Chapter 36: Chapter 36

“Si-hyun! How did it go this time?!”

“I think I did pretty well just now too!”

As the additional battles that followed the dungeon exploration concluded, the men approached Si-hyun with sparkling eyes.

Si-hyun, who had been watching from the back, nodded lightly.

“You all improved a lot.”

“Buffs are really something!”

“It’s all thanks to you, Professor! Hahaha!”

The excited men naturally praised Si-hyun. The corners of her mouth twitched slightly.

“No, how do you know so much about monsters?”

“Truly a professor of the academy! You’re amazing!”

“Hoho…”

The continuous barrage of compliments made Si-hyun’s usually expressionless face begin to soften.

The enthusiastic praises from the men whose lives had been saved started to take effect little by little.

A contract is a contract, and something impressive is just that. Everyone was captivated by Si-hyun’s chicness and strength. A cheerful atmosphere was forming, filled with laughter.

However, in that warm atmosphere, there was one man who felt dejected.

He was an archer.

He spoke to Han-gyeol beside him in a dispirited posture.

“Han-gyeol, why did I have to have the trait of being an archer…?”

“Huh? Isn’t long-range good?”

“But Si-hyun said she doesn’t know much about bows…”

“Oh, hahaha… But there’s still plenty to learn about monsters, right?”

Han-gyeol awkwardly chuckled in response. The archer slowly nodded his head.

As Han-gyeol said, there wasn’t any teaching about bows, but it was true there was a lot to learn.

The archer sighed deeply, but the group proceeded smoothly with their dungeon exploration.

After quite some time passed, the team, now filled with excitement, encountered a troll.

“Uuuh?”

“…Everyone, this is a good teaching material.”

Si-hyun stepped forward. Earlier, the continuous praise from the men had uplifted her spirit, making her more proactive.

“When facing a troll, you should…”

Bwoom—!

Si-hyun lightly dodged the troll’s massive fist by twisting her body.

“Basically, targeting joints or knees is the best approach.”

In an instant, she approached the troll and tapped its knee with her finger. To the troll, this was an extremely provocative action.

“Grrr!”

Enraged, the troll attempted a knee kick. But Si-hyun stepped back lightly, as if she had anticipated it.

The men’s eyes widened at the rapid succession of her moves.

Next, Si-hyun lightly kicked the inside of the troll’s knee.

“Grah—!”

With a loud scream, the troll knelt down, its large frame bringing its height closer to Si-hyun’s.

She naturally continued her lecture.

“Of course, if you’re in range, aiming for the neck is also a good idea.”

“Graaah!”

Enduring the pain, the troll swung its arm at Si-hyun. But it was a futile struggle.

Si-hyun lifted her leg and kicked the arm that was swinging towards her.

Thwack!

With that, the troll’s arm twisted back and hung limply.

Si-hyun cast a glance at the troll as if it were nothing and continued her lecture.

“Archer, you could also aim for the eyes.”

Gripping the troll’s head tightly with one hand, she pointed at the tears rolling from the troll’s eyes with her finger.

The guild members, who had been watching quietly, gasped in astonishment.

“Whoa…”

“Guys, what am I watching right now?”

“Is it crying because it hurts?”

“Was the troll such a pathetic creature?”

Whether the men were surprised or not, Si-hyun nodded once and gestured towards the archer.

When he looked at her, she pointed again at the troll’s eyes.

Blink. Blink.

The archer alternated his gaze between Si-hyun’s face and the troll’s head.

Si-hyun nodded.

‘Shoot, she’s telling me to shoot…?’

Awkwardly, the archer lifted his bow and readied himself. Though his mind struggled to keep up with the situation, he felt compelled to act.

What if he accidentally hit Si-hyun? That thought briefly crossed his mind, but soon followed with the belief that he wouldn’t even be able to hit it.

Whoosh!

Thwack!

“Nice job!”

“Oh, haha!”

It was a hit! The arrow struck directly into the troll’s eye.

Though the troll’s head was slightly tilted, no one noticed.

As Si-hyun praised him, the archer sheepishly scratched his head. He felt a bit like a kindergarten student, but it wasn’t a bad feeling at all.

His self-esteem soared at the praise from the smiling beauty.

“Long-range really is great!”

“Right?”

“Hahaha!”

“Hoho.”

The party’s atmosphere became even more cheerful. Without any laggards, everyone laughed together, exchanging compliments and humor.

Thus, the Wing Guild’s field trip to the C-rank dungeon turned into a delightful outing.

---

After a brief break, before continuing with the dungeon exploration, the members of the Wing Guild asked Si-hyun.

“Si-hyun, what are your plans for dinner after the dungeon today?”

“Would you like to eat with us and then head home?”

The group’s attention turned to Si-hyun. She shook her head and replied.

“I plan to have dinner at home with my younger sister.”

“Oh, I see!”

The men showed a hint of disappointment but didn’t express it too openly. They began to move busily, preparing to wrap up the dungeon exploration.

During this, they encountered a group of goblins wielding various weapons.

“The professor wants to leave early!”

“Let’s finish up before dinner time!”

“Your sister is waiting! Charge—!”

The men shouted energetically and rushed forward.

‘I didn’t really want to leave early…’

Si-hyun forced a smile. However, it was nice to see everyone so lively compared to when they first entered the dungeon.

“Hm…”

“Kek—!”

Suddenly, she kicked the belly of a rushing goblin.

Si-hyun leisurely observed the Wing Guild members.

D-rank hunters were certainly more adept in combat than E-rank hunters. They fought like fish in water against familiar goblins.

Of course, the sheer number of goblins made things challenging.

