Chapter 50 : Fangs Beneath the Ice

Sixteen-year-old Seong Jihoo.

Ever since his debut as an Explorer two years ago, he had been in the media spotlight.

It was partly due to his family background, and partly because of his own exceptional talent.

Thanks to his astounding magic control ability, he had quickly risen to become an A-rank Explorer at a very young age.

When activating his Gift, his hair would bleach white, and he would move with incredible speed.

Because of this, he earned the cool nickname White Wolf of the World.

However, he was always dissatisfied.

He carried an inseparable label with him.

‘Master of Baekyeong Seong Ryuha’s younger brother. The undeniable bloodline and talent.’

His older sister, Seong Ryuha, was a famous Explorer who had become the Guild Master of the rising guild White Star at a young age in her mid-twenties.

Though Jihoo was talented as well, perhaps because of the age gap, his sister was an insurmountable wall.

“Hi-ah, ha.”

Once again, he had overexerted himself by participating in the Serpent Subjugation Party, and then pushed himself even harder running over the water’s surface.

They were still far from the Seventh Island, but he had already used up a lot of his magic.

Running on the surface consumed magic extremely quickly, so he had stopped in the middle of the sea about twenty minutes ago.

Minimizing magic consumption, he barely maintained his balance, steadying his breathing to recharge his magic.

“Maybe I pushed myself too hard.”

Baek Yuseong had made him take a pointless test of pulling the puller.

As Jihoo was still in his growth phase, he couldn’t pass that test.

The boy’s pride was deeply wounded.

Baek Yuseong remained an annoying memory to Jihoo.

“This time, I’ll definitely be first…!”

The reason he had joined this Subjugation Party was to achieve a record in Serpent Subjugation.

Ultimately, he wanted to break free from the shadow of his sister and stand proudly as an independent Explorer.

The Seventh Island was getting closer.

If he set off again, it was certain he would be the first to reach the island.

His lean and small frame, his delicate and handsome face.

Determination was etched across Seong Jihoo’s expression.

“Wah, no!”

Suddenly, a piercing scream from behind startled him as if his heart dropped.

Who was running in the middle of the sea?

Had other Explorers already caught up to him?

What method had they used to track him down so quickly?

He barely avoided falling into the water as his magic burst and scattered.

Jihoo turned his head sharply.

Filling his entire vision was a huge fish shining with a silver sheen.

If he had enough magic, and if it weren’t for the unreal circumstance of a fish appearing right in front of him, he might have been able to respond.

But in the end, Jihoo was brutally struck by the fish.

Thwack!

Coldness, the smell of fish, and pain surged simultaneously.

Jihoo was hit by a fish heavier than his own body weight.

Blood burst from his nose as his body spun through the air.

Stars flashed before his eyes, and when he regained his senses, he was already submerged in cold water.

He lost the balance of magic he had struggled to maintain, and fell into the water.

“Kuh, uhph, uhgh!”

Water filled his nose, causing him to cough violently.

But the amount of water expelled by coughing was less than the amount that entered his lungs.

His swift movements and excellent swordsmanship were useless while drowning.

Suddenly, he realized he couldn’t swim.

“No, no.”

His experience was insufficient to remain calm in this situation.

The more he struggled, the deeper he sank into the water.

He squeezed out the last of his magic to move his body lightly, but instead, the flowing water dragged him deeper.

He felt the threat to his life.

“Keuh, kuh!”

No more coughs came.

Was he really going to die so foolishly, hit by a fish and drowned?

Lack of oxygen and magic darkened his vision.

“Nuna.”

Remembering the face of his beloved yet resented sister, he lost consciousness.

***

“We… we killed someone…!”

Jang Dojin panicked.

They had pulled Seong Jihoo from the water, but he was limp and unmoving.

Meanwhile, Yuseong only licked his lips upon seeing the broken cable of the fishing rod.

“No, it wasn’t us—it was Yuseong hyung who killed someone…!”

Jang Dojin checked Jihoo’s pulse like a doctor.

“There’s… no pulse!”

“You won’t find one in the suit. I saved him, so he’s fine.”

Yuseong shrugged off the concern.

“He’s alive. He’s breathing.”

“Oh.”

Jang Dojin finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Yuseong scrutinized the suit Jihoo was wearing.

“White Star, huh…”

There was a white mark engraved on the neck collar of the suit.

The crystal-shaped mark was the symbol of the White Star guild.

