A Public Servant Hunter Who Exploits Skill Combinations – Chapter 50
Translated by: Hanzo
Chapter 50: Guild Training (3)
"Let's see, what's the special feature today?"
"Today's feature is on Variant Gates."
This month's Hunter Magazine was featuring Variant Gates.
Being a hunter didn’t mean you were always hunting inside gates.
Gates didn’t appear 24/7.
In the end, there was a lot of waiting around.
In the early days, hunters would constantly roam around looking for field gates.
But fuel didn’t come for free.
And wandering around aimlessly didn’t guarantee any results either.
That's when Hunter Magazine helped hunters kill time.
"A Variant Gate refers to a gate that undergoes transformation from its original state."
"Why are you reading that out loud? Just read it quietly. I'm watching a video."
After a scolding from his teammate, he started reading in silence.
The article described the first recorded Variant Gate—
A D-rank gate that, after being cleared, transformed into a B-rank gate.
After that, Variant Gates kept appearing.
There was no clear definition for them.
No pattern or rule dictated how they transformed.
The article listed recent Variant Gates in chronological order.
It was hard to tell if it was listing Variant Gates or just hunter death dates.
"Wow, so once a Variant Gate appears, you're basically dead, huh?"
"Oh, that? A guy I knew went into a B-rank gate a few years ago, but it transformed into an A-rank, and everyone died…
Even though he was an A-rank, he couldn't do a thing and got wiped out."
"Oh… Why?"
"I'm not entirely sure—I heard it through someone else. But apparently, as soon as they killed the boss monster, another new boss spawned, and then all the dead monsters suddenly came back to life."
"Huh? You mean like a Necromancer?"
"Yeah. More precisely, a Lich. It was a cave-type gate that transformed into a quest-type gate."
"So they had to kill the new boss too?"
"No."
"Huh? Why not?"
"Instead of killing it… they had to survive for an hour."
"Oh, that was the mission?"
"Yeah. But they didn’t know that… So they just kept fighting, cutting down the resurrected monsters over and over… until they ran out of mana. In the end, with only a few minutes left, they all died to the monsters."
"But there are so many types of transformations—it’s impossible to predict them."
"Exactly… You never know when you’ll die."
With a small sigh, his teammate continued,
"This is why hunter salaries are so high—we literally risk our lives."
"What's the point of a high salary… when it's all or nothing? You spend your life paying off gear installments and then just die."
"Same here… I keep working on my mana refinement, but it’s not improving."
"Me too…"
Like all conversations among losers, it eventually turned into a rant about their misfortunes.
"By the way, which guild was that guy in?"
"Huh? Oh, that guy? Magma Guild."
***
Just before entering the gate
"Wait a second."
"Huh? What's wrong?"
"I need to use the bathroom real quick…"
"At a time like this?"
"Maybe it's because I'm nervous."
"You haven’t been like this before… I guess you're nervous since it’s a B-rank gate this time?"
"Yeah, maybe."
I smiled nonchalantly and told them to go in first.
"Take your time clearing it. I'll be right behind you."
Once I confirmed that they had entered the gate, I activated Stealth, making sure no one saw me.
Then, using Wind Sprint, I rushed toward the nearest skill card shop as fast as possible.
<You have delicious mana stones right in front of you, and yet you're running off somewhere?>
'I need some skill cards.'
<Why skill cards all of a sudden?>
Mir sounded curious.
Normally, he didn’t care much about what I did, but now that I was walking away from mana stones, he was suddenly interested.
'That gate is a Variant Gate.'
<Variant Gate?>
Mir's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
'Yeah. The boss in there is a Lich.'
<A Lich… You mean the one that controls corpses?>
"That's right."
<Then, you'll have to endure for a long time… But aren't you weak when it comes to defense?>
Mir immediately realized that facing a Lich meant a long battle.
Was he just naturally perceptive, or did he know a lot?
'I got the Demonic Spirit Garment from the principal recently.'
<That alone won’t be enough to last.>
'I know. It’s because it hasn’t awakened yet. Awakening requires fulfilling certain conditions.'
<So what’s your plan?>
In response to Mir’s question, I answered simply.
"Skill Combination."
As soon as I arrived at the skill cardshop, I started selecting skill cards.
"Huh? Aren’t you Jung Tae-sung?"
"Yes, that's me."
"Wow, I didn’t expect to meet someone famous in such a small shop."
"Uh, do you have Stone Armor?"
"Stone Armor… One moment. I think we have it."
Thanks to the friendly shop assistant, I successfully obtained the skill card.
I immediately opened my inventory and placed the cards into the Combination Zone to attempt Skill Combination.
[Skill Combination Successful!]
And then…
Once more…
Combination.
***
In my previous life.
Not long after I started experimenting with Skill Combination, Jun-hyuk showed up at my place.
"How's it going? Found any useful combinations?"
"Nah… It's not working too well."
"Harder than you thought, huh?"
"You mocking me?"
"Why would I mock you? I'm here to brag."
"The hell?"
"I discovered a new formula recently. Made 30 billion won off of it."
I asked in a surprised tone at the rather large amount.
"30 billion?"
"These days, just selling formulas makes a ton of money."
I knew that too.
"So what is it?"
"30 billion."
He reached out his hand as if asking for money.
"Are you seriously doing this to a friend...?"
"I'm just kidding. Here, take this."
Jun-hyuk handed me a few skill cards.
