A Public Servant Hunter Who Exploits Skill Combinations – Chapter 19
Translated by: Hanzo
019. Mock Test (2)
Beep!
With the system's sound at the entrance, doors opened at the spot where each person stood.
At that moment, I suddenly remembered when I was combining skills.
“Oh, right! There was a skill card that expanded the mana radius. That’s it.”
Among the D-grade set I bought from the shop, there was a skill called Mana Perception.
It was a skill that sensed the mana waves in the surroundings.
But if I added a Mana Amplification skill to this...
“Combine.”
---
Huh? Was this not the right formula?
Was it like this?
I switched the order of the skill cards.
“Combine.”
This is driving me crazy.
The lack of response meant it was not the correct combination formula.
Was there something else I’m forgetting?
I feel like I’m on the verge of remembering...
I had no choice but to stand there for a while.
I was straining to recall the formula from those years when I spent over a decade just focusing on combinations.
Ah!! I needed to use Mana Perception twice!
“Combine!”
[Combination Successful!]
[Amplified Mana Perception has been obtained!]
Now, I can sense mana waves within a 1 km radius.
And...
By mixing the Charge skill with the Wind Walker skill, I can create a skill called Wind Sprint.
[Wind Sprint has been obtained.]
It was a skill that temporarily boosts movement speed.
With this, I should easily be able to toy with Ma Tae-ho.
Mana spread throughout my body, and I began to sense the positions of the goblins.
Straight ahead, one on the left, two on the right. Three if I keep going straight.
Not only that, but I could also feel the mana of Ma Tae-ho and the goblins near him.
It takes about 10 seconds to eliminate one goblin.
The time elapsed so far is approximately 3 minutes.
This means Ma Tae-ho has killed at least 10, possibly up to 18 goblins.
If that’s the case...
I utilized Wind Sprint and moved toward the goblin cluster.
The moment I spotted the goblins, a sword appeared in my hand.
Zap!
Several goblins fell simultaneously as they were electrocuted.
I quickly moved to the next location where goblins were, gradually catching up to Ma Tae-ho’s count.
The thrill is in the close competition.
For every goblin he took down, I took down two.
At a rate of 10 seconds per goblin, that’s six goblins per minute.
However, since they don’t spawn endlessly, one has to search for goblins within the maze.
In other words, it’s also crucial to sense mana and move quickly.
To move fast, physical ability is essential. To sense goblins’ positions, sensory ability is critical. And for defeating goblins, combat ability is indispensable.
This test comprehensively evaluates the fundamental abilities required of a hunter.
I turned a corner and headed toward a new group of goblins. Pretending to struggle, I staged a tough battle.
With a half-hearted stab, I caused the goblin pain without knocking it out.
To surpass him, I needed to kill one goblin every 10 seconds.
And to avoid suspicion, each kill had to take more than 5 seconds.
"Use just enough mana appropriately."
At that moment, I sensed that the goblins in Ma Tae-ho’s direction disappeared.
In that case...
I alternated between using skills to wipe out clusters of goblins and engaging in seemingly difficult fights with smaller groups, maintaining a slight lead over Ma Tae-ho.
Before I knew it, there were 3 minutes left.
Suddenly, I sensed Ma Tae-ho’s pace accelerating.
“What? What’s going on? Did he pull some trick? Ah, is it a pet?”
I needed to adjust my pace accordingly, but I couldn’t indiscriminately hunt goblins since drones were recording everything.
Having high mana output and excellent combat skills are entirely different matters.
I plan to work as a public servant hunter comfortably, but standing out in combat could get me assigned to a grueling department.
So, I needed to keep my performance slightly ahead of his—without being too overwhelming.
But I had no intention of losing, either.
"For now, I should head to the larger goblin cluster and deal with them all at once."
I hurried toward the large goblin group I had sensed earlier.
Twenty-five in total.
How many Ma Tae-ho kills would determine how I handled these goblins.
Judging by the situation, I felt I only needed to take down about ten.
