(MC pov)
"Jeanne… mm… bad dream?"
No matter the angle, the dark circles beneath her eyes were impossible to miss.
"Ah, good morning, Ken," she said softly. "It wasn't a bad dream. I'm fine."
Jeanne pulled out a chair and climbed onto the table, reaching for her breakfast with obvious fatigue. There was no energy in her movements.
"So… what exactly did you do yesterday?"
"Huaah… nothing special," she replied, stifling a yawn. "I went to the church. Prayed, helped around a bit, and listened to those who were looking for guidance."
"Confessions?"
She gave a weak nod.
"Uh-huh…"
"That must've been hard."
"Yeah. I never imagined human lust could be so limitless." Her voice was quiet, almost distant. "But… I'm glad they want to leave that path."
"I see," I said gently. "Maybe you should stop doing that."
Bam.
She slammed her hand against the table and glared at me, her eyes half-open but sharp.
"You…" She pointed straight at my face. "You're the one who needs help too, Mast....er."
Before she could finish, her head dropped onto the table. A second later, soft snores filled the room.
Whatever she had heard yesterday must have weighed heavily on her enough to steal her sleep.
I carefully lifted her into my arms and carried her back to her room.
---
It was my third day as a member of B-squad. Honestly, I'd learned how guilds operated, how hunters were managed, and how everything functioned behind the scenes. That knowledge was crucial, especially since I planned to build my own guild.
Even so, I wasn't slacking off. With my clones alongside me, my level had risen faster than I'd expected.
"We're here."
With Kihoon leading the way, we stopped and looked up at a massive blue gate towering before us.
"This is an A-rank gate," he said calmly. "We'll need to be extra careful inside."
"Yes, Captain."
Everyone began checking their equipment before entering. Beside us stood three carriers loaded with gears, and some members even took the time to grab a coffee.
"Ken-ssi. Care to join me?"
Kihoon handed me a cup of espresso.
"Thanks."
"So," he asked, watching the gate, "how does it feel being part of B-squad?"
"It's great," I replied. "Working with pros like this is really interesting."
"Ahaha…"
He laughed softly, then glanced away while I focused on my coffee.
"Please don't take Gina and Bora's harsh words to heart," he continued. "They don't act that way because they see you as a rival. No one in our guild loves magic more than those two. I don't fully understand what happened to humanity either, but they've been searching for that answer ever since we started working together."
"Thank you, Cap," I said. "I understand. That kind of burning curiosity is something a mage is supposed to have. As someone walking the same path, I respect that."
"I see…" He smiled. "That's good to hear. Let's do our best today too."
"Yeah."
Honestly, I wasn't offended by what happened on my first day. If anything, I admired their passion. Gina and Bora clearly had both talent and ambition as mages.
"Alright!" Kihoon called out. "We're entering the gate now! Everyone, formation!"
The squad quickly lined up according to plan.
I heard footsteps approaching then stopping right beside me. It was Gina.
Should I look at her? No. Absolutely not. She was way too hot. I mean, what the heck? Considering how dangerous this job is, why reveal so much skin? That guy over there uses full knight armor, and an arrow could have struck the opening in his helmet. If I glanced now, I wouldn't be able to control where my eyes landed, and that would only make things worse between us.
"Nice cape," Gina said flatly.
I raised an eyebrow. It was the first thing she'd said to me since that heated argument.
"You've already seen it before."
"Keke." Jiwoo smirked. "Ken, when a woman compliments you, all you need to do is say thank you and then take her to bed."
Gina tch, "This slut."
Jiwoo let out a heartfully giggle, clearly enjoying Gina's irritation. Meanwhile, I could hear Bora sigh, sounding utterly done with both of them.
---
(3rd pov)
The dungeon was enclosed by towering stone walls and a high, cavernous ceiling. The ground, however, resembled a desert. Its surface coarse and uneven, though tinted a deep, unnatural black.
"Where are the magic beasts?" Kihoon asked.
"I have no idea, Captain," someone replied.
"Keep moving. Stay alert."
B-squad pressed deeper into the dungeon, yet there were no signs of monsters, no tracks, no mana disturbances, not even the faintest sound. The silence itself felt wrong.
As they advanced, Ken noticed the ground beneath their feet growing denser. His brows knit together in concern.
Soon, they reached the edge of a massive drop. About five meters down from the entrance, the cave opened into a vast hollow space. The floor below was riddled with enormous holes scattered in every direction.
