VSP 137

His mind was foggy. He vaguely remembered a flash of blue light, but couldn’t quite recall how it happened.

What was it? Why was I standing here?

His head throbbed, and as Sejun lifted his head in confusion, the massive snake boss, which had somehow appeared close, suddenly opened its mouth wide.

It looked like it was about to devour its dazed prey at a glance.

What the hell is this?

But there wasn’t much time to think, so instead of pondering what this thing in front of him was, Sejun raised his hand.

And he struck it down with one hand.

Crash!

Then, in an instant, the serpent’s massive body flew through the air and slammed into the building across the way, something unimaginable as the work of a human hand.

The shockwave sent buildings crashing down in a chain reaction with a resounding rumble.

As Sejun shook his numb, tingling hand, his summoned beast, which had been far away, suddenly appeared close by, seemingly having spotted the collapsing buildings from afar.

“What’s going on? Why all the sudden commotion?”

It was his summoned beast, Ruya. The blue dragon lazily circled around Sejun.

[You don’t look too happy.]

Ruya, who had been hunting alone elsewhere, saw his master’s inexplicably downcast expression and unnecessarily checked on his condition. Sejun shook his still throbbing head.

“My injury hurts.”

[What? You’re hurt?]

At the mention of Sejun being injured, the previously relaxed Ruya’s demeanor changed. Scanning Sejun’s body with his dragon eyes, he immediately noticed the injury and clicked his tongue.

[It hurts you? It’s still just a slightly enhanced mob in an A-rank dungeon!]

The dragon’s eyes glowed a faint blue, and before long, Sejun’s leg was as good as new.

[There. Perfect.]

“Of course. You are Lord Seo Sejun’s summoned beast, after all.”

[Ha.]

Ruya sighed softly, seemingly quite accustomed to Sejun’s self-assured attitude.

Shhhhhhh

Around that time, the dungeon boss, who had been knocked unconscious for quite a while due to the considerable impact of being slammed into the wall, raised its head.

Even seeing its visibly enraged expression, Sejun wasn’t the least bit worried. After all, it was just an A-rank boss.

Ruya, who had been quietly observing, spoke up.

[Give the order.]

“What?”

Ruya tilted his head, finding Sejun’s unusually stumbling speech today rather strange.

[Seo Sejun, you seem kind of dumb today.]

“That’s harsh.”

[You’re usually smart and cold-hearted, but today you’re acting weird.]

Wasn’t that an assessment he’d never heard before in his life? Yet Sejun immediately thought, Yeah, that’s me.

[Or are you waiting for something?]

It sounded like he was asking if Sejun had some kind of plan, but Sejun blurted out something completely out of the blue.

“……Cha Dogyeong?”

[Cha Dogyeong? Why, are you going to fight again? Why are you waiting for that guy?]

Ruya tilted his head, clearly baffled.

But Sejun was just as confused. Yeah, why am I waiting for Cha Dogyeong? What for? It’s not like we’re actually going to fight.

[Why don’t you just stop fighting Dogyeong already? You’ve never really settled anything properly, and it’s meaningless anyway. When you fight, it just wears me out, so cut it out.]

Was that so? Yeah, that was it. Dogyeong and I always ended up fighting, but we never actually settled anything.

Well, yeah, they’re both EX-rank Hunters. Fighting doesn’t really mean much.

Sejun watched the snake hissing menacingly, clenching and unclenching his fist.

He could feel it. The mana coiling around his entire body, so abundant he could go without potions for a while. Overflowing vitality and boundless confidence radiated from him.

[Just give the order already. Even if your mana is overflowing, summoning me and doing nothing is a waste of mana.]

Ruya, the bomb ready to fire since earlier, seemed restless, spinning mid-air.

Sejun chuckled softly and gave an order to his exceptionally lively summoned beast.

“Go kill it and come back.”

[As you command.]

Ruya flew off, thrilled.

Sejun watched him silently, then surveyed his surroundings. He looked at the ruined city, the dozens, hundreds of snakes, the traces of fierce battle, before leaping into the air.

Though he possessed the average physique of an S-rank hunter, his physical prowess was unbelievable for Sejun, who couldn’t wield any superhuman strength whatsoever.

Sejun’s shadow stretched long across the ruins. He took in the surrounding scene for a long while before realizing there was quite a lot to sort out in his head. He closed his eyes and started thinking.

