A Hunter on Borrowed Time Keeps Surviving - Chapter 8

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 8.
At the far end of Red Fang Hill stood a massive stone gate.
It was an ominous entrance carved with the crude, characteristic markings of orcs.
In front of it, Min Hyung-sik raised his hand, bringing his team to a halt.
“We’ve reached the Boss Room.”
Every member of the party naturally turned their gaze toward Siul.
“Really… are you going in alone again?”
Park Do-hyun asked, concern threading through his voice.
“What if the rest of us provided support from behind, only staying out of your way during combat? That way we’d be ready for any unexpected situation….”
“No, that’s all right.”
Siul declined firmly.
“I’m perfectly capable on my own. While you wait, please mine the Mana Stones.”
A low murmur rippled through the team.
“Is there a specific reason it has to be this way?”
“Yeah. We could at least provide some backup….”
In truth, Siul would have felt reassured by Min Hyung-sik’s party acting as support.
But circumstance wouldn’t allow it.
‘Any information about the Judgment Dragon leaking out would be disastrous.’
One wrong move and his Death Notice deadline could be bumped up to tomorrow morning.
Since he didn’t yet understand the criteria and scope of information disclosure, he had to be all the more careful.
“I appreciate your concern, but your presence would actually hinder me.”
Siul had prepared this explanation in advance, anticipating exactly this situation.
“I possess an ability that’s dangerous enough to injure not only enemies but allies as well. For your sake, I must enter the Boss Room alone.”
There was truth in what he said—half of it, anyway.
The image of Siul’s head splitting open.
Dislocated bones and torn flesh regenerating with grotesque, unnatural contortions.
Even a seasoned hunter would be left traumatized witnessing that up close.
“Ah, so you possess such an ability? That makes sense now.”
“I’ve heard about it. That powerful abilities can be too dangerous to control.”
“So that’s what Siul is like!”
The persuasion had gone more smoothly than expected, and he was grateful for it.
Trust shone more brightly than anxiety in his teammates’ expressions.
“If you find yourself struggling, send us a signal immediately. We’ll stay within earshot.”
Min Hyung-sik said this as he saw Siul off toward the Boss Room.
Siul smiled and nodded.
“It may take some time. Still, don’t worry—I’ll come back alive. That’s a promise.”
With that assurance, Siul turned and proceeded onward.
As his hand touched the massive stone gate, a powerful vibration rang out and the door began to open slowly.
Rumble—rumble—rumble!
A desolate aura of mana drifted from within.
Siul drew a deep breath and stepped into the Boss Room.
* * *
The interior of the Boss Room reeked with an uncanny stench.
The stale smell of rotted blood, charred bone, and a sickening blend of herbs and resin hung heavy in the air.
Red cloth and fragments of hide were draped across the walls, while the floor was covered in layered, chaotic shamanic markings painted over and over.
‘Like some primitive tribe’s lair.’
This impression deepened the further he ventured.
The scenery fit a primitive tribe far too well.
An altar built of stacked stone stood before him, its surface littered with dried human skulls arranged haphazardly.
And directly in front of that altar….
“…?”
An orc of peculiar appearance was dancing.
Boom—boom—boom.
The drums thundered across the earth.
The musician was none other than an orc.
Adorned with trinkets hanging from every part of its body, wearing a mask carved from bone, and striking a drum in its grasp while it danced—a grotesque orc indeed.
Thanks to the dungeon manual Park Do-hyun had provided earlier, Siul knew exactly what he was facing.
A Shamanic Orc. The master of this dungeon.
【Continuous Quest Triggered!】
【Eliminate the Mortal Threat】
Remove the life-threatening obstacle directly.
Obstacle danger level: 10
Success reward: 3 Level-up Points
“Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!”
The Shaman Orc swayed his body in a rhythmic, incomprehensible motion.
Dozens of Orcs surrounded him.
They formed a circle around an altar and chanted in unison with perfect timing.
‘What are they doing?’
At first glance, they looked like primitives conducting some kind of ritual.
“Hey. A human just walked in—shouldn’t you at least pretend to notice?”
Siul announced his presence with a voice.
But the Shaman Orc and his underlings paid him no mind, their focus entirely on their dance.
