[Title: Guys, guys, guys, what do I do??]
[Mint Soboro Bread]
[Content]
High School Grad Middle Schooler << He’s just too brilliant and adorable, what am I supposed to do????
[Comments]
– Did this bastard get blackmailed or something?
– Looks like it lol
– Ugh, you’re pathetic, Mintso.
– Reporting this under the Child Protection Act.
– Mint Soboro Bread: It’s fine, he’s a high school graduate lol
“Pfft.”
Observing Mint Soboro Bread, who was faithfully carrying out my orders even today, I perched on the edge of the bathtub, drenched from the rain, and let out a light laugh.
While the channel users seemed to dismiss it as worthless nonsense, in truth, it wasn’t merely baseless flattery.
For I was, truly and genuinely, a super-genius, brainy beautiful girl with exceptional intellect.
It floated.
Floating a tiny mini-cloud above my palm, I gazed at it with satisfaction, my mind recounting the achievements of the past few days.
‘…It hadn’t been easy.’
However, with my inherent genius combined with arduous effort, I had finally become capable of effectively protecting Bucheon City from the onslaught of anomalous weather.
More precisely, I had learned to control the scope of my subconsciously manifested abilities, shrinking their area of effect to a more localized region.
[Title: Guys, seriously, what do I do???]
[High School Grad Middle Schooler]
[Content]
What on earth am I supposed to do with my genius talent????
[Comments]
– Hmm;
– Is it really that much?
– He really sounds like a complete idiot lol
– Test time. What’s 14 multiplied by 17?
– High School Grad Middle Schooler: 2428?
– At least do the math before you speak, you damn idiot.
Now, as long as I maintained my concentration, even if I entered a state of intermittent ‘menhera’ (TL Note: A Japanese slang term, short for ‘mental health-related,’ often used to describe someone with unstable mental or emotional states), the residents of Bucheon City would suffer no significant harm.
Instead, a small rain cloud would form above my head, causing only a one-meter radius to be submerged in a downpour.
“Ugh, still damp.”
After shedding my water-soaked outer and inner clothes, tossing them into the washing machine one by one, I drew a warm bath and immersed my chilled body fully into the water.
Although I had made a fuss about various things, it was an undeniable fact that my abilities had indeed advanced to the next level.
Did ordinary hunters also develop their abilities at such a rapid pace?
Though I wasn’t entirely sure, the swift and consistent results meant that, despite everything, I couldn’t say I was in a bad mood.
‘Hmm…’
The celestial deities of the Dangun myth.
Once, I had respected them as my seniors, even poring over books detailing their exploits, but now, it was no exaggeration to say that our hierarchy had truly been inverted.
From this moment forward, Pungbaek, Usa, and Unsa would have to revere me as an elder on par with Hwanung himself.
“Samguk Yusa, cut.”
Splash!
Swish!
Thud, thud.
As I rose from the bathtub, my skin, now thoroughly warm and perfectly dry, emerged.
Having donned only my underwear and a shirt, I emerged, retrieved a banana milk from the refrigerator, and as I checked the clock, the time was already approaching 5:30 PM.
‘Perfect timing.’
The agreed time for the ‘ssalmeok’ (TL Note: A Korean slang term referring to profiting from online games or activities, often by selling in-game items or accounts for real money) laptop transaction was 7:00 PM. If I finished my preparations and headed to the meeting spot now, I would arrive at a reasonably opportune moment.
Rustle.
Whoosh.
After completely drying my hair and body, I put on my training shorts and a hoodie, then set off.
Since I wasn’t going out to show off my face, I made sure to wear a mask, completely shielding myself from any prying eyes.
‘Stealth, perfected.’
Carrying the laptop, I boldly set off for the meeting place… only to find myself, a short while later, in a cave I had never seen before, surrounded by strangers I had never met, staring blankly at the stalactites clinging to the ceiling.
In short, I had been trapped inside a suddenly appearing dungeon.
‘Uh…’
What is this? Someone get me out of here.
****
“W-where exactly are we?”
“Surely… it’s not, is it?”
“What do you mean ‘it’s not’? This is clearly a dungeon!”
By some stroke of immense luck, the ‘ssalmeok’ laptop was not currently in my hands.
This was because I had encountered this predicament not on my way out, but on my way back home after completing the transaction.
‘The people caught up in this… six in total?’
Five excluding me, six including me.
However, even if a truckload of unawakened ordinary people were present, they would be of no help inside this dungeon.
As those who grasped the situation began to tremble with anxiety, a young man, the only one among them who remained composed, stepped forward and calmly revealed his identity.
“Please calm down. I am Shin Myeong-hoon of the Halla Guild. May I take control of the situation from this point?”
“What? The Halla Guild…?”
Swish—!
Though people had eyed Shin Myeong-hoon with suspicion, as he summoned a sword and shield of light from thin air, their doubtful gazes swiftly transformed into ones of elation.
‘Oh…’
Though circumstances prevented me from stepping forward, to be honest, it was a situation I’d always wanted to emulate at least once.
