Chapter 231: Chapter 231

Up until this point, Choi Yeonseung had lived without using his power as a constellation that much. Very few people knew about Choi Yeonseung’s identity, and there was no need for him to issue orders as a constellation. But now that he did just that, honestly…

It was fun.

‘Is this what power feels like?’

Not even the most powerful A-grade hunters could disregard the constellations of the Abyss.

-... Successor, don’t get excited about weird things.

[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ also wants you to stop!]

The constellations seemed worried by Choi Yeonseung’s attitude, so they tried to step in and stop him. Once one became drunk on power, there was no going back.

-Don’t worry. I haven’t lost my mind or anything.

Huang Guangao told him, “I’ll work hard.”

“Yes, work hard. The constellation will be watching you.”

Huang Guangao choked. They were both A-grade hunters, but there was nothing he could do about the constellation. Sometimes, a constellation would favor a C-grade hunter who had nothing.

‘Just watch, you jerk. I will gain achievements and rise above you.’

Huang Guangao made up his mind. He would definitely stand out by accomplishing a lot and would eventually climb up the ranks. Choi Yeonseung might’ve been favored by the constellation, but Huang Guangao was an A-grade hunter who had never lost in a competition like this.

“What are you two talking about?” Kwon Yeongseung asked curiously. What could Choi Yeonseung have had to say to this Chinese A-grade hunter?

“He’s thanking me for saving him.”

“Huh?! Do Chinese hunters know how to express gratitude?!”

“...”

Hearing this, Huang Guangao got angry. Of course he knew how to be grateful. Who didn’t know that? What was even more upsetting was the fact that Kwon Yeongseung wasn’t even trying to tease him. He was actually serious. Kwon Yeongseung wasn’t someone to say something in a roundabout way…

“Even Chinese hunters are grateful sometimes,” explained Han Seha. “It’s when they want something. They should never be trusted.”

“...”

The Chinese hunters who got rescued listened to these words with perplexed expressions.

Huang Guangao was afraid that Choi Yeonseung would misunderstand and say something bad about him to the constellation, so he hurriedly cried out, “That’s nonsense!”

“Are you saying that Hunter Han Seha is talking nonsense? You rude bastard.”

“...When will the torch dragon attack again?!”

Huang Guangao hurriedly changed the subject. He realized that the more he talked in this combat helicopter, the worse it got for him.

“The torch dragon is falling!”

“!”

Recruiting a large number of hunters turned out to be rewarding for the Chinese government. There had been some incidents so far, but the torch dragon could no longer withstand the attacks coming from the numerous hunters, and consequently fell.

“Go down! We have to finish it before it recovers!”

***

Thump—

The moment the torch dragon hit the ground with its giant body, a small earthquake occurred around it. The hunters didn’t hesitate at all because they had already led it to an isolated area with no civilians or buildings.

“Start the attack. We’ll kill it first!”

The Russian hunters, who were last in the raid order, quickly came out. They were naturally reluctant to deal with an S-grade monster, but they had been promised huge rewards if they managed to kill it.

The core of an S-grade monster had enough energy for numerous energy companies to use without having to get new cores for several years. A core was the primary reward. If it dropped items, several governments would compete fiercely for them. Thus, how could the hunters get more rewards for themselves in such a competition?

They needed to have the upper hand. One extra blow could make the difference.

“The other hunters haven’t landed yet...”

“You dumbass! For how many years have you been a hunter? Don’t you know what happens if we don’t strike now?!”

“I’m sorry!”

“Move! Go forward!”

The Russian hunters moved fast thanks to buff magic like ‘Advanced Reflexes Speed’, ‘Iron Armored Skin’, ‘Intermediate Forcefield Shield’ and ‘Intuition Enhancement.’

Many people, especially hunters from different countries, said that Russian hunters were more like soldiers. They were heavily controlled by the government and subjected to military-style training. Thus, during this monster wave, they were faster than hunters from other countries and had good teamwork.

Hunters equipped with the same artifacts approached in unison and unleashed exploding magic on the torch dragon with the tip of their spears. They looked like primitive hunters hunting a huge beast.

-■■■■■...

The torch dragon had closed its eyes upon landing on the ground, but now, it opened them again. After that, it took a deep breath and exhaled.

“!!!!”

“What...?!”

Their surroundings suddenly became dark as if it was night outside with no street lamps. The Russian hunters screamed in panic as they couldn’t see anything around them.

“They’re idiots!” lamented Chen Xiezhi in a pitying?voice.

They were hunters at the end of the day, so their greed wasn’t surprising, but attacking an S-grade monster like that only by themselves was like asking to get killed.

-The vital signs are gone. Please be careful.

“It might not have the strength to fly but it can still fight. Be careful.”

Choi Yeonseung nodded. There was only one reason why the torch dragon fell to the ground despite still having some strength left.

‘It’s trying to protect its reverse scale.’

The fact that the torch dragon descended as soon as it realized they were targeting its weakness meant that it still had some strength left. Choi Yeonseung frowned and thought about the next course of action.

“Shouldn’t we launch an attack?” asked Kwon Yeongseung in a slightly nervous voice.

The hunters were still greedy despite the fact that the Russians were being killed in droves. The moment they landed, they immediately set up an attack formation and encircled the monster. The torch dragon had cast defensive magic in the meantime and managed to block the attacks. The hunters had no way of telling when their attacks would finally break through.

