As the two of them entered the boss room, they were greeted by a massive monster.
The slumbering monster sensed the presence of humans and slowly raised its body.
Jia lifted her head to gauge the size of the monster. It was roughly the height of a two- to three-story buildingâan enormous creature indeed.
âItâs a variant drake.â
âRight, it looks like itâs iceå±æ§ too, doesnât it?â
As Si-hyun spoke, Jia nodded in agreement.
Simply put, it was a dragon without wings.
Starting from its jaw and extending through its chest and belly, its entire body was covered in scales that radiated a chilling aura.
The head and back were lined with massive, sharp spines. Any close-combat hunter would be pierced through if they let their guard down.
Grroooarâ
As the drake exhaled sharply, the air near its mouth froze. This was a signal that the battle was about to begin.
âItâs coming!â
âRight!â
The drake, scraping its hind legs against the ground, charged toward the two of them like a bullet.
Si-hyun and Jia quickly spread out to avoid the attack.
CRASHââ!
The drakeâs head collided with the wall, creating a loud noise that echoed through the cave.
After creating a crater in the cave wall, the drake lifted its head. Dust from the spikes on its head began to fall away.
Thud, thud.
It was a terrifying sight.
Rejoining in the middle, Jia muttered, âIf that hits, weâd be in big trouble.â
âDonât worry, Iâll save you.â
âOh, hahaâ¦â
Jia awkwardly laughed.
Though she had made the light-hearted joke to maintain a suitable level of tension, the calm response she received felt ominous.
It genuinely seemed like it could happen, sending a slight shiver down her spine.
Shaking her head, Jia tried to shake off her thoughts. After all, she had no intention of getting hit by such a simple attack.
âIâm going in!â
Facing the approaching drake, Jia stepped forward.
Though she entered confidently, this was the boss of an A-rank dungeon. Under normal circumstances, two hunters would struggle to face it.
But since she was with 'Jeong Si-hyun', Jia advanced with bold steps.
She maximized her concentration.
Thud!
She pushed off the ground and sprinted forward.
As the distance closed, the drake spun furiously and swung its tail.
Jia used her spear as a pivot and jumped high into the air.
Using that momentum, she quickly closed the distance.
Just as the drake finished its tail spin and faced forward, mana gathered at the tip of Jiaâs spear, glinting a blue hue.
The weak point was the area without scales!
Jia gripped her spear tightly.
In that moment, her body, which had been defying gravity, began to drop quickly.
Swishâ!
Leaving a blue trail like a shooting star, Jiaâs spear slashed deep into the drakeâs chest.
âGRAAAAH!â
With a loud explosion, the drake let out a painful scream.
However, being the boss of an A-rank dungeon, the wound wasnât too deep.
The drakeâs eyes, filled with fury, locked onto Jia.
As if seeking revenge, it aimed its massive maw at her.
In that momentâ
BOOMâ!
A sudden explosion of flames erupted, causing the drake's head to jerk sideways.
âNice!â
With Si-hyunâs timely support, Jia cheered and assumed an attack stance.
Raising the spear tightly held in both hands, she bent it backward.
With a powerful push against the ground, she soared into the air.
Spinning rapidly in midair, she added acceleration to her spear, leaving another long scar on the drakeâs chest.
The mana packed into the spear once again dug deep into the drakeâs heart.
âGRAAAAH!â
Once more, the drake screamed in agony.
In the midst of this, it attempted to shake Jia off by powerfully kicking its hind legs.
However, things didnât go as the drake intended.
An invisible wall that had formed blocked the drake's hind legs.
With the attack failing, a gap naturally appeared, and Jia unleashed her mana without holding back.
Whoosh! Swishâ!
Stabbing, swinging, and thrusting.
She swung her spear mercilessly at an astonishing speed.
Since she had already adapted to Si-hyunâs buffs, Jia turned even the speeds beyond her limits into her own.
The spear whipped through the air at a speed invisible to the ordinary person.
Continuous scars were added to the drakeâs chest.
Eventually, the drake attempted to turn the tide with a massive move.
