Chapter 14: With Beastly Instinct (1)
“Do it that way.”
In the end, Jo Gwang-su bowed his head and gave in.
It was, quite literally, like a bolt from the blue.
But in truth, even a bolt like this was nothing compared to the countdown echoing above my head right now.
“But you see.”
Jo Gwang-su chewed out his words and added,
“If things don’t go as planned, you’ll have to take appropriate responsibility.”
“That’s a bit strange. I wasn’t the one who asked for help first.”
Of course, I wasn’t the type to just let that kind of add-on slide.
“Everyone is responsible for their own actions. You were the one who asked me for help, and the one who said you’d follow my lead.”
There was nothing he could say to that.
“……So what do we do?”
In the end, Jo Gwang-su asked with a sour expression.
“First of all, obviously, rescuing the Pigmallets comes first.”
“And how are we supposed to know where they are in this forest…….”
“Don’t worry. You just need to do as I say.”
With that, I picked up a branch and began drawing something on the dirt.
“This is a map of the ‘Lake.’”
Doubt flickered across the Hunters’ faces, as if wondering how I knew that.
“I have a Search Skill. Fortunately, it works properly here too.”
I brushed aside the suspicion simply and continued drawing.
Soon, a map shaped like a boot lying on its side was completed.
After drawing a round hole in the center, I continued,
“There’s a massive lake at the center, and streams flowing from all over the forest weave together like a web and flow into it.”
“You can figure out even that with a Search Skill?”
Eventually, Jo Gwang-su voiced his doubt.
Fair enough—most “Search” Skills couldn’t identify terrain in such detail.
But mine could.
[Viewing the “Garden of Mind ‘Lake’ Aerial Map” provided by the Dream Lord’s Castle.]
Before my eyes was a map far more detailed than the crude drawing on the ground.
Of course, it was still just a map.
It didn’t show the Pigmallets’ locations in real time like a GPS.
Figuring out their positions was entirely up to me.
But that wasn’t difficult.
I marked a total of 8 points on the map.
“The Pigmallets will likely be scattered around these points.”
6 of the points were clustered around what would be the calf area of the boot.
“You can tell that too?”
“It’s a guess. But it’s almost certain. There’s no time, so I’ll keep it brief.”
The Hunters’ gazes gathered on me.
“Pigmallets like mud and water. And they’re timid. That’s why they usually bury themselves in damp soil to move around. Normally, the area near the central lake would have been the ideal habitat.”
Given up moving.
That meant they chose not to run, but to stay buried and hidden.
In places they considered suitable for hiding.
In that case—
“Staying near the lake right now is practically suicide. The area around the lake is wide open, so even if they bury themselves, they’ll still be visible.”
I nodded and continued,
“Therefore, they’ll head toward places that both conceal them well and have plenty of water.”
The 8 points I marked matched those conditions perfectly.
Swampy areas filled with thick vegetation and muddy ground, with fairly large streams flowing beside them.
“As a side note, our current position is around here.”
I tapped the pointed toe of the boot-shaped map with the branch.
“How can you be sure?”
“Look at the ground we’re standing on. The soil is dry, and we don’t hear any streams. And according to my Search, this is the only place without flowing water.”
“So we’re quite far from where the Pigmallets are gathered.”
“That’s right.”
I drew a circle with the branch.
“Then you already know what to do next, right?”
“So we find the hidden Pigmallets and rescue them?”
One Hunter asked.
“Exactly. Whether you carry them or herd them like sheep, it doesn’t matter. Move as many Pigmallets as possible to a place that seems safe. Somewhere dry, like here.”
“A dry place?”
“The Slaughterers aren’t stupid—they know the Pigmallets’ habits just like we do. They’re probably searching all the wet areas first.”
[‘Slaughterer’ has turned 3 Pigmallets into jerky! Remaining Pigmallets: 115]
Indeed, the speed at which the Slaughterers were killing Pigmallets was increasing.
The count was dropping by the second.
“That’s all I have to say.”
“We take west to south according to the predetermined watch order. If you’ve memorized the positions, move.”
The Hunters quickly caught on.
The moment Jo Gwang-su finished speaking, they vanished into the forest.
“What about you?”
Jo Gwang-su, the last to remain, asked.
I shrugged.
“I’ll do what I need to do.”
“…….”
With a dissatisfied expression, Jo Gwang-su disappeared into the forest as well.
Only I and the map drawn on the ground remained in the clearing.
“Now then.”
I wiped away the map with my foot and muttered,
I’ve handed off the annoying work easily enough.
[The Dream Lord’s Castle has provided hidden information about the Garden of Mind ‘Lake.’]
[A hidden mission exists. Discover the mission and obtain appropriate rewards.]
Now it was time to find the hidden mission meant only for me.
***
Information that ‘a hidden mission exists in the Lake.’
And an aerial map that shows the structure of the Lake at a glance.
That was all the Dream Lord’s Castle provided.
It was up to me to prepare the meal with these ingredients.
‘I should move first.’
There was something I needed to confirm.
The identity of the Slaughterers that preyed on Pigmallets.
And that identity revealed itself before long.
