Chapter 58 - Dullahan Hunt (2)

[The last remaining Dullahan has evolved into a Dullahan Lord.]

A Dullahan Lord.

A rather troublesome opponent for my current self had appeared.

The Lord's size was three to four times larger than a regular Dullahan, and its head was proportionally even bigger.

As its size increased, so did its magical power, and it didn't just throw its head like a normal Dullahan.

And what was most annoying was the Dullahan Lord's regenerative ability.

To deal with this monster with tenacious life force, one had to either launch a powerful attack at once or exploit its weakness.

In fact, both methods were viable options.

The former was an option when Seo Ji-hoon took the lead, and the latter was an option when I did.

Naturally, my choice would be the latter, to exploit the Dullahan Lord's weakness.

But I wouldn't go out alone.

Because a more dramatic performance was possible when I was with Seo Ji-hoon.

Of course, all of this was to obtain the map that led to the Hatchling's Nest.

“It's time for you to step up, brother.”

“I suppose I should.”

Seo Ji-hoon was taking his participation for granted.

“I'll be in the vanguard, so you take care of the rear support.”

But he immediately shook his head.

“No need. I'm enough on my own, so you don't have to step up.”

“You haven't forgotten today's rule, have you?”

There was an agreement between me and Seo Ji-hoon.

Today's hunt would be led by me from start to finish, and Seo Ji-hoon would only intervene when I was in danger.

For that reason, he had no business joining the hunt today.

“This is not a situation to follow such rules. The dungeon going berserk is already a dangerous enough situation.”

“No. That rule is still valid.”

“A Dullahan Lord is a deadly monster! It's clear you'll be in danger the moment the battle begins. That's why I'm telling you not to step up, but I don't know why you can't understand!”

“It seems you're the one who can't understand, so I'll have to say it again. My intuition is quite accurate. Especially when it comes to sensing danger. So, I'll be the vanguard, and you'll be the rear support.”

I looked straight at Seo Ji-hoon and stated my intention firmly.

“Unit Leader! Why don't you go along with Unit Leader Seo Ji-han's wishes? You can always intervene after the battle has started, can't you?”

The one who provided me with supporting fire was Chae Su-ji.

Of course, I knew her intention well.

She would want to know the source and truth of my confidence.

And this would be connected to the doubt that the two of them had been harboring all day.

Seo Ji-hoon eventually nodded at Chae Su-ji's words.

“Alright. I'll follow your wish one more time. But, if I see even the slightest sign of danger, I will end it immediately.”

“As you wish.”

Of course, it would end anticlimactically before he even had a chance to intervene.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The ground trembled as the Dullahan Lord was already charging fiercely towards us.

A massive body comparable to an ogre. A huge head held in both hands. And on top of that, an incredible speed that didn't match its bulky body at all.

It made one understand at once why the title 'Lord' was attached to it.

I raised my Reapersword and began to walk leisurely towards the Dullahan Lord.

Normal attacks wouldn't work on that thing at all.

Whether I stabbed it with my sword or cut its body, the Dullahan Lord would immediately regenerate its body and counterattack.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Before I knew it, the distance to the Dullahan Lord was just a stone's throw away.

It was running like mad, its movements solely for attack.

Trusting in its regenerative ability, it paid no mind to defense.

Thus, its huge body was full of openings.

Perhaps it was an instinctive ploy for a single counterattack.

Finally, at the moment when the creature and I overlapped at one point.

Whoosh!

I slipped behind the Dullahan Lord and lightly swung my Reapersword.

Swish!

The place I cut was the Achilles tendon, right above its right heel.

A non-regenerable weak spot that even the monster itself didn't know about.

Blood splattered as it staggered and let out a scream.

Kieeeeeeeee!!!

It was a strange sight every time I saw it.

To think that a head separated from its body could feel pain and suffer like this.

“Don't let your guard down!”

Seo Ji-hoon shouted.

As he said, letting one's guard down against a Dullahan Lord was absolutely forbidden.

In a normal case, that is.

In this situation, a Dullahan Lord would usually regenerate its injured ankle immediately and then smash its head held in both hands down on me.

But today would be a little different.

Kieeeeeeeee!

The Dullahan Lord barely managed to get up and just showed defensive movements while screaming.

For Seo Ji-hoon, it must be a sight that defied common sense.

“Something is definitely wrong! I'll step in and finish it!”

“Are you trying to reap the rewards without lifting a finger?”

“Don’t get me wrong! This is not a monster that can be defeated with an attack of this level!”

But I ignored Seo Ji-hoon’s words and raised my Reapersword towards the Dullahan Lord.

With a wound that couldn't be healed, its fighting power was already less than half.

It would now pay a bitter price for charging recklessly, trusting only in its regenerative ability.

Swaaaaaa!

Swaaaaaa!

Every time I swung my sword at the Dullahan Lord, the dungeon vibrated with its screams.

Still, its regenerative ability was top-notch.

The process of its wounds healing could be seen in real-time, and its mangled body was cleaned up in an instant.

Except for one place. The right ankle.

This difference was quite significant.

Because its balance was off, it couldn't attack or defend properly.

Just like now.

Whoooooosh!

It tried to swing its head like a flail, but its speed and trajectory were a mess.

I tilted my body to lightly dodge the Lord's attack and then swung my sword.

