Chapter 59. Dungeon Training Practice (3)

Chapter 59. Dungeon Training Practice (3)

Grrr...

The ogre slowly moved its head, as if observing me.

My heartbeat quickened in response.

This was the precursor to my Combat Sense.

By now, I had grown accustomed to this sensation.

Thump.

The ogre before me lived purely by instinct.

Instinctual destruction and plunder—it devoured anything it could hold and destroyed anything that moved.

This dumb monster lacked intelligence but was irritatingly curious.

Because of that, it always observed anything unfamiliar.

It had absolute confidence that even if it was attacked, it could counter at any moment.

That’s why I needed to strike now, before the ogre shifted from observation to action.

Slowly, I condensed mana inside my body so the ogre wouldn’t notice.

The moment mana moved externally, it would charge.

I needed to manifest my magic instantaneously to hit it before it could react.

This was my specialty, and I was confident in it.

Three seconds.

The ogre was still staring at me. Now, it was even glancing at Baek A-Young behind me.

‘Now!’

Chwarrrrk!

Magic circles formed in an instant, releasing their spells.

I launched a fireball at the ogre’s eyes with one hand.

Wind blades shot toward its abdomen, slicing its skin.

Boom! Boom! Fwoosh—

Smoke from the fireball enveloped the ogre. When it cleared, the ogre stood with its arms shielding its face.

“Ha, what a ridiculous bastard.”

Shockingly, the arms that covered its face were completely unscathed.

The dozens of wind blades had only left shallow scratches on its abdomen.

The ogre growled in irritation.

“Kruoooaah!”

It stomped the ground, expressing its fury.

It had now fully recognized me as an enemy.

“Kuaaaah!”

Its eyes burned red as it charged at me, swinging its fists.

The slobber dripping from its mouth made me not want to get any closer.

I quickly glanced behind me.

Baek A-Young was trembling, staring at the scene in fear.

I accelerated the mana circulating in my mana circuits.

Activating ‘Acceleration,’ I dashed forward.

It was better to fight head-on than to risk Baek A-Young getting hurt.

Boom! Crash!

I dodged the ogre’s fists while maneuvering the battle away from Baek A-Young.

“Kuaaaah!”

Whoosh—!

The ogre’s fist brushed past me, making my hair flutter.

If that landed, I’d definitely break some ribs.

As I led the ogre further away, I gathered more mana.

‘What do I do?’

Its skin was too tough for my magic to deal significant damage.

I didn’t have enough time or mana for a high-tier spell.

That meant I needed a high-damage attack with minimal mana expenditure.

Thump.

My heartbeat accelerated.

I could feel the ogre’s hot breath while dodging, but my mind remained cold and calculating.

For high damage with low mana cost, I needed to attack at close range.

That way, no energy would be wasted in travel distance.

On top of that, using ‘Acceleration’ to boost the speed of my attack would maximize efficiency.

I had my plan.

I had two options.

One, strengthen my fist with mana and punch the ogre’s abdomen.

Two, create a new form of magic capable of piercing the ogre’s skin.

Fortunately, while the fireball had done nothing, the wind blades had at least left slight scratches.

That was my opening.

“Kruaaaah!”

The ogre swung its massive fist at my head. I ducked just in time.

At the same moment, I concentrated mana in my hand.

I shaped the mana into a spiral, similar to how I created Cotton Guard.

The same spiral structure used for sturdy defense could also form the most solid offensive technique.

I compressed the spiral mana into a sharper form.

Even though the mana had been refined into a blade, it was still just an advanced version of wind blades.

I rotated the spiral sphere at high speed, compacting it further.

A rapidly spinning spiral sphere like this would slowly carve through the ogre’s skin.

Boom!

The ogre swung its arm again, narrowly missing me.

‘One more attack, and I’ll pierce through.’

I intentionally kept my distance close, baiting it into a bigger movement.

The dumb ogre fell for it, slamming both hands into the ground.

Boom!

‘Acceleration.’

