Chapter 29

As Ji-a agreed, Si-hyun immediately began preparing elemental attack magic.

It’s the easiest method to deal with monsters whose attributes are blatantly obvious.

Attack according to their weaknesses.

*Crackle, crackle!*

Mana began swirling around Si-hyun.

Ji-a straightened her stance and stared ahead.

Slimes started dropping from the ceiling one by one, sensing the massive mana fluctuation.

*Splat! Splat!*

*Chomp—*

The floor where the slimes touched began gradually freezing due to their cold aura.

A chilling sound of spreading ice echoed through the cave.

Then, as Ji-a stepped forward…

Dozens of giant slimes surged toward her.

Stopping at mid-range, some of the slimes extended their bodies like tentacles.

They lashed out at Ji-a like whips.

“Where do you think you’re going?!”

Ji-a reacted skillfully. She dodged some of the incoming tentacles with a light twist of her body and sliced through the rest with her spear.

With each quick step left and right, the number of tentacles rapidly decreased.

The same motions repeated a few more times.

In just a few seconds, all the tentacles attacking Ji-a were eliminated.

But there was no time to catch her breath.

The remaining slimes quickly closed in on her.

One slime readied itself. Moments later, it pushed off the ground and charged at Ji-a at high speed.

‘Now…!’

Having already anticipated the slime’s move…

Ji-a activated her combat skill at the perfect timing.

She focused power into her arm while holding her spear in a thrusting stance.

Her smooth arm muscles tensed, creating delicate curves.

And with that…

Ji-a lunged her spear forcefully toward the charging slime.

*Gash—Shriek!*

The intense mana swirling around the spear shot forward violently.

The savage storm of mana struck the slime’s core dead-on.

Unable to withstand the force, the core shattered, and the slime’s body exploded.

But it wasn’t over yet.

The mana that destroyed the core kept spinning forward, slicing through the slimes behind it in one brutal sweep.

Ji-a repositioned herself.

She had killed one slime and temporarily incapacitated another.

But that was only a small portion of the dozens still remaining.

Normally, she’d have to worry about her body slowing down due to the cold.

However…

Ji-a could already feel the mana vibrating sharply behind her.

Instinctively, she knew that Si-hyun’s spell would be ready soon.

At that moment, Si-hyun shouted.

“It’s done!”

Ji-a swiftly leaped backward, pushing off the ground to put distance between herself and Si-hyun.

Just then, the slime attacking her crashed helplessly into the ground.

A loud noise rang out—but that was all.

Si-hyun pointed her sword forward.

The chaotic mana swirling around her began gathering at the tip of her blade.

A small orb formed and grew larger.

A brief silence followed.

But soon…

*KABOOM———!*

The condensed fire erupted with a deafening roar, blasting a colossal wave of flames straight ahead.

The massive explosion echoed throughout the dungeon.

Like a living creature, the flames coiled and dove toward the slimes.

The scorching heat and explosive force melted not only the monsters but also the cave floor beneath them.

*Sizzle, sizzle…*

Shielding her face with the back of her hand against the intense heat, Ji-a peeked through her fingers when the temperature dropped.

The enormous flames had vanished, leaving only embers smoldering.

Almost all of the dozens of giant slimes had disappeared.

Only two remained at the very back.

Though their cores hadn’t melted, their bodies were severely damaged, and the cold aura was gone.

*Snap!*

Si-hyun flicked her finger lightly.

Arrows of mana formed above the slimes…

*Krak—!*

And the remaining slimes met their end.

Ji-a blinked dumbly.

She alternated her gaze between the spot where the slimes had been annihilated and Si-hyun.

“My goodness…”

Ji-a had seen magic before—it wasn’t her first time.

While she hadn’t witnessed an S-rank magical hunter’s prowess, she’d seen A to B-rank abilities occasionally during high-level dungeon raids.

But…

“This is…”

Si-hyun had clearly stated her profession was “Holy Maiden.”

Thanks to her body’s memory, she knew how to use some magic.

From rolling around on battlefields, she’d also learned to toughen up like a paladin.

Still, she claimed her main specialties were buffs, debuffs, blessings, and the like.

‘Is this what “knowing how to use it somewhat” looks like?’

To Ji-a, Si-hyun’s offensive magic had already surpassed B-rank.

At minimum, an A-rank hunter would need to show up to even compete, right?

Lowering her arm, Si-hyun approached Ji-a.

She shyly twirled the ends of her hair with her fingers while glancing at Ji-a sideways.

“Well, staff or something… If I had tools for support, it’d be more efficient.”

She made an excuse as if the power were insufficient, wearing a bashful expression.

“…What? That’s ridiculous.”

Ji-a couldn’t hold back her laughter any longer.

