Chapter 69

To run at full speed, Suho had to use various buff skills that steadily depleted his mana. The mana spent could be replenished with potions, but it remained uncertain whether he would have the luxury to do so when he reached Lee Minsung.

I need to conserve as much stamina as possible.

I need to be ready to engage in battle immediately upon arrival,

Suho thought. He wanted to be as fresh as possible, which led him to ask Miho to carry him.

“You want me to carry you?”

“Yes.”

“You want me to carry you? A hunter?”

“Why not? We’re going the same way,” Suho said as he tried to hop on her back.

“Wait a minute! Do you think asking someone to carry you on their back is a normal thing to do? Are you serious right now?” Miho asked, flabbergasted.

“Does it look like I have time for jokes right now?”

“Wow...” Suho’s audacity left Miho momentarily speechless.

The seriousness in his eyes told her that he wasn’t joking in the slightest. She also recognized they had no time for banter, but she was taken aback by his nonsensical proposal.

Who does he think he’s talking to? I’m the vice guild master of the White Tiger Guild! A piggyback ride? Do I look like a taxi to him?

“I need to conserve as much stamina as possible before I face Lee Minsung,” Suho explained.

“What about my stamina?”

“You’re an A-rank hunter. Carrying me shouldn’t drain your stamina or mana that much, right?”

“Well, that’s true, but...”

“What a relief. I’m a C-rank, so my stamina is lower than yours. If I spend my stamina running there, I’ll need a rest before I fight. Does that sound like a good idea to you?”

Woah, that actually sounded convincing... No, wait! Why does this make sense? It shouldn’t but...

Miho found herself strangely convinced by Suho’s words.

Given the urgency of the current situation, she didn’t have the time to refute his logic. But even if she had the time, Suho exuded an intimidating aura of pressure that couldn’t be expressed in words.

Why does it feel like I’m facing my father?

[Rakan chuckles as he observes Baek Miho.]

Miho was unaware that the former King of Beasts was looking down at her from a distant place. It was his majestic aura, one of a formidable predator, emanating through his shaman that pressured her.

Miho tightly closed her eyes and eventually shouted, “Fine! Every second is precious right now!”

As an explosive surge of feral energy radiated from Miho’s entire body, Suho and Beru’s eyes lit up with intense fascination.

Suho realized why Rakan had been observing Miho.

If he hadn’t chosen me, perhaps she would have become his shaman.

Beast Transformation was a mysterious ability that enhanced the human physique, giving the user powers of beasts.

Suho had heard stories about Baek Yoonho, the guild master of White Tiger Guild, transforming into a white-tiger-like being by harnessing the power of the skill to its maximum. But his daughter transformed into...

“A fox?”

Enveloped in the power of the beast transformation skill, Miho had turned into a nimble fox-like hybrid. She cast a sharp gaze down at Suho, her flowing white locks blowing in the wind. The cloud of white aura covering her had given her the ears and tail of a fox.

“Okay, get on my back.”

Suho effortlessly hopped on her back, which made Miho’s eyes flicker.

Is he not intimidated by my energy? But he’s a C-rank hunter.

An instinctual hierarchy existed between hunters with the powers of the beast transformation skill. Of course, it was possible to suppress or ignore the innate pecking order with willpower and tenacity. However, the normal reaction to Miho’s transformation was something like the ones shown by the White Tiger Guild hunters following behind them.

“Woah! V-Vice Guild Master!”

The incredible power emanating from Miho turned the hunters behind her pale, trembling in fear like a beast cowering against a strong predator.

However, Suho was different. “Let’s go! Quickly!” Perched on her back like a cicada on a tree, he even made muffled sounds akin to the insect.

And atop that human cicada was a smaller and noisier insect.

“What’s the holdup, Fox Lady?”

“Hold on tight.” Miho bit her lip and gave them a stern look. “I’m going to run at full speed.”

Miho and the others blended into a beam of light, shooting forward into the distance.

***

Racing through the city center at full speed was no easy feat, even for a hunter.

The risk of hitting unknowing pedestrians was a genuine concern. The moment a hunter’s body brushed against an unawakened person, they would be sent flying away like bowling pins.

The impact was more dangerous than colliding with a truck, and it could result in instant death or cause a series of unintended accidents. Immediately after the Great Cataclysm, such accidents were a common occurrence. New hunters were intoxicated by their newfound powers, and they would recklessly jump around town, inadvertently causing major accidents. However, with the establishment of the Hunters Association and the enactment of hunter laws, instances of hunters racing through the streets became rare.

No matter how confident they were in their physical abilities, hunters generally opted to use other means of transportation to move around in the city nowadays. But in emergencies like the one they were facing, they had to take drastic measures.

I’ll move above the buildings as much as possible!

With Suho on her back, Miho was leaping from one building to the next, swiftly navigating toward the ongoing emergency. Her speed was so fast that ordinary humans couldn’t follow her with their eyes.

