Skill Copy’s Sweet Rewards

Choi Junhyuk deftly evaded attacks, seizing every opportunity to counter. He meticulously managed the aggro, deploying his aggro-generating skills at opportune moments to ensure it never strayed to another target.

‘Hmm, at this rate, the aggro won’t jump even with two more ranged attackers.’

The addition of two new ranged damage dealers significantly escalated the damage inflicted upon the True Decker.

Yet, thanks to the bracelet’s unique ability, the efficacy of his aggro skills had surged dramatically. Consequently, the threat of losing aggro due to the mere presence of two additional ranged attackers was negligible.

Conversely, the True Decker’s shield dissipated at a far greater pace with the combined efforts of the two ranged damage dealers.

After approximately three more hours, the arduous hunt finally concluded without a single hitch.

Groooaaaan…

The True Decker’s massive body began to tilt, slowly at first, before plummeting to the ground.

Thump!

The current time was 4:47 PM.

They had hunted relentlessly for nearly eight hours, without a moment’s rest.

The damage dealers had long exhausted their Force, their bodies and minds utterly spent.

Whoosh.

The True Decker’s fallen body disintegrated into light, leaving behind byproducts and a green Awakening Stone.

The only regrettable aspect was the absence of any crystals or cards.

“Oh! An Awakening Stone! It’s an Awakening Stone! Hahaha!”

A green Awakening Stone, capable of awakening a support ability user, was valued at roughly 100 million won. Given the byproducts, along with the crystals and skill cards obtained from the Mantis, this hunt could unequivocally be declared a resounding success.

As Cheolmin excitedly waved the Awakening Stone in his hand, Sangjin addressed the group.

“Everyone’s exhausted, and our Force is depleted. Let’s call it a day for hunting.”

He then shifted his gaze to the survivors of Park Seungnam’s party, continuing,

“And you. You wouldn’t object to us taking the byproducts and dropped items from the Mantis, would you?”

Their expressions turned bewildered at Sangjin’s words.

“What? B-but…”

“No, we hunted together, so why…”

Seeing their reluctance to give up so easily, Sangjin’s expression subtly darkened.

“Are you truly unaware of the situation? Failing a hunt is one thing, but to drive your prey into another party’s hunting ground? Are you saying this after nearly getting our entire party wiped out because of you?”

When the Mantis had burst in, Sangjin had truly believed he was facing death. Despair had overwhelmed him so completely that his vision had blurred.

Though he had lunged at the Mantis in a desperate struggle to the very end, inwardly, his mind had been filled with the thought, ‘Ah, I’m going to die here today.’

Had Choi Junhyuk not stepped forward, had he not swiftly drawn the True Decker’s aggro, their party would have, in all likelihood, been annihilated. The memory reignited a furious heat within Sangjin.

“But… we didn’t tell him to do that. The Trapper acted on his own. We’re also victims here.”

When a ranged dealer from the other party offered this excuse, Sangjin emitted a menacing aura, his voice a low growl.

“The Trapper acted alone? Perhaps. But what did all of you do in the meantime? Did you not think to stop his actions, which could have wiped out another party? Or did you just think, ‘At least we’re safe, no matter what happens to them’?”

At Sangjin’s words, they were struck dumb.

“……”

“……”

At the time, they had watched the Trapper drag the Mantis toward Sangjin’s party, yet they hadn’t thought to stop him. Or, more accurately, they hadn’t bothered.

They had sensed Sangjin’s party was doomed, yet they had pretended not to notice, leaving them to their fate. And they had felt relieved to have survived themselves.

“Even if this is a lawless zone, there are unwritten rules. You ignored those rules. What do you think would happen if I posted this incident on Force Life? Would you ever be able to hunt here again? No, before that, would any party even accept you? Even if you’re part of a guild, the guild itself would impose sanctions.”

The Hunters operating in this area, especially the tanks leading parties, shared a communal network. This was due to the necessity of organic coordination between parties during hunts.

Along with this, an implicit rule had emerged: in case of a problem during a hunt, one must at least avoid actions that would harm other parties. And this rule was not only known by tank leaders but by all Hunters in beginner hunting grounds.

Yet, individuals had emerged who violated this rule. Would other parties accept such people? If someone were to accept them, that party’s leader, the tank, would almost certainly be expelled from the community.

Damage dealers and mappers were abundant; who would risk such a thing? Of course, the situation might differ for a ‘noble’ class like healers.

Threatened by Sangjin’s intention to post the incident on Force Life, their faces instantly paled.

“W-we’ll just give up on them.”

“Yes! Of course, we should give them up. Absolutely. Haha, we’re truly sorry. It was our first time experiencing something like that, so we were quite flustered…”

The ranged dealer and mapper immediately changed their tune, offering to relinquish the byproducts. It was clear that having their names associated with such an incident on Force Life would severely impede their future lives as Hunters.

“Haa, I wasn’t interested in the byproducts from the start. Once the hunt failed, the Mantis was no longer our prey. And I truly apologize for not stopping our team’s Trapper. I was just too scared at the time.”

While he had expected the ranged dealer and mapper to comply, he’d thought the healer might put up a fight. Surprisingly, she readily admitted fault and cleanly gave up the byproducts.

Only when they all agreed to forfeit did Sangjin’s expression soften.

