BXBX NOVEL Chapter 61
The training became even more dangerous.
Today, even An Yu-seong and Shin Seong-a, who had only been observing until now, joined the battle.
“Don’t fight alone! Group in threes and eliminate blind spots!”
Jo Seong-chan excelled at leading and commanding people as he had been taught.
The experience he had built up as the leader of a fairly large guild called ‘Haeseon’ still shone even now that the situation had changed.
“Understood!”
Although only a day had passed, the attitude of the guild members towards Jo Seong-chan had changed a lot.
Even those who initially resisted his words were now following his instructions without complaint.
“Kerarara!”
“Keurk, keurk!”
The goblins, now a sight they were sick of seeing, poured out in droves.
Originally, this dungeon required facing a large number of enemies, but because Kang Hyeon had driven them all together, many more enemies than usual had gathered.
“Aaah! We’re really going to die at this rate.”
“Isn’t this too much?”
“Damn it! Why am I suffering like this..!”
The guild members hadn’t even properly recovered from yesterday’s fatigue.
Their tired bodies felt like they would collapse just from swinging a sword.
“Kuaah! Die!”
But their minds were becoming sharper with each passing moment.
Without even realizing it, they were changing at an incredible pace.
“Hey! Who’s that over there?! It’s dangerous!”
During the chaotic battle, one guild member broke formation.
As he was about to be surrounded, Kang Hyeon, who had been observing, sprang into action.
“Move aside! You tiresome things!”
Kang Hyeon jumped into the air, stepping on a goblin’s head.
“Keeek!?”
Then he dashed forward, using the goblin’s heads as stepping stones.
-Puk, puk, puuk!
“Kek!”
Some of the goblins that became Kang Hyeon’s foothold without knowing why had their necks snapped and died on the spot.
“Watch out!”
Kang Hyeon finally reached the vicinity of the guild member. His eyes caught sight of the guild member about to be skewered, surrounded by goblins.
‘At this rate, I’ll be too late.’
Kang Hyeon decided to first throw a magic orb to repel the goblins.
His judgment was quick and his action was faster.
“Magic Explosion!”
-Kwagwagwang!
“Aaargh! I’m getting caught up in it too!”
“Open your eyes properly and get a grip!”
The guild member floundered in the dust swirling from the magic explosion.
-Pusuk!
Eventually, a sharp spear pierced the flailing member’s side.
“Kuaaaaargh!”
“Kekeke!”
The spear, which had cleverly struck a spot unprotected by armor, instantly penetrated the guild member’s flesh.
“Kuaaa! Save me!”
The guild member with a hole in his side screamed in panic.
“Stop whining.”
-Seuk!
The goblin that had stabbed the guild member was bisected at the waist in an instant.
Kang Hyeon grabbed the injured guild member.
“Ugh, uugh…”
“Is this your first time getting a hole in your body? Why are you acting like a baby?!”
Far from comforting the injured man, Kang Hyeon berated him even more.
“Do you think those goblins over there are going to say ‘Sorry!’ and apologize if you whine about being hurt?”
The guild member’s face contorted even more at Kang Hyeon’s words.
‘Damn it. Are you talking trash because it’s not happening to you?!’
If there had been any strength left in his body, he surely would have used it to punch Kang Hyeon in the face.
“Haa, haa…”
“Looks like your internal organs aren’t damaged. You’re not going to die right away, so get yourself together and move!”
“…”
The man glared at Kang Hyeon with eyes full of resentment.
“What are you going to do by staring? If you hate it so much, come at me! If you win, I’ll make you the guild leader!”
“Uugh…”
“Feeling wronged? Annoyed? Then go kill some goblins and come back stronger! You bastard!”
“Uaaaaargh!”
The power of anger was remarkable.
In an instant, the frail child who had been trembling just moments ago turned into a warrior with burning eyes.
“What is this…?”
An Yu-seong, who was surprised by the man who suddenly appeared beside him and started massacring goblins, muttered.
