The Little Prince (4)
“He went in there?”
Kim Min-jae, the president of the Association, muttered with a curious voice.
“Yes. He jumped in without hesitation… Also, it was so crowded that I wasn’t able to catch him before he did.”
The Association staff standing in front of him answered with a scared voice and with his head bowed. Kim Min-jae’s powerful charisma was enormous enough to make even veteran hunters cower.
“I see… But you couldn’t follow him inside the crack?”
“Yes. It was a crack where the number of people is limited. There was one child trapped inside, then the cadet… it’s a two-man crack.”
“Ah, hahaha. What a coincidence. A two-man crack.”
Kim Min-jae laughed.
The Association staff didn’t know what was funny, but he managed to laugh as well. Then, he quickly bowed his head again, embarrassed.
“Don’t worry about the crack and get rid of the crowds. The people’s screaming and crying are more annoying than the monsters.”
“Yes… yes!”
The staff bowed quickly and ran off.
Kim Min-jae’s brows furrowed as he watched the staff’s back.
It was an unusual crack, but he ran to it without hesitation…
Then, he turned his gaze toward his hand.
Does he want to pretend to be a hero? He’s young enough to do that. But… his power… is interesting.
When Jeong Si-woo’s hand tried to expose him earlier, he tried to block it instinctively. That power was enough to tear the kid’s arm off. It was not an attack that could not be stopped by a cadet.
However, Jeong Si-woo’s arm ended up fine.
He looked as if he was in pain, but his bones didn’t break, nor did his arm tore off.
At that moment, Kim Min-jae saw an entity staring at him from behind Jeong Si-woo.
An old man resembling a god.
The entity was smiling at him, a smile that warned him not to touch the cadet.
He read the old man’s lips.
[Don’t you dare.]
Kim Min-jae stared at his hand for a long time, then quickly shook his head with a smile on his face.
Still, awakeners who want to play heroes are not allowed. I could not afford a loose bomb.
He looked at the scene before him. People were screaming and falling down in panic. No one even paid attention to the young hero who jumped into the rift.
When facing danger, people only think of themselves.
Kim Min-jae knows it deeply. He raised his hand and yelled to the crowd with authority.
“Everyone stay calm.”
As he did, a dark thought passed in his mind.
I’d rather he dies in that rift. Variables are dangerous.
* * *
“Huh… Heh heh… … .”
The first thing I saw upon entering the crack was a child.
Her body was full of scratches, and her face was filled with tears.
She looked about seven years old.
“Mom, mom…”
Green monsters surrounded her, and they were laughing with their ugly mouths wide open.
It was a characteristic of goblins. They toy with their prey. They don’t kill them immediately. Rather, they drive them into the point of desperation.
I counted them as I watched the grim scene.
Eight.
Can I handle that number now?
Pain was still tingling in my arm.
It would be impossible to use a bow. It was not a serious injury, but the pain does not stop.
I could not risk using it in this situation.
Then… damn it!
I flicked my finger once. Flame soared between my thumb and middle finger.
At the same time, flames erupted under the goblins’ feet.
“Kueek ueeek!”
They squealed like pigs. As I heard their cries, I charged at them. Nightmare changed its form into a sword.
『Magic should always be unstable.』
『You say you mainly use swords? I do not care. Skilled wizards can utilize magic regardless of their posture or tools. 』
『Even in the elven guardians, there were a few who used both sword and magic at the same time.』
In a heartbeat, my body filled with mana. My senses became clear, and my movements became faster.
Boo-!
A burning goblin was pierced in the nape.
Next, I turned to a goblin behind the little girl.
Elf Magic, which I learned through repeated training in the village, was now at a level that I could easily control. A green light suddenly flashed and crushed the monster.
“Huh… Oh my!”
The little girl’s body was covered in goblin’s blood. She screamed in horror, and I quickly picked her up.
There are six left. However, they were all burning up. It would not be difficult to finish them off.
I breezed through them, slashing through their necks, piercing their chests. It only happened within a few seconds.
The place that was filled with pig-like squeals suddenly turned quiet.
“Let’s go.”
It won’t end here. I can’t stop.
I placed the crying girl on my bag and quickly ran.
It wasn’t like the maze of the cadet practical exam. A real crack wasn’t that easy.
I shook my head to remove the various thoughts that lingered in my head and focused on the crack information that appeared.
[Name: Green Prison]
[A crack where many villages of green-skinned monsters are located. It is a crack that most 3rd class hunters are reluctant to do.]
[*Multiple humans cannot enter because of severe dimensional distortion.]
[*Limited number of people: 2/2]
[*Appearing monsters: Goblins, Orcs, Ogres]
It was the most common among cracks that appear without prior notice, and there are quite a few times where people have entered them in confidence because there were only a limited number of monsters.
