Chapter 61: Toxic Showdown

“Eugh…! This is so disgusting…”

One end of the worm’s faceless body suddenly split open horizontally, revealing a row of razor-sharp teeth. Earth’s voice trembled.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, the worms began to devour each other’s bodies.

Every time the bristled flesh was chewed by those fangs, blood and torn meat dripped down from their mouths.

“Ugh. They’re doing it again.”

The number of carnivorous larvae, once close to several dozen, rapidly decreased.

When it dropped to a single one, the bloated creature stiffened as its body swelled grotesquely.

“It was gross even on video, but seeing it in real life is way worse…”

Shin Jimin looked up at the massive lump covering the cage with a pale face.

“I’m fine, so let’s finish this thing off and take care of the others too. We need to level up as much as possible in this mission if we want to survive the next one.”

Despite the situation, Jimin was more concerned about Roy’s level than her own safety.

As someone with years of experience as a Hunter Idol fan, she knew better than anyone—contestants had to raise their levels quickly now.

The production team had clearly chosen fans with buffing abilities for this mission to ensure that participants reached a certain threshold before moving on.

***

Fzzzt.

Just as Roy bowed slightly to Jimin in gratitude, a vertical slit appeared across the top of the cocooned monster’s hardened body.

A long, thin black tendril slithered out of the gap and swayed.

A second tendril soon followed, and Ber was the first to react.

“Beeep!” (We have to burn it before it hatches!)

“Wait—hold on!”

Before anyone could stop him, Ber released a burst of flames at the monster.

Startled, Shin Jimin reached out toward Ber, then quickly ducked.

The flames that grazed over her body were so intense it felt like she had just stepped out of a sauna—her whole body was drenched in sweat.

“Kiiiee—!”

But contrary to Ber’s intentions, the cocooned carnivorous larva was resistant to fire.

After all, the dungeon these creatures appeared in had volcanic terrain, with lava erupting all around.

The slow mutation process accelerated dramatically under Ber’s flames.

Antennae sprouted, followed by a pair of eyes the size of human fists, and a jaw lined with gear-like teeth.

“That’s a carnivorous butterfly, evolved from the larva. Those teeth… they’re really sharp.”

Jimin pointed at the butterfly, which was large enough to completely cover her body.

Carnivorous butterflies weren’t common monsters—they were a strange species that leveled up by consuming each other.

“Hold your breath!”

With every flap of its wings, the butterfly shed sparkling powder.

Roy noticed the powder corroding the iron bars it touched, immediately realizing it was toxic.

Jimin nodded and took off her jumper, pulling it over her head like a hood.

Her level was 258.

The carnivorous butterfly’s level varied by individual, but this one was around level 35.

Given the large level gap, Jimin was confident the toxic powder wouldn’t affect her.

Buffers didn’t have combat abilities, but a higher level still meant enhanced physical attributes.

But she deliberately pretended to be scared, trembling and shivering.

She wasn’t about to waste a precious moment where her favorite idol might worry about her.

***

“Ber! This monster is fire-resistant, so don’t attack it directly. Protect Jimin instead!”

“Beeep…” (Understood.)

Ever since Aqua appeared, Ber had wanted to prove he could be more impressive.

But his attack had only made the monster stronger.

With a downcast chirp, Ber flapped his short wings.

“Beeeep.” (I’ll protect you, Contract Holder’s fan.)

Earth had told him: in this world, the more fans a summoner had, the faster he could regain his original power.

Even though his words didn’t reach Jimin, Ber breathed fire into the air above her.

The flames formed an umbrella over her crouched figure.

The drifting toxic powder burned up the moment it touched the fire and couldn’t get close to her.

“Aqua, ice arrows!”

“Fouru!” (That’s easy!)

With a strong whip of his tail, Aqua summoned ten glowing blue ice arrows that hovered in the air.

The arrows began to spin in place.

The moment Aqua’s eyes lit up, they all shot toward the carnivorous butterfly.

“Kiiiik—!”

Sensing a life-threatening attack, the butterfly beat its wings fiercely and soared high into the air.

It was faster than the arrows, which all missed their target.

“Beep-beep, beeeep.” (What a terrible hit rate.)

Ber folded one wing and covered his beak, letting out a soft chirp.

At some point, Shin Jimin had relaxed into a comfortable sitting position, legs crossed, calmly watching Roy and Aqua fight.

The fiery umbrella spread above their heads felt warm—like sitting comfortably in a steam room while watching a show.

“Did… Ber just laugh at Aqua?”

Spirits, known as beings higher than humans, weren’t usually this expressive.

Even Shin Jimin, a high-ranking Hunter, had never observed a spirit this closely before.