“Is he one of the Seong clan?”

Yuseong didn’t remember all guilds and forces, but of course, he knew about White Star.

It was one of the guilds that had fought together until the last stages of Abyss Conquest.

Although the Guild Master had died and been replaced, weakening their influence, they were still a strong guild.

Yuseong asked Jang Dojin.

“Do you know about White Star?”

“They’re a rising guild these days. The Guild Master is quite young, too.”

“Seong Ryuha?”

“Yes, oh, I knew her too.”

“Right, this kid seems to be her younger brother.”

Of course, Yuseong knew the Explorer Seong Ryuha.

“She was like a comet-born genius.”

After the 20th floor, many Explorers had lost hope due to the steep difficulty.

She was the hero who proposed a new Conquest Paradigm and overcame the crisis.

Thanks to her, the method of analyzing the Abyss environment, rather than brute forcing monsters, started to spread.

Yuseong benefited from that as well.

People began analyzing the ecosystem of monsters, making it easier to find edible food.

“This time, I must participate in the 20th-floor conquest for sure.”

Especially at every 10th floor.

There was always a special boss monster at the 20th floor.

And from Yuseong’s experience, such boss monsters were considered delicacies.

The Demonic Wyvern, the boss monster he had failed to capture in his previous life.

Before Seong Ryuha and the lead conquest parties capture it, he needed to reach the 20th floor quickly.

Since the leading conquest teams were currently exploring the 18th floor, not much time was left.

Even amidst such happenings, the ship steadily moved forward.

Jihoo seemed to have fainted properly, not getting up at all, and Yuseong’s group eventually reached the Seventh Island in that state.

Yuseong climbed onto a reef and silently observed the surrounding environment.

The Seventh Island was one of the many islands on the 10th floor but was a particularly barren area.

Unlike the main island, there were few trees or plants, and jagged rocks were scattered as if formed by many reefs gathering together.

Kwa kwa kwa kwa.

The sound of waves was generated by strong currents between the clustered rocks.

What made this island special was the depth of the surrounding waters.

There was no proper shore, and stepping slightly off the rocks led immediately to water hundreds of feet deep.

In other words, it was a convenient place for huge Serpents to move around.

Because of that, Explorers rarely visited the dangerous Seventh Island.

It had been chosen as a place to subjugate Serpents for that reason.

Yuseong approached a precariously growing tree beside a rock.

“This is…”

Beneath the rock was a pitch-black water surface.

The tree, whose roots were buried in the rock, had been severely gnawed from the middle.

Large feathers of bird-type monsters were scattered underneath.

“Seems like one appeared recently too. Looks like it swallowed a nest.”

“What is it?”

“A Serpent.”

Yuseong’s answer made Jang Dojin’s expression harden.

“You’re saying it climbed up this high to catch a bird resting in the tree?”

The distance from the tree to the water surface was equivalent to a three-story building.

“This guy can operate on land.”

Contrary to popular belief, Serpents didn’t live only underwater.

It was more accurate to consider them amphibious water snakes.

Leaping out from the water surface below, climbing up the rocks.

In one gulp, it swallowed a bird-type monster resting in its nest.

Judging by the dried blood and scattered feathers, the whole process happened in an instant.

“Impressive.”

However, a smile appeared on Yuseong’s lips.

At least it was now certain that Serpents frequently appeared on the Seventh Island.

That meant Yuseong’s plan to test the Serpent was increasingly likely to succeed.

All that was left was to find and catch a Metal Pig.

And shortly after, Yuseong quickly found signs of a Metal Pig.

“The catch.”

The ground was dug up, and black rods the size of thumbs were wriggling about.

“What’s that?”

Jang Dojin looked at it, completely clueless.

“How could that be a sign of Metal Pig?”

“Metal Pigs dig the ground with their snouts to hunt mushrooms. They especially like Black-Horn Mushrooms. Their trunks are so hard that they only eat the mushroom caps.”

“So…”

“Yeah, those are leftovers from what the Metal Pig ate.”

Jang Dojin once again admired Yuseong’s knowledge.

It was as if he carried the Abyss Encyclopedia in his head.

“Let’s follow it.”

“Uh, but…”

As Yuseong stood up, Jang Dojin hesitated and asked.

“What about him?”

Seong Jihoo was sound asleep on Jang Dojin’s back.

When Yuseong disembarked, Jang Dojin worried about what to do and decided to carry him down on his back.

“You’re still carrying him?”

