LTTH C12

Chapter 12

“……”

What is this? A silent scream passed down his throat. Perhaps his sense of distance was off. Or maybe his skill was acting strangely. Unable to pinpoint, he opened the skill window and re-read the skill description, but it still said the range was 5 meters.

“What kind of Healing Light is this…”

“Could it be a Ranker? But I don’t think I’ve ever seen their face…”

The first to react to the abnormal range were the hunters—not ordinary hunters, but those affiliated with the Association. Whether summoned by guilds, foreign countries, or the state, when support was requested, these were the first called upon. Experienced and well-connected, they easily recognized something unusual at a glance.

Of course, among the civilians caught up in this situation, there was no one unaware of the healer’s skills. Since the appearance of hunters and monsters, hunters had been regarded almost like idols or celebrities, and among them, high-level healers even more so.

“A typical healer’s skill isn’t usually this big, right?”

“No matter how wide, it should be about 5 meters.”

“…A Ranker, then?”

At the fairly precise figure someone muttered, his body flinched slightly. Even if asked, no one could explain why the range of Healing Light had increased. Hansol deliberately kept a blank expression and stared straight ahead.

‘Anyway, this can’t go on.’

There were many people he had to protect, and the number of hunters was terribly low. This was a war of attrition—one overwhelmingly unfavorable to them. The only faint hope was the “purified ground” faintly glowing at his feet.

The undead could only freely move on corrupted ground. That was why every gate summoning undead had soil as muddy and black as it was now. So, what would happen on purified ground? Would they be unable to move at all, or could a debuff be applied? It was a credible speculation.

A portion of the corrupted ground has been purified.

Experience points gained.

As Hansol frantically used Purification, several system messages buzzed in his ears and clouded his vision. Around ten times in, he wondered if this was really happening. After about twenty repetitions, about ten people including himself had a faint light glowing at their feet, turning the ground into purified soil. Past thirty times, his mana grew dangerously low. On top of that, one of the hunters responsible for the frontline suffered a serious injury and was being moved beside him.

“Please step aside briefly! We’re only moving the wounded!”

“Cough. H-Healer.”

A hunter clad in shining silver armor with neat features looked rich enough to be a third-generation chaebol or heavily sponsored by a guild. Hansol looked at his remaining mana once again—just over 400. Far too little.

Saving people was of course important—especially if they were hunters. But if he focused all his healing skills here, he wouldn’t be able to use Purification enough. That might lead to civilians’ sacrifices.

“I’m fine.”

“……”

The wealthy hunter’s chest rose and fell with heavy breath, putting on a front that Hansol found irritating. His frown was no response to the man but to his own powerless state of low mana and level.

Even if his level were 10 higher here. Or at least 5 higher. If only then his mana would be a little more generous.

“…Healing Light.”

A sigh escaped, born from helplessness. He was angry at the reality that forced him to hold back. His clenched teeth let out a faintly muffled voice, and a wave of light rippled across a wide area. It must have been a light to the hunters with minor injuries, but to the rich hunter beside him, it was but a drop in the ocean.

“…The Association will probably send an assault team, right?”

“It’s right in front of the Association. They’ll come rescue us soon.”

“Right…? We just have to hold out a little longer.”

As hunters were wounded one by one, anxiety slowly spread. Among the agitated crowd, there were even children sobbing.

Yet, fortunately, everyone still clustered together. But if even one person was lost, the situation would suddenly change. A groan escaped at the thought of such a hopeless future. He should never have come. No—once he sensed something was wrong, he should have helped to prevent even one more from being swept away.

“…Damn.”

At that moment, a hunter wielding a greatsword among the crowd suddenly broke his sword. The image was clear as day. Like in slow motion, the falling blade predicted what came next. The man’s weapon was gone, but the skeleton monster had picked up a dagger from somewhere in its hand.

“No. Please!”

Someone was going to die like that again. Right before his eyes.

Just like the day of the great catastrophe, people were losing their lives in front of him, and yet he could do nothing. Powerlessness and rage filled his body.

“Heal!”

He had to do something. That was why he called out a Healing Light at a distance for the first time ever. Couldn’t he use Healing Light and Healing Prayer together? Could healing remotely even be possible? Filled with such hope, the light that spread from his fingertips flickered weakly before starting to approach the hunter at the crossroads.

“Good!”

It might boost regeneration. If it worked well, fatal wounds could be avoided. In that brief moment, Hansol held onto hope and watched the light swarm.

Then a young man holding a wooden sword pushed the hunter aside, urgently blocking the skeleton’s path. He was quite tall but not bulky. Maybe because he wasn’t as armed as other hunters, but that wasn’t the problem.

His clothing was simple. He was not a hunter. Though the skeleton was made of bones, it was still a monster. And there was no way a monster’s attack could be blocked with just a simple wooden sword.

“What are you doing?”

“Has that young man lost his mind?”

As expected, the surrounding crowd muttered loudly and voices rose here and there. Perhaps some would call it a brave act, but to Hansol, it simply looked like a man sacrificing himself for the hunters.

“Ah…”

My goodness. Moreover, the light that had reached beside the hunter now seeped into the courageous young man facing the skeleton.

Of course, healing worked on civilians as well. Licensed healers sometimes used healing skills to treat civilians. But unlike hunters, civilians’ physical durability was different. While a hunter might only suffer a fatal wound, a civilian’s injury could mean instant death. That rule had never changed. Not once.

Hansol squeezed his eyes shut. Maybe it was a kind of escaping reality—not wanting to see someone die right before his eyes again.

“Wow.”

“Did he dodge? What?”

“Is he a hunter? Doesn’t look like it.”

Outside his pitch-black vision, voices blended with surprise and disbelief flooded in. There was no way an ordinary man could dodge the skeleton that even hunters struggled against. Yet in his faint vision, he saw the young man desperately struggling. No, to be precise, struggling beautifully.

The skeleton swung its dagger with a clatter, but the young man dodged with inches to spare as if he had predicted it. Occasionally, he struck valid hits with the wooden sword he held, but the skeleton was tough enough to be felled only by hunters’ weapons. The training wooden sword couldn’t have damaged it.

Still, an ordinary man was fighting a monster. The sight defied common sense. Though he wondered who this person could be, he also felt a pang of self-reproach for feeling helpless. Yes, if only that young man had a high-level healer’s buff instead of just healing.

Sanctuary has been declared.

There is 1 target eligible for Knight appointment.

Would you like to appoint the target as a Holy Knight?

“…Knight, appointment?”

What was this now?

The target was appointed as a Holy Knight. 1 Divine Power Point consumed.

“No, I hadn’t agreed to appoint yet!”

His bewildered shout was met only by the hollow echo of the system window. Hastily checking the status window, he saw the Divine Power number beside it had dropped from 3 to 2. His stats decreased without any debuffs. That meant instead of giving up precious stats, he had just sacrificed one to appoint a Knight. He truly wanted to help the young man, but that did not mean he was willing to sacrifice stats.