A S-Class Hunter With Great Agility - Chapter 68
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 68: Hunter Academy (4)
“Sister—! Look over here!”
“Choi Yu-kyung! Choi Yu-kyung!”
Ever since awakening as an S-rank during her high school years, the pouring attention from mass media had become familiar to Choi Yu-kyung.
“Wow, Eden? Are they crazy?”
“How did they manage to get her?!”
“Even this pathetic academy’s second-years get to see the light like this.”
However, this type of cheering was something she wasn’t familiar with at all…
‘Heo Gil, I’m killing you when this is over. No matter what.’
Choi Yu-kyung stepped both feet into the center of the arena.
Being thrown into the middle of spirited teenagers and demonstrating combat as if holding a concert was nothing short of torture for Choi Yu-kyung.
Embarrassment and bewilderment, regret and a slight sense of elation came flooding in like a tide.
‘They’re making me do this?’
However, even while thinking such thoughts, Choi Yu-kyung raised one hand. When she waved it lightly, another scream hit her ears.
“Ahem.”
The fact that her ears had turned slightly red was something only Eun Hae-dam in the spectator seats, with his keen observation, would notice.
[This combat demonstration will be conducted using Hunter Academy’s hologram monsters!]
“Holograms…”
It was Choi Yu-kyung’s first time facing them directly as well.
The Association uses similar technology when measuring ranks. However, there were rumors that the Academy’s version boasted much more sophistication than the Association’s.
“Let’s see if the rumors are true.”
Kwaaaaaaang—
A violent noise filled the arena. Dust clouds were thick.
A massive golem that filled nearly half the arena stood before Choi Yu-kyung.
[Now! Hunter Choi Yu-kyung’s opponent is an S-rank monster, the Stone Golem!]
Kuwoong, kung.
The golem standing on two feet provided an overwhelming presence just by existing.
“Holy shit, S-rank?”
“They’re bringing that out… Will this work?”
“Sister Yu-kyung—! We believe in you—!”
The murmuring among students grew thicker. Even if it was just a hologram, the intimidation of an S-rank classification was tremendous.
However, Choi Yu-kyung maintained a calm expression while taking her pre-combat stance.
“Since I’m here anyway, enjoying it wouldn’t be too bad.”
Since high school, for roughly over ten years, Choi Yu-kyung had always reigned at the top among S-rank Hunters.
Her skills, her guild. Among everything that comprised Choi Yu-kyung, nothing was of low caliber.
“Though I’m not sure if you’ll be able to provide entertainment.”
Choi Yu-kyung smiled lightly. She was someone who could smile even with a golem before her.
“World Tree, 7th Form.”
Kwaddeuk.
The World Tree grew, piercing through the arena floor.
* * *
Lee Cheong-ryu tossed popcorn into his mouth and chewed.
“Hmm. An S-rank golem. Is that the guy that appeared in Mexico two years ago?”
I brushed off the numerous pieces of popcorn that had fallen on my shaman robes’ shoulder with my hand.
“Aren’t you worried? Even if she’s S-rank, it’s not easy to easily defeat a monster of the same rank.”
That was certainly true. Even A-rank Hunters need to form parties to face A-rank monsters.
The same would apply to S-rank. However…
“Well. I wonder if worrying about Sister Yu-kyung is even a valid concern.”
Kwagak!
Yu-kyung’s fingertips sliced through the air. Where her fingertips passed, a tree imbued with light was created.
The tree that grew in an instant had already bound the golem’s arm.
“And that technique, I saw it once while looking around here today.”
I didn’t take my eyes off the arena below.
The confrontation between the golem with its bound arm and the World Tree was tense. The tenacious tree would never let go of its opponent.
Kkudeuk, kkudeudeuk.
Yu-kyung’s skill finally burrowed into the gaps in the golem’s body.
Kwauuuuu—!
The golem let out a roar and thrashed about. However, despite being at a close distance from Yu-kyung, the golem didn’t easily make violent attacks.
“It was quite different from actual monsters.”
“Really?”
“Setting aside the fact that no blood came out at all, I couldn’t feel any malice.”
“….”
“It seemed like it had no intention of killing its opponent.”
Certainly, the power of the skills the golem possessed was at a level I’d never seen before.
However, it wasn’t outputting maximum power that could kill an opponent.
It was merely for training purposes, meaning it wasn’t a being created to kill humans.
“There’s no way my sister couldn’t handle such a half-hearted thing.”
The World Tree had grown large enough to almost fill the entire arena.
It was like a single forest.
* * *
“Crazy… did you just see that?”
