RCMT-Chapter 4

Ch.4 The Regression Of Calamity-Level Monster Tamer

Inside the Gate.

A dry, red plateau greeted us.

‘I wonder if they’ve arrived by now?’

From the government, Manager Seo Gyeoul of the Gate Management Agency.

From the guild, Team Leader Jang Seong-han of Jotunn Guild.

These two would have been dispatched to raid the Gate.

‘But what to do? They’re a step too late.’

Both would be thoroughly flustered that some beanpole had already entered the Gate first.

Of course, they wouldn’t dream that I would clear the Gate.

‘Yeah, I will. Since it’s come to this. Even what you were supposed to eat, I’ll eat it all by myself.’

In the past, these two became famous by rapidly growing stronger starting with this Gate raid.

The ‘Ice Queen’ representing the Gate Management Agency, Seo Gyeoul.

Jotunn Guild’s assault captain, ‘Flame Giant’ Jang Seong-han.

They became strong enough to frequently cross paths with me while climbing the Tower later, so enough said.

Anyway, after Jang Seong-han became strong, he did this interview:

— Miss Seo Gyeoul! When I proposed to you while giving you that ‘Essence’ back then, you accepted! But after just taking and eating it, you completely wiped your mouth clean? You trample on a man’s pure feelings so mercilessly and you call yourself human!

Essence.

Simply put, you can think of it as the same as an elixir.

Those guys caught the Blood Wolf leader and obtained it.

Moreover, the fact they split it between them means there were two Essences.

“I’ll monopolize that.”

Buzz buzz—

I sat atop Freki, swinging a 2-meter-long traffic sign like a spear. It wasn’t an item, but it looked more useful than the utility knife, so I brought it.

‘It should appear soon…’

Given the Blood Wolves’ impatient nature, they would have attacked if anything, not sat still and waited.

“…?”

At that moment, the pack became noisy.

Some bared their teeth and growled, while others rushed to the front of the pack and perked up their ears.

I opened my eyes to slits and examined the ridge.

Just then, red dots appeared one by one over the blue horizon, and soon those dots multiplied into dozens.

‘It’s them.’

Those dots began rolling toward us like a tidal wave down the slope.

“Freki!”

“Kang.”

At my call, Freki barked lightly, then stood at the front of the pack and let out a long howl.

“Awoooo—”

“Awoooooo—”

Then thirty Gray Wolves followed it in unison. It was an act like war horns before battle to raise morale.

“Let’s go—!!”

I grabbed Freki’s mane and shouted loudly.

Simultaneously, the Gray Wolf pack kicked off the earth.

Thud thud thud thud thud—

Red dust swirled and the earth trembled.

As expected, Freki led the charge.

I leaned my body forward at the fast speed and looked ahead.

The distance between us and them closed by the second.

“Huff, huff.”

Adrenaline exploded.

My heart beat faster and faster, my breathing grew rough.

Even though I’d fought this battle tens of thousands of times, this tension every moment made me feel alive.

Now we were close enough to see the Blood Wolves’ panting breath, their tongues flailing from exhaustion, even their dripping saliva.

‘Don’t get excited. Focus.’

I tucked the metal pole under my armpit and gripped it tightly with my hand.

Then the sharpened triangular sign pointed forward.

‘5… 4… 3… 2… inhale.’

Now.

Pabababababak—!

With a heavy impact, blood and flesh splattered.

Freki and I split the Blood Wolf pack in half.

[Defeated Blood Wolf…]

I heard the system voice, but it was quickly buried in the battlefield noise.

“Kang!”

“Kwaaaang—!”

“Kyaaang!”

Immediately, a chaotic battle began.

Gray Wolves and Blood Wolves bit and tore at each other in a bloody fight.

It was a scene from hell itself.

“Whew…”

I threw away the sign that broke from a single impact and opened the achievement shop.

There was a weapon I’d had in mind from the moment I planned to face the Blood Wolf leader.

[Moon Fang’s Karambit]

Rank: Advanced (Uncommon)

Price: 1000 coins

Information: A pair of karambits made from a bat Magic Beast’s fangs. The raw material itself has excellent performance, but it was made by an inexperienced craftsman and carries equivalent penalties.

· Strength +4, Agility +8, Stamina -9

· Skill, Tinnitus Max (D)

The penalty written in the item information was bothersome.

