Chapter 106 Chapter 25.8 - Joint Dungeon
"Urghk…..My head….."
Irina opened her eyes, and immediately, a wave of pain assaulted her. It felt as though her head was pounding, and her body ached all over.
"Ughk!"
She tried to move, but the effort was excruciating. Her limbs felt heavy like they were encased in lead.
Gradually, her surroundings came into focus—she was lying in the snow, the cold seeping through her clothes.
"Oh, right… the Yeti," she mumbled, memories of the battle flooding back.
"Yeah, the Yeti…."
Just at that exact moment, she heard someone's voice coming from the sides. It was the annoying voice of the guy she didn't want to associate with.
"What?" She mumbled with surprise as she turned her head to the side, looking at where the voice came from.
"What, what?"
It was the same annoying guy. His cold purple eyes were looking down at her from the rock he was simply sitting on.
"W-what, urgh...are you doing here?"
Despite the pain, she forced herself to sit up, assessing her injuries.
Bruises and cuts adorned her arms and legs, souvenirs of the fierce attack. Her clothes were torn in places, and she could see a few spots where blood had seeped through.
That surprise attack and her crash probably injured her both internally and on the surface.
"Can't you see?" he replied, gesturing around them. Countless wolves were lying on the ground, each with arrows lodged in them.
Irina's eyes widened with realization. "You did this?"
He didn't answer, but his cold and confident demeanor spoke volumes. It was Astron, the same guy she had been trying to avoid, the one she thought was a bastard.
In her current state of pain and confusion, she couldn't shake off the unease that gripped her whenever she was near this man. The rumors and the stories she had just read were still fresh in her mind.
BOOM!
At that exact second, she felt the tremors underneath the ground, followed by the sound of explosions.
"The Yeti!" She shouted as she realized the monster had yet to die. If the monster didn't die, that meant Julia was also in danger.
"Krugh-"
She tried to stand, but the pain was overwhelming.
"Why are you not helping them?"
She asked as she looked at the bastard sitting on the rocks leisurely.
"Even if I go there, I can't do anything." However, he simply shrugged in response.
'Ah….He is injured….'
Now that Irina looked into his clothes closely, she saw the coat he was wearing had torn marks all over. His pants, shirt, and everything was tattered, and from some of the wounds, blood was dripping.
Also, she could see his mana was almost exhausted. Being sensitive to the mana from birth, she could feel the amount of mana lingering around.
It was clear that a very dangerous fight had just occurred in this place.
"Also, someone needs to take care of these frenzied monsters."
"Frenzied monsters?"
"I thought you had noticed it earlier." His words were sarcastic as if he was mocking her. But his expression never changed, even for a second.
However, when she looked at it back, the Yeti should have died after the attack she had done. There was no way a monster of rank four could withstand one of her strongest attacks. It was mathematically impossible.
"So, that's why?"
She could also see why that Snow Squirrel didn't die at that time.
"It took you long enough."
"..." She had no words to say anymore as she realized she was in no position to reprimand him. In fact, what he was doing was one of the most crucial things.
He understood that he didn't have enough strength to confront the boss monster. Even the arrow he had shot at the Lesser Magma Wyrm wouldn't be strong enough to damage the Yeti's skin.
So, instead of wasting his time trying to show off, he did what was best. Covering the real part of the group from the sides.
Not everyone in the academy could simply push their pride and stay on the backlines while letting others gain all the credit.
'How come such a thorough guy did such a thing?'
At that moment, she asked herself. Considering the way he was thoughtful, it didn't make sense that he was someone who would force himself on others. Such people would seek attention all the time.
However, this wasn't the time to think about such matters anymore. The more she felt the tremors coming from the boss' side, the more her worries got stronger.
"Urgh!"
She stood up, ignoring the pain in her ribs.
"Where are you going?" He asked, his gaze looking at where her hands were clenching.
"I will help them."
"Do you think you will offer anything with that condition?"
She was annoyed at the fact that this bastard was looking at him with such eyes like he was saying, 'Are you stupid.'
"…..It is better than sitting on the back…."
"….Yeah, this is something you would say."
She got chills when she heard him say that. As she tried to leave, she stumbled and almost fell.
It was clear she wasn't in a condition to rush into another battle. However, that determination in her eyes couldn't be overlooked. Julia was there, and from the way she saw that, the Yeti was pushing her back.
She might even be in a critical condition right now.
SWOOSH!
"Take this."
Just at that moment, a vial flew towards her face.
THUD!
She grabbed the vial in the air and looked at its contents.
'A mid-rank potion? How did he find such a thing?'
She was well aware of the fact that Astron was an orphan. And mid-rank potions were quite rare, as well as they were expensive. Therefore, her suspicions soared when she saw the vial in her hand.
"I won't take something you got with dirty money." She frowned and threw the potion back.
"What are you talking about?"
"Tch….Don't play dumb."
As she frowned, he finally understood what she meant.
"…..You really are stupid."
"Ha! What are you saying!"
"Does your pride have more importance to you than your friend?"
"….."
"Whether I took this potion with dirty money or not, does it matter? In the situation you are in, do you really have any choice?"
"….Still….."
"That's why you are naive…. Listen, little princess… The world we live in is not always just and fair…" Astron's voice was cold, his eyes reflecting a harsh reality. There was a clear hatred in his voice as if he was speaking to someone different.
"Sometimes, the path that appears evil or questionable is the only choice. Survival isn't about adhering to moral standards; it's about doing what you must to live another day. Not everyone in this world has the privilege of luxury and righteousness."