“Eden is Eden after all…”
“What rank was he again? Didn’t you guarantee he’d go to Eden and make a place for himself? He’s going to get crushed.”
Choi Yu-kyung caught her breath. She was standing on top of a tree, looking down below.
That sight completely overwhelmed the viewers.
‘Something’s lacking though.’
Choi Yu-kyung tilted her head.
The S-rank golem that had appeared in Mexico two years ago. Fighting it was a rare experience even for Yu-kyung, but.
‘It lacks that satisfying feeling.’
She had to click her tongue in disappointment.
“World Tree, Second Form.”
The roots of the World Tree began to grow from underground.
“Transformation.”
Soon after, thorns sprouted from the thick roots. The sharply erected thorns threatened the golem.
The golem didn’t care about being pierced by the thorns and immediately grabbed the roots to pull them out from underground.
Crack.
Screeeech—!
And it swung the extracted World Tree like a whip, threatening her. The attack missed Choi Yu-kyung.
‘It’s not just my imagination.’
Choi Yu-kyung knew how cruel and terrible S-rank monsters actually were.
They were beings meant for slaughter. Creatures that existed solely to destroy everything in front of them.
‘Compared to that, this thing…’
Choi Yu-kyung chuckled.
“This much…”
If this were inside a dungeon, that whip would have sliced the necks of everything around.
“Transformation.”
Kwaaaaaaaang!
The thorns that had sprouted on the World Tree all exploded at once. Naturally, the golem was also caught in the explosion.
Crack, crash!
Fragments of massive rock scattered in all directions. The illusory image disappeared with crackling sounds.
“The end.”
Thud.
Choi Yu-kyung flicked her wrist slightly.
At the same time, a thorned root pierced through the area near the golem’s heart.
Swoosh.
Waaaah—!
The hologram slowly disappeared. No blood, no debris, no magic stone. It left nothing behind.
It was Choi Yu-kyung’s victory.
“Phew…”
Choi Yu-kyung retracted her trees and slowly descended to the arena floor.
Numbers appeared where the golem had been.
“…Damn it.”
[Guild Leader Choi Yu-kyung’s score is 99.4! Considering that the Academy’s all-time highest score was 94, this is an incredible result!]
Choi Yu-kyung swallowed her curse upon seeing that number.
“Heo Gil, you really went all out, didn’t you?”
Displaying the score so publicly like this meant…
It meant they intended to stir up competition between Choi Yu-kyung and Lee Cheong-ryu.
Like a sports match.
‘They seem to be planning to gather every bit of attention they can.’
[Then, for the next turn, we’ll invite Hunter Lee Cheong-ryu from Blue Dragon Guild!]
Soon Lee Cheong-ryu came down to the arena. He briefly passed by Choi Yu-kyung who was returning to the spectator seats.
Waaaah—!
“Haha. I’m losing in terms of cheers.”
Since he was also an S-rank Hunter, cheers no less than Yu-kyung’s filled the arena. There were overwhelmingly many comments about how handsome he was.
However, the Academy was a place where Blue Dragon’s popularity was low. There were quite a few boos as well.
“You’ll lose in results too.”
“You know this is all a setup that Heo Gil deliberately arranged, right?”
“A match is a match—that’s my motto.”
It was a very Choi Yu-kyung-like statement. The electronic board only showed the two of them smiling amicably together.
* * *
At the very top of the arena, in a seat overlooking the entire view.
Heo Gil sat there, resting his chin on his hand.
[Wow, what incredible speed!]
Lee Cheong-ryu’s opponent was an S-rank Bone Dragon.
Having opened a Gate to draw his weapons, he had just begun a spectacular battle.
Clang.
Lee Cheong-ryu held silver swords in both hands. Those swords sliced through both shoulder bones of the S-rank Bone Dragon.
From the Gate, piles of stones that would serve as footholds poured out continuously.
Lee Cheong-ryu stepped on the stones and kept leaping into the air.
Clang clang clang!
The spectacle of swirling navy blue sword aura presented an enchanting battle.
“Ha, even though there’s a difference from reality. Monsters are monsters, both of them.”
A staff member standing beside him handed Heo Gil a coffee cup.
“Yes… They really are. It’s frightening.”
The silver sword once again split the Bone Dragon’s thighbone. The monster, unable to maintain its balance, swayed as if it would fall.
Only then did the Bone Dragon pour out strong wind from its mouth. Lee Cheong-ryu was pushed to the edge of the arena.
His grinning smile filled the electronic board.
“I can never tell what that guy is thinking. Who knows how many things he’s hiding behind that smile.”
Heo Gil sipped his coffee. The heat of the arena was as hot as coffee.
