LIGHTNOVELWORLD 68. Cha Taeyang and the Hell Tree (1)
The children, who had been discussing with their heads together, seemed to have reached a decision as they showed a page from somewhere in the middle of the file.
“We’ll go with this one!”
“…Cave 49? Are you sure?”
“Wow, you guys picked an interesting one.”
As Jo Sung-hyun shrugged and answered “Of course,” Hong Yun-jae’s face grew serious.
‘Their reaction is strange. Let me see.’
At the top of the page the children had opened, the words “49th, Cave of the Hell Tree” were written in bold. Skimming through the description, it mentioned that a B-rank raid boss appears.
‘Isn’t this an appropriate level?’
These two are young but highly skilled. Since it’s a tree, it’s likely to be a stationary type.
Shin-ju, who had been giggling quietly, pointed at the file and said,
“Gaho-Gaho, do you see that red star mark?”
“Next to the name?”
“Yeah. That means…”
“It’s a caution mark.”
Hong Yun-jae interrupted Shin-ju, who had been dragging out her words to tease me.
“It’s a mark that’s only attached to caves that require special caution, regardless of rank.”
“You’ve grown a lot, huh? Interrupting me like that.”
“Cadet Jo Sung-hyun, Hunter Cha Taeyang. Please reconsider. Cave 23 or 68, or if you want something a bit more challenging, Cave 91 isn’t bad either.”
Despite Hong Yun-jae’s repeated attempts to persuade them, the children didn’t easily change their minds. Wondering if they were about to do something dangerous, I narrowed my eyes and looked at the two. Cha Taeyang shook her head vigorously and protested.
“Here. Read this properly. Then you’ll understand why we chose this one.”
“We’re not doing anything dangerous. Even Sori approved!”
If the goblin, who’s sensitive about Cha Taeyang’s safety, approved it, it should be fine, but looking at Hong Yun-jae’s reaction, it seems not. Their responses were polar opposites.
“Hurry up.”
Unable to wait even that brief moment, Jo Sung-hyun thrust the file into my arms.
[49th, Cave of the Hell Tree★
– Raid Boss: Hell Tree (B)
– Summary: B-rank, Dark attribute, Plant type, Physical + Magical
– Field characteristics: Dark attribute field, Forest, Red Moon
As soon as you enter, the Hell Tree in the center of the dark clearing opens its eyes. (…) It mainly uses physical attacks with its branches and roots as whips, and the power of its attacks is relatively weak compared to other raid bosses of the same rank. In the early phase when the moon is covered, the power of magical attacks is greatly reduced.
After taking a certain amount of damage, the clouds clear and a red moon rises. From then on, its attribute changes to magical, and it summons a legion of vengeful spirits.
……]
‘This is classified as B-rank?’
The transition from physical to magical is rare in itself. And it even commands a number of summons large enough to be called a legion. I could understand Hong Yun-jae’s reaction now.
“Although it’s classified as B-rank because the power of the main body’s attacks isn’t strong, it’s actually comparable to an A-rank monster. Plus, what it summons is a legion of ghost-type monsters.”
Hong Yun-jae warned that it’s one of the trickiest caves even within the Ninety-Nine Branch Cave.
As he said, it was a nasty field. In the early phase, magical attacks are reduced. But if only physical dealers go, they’ll be helpless in the later phase when the vengeful spirit legion is summoned.
“If there were no person limit, it might be different, but this is certainly not ordinary.”
“Usually, one magic-type and one physical-type form a team to handle each phase, but even that’s not easy and always causes trouble.”
The children didn’t seem to have any intention of changing their minds, and Shin-ju was cackling about how their spirit was admirable, so Hong Yun-jae started trying to persuade me.
“You just need to defeat a boss of an appropriate rank, there’s no need to make it unnecessarily difficult.”
“That’s true, but…”
“As their mentor, if Hunter Yun Gaho could persuade Cha Taeyang…”
Perhaps thinking I was the only person who could be reasoned with, Hong Yun-jae’s gaze towards me was quite desperate. But I shook my head.
Normally, I would have dissuaded them too. Normally, that is.
‘She’s probably planning to use Gate of the Dead.’
Cha Taeyang said she received decent equipment as a reward for the hidden quest. She also mentioned buying new gloves. She must have used those to make up for her lacking magic stats.
They said the power of the tree’s main body is weak, so as long as there are no unexpected situations, they should be able to defeat it more easily than other bosses of the same rank.
“Hunter Cha Taeyang isn’t an ordinary A-rank, so it should be fine.”
“That’s right, who do you think raised her! As expected, Mr. Kim knows her stuff!”
