He is a legendary prison guard

Episode 15
Difference

“Don’t attack! Eun-ho, just go and draw aggro. Healer, keep checking regularly. If it gets dangerous, give a heal.”

The experienced C-rank hunter, the leader of the Black Tiger Guild, quickly assessed the situation and issued commands.

Realizing that the betrayer was a far more dangerous opponent than the hellhound, he decided to assign most of his forces to Bayan.

Attacking the hellhound unnecessarily would only create chaos if the aggro shifted to another hunter.

Here, he could only rely on the swift movements and agility of Eun-ho, the C-rank tank.

It was regrettable to have to use one of the only two C-rank hunters, including himself, but there was no other choice.

If he assigned a D-rank, they wouldn’t be able to hold out at all.

“Everyone, don’t hold back on items! That guy is incredibly strong! If you hold back, it’ll end badly.”

Since they made a living by going through gates, hunters usually carried a few items for survival.

These included healing potions and magic scrolls.

The guild leader himself tore up two scrolls containing Strength and Haste spells without hesitation.

He recognized that this was an enemy he could not handle in a normal state.

Other hunters also tore up scrolls with support magic or drank potions to enhance their strength or agility.

“Go on; struggle as much as you want. It’ll make killing you all the more enjoyable.”

With a relaxed expression, Bayan approached the hunters.

It was the hunters who were tense instead.

Shi-hyun gripped his longsword tightly, his face set. Just in case, he checked his stats again, but there was no change; it seemed the guy wasn’t a prisoner.

He had considered pulling out the legendary Acurerats but decided against it for now.

There was no guarantee that pulling it out would lead to victory, and it was obvious that if he revealed such a good sword, he would become the top target.

That would be unmanageable.

It seemed wise to keep his Trump card hidden until necessary.

“Be careful, oppa.”

Eunhye said in a calm voice.

A voice soaked in tension makes the listener tense as well.

So she showed no outward signs of her anxiety.

“Yeah, you too, Eunhye.”

Shi-hyun replied as calmly as possible.

“Ice Bolt!”

“Fire Arrow!”

The Black Tiger Guild’s mage hunter cast first, launching a sharp chunk of ice.

Eunhye quickly cast Fire Arrow and shot it off.

At the same time, the rogue hunter threw a dagger.

“Good effort.”

Bayan dodged the attacks with a nonchalant gesture.

“Incoming!”

Someone shouted.

They had spotted Bayan’s movement suddenly quickening.

The leader of the Black Tiger Guild stepped forward with his sword, intending to meet Bayan’s attack head-on.

He thought that if the strongest among them blocked the enemy’s advance first, it would help maintain morale.

Clang!

“Ugh….”

As their weapons clashed, the guild leader groaned.

The attack was far too heavy and quick.

Without the Strength and Haste spells active, he probably wouldn’t have been able to withstand it.

Taking advantage of Bayan’s momentarily halted movement, the other hunters lunged in from both sides.

But Bayan was already gone.

He had leaped up and swung his dagger at the guild leader’s neck.

Clang!

Just as the blade was about to sever his neck, a metallic sound rang out.

Shi-Hyun had barely managed to block it with his longsword.

“Everyone, watch out for the neck, heart, and eyes!”

With his active skills,
Skilled Neck Cut,
Skilled Heart Stab, and
Skilled Eye Gouge.
Shi-hyun had read all the skills from the enemy’s info window and warned them.

“Huh?”

Bayan’s eyes widened for the first time.

He felt that something had been read.

But he tilted his head slightly and soon returned to his original expression.

‘That can’t be.’

As far as he knew, awakeners who could read the enemy’s info window were extremely rare in the world.

Moreover, they lacked combat abilities, and their matters were top secret.

If he hadn’t had connections with high-ranking officials, he wouldn’t have even known that such awakeners existed.

It was highly unlikely that such a precious and rare awakener would be here.

He thought that perhaps this person had fought against an awakener of a similar type before.

“Did you get your tail cut off after one clash?”

The guild leader provoked Bayan, thinking he had to make a decisive move before the magic wore off.

Fortunately, the enemy responded readily to the provocation.

“I’ll show you. hehehe.”

Laughing derisively, he charged in with even greater intensity.

Clang!

Once again, the guild leader absorbed the impact of the attack.

But at the same time, the dagger in Bayan’s left hand moved as well.

“Huh!”

Swish!

A nearby D-rank hunter gasped and barely managed to block the attack. If he had been even a moment late, his heart would have been pierced.

Shi-hyun’s warning about the heart had been helpful.

“That guy seems to be ambitious!”

Shi-Hyun shouted as if he had been waiting for this moment.

He had already read the passive skill Ambidextrous.

“That seems to be correct, Guild Leader! The left side is incredibly sharp too.”

The near-death D-rank hunter chimed in.

Even if he used dual swords, the off-hand wouldn’t have as much power.

But the fact that there was almost no difference hinted at ambidexterity.

“Hmph.”

Bayan scoffed as if it didn’t matter that he knew.

He quickly alternated his attacks from left to right, striking the hunters’ formation.

The hunters were only barely managing to defend themselves.

The stark difference in abilities combined with the ambidexterity made it even more challenging.

After some time, it seemed he had identified a weak point and began to focus his attacks there.

It was where an E-rank hunter was positioned.

Even though the guild leader had assigned someone to cover that spot during formation, it still lacked strength.

“Ugh?”

“Shield!”

The E-rank hunter, unable to block the attack, was nearly killed when the mage behind him cast a shield spell.

But that seemed to be a trap, as Bayan leaped low and quickly jumped over the E-rank hunter.

He aimed straight for the mage, who had just cast the shield.

He had seized the moment when the cooldown for casting another shield was still active.

“Ugh!”

The image was frozen in place, unsure of what to do.

In a desperate situation, his body had stiffened.

There were tanks and rogues nearby to protect the mage and healer, but they too seemed to be a beat late in reacting to this attack’s speed.

“Shield!”

Eunhye managed to cast the shield just in time.

Clang!

The mage barely saved his life.

This time, however, Bayan changed direction and turned his blade toward Eunhye.

But this time, Shi-hyun anticipated his movement and stood firm.

Clang! Clash!

The blades collided twice.

‘Damn it….’

Even though his surprise attack had failed, Bayan showed no signs of agitation.

He never stayed in one place for even a moment.

Constantly moving, he cornered the hunters.

‘Damn, this is.’

The leader of the Black Tiger Guild frowned with a grim expression.

Everyone felt it.

Just holding out this long was a miracle.

If they hadn’t used scrolls and potions with buff effects to exert more power than usual, several would have already died.

Yet even those buff effects were starting to wear off.

As the effects of the buffs faded, screaming erupted.

“Ugh!”

A hunter fell, clutching his throat as blood gushed out like a fountain.

“Healer! Heal quickly!”

“It’s already too late! Focus on the fight!”

The guild leader shouted.

But the formation had already broken down.

“Ugh!”

Clang!

Another hunter fell, his wrist severed, dropping his weapon to the ground.

‘Shit, I have no choice but to pull it out.’

Shi-Hyun bit his lip.

If Hellfire missed, he would die.

But it was a problem that, unless he was an idiot, anyone could tell just by looking at the engraved sword that it was a magically inscribed weapon.

The moment they realized that the chances of hitting would drop dramatically.

There had to be optimal timing to catch the enemy off guard, but he was in such a dangerous situation that it was hard to gauge anything now.

Yeah, now there was no choice but to pull it out.

‘Acurer…’

Just as Shi-Hyun was about to pull out the Acurerats.

“You crazy bastard! What the hell are you doing here?”

A sharp female voice rang out.