Each spirit took a different form, but Ber—despite looking like a bird—made facial expressions just like a person.

“Peep.” (Even our Contractor’s fan is sharp-witted.)

Anyone else would have seen that Ber was clearly mocking Aqua, but Ber didn’t give it a second thought.

Twisting his body so Shin Jimin couldn’t see his face, he continued watching Roy barely dodge the proboscis of the carnivorous butterfly.

“Peep!!” (Contractor! I didn’t raise you to be this weak!)

At the voice ringing in his head, a sharp line creased Roy’s brow.

Cough, cough…

Unlike Shin Jimin, who was immune to the toxin powder, Roy was still a lower level than the carnivorous butterfly.

Every breath brought a searing pain that spread through his chest.

“Screeech! Screeee!!”

Even with his vision blurring, there was no time to breathe easy.

The carnivorous butterfly kept jabbing its long proboscis like a spear.

“Forrr!!” (You little—!)

Aqua, who usually only used polite words, now had a vein bulging on his forehead.

A violent whirlwind of ice began to swirl around his small body.

***

CRASHHH—

The dirt ground was ripped apart by the whirlwind.

Sensing the threatening aura, the carnivorous butterfly—which had just brought its proboscis to Roy’s back as he rolled across the ground—suddenly stopped and flapped its wings in retreat.

“Ber, I’m fine. Go help Aqua!”

Shin Jimin gently patted Ber’s head, realizing that Aqua wouldn’t be able to defeat the creature alone.

Ber glanced at her, then trotted quickly toward Roy.

“Peep!” (Now, just trust me and take a breather.)

As Ber opened his beak, flames fanned out in a wide radial blast.

Ber had realized his attacks only empowered the carnivorous butterfly, so instead of targeting the monster, he focused on shielding Roy.

Thanks to him, Aqua could now focus solely on the fight without worrying about Roy’s safety.

“Forrr!” (Let’s see if it’s still fine after being shredded by ice.)

The icy whirlwind summoned by Aqua surrounded the carnivorous butterfly, gradually tightening its grip.

The monster tried to lift off to escape, but Aqua didn’t let up.

As it ascended, the whirlwind rose with it, until it finally engulfed the butterfly.

“Screeeeech!!”

The edges of the creature’s wings were the first to be torn by the icy spiral.

To protect its tattered wings, it desperately thrust its spear-like proboscis at Aqua.

“Forrr.” (Fool.)

But the moment the proboscis touched Aqua’s body—

As if slicing through water, it passed straight through Aqua, only to suddenly freeze solid at rapid speed.

“SCREEECH!”

The butterfly thrashed its head, trying to pull out, but it was too late.

Now immobilized, it was fully engulfed by the accelerating ice storm, its body disintegrating in real time.

“Haa…”

Roy dropped to one knee, gasping for breath.

The carnivorous butterfly had turned to ashes, but the toxin powder still lingered in the air, making the dizziness worse.

[Your level has increased by 1.]

[Your level has increased by 10.]

Defeating the butterfly had raised his level by two at once.

The brutal pain that had made him wonder if his heart and lungs had been damaged lifted, and his body finally felt lighter.

Roy swept his sweat-soaked hair back and rushed to Shin Jimin.

“Are you alright? I’m sorry I took so long to defeat it…”

He wished he could’ve sliced the monster in half in one strike, but the reality was harsh.

Even now, Roy’s power wasn’t enough to one-shot a level 35 monster.

“I do feel a little dizzy, but…”

“Aqua, can you make some water?”

When Shin Jimin pressed a hand to her forehead and asked, Roy immediately turned to Aqua.

Aqua eyed her suspiciously but obediently produced a fist-sized ball of clean water.

“Aqua’s water is safe to drink.”

Ber, the Fire Spirit King, had vast powers, but Aqua’s water manipulation was also highly versatile—especially outside of combat.

“Thank you.”

Shin Jimin didn’t hesitate to take the water Aqua made.

Strangely, the moment her lips touched the droplet, it was as if she were drinking from a bottle—just the right amount flowed into her mouth.

“Oh! But you don’t need to rescue me right now. If you do, the mission will count as completed.”

The iron bars surrounding Shin Jimin were covered in the fluid left by the carnivorous butterfly larvae before their transformation.

Roy stepped forward to grab the bars, but Jimin quickly stopped him.

“New monster incoming. The buff won’t wear off for another two hours. Let’s power level while we can!”

[Buff Target: Hwang Roy (02:03:34)]

Jimin checked the system window floating in front of her and pointed behind Roy.

He turned around—and just like she said, something long and thin was rapidly approaching.