Against the Clock: The Team Leader’s Pursuit of Glory

War was inevitable, but battles could occur by chance. This was true even for the movement of the goblins.

The Goblin Matriarch had long been aware of the presence of the Iron Will guild, who had set up their base camp on the south side of the Sanjeong Lake.

As the size of the tribe increased, she had predicted that they would inevitably clash with the humans.

With the onset of war, she had made plans for when and how to counterattack. However, there were clear limits to a monster's patience.

Frustration exploded within her at the humans who continued to scratch at her nerves by observing them without attacking. Eventually, she decided to mobilize the monsters under her command and carry out a preliminary skirmish.

At first, the results were quite favorable. They had confirmed that the humans dealing with the Grey Squirrels were not as strong as they thought.

However--

The human who faced off against the Watusi Snake was different.

The sight of her sent chills down her spine as if she was looking at an ogre, not a human. Could that creature even be called human? A monster that caused dozens of Watusi Snakes to tremble in fear? Even an ogre would have difficulty doing that.

The Matriarch realized that she couldn't defeat this monster unless she perfectly trapped it.

"To the tribe's nest. Deceive them."

Deciding that the surefire strategy was to lure the ogre-like human into the tribe and trap her, the Matriarch began to contemplate how to bring her in.

Just then, a good bait rolled in. Humans were playing apart from their territory for some reason. Their numbers were not small. She would capture these humans and use them as bait.

New news arrived shortly after the Matriarch sent out a goblin squad with her plan. The humans had audaciously committed the atrocity of killing the tribe's young one.

The Matriarch was furious. Every goblin was her child. The young ones were especially cherished. The future of the Goblin tribe. That future was supposed to make her stronger.

The Matriarch took this as a challenge to herself and issued an order.

"Sacrifice the humans. Revenge with blood."

The goblin elite soldiers left the tribe.

For an act of bloody revenge.

The Lee Dong-soo gang was a party composed of freelance Hunters. They were a regular party formed by those who had been freelancing for several years and worked well together.

While a few members were occasionally added as needed, the seven who gathered today usually moved as the main members.

"Aish, this place has a lot of mobs and the level is just right, but carrying the loot is a pain. Ah, it's so annoying."

"The taxes they take are high too. It feels like I'm paying to hunt."

The reason why the North Pocheon hunting ground was not popular, as the party members mentioned, was clear.

They couldn't make much money.

Despite the variety and number of monsters, the biggest reason they couldn't make money was the burden of carrying the loot.

"If we could at least freely use a car, it'd be one thing, but carrying the harvest with backpacks and pole carriers... Tsk! Boss, that's what I'm saying! I told you we should've gone for that DMZ Gate gig."

Due to the high concentration of mana in the northern region of North Pocheon, a designated special activities zone, vehicles had to be equipped with 'Engine Protection Mana Cartridges' to operate.

Even in the central region, where the mana dispersed in the atmosphere was less dense, vehicles could not be run for long without a 'Mana Moisture Prevention Cover' on the hood.

All of this was a matter of cost, a matter of efficiency. It was an excessive waste of money for freelancers.

To catch monsters that could earn them money without spending it, Hunters had no choice but to roam only in the southern part of North Pocheon or park their cars and move on foot.

Ultimately, it was something they had to complete with their bodies.  Dragging a rear car around somewhat solved the burden of luggage, but this solution only worked in flat areas.

Since most profitable creatures tended to be found in steep mountainous regions, even rear cars had their limits.

"Would things get better when Iron Will steps in?"

"What's going to improve?"

"They're planning to make it their base of operations, or so the rumors say. Apparently, they're willing to buy monster by-products and gathered materials at prices lower than the current Special Activities Zone tax rate. If they buy at a good price, we should be thankful."

"Is having a base some kind of master key?"

"Though the tax-related benefits from other bases might be negligible, it's different in Special Activities Zones."

"Huh, you're right when I think about it."

The party member, who had nodded in agreement, suddenly collapsed as if the bones in his neck had been removed.

Lee Dong-soo spotted the arrow embedded in the party member's neck faster than the victim realized what had happened.

"Ambush!"

At his shout, the party members scattered, each finding cover behind trees and rocks.

Lee Dong-soo lay flat on the ground, clutching the back of his comrade's head as the man gasped for breath. He took out a low-grade potion vial from his waist, trying to use it, but a volley of arrows flew their way without missing a beat.

"Urgh..."

"Gak...!"

The critically injured party member left defenseless, was unable to dodge the arrows and went lifeless.

Attempting to save him, Lee Dong-soo even took an arrow to the shoulder. When the party member died, he used the comrade's body as a shield.

It was a cruel choice, but it was the best decision for survival. There was no cause for blame in the hunting field for using a corpse in such a way, especially after the breath of life had already left it.

