D-Rank Constellation Hunter… Stuck Without Internet! - Chapter 65
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 65
The most crucial element for a Constellation to act within a client’s world is naturally ‘plausibility’.
Even Constellations with inherently cruel natures who revel in amusement operate under the guise of ‘for enjoyment’.
We need justification to intervene directly.
I, a Constellation born from Earth and of human origin, had invoked the pretext of protecting my world.
And now I had stepped forward to preserve the life of my precious client.
“I’m not the one who prevented the taking of each human’s life, and I’ve overlooked the insults directed at me to a reasonable degree.
“But, well, let me be clear.”
“Laying hands on a client bound by contract with me—should I interpret that as a formal challenge to face me in combat?”
My voice carried unmistakable anger.
Just now I’d lost control of my emotions and lashed out roughly, but the situation warranted nothing less.
“Combat? You, of all beings!”
Deep violet lightning crackled down around the Constellation.
“Do I appear human to you?”
Not even from Earth, at that.
As the Constellation soon fell silent, as if acknowledging defeat, I quietly withdrew the light.
Had they pressed further, I was prepared to drag them by the collar in Sungdo itself and settle this properly.
Glancing around, everyone had fallen silent.
Those who had been slandering me looked terrified, evidently imagining that lightning striking their own faces.
I held my head for a moment, exhaled slowly, and spoke.
“Don’t worry—I’m not killing anyone.”
“Se-um! Are you hurt?”
Ha Gyuhyuk, who had nearly taken the Constellation’s attack directly to his head, was frantically examining my avatar from every angle, all dignity abandoned.
Hadn’t I just overwhelmingly dominated the exchange?
I patted Ha Gyuhyuk’s shoulder and spoke, eyes forward.
“But before you slander someone, you should at least gauge whether they can harm me, shouldn’t you?”
Ha Gyuhyuk, watch carefully.
These are the people who once looked down on you without restraint, who still refuse to heed your words.
Why you don’t need to be wounded by their contempt and dismissal.
Why I chose you instead of them.
“….”
They lost their words and averted their eyes.
Of course, they were suppressed by fear of my overwhelming power, but at least they would understand basic meaning.
Ha Gyuhyuk, who had been panicking at the sight of me, paused briefly and looked around.
They were now ready to listen to what he had to say.
Ha Gyuhyuk opened his mouth quietly.
“I was originally D-rank, so I couldn’t enter high-level dungeons like this. I understand your doubts about following someone like me.”
“…Everyone, everyone has a beginning.”
Someone barely managed to speak into the silence.
One of those whose lives Franson had saved.
Franson gained a fan. Does that mean I gained an anti-fan? How depressing.
No, it doesn’t matter.
If I seized this atmosphere through fear, then at least it became an opportunity for another human who had been suppressed to speak.
Ha Gyuhyuk looked in that direction and smiled.
“I lived hand-to-mouth collecting Dungeon byproducts. Have you all heard of the Hunter Stepping Stone Welfare?”
“Hunter Stepping Stone Welfare?”
“You know, that national project.”
“Ah… the one that only the lowest-ranked receive.”
I heard whispers, but looking at Ha Gyuhyuk’s expression, I could tell.
He wasn’t wounded by the contempt directed at him.
But he no longer accepted it as naturally as before. His gaze turned toward those whispering.
“If a nation and collective don’t care for the weakest among them, what reason do they have to exist? Is that something to mock? Me asking for and receiving the help I need?”
Not a sharp retort, but a calm tone.
Yet people like them couldn’t move when faced with such direct criticism aimed at them.
Once silence returned, Ha Gyuhyuk spoke again.
“I hoped that someday I’d have a chance to enter a Dungeon like this. So I kept studying. Even if I never got that chance until I died.”
If he hadn’t met me, his life might have already ended.
But even before meeting me, he had been continuously preparing for that opportunity.
Of course, they didn’t need to know that.
“I heard that Dungeons like this basically require clearing one side before tackling the other. So I’d like to decide our direction by majority vote, if that’s acceptable.”
He didn’t make some grand speech to make people follow him.
