The hunters only saw Lucien mouthing ’guests’ and a chill crept down their spines.

Everyone subconsciously shifted their eyes away, head whipping.

"D-damn. Fck. Sh*t."

Someone cursed in the voice channel and the others held their breaths, their voices shaking.

"D-did it...see us?"

Yes, it.

There’s no way it’s a human, right?

Right??

The captain patted his beating heart and struggled to speak, his voice heavy.

"...let’s observe. Don’t...don’t get close."

At the same time, Lucien turned his head to the left and stuck his tongue out, his inner soul running around while crying.

Ahhh! The tea is hot! Damn it!

Thump. Thump.

The thumpers were still banging their bodies into the invisible wall and Lucien’s heart almost jumped out.

Fck. What kind of horror movie is this??

Lucien’s inner soul already crept back into the blanket while the mini dungeon boss stared at the thumpers, saliva dripped down his mouth.

—Eat....

?? Disgusting bastard!

Lucien threw away his thoughts and gripped the tea, mind racing.

Did the expedition team see him?

Wait. They’re quite far away— they shouldn’t see him yet?

Maybe they only saw the thumpers!

Lucien suddenly felt like an idiot.

If the expedition team couldn’t see him, how could he kidnap— ask them for help?

Geez.

Lucien patted Mumu’s body as he checked the system panel—

There, a new feature appeared.

[Patrol guard: 0/10]

[Designated patrol guards can roam around within a 300 meters range]

This means he could summon the monsters outside of his house, right?

Lucien subconsciously came up...with an idea.

Lucien’s inner soul instantly cursed like crazy, twisting inside the blanket.

Yahhh! Crazy bastard!! Don’t do that!! Ahhh!!

But the mini dungeon boss slapped his tail excitedly, his eyes gleaming.

—Hunt...food?

Lucien took a deep breath and slowly stood up.

Thump. Thump.

Right now, the other two thumpers had already arrived and synced like Bluetooth, they simultaneously slammed the barrier.

[Barrier durability: 50/100]

In just a few minutes, the barrier’s durability was cut in half.

Lucien shook his head as he slowly stepped forward.

The tea in his hand floated and drifted into the house, like magic.

Then, under the hunters’ wide eyes—

Lucien stepped out of the terrace.

Out of the barrier.

Thump!

The wind blew Lucien’s head and the thumper’s body was infinitely close to him, just an inch away from breaking his bones!

Yet Lucien walked forward slowly with Mumu in his arms, his pace leisure.

The hunters sucked in the cold air.

"Fck, what— "

At that moment, the thumper closest to Lucien whipped its head around.

The next second—

Swish!

The thumper’s face bolted right in front of Lucien, the teeth flashed viciously—

So close that Lucien could sniff the rotten smell.

The hunters all closed their eyes, faces pale.

That humanoid monster is done for—

But...

Wongggg.

The void around Lucien suddenly twisted.

Plop. Plop. Plop.

Five navy blobs rained down the void, landing right onto the thumper’s head.

The hunters’ jaws dropped.

Those are...slimes?

What’s the use—

Then, the hunters’ eyes popped out.

Chew. Chew. Chew.

The navy slimes viciously gnawed at the thumper’s shelled head, black liquid poured out like a waterfall.

Sizzle. Sizzle.

The thumper’s teeth paused just an inch away from Lucien’s head and it suddenly bolted to the left, shaking its head frantically.

"Hissss!!"

The shell was instantly charred black, peeling and melting like butter.

Psssh.

The liquid penetrated down the shell and touched the tender flesh beneath.

The smell of burnt flesh instantly drifted with the wind, even the faraway hunters could smell it.

"Hisss!!"

The first thumper shrieked, its body wriggling, but Lucien calmly dodged, walking out of the house with leisure steps— not too fast, not too slow.

Thud.

Behind him, dust rose. The first thumper’s body fell down, its body twitching.

The three other thumpers whipped their long necks around and ignored the fallen comrade, their eyes on Lucien’s receding back, saliva drooling.

At that moment—

The wind slapped Lucien’s back, lifting his hair.

Swish!

The three other thumpers lunged at Lucien’s back, their jaws stretched to the max.

Snap.

Lucien snapped his fingers and the void twisted again.

Three more blue blobs fell down, each on one thumper.

"Glurg!"

