Chapter 861

EP.861 [Light Novel Side Story] The Death Dinass of the Sky 1st Volume 008

<Chungcheongnam-do, Cheonan City, General Management Zone E. Slime Dungeon.>

Pfft! Yuna thrust her staff into the slime’s body, causing it to explode. She infused the tip of her staff with magic power, granting it light attributes, and the slime, unable to withstand the attack, burst apart.

“Fourteen.”

Crunch. Yuna swirled her staff through the remains of the slime, searching for its core. Fortunately, once a slime was defeated, its viscosity quickly dissipated, and the corpse was rapidly absorbed into the cave floor.

“Fifteen.”

Clap, clap, clap. Xian applauded upon recovering the core from the slime’s remains, celebrating their successful first hunt.

“That was impressive. I thought you only attacked from a distance.”

“…I can’t use <Light Bomb>. I’m only E-rank.”

“No, no, I mean something like a crossbow. Aren’t there good hunting kits available these days?”

“I don’t have money for that since I’m still in school. Besides, my staff is enough to hunt up until King Slime, so it’s fine.”

Yuna mechanically sought out and destroyed every slime attached to the cave walls, as if releasing pent-up stress. Xian instinctively backed away, sensing she might accidentally strike him.

Pfft! Pshew!

‘What if she makes a mistake and hits me?’ Definitely an illusion. Xian swallowed hard as he noticed a differently colored slime and called out to Yuna.

“Yuna-san, this one has water attributes.”

“It doesn’t matter. They’re all the same anyway.”

Without hesitation, Yuna pierced the relatively blue slime among the others.

Huh?

“It didn’t die in one hit…”

Due to its elemental properties, the slime didn’t burst immediately but instead prepared to counterattack.

“Well then, let’s try again.”

Pfft! Without a trace of hesitation, Yuna swung her staff, launching the blue slime against the wall like a golf ball. Her expression looked oddly refreshed after doing so.

Fwip! As the slime exploded against the wall, its goo splattered onto Xian’s cheek. He wiped it off with his hand and rubbed it against the wall, which promptly absorbed the slime’s residue.

Glug, glug. Watching this bizarre scene, Xian muttered under his breath.

“Every time I see it, it’s amazing. What principle makes this work?”

“A dungeon is considered an ‘artificial otherworld’ according to the Magical Engineering community.”

Yuna responded to Xian’s muttered thoughts. Realizing he had spoken louder than intended, Xian clarified while asking another question.

“Do they teach that at the academy?”

“No, we learn it in second year. I studied ahead… maybe. If we can ascend, that is.”

While hitting another water-attribute slime, Yuna continued speaking.

“If I don’t reach D-rank, I might not be able to advance to second year. So far, no freshmen have completed their first year using only E-rank abilities, so the professors are holding emergency meetings… because of me.”

“…Oh dear.”

“I’ve tried everything—every kind of elixir I could get my hands on—but nothing works. I throw up after eating them, and injections don’t help either…”

“?…”

After trailing off, Xian paused in thought. A body resistant to elixirs…

‘What should I do?’

A jackpot or a dead end? Either way, Xian didn’t care. He had already decided to form the strongest team with the angel and become the world’s top guild in this land.

‘If it weren’t for her, I’d probably be packing up by now.’

Smiling brightly, Xian collected the cores. Even though gathering E-rank cores wouldn’t cover the daily rental fee for Yuna’s staff, he had no intention of selling them.

Crunch. By now, Xian’s pocket was quite full, and Yuna had destroyed all the slimes generated within the dungeon.

“We’re done. This is the ‘Boss Room.'”

At the end of the straight tunnel stood an iron door with half-carved devil faces. The two rested briefly in the open space before the door.

Whoosh. Xian pulled out his kit and started a small campfire. Taking out two folding chairs, Xian sat across from Yuna by the fire. Playing with her staff, Yuna asked,

“So, what’s your plan now?”

“Hmm, there are two plans. One is…”

Xian raised his index finger.

“Yuinah will defeat the King Slime alone.”

“That’s impossible. I’ve tried it before.”

“Just once, right? Let’s give it another shot—”

“Correction. I’ve tried four times.”

Yuna cut Xian off, looking quite exhausted.

