Chapter 69: The Scent That Lured Disaster

They set up camp and, after making their plans, six members of the advance party set out in search of the monster horde.

About an hour had passed since they entered the jungle forest.

Kuwaaaa!

Krrraaaarararak!

Monster roars rang out not far from the camp.

Heavy vibrations soon followed, shaking the earth.

“What’s going on all of a sudden?”

Jo Taeseok cried out in shock, and all the cadets remaining at camp hurriedly prepared for combat.

Only four people had stayed behind in the camp.

Jo Taeseok, Min Sora, Lim Heeju, and Park Haesung.

These four had slightly lower physical abilities compared to the others, so they decided to stay back and guard the supplies.

And yet, just when only they were left, monsters attacked the camp.

“Don’t be scared—stay calm and handle it!”

Fortunately, Park Haesung took charge and started giving orders on how to respond.

Park Haesung and Jo Taeseok rushed toward the direction from which the monsters were charging, while Min Sora and Lim Heeju stayed at the rear to provide ranged support.

Just a few seconds later,

Crack!

Boom!

Thick trees in the forest were knocked down as more than twenty monsters emerged through the gaps.

Most of them looked like wolves—the Wolves-type monsters—but judging by their red manes, they were the most violent and powerful of the Wolves, the Red breed.

The moment they appeared, the monsters charged straight at the camp without hesitation.

Jo Taeseok and Park Haesung, no rookies themselves, kept calm and worked together to face the Wolves.

But the monsters weren’t just Wolves.

Soon, Ghouls appeared from another direction and attacked Min Sora and Lim Heeju.

In an instant, the camp was thrown into chaos.

The three tents that had been set up, as well as the campfire burning in the center, were all wrecked in the battle with the monsters.

It took some time, but the four cadets managed to defeat all the monsters without serious injury.

A total of thirty-four.

But why had these monsters suddenly swarmed the camp and attacked so madly?

Park Haesung stared in disbelief at the shredded tents and destroyed equipment.

Just then, the advance party returned.

They were shocked to see the state of the ruined camp.

“What the hell happened here?”

They’d been glad to have tents to sleep comfortably in for three days, but less than half a day had passed before everything was destroyed.

And it wasn’t just the tents.

Many of the survival supplies left inside the tents by the cadets were also broken, and a large amount of food had been rendered inedible.

“We’re just as curious! We have no idea where these monsters came from or why they attacked us.”

Park Haesung shouted, sounding genuinely wronged.

At that moment, Jo Taeseok turned his gaze toward the ashes of the campfire and spoke.

“Heeju lit a campfire here, and about ten minutes later they suddenly stormed in.”

Jo Taeseok glanced at Lim Heeju, then turned back to Choi Cheolmin.

“A campfire? Why would you light one when it’s not even night?”

Choi Cheolmin asked, and Lim Heeju, looking flustered, glanced sidelong at Park Haesung.

“Haesung oppa said he hated all the mosquitoes, so he gave me some herb leaves.”

“Herb leaves?”

Sensing something odd, Choi Cheolmin approached the campfire remains and squatted down.

He poked through the debris with a branch and found partially burnt herb leaves.

As soon as Choi Cheolmin picked them up, his expression twisted in anger.

“This is Corsica Basil! Who the hell in their right mind would burn this stuff here?!”

Choi Cheolmin shouted furiously at Park Haesung.

Corsica Basil.

It was a type of herb leaf, but instead of repelling mosquitoes or insects, it was a powerful attractant that drew in monsters.

In addition to its herbal scent, Corsica Basil released a unique fragrance that monsters found irresistible.

That’s why hunters on monster hunts usually carried Corsica Basil with them—specifically to toss into the fire and lure monsters in.

The fact that the basil was found in the campfire’s remains meant Park Haesung had deliberately summoned monsters to the camp.

“What are you talking about? Corsica Basil? Look for yourself—I only ever carry herb mint, I don’t have even a speck of Corsica Basil… huh?”

Park Haesung protested indignantly, but as he shook out his bag, some herb leaves fell to the ground—leaves anyone could see were Corsica Basil.