His eyes looked slightly sorrowful for a second, but then they returned to normal immediately.
She could feel his words were genuine, and this made it even weirder. Just what kind of life did this bastard live all this time to speak with such clear hatred?
Just what happened in the past.
At that moment, he threw the potion once again.
SWOOSH!
"Take it and help Julia. Only you can deal with that monster right now."
THUD!
As she grabbed the potion once again, she looked at the transparent liquid in the veil.
"...I will pay this one back."
She said, trying to cling to the last bit of her pride.
"It was never meant to be free. I will get my payment….But, it won't be interest-free."
"Tch."
GULP!
She gulped the potion, with her heart filled with annoyance. It was her own fault that she didn't bring any potions with her since she thought she wouldn't need them.
And now she had to bow her head to this bastard and swallow what she wanted to say.
'Next time, I won't ever make such a mistake.'
She swore to herself as she felt the strength returning to her body. Her mana had already been filled to the maximum, and now that her injuries were healed, there was nothing that was holding her back any longer.
BOOM!
With a strong force, she blasted herself and rushed to where the monster was standing.
And this was what marked the end of the fight for the frenzied Yeti. From the moment Irina jumped to the fight, its fate was sealed.
******
After Irina's arrival, the fight took a drastic turn.
The Yeti was a monster that was resilient against ice psions and the cold; however, at the same time, that meant it was weak against fire.
Thanks to that, the fight ended in just a matter of minutes, and now the students were being evacuated by the instructors.
"Everyone follow me. This dungeon will be closed for a while."
Since the dungeon wasn't functioning just as it was supposed to, naturally, it was going to be under surveillance for a while. After the arrival of instructors, the frenzied monsters were subdued immediately, and the students were taken to the infirmary to check up.
"Sylvie, are you okay?" Mason asked, 'concern' in his eyes as he approached her after the intense battle with the Yeti.
He had made sure to cover her whenever danger approached during the fight, and Sylvie was already considering him a reliable ally.
Sylvie nodded, managing a small smile despite her lingering fear. "Yes, thanks to you and everyone else. You were all amazing in battle."
Mason grinned, a little sheepish. "Well, we make a good team, right?"
She nodded again, feeling a sense of camaraderie with her fellow teammates.
The bond they had forged in battle was something she hadn't expected when she first entered the dungeon.
Julia walked over, her face showing a mix of relief and exhaustion. "We did it. Good job, team. Now, let's head back and get some rest." Her clothes were tattered, and the wounds on her were the most severe.
However, thanks to the immediate treatment from the academy personnel, all of her wounds were covered. Even though they were aching from time to time, she was healing rapidly.
"Though, I doubt we would survive if not for you." Julia turned her head to the fiery orange-haired girl, whose attention was elsewhere.
"Yeah…If not for Miss Irina, things would be more severe." Barry said with gratitude. Their team was in a rough position thanks to the avalanche at that time, but with Irina's strength, they were quite literally saved.
"It was nothing much." She simply mumbled while still looking at someone. Following her gaze, Julia saw where it was headed.
A black-haired boy was speaking with the yellow-haired instructor. No, rather than speaking, it was more like a one-sided questioning.
"What are they talking about?" She asked.
"Professor Eleanor called him the moment she entered."
"It was this urgent?"
"I don't know. But from the looks of it, she is quite mad."
Everyone knew Professor Eleanor would get angry whenever this guy mentioned, so they didn't mind. However, that wasn't the case for those from different classes.
"I guess it is about those rumors," Mason said as he also looked into the two.
"Maybe."
"What rumors?" Sylvie asked. She didn't have the habit of checking social media accounts, so she had no idea about what was happening in those forums.
"You don't know?" Mason spoke, feigning surprise. He saw this as an opportunity to further his own agenda, and unfortunately, it involved spreading false rumors about Astron.
"Well," he continued, leaning in closer as if to share a secret, "there have been all sorts of rumors circulating about him. Some say he's a criminal, involved in all kinds of nefarious activities, like theft, assault, and worse."
However the response he got was something he was not expecting. Instead of believing him, Sylvie rather frowned. "No, these can't be true. Astron is not such a person."
She defended him with a serious face. In fact, for her, there wasn't even a tiny bit of a possibility that Astron was a bad guy.
Barry chimed in, adding fuel to the fire. "You can't always judge someone by what you see. People can hide their true selves well."
However, one person simply finished the discussion.
Julia looked at the group her gaze frowning. "If you can't judge someone by what you see, then how come you can judge them by what you have heard?" His eyes exceptionally bore through Barry.
"I-I….."
"We, as Hunters, shouldn't jump to conclusions without any concrete evidence. Rumors can be incredibly damaging."
"You are right." In the end, in front of the heir of the Middleton family, Barry simply shut his mouth without saying anything.
But Mason was relentless in his storytelling, painting an even darker picture. "Oh, it's not just that. The article says he's a master manipulator, a womanizer, and heavily involved in drug abuse. The authorities have been looking into him for a while."
However, even then, Sylvie simply shook her head. "I don't believe none of those."
She had been watching him from the start, and if he was a criminal, she would see from his emotions. If he was a womanizer, she would know the lust. If he was a drug addict, she would see it as the form of an 'addiction.'
However, she never saw such emotions inside him, aside from anger, sorrow, and hatred. Therefore, she didn't believe Astron was a criminal since her trust in her skill was top-notch.
Hearing Irina's and Julia's refusal, the orange-haired girl shook her head and didn't say anything more as the group advanced in the academy….
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