The arrows relentlessly targeted the party members.

Lee Dong-soo shouted towards his companions who could not even stick their heads out from behind their cover.

"Dammit! How many enemies?"

"Multiple, about 50 to 60 meters ahead!"

"How many is multiple?!"

"Roughly over twenty!"

The supporter who used a detection skill responded. Though the skill's accuracy and range were compromised due to the user's low proficiency, it was still a valuable asset as it provided basic information.

Lee Dong-soo looked left and right. He was looking for a direction to retreat.

Noticing a party member peering ahead through a gap in the rocks, he asked, "Can you see the enemy from there?"

"They're hiding in the bush, I can't tell what they are. Probably humanoid monsters."

"Who wouldn't know that? If they're shooting arrows, of course, they're humanoid. What next, are they dragons?"

Frustrated with his party members, Lee Dong-soo contemplated abandoning them and running away. As the highest-ranking member in the group, he could use his team as bait to escape.

'If there are twenty mobs with bows, shouldn't I be able to run away alone? ...Damn, if any of them make it out safely, I'll be the one with a tarnished reputation. If the rumor spreads, my freelancing days are over.'

Freelancers cared most about their reputation. If one was tagged as a scoundrel, no party would take them in.

The only solo hunting possible was joining in on the quests issued by the Guild App, which wasn't particularly profitable. At best, it would attract the attention of a guild for a potential scout.

So, freelancers couldn't just run away unless the situation justified it in everyone's eyes.

Of course, many Hunters would misjudge the situation and die as a result.

Thanks to this, a Hunter who could accurately discern when to fight and when to run was highly respected among freelancers.

'But when will this arrow attack end? I can't move like this...'

Suddenly, Lee Dong-soo felt a chill run through his body. An arrow attack that doesn't advance but only suppresses.

If their goal was to firmly hold them in place so they couldn't escape!

"Hey! Check the rear!"

The supporter couldn't carry out Lee Dong-soo's order to scan the area. Choking, he clung to the handle of the dagger embedded in his heart.

Upon seeing this, Lee Dong-soo shouted a warning.

"It's a Goblin Assassin!"

A goblin assassin, a warrior class specializing in assassination. It was an evolution he had only read about in textbooks.

"F*ck!"

Lee Dong-soo hoisted the corpse he'd been using as a shield.

Thunk, thunk!

The sound of arrows hitting the body was distinctly audible.

In a moment, the body had turned into a porcupine. It was exactly the time Lee Dong-soo had wanted, the brief respite allowed him to move to where the supporter had died and swing his sword.

"Die, you little runt!"

The Goblin Assassin, busy extracting its dagger from the supporter's chest, couldn't avoid Lee Dong-soo's sword. Its head split open and fell to the ground.

Having eliminated the assassin, Lee Dong-soo turned around and issued an order.

"Everyone, retreat! If we stay here, we'll all die..."

His words echoed emptily. Lee Dong-soo was unable to finish his sentence.

There were no party members left to receive his orders.

Goblin Assassins were slowly rising from the shadows where the party members had taken cover.

"Damn, I should have just taken a government quest."

Lee Dong-soo's curse became his last words.

"Mark the confirmed goblins." At Kang Mu-hyuk's command, Gong Du-ri's hand moved swiftly.

Various shapes marked with numbers appeared on the large monitor. Circles represented Soldier-class, and squares represented Warrior-class.

And triangles were...

'A General-class Goblin outside the village?'

And there were two of them being displayed. Scouting wouldn't be 100% successful, so there could be more hiding somewhere.

The reason for this assumption was that the number of confirmed goblins exceeded 300.

The typical General Goblin moved with a force of around a hundred goblins. The undetected ones were undoubtedly somewhere in the field.

"Have the Hobgoblins been found?" he inquired.

"No reports yet."

"Commander, additional information has just come in. I will display it on the screen."

The color of some squares etched on the screen changed with the operation report, exchanging contact with each reconnaissance group.

"Green, red?"

"Assassins and Riders."

Just then, Ju Se-ah, who had entered the command room, identified the shapes and approached. Since it was a predetermined shape indication, she recognized it at a glance.

"Emptying the tribal quarters and mobilizing as many as Warrior-class is unexpected. It appears the Goblin tribe is stronger than we anticipated."

"Should I act separately and proceed to divide and conquer?"

"It doesn't matter if you're the Guild Master, without guild members' help, you can't catch all the goblins running in every direction. It would only drain your strength and accomplish nothing substantial. It would be better to form an attack force. Are the members ready?"

"They are ready. Whether they can fight as prepared, that's another matter."

A stern expression uncharacteristic of Ju Se-ah caught his eye. She looked somewhat tense.

