The Genius Assassin Who Takes it All

Chapter 137: Versatile (3)

“Shall we settle up and then rest? You have priority, and it seems like the obvious choice for you.”

During the loot distribution, Ma Jinho offered Kang-hoo an orange magic stone valued at ten billion won.

This was because the magic stones dropped by Edax were one orange and one yellow.

It looks like things are going well.

Of course, for the Groo Guild, who conceded the priority, it was a bitter situation.

Kang-hoo alone pocketed ten billion won, while the remaining nine split the billion-won magic stones.

“Thank you.”

“No need to mention it. This is the first time I’ve seen someone manage their stamina so well after hunting Edax.”

“What was it like before?”

“Do they rest once more?”

“That would be too disgraceful, so we capture Edax. But after that, a mandatory 12-hour rest is required.”

Ma Jinho smiled, looking back at his teammates who were resting.

Although they were resting, they enjoyed the break with jokes and pranks.

In the past, everyone would have been utterly exhausted, sprawling on the floor to rest.

For Kang-hoo, the passive skill ‘Whisper of Favorable Winds’ stolen from Edax was the greatest satisfaction.

The ability to permanently increase stats without equipping an item is a significant advantage.

Later, when every part of the body has items equipped.

From that point, the task of pulling additional stats from items becomes very challenging.

It’s then that the stats diligently invested through leveling up and such permanent stats shine.

Ma Jinho asked,

“Do you often join raids as a mercenary like this?”

“No, this is the first time I’ve participated as a bleed dealer.”

“…What?”

Ma Jinho was surprised.

It was hard to believe it was Kang-hoo’s first time, given how flawless his movements were from start to finish.

“I often solo or tackle small-scale personnel, so I don’t feel pressured in one-on-one situations with monsters.”

“Ah. You prefer to minimize the number of players.”

“If you share the experience too much, it loses its flavor.”

“Ah, I agree.”

Ma Jinho laughed.

Anyway, this was the first time he participated with the primary purpose of maintaining bleed.

No matter how you think about it, cognitive dissonance occurred because all of Kang-hoo’s movements were too clean.

“Recently, the perception of assassins hasn’t been good, but Shin Kang-hoo completely changed that.”

“It’s tough to find a good assassin, just like it’s hard to find a sensible healer.”

“Exactly. Everyone was skeptical, but now they might become fans of Shin Kang-hoo.”

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Ma Jinho glanced back, and everyone was pointing at Kang-hoo, talking and laughing.

From their gestures of vigorously waving at Kang-hoo, it was very likely they were complimenting him.

“The raid damage was beyond imagination; there’s a thrilling feeling in beating down monsters.”

“Our guild gathered only the elite. We’re also called Team Groo 1.”

“Team Groo 1, huh…”

“When the guild master and deputy guild master arrive, I get immediately demoted to Team 2. Haha.”

Just as Ma Jinho said, the two top-ranking members of the Groo Guild, who are also siblings,

Were swordsmen like Ma Jinho and main tankers.

If he was the type to solidly hold the center of the battlefield with his massive body and strong defense,

The two were known for their dazzling skill usage and coordination, trapping the monsters as if in a swamp.

They not only provoke but also significantly reduce the mobility of the monster horde using a variety of skills.

For example, by creating a slowdown zone or applying a debuff to reduce a monster’s mobility.

Since there’s no precise term to refer to them, they are commonly called ‘Debuffer Tankers.’

“I’d like to meet them.”

Hunters with unique forms or abilities are always a subject of curiosity.

In the original work, the two sisters were briefly mentioned as the owners of the Groo Guild.

This time, I was eager to see them in person. Debuffer Tankers. It sounded quite interesting.

At that moment.

Boom!

Among the brothers who were drinking, the younger one slammed the table, which had been set with bottles and glasses.

Fortunately, the table was made of reinforced wood; otherwise, it would have been split in half long ago.

“Why are you so worked up?”

“Are you not angry? Look at our internal hierarchy in Eclipse that was just reorganized. Is this normal?”

“…Damn.”

The elder, trying to ignore the contents, cursed.

The two brothers, Choi Jin-ho and Choi Jin-su, were three years apart and served as executives in Eclipse.

Unfortunately, they were classified as lower-tier executives, evident from their role managing dungeon licenses.

While looking at the hierarchy chart, Choi Jin-ho muttered,

“Jin Hyo-young died, and yet why is our personnel movement still in a backlog…”

“At least let us manage the tracker unit or give us the team leader position for Tracker Team 5 or 6.”

Both were extremely frustrated.

When Cha So-hee died, there was a general reshuffling of positions among the executives, naturally leading to promotions.

However, even then, the Choi brothers were not considered for a position change.

Instead, executives who were below them used Cha So-hee’s death as an opportunity to climb up,

Effectively bypassing the brothers and experiencing a two-step rise in rank.

They tolerated it then,

Thinking that the boss, Kang Dong-hyun, had some plans. But now, the same situation occurred.

Hunters they used to manage as lower-tier executives had now moved up the ranks.

“Damn. Do two people have to die for us to move up? This is too much.”

“Should we just confront the boss directly? We have contributed to Eclipse!”

“Forget it. Ever seen anyone talk back to boss Kang Dong-hyun and survive?”

