I’ll Retire After Saving the World

Chapter 8: Broken Nose (1)

Some people say that makes life interesting, while others say it makes life a headache.

The Director was the former, and I was closer to the latter.

Look. Just a few hours ago, I was enjoying my vacation, and now I’m time traveling to the past to change it, like the protagonist of an old sci-fi movie.

There’s no way this crap could be fun.

“Grr.”

“Where the hell do these bastards keep coming from?”

I scratched my head and looked down.

The streets were swarming with monsters. There were more left than I thought, and their numbers were gradually increasing.

“Well, the Hunters here will take care of those….”

If I had gone back to my childhood, it would at least be easier to understand.

Time travel.

Does that mean the ten-year-old Woo Hwijae really exists here?

If there is a ten-year-old Woo Hwijae, that would be troublesome. There was a time travel movie where someone changed the past and erased their own existence….

After pondering for a moment, I shook my head.

Whatever.

Changing past events didn’t matter to me as long as I saved those High school kids. How many people were supposed to die there? Seeing that I’m still fine, it didn’t seem like changing a few things would make me disappear.

And that suspicious item that sent me here also said this world was destined for destruction.

I can’t trust everything that item says… but if the world is doomed anyway, it doesn’t matter what I do. And if I get lucky, maybe it won’t end.

‘Make it out alive.’

Yoo Ji-eun’s last words lingered. That was just a few hours ago.

“…Wait.”

Come to think of it, the item came out after the centipede died. If that centipede was the boss of the Bangi-dong Dungeon….

When did the Bangi-dong Dungeon appear again?

I tapped on the Mana Watch. The battery is my mana anyway. While the communication function doesn’t work, everything else functions properly.

Since the only users are Director and me, there was no need to restrict the data on the Mana Watch. Thus, this small watch contains all the information about Hunters and Dungeons in South Korea.

Information is power. Especially in South Korea.

I quickly scanned the holographic screen.

April 6, 2021, Bangi-dong Dungeon appears in Songpa District, Seoul.

“…Huh.”

A chuckle escaped me.

There was indeed a reason for this particular day.

* * *

So what should I do now?

I sat on the rooftop of a building, organizing my thoughts.

The top priority is, of course, the Bangi-dong Dungeon.

But sneaking into a Dungeon embedded in the center of Songpa District is impossible.

To enter a Dungeon, you need solid identification and the endorsement of a reliable Hunter.

As I said earlier, that’s impossible for me right now. Even if I saved their beloved youngest grandchild, Daeyeon wouldn’t grant permission to an unknown Hunter….

It’s hard not to curse. Damn,

“Shit!!!!”

“…?”

I was startled, thinking I had inadvertently cursed aloud, but it wasn’t my voice.

“Why are these cow bastards suddenly acting up!!!”

A string of coarse curses followed.

I squinted and looked in the direction the sound came from.

Boom!!!

“Guaaa!!”

With a loud explosion, the herd of buffalo was swept away.

“Hey, wasn’t that guy the one who called them? He did it earlier too!”

“Annoying even with a bull head!!!”

I looked to see who was conversing so nonchalantly and saw Hunters coming down from the direction of Namsan.

About ten Hunters were swinging their weapons at the horde of monsters and quickly dodging. Behind them, a Minotaur was chasing.

“Grrraaah!”

“Shut up, you dog bastard!”

“It’s a cow, not a dog.”

“…You cow bastard!”

For a conversation among Hunters representing South Korea, it lacks weight.

The situation isn’t entirely relaxed. If it were, they wouldn’t have been pushed down here by the Minotaur.

But I’m not worried. I already know the outcome of this event. The Minotaur will be subdued and the Myeong-dong Dungeon will be closed.

The number of casualties is enormous, but somehow they recover. During this process, the guild responsible for the Myeong-dong Dungeon is investigated, and eventually, the guild leader and key guild members are arrested.

After this, Dungeons are no longer managed autonomously by guilds but by the state.

That’s more related to the Director than me. Now… that man vigorously swinging his spear up ahead.

“When will this end?”

“Hong ssi, stop grumbling and swing that spear one more time.”

“Can’t you see I’m already swinging it like crazy?”

“There are more with heads attached than detached. Hong ssi, you’re getting old.”

“I’m still in my prime!!”

With each swing of the spear, a blue wind swirled. The fierce blade of mana shredded the monsters, finally reaching the Minotaur’s legs.

“Graaah!!!”

The Minotaur’s calves were already a mess from multiple hits. Blood dripped to the point that white bones were exposed. For a bipedal giant monster, targeting the legs is the strategy.

Enraged, the Minotaur snorted and swung its club. It didn’t seem to care that its minions were being swept away. The Black Buffalos, frightened by the Minotaur’s fury, began to scatter. The narrow street became chaotic as they crashed into and trampled each other.

This is a prime viewing spot.

The Hunters gathered here, despite being hastily assembled, are all highly renowned. Not many of them will be alive twenty years from now, but it’s no exaggeration to say they all led the modern history of Hunters in South Korea.

When else would I get to see the peak-time battles of such people up close? It’d be great if I had a camera. It’d be perfect to show this to newbie Hunters during mandatory education….

“Alright! One more time!”

Vines sprouted from the ground. The green leaves amidst the half-destroyed street somehow felt romantic.

Of course, separately from that, the vines quickly climbed up the Minotaur’s legs.

