32 chapter - Natural Healing Pension (2)

I ripped the spear from the Orc with the shattered neck, drew blood from its corpse, and let it flow into my right eye.

Then, I finished off the remaining Orc writhing in pain beside me.

Woom…

As expected of a C-Rank monster, generous experience poured into my body.

The pension manager finally arrived at the parking lot, utterly horrified.

“W-What… What happened here…?”

“Contact the Bureau now and request backup, hurry!”

“Huh? Uh, yeah?”

The manager's eyes swept over the three Orc corpses lying on the ground, and he quickly nodded.

“R-Right!”

I watched him dash off somewhere and turned to the party.

“Everyone, back to the rooms. Arm up.”

Seong Yohan looked confused as he responded.

“Isn’t the situation over?”

I checked the Hunters app and answered flatly.

“No.”

Orcs showing up meant a Gate had opened nearby.

But there were no disaster alerts, no gunfire, no signs of chaos.

The Hunters app wasn’t showing anything either.

An unregistered Gate broke open.

Even in Gangwon-do, where the population is sparse, the military and Bureau monitor heavily.

They patrol regularly. A standard Gate? It would’ve been discovered before it ever opened.

Which left only one possibility.

A rapidly eroding Gate—a natural disaster-like ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) phenomenon that breaches within hours, sometimes within the same day, spewing monsters.

“Seems like a rapid erosion Gate popped nearby.”

Meaning, Orcs could flood out at any moment.

The party's expressions hardened.

“So hurry up. Gear and weapons—now.”

We rushed back to the pension and threw on the equipment we had barely taken off earlier.

Better bring this too.

The pistol with the mana stone modification.

It felt like a waste to use it outside a Gate, but this wasn’t the time to be picky.

Better than nothing.

As we stepped back outside, someone was waving us over.

“Hunters!”

It was the pension manager, the one who ran off to report earlier.

He gestured wildly.

“Over here, hurry!”

We followed him across the grounds, and a shipping container came into view.

As he unlocked the triple-layered padlocks, I asked bluntly.

“What’s this?”

“Weapons cache.”

Inside were ten K2 rifles and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

“I figured the Hunters should get theirs first…”

“When you say ‘first,’ you mean… you’re distributing to the other guests too?”

“Uh… after arming our staff with the extra five rifles, each team will get one.”

I inspected the rifles—they were well-used.

“These military-issued?”

“Yes, from the local base.”

“This happen often?”

“Not before. But these last few months, way more frequent.”

His face darkened as he continued.

“It used to be, the worst you’d get were goblins…”

Now, Orcs.

“At least we’ve got rifles.”

Orcs were powerful monsters.

It took dozens of C-Rank Hunters to clear a Gate where Orcs appeared.

But outside a Gate? It changed the equation.

A trained company of soldiers with rifles could sweep up regular Orcs.

Guns—still the most reliable weapon.

The real problem is elites and bosses, though.

Standard Orcs, sure, rifles could drop them.

But elites and boss-class Orcs? That was different.

You needed high-caliber rounds—the kind that could take down elephants in one shot—to stand a chance.

We didn’t have sniper rifles right now. The only ones who might be able to take down elites or bosses… was our party.

Typically, one Gate spawns a dozen or so Orc elites.

Even pushing our limits, maybe we could kill five or six.

If they storm this place, it’s over.

If they found this location before reinforcements arrived, it would be a massacre.

No choice then.

I turned to the manager.

“Gather everyone. Shelter in one of the guest rooms.”

“Wait… what about you Hunters…?”

“We’ll hit them first. Keep them from even noticing this place.”

Im Jin-sol reacted first.

“Boss? Are you insane?”

“I’m sane.”

She gave me a disbelieving look and tried to talk me down.

“You really don’t know Orcs, do you? A few rifles? They’ll laugh at us. At least—”

“I know.”

She thumped her chest in frustration.

“Then how the hell are you saying this?! Boss! Get your head on straight! We’re not some damn charity!”

She turned to the party, pleading.

“Come on, someone say something! Talk some sense into this crazy boss!”

But the responses weren’t what she expected.

“…If the Captain’s doing it, I’ll follow.”

Hong Soo-ah backed me first.

“M-Me too. Who else is going to stop them if not us? We’re Hunters.”

Naïve but determined, Lee Yuna chimed in.

“Uh… well…”

Seong Yohan fumbled, caught between both sides.

Im Jin-sol’s face twisted in disbelief.

“You’ve all lost your damn minds. You trying to die? Have you lost it completely?!”

I watched quietly, then spoke.

“Im Jin-sol, Seong Yohan—you stay here. Protect the civilians.”

“Huh?”

“Hong Soo-ah, Lee Yuna—you’re with me. We flank the Orcs.”

“W-Wait a sec…!”

Sorry. No time to waste.

“Hong Soo-ah, Lee Yuna, move.”

I left Im Jin-sol mouthing silent protests and Seong Yohan frozen, unsure what to do, and headed for the parking lot where the Orcs had shown earlier.

Crowds had gathered around the Orc corpses.

“Those are definitely Orcs, right?”

“Who killed them?”

