I Became The Rankers’ Number One Pick [EN]: Chapter 85

85.

Kang Hae-in closed his eyes, gesturing with his staff as if conducting an orchestra.

Immediately, water bombs began to rain down from all directions. Seo-ah’s eyes widened at the sight.

Kwarururung- Kung! Kung! Kung!

The water bombs were literal bombs, boasting enough power to crater the ground with a single blast.

Seo-ah and the others huddled even closer behind Kang Hae-in. The numerous flames gradually dwindled.

After a while, Kang Hae-in opened his eyes, and the barrage of water bombs subsided. He seemed to have exhausted a considerable amount of energy, panting for breath.

Song Jin-ho immediately cast a recovery skill on Kang Hae-in, and Seo-ah refreshed his buff skills.

“I’ve never been so glad that Hae-in *hyung* [older brother or male friend] is a water mage.”

“Even considering that, he seems much stronger than usual, doesn’t he?”

“Yeah, it’s thanks to Hunter Park Seo-ah’s skills. But it’s still too early to relax.”

Kang Hae-in’s massive water bombs significantly reduced their numbers, but embers still remained.

The salamanders seethed, watching for an opportunity to pounce on them at any moment.

“It’s my turn this time.”

Then, Yoon Ah-jung stepped forward.

Yoon Ah-jung, an A-class tank and earth mage, specialized in defense using earth and rock.

Seo-ah immediately applied the buffs she had used on Kang Hae-in to Yoon Ah-jung as well.

“Oh, thank you. I feel a surge of power.”

“That’s amazing.”

Yoon Ah-jung shrugged at Kang Hae-in’s words.

“I just need to cover everything, right?”

“Yes.”

Yoon Ah-jung confirmed with Yoo Ji-an once more, then stomped her foot firmly on the ground.

“Hah!”

At the same time as she shouted, the firmly packed earth and sand instantly rose in the shape of pillars.

Yoon Ah-jung reached out into the air, and a large sword appeared in her hand.

Yoon Ah-jung’s sword, ‘Falchion,’ had a gently curved shape, making it more suitable for slashing than stabbing.

The blade was quite thick and wide, making it suitable for use as a shield as well.

Yoon Ah-jung, holding the Falchion, slashed horizontally through the air.

Kukung!

The pillars surrounding the group grew even taller. The flames were completely obscured by the pillars, making them invisible.

The ground shook violently as if an earthquake had struck.

“Ah!”

Seo-ah stumbled from the force, and Song Jin-ho reached out to steady her.

And when Yoon Ah-jung swung the Falchion downwards once more, the earthen pillars collapsed outward in unison.

Kwarururung-

As if finally realizing the situation, the small flames scattered in all directions. But it was already too late. All the remaining embers were completely buried under the wet piles of earth.

“Wow.”

Seo-ah exclaimed softly.

Both Kang Hae-in and Yoon Ah-jung were truly remarkable A-class hunters. She had felt it during her time with the Royal Guild, of course, but seeing such large-scale skills used in succession made her realize it again.

“Phew, I think everything’s out now.”

Yoon Ah-jung put away her shield and looked around.

“Let’s go. The real gate starts from there.”

Yoo Ji-an pointed to the top of the crater where the piles of earth were stacked.

“Huh? We weren’t in the gate yet?”

“No, this is just the entrance. The salamanders are spirits guarding the entrance to the gate.”

Seo-ah raised her head and looked up. The end of the crater was visible far above.

“How do we get up there?”

“Well, by climbing…”

Kim Soo-hyuk was about to explain, but Yoo Ji-an silently reached his hand towards the sky.

Then, his hawk, Kian, appeared from the sky.

The large hawk flew gracefully and landed gently beside Yoo Ji-an.

“…Don’t tell me it’s just for *hyung* [older brother or male friend].”

“It looks like it can only carry one or two people at most, right?”

As if to prove his words, Yoo Ji-an beckoned only to Park Seo-ah.

“Come here, Park Seo-ah.”

Seo-ah glanced at the other hunters and cautiously approached Yoo Ji-an.

“Then… I’ll see you up there.”

She felt sorry, but she didn’t have the confidence to climb the sheer walls with her bare hands, and even if she did, she would be too slow and a nuisance.

“Haaa. Let’s go, we’ll go this way.”

Kang Hae-in first placed his hand on the wall with slumped shoulders. Kim Soo-hyuk, Yoon Ah-jung, and Song Jin-ho began to climb after him.

