ALL NOVEL chapter 35
Chapter 35 Treasure in Hell (6)
The entire leg was covered with bulging muscles.
The dark, rough skin was as tough as a shield.
Truly iron legs.
From the outside, it was impossible to see it as a weakness.
But if you knew, it was an empty shell.
As soon as I reached them, I aimed for the lower part.
Thunk!
Despite its massive body, it reacted quite quickly. The spiked club came to block the sword path.
It was useless.
Slash!
I swung the sword upwards.
The hand of the monster, unable to withstand the recoil, bent backward.
Thud, the spiked club flew into the air and struck the unfortunate comrade’s head.
“Eek!”
The man, now stripped bare, tried to grab me with both arms.
There were too many gaps.
I dodged by slightly leaning back and attacked his lower body again.
Screech.
His muscular body tore and split like a piece of paper.
His body tilted.
The attack wasn’t continuous, so he didn’t even go into [groggy] state.
He ended up like this after just one hit.
“Graaah!”
He roared and tried to pounce on me again, but his body wouldn’t obey.
A sword was already thrust into his remaining leg.
The sword went in smoothly, and his bulging muscles burst like balloons.
Although Carolus’s legs were a weakness, I knew the most fatal weak points among them.
Because I could see them all with [Kiri’s Eye].
Slightly below the middle of the thigh.
Slightly to the left of the upper calf.
Between the toes and the instep.
There were spots where the blue dots sparkled more brightly.
I just had to aim for those spots.
He was dealt with that way.
Then I dealt with the ones rushing at me from the front in a similar manner.
The head or the heart were good targets, but the legs were more effective.
Even with just one or two hits, they crawled on the ground like worms.
“The legs are the weak point!”
I shouted.
The soldiers, who were half in doubt, started to focus solely on the legs as they saw three of them die instantly by my hand.
From the beginning, it was hard to aim for the head or the heart.
The skin and bones were too tough to penetrate even with magic or weapons.
On the other hand, the legs were an instant critical hit if you aimed well.
“Only aim for the legs!”
“Everyone, attack the legs!”
The squad leaders, unfamiliar with the Carols, were the same. Due to the difference in combat power, they did not struggle for a moment unlike the soldiers, but they had not yet figured out the strategy.
That was solved in an instant.
“Well done, Koo Yoon-ho!”
By me.
“It only looks tough on the outside, but its lower body is weak.”
“Die!”
The battle situation had completely changed.
The soldiers no longer acted defensively.
The shield soldiers blocked all attacks with their shields and then tripped the enemies by targeting their legs.
The magic soldiers in the rear used arrow-type spells to continuously strike at the legs.
All kinds of screams echoed across the battlefield. Most of them came from the Carols.
Long chunks were scattered everywhere.
They were the legs of the enemies cut down by the sword soldiers.
The spear soldiers, with their agile bodies, rendered the spiked clubs useless and repeatedly stabbed the legs with their long reach.
“Nothing to it.”
“Good job.”
The guerrilla leader’s aim was to see how efficiently they could fight an enemy they had no information about, and this was the result.
Overwhelming superiority.
I also took down two more on my own.
Without anyone else’s help.
《Due to the influence of [Strong Bones], the proficiency of physical abilities has skyrocketed.》
《The proficiency of [Strength] has greatly increased.》
《The proficiency of [Stamina] has greatly increased.》
《The proficiency of [Agility] has greatly increased.》
As the battle continued, my strength did not decrease but rather increased.
I felt a continuous surge of energy.
I swung my sword.
A blue snake opened its mouth and bit the thigh of a Carol running from the side.
“Kreeeek!”
He grabbed his leg and screamed.
I thrust my sword through his other thigh.
He couldn’t hold on any longer and collapsed.
Even considering it was a fatal weakness, my attack power was overwhelming his defense.
It wasn’t even a fight.
Thunk.
His pumpkin-like head rolled off his body. Fear was etched in his wide-open eyes.
