Finally Got Stronger but Ended Up Regressing

Chapter 2 On Second Thought, It’s Not So Bad (1)

I looked around with vacant eyes. Soldiers armed with combat helmets, combat uniforms, combat boots, and their respective weapons were standing there.

To be precise, Hunter soldiers.

“Byun Ji-tak, Jung Ye-som, Kang Sung-jun, Koo Yoon-ho. The four of you are the last team. Ji-tak, you take the lead and guide them well.”

“Corporal Byun Ji-tak! Yes!”

Corporal Byun Ji-tak.

Corporal Jung Ye-som.

Private Kang Sung-joon.

The names rolling off the tongue are not unfamiliar at all.

Of course.

They were the seniors I ate and slept with back in those days.

“There are barely ten of them left, and even those are scattered here and there, but a monster is still a monster. Be extremely cautious in carrying out the mission.”

“Yes!”

I also remember Sergeant Kwon Min-chan, who gave the orders. Although the time we spent together wasn’t long, he left a deeper impression on me than those I lived with due to several incidents.

“Gu Yoon-ho.”

And the name being called.

“Private Gu Yoon-ho!”

That was me.

I wanted to delve into why I suddenly regressed, why this wretched situation happened, but for now, I had to fulfill my duty.

Dungeon.

This is a place where life and death come and go.

“You don’t need to step up. Just take care of the others.”

“Understood.”

Sergeant Kwon Min-chan always treated me this way.

A tool for cleaning up.

A laborer.

But I couldn’t object.

Not because I was a private.

I knew myself that I was only that capable.

“Anyway, the way you talk. You should do better.”

A clear voice is heard from the side. A female mage with impressive big eyes.

It was Corporal Jung Ye-som.

She tapped my arm and whispered.

“Yoon-ho, don’t mind what the squad leader says. It’s just a bit tough now, but it will get better later. Let’s catch the monsters or whatever then and make sure he can’t say such things anymore.”

Yeah, Corporal Jung Yesom was always like this. Covering for me and cheering me on.

It all comes back to me vividly.

But that’s why I felt sorry.

Because until the moment Corporal Jung Yesom was discharged, I hadn’t made much progress.

“Getting better? What a joke. It’s a miracle if you don’t get worse.”

Corporal Byun Jitak, who was returning to his seat, sneered.

“Gu Yunho is just a fool.”

“What are you talking about? Get lost.”

“Heh, you get lost. I’m the team leader.”

“Stop grinning.”

“Get your ugly face out of my sight.”

Corporal Byun Jitak. I can never forget this guy. He was a devil and a piece of trash who didn’t hesitate to verbally abuse and physically assault others.

I was one of his biggest victims.

“Isn’t that right, Seongjun? Isn’t Jung Yesom’s face even more annoying?”

“Hehe, that’s right.”

Private Kang Seongjun, who was sticking close by, was the same.

Unconsciously, I clenched my fists.

I wanted to punch him and have a fight, but I held back.

I couldn’t afford to end up in the guardhouse just to vent my frustration.

If I ended up in the guardhouse, that would be the least of my worries. If things got worse, I could lose my hunter qualification.

I had to endure for now.

“Alright, everyone to your positions.”

“To your positions!”

The three teams moved to the north, west, and east respectively. I was in Corporal Byun Jitak’s team, heading east.

The terrain was a forest.

Under the blue sky, a green wave spread out. It was a beautiful scenery like something out of a movie, but unfortunately, this entire area was a battlefield.

Corporal Jung Yesom seemed to be very dissatisfied with that.

“Yunho, is this right? Fighting monsters in such a beautiful place.”

“It seems very wrong.”

“Right?”

“Yes.”

She grumbled and glared at Corporal Byun Ji-tak and Private Kang Sung-joon ahead.

“Should I just set their heads on fire?”

“Would it be right to stain your pretty hands with dirty blood? Please hold back, Corporal Jung Ye-som.”

“Puh-huh, got it.”

Corporal Jung Ye-som, who had quickly calmed down, asked,

“But did you know our Yoon-ho could say something like that? He’s got a surprisingly cute side.”

It wasn’t that he knew how to say it, he had learned it. As you rise from private to sergeant, flattering naturally becomes second nature.

Well, Corporal Jung Ye-som is actually pretty. Weren’t there about a dozen people in the company who confessed to her?

Then.

From a distance, there was a rustling sound.

“Huh.”

As I suddenly stopped walking, Corporal Jung Ye-som also stopped.

“What’s wrong, Yoon-ho?”

“What? Aren’t you coming quickly?”

Corporal Byun Ji-tak, who looked back, frowned. His large body was in front of me in an instant.

