I had killed quite a few Kiraks.
I hadn’t counted them, but surely I’d killed more than fifty?
Perhaps that was why Messages announcing increases to my stats had appeared.
[Vitality has increased +1]
[Attack Power has increased +1]
[Defense has increased +1]
[Evasion has increased +1]
I had grown even stronger.
Moreover, I had obtained my first Skill.
[You have awakened the Skill ‘Swing (F)’!]
I was pleased that my stats had increased, but the Skill interested me even more.
It was a Skill that would immediately help me swing my sword.
‘It’s a well-known Skill.’
Swing was a Skill possessed by most Hunters.
That also meant it was common, but that did not matter in the slightest.
“Who cares if it’s common? As long as it helps me in battle, that’s all that matters. Oh! Another one’s here?”
I cheerfully swung my sword at the Kirak charging toward me.
My mindset had changed after my stats increased and I obtained a Skill.
Fighting them no longer felt tedious. Instead, I found myself wanting to encounter even more Kiraks.
SLASH—!
After swinging my sword at the charging Kirak...
I opened the information for the Swing Skill.
【Swing】
[Grade] F
[Description] Attack Power increases when swinging something
It was a simple explanation.
However, it also felt somewhat unhelpful.
It would have been nice if it told me exactly how much it increased my Attack Power.
“SKRREEK!”
“SKREEK! SKREEK!”
More Kiraks charged toward me.
It seemed I would have to test the effects of Swing myself.
SLASH—! SHNK—! SHNK—!
Every time I swung the Limitless Sword, a Kirak fell dead.
I dispatched the two Kiraks in an instant.
“Ah, so that’s what it feels like?”
The battle had been brief, but I had clearly felt the Skill’s effects.
Although Swing was an F-grade Skill, the lowest grade, it was still quite useful.
“It doesn’t seem to raise my Attack Power by much, but it definitely made me stronger.”
It took less force to cut through the Kiraks.
My movements also became slightly more agile whenever I swung the sword.
I wanted to spend more time testing it, but...
“Getting out of here comes first.”
Before I knew it, I had arrived at my destination—the Dungeon’s exit.
Although it was called an exit, it was actually a Gate connected to Earth.
I pushed myself into the oval-shaped Gate that emitted an ominous light.
SWOOSH—!
The instant a flash filled my vision...
My surroundings changed, accompanied by a nauseating wave of motion sickness.
‘I…… made it out.’
Only moments ago, I had been inside a Dungeon where Monsters could attack at any time.
Now, I was back on Earth.
The world where I lived.
***
Now that I had successfully escaped the Dungeon...
“Whew…….”
The thought that I had reached safety made all the tension leave my body.
My legs immediately began trembling, and my heart pounded violently.
Everything I had experienced inside the Dungeon felt like a dream.
“Calm down. It’s over now. There’s almost no chance I’ll be attacked by Monsters here.”
I was trying to put myself at ease when...
“Aaaaaah!”
A scream rang out.
Startled by the sudden noise, I looked around.
‘Monsters?!’
I saw Monsters.
They were attacking people, while the terrified civilians fled from them.
Several Hunters were fighting the Monsters, but they were severely outnumbered.
Moreover, the Monsters were Kiraks—the same creatures I had been fighting only moments ago.
‘Is there another Gate nearby?’
I had not seen any Kiraks escape from the Dungeon I had been in.
That meant another Gate might exist nearby, and that Gate was connected to a Kirak Dungeon.
In any case...
Something that rarely occurred had happened.
People were in danger, and they were actually being injured and killed.
“Ha…….”
Memories of the past resurfaced.
I saw myself being attacked by a Monster.
I saw my mother and father throw themselves in front of me to protect me.
And then...
I saw the Monster mercilessly attack them.
GRIND—!
My teeth ground together.
“It’s a memory I never wanted to recall…… but those Kirak bastards dragged it back up.”
Rage surged within me.
CLENCH!
My grip tightened around the Limitless Sword.
At that moment...
“SKRREEK!”
“SKRREEEK!”
“SKREEK! SKREEK!”
Three Kiraks charged toward me, their mouths split into wide grins as though they had discovered their prey.
“Yeah, come on.”
I charged at them as well.
WHOOSH—!
Using the momentum from my sprint, I swung my sword.
The Limitless Sword might have looked ancient, but it was actually an extraordinary weapon.
WHOOSH—! SLICE—!
The moment I swung it, the bodies of two Kiraks were severed in half.
SLASH—!
I swung the sword again and cut through the remaining Kirak along with its weapon.
“SKREEK……!”
The three Kiraks died with almost anticlimactic ease.
I had already experienced this countless times inside the Dungeon, so I was neither surprised nor relieved.
There were still far too many Monsters left to kill.
SLASH—! SLAAASH—! SHNK—!
I killed every Kirak I saw.
Kiraks attacking civilians.
Kiraks chasing civilians in order to attack them.
Kiraks fighting other Hunters.
No matter what a Kirak was doing, I swung my sword at it.
SLAAASH—!
Just as they had inside the Dungeon...
The Kiraks could not withstand my sword.
One swing killed one Kirak.
It was also common for two to be sliced apart at once.
‘Calm down.’
I kept telling myself that throughout the battle.
I had to suppress the rage surging within me.
‘I need to stay calm. If I fight while worked up, I could be the one who gets hurt.’
