Otherworld Constellation Gallery Chapter 22

Otherworld Constellation Gallery

Chapter 22

“KYAAAK!”

A scream erupted. Just now, from the mouths of women who had been holding their breath and only watching cautiously even when a bullet was lodged in a person’s head.

The place where their gazes were directed. There, already familiar monsters were revealing themselves. Ghouls, and Dead Mask Archers. 

…But Something seems off.

I frowned.

Mixed among them was one that clearly differed from those I’d seen so far. A ghoul with red teeth that I’d never seen before.

‘Probably a high-grade ghoul.’

I instantly opened the Constellation Gallery. Sure enough, related posts were already up.

[Title: In celebration of high-grade ghouls appearing, I’m thoroughly providing characteristic information for newbies]

• Deeper skin color and higher muscle density.
• Enhanced physical abilities and running around.
• Red teeth and claws.
• Don’t let your guard down thinking there’s no dagger; if bitten or cut even once, bleeding won’t stop.
• If handling is delayed, wounds recover.
• May even rise from a half-dead state.
• Possesses ability to conceal presence.
• More skilled than mid-grade ones.

I clicked my tongue while reading the characteristics.

‘Bleeding that doesn’t stop, this is going to be annoying.’

At that moment, an arrow flew. While getting hit by the arrow, I shouted to the women behind me.

“I’ll handle it, so don’t be too scared!” 

“You know who looks the most dangerous right now, don’t you?”

I understand why Tulip is talking like that. The fact that she can speak so leisurely right now is probably because she feels it’s not very threatening.

‘Has Tulip already become quite accustomed to this?’

But I also know it’s not just a simple joke. Along with my attire, I killed a person without batting an eye. And without any hesitation at that. In their eyes, I might be scarier than the monsters.

‘That’s why I said what I said.’

From the beginning, all of this was my intention. I fired a gun outside to deliberately lure these monsters. To show who’s really protecting them, and who is more threatening to the thugs.

‘I did it thinking there would be more thugs inside…’

Anyway, I was planning to just take the food and leave without bloodshed, but I overreacted using the insult as an excuse. That aside, since it’s already happened.

“Tulip, you support… Ah, you might not understand if I say it like that, so please cover me.” 

“Cover you?” 

“Supporting fire. No, just don’t worry about me, just help kill the monsters. Got it?”

Tulip, who was pondering for a moment, soon summoned a bow as if she understood. 

Then I…..

SWOOSH!

As if space was distorted, Manyō’s Tomb appeared in my hand. Then, the man who had guided me earlier looked at me and said in a low voice.

“…Indeed. I wasn’t wrong earlier.” 

“Does that seem important to you right now?”

He closed his mouth for a moment.

Then, in a voice as if he would bite and swallow, he said.

“This is just a temporary alliance.” 

“Go fuck yourself, third-rate villain.”

After spitting that out, I started running while deflecting the flying arrows with my sword.

 Tulip reacted immediately too.

WHOOSH!

The arrow she shot once again precisely pierced the archer’s head.

[Dead Mask Archer (mid-grade) kill reward: 100 gold]

“Good, Tulip. A bit faster, shoot wildly without thinking about me!” 

“GRAAAARRR!”

A monstrous roar sounded. My body reacted instinctively. I kicked off the ground and moved backward.

SLASH!

The place where I had just been. The ghoul’s sharp claws slashed through that spot.

When it opened its mouth, red teeth were revealed. Its pupils were stained with blood filled with madness, and dark red saliva dripped from its severely torn mouth corners.

“…TSK.”

I adjusted my grip on the sword for a moment. Clearly, it is different from a mid-grade ghoul. Behind me, the Constellation Gallery was in chaos.

[Title: Squandering potions, you fools~]

 If bitten even once, you’ll bleed continuously, so if you try to save potions against a high-grade ghoul, you’ll die of anemia, so make sure to drink it.

ㄴ Teacher, they can’t see if you write here. 

ㄴ When did you ever think about that when writing?

ㄴ Do the teeth and claws get embedded? 

ㄴ Even if they get embedded a little, you’ll get weak.

I calmly lowered my body.

“Tulip!” 

“Yes!” 

“Take the people and fall back as far as possible!”

She froze for a moment. But she nodded immediately as if trusting me.

“Yes, be careful!” 

“Careful? Nah.”

I gripped Manyō’s Tomb tightly.

“This thing will take care of it for me .”

At that moment, the high-grade ghoul leaped at me.

“GRAAAARRR!”

Its speed is fast. I need to fight from a distance. I twisted my body and threw the sword.