It looked just like regular basil, but Corsica Basil had a distinctive purple blotch at the center of each leaf.

All the leaves scattered on the ground had that purple hue.

“Wh-why is this here…?”

“You, you bastard! You did it on purpose, didn’t you?! Are you really going to deny it when the evidence is this clear?”

Choi Cheolmin never liked Park Haesung much to begin with.

He always wore a pleasant smile and never lost his temper, but this time even he couldn’t hold back and ended up cursing.

“How many times do I have to say it’s not true! Why would I be crazy enough to burn Corsica Basil here?!”

“Then what about these leaves? What, because your evaluation scores were different from the other cadets, you want everyone to get the lowest mark too, so you’re dragging us all down?”

“Ugh, whatever! I said it’s not me, and I don’t intend to do that. Believe me or don’t, do whatever you want.”

Park Haesung snapped irritably, grabbing his belongings as if he wanted nothing more to do with the conversation.

“Hah… one troublemaker ruins it for everyone.”

Choi Cheolmin glared after Park Haesung.

While the two argued, the others gathered around Min Sora and Lim Heeju.

“I saw it too—Haesung oppa definitely told Heeju to do it. He said there were herb leaves in his bag and told her to burn them. I never even imagined it would be Corsica Basil.”

Min Sora stepped up as a witness on Lim Heeju’s behalf.

After that, everyone’s expressions turned grim, knowing Park Haesung was the culprit.

“I’m sorry. I should have been more careful… I had no idea there was a herb leaf that attracted monsters. I really don’t know enough, and I’m always causing trouble for you all. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. I have no excuse.”

Lim Heeju kept apologizing as if everything was her fault.

Min Sora and Irina both comforted her, insisting it wasn’t her fault.

At that moment, Kim Seojun quietly picked up a Corsica Basil leaf from the ground and sniffed it.

Corsica Basil had a scent quite similar to that of women’s cosmetics.

Kim Seojun realized he’d smelled that scent from someone before.

His gaze naturally drifted to that someone.

The cadets abandoned the camp.

The tents were too damaged to repair, and too many survival supplies were broken—so the base camp was no longer useful.

They all moved together toward the monster nest that the advance party had discovered.

Meanwhile, Kim Seojun played the role of the cadets’ porter.

His Spatial Glove had a subspace capacity of a whopping 3㎥, so even after packing all the cadets’ gear, there was still plenty of room left.

However, Kim Seojun didn’t lend his subspace out for free.

In exchange for letting them use his subspace, he asked to be excused from night watch and perimeter duty.

His request was immediately granted.

Thanks to that, Kim Seojun could live quite comfortably.

The monster nest was about two kilometers away.

Roughly two hundred monsters had gathered there, all of them Gnoms.

Gnoms, who looked like mangy dogs, were bipedal monsters who could make and use simple weapons like spears and shields.

Individually, they were very weak monsters, but they always moved in groups, could dig traps, and used their heads for ambushes—so you couldn’t take them lightly.

The cadets hid themselves about a hundred meters away from the Gnom nest, discussing how to handle them.

In the end, they agreed to dig traps here, lure the Gnoms in, and wipe them out all at once.

After the Corsica Basil incident, Park Haesung didn’t say a word to anyone.

Even if he’d acknowledged his mistake and sincerely apologized, it might not have been enough—yet he stubbornly insisted he’d done nothing wrong, and the other cadets were so angry they wouldn’t speak to him.

Still, he was a fellow cadet, and since they all had to finish the training and return together, they didn’t kick him out of the group.

Once the plan was set, everyone worked together to prepare the traps.

They dug large pits and stuck sharp wooden stakes upside down inside.

They braided tough vines into ropes, set them at ankle height, and rigged them so that if triggered, heavy rocks would fall.

The dense forest was perfect for hiding traps.

Actually, this kind of terrain was disadvantageous for cadets who needed to use mystic arts for large-scale battles.

For the Gnoms, who were only half the height of a human, the jungle was more favorable.

But that meant the Gnoms would be less cautious and more likely to fall for the traps.

Truth be told, if it was only about two hundred Gnoms, the cadets could probably rush in and wipe them out even without traps.

