As soon as Jia agreed, Si-hyun began preparing her elemental attack magic.

The easiest way to deal with monsters that obviously show their attributes was to attack based on their weaknesses.

- Zzzzt, zzzzt!

Mana began to swirl around Si-hyun.

Jia corrected her stance and stared straight ahead. The large waves of mana made the slimes drop one by one from the ceiling.

Thud! Thud!

With a squelching sound—

The ground touched by the chilling slime slowly began to freeze. The eerie sound of ice spreading echoed through the cave.

As Jia stepped forward, dozens of huge slimes charged toward her.

Some of the slimes, having stopped at mid-range, extended their bodies like tentacles. They struck down at Jia like whips.

“Not on my watch!”

Jia reacted skillfully. She dodged some of the approaching tentacles with a quick twist of her body, while slicing through the rest with her spear.

As she stepped lightly to the left and right, the number of tentacles decreased in an instant.

After a few similar maneuvers, all the tentacles attacking Jia were eliminated.

Though she had a brief moment to catch her breath, the remaining slimes quickly closed in on her.

One slime took a stance. Moments later, it leaped off the ground and charged at Jia at high speed.

‘Now…!’

Having already sensed the slime’s actions, Jia executed her combat skill with perfect timing.

Focusing her strength into her spear, which she held in a thrusting position, her smooth arm muscles tensed, drawing a delicate curve.

In that stance!

Jia thrust her spear forcefully at the oncoming slime.

Swish—thud!

The mana that had been swirling intensely around her spear shot forward with ferocity.

The fierce storm of mana struck directly at the slime’s core. Unable to withstand the force, the core shattered, and the slime’s body disintegrated.

But that wasn’t the end.

The mana that had burst the core didn’t stop; it continued to swirl forward, tearing through the remaining slimes behind it.

Jia quickly regained her stance.

She had killed one and temporarily incapacitated another. However, that was just a tiny fraction of the dozen that had charged at her.

Under normal circumstances, she would need to be cautious about her body becoming sluggish due to the cold.

But—

Jia was already feeling the tingling mana vibrating from behind her. Instinctively, she sensed that Si-hyun’s magic was about to be completed.

At that moment, Si-hyun shouted.

“Okay!”

Jia quickly pushed off the ground and backed away in front of Si-hyun.

Just then, the slime attacking Jia collided helplessly with the ground.

A loud crash echoed, but that was all.

Si-hyun thrust her sword forward.

The storm of swirling mana began to gather at the tip of her sword, and a small orb began to form, gradually increasing in size.

A brief moment of silence followed.

But soon—

KABOOM———!

The condensed flames erupted with a thunderous roar, shooting forward in a massive blaze.

The explosive sound reverberated throughout the cave.

Like a living creature, the swirling flames descended upon the slimes.

With the intense heat, the explosive force melted not just the monsters but even the cave floor beneath them.

Tap, tap…

Feeling the searing heat, Jia shielded her face with her arm. After a moment, as the heat settled, she peered through the gap between her fingers.

The once-mighty flames had vanished, leaving only embers still flickering.

Almost all the giant slimes had disappeared.

The only ones remaining were two slimes at the back. However, even they were battered and their bodies ragged, with their cores untouched but lacking any chill.

- Snap!

Si-hyun lightly flicked her fingers.

Then, mana arrows materialized above the slimes.

BAM—!

The remaining slimes met their end as well.

Jia blinked in disbelief.

She alternated her gaze between the place where the slimes had vanished and Si-hyun.

“Oh my god…”

It wasn’t the first time Jia had seen magic. 

While she hadn’t witnessed an S-rank magic hunter in action, she had seen A- and B-rank ones occasionally when she tackled high-level dungeons with others.

But…

“This is…”

Si-hyun had clearly stated her job was ‘Saint.’

Thanks to the memories of her original body, she was capable of using magic to some extent. After rolling on the battlefield, she had also learned how to be as sturdy as a paladin.

However, she had mentioned that her specialties were buffing and debuffing spells, as well as blessings.

‘Is this really just a level she can handle?’

In Jia’s mind, Si-hyun’s offensive magic had already surpassed B-rank. 

An A-rank hunter would at least need to compete.

With her arms lowered, Si-hyun approached Jia. 

Shyly smiling, she fiddled with the ends of her hair.

Glancing at Jia’s reaction, she said, “Um, I don’t have a staff or any tools to assist… so the efficiency is a bit lacking.”

