Chapter 52

With a loud shout aimed at turning the tide, Kang Do-joon included—

The thieves began to vanish one by one, activating their stealth skills and disappearing without a trace.

As a result, those left behind started reacting in various ways.

“Damn it, where did they go?!”

“I, I can’t even sense their presence?”

Some were frantically looking around, checking every corner.

“Is it here?!”

“Stop hiding and fight honorably!”

Others were wildly swinging swords or spears in the air, wasting stamina like there was no tomorrow.

But despite Kang Do-joon’s powerful roar, nothing had happened yet.

“P-P-Professor! W-What do we do?!”

Arum called out with a trembling voice.

Just moments ago, she’d been thrilled watching her allies suddenly go berserk with newfound energy. Though the professor hadn’t outwardly used any skill, its effects were undeniable. It was as if everyone’s rank had temporarily increased by one level, allowing them to perform impressively. But now that the thieves were hidden, things had changed again.

The two C-rank men remained calm, maintaining steady stances, while the D-rank males were thrown into confusion, anxiously glancing around in panic.

“Arum, you know what usually happens in situations like this, right?”

“Y-Yes?”

Finally, the professor’s smooth voice rang out. Arum turned her gaze back toward Si-hyun.

Right then—

“Guhk!”

“So you actually thought you could target us so easily.”

Si-hyun reached into thin air, gripping something tightly as though grabbing an invisible foe.

“What… what is that…?”

Arum stared wide-eyed at the professor’s actions.

With a swift motion, Si-hyun hurled whatever she’d caught onto the ground.

“KRAAAAH!”

A thief reappeared with a loud thud, bouncing off the floor before rolling across it several times. He eventually collapsed, unmoving.

Arum covered her mouth with both hands, watching in shock.

And it wasn’t over yet.

SWOOSH!

Suddenly, a sharp sound cut through the air—a projectile flying unseen.

Startled, Arum whipped her head around just in time to see…

“Hmph.”

“Wow…”

The professor stood there, calmly holding a dagger between two fingers.

Speechless, Arum could only stare.

She hadn’t seen the dagger move at all—it happened too fast. She only realized because she’d been watching the professor closely.

“W-What the hell?!”

From somewhere unseen, a male voice gasped in disbelief.

At that moment, Si-hyun leaped into action, jumping lightly and driving her knee forward.

POW!

“Ugh!”

Another thief appeared, clutching his stomach after being struck. His body bent awkwardly, saliva dripping from his lips as he stumbled sideways before collapsing unconscious.

Arum blinked repeatedly, her eyes wide open.

“Let’s see…”

With ease, Si-hyun flicked the dagger upward with two fingers. The blade spun gracefully in the air before descending. She caught it perfectly by the handle, then relaxed her wrist.

WHOOSH!

With deadly precision, she threw the dagger behind her.

“AAAAHHH!”

Arum instinctively turned her head away, startled.

Not far off, a C-rank male thief rolled on the ground, clutching his leg where the dagger had embedded itself deeply.

“P-Professor! That’s amazing!”

“Heh heh….”

“S-Super cool!!”

“Mm-hmm.”

Arum couldn’t help but jump up and down, cheering loudly despite herself.

Honestly, she hadn’t seen the dagger fly at all—it was that fast. All she knew was that the professor had done it.

‘How does she hit something invisible?!’

The man had clearly been trying to lure monsters toward them. If left unchecked, chaos would’ve erupted in the clearing.

With awe-filled eyes, Arum gazed upon her mentor. Buffs? Check. Combat prowess? Double check. This was the ultimate all-rounder, capable of handling everything flawlessly.

Literally glowing in her student’s eyes.

‘Dream big, they say…!’

A new ideal for support-class hunters crystallized in Arum’s mind, evident in her expression and posture.

Seeing this, Si-hyun nodded approvingly at her disciple. Today’s villains may have shown up, but the results were satisfying. The unpleasantness caused by Kang Do-joon had vanished completely.

“Can you gather the unconscious ones in one spot while I deal with that guy over there?”

“Yes, yes!”

Arum straightened up, responding enthusiastically. She approached the groaning man lying nearby, dragging him despite her struggles. After placing him next to another drooling male, she exhaled deeply and looked toward the C-rank thief.

The dagger was buried so deep he couldn’t stand. Crawling desperately to escape, his movements were pitiful.

‘What should I do about this…?’

He was C-rank, sure, but Arum was merely E-rank, fragile and specialized in support roles.

She hesitated briefly.

Since the professor had specified “unconscious ones,” maybe letting him go would be fine. Still, watching him flee felt wrong.

Determined, Arum crept closer silently.

Too focused on escaping, the thief didn’t notice her approach.

‘Fuck, damn it! Just hide and drink a potion first!’

Exerting all his strength to crawl, he suddenly sensed danger and looked up.

“H-Huh?!”

There stood a woman wielding a long wooden staff, staring coldly down at him. A weapon she hadn’t touched during the battle until now.

More like a club than anything else.

With all her might, Arum swung the staff down repeatedly.

POW! POW! CRACK!

“S-Stop! AAAHHH!”

The thief tried to resist, attempting to block the staff despite his injured leg.

But…

‘Why, why can’t I move my body?!’

Bound by some unseen force, his limbs refused to obey. Helpless, he was beaten mercilessly.

Here, the durability advantage from their rank difference turned the situation into a grim torture session.

“HIIIIIIEE! Stop, please stop!”

“Ugh… Why won’t he pass out already?!”

“AAAHHH! Mercy, mercy!”