If they killed dozens at once, the rest would scatter in fear.

But if that happened, it’d be harder to completely wipe them out.

The most important reason for killing monsters was for Magic Stones.

Magic Stones only appeared by chance, so the more monsters you killed, the better your odds.

And this area didn’t just have Gnom nests.

Not far off was an Orc nest, and a cave that housed a large Goblin tribe.

So they had to keep the Gnoms from fleeing and raising a ruckus, and lure them into the traps for a total wipeout.

After about two hours of work, the traps were ready.

Three cadets were chosen to lure the Gnoms to the spot.

Kim Seojun, Shin Taeyang, and Yang Hwi.

Among the cadets, these three were the fastest, and if something unexpected happened, they had the skill to escape safely.

Kim Seojun and the two cadets boldly started toward the Gnom nest.

The plan to lure the Gnoms was a great success.

Of course, it didn’t work in one shot.

Kim Seojun and the other two strode right up to the Gnom nest, threw rocks, and yelled provocations, but the Gnoms had just finished eating and didn’t show much interest.

They only fired old-fashioned, homemade arrows from a distance.

So Kim Seojun unleashed Heavenly Bowshot.

He picked up a few sharp stones and, using Heavenly Bowshot, hurled them—their heads exploded on impact.

Seven died instantly, which drove the Gnoms into a frenzy.

The chief Gnom, wielding an absurdly large mace, ordered the attack, and nearly two hundred Gnoms charged after the three.

The trio skillfully darted through the dense forest, drawing the Gnoms on.

Blinded by rage at their comrades’ deaths, the Gnoms charged recklessly, and the result was disastrous.

The cadets, hidden deep in the forest, triggered the traps the moment Kim Seojun and company led the Gnoms in.

Twang!

As the rope was pulled, huge rocks perched atop trees came crashing down.

Gnoms trying to flee the falling rocks fell into the hidden pits and were impaled on the stakes below.

In an instant, over a hundred Gnoms died in the traps.

The chief Gnom, stunned, couldn’t decide whether to continue the attack or run.

At that moment, the hiding cadets rushed out and began slaughtering the remaining Gnoms.

The cadets’ strength was on another level from the Gnoms.

With swords, spears, and sabers, they cut down the monsters one by one.

Even without using mystic arts, their battle skills honed by training were enough to take out the Gnoms.

Kiaaaak!

Kwaaak!

The Gnoms’ screams rang through the forest.

In no time, the forest was littered with Gnom corpses.

Heads lopped off, bellies split open, blood stained the ground red.

The battle didn’t last long.

About twenty minutes.

In that short time, all two hundred Gnoms were annihilated.

Among the cadets, the one who killed the most was Yang Hwi.

He wielded a spear as his main weapon, and even in the tight spaces of the forest, he used it with absolute mastery.

Instead of swinging or spinning it, he stabbed through narrow gaps, skewering two or three at a time.

Next was Shin Taeyang.

His weapon of choice was the Crescent Blade.

The Crescent Blade was hard to use in a thick forest, but Shin Taeyang swung it with such brute force that he cut through trees and Gnoms alike.

The third was Kim Seojun.

Kim Seojun used a dagger.

He nimbly used the trees as obstacles, punching holes in the Gnoms’ necks, chests, arms, and legs.

He moved like a flying squirrel.

Every time he bounced off a tree, blood spouted from the Gnoms’ heads.

After about twenty minutes, the battle ended.

Grrraaak!

The chief Gnom clutched the dagger stuck in his neck and toppled forward.

Thud.

The chief Gnom was twice the size of the others.

When he fell, there were no more living Gnoms left.

The cadets immediately began checking the corpses for inner cores.

Statistically, they should find about two orange-grade Magic Stones.

A few moments later—

“Found one here!”

“Me too!”

“Huh? I found one as well!”

Voices shouted from all around, announcing they’d found Magic Stones.

After checking all two hundred Gnom corpses, the result was surprising.

“Five? We got five Magic Stones out of just two hundred Gnoms?!”

Choi Cheolmin was astonished at the haul the cadets had gathered.