Glistening under the faint moonlight, a black leg shot forward like the sharp tip of a spear.
It was a sudden ambush.
But I felt no sense of danger at all.
The creature’s lunge toward me looked like it was happening in slow motion.
“Whoops.”
I pushed off my feet and stepped back. At the same moment, the creature’s massive body crashed down where I had been standing, letting out a tremendous roar.
KRAAANG!
A cloud of dust billowed up.
Kiiieeeek!
From within the dust, the creature shrieked in frustration, propping itself up on its legs.
I generated a light gust of wind to blow the dust away.
Finally, I came face to face with it.
“Oh, you’ve gotten bigger.”
As if to prove it hadn’t been lazing around for the past ten years, its larger frame came into view.
The exoskeleton covering its entire body seemed to have grown even tougher, gleaming under the moonlight.
“Last time I saw it, it was C-rank…”
Without a scanner, I couldn’t get an exact measurement, but based on my vast experience, I’d guess it was now just barely B-rank.
“Quite ferocious.”
Top of C-rank versus the bottom of B-rank.
At a glance, it might seem like it had only climbed a single step, but the reality was different.
For a monster, moving from C-rank to B-rank meant it had undergone an evolution.
In other words, it wasn't just one step up; it was like it had ascended an entire floor in one go.
In terms of raw numbers, it had to be at least 1.3 to 1.5 times stronger.
Fwish!
The creature shot a web from its spinneret.
I made a wide movement to dodge the webbing as it spread out in mid-air like a net.
Splat!
The web, having missed its target, fell and stuck to the ground.
Just by looking at it, I could tell it was sticky enough that you wouldn't get free easily if you stepped on it.
Letting it keep shooting webs would be a pain.
“Then I’d better end this quickly.”
Monsters like spiders and scorpions are encased in a hard exoskeleton.
This gives them high defense, making them difficult to pierce.
So, what’s the most effective way to hunt them?
As I’d already demonstrated with my team in the ant nest, attacking the joints is the most effective method.
I immediately gathered my mana, forming a blade of wind imbued with sharpness.
“Wind Cutter.”
The blade flew, precisely targeting the thin joints exposed between the plates of its exoskeleton.
But unlike the ants, which had been helpless against this attack, this creature swung its legs one by one, batting away every blade that aimed for its weak spots.
Its guard is pretty solid.
Kikikiki!
It chittered triumphantly, as if it had been sharpening its skills ever since it got beaten once before…
“Ah.”
It’s because of me, isn’t it?
The first time I met this thing, I was investigating the flower’s condition, and it kept pestering me. So, I’d fired a volley of sword aura and severed every single one of its leg joints. Right.
“…This bastard really holds a grudge.”
It probably didn’t know I was the same person from back then, but it had clearly been waiting for a rematch.
Fwish! Fwish!
Another volley of web clumps shot out.
Closing the distance while dodging the webs, I gathered mana in both hands.
If ranged attacks won’t work, I’ll just have to drive something directly into its joints.
Chillingly blue mana formed a pure white dagger in each of my hands.
“Ice Dagger.”
It was a modified version of Ice Needle, a spell that shoots out sharp, icicle-like projectiles.
Kiaaak!
I had instantly gathered a significant amount of mana, weaving it meticulously from hilt to tip. The durability of the resulting daggers was…
Klaang!
…so high that despite being made of ice, they blocked the creature’s foreleg without a single scratch.
I immediately engaged it in close combat.
I could count on one hand the number of times I’d held a blade in this body, so it felt a little unfamiliar, but it was no problem.
It only took a few swings to reacquaint myself with the weapon I’d wielded my entire life.
The four legs not supporting its massive body rained down on me like a storm.
Fast and sharp, each strike felt like a large-caliber bullet.
A direct hit would be fatal, even for a Hunter’s body…
But that’s only if it hits.
They were fast, but they were simple attacks that couldn’t deviate from a straight line.
The moment it lifted a leg, I knew where it was going to strike. Unless I forced myself to stand still, it would be hard to get hit by such a ridiculously simple attack.
“Hup!”
Using a sudden burst of acceleration, I spun my body out of its attack range and simultaneously plunged the dagger in my hand into the joint of the leg before me.
Crunch!
Skrrch!
One dagger for each leg, sinking deep.
Kiihiiiik!
The creature’s scream followed.
For us, it would be like having a dagger shoved deep into the knee connecting the thigh and shin. Of course it would hurt.
I didn’t stop there.
Dodging the creature’s flailing attacks, I continued the same process over and over.
Create a dagger, plunge it into a joint.
By the time I had circled its massive torso completely…
THUD!
…its enormous body collapsed to the ground.
It was impossible for it to support that massive frame on its mangled legs.
“Let’s end this.”
I aimed my palm at the creature’s neck as it trembled feebly.
Mana gathered and divided around its neck.
Soon, eight lances of pure white ice materialized.
“Ice Spear.”
An intermediate-level ice spell that not only pierces the target sharply but also freezes the wound, preventing a single drop of blood from escaping.
The sharp tips, honed with chilling frost, would be more than enough to pierce its carapace and end its life.