Rather than enduring, the thief screamed, wishing he could faint already.

Meanwhile, Si-hyun moved her attention elsewhere.

Having given Arum the chance to shine, she glanced toward Ji-han and Kang Do-joon.

The thief who’d been sneaking up on Ji-han was now circling behind him, preparing for a cowardly ambush. But Ji-han quickly turned around, blocking the attack.

“Obvious, obvious!”

“Grrr…”

Ji-han smirked mockingly.

A hunter’s instincts sharpen with higher ranks. Add to that the heightened state brought on by the professor’s buffs, and reacting to such an ambush was child’s play.

‘Shit…’

Stepping back, Kang Do-joon frowned deeply, analyzing the situation. How had everything gone so wrong so quickly? He saw his comrades knocked out everywhere.

In the distance, a foolish woman approached. Perfect, a new hostage opportunity!

‘First, take her hostage…!’

Though his teammates fell, he was B-rank. Time to prove he was different.

“Stupid girl!”

“Huh?!”

Feigning an attack on Ji-han, Kang Do-joon swiftly spun around and dashed toward Si-hyun, activating his stealth skill mid-stride.

Caught off guard, Ji-han shouted in alarm.

“N-Nee-san! Watch out!”

“Nee-san? What’s that supposed to mean…”

Sighing deeply, Si-hyun casually sidestepped, extending her hand into empty air.

“Wha-What?!”

With pinpoint accuracy, she grabbed the invisible thief’s wrist.

WHOOSH!

Without hesitation, she spun him around 360 degrees at incredible speed.

CRASH!

Using momentum, she slammed him forcefully into the ground.

“AARRGGHH!”

The impact caused Kang Do-joon to drop his dagger. Clutching his face, he rolled around in agony as blood and broken teeth scattered across the dungeon floor.

It all happened in an instant.

Ji-han stood frozen, mouth agape.

“F-Fucking insane… So damn cool…”

Smooth, seamless motions followed by a casual glance away—Si-hyun was perfection personified.

While observing, Han-gyeol approached. Noticing the defeated thief writhing in pain, Si-hyun spoke.

“Han-gyeol, can you handle the boss without me?”

“Of course! Thanks to you, we’re in top condition!”

“In that case, take Arum and head to the boss room. I’ll handle this area.”

“Huh?”

Pointing toward the path she’d taken earlier, Si-hyun explained.

“A group of monsters is coming. I’ll hold them off briefly while you defeat the boss.”

Han-gyeol glanced between Si-hyun, the unconscious thieves, and Arum before nodding decisively.

“Understood!”

Other guild members also sprang into action, moving Arum toward the presumed boss room location.

Once they were gone, Si-hyun grabbed the thief by his hair.

“AAHH! I-I’m sorry! Please stop!”

Ignoring his cries, she dragged him over to where the other thieves lay, then activated divine power.

One by one, the unconscious men began waking up.

“Huh?!”

“Ughhh!”

Facing them was their leader, bloodied and battered, kneeling with his head bowed.

Realizing their predicament, they quickly dropped to their knees, trembling as they awaited judgment.

Si-hyun crouched down, issuing orders.

“Hand over everything you’ve taken.”

“Huh?”

“You’ve been stealing from others, haven’t you? Time for you to experience the same treatment.”

“But…”

“Tsk.”

Misunderstanding her intentions despite their submissive postures, Si-hyun sighed and held up the boss’ face for them to see clearly.

Then—

CRASH!

She slammed it into the ground again, splattering more blood and teeth across the dungeon floor.

“Ugh!”

“We’ll give it back! Everything!”

“Please, spare our lives!”

Terrified, the thieves began accessing their inventory screens, handing over items one by one.

Mostly potions—likely all they had left after previous encounters. Threatening them further felt unnecessary.

Si-hyun pocketed a few daggers and potions into her bracelet before speaking softly.

“Karma’s coming for you…”

“Huh?”

Ignoring their confused questions, she stood up and bound them magically, dragging them toward the incoming monster horde.

Realizing their fate, the men struggled violently, screaming desperately.

“Please, let us go!”

“Save our lives, we beg you!”

Unmoved, Si-hyun continued walking until reaching the edge of the undead-infested area.

Remembering everything these thieves had done to other parties…

With a detached expression, she addressed them.

“Experience exactly what you’ve done to others.”

One by one, she grabbed each thief and hurled them into the midst of the undead horde.

“Keehehe?”

“Hihii?”

This dungeon wasn’t populated solely by skeletons—zombies and other undead creatures roamed freely.

Smelling living flesh, the undead reacted with unsettling laughter.

“Keeheeheehee!”

“Cackcackcack!”

Driven by primal instincts, they lunged at the thieves, biting into flesh and tearing apart limbs with their bare hands.

“AAAAAHHHH!”

“No, NOOOO!”

Even with the binding magic wearing off, it made no difference. Surrounded by ravenous undead, the thieves met their grisly end.

Turning away slightly disturbed, Si-hyun decided to catch up with the others sooner rather than later. Despite leaving Arum with the Wings Guild members, she preferred ensuring her safety personally.

Walking away without looking back…

Elsewhere, Arum watched intently as the Wings Guild battled the boss.

“W-Wow…”

For what felt like the hundredth time today, she found herself amazed.

“There’s the skeleton mage…”

The very creature Professor Si-hyun had predicted upon entering the dungeon. Her foresight proved flawless once again.

‘Of course, it’s Professor Jeong Si-hyun!’

Arum sparkled with admiration, eagerly awaiting her mentor’s return.