Holy B-Class Life

#108

“Dan Joo-hyuk!”

Kim Sin-cheol called out anxiously, worried that Dan Joo-hyuk might have thrown Yoon Pa-ran somewhere far away. Dan Joo-hyuk turned his gaze towards him at this call.

However, he suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked back. They had definitely made eye contact.

As Kim Sin-cheol frowned at him, wondering what was going on, he saw a small, white figure trudging up from behind.

Thankfully, it seems Yoon Pa-ran is in a decent enough state to walk.

Surprisingly, Dan Joo-hyuk stood still in one place until Yoon Pa-ran caught up with him. Just as Kim Sin-cheol was questioning whether Dan Joo-hyuk was actually waiting for Yoon Pa-ran,

Yoon Pa-ran quickly brushed past Dan Joo-hyuk and went straight into the safe zone alone.

Judging from Yoon Pa-ran’s hardened expression and flushed face from anger, the situation was obvious. Kim Sin-cheol reproached Dan Joo-hyuk with a tired tone.

“Did you fight again?”

Only after confirming that Yoon Pa-ran had completely disappeared into the safe zone did Dan Joo-hyuk turn to face Kim Sin-cheol.

Then he replied in a rather languid tone.

“Ah, yes. We had a round.”

“Tsk…”

Clicking his tongue as he looked at Dan Joo-hyuk, Kim Sin-cheol noticed something strange. As if they had really fought physically, Dan Joo-hyuk’s hair was disheveled.

Seeing this, Kim Sin-cheol inwardly clicked his tongue again, thinking that Yoon Pa-ran, who could engage in such confrontations with Dan Joo-hyuk, was indeed no ordinary person.

Then suddenly, Kim Sin-cheol realized something odd.

If Dan Joo-hyuk had moved enough to mess up his hair, how was Yoon Pa-ran’s body still intact?

“Let’s go in.”

“Oh, okay.”

With Kim Sin-cheol alone harboring this peculiar doubt, the gate conquest resumed.

❖ ❖ ❖

From Kim Sin-cheol’s perspective, Dan Joo-hyuk continued to act a bit strangely afterwards.

Volcanic terrains usually had four safe zones. And from around the third safe zone, the width of the path the attack team had to walk gradually narrowed.

Therefore, from this point on, the standard strategy was to move in groups of five.

Normally, Dan Joo-hyuk would ignore this and forge ahead alone. Even more so if Kim Sin-cheol was there to back him up.

However, Dan Joo-hyuk unusually declared that he would go with a 5-person system. Then he pulled Yoon Pa-ran in as the ranged attacker for the front team.

This way, including Kim Sin-cheol, a total of 3 people were at the very front. It was a formation that disregarded both position combination and numbers, despite being called a 5-person system.

‘Mr. Yoon Pa-ran, come to the front.’

‘What?’

At first, Yoon Pa-ran also resisted Dan Joo-hyuk’s sudden words.

But soon after, he joined Dan Joo-hyuk’s team with a reluctant look. It was after Dan Joo-hyuk approached him and whispered something in his ear.

Kim Sin-cheol assumed he must have made some unnecessary threat again.

Thanks to this, Kim Sin-cheol felt overwhelmed. Because of that guy’s stubbornness again, he alone was bound to have a hellishly difficult time backing them up.

However, unexpectedly, Yoon Pa-ran proved to be quite helpful to the combat power. Although he already seemed to be lacking in stamina for some reason, his skill usage ability was cleaner than expected.

He even coordinated well with Dan Joo-hyuk, surprising Kim Sin-cheol.

“Two of them.”

Dan Joo-hyuk moved forward, protecting the two while grabbing the monsters’ feet. Then he gradually pushed them back, controlling their numbers.

This kindness, uncharacteristic of his friend, made Kim Sin-cheol suspicious of his intentions. He wondered if it was another ploy to torment Yoon Pa-ran.

Creak, creak-creak, creak!

“Hunter Yoon Pa-ran!”

“…”

Yoon Pa-ran shot water streams at the monsters that had been pushed back with ghostly skill. His aim, using water attributes to freeze the monsters’ joints first, was incredibly sharp.

Then it was Kim Sin-cheol’s turn. Although he generally didn’t have good compatibility with the volcanic terrain, he targeted the monsters’ weaknesses in his own efficient way.

The monsters, entangled by tree branches that suddenly sprouted from the ground, all collapsed. Faint smoke spread from the burning branches.

Almost simultaneously, Dan Joo-hyuk called out numbers again.

“Four.”

“Hunter Yoon Pa-ran, just intercept as much as you can. I’ll back up the rest.”

“…”

Kim Sin-cheol tensed up at the doubled number and advised Yoon Pa-ran. However, although Yoon Pa-ran’s expression hardened, he skillfully intercepted all the monsters simultaneously.