“Twice, I went in alone and failed to capture it, escaping in the end. The other two times, I went in with friends. During the last attempt, just like today, I handled all the regular slimes myself and faced the King Slime one-on-one…”

Shivering slightly, Yuna seemed reluctant to recall the memory.

“I fought for three hours, destroying all my equipment, and in the end, my friend finished it off. The share ratio was 90:10. I couldn’t clear it alone even back then when I used a much more expensive staff.”

“…Then let’s go with the original second plan. Yuinah will defeat the King Slime with ‘this’.”

Xian pulled out his gun from his coat. Its massive size startled Yuna momentarily, but Xian spun the weapon casually as if it were a toy and smiled.

“You saw at the airport—it’s a gun capable of killing even B-rank monsters with one shot. To be specific, it uses ‘.50BMG’ ammunition in a ‘Triple Action—”

“Ah, so you were the one who killed the Argentavis.”

Interrupting again, Xian looked dejected as he lowered the weapon.

“—Called ‘Thunder.’ Yes, that day, I was the one who killed the monster.”

Xian pointed the gun inward toward his coat. Yuna, confused, asked,

“How is that possible? You’re not a special ability user, right?”

“Yes, I’m powerless. But my weapon isn’t.”

Xian opened the barrel cap and removed a bullet. Unlike normal bullets, this one shimmered with gold.

“It’s made from processed monster corpses. Each costs nearly two hundred… that much. Every single bullet is a core weapon.”

“…What?”

Did she hear correctly? Yuna’s eyes widened in disbelief as she questioned whether her ears were playing tricks on her. Xian tossed the bullet to her.

“!”

Hastily catching it with both hands, Yuna almost dropped her staff. It was hard to believe such a small bullet could cost hundreds of thousands.

“There’s no rule saying only special ability users can kill monsters, right? Right now, the technology is still lacking, so core weapons are mainly used by special ability users…”

Scratching his cheek, Xian adjusted the grip of his gun.

“To maximize destructive power in each bullet, it ended up being a single-shot revolver. We abandoned rapid-fire capabilities in favor of delivering a fatal blow to a monster with one shot—”

“Why didn’t you say anything earlier?!”

Yuna raised her voice unusually. Xian looked puzzled in return.

“Say what? About sneaking a gun into the airport?”

“No! About you killing the Monster Bird! Not the wind spirit—you did it first! That’s what I’m talking about!”

“Oh. That thing?”

“‘That thing’? Is that all it is to you?!”

Yuna became visibly upset as if it were her own accomplishment. She was irritated that he disappeared without acknowledging his role in killing the monster bird. Moreover, she couldn’t understand why he hadn’t claimed any share of the spoils despite using a bullet worth hundreds of thousands.

“You practically finished it yourself. You would have been entitled to at least ten percent of the shares.”

“Some people love attention, like the wind spirit. Others prefer to live quietly.”

Xian loaded another brown bullet into the gun from inside his coat.

“Maybe someday the truth will come to light, but for now, I’d rather stay low-key. Why did I come all the way to Korea? And why am I here in this dungeon-like place anyway…”

Xian aimed the gun at the boss room’s iron door.

“Hey, what are you doing?!”

Yuna hastily grabbed her staff and stepped back.

“Don’t move, and keep this a secret.”

Xian grinned as he pulled the trigger at the iron door. Yuna realized the thunderous sound wasn’t just an illusion.

BOOM! The iron door exploded, and the boss room entrance crumbled. Stunned, Yuna stomped her feet in frustration.

“What are you doing?! Now the boss will escape the boss room!”

“That’s the point, Yuna.”

The king slime, resembling a wild boar in size, began crawling towards them. Despite having seen this pattern dozens of times, never had its slow movements felt so terrifying.

“Stay there!”

Xian quickly removed the bullet from the gun and approached Yuna from behind, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Holding the gun horizontally in front of her, he handed her the handle.

“Listen, do you know how to shoot?”

“I’ve trained, but wait—are you serious?”

Come on. This can’t be happening. Yuna turned to Xian with an incredulous look, but his expression remained serious.

“Drop the staff and grab this. Quickly.”

BEEP-BEEP-BEEP—!

The king slime was already halfway through the boss room. In less than ten seconds, it would exit and chase them.

“Ah, really!”

Yuna squeezed her eyes shut and gripped the handle with both hands. Though it felt impossibly heavy for a pistol, Xian supported her hands from below, making it slightly lighter. Xian asked, startled,

“Where’s the bullet?”

