Chapter 33: Negotiating a Kiss in the Middle of a Boss Fight

When Seong Ju-an had checked the status window outside the dungeon, there had been information about the “Werewolf.” If that was the case, then studying the map carefully might reveal a clue.

Keeping one eye on the map, Ju-an closely observed the behavior of the wolves endlessly pouring toward them. The mercenaries were coming from the left. The archers from the right.

Neither the mercenaries nor the archers had any ego of their own, they moved strictly according to orders. If they were emerging from two directions, then the command itself had to be coming from a single point.

“…Right here!”

Ju-an jabbed a finger at the map. Even as he did, Joo Ji-chan and Gong Se-yoon never stopped attacking, shielding Ju-an from the advancing wolves.

“Hyung, which way? We should move while there are fewer monsters, right?”

“It doesn’t matter which path. The fork will reconnect with the rear guard route later. First, we deal with those units, then we head for the Werewolf.”

“Got it!”

Ji-chan shot forward at terrifying speed, slaughtering every wolf in sight. Thanks to that, Se-yoon and Ju-an were able to follow safely behind.

“AAAH!”

A roar echoed from the dungeon entrance. It sounded like Mo Jun-young’s skill. The closer they got to the boss, the more the mercenaries and archers would try to defend it. Herding monsters wouldn’t be easy.

But strangely, the sound seemed to be getting closer.

No way… Did they already wipe out everything at the entrance and move inside? Without even fighting each other?

“AAAH!”

The roar sounded right beside them. The hidden archers all burst out of stealth and were magnetically drawn toward Mo Jun-young. Before Ju-an knew it, Baek Eun-hoo and Mo Jun-young were right there.

Ju-an stared at them, dumbfounded.

“How did you get here?”

“It wasn’t much.”

“…You used Pale Lightning, didn’t you?”

Baek Eun-hoo grinned as if it were obvious. In a dungeon where life and death hung in the balance, that kind of composure was absurd. And yet, Ju-an found himself smiling back.

“Come here.”

“Suddenly?”

“The Hug buff only lasts one minute thirty seconds.”

“Oh. Right… that’s true.”

Still perched on Se-yoon’s back, Ju-an leaned over and hugged Baek briefly before letting go. But the one who truly needed defense now was Mo Jun-young.

“Mo Jun-young, get over here! Stop roaring!”

“AAAH!”

Jun-young ignored him and roared again. Having a tank was certainly convenient… but could they really bring these two any closer to the Werewolf?

Mo Jun-young, with his rigid public-servant mindset. Baek Eun-hoo, brimming with ambition.

Both would be especially vulnerable to hallucinations.

Regardless, they first needed the exact location of the Werewolf.

“Baek Eun-hoo, it’s already risky that you came this far. Fall back with Mo Jun-young.”

“I don’t like being treated like this.”

“…Please just listen. Don’t ruin a battle we’ve already won. And Mo Jun-young, I clearly told you to stay at the entrance.”

Jun-young tore apart the wolves clinging to him with his bare hands as he replied,

“We cleared the entrance and came in. I was… concerned.”

Ju-an couldn’t scold him further. Jun-young wasn’t someone who spoke empty words. The concern felt genuine.

Still, they couldn’t all go deeper together.

Ju-an sighed and spoke firmly.

“Baek Eun-hoo and Mo Jun-young, do not come any further. I’m warning you.”

“The warning isn’t very scary, but fine.”

“Understood.”

After receiving their responses, Ju-an turned to Se-yoon.

“Let’s go deeper. Finding the Werewolf’s position is the priority.”

Se-yoon began running again. Howls echoed from within, along with explosive bursts, Ji-chan was clearly still tearing through wolves.

“Se-yoon, light it up.”

Se-yoon activated Lament of the Spray. A transparent mist flared, briefly illuminating the area. Ju-an compared the lit terrain with the map and pointed northeast.

“There!”

An enormous pack of wolves clustered in that direction.

“No wonder Baek Eun-hoo and Mo Jun-young had nothing to do and came inside.”

“Yeah. Looks like they’re glued to their leader. But hyung, how do we tell which one’s the boss?”

Ju-an had designed the monsters to be clearly distinguishable.

“You’ll know at a glance.”

Se-yoon, charging forward, suddenly halted.

