-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Bang-gaksi
-----------------------------------------------------------------
‘I have more than a few questions, but now someone’s coming? It’s just one thing after another.’
Instead of activating a skill, Seora put her weapon into her inventory. Her senses didn’t pick up any presence, but the Administrator wouldn’t lie about something like this.
“Well, you may not lie, but you’re great at hiding things, aren’t you?”
【Administrator: (;¬_¬)】
Seora scoffed, spitting out the words bluntly.
“I should have been the one to kill this thing. What a shame.”
She leaped back, dodging another attack from the magical beast.
She had no intention of forgiving the bastard who had ruined her chance to clock out on time, but she had no choice. She didn't want to get caught and have her resignation, let alone her prompt departure from work, blown away.
‘Ah, but when are they getting here? At this rate, that thing is going to suck me dry!’
Since someone was on their way, she couldn't ask for the Blessing of Protection, which would reflect attacks with triple the force.
The problem was that her frantic movements were splattering drops of blood everywhere. The beast, as if unwilling to waste a single drop, was opening its jaw wide to catch them.
It was a truly gruesome sight. Ugh, I should try not to bleed anywhere from now on.
“Aaaargh! Stop it, you’re making me sick…!”
Exploiting its spectral nature, the magical beast closed the distance in an instant, leaving no trace. Just as a horrified Seora tried to dodge, protecting her injured arm at all costs, she saw it.
A figure approaching from behind the beast, even more silently than the specter itself.
Short black hair, a composed, expressionless face, a pitch-black combat suit that covered her from neck to limbs, and movements as fluid and natural as flowing water.
Seora’s eyes widened at the sight of the familiar person.
Why is she here?
“I’ll kill you.”
A heavy, calm voice cut off the magical beast. Along with it, a pure white blade sliced cleanly through the specter’s neck. A horrifying shriek erupted.
Even then, its long tongue tried to swallow Seora, but the sword struck again. The translucent body scattered powerlessly into the air.
The specter was dead.
【The boss monster of the 4th-grade dungeon ‘Ghost Town’ has been slain!】
【Top Contributor: Jeong Hoyoung (S-Rank)】
‘So my eyes weren’t deceiving me.’
The one sheathing the dagger that had decapitated the magical beast was none other than Jeong Hoyoung, the guild master of the Chasa Guild, ranked second in the country.
Along with the relief of being saved, Seora felt another, very different kind of relief.
‘Wow, that gives me the creeps. What would have happened if I’d ignored the Administrator and killed the beast?’
Of all the people who could have shown up, it had to be Jeong Hoyoung.
She was one of Song Hanna’s most famous followers in the country. It was so extreme that people joked she had named her guild ‘Chasa’ to signify her unwavering loyalty to Association President Song Hanna.
If someone that devoted had witnessed her killing the beast? She would have run straight to report the fact without a second thought.
Seora was genuinely relieved that she had listened to the Administrator.
‘Elizabeth, I’ll let you off the hook for hiding things from me this time.’
【Administrator: ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و】
‘Of course, that doesn’t mean I won’t question you later.’
【Administrator: (._, )】
Ignoring the Administrator, who had started sniffling quietly again, Seora met Jeong Hoyoung’s gaze. The woman approached and carefully examined the wound on her arm.
“This is severe.”
Well, it certainly was severe. Rolling around to dodge the beast's attacks had worsened the cut on her arm, and her body was covered in dust.
“Is this from that magical beast just now?”
“Y-yes.”
“It’s a spectral attack, so there won’t be any poison, but it’s best to treat it quickly.”
Jeong Hoyoung took a potion from her inventory and poured it liberally over the wound.
My goodness. To use such an expensive high-grade healing potion like this. I guess being Song Hanna’s cherished friend’s daughter has its perks.
“I-is the Chasa Guild in charge of clearing this dungeon?”
Seora asked, making sure to act as if she were in great pain.
It was a good thing she had rolled around so much while dodging. If she had been clean, it would have surely raised suspicions. As the nation’s top assassin-type, Jeong Hoyoung was highly skilled at noticing such details.
“The Association President requested it. Our headquarters is nearby, as it happens.”
“So you came to rescue me from the start?”
“The Association President is very worried. She suggested you get an exorcism.”
“…”
A look of sorrow settled on Seora’s face. This time, it wasn't an act; it was genuine.
I know, right…? How did things ever get to this point…?
“The bleeding has stopped. There’s an ambulance waiting outside. Let’s go.”
“Yes, yes. Oh! Section Chief Kim Sanghyeon!”
Remembering Kim Sanghyeon, whom she had inadvertently thrown when the beast attacked, she frantically looked around. He was slumped in a sorry state in a corner against the wall.
S-sorry. It wasn't on purpose.