But it was fine.

‘Just don’t get hit and kill quickly.’

The solution was very simple.

Without a moment’s hesitation, I pressed the purchase button and attached them to my waist.

“…?”

Thud, thud.

At that moment, a dual existence appeared—too alien to this hellish situation while simultaneously melting into it all.

[Encountering a Special Entity on the verge of becoming Named.]

A massive Blood Wolf that sauntered through the blood-spraying battlefield like its own living room.

It was staring straight at Freki and me—no, precisely just at Freki—with odd eyes, one red and one blue.

Freki also bared its teeth, displaying strong hostility toward it. I calmed Freki and opened my mouth.

“So it’s you? The bastard who hit my kid.”

Then I came down to the ground and blocked between the two.

Them fighting goes against the plan.

I stroked Freki’s forehead and whispered.

“We promised, didn’t we?”

“Kang!”

“I’ll take that one, you go find your brother.”

“Whine…”

“Hey!”

When I flicked Freki’s nose with my finger, it snorted and took a step back.

“…”

Then, with a gaze dripping with reluctance, it took two steps back, three steps back, and soon turned around and began running alone.

Moving together would be too inefficient.

That’s why we’d divided roles before entering.

Each would do what they were good at.

‘Then I can comfortably leave the Quest to Freki.’

At that moment, sensing the killing intent from behind, I slashed with the karambit held in reverse grip.

“Grrrrr—”

The Blood Wolf leader leaped far back.

Its gaze was looking at Freki moving away.

It probably needed to catch Freki to seize the Gate and become the Gate Boss.

“But what to do? You’ll die here.”

“…”

Realizing it couldn’t pass without killing me, it slowly began circling to probe for an opening.

I also heightened my senses to all its movements.

‘End it quickly.’

We were at a disadvantage in terms of forces.

Moreover, because of this weapon’s penalty, my Stamina stat was 3.

A prolonged battle was impossible.

But I absolutely couldn’t show it.

“You’re more cowardly than I thought. What are you doing, not attacking?”

From its perspective, I wasn’t the one in a hurry—it was.

It had to chase after Freki before Freki rescued Geri.

So there was no need to make the first move.

Whirrrr—

The karambit on my index finger rotated back and forth, making a threatening noise.

When the karambit had rotated about three and a half times.

It kicked off the ground and charged like lightning.

“Kwaaaang—!”

Its bulk was twice Freki’s size, and its speed was even faster. But it wasn’t impossible to dodge.

So just as I was about to throw my body—

“…?!”

Crackle crackle—

Its blue eye glowed blue and both my feet froze to the ground.

But I didn’t panic.

“Yeah, I knew.”

Seo Gyeoul’s ability, Blue Eye.

Jang Seong-han’s ability, Red Eye.

I couldn’t not know.

[Using Skill ‘Blue Wolf’s Step Lv.1 (C)’.]

In a fleeting moment, I entered a ‘fluidized’ state and escaped its trap.

Simultaneously.

Shaaaak—

Like cold moonlight, the white karambit cleanly ripped open the side of the passing creature.

Blood poured like a waterfall from the wound.

“Kwang!”

“Shut up.”

It howled and tried to create distance, but I pressed it even harder.

When you gain momentum, you must press the advantage.

I’d experienced too much bad luck to relax thinking I’d already won at this level.

But it seemed to be someone who’d thrown its weight around somewhere too.

‘…Is this crazy bastard?’

Whoooosh—

Its red eye flashed, then flames ignited on the slashed side, completely cauterizing the wound.

Naturally, the bleeding stopped at the same time.

“Tough bastard.”

I spat curses like chewing and closed in on it.

Clang! Clang clang—!

When its claws and fangs clashed with the karambit, sparks flew in all directions.

‘This bastard is already on the verge of becoming Named.’

Looking at the metallization state of its bones, it seemed just before becoming a Gate Boss.

‘It would’ve been best to finish it while pressing earlier, but…’

It can’t be helped.

Isn’t life about things not going according to plan?

That’s why you make Plan B.

‘Use it… use it…’

I continued fighting while waiting for it to use its ability.

Huff—huff—

When my breath rose to my chin like that, the opportunity finally came.

Its red eye was about to brighten.

And when it used its ability, there was a very short gap.