“So, how long do we have to endure this disrespect? Bro, we have families to support too.”

The ‘family’ Choi Jin-su mentioned referred to their subordinates, not their actual families.

Anyway, having subordinates who call them ‘boss’ doesn’t mean much if they can’t command respect.

After a moment of silence.

Choi Jin-ho, biting his lip hard, stood up as if he had made a decision.

“Jin-su.”

“What?”

“It seems we should become bounty hunters.”

“What bounty?”

“You know the boss is all focused on that damn Shin Kang-hoo. If we kill him, we get a reward, items, and a promotion. It’s a three-in-one deal.”

“Bro, he’s not an easy target. Cha So-hee died, and so did Jin Hyo-young. They were stronger than us.”

“Idiot. They moved alone because they were too proud of themselves. We move as twenty.”

“Hmm…”

“Use some as cannon fodder while we play to our strengths, even Shin Kang-hoo can’t do much.”

“Let’s throw some guys in and snipe with a magic bullet?”

“Exactly. No matter how tough an assassin is, a headshot will end it.”

“Right. There’s no defeating numbers. Just need the right timing.”

Both Choi Jin-ho and Choi Jin-su were gunners. Specifically, snipers like Ban Se-yeong, specializing in long-range attacks.

“Right. It makes sense for us to break through. We can’t just sit around waiting for a chance to fall.”

“Get the kids ready. A couple of newbies should be enough for dungeon management.”

“Will it be okay with some sacrifices?”

“Damn it. If we keep being protective of our subordinates and end up being left behind, we’ll die too.”

“…Damn.”

“Let’s prepare. Let’s start by gathering information on places where Shin Kang-hoo frequently appears.”

With that, the two brothers took action.

The hit list posted on the official Eclipse website by Kang Dong-hyun had a significant impact.

Although the Choi brothers were the first to act, they were not the only ones thinking this way.

For Eclipse hunters seeking the boss’s favor, the target for extermination was indeed an attractive prey.

Perhaps it was because the journey up to the middle boss monster segment had gone smoothly.

The approach to the main boss monster segment also progressed without any incidents, like a one-sided game.

The strategy was so successful that the health and magic potions brought along were never even used.

Contrary to what Ma Jinho said about always using up the potions he brought, this time the potion bag remained unopened.

The level had already reached 113.

If Kang-hoo had only been the shuttle for bleeding, he wouldn’t have found much fun in terms of experience…

But Kang-hoo actively engaged in damage dealing throughout the strategy, reaping significant results.

With such a flow, if they catch the boss monster, they might even hope to reach level 120.

That means raising more than 10 levels in a high-level dungeon.

Of course, not just anyone can do this.

If you just suck your thumbs in a high-level dungeon, you won’t even get a speck of experience.

Everything is the fruit of effort, so there’s no gain without effort.

“Ha… Now we have to face the most tedious and tricky boss monster, Gloria.”

Ma Jinho pointed at the boss monster in front of him.

Kang-hoo had been watching for a while too, and there was a reason why Ma Jinho sighed.

Gloria was a giant female-type boss monster, approximately 5 meters tall.

A peculiar feature of Gloria was that she floated in the air, her entire eyes covered with a blindfold.

According to the pre-briefing done before entering the dungeon, there was a story behind it.

Was it that Gloria, not wanting to see the corrupted world anymore, had gouged out her own eyes?

Regardless, Gloria, who had gained the ability to ‘see’ without seeing, perceived the world in a different form.

She was a boss monster that uniquely had ‘no’ offensive capabilities on her own.

To find a similar case…

It was reminiscent of Regant, a boss monster that Kang-hoo and Jung Yuri had previously tackled.

At that time, Regant vanished as soon as Kang-hoo touched it, marking the beginning of the dungeon’s collapse.

Regant lacked attack capabilities, yet the collapsing dungeon served as a form of attack.

Gloria was slightly different.

Approaching her could easily result in her death, but the protective zone surrounding her posed the real challenge.

The danger was so acute that a careless approach could lead to instant death within a death zone.

Not just receiving damage or injuries, but literally dying on the spot.

The protective zone around her contained death zones that constantly shifted, posing a threat to any hunters who dared approach.

Additionally, attacks in the form of instant-death rays sporadically shot from the outskirts of the zone.

Ma Jinho referred to it as the ‘murder ray,’ stating that merely brushing against it would reduce the body to a handful of ash.

This was why attacking Gloria required continuously inflicting damage from a distance.

Maintaining bleeding was not an option, making it a tedious task akin to unleashing skills over an extended period.

This was the reason everyone was consuming high-calorie meals in preparation for the drawn-out battle.

However, Kang-hoo had been closely observing Gloria and her surroundings the entire time, utterly focused.

He hadn’t even noticed Ma Jinho speaking beside him.

Ma Jinho said,

“What are you thinking? You don’t need to maintain bleeding on this one. Actually, you can’t.”

Then Kang-hoo asked,

“If we just break through the instant-death zone… Is Gloria’s endurance really that weak?”

In that moment, Ma Jinho thought.

Could this ‘crazy’ assassin have devised an unexpected and unique strategy?

Given Kang-hoo’s history of exceeding expectations, anticipation naturally surged.