Chick 179

179

The sound of Taemin’s heartbeat pounded loudly in his ears.

Gripping his twin swords, Taemin summoned his magic. Deep blue mana, star-speckled like the universe, rippled all around him.

At the sight, even the awakened Chabu exclaimed in admiration.

“Wow, wow, look at that. Our rookie hunter here, no one would bat an eye if he reawakened as S-class, would they? Gentlemen, the future of South Korea looks bright!”

Pyroclasto faltered as it sensed Taemin’s massive magical power.

Suddenly, Taemin felt the heat of the earring at his earlobe.

“Hey friend, I think you should take off that earring.”

For an instant, Kitahn’s warning echoed in his mind.

As did the baby bandits, menacing with their forks and demanding his earring.

What did Hyunak know about this earring?

Taemin had a vague sense. He knew this thing was threatening his life.

‘But…’

He remembered Hyunwoo, handing him the earring.

“What’s this?”

“I scraped together some savings. Bought it in secret, so don’t go telling anyone.”

“Hyung, this must have cost a fortune…”

“How many times do I have to tell you? You’re our poster boy. If you live, I live, we all do.”

Hyunwoo had spent all his savings—funds meant for his own marriage—on these top-tier mana stone earrings.

By the time Taemin realized something was wrong, it was far too late.

‘What an idiot, seriously.’

His magic churned, threatening to lash back at him.

Even so, Taemin grit his teeth and charged at Pyroclasto.

Water energy infused his twin swords, lengthening their blades.

With extended reach, the watery blades whipped out, wrapping Pyroclasto’s searing surface like a pair of lashes.

Sssssss—

But every time the summoned water touched Pyroclasto’s shell, it evaporated and reformed.

There was a difference in class.

Though he kept conjuring more water with the mana supplied by the earrings, it was clear his skills weren’t getting through.

At this rate, it was impossible.

He needed a support-type hunter to weaken the monster’s defenses and target its weak points. Doing it alone was out of the question.

“Uh-oh, things seem to be taking a turn for the worse,”

Chabu, who’d witnessed countless dungeon clears, raised both hands.

“Hunter Lee Taemin! Fall back for now!”

If they bought some time and called in the standby hunters, they’d likely be able to withdraw safely. Every precaution for emergencies had been taken already.

But—

“Hunter Lee Taemin?”

Something was off about Taemin’s response.

“His eyes look glazed over…”

“What’s happening to him?”

Chabu gestured to the PD.

“Get the standby hunters on the line. Something’s wrong.”

“GRAAAAHHH!”

Pyroclasto, trading blows with Taemin, roared again.

Chabu stiffened.

Pyroclasto had used a skill.

‘Fear!’

If affected by the fear skill, lower-ranked hunters are paralyzed for a brief period.

And here, there were none awakened above Pyroclasto’s own rank.

“Damn it!”

As Pyroclasto opened its maw wide to devour Taemin—

Ssshhhhhh—

Suddenly, a sandstorm enveloped the boss.

Its once impenetrable shell was quickly ground away by the sand, revealing the vulnerable flesh beneath.

“G-gentlemen… Do you see that? A sandstorm just appeared out of nowhere… What is happening?”

Armor that even an A-class rookie couldn’t pierce, crumbling so easily?

Everyone, Chabu included, stared in awe at the wondrous sight.

Thwack!

A dagger appeared from nowhere, landing a light hit.

Whoosh—

Whoosh—

Whoosh—

At the same time, bullets fired from three drones at Mach speed.

The rounds punched straight through Pyroclasto’s exposed head.

“GRAAAHHH…!”

Boom!

Pyroclasto collapsed in a single blow, the ground quaking around them.

‘Could it be S-class?’

That was the thought on every mind.

A silhouette emerged from the swirling sands.

Blue eyes fixed on them.

“Serhi…?”

Chabu muttered the name under his breath.

He was a YouTuber from a major hunter channel.

Of course, he knew all the famous guild members, and knew of Serhi as well.

When the guild Hyunak—which had declared it would take no new recruits—suddenly accepted a minor of undisclosed rank, it had caused quite a stir on the online boards.

‘Could it really be…’

Thump, thump, thump. His heart pounded fiercely.

That thrill he felt every time he came face-to-face with a strong one.

His heart had found its mark and was beating violently.

Serhi’s skill clearly surpassed A-rank Taemin!

Even as everyone stared in shock, Serhi indifferently popped and blew a bubble of gum.

“Yeah. Serhi Markov.”

He gave a short answer, looking straight ahead, then suddenly flinched.

What was going on? Had another monster appeared?

The film crew tensed, glancing nervously at their surroundings.

Serhi, looking annoyed, pointed at the chick drones circling his head like flies.

“These chicks will be on sale soon. Hope you’ll check them out.”

In the midst of the crew stood an unfinished teddy bear, sticking out its thumb like a veteran producer.

• Um! That’s it!

But Serhi, dissatisfied with his new role as mascot, only chewed his gum resentfully.

“…?”

It was an astonishing AA-rank solo clear by a hunter of undisclosed rank.

And yet—

Was all of this for an advertisement?

“…”

The audience fell into silence.

Only the chat window was in a frenzy. Question marks and nonstop messages scrolled by.

• ?
• Serhi? Drone?
• Chabu-hyung, is this some hidden camera prank for our enjoyment?
• It IS fun, though??
• For real? In that case, is Serhi S-rank?
• dunno

The first to regain composure was Chabu, veteran of countless broadcasts.

He quickly turned the microphone to Jjapso.

As impressive as Serhi’s unexpected display was, the chat’s wildest reactions had been reserved for the railgun.

“Jjapso hyung! Did you say these drones are going on sale?!”

• Yes.

“They look a little different from the ones shown on the news, right?”

Groo nodded hesitantly.

• This one is B-minus class…

The mechanism was the same, but being a lower grade, their firepower was reduced—that was a slight concern.

“Ah, so it’s a slightly lower-rated railgun? Where will they be sold? With the chat going wild, could you share just a little more information, please—just a little.”

• Um, about five units of the drone will go on sale. But you’ll have to buy the magic stones separately. The exact details will be announced later.

“Wow, only five? People are going to go crazy for those. They’re already throwing money at the screen. Can you see?”

Groo pricked up his ears.

Chabu showed him the phone with the chat, messages scrolling so fast they were unreadable, but the sheer demand was obvious.

‘So they’re popular even at a lower grade?’

Groo’s worries began to ease a bit.

At that moment—

“Ugh…”

Came Taemin’s rough, scraping voice.

‘…?’

“AAAH!”

“T-Taemin! Taemin, what’s wrong?!”

Mana, swirling around Taemin, burst outward in shockwaves.

Swishhh—!

With a single leap, Serhi flew to Groo, pulling him clear of the danger zone.

Groo’s bag billowed—and Baelak poked out.

“Nyunyut… (He’s about to go berserk.)”

It was a mana core containing the power of SSS-rank Baelak.

Using it raw and unrefined, without filtering, was too much for a mere human body to withstand.

A true mana overload.

It was akin to an incomplete awakening.

It would leave massive damage to all nearby, and end with Taemin himself bursting like an overinflated balloon.

As befitted a hunter channel, BJ Chabu and the crew sensed the danger and bolted.

Taemin, suffering in the grip of a mana storm, the scattered film crew—

And in the midst of it all, only Choi Hyunwoo struggled to reach Taemin.