“Hiuaak!”
Hyeon Gyu-ha waved his hand while smiling slightly at In Yoo-shin, who was convulsing as if he was about to jump out of his seat. A monster that had just formed next to him burst with a bang.
“I’m going to heal your wound.”
“I-I-If I apply my saliva, it’ll be fine!”
“Your wound isn’t on your hand, it’s on your cheek. How can you apply your spit, Yoo-shin-ssi? Your tongue can’t reach your cheek.”
Huh? Is that so? Is that so?
In Yoo-shin, who was flustered and almost fell for his sophistry, quickly came to his senses.
“I can just apply saliva to my hand and rub it on the wound!”
“You can’t even see where the wound is, Yoo-shin-ssi.”
“…….”
……Wait a minute?
As he listened, he became more and more convinced, and Hyeon Gyu-ha smiled gently, moistening his eyes, unlike his sly words.
What are you, really, to me?
71 hours and 46 minutes trapped in the erosion gate.
"I should bring several spare portable batteries next time.”
"I hope I don't get trapped in the erosion gate next time…….”
"Well, it's like dating for 24 hours, isn't it nice? Even though there are a lot of impurities around."
Hyeon Gyu-ha, who had been through the darkness, returned to his usual relaxed appearance. Other people might not have been able to tell, but In Yoo-shin could clearly see it.
“Let’s play this game too.”
Hyun Gyu-ha took out a board game box from the subspace. This time, it was a new box that had not been opened yet. In this place where there was no radio transmission and no way to charge the battery, board games were a good choice for killing time.
There were all kinds of board games, but Hyeon Gyu-ha had never played a single one. He said he just bought them in order of popularity. In Yoo-shin had only played a little board game at the orphanage.
While the two were reading the rules together, Park Seung-gi, who had borrowed Yoo-shin’s cell phone and was diligently filming until the battery ran out, quietly joined in. Lee Hye-yeon and Choi Jin-hyeok also joined in.
Surprisingly, the person who knew board games well was Gong Tae-seong. Choi Jin-hyeok forcibly dragged him over and sat him down, even though he was annoyed by him.
<This kid used to play board games a lot when he was on dates.>
<Ugh. A date with Team Leader Choi?>
<Even if it was a joke, don't say such horrible things. I'm talking about Kong's ex-wife who divorced him.>
The date with the third generation of a conglomerate was surprisingly simple.
The board game that started like that continued steadily even as the members changed little by little. Other people who were watching also borrowed board games.
People gathered in groups of three or four and became absorbed in board games. The game that they could immerse themselves in somewhat soothing their anxiety.
The belief that they would soon be able to leave the gate with two S-class players gradually faded. The dungeon boss was still not found, and people were getting tired.
The four top hunters were unshaken, but the others were not. Even hunters who set up forward bases inside the gate and continue hunting for days on end can't hide their anxiety, how much more so for ordinary people?
Unlike other gates, this isn't a dungeon where you can escape the monsters, so the mental exhaustion and fatigue are even greater. Even food and water are in short supply.
There was a limit to calming down with board games. Finally, one man who couldn't stand it raised his voice. He was an E-class awakened person who had undergone a physical test like In Yoo-shin.
"How long do I have to eat these tasteless pieces of bread!"
The man threw the bread bag in frustration. The bread that hit the floor couldn't withstand the impact and quickly turned to dust and disappeared.
"Are you even looking for it properly? People like us are just a burden, so they wait for everyone to die and then you guys can just leisurely go back! "
If you think about it calmly, it doesn't make sense. There was no reason for the hunters to kill all the ordinary people and escape. However, the situation of being isolated in a gate without a boss for nearly three days had long since taken away the man's reason.
Not only the man, but also the other ordinary people who were crouching anxiously were murmuring.
"Seeing you thinking such useless thoughts, I guess it’s worth living for you. You haven't even lifted a finger, but you're being given food and water, so you're being so greedy and making such a fuss. People like that should just starve."
Park Seung-gi, who was reading the board game rules with him, grumbled softly.
Lee Hye-yeon, who got up from her seat, gestured to the man in an awkward tone.
