I Became the Only Healer in the Academy - Chapter 18.1
[Unlocked: Stigmata]
[Stigmata: Inflict a specific level of pain, limited by what level the user can feel pain while healing others. Cannot create wounds. This pain bypasses all resistances.]
Seonghyun stared blankly at the unlocked window.
The moment he had longed for—his combat-related ability finally unlocked.
***
The newly unlocked ability, stigmata, had no side effects whatsoever and no specific conditions.
It was solely a power unlocked for combat.
“With this level of ability, it might not be top-tier hunter material, but it’s definitely at an upper level.”
Looking at the abilities of hunters who currently held powers equivalent to national leaders, each one was formidable.
Their level of power could effortlessly annihilate the military of an entire nation alone.
“But this ability probably applies to a single target, right?”
He wondered if it could be applied to the Devotee’s Pendant, but since the description explicitly mentioned the healing ability, it was likely impossible.
“Then just a moment…”
Seonghyun took out his phone to check the time.
It had been several days since he entered the gate, so staying a few more hours here shouldn’t pose any problems.
“Hm? What’s this?”
However, the time displayed on the phone was completely different from what Seonghyun had expected.
It had only been an hour since he first entered the gate.
“So time flows differently in those solo gates.”
Seonghyun tried to recall if there were any other solo gates in his memory, but unfortunately, up until just before his return, there were no further memories regarding it.
“Let’s check out a nearby gate for now.”
Although he wanted to enter a gate of a higher grade, he had consistently gone to the weaker gate because approval from the Association was required.
Besides, he still had to clear the daily quest anyway, so he needed to enter a gate.
As he entered the gate, there were quite a few hunters hunting today.
[Sage’s Exclusive Daily Quest Remaining Time: 3 hours]
“Three hours should be quite ample.”
Seonghyun leisurely ventured deeper.
The monsters near the gate seemed to have dried up, as weaker ones were hardly visible. The few that were visible were already engaged in battles with other hunters.
“Just a bit deeper…”
Seonghyun continued further into the depths.
After a while, he arrived at a rather familiar place.
“This is…”
It was the spot where Hanwook had collapsed before.
That meant there was a wolf-type monster in the area.
“If it were in the past, I’d have fled…”
But not now.
He felt a surge of confidence instead.
Though a little further on, that confidence might have turned into arrogance, Seonghyun didn’t let himself become one; he had already encountered a wolf-type monster before.
“Grr…”
The distant howl of the wolf-like monster echoed.
‘…Let’s go.’
Seonghyun concealed himself among the bushes.
Since he still knew nothing about whether this ability affected a single target or had a range, or how long it took to cast, facing a large number of foes might pose a bit of a challenge.
Approaching the source of the sound, he spotted the monster a short distance ahead.
‘Alone?’
No matter how much he scanned the surroundings, there were no signs or sounds of other monsters.
Seonghyun emerged from the bushes.
“Grr!”
The monster seemed to sense Seonghyun’s presence and immediately assumed a defensive posture.
‘Wait, defensive already?’
Wolf-type monsters had exceptionally keen senses.
This ability allowed them to distinguish whether their target was prey or predator.
Seonghyun could see the caution in the monster’s behavior, which wasn’t evident in their previous encounters.
“Just stay put.”
Seonghyun remained still, and the monster, despite maintaining its defensive stance, didn’t make any aggressive moves.
Seonghyun took out his phone, checked the current time, and activated Stigmata.
‘Stigmata.’
As soon as he activated it, the monster that had been on guard moments ago collapsed to the ground, whimpering in pain.
“…”
Maintaining his guard, Seonghyun cautiously approached the suffering monster.
Upon reaching the creature, it seemed to be in even more agony than before, writhing on the ground.
“Is it dying? How long does it take?”
Seonghyun sat on a nearby flat stone, observing the monster.
Was it actually possible for it to die from the pain inflicted by Stigmata? And if it did, how long would it take?
“Hmm…”
Seonghyun checked the time on his phone.
It took a whopping 10 minutes until the monster finally perished.
“Could this be considered a combat ability?”
While using Stigmata alone to kill seemed challenging, considering the creature couldn’t properly contain the pain, it might indeed be more related to curse-based abilities than outright lethal combat ones.
“This much is good enough.”
Seonghyun didn’t retrieve the essence of the monster and simply turned away.
“As for today’s quest…”
Given the high number of hunters entering the gate, there would likely be enough injured ones around.
While wandering near the gate, he heard voices nearby.
“Are you alright?”
“Yeah, it’s nothing.”
Confirming the source of the voices, Seonghyun saw a hunter gripping their ankle, sitting on the ground.
‘They seem fine.’
Seonghyun immediately appeared before the two.
“W-Who are you!”
“W-Who…”
Taken aback by Seonghyun’s sudden appearance, the two hunters remained cautious.
Since there were instances of hunters targeting other hunters within the gate, it was natural for them to be wary if an unknown hunter suddenly appeared when they were injured.
“…”
“Why are you…!”
“L-Let’s calm down first. Who are you?”
Surprisingly, the injured individual asked calmly.
It seemed they were well aware that provoking someone in their condition wouldn’t be beneficial.
“…”
Without saying a word, Seonghyun glanced at the injured hunter for a moment before departing.
[Sacrificial Spirit has enhanced the physical abilities.]
[Sage’s Exclusive Daily Quest completed.]
[Proficiency of healing ability increased.]
“Uh…?”
“Why? Did the pain worsen?”
“No, the pain’s gone…”
The two hunters glanced in the direction where the unfamiliar person had just been, but they realized that the hunter had already left.
“No way…”
“Nah… It couldn’t be. Why would he be…”
Yet the complete absence of any pain was turning their doubt into certainty.
‘Let’s head home now.’
Having completed the daily quest, Seonghyun returned home.