“Fine. Do whatever you want. I’ve got my own work to do.”
It didn’t matter if the Orcs danced or cast shamanic magic.
What mattered was that the Quest window Siul had been waiting for had appeared.
He opened his Inventory as planned and entered Hunt Mode.
Whish—!
The Tracker’s Blade cut through the air.
‘Clear a path first.’
The Tracker’s Blade pierced the vital point of the foremost Orc.
“Ughhhh!”
One Orc fell.
Only then did the Orcs who had been circling around the altar stop their movements.
“Finally got your attention.”
Siul hurled the returning Tracker’s Blade again in quick succession.
Thwack—! Crunch! Screech—!
The Tracker’s Blade pierced through the Orcs’ bodies with vicious speed.
A path began to open up, and the space before the Shaman Orc cleared.
If he charged now, he could face the creature directly.
Yet the Shaman Orc continued its solitary dance.
‘Let’s see how long it keeps that up.’
Siul aimed the Tracker’s Blade at the Shaman Orc and took a step forward.
That was when Siul froze.
“Ugghhh….”
Several of the fallen Orcs were rising to their feet again.
The bleeding had stopped in their torn wounds, and the injuries were mending.
‘…Regeneration?’
Thump— thump— thump—!
The drum sound grew louder.
The Shaman Orc accelerated the pace of its dance.
Simultaneously, a crimson aura pulsed forth from the altar, enveloping the Orcs’ bodies.
“Ah.”
Siul understood at last.
The Orcs that had just risen to their feet had their wounds healed by the Shaman Orc’s power—the one dancing before the altar.
‘So when that creature dances, the Orcs’ bodies recover?’
Indeed, the more violently the Shaman Orc danced, the faster the wounded Orcs recovered.
Before long, Siul’s path ahead had returned to their initial state—not a single injured Orc in sight.
‘So that’s why this Dungeon is notorious for stamina battles and prolonged wars.’
The puzzle clicked into place in Siul’s mind.
The Orcs already possessed tough bodies, and with the boss’s Healing ability layered on top of that, breaking through would be no trivial task.
“This is interesting.”
Siul gripped his dagger again and locked eyes with the Shaman Orc.
“Let’s find out—whose power is superior? Your Healing ability or my Regeneration?”
In response to Siul’s provocation, the Shaman Orc’s dance became even more frenetic.
Both radiated bloodlust and sinister Mana with absolute confidence.
* * *
【Quest Successful!】
【You have successfully eliminated the life-threatening enemy using Heart Piercing.】
【You receive 3 Level-up Points as a reward.】
【Current accumulated points: 6】
“Phew… it’s over.”
Siul caught his breath and checked the time on his wrist watch.
“Combat duration: forty-four minutes. That’s a solid improvement compared to last time.”
When he’d taken down the Giant Golem, the fight had dragged on for over three hours.
Considering the shaman orc’s nature—Healing being its specialty—this was undeniably excellent progress.
‘I owe a lot to this thing.’
Siul laughed as he gazed down at the Tracker’s Blade in his grip.
“That infernal drum sound is gone—feels like a weight’s been lifted.”
He exhaled sharply and surveyed the Boss Room.
The altar lay in ruins, the drum split and rolling against the far wall.
The shaman orc sprawled dead in the center of a heap of skulls on the altar.
The other orcs, cut off from Healing, would rise no more.
“Healing and immortality aren’t even in the same league.”
Siul straightened his chin with unmistakable pride.
For a moment, he seemed to have forgotten the price: the Death Notice hanging over his head.
Ding!
“Huh?”
Just as Siul basked in his victory, an unfamiliar notification window materialized in his vision.
【Consecutive Quest Condition Achieved!】
【Bonus Level-up Point 1 has been awarded for succeeding at 3 consecutive quests.】
【Current Accumulated Points: 7】
“Oh.”
Siul’s eyes gleamed.
“There’s a bonus system?”
The quest window responded with an explanation.
【Bonus rewards scale upward based on consecutive quest completion milestones (3 times, 5 times, 7 times, 10 times).】
The word “bonus” was always welcome, but seeing it attached to a quest where lives were on the line made it sweeter still.
