Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 14

Chapter 14

“…Kuk!”

Hidden among the dense trees, Jung Tae-il frowned as he wrapped bandages around his arms. 

His skin had long turned black from the venom.

He endured it because it was him; if it were someone else, the fatal injury might have caused them to writhe in agony and die. The venom of an S-level cobra was indeed dangerous, capable of melting everything with a mere touch.

Due to the lack of resistance to the venom in his weapons, they had melted away, leaving Jung Tae-il to fight barehanded. Of course, he had hastily put on gloves with venom resistance, but a cobra was a formidable opponent.

Especially for Jung Tae-il, who primarily relied on close combat, it was an unfavorable matchup. 

If Han Seung-hoo or Kang Yoon-soo had provided support from behind or if there were at least one more auxiliary hunter, he could have faced the cobra more comfortably.

In these unfavorable conditions, two close combat specialists were fighting against the venom, making the situation extremely challenging.

“Haa, hoo….”

Breathing heavily, Jung Tae-il closed his eyes for a moment. While the owner of the “Ego Sword” was holding off time alone, Jung Tae-il needed to recover both his mana power and physical strength.

He had been fighting the cobra for about two hours. His clothes had turned completely black due to the venom, and he had no mana power left to draw upon.

How did it come to this?

Jung Tae-il clenched his fist so tightly that his hand turned white. 

When he first entered the gate, the monsters inside were weak, not even reaching C-level. However, as he approached the area where the mana power density became abnormal, formidable opponents became abundant.

Even Han Seung-hoo, who had entered with him, had long disappeared. Han Seung-hoo, who disliked sticking with him from the beginning, couldn’t be considered suspicious for leaving.

Now, considering the current situation, Jung Tae-il couldn’t help but think that Han Seung-hoo might have fallen victim to the monsters.

Jung Tae-il shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel such thoughts. 

Han Seung-hoo’s skill in handling mana and the potency of his mana power were outstanding. Losing him would be a significant blow to their overall strength.

Therefore, Jung Tae-il needed to find and rescue Han Seung-hoo before his body turned up somewhere. 

“Hoo, I should capture him and tie him up.”

Why can’t that guy just stay with him without being a trouble?

In his search for Han Seung-hoo in the central part of the gate, Jung Tae-il unexpectedly encountered the cobra right in front of him. The sudden appearance of such a large cobra, as if it had emerged from nowhere, was surprising. 

Jung Tae-il had an invisibility skill, leaving no traces or presence when he roamed alone. Yet, the cobra recognized Jung Tae-il and attacked.

With its large mouth wide open, the cobra approached Jung Tae-il with terrifying speed, seemingly defying its massive size.

Swish!

Instinctively, Jung Tae-il dodged the cobra trying to crush him entirely. Fending off consecutive attacks, Jung Tae-il bit down on the wire he retrieved from his inventory.

It was a mobility device he had created through several attempts, considering his lack of separate movement skills despite being a close combatant. 

Securing high ground was a priority for fighting. Once he climbed to a high place, dealing with monsters by skill or wire would be manageable.

Jung Tae-il leaped onto a nearby tall tree. Although it was easily over 10 meters tall, he ascended it as if flying through the sky.

Kiaaak!

Having missed its prey in front of its eyes, the cobra rushed straight toward the tree where Jung Tae-il was. 

Thud! The cobra forcefully struck the tree with its head.

Due to the impact, the tree slowly tilted as a crack appeared at its base. Remaining calm on the tree, Jung Tae-il calmly shot the wire, attempting to anchor it to the cobra’s head.

“…The scales are quite slippery.”

As expected, the wire didn’t easily secure itself and flowed down. 

With a sigh, he concentrated again and accurately shot the wire in the same location. 

Thud! This time, it fortunately secured itself somewhat unstably but in the desired position. The S-level materials on the hook of the wire were doing their job well. 

Surprisingly, success came on the second attempt.

Breathing a satisfied sigh, he held a dagger in one hand and coiled the wire around it. With a taut line, Jung Tae-il leaped using his foot.

Pulling the wire rapidly, he seemed to be about to land on the cobra’s head. However, sensing danger, the cobra instantly raised its head, altering its direction. Having lost the place to settle in the air, Jung Tae-il muttered softly.