They had to go in now if they didn’t want to fall behind others! Everyone, from the angel constellation’s household members to the Icarus clan members, wanted to launch an attack as soon as possible.

“Keep waiting.”

“...!”

Choi Yeonseung chose to wait.

‘It’s aiming for something.’

Choi Yeonseung had accumulated a lot of fighting experience in the Abyss, so he knew when to be patient. Whenever he faced a smart opponent, he had to find clever ways to deal with them. Their confrontation with the torch dragon was no different.

‘Why is he doing this?’

Kwon Yeongseung didn’t understand Choi Yeonseung’s decision to wait.

Right now, hunters from other countries were scrambling to break through the defenses of the torch dragon in order to inflict damage to it. Despite that, Choi Yeonseung was just staring at it from a distance. It would’ve been understandable if he had been scared, but to Kwon Yeongseung’s mind, Choi Yeonseung wasn’t someone to get scared in such a situation.

So why…?

‘I want to ask him why he’s waiting, but Hunter Han Seha will probably scold me if I do...’

The Korean hunter and Icarus clan hunters decided to wait despite not understanding why because they had confidence in Choi Yeonseung. However, the hunters sent by the Six-Winged Angel Who Hunts Dragons were different. They were quite anxious about not joining the fight.

“Amelia, should we launch an attack on our own?”

“No. Just wait.”

“...”

The hunters were confused, but they didn’t dispute Amelia’s words because was a trusted household member of the angel constellation.

‘There must be a reason why Illaphael said that about Choi Yeonseung.’

Before Amelia came here, she had met and talked with Illaphael, the angel, in person.

***

-Illaphael. Hello. I heard about what happened in Paris. You said that Hunter Choi Yeonseung is quite rude. Is that true?

-...Yes, he is rude…

-If you want, I can order the other hunters to attack Hunter Choi Yeonseung.

-...Forget it.

-?

Amelia was astonished that the proud and arrogant angel wouldn’t try to punish the man who insulted him.

-He might be insolent, but he’s a trustworthy hunter. His skills are indisputable.

-If you’re the one to say this, then it means he must be insanely strong.

-It’s not to that extent...! I’m just certain about his skills, that’s all.

‘He’s complimenting someone...’

Illaphael didn’t usually praise humans, so whenever he complimented someone, there was a clear awkwardness to it. The more Amelia listened, the more she felt intrigued by Choi Yeonseung. What had happened in Paris?

-This time, we will be hunting the torch dragon as Master?ordered. We could fight it with Master’s power.

The Six-Winged Angel Who Hunts Dragons. True to its name, the constellation had a number of powerful skills that were perfect for hunting dragons.

-Um... This... No... Forget it.

-Tell me anything. I will follow your words.

-No. Forget it.

-...Please say it.

Amelia spoke in a slightly irritated voice. She respected the angels who served her master, but sometimes, from a human’s perspective, they were quite annoying. Why couldn’t he just speak his mind?

-I don’t know if I can really say it.

-Please say it!

-...Are you angry at me??

Illaphael looked at Amelia with a shocked expression.

-No, of course not.

-I want you to cooperate with Hunter Choi Yeonseung when hunting the torch dragon.

-Huh???

Amelia was quite surprised. She had never imagined that Illaphael would say something like this while blushing.

-Is it ridiculous? Forget it. Forget it. Just go and hunt it.

-Ah. No. It’s not that difficult... Do you really want us to hunt together? Do you want me to backstab him? Attacking from behind is a bit...

-What do you mean by backstabbing! I told you to cooperate, not betray him! Help!

-Ah... You mean to help him.

-...It’s cooperation, not help. Cooperation.

-......

-What does that expression mean?

-I have always admired you.

-Hmm. Thank you.

If Illaphael had been more aware of how things worked on Earth, he would’ve noticed that Amelia was teasing him. However, he didn’t.

***

‘He must have something if Illaphael is saying so. I’ll have faith in him and wait.’

Amelia made up her mind to follow Choi Yeonseung. Meanwhile, the barriers around the torch dragon were destroyed again. There was a big wave of attacks that overwhelmed the monster thanks to the sheer number of hunters. However, the moment the barriers got shattered and the hunters rushed in screaming, the torch dragon opened its eyes and magic power exploded all around his body.

“...?!?!?!?!”

All the nearby hunters got caught up in the explosion and disappeared. The extraordinary sight left even Choi Yeonseung speechless.

“... Is it even possible to use it over such a large area??”

Kwon Yeongseung shook his head in astonishment, given that he too was a space magic user.

“That isn’t something that can be used over a wide area...!”

“We must retreat!”

Chen Xiezhi was the first to react. Even though he was suggesting they retreat and leave everyone behind, he was extremely calm.

The majority of the hunters here were gone. Up until that point, they had been able to suppress the torch dragon because of their big numbers. Now that almost everybody had disappeared, they had to retreat immediately. They would die as well if they stubbornly decided to keep fighting.

“We have to retreat... Wait, where did he go??”

Chen Xiezhi was taken aback, for he could no longer see Choi Yeonseung. Was he also caught by the magic?

That wasn’t the case, for Choi Yeonseung was already in front of him. The moment the blow filled with internal energy struck, a light flashed, and the torch dragon was knocked to the side.

“Start attacking!”

“...”

Chen Xiezhi was astonished. He never imagined this person would be so reckless.

‘Did raid tactics change that much after I retired???’