The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 480

Park Ki-tae went first.

He carefully walked through the ruined city, talking to the two men behind him.

“I don’t know how you knew, but you were very smart to choose me, Park Ki-tae, as your guide in Incheon. If you had picked someone else, you would have already run into monsters and wasted all your energy before even getting started.”

He spoke with confidence.

It wasn’t by chance that Park Ki-tae was chosen for this mission.

Usually, Hunters prove they deserve a promotion by defeating monsters of the same rank. But people who don’t fight, like Park Ki-tae, are different.

They were judged only by their experience.

Completing ten F-rank missions made them an E-rank, and completing a hundred E-rank missions made them a D-rank.

He had slowly earned his rank, mission by mission. Even though he was only D-rank, Park Ki-tae was a veteran Hunter. He had fought in many battles.

Besides, he was close to getting promoted to C-rank.

Even though he wasn’t part of Cheongsan, Gu Cheol-ho always asked for Park Ki-tae when it was really important, and there was a good reason for that.

“We are taking a shortcut right now. I can say for sure that I’m the only person in Incheon who knows this way. If we keep going like this, we can get to the ant tunnel without seeing a single monster.”

“Oh, really?”

The answer was not excited.

For a moment, he sighed to himself.

Usually, when he said something like that, the people who hired him would be impressed and give him a thumbs-up.

But the black-haired foreigner and the E-rank Hunter didn’t care. Their attitude, like they didn’t care what happened, annoyed Park Ki-tae.

He thought, ‘They don’t understand how good this shortcut is. That’s why they don’t care.’

He checked inside his coat.

Teleport scroll.

It seemed like he would need to use it soon.

If things went wrong even a little bit, Park Ki-tae would tear the teleport scroll without hesitation.

After that, they stopped talking.

Park Ki-tae quietly led the way, and as if to prove he was a good guide, they didn’t see any monsters even after walking for a long time.

That was why they hired a guide. A guide who knew a lot about a specific hunting ground made traveling easier and, most importantly, lowered the chance of getting lost.

Ant tunnel.

It was a hunting ground where a guide was really needed.

If that wasn’t the reason, Kang Min-ho wouldn’t have suggested hiring a guide.

How long had they been walking?

Finally.

“We’re here at the entrance to the ant tunnel.”

The place they were going to appeared in front of them.

The ant tunnel was a hunting ground that went underground.

From the outside, it looked like a small hole in a pile of dirt leading underground, so small that you wouldn’t even know it was an ant tunnel.

Park Ki-tae said.

“The ant tunnel is a very dangerous hunting ground. It’s built strong, so it won’t collapse, but once you go inside, it’s hard to get out. And the biggest problem is that, unlike normal ant tunnels, there are two queen ants living here. If two queen ants have been making ants for over a month, I don’t know how many ants are inside.”

Just in case, he had to make sure he had a better chance of surviving.

He had a way to escape, but he didn’t want to just send these people to their deaths.

He was doing his best as a guide.

That was why Park Ki-tae was so respected in the mercenary world.

“I want to know your plan. How are you going to attack this ant tunnel, which even the Incheon government has given up on, with just two people?”

He was really curious.

Only two people.

No matter how he thought about it, he didn’t see any chance of them winning.

If they weren’t trying to kill themselves, they must have had some kind of plan.

Then, Roman Dmitry said.

“Our strategy is simple. Kang Min-ho will go first, and if Kang Min-ho is losing, I will step in.”

It was unexpected.

Roman Dmitry didn’t use any special magic to translate, but he spoke the plan in pretty good Korean.

The problem was the plan itself.

Instead of solving the problem with a smart idea, Park Ki-tae felt dizzy thinking about just pushing forward.

‘They’re crazy.’

He was sure of it.

Ant tunnel.

Besides the fact that a B-rank queen ant lived there, the hunting ground itself was very difficult. If they attacked it like this, the result was obvious.

Just as he was about to check the teleport scroll again because he was worried, he heard Roman Dmitry’s voice.

“If you think it’s too dangerous, you can run away anytime. We won’t blame you.”

”

Yes?”

He was surprised.

Park Ki-tae’s face became serious, thinking that they had read his mind.

Park Ki-tae’s reaction didn’t matter.

From the start, they hired him because they needed a guide who could take them to the ant tunnel without getting lost.

Of course, it would be good if he could guide them to the end like Kang Min-ho wanted, but judging by Park Ki-tae’s reaction, that was unlikely.

“We know this mission is dangerous for you. We won’t force you to stay. We’ll send you the payment we promised, and we’ll take responsibility for what happens after that.”

Park Ki-tae bit his lip.

He felt very exposed.

He had never felt so ashamed as a guide.

But he couldn’t promise to stay loyal.

That was the same as killing himself. So, showing his true feelings, Park Ki-tae said what he really thought.

“I understand. I’ll do my job as long as I’m safe. So remember, the ant tunnel is not easy, and I’m not responsible for anything that happens from now on.”

The inside was bigger than he thought.

Several adults could walk together easily, and Park Ki-tae used light magic to light the way.

Park Ki-tae said.

“The inside of the ant tunnel is like a maze. If you go the wrong way even a little bit, you’ll get lost, so please follow me as quietly as possible.”

He used exploration magic.

That was his ability.

It was the first skill he learned as a Hunter, and Park Ki-tae slowly found the right path using exploration magic.

He knew they would run into ants eventually.

However, he planned to do his job until he thought it was really dangerous. Because of that, they quickly went deeper inside.

How long had they been walking?

In the dark space, Park Ki-tae raised his hand.

“Get ready.”

Beyond the darkness, he could feel living things moving.

It was ants.

If he didn’t have exploration magic, he wouldn’t have noticed the ants until they were right in front of him in the dark.