As she slowly reached out her hand, she thought:

Showing such incredible magic yet worrying about others’ opinions—

*Swish swish—*

It felt pitiful…

Yet, on the other hand, it was undeniably cute and adorable. Not to mention, her appearance was intimidatingly beautiful.

Ji-a gently patted Si-hyun’s head.

Unlike earlier in the morning, Si-hyun quietly accepted the gesture this time.

Ji-a whispered softly.

“Si-hyun, you can be more confident. You were amazing just now.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah, the best! You’re the greatest mage I’ve ever seen.”

“…Hehe.”

Joyful smiles bloomed across Si-hyun’s face.

Ji-a smiled back at her.

—

Continuing the dungeon expedition, Ji-a and Si-hyun exchanged stories whenever they got the chance.

“Si-hyun, I’m a little worried about something.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“At the academy, you don’t go around caring too much about your students’ opinions, do you?”

“Not at all!”

Walking ahead, Ji-a glanced sideways at Si-hyun’s confident expression.

“Then, just act confidently! You’re the professor.”

“Of course! Anyway, they’re always below me anyway.”

“…Huh?”

“Always below me.” Si-hyun’s word choice was blunt.

This made Ji-a raise an eyebrow sharply.

I’m starting to get it. The occasional reactions and nervousness Si-hyun showed sometimes.

‘Should I probe a bit more?’

Ji-a asked casually.

“What do you think a Holy Maiden’s role should cover?”

“Hmm….”

Thinking deeply, Si-hyun flexed and unflexed her fingers while walking.

After a pause, she spoke.

“Give buffs, drop blessings, pull aggro for paladins if they’re struggling. Hmm, and… help the damage dealers if they’re having a hard time? Treat injuries if someone gets hurt and fill in roles when necessary. Hmm, and…”

“Wait, wait a sec!”

“Hm? Why?”

Interrupting the endless list of responsibilities coming from Si-hyun, Ji-a stopped her seriously.

If she didn’t, it might’ve continued forever. It was already enough.

She’d already admitted to covering tank, damage dealer, and support roles—all of them.

The fact that there was more to add was absurd.

“If we compare hunters, a Holy Maiden is essentially a support-type hunter, right?”

“…Right?”

Looking at Si-hyun, who tilted her head in confusion about what she wanted to say, Ji-a shook her head and continued.

“A support hunter only needs to stay safe in the back and heal well to fulfill their role. Safety first! Usually, just taking care of yourself is impressive enough.”

“…What? How is that fulfilling a role? Isn’t that just being useless baggage?”

“Just your presence alone can change the stability of a party!”

“Mm…?”

Si-hyun still seemed confused.

Ji-a realized the influence of those so-called hero parties was worse than she thought.

“All hunters are ultimately the same. Their lives are the most important. And the ones who take best care of that are healers and support hunters.”

“Um…”

“There aren’t enough of them, which is why most, if not all, belong to major guilds.”

“But still… isn’t just staying safe too extreme? Isn’t fighting together better? Being useless baggage is lame.”

“…Ugh.”

Ji-a unconsciously bit her lower lip.

Pointing out deeply ingrained wrong thinking wasn’t easy.

Being able to just stay safe and heal isn’t wrong at all.

Even some hunters need separate guards because they can’t protect themselves.

But even those people are scarce.

That’s why support hunters are treated as valuable.

Compared to those kinds of people, Si-hyun was versatile.

If you can perform all roles, then you should.

It’s not normal—it’s uniquely Si-hyun’s incredible ability.

This isn’t something everyone can do; it’s purely how amazing Si-hyun is.

There’s a clear difference between “must do” and “can do.”

Sighing softly, Ji-a said.

“Hmm… No, let’s focus on the dungeon today.”

“Yeah, we should!”

It’s true Si-hyun has only recently returned to Earth.

Ji-a recalled the idiom ‘time heals all wounds.’

If she keeps supporting and helping steadily, it’ll work out.

“Hmph—”

Letting out a deep sigh, Ji-a burned with resentment toward those hero parties of the other world.

Every time she hears about them, they seem nothing but despicable.

Hopefully, they won’t cross paths.

But if they do…

She’ll shred them with her spear.

“Ah, Ji-a! It’s the boss room.”

“So soon? We’re really fast!”

The two women nodded at each other briefly.

Then, Si-hyun smiled faintly and asked.

“Hey, can I just do my one part?”

“Pfft, you’re already doing way more than enough!”

Ji-a burst into laughter at Si-hyun’s joke.

Si-hyun giggled playfully in response.

Looking at her smiling face, Ji-a thought:

Maybe she doesn’t need to worry too much.

Si-hyun will surely handle things well on her own.

Maintaining an appropriate level of tension, the two women entered the boss room.