The name of the newly acquired skill that didn’t exist before.

“<Dragon’s Ascent>.”

A blue mana power gathered beneath Jung Tae-il’s feet. Swift updrafts formed around him. Utilizing the air mass and currents created below, Jung Tae-il could change direction in an instant.

Simultaneously changing direction, the slowed speed turned into a road, or rather, accelerated. Due to the lack of proficiency and an unrefined usage method, this was the only way Jung Tae-il could use it for now. However, he could achieve what he desired right away.

In less than a second since hovering in the air, Jung Tae-il reached the cobra’s head as his target.

Quaaang! A loud metallic sound echoed.

A very loud one.

Jung Tae-il, who had attempted to pierce the head with the dagger in his hand, furrowed his brow. 

Not only did he not feel the sensation of piercing scales, but the blade of the dagger was making a peculiar sound as it wore away.

“Darn it!”

The enraged snake opened its mouth wide, as if trying to spread venom all over its body, and began spewing out venomous mist. Jung Tae-il quickly took an antidote from his inventory, consumed it, and hastily searched for a place to avoid the venom. 

In that brief moment.

“Ha, there he is.”

He discovered Han Seung-hoo and a man with a fierce aura. They were in a ‘house’ that didn’t fit or shouldn’t exist in the gate. It was probably the house that Kang Yoon-soo mentioned. 

A place where mana power gathered without being dismantled.

A chilling smile appeared on Jung Tae-il’s lips. Yes, that should be the place Han Seung-hoo discovered first and acted alone. Han Seung-hoo always wanted to surpass Jung Tae-il, after all.

He decided to settle the score with Han Seung-hoo later. For now, he needed to deal with the cobra to investigate the house. 

Jung Tae-il took an antidote from his inventory and applied it all over his body. Without the antidote, he wouldn’t be able to approach the cobra.

“I should catch it quickly, or knock it down.”

And meet the owner of that house as a bonus. That’s what he thought about 30 minutes ago.

“Hoo… This should be fine.”

With a body sufficiently recovered to use skills, Jung Tae-il immediately charged at the cobra. 

The creature yelled at him for finally coming, but he didn’t care and tried to pierce its scales, which were harder than iron. He aimed to pierce scales tougher than metal with a determination stronger than a rock.

Unfortunately, Jung Tae-il was, indeed, a human. No matter how much of a top-ranked player he was, fatigue was inevitable. Moreover, the area where he faced the cobra had completely melted due to the intense battle, and he fought even harder.

To make matters worse, for some reason, the cobra continued to spew venom without showing signs of fatigue, and the antidote he had was exhausted. 

The effect of the venom seemed to be accumulating, and blood was rising in his throat. If he hesitated, it seemed like he might lose his life right there.

Even now, there was nowhere safe for Jung Tae-il to step. He retrieved the S-level dagger he had saved in his inventory due to the venom and tightly gripped it.

If even this dagger couldn’t pierce the cobra’s scales, there was no way he could win this fight. He had to decide whether to give up on capturing that darn snake.

Just as Jung Tae-il was about to sink his teeth into the cobra and attack.

Tick. Tock…

Rain began to fall from the sky.

Rainfall in a fixed climate gate, and that too, only in the vicinity of the cobra, Jung Tae-il, and Cha Jae-joon. 

Krraaah! Keeeeyah!

The cobra, now getting wet in the rain, started to writhe in pain. The venomous scales that had been impervious to a dagger were melting away in an instant. 

While the cobra was in agony, Jung Tae-il experienced a different effect.

[Status Abnormality Fully Recovered!

You are currently being showered with artificially created rain in the safety zone. A special effect for you, who have unexpectedly joined in this extraordinary event!

? Fully Recovered from Status Abnormality.

? Recovery from injuries caused by venom.]

Quickly checking the text, Jung Tae-il realized that his body, which had struggled to move due to the injuries just a moment ago, was now moving comfortably.

In that moment of realization, he moved his body and thrust the dagger into the center of the cobra’s head. And then…

What he had been waiting for appeared before Jung Tae-il with a loud noise.

[You have defeated the underground tyrant, S-level Cobra. Congratulations!

Reward: Unknown]

Finally, it was over.