It seemed like she was making excuses, as if her power was insufficient, while displaying an embarrassed expression.

“…Pfft, what is that?”

Unable to hold it back, Jia burst into laughter.

She slowly reached out her hand to Si-hyun.

Seeing her present such an extraordinary display of magic and yet worry about how others perceived her was both pitiful and, in a way, adorably cute. After all, she had an impressive appearance.

Jia gently patted Si-hyun’s head. 

Unlike in the morning, Si-hyun accepted the gesture with ease.

Jia whispered softly, “Si-hyun, you can be more confident. You were really amazing just now.”  
“Really?”  
“Yeah, you were the best! You’re the most impressive magician I’ve ever seen.”  
“…Hehe.”

A joyous smile bloomed on Si-hyun’s face.

Jia also smiled back at her.

* * *

As they continued their exploration of the dungeon, Jia and Si-hyun exchanged small talk.

“Si-hyun, I’m a bit worried about something.”  
“Huh? What is it?”  
“When you’re lecturing at the academy, you’re not too concerned about the students, are you?”  
“Not at all?”

As they walked ahead, Jia glanced sideways at Si-hyun’s face. She had a confident expression.

“Right! Just be confident! You’re the professor here.”  
“Of course! They’re all beneath me, anyway.”  
“…Huh?”

The term “beneath me” was quite direct.

Jia narrowed her eyes at Si-hyun.

She thought she understood. She had noticed Si-hyun’s reactions and the times she had been cautious.

‘Should I probe a bit more?’

Jia spoke lightly. 

“What do you think is the role of a saint in combat?”  
“Hmm…”

Si-hyun folded and unfolded her fingers as she pondered Jia’s question. 

After a moment, she opened her mouth. 

“Giving buffs, casting blessings, drawing aggro if the paladin struggles, and… if the dealer has trouble, dealing damage too? If there are any injuries, healing while filling in the roles. Hmm, and…”  
“Wait, hold on!”

“Huh? Why?”

With Si-hyun continuously listing the roles of a saint, Jia stopped her with a serious expression.

If she didn’t stop her, it seemed like Si-hyun would continue indefinitely. It was already enough.

She had already said with her own mouth that she could perform all the roles of tank, dealer, and support.

The idea that there was still more to add was simply absurd.

“If we’re talking about hunters, then a saint is a support-type hunter, right?”  
“…Right?”

Si-hyun looked at her with wide eyes, as if unsure of what Jia was getting at.

Jia shook her head and continued.

“A support can just heal from a safe distance to contribute their share. Safety first! Usually, just being cautious is impressive enough.”  
“…? What’s that? How can that be a share? Isn’t it just dead weight?”  
“The mere presence of one can change the party's stability!”  
“Hmm…?”

Si-hyun still looked confused.

Jia couldn’t help but bite her lower lip. 

Pointing out deeply ingrained misconceptions was no easy task.

It’s true that just being cautious could count as a contribution.

After all, there were hunters who couldn’t take care of themselves and needed escorts.

But even those were scarce.

That was why support-type hunters were treated as precious.

What about someone like Si-hyun? She was a jack-of-all-trades.

If she could fulfill all roles, then she should just do that.

It was incredibly idealistic, and it wasn’t something anyone could do—only Si-hyun had that outstanding ability.

This wasn’t something that was meant to be; it was purely because Si-hyun was exceptional.

The difference between ‘having to’ and ‘being able to’ was clear.

With a small sigh, Jia said.

“Phew… never mind, let’s focus on the dungeon today.”  
“Yeah, let’s do that!”

It was true that Si-hyun had only recently returned to Earth.

Jia recalled the saying, “Time is the best medicine.” She thought she just needed to consistently support and help her.

“Phew——”

Letting out a deep breath, Jia felt her resentment toward the heroes' party from another world ignite within her.

Every time she heard stories about them, she couldn’t help but think of them as vile beings.

She might never meet them.

But if they ever appeared before her—

She would pierce them with her spear.

“Ah, Jia! It’s the boss room.”  
“Already? We’re really fast!”

The two women exchanged nods as they looked at each other.

At that moment, Si-hyun smiled shyly and said.

“Can I do at least one share?”  
“Pfft, you’re already doing more than enough!”  

Jia laughed at Si-hyun’s joke.

Si-hyun also chuckled playfully.

Seeing her face, Jia thought that it didn’t seem necessary to worry too much.

Si-hyun would surely manage just fine.

With a suitable level of tension, the two women entered the boss room.