He stayed like that until his loyal summoned beast finished off the snake boss it had been toying with.

•••

The situation was resolved quickly.

When Sejun, who had been lost in thought, opened his eyes, a refreshing breeze signifying the dungeon’s clear was already blowing through the interior.

Thanks to Ruya running wild, the ruins were reduced to dust. With overflowing mana, he’d unleashed attacks indiscriminately, leaving even the minor mobs cleared.

Ruya swiftly disposed of the snake and returned to Sejun’s side, looking triumphant. 

Seeing him stand tall as if he were a triumphant general, Sejun chuckled softly.

It was a gesture demanding praise. Sejun reached out and stroked his summoned beast’s head.

“Good job, Ruya.”

It was amusing, but Sejun’s expression quickly fell. Trying to sort through the chaos in his mind gave him a headache.

No wonder something felt subtly off. Once he grasped the situation fully, it was absurd in every way.

What followed was a fundamental question: What am I?

But Sejun quickly reached a conclusion. He was Seo Sejun. Even if many things changed, that core remained unchanged. I am Seo Sejun.

Sejun calmed down quickly. Not dwelling on things for long was his specialty.

It seemed like things had gotten properly tangled up somehow, but it also looked like it might be fun.

After briefly surveying the dungeon, Sejun moved closer to the exit.

“Ruya, I’m going to dismiss you.”

[Huh? Why?]

Ruya, who was usually summoned and always by Sejun’s side, tilted his head in confusion.

Sejun smiled, his eyes twinkling.

“There’s something I need to do. Don’t appear until I call you for a while.”

[Hmph.]

Ruya clearly hated being separated from Sejun and made it abundantly clear he wasn’t happy. But when Sejun stroked his head, Ruya seemed pleased, did a somersault in midair, and then vanished on his own.

“…….”

Sejun stared at the empty space where his summoned beast had disappeared. He soon shook his head to clear his thoughts and moved closer to the exit.

“Oh.”

Sejun didn’t panic upon seeing the crimson chains completely barring the exit. This wasn’t the ‘first’ time he’d seen this.

Or was it really the first?

Sejun reached out and grasped the crimson chain and padlock-like object.

Creak.

As he applied pressure, cracks began to form in the lock. Soon, unable to withstand the force, it snapped off with a sound like shattering glass.

Without a second thought, Sejun tossed it to the ground and immediately exited the dungeon.

The atmosphere outside the dungeon was quite tense.

Cha Dogyeong and Ryu Sehyun, who had arrived unnoticed, were glaring at each other and growling.

It seemed they had clashed over how to handle the lock and chain, and a heated argument had just passed.

But suddenly, when the lock and chain vanished and the person inside revealed himself, everyone stared at Sejun with stunned expressions.

“…Sejun-hyung?”

“Sejun!”

Cha Dogyeong and Ryu Sehyun, who had been right in front, rushed to Sejun first. Choi Yerin and Choi Hangyeol, who seemed to have come running due to the request for support, also approached Sejun. Jeong Siwoo, looking bewildered, tagged along.

All the S-rank hunters had gathered, except for Lee Dohun and Na Yookyung.

“What happened? Are you okay? I heard your leg was broken.”

Cha Dogyeong moved closer to Sejun and scanned his body up and down. His clothes were torn and bloodied from rolling around in the dust multiple times and sustaining numerous injuries. Consequently, worry filled his eyes.

Sejun, who had been watching this scene with a somewhat fresh look, let out a hearty laugh.

“I’m fine, I’m all healed up.”

To reassure him, Sejun tapped Dogyeong’s forearm. Glancing over his shoulder at the crowd, he asked casually,

“Did everyone rush over to save me?”

Perhaps it was his overly relaxed demeanor, but Dogyeong visibly flinched right in front of him. Facing that gaze, as if seeing something strange, Sejun inwardly gasped.

Ah, this isn’t it?

As Sejun scratched his cheek, Choi Yerin, who had been standing slightly apart to avoid the arguing Dogyeong and Ryu Sehyun, approached.

She seemed to be there to treat injuries, but her eyes widened when she realized Sejun was simply disheveled and bloodstained, without a single wound.

“What? You’re all healed? Siwoo said your leg was broken?”