With the spinning spiral sphere in my hand, I drove it into the ogre’s exposed side just as it tried to lift its arm.

“Kuaaaaaargh!”

Crunch! Rip!

A grotesque sound filled the cave as its hardened skin was gradually torn away.

As blood gushed from its side, its inner flesh was finally exposed.

A massive fracture formed along the ogre’s abdomen.

Once its outer skin was breached, the battle was over.

My mana spiraled deeper inside, grinding through its innards.

Blood and flesh splattered across the dungeon floor.

“It’s over.”

Thud!

The ogre collapsed, a gaping hole in its abdomen.

──『 Spiral 』──

▶ Unique Skill

▶ Compresses mana into a three-layered spiral, forming an ultra-dense rotating sphere. Requires extremely advanced mana control. More effective at close range than at a distance.

─────────

“Spiral?”

Why do I keep getting close-combat skills I don’t want?

Damn it. This isn’t what I had in mind.

“Hoyeon! What the hell were you thinking, fighting an ogre like that?!”

Baek A-Young rushed over, her face full of concern.

“I couldn’t just leave you behind. I’d rather die together.”

“...You!”

She looked like she was scolding me, but she didn’t seem upset.

Raising her favorability further would be ideal, but I wasn’t in great condition.

My head felt light—mana depletion was approaching. I needed to replenish it fast.

“I’m going to meditate for a bit. Keep watch.”

“O-Okay. I’ll let you know if anything approaches.”

Using Baek A-Young as a human alarm, I sat down and started meditating.

My mana reserves were practically empty from that last fight.

Fortunately, my meditation efficiency was high—I would recover quickly.

“Hoo...”

I closed my eyes and slowly began absorbing the surrounding mana.

*

“Student Council President, please calm down. I understand your concerns, but—”

“Move aside. I need to see him right now.”

“Wait! Ah, geez!”

Moon Surin shoved past the secretary guarding the chairman’s office and stormed inside.

“Surin, what brings you here?”

A white-haired man sat on the main couch, leisurely reclining.

He greeted Moon Surin with a friendly smile.

“Do you think this is the time to be drinking coffee? Cadets are trapped in the dungeon!”

But Moon Surin had no interest in his reaction, spilling her frustration outright.

The dungeon berserk event had left cadets stranded, yet he was sitting here so calmly.

“...Surin, you’re not suggesting I’ve been idly drinking coffee while ignoring the situation, are you? I’ve already summoned rescue teams, allocated supplies, and assigned mages. Also, I haven’t even touched the coffee.”

“I know all that. But do you really have time to rest? Cadets are still trapped!”

“I’ve done everything within my power. You know that.”

“No. Go there yourself.”

“...Surin!”

His condition was a forbidden topic.

But Moon Surin had no time to be considerate.

Lee Hoyeon. The moment she heard he was trapped in the dungeon, her heart felt hollow.

It was then that she realized her feelings for him.

And the moment she acknowledged those feelings, she abandoned all her duties and rushed to the chairman’s office.

Seeing her completely irrational behavior, the chairman decided he needed to calm her down.

“I’ve summoned all available specialists and deployed a large number of active Hunters to the search. Just wait without worry.”

“No. If you won’t go, I will.”

“Why are you so desperate? Do you have feelings for a first-year cadet?”

“T-That’s not it! I mean, all cadets are part of Victoria Academy!”

“...”

The chairman’s expression stiffened.

He turned his head away as if to avoid looking at her, sneaking glances before quickly looking away.

He had seen his granddaughter act like this before.

This was how she reacted when she wanted to change the subject.

“A-Anyway! I’m going in myself, so take note of that! And I’m on strike until this incident is resolved!”

“S-Surin! The academy won’t function without you!”

“That’s not my concern. The dungeon berserk event is the priority. We need to maximize search operations and recruit more Hunters.”

“B-But that costs academy funds!”

“I’ve brought in way more money than this will cost.”

With a cold glare, Moon Surin threw out her words and left the chairman’s office.