“Good. Excellent.”
Only then did a satisfied smile appear on Kang Hyeon’s face.
***
Ippotranslation
***
The goblin hunt, which had continued all day without rest, finally ended when they reached the core.
“Unbelievable. Clearing the core in just one day…”
“Did we really accomplish this?”
Although it wasn’t the main core but a normal core, it still typically took at least 3 days to clear.
Those who always prioritized safety and maintained perfect formation while exploring dungeons felt like they had opened their eyes to a new world.
“How much did we earn in just one day?”
The reward for a D-rank normal core was 40 million won.
If they had properly collected the magic stones and corpses they had left behind today, the earnings might have reached 100 million won.
“Wow! If we just set up a collection team, we could make money in no time, right?”
“No matter how good the money is, would you want to do this again?”
“Well, that’s true…”
Everyone who came out of the dungeon was in tatters.
Dirty with blood and sweat.
Normally they would have been desperate for a shower, but right now all they wanted was to collapse on the ground and sleep.
“I’ll give the money we earned from today’s dungeon clearing to Team Leader Han Si-hwan, so use it among yourselves as you see fit.”
All the guild members cheered at Kang Hyeon’s sudden declaration.
“And I noticed there were some dissatisfied guys today, so let me make this clear. Listen carefully.”
The cheers disappeared as if they were lying at Kang Hyeon’s following words.
“If you don’t want to do it, quit right now and get out.”
“…”
“I’m not forcing you, so just quit. Go be a basement guardian or whatever the hell you want.”
“…”
“From tomorrow, only those who want to come should show up.”
“How can you speak so irresponsibly?!”
A guild member protested against Kang Hyeon’s words.
“You came here because you wanted to, so why should I take responsibility? Even if you die in the dungeon, or become disabled, I won’t take responsibility for anything.”
“What do you…”
“But! I promise you this one thing.”
“…”
“You can become strong.”
Become strong.
At those words, the guild members unknowingly swallowed.
“Isn’t that what you want? Didn’t you go around saying you wanted to become strong and protect humanity?”
Something seemed to emanate from Kang Hyeon’s body as he spoke, overwhelming everyone.
“I’m going to watch and see how determined those who were shouting about protecting humanity really are.”
After finishing his speech, Kang Hyeon left alone in a van.
“He’s gone…”
“Yeah, he left.”
Han Si-hwan approached the guild members who were watching Kang Hyeon’s departure with a hollow feeling.
“What are you all going to do?”
At his words, the guild members showed signs of being troubled.
“Honestly, I’m not sure. I don’t know if following that man is the right thing to do, if this is correct…”
“It’s true that our Guardian Guild gathered with that intention, but I also think this is a bit too much.”
The Guardian Guild members present here were all essentially followers of the late Park Se-hyeon.
It meant they were people united by a sense of mission to protect humanity.
But no matter how strong their beliefs were, there was no one who didn’t value their own life.
“Let me speak first. I’m going to follow Kang Hyeon to the end.”
“Me too.”
The Jo Seong-chan and Jo Dong-won brothers stepped forward and spoke.
“We brothers have ambition. And we think there’s no better guild than this one to achieve it.”
“…”
“We said the same thing to Kang Hyeon-nim, but he said he doesn’t care.”
“He doesn’t care?”
“If I repeat exactly what I heard then, it goes like this.”
Jo Seong-chan cleared his throat and imitated Kang Hyeon’s voice.
“Do you think I expect some petty loyalty? You and I can use each other as much as we want, and when we no longer need each other, you can leave. As long as you don’t stab me in the back, I’ll let you do whatever you want.”
“Hahaha!”
Han Si-hwan thought it was a very Kang Hyeon-like answer.
“So I decided to use each other as much as we can. I’m not sure what you Guardian Guild members will think about this.”
“Thank you for your words.”
After Jo Seong-chan finished speaking, the Guardian Guild members’ contemplation deepened.