I’d observed it twice just now, so I was certain.

‘…Now!’

Whirrrr—

I scraped up the ground with my karambit.

The red soil scattered across its face.

It reflexively closed its eyes and shook its head.

“Kang! Kang!”

Though it wasn’t speaking human language, I felt like I knew what it was saying.

“Where’s the dirty play when you die if you lose!”

This bought me time.

I brought the sharp blades of the karambits in both hands together.

Then I slowly began scraping them.

“…”

At first, nothing happened.

But shortly after.

“Kyaaang! Kyekyekyaaang—!”

The Blood Wolf leader began groaning and rolling on the ground.

‘Got it.’

It was the skill attached to the karambit, ‘Tinnitus (D)’.

[Tinnitus]

—Rank: D

—Level: Max

—Description: A skill that generates noise in the opponent’s hearing to cause ‘Status Abnormality—Confusion’ for 3 seconds. Casting time 5 seconds.

(However, effectiveness may vary depending on the opponent’s hearing ability.)

I slowly approached it.

Even though the skill’s 3-second duration had passed, it was still writhing in pain.

‘The fundamental reason Blood Wolves are strong and ferocious.’

It’s because they possess excellent five senses.

Easy to understand if you think they’re as nimble as their senses are sharp, but they get stressed just as easily.

‘And I exploited that.’

Of course, if Stats from leveling up hadn’t supported me, I wouldn’t have been able to even create an opportunity to use this method against such a quick and cunning creature.

‘Time to die.’

I pressed down on the struggling creature’s neck with my knee to hold it in place and stabbed its carotid artery.

Stab! Spurt—

When I twisted the karambit, a fountain of blood not only soaked my face and body but shot up toward the sky, and its struggles gradually subsided.

[Defeated Lv.20 Blood Wolf (Special Entity).]

[User’s Level has increased by 2.]

It was a pitiful death compared to all the fuss it made.

I lifted its severed head high and shouted.

“It’s over—!!”

When my shout echoed across the battlefield, all the Magic Beasts biting and tearing at each other looked at me.

Then only the Blood Wolves among them tucked their tails and began running away.

Looking around, the Gray Wolves had suffered considerable damage too.

But those who survived to the end raised their injured bodies and howled toward the sky.

“Awoooooo—”

“Awoooo—”

“Awoooooooo—”

It carried the meaning of celebration for victory and farewell to departed comrades.

Rustle rustle—

The corpses on the battlefield scattered like dust.

Then only Magic Stones remained, rolling on the ground.

I let the Gray Wolves absorb them.

I could have taken them if I wanted, but I deliberately didn’t.

It was bothersome, and it was also consideration for them.

If I took Freki and Geri, they would have to survive on their own strength.

‘This is enough for me anyway.’

I only took the leader’s Magic Stone.

They didn’t touch my spoils either.

[D+ Rank Magic Stone]

Rank: Advanced (Uncommon)

Information: A mineral storing mid-to-low level magic power.

‘Just selling this will cover living expenses for a few months. And I didn’t come just to get this little thing.’

Money? Of course it’s important.

But you can get that when you need it. There are plenty of holes money comes from.

I picked up one red orb and one blue orb lying on the ground.

‘So this is what made those ordinary creatures so strong?’

I checked the orbs’ item information.

[Sun’s Eye]

Rank: Epic

Information: As a remnant of a being that was once great but has now vanished, it faintly contains the power of the sun.

A nameless Blood Wolf obtained it by chance and has a history of using it as an Essence.

· Talent, Solar Limbs (S)

[Moon’s Eye]

Rank: Epic

Information: As a remnant of a being that was once great but has now vanished, it faintly contains the power of the moon.

A nameless Blood Wolf obtained it by chance and has a history of using it as an Essence.

· Talent, Lunar Limbs (S)

‘Wow… not even Skills, but actual Talents.’

Essences that could grant S-rank Talents.

Seeing the rewards, I felt pathetic for having hesitated about whether to enter the Gate.

‘To think those guys would have obtained this again in this life… it’s so infuriating I could die.’

Kang—!

At that moment, I saw two Gray Wolves running from far away with a familiar cry.

‘Ah, right on time.’

One was running with its magnificent mane streaming, and the Gray Wolf chasing behind was approaching with a tail more than twice as long as the others, fluttering like a victory flag.