“Huh? What’s that over there?”

“Hm? What are talking about? There’s nothing there.”

“Damn. Is there something wrong with my eyes?”

Even if someone tried to take a photo of them, Miho’s tremendous speed was too fast for the shutter, leaving the photographer with a photo of the unassuming background.

Suho was genuinely impressed by her nimble movements.

She’s incredibly fast.

Is this the level of an A-rank?

He was trying to gauge the level of Minsung’s powers based on hers.

“Oh! You’re quite the agile fox. We should acquire her services more often. It will prove to be most beneficial!”

“Beru, she can hear you.”

Miho frowned, pursing her lips. The summoner and his summoned creature were utterly shameless.

“At this speed, we really will arrive within twenty minutes!” Suho said.

“Who knew,” Beru chimed.

Miho felt the need to speak out. “Do you guys really take me for a taxi?”

Suho looked at Beru and remarked, “I don’t know about that, but the faster, the better.”

The ant formed a wicked smile. “Your wish is my command.”

Ding!

[Beru activated the Skill: “Ruthless Command”.]

The skill the ant had acquired after defeating Broki could only be used on magic beasts, which was perfect for the “beast” they were riding on.

[Skill: “Ruthless Command” increases Baek Miho’s stats by 50%.]

[Skill: “Ruthless Command” has a side effect that causes Baek Miho to be afflicted by a curse of madness.]

Miho’s eye turned even more fierce. From the depths of her mind, an intense anger bubbled up, rising to the tips of her hair. It was uncertain whether the anger was triggered by Suho and Beru’s conversation or the mysterious buff skill.

The moment she surrendered to this emotion, she accelerated at an incredible speed.

“Perfect!” Suho shouted.

Baek Miho was truly furious.

***

They successfully arrived at their destination within ten minutes.

[Skill: “Ruthless Command” has been deactivated.]

“Are you okay?” Suho asked.

“I’m fine.”

Having exerted herself beyond her usual limits, Miho looked fatigued as she came back to her senses. However, a round of deep breaths was enough for her to recover from her tiredness. The situation at hand left her no other choice.

“What on earth is this?” Miho was astounded by the unfolding scene before her.

Grotesque mutants were attacking civilians, and hunters were busy trying to stop them. But the problem was that victims of the mutants were gradually decaying, transforming into new mutants.

She felt the situation was moments away from spiraling out of control, and it needed to be resolved promptly. “Good heavens. A zombie outbreak in the middle of the city...”

“No. They’re not zombies.” Suho promptly corrected her. “They’re ghouls.”

He could see the name tags above the mutants’ heads.

[Contaminated Ghoul]

[Contaminated Ghoul]

[Contaminated Ghoul]

Zombies and ghouls were entirely different. While zombies were walking corpses, ghouls were creatures more akin to vampires. To be precise, they were supernatural beings that consumed flesh, much like how vampires craved human blood. The most important distinction between the two was that ghouls weren’t dead, so they weren’t mindless like zombies.

Strangely, the ghouls were more fixated on killing rather than devouring people. The humans attacked by them gradually decayed before rising again as new ghouls, which resembled how zombies rose.

Their purpose isn’t to massacre the people here,

Suho thought.

The potent aura of the venom Arsha had used to create her soldiers, royal jelly, was emanating from the Contaminated Ghouls.

She said Minsung was currently gathering his own legion.

Suho, quickly grasping the situation, turned toward the ant beast. “Beru.”

“Yes.”

“Do you think you can find Lee Minsung?”

“I already have.” Beru’s antennae, which had been buzzing incessantly, suddenly stopped.

Suho and Baek Miho simultaneously raised their heads to follow the direction it pointed at.

The answer had been right under their noses—the forty-story residential complex standing right in front of them.

They looked toward the upper floors of the high-rise, which required them to crane their necks, and saw a massive beehive atop the building.

“That’s where he is...”

Miho blinked and clenched her fist, a tremendous energy surging from her body. “Suho! Let’s split. I’ll take on whatever is waiting at that beehive, and you stay here.”

“It looks like the power has been cut off. Are you planning to reach the top using the stairs?”

“I’ll deal with it in my own way. Well then, I’ll be going now. Huh?!”

“Hold on.” Suho grabbed Miho before she set out to leave.

“Wh-what are you doing?!” she said, looking bewildered with a flushed face.

Suho chuckled and said, “You gave us a ride here, so let me return the favor.”

“Woah!” Miho suddenly felt like she was being lifted by something and turned around in surprise.

[Shadow Lancer – Level 1 – Normal Grade]

[Shadow Lancer – Level 1 – Normal Grade]

Lancers rose from Suho’s shadow. The soldiers enveloped in sizzling black steam quickly encircled Suho and Miho and stretched out their arms to carry them.

“There’s no time to waste, Let’s fly to the top.”