“I’m already grateful that you all trusted me and followed me this far. I won’t resent whatever choice you make.”
Han Si-hwan spoke to ease the burden on the guild members.
“Vice Guild Leader…”
“Honestly, I have many questions about this man Kang Hyeon too. But I realized that if we don’t become strong, we can’t protect anything.”
“…”
“Justice is something we can only seek after we become strong.”
“Yes.”
“And I’m not the Vice Guild Leader of the Guardian Guild anymore. Just call me Team Leader.”
The Guardian Guild members thought about it.
The reason they joined the Guardian Guild. Their personal goals. And their beliefs.
All these things swirled in their minds, causing confusion.
[Protect Humanity]
There were those who sneered at it as a cheesy and ridiculous phrase.
But these people had seriously fallen for that sentence and joined the guild, and in the end, they left the changed guild, following Han Si-hwan, who was the only one still keeping that promise.
‘Maybe it’s not the guild that has changed, but us…’
They had talent and they worked hard.
They thought they had become strong enough.
People looked up to them.
And at some point…
Those people started to feel insignificant.
As protectors of humanity, they had become great humans different from others.
[Protect Humanity]
The great belief that had led them.
It had somehow made them arrogant and was eating away at them.
-I’m going to watch and see how determined those who were shouting about protecting humanity really are.
Kang Hyeon’s last words kept echoing in their minds.
***
Ippotranslation
***
In the van returning to the safe house.
Shin Seong-a spoke to Kang Hyeon, who was looking out the window.
“Kang Hyeon.”
“Yeah.”
“How many of them do you think will show up tomorrow?”
“Why? Are you worried?”
“A little. Yesterday and today. I’m thinking maybe you treated them a bit too harshly.”
Kang Hyeon smiled at Shin Seong-a’s words.
“An Yu-seong, what do you think?”
“I don’t care.”
“Come on, give a more sincere answer.”
“They all look like they’re going to die soon anyway. Why bother caring?”
“I must be crazy for asking you a question.”
It was a mistake to expect a normal answer from An Yu-seong.
“To conclude, yes, I did treat them harshly.”
“Is there a specific reason?”
“I just don’t like seeing people who can’t even protect themselves making a fuss about protecting humanity.”
“…”
Shin Seong-a, who was waiting for more words, scratched her head.
“Is that all?”
“Yeah. Is there supposed to be more?”
Honestly, even Kang Hyeon didn’t know why he was doing this much.
Originally, he expanded the guild for money.
He could have just accepted them, had them run dungeons, and taken the profits from that.
That should have been the extent of their relationship.
There was no reason for him to waste his time running dungeons with them and expending his emotions.
‘Surely that should be it, but…’
For some reason, Kang Hyeon didn’t want to treat them lightly.
He didn’t want to give up on them.
“Hey. Why are you asking things like that? It’s bringing down the mood.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. What time is it now?”
“It’s 7 PM.”
“Let’s go eat some beef. Have a beer too.”
“Sounds good.”
Shin Seong-a smiled at Kang Hyeon’s suggestion.
“What about you?”
“I’m a minor, you know.”
“Oh, come on, cut the crap.”
It’s still hard to believe, but An Yu-seong should originally be enjoying his freshman year in college right now.
Even that is misleading because he’s actually barely 19 years old.
“You look like someone who’d be hooked on marijuana, but you’re surprisingly principled in weird ways, huh?”
“Kang Hyeon. I can enjoy myself plenty without relying on such things.”
An unexpected declaration of happiness.
Kang Hyeon looked at An Yu-seong with a surprised expression.
‘I didn’t know he was such a positive person. I thought he was just a weirdo… Well, he’s just a 20-year-old who recently graduated from school and likes games after all.’
Kang Hyeon realized he had misunderstood An Yu-seong all this time and felt regretful.
“Ah, the thrill of smashing something with a mace… It’s probably unbeatable even if you brought all the drugs in the world. Hehehe!”
“Oh geez, damn… I should’ve kept my mouth shut.”