Chapter 2
‘He’s following well,’ thought Kim Sae-Jin as he took a glance at the overly cautious male Hunter behind him.
It was a bit of a waste to leave behind the carcass of that dead Brown Wolf, but Sae-Jin figured that little guy wouldn’t be worth much as a material seeing how weak and famished it was. At most, the Korean government’s reimbursement would be worth less than $440 US. He would have to derive satisfaction from knowing that he was able to help these two Hunters today instead.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, the exit from the mountainous regions’ border could be seen in the distance. A signboard near it said, "From here on, the number of Monster encounters will increase."
Confirming their location, Sae-Jin lowered the unconscious Hunter, who had a faint pulse, to the ground and glanced back.
"Heup!!"
The Hunter following Sae-Jin made a funny noise as he hurriedly held his breath in fear. Feeling rather mischievous after seeing that nervous appearance, Sae-Jin decided to pull a prank at the scared man.
– Krrrrng.
"Eeeeeeek!!"
Sae-Jin found the panicky reaction of the Hunter falling on his butt absolutely priceless.
‘Have a less dangerous life, Mister.’
The funny reaction caused Sae-Jin’s lips to twist upwards. He then lightly patted the shoulder of the sacred and sweaty Hunter with his front paw, and stepping past, he leisurely headed back towards the forest.
Left alone, Kim Tae-Jo remained there utterly dazed for a long time. The massive Brown Wolf had long disappeared into the thicket, but he failed to understand what had just happened…. this maddeningly weird experience.
Somehow recovering from the shock, he recounted the events from several moments ago. That big Brown Wolf…. That Monster…. It rescued him.
Unsure of whether he was dreaming or not, Tae-Jo sharply slapped his face.
"Ouch."
It hurt. Therefore, it was definitely not a dream. Still dazed, Tae-Jo’s stares fixed on the direction where the mystery Brown Wolf had gone off to.
"… Cough, cough. "
"Ah, Sang-Yun!! Can you hear me?!"
The wounded comrade, Sang-Yun, coughed weakly, breaking Tae-Jo’s dazed state. He quickly shouldered the fellow Hunter and stood up.
"Heeeey, over here!!"
Tae-Jo shouted out aloud and soon, he could see some sort of stirring by the guard post building over yonder by the exit.
"Please help!!"
After determining the location of the desperate voice, soldiers hurriedly ran towards his direction. A relieved smile broke out on Tae-Jo’s face as he realised that he’d be able to live for another day, all the while momentarily forgetting about the dream-like event of a Wolf saving him.
*
"A Spirit Beast?"
"That’s right. That’s the only fitting explanation for what happened. That massive size, that display of human-like intelligence…."
Once more, Tae-Jo’s expression became profoundly moved after recalling the event as he sipped some warm tea.
"But, can a Monster evolve into a Spirit Beast?"
A soldier manning the border exit guard post tilted his head in puzzlement and asked, unconvinced.
Spirit Beasts were creatures seemingly blessed by Divine Spirits. They were unfathomably mysterious beings; their physical abilities and mental prowess were greatly enhanced as they accepte
d the aura of Mother Nature. They were essentially different from the vicious beasts with Mana that ran amok, and so, were treated differently as well.