It curled its body into a circle and spun toward Jia.
âWhoaâ¦!â
Jia instinctively shouted in surprise and stepped back.
Fortunately, while the attack was threatening, it was slow.
Jia quickly evaded the attack and managed to avoid the drake's charge.
The drake raised its body once more.
Soon, an intensely cold aura began to flow from its mouth.
Seeing this, Jia returned to Si-hyun's side instead of charging forward.
âSi-hyun, can you stop that?â
âLeave it to me.â
With a reassuring response, Si-hyun immediately prepared her magic.
When she was at a distance, she would only hinder the drakeâs hind legs. But if someone was nearby to protectâ
Si-hyun was confident she would not be breached.
Utilizing her full strength, Si-hyun prepared for the drakeâs breath attack.
First, her signature barrier created from holy power shimmered brightly as it manifested.
âGrrrrâ¦â
The massive mouth of the drake slowly opened.
A cold and chilling energy enveloped the air around them.
In a moment of silence, and thenâ
KAAAWAAAHâââ!
With an explosive sound, a breath imbued with extreme cold shot toward the two of them.
However, what Si-hyun had prepared wasnât just the holy barrier.
A wall of blazing flames flickered into existence in front of the barrier at the exact right moment.
A double barrier.
The path of the breath turned icy cold.
Even the moisture floating in the air froze, scattering ice crystals everywhere.
But Si-hyunâs preparations were perfect.
The wall matched against the cold energy reduced its power.
Thus, the barrier created from holy power stood firm.
âSi-hyun! Thatâs incredible! Wow!â
ââ¦Heh.â
Si-hyun let out a bashful laugh at Jiaâs exuberant praise.
After the breath attack ended, when Si-hyun released all her magic, the ice that had formed on the barrier fluttered in the air.
Jia immediately dashed away from the path of the breath attack.
âGRAAAAH!â
Again, it was the chest.
The drake, attacked repeatedly in the same area, let out a massive scream.
This time, it tried to counterattack again, but Jia evaded far more easily.
From the moment the battle began, the accumulated effects of Si-hyunâs debuffs had built up during the time the drake had been expelling its breath.
The furious mana continually gnawed at the drake.
Under normal circumstances, Jia would have been dulled by the drakeâs cold aura.
But thanks to Si-hyunâs blessings and buffs, Jiaâs resistance was raised.
Whenever she felt even slightly sluggish, Si-hyun would immediately purify the cold energy, eliminating it.
Thus, the drakeâs chilling aura had no substantial effect on Jia.
In the end, time was on Si-hyun and Jiaâs side.
So, the two of them easily continued their back-and-forth with the drake.
The drake kept struggling, but it was a mismatched fight.
While Jia remained as she was at the start, the drake grew progressively weaker.
Even if Jia were to sustain an injury, Si-hyunâs blessings would follow immediately.
Eventuallyâ
âGrrrrâ¦â
The massive boss monster collapsed to the ground, breathing its last.
âHaâ¦!â
Jia exhaled the breath she had been holding back.
Approaching her, Si-hyun walked with excited steps.
âJia, you did great! That was really impressive!â
âYou too! You were the best support!â
âHeheâ¦â
âHaha!â
Reveling in the joy of victory,
Si-hyun and Jia exchanged a high-five with a satisfying clap!
It was a clean and perfect victory.
* * *
In the Hunter Management Bureau office in Seoul.
Department Chief Jang Han-soo stared intently at the monitor screen.
It had been several hours since Hunter Kim Jia entered the A-rank dungeon on a mission from the management bureau.
Normally, an individual wouldnât be assigned an A-rank dungeon.
In fact, the chief had recommended starting from a B-rank dungeon.
After all, even for an A-rank hunter, tackling a B-rank dungeon alone was a significant achievement.
However, she insisted on challenging the A-rank dungeon.
Despite his attempts to dissuade her, she confidently requested to be entrusted with the task.
At that moment, a certain womanâs information flickered through the chief's mind.