The goblin, excited by Cha Taeyang’s praise, rolled towards me. Hong Yun-jae, having lost his only voice of reason, sighed deeply and approached Shin-ju.
“Sunbae.”
“Hm?”
“Surely not all of your guild members are like this, right?”
“Hahah, they’re mostly like this!”
Cha Taeyang, seemingly overjoyed that I supported her choice, smiled brightly and linked her arm with mine. When I praised her for finding such a good option despite having many choices, Cha Taeyang and the goblin became excited and made a fuss.
‘It was probably Jo Sung-hyun’s idea though.’
It didn’t seem like the kind of thinking that suited Cha Taeyang, who specializes in head-on approaches. Jo Sung-hyun must have come up with this clever plan. Jo Sung-hyun, who had been tossing and catching his uniform cap, noticed my gaze and boasted in his characteristic insolent tone.
“What do you think? It’s a good idea, right?”
“Variables always occur in actual combat. Don’t let your guard down.”
“That’s right! Jo Sung-hyun, last time you touched that weird clock too…”
“Ugh, that’s ancient history!”
The children, who had started arguing again, began a chase around the waiting room. I hope they don’t act like this in the field. I suddenly felt uneasy about sending just the two of them.
As if sensing my concern, the goblin, who had climbed onto my crown, said cheerfully,
“Don’t worry, Mr. Kim! Kids grow up by fighting!”
◆◇◆◇◆
A toy soldier, large enough to rival a decent-sized building, fired block missiles from its fingertips. The blocks, which had been flying in a straight line, drew a large curve as they chased after me.
[Childhood Guardian, Soldatino]
[♪(^∇^*)]
The soldier, with an LCD screen instead of a face, smiled annoyingly.
‘Of all the fields Shin-ju could have chosen, she had to pick this one.’
I gritted my teeth as I looked at the plain with no suitable places to hook onto. If I can’t avoid them, I’ll have to attack! I shot an arrow towards the block missiles that had almost reached me.
“Apply ‘Chain’ to slot 3!”
The arrow that hit the nearest missile curved in a zigzag pattern, shooting down the rest of the missiles. Fragments of blocks that burst with an explosive sound grazed my cheek as they passed by.
“Good shot!”
“Park Shin-ju! Above!”
“Yes, I know.”
Shin-ju, who had been grinning at me, kicked away the soldier’s left leg that was falling towards her head with a Tonfa. I, who had been waiting with my bowstring drawn, fired an arrow at the right foot supporting its body.
Bang!
The soldier’s body lost balance and tilted backwards. Simultaneously, a speaker that appeared next to Shin-ju’s face shouted in a frivolous voice.
[PERFECT! 30 COMBO achieved!]
“Okay! The real game starts from here!”
No sooner had Shin-ju finished her signature line than cheerful music began to flow from the speaker. Her skill, ‘Rhythm Note’, had activated.
As I watched Shin-ju start running up the soldier’s leg, I also activated ‘Explorer’s Eye’. Unlike before, markers were floating around various places near Shin-ju.
The red circular markers, the notes, were shrinking every second.
“Bow Assistant activate, Anchor!”
I aimed at the note that was shrinking at the fastest rate among them. The arrow, aimed with the help of the skill, pierced the center of the note.
[EXCELLENT! 31 COMBO!]
Paching-!
With a loud effect like fireworks, a gust of wind arose where the note had been. The soldier, who had just managed to right itself, fell on its behind from the unexpected explosion.
[32, 33, 34 COMBO!]
Shin-ju, who had placed her palms on various parts of the soldier’s body, seemed to have finished her preparations and started hitting the notes in earnest. As the combo count increased, the light imbued in her Tonfa became more vivid, and the power of her attacks visibly strengthened.
[PERFECT! 50 COMBO!]
Shin-ju’s hair fluttered violently amidst the effects pouring down like a waterfall.
“I can’t just stand still either.”
This field with its vast plain isn’t a particularly good environment for me.
But there was one place where I could hook onto.
‘And it happens to be where that thing is!’
Moreover, it’s currently distracted by Shin-ju’s whirlwind of attacks. It wouldn’t be hunter-like to miss such a perfectly set opportunity.
With a smirk, I fired my grappling hook upwards. Seeing me suddenly float into the air, Shin-ju laughed loudly.
“Ahaha, Yun Gaho! What are you planning to do?”
“Didn’t you hate spoilers?”
“You know me too well!”
As my altitude increased, Shin-ju’s voice grew fainter, and I made eye contact with the soldier.
[(+_+)?]
The soldier displayed a question mark, as if unsure why I was there. It seemed to be asking what I was trying to do.
“Well, there’s always a way. Look forward to it.”