“Sssit, ssit.”
The moment I spotted the “Slaughterer” darting through the forest with sharp eyes—
I hid myself in the bushes and nodded quietly.
A humanoid monster wearing leather armor over a reptilian body.
“Lizardmen, huh.”
They were D-grade monsters—Lizardmen.
Lower ranked than Ogres, and only barely one rank above Goblins.
Yet I remained hidden, watching them.
‘There are more than I expected.’
When Lizardmen formed groups, their combat power rose to the level of B-grade or higher.
They could wield various weapons and were cunning—that’s what made it possible.
‘Even in MonMonMak, Lizardmen had insane group bonuses.’
Even in this situation, I found my thoughts drifting to that trash game, and shook my head to clear them.
Then I carefully assessed the situation.
A total of 8 Lizardmen roamed the muddy ground.
Crossbows, bucklers—and the one who seemed to be the leader even carried a massive crescent blade.
Dangerous.
Even a B-grade Hunter would struggle against 8 Lizardmen alone.
‘Best option is to avoid them entirely.’
Their priority prey was Pigmallets.
It was best to let them pass without wasting energy.
I would’ve done the same.
“뀨잇!”
“Shit.”
“Ssit?”
If only that cute cry hadn’t come from right ahead on the path the Lizardmen squad was taking.
The moment I heard it, I cursed aloud.
The Lizardmen’s gleaming eyes narrowed in satisfaction.
“Ssit.”
My gaze followed theirs.
And soon, I saw it—
A pink lump trembling, with only its face sticking out of the mud.
A creature that looked like a living piggy bank.
A Pigmallet.
There were 5 piglet-like heads poking out of the mud.
“뀨, 뀨잇!” TL/N[Chirp, chirp]
Even after locking eyes with the Lizardmen, the Pigmallets didn’t move.
They only cried pitifully.
“Ssit.”
The Lizardmen began to move slowly toward them.
Then suddenly, a new Status Window appeared before my eyes.
[You have encountered Pigmallets being hunted by Lizardmen for the first time! Advice: You do not need to save all Pigmallets!]
This one was a sleek hologram.
Meaning it appeared to all Hunters facing this situation, not just me.
‘So that’s how it is?’
It emphasized the obvious.
The mission never required saving every single Pigmallet.
Rescuing those Pigmallets without confronting the Lizardmen was impossible.
The best option would be to sacrifice them and find others nearby.
“……Ha.”
A dilemma.
“Chirp Chirp”
The Pigmallets cried desperately.
After a moment of thought, I let out a low sigh.
Yeah. This is the right call.
“If it weren’t for the insane Lizardmen group bonus, I wouldn’t be doing this crap.”
Seriously.
This was entirely for strengthening my forces.
The Lizardmen’s group bonus was one of the most broken synergies in MonMonMak.
I stepped out of the bushes and stood between the Pigmallets and the Lizardmen.
“Ssit?”
“Chirp?”
The Pigmallets stared at me wide-eyed.
The Lizardmen squad narrowed their eyes at this sudden intruder and raised their weapons.
I sighed and spoke,
“Since it’s come to this, all of you are mine.”
The purple orb in my hand rolled onto the ground.
[Summoning Goblin Slave.]
Pshhhh!
With the Status Window, the Goblin Slave emerged through smoke.
“Kiruk.”
Gono was still covered head to toe in flashy equipment.
As he bowed to me, the earring on his ear shimmered brilliantly.
That thing was worth about 1,000,000 won in real cash.
“Long time no see, Gono.”
“Kiruk, kiruk!”
Gono swung his club around and scanned the surroundings.
His sharp eyes met the Lizardmen’s gleaming ones.
He quickly grasped the situation and nodded at me.
Good.
Time to give the order.
“I want them.”
My finger pointed at the Lizardman holding the crescent blade.
“Kiruk.”
[Gono activates 「Raven Set Effect - Raven’s Wingbeat (A)」.]
The Status Window surged, and Gono vanished beside me, leaving afterimages.
“Ssit?!”
The Lizardmen’s eyes widened.
“Ssit!”
As the Goblin disappeared instantly, the leader shrieked sharply.
It seemed like an order to maintain formation—
“Kiruk.”
“Sssiii—?!”
Crunch!
Unfortunately, before the command could be completed, the head of the foremost Lizardman exploded.
One snapped to attention and aimed a crossbow—but Gono was faster than the bolt.
Crunch!
Crunch!
3 down in an instant.
The leader spun his head in shock.
Unlucky.
When grouped, they could toy with enemies 2 tiers above them.
But they weren’t intelligent enough to immediately counter something beyond their limits.
“S-siiit!”
Only after 2 more were taken down helplessly did the leader make a decision.
He charged straight at me, who stood protecting the Pigmallets.
A very reasonable choice.
He knew I was the Goblin’s master.
And that right now, I was weaker than him.
The timing was good too.
“Kiruk?!”
He had waited until Gono engaged the remaining 2.
Truly fitting of a leader.
A solid plan.
[Activating Monarch’s Afterimage Lv.1.]
[Dragon Child Count Gular’s stats are being applied!]
Right until he got punched by me.