After Returning, My Abilities are Infinite

Episode 71. Was this something we could use? (2)

“Ugh….”

“Are you okay? Do you want some more?”

“No, thanks. If I drink any more water, my stomach will burst.”

I emptied the bottled water bottle that Yoo Ji-yeon brought for me in one gulp. After pouring in six bottles of cold water in under five minutes, I felt somewhat better. My pounding heart had calmed down quite a bit. Whew, I thought I was going to die.

[Looks like you won’t be able to use it frequently.]

The Traveler murmured as he saw me coughing. As he said, it wasn’t a simple skill I could use with a smile.

‘Didn’t it say that the Great Heart transformed parts of my body?’

It felt like my throat was burning. As if the drinking water I thought would be cold turned out to be boiling hot. The painful feeling still hadn’t completely gone away. Which part of me was transformed? A hole almost burned open in my throat, and I could have ended up breathing more easily thanks to it.

[Name: Dragon Breath]

[*Borrows the breath of a dragon to blast fire.]

[*The symbolic power of a fantastic creature that can burn anything to ash.]

[*Due to the effect of the ‘Great Heart’, a part of your inner organ has been transformed.]

[*Your physical endurance is still significantly weaker than the Dragon species]

[*Damage may occur if used multiple times in a short period.]

Still, the skill itself was appealing. It’s not like it consumed mana, and it was powerful enough to overwhelm most other kinds of magic.

But the problem was that the enormous power damaged my throat as well. Damn it.

[It seems like the exact opposite of your battle style, but it suits you.]

“You think it suits me?”

[Yes. The fact that it damages you as well doesn’t fit you, but it’s just the technique for you since you focus on creating unpredictable could imagine that a dragon’s breath will pour out from a human’s throat?]

“Are you kidding me, or are you serious?”

[Both. Hahahaha!]

I felt blood rush to my head as I listened to the Traveler. Oh, he was good at irritating people.

“…If I control the output and focus my mana on strengthening my body beforehand, I think I can use it.”

[Yes, I’m sure you can use it easily then.]

Touching my throat, I thought of ways to use Dragon Breath. It definitely wasn’t an impractical skill.

After all, the floor of the training room that remained intact after multiple sword blows had melted down with one breath. Even Han Yeon-soo, who heard Yoo Ji-yeon panic and came over, looked surprised at the sight and asked how I did it.

“Whew, whew….”

y hand on my chest and slowly breathed deeply. At first, I seriously considered calling Zhang Wei, but the burn quickly healed after I drank several bottles of cold water. I didn’t even need any medicine.

I laughed in disbelief. My body was no longer like an ordinary human being’s. Moments like these made me realize I was no longer an Analyst but a superhuman who was strong even among hunters. In the past, I would have been rolling on the floor, making a fuss.

“Are you alright now? You won’t be spitting fire again, will you?”

“Yeah, I won’t. Oh, I don’t know. Maybe if I cough again…….”

“What?”

“Haha, I’m kidding. Why are you so surprised?”

I teased Yoo Ji-yeon, who looked very worried about me. She hit me, and I slowly stood up. I felt like eating some ice cream and resting, but…….

“Ajusshi, there’s an incident occurring nearby.”

Unfortunately, hunting wasn’t a laid-back occupation with fixed breaks.

“Grab your gear.”

At my order, everyone promptly jumped into action.

* * *

“Bad luck. The Rift occurred near the main street, causing a lot of casualties.”

“Were the outpouring monsters high-grade ones? Doesn’t this area have a lot of hunters standing?”

“The casualties weren’t caused by monsters. A lot of people were swallowed up by the Rift.”

As soon as I arrived, an employee of the Association handed me the data. According to his short briefing, not many people were attacked by monsters. However, because the Rift was so huge, many people were directly sucked in.

“Since you arrived so fast, you might be able to rescue them if you go in now. And the hunter team that was stationed over here is also working hard.”

“Okay. We’ll enter the Rift at once.”

It was an urgent situation. The Association’s staff members were flustered, trying to evacuate people. But the agitated people ignoring the guidelines and trying to get their way were slowing them down.

This always happened when a Rift appeared near a main street. Although people of this generation were used to disasters, they couldn’t help but panic in the face of death.

“Excuse me. We have a team entering the Rift!”

The Association staff shouted, but the confused, huddling crowd showed no signs of moving. Looking at them, I snapped my finger.

“Hyun-woo, open the way.”

At the same time, the crowd of people floated into the air. Some cried or screamed like children due to the rather violent method.

But we ignored them and headed toward the Rift, passing by the wide-open road in the center. Hyun-woo’s telekinesis set down the floundering people in a safe area. And I walked silently, dismissing the screams as background music.

