Chapter 29 : Golden Feathers, Crimson Blade

Yuseong was the type who didn’t care about such things.

But among explorers, there was still a certain seniority and respect.

Especially in Red Eye, which had been one organization since birth, hierarchy was important.

Cheon Younghun ranked just below the Guild Master’s grade.

Judging by his age alone, he was in his late thirties, much older than Yuseong.

So when Yuseong quietly asked them to keep it down, the atmosphere instantly turned cold.

“…Ah, keep it down.”

Yet Cheon Younghun himself seemed unfazed by Yuseong’s request for silence.

However, his subordinates were not so indifferent.

Go Byeong Jae, who followed Cheon Younghun the closest, stepped forward.

“Suddenly asking us to keep quiet? What’s that about?”

“That’s exactly right. He just said to be quiet for a moment.”

“Huh, seriously? Do we own this place or what?”

Go Byeong Jae’s tone grew surly.

The other guild members’ expressions hardened as well.

At that moment, Cheon Younghun raised his hand.

Go Byeong Jae immediately shut his mouth.

“He’s straightforward, but what’s the reason?”

Yuseong answered instead by pointing behind him with his hand.

Everyone followed the direction of Yuseong’s fingers and looked down at the cliff below.

“…What is that?”

“Is something over there?”

However, none of the Red Eye members could identify what was there.

Only Cheon Younghun nodded with a ‘ho-oh’ sound of approval.

“A trap?”

“Eh.”

“Even a young guy uses pretty old-school methods, huh, Yuseong?”

“That’s basic for explorers.”

“Hahaha, it’s basic. These days, most just rush in headfirst.”

Cheon Younghun looked genuinely impressed.

Yuseong was secretly surprised as well.

He hadn’t expected to meet an explorer who could recognize something from so far away.

Only then did the Red Eye guild members realize why Yuseong had asked them to be quiet.

“Oh, so they’re lying in wait at the trap?”

“So that’s why he told us to be quiet. Huh.”

Still, Go Byeong Jae’s expression showed that he was displeased.

“Damn, but we were the ones resting here first…”

“Hey, you punk.”

Suddenly, Cheon Younghun smacked Go Byeong Jae on the back of the head.

Thwack.

“Ugh!”

“License exam, huh? Didn’t you learn the Rules of Conduct?”

“Huh, what?”

“Manners, you punk. When someone’s hunting monsters, you cooperate. Your head’s full of rocks.”

Now that he mentioned it, Yuseong recalled that the Provision Clause about manners was indeed covered in the Written Exam.

Also, disturbing other explorers or guilds while they were hunting monsters was prohibited.

But who strictly followed such manners?

Especially the Red Eye gang, who had always been distant from manners.

It was clear that Cheon Younghun’s reprimand was because the opponent was Baek Yuseong.

Go Byeong Jae finally understood Cheon Younghun’s intentions.

“I’m sorry, I was a bit thoughtless. Sorry.”

He then offered Yuseong a rather sincere apology.

“No, just don’t be noisy.”

Yuseong accepted the apology.

“Actually, we were just about to leave now. Hope you have a good hunt.”

Cheon Younghun said with a broad smile.

“By the way, if you don’t mind, could you tell me what kind of trap you used? I used to do it more often, but I’m out of practice lately.”

“Of course. I used the ogibwa type.”

“Oh, then spring type?”

“No, bird type. Since we’re hunting flying monsters, I set it up as a leg snare.”

“Huh, then why not use the ogibwa type?”

“Because the body is a bit big.”

“Ah, I see. You really know your stuff!”

No one else there could understand the conversation between Yuseong and Cheon Younghun.

Yet smiles began to spread across their faces as they spoke.

“What kind of wire did you use?”

“This time I just used aramid rope.”

“Really? Wire would be better for catching.”

“We’re not just catching them, we’re trying to find the nest.”

“Oh, so you tie a brightly colored rope to track them. Smart thinking, haha.”

“Hehe.”

The two settled in and began exchanging stories.

The Red Eye guild members simply sat elsewhere and rested.

Though they were about to leave, their squad leader had become deeply absorbed in Baek Yuseong’s theory.

“By the way, are you trying to catch something?”

“The Golden Kakgye.”

“What! The Golden Kakgye?”

Even Cheon Younghun, who rarely got surprised, was shocked.

Because the Golden Kakgye was not an ordinary rare monster.

“We’re after it to find the dalgal in its nest. They say it tastes amazing.”

“…So the rumor was true. It’s crazy how obsessed with food you are.”

