Chapter 29

Chapter 29

‘Why did I do that?’

As soon as the hunt ended and the rewards came in, Dojae snapped back to his senses.

He then looked at the dead body lying a short distance away.

Only one mangled leg remained; his arms and chest were crushed, and his blue sword was stuck between his wide, round eyes.

‘Bloody hell.’

Seeing the result of his own actions, Dojae covered his mouth with one hand.

He had always prioritized efficiency in monster hunting.

His hunting style was usually to strike the neck and sever the head or stab a vital point for a one-hit kill.

It was a habit born from his extreme fragility.

But this time was entirely different.

This one was no exception, and the ones he’d hunted before had all died without a single intact spot.

He hadn’t even taken a single piece of the spoils he used to love so much.

‘What the hell is wrong with my head?’

Dojae shook his head violently.

His heart was still pounding wildly.

And only then did Dojae listen to the voice echoing in his head.

– Kill more. Kill more.

It was her voice.

The voice of that goddess who had promised to become Dojae’s god.

“What have you done to me?”

Dojae asked, gazing into the empty air.

Then the voice answered his question.

– I planted a tiny spark within your heart. A very small spark that can resonate with my emotions.

She sounded somewhat agitated.

It was completely different from her solemn demeanor in the temple.

“Why?”

– Why? They are filthy followers. For followers, there is only a painful death.

“Filthy followers? Wait… Who are you?”

– I am Elatra. The Witch of Insight who shall become your god and bring despair to the filthy followers!

Suddenly, her emotions flooded into him.

Blood gushed like a waterfall from his heart, now beating even more violently, coursing through Dojae’s entire body.

His skin flushed crimson, and his eyes bled red as capillaries burst.

A splitting headache erupted in his head.

Sssshhhhh.

As her mind scattered, the golem armor deactivated.

Fortunately, as if by magic, his blood pressure and pulse returned to normal.

“Huff, huff.”

Dojae sat down heavily, gasping for breath, trying to steady himself.

This must be what it feels like to be hit by a Red Oak Priest’s Berserker spell.

A state consumed by impulse, focused solely on slaughtering enemies.

Experiencing it firsthand, it wasn’t exactly a pleasant feeling.

‘Is she completely psycho?’

The being he thought was a god claims to be a witch herself.

And that creature dares to speak of gods.

It sends shivers down my spine.

‘Let’s seal the Golem Armor for now.’

The ‘Golem’s Eye’ the witch gave me.

The Golem’s Eye was an incredibly useful skill, but after hearing her voice, it feels unsettling.

Fortunately, the voice only comes through while the Golem Armor is active, so I decided to seal it away for now until I find a solution.

‘More importantly, Kim Joon-soo.’

There’s been no response from the Golem since earlier.

The connection had already been severed during the fight with Hoi-in.

Back then, I was consumed by the thought of killing Hoi-in and couldn’t spare any attention for anything else. But now that my senses had returned, I was worried about Kim Jun-soo.

And the moment Dojae’s breathing returned to normal, he began running toward the spot where he had last sensed the golem’s presence.

***

Kim Junsu’s sword sliced past the troll’s leg.

His well-honed supply sword carved a deep wound into the troll’s thigh.

“Kuuurrrgh!”

Unfortunately, by the time Kim Joon-soo turned back to the troll, the wound was already beginning to heal.

Truly, the troll’s regenerative ability is second to none.

For those without the ability to sever a troll’s neck in one blow, there is no tougher foe.

“Damn it, where the hell are Jang Pil-ho and Lee Ji-woong? Jang Pil-ho! Lee Ji-woong!”

Kim Junsu shouted again while dodging the troll’s attack.

They say they don’t care what you do when resting, but shouldn’t they at least stay on the battlefield?

“Sorry!”

“Lee Ji-woong! Where the hell were you!”

Lee Ji-woong came running over, looking utterly apologetic.

But having one more person didn’t dramatically change the tide of battle.

Thud!

The troll ignored Lee Ji-woong’s attack as if it were nothing, swinging its blunt club down.

“Guh.”

The club and sword collided, but far from being severed, the club was forced down by the sheer force, slamming into the floor.

Had he maintained his sword like Kim Junsu did, he might have inflicted some damage on the club, but expecting that from Lee Ji-woong, who usually preferred to play around, was difficult.

No, in a way, it was probably for the best.

If the sword had gotten stuck in the club and refused to come out, he might have faced even more trouble.

Lee Ji-woong’s laziness saved him.

Thwack!

Swish-!

Both swords slash at the troll’s waist and legs.

Kim Junsu’s sword inflicted a decent wound again, but Lee Jiwoong’s blade couldn’t pierce the troll’s tough hide and slid off.

It was a sword against a sword, but it also meant Lee Ji-woong’s skill was lacking.

“Draw its attention!”

“Huh? How?”

Lee Ji-woong, the youngest in Class 3.

Because he hadn’t spent much time with the other members, their coordination was off and clumsy.

And this ultimately led directly to the path of life and death.

“Gah!”

The troll’s club grazed Lee Ji-woong’s leg.

It was only a graze, but it was a powerful enough blow to leave a bruise.

“Bro, my leg…”

“You idiot, get out of the way!”

Lee Ji-woong tried to stand, his leg trembling violently.

The troll swung his club at him again.

Thwack-!

“Gah!”

Kim Junsu threw himself in front, taking the blow instead.

The recoil sent him flying like a soccer ball hit by a baseball bat, landing with a heavy thud on the floor.

