Retire 308

308 Hunt (1)

‘Now then, let’s review what you’ve learned so far.’

‘…What are you doing?’

‘I said, let’s review. Or rather, let’s check how far you’ve gotten?’

Woo Hee-jae wore the exact same expression as Woo I-rok did when told it was past his bedtime and he should go to sleep.

Whether he realized that Hong Seok-yeong was deliberately provoking him just to see that look or not, Woo Hee-jae protested in disgust.

‘What’s the point of that?’

‘What do you mean, what’s the point? Of course it’s for supplementary lessons.’

‘Are you trying to act like a teacher now?’

‘Hey now. I am the principal, after all.’

‘The world’s going to hell…’

But in the end, Woo Hee-jae couldn’t win against Hong Seok-yeong’s stubbornness. Because it was a stubbornness backed by a legitimate reason. Or rather, if there’s a reason, can you even call it stubbornness?

If anything, Hong Seok-yeong had more right to feel wronged, but he didn’t care at all.

‘Of course, I know our Hee-jae has been studying hard!’

‘Who’s “our” Hee-jae?’

‘Still, this father can’t help but worry.’

‘Who’s your father?’

‘Hee-jae, have you ever caught a mage before?’

‘I told you, who’s “our”—wait, what?’

‘I think you’d better know how.’

There’s a lot to say about magic, more than just mana. Because it’s still a power that hasn’t been fully understood. Of course, there’s always a bit of badmouthing about mages mixed in, too.

It’s rare, but not impossible, to encounter monsters that use magic inside dungeons. There are plenty of cases where an entire dungeon is shrouded in illusion or hallucination to deceive the raid party.

But the magic used by humans and the magic used by monsters are fundamentally different. If you ask a mage, they’ll give you an answer full of complicated, difficult words, making it hard to understand, but Hong Seok-yeong knew the difference instinctively.

The way they use mana is different.

Of course, if you asked Hong Seok-yeong what that meant, he’d only be able to say, “It’s just different.”

Hong Seok-yeong carefully checked whether Woo Hee-jae had learned from his future self how to deal with monsters that use magic, how to break free from illusions and hallucinations. As long as you’re a thinking being, you’re bound to get caught by such things at least once. That’s why the next step is important. Break out quickly, and kill the monster before it can do anything else.

Yes. If it’s a monster, it’s easy. At worst, you can run for the gate or focus on destroying the dungeon core.

‘But you know, Noah Michel… and Sam Bloom. You never know when another human mage might show up.’

‘…I—’

‘No, no. Not how to kill a mage, but how to subdue one. It’s good to know. And it’s surprisingly useful even outside of dealing with mages.’

And so, the present Hong Seok-yeong taught Woo Hee-jae, too.

He couldn’t just leave all the teaching to his future self. Even now, he still had a trick or two up his sleeve to pass on!

…Well, even if it was something his future self had deliberately left out, who knows what else he might be able to teach? There was still plenty of time left. Plenty of time to do what he hadn’t done before, this time with both sons.

‘But, you know.’

‘Hm?’

‘How do you know all this?’

‘Hahaha.’

‘…Why are you laughing like that?’

Still so naïve. Proof he’d never really been involved in this business.

With a mischievous grin, Hong Seok-yeong tossed the question back at Woo Hee-jae.

‘For someone who majored in film, you sure lack imagination.’

‘…….’

A face that made it perfectly clear he was annoyed.

He never showed that face in front of the kids or other Hunters, but now, with his guard down, it seemed he was finally starting to feel comfortable around him, and that made Hong Seok-yeong happy.

‘It’s all real combat, real combat.’

‘Real combat.’

‘Exactly. Heh, there are all sorts of bad people in the world.’

‘…I suppose so.’

His clever son didn’t ask the same question again. After mulling over his experiences with his future self, he must have had a rough idea.

Neither the Hong Seok-yeong from the future nor the one in the present wanted to teach someone how to kill.

But if his son’s life was ever truly in danger, he’d rather see him survive, even if it meant killing someone else. It’s not as if he was telling him to kill innocent people—just to defend himself from those who attacked him. Was that really so wrong?

If, by some chance, even if someone named Hong Seok-yeong died, he had to make sure his son could at least protect himself…

“Haha.”

Hong Seok-yeong laughed.

In movies, characters who say things like this always end up dying.

But hadn’t he just been lecturing his son on how to capture a mage without causing harm, acting all high and mighty? He couldn’t afford to fail here. No matter how adorable his son was, being laughed at by him would sting.

No, even if it wasn’t his son, it would be a blow to his pride as the strongest Hunter.

“Eeeek!!”

“Whoa there.”

“Uwaaaaaah!!!”

“Can’t even speak properly anymore, huh?”

The first step to subduing a mage:

Stop them from using magic.

“If you keep darting around like that… it’s just distracting!”

So how do you stop a mage from using magic?

“Did you think waiting around would work in your favor?”

Don’t give them a chance to cast.

Magic, after all, is about drawing on mana. Compared to other Awakened, who mainly use the mana within their own bodies, mages are inefficient. They have to draw in all the nearby mana. The more powerful the spell, the more mana is consumed, and there’s no way to hide that.

Any decent Hunter can easily read the flow of mana.