Instead of displaying tremendous leadership and decisiveness, he proposed a rational approach: majority vote.
Yet because of that, the weakest among them were first moved by him.
Ji Chae-ah gathered her courage and spoke first.
“Among the Dungeons I’ve been to so far, the left side had relatively stronger enemies.”
“Oh, the right side seemed to have more magic-type attacks!”
People began sharing their experiences one by one.
Ha Gyuhyuk nodded while listening to everyone’s opinions.
Kim Gyuwun was watching them with a complex expression, yet touched.
“See? I changed them,” I whispered smugly.
He shook his head.
“No, Ulrim.”
He was contradicting me. Before I could react indignantly, Kim Gyuwun continued.
“That’s not change. That’s evolution.”
* * *
“Prepare barriers against frontal attacks and focus support on the rear. The boss is at the center with standardized patterns, so I suggest switching to magic before the third attack pattern arrives. From the third pattern onward, proceed with magic, and supporters, please use lightening to lift the boss.”
Kim Gyuwun, who had been blending into the background until now, began to demonstrate his worth.
I was just about to regret casting someone who seemed so insignificant, but he’s earning his keep.
Ha Gyuhyuk knew exactly when to engage and when to pull back.
“Se-um, I think that head’s going to get scalped.”
“What’s wrong with me petting the head of someone I evolved?” I asked.
“No, it’s fine….”
While they chattered away, I continued showering Ha Gyuhyuk with praise.
[ You have sponsored your client with ‘Won Currency’. (Specified quantity: 30,000 Karma exchanged) ]
[ You have sponsored your client with ‘Premium Growth Accelerant’. ]
[ You have sponsored your client with ‘Holy City Training Ground Entry Ticket’. ]
[ You have sponsored your client with ‘Concert Banner Featuring Ha Gyuhyuk’s Face’. ]
[ You have sponsored your client with ‘Premium Equipment Set for A-rank Hunters’. ]
“Constellation, there’s something odd.”
“No, there’s nothing odd.”
“Right, nothing at all.”
While I continued pouring affection toward Ha Gyuhyuk from behind, the conversation went on.
“However, relatively speaking, there are few tank-class Hunters, so I’m uncertain whether we can hold out until the third attack arrives.”
“You said there are a total of seven tank-class Hunters?”
“Yes, and three of them here have tanking as a sub-class. Their main class is magic.”
Kim Gyuwun’s face took on a troubled expression.
It seemed different from the information about the initial entry Hunters.
Apparently, since word had spread that even a Constellation would be entering this Dungeon, some had pushed themselves to purchase entry tickets and come anyway.
He glanced over at Franson, who was running an odd-or-even betting game off to one side.
“You said Jerry is on the magic side? What about Ulrim?”
“I’m not getting involved.”
I had to block a certain Constellation lurking behind me, constantly watching for an opportunity to raise the difficulty.
Kim Gyuwun’s gaze shifted subtly elsewhere.
There was a small girl staring blankly at the boss.
“That girl, Sia….”
Tasha turned her body very quietly to face Kim Gyuwun.
Could he even guess?
That small head had already completed hundreds of billions of calculations that even a supercomputer couldn’t handle.
Tasha smiled gently, pulled out a memo pad, and wrote something with a pen before handing it over.
[ You can keep just this one as a defense class and deploy the rest of your personnel in different classes. ]
Kim Gyuwun blinked as if bewildered.
“But that’s not possible.”
[ Switching before the third pattern is the correct judgment. However, there are only 3 seconds between the third and fourth patterns before the form changes, so I recommend preparing items or skills that allow repositioning. If that’s not feasible, I can buy you time. ]
“Um….”
[ The suggestion of weight reduction is quite intriguing, but the real problem with this boss isn’t its weight—it’s the ankles rooted in the ground. Devising a means to sever that point increases your success probability by 12.7564%. ]
I sighed as I watched Tasha scribbling memos at an inhuman speed and Kim Gyuwun struggling just to read them.
[ Se-um: These two really… ]
[ Se-um: …aren’t even trying to hide that they’re Constellations, are they??? ]
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————