Similar incidents repeated several times. The number increased to six, but fortunately, it wasn’t an overwhelming number for the two to handle. If anything, they had more than enough manpower.

Dan Joo-hyuk personally took down many monsters. Apart from his significantly depleted stamina, Yoon Pa-ran performed skillfully beyond expectations.

The other teams lined up in groups of five behind them were the same.

In volcanic terrain, one usually fights with their back to the wall, facing the lava. This is because in this gate, monsters come out of the lava and climb up the walls.

The screams of monsters beating against the hunters’ long defensive formation that stretched without pause also subsided. The monsters’ approach had reached a temporary lull.

“Phew!”

Kim Sin-cheol, who let out a frivolous sigh, peeked down below.

Until the end, Dan Joo-hyuk moved diligently without getting distracted. Thanks to this, they quickly dealt with the monsters that came up first, and the monsters for the next formation were just starting to emerge from the lava. It would probably take some time for them to climb up here again.

From behind, Dan Joo-hyuk, unable to resist even for that short moment, spoke to Yoon Pa-ran again.

“Mr. Yoon Pa-ran.”

“…”

“You should answer, Mr. Yoon Pa-ran.”

“What.”

“I just called to see. Wondering if you’re hurt anywhere.”

“Get lost.”

Similar incidents occurred throughout the journey. While Dan Joo-hyuk was persistent in picking fights, Yoon Pa-ran was no pushover either.

By the way, doesn’t his questioning seem a bit odd to be considered picking a fight?

“Oh my.”

At that moment, Dan Joo-hyuk made an awkward sound and moved his leg.

A monster corpse that was kicked by his leg flew helplessly into the lava.

Creak!

The flying corpse hit a monster that had just clung to the wall below. If he had aimed on purpose, it was quite a skillful act.

“What are you doing kicking that!”

Yoon Pa-ran immediately flared up and shouted at Dan Joo-hyuk.

Kim Sin-cheol agreed with this sentiment. Throwing it away like that meant they could never recover the monster corpse or the magic stone inside.

“My foot slipped.”

Dan Joo-hyuk opened his mouth, shrugging his shoulders. His detestable tone, as if it was really a mistake, was an added bonus.

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

“Ah. The income from this gate will decrease significantly.”

Hunter Yoon Pa-ran smartly pointed out Dan Joo-hyuk’s nonsense. Regardless, Dan Joo-hyuk exaggeratedly continued talking about just one monster.

What did he eat wrong?

Kim Sin-cheol observed Dan Joo-hyuk’s behavior questioningly from the edge of the path. As soon as Yoon Pa-ran looked at him directly, Dan Joo-hyuk approached him quickly and asked another question.

“So, are you hurt anywhere?”

“No!”

It was an incredibly persistent act. Finally, Yoon Pa-ran, tired of Dan Joo-hyuk’s behavior, tried to move towards the other teams that were still fighting.

Then, Dan Joo-hyuk, who had finally pulled Yoon Pa-ran’s arm again, whispered something in his ear.

“Geez.”

He must be threatening him again. Whatever the threat was, it must have been strong as Yoon Pa-ran’s expression hardened.

“That Dan Joo-hyuk, he’s tormenting Yoon Pa-ran too much today.”

Other team hunters, watching the scene from behind, whispered in low voices.

“I thought there might be less conflict with Yoon Pa-ran as a ranged attacker, but it’s still the same.”

“To think he’d torment him so persistently. Isn’t this the first time Dan Joo-hyuk is going with a 5-person system in a volcanic terrain?”

“Ugh, Yoon Pa-ran must be having a hard time being targeted like that.”

“Wow… But is that the item from the Russian gate? The sword’s power seems no joke.”

Those who, like Dan Joo-hyuk, quickly defeated the vanguard of monsters took a moment to rest. Naturally, their gazes turned towards Dan Joo-hyuk and Yoon Pa-ran.

Park Jung-hoon’s gaze was mixed in there as well.

“…Hunter Dan Joo-hyuk is really being too harsh on Hunter Yoon Pa-ran.”

“I know. There was a rumor that Yoon Pa-ran moved to ranged because he couldn’t endure anymore. Wonder where he got that item from, must have cost a fortune.”

“Well, it probably isn’t a very good grade. Anyway, he acted so stingy, was it to get an item?”

“…”

Park Jung-hoon’s gaze, listening to others’ conversations, sank into a peculiar darkness. It was a strange darkness that even the light from the lava couldn’t penetrate.

Meanwhile, Kim Sin-cheol’s expression became increasingly strange.

Seeing them up close, the conversation between the two became increasingly odd.

“Why are you trying to help other teams? Just sit down for a moment instead. You can just sit during the next clash too.”

“It’s because of you!”

“Yes, it’s because of me. That’s why I’m telling you to rest, since I know that.”

How long has it been since I’ve seen Dan Joo-hyuk smile like that?