In a moment of crisis, a super-genius weather manipulator appears, summoning dark clouds and unleashing thunderbolts!
Wouldn’t that be a performance that would utterly astound the citizens present on the scene?
“Wow! Are you perhaps a Paladin class?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right. You have good observational skills.”
“Paladin Shin Myeong-hoon? I’ve never heard of a hunter like that in the Halla Guild…”
It was a somewhat gruff remark from a middle-aged man, yet the observation itself was valid.
The Halla Guild held a certain degree of public recognition, and even I, who practically lived on online forums and archives all day, had never once heard the name Shin Myeong-hoon from Halla.
As if acknowledging this, Shin Myeong-hoon nodded awkwardly and continued speaking.
“For now, it’s because I’m an apprentice.”
“A-an apprentice…?”
“While I understand your apprehension, there’s no need to worry excessively. I was, after all, scheduled to officially join the guild’s raid team next week.”
The middle-aged man seemed half-convinced, yet with no other lifeline to cling to, he soon nodded and agreed to follow Shin Myeong-hoon’s lead.
And so, the rather shoddy dungeon exploration by Shin Myeong-hoon and five others commenced.
“This doesn’t appear to be an overly dangerous dungeon, but if I determine it’s beyond my capacity, I will retreat, prioritizing the survival of the largest possible number. Do you all agree?”
“Yes, yes.”
In truth, while it sounded good to aim for survival, if Shin Myeong-hoon failed to clear the dungeon, the helpless ordinary citizens would have no recourse.
They could only pray for the swift arrival of a rescue party, or else face being encircled and slain by the swarming monsters.
Only two outcomes awaited them, dividing life from death.
Squeak!
Squeak!
Approximately five minutes later.
Accompanied by cries reminiscent of birds, a swarm of rats, each roughly half the size of an adult man, appeared and began to threaten the people with their distinctively sharp claws.
“These are Rank 2 Needle Rats. Not a particularly difficult opponent.”
Leaving that single remark as if providing commentary, Shin Myeong-hoon brandished his sword and shield of light, carving through the swarm of rats with perfectly streamlined movements.
One rat with one, or sometimes two, slashes.
His movements were so refined that even an ordinary person would consider them impeccable, and indeed, the Needle Rat swarm proved no match for Shin Myeong-hoon.
“Hoo, hoo… Let’s rest a bit, then move to the next passage.”
Yet, despite his proficiency, he was not an exceptionally powerful hunter.
It felt as if he would struggle immensely if a slightly stronger monster were to emerge, how should I put it?
In any case, it meant he was a somewhat unreliable companion to blindly trust and entrust everything to.
“Ah, they’re even bigger than before!”
“…Hunter, are you going to be alright?”
“Please stand back. If I lose my composure, the aggro might accidentally shift.”
Giant Needle Rats, possessing a Rank 3 threat level.
While I had seen them in pictures a few times, this was my first time confronting them in person, right before my eyes.
Yet, even as the people around me clung to each other, trembling with fear, I, who was with them, felt no particular tension.
‘…Honestly, it just feels like a free trip to the zoo.’
I had a certainty.
An almost instinctive conviction that no matter how many sewer rats dared to attack, they could pose absolutely no threat to me.
Regrettably, the biological disparity was simply too vast. As someone who had effectively become an equal to Hwanung, the Son of Heaven (TL Note: A central figure in the Korean creation myth, often considered the ancestor of the Korean people), how immense could that difference possibly be?
‘However…’
It seemed that wasn’t the case for Shin Myeong-hoon, who was right before my eyes.
Watching Shin Myeong-hoon, who was gradually accumulating injuries and struggling to contend with the swarm of giant rats, I couldn’t help but feel a nervous apprehension, as if observing a child left alone by the water’s edge.
Swish!
“Keugh!”
Ouch… that looks like it would hurt quite a bit.
Shin Myeong-hoon fought with immense effort, but regrettably, it was becoming palpable that he was starting to run out of strength.
With a sense of unease, I waited for the battle to conclude, and the moment the group entered the next passage, I unleashed an effect with all my might, levitating a small dark cloud into the air.
‘Yep.’
Making it appear as cute and charming as possible, as if to signal its harmlessness to humans.
Carefully envisioning the form of a mini dark cloud puppy floating through the sky.
Flash!
Rumble—!
It floated.
It floated.
Initially, everyone cast bewildered glances, wondering what on earth it was, but Shin Myeong-hoon soon regained his composure, accurately grasped my intention, and began to speak with an excited demeanor.
“I’ve heard that while dungeons are fraught with all sorts of dangers and traps, they also contain items with special abilities or certain gimmicks that provide buffs.”
“Then…?”
“If we manage to tame this cloud donkey… it might provide significant assistance in our future endeavors.”
Mm-hmm. Yes, yes.
Although I might have messed up the eyes, nose, and mouth a bit, that’s roughly correct.
You’ve got talent. Keep going, Shin Myeong-hoon.