“Of course.”

Yuseong looked at Cheon Younghun as if wondering what was so strange.

Cheon Younghun shrugged and stood up.

“Well then, good luck catching it. We should get going soon.”

“Yes, we’ll be on our way.”

Yuseong also stood up.

Just as Cheon Younghun was about to order his men to depart, a faint sound came from below the cliff.

Peeng.

A small noise of something moving.

Soon, the howling of a monster could be heard.

“Kki-ooo-ook!”

A shriek similar to a rooster’s crow.

Yuseong responded instantly like a flash of light.

“Dojin-mi!”

“Yes!”

Without any farewells, they leapt down the cliff.

With a thud, they landed, and the sound of them running could be heard.

All this happened in under three seconds.

Go Byeong Jae stared dumbfounded at the spot where they had vanished.

“Wow, they’re really excited.”

“Hahaha, interesting guys.”

Cheon Younghun expressed admiration.

“Hyung, even if the monsters here aren’t anything special, is it really necessary to go to such lengths?”

Go Byeong Jae couldn’t understand why Yuseong was making such a fuss.

Most monsters that could be caught here didn’t bring much profit.

It was hard to accept enduring this much effort just to get one to three grade Masok.

If so, it would be better to hunt directly oneself.

“Maybe, but I don’t think so.”

“Yeah, what rare monster could it possibly be?”

“The Golden Kakgye, that’s what.”

Go Byeong Jae’s face hardened.

He too knew the name of the Golden Kakgye monster.

“Come on, that’s nonsense. How could they catch such a precious Golden Kakgye so easily?”

“Go check it out yourself.”

“No way…”

Despite his suspicion, Go Byeong Jae hurried toward the cliff.

The others who had gathered watched with their mouths agape.

The monster that Yuseong and Jang Dojin were wrestling with was a rare species, even for Red Eye, who had only heard about it.

Its golden feathers stood out even here.

Roughly the size of a bustard, with a comb like a rooster.

A beak that gleamed like pure gold.

It was definitely a Golden Kakgye.

“Kki-oo-oo-oook!”

The roar was just like a rooster crowing to announce morning.

“How much is that thing worth?”

“The Golden Kakgye? You actually caught one of those?”

Above all else, the Golden Kakgye was famous for its value.

“I’m so jealous!”

Go Byeong Jae cried out in awe.

Just catching one of these monsters guaranteed at least 30 million won in profit.

Yuseong, who initially thought it was nothing special, had just secured his own annual salary.

Go Byeong Jae sank to his knees in envy.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Though Cheon Younghun declared departure, his legs felt heavy.

***

Just seeing a monster like the Golden Kakgye made it clear how different Abyss monsters were from animals on Earth.

No animals on Earth had golden beaks and talons.

“Kki-oo-oo-ook!”

The creature swung its talons and uprooted the tree where the snare was tied.

Crack! Smash!

The tree was gruesomely split, and splinters flew.

Any ordinary explorer brushed by those talons would have been sliced in two instantly.

Coupled with the deadly venom glands linked to the talons, one hit could be fatal.

“T-That’s kind of scary, hyung.”

“It’s fine. Just think of it all as money. Don’t be scared.”

Jang Dojin’s fear was understandable.

The Golden Kakgye population was extremely small.

And for that reason, in this layer, it was an overwhelmingly dangerous opponent.

“Is it really that rare?”

“Catching one and selling it nets about 30 million won.”

“Let’s do our best!”

The Golden Kakgye was first discovered in China and named accordingly, but its Masok and byproducts were so valuable that it quickly became famous.

Yuseong had joined a journey to find the Golden Kakgye before.

At that time, a ten-person party had spent two months of painstaking effort before finally finding one at the seventh layer.

In the end, they succeeded in catching just one.

But the profit per person was less than 1.5 million won.

After excluding supply costs and various expenses, they all ended up at a loss.

“Remember the location. You’re lucky.”

Based on past memories, they had identified the region where the Golden Kakgye appeared, but didn’t expect to catch one so quickly.

As soon as the Golden Kakgye turned its gaze toward Jang Dojin, Yuseong quickly grabbed the hidden end of the rope.

The rope, which had been loosened by the monster pulling on it, tightened.

The beast rolled its eyes nervously.

“Kki-ok… kogok.”

It was sizing them up.

Yuseong shouted loudly, filled with energy.

“Get lost!”

At the sound of the booming command, the Golden Kakgye turned and started to run.

Yuseong’s intention was clear.

“…Is this really okay?”

Jang Dojin asked with unease.