“Damn, Kian looks cool every time I see him. When will I ever get a companion monster?”

“Tell me about it, I applied to a tamer last year, and they told me to wait 12 years.”

“Heuk, 12 years?”

They grumbled, but they began to climb the rough wall quite quickly. They seemed much faster than when she saw them during climbing training last time. It seemed like they were just slacking off back then.

Seo-ah also climbed onto Kian’s back. She was quite used to it, having ridden it once before. Seo-ah gently stroked the feathers on its back.

“Please take care of me.”

Yoo Ji-an watched the A-class hunters climb for a moment, then leaped onto the hawk’s back.

“Let’s go, Kian.”

At Yoo Ji-an’s command, Kian cried out loudly and flapped its large wings. Seo-ah was sitting on its back, and Yoo Ji-an was standing.

Seo-ah noticed reddish burn marks on Yoo Ji-an’s exposed hands and wrists.

“Just a moment.”

Without asking Yoo Ji-an, Seo-ah gently grabbed his hand and used her recovery skill. It was only an E-class skill, so it wasn’t much, but it might reduce the pain.

“Don’t bother. It’ll heal on its own if you leave it alone.”

S-class hunters had fast recovery rates. But even as he said that, Yoo Ji-an didn’t pull his hand away.

“No matter how strong you are, you can still feel pain, right? You’re not a robot.”

“…….”

During the short time it took to ascend, Seo-ah carefully healed him, and the red marks visibly subsided. She felt proud of herself.

‘Okay, let’s not be greedy. Just do what I can in my position.’

Before she knew it, Kian had landed on the flat ground above the crater.

Then, a system message appeared. It seemed that this was truly the beginning of the gate.

As Seo-ah got off Kian’s back, Yoo Ji-an’s expression was quite serious.

“What’s wrong?”

“It looks like it’s going to be a bit difficult.”

“Is that so?”

“The progress is faster than expected.”

Seo-ah also gazed in the direction Yoo Ji-an was looking.

The first thing Seo-ah saw was a world that looked completely arid. Red earth, a red sky, a land without a single blade of grass, and dried-up riverbeds.

And there was a fairly large village at the foot of the mountain. Judging by the shape of the buildings, they didn’t seem to be from the same era. They were in a style reminiscent of old Europe.

A place with spirits and traces of old Europe.

This place was like a recreation of a ‘medieval fantasy’ world.

And beyond the village, in the distance, was another active volcano.

This volcano crater was quiet after the salamander spirits disappeared, but that volcano was still seething. The smoke was visible all the way here.

Seo-ah couldn’t quite understand what he meant by the progress being fast, but the perspectives of an S-class and an E-class were bound to be different.

Meanwhile, the A-class hunters also arrived one after another. Despite climbing that height, they didn’t seem tired at all.

‘Well, this is just the beginning.’

They also shook their heads as they looked down at the foot of the mountain.

“It looks difficult to clear just by looking at it. It doesn’t seem like it’s just about beating up monsters.”

Still, they seemed to be able to roughly grasp the situation just by looking at it, thanks to their experience.

“Yes, to clear this gate, we must first find the spiritist.”

Yoo Ji-an gathered them and spoke.

“Spiritist?”

“The fire spiritist. They’re probably living in that village. A spiritist who controls fire spirits.”

Yoo Ji-an pointed to the village with an almost certain tone.

“The spiritist couldn’t control the spirits, so it’s come to this.”

The village clearly looked like it had once been prosperous. But now, even from a distance, it was clear that it was declining. That decline was definitely related to the fire.

Having come this far, no one questioned Yoo Ji-an about how he knew that.

They just accepted it naturally and asked the next question.

“How do we find the spiritist? What do they look like?”

Seo-ah’s question was answered by Yoo Ji-an.

“The spiritist always changes, their gender, age, appearance, and original occupation.”

“What, so we have to grab them one by one and ask, ‘Are you the spiritist?'”

Yoon Ah-jung clicked her tongue, and Yoo Ji-an nodded.

“Similar, but they won’t answer easily. Their connection with the spirits is severed, so they’ll be powerless. They’ll want to hide their identity.”

“Then what do we do?”

“There are many ways to make people open their mouths.”

Yoo Ji-an gripped Ruin Blade and said. Kang Hae-in looked at him with a dubious expression.

“Anyway, we have to go down there. But is there no other way besides finding the spiritist?”