They were clearly Freki and Geri.

The two who rushed over in an instant pounced on me and we all rolled on the ground together.

“Pant pant pant—”

“Pant pant—”

“Argh! Hey, hey! Don’t, you’re heavy!”

[Completed ‘Hidden Quest: Freki’s Request’.]

[As a reward, Gray Wolf ‘Geri’ is automatically Tamed.]

[As a reward, acquired ‘Skill Book, Nest (F)’.]

I barely pushed away the two who kept clinging to me and learned the Skill Book received as a reward.

‘I would have learned it later anyway since it’s a Tamer-exclusive skill, but there’s no harm in learning it early.’

You can understand the ‘Nest’ skill as a subspace that can only store Tamed Magic Beasts.

Right now it’s F-rank so it can only store one, but as the rank increases, that space will expand too.

‘That’s settled… then what about these Essences? Which of the two should I eat? No, can’t I eat both?’

As a child, I saw it in martial arts novels.

Overpowered protagonists who handled both yin and yang.

So I was holding the ‘Moon’s Eye’ in my left hand and the ‘Sun’s Eye’ in my right hand, pondering.

“…”

Gulp…

I feel an intense gaze from somewhere.

Turns out Freki and Geri were eyeing the Essences while drooling.

“…Want to eat them?”

Before my words even finished, they nodded so hard it looked like their necks would break.

“…”

I looked at the Essences once, at their faces once, alternating like this, then squeezed my eyes shut.

‘Right, I’m a Tamer anyway. There’s a limit to how strong I can get.’

It’s an unavoidable structure by the system.

Since I chose Tamer, I can only play a supporting role myself.

‘Not regretful, not regretful, not regretful…’

I continued self-hypnosis internally while throwing the ‘Moon’s Eye’ to Geri and the ‘Sun’s Eye’ to Freki.

They were the Essences each had been eyeing.

Gulp.

They swallowed the Essences in one bite, then excitedly licked my face.

“Pant pant pant—”

“Ah, stop!”

I pushed away both their faces and checked their information.

Since I fed them good stuff, there should be commensurate effects, shouldn’t there?

[Magic Beast Information]

Name: Freki

Classification: Undetermined

Rank: D (Digesting ‘Sun’s Eye’)

Level: 15

Loyalty: 100

Skills: Two Are One Lv.1 (S-), Wolf Pack Max (B)

[Latent Abilities: Riding (D), Elasticity (B), ??? (?)]

[Magic Beast Information]

Name: Geri

Classification: Undetermined

Rank: D (Digesting ‘Moon’s Eye’)

Level: 15

Loyalty: 100

Skills: Two Are One Lv.1 (S-), Wolf Pack Max (B)

[Latent Abilities: Riding (D), Elasticity (B), ??? (?)]

“Oh?! You guys did get a bit stronger, huh?”

“Kang—!”

“Kang!”

The most noticeable thing was their appearance changed.

Freki’s mane turned red.

Geri’s long tail turned blue.

Moreover, their Level increased by 5, and one latent ability automatically awakened.

‘Elasticity? Don’t tell me… it’s not like a rubber-rubber ability user, right? That would be too horrifying…’

I’d know later when I see them use it.

More importantly than that.

‘The Conditional Growth Type restriction was lifted… feeding them Essences was the right answer.’

Freki, who was already E-rank, grew to D-rank.

Seeing the system message saying they’re still digesting the Essences, there’s room for even more growth.

“Hey! These brats! I’ve found treasures, found them!”

“Kyekyekyaaang—”

I put Geri and Freki’s faces under my arms and put them in headlocks.

I can’t believe how adorable these guys look.

Then, the ending message appeared.

[Gate has lost all Boss candidates.]

[Gate is considered cleared.]

[In 10 seconds, user will be transported.]

“Kids, this is the last. Everyone say goodbye.”

At my words, Freki and Geri rubbed faces with the surviving Gray Wolf pack for a final farewell.

I watched them and fell into thought.

‘Outside the Gate, the government and guilds would have set up camp waiting, right? Eagerly anticipating ‘when the hell will he die’?’

But that didn’t happen, and I cleared it.

I’m seriously curious what their expressions will be like now.

“Shall we make our entrance then?”

Like that, 10 seconds passed and my vision turned white.