That way, I could beat him by a margin of one or two.
Seo Ye-rin was also doing her best, and Mun Jung-ho had taken down quite a few goblins too.
As expected from the special class, everyone had the skills to hunt goblins with ease.
In the past, I might’ve struggled to even kill one goblin...
While leisurely handling five goblins at once, I focused on the disappearing goblin energy from Ma Tae-ho’s direction.
Suddenly, the inventory screen opened.
What? I didn’t open it.
An egg that had been in the corner of my inventory fell to the ground.
The glowing egg began to crack.
Crack!
[A pet has been born! Please name it!]
Huh?
What’s this all of a sudden?
To top it off, the pet started talking.
<Mana stone! I smell a magic stone!>
The snake(?) in front of me lunged at a fallen goblin.
“What are you eating? You little worm!”
[Name set to “Worm.”]
Wait.
The worm, after swallowing the goblin’s mana stone, glared at me and spoke.
<How dare a lowly human call me a worm... I am an Imugi—destined to become a dragon!>
(T/N: Imugi is basically a Korean dragon.)
“That’s some insane nonsense.”
It looked no more than 20 cm long.
Its face resembled an axolotl. It had small, cute legs, but its body was too long for a lizard and too suspicious-looking for a snake.
(T/N: Axolotl.)
<You dare insult me, calling me a worm!!>
“Worm?”
<Graaaah! The Black Flame Dragon within me is stirring!>
Suddenly, waves of unknown energy emanated from the worm’s body.
A strange sound echoed in my ears, making it feel like the mana flow was reversing.
At that moment...
[Imugi's Roar has been activated.]
The goblins in front of me collapsed instantly—all five of them.
And not just them.
The mana of about 30 nearby goblins vanished in an instant.
At the same time...
Beep.
The mock test ended with an announcement.
“What... What the heck was that?”
Looking at the final numbers on the scoreboard, I couldn’t help but curse.
“...Damn it...”
---
[Jeong Tae-seong: 104 goblins.]
[Ma Tae-ho: 60 goblins.]
[Mun Jung-ho: 54 goblins.]
[Seo Ye-rin: 52 goblins.]
***
Seo Ye-rin was stunned when she saw the mock exam results.
Could there really be this much of a difference?
Until now, she had never doubted that Ma Tae-ho would become the greatest hunter.
Jung Tae-sung’s mana score? It had surprised her a bit.
But mana level could always be caught up with someday, so it wasn’t a big concern.
She had known Ma Tae-ho since childhood.
At school, he was good at studying, had a handsome face, and was quite popular.
On top of that, his father was a hunter—a famous S-class hunter, Ma Jung-seok.
Tae-ho had always said he would become a hunter once he awakened.
She admired his dreams.
She thought geniuses were born, but seeing Ma Tae-ho’s efforts up close made her realize something else: even effort seemed like a talent in his case.
She envied him and respected him.
Not as a man, but as a person.
Maybe it was this influence.
Seo Ye-rin wanted to become a hunter too.
But...
“No way! A hunter? Are you out of your mind?”
“Dad, I want to be a hunter.”
“Absolutely not.”
Faced with her father’s adamant opposition, Seo Ye-rin went on a hunger strike for an entire week.
At first, he just got angry. The second time, he tried to persuade her.
The third time, he gave up.
By the fourth time, his anger reached its peak.
When none of it worked, he finally proposed a deal.
“If you graduate at the top of the Hunter Academy, I’ll allow it.”
“Really? You can’t go back on your word!”
From that day, Seo Ye-rin started pestering Ma Tae-ho.
“How do you sense mana?”
“How do you control mana?”
“How do skills work?”
Ma Tae-ho found her constant questions annoying, but he was also happy to spend time with her. Without showing his annoyance, he taught her everything he knew.
More importantly, as he watched her absorb knowledge like a sponge, he thought:
“Maybe Ye-rin is a genius, too...”
In this way, the two future S-class hunters learned a lot from each other and grew faster than anyone else.