“Ugh. This is all the captain’s fault…”

The approaching troll.

Lee Ji-woong stands before the fallen Kim Jun-su and mutters.

Even if we all attacked together, it wouldn’t be enough, yet he’s protecting the unconscious Kim Junsu and fighting the troll one-on-one?

Lee Ji-woong began to resent.

“We’re going to end up like Class 2…. If only the class president hadn’t abandoned us….”

The troll, now right before him, raised its arm again.

And Lee Ji-woong, seeing the scene unfold in slow motion, was consumed by conflict.

‘Dodge? Block?’

You can avoid it if you try.

Trolls are slow compared to their defense and health.

Lee Ji-woong, an awakened being between D-rank and E-rank.

Landing a hit might be difficult, but dodging is entirely possible.

But if you dodge here, that club will smash Kim Joon-soo.

At minimum, a fracture; perhaps even death from internal organ rupture.

Sacrifice yourself for your comrade, or sacrifice your comrade to save yourself?

As these thoughts swirled through Lee Ji-woong’s mind, his body was already fleeing beyond the troll’s attack range.

CRASH!

Dust billowed thickly, obscuring the view.

Several seconds passed.

As the dust settled, the troll’s club appeared to be stuck on something.

“G-Golem?”

A golem stood in front of Kim Junsu, blocking the troll.

The golem gripped the club with both hands, immobilizing the troll.

Thud!

Meanwhile, Lee Ji-woong quickly scooped up Kim Jun-su and limped away, while the troll let out a bloodcurdling scream and swung its other arm, striking the golem.

Thud-thud-thud-.

Its head flew off, fully exposing the magic stone embedded in its chest.

The magic stone’s light was faint, like an ember on the verge of dying out.

Boom-!

And the final blow.

The troll’s fist smashed down on the golem.

The golem’s body shattered into pieces along with the magic stone, losing its form and turning into a pile of dirt.

“Kwoo-ooh!”

Having been thwarted twice in snatching its prey right before its eyes, the troll’s temper began to flare.

Lee Ji-woong, who had laid Kim Jun-soo down a short distance away, gripped his sword tighter to steady his trembling hands.

“Haah… Dammit…”

Lee Ji-woong glanced around one last time.

The other three were completely occupied fighting the troll, leaving no room for anything else.

‘Fuck, I gotta survive too.’

Thud thud thud-.

Lee Ji-woong began dragging his leg as he ran.

But his choice wasn’t the wisest one.

If he had fled toward Son Jeong-gyu, Yook Hyeon-jae, or Jang Pil-ho, they might have been able to help him.

But when he started running in the opposite direction, the troll gave chase.

And to make matters worse, he tripped over a rock and fell.

‘Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!’

The troll approached with a grotesque grin.

Lee Ji-woong couldn’t even think of getting up; he crawled along the ground.

The terror of death he’d never felt since joining the extermination force.

“Gurgle gurgle.”

Lee Ji-woong turned his head to look behind him.

The troll, now right behind him, raised its club.

It looked poised to strike at any moment.

‘This time it’s real.’

Just as Lee Ji-woong had completely resigned himself.

Swish-.

A very thin line appeared on the troll’s neck.

Drops of blood began to form along it.

Thud-.

The troll’s head, unable to resist gravity, fell.

Then, the troll’s body collapsed pitifully.

“Sorry. I’m late.”

Behind the fallen troll, a familiar face appeared.

There stood Dojae.

***

Drip, drip.

“Don’t spill a single drop.”

Son Jeong-gyu barked orders at Jang Pil-ho and Lee Ji-woong.

“Hey, I told you to be careful pouring it.”

“You should be careful yourself…”

The two were collecting the troll’s blood into the glass bottles Dojae had given them.

“Section Chief, I’m sorry.”

Team Leader Kim Joon-soo bows his head to Do-jae.

Do-jae said it was fine and addressed Jang Pil-ho and Lee Ji-woong.

“Drain all their blood, skin them clean, and separate the bones. That’s their punishment.”

“Yes…”

“Yes…”

The two answered weakly.

With Dojae joining the fight, the battle against the trolls ended quickly.

The other team joined late, but the trolls were already dead at Dojae’s hands, leaving them with nothing to do.

Except for Lee Ji-woong, who had a broken leg and was wearing a splint, Kim Jun-soo had only suffered minor bruises and fainted, so there was no major damage.

“The captain’s golem…”

Kim Joon-soo trailed off.

But Dojae showed no particular reaction.

Jang Pil-ho and Lee Ji-woong had already confessed honestly, and in any case, the responsibility fell on him.

“It’s over now. Don’t worry about it.”

Honestly, he couldn’t help feeling a little bitter inside, but he had to consider himself lucky that the class members hadn’t been seriously injured.

Resolving to feel more responsible going forward, Dojae checked his sub-space.

Because only one of the three golems remained now.

‘Subspace. Sort magic stones.’

– Magic Stones (E) x9

– Magic Stone (D) x2

– Magic Stone (C) x5

– Magic Stone (B) x3

– Magic Stone (A) x1

Subspace segmentation became possible after enhancing the Golem’s eyes.

This allowed me to view the magic stones separately.

‘Make it?’

Dojae pondered.

To create a usable golem, level grinding was necessary again.

Of course, using higher-grade magic stones could create stronger golems, but their immediate utility was low.

Buzz- buzz-.

Just as the half-circle gathered and they were about to head back for the day, a notification popped up on his smartphone.

[Class 3: Immediate return requested. After returning, the class leader is to report to the captain’s office.]