“…The one with a wolf’s body and a human face?”

“Correct. Good eyes. I couldn’t spot it.”

Thanks to his ice-based visual traits, Se-yoon could see clearly even in reflective glare. Beside them, Ji-chan continued generating firebombs and spoke,

“So we just kill that thing, right?”

“Yes. Once it dies, the rest are disorganized rabble. You could handle them alone-”

“Gah!”

Suddenly, a storm of arrows rained down. All of them were aimed at Ju-an. Clearly, the Werewolf had issued the command.

“Hyung, get down.”

Ju-an slid off Se-yoon’s back, only to be pulled into a tight embrace. Hug increased defense, Se-yoon was shielding him with his own body.

Ju-an shouted toward Ji-chan.

“Now! Use Curse Explosion!”

Ji-chan’s eyes sharpened instantly. For a split second, Ju-an feared hallucination, but Ji-chan inhaled deeply and raised his flamethrower, angling it northeast before pulling the trigger.

Tssssss.

White fuel sprayed outward. Se-yoon immediately cast his skill onto the dispersing stream. The scattered droplets converged into a massive torrent.

Fwoooosh! Hissssss!

Like a waterfall of fuel, it crashed down in a roaring deluge.

“Wow… When you two combine your powers, it’s insane.”

Ju-an was genuinely impressed. That was just fuel, no ignition yet.

The wolves panicked, scattering away from the Werewolf. Still trapped in Se-yoon’s arms, Ju-an watched Ji-chan, waiting for the final strike.

But Ji-chan didn’t move.

He simply stood there, holding the flamethrower.

…Had he fallen to hallucination?

If so, only Ju-an could snap him out of it.

He struggled against Se-yoon’s grip.

“No! It’s dangerous.”

“Ji-chan’s under hallucination-!”

The more Ju-an struggled, the tighter Se-yoon held him. He stomped, bit, did everything he could, but couldn’t break free.

“Hyung. Ji-chan’s normal.”

“…What?”

“He’s normal.”

“How can you be sure? He doesn’t look normal at all.”

“Ugh… It’s that condition of his again.”

“What condition?!”

“Look at the Werewolf’s face. It’s human. He feels guilty. Ji-chan’s great, but he’s too soft-hearted.”

That hadn’t even occurred to Ju-an.

He’d chosen Ji-chan precisely because of his unwavering convictions, yet those same convictions were stopping him from killing the boss.

Se-yoon had noticed that? Impressive.

Still, they needed confirmation.

“Ji-chan! Can you hear me?”

“I hear you! Damn it.”

Relief flooded Ju-an.

“What’s our code?”

“Diamond Body.”

“Okay. Not hallucinating.”

Se-yoon chimed in smugly.

“Told you. He’s just conflicted because of the face. It’s still a monster, human face or not!”

Ji-chan barked back,

“I know that! I’m firing now!”

He lifted the flamethrower again. The fuel was already spread. One ignition, and the dungeon would be cleared.

But something felt off.

Ju-an suddenly gasped.

“Ji-chan! Come here. I need to kiss you!”

Ji-chan froze mid-trigger.

“…Right. There’ll be a difference in attack power.”

He cleared his throat and stepped closer.

At that exact moment, Se-yoon began swaying side to side, deliberately disrupting the angle.

This wasn’t about dodging wolves, he was blocking the kiss.

‘Seriously? Now?’

“Se-yoon. If you keep this up, we could all die.”

“Tch. I know. I won’t avoid it forever. But before that… you need to promise me something.”

“Say it. Quickly.”

The wolves were already regaining their senses.

“In the next dungeon, promise you’ll give me the Kiss buff.”

Ju-an stared at him in disbelief.

“In the middle of a boss fight, you’re negotiating?”

Se-yoon’s grip tightened stubbornly.

“Promise.”

Behind them, the Werewolf let out a distorted howl, half human, half beast.

Ju-an gritted his teeth.

“…Fine! Next dungeon, you get it first!”

“Promise?”

“I promise!”

Se-yoon immediately stopped swaying.

Ji-chan stepped forward without hesitation.

Ju-an grabbed his collar, pulled him down…

And pressed his lips against his.

A surge of blazing energy exploded outward.

Ji-chan’s eyes ignited like a furnace.

“Move.”

He turned, aimed…

And pulled the trigger.