Chiiik.
Chiiik.
“Oh my, oh my. Looks delicious~”
Olgania smiled as she gazed at the dripping juices.
If someone were to witness this scene of a high elf from the Great Forest and a child of the World Tree craving meat, they might think it’s a competition. However, unfortunately for them, Olgania had long ago succumbed to carnivore corruption.
And to be precise, Olgania wasn’t truly an elf.
Strictly speaking, she was a sort of chimera, mixed with Chaos Ants, elves, fragments of the World Tree, and shards of the Demon King.
Yet, as a blessed child of the noble World Tree, she still received the love of spirits.
Anyway, sitting next to Olgania, who was gazing at the meat with honey-dripping eyes, were two other figures.
“That’s true.”
A young but haughty S-grade ice hunter, Yeonhwa, with blue hair.
“…In three minutes, it’ll be fully cooked.”
And there was Lirisia Alpenheim, who was once the Witch of the Dark Star.
The three peculiar figures huddled by the campfire, staring at the meat above it.
An awkward atmosphere lingered, but with the presence of meat, they weren’t too sad or uncomfortable about the current situation.
Actually, to be precise, the attempt to deny or escape the awkwardness was futile. It was just like a child throwing a tantrum, trying to flee from the uncomfortable air instead of simply accepting it.
Thus, they chose to accept it.
As mature adults. Or as people becoming adults.
Even if their meeting seemed out of place, it was something beyond their control; once a person is born, they can’t only do things they like or wish for.
Rather than worrying, they focused on accepting and letting go, preparing to greet the noble existence before their eyes.
An existence that shattered all awkwardness and the frightening silence.
Meat.
Delicious meat.
Very delicious meat.
Chiiik…!
Chiiik! Youtain…!
The flames of the campfire danced vividly and enchantingly.
The sparks that rose to the sky seemed to sink slowly and then cascade down.
The circumstances leading to their encounter trace back to a little while ago.
○○○○
“Sigh…”
As the hunter who had been teleported to a cave in Hwangwoo Valley murmured while cutting through the dark, her deep sigh echoed against the walls.
In reality, it wasn’t just any cave.
This was a chaotic place, deep in the abyss, resembling an unorganized bottomless pit.
Even an S-grade hunter with expert knowledge in curse and trap resistance could resist the dungeon’s teleportation gimmick.
But resisting that gimmick was only possible when one had prior information to prepare.
There was no avoiding sudden teleportation while asleep or living out daily life, completely caught off guard.
And in this place, a person caught in the Great Valley’s teleportation gimmick was also present.
Lirisia Alpenheim.
An existence that faced an end similar to Isia’s but yet different.
Though everyone might have forgotten, Lirisia was the Witch of the Dark Star who had brought ruin to a world, even if she was weakened.
Though turned into a mere human by Menelapie’s wicked acts and unable to use her malevolent miracles or terrifying curses as before, the massive mass contained within her very being and the physique resulting from that mass allowed the dungeon to classify Lirisia as an S-grade hunter.
“Sigh, I was about to eat, but suddenly dirt pours into my mouth, how infuriating.”
Cak-cak!
“Hang in there. I’m hungry too.”
Kyaak!
Her tentacles ground against sharp teeth, expressing hunger, yet faithfully navigating through the cave walls, moving her owner along.
Unfortunately, Lirisia was stuck deep underground, not on the surface or in the sky.
At least she could tear through the earth as if it were nothing, but if another S-grade hunter had fallen here, they might have met an untimely death from being buried or suffocated without understanding what was happening.
Even occasionally, massive carnivorous worms attacked, but once Lirisia’s tentacles started drooling, the worms quickly dug into the earth to escape.
“Hey, I don’t want to eat that.”
Grurur…
“Let’s go outside and eat. A Valley of the Bull must have something like bull calves.”
Krukk!
“If you understood, hurry up and dig.”
Beeep.
329 meters to the surface.
At the drone’s alarm, Lirisia let out a sigh of relief for the time being.
The mana saturation levels in the dungeon were likely high, causing the drone’s radar to malfunction, making it impossible to locate a train or other hunters. Still, at least she could gauge how far she was underground.
‘Well, at least it’s good to have this.’
Lirisia had no problem vanquishing the underground floor or walls. However, without the drone, digging aimlessly without pinpointing her position would have risked plunging her deeper into the abyss.
Recognizing that the distance to the surface had drastically shortened, Lirisia drove her tentacles into the ground.
Squish.
She felt the squishy sensation of soil mixed with underground water.
Realizing she was getting close, Lirisia caressed her tentacles.
“Break through.”
