'The soldier bastards are obviously weaker than the boss.'
The average Level of monsters appearing in a D-rank dungeon was 30.
'My Level is 20, but my Skills make up for it, so it should be fine.'
There was no reason to hesitate against two subordinate monsters.
『 The effect of Skill 'Intimidation Lv.7' is activated. 』
The two soldiers approaching me immediately flinched and stopped. Some of their abilities decreased.
I kicked off the wall behind me and leapt up, raising my blade.
A blue straight line was drawn from left to right in a single motion. A powerful impact followed around the area where the line extended.
BOOM!
The two soldiers were still alive.
'Did they block it?'
Their swordsmanship was quite impressive for subordinate monsters. In that brief moment, they had raised their swords and blocked Straight Slash.
However, they could not nullify the shockwave that followed. The two soldiers lost their balance and tilted.
'Now.'
Like a beast hunting its prey, I quickly charged toward one of the soldiers. Before it could regain its stance, I used Straight Slash once again.
Slash—!
The blue line cut through its body. This time, it landed perfectly. An irreversible wound was carved into its armor.
The soldier's head turned toward me with a rattling motion, as if it could not accept what had happened. However, its body had already been split in two.
Clack, clack!
The remaining soldier, which I had failed to deal with, charged toward me. At the same time, I saw the boss on the edge of my vision preparing to fire a magical slash filled with power.
However, the first soldier lost its life.
At that moment, the victor was decided.
『 The effect of Trait 'Talent Adjustment (EX)' is activated. 』
『 Acquired Experience becomes 100,000 times greater. 』
『 Due to the effect of Trait Talent Adjustment: Limit Break, the increase rate of attributes becomes 1.2 times greater. 』
A pure white light began wrapping around my body violently. Amidst the brilliant baptism of light, I lightly jumped.
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.21. 』
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.22. 』
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.23. 』
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.24. 』
···
..
.
"!"
I only jumped slightly, but before I knew it, I was close enough to the ceiling to be startled. The effect of the increased attributes from leveling up was beyond imagination.
Of course, my surprise only lasted briefly. Adapting was not difficult.
『 The effect of Skill 'Perception Lv.10' is activated. 』
『 The effect of Skill 'Martial Arts Lv.10' is activated. 』
『 Two Skills assist with the drastically changed physical abilities. 』
Thanks to Perception and Martial Arts, I was able to adapt to my body quickly. It felt natural, as if these had always been my abilities.
I reached the area above the soldier's head in an instant. The soldier's sword cut through empty air, and the boss's magical attack, fired too late, struck the unfortunate dungeon wall.
BOOOOM!
Fragments and pieces of dust scattered.
Slash.
I lightly swung Soul Devourer and cut down the soldier. There was no need to use a Skill. The soldier, cut helplessly by Soul Devourer's blade, collapsed to the ground.
.
..
···
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.37. 』
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.38. 』
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.39. 』
『 Level Up! You have become Lv.40. 』
'So this is the difference in power that comes from Level.'
Before leveling up, my strength had only been at the very beginning of D-rank. But now, it was the same as the abilities of C-rank.
There was improvement in every aspect, including speed and strength.
The purple mist began swirling around the boss's blade again. However, the overwhelming pressure from before was no longer there.
I moved smoothly and avoided the slash. Several more slashes flew toward me, but they were not threatening at all.
I raised my head and looked at the boss. The mist surrounding it had become even thicker. That standoff continued for a moment.
The boss also seemed to possess intelligence, so it did not summon more soldiers. That would probably consume its magic power as well.
It was a shame, but it was fine.
'And I think I can do it now.'
Tap.
When I kicked off the ground and charged forward, I reached the boss's side in an instant. It felt as if I had become a high-rank hunter.
I swung my sword like a storm.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The blades collided, scattering blue sparks. The sword I swung was unbelievably light and free.
The difference from when I was Level 20 was obvious.
Since 20 Levels had increased at once, the sensation was even more significant.
Clang!
With every one of my attacks, the armored knight was pushed back heavily. The hand holding its sword twisted, and eventually the sword itself began to shake.
I continued pouring out attacks without pause.
Something was boiling inside me.
Sense and swordsmanship? Of course, they were important. But before that, what had to support them was undoubtedly Level.
The difference in attributes built through Level was overwhelming everything.
Clang!
Blue sparks flew as the armored knight's sword was pushed far backward.
I pulled Soul Devourer back and prepared Straight Slash.