"Could this be an insect lair?" Bora muttered, scanning the area carefully. "It fits the pattern. They're probably waiting for us to fall into their trap."
"Yeah…" Kihoon nodded. "That's typical. We'll draw them out using Taunt."
The Taunt skill was a standard ability for tanks to provoke magic beasts and force them into direct combat.
"Wait, Captain," Ken said, stepping forward. "I don't think this is an insect lair."
Everyone turned toward him.
"The ground here is too hot for insect-type beast to live in," he continued. "Normally, you'd see hardened clay infused with dense mana around holes. But these holes are… quite ordinary." He paused, then added, "This fits more as the nest of star-nosed dragons."
A brief silence followed. Even Bora looked impressed.
"I see," Kihoon said thoughtfully. "What do you think, Bora?"
She took another careful look. "He's right. I overlooked that detail."
Kihoon smiled as he turned back to Ken."Then what's your plan?"
Ken smiled faintly. "Star-nosed dragons are weak to water so that makes me their natural enemy. I'll flood the area first. However, the soil will absorb the water quickly. After that, the combat team goes down and finishes them. The mages stay here and counter the fire attacks."
Kihoon nodded without hesitation. "Sounds good. We'll wait for your signal."
Ken raised his hand. A single magic circle bloomed in midair.
In the next instant, a massive torrent of water burst forth like a waterfall, crashing down and rapidly soaking the ground below.
"I've got you, Ken-ssi!"
Han Semi pressed her palms against his back. A surge of green mana flowed into him, reinforcing the spell and stabilizing his output.
ROARR!
The ground trembled as multiple creatures burst from the holes. The earth dragons writhed desperately, trying to escape the flood.
"Now!"
Ken cut the spell short.
Everyone except the mages leapt down from the cliff.
The tanks immediately activated Taunt, drawing the beasts' attention. The star-nosed dragons gathered fire in their throats and unleashed blazing streams from their mouths but the mages responded instantly, neutralizing the flames midair with precise spells.
Ken wasn't finished.
Spheres of water formed around the dragons' heads, sealing over their mouths and forcing water inside. The creatures thrashed wildly.
Seeing this, the squad realized Ken was covering them yet again. Their morale surged. What followed was simple. A one-sided slaughter.
---
Leaving only the dungeon's boss, B-squad retreated from the raid so the mining team could harvest the magic crystal and monster bodies.The squad waited outside the gate and enjoyed their coffee time.
'After he joined the B-squad, our efficiency has increased a lot.' Bora thought this.
It's been three days since he joined the team.He has proven himself to be skillful and knowledgeable. With that, he could propose a plan to subjugate the Star-nosed Dragon.
Now she felt her behavior might have been too much back then. Looking around, she didn't find him anywhere.
"Does anyone see Ken?"
"Ah! He said he would be patrolling inside the dungeon. He's really diligent, isn't he?"
Bora was aware of that too because he had done that in every raid.
"I'll go back inside."
But she wasn't alone
Bora looked at Gina.
"Ah, you too?"
Gina looked away while keeping her cool.
"Yeah."
Regardless, both of them felt the same.
Soon, they arrived at the same place where the battle took place. Down there, something amazing was happening. Two books were hovering while pens scribbled, with no hands moving them. As this happened, the person between those books was also writing something in his own book.
"Gina, can telekinesis do that?" Bora asked Gina, who has the skill.
"Uh, yeah, I think so? But it's another question whether I could use it to write in two books and write at the same time."
They eventually walked toward Ken, who was observing the dead body of the Star-nosed Dragon. But they stopped once they saw what he was doing.
'No way!'
Both of them were even more startled when they realized that the book on the left was not just writing but drawing the beast's anatomy. Meanwhile, the one on the right seemed to be about the beast's habitat. Furthermore, even with magic, the drawing and writing were exceptionally good. Even with hands, people still wouldn't achieve that level. It was like writing and drawing with both hands, but this guy could do it with three books at the same time.
Even though it seemed simple and wasn't flashy magic, pulling off that feat alone with telekinesis required amazing control over his magic. The two of them were curious about what he had written himself, but they were too shy.
However, things became clear to them that he was serious about what he wanted to achieve.
---
-Author Note-
As you can see from the tags, I didn't even include romance, so I'll be adding some of it in the upcoming chapters. What do you think?
Faithful
Harem
Geh
Please support me with your Power Stones and leave comments!
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