The returnee who identified herself as a paladin, currently registered as a D-rank hunter, Jeong Si-hyun.
Though he was respecting her wishes and ensuring that the information wouldnât spread too much,
The chief suspected she was at least B-rank, if not A-rank.
He understood Kim Jiaâs intentions.
Although Si-hyunâs name hadnât been mentioned directly between the two of them,
the negotiations had proceeded smoothly.
Chief Jang had considered Si-hyun in the arrangements for entering the gate.
Thus, today, the chief had been repeatedly refreshing the app screen for hours.
âI canât concentrateâ¦â
He needed to handle other tasks, but he found himself constantly drawn back to the screen. It was a struggle.
After all, in normal cases, it was rare for an A-rank dungeon to be cleared in less than a day.@@novelbin@@
The chief was well aware of this.
However, for some reason, due to their past achievements, he couldnât help but keep checking.
âI guess Iâll have some coffee.â
Stretching, the chief got up from his seat.
He swung by the lounge and returned with a cup of coffee, plopping back down in his chair.
And then he noticed.
âOh?â
Without thinking, he clicked refresh on the screen.
The A-rank dungeon located in Gangneung hadâ
Indeed! Once again! It had cleared in less than half a day!
The chief unconsciously clenched his fists in excitement.
âThis is it! Ahâ!â
His nostrils flared with exhilaration.
The chief bounced up and down in his seat, nodding in satisfaction.
He had thought it was unlikely, but the two women hadnât disappointed him.
Once again, they had spectacularly defeated an A-rank dungeon together!
The chief felt a sense of euphoria as if he had achieved it himself.
However, he soon realized that he had shouted without thinking and tried to calm his excitement.
But it was too late; he had drawn someoneâs attention.
A nearby team member approached him.
âChief, is there something good going on?â
âAh, just now Hunter Kim Jia cleared the A-rank dungeon.â
The chief replied casually.
After all, this would be information that would spread soon enough.
âWow, again? At this rate, isnât Hunter Kim Jia going to achieve S-rank soon?â
âExactly! Itâs really reassuring.â
âWow, every time I hear news like this, I feel a sense of pride! Like a new hero has emerged in our country! It feels like that!â
âI agree! Hahaha!â
The team member chatted with the chief for a while about Jia and the hunter.
After he left, the chief leaned back in his chair and thought.
Honestly, he wanted to publicly share about Si-hyun.
That thereâs a returnee in our country! Someone more extraordinary than the returnee from the United States!
Just imagining it excited him.
But it was still too early.
If he inadvertently upset Si-hyunâs feelings, it could all backfire.
The relationship between the management bureau and Si-hyun must not turn into that of the hero party he had heard about before.
For the time being, it would remain information known only to a very few, including himself.
The chief quietly savored his elated feelings.
* * *
Si-hyun and Jia's dungeon-crawling schedule was a day trip.
Having defeated the A-rank dungeon and enjoyed dinner, the two headed straight back to Seoul.
âSi-hyun, you did great today!â
âYou too! Be careful on your way back!â
After dropping Si-hyun off in front of her house, Jia drove away.
Si-hyun briefly gazed at the back of the car as it disappeared before turning away.
Considering the distance between Gangneung and Seoul, and the stop at the mart along the way, it was already night.
Si-hyun's hands were filled with delicious snacks.
Since the profits from todayâs dungeon run had been fruitful, he had picked up various things at the mart.
Returning home, Si-hyun tilted his head and surveyed his surroundings.
He had thought his younger sister, Si-yoon, would be watching TV in the living room.
But she wasnât in sight.
Setting the bags down on the dining table,
Si-hyun looked around blankly and checked his smartphone.
He had sent a message saying he would be back with a lot of food at this time.
Checking the chat history, he saw that Si-yoon had read the message and left a reply.
âAre you still in your room?â
Hadnât she already finished her work hours by now?
Si-hyun lightly tiptoed over to Si-yoonâs door and stood in front of it.
Knock, knockâ
âIâm back! Are you still working?â
Si-hyun knocked on the door, checking if her sister was inside.