She captivated the succubus.
When it was mentioned that the gate clearing was complete, a faint expression of emotion appeared on Cheong Ha-rin’s face.
“What, what did you say?”
“I captivated the succubus. I didn’t meet her in person, so I can’t give a suicide command, but with this, I think I can make her submit.”
It was not something to say with such a calm expression.
It broke Cheong Ha-rin’s emotionless face.
This situation, which she could not possibly comprehend with her common sense, made her think that maybe, just maybe, the man in front of her could make it happen.
Don’t think of him as an ordinary Hunter.
She recalled a line Kang Hong-yeon had said when she had been offered the gate clearing proposal.
At that time, she thought it was just a reminder to be considerate because he was a male Hunter.
Despite his outstanding skills as a Hunter, Kang Si-woo’s value was higher as the guild’s mascot and symbol.
His charm and the overwhelming proportion of women in the Hunter industry meant that the allure engraving he carried had an advertising effect beyond imagination.
So, Cheong Ha-rin had thought of herself more as a bodyguard than a party member.
… I was wrong.
But it was a misconception.
The line Kang Hong-yeon had said — not to think of Si-woo as an ordinary Hunter — she had misunderstood the point.
It wasn’t about him being a Hunter, but about him being extraordinary.
Cheong Ha-rin focused on the word “Hunter,” assuming that like other male Hunters, he must have a decent strength.
She had believed his ability was just the allure engraving.
She had genuinely thought that surviving the incident at the Snow Woman’s Mansion was all he had achieved.
“Impressive.”
But after witnessing what he just showed, Cheong Ha-rin felt her own inadequacies.
The remnants of the allure she couldn’t even recognize.
The mana control to trace those faint traces and the divine-like skill of sending the engraving’s mana energy with such precision.
Even if his swordsmanship was lacking, his mana control and operational skills had already far surpassed Cheong Ha-rin.
How many of the mages in the Arkineth Guild could replicate the technique Si-woo just demonstrated?
Among the seniors, even fewer than ten would manage.
Excluding S-rank Hunters like Kang Hong-yeon and Baek Eun-seol, how many would be capable?
If someone wasn’t born with an engraving related to mana, attempting it would be impossible.
Drawing mana like thread, maintaining its uniformity without it becoming tangled or thicker.
It was a task as difficult as drawing a perfectly straight line with no deviation, even by 0.1mm.
Cheong Ha-rin didn’t even dare to try it.
“Thanks to having a great master.”
“No, even with a great master, it’s because of Hunter Si-woo’s exceptional talent that this is possible.”
“Thank you for saying that.”
Did it feel like a lie, even if it was just a compliment?
For a brief moment, Cheong Ha-rin felt a sense of confusion as Si-woo gave no real reaction.
“Let’s finish the clearing quickly. As I said, I’ve successfully made her submit, but I haven’t managed to make her listen to a suicide command or reach the level of complete allure.”
During the process of captivating her, the location was pinpointed.
They could go there, amplify the allure, and either order the succubus to commit suicide or just decapitate her on the spot.
As long as she was under the faint influence of the allure, she couldn’t escape Si-woo’s power.
If it was only this easy, we wouldn’t have gone through so much trouble before.
With a confident expression, she followed the thread of mana, advancing across the plains.
Occasionally, mimics disguised as Eden’s snakes and golden apples appeared, just as the information had indicated.
“Mm, as expected, they’re still intact.”
However, no real damage was caused.
The Eden snakes and golden apples, whose mental states were impaired, were still under the succubus Lilim’s allure, but they didn’t pose any threat.
They were completely ineffective against Si-woo, and even Cheong Ha-rin was unaffected by their mental disruption.
Monsters that relied on a distorted mental state and lacked any proper means of attack were no match for the two of them, who were truly their natural predators.
“This is it.”
“Anyone can tell this is the boss room, it’s practically advertised.”
At the end of the thread made of mana, they discovered a massive castle made entirely of natural elements.
The castle, constructed from black bricks and adorned with deep pink accents, had a peculiar, alien feel to it. Cheong Ha-rin drew out her staff.
“Should we burn the entire castle down?”
“Shall we?”
In this situation, it wasn’t a bad plan.