Yet, thanks to Si-hyun’s assistance in critical moments, the team successfully defeated the monster horde once again.

“Thanks to you, Si-hyun, our progress is incredibly fast. We’ll be done soon!”

“It’s so quick!”

The men chattered excitedly while gathering the loot.

Indeed, their pace was exceptionally rapid. Riding the momentum, they swiftly cleared the forest.

With their confidence boosted, the men moved forward without hesitation.

“Hmm? Is that an open area?”

“Don’t you see something at the end of that clearing?”

“So, is this the end?”

“Everyone, hold on for a moment…”

Si-hyun attempted to stop the men. A faint mana she was releasing hit a specific boundary.

This sensation was precisely what she felt when entering a boss room. It was her first time sensing this in a dungeon clearing.

“Let’s finish up quickly!”

“Let’s go!”

But the excited men did not hear Si-hyun’s voice. They continued to chatter lively as they moved forward.

“…Stop for now!”

Feeling something was off, Si-hyun shouted loudly. Han-gyeol, who was near her, immediately halted.

However, the remaining men kept advancing. The conversation came to a halt.

But their steps did not cease.

It was as if, upon passing a specific boundary, ‘the space had been separated.’

An ominous situation. Si-hyun immediately stomped the ground.

With all her strength, she thrust her fist into the space where the mana was blocked.

Boom—!

Si-hyun’s fist was halted. An invisible barrier crackled, refusing entry.@@novelbin@@

The steps of the men ahead came to a stop.

They hadn’t heard the sound of the barrier breaking.

They realized late that Si-hyun and Han-gyeol had halted their steps.

They turned back, tilting their heads as if to speak, but no sound came out.

They were perfectly isolated by the boundary.

Han-gyeol, who approached Si-hyun, touched the air.

Something transparent was blocking their way.

A notification appeared in Han-gyeol’s status window. He wiped the cold sweat from his brow as he stared at the status window.

The men on the other side also sensed something was off.

They tried to walk back through the boundary.

Thwack!

They were pushed back by an invisible wall. Rubbing their foreheads, they glared at the boundary.

At that moment, Han-gyeol sighed heavily.

“Oh, my god…”

“…Han-gyeol?”

“This is… so malicious…”

With a curse, Han-gyeol made a sobbing sound.

Si-hyun turned her head towards Han-gyeol. He was staring blankly at a direction in the air.

Si-hyun instinctively understood what that motion meant. This was something awakeners did when looking at their status windows.

“Damn it! Damn it!”

With all his might, Han-gyeol struck the invisible wall with his sword.

The barrier crackled, lightly deflecting his sword.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Han-gyeol didn’t give up and kicked the barrier multiple times. But he could

not continue for long.

It was all in vain.

Despairing, he hung on to the invisible wall, eventually kneeling down.

“Why is it that this dungeon has to appear now…?”

In despair, Han-gyeol trailed off his words as he wept.

Si-hyun furrowed her delicate brow and looked up.

The boss monster of the dungeon, located on the opposite side of the large clearing, slowly rose.

It had sensed the prey entering its territory.

The expressions of the four D-rank men trapped inside turned pale.

To kill the boss of a C-rank dungeon, a D-rank hunter would need at least ten or more to participate. They would also have to be prepared for fatalities.

And just four of them?

It was effectively a death sentence.

The men’s legs began to tremble uncontrollably.

The situation had grown urgent. Si-hyun looked back at Han-gyeol.

“Han-gyeol, what happened?”

“…It’s a one-way entry limit boss room. Only D-rank or lower can enter! Damn it!”

Half out of his mind, Han-gyeol cried out.

If a typical C-rank party had discovered this, the management bureau would have called in sufficient personnel to handle it.

It was sheer bad luck that they found it this way.

Suddenly, Han-gyeol’s eyes widened as he looked at Si-hyun.

‘Wait…?’

Wasn’t Si-hyun a D-rank hunter?

While the hunter's rank is shown in the status window, one can only see their own.

Thus, promoted hunters go to the management bureau to take the promotion exam to have their rank acknowledged.

Therefore, Si-hyun was now a hunter of C-rank or higher.

‘So what if she is…?’

It was a moment of understanding why she was so strong. But that did not help solve their current situation.

Should they rather rush outside to call for help?

…No, it would surely be too late.

They couldn’t hold out until a sufficient number of D-rank hunters gathered.

If even a little time passed, the guild members in front of her would be torn apart by the boss monster.

“Damn it, damn it…”

Tears streamed down Han-gyeol’s face as he pounded the ground with his fist.

No matter how much he thought, there seemed to be no way out.

The unfortunate death that hunters could encounter was arriving today of all days! Han-gyeol wept in despair.

After hearing the explanation, Si-hyun placed her palm against the transparent wall.

‘It’s a rank restriction.’

It was something hunters always said.

While the status window is incredibly convenient, it’s also ‘unfriendly.’

That seemed undeniably true. Even a non-awakened individual was restricted from entry.

In other words, it wasn’t a matter of entry limited by rank. It was a magical phenomenon.

“Han-gyeol.”

“…Yes?”

As Si-hyun called, Han-gyeol, teary-eyed, lifted his head.

He found Si-hyun’s serious gaze.

“Do you trust me?”

“…!”

Han-gyeol’s eyes widened.

The woman in front of him looked overflowing with confidence. It was as if she had a way to solve their current situation.

Her mystical golden eyes sparkled brilliantly.

Feeling as though he was being drawn in, Han-gyeol slowly opened his mouth.

“...Yes! I trust you!”

It was a powerful response.