“Good. Let’s consider this incident as never having happened. So you all should also forget what transpired here. Ah! And you’ll help us retrieve the bodies of the deceased, won’t you?”

Though their relationship was purely professional, Park Seungnam had been part of the same community, and they had been quite close. Sangjin felt he would only find peace of mind if he retrieved the body with his own hands.

“Ah, yes. Of course, we will.”

“We were planning to do so anyway.”

Regardless, they had been party members for a time. Retrieving the bodies of their comrades was a duty they, as fellow party members, were obligated to fulfill.

Seeing their agreement, Sangjin nodded.

“I need to finish up some things here. Could you all go ahead and start retrieving the bodies?”

“Understood.”

“Haha, take your time coming over.”

At Sangjin’s request for them to go ahead and retrieve the bodies, they hastily responded and departed.

Once they were gone, Sangjin slowly approached Choi Junhyuk.

“Hey, Choi Junhyuk. What exactly are you? Did you really awaken just yesterday? How can a complete novice, who just awakened, tank like that?”

Choi Junhyuk merely shrugged at Sangjin’s question. As Sangjin stared at him with eyes full of wonder, Choi Junhyuk spoke as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.

“Indeed. I even surprised myself. I suppose in such a dire situation, some superhuman strength must have manifested without my conscious knowledge… Hahaha.”

Watching Choi Junhyuk’s playful evasion, Sangjin’s brow subtly furrowed.

“Surely you don’t expect me to believe that, do you?”

Choi Junhyuk scratched his head in response.

“It’s hard to believe, isn’t it?”

“Would you believe it if you were me?”

In truth, even if Choi Junhyuk were in Sangjin’s shoes, he wouldn’t have easily believed it. A fledgling tank, who had just awakened, had displayed superior tanking skills to a veteran tank on the verge of his second awakening.

And to claim it was merely due to some supernatural phenomenon? It was hardly a joke; who would believe such a thing?

‘Haa, should I have shown a bit more hesitation? Well, what’s done is done. I’ll just have to brazen it out.’

“Haha, I know it’s hard to believe, but I don’t really have another way to explain it. It just… happened when I did it.”

Sangjin’s expression turned incredulous at Choi Junhyuk’s words.

“Huh… it just happened when you did it?”

What more could he say when Choi Junhyuk claimed it simply ‘happened’?

“Yes. It just happened.”

“Tsk, fine, you win. I’ve never seen a tank who could do something like that just by ‘doing it.’ You’re the best.”

Judging by Sangjin’s expression, he didn’t seem inclined to press the matter further.

‘In any case, this seems to have resolved the issue with Cheolmin, doesn’t it?’

Over these past two days, Choi Junhyuk had achieved everything he desired. He had copied not only Sangjin’s tanking skills but also those of a healer, damage dealer, mapper, and trapper. More importantly, he had saved Cheolmin’s life, his primary objective.

Perhaps because of this, he felt a profound sense of relief.

“By the way, I feel quite tired, perhaps because it was my first real combat. Haha, I think I’m exhausted…”

Choi Junhyuk subtly changed the subject, attempting to gloss over the current situation. Sangjin sensed his intention but simply let it pass.

“Is that so? Then you should go and rest. And thank you. If it weren’t for you today, I, and the others, would have surely died.”

Having expressed his gratitude to Choi Junhyuk, Sangjin looked back at his party members.

“And I have something to say to all of you. As you know, Choi Junhyuk hasn’t completed his Awakened registration yet, so he shouldn’t be hunting. If word of today’s events gets out, it could cause trouble not just for Choi Junhyuk but for us as well. So, everyone, keep quiet about what happened today. Understood?”

Although the circumstances had been unavoidable, if it became known that an Awakened who hadn’t completed their registration had participated in a hunt, it could lead to various problems. This wasn’t just an issue confined to Choi Junhyuk but could affect the entire party.

Therefore, Sangjin made sure his party members understood this point and enforced their silence.

At Sangjin’s words, each party member offered their assurance.

“Oh, don’t worry so much. We’re not fools; do you think we wouldn’t know that?”

“Haha, we’ll take it to our graves!”

They, too, had no desire to complicate the situation by speaking carelessly, so everyone acknowledged and agreed.

“And it’s undeniable that everyone here owes their lives to Choi Junhyuk today, isn’t it? So, I intend to include Choi Junhyuk in this loot distribution. As a tank, of course. Any objections?”

Tanks, along with healers, held the highest distribution ratio. This meant that if Choi Junhyuk received a tank’s share, others would inevitably receive a lower percentage.

However, not a single person voiced a complaint about this.

“Of course not. We came back from the brink of death thanks to Choi Junhyuk; how could we possibly complain?”

“That’s right. And if anyone has a complaint, tell me. I won’t heal you in the future.”

Just a few hours ago, they had been teetering on the brink of death. Perhaps because of this, what mattered to them now was not a few coins, but the very fact of their survival.

“Alright. Then we’ll proceed with that. I need to retrieve Brother Seungnam’s body, so you all can clean up here roughly and wait for me in the car.”

“Yes, we will.”

With those words, Sangjin turned away with a bitter expression, and the remaining party members hastily prepared to withdraw.

“Alright, everyone! Let’s prepare to withdraw!”

Thus, Sangjin’s party concluded their eventful hunt and began their retreat.