Obeying Lirisia’s command, the tentacles immediately swung their immense mass down like an explosion, obliterating the earth.
Boom!
Thus, after being teleported underground for one hour, Lirisia emerged into the open air.
Sensing her previous suffocation, the tentacles lifted Lirisia into the air to enjoy the refreshing breeze.
Shaking off the dust that clung to her body and brushing back her dark, muddy hair like a shower, the cool wind wiped away the sweat trickling down her forehead.
“The air outside, haaa…”
The outside air was quite refreshing and clear.
Though it wasn’t as pristine as the elven terraform-enchanted great forest, it had been a considerable time since Lirisia breathed the outside air, and she stretched as she gazed at the sun.
“Shia un, you…?”
Just then, Lirisia felt the gazes upon her.
“…….”
The atmosphere instantly shifted.
There wasn’t just a single gaze.
To be precise, there was one human’s gaze, surrounded by a multitude of Minotaurs glaring at Lirisia, growling menacingly.
“Tch.”
Turning her face towards the sound, Lirisia clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘Of all the times to run into that one…’
It was Yeonhwa.
As an S-grade hunter from Korea and a member of the Hunter Train operation committee, it was not unusual for her to be teleported somewhere due to a dungeon’s gimmick, yet it was unfortunate this time she ran into Lirisia.
And the many Minotaurs surrounding her.
Lirisia generally preferred to avoid encountering other humans as much as possible.
Though the Hunter Association claimed the issue in Mapo District had been resolved, that was only because Shia wanted to keep Lirisia’s identity concealed.
In a way, Lirisia’s very existence was also Shia’s secret and could potentially become a weakness.
While one might say all these negative thoughts were merely paranoia, it was a well-founded thought to exercise caution until the situation with Shia and the surroundings stabilized.
Lirisia wasn’t unaware of this either.
If looked at from that perspective, meeting Yeonhwa was somewhat fortunate for Lirisia. What she wanted was to maintain a low profile, blending in, and later sneak onto the Hunter Train.
Of course, Yeonhwa also had rather complicated feelings towards Lirisia.
During the Mapo District incident, Yeonhwa had nearly lost her life at Lirisia’s hands. Though Shia had forgiven her, the delicate conflict between them was something difficult to define, let alone resolve.
“…… Hah.”
However, encountering each other in this way was anything but ideal.
The elves, who had gotten close through terraforming Yagada, were one thing, but Lirisia was still unable to even apologize to Yeonhwa for almost killing her. Now, stating “Sorry for almost killing you,” wouldn’t establish any emotional exchange between them.
Time could solve such matters, but that time had not yet passed in full measure.
MunOoOo!
Woman Minotaur!
MunOoO, MunOo! Octopus Woman!
Today’s dish is boiled octopus!
Heub Heub!
“…..”
Nonetheless, despite the awkwardness of meeting a human, Lirisia decided to handle the pressing situation first.
Yes, let’s deal with those things first.
Lirisia glanced at Yeonhwa and murmured.
“Hunt.”
“… Ah…!”
Hunt.
That single word was enough.
As their gazes drifted apart, turning their heads, Yeonhwa rocketed forward.
Her movements carried no hesitation.
It felt like she was attacking the sacrificial lamb of the awkwardness and the silent air surrounding them, intent on killing the monsters aiming for her.
Paaaan!!
Ice Dominion!
CrOoOo?!
Uwo!
In an instant, Yeonhwa froze the ground, reducing friction to almost zero, as she raced through, leaving a trail of frozen Minotaurs in her wake.
Of course, the Minotaurs possessed great mana.
Under normal circumstances, Yeonhwa’s attack would have frozen their entire bodies, but thanks to their inherent magical powers, they only froze parts of their ankles or arms.
But that was enough.
Snap!
Lirisia’s spine shattered and then regenerated.
The tendrils, thin as an arm, thickened and grew to the size of tree trunks in less than a second. In an instant, Lirisia swung out five tentacles in all directions.
The colossal violence itself drew Yeonhwa’s attention, slamming down on the defenseless Minotaurs on all sides, crushing and devouring them.
MunOoOo!
Gggk!
OoOo! The Woman Minotaur is attacking!
All around, the indiscriminate mass bombardment caused the Minotaurs to scream, their bodies either freezing or defensive postures failing to hold up against the terrifying strength of Lirisia’s tentacles.
Single strikes crushed their skulls and ribs into oblivion.
Thud!
Crackle!
The clean-up was swift.