“It’s… in my jacket pocket—”

Without hesitation, Xian’s hand dove into Yuna’s jacket. Before she could protest, every nerve in her body tingled.

“?!?!”

“Stay still. Ah, found it.”

Xian retrieved the golden bullet and reloaded it into the gun with calm precision. Yuna grew angrier at his businesslike attitude.

“What are you doing?!”

“I’ll count down. Three, two, one—shoot!”

KABOOM! Unbeknownst to herself, Yuna pulled the trigger. The bullet emitted a golden magical energy from the muzzle and zipped toward the king slime like a laser beam.

…?!

“…Shoot.”

Xian chuckled nervously as the king slime collapsed slowly. Without any aiming assistance, Yuna had successfully struck the core of the king slime.

[Dungeon internal monsters eliminated confirmation. E-Rank Slime Dungeon cleared.]

The system message flowed through the magical gear linked to the dungeon, announcing the dungeon’s clearance. Far beyond the boss room, a treasure chest fell, prompting Xian to rush toward it.

“Recovery, recovery!”

Within thirty seconds of defeating the dungeon boss, all rewards must be recovered. Otherwise, the dungeon would seal itself, and the rewards would be lost forever.

“Haha, ha, ha.”

Yuna laughed nervously like a broken tape recorder. For all her pretense of competence, the final thread she clung to involved a sexual harasser.

‘We fired it together in the end.’

As soon as they exited the dungeon, she would report him immediately. Fighting back tears, Yuna lifted her magical gear.

[Dungeon Clearance Share: Yuinah 100%.]

“…Eh?”

Gurgle, gurgle. While the dungeon collapsed, Yuna stood dumbfounded.

[‘Achievement’ unlocked! <Cleared a Dungeon Alone>]

Yuna’s consciousness faded.

* * *

<6 PM, New Seoul, Xian’s Office.>

“The king slime uses a wide-area attack in its death throes, so anyone blocking it will gain at least 1% of the loot share. Haven’t tried this method yet, have you?”

Xian pointed at the gun on the table. Since leaving the dungeon, Yuna had hung onto Xian’s every word with the reverence of a devoted student, ready to follow any order—even death. Xian found her unwavering trust somewhat burdensome.

“What did the system say at the end? You earned an achievement, right?”

“Yes, <Cleared a Dungeon Alone>. It actually showed up.”

Excited, Yuna couldn’t hide her enthusiasm. Xian calmly picked up the expensive magical power detector he had just purchased.

“You’ve been tested with this, right?”

“Yes, it’s the latest model in Korea.”

Tsk. Xian activated the device, its FND display lighting up.

“This version uses two kanji characters for numbers up to 99, similar to what you’d see in elevators.”

“Who are you explaining this to?”

“To you, Yuna. Pay close attention.”

Xian pricked his fingertip with a needle and dropped a drop of blood onto the detector. After analyzing the magical power in his bloodstream, the detector displayed the results.

– Earth 04, Water 03, Fire 00, Wind 02, Light 09, Dark 09, Illusion 07

“Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Light, Dark, Illusion. All seven attributes are below 10 for me. None exceed E-rank.”

“…”

Upon receiving Xian’s test results, Yuna was utterly shocked. She thought she was at rock bottom, but his stats were even worse. Xian waved his hand dismissively and smiled.

“In any case, let’s set that aside for now. It’s your turn, Yuna.”

Xian carefully wiped his blood from the detector, reset the settings, and prepared for another test. To ensure no errors occurred due to mixing samples, he ran two preliminary tests.

“Could you give me some blood?”

“…Alright.”

Taking a deep breath, Yuna pricked her finger with the needle. A drop of red blood landed on the detector, and soon her results appeared.

Sizzle! Xian swiftly tore off a piece of paper and covered the results with his hand. Tension gripped Yuna as she awaited the outcome, reminiscent of exam results.

“…”

However, Xian’s expression was grave. Yuna waited for him to speak.

Ten seconds, thirty seconds, one minute. Xian stared silently at the covered result sheet without uttering a word. Just as Yuna was about to rise and peek at the results, her magical gear buzzed with an ignored call.

[Yuinah, urgent message. Yuinah, urgent message.]

“…Mom, seriously!”

