The Female Lead Saves the World - Chapter 289

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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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Yeo Joo Saves the World
Part 2, Episode 110

“Me? You mean me?”
Sung Yo Na, startled by the sudden nomination, coughed and widened her eyes in surprise.
“Yeah, give the preliminary round a shot.”
“No, I… I’m not skilled enough for that yet…”
Her pale face, suddenly the center of everyone’s attention, flushed crimson like a ripe apple, and her murmured words grew quieter until they became barely audible.
Everyone laughed at how adorable Sung Yo Na was being, but I spoke once more with conviction.
“We’ll find out whether you’re ready or not once you compete in the preliminary round.”
Given her personality, Sung Yo Na would never step forward on her own initiative in front of others.
Even if she were already skilled enough.
“Besides, what does it matter if the results aren’t great? It’s just our own preliminary round anyway. Right?”
“Yeah, yeah!”
“Go out there and show us what you’ve got, Yo Na!”
“You’ve been training hard all this time!”
As the guild members added their words of encouragement one by one, I could see the thought of “maybe I should try” flicker across Sung Yo Na’s face.
“Yo Na, just think of it as a simple skills check and take it easy.”
I didn’t want to burden her, but a little push was necessary.
Sung Yo Na, glancing back and forth between me and the guild members as she wrestled with her hesitation, finally opened her mouth carefully.
“Then… I’ll give it a try.”