I kicked it aside and turned around.
The vibrations that had been shaking the surroundings were slowly subsiding.
Massacre.
There were no more Carols standing on the ground.
The soldiers raised their hands in unison.
“We won!”
“Wow!”
It was a joy that came from deep within.
A familiar voice called out to me.
“Yunho! You’re the hero of the day!”
Corporal Kwak Woo-hee was cheering with two axes raised high in the air.
The blades were stained red.
How many Carols had been killed by those axes?
“Yunho, thanks to you, the fight was easy.”
Next to me, Corporal Jung Ye-som was extinguishing the flames.
The charred one-eyed corpses were scattered everywhere.
They were all her handiwork.
The close combat soldiers might have finished them off, but it was her magic that caused such damage.
“Yunho, I also had an easy time thanks to you. When I struck their legs with my shield, they were as good as dead.”
“Shooting arrows at their legs made it easy too.”
“Knowing where to hit definitely made the battle easier.”
Even the seniors from other squads and platoons came to express their gratitude.
Then, a sharp voice came from behind.
“Damn it, it was a weakness that would have been revealed soon anyway, so why are you praising him like he did something great?”
I could see that face without even looking.
Corporal Kwak Woo-hee, who came up to me and patted me on the back, said.
“Of course, it would have been revealed soon. But the timing of the revelation is important, Jitak. Yunho figured it out right at the start, so the battle ended much faster. There are so many corpses, but we have few injured.”
The corpses of the Carols were scattered everywhere. Their groans occasionally pierced my ears.
On the other hand, the soldiers were relatively unscathed.
There were some injured, but they were wounds that would heal quickly with some treatment.
“Don’t you know that as a corporal?”
“…!”
Unpleasant lips were chewed. Corporal Byun Jitak couldn’t say anything more.
It wasn’t because the opponent was Corporal Kwak Woo-hee.
It was because he realized he couldn’t deny her words.
“That guy always picks fights.”
“Leave him be, he’s just jealous.”
“Right, he always ignored Yunho, didn’t he?”
“Yeah. He’s acting like that because the guy he ignored is getting all the attention.”
The other soldiers who were watching also openly criticized Corporal Byun Jitak.
Private Kang Sung-joon, who was next to him, quietly slipped away.
Even his lackey had abandoned him.
When they returned to the unit, he would stick to him again as if nothing had happened.
“Gu Yunho.”
“Private Gu Yunho!”
“Impressive. To identify such a weakness so quickly. Even the squad leaders didn’t expect it.”
Even the squad leaders didn’t see the Carols’ legs as a weakness.
They all said in unison.
“This battle owes a lot to you.”
“Thank you!”
Sergeant Sun Ah-rin, who had been silently listening to the seniors’ conversation from behind, finally spoke up.
“Well done, Yunho.”
Winking with one eye.
“Squad Leader, come here for a moment.”
“Yes!”
At the call of her seniors, she quickly left her seat.
A sigh was heard from somewhere.
“Lucky guy… getting a wink from the Squad Leader.”
Sergeant Song Gi-yong was staring endlessly at the back of Sergeant Sun Ah-rin, who was running busily.
Is this what lovesickness feels like?
I casually threw out a comment.
“I envy you more, Sergeant Song Gi-yong.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re the deputy squad leader, you can go to the squad leader’s office anytime to see her.”
“That’s true.”
Being a mood-maker, he clenched his fist as if he had never been down and burned with determination.
“I will definitely win the Squad Leader’s heart.”
“I’ll cheer for you.”
“Thanks, buddy.”
He patted my shoulder and moved to check the equipment. The long spear was covered with pieces of flesh and bone fragments from the Carols.
“Yoon-ho, do you think there’s a chance?”
“Are you talking about the relationship between the Squad Leader and Sergeant Song Gi-yong?”
“Yeah. Be honest, it’s just us.”
Corporal Kwak Woo-hee asked, putting her arm around my shoulder.