Compared to the Minotaur’s massive body, the vines seemed fragile, but the creature couldn’t move once caught by them.

“Oh.”

It’s the unique magic of the Archmage Kim Chae-min.

I never thought I’d see this with my own eyes.

After Kim Chae-min’s death, this magic was completely lost.

How did Kim Chae-min die again? Saving not just the Hunter High school kids but also a big figure like Kim Chae-min could be helpful later on, if not detrimental.

Let’s think about it.

For twenty years, the Bangi-dong Dungeon’s danger level hasn’t changed. Such a stable Dungeon had that kind of monster hiding in it, and a few S-rank Hunters wouldn’t be enough.

Besides, wasn’t there more than just that centipede in Seoul?

So, if I save people destined to die like the Hunter High school kids, things might change. First, close the Bangi-dong Dungeon, then find the Dungeon hiding the one who set fire to Seoul….

That’s a good plan.

No, it’s not just a good plan; it’s the only way. Saving lives in the process and accumulating debts of gratitude could ensure a comfortable retirement too….

“Got it! It’s in!”

The Director’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

Finally, the Minotaur’s leg was cut off.

Thanks to Kim Chae-min’s vines, the Minotaur didn’t fall immediately, but it had no means to replace its severed leg. Two legs are essential to support that massive upper body. Once it loses its balance and falls, the rest is relatively simple.

“Finish it!”

A sharp voice shouted from the rear. Without any flashy effects, the vines disappeared in an instant. The Minotaur flailed its arms to regain its balance. Utility poles toppled, and several buildings were damaged. I hope no one was inside.

“Graaah!!!!”

Still, a boss is a boss. The Minotaur didn’t go down easily. Clinging to one building for support, the Minotaur swung its arms at the advancing Hunters.

…The distance is getting too close. Maybe it’s time for me to head to City Hall.

“Hong ssi, cut off the other leg too!”

“Got it!”

The Director deftly dodged the Minotaur’s arm and got right up close to it. Rather than chipping away at it from a distance with mana blades, it seemed he planned to end it in one explosive strike. The other Hunters were providing cover for him.

Kim Chae-min summoned vines again. This time, they wrapped around the arm swinging the club, intending to unbalance the Minotaur.

One Hunter grabbed the vines.

Planting his feet firmly on the road, his muscles bulged. He wasn’t aiming for anything grand. Just making the Minotaur stagger a bit would be enough.

The Director struck the remaining leg. He couldn’t cut it off entirely, but he inflicted a deep wound. The Minotaur screamed in pain, and the Hunter holding the vines pulled hard.

The Minotaur lost its grip on the building. Its massive body began to tilt forward, and instinctively, it reached out its hands.

That means…

“…Shit!”

…towards the rooftop where I was.

* * *

‘This is supposed to be a B-rank dungeon?’

Hong Seok-young ground his teeth as he faced the Minotaur emerging from the Dungeon.

This is why allowing self-reporting was a bad idea. What were they thinking, entrusting dungeon ranking to the guilds?

Despite pushing for an inspection system, the guild union’s opposition delayed it, and now this mess has occurred.

The reasons for their opposition were obvious, just as the reasons for falsifying Dungeon grades were.

In the end, they only come to their senses after damage has occurred.

“Shall we go?!”

Kim Chae-min shouted from behind.

The Hunter who earned the Archmage title before turning thirty was showcasing her talents generously.

Thin vines tightly bound the house-sized monster. Indeed, a desirable talent.

There are already two children with great magical talent in the school. In other fields, it might be manageable, but teaching magic is challenging. If a Hunter like her could give a few lessons….

Suddenly, the children’s faces came to hid mind. By now, they must have evacuated safely.

“Grrr!!”

“Hong ssi, cut the remaining leg!”

“I got it!”

This isn’t the time for distraction.

Hong Seok-young regained his focus and gripped his spear tightly. Right now, the priority is capturing that monster.

Mana gathered at the spear’s tip. One leg had already been cut off. Once it falls, the rest will be easier.

While completely severing the leg as claimed is impossible, the goal is to strike the remaining leg and make it fall. That’s sufficient. Without any lengthy preparation, Hong Seok-young swung his spear.

The massive body wobbled. Desperately flailing its arms, it couldn’t regain its balance. Its arms noisily swept nearby buildings before it eventually fell forward.

“…Huh?”

Hong Seok-young paused his next attack. He saw a person on the rooftop the Minotaur had reached for. A man in a wrinkled, dust-covered suit.

How did he get so close without me noticing any presence?

Hong Seok-young squinted his eyes. He was definitely holding a sword. It was such a brief moment, but he couldn’t miss it.

And the man on the rooftop wasn’t just looking at Hong Seok-young.

“A person?”

“Is it a civilian?”

“No, he was holding something!”

At that moment, blue flames cascaded down the Minotaur’s back, slicing through the monsters filling the street. The monsters touched by the fire were instantly engulfed in flames.

“Ah… good work everyone…”

A languid voice, sounding either awkward or disinterested, echoed from the Minotaur’s back.

“You seem busy, so don’t mind me and carry on with what you were doing.”

“…Who are you?”

Hong Seok-young couldn’t hold back and asked.

“Me?”

The man in the wrinkled suit scratched his head as he pulled the sword from the Minotaur’s back. Blue sparks swirled around the sword.

“Just a passerby.”