“Calm down. We’re doing our best. As you can see, we’re continuing to search underground and underwater, and perhaps this gate may also be a clear condition for spending a certain amount of time………….”
“How can we believe that! How do we know that you guys aren’t planning to kill us!”
“Why are we trying to kill you?”
“You must be feeling bad about the food that goes into our mouths!”
The man shouted, making no sense at all. If the monsters here had reacted to the sound, it would have been a huge commotion.
In Yoo-shin grabbed the hem of Hyeon Gyu-ha’s clothes, who was sitting next to him. Hyeon Gyu-ha opened his eyes and smiled languidly.
“You called?”
“Can I not stop him? I think Noona is in trouble………………….”
“Let it go. Hye-yeon’s kind, but she’s not a pushover.”
Gong Tae-seong, who finished eating the hamburger and wiped the colorless sauce off his mouth, also intervened.
“No matter how much the public servant hunters of the Department of Supernatural Affairs and Public Safety are idiots, if Lee Hye-yeon was a pushover, there’s no way they could handle it.”
When he turned around after hearing that, Choi Jin-hyeok didn't seem to care much either, and was listening to music on his earphones connected to his phone, which had a low battery. It seemed like In Yoo-shin was the only one fidgeting.
Still, it didn't seem right to just watch without saying anything. He tried to get up to stop the man, but the man who was angry alone couldn't control his anger and walked away.
"I can't live eating this kind of trash! You guys are clearly hiding the proper food and eating it by yourself?! Do you think I don't know?"
"That's all."
Lee Hye-yeon's voice suddenly became cold. When Lee Hye-yeon, who had always treated them with polite speech and a smile, changed her reaction, even the man who had been talking nonsense flinched.
Lee Hye-yeon's hand pointed to the circle surrounding the group. It was the boundary where Gong Tae-seong's flames were burning, and it was also the boundary where Choi Jin-hyeok's venom was stored.
"There is only one warning. I’m the current leader, and I have set the rule that you, the ordinary people, must stay within this circle. As long as you follow the rule, we’ll protect you."
Gong Tae-seong's cold mockery followed.
“To summarize it in a way that even an idiot like you can understand, if you go outside that line, the monster will either blow your head off or tear your limbs off, so you can go get food or whatever you want.”
“H-how could you! You guys are supposed to protect people who aren’t hunters!”
“If you disobey the leader and don’t follow the rules inside the gate, doesn’t that mean you want to be killed? Didn’t you learn during the test that if you cause unnecessary trouble inside the gate, you’re allowed to be summarily executed, no matter regardless of if you’re awakened or not?”
“If you pass the physical test, aren’t you already a hunter? Just kill him since he’s noisy.”
When Choi Jin-hyeok also took out his earphones and frowned, the man’s face turned even paler.
“Are you ordering me?”
“Go away, Gong.”
“………………I’ll definitely kill you.”
Exactly 72 hours had passed by then.
Hyeon Gyu-ha, who was hesitating at the edge of the circle without being able to return because of his petty pride, suddenly whistled as he glanced behind the man.
“Master-nim, I think the boss is coming out, so stick close to me.”
Here it is.
“What?!”
The reaction came not from In Yoo-shin but from others. The man, whose legs lost strength at the sound of the boss coming out from behind, screamed and crawled in.
In Yoo-shin, who was surprised, immediately clung to Hyeon Gyu-ha, and the hunters quickly formed a formation that they had planned in advance. It was a formation with Gong Tae-sung, a pyrokinesis with an advantageous matchup against the demons here, as the main dealer.
The tattoo of Gong Tae-sung’s artifact engraved on his forearm glowed, and a dark red murderous spirit was woven into his sword along with flames. The inside of the gate vibrated, and black energy rose from all directions and began to gather in the air. Kkurung! The center building, unable to withstand the boss’ energy, collapsed with a loud noise.
And in front of everyone’s tense gaze, the energy that had gathered gradually took on a single shape, a huge………………
“Byu.”
The hamster appeared.
------
Credits:
Translator: Hoshi Miya
Editor/Proofreader: eteryl
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Time for MC to shine! Lolol