Seung-hoo clenched his jaw and activated Eye of Truth.
For a brief moment, the world shattered into layers of glowing mana. The gigantic bird's body was outlined in blinding currents of energy—its muscles, its feathers, its strange inner organs pulsing like a living constellation.
And then—
Pain.
A sharp, searing burn exploded behind his eyes.
"Agh—!"
Seung-hoo stumbled back, grabbing his face with both hands as if trying to rip the pain away.
"Dammit… too much mana!" he shouted, his voice cracking.
It felt like needles of fire were stabbing straight into his skull. His vision blurred, flashing white and blue, and he dropped to one knee.
The hunters noticed immediately.
"Is he okay?!" "Why did he stop moving?" "Did the monster hit him?!"
Confusion spread through the group. Some raised their weapons defensively, others hesitated, not knowing whether to protect Seung-hoo or prepare for the next attack.
Byung-chul turned sharply. "Seung-hoo!"
Seung-hoo breathed heavily, forcing himself back to his feet. His hands shook as he lowered them from his face. His eyes still glowed faintly, like dying sparks.
"…Guess that shortcut's not working," he muttered.
The bird screeched again, sensing weakness. Its wings spread wide, stirring the lake into violent ripples.
Seung-hoo straightened.
Then he moved.
He turned suddenly and hurled the dagger back toward the assassin behind him. The blade spun through the air and landed perfectly in the hunter's hand.
"Here," Seung-hoo said without even looking. "Thanks."
The assassin blinked. "Huh…?"
Before anyone could react, lightning crackled faintly around Seung-hoo's body as his summoned weapon dissolved into sparks.
"If I can't find your weakness…" Seung-hoo said quietly, staring at the bird, "…I'll make one."
Then—
He disappeared.
Not a blur. Not a dash. Gone.
The bird's massive eye widened, its head jerking from side to side.
Slash.
A deep cut tore open along its chest.
Slash.
Another wound ripped across its wing.
Blood sprayed into the lake, turning the water dark. The bird shrieked in pain, thrashing violently and sending waves crashing into the shore.
Hunters gasped.
"Where did he go?!" "Those wounds just appeared!" "He's above it!"
Seung-hoo reappeared in midair, suspended as if standing on invisible ground.
But this time—
He wasn't holding his lightning sword.
He was holding a physical sword.
Back when he vanished, Seung-hoo had retracted his lightning blade and reached for the nearest hunter with a real weapon.
The hunter felt it instantly.
"…What?" he muttered.
His waist felt strangely light.
He looked down.
His sword was gone.
Only empty air hung at his side.
"My—my sword?!" he shouted, spinning around. "Where did my sword go?!"
At the same moment, a familiar mechanical shim rang inside Seung-hoo's head.
______________________________________________________
|[ You steal a dagger? ]|
|[ But you gave it back ]|
|[ Now you steal a sword!? ]|
|[ Poor hunters😥 ]|
______________________________________________________
Seung-hoo glanced at the window midair, annoyed.
"…Hey," he muttered. "I said I'll give it back."
Below him, the bird screamed again, its movements slowing as blood poured from the open wounds. Its wings beat unevenly now, splashing water wildly across the shore.
Seung-hoo tightened his grip on the sword.
"I forgot you only respond to physical weapons," he said to the system. "Don't make it sound like I'm robbing people."
The hunters stood frozen, watching a man who was supposed to be an S-rank do something that felt far beyond any rank they understood.
The bird convulsed, feathers falling like dark snow into the lake, while Seung-hoo hovered above it with a stolen blade, eyes still burning faintly from the strain of his failed vision.
Then, the bird turned around, already having it's mouth wide open, then another fire spear shot out of its mouth, Seung-hoo looked at the spear hurling towards him
The gigantic bird twisted its massive body in the air, water and feathers scattering in every direction as it turned to face Seung-hoo once more. Its beak opened wide, wider than before, and a deep glow gathered in its throat like molten metal being forged.
The air grew unbearably hot.
Leaves curled at the edges. The lake hissed as steam rose from its surface.
Hunters felt their skin prickle and stepped back instinctively.
"…It's doing it again," someone muttered.
The glow flared.
Another fire spear burst from the bird's mouth, ripping through the air with a sound like thunder tearing the sky apart. It was faster than the last one, thicker, hotter, and aimed straight at Seung-hoo's head.
Seung-hoo didn't run.
He didn't jump.
He didn't even flinch.
He lifted one hand.
"…Skin, please forgive me," he said quietly, almost apologetically.
The fire spear slammed into his palm.
Light exploded outward. Heat surged up his arm like liquid flame. The force pushed him backward half a step, his boots sinking into the wet mud. Smoke immediately rose from his hand, curling into the air in thin gray trails.
The smell of burning flesh mixed with scorched mana.
Hunters gasped.
"He did it again!?" "He caught it again!?" "That's the second time!"
Some of them grabbed each other's shoulders just to stay standing.
"That was a monster spell…!" "He didn't dodge it—he stopped it with his body!"
Seung-hoo's fingers trembled for a moment before he slowly lowered his arm. His palm was darkened, cracked, and smoking faintly, but he didn't scream. He didn't even grit his teeth.
He had already felt this pain once.
And his ability made sure he wouldn't feel it the same way again.
Not magic. Not resistance. Just a cruel trick of the mind and body—ignoring what it already knew.
But it was never free.
Sometimes it protected him.
Sometimes it made the damage worse.
He flexed his burned hand once, then twice.
"Tch…" he clicked his tongue, more annoyed than hurt. "Still hot."
Behind him, the gigantic bird shrieked in rage, its voice echoing through the forest and over the lake. Its wings slammed down violently, sending waves crashing into the shore and knocking several hunters off balance.
Water sprayed into the air like rain.
Seo-yeon remained frozen in stone. The tanks were still petrified. The other hunters stood scattered, stunned, watching the impossible scene unfold
Byung-chul stared at Seung-hoo's smoking hand, his mouth slightly open.
"…He really did it again," he whispered. "That wasn't luck."
Seung-hoo glanced at his palm, then up at the bird.
"…Yeah. That's worse than last time."
He shook his hand once, as if trying to cool it down, then rolled his shoulders.
"This fight…" he muttered to himself, eyes narrowing, "…has been going on for five chapters ever since that bird showed up."
He let out a short, breathless laugh.
"I need to hurry."
The bird's throat began to glow again, brighter than before. Heat distorted the air around its beak. The forest groaned under the pressure of its mana, branches bending and leaves trembling.
Hunters backed away step by step.
"It's charging again!" "Get back!" "Move—move!"
Seung-hoo tightened his grip on his sword, standing alone in front of the towering creature, smoke still rising from his burned hand as he lifted his gaze toward the glowing mouth of the bird.
The distance between them filled with heat, wind, and fear, and the entire forest seemed to hold its breath as the monster prepared to strike once more.