‘So the bonus reward scales with each milestone… if I hit the fifth achievement, I’ll get something better than the one point I just earned, won’t I?’
The thought made his mouth water.
Besides, that extra point had just brought his accumulated total to seven.
One more B-Rank monster slain would push him to ten accumulated points.
A single Rank advancement in Awakening.
‘At this pace, I might be eyeing A-Rank Awakening before too long.’
A-Rank and above belonged to the upper echelon.
Seven-figure annual salaries were merely the baseline; the scope of operations itself was fundamentally different.
It was a realm Siul had never dared imagine for himself.
‘I’m becoming an upper-tier Hunter….’
He found himself overlaying those celebrities from the news broadcasts with his own reflection, conjuring a warm fantasy.
At the same moment, the face of the Judgment Dragon surfaced in one corner of his mind.
‘I don’t know what you’re plotting with all this, but I won’t go down without a fight.’
The distance was still vast.
Yet he was moving toward it—steadily, inevitably.
That alone kindled within Siul a hope to keep living.
* * *
In a sunlit alley off Jongno, a few elders sat around a Go board.
“If you place it there, you’re trapped.”
“No kibbitzing, kid.”
Each time a Go stone clicked softly into place, leisurely sighs and laughter rippled among them.
On a bench beside them, Kang Ho-chul and Baek Ga-hyun sat side by side.
Kang Ho-chul kept his arms folded, eyes downcast on the Go board, while Baek Ga-hyun sipped his coffee and took in the street scene.
To the casual observer, they were merely two ordinary office workers spending their lunch hour, but their actual attention lay elsewhere.
At the alley’s far end: a gated security checkpoint with guards stationed in three-fold depth.
“Not bad. Lots of foot traffic makes the surveillance blend right in,” Baek Ga-hyun observed, basking in the afternoon sun.
Baek Ga-hyun murmured as he savored the afternoon warmth.
“Yeah. Better than standing out at the edge of town.”
Kang Ho-chul replied without lifting his gaze from the Go board.
“Senior.”
“Mm.”
“You should stop looking at the board now.”
The moment Baek Ga-hyun spoke, Kang Ho-chul’s pupils shifted with sudden precision.
People began trickling out of the gate one by one.
Siul and his party members approached the security personnel to report their conquest results.
The dust and traces of blood on their protective suits were faint, and their expressions were bright.
The security personnel made their records while offering applause.
“Dungeon conquest successful, then.”
As Baek Ga-hyun spoke, Kang Ho-chul nodded slowly.
“Doesn’t it strike you as odd?”
“What do you mean?”
“That man’s registered Rank with the Hunter Association is D-Rank. Yet here he walks out unscathed from a B-Rank Dungeon raid party. How?”
Kang Ho-chul continued without shifting his gaze.
“What’s more, there’s a record of him handling an A-Rank Wyvern Goblin. A D-Rank hunter, no less.”
Baek Ga-hyun waved his hand dismissively.
“That was handled by Jang Jin-young, Executive Director of the Dae-ho Guild. Didn’t you read the incident report properly? We must avoid unfounded overestimation.”
Kang Ho-chul turned to face Baek Ga-hyun, his eyes narrowing.
“Then in your view, does this seem normal? A D-Rank novice hunter.”
Baek Ga-hyun couldn’t answer immediately.
Siul exchanged farewells with his party members and watched them disperse before finally speaking.
“Of course not, actually.”
Baek Ga-hyun rose from his seat.
He fastened his jacket and swept his eyes one last time across the direction where Siul had vanished.
“We can figure out what’s strange by checking it directly. Won’t that man be heading out for another raid soon enough?”
Kang Ho-chul stood as well, nodding.
“Given his recent activities, it’s highly likely. His activity level has been extraordinary.”
Baek Ga-hyun’s lips curved upward.
“Excellent. Then we’ll tail him on the next raid.”
A Terminal Condition Hunter Continues to Survive
Author |
Kutsumattsu
Publisher |
Samyang C&C Corp.
Editor-in-Chief |
Editorial Department
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Samyang C&C Corp. – Dream Books
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G720:N+A063-20260731071
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Submissions |
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No part of this book may be used in any form or by any means without the written permission of Samyang C&C Corp. – Dream Books.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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