In a regular boss fight, it would be a mistake. If they destroyed the boss room, it would be like removing the limitation that forced the boss monster to stay in the boss room.
The failure of the attack would immediately lead to the boss’s escape, so it was a method that should never even be considered.
“Although a suicide command is impossible, I can order her to stay still until she’s on the verge of death.”
That was assuming no further exceptional circumstances like the current situation.
“I’ll unleash maximum firepower.”
Cheong Ha-rin nodded in response to that.
As she slammed the staff onto the ground, a pale blue magic circle began to unfold.
A vast circle surrounded by mysterious, unreadable symbols materialized the phenomena.
She glanced at the magic circle just in case, but, as expected, she couldn’t understand it.
I was kind of hoping…
Just like when she had read the engraving book found at the Snow Woman’s mansion, she had hoped that the unknown symbols in this magic circle might be something she could comprehend.
However, she quickly realized that the reason she was able to read the engraving book was because of the translation magic inscribed in the diary.
I have no idea what it’s saying.
There were a few characters she had seen in Saria’s magic circle, and she could tell that they were moving in a regular pattern, but even knowing that didn’t help her understand the magic itself.
If it were a simple enough field to interpret, scientists would have deciphered it long ago.
“Step back a little.”
“Okay.”
Crack!
The magic circle triggered the phenomenon.
The effect was a lightning strike, fired in a straight line, with maximum firepower.
Cheong Ha-rin’s eyes shimmered as she calculated the formula and inscribed the necessary information into the magic circle.
Crackle!!
The blue lightning gathered into a single point.
She poured more than half of her mana into the firepower.
She could have increased the power even more by giving up control, but given the uncertain situation, this was the maximum firepower she could safely unleash.
“Where exactly is it?”
“At the top of the castle. The room located on the highest floor.”
“I’ll adjust it.”
Si-woo fixed his gaze on the designated location.
He focused solely on the attack. Since the succubus was already under the influence of his allure, no matter how skilled her magic was, she wouldn’t be able to defend herself freely.
“I’ll fire.”
At Cheong Ha-rin’s words, Si-woo took a step back.
And at the same time, the completed lightning strike shot in a straight line.
Unimpeded, it moved toward the boss room where the succubus was likely staying.
It had hit perfectly.
This was the moment Cheong Ha-rin, though slightly premature, was certain of their victory.
Boom—!!!
“….Huh?”
Cheong Ha-rin’s magic had been perfect.
It boasted the greatest power of any spell she had cast so far, and the direction had been adjusted with slight corrections, perfectly targeting the direction of the boss room.
Even if it was a boss monster, with a B-rank danger level, no succubus would be able to stop such a powerful attack.
The attack, akin to a railgun made of her mana, was an overwhelming force that could neither be evaded nor blocked—nothing short of a natural disaster.
“What is that?”
The lightning struck the castle directly.
With no energy wasted, the magic moved in a perfect line and precisely hit the direction of the boss room.
“It’s taking it head-on.”
Cheong Ha-rin spoke with a calm expression.
But the cold sweat dripping down her forehead betrayed her emotions.
The lightning couldn’t be diverted.
It couldn’t be avoided, and it was beyond her ability to block it.
Therefore, it was taking the full brunt of the lightning with her body.
“Is the command not working?”
Wasn’t she under the allure?
With a sense of doubt, Cheong Ha-rin focused her mana into her eyes.
The identity of the monster, which had been blurry just moments ago, became clearly engraved in her vision.
“At this point, should I just get rid of the engraving?”
The succubus absorbing Cheong Ha-rin’s magic was indeed the succubus who had fallen under the allure.
From her pink hair to her ridiculously vulgar outfit, it matched the succubus Si-woo had faintly charmed earlier.
“The allure has been refreshed?”
A pink heart was etched into her eyes.
A symptom that appears in someone who has been charmed. However, Si-woo’s faint allure wouldn’t have caused such a deep, obvious mark to show on the surface.
That could only mean one thing.
Someone has layered a stronger allure over mine.
Faced with an unexpected situation, Si-woo let out a bewildered, disbelieving laugh.
“I really want to cry.”
It seemed that this crazy engraving, like the one at the Snow Woman’s mansion, had triggered some strange reaction.