The chairman let out a sigh of frustration. Just who was this man that had his granddaughter so shaken?

From his long life experience, he knew one thing: people like that never die easily.

“I should at least see what kind of brat he is once he escapes the dungeon,” the chairman muttered.

*

“I feel much better now. Thanks.”

“Mm, it’s nothing. I’m just glad you’re alright.”

We continued exploring the dungeon in a relaxed atmosphere.

After taking down an ogre, my confidence had soared.

From what I heard, even active Hunters struggled to take one down solo.

But I had killed one alone. That was definitely something to brag about, right?

“At least we won’t run into anything stronger than an ogre. That was already way beyond normal.”

Ogres had no business appearing in a dungeon filled with kobolds.

It must’ve been something to do with the demonic group, Pandemic. But it wasn’t something I recalled from the original story, which was frustrating.

“Right? I guess that’s a silver lining...”

Boom. Boom.

“Ah, shit.”

I accidentally cursed in front of Baek A-Young.

Luckily, she didn’t seem to hear me.

Boom. Boom.

She was too focused on the ominous footsteps.

And this time, there wasn’t just one set of footsteps.

Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.

Two. Two ogres were approaching.

Thump.

My Combat Sense surged again, but I remained calm.

I had already taken one down before, so I wasn’t afraid.

The method to kill a dumb ogre didn’t change just because there were two.

Dodge their simple attacks with ‘Acceleration,’ then drive ‘Spiral’ into their guts—game over.

The details might be different, but the big picture was the same.

Kuaaaaah!

The ogres’ roars grew closer.

I wanted to take out one immediately.

Baek A-Young’s stamina was running low. I needed to end this fast and find a place to rest.

‘Spiral.’

I formed the rotating spiral sphere in my hand.

‘Acceleration.’

I accelerated the mana around my body.

Gathering mana at my feet, I waited for the right moment.

Krrrrr—!

Just before I entered the ogre’s vision, my enhanced eyesight through ‘Clairvoyance’ let me see it first.

Boom!

I launched forward with enough force to shatter the ground beneath me.

Krr?

The ogre finally noticed me, but it was too slow to react to my accelerated strike.

Kuuek—!

“Die, you bastard.”

My Spiral pierced through the ogre’s stomach, and it collapsed, vomiting blood.

Ku-Kueek?!

The remaining ogre turned, shocked to see its companion reduced to pulp, and swung its club at me.

Thump.

My Combat Sense told me—

This kind of simple attack wasn’t even a challenge anymore.

I dodged the club with ease, preparing another Spiral.

All I had to do was drive it into its stomach or face.

“Kuaaaah!”

The ogre flailed, then threw a punch in frustration.

As its fist sped toward me in an accelerated space, I had a thought right before driving Spiral into its face.

‘This is my last chance.’

The ogre was mid-swing, but I was much faster.

If I continued, I could shatter its skull instantly.

But that wasn’t my goal.

I didn’t come here just to kill monsters. My target was Baek A-Young.

If I didn’t take this chance, I wouldn’t get another.

The dungeon’s mana density had stabilized. No monster stronger than an ogre would appear.

Even having two ogres here was absurd.

I had already displayed my strength by instantly killing one.

But if I was suddenly injured fighting normal monsters, it would be too suspicious.

This was my last opportunity.

Two ogres. A perfect situation.

Baek A-Young would keep me alive.

‘I can do this. No—I have to.’

To win Baek A-Young over, I needed this setup.

As the ogre’s fist closed in, I slightly slowed my Spiral hand.

Even if I got hit, my Spiral would still kill the ogre.

Crunch! Splatter!

First, its punch landed. Then, its skull exploded.

Ogre blood and fragments sprayed over me.

“Kuh...! Guh...!”

Blood dripped from my mouth.

It hurt like hell. Fuck.

It wasn’t just broken ribs—my insides were wrecked.

“H-Hoyeon! No!”

But as Baek A-Young rushed toward me, I knew my plan had succeeded.

*************************************************

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