I felt the girl’s grip tighten around my neck as I ran faster.
A place where even 3rd class hunters are reluctant to do.
But at my level, it wasn’t an overwhelming crack.
“Oh oh oh oh!”
A monster several times larger than a goblin.
An ogre appeared with a booming cry.
I stared straight back at its mad eyes.
He had no defensive skill or armor. I could kill it with one blow.
“Run away. Escape…” the little girl whimpered.
But I chose to go ahead rather than step back.
“No! Look at the size of his club! We will die!” the little girl screamed.
The girl was in tears, but my judgment was different. The ogre was no match for me.
Especially that I have Linked with this existence.
[Quick Hunter]
[Rating: D-]
I accelerated faster.
Nightmare began to change.
The style the existence was used to was not a long sword.
“Ah uh uh uh!”
The ogre charged at me. Each step he took shook the ground.
I could feel the little girl’s body trembling.
I also felt fear, but with the urge to protect her, I functioned coldly, more efficiently.
Magic should always be unstable.
『I can’t understand why everyone wants to run away! 』
『No, why are they scared? You can dodge and avoid attacks. Then, counterattack. It will be over quickly. 』
A dagger’s blade sparkled in my hand.
The weight of the girl on my back was not a factor to worry about.
The subject I Linked with was one who killed monsters at an insane speed even while wearing a backpack of over 100 kilograms.
The scenery blurred as I ran past.
The ogre’s size was over five meters. I would not be able to reach its face.
Instead, I sped between his legs.
Hooowoook-!
I felt strong wind pass above me as the ogre’s massive arms swung by.
Then, I used the dagger in my hand.
“Koeeek!”
Blood spurted out of its ankle. I stabbed at the precise location of its Achilles tendon underneath its leathery skin.
I stabbed and slashed without stopping. I could not count how many times I attacked per second.
Blood gushes out of the ankle, the Achilles tendon surrounded by thick leather. Without stopping, I constantly swing and stab the dagger in one hand. I couldn’t count how many times per second I was stabbed.
『Sometimes, I can’t even see my hands. 』
The ogre’s stumbled and fell on one knee. Then, I turned and chopped at his other ankle.
I flicked my finger once more. I felt the mana rush out of my body and turn into a cold freeze. Soon, I had a sharp ice spear that dug through the ogre’s calf.
No matter how tough its skin was, its flesh was as tender as any.
“Ahhhhhhhhh!”
I continued hacking through the ogre’s flesh little by little until all his limbs were filled with multiple wounds, and all he could do was crawl.
Now, I could look at it face to face.
I gathered the air around me, forming a sphere.
“Ke-e-e… Okay!”
I fired the sphere and smashed the ogre’s eyeballs. As blood poured out of its eyes, the dagger in my hand elongated into a sword.
The Elf’s Arcane Magic was deactivated, and I used my remaining mana to strengthen my muscles.
With strengthened muscles, I stabbed the long sword into its empty eye sockets, stabbing again and again.
Finally, the ogre’s cries stopped along with its breath.
“It’s definitely hard to catch a big one.”
Nightmare returned to the back of my hand as I brushed the blood that covered my arm.
There were more monsters inside the crack. I couldn’t help it. I went further in.
I could not rest knowing that there were monsters breathing within my reach.
Time passed by unnoticed.
[For the first time, you succeeded in attacking a crack by yourself.]
[The structure of the ‘Green Prison’ is perfectly recorded in Akashic Records.]
[Your understanding of Goblins, Ogres, and Orcs has reached the highest level.]
[Now, when dealing with the ‘Green Skin’ race, you deal 50% more damage.]
[The remnants of the soul remain in your body, and some of the entity’s abilities are obtained.]
[You acquired Instantaneous Acceleration (E).]
I was met with blank faces of several hunters when I stepped outside the crack.
“What… did you attack <Green Prison> alone?”
Instead of answering their questions, I handed over the little child on my back.
The child endured a dire experience.
“Wipe the monster blood off her body and take him to the hospital. Since she is not an awakener, she may have some side effects from being in the crack. Please take her as soon as possible.”
“Ah…”
“Since all of the monsters inside have been dealt with, all you have to do is gather and process the by-products. The processing fee would be 20% of the earnings. Please send it to Hwayeon Academy, to this account.”
I poured words out like quickfire at the faces of the dumbfounded hunters.
“And, are you from the Association?” I asked them lastly.
“Yes? Oh, yep. We’re hunters…”
Only
“Then, please relay my message.”
I was tired, but I have to say it.
“Dear Kim Min-jae, President of the Association, I have no intention of going to the Association.”
While hunting, I realized I didn’t want to try politics.
With adrenaline still pumping from the battle, my words seemed a little radical.
“Also, please tell him not to do anything nasty like disguising next time.”
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