However, as she turned to check if he was injured anywhere, Seora had to apologize again. He must have hit something, because even while unconscious, blood was streaming from both his nostrils.
I’m truly sorry. I’ll pretend I didn’t see that.
Seora silently took out a handkerchief and wiped his nose.
* * *
Outside the gate, the members of the hunting guild, presumably rescued by the Chasa team, were sprawled everywhere.
Some had died, their minds completely consumed, but most had survived. Everyone was puzzled as to how the members of a small-scale guild had survived the White Ghost’s mental attack.
Surprisingly, the truth came out quickly.
“My mind went hazy, and I saw illusions as if I were wandering through a dream. That’s when it happened. Something shot right through my head.”
“R-right! Me too, me too! The illusions vanished, and I felt my body go limp, so I thought I was dead for sure! But how am I even alive…?”
“It was a gun. It definitely felt like being shot by a gun. I’ve been shot before, so I know exactly what it feels like.”
“The moment something pierced my head, I felt all the energy drain from my body. I thought my soul was leaving me, so I was sure I was dead. I can’t believe I’m perfectly fine.”
The survivors’ stories were all the same. Even the dispatched civil servant, Section Chief Kim Sanghyeon, claimed to have had the same experience.
As people murmured, wondering what had happened, Seora quietly raised her hand. As all eyes, including Jeong Hoyoung’s, turned to her, she spoke with utmost seriousness.
“It was the same for me. Right after the Section Chief went down, I collapsed too, and something came flying at my head. It didn’t hurt, but the sensation was shocking. My head was pierced…”
Rubbing her forehead as if in pain, Seora swayed dramatically. Jeong Hoyoung, who was standing beside her, quickly supported her. The face that offered a small word of thanks was so pale that Jeong Hoyoung grew deeply concerned.
And so, she had no idea.
That in contrast to Seora’s stiffly held body, her mind was racing furiously.
‘I’m screwed. Royally screwed! I can’t believe they could feel that even while unconscious! What do I do!’
Seora gulped.
From now on, she had to play dumb, no matter what.
I just woke up a little earlier than everyone else.
I didn't see a thing.
Seora repeated these phrases to herself over and over, putting on the performance of a lifetime.
* * *
【Title: Is it true Headbang showed up at the rift dungeon that opened today?】
【The hunting guild members were almost dead from the White Ghost’s mind control, but they say they were saved by getting shot in the head? The only one going around shooting people in the head these days is Headbang, right? If it’s really him, then what in the world…? Can he even purify mental corruption? Isn’t that skill totally OP?
But why did he save people and then disappear without telling anyone again??? Is he some kind of modern-day Snail Bride or something?】
【Comments】
Not Snail Bride, Bang-gaksi.
└Dude above me is insane lollll Bang-gaksi 😂😂😂😂😂
But seriously, it’s weird. You’d think he’d reveal his identity after solving something like this, so why doesn’t he?
└He pulled a hit-and-run rescue after taking down a 2nd-grade magical beast. You think he’s gonna show his face for clearing a 4th-grade dungeon?
Huh? Wasn’t it the Chasa Guild that handled the rift dungeon? The guild master who doesn’t lift a finger unless her beloved Tiger commands it actually made a move for once.
└That was just for the boss. Pretty sure it was Bang-gaksi who saved the hunting guild members.
└For real? Seeing the Tiger’s fans clapping and saying ‘That’s our Tiger’s Chasa for you,’ it just looks like Chasa handled it.
└Nah, Chasa said themselves it wasn’t them.
“…Guild Master, why did you have to do that? You could have just said you handled it.”
Scanning the community posts, Seora recalled the painfully honest Jeong Hoyoung and shed a silent tear.
“And Bang-gaksi, really? You think I wanted to become a Snail Bride…?”
She, too, wanted to sit at a table set by someone else and enjoy a warm meal. Did they really think she enjoyed preparing the feast only to flee before she could take a single bite?
She had no choice but to run, because if she took even one bite, her life would be forfeit from that moment on.
“If it weren’t for my aunt’s overprotectiveness, I would have quit long ago… Now that I’m S-rank, there’s no need to keep working as a civil servant anyway.”
There was a reason she had wanted to become a civil servant right after turning twenty, just as she became an adult.
But now that her rank had been upgraded, that reason was gone.
“Is there any way for me to quit quietly without my aunt getting suspicious and dragging me back to her house?”
For the first time since taking the civil service exam, she wracked her brain until it felt like it would split, but all she could see was a bleak future. *Sniffle.*
Just then, her phone, lying beside her, buzzed with a text notification. Seora sluggishly turned on the screen. Her expression soured the moment she read the message.
[Do you even have any intention of hiding your identity?]
It was a text from that damn Regressor who had supposedly lived through five lifetimes.