In the meantime, Yeonhwa created ice wherever her feet touched the ground, making it nearly frictionless, deftly weaving between the Minotaurs she encountered, freezing them all in place. Even those Minotaurs who finally noticed and attempted to flee could not shake off Yeonhwa’s pursuit.
Just freezing a leg or an arm was enough.
Once a limb was frozen, they couldn’t form a proper defensive stance and would inevitably be pierced by Lirisia’s tentacles or struck down by her massive weight, leaving them to go down like a mere mob monster.
It was surprising how they managed to achieve such optimal synergy without ever having planned tactics or practiced together.
Whack!
Thud!
Uwo!
MunOoOo!!
Minotaurs that were frozen and momentarily immobilized faced demise.
Lirisia’s giant tentacle swung with unrestrained violence, causing the Minotaurs to drop like flies.
Of course, not all the Minotaurs stood idle against Lirisia’s tentacles.
“Hey? You’re blocking, huh?”
One Minotaur with only its ankle frozen held its ground, bulging muscles ready to burst as it hugged Lirisia’s tentacle like a snake.
In fact, the strength of a Minotaur was known as the stuff of myth and legend—synonymous with extreme power.
The legendary creature often found in tales and the symbol of malice and violence wasn’t coined for no reason.
Though Yeonhwa dashed around freezing and confusing them, the trained muscles of a Minotaur could crush cars with just one hand. An A-grade hunter could never physically defeat one.
MunOoOo!!
The Minotaur poured every ounce of strength into the struggle, its veins bursting, its muscles and blood vessels bulging.
Lirisia watched it curiously and realized her tentacle was inching backward.
Thinking they were weak since they were being swept aside like mere mobs, she found they possessed greater strength than expected.
Brothers!
We’re coming!
MunOoOo!!
Dinner shall be boiled octopus!
Uwooo!
“Eh?”
Other Minotaurs began to latch onto Lirisia’s tentacle.
Moreover, they had avoided Yeonhwa’s freezing attack, allowing them to exert their full strength.
When one of them put its all into it without yielding, Lirisia couldn’t push it back, and as five fully-conditioned Minotaurs clung to the tentacle, it began to tremble wildly like a giant snake pushed to the ground.
Lirisia’s other tentacles were too busy crushing the other Minotaurs to assist.
The tentacles granted to Lirisia were somewhat limited compared to Shia’s.
Watching this unfold, Lirisia decided to pull out her claws.
Slash!
With a squelching sound, Lirisia’s claws morphed into dark, extended, beast-like forms.
She wasn’t keen on stepping in, but she had no choice…
“Perfect timing.”
Ice Infection!
At that moment, Yeonhwa descended from the sky, scattering frost upon the Minotaurs grouped together.
Thwump!
The sound was far too chilly to be called an explosion, resonating everywhere.
This was nothing like the pathetic Yeonhwa trapped long ago in Nafthar Great Forest during the Dungeon Overbreak.
The cold spray exploded out, freezing the Minotaurs clinging to Lirisia’s tentacles in less than a second to their very cores.
Though Lirisia’s tentacle also entered the freezing zone, Yeonhwa quickly acted, well aware that Lirisia’s tentacle was something extraordinary, not like Shia’s.
Kyaaa!
And as Yeonhwa had anticipated, while the Minotaurs were frozen, Lirisia’s tentacle quickly threw off the ice and vented frustration, crushing the frozen heads of her attackers and shredding their torsos and lower bodies apart.
“Hoh.”
Even Lirisia, watching the ruthlessness of the freezing attack from afar, let out a whistle of admiration.
Additionally, other Minotaurs who, at any point, had been partially infected by the cold began freezing solid, their bodies gradually succumbing to the chilling infection, rendering them inactive.
Life signs: None.
Monsters: Annihilation.
Good job, Hunter!
With the AI drone announcing their victory, both women exchanged glances.
Having fought Yeonhwa briefly during the Mapo District Crisis, Lirisia could now clearly tell how much stronger Yeonhwa had become.
Clap clap clap!
“You got stronger, Ice Girl?”
“Huh…!?”
As Lirisia clapped, grinning like Shia, Yeonhwa’s shoulders jerked sharply.
Once an adversary, the Witch of the Dark Star now wore a visage that bore an uncanny resemblance to Shia with her dyed black hair, momentarily entrancing Yeonhwa.
After a long pause, Yeonhwa muttered as if to excuse herself.
“…I am not your Ice Girl.”
“Oh really?”
Catching Yeonhwa’s intent, Lirisia couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.
‘How many of those twisted pervert priests has she enthralled like that?’
Only Lirisia, well aware of Shia’s twisted sexual interests, would truly understand how perverted Shia could be.