The five blue blobs on the first thumper moved like a shadow, pouncing at the three thumpers.

Sizzle! Sizzle!

The three thumpers’ mouths couldn’t even touch the hem of Lucien’s clothes.

Behind Lucien, the thumpers writhed in agony, their shrieks pierced through the sky.

"Hissss!"

Thump! Thump!

The sound of the thumpers’ slamming the ground overlapped with the hunters’ bursting hearts.

The hunters’ eyes went blank. Their minds froze.

What...the hell?

Those are...slimes, right?

Sizzle. Sizzle.

The hunters clearly saw the slime’s liquid melting the thumper’s tough shell as if it was nothing.

...

That can’t be slimes.

Right??

The hunters screamed in silence, on the verge of fainting.

In their eyes, the slimes turned into vicious man-eating blobs.

Thump. Thump.

The ground shook violently and Mumu in Lucien’s arm shuddered.

Only then did Lucien seem to notice the thumpers thrashing around behind.

He slowly turned his head around and slapped his forehead.

"Ah. These strays again."

Lucien shook his head and snapped his fingers.

Woongggg.

The void twisted and two giant shadows fell down.

"Kiiik!"

Two giant spiders stood on the asphalt and bowed at Lucien, their heads pressed low.

"You two." Lucien pointed at the thumper who was still alive— barely.

"Web."

The spiders tilted their head and simultaneously spat out webs from their mouths, turning the last breathing thumper into a pupa.

"Hisss! Hisss!"

The thumper’s body trembled. Its wriggling slowed down.

"Okay, enough. Just the lower body."

Only the thumper’s head was visible, its teeth breathing in and out.

"The collar?"

"Kiik!"

A thin web stretched out around the thumper’s neck, like a rope.

Then, the spiders handed the "rope" to Lucien’s hands.

From afar, it looked like...

Grip.

"Hey, stand up."

Lucien tugged the rope and the thumper laying on the ground slowly rose, its body shivering.

"Hissss..."

In its eyes, Lucien suddenly looked like its predator—

The digger.

The thumper, who was so vicious back then, not flinching even in front of Lucien’s Landlord aura, stiffened.

It slowly lowered its body and hissed weakly.

"Hisss."

Tap. Tap.

Lucien patted its intact shell covered in a spider web.

"Time for a walk."

Feeling the slight push, the thumper trembled as it tried to move its body away, its shell inside the web slowly melting.

Thump.

Behind the thumper, Lucien waved at the spiders and slimes, his voice drifting with the wind.

"Eat."

With one cue, the slimes and the spiders pounced at the three thumpers who still had their last breaths.

Splat. Splat.

Flesh and blood splattered everywhere, but not a single drop landed on Lucien’s pristine clothes.

As Lucien left his house with the thumper, the hunters’ breath stuck to their throats, their chests ached.

"T-t-the target...is leaving."

"...with a thumper."

Everyone’s hearts dropped to their stomach.

Not good.

The captain quickly growled in the voice channel, his voice like dry sand.

"R-retreat! Anyone near there— move! Now!"

The vision hunter, the closest to Lucien, was the first to dart away, sweat drenching his back.

"Huuu! Huuu!"

The other hunters tremblingly crept away from their hiding places.

Their eyes were full of Lucien’s figure and the thumper.

Lucien’s figure looked like an ant next to the thumper, but...

Thump. Thump.

The thumper next to Lucien moved as slowly as possible, even slower than a snail.

"Hisss."

A few big thumpers lurked around, eyes on Lucien’s back, yet the man didn’t even bat an eyelid.

It was as if those worms were just... strays.

The hunters’ minds collectively flashed with one word.

Monster.

That guy...

Is a monster.

Lucien could feel the hunters’ gaze on him, trembling with awe (fear).

As Lucien’s prestige soared, his landlord’s aura slowly surged like a tide.

Thicker and deeper, bottomless like the abyss.

Shaaa....

It came crashing down like a mountain, pressing onto the surrounding thumpers.

"Hisss!"

The thumpers bared their teeth, yet their bodies froze stiff, trembling.

Exactly like when a digger was in front of them.

Ignoring the looming shadows around, Lucien walked and walked...

The captain saw Lucien’s figure approaching a familiar place.

A building with a curved roof.

Where did he see it before...

The captain looked up and saw—

A curved roof.

Right above his head.