“That guy’s venom is severe, so you can’t eat it. We want the dalgal, the dalgal.”

Among the reasons Yuseong wanted to catch the Golden Kakgye, money was second.

First priority was the dalgal in its nest.

Ten times tastier than dalgal on Earth, the legendary dalgal.

The rope stretched long in the direction the Golden Kakgye fled.

The talon snare was still tied to its ankle.

All 100 meters of rope had been prepared just for this.

“Keep up exactly. If you slack off, you die.”

“Yes!”

Yuseong and Jang Dojin started running along the rope.

***

Unlike an ordinary chicken, the Golden Kakgye ran as fast as a bustard.

If it weren’t for the fact it couldn’t fly, it would have been a serious threat.

They might have lost it if they hadn’t eased their speed halfway to feel safer.

“There it is, there it is.”

“That’s the nest…”

After an hour of tracking, Yuseong and Jang Dojin found the Golden Kakgye’s nest.

If not for the yellowish rope tied to its ankle standing out, finding it would have been difficult.

Yuseong counted the number of Golden Kakgye dalgal visible from afar.

“One, two, three, four…”

“You sound like an old man counting.”

“Wow, twelve eggs.”

Jang Dojin scoffed, but Yuseong’s body trembled with excitement.

The last time he found a nest, there were only two eggs.

“Golden eggs, golden eggs.”

There were twelve precious eggs, enough to satisfy hunger with just one.

“Let’s proceed as planned.”

“Hopefully we don’t get killed.”

“Nothing more embarrassing than getting defeated by a chicken. Let’s do our best.”

Jang Dojin cautiously started moving to carry out their prearranged plan.

He quietly circled to the opposite side of where Yuseong was.

A moment later, Jang Dojin’s shout echoed.

“Kko-kko-yak!”

Jang Dojin appeared wielding a long iron rod, threatening the Golden Kakgye.

The monster raised its head high and charged toward Jang Dojin.

“Kki-oo-oo-ok!”

At that moment, Yuseong suddenly jumped out.

“Chicken head!”

The Golden Kakgye reversed course and glared at Yuseong.

It looked confused, alternating its gaze between Yuseong and Jang Dojin.

“Kko-kko-ya!”

“Chicken head!”

Whenever it looked at Yuseong, Jang Dojin shouted, and whenever it looked at Jang Dojin, Yuseong shouted back.

Its jet-black eyes rolled back and forth.

No matter how threatening its talons and beak were, its brain was probably no bigger than a baby chick’s.

That was why the term “chicken head” was synonymous with stupidity.

“Kki-yo-ok!”

Despite the threats, Yuseong and Jang Dojin slowly closed the distance.

This method was something Yuseong recalled from past experience.

Long ago, when he caught native chickens with his grandfather on an island.

Unlike domestic chickens, catching wild native chickens was not easy.

So Baek Yuseong and his grandfather used a pincer operation.

They slowly approached from both sides.

Normally, the chickens would rush in or escape, but when approached carefully from both sides, they became confused and froze.

“How much closer can we get?”

“A little more. Look this way, chicken head!”

Of course, the monster wouldn’t just give up easily.

If you got close enough to touch, it would strike sideways and try to flee.

“Kki-oo-oo-ook!”

The Golden Kakgye screamed and leapt sideways with its claws.

It was a situation where it could escape at any moment.

If it fled at full speed, it would be very hard to catch.

Of course, that was only if it managed to flee.

“Pull!”

On Yuseong’s command, Jang Dojin grabbed the rope and pulled it tight.

If he were an ordinary person, he would have been dragged away helplessly by the nearly 100kg Golden Kakgye, but Jang Dojin held firm.

Then it was Yuseong’s turn.

His thighs flexed tightly, and he prepared to leap.

Before long, the Rose Knife in his hand gleamed under the light.

“Kki-e-e-ek!”

“Die!”

Yuseong’s momentum didn’t falter against the Golden Kakgye’s rooster-like roar.

The Rose Knife sliced through the air and struck the Golden Kakgye’s neck.

Thwack.

No matter how great the monster was, it was still a chicken’s neck.

The Rose Knife neatly severed it.

The neckless Golden Kakgye let out a heavy sound and collapsed.

Kuh-woong.

“Phew, phew.”

A thrilling heat surged through Yuseong’s entire body, and a message arrived.

[Extraordinary Achievement ‘Upstart Killer of Golden Spurred Fowl’ has been unlocked.]

[Achievement reward ‘Blessing of the Rooster Star’ has been bestowed.]