“If you keep doing this, people will hate you. We could just slowly pass through.”

“Getting hated is better than losing one or two more people.”

ly to Han Yeon-soo’s murmuring words. I hated the cries of bereaved families more than people smearing my name. I was used to being cursed at, but I could never get used to parents and children weeping from losing their families.

[‘Access to Information’ is activated.]

I felt a sticky sensation as my body was sucked into the huge Rift. The chaotic city before me turned into a rough and rocky mountain range.

[Name: ‘Home of Walking Rocks’]

It wasn’t a highly dangerous Rift. Instead, it was a troublesome one because of its vast interior and because the monsters inside were golems, which took a lot of time to wipe out.

“What about Mr. Zhang Wei?”

“He’s on his way. He said it’d take about 10 minutes.”

“Okay.”

There was no time to have Hyun-woo bring Zhang Wei here. It took about three minutes just to pinpoint the coordinates and get him. Since there weren’t any major injuries, it was better if Hyun-woo hunted here for three more minutes.

“Help!”

Desperate voices rang out everywhere. Yoo Ji-yeon frowned. It was her first official hunt, and she probably wasn’t used to the chaotic atmosphere.

“I’ll start the briefing.”

Of course, there was no time to take care of her. No one could teach someone how to adjust. You had to move about and experience it yourself.

“We can easily get rid of Golems individually. Unless they are large ones, I think it will take about two to three minutes per golem. Han Yeon-soo, concentrate on rescuing people by deploying as many troops as you can. And Sung Hyun-woo and Yoo Ji-yeon, focus on the monsters that try to interrupt the rescue. Your purpose is not to wipe out the monsters but to save as many people as possible.”

“Okay. What about you, Mr. Si-woo?”

“Me?”

Whirrrr.

Mirages rose from my wrist and began to hover around me, shining brilliantly.

going to smash those things to pieces.”

I wasn’t specialized in rescue in the first place.

“Every single one of them.”

I was optimized for killing monsters.

After seeing the team getting in formation, I rushed towards the raging golems. Simultaneously, one of the shining Mirages transformed into a large hammer and came to my hand.

“Krrrraaaa.”

A stone giant was walking up a rocky mountain as if it was taking a stroll in its front yard. I kept my eyes on it as I kicked the wall to jump higher.

I flew up to its head in an instant.

The giant’s empty eyes recognized me. It slowly lifted its head as if it had seen a tasty prey. And then.

I replied, stifling the burning sensation in my mouth. I turned and ran without hesitating, and soon after, I could find the other hunter they were talking about.

[Hmm.]

Five golems were surrounding the place. The sound of rock hitting steel resonated loudly. Although his physical strength was weak, his skilled shield technique was effectively deflecting the attacks and protecting the civilians.

I could hear children crying and painful groans. The shield was cracked and broken. Half of the shield was gone.

[Was there no need for you to learn? If it is fate, you are bound to meet either way. I suppose the last two years’ efforts were in vain.]

Although the situation was urgent, the Traveler kept saying things I couldn’t understand.

Seeing the hunter protecting people with all his might in the rising cloud of dust, I grabbed a Mirage and ran to rescue them.

“Stop. Run… away. You can escape alone.”

“Don’t be stupid! Go, go hide over there.”

“Sniff… Waahhh…”

I could hear a small conversation through the intense noise. But one of the voices sounded familiar. It felt like I was hearing the voice of an old friend after a long time.

Swooosh!

A golem swung its arm, and the dust clouds slowly scattered. As I neared them, I could clearly see the struggling lone hunter.

My fingers trembled. My body was responding to the hunter’s actions and shield movements. To be exact, something within my body was responding.

[Or maybe you were guided by Ki because of your two years of training. I don’t know much about fate, hahaha.]

The shield lifts and then slides down. Along with the dance-like movement, I could see the man’s face.

I unconsciously stopped in my tracks.

My legs almost buckled beneath me.

“I said, hide……!”

His face was covered in dust, but it was familiar. The muscular body that he must have trained every single day. The shield that was way equipment hanging on him.

Although he was much younger than what I remembered, I was sure of it.

-He wasn’t a hunter that went on scheduled raids. I don’t know if you’ll understand from my explanation. He stayed in the city and rescued people from Rifts, and dealt with the aftermath.

An upright man. The hero that humankind loved the most; who never looked back and never backed away from danger. And the hunter I trusted and relied on the most.

-I still dream of the children that died because I was too weak. If I had met you earlier, I could have saved everyone.

The Martial God.

Kim Seung-hyun was standing there.

[One thing is for sure. Your meeting with him was destined to happen.]