[Ice Flower], [Mana Absorption], [Magic Armor], [Stone Will]
"What are these?"
"What do you think? A skill combination formula."
"Aren't these just really basic skills?"
"Yeah, that's right. Skill combination formulas aren't always that complex or difficult."
"I see..."
"The only one that would be useful for you is probably Mana Absorption since it's a more of a physical skill."
"I can use the others too. They just don't have as obvious effects as magic-type skills."
"That just means they’re not worth using. Anyway, arrange them in the order 1, 3, 5, and 6, and try combining them."
Following his instructions, I arranged the skill cards in the combination zone and attempted a combination.
[Skill Combination Successful.]
[Acquired: Ice Armor.]
"Huh? Ice Armor?"
"Yeah. It's a good defensive skill."
"What does it do?"
"It turns your body into something like ice, making it hard as ice."
"Wouldn't that just freeze me solid?"
"No, it doesn't actually freeze you. It just hardens your body."
"Then I don't really need it, do I?"
"Hey, you idiot, that thing is worth 30 billion."
"And since when is ice hard? It melts in fire."
"As long as there’s no fire, it's strong. Once you try it, you won’t be saying that."
"Really...?"
Initially, the formula was worth 30 billion, but within a month, it dropped to 3 billion.
Of course, after that, it dropped even further, and soon, the price of an Ice Armor skill card was less than 3 million won.
Despite that, Jun-hyuk still said this to me:
"You owe me 30 billion."
"Wow, you damn thief..."
As time passed, Ice Armor evolved further.
Into a skill called [Unyielding Ice].
It was an upgrade from a simple defensive barrier to a skill with significantly enhanced defense.
The reason Ice Armor was able to evolve was that it was the only elemental skill that provided a defensive function.
Fire, ice, water, wind, light, darkness.
Most elemental attributes were focused on attack or speed.
There were skills like Stone Armor and Iron Armor, but those were only usable by people with special abilities.
That’s why Ice Armor, which anyone could use, became the most widely known formula.
One of the reasons I was eager to hunt the Ice Beast was because of this skill.
The [Ice Field] I acquired back then.
This skill was necessary to combine Unyielding Ice.
Skill cards like Ice Field don’t appear often, so you can't simply buy them with money.
Most people learn such skills directly.
Or, they sell them within their guild.
For high-tier skills like these, selling them to outsiders would be like handing your strength to a competitor...
Even if their own guild members couldn’t use them, they often just held onto them.
They might not be able to use them, but they didn’t want to give them away either.
And now, I had a skill card that I, too, didn’t want to give away.
I had originally planned to attempt it later, but now seemed like the perfect time.
I had managed to create Ice Armor with ease, but would I be able to successfully create Unyielding Ice as well...?
Its high rank meant a high failure rate.
If I didn’t succeed on the first try, I’d have to come up with another plan.
Maybe I needed to inform Ma Jung-seok.
***
Upon entering the dungeon, I was immediately met with the sight of numerous fallen knights.
They finished quickly.
I hurried my steps and moved deeper into the dungeon.
Before long, I encountered my party in the middle of a battle.
"What took you so long?"
"I think I might be a bit constipated."
"We almost finished everything without you."
Like that would happen.
"Well then, you guys can take it easy now. I'll get warmed up."
"Alright, let’s see what our youngest can do."
My teammates often gave me plenty of opportunities.
At first, they were cautious with me, but after seeing what I could do, they realized I wasn't lacking compared to them and treated me as an equal.
Maybe Ma Jung-seok had something to do with it...
The monsters in this dungeon were all humanoid in shape, with green skin, decent regeneration, and sturdy bodies.
Their name? Pointy-eared Green Warriors.
And their outfits were quite unusual.
Unlike most other monsters, which just wore scraps of hide, they were dressed as if they were wearing proper human armor.
That made fighting them feel almost like fighting real people, but in the end, they were just monsters to me.
As we continued to hunt and advance, we eventually reached the boss room.
Now it begins...
The boss in front of us looked like a frail wizard who would collapse with a single touch, yet it was oddly wearing armor.
Typically, monsters like this were called Magical Monsters.
They could shoot black orbs, generate barriers, and teleport short distances.
I hadn't realized before, but now it finally made sense.
The soul of a lich was inhabiting the body of a dead warrior, which explained its strange, unbalanced appearance.
So that’s why… If we kill that shell, the mage’s soul—meaning the lich—will awaken.
If I hadn’t known, I never would have figured it out.
Its thin, withered frame wasn’t due to starvation but because it was a corpse.
In other words, it was an undead body housing a soul.
Looking back, I saw the corpses of all the monsters we had defeated along the way.
Once we defeated the boss, the lich would emerge and resurrect all of them.
The fact that they all wore armor gave off the feeling of an army.
Everything in the dungeon had been a clue.
When I didn’t know, I couldn’t see it. But now that I did, everything became clear.
These monsters would keep getting back up for the next hour.
And the newly spawned boss, the lich, would be invincible for that hour due to the Variant Gate’s effect.
We had to endure for an hour before we could kill it.
A short time if short, a long time if long.
Of course...
For me, it was short.
True to our teamwork, once the Magical Monster fell, the lich appeared.
My teammates were caught off guard, but I stood in front of them and said:
"Everyone, stay behind me."
[Unyielding Ice.]
Ice began to sprout from all over my body.
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