“Well, he’s just a kid.”

“Leave him here. He’ll manage when he wakes up. That kid’s tough in his own way.”

Jihoo was probably in a state of magic exhaustion.

His body was numb and that was why he wouldn’t wake up.

If he recovered some magic after a while, he’d soon wake up fine.

After all, Jihoo was an Explorer whom even Yuseong had once looked down upon.

Jang Dojin followed Yuseong’s instructions and placed Jihoo on a rock.

“What are you doing?”

“Just feels sorry to leave him lying there, might as well cover him up…”

Jang Dojin picked up a handful of wet leaves scattered on the ground and covered Jihoo.

“If you cover him with wet leaves, he’ll get colder. Wake up and get a grip. We have to catch the Metal Pig.”

Yuseong clicked his tongue.

In his mind, there was no longer White Star or Seong Jihoo.

“If we head a little north from here, Metal Pigs will appear.”

The highest priority was to catch a Metal Pig and make barbecue.

“Looking forward to it.”

***

Though Yuseong and Jang Dojin didn’t realize it, Jihoo had not lost consciousness entirely.

“Magic… exhausted…”

Before falling into the water, his magic was already low.

Suddenly getting struck by a fish underwater, and struggling, caused the little magic left to go into overdrive.

As a result, he couldn’t see clearly or move his body, feeling as if he was pinned by a cage.

Moreover, he couldn’t grasp his surroundings properly.

The voices he heard sounded like they were transmitted through a real phone line, distant and muffled, and his vision was still dark.

He could barely tell someone had rescued him from the water, and that the rescuer was Baek Yuseong.

He was dragged up onto the ship.

Though muffled and difficult to understand, Baek Yuseong’s voice could be heard.

“I saved him, so it’s fine.”

At that moment, Jihoo realized what had happened.

It was Baek Yuseong, who happened to be passing by by boat, who saved him.

Jihoo was embarrassed that he had been thinking badly of Baek Yuseong until just a moment ago.

He felt someone checking his pulse at his wrist.

He could hear the conversation between Baek Yuseong and Jang Dojin.

The two’s mixed voices were even harder to understand.

But part of what Yuseong said was clear.

“…Seems like he’s Seong Ryuha’s younger brother…”

It seemed Yuseong recognized Jihoo, and Jihoo also realized Yuseong knew who he was.

Unconsciously, his heart started pounding.

He felt ashamed to be seen in such a pitiful state.

He tried to move his body but felt intense pain.

It was because he tried to pull magic in his exhausted state.

He lost consciousness once again.

When he barely regained awareness and could sense his surroundings again, the scene had changed.

It was no longer the rocking ship.

His magic had returned considerably during his unconsciousness.

Soon, he would be able to move his body.

He came to consciousness thanks to the leaves covering his body.

Feeling the cold dampness of the leaves, Baek Yuseong’s voice was heard once more.

Perhaps it was a message for Jihoo.

“Stay alert.”

And one more phrase.

“Stay alive…”

An indescribable aura flowed through him.

After hearing those words, Jihoo could clearly understand what Yuseong had said.

“…If you head a little north from here, Metal Pigs will appear.”

That was information.

Information as precious as gold.

To Jihoo, who saw nothing, it felt like Yuseong was speaking directly to him.

“Why would he tell me this…”

The young officer of White Star, Seong Jihoo.

Many new Explorers were out there.

But most of them only wanted to use the connection to his sister Seong Ryuha for their own gain.

Such unsolicited kindness was a first for Jihoo.

He had no idea why Baek Yuseong was sharing this information.

And then Yuseong said one last thing.

“…Looking forward to it.”

Expectation.

Yuseong said he had expectations for the White Wolf of the World, Seong Jihoo.

“I, he expects something from me…”

Yuseong’s words resonated deeply in Jihoo’s heart.

And the sound of Yuseong leaving was heard.

For some reason, Jihoo felt that if he had an older brother, Yuseong would be that kind of person.

A few minutes passed.

Regaining his energy, Jihoo shook off the leaves and stood up.

He quietly watched the direction Yuseong had gone.

After being rescued, after hearing such precious words.

His heart trembled for no reason.

“I won’t forget.”

The expectation Yuseong had voiced.

Jihoo resolved to live up to it.

The misunderstanding that Yuseong’s fishing was a trap to drown him was completely forgotten.

Unknowingly, Yuseong had become indebted to Jihoo with a kindness of his own.