Of course, an average Hunter wouldn’t be able to instinctively spot the weak points in that flow and sever them, or drive a spear right into the center where a hidden mage might be lurking—but Hong Seok-yeong wasn’t an average Hunter.

“Maybe you didn’t hear who I am?”

The second step to subduing a mage:

Provoke them.

It doesn’t matter if you do this first. Of all the mages Hong Seok-yeong had encountered, except for a handful, most were stubborn, prideful people. If you dismiss their magic or stop them from casting a few spells, they get flustered easily. And in a fight, losing your cool means making mistakes.

‘Isn’t that… I mean, do you really have to call it a method for catching mages? Besides, isn’t this something only you can do?’

‘Hey now. I don’t remember raising you to be so weak, Hee-jae.’

‘That’s because you didn’t raise me.’

Well, even if you go with a more orthodox method, it’s the same.

The most important thing in catching a mage is stopping them from casting.

After all, mages aren’t monsters, and there’s only so much magic you can use against humans. Humans aren’t as big and slow as monsters, just standing there to get hit by blind spells. They’re not unawakened, either—what kind of magic could you use against a small, nimble Hunter? You’d have to use a wide-area spell to catch them all at once.

That’s why most mage crimes are about illegal trafficking in monster byproducts, rather than targeting humans.

Right now, mage spells are ill-suited for targeting humans.

‘So as long as you know the spells mages can use against humans, you can deal with them easily.’

‘…But there are elemental spells, too.’

‘That’s where improvisation comes in. After all, the spells we use are the same as theirs. Firestorm? Water mages have a flood. It’s all the same.’

But there are always exceptions.

Hong Seok-yeong quickly noticed the mana twisting. The mage was trying to hide it, keeping it low to the ground, but he couldn’t miss the writhing flow.

But what stopped Hong Seok-yeong was the chill in that mana.

When he was young, stepping out of bed to go to the bathroom, walking the dark orphanage hallway—he’d felt that fear. That terror. That weakness.

That sense of unease.

The mana crawling along the ground opened its jaws like a snake. Mana that so clearly bore the mark of a mage?

Hong Seok-yeong’s brow twitched.

‘But… there’s one thing you have to watch out for.’

‘Only one?’

‘Wouldn’t it be a shame if there were two?’

‘A shame for who?’

‘For someone named Hong Seok-yeong?’

‘Ah, right…’

‘Ahem. Anyway, as long as it’s a regular elemental spell, with your skill you can handle it. But—’

‘But?’

‘If it’s a unique magic, that’s a different story.’

‘Unique magic? I doubt I’ll ever have to fight an archmage.’

‘Was Noah Michel just any ordinary mage?’

‘…….’

‘Noah Michel’s unique magic is well known… but you never know. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were something hidden.’

Hong Seok-yeong spoke firmly to Woo Hee-jae.

‘If you ever face someone using unique magic—’

‘…….’

‘Just run.’

‘…What?’

‘No one knows what kind of magic might come out. There’s no reason to take unnecessary risks, right? Run first, then figure out their magic and make your move. If you can’t run, then kill them before they finish casting.’

‘Hmm…’

‘You must know at least one archmage… What about their unique magic?’

‘I know a few.’

‘If you got caught by it, could you escape?’

‘……It’s not impossible, but it would be tough.’

‘Then you know what I’m saying.’

Hong Seok-yeong’s teaching philosophy was simple.

Teach only what I can do.

It would be ridiculous to teach something he himself couldn’t do.

The reason the students at the demonstration school struggled to keep up was because Hong Seok-yeong only taught what he could do.

So everything he taught Woo Hee-jae, he could do himself.

Even the lesson to run away if you can’t win right away.

Because there’s nothing shameful about running away.

“……!”

That’s unique magic. The kind of spell that turns a run-of-the-mill mage into an archmage.

‘What’s so great about being an archmage that you’d do something like this!’

He could say the same about Noah Michel….

Hong Seok-yeong scraped at the mana crawling along the ground with his spear. The mana was shredded, but it wasn’t enough to stop a spell already half-complete.

Should he run?

If they were outside the dungeon, Hong Seok-yeong wouldn’t hesitate to flee. Even if it was an archmage, what could they do if he sprinted a few kilometers away in an instant? Even Kim Chae-min couldn’t stretch her vines that far.

But this was inside the dungeon. And the mage had entered first and set up their position.

Even if he tried to run, unless he escaped through the gate, he couldn’t be sure he’d get away.

Ah, so that’s why.

That’s why the enemy was waiting.

So Hong Seok-yeong had only one option.

Kill the enemy before the spell is completed.

Not that he’d been going easy on them before.

The enemy had wrapped themselves in dozens of layers of magic to hide from him. Invisible magic, defensive magic… He’d been breaking through them one by one, but they were strangely resilient.

Hong Seok-yeong gritted his teeth. Pain flared in his shoulder. Torn tendons could be healed. Severed arms could be reattached.

But a dead life can’t be brought back.

Hong Seok-yeong’s spear pierced through dozens of layers of magic.

His arm was shredded, blood gushed like a fountain, but Hong Seok-yeong grinned like a beast.

Another mark was added to the dog tag hanging around his neck.

Through the shattered magic, he saw the mage’s face, twisted in horror. With the hand opposite the one gripping his spear, he seized the mage’s throat—

The spell was completed.