But then, a new outlier appeared before them.
This individual never seemed to study, never opened a book, and always seemed distracted during practice.
Naturally, they assumed his mock exam scores would be rock bottom.
But to their surprise, this person achieved the impossible.
Seo Ye-rin now had an unexpected new rival.
She wasn’t even sure if she could beat Ma Tae-ho, but now Jung Tae-sung, too...
After the mock exam ended, Seo Ye-rin openly stared at Jung Tae-sung with obvious curiosity.
***
The academy was in an uproar again.
I was called to the principal’s office.
For the second time, the secretary greeted me.
“You’re here again, Mr. Jung Tae-sung—our ‘White Snake.’”
“...Is it White Snake this time?”
It was the "Angel" last time and now this?
What's up with these unwarranted cringeworthy nicknames.
“The president has been calling you that. He told me to let you in right away when you arrived. Go on in.”
As I opened the door to the principal’s office, his voice reached me even before I stepped inside.
He was on the phone, sounding quite excited.
“I’m telling you, our angel Tae-sung has a white snake now! Haha!
Right, right—104 goblins.
Ever heard of someone catching 104 goblins?
That kid from Seoul, Jin Guk-hee, or whatever his name is, caught 60, they say? Haha!
What’s the point of speed if you don’t have the ability?
Our Tae-sung can easily catch 60 even without a pet.
And get this—he started 3 minutes late out of consideration for the others!
What, you don’t believe me? It’s all recorded on drone footage. And the lightning discharge? Yeah, yeah—I’ll send you the video later.”
I couldn’t wait any longer and called out to him.
“Excuse me, sir. You called for me?”
“Ah, Tae-sung! When did you arrive, my lovely Tae-sung?”
The president hung up his call, beaming with satisfaction, and moved as if to hug me.
“I’m fine without the hug, sir.”
“Oh, is that so? Haha! Anyway, tell me—what would you like as your reward?”
“...Pardon?”
“We’ve decided to give the top scorer in the mock exam a rare-grade item. Don’t worry; the cost is covered by the presidents pooling their money together.”
Pooling money? It’s probably more like betting...
“So, I can just say what I want?”
“Yes, is there something specific you’d like?”
“If possible, I’d like something that boosts defense.”
“Defense, hmm. I’ll see what I can find.”
“Thank you, sir.”
I wanted to leave quickly now that our business was over. Otherwise, the principal would start oversharing.
“By the way, where did you get that pet?”
I hesitated before answering, but he spoke first.
“Did it come from that giant spider you defeated?”
“Ah, yes.”
“I thought so. The timing matches perfectly. But a snake? That’s unusual.”
The pet, wrapped around my left wrist like a bracelet, responded.
<Who is this chatty old man comparing me to a snake? I am an Imugi, destined to become a dragon!>
‘Shut up.’
<I’ve been asleep for 900 years, and humans these days have no manners. The older one gets, the more they should bow their heads.>
‘You mean they should humble themselves. And if you keep this up, no mana stones for you.’
<You’re cruel...>
“So, what abilities does it have to wipe out goblins so quickly?”
“I’m not sure yet. It only hatched recently.”
“A pet with offensive abilities, huh? Impressive. Mine only eats mana stones.”
“Well, sir, your pet is cute.”
“Oh? Have I shown you my pet before?”
“I saw it on a broadcast once.”
“It doesn’t do much besides collecting mana stones.”
“By the way, sir, does your pet talk?”
“Talk? Pets that talk? Never heard of such a thing.”
“I thought they might. It seemed odd that they don’t.”
“In all my life, I’ve never seen a talking pet.”
“I see...”
Judging by his expression, he really had no idea.
As I thought...
Even in my memories of the future, I’d never heard of a talking pet.
But then, who would go around advertising that their pet could talk?
Still, it felt like I had the only one of its kind.
Meanwhile, my pet kept communicating through my thoughts.
<I’m hungry. Bring me a feast of mana stones.>
...What, do you have a beggar in your stomach or something?
....
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