I answered immediately.
“Not even a gram.”
“Pfft, you have a very keen eye. You didn’t just figure out the weaknesses of those nameless monsters for nothing.”
She laughed, holding her belly.
“But look over there.”
“What is it?”
“The Battalion Commander has been looking at you since a while ago.”
When I turned my head, Lieutenant Colonel Park Ui-cheol was indeed staring this way. Even Captain Oh Joon-beom, who had defeated the Reluxes, had joined him.
At that moment.
“Company 3, it was a perfect battle.”
A middle-aged man suddenly appeared, riding on the back of a large buffalo.
He was holding a megaphone in one hand.
It was the guerrilla commander.
“I hope my last gift also serves as good fertilizer.”
“Fertilizer, my ass.”
“No matter how you look at him, that guy’s a psycho.”
“If I met him outside, I wouldn’t let him go.”
Curses erupted simultaneously.
Of course, they couldn’t be heard over there.
“Cadets, I hope you have a good return march.”
His hit-and-run tactics were artful. The guerrilla commander appeared like the wind and disappeared like the wind. Somehow, he looked a bit flustered.
The other soldiers seemed to have noticed his face too.
“Doesn’t the guerrilla commander look a bit flustered?”
“He should be. According to his expectations, we should have struggled more, but we won easily.”
Even thinking back to before the regression, the soldiers were right.
We only realized late that we should target the legs, resulting in dozens of injuries.
“Gu Yoon-ho played a really big role.”
Once again, attention was focused on me.
And someone approached.
“Private Gu Yoon-ho.”
“Private Gu Yoon-ho!!”
As soon as I saw him, I shouted my name and rank at the top of my lungs.
Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol stood there with a kind smile.
“You fought a splendid battle.”
His gaze was also focused on me.
“It was impressive.”
*
“Proceed with the special promotion.”
It was a conclusion reached after a very short discussion.
There was no need for discussion in the first place.
Everything he showed during the 4 nights and 5 days made it unnecessary to discuss.
Above all, it was a matter directly instructed by the head of the unit.
“As quickly as possible.”
“Yes! I will prepare immediately upon return.”
“Oh, and by the way.”
“Yes, please speak.”
Captain Oh Jun-beom, who always exuded charisma in front of the soldiers, was bowing like a servant serving a king.
That was because a king-like figure was standing in front of him.
It was Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol.
“You said you haven’t thought about your plans after discharge.”
“Yes.”
“That friend has grown too big to just wait for an answer.”
“That’s right. Considering he has awakened all his physical abilities.”
“Yes, he’s becoming a monster in no time.”
His tone was gentle, but his expression seemed urgent. Unlike the usual Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol.
The reason was revealed in his next words.
“People cheer more for a loser who suddenly succeeds than for a talented person who continues to succeed.”
“-“
“The same goes for hunters. No matter how much officers from the Hunter Academy excel, they can’t keep up with a private who rises to corporal in less than a month.”
“-“
“If he doesn’t stop at corporal and keeps rising, the story will change even more.”
“-“
“Isn’t Han Jae-woo particularly in the spotlight for the same reason? A former private like him became a world-class hunter.”
“-“
“Even Han Jae-woo is a hero from our Biho unit.”
“That’s right. His story certainly aligns with that.”
“Anyway.”
“Yes.”
“Do you know what the general who had Han Jae-woo under his command regrets the most?”
“What is it?”
“Not being able to capture Han Jae-woo in the Hunter Corps at that time. He still laments over it.”
“!”
This was the conclusion of the long story.
“Captain of the 3rd Company, I don’t want to have such regrets in the future either.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Yes, from now on, put strong pressure on him. Make sure that friend stays in the Hunter Corps no matter what.”
On the face of Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol, who had always been kind, a certain desire wriggled.
“Whether it’s the higher unit or the Hunter Headquarters, how much would they love this story? Somehow, we capture that friend, and we just sit back and enjoy the benefits.”