Chapter 13: Slime, Sliced and Served

Two days later.

Squad 2, Team 1 was checking their equipment in front of the dungeon.

Today was the day they were to tackle the D-rank dungeon that had appeared near Yonghwa Mountain in Gangwon-do.

Since it was a dungeon where level 2 monsters appeared, not level 1 monsters, privates weren't included at all.

"Kim Hyunjun. Do you really think you should be here?"

While Kim Hyunjun was inspecting his spear, Corporal Seo Jinwoo from Squad 1, Team 1 approached him.

From his hulking figure and the large shield slung over his back, he was clearly a shieldbearer.

‘If I didn’t owe Jeong Yena...’ he grumbled, making it clear he was displeased that Kim Hyunjun had joined as a mercenary.

‘He must not like the idea of a newly promoted private first class coming to hunt level 2 monsters.’

It wasn’t surprising for him to react like that.

One soldier's mistake could end up harming the whole team.

In other words, Corporal Seo Jinwoo didn't trust him.

"Private First Class Kim Hyunjun. I’m confident."

"Confident, huh? Let’s see how good you really are."

With that, Corporal Seo Jinwoo glared for a moment before walking away.

‘If I mess up, he’ll probably bash me with his shield.’

This dungeon raid was important to Kim Hyunjun in several ways.

Private First Class Jeong Yena had personally recommended him, and he’d earned this spot by ignoring the jealousy of his seniors.

‘If I don’t do well, they’ll give me hell from all sides.’

The looks the Team 1 members gave him made that clear enough.

Of course, he had no intention of making mistakes.

Instead, he was thinking hard about how to earn the most experience and gold from this dungeon raid.

‘Maybe there’ll be an Irregular this time.’

If an Irregular monster popped up in every raid, it wouldn’t be called an Irregular.

He decided to stay alert and adapt as needed.

"The dungeon we’re clearing today is a gnoll habitat. According to the recon team, about twenty monsters are expected."

Before the raid began, the commanding officer briefed them on the dungeon’s basic information.

The dungeon’s structure, the types and levels of monsters, soldier placements, and so on.

It was all necessary preparation to clear the dungeon with minimal casualties.

‘Team 1’s got two shieldbearers, so we’re solid.’

Kim Hyunjun judged Squad 2, Team 1’s composition to be quite strong.

Two shieldbearers, two swordsmen, and two archers in the rear.

With such a sturdy frontline, the rear could attack without worry.

Each company, squad, and team arranged their soldiers differently.

With each soldier’s role, specialties, and skills differing, it had to be that way.

Observing these things was pretty interesting in its own right.

"Enter the dungeon!"

At the officer’s signal, the raid began in earnest.

They moved in formation inside the dungeon for a while, when the officer spoke up.

"Hold for a moment."

"Stop!"

Had something gone wrong?

They stood in place for a moment as the officer scanned the dungeon’s interior and let out a sigh.

"Damn recon bastards. Is this what they call a report? Jinwoo."

"Corporal Seo Jinwoo."

"Who did the recon here?"

"I believe it was Team 1 of Squad 1’s recon unit."

"Tell the guys who checked this dungeon to see me when we get back."

"Yes, sir."

The recon team’s report hadn’t matched the actual dungeon interior.

There were hardly any gnolls inside.

‘That’s… a Paralysis Slime.’

Kim Hyunjun recognized the monster from the viscous liquid trickling down the dungeon wall.

A thick, sticky fluid with a deep green tint.

A telltale sign of the habitat of Paralysis Slimes, which sprayed paralytic poison.

‘No wonder the officer’s pissed.’

The type of monster that appeared in the dungeon changed the entire strategy.

If it was a Paralysis Slime, and they didn’t have suits to block the paralytic toxin, the difficulty skyrocketed.

They could run back and get the suits if supplies allowed, but there weren’t many extras.

You had to request them at least a week before the raid.

"We’ll proceed as is. The monsters are likely to be Paralysis Slimes, not gnolls, so stay sharp, everyone."

"Yes, sir!"

At least the officer had brought various potions in case of emergencies.

There weren’t many, but he seemed to judge it was still doable if they were careful.

"Hey! Corporal Seo Jinwoo! Look at that!"

As they advanced in formation deeper into the dungeon, one of the soldiers pointed something out.

Keeek!

A squirming Paralysis Slime was devouring a gnoll.

The gnoll, which had been struggling, went limp and was quickly eaten by the slime.

The gnoll’s form disappeared in an instant.

That digestion was terrifying.

"Prepare for battle!"

It was just one Paralysis Slime, but no one took it lightly.

Its level was 2.

The monster was much larger than an average adult man.

It could swallow a gnoll nearly a meter tall with ease.

Its movements were slow, but its poison, fired from a distance, could induce extreme paralysis within seconds of contact.

Most importantly,

"Archers, don’t fire, just hold position!"

"Understood!"

Paralysis Slimes were nearly immune to ranged attacks.

Even if you shot arrows, they would simply absorb and dissolve them with their gelatinous bodies.

Shwiik! Shwiik!

The squirming Paralysis Slime sprayed paralytic poison like a water gun.

The shieldbearers skillfully raised their shields and blocked the poison.

"Move in now!"

"Yes!"

Corporal Seo Jinwoo, timing the attack, signaled, and the swordsmen kept their distance as they slashed at the slime from various angles.

Soon enough, the Paralysis Slime spewed its internal fluid and died.

‘Clean.’