Kyaak!

Kyaaak!

It was just as he expected.

When he saw the ants coming through the darkness, Park Ki-tae’s face turned pale for a moment. There were more than he thought.

Dozens of worker ants and three soldier ants rushed in like a wave, and Park Ki-tae quickly stepped back.

It was then.

Pat.

Kang Min-ho dashed forward.

Park Gi-tae thought it was very dangerous for him to attack the ants directly.

“He’s crazy! What is an E-rank Hunter doing against so many D-rank ants?!”

The opponents were soldier ants.

D-rank.

One-on-one might be manageable, but Park Gi-tae didn’t believe Kang Min-ho, an E-rank Hunter, could handle so many of them.

The Hunter Database showed that E-rank Hunters were weak.

Years spent stuck in E-rank suggested Kang Min-ho’s skills were not good enough to win.

And yet.

Flash!

Kraa!

Right at the front, the lead soldier ant’s forelegs were sliced clean off.

Kang Min-ho moved quickly into the space where blood was flowing, pushed his sword into the soldier ant’s stomach, and ripped it open.

The soldier ant screamed and thrashed.

Savage mandibles snapped from all directions, wanting to tear Kang Min-ho apart, but he calmly blocked each attack.

Clang!

Clang! Clang!

His swordsmanship was steady.

Most surprisingly, his E-rank strength didn’t weaken against the soldier ant’s power.

Park Gi-tae froze.

Was Kang Min-ho really this strong? He watched, unable to move.

He’d been quickly preparing a teleport scroll, but Kang Min-ho’s strong fighting stopped him.

Even in the middle of the messy fight, Kang Min-ho was calm.

Roman Dmitry watched from behind, but he didn’t offer to help.

Just then.

Kraa!

A soldier ant, bigger than Park Gi-tae’s dog at home, lunged. Its black, shiny body moved fast. Seeing Park Gi-tae frozen in fear, it opened its sharp, clicking mandibles, ready to bite.

Park Gi-tae’s hands trembled as he held the teleport scroll. He was too scared to move.

Then, a flash of silver!

Crack!

The soldier ant’s head burst open like a dropped melon.

Kang Min-ho, who had been fighting surrounded by dozens of ants, appeared in Park Gi-tae’s vision in the blink of an eye and swung his sword at the soldier ant’s head.

The head shattered instantly. Even D-rank Hunters struggled to pierce the soldier ant’s tough exoskeleton in one strike, but Kang Min-ho’s sword seemed to ignore such limitations.

Pat pat.

Blood splattered.

Pieces of the dead ant fell.

In the middle of the horrifying scene, Kang Min-ho spoke to Park Gi-tae.

“Stand back, Park Gi-tae. I can take care of this.”

Kang Min-ho felt his blood rush. This is it! Time to test what I’ve learned, he thought, charging towards the swarming ants.

Flash!

Thwack!

He cut off an ant’s head.

Kang Min-ho killed worker ants with a single blow, cutting through the bodies of every ant he encountered.

It’s certain. I am different, he thought. Roman Dmitry’s training really worked.

A month ago, he met Roman Dmitry.

Back then, he had to risk his life against a single soldier ant, but Roman Dmitry’s teachings had opened the door to a new world.

The Asura Sword Technique and Asura Heart Method didn’t just teach him higher-level skills.

It explained how to control mana, and because of that, Kang Min-ho’s skills had improved a lot.

Dash.

Tap tap tap!

He moved through space. He moved even faster and with more power, cutting off the ants’ arms and legs before they could react.

And then, Forceful Strike.

Wham!

Rumble!

He brought his weapon down on their heads.

Using the Asura Heart Method to explode mana, the Forceful Strike, a simple skill, showed power that didn’t make sense.

Kang Min-ho was very happy, almost crazy. For the past month, he had trained hard in the Asura Sword Technique and Asura Heart Method.

Roman Dmitry hadn’t taught him anything special after the first day, but by training alone, Kang Min-ho was sure he was getting stronger.

It was just as he thought.

Look at what was happening. Even a D-rank Hunter would have trouble, but he, an E-rank, was showing great power.

Crack!

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

He pushed back the ants.

If he cut down one, another would attack from the side, and after dealing with that one, two more would show their savage mandibles from above.

His vision spun. It was a dangerous scene that made Park Gi-tae fidget, but Roman Dmitry calmly watched Kang Min-ho fight. A small smile appeared on his face. He’s improving, Roman Dmitry thought.

Kang Min-ho wasn’t one of the talented ones.

He wasn’t like Chris and Kevin, whom he’d first met in his previous life.

Kang Min-ho didn’t have the talent to be as good as them, but he had a different kind of determination than Kevin.

He had a reason to become strong, no matter what.

He had started late and people thought he wouldn’t be a good Hunter, but he stubbornly hunted and got his E-rank qualification on his own.

He had a strong desire.

The desperation he’d felt at the bottom had filled his whole being, and as he gained power, it burst out like a spring.

It was still a long way off.

But it was quite something.

In the future, Kang Min-ho would be strong enough that people in this world would notice him.

Crack!

He crushed an ant’s head.

After meeting Roman Dmitry, he had changed his weapon, using the sword freely in both his left and right hands, and killing the ants one by one.

His whole body was covered in blood.

He breathed heavily, the metallic taste of blood in his mouth, but he didn’t ask for help, and he stubbornly finished off every last one of them.

“Hoo, hoo.”

It was over.

His face was full of joy.

When he saw the strength he had only imagined, he felt a great sense of accomplishment.

Then, Park Gi-tae came into view.

“Are you alright?”

He didn’t know.

Park Gi-tae looked horrified.

It was almost the same as his own face the day he first met Roman Dmitry.