“Farewell.”
With a small gesture, the eight lances floating in the air simultaneously pierced the creature’s head.
Thunk! Thunk! Crack!
The light faded from the eight eyes on its head.
A black mist of mana rose like the regrets of a life.
“A shame.”
If I had Mana Absorption, I would have taken all of that.
I clicked my tongue in disappointment and turned away.
Before its corpse disappeared, I cut off and took a few necessary parts, then headed for my true objective.
A single, beautiful flower that had been growing in the same spot for 99 years and 360 days.
This flower was the reason I had hidden the dungeon.
It fed only on the moonlight—how that worked, I had no idea—and its medicinal properties would be maximized only when it reached full bloom after exactly 100 years.
Back then, I couldn’t find a way to replicate that specific mana, so I had no choice but to leave it. But things were different now.
This body’s talent allowed my mana to become anything.
I used earth magic to create a trowel and began to slowly dig up the soil around the flower.
Careful, careful not to damage a single root…
“Got… it!”
Thanks to the delicate work, I succeeded in digging up the flower with its root system completely intact.
Just as I had with the trowel, I used earth magic to create a small flowerpot.
I gently laid down the soil I had dug up, then carefully placed the flower in the middle.
Then, I covered it with more soil.
“Phew!”
Only the final step remained.
The mana imbued in the moonlight that endlessly poured into this corner of the cavern.
I copied its form and arrangement exactly, implanting it into my own mana.
If I drew this out and shone it on the flower and soil…
“Oh…!”
The still-unfurled petals trembled lightly, as if pleased.
It seemed to be a complete success.
“Hehe, now that I’ve packed it up nice and tight…”
Finally, I left a note so my guild members wouldn’t be alarmed when they arrived in five days…
“There.”
Now, it was time to go home.
*
Early the next morning.
A black sedan departed from a high-rise building in Gangnam.
There were three people on board, including the driver.
They succeeded in getting out of Seoul before the morning rush hour clogged the roads. Their destination was Taebaek Mountain.
After getting out of the car, the three men walked in silence.
In the heavy atmosphere, one of them finally spoke up.
“W-Wow! The madam will be so pleased today!”
Another man chimed in.
“Hmm… Indeed, even for the madam, an item of this quality would be difficult to obtain…”
As the two men worked hard to lighten the mood, a small smile appeared on the lips of the man who had been walking silently.
“…I hope so.”
A glimmer of hope had appeared.
A small hope that perhaps today could be the day they finally broke the deadlock in their stifling relationship.
His pace quickened.
His body, honed to its peak, allowed him to run up the tall mountain as if it were flat ground.
“Master! It’s not that way.”
“Ah…”
Did I get too excited?
He tried to hide his awkward expression and followed the other two as they changed direction.
After walking for about thirty more minutes, they safely arrived at the tree they had marked.
“Let’s begin.”
“Yes, leave it to us!”
The younger man rolled up his sleeves and slammed his fist into the ground.
KWAANG—!
Dust billowed up, and a massive crater appeared where the flat ground had been.
The punch was so powerful that it had shattered the rock that had been blocking the entrance below.
The other man, now covered in dust, covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief and glared at the younger man.
“…Try to control your strength.”
“Haha… my apologies.”
The young man offered an embarrassed apology.
After the dust slowly settled, the three men descended into the crater.
Before them was a small tunnel.
The young man took the lead, forging ahead and clearing the path.
The remaining two followed slowly along the path he widened.
Soon, they reached the rift and placed their hands on it.
They didn’t flinch as the atmosphere changed in an instant, simply walking silently down the path.
“You said the boss was still alive, right?”
“Yes. It’s C-rank, so it won’t be dangerous.”
“Haha! Then it’ll be over in one punch.”
The young man laughed heartily and clenched his fist.
“I’m going in!”
With a confident stride, the young man threw open the door to the boss room.
He quickly slipped inside, but soon wore a puzzled expression and looked back.
“…It’s not here.”
Urgency filled the faces of the two men who had been following at a leisurely pace.
A missing boss monster meant someone had already cleared the dungeon.
As the two men crossed the vast cavern and reached the far end, a shocking sight greeted them.
The small space where the faint moonlight shone was completely dug up.
“N-No…!”
“……”
On top of the mound of upturned soil lay a small, neatly folded note.
The middle-aged man bent down, picked it up, and unfolded it.
[Thanks for the meal.]
Kekekeke!
The moment he read the words on the note, he heard a phantom laugh from somewhere and strained his ears.
It was a laugh that seemed to mock him.
The middle-aged man silently crumpled the paper and his expression at the same time.
The other man, looking utterly dumbfounded, didn’t know what to do and asked him tentatively.
“What should we do? Should we track them…?”
“…Don’t bother.”
He shook his head.
He had a good idea who the culprit was.
However… confronting them would be complicated for many reasons.
Strictly speaking, you could say the flower had simply found its rightful owner.
It was just that…
“Life is bitter…”
He could only shake his head at the bitter taste that filled his mouth, a taste born from an arduous life.