Blushing, Yuna brought up the screen. Knowing the calls would persist unless acknowledged, she read the urgent message from her mother, her fingers freezing midway.

[Final Notice. If unaffiliated with a guild by Friday, February 28th, Hero Academy freshman Yuinah will be expelled. For further details, contact the Student Affairs Office after the Lunar New Year break…]

“…I’ll take this call outside.”

Hurriedly, Yuna left the office and dialed her mother via video call. Her mother appeared on screen, looking somber as if waiting for the call.

[Sorry, Yuna. I kept calling you—]

“What is this?”

[…Actually, I received the letter before Lunar New Year. Seeing how hard you worked, I couldn’t bring myself to tell you. Mom’s sorry. Come home and—]

Bang! Yuna angrily closed the screen and slumped down the stairs, clutching her head.

“Aaahhh…!!”

She knew her mother hadn’t done anything wrong. She understood her family’s concern and care. Knowing this, Yuna felt guilty for losing her temper momentarily.

But she was also genuinely angry with her parents for not informing her sooner. These conflicting emotions tangled together, leaving Yuna confused and conflicted.

-Give up.

A voice whispered in her mind, dark and tempting.

-Give up on everything. The world that looks down on you, everyone who doesn’t appreciate your efforts.

“…”

Looking at her reflection on the screen, Yuna gave a hollow smile. Would giving up truly bring her peace?

-Take my hand, and I’ll make things easy for you.

Was it a hallucination? Purple smoke swirled before her, reaching out a hand. Tempted by the promise of ease, Yuna unconsciously extended her arm.

At that moment, an explosion rang out.

BOOM!

“Kyaa?!”

Rising from her seat, Yuna rushed back into the office, where the detector lay smoking and crackling on the table.

“Cough, cough!”

Xian opened the window, letting the cold winter breeze dissipate the smoke. Calming her racing heart, Yuna approached Xian.

“What happened?!”

“Ah, no. I thought the detector might be malfunctioning, so I kept testing it… and it exploded.”

“Whaat?!”

Yuna alternated her gaze between the detector and Xian. Blood streamed down his face from cuts near his eyes. Laughing nervously, Xian closed his eyes.

“Haha, seems like shrapnel got me. Don’t worry. If we go to the hospital… Ah, it’s Lunar New Year today.”

“With blood pouring like that, are you kidding about the hospital?! Hold on!”

Yuna placed her hand over Xian’s eye. Golden magical energy flowed from her veins into her fingertips, covering Xian’s wounds. Worry etched on her face, she continued channeling her power.

“I can heal wounds like this… …to some extent.”

Xian silently entrusted himself to Yuna’s healing. After about three minutes, the torn eyelid stopped bleeding, and the wound healed. Wiping the remaining blood with her sleeve, Yuna fretted.

“Are there any other injuries? If I can heal them, let me know. Tell me.”

“…Yuinah-sama.”

Kneeling on one knee, Xian operated his magical gear. Confused, Yuna knelt opposite him and accepted the transmitted screen.

“Join me and become the greatest hero.”

Sniffling, Yuna replied to Xian’s earnest voice.

“Is this an official guild invitation?”

“Not yet, it’s informal. We need two more special ability users. But…”

Xian bowed his head.

“I want you, Yuinah, to join me. …Until the very end.”

Yuna cried and smiled simultaneously. She never imagined that the last lifeline she clung to would truly save her.

“Thank you for accepting someone like me.”

“No, I’m the one who should thank you. Thank you for becoming my first team member.”

Kneeling on the office floor, the two exchanged heartfelt gratitude, eventually breaking into laughter as they stared at each other.

“Please work well with me, Hero Yuinah.”

“And please work well with me, Guild Leader.”

January 29th marked the historic day when Xián’s guild welcomed its first hero.

“Hey, Oracle, it’s me. Why’d you call? Oh, you miss me? Yeah, sure.”

“Your intuition is annoying. Anyway, I called for a reason. What? No, not that kind of thing.”

“Just need an item. Remember the magical power detector I made last time? Send one here. Yeah. The faster, the better, but secretly, without anyone knowing.”

“…You’re too perceptive for your own good. Look, I’m unsure too, so I’ll let you know once I’m certain. But if my suspicions are correct…”

“She’s a spirit.”

“Hello? Hey, hey! Don’t hang up! I haven’t been drinking, I swear!”