A sword was in my hand.

“Are you going to draw a picture in the air with your sword? Why the sudden fuss, you b*stard? Do you want to die?”

A sound that no one else heard reached my ears.

Of course.

Their combat experience was at most about a year, but I had a whopping 25 years.

Even without auditory abilities, I could hear that sound clearly enough.

And I knew exactly what that sound was.

“They’re coming.”

“What’s coming, you b*stard? Are you really crazy about dying… huh?!”

Corporal Byun Ji-tak couldn’t finish his sentence. A black monster appeared through the bushes.

The monster, standing 170cm tall with broad ears, was holding a club in both hands.

A club with sharp spikes embedded in it.

At first, I wondered why it was so scary. But now it just looks like a cute puppy.

A spiked club?

If this were a game, there wouldn’t even be five attack patterns.

I could dodge them all with my eyes closed.

“When did those things get here! Let’s crush them first!”

Unfortunately, there was no need for me to step in. Corporal Byun Ji-tak, wielding a sword, and Private Kang Sung-jun, holding a shield, rushed at the creatures.

There were two in total.

We had the numerical advantage.

Whoosh!

“Burn, flames!”

Corporal Jung Ye-som in the rear was already casting a spell. A crimson mass appeared above the crystal orb of her staff.

It was a low-circle spell, so its firepower was quite weak, but the opponents were gnolls.

It was enough to deal damage.

Slash!

Corporal Byun Ji-tak’s sword had already carved a deep wound into one of the gnolls’ torsos.

Despite his foul temper, he was quite skilled.

He swiftly finished it off, thrusting his sword into the head of the gnoll, which was flailing around with its arm on fire.

Whoosh!

Private Kang Sung-jun’s combat uniform got slightly torn, making his movements a bit awkward, but the result was still a victory. Corporal Jung Ye-som’s fire magic had burned both of the gnoll’s legs.

“Piece of cake.”

“Indeed.”

They could have subdued the gnolls on their own, but Corporal Jung Ye-som’s timely intervention made it much easier.

Not a drop of blood was shed, all thanks to her.

“Look at them, they have no idea about teamwork. They lack camaraderie.”

“They’ll get into big trouble someday, trying to do everything by themselves.”

“I hope that day comes soon. By the way…”

Corporal Jung Ye-som glanced towards the bushes where the gnolls had emerged.

“How did you know? It was quite a distance.”

“I heard a sound.”

“A sound?”

“The bushes rustled, so I figured there were gnolls inside.”

“Wow, you heard that? I really didn’t hear anything.”

“You’re making a fuss over something you just happened to hear by luck.”

Corporal Byun Ji-tak naturally didn’t acknowledge me. But I saw it.

The fleeting distortion passing over his face.

His pride was hurt.

The fact that he, who was both a corporal and a squad leader, hadn’t noticed something that the guy he always ignored had picked up on immediately.

Maybe that’s why he kept taking it out on me.

“Why did you grab the sword? Are you planning to fight? Hahaha. Damn, do you even know how to stab and slash? A guy who can’t even properly complete his specialty training, trying to act tough.”

“Why are you acting up again? You should be thanking me for helping you avoid an ambush.”

“Ambush? Don’t make me laugh. Do you think I would fall for something like that?”

I admit that. As I recalled, Corporal Byun Ji-tak hadn’t been injured in today’s Nol Dungeon.

On the contrary, I was the one who got hurt.

Badly enough to be carried away with a canteen.

The reason was obvious.

A Nol suddenly jumped out from the side and struck my back with a spiked club.

Even the combat suit with its strong defense was no match for a direct hit.

It was so sudden that no one could do anything.

“Hmm, excuse me for a moment.”

“What?”

This time was different.

“There’s a rat hiding beside us.”

I turned my body and stretched out my arm with all my might. The sword in my hand was thrown like a spear.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

With a death cry, something fell forward from the previously empty bushes.

It was a Nol that had been there for who knows how long.

The one with its heart pierced died instantly.

“Screech!”

At the same time, another Nol jumped down from a nearby giant tree.

Alright, I knew you were there too.

Swoosh.

As I slightly twisted my body, the spiked club struck the innocent ground instead. At the same time, the creature’s body shook violently.

I struck its side hard with my left foot.

“Keek!”

The creature screamed and rolled on the ground. Even though all my strength had disappeared due to regression, I had experienced all sorts of hardships over the past 25 years.

Catching a few creatures like this was nothing.

I pointed at the creature with my chin.

“Corporal Byun Ji-tak, are you just going to keep watching?”

Corporal Byun Ji-tak’s face was filled with astonishment.