At the same time, the darkness inside the helmet continued watching me. Even while staggering, it infused its sword with mist. The magical sword was about to be swung explosively.
However.
'This time, I'm faster.'
Simple yet precise.
『 Skill 'Straight Slash Lv.10' is activated. 』
Slash—.
A calm blue light stretched in a straight line from left to right.
Was it because my Level had increased? The power contained in Straight Slash was on an entirely different level. The blue line carved into space began releasing unprecedented pressure.
BOOOOM!
The boss's sword could not be swung.
Even the mist covering the armor was split apart, losing its form and scattering.
The unknown soul filling its interior also disappeared. The armor, cleanly divided diagonally, rolled uselessly across the floor.
『 Special Blade 'Soul Devourer' devours demonic energy. Attack Power +3 』
『 Effect of Causality Reversal Shop! 』
『 Level has reached its maximum, so Points are acquired instead of Experience. 』
『 You have acquired 213 Points. (Total amount held: 242p) 』
Messages appeared one after another. They were also messages announcing that the boss had completely died.
I wiped away the sweat running down my forehead.
'Haa.'
The difficulty was incredible for a D-rank dungeon. It must have been affected by demonic energy from somewhere.
Still, I raised the Mental Fortitude Skill and the Intimidation Skill. I also gained Levels efficiently. It was a perfect conquest.
A new message appeared in front of me as I smiled with satisfaction.
『 The dungeon boss has been defeated. 』
『 Clear rewards will be provided. 』
Unlike gates, dungeons had clear rewards.
'Finally.'
It was time to confirm the identity of the item that a Demon Force Commander might have used.
A red light softly descended before me. The dazzling light gradually settled and revealed the shape of an object.
Its identity was a ring.
An iron ring roughly carved from iron.
I picked it up.
At first glance, it was truly an ordinary ring. However, judging an item by appearance alone was a mistake.
I immediately checked the item information.
『 Item Information 』
'Hmm.'
I let out a troubled hum.
'It is impressive, but... It doesn't seem like something a Demon Force Commander would use.'
Of course, being able to gain 10 Defense from just one ring was an incredible advantage.
The Metal Armor Set I borrowed last time had only 25 Defense even when fully equipped.
But it felt too lacking to say that a Demon Force Commander used it.
Was the rumor false?
'There should be something...'
As I examined the information with suspicious eyes, I noticed the three question marks in the message window. I then checked the explanation below.
'The core function is sealed?'
Items with sealed abilities were occasionally discovered. Once the seal was removed, they gained special abilities, and the types and performances varied.
However, I knew a method to determine the type in advance.
'No one knows it now, but in the ruined world, it was common knowledge among most people.'
It was an item identification method widespread enough that even a poor hunter like me knew about it.
I approached the torch and carefully examined the inner part of the ring. A faint magical formula was engraved there.
It was impossible to read the contents exactly, but I could tell what it was.
At the end of the formula, there was a very tiny star mark.
'This is... amazing.'
After confirming the mark, the corners of my mouth rose without me realizing it. This might truly have been an item used by a Demon Force Commander.
Because.
This was a growth-type item.
'A growth-type item.'
Although it was still displayed as '???', once the seal was removed, it would reveal its original form.
Of course, if that was all, I would not have been this happy.
The most important part was this.
My Trait gave me 100,000 times more Experience.
And growth-type items...
'This is insane. Really.'
They grew through Experience.
Clang! Clang!
The boss was defeated, but there was still something left to do. The magic stones protruding densely from the wall behind the boss room.
They were all piles of money.
I took the hunter pickaxe I had purchased beforehand and mined those lovely things.
At first, I mined at an ordinary pace, but the more I mined, the faster I became.
『 Skill [ Mining Lv.1 ] has been acquired. 』
『 Skill [ Mining Lv.2 ] has been acquired. 』
···
『 Skill [ Mining Lv.10 ] has been acquired. 』
'Oh...'
Skills like this always leveled up ridiculously well. Both the Dissection Skill and the Mining Skill were like that.
It was when I focused on mining again.
Thud thud thud thud!
Suddenly, my hands began striking the dungeon wall insanely fast, extracting magic stones. Every hit caused magic stones to pop out, and I did not even get tired.
I slightly turned my gaze and checked the message.
『 Skill [ Mining Lv.11 ] has been acquired. 』
『 Additional Effect: Digging power increases by 35%, and Stamina consumption during mining decreases by 50%. 』
'Convenient.'
Perhaps because it was a non-combat Skill, the effect was absurd. I had literally become an excavator and could harvest magic stones.
I placed all of them into the bag with the Storage Skill attached. The 14 million won bag was finally proving its worth.
'I can continue using the bag, and the profit I gained this time is much greater.'
In the end, it had been a good investment.
After collecting all the magic stones, I took all the items and left the dungeon.
"Whoo."
When I took a deep breath, the fresh night air of the mountain spread throughout my lungs. It felt refreshing.
'Fresh mountain air really is better than the stale dungeon air.'
Before I knew it, it was a dark night. That made sense, since I had been there for quite a long time. It was a large amount of magic stones to mine alone. I had only reached Skill Level 11 at the very end.
I glanced at the magic stones inside the bag.
'If I sell all of these...'
Wouldn't I get around 100 million won?
'The effect of the Potion of Wealth Acquisition is definitely real.'
Thinking about the amount made the corners of my mouth rise. There had been so many good things that my mouth almost hurt.
Yes, this was the life of a hunter.
A life of entering dungeons and gates while sweeping up money.
A life where resources and fame rose according to my abilities.
Before returning, all I could do was watch the backs of other hunters while sucking my fingers. But now, I had conquered a dungeon alone and slaughtered monsters. It felt surreal.
'I want to be happy about this, but...'
The problem was that the world could not possibly remain peaceful like this.
'Those damn demons.'
While descending the mountain, I raised my head and looked at the night sky.
Because of the city lights, the stars were hard to see. Due to light pollution, it was just a black night sky. But strangely, that made me feel more at ease.
Before returning, the night sky had been filled with stars.
Because there were no human lights left in the ruined world.
'If we fail to stop the demons' invasion, money or anything else will ultimately become meaningless.'
I was the only person in this world who knew of the despair that would come. Even the information broker Baekmuk did not know yet.
'There might be people communicating with demons, but...'
Even they did not believe the world would be destroyed.
By the time the public began noticing their existence, the demons had already finished preparing to swallow this world.
By then, it would be too late.
'I have to stop their plans as much as possible beforehand.'
The knowledge, abilities, and a little money needed for that were in my hands.
I lowered my head and focused on continuing down the mountain.
The night air was cold, but my heart felt reassured by the weight of the bulging bag.
Thud.
After arriving home, I placed the bag down in a corner of the room. It was worth a full 100 million won.
'Selling all of it at once will be difficult. For now, I'll sell small amounts whenever I need living expenses.'
I was still just a lone hunter without a guild. Selling this much at once would only create unnecessary suspicion. Even if it had nothing to do with demons, it would become troublesome in many ways.
'Besides magic stones, there will be quite a few valuable items I obtain in the future.'
A normal merchant would not be enough to sell all of those.
I took out the business card I had received yesterday.
A simple design with a pure white logo on a black background. Unusually for a business card, it did not have a title written on it.
From now on, I planned to sell magic stones and items through Baekmuk.
'If I establish a sales route through Baekmuk, there shouldn't be a problem.'
The commission would probably be considerable, but when it came to quiet and discreet handling, there was no one more trustworthy than Baekmuk.
'He asked me to contact him in a week.'
For now, I had gained his favor, so there was no problem.
However, to establish continuous business with Baekmuk, I needed to present a satisfying bait. I had already thought about that.
'The best outcome would be for Baekmuk to make a proposal to me.'
I organized my thoughts appropriately and sat down.
'There is still something important left to settle.'
It was about my Level.
Ding.
I raised my finger and called up the information window.
『 Status 』
Name: Lee Jihan
Age: 24
Level: 40 [Locked]
Rank: D
Trait: Talent Adjustment (EX)
Points Held: 313 Points
The Level that had only been 20 this morning had risen to 40. If I removed the lock immediately, I would be able to level up tremendously right away.
But I did not do that.
'Because there is a way to become much stronger.'
Raising Level and increasing Rank was something previous hunters had all done. However, even those SSS-rank hunters who became that strong could not stop the demons.
Simply raising Level was not enough. I needed to become overwhelmingly strong.
Ding.
I touched the part marked 'Locked.'
A quest appeared due to the special effect of my Trait, 'Limit Break.'
'What kind of quest and reward will appear this time?'
『 Having reached the maximum Level 40, a new quest has been issued. 』
『 Due to the effect of 'Talent Adjustment: Limit Break,' items will be supplied. 』
Filled with anticipation, I rubbed my hands together.
Considering the rewards I had received so far,
there was no way I could not be excited.