Chapter 70: The Best Revenge is Kill-Stealing

Stealing a monster he was about to handle?

Kill-stealing was bad manners in any game.

They had even decided to take turns blocking the Gate.

Right now, it was Lee Tae-sung’s turn.

Even though they had stepped in for his sake, from Lee Tae-sung’s perspective, it was no different from them breaking the order to steal his kill.

And to make matters worse, they were grinning as if asking, “I did well, right?”

‘Was this some kind of high-level hazing? The kind that’s much trickier than blatant harassment?’

Lee Tae-sung’s gaze grew even colder.

‘Which guilds are they from?’

The three Hunters belonged to the Cheoltap, Paecheon, and Bronze Sword Guilds.

Lee Tae-sung made sure to remember them.

‘Just wait until I’m the one selling the Elixirs!’

***

The work of blocking the Gate was so smooth it was almost boring.

The field Lee Tae-sung created by mixing Flying Flower Explosive Shadow and Heavenly Net Flame Hand lasted quite a while.

Even if a monster managed to endure the field, Lee Tae-sung would use Biseong Chuhon from beyond it.

*Whoosh!*

A single white Hidden Blade streaked across the sky and pierced the monster.

It wasn’t the same Biseong Chuhon as before.

It was a blade carrying the powerful flames of the Heavenly Net Flame Hand!

The monster, which had been struggling while engulfed in flames, collapsed as the blade pierced its head.

*Ping!*

**[You have defeated a Swamp Lizard Warrior]**

**[You have obtained 389 SC]**

‘Reaching Level 6 in Heavenly Net Flame Hand was a godsend.’

Just that one change had dramatically boosted his combat power.

However, that was as far as it went.

No stronger monsters appeared, leaving him with nothing to do.

While the other Hunters were happy the task had become less tedious since they were only there out of obligation, Lee Tae-sung wanted to see more action.

‘What a shame. I wanted to try using the light spirit this time.’

Ashaka was a lesser spirit of light he had contracted in the Dark Spirit Realm.

Now that he had become a Spirit Mage, he planned to summon Ashaka if a strong monster appeared.

He wanted to see how summoning and contract magic worked in the real-world and test its power.

But the opportunity never came.

*Vroom!*

Just then, a jeep arrived from the opposite side of the desert.

The car stopped, and the government official he had seen earlier rushed out.

“Korean Hunters! Please, help us!”

“What’s the matter?”

“A powerful creature has appeared at the central Gate! We don’t have enough firepower, so please help us!”

“But we’re in charge of this area,” Lee Ye-ji said with a shrug. Since they were already assigned to a Gate, they were fulfilling the agreement between the Republic of Korea, China, and Japan.

They had no obligation to support other Gates they weren’t assigned to.

Knowing this, the official stomped his feet in anxiety.

“I will make sure to report this later so you can receive additional compensation. So please, help us!”

“Hmm….”

When he went that far, Lee Ye-ji began to reconsider.

If he had spoken in an arrogant, commanding tone, she might have ignored him, but seeing his desperate expression made it hard to refuse.

“Let’s go. We came here to help anyway, so it wouldn’t look good to back out now. It would be leaves a bad taste in my mouth if this led to a major accident.”

Lee Ye-ji said this and then looked at the others.

“Do the other Hunters agree?”

“Yes.”

“I’m in.”

The other Rankers and Lee Tae-sung nodded.

If they were the type to back out in such a situation, they wouldn’t have become Rankers in the first place.

One needed both courage and skill to keep clearing Missions.

“You guys go ahead. I’ll keep an eye on things here,” Lee Ye-ji said with a slight smile, waving them off.

Since the Gate the Korean team was in charge of was an easy one, one person was enough to hold it.

“The Vice Guild Leader of Blue Dragon?”

“Why? Do you have a problem with that?”

“…No.”

The Hunter who was about to object quickly looked away when Lee Ye-ji clenched her fist.

They were Rankers too, but they were no match for Lee Ye-ji.

They didn’t want to get punched for talking back.

This was the privilege of a temporary leader.

The other Rankers looked at Lee Ye-ji with envy.

“Hunter Lee Tae-sung… would you like to stay behind instead of me?”

However, even Lee Ye-ji couldn’t lord her authority over Lee Tae-sung.

What if she offended him and the Elixir purchase was canceled?

It would still be a long time before every Hunter in the Blue Dragon Guild was supplied with Elixirs.

“I’m fine. I was curious about the central Gate anyway.”

“If you say so. Be careful out there.”

***

The Korean Rankers moved in the government official’s car.

There were four of them in total, including Lee Tae-sung, and their expressions were stoic.

No matter how dangerous the central Gate was, they were confident they could protect themselves, and they could always retreat if necessary.

Having already managed one Gate, they had fulfilled their duty, so there was no pressure.

However, Lee Tae-sung maintained a cold expression.

‘These stealers. I was caught off guard once, but I won’t let it happen a second time!’

Excluding Lee Ye-ji, there were three of them.

These were the ones who had stolen Lee Tae-sung’s monster earlier.

He couldn’t let them do that again right under his nose.

As he made this firm resolution, the Hunters misunderstood him.