“The students’ morale will rise a lot. Seeing something like that makes them want to fight too, doesn’t it?”
“Well, that could be. If they could even imitate something like that.”
The Bone Dragon writhed in pain.
Kuuuuuu—!
It was the moment when Lee Cheong-ryu, who had gotten back on his feet, extended his hand.
“Where would you find someone with skills like that commonly?”
A blue Gate opened. Simultaneously, three or four Gates appeared.
They spat out sharply refined iron spears.
Crash, clang clang!
Thud, clang!
The iron spears drove into the ground as if caging the Bone Dragon.
Several of them pierced through the Bone Dragon’s bones.
Lee Cheong-ryu took advantage of the Bone Dragon’s hesitation to leap up. Then he swung his sword to shatter the opponent’s body into pieces.
Kuuuuu—!
Eventually, the hologram disappeared before long.
It was a score that didn’t reach Choi Yu-kyung’s, but as a record, it was an incredibly spectacular result.
“Consecutive new record achievements.”
“…Except for the student ranked first, there’s never been a case of exceeding 94 points.”
“Right.”
Heo Gil sneered indifferently.
That score was a number produced by comprehensively evaluating everything—strength, agility, and skill proficiency.
Even so, 98 points and 99 points… Both meant they were nearly perfect.
“Shit, that’s creepy.”
“That’s possible? That’s totally cheating.”
“Didn’t they say they awakened not too long ago…”
The students’ astonished murmuring could be heard all the way up here.
“I should worry about their morale dying instead.”
The staff member hesitated at Heo Gil’s indifferent words. He asked hesitantly.
“Then, Dean. Is there a particular reason you insisted on conducting this special class? I’m worried it might just demoralize the students…”
“Hmm.”
“…Ah, I apologize for the presumptuous question.”
“….”
[Hunter Lee Cheong-ryu! He takes down the troublesome Bone Dragon in one strike!]
Heo Gil gave light applause.
“My thinking is a bit different.”
“Pardon?”
“The demoralization will probably be temporary, and given the kids’ nature, they’ll soon think they can reach that level someday. Especially those in the top 10 rankings will be even more so.”
“….”
“That’s my real plan. The awakening of the Academy’s top-ranked students.”
The strong don’t cower when they see the strong. Rather, they think about surpassing them.
Watching an S-rank Hunter’s combat would probably raise the students’ goals even higher.
“Ah… I see.”
The staff member nodded as if he had realized something.
“Then bringing that B-rank Hunter here, was there also a special reason for that…?”
“Originally, there wasn’t.”
Proof of trust? That was just an excuse. From the beginning, Heo Gil had no intention of trusting Eun Hae-dam.
Eun Hae-dam had served his purpose the moment he secured the promise of Choi Yu-kyung and Lee Cheong-ryu’s combat demonstration.
‘But…’
[And so the special class has begun with such a spectacular opening! Now we should jump right into the main event before the excitement cools down!]
Eun Hae-dam walked into the arena.
The Hunter wearing black martial uniform and blue silk clothing with a sword at his waist aroused the students’ curiosity.
“I heard he’s A-rank.”
‘Then that changes things.’
“What?”
“Hard to believe? It’s information that just came in. Seems like he was re-evaluated recently.”
“…He really doesn’t look it though.”
“Right. He’s weak. He might have used some trick during the rank assessment.”
The Academy’s intelligence network was excellent. The investigation into Eun Hae-dam that he had commissioned just in case yielded unexpected results.
A Hunter whose B-rank rating was already suspicious had somehow obtained an A-rank.
‘Well, what can’t a con artist do.’
“But however he obtained his rank doesn’t really matter. Either way, he’ll be introduced as a professional A-rank Hunter for now.”
Eun Hae-dam stood at one side of the arena. He briefly checked the condition of his weapons.
“An adult who’s not a student, and moreover, an actually active professional A-rank Hunter.”
“….”
“What would happen if an Academy student easily defeats that professional Hunter? And in such a public venue at that.”
“…!”
“It would create a huge sensation. Academy students are already beating professional Hunters… The truth doesn’t matter. Since they saw it with their own eyes, the fact that everyone will believe it is what’s important.”
‘They’re still treated as rough gems. Even the contract conditions offered by large guilds are often investments for the future.’
However, Academy students are beings who can jump into the front lines right now.
This was nothing short of an opportunity to prove that.
“Thanks to Eden and Blue Dragon, many reporters are here. This will become the cornerstone for the Academy to truly prove its abilities to the public.”
A smile appeared on Heo Gil’s face. He was completely confident of victory.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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