Kieeeeeeeeeek!

From behind, I could feel Seo Ji-hoon flinch.

He must be readying his blade, prepared to intervene at any moment.

But all he could do now was repeat the same line like déja vu.

“Don't let your guard down!”

“Wouldn't it be okay to let it down a little?”

Swaaaaaa!

Another sword wound was carved into the Dullahan Lord's chest.

Swaaaaaa!

Swaaaaaaaa!

And then, I accelerated my sword strikes.

Since I couldn't make a big attack at once with my mana, the best way was to overwhelm it with quantity.

If my sword strikes surpassed the Dullahan Lord's regeneration speed, the result would be the same anyway.

And at the moment that critical point was passed.

Kieeeeeeeeeek!

The Dullahan Lord dropped the head it was holding in both hands.

Thump!

The ground shook, and a thick cloud of dust rose.

It was time to finish it.

If I didn't hurry, I would have to start all over again, so I plunged my Reapersword into its head without hesitation.

Thwack!

Blood spurted out like a fountain.

Silence fell upon the dungeon that had been filled with screams.

The Dullahan Lord's body collapsed helplessly.

If it regenerated again even after being so mangled, this creature wouldn't be a Dullahan Lord.

[Dungeon has been cleared.]

The journey in the berserk dungeon had come to an end.

Seo Ji-hoon stood there, still holding his drawn sword, just staring at me blankly.

All sorts of thoughts must be going through his head, but he wouldn't be able to find a clear answer anyway.

The important thing was that I was right.

“I told you. It's not dangerous.”

“Unbelievable.”

“There’s nothing in the world that can’t happen.”

In a world where one could be reborn in another dimension after reincarnation, there was nothing that couldn't happen.

[Rewards have been distributed.]

For example, there were people who were continuously lucky with dungeon rewards.

The rewards I received for clearing the dungeon today were one high-quality Mana Stone, one Mana Rune, and one Abyss Rune.

***

The car on the way back to the family estate was filled with silence.

I was separated from Chae Su-ji in the driver's seat by a glass partition, and Seo Ji-hoon, sitting next to me, seemed lost in thought and said nothing.

The Taros's Necklace he had borrowed from Chae Su-ji was emitting a faint mana from his inner pocket.

It seemed he intended to find out something by talking to me on the way back, but for that, he was too quiet.

In the end, it was a meaningless mumble that broke the silence.

“You've changed so much.”

“Me?”

“Yes. How is such a thing possible?”

“A person can change with a single catalyst that comes at a certain moment.”

For me, it was just death and reincarnation.

“Anyway, it's an amazing thing.”

“By the way, have you thought more about what I proposed?”

He would have understood even if I didn't spell it out.

The map that led to the Hatchling's Nest.

I wanted him to hand over the one he had.

“The words that I would die and you would live if we entered that nest. Is there really any basis for that?”

This question itself was a surprising change.

At that time, Seo Ji-hoon had dismissed this story as nonsense.

He had only postponed entering the nest because he had reluctantly granted his youngest brother's request.

“A basis? Of course, there is.”

“Do you really think you are stronger than me?”

Seo Ji-hoon let out a scoff as if he found his own question absurd.

“I'm not that undiscerning. Well, it's only a matter of time before I become stronger than you, though.”

“You're really not the old Seo Ji-han. Then what is that basis?”

“Let's just say it's intuition. You can think of it in a similar context to how that Dullahan Lord today didn't seem dangerous to me.”

It was a vague answer, but Taros's Necklace was not reacting at all.

In many ways, the situation was helping me.

Like how the dungeon went berserk today.

“That intuition. It's truly a fearsome thing.”

“I agree.”

“But handing that map over to you is not such a simple matter.”

“I know. It's a reward you earned through hardship by carrying out a quest with the Wolyeong Knights. Well, it's not really a reward in the end, though.”

“In any case, that proposal is off the table.”

It would be troublesome if Seo Ji-hoon came out like this.

What was clear was that his heart had been swayed by this dungeon raid.

There would be no better opportunity than today, when I had momentum.

“Wouldn't it be unsettling? To ignore my words and enter the Hatchling's Dungeon. You don't even know what you can get from there, so is there a reason to take such a risk?”

“It hasn't even been revealed how dangerous a hatchling is, so there's no reason to give up the reward I can get from there either.”

“If you give me the map, I'll make a firm promise. I'll give you all the rewards I get from that nest.”

“What?”

The reward was not important to me.

There was something I had to ask when I met the hatchling.

Even if I couldn't get the answer I wanted, I thought I absolutely had to seize this rare opportunity.

“If the reward is a bound item, I'll compensate you even if I have to pull out the main pillar of the sword unit, and I plan to give you all transferable rewards. Should we write a contract?”

“Then what are you going there to get?”

“It's nothing special, just curiosity. It's not dangerous for me anyway.”

As I said that, I looked straight into Seo Ji-hoon's eyes.

Naturally, Taros's Necklace showed no reaction at all.

I smiled broadly at Seo Ji-hoon.

Under this condition, it was by no means a losing deal for him.

Since he even had a lie detector, he didn't have to worry about me cheating him out of the reward.

“How about it? Have you changed your mind a bit now?”

Silence hung in the car for a moment.

Judging by Seo Ji-hoon's expression, I had already passed the eighth ridge.