‘He must be worried. I guess it’s because he hasn’t had much experience with this yet.’

‘I should stay close to him and keep him safe.’

They soon arrived at the central Gate.

“It’s over there! Eek!”

The official shouted, pointing toward a massive lion-like monster.

It was about eight meters tall, as big as a commercial building on legs.

The creature leaped around, slamming the ground with its heavy legs and tail, while Chinese Hunters fought back desperately.

The Korean Hunters exchanged glances.

Being Rankers, they knew each other by reputation and could estimate each other’s skill levels.

In their judgment, that lion monster was an opponent they could handle.

“We’re going to support them. What will you do, Guild Leader Lee?”

“I’ll provide long-range support from the rear.”

“Good thinking!”

The Rankers were relieved that the precious Elixir supplier was choosing to stay in the rear of his own accord.

The Hunters then charged forward.

“Ashaka. Come out.”

Left alone, Lee Tae-sung whispered softly.

A brilliant light erupted beside him.

The fox-shaped light looked around with a curious expression.

“I moved because of my schedule.”

Earlier, when he was alone, he had summoned Ashaka briefly as a test.

It was to see if the summoning worked properly.

As it turned out, summoning Ashaka was easy.

‘Though it eats up a lot of mana.’

Normally, a spirit contract doesn’t consume much mana.

Once summoned with a small amount of mana, the spirit uses its own power to cast magic and defeat enemies.

Contracts were difficult to establish, but once made, there was no magic more convenient.

There was no need to calculate complex formulas or recite long incantations like a traditional mage.

However, it was different on Earth.

‘Maybe it’s because we’re not inside the Dream World.’

It was a shame, but there was nothing he could do.

“I need to deal with that thing. Can you lend me your strength?”

Lee Tae-sung pointed at the lion monster.

Ashaka took a look and nodded.

“It’s fine.”

Having confirmed that summoning cost mana, the next step was to see how useful the spirit was in actual combat.

Lee Tae-sung supplied Ashaka with mana.

The spirit seemed to enjoy it, darting through the sky before firing arrows made of light.

*Hummm!*

*Thwip!*

The monsters emerging from the Gate were the giant lion-like creature and bipedal tiger monsters wielding spears.

The light arrows targeted the bipedal tigers.

They flew through the air in the blink of an eye and pierced their heads.

The small arrows were surprisingly powerful.

Even though the monsters looked strong, they collapsed instantly without even being able to react.

*Ping!*

**[You have defeated a Hotark Warrior]**

**[You have obtained 2,800 SC]**

**[You have defeated a Hotark Warrior]**

**[You have obtained 2,800 SC]**

**[You have defeated a Hotark Warrior]**

**[You have obtained 2,800 SC]**

‘This is revenge, you stealers!’

Lee Tae-sung grinned.

There was a reason he targeted the Hotark Warriors instead of the giant monster.

The Chinese Hunters were handling the giant creature, while the Korean Hunters who had just arrived were fighting the surrounding Hotarks.

Lee Tae-sung was paying those stealers back in their own coin!

“Thank you!”

“That was great support!”

Ironically, the Korean Hunters who received his support gave him thumbs up.

‘What was that skill? It’s impressive.’

‘He’s not just strong with area-of-effect skills.’

They were amazed by Lee Tae-sung’s light arrows.

They realized how threatening something small and fast could be.

It was impressive enough that he could manufacture Elixirs, but to provide such rear support as well… he was incredibly reliable.

Moreover, his combat sense was excellent.

Instead of blindly attacking the giant monster to hog the glory, he calmly supported his allies.

‘His judgment is far beyond that of a rookie!’

Lee Tae-sung looked at their sparkling eyes with a lukewarm expression.

Regardless, he continued to safely fire light arrows and take down the Hotark Warriors.

However, it didn’t last long.

‘My mana…’

His mana drained while maintaining Ashaka, and firing arrows on top of that was too much for his mana pool.

He thought his mana capacity had increased significantly lately, but Ashaka’s consumption was beyond his imagination.

“Ashaka. That’s enough for now. Go back.”

Lee Tae-sung said as he drew his sword.

He had finished the test.

His conclusion was that while the power was great, the efficiency was poor.

However, the fact that he now had a long-range attack capability—which had been his weakness—was a strength that outweighed all the disadvantages.

Lee Tae-sung then channeled the energy of the Heavenly Net Flame Hand and prepared to charge toward the lion monster.

But Ashaka’s ears drooped beside him.

“No, it’s not that… I can handle it on my own now.”

“!!?”

Suddenly, Ashaka dove into Lee Tae-sung’s sword.

Immediately, the sword that had been covered in the flames of the Heavenly Net Flame Hand transformed, blazed with an intense white fire!

Lee Tae-sung stared at the sword, which now resembled a blade of pure light.

He could feel an immense power coming from the hilt.

Just then, a Hotark Warrior charged at him.

Lee Tae-sung instinctively swung his sword.

*Slice!*

With a sound like tearing air, a beam of white light cut the monster in half.

“!!!”

His mouth fell open in shock.

The sensation in his hand had been so light, it felt as if he had merely cut through paper.