She was a veteran who had countless experiences with Red Gates. She had even ventured into a Black Gate as a Hunter.

Despite her evolution, it was unlikely that she was frightened of mere goblins.

'A typical problem of a one-man guild is apparent. The members are holding her back. And despite being called a witch, she's not toxic. I can't tell whether having such a guild master for the first time is a good thing or not.'

Kang Mu-hyuk felt he had caught a glimpse of Ju Se-ah's essence.

She was someone who could ruthlessly tear apart monsters and villains but couldn't bear to see people around her getting hurt.

In many ways, she seemed to be more of a hero than a witch, that kind of a Hunter. This was also the conclusion he had drawn after secretly investigating her ten-year track record in Slayer.

Perhaps the reason for her departure from the Slayer Guild was linked to Ju Se-ah's own beliefs.

"But why would they suddenly move their main force? This is completely different from what you predicted, Guild Leader."

Kang Mu-hyuk believed that the Goblin Matriarch must have seen Ju Se-ah's full potential when she hunted the Watusi Snake.

As seen in the Amazon case, it was known that the Matriarch had a connection with the monsters she controlled with her psychic abilities. She could immediately verify what the controlled monster saw and heard.

"Yes. I thought that since the Matriarch saw the Guild Master, she would certainly avoid a direct fight and try to draw us into a trap. The Brazilian Guild was tricked in the same way. However, this is a completely different pattern. We still haven't determined whether this is a trap or another operation. For now, we need to strengthen our defense and gather more information. Depending on the situation, we might even consider a strategic retreat."

Kang Mu-hyuk proceeded cautiously. Since he wasn't a Hunter, he had to proceed cautiously in such unforeseen situations.

However, Ju Se-ah had different thoughts.

On the field, in the crossfire, Hunters who had experienced battle possessed a unique sense of smell known only to them.

Some called it intuition, while others labeled it instinct. Regardless of how one defined this sense, Ju Se-ah felt that now was the time to act.

"How about the east entrance of Sanjeong Lake?"

"You mean Route 78? Why all of a sudden..."

"Regardless of what's happening, the goblins are currently gathering in the west. They're alert to our guild in the south. But what about the east?"

Kang Mu-hyuk realized what Ju Se-ah intended to say.

"You mean a surprise attack?"

"I've never seen a Goblin Matriarch myself, but most creatures that use large-scale mental magic are often lacking in direct combat ability, right?"

"Yes, aside from psychic magic, it's a rather unremarkable creature. But it's particularly adept at leading the tribe."

"Aren't we supposed to just take down the Matriarch in this raid? Once the Matriarch is gone, it'll be just like any other goblin extermination, won't it?"

A spark of inspiration flashed through her mind. Kang Mu-hyuk looked at the monitor displaying Sanjeong Lake.

'Considering the area around the lake and the environment, there can't be more than a thousand, even if we overestimate. Taking the food supply into account, perhaps half of that? It would still be a large-scale operation. However, it's small for a tribe that managed to produce a Matriarch. But, that doesn't mean a tribe with at least two Goblin Generals would be weak.'

It was enough to send out two Goblin Generals.

The fact that the Matriarch could deploy such power outward implied the presence of goblins of even higher rank within.

Since the Matriarch lacked combat prowess, her safety would be paramount. Assuming that there was a clear limit to gathering food, they couldn't possibly increase their numbers haphazardly.

"I think this goblin tribe is focusing more on evolution than on size. They may even have fewer goblins than the size of the confirmed tribe. Of course, I can't conclude this for certain."

Kang Mu-hyuk suspected that the Goblin Matriarch might be concealing the true size of the tribe.

Could they have been deceived into thinking the tribe was larger due to the overwhelming number of goblin scouts and the massive tribe?

The Matriarch was an entity with substantial intelligence.

"If the number of goblins is small, even if they're elite, we could penetrate their defenses with a small elite force of our own and cut off the Matriarch's head," Ju Se-ah stated definitively.

She made no further argument, leaving the final decision to Kang Mu-hyuk.

After a moment of contemplation, Kang Mu-hyuk ran his hands through his hair and sighed.

"Phew! Taking this approach is not my style, Guild Master."

"I admit it. It's my style. Just this time." As Kang Mu-hyuk spoke in a half-permissive tone, a spark of excitement lit up in Ju Se-ah.

Her first raid as a Guild Master. She had hunted a few powerful monsters before, like a part-time job, but this was her first time leading as a guild, not an individual.

The pounding of her heart filled her ears, a testament to her anticipation.

"I'll add a bit of spice to that plan," he said.

"Spice?"

"There's something I need to prepare in advance. Merely succeeding in the hunt isn't enough."

At the hint of a smile playing on Kang Mu-hyuk's lips, Ju Se-ah felt an inexplicable sense of foreboding.

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