* * *

Including Sung Yo Na, a total of seven people participated in the Round of 16 selection match.
Though it bore the grand name of a “selection match,” the format was straightforward.
Each participant entered the Simulation Training Ground—which boasted impressive performance thanks to repeated upgrades—and they compared how quickly each could eliminate a predetermined number of monsters.
“Grrrrr….”
The low growl of a B-rank Snowfield Wolf, the most common monster in the Glacier Dungeon, echoed through the speaker and spilled out beyond the Simulation Training Ground.
Set to spawn five at a time, befitting their pack behavior, the sheer size of each wolf made the spacious training facility appear cramped.
Kang Han, arms crossed as he watched Lee Yu Eul face off against them alone through the glass window, asked Han Ji Sung a question.
“Ji Sung, Yu Eul is the fifth one, right?”
“That’s right. Though she’s never faced multiple enemies alone like this before, so I was worried… but I guess I don’t need to be.”
Han Ji Sung let out a soft chuckle as he watched Lee Yu Eul charge fiercely at the wolves with a mandau in one hand.
Her movements showed no hesitation as she began attacking the largest pack leader first.
Whoosh!
Swish!
Each time the Jungle Blade, trailing a deep blue aura along its curved edge, was wielded roughly, long scars were carved into the Snowfield Wolf’s tough hide.
“Roooar!”
“Snap! Snarl!”
The remaining wolves bared their massive fangs and slashed with sharp claws in response to the assault on their leader, but they failed to land a hit on Lee Yu Eul.
She swiftly withdrew from their range, with only the hem of her clothing barely grazing past them.
“Grraaaagh!”
The pack leader wolf, black blood dripping across its white fur, barked loudly in frustration and leaped high to target Lee Yu Eul’s back, but it only snapped at empty air.
“Clang! Clank!”
Instead, the wolf that had been lagging at the rear of the pack, with one leg half-severed, exposed its neck as Lee Yu Eul exploited the opening, and it oxidized into black ash and vanished.
It was a strategy of diverting the strongest pack leader’s attention while methodically eliminating the weakest members one by one.
By the time she had eliminated the entire first pack and left only one wolf from the second pack, merely 18 minutes had elapsed.
At this pace, Lee Yu Eul would have no trouble joining the squad.
It was faster than Team 3’s captain Lee Tae Yoon, who had taken 31 minutes to eliminate 15 wolves.
Eliminating an entire pack of B-rank Snowfield Wolves without suffering fatal injuries alone was no trivial feat, so successfully handling 15 wolves was certainly an encouraging result.
Yet Lee Yu Eul was now surpassing even Lee Tae Yoon’s performance.
Aware of this fact herself, Lee Yu Eul was grinning with delight even as blood seeped from wounds she hadn’t managed to fully evade.
“Phew, these young kids these days are scary, really scary.”
Yeo Joo, who had returned after treating all the previous participants’ injuries, shook her head as she looked at Lee Yu Eul.
Yet her eyes remained fixed on the rather large wound on her shoulder.
In the end, Lee Yu Eul’s body, having successfully eliminated all fifteen Snowfield Wolves, bore several wounds as significant as the one on her shoulder.
“Hah! I did it!”
The moment the last wolf vanished, Lee Yu Eul burst out of the simulation room and immediately sought out Yeo Joo.
“Unnie! Yeo Joo unnie!”
“Oh my, you’re quite injured.”
“Mmm, this spot hurts the most.”
“Who told you to charge in so recklessly?”
“No, while I had it in my mouth, I could attack its vital points. But how many minutes did I take?”
Kang Han pointed at the numbers displayed on the Simulation Training Ground control device’s screen in response to Lee Yu Eul’s question.
“Twenty-seven minutes.”
“Yes! Awesome!”
Lee Yu Eul threw both hands up in celebration, only to receive a sharp slap on her back from Yeo Joo.
“Stop celebrating and get yourself treated.”
“I’m just so happy, that’s all!”
While Lee Yu Eul fawned over the much smaller Yeo Joo, Yang Hwa Yeon entered the Training Facility.
As had happened several times before, five Glacier Wolves materialized before her all at once.
“Hmm, they’re a bit intimidating.”
Yang Hwa Yeon scratched her forehead as she faced the wolves.
Then she conjured a massive fireball in each hand.
Whoosh!
But then something unexpected happened.
The wolves, their muzzles twisted as if ready to pounce on Yang Hwa Yeon at any moment, flinched and began slowly backing away.
“Hehe, yes, I thought you’d be like this.”
Han Ji Sung’s eyes, watching the situation from outside the window, sparkled with interest.
While animal-type monsters generally feared fire and naturally showed weak matchups against flame hunters, the Glacier Wolves appeared far more vulnerable.
It was as if they understood instinctively.
That their hides, which could withstand temperatures dozens of degrees below freezing, were nothing but kindling before flames.
“Come at me, you cowards!”
Yang Hwa Yeon shouted loudly and hurled a fireball each at the two nearest wolves.
Boom!
Crash!
The fireballs exploded against the wolves with violent tremors that made the glass window rattle.
And at that moment, Yang Hwa Yeon snapped her fingers.
Snap!
With a sound like striking flint, the red glow flickering like candlelight in her eyes wavered once, and the wildly spreading flames stretched out like taffy, instantly engulfing the wolf’s fur.
“Yelp! Howl!”
They were even more vulnerable to fire than expected.
The one hit directly by the fireball ignited instantly and vanished, while the one grazed on its flank panicked and, unable to even attempt attacking Yang Hwa Yeon, rolled on the ground desperately trying to extinguish the flames.
“The matchup is insane….”
“Even so, they burn that easily?”
“Wow….”
The Justice Guild hunters watching Yang Hwa Yeon’s turn clicked their tongues in amazement.
“If Glacier Wolves show up in next week’s Gate, they’ll just be Yang Hwa Yeon’s prey, won’t they?”
“But she really benefits a lot from items.”
Everyone nodded at someone’s murmur.
With the Guild Cup confirmed, they were seeing the effects of the mana efficiency enhancement ring that Maestro had provided for Yang Hwa Yeon.
“Hahahaha! Come on, all of you!”
Yang Hwa Yeon, her initial hesitation completely forgotten as her spirits soared, laughed heartily like a general on the battlefield and continued hurling fireballs.
Boom! Boom! The sounds echoed across the snowy field like fireworks exploding in all directions.
The two wolves, battered by the overwhelming barrage of fireballs, rolled across the snow and barely managed to extinguish the flames before tucking their tails between their legs.
Seeing this, Yang Hwa Yeon grew even more confident, but there was one thing she had overlooked.
The wolf that had been grazed by the initial fireball seized the moment of her carelessness and charged at her with the speed of an arrow.
“Watch out! Behind you, behind you!”
Jung Yi Do, the shield user of Team 2, shouted, but his voice could never reach inside the Training Facility where the simulation was running.

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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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