by the younger generation, he pushed off the ground lightly and leapt.
He left another series of deep wounds on the writhing snake head before landing gracefully.
With Ji-a’s addition to the effort,
the hunters’ strategy against the snake head gained momentum.
The Dawn Guild’s S-rank tank handled the two front heads and forelimbs.
Meanwhile, most of the hunters focused on the tail.
With the timely support from the rear guard hunters,
the result was clear.
“Grrr!”
“Graaaah!”
“Kiiiik—!”
The remaining chimera heads let out horrifying metallic shrieks.
This was because the master of the Knight Guild had severed the snake head at the tail.
At that moment, all the hunters cheered as one.
“Nice—!”
“Hahaha! That thing got what it deserved!”
“Amazing work, Elder!”
The spreading venomous mist began to dissipate gradually.
Despite coughing, the hunters handling the tail regrouped and adjusted their formation.
With the most troublesome head removed,
a sense of relief spread quietly among the hunters.
However, at that moment,
the chimera, which had been focused only on its immediate opponents, suddenly changed its behavior.
“Baaaaah——!”
The goat head’s eyes glowed purple again.
At the same time, the chimera clawed at the ground with its legs, taking a stance to charge forward.
“Defensive magic! Quickly!”
The melee hunters rushing back to the main group hurried their steps.
Yeo Do-hyung, sensing something unusual, began preparing defensive magic skills alongside them.
“Can you block the charge?”
“Leave it to me!”
The Dawn Guild’s S-rank tank stepped forward.
Standing firmly at the edge of the protective barrier’s range, he raised his massive shield.
‘I have to reduce the charge’s impact as much as possible…!’
Just as the hunters’ preparations finished precariously,
Boom———!
A deafening roar tore through the air.
Crash! Boom!
Pillars of intense lightning began to strike the protective barrier.
Far stronger than the previous attack.
Even with Yeo Do-hyung reinforcing the barrier, it barely held.
The lightning didn’t stop; it kept hammering down on the barrier.
Each strike caused cracks to form and spread.
“We can’t hold it any longer!”
“I’m running out of mana too!”
“Is it going to break through?!”
Several hunters screamed under the pressure of the large-scale spell.
Yeo Do-hyung gritted his teeth and poured his mana into maintaining the barrier.
Without him, the barrier would have already shattered.
Boom—!
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The relentless lightning continued to batter the barrier.
Now, only Yeo Do-hyung’s magic shield was holding them together.
Fear slowly crept through the hunters.
Some even lost their balance and collapsed.
Amid the spreading chaos, Ji-a gripped her spear tightly.
She kept her eyes on the sky, ready to leap at any moment.
She prepared to intercept the lightning directly if the barrier broke.
‘If I use my skill, I can deflect some of it.’
Ji-a steeled herself.
Then, someone placed a hand firmly on her shoulder.
“…?”
Ji-a turned her head to see who it was.
It was the master of the Knight Guild.
“I’ll take care of that role.”
“Hmm…”
Ji-a hesitated for a moment.
This man was undoubtedly the strongest among the vanguard.
But at the same time, he was a hunter who had retired from the frontlines due to his age.
His participation in this raid was an exception, requested by the Hunter Management Bureau in an emergency.
As Ji-a deliberated over what to do, she looked up again.
The blinding lightning continued to pound relentlessly against the protective barrier.
It would likely break in a matter of seconds.
Considering her relatively better condition as someone assigned to the rear guard, it seemed logical for her to act first.
Quickly analyzing the situation in her mind,
Ji-a made a resolute decision.
The lightning continued to strike mercilessly, straining Yeo Do-hyung’s protective barrier.
Then, it happened.
Rumble———!
The ground began to shake unexpectedly.
The earth trembled, and a deafening roar spread through the area.
For a brief moment, everyone’s gaze was drawn to the ground.
The dirt outside the barrier rippled unnaturally.
And then,
Rumble!
A massive mound of earth rose rapidly!
The towering wall of earth extended and solidly covered the top of the protective barrier.
Each strike of lightning left marks, but the earthen wall withstood them sturdily.
“Whoa, what the hell.”
“What… is this?”
A sudden wall of earth, appearing in the midst of crisis.
The hunters stared at the wall, swallowing their astonishment.
This was a defense of an entirely different caliber from anything before.
And the wall’s performance didn’t end there.
As soon as the lightning spell ceased, the chimera launched its massive body in a charging attack.
Boom—!
The resulting impact shook the ground, echoing with a loud crash.
Yet, the giant earthen wall held firm, standing tall and unmoved.
The Dawn Guild’s S-rank tank didn’t even need to step in.
‘Could it be…?’
Ji-a felt her heart race as she turned to look behind her.
There was only one person she knew who could do something like this.
“Haha! Everyone, Kang Chul-min is here, so there’s no need to worry anymore!”
A burly man roared energetically.
It was a signal that the rear guard had arrived.
Hunters poured into the boss room en masse.
Among them,
Ji-a spotted a familiar figure.
Dressed in a pitch-black nun’s habit.
The person’s gaze under the veil met Ji-a’s.
Ji-a smiled as brightly as sunlight.
***
With the rear guard’s participation, the chimera was swiftly defeated.
Some of the rear guard hunters, still in good condition, took up positions to monitor the gate to the double dungeon.
The rest of the hunters began to take a much-needed break.
“Everyone, grab supplies!”
“Take your potions!”
The rear guard distributed the items prepared by the Hunter Management Bureau to the vanguard.
Meanwhile, the S-rank hunters gathered in one place to share information.
“So, the original boss wasn’t that thing, but something from the portal?”
“Hmm, the original boss was a lich.”
In response to Kang Chul-min’s question, the master of the Knight Guild explained.
The Dawn Guild’s tank sighed deeply and spoke.
“Phew… I was hoping that thing was the final boss, but it seems there’s more.”
“Well, no problem. With the four of us, we’re more than enough. I, Kang Chul-min, will stand firmly at the front! Hahaha!”
With his hands on his hips, Kang Chul-min laughed boisterously.
The other hunters, including Yeo Do-hyung, gave wry smiles.
Those familiar with Kang Chul-min’s personality had seen this scene many times before.
“By the way, whose skill created that earthen wall earlier?”
“Hmm? Well, no one in the rear guard specializes in that. Could it have been one of the vanguard hunters?”
“…Really? Hmm.”
In response to Yeo Do-hyung’s question, Kang Chul-min shrugged as if it didn’t matter.
What mattered most was that he had arrived.
Now that the monster was defeated, the earthen wall was a secondary concern.
His focus was solely on taking the lead and restoring the guild’s reputation.
Seeing this, Yeo Do-hyung sighed quietly, deciding not to engage him further.
Instead, he scanned the rear guard participants.
Suddenly,
he felt a chilling intent and instinctively turned toward it.
The person in the nun’s habit and veil was staring directly at him.
Though their face was obscured, it was clear they were glaring.
‘…Why are they looking at me like that?’
Yeo Do-hyung tilted his head slightly in confusion.
But before he could dwell on it,
“I’ll be taking command from now on! Hahaha!”
Kang Chul-min’s booming voice refocused the group on their discussion.
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