After finishing their al, they moved on again. Spirits that had sagged quickly recharged when luck smiled on them—they found a pharmacy untouched by looters.
The reason beca clear once they peeked inside. A cluster of monsters had claid it: spiders, with bodies the size of one-liter bottles and unnaturally long legs. Their bodies were a glaring crimson, unmistakably venomous. Even Yohan recoiled this ti. Contaminated insects were sothing he could never get used to.
“Sotis these are the easiest to deal with.”
Lee Hyunmook spoke calmly as he opened the door. Before the spiders could react, he tossed sothing inside and shut it again. The small grenade-like device rolled deep into the pharmacy before exploding with a soft pop. Colorless, odorless smoke billowed out—pesticide.
The spiders shrieked in frequencies too high for human ears, thrashing violently. They didn’t die, but their movents slowed to a crawl, shooting webs so wildly they even snared each other. Hyunmook grinned at the wide-eyed rookies.
“This ti, we’re lucky.”
Against higher-class monsters, of course, such tricks wouldn’t work. That thought crossed Yohan’s mind as he strapped on his stifling gas mask and joined the Little Sheep Team in finishing off the sluggish arachnids. Their body fluids splattered, foul webs clung, and Yohan itched to purify everything—but he held back.
Inside the pharmacy, they found a decent stock of dicine. Beyond that, they scavenged a surprising number of canned goods. By the ti their packs bulged with loot, everyone’s faces had brightened. Each mber could keep a portion of what they gathered—or turn it in to the guild for cash or trade. dicine, especially, was priceless in this age.
That night, they cleared out a derelict building and turned it into a temporary base. The rookies, exhausted from the day’s tension, fell asleep at once. When Yohan’s watch ca, he grinned. Just in case anyone overheard, he scrawled with his spear butt on the dusty ground:
‘Aren’t you sleepy?’
Hyunmook smiled faintly and wrote back: ‘Not at all.’ Then he added: ‘How was today?’
‘A little dull, but just right.’
They had deliberately skirted the rift’s outer edges for the rookies’ sake—ta, safe exploration. Still, the Little Sheep Team had kept up, struggling but surviving. In an age where lives, especially Awakeners’ lives, were precious, proper guilds raised their recruits carefully. With contamination shortening lifespans, veterans were rarer than ever.
Glancing around, Yohan shyly drew a small heart. Hyunmook, stifling laughter, drew a round, fluffy shape beside it—a sheep. Seo Yakrin, watching, butted in. He sketched two hearts around the doodle, then scribbled:
‘The babies are adorable, aren’t they?’
Babies... Yohan supposed they must look that way to him. After all, not one of the Little Sheep recruits was over twenty-five. Yakrin chuckled as he wrote again:
‘Just wait till tomorrow. They’ll be chirping even louder. Adorable.’
Chirping louder tomorrow...? What was coming? Hyunmook’s smile didn’t ease Yohan’s unease. Before sleeping, Yohan snapped a picture of Hyunmook’s sheep drawing. Seo Yakrin’s hearts had already been neatly erased. Yohan laughed silently to himself.
* * *
The next day, Yohan understood exactly what Yakrin had ant.
So this is what he was talking about...!
Before him lood a gigantic chicken.
Or was it?
Kwahhhk! Kwaaak!
No, maybe a parrot? A pigeon? A duck? As Yohan tried to make sense of it, the beast shrieked again. In truth, it was less bird than dinosaur—no, a pterosaur. Its wingspan was barely a handspan, yet its body was enormous, its beak and talons slamming into the ground with thunderous force.
“Uwaaaah!”
“Shit, no way!”
The rookies scread, scattering. Compared to this four-ter monstrosity, yesterday’s bipedal dog-thing and the venomous spiders were nothing. Its danger level was estimated at Grade 5. Of course, Hyunmook and Yakrin hadn’t thrown them to the beast to die.
“Alright! Ten minutes—just ten! Run! Don’t just run blind, keep your eyes open!”
Yakrin clapped his hands sharply, shouting encouragent.
“Help! I-I’m gonna die!”
“You won’t! You won’t! Just hang on!”
Taeyang Guild demanded only one thing from rookies here: endurance. This particular Grade 5 was relatively mild. It had no venom, no acid—only brute force. Its Awakener counterpart would be pure strength or body reinforcent.
One recruit tripped, rolling across the ground as the massive beak slamd down inches from his head. Frustrated, the monster hamred at him, but Yakrin’s telekinesis blocked each strike until it gave up and turned elsewhere. The recruit trembled, frozen, until Hyunmook’s voice cut in softly.
“As I’ve said—you may quit anyti if you want.”
Clenching his teeth, the rookie shot to his feet.
“No! I’ll keep going!”
Compared to other guilds, Taeyang’s pay, benefits, and exploration fees were unmatched. If one had to risk their life, better to risk it here. If they endured, wealth and glory awaited.
Hyunmook clapped him on the shoulder, silent approval. The rookie straightened, then threw himself back into the telekinetic arena. Screams and curses echoed as the giant bird raged.
At that mont, another voice rang out—
“I’ll draw its attention. Catch your breath.”
“Huh? W-wait—”
The stunned rookie turned. It was Yang Yohan. Without hesitation, he darted at the beast, spear stabbing into its ankle.
Gwaaaarrrrk! Kwaaaaak!
The monster’s eyes bulged, veins swelling until one nearly popped. It locked onto Yohan, hamring the ground with beak and talons in a frenzy.
Crash! Crash! Crash! Concrete shattered under each strike like a construction site under demolition.
But none of it touched Yohan. He slipped through every blow, even managing to jab the ankle again.
The rookie gaped.
“H-holy shit...”
Dodging the monster’s rampage, Yohan’s thoughts strayed to the Abyss—the contaminated Yakrin, the Abyss core raid. He’d grown bolder since those horrors. Seeing this creature now only reminded him of Yoon Seungryong’s chicken stew.
It doesn’t even look that gross. If I could purify it, I’d haul so at back. Bone-bird, at-bird—they tasted amazing...
Another thought crossed his mind:
But I can’t kill this thing alone.
Training in the Abyss had honed his evasive skills. The monster’s attacks were destructive, yes, but its swings were huge, easy to slip past. He knew his ankle strikes were superficial. Without purification, a healer like him lacked the damage to bring it down.
Still, his reckless distraction gave the rookies ti to regroup.
“Debuffer! Use your skill! If it targets you, tanker covers!”
“O-okay!”
Purple energy seeped from the debuffer, seizing the monster with a weakening effect. It staggered, then barreled toward him. Panicked, he bolted to the tanker, who raised defensive skills and shielded him. Two damage-dealers rushed in, striking while it faltered.
At °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° last, the rookies were acting like Awakeners. Seo Yakrin bead.
“Look at those chicks flapping, Team Leader. Cute, aren’t they?”
His tone was formal during combat, but his eyes danced.
“...Yes. Cute.”
Hyunmook nodded, gaze fixed solely on Yohan. Yakrin thought, He’s clearly talking about our youngest.
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