Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 12
Chapter 12
‘Just thought it was a bit inconvenient…’
I only had a thought, yet the system acknowledged it.
Is this even possible?
It felt strange, but even in its peculiarity, the system seemed to have become kinder.
Before, it was less friendly, and information was scarce. Because of these shortcomings, there were many things I could do…
‘Well, good things are good.’
Yeah, let’s not dwell on it now since nothing has happened to me immediately. What was important right now wasn’t this.
I focused on the sounds outside the window again.
The mental standoff between Cha Jae-joon and Han Seung-hoo was still ongoing, running on parallel lines.
Even if it was understandable for Han Seung-hoo, I had no idea where Cha Jae-joon was getting such unwavering confidence.
“…What does he mean he has to do it directly?”
Doesn’t he realize how suspicious he looks right now?
I began to wonder when he would realize that he looked like someone very dubious, given his appearance with the ‘Ego Sword.’
“…Do I have to go out myself?”
Maybe it would be safer to let him into the house. If Cha Jae-joon entered the house, it would be easy for me to use the skill to drive him out.
I fell into deep contemplation for a moment.
In reality, letting Han Seung-hoo into the house was already overwhelming.
In the midst of this, inviting a crazy guy who didn’t even respond to such words into the house… anyway, a major decision was needed.
“…I don’t know.”
I really didn’t know…
If I hadn’t accepted Han Seung-hoo in the first place, I wouldn’t have been in such a dilemma. After all, if I had just ignored and not accepted him, that would have been the end of it!
I let out a big sigh and moved towards the front door to do whatever needed to be done.
That’s when it happened.
Kwaaaang!
A loud noise echoed very close by. No, it was more accurate to say it exploded right in front of me.
I immediately turned my head and quickly walked toward the direction of the sound.
‘Could it be that Han Seung-hoo and Cha Jae-joon are having a showdown?’
If they were fighting, my house would be destroyed. With an anxious heart, I checked where Han Seung-hoo was first.
Fortunately, Han Seung-hoo was still in his place.
‘…Then what about Cha Jae-joon?’
Wringing my forehead, I turned my head directly, and there he was, also standing in his place. Both of them had surprised expressions, looking at something.
It was fortunate that Han Seung-hoo and Cha Jae-joon weren’t fighting, but the fact that I couldn’t figure out the cause of the sound made me tremble with fear.
‘Even if it’s a monster, it can’t kill me as long as I’m in this house.’
Conversely, speaking the other way around, if the source of that noise was a hunter, I could also be in great danger.
“…So, what should I do now?”
What could I do to avoid the current situation right away?
I couldn’t just sacrifice my life for those two outside. They could fight against the enemy whether this house collapsed or not.
But…
‘Not me.’
I had to protect this house.
With utmost care, ensuring that not a single thing was damaged, I managed to preserve everything. Interrupting my prolonged thoughts, I quickly opened the status window.
“I need to find a skill that I can use right now.”
The best option was to completely block any attacks. The next best option was to defend the house even if I received some threats. So…
“…Activate the courtyard?”
My house was a detached dwelling, and it had a fairly spacious courtyard.
When I bought the house, the yard was a significant factor in my decision. Currently, due to my insufficient skill proficiency, the yard was excluded from the safe zone.
‘No, it’s not an issue of skill proficiency. It’s because my stats are lacking.’
Yes, it was because I was still at the FFF level. Monsters could occupy my yard without me being able to drive them away, and I was at a level where I could die with just one attack.
Therefore, my dominance over the yard was low.
In other words, if I leveled up, I could increase my dominance over the yard.
“The immediate way to raise stats…”
Of course, there was a way. I had the “Enhancement Probability Increase Potion (30 minutes)” acquired from a quest. If I used it right away to upgrade my house, I could permanently gain 30 points in all stats.
If I used skills excessively, my mana might be depleted, but I had Seung-hoo, a mana support battery, and also Jae-joon.
‘I’ll borrow mana from Seung-hoo again and ask Jae-joon to block the cause of the loud noise for 30 minutes.’
If it went as planned…
I wasn’t sure if Jae-joon would follow my instructions, but since he expressed a desire to talk with me, he probably wouldn’t just stand by if I were in danger.
With this plan in mind, I clenched my teeth and looked outside.
At that moment…
Kwaaaang!