“No clue. Heard there’s a Hunter staying here.”

“Really?”

The group gawked at the bodies, curious.

Idiots.

No sense of danger whatsoever.

In a situation where Orcs could appear at any second, they were playing tourist with the corpses.

“Damn. Should’ve seen the fight.”

“I told you, Gangwon-do’s got this kinda action.”

Situations that could be resolved safely often turned into disasters because of people like them.

I scowled.

“Return to your rooms. Now. This area isn’t safe.”

They didn’t look remotely interested in listening.

“Whoa, guns! Even a sword!”

“Are they really Hunters?”

“Hey, I know that guy. Saw him in the qualification exams. What’s his name…”

The group looked barely in their twenties, talking loudly for our benefit.

“Those girls gotta be Hunters too, right? Damn, they’re hot.”

“Duh, with how much money Hunters rake in, they probably paid for all kinds of upgrades.”

“Figures. Our tax money going to that crap?”

“Yeah. Should cut the Gate subsidies in half or something.”

I wanted to give them a real-world lesson with settlement cash in hand—but there wasn’t time for lectures.

Then, from behind, Im Jin-sol’s voice rang out.

“Hey, you trash piles! What the hell are you standing around for?! Get your asses over here!”

The biggest guy from the group stepped forward, glaring.

“You talking to us, bitch?”

Im Jin-sol’s response was simple.

“Aim.”

The man rubbed his forehead as a glowing blue target appeared on it.

“W-What the hell is this?!”

He looked utterly terrified, panicking at the unfamiliar phenomenon.

Im Jin-sol casually aimed her gun at him and sneered like she was chewing him up.

“You dumb bastard, follow orders unless you wanna die! Until the Bureau gets here, I’m in charge!”

The group, cowed by her overwhelming presence, reluctantly started complying with her commands.

Annoyance written all over her face, but still following my orders to the letter.

“Leave this to Im Jin-sol. We move.”

“Okay!”

“…Yes.”

As we entered the forest where the Orcs had come from, I heard Jin-sol’s booming voice from behind.

“Boss! Don’t you dare die out there!”

I let out a faint smirk and waved back.

**

Finding the Gate’s location was easier than expected.

Once we crossed the ridge, a wide-open field stretched out below.

Right near the pension.

They’re coming this way.

The mountain looked like it had a massive chunk gouged out, making it easy to spot the Orcs’ movements.

They were headed straight for the pension.

They must’ve noticed it.

No wonder three scouts had already made it that far.

That was a close one.

We nearly had a catastrophe on our hands.

“…What should we do, Captain?”

“We ambush them here.”

I quickly outlined the plan.

“We ambush from here. After that, I draw their attention. You two head back to the pension and regroup.”

Hong Soo-ah stared at me in silence.

I pressed her.

“You can do it, right?”

She quietly nodded.

“Good.”

Lee Yuna still looked unsure, clearly overwhelmed by the situation, but she said nothing.

“Yuna, all you need to do before leaving is cast your buff on me.”

Yuna opened her mouth a few times, clearly wanting to say something, but clenched her jaw shut and nodded.

“Okay.”

The Orcs climbed the ridge in no time.

Even the weakest of them were rumored to rival C-Rank Hunters with Body Enhancement traits—their physical capabilities were no joke.

Bang!

A gunshot split the air, dropping the lead Orc instantly.

Bang! Bang!

Hong Soo-ah and Lee Yuna opened fire right after me.

In seconds, dozens of rounds cracked through the air, and over a dozen Orcs collapsed on the spot.

Unexpectedly, it was Lee Yuna’s performance that stood out.

Every single one of her shots pierced an Orc’s skull, flawless precision.

Considering the distance—200 to 300 meters—it was an incredible feat.

Huh, maybe we can hit them harder than I thought.

Over twenty Orcs lay dead already, blood spraying everywhere.

Yuna’s impressive accuracy was getting us better results than anticipated.

But it didn’t last long.

The Orcs scrambled behind cover.

They were already figuring it out.

Not bad… if we can stall them like this, that’s even better.

We’d avoided targeting the elites.

I’d explained their traits to Soo-ah and Yuna beforehand and told them explicitly not to engage the elite troops.

Right now, they probably think every gunshot means instant death.

From the Orcs’ perspective, these weapons were an unknown civilization’s tech.

Watching their comrades drop like flies, even elites hesitated.

We had the advantage—full intel on them, and they knew nothing about us.

Just hold out a bit longer, reinforcements will come.

But that thought underestimated them.

“Kruooorgh!”

An elite Orc warrior charged straight for us, fearless.

I grabbed Yuna’s hand for a moment and spoke.

“You two—back to the pension, now!”

I sprinted in the opposite direction, firing my gun.

Bang!

“Over here!”

I made myself the focal point to ensure Yuna and Soo-ah could escape safely.

But—

Bang! Bang! Bangbang!

Gunfire erupted from the direction they were fleeing.

It wasn’t them.

Slightly farther off.

The pension…

Something was happening there.

Kruooorgh!

But I had no time to worry about the pension.

Damn it!

I unleashed a burst of gunfire at the charging Orc.

Tududududu!