SWOOSH!

THUD!

The flying blade pierced the ghoul’s head. But.

“GURRRK…!”

It looked at me as if nothing had happened, despite having a hole in its head. At that moment, a post appeared in the Constellation Gallery.

[Title: Ah  Targeting the head ] 

The high-grades have different core locations, so if you can’t find the core location, it won’t be a one-hit kill.

ㄴ Lmao, even the first hunter has to learn the hard way. 

ㄴ Even if you cut off its head, it will pretend to be down, then get up from behind with its presence concealed and kill the hunter .

ㄴ There’s a reason high-grades are hunters’ graves.

ㄴ But once you find the counter, even high-grade early monsters are manageable, right? 

ㄴ Yeah, finding the core is just grinding .

ㄴ The core differs by high-grade mob, but it’s consistent for the same type, so it’s doable.

So that’s how it was. It would be nice if they just told me the core location.

‘…This is tougher than I thought.’

I recalled the sword back to my hand. I felt a heavy weight in my hand. At that moment, the high-grade ghoul disappeared.

“…”

No, it didn’t disappear. I instinctively lowered my body.

KWAAANG!!!

The display stand behind me exploded and shattered. When I looked back, it had disappeared somewhere again.

“You’ve… completely concealed your presence.”

One of its characteristics. It hides its presence more delicately than a mid-grade ghoul. So I momentarily lost its position.

‘But it’s not like it becomes invisible, right?’

I held my ground.

‘Come on, bring it.’

I held my breath and slowly raised my sword. Soon, the high-grade ghoul that reappeared came rushing toward me at tremendous speed. But my sword was faster.

SLASH!

Its head was severed. The ghoul lay pretending to be dead.

“Sorry, but… playing dead won’t work.”

Because the kill alert didn’t appear. As I was dicing up the body, it was when I touched near the heart.

DING!

[Ghoul (high-grade) kill reward: 300 gold]

“Found it. The weakness.”

At the same time, the pattern within the blade flickered with a dark red light for a moment before fading.

‘Why is it dark red this time?’

Fuck it, who cares?.

[Title: Damn, is the First Hunter really a First Hunter?] Immediately recognizing it wasn’t completely dealt with yet .

ㄴ Wasn’t it because the notification didn’t appear? 

ㄴ Usually, people are too busy fighting to notice whether it appears or not.

ㄴ For real, there’s a reason for double kills.

ㄴ You guys keep praising First Hunter, but it’s driving me crazy that he won’t contract with anyone.

ㄴ Yeah, I was a fan, but I stopped after drawing a First Hunter fanart last night.

ㄴ Gay gay, you get out.

ㄴ I don’t have a gender though.

I smiled slightly and turned my gaze.

“Now, Tulip! Let’s go collect our fee~”

The woman who was already at the mart swallowed her breath. The scene before her eyes didn’t seem real at all. Until now, it had been a series of surreal events, but this was on a different level.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

Arrows continue to fly, swift and quiet. The arrows shot by the young-looking child never missed a monster.

Where she aimed, there was always the enemy’s heart or head. Every shot was a precise hit.

“…Impossible.”

The woman unconsciously muttered. Just surviving here is a miracle.

But that child appeared from nowhere, holding a bow, and continued to hunt monsters.

 And so calmly at that. However, there was an even more overwhelming presence.

GULP.

A human closer to a monster than the girl. The woman saw that man again, the one she had seen earlier today.

“…!”

He was no longer the man she had seen during the day. Even when she first saw him, he wasn’t an ordinary person. He was a crazy guy who was hitting monsters’ heads with a frying pan. But, not now.

‘That’s not just a crazy person.’

That’s… an insanely crazy person.

Reappearing in a strange outfit, he was now pushing through the narrow display stands and mercilessly slashing monsters.

The sword in that man’s hand shines. The long corridor inside the mart sparkled like broken crystal. The man was a merciless storm passing through its center.

His sword swung like fate, drawing black trajectories in the air. The monsters slowly crumbled before his power, and his movements were harmonious like a precise performance.

The light that continuously bloomed from the tip of his sword devoured the lives of enemies like meteors blocking the night sky. After he passed, only black shadows remained there.

‘I’ve never seen a demon, but…’

That is truly a demon. No, perhaps a demon lord. That’s how it felt.

Soon the battle ended. 

The man calmly walked past the scattered monster corpses towards her. 

And soon, he stopped quietly in front of her and opened his mouth.

“Did you get any contract offers?” 

“…Pardon?”