Kim Hyunjun nodded at the soldiers’ skilled response.

Even without toxin-blocking suits, there was no hesitation.

They trusted the shieldbearers.

It was a sign of a squad experienced in dungeon raids.

"Sixty meters ahead, there’s another Paralysis Slime!"

The raid was progressing smoothly.

But as the number of Paralysis Slime corpses piled up, Kim Hyunjun’s expression grew darker.

‘They’re handling everything themselves.’

He hadn’t had a single chance to step up.

He’d somewhat expected this as a mercenary from another team, but not to this extent.

‘If you’re going to “see how good I am,” shouldn’t you at least let me take out one of them?’

‘Anyone would give me at least one to handle myself,’ he grumbled inwardly.

Just then—

"Look over there!"

One of the archers spotted something in the distance and reported to the officer.

"Tch. And things were going so smoothly, too."

Now, instead of appearing one by one, the Paralysis Slimes were moving in a group of three.

It was a common trait of the species, so it wasn’t surprising.

"Shieldbearers. Swordsmen. Think you can handle it?"

"Even with suits, that’s dangerous."

"Sorry, sir. Three at once is a bit much for us."

Dealing with three at once was a different story than one.

The officer seemed ready to halt the raid, judging it was too risky.

"Private First Class Kim Hyunjun. I’ll handle them."

At that moment, Kim Hyunjun, who’d been listening, stepped forward.

Now was his chance to earn experience.

"...What? You’ll do it?"

"Yes, sir."

"Do you even know what kind of monster a Paralysis Slime is? That’s a level 2. Not some level 1 rat."

"Yes, I know. And I’m confident."

The officer seemed ready to refuse, but was also wavering.

‘He took out that Irregular monster solo, and he placed first in the recent promotion exam…’

If it had been a normal private first class, there would’ve been no point considering it.

Even the corporals said no, so how could a mere private first class?

But Kim Hyunjun was no ordinary private first class.

That’s why the officer hesitated.

If they failed to clear the dungeon and had to retreat, they’d be chewed out from above.

They could even get blamed for the recon team’s mistake.

‘We have enough spare potions. Even if something goes wrong, we can pull him out.’

In the end, the officer gave his consent, and Kim Hyunjun completely replaced the swordsman’s spot.

"What if you mess up?"

"Taking on three of them alone without a suit? If you could do that, would you even be a private first class?"

"He’s being reckless. Why’s a mercenary acting up like this?"

The stares weren’t friendly.

If a soldier got hurt during a raid, it would affect the whole team.

But Kim Hyunjun didn’t care at all.

‘Would I pass up a chance to monopolize level 2 monsters?’

To him, the three clinging Paralysis Slimes were just sacks of experience and gold.

"Kim Hyunjun. If you mess up, we’ll just fall back and leave you."

Right before the fight.

Corporal Seo Jinwoo raised his shield and issued a warning.

His look was sour, and his tone said he’d bail at the first sign of trouble.

"Understood. Please look after me."

As long as he did well, the shieldbearers wouldn’t need to fall back, so it was no problem.

‘Finally, my turn has come.’

He’d just been standing in the middle of the formation, twiddling his thumbs, but now an opportunity had arrived.

‘I’m going to take down every last one in this dungeon.’

And so the real fight began.

Kim Hyunjun waited behind the shieldbearers for his chance, then slipped forward during a lull in the attacks.

"I’m moving in now!"

A swordsman would have to go in deep, but with a spear, there was no need.

Superior reach compared to a sword.

He could keep plenty of distance and dodge the slime’s attacks easily.

The shieldbearers’ support was invaluable, too.

Puk! Puk!

He jabbed one as if to check its reaction, but the damage was less than he’d expected.

‘These things need to be slashed, after all.’

Slime-type monsters had low magic resistance, but their physical defense was high.

No wonder the archers had just been standing by until now.

‘I’ve been practicing Empire Spearmanship recently, learning slashing moves too.’

A spear was not only for thrusting.

But slashing each one individually would tire him and the shieldbearers out.

He’d been bold, so he needed to dispatch them quickly and cleanly.

"Shieldbearers, please fall back for a moment!"

Kim Hyunjun quietly spoke the skill activation phrase and readied himself.

He wasn’t sure how wide the skill’s area was, so he needed to clear the area.

"Are you nuts? If we back off now, you’ll get drenched in paralysis poison! Have you lost it?"

"I know! Trust me, please!"

"...Crazy bastard. I warned you."

The shieldbearers cursed at his sudden move, but eventually followed instructions.

It was because of his utterly confident expression and tone.

‘If you stay close, you’ll get caught up in it too.’

He’d recently acquired a new skill, Spiral Slash.

It was a slashing skill, so it should be even more powerful now.

‘If it doesn’t work, I can always finish with a vital thrust.’

He used to get exhausted after one use, but with increased mana, he could now use it twice easily.

Sssss.

Mana gathered at the tip of the spear, and Kim Hyunjun spun his body, using himself as an axis.

He channeled all his body weight into the spear to amplify its power, then unleashed a wide slash at the Paralysis Slimes.

Spiral Slash.

The three Paralysis Slimes, slashed horizontally, shuddered for a moment and then froze.

And then,

Kwakwakwakwa!

They collapsed all at once, spewing their insides like a waterfall.

They’d died in a single strike.

"...What did I just see?"

"He took out all three by himself?"

The shieldbearers, who had retreated to a safe distance, were left speechless by what they’d just witnessed.