Once again, the thunderous noise echoed near my house, and the source of the noise began to appear.
Kwaahhh!
A black object rapidly emerged from the ground. On top of it, a man wielding a sword rose into view. The man attempted to split the head of a gigantic creature with his sharp sword.
However, the scales proved too resilient, causing the man to slip and fall to the ground. The enraged black entity straightened its body, revealing its presence.
Once again, a deafening roar echoed, and the identity of the noise-maker became apparent. The creature causing the commotion was none other than a venomous cobra!
‘A cobra with venom…!’
I widened my eyes in disbelief and bit my lips.
Simultaneously, both good and bad news emerged.
Firstly, the good news was that my house provided an absolute defense against monster attacks. However, the bad news was that the person fighting the cobra was none other than the top-ranked Hunter, Jung Tae-il.
‘Right… with Jung Tae-il and Han Seung-hoo present, they should be able to handle the cobra easily.’
However, the increased threat to my house and the fact that the cobra was spewing venom into the air posed a greater concern.
‘More importantly, Jung Tae-il’s fight against that cobra is happening right now.’
I was in a hurry to upgrade my house to increase my stats and expand my territory.
This would, in turn, increase the effectiveness of my area that completely healed status abnormalities.
As I was about to call for Han Seung-hoo, a tremendous sound echoed once again.
Kwaahhh!
Jung Tae-il, wielding a sword in one hand and a wire in the other, circled the cobra. The cobra, restricted in its movements by the wire, swung its tail toward Jung Tae-il.
Unfortunately, the tail was aimed at my house.
The cobra’s attack precisely struck the roof, but there was no notification in the system window indicating that something had been damaged. However, my relief was short-lived.
Immediately, I bit down on my frustration and opened the living room window wide. Then, I shouted to Han Seung-hoo and Cha Jae-joon, who was surveying the situation.
“Why are you standing there doing nothing right now!”
“Oh, Jung Tae-il is here.”
“That thing is venomous! If it touches me, I’ll die! That means the house will disappear, and everyone will die!”
“Why? You’ll be safe if you stay there.”
Han Seung-hoo looked at me with a puzzled expression, and I urgently explained.
“I can’t stay inside forever!”
More precisely, I couldn’t stay inside forever because Jung Tae-il could destroy this house. At that moment, a deadly gas could seep in, and I could die.
‘Even if the house is repaired, I’m only FFF level. I’ll die as soon as I touch it!’
I didn’t mention the fact that the house could be destroyed by aHunter’s attack; it seemed best to keep that as secret as possible.
In response to my plea, Han Seung-hoo seemed to understand, nodding slowly.
“I’ll go kill it and come back.”
“No, I’ll do it!”
In response to my words, Han Seung-hoo blinked, and Cha Jae-joon, as if seizing the opportunity, sparkled his eyes.
“Han Seung-hoo, come into my house first, and Cha Jae-joon, help kill that snake. Just make sure it can’t approach my house.”
“Yes! I’ll do that!”
“Absolutely, you can’t attack my house! Inform Jung Tae-il as well!”
I shouted at Cha Jae-joon, who was preparing to fly after hearing only part of my words.
Holding the ‘Ego Sword’ in his hand, he nodded at me, rolled his foot, and leaped, leaving only black mana behind, disappearing in an instant.
Soon after, he appeared where Jung Tae-il was.
“…I just hope Jung Tae-il doesn’t attack Cha Jae-joon.”
Leaving Cha Jae-joon, whose identity could not be known, and sending Han Seung-hoo was even more of a gamble.
Capturing Han Seung-hoo alone would take 30 minutes, and the reason for sending Cha Jae-joon was to defend against attacks during that time.
Feeling uneasy, I unconsciously paced back and forth, observing the situation outside.
“What should I do now?”
“Oh, this time too, lend me your mana. I need to expand my territory to the yard. So, I’ll use Seung-hoo’s mana.”
“…Will that solve everything?”
“At least if you’re inside my safe house, you won’t die from poison.”
“…I understand. Let’s give it a try.”
Although Han Seung-hoo had a somewhat dissatisfied expression, he obediently extended his hand to me.
I immediately took his hand and connected my mana with his. Just trying it once, my mana quickly harmonized with Han Seung-hoo’s.
Then, I opened the system window and quickly checked the conditions for upgrading the house.