CHAPTER 13

Goblin Hunt (3)

Crunch.

Under the brightly shining full moon, a pair of crimson eyes gleamed ominously within the deep shadows cast by the towering apartment buildings.

Snap!

A narrow alley to the north.

The master of that place was a single humanoid beast.

A creature covered from head to toe in coarse, jet-black fur.

Crunch!

It was absorbed in crushing the spine of a goblin.

Kill.

Dozens of goblin corpses were strewn about, rotting and spreading a putrid stench.

Crack—

It was hard to believe this was just hunting to satisfy hunger.

Malice was deeply embedded in every single body piled around the beast.

The way it focused on tearing apart the goblin's corpse wasn't hunting—it was venting its fury.

Kill.

Not a single goblin body remained intact.

Each one was severely mutilated, broken into scattered pieces.

"Grrr."

What was surprising was that there wasn't a single human corpse among them.

Only a mountain of goblin bodies surrounded the beast.

More.

Having just finished dismantling the goblin in its mouth, the creature's crimson eyes flared as it searched for its next prey.

I need more.

And then—

The hateful screams of goblins rang in its ears.

"Kieeek—! Kieeek—! Kieeeek—!"

The ear-piercing cries of goblins in a frenzy sent the beast's instincts into overdrive.

The underground parking lot.

Despite suffering numerous wounds when it had stormed their den once before, there was no hesitation in its steps.

All those wounds had long since healed.

Kill.

It was hunting time.

Swish—

With a sound as if space itself was warping, Choi Hyung-jun appeared.

Phew. That was close.

Throughout the mission, he had been monitoring Choi Hyung-jun with his [Absolute Eye].

If anything went wrong, he was prepared to use his Guardian Summon skill immediately.

He had hoped it wouldn't come to that, but things nearly went sideways—so he had no choice but to activate it.

Didn't expect it to take three whole seconds to cast.

He even had to disable [Absolute Eye] to execute the skill, making the actual delay a bit longer.

"Huff! Huff!"

Gasping for breath, Choi Hyung-jun spotted him and, nearly in tears, stammered out,

"J-Jaehyun! Ugh!"

"Are you hurt?"

"Hic. I'm fine."

"That's a relief. Hm?"

Contrary to his words, blood was slowly seeping from Choi Hyung-jun's calf.

Following the gaze, Hyung-jun looked down at his own leg, then scratched his head.

"When did this…? It's nothing. This will heal quickly."

The bleeding was minimal, suggesting the wound wasn't too deep.

It seemed to be a scratch from a goblin's claw, which was undoubtedly filthy.

To prevent secondary infections, it had to be treated immediately.

I should register medical supplies too.

There were too many essential items that needed to be stored.

"You should stay here."

"…Okay."

Inside his home, he opened the drawer where medical supplies were stored.

I might end up using these more often than I thought.

There would be constant battles with monsters ahead.

Small wounds would be inevitable, and having proper medical supplies would be crucial for safe treatment.

Antiseptics, antibiotic ointments, bandages, cold medicine, painkillers like Tylenol—

Due to frequent illnesses as a child, he had always made sure to stock up on such things.

There's even antibiotics.

Before the world turned into this mess, he had suffered from a boil infection, forcing him to visit the hospital frequently.

Like most people, he had stopped taking the prescribed meds once he felt better—some of them still remained.

Penicillin.

Penicillin was one of humanity's greatest medical discoveries.

Medical history was often divided into two eras—before and after penicillin.

Now, with monsters running rampant and injuries unavoidable, it was one of the most necessary drugs.

Too many things to register.

There were only a few slots left in his shop inventory.

With just 40 slots available, even stocking essential survival items was a challenge.

And since there was no way to predict when he'd earn more skill points, conserving those slots was the best strategy.

Will this work?

There was a trick to saving inventory slots.

He had discovered that the toolbox Choi Hyung-jun brought earlier had been registered as a single item, despite containing multiple tools like hammers and screwdrivers.

Probably because it was sold as a set.

But the medical supplies here were different.

They had all been bought separately, so it was uncertain whether they'd be recognized as a single set.

Might as well try.

He shoved as many supplies as possible into a first-aid kit and attempted to register it in the shop.

Improvised Used Medical Kit (77,330 won) ▶ Restore?

…It worked.

It was ridiculously expensive, and the restoration cost was absurd, but at least it proved that makeshift sets could be registered.

I'll hold off on restoring it. Not necessary right now.

Aside from the outrageous price, it was a solid success.

And later, if needed, he could extract specific medical items from the set and register them separately.

Carrying the slapdash first-aid kit and a bottle of water, he returned outside, where Choi Hyung-jun was waiting obediently.

"Let me see your wound."

"I really think I'm fine…"

Rolling up his pant leg, it was indeed a laceration from a goblin's claw.

The cut wasn't deep, but the surrounding skin was already inflamed.

Not a good sign.

"I'll disinfect it."

"A-Alright."

He wiped away the blood with an alcohol swab, then applied antiseptic.

Choi Hyung-jun flinched at the sting, but once the ointment was applied, his expression relaxed.

[Citizen Choi Hyung-jun's trust has increased.]

[Citizen Choi Hyung-jun's loyalty has increased.]

"…Thank you."

"Take this too. It's an antibiotic. And here's some water."

"Y-Yeah."

Just as the treatment finished, a commotion erupted from the emergency stairwell below.

They're here.

Hadong-geon's group was racing up the stairs, pursued by dozens—no, hundreds—of goblins.

"We're almost there! Just a little more!"

After accepting over 90 people into his domain, he had learned that the average level for an adult male was around 7 or 8.

Yet, even the women in Hadong-geon's party, Kim Ga-young and Yoo Hye-rin, had levels in the double digits.

Being former athletes, their stamina was far superior to that of ordinary people.

"Huff! Huff!"

But even they were struggling.

It was understandable.

Running at full speed up 30 floors was exhausting enough.

Being chased by a horde of bloodthirsty goblins made it infinitely worse.

Especially since the goblins, running on all fours like rabid dogs, moved at terrifying speeds.

Fortunately, they had survived this far thanks to their exceptional teamwork.

"Huup!"

Crash!

Moon Byung-ho, at the rear, swung his bat, sending two goblins tumbling down the stairs, momentarily disrupting the horde.

It barely bought them time, but they kept running.

"Byung-ho, hurry up!"

Kim Ga-young and Hadong-geon provided cover fire, aiming for goblins' bellies and shoulders.

Thud!

"Kieeek!"

The wounded goblins became obstacles, slowing their brethren.

Perfect teamwork.

Thanks to it, they all managed to reach the 30th floor safely.

And now, it was time for Step Three of the driven hunt.

A plan that would turn the tides completely.