I did not want to get myself killed or injured because I had failed to control my emotions.
I wanted to remain composed and kill as many Monsters as possible.
As I continued killing Kiraks without rest...
[Vitality has increased +1]
[Attack Power has increased +1]
[Defense has increased +1]
[Evasion has increased +1]
[Magic Resistance has increased +1]
My combat stats increased.
Furthermore...
[You have awakened the Skill ‘Thrust (F)’!]
I obtained a new Skill as well.
【Thrust】
[Grade] F
[Description] Attack Power increases when thrusting with something
Like Swing, it was common enough that almost every Hunter possessed it.
Even so, it was a Skill that would be useful to me.
Increases to my stats and the Awakening of a new Skill...
Under normal circumstances, they would have drawn a great deal of my attention.
However...
My attention was now fixed elsewhere.
‘Oh……!’
A new Message had appeared in real time.
Its contents were far too shocking to ignore.
[The first seal on the ‘Limitless Sword’ has been released.]
[You can now view some information about the ‘Limitless Sword’.]
***
BZZZT! BZZZZZT!
A powerful vibration buzzed from the smartphones of people throughout Seoul.
『Gate detected in Seoul’s XX District! Monsters are currently emerging from it! The Monsters have been identified as E-rank ‘Kiraks,’ and nearby civilians are in danger!』
『Multiple Kiraks are emerging from a Gate in Seoul’s XX District! Civilians’ lives are currently at risk. Hunters in the vicinity are requested to provide immediate support!』
『Monster attack occurring in Seoul’s XX District! Nearby civilians must evacuate immediately!』
They were emergency alerts that also requested support.
In a world where Gates, Monsters, Dungeons, and Hunters existed, such incidents occasionally occurred.
However...
They were also something people could never become accustomed to.
“Aaaaagh! Help me!”
“Please help us, Hunter! My friend was attacked! Please help!”
“Aaargh! My leg! My leg’s been cut by a sword……!”
E-rank Monsters known as Kiraks.
Several Hunters had stepped forward to stop the creatures’ brutal rampage, but they were outnumbered and struggling.
Naturally, the number of civilian casualties continued to rise.
WHIRRR! WHIRRRR!
Several drones flew through the sky.
Some belonged to broadcasting stations covering the situation live.
Others belonged to people livestreaming the incident on platforms such as YouTube.
Surprisingly, the YouTubers’ livestreams had the largest number of live viewers.
That was because they showed the unfolding situation in all its graphic detail.
- Look at all those people getting hurt and killed…… This is horrifying.
- Damn…… This is really bad, isn’t it? There are way too many Kiraks.
- The Hunters are struggling, but at this rate, this is going to turn into a disaster……! They need backup fast, don’t they?
-What the fuck!!!! There are tons of guilds in Seoul!!!! What the hell are all of them doing?
-The Hunter Association stuffs itself with our tax money, but it’s always late when something like this happens. This is seriously infuriating.
The mood among the livestream viewers was grim.
They were watching people being killed and eaten in real time.
It might have been different if the Hunters had been eliminating the Monsters quickly, but instead, they were being driven back.
In the midst of all this...
- Huh? Another person arrived!
A man who appeared to be a Hunter emerged.
He wore worn-out leather armor and carried an ancient-looking sword.
- He looks like a rookie Hunter. Isn’t he just going to get killed by a Kirak if he jumps in?
- He looks like a total fucking pushover. Hey! Don’t fight! Just get out of there!
- For fuck’s sake…… Of all the backup to arrive, why did it have to be someone like that? Is he even registered as a Hunter? Look at his armor. It looks like an antique from a hundred years ago. Does that thing even provide any protection?
└ Seriously, I’ve never seen armor that worn-out. Is customizing armor to look vintage some new trend?
└ That isn’t vintage. He just looks broke as hell.
└ LOL, as if that crap would ever become trendy. And that sword looks like it’ll snap after a single swing.
The livestream viewers reacted negatively.
However, the moment the shabby-looking man swung his sword...
The atmosphere changed.
- Holy shit! He swung his sword once and sliced apart two Kiraks!
- What??? That guy really is a Hunter? He’s killing Kiraks ridiculously easily……?
- A Kirak dies every time he swings his sword! Whoa! He just cut straight through the sword and shield too!
- His hunting speed is fucking insane;;; He’s fighting unbelievably well with that worn-out sword;;;;
- Kiraks are E-rank Monsters, right? Since he’s killing E-rank Monsters in one hit, he must be at least D-rank.
└ He’s probably C-rank. Even a D-rank Hunter would have trouble killing Kiraks in one hit like that.
└ I’m an active Hunter. That guy is clearly a veteran who deliberately runs around wearing trash armor and carrying a trash sword. Judging by how he’s killing Kiraks in one hit with that piece-of-shit sword, he has to be at least a B-rank Hunter.
The livestream viewers had initially responded negatively.
Now, they excitedly began cheering for the shabby-looking man.
- Go, Shabby Hunter!!!!! Cut down every last one of those Kirak bastards!!!!!
- Let’s go!!!!!!
- He’s already killed twenty-two Kiraks! His hunting speed is fucking insane!
- Live viewers just passed fifty thousand!!!! The numbers have been shooting up ever since the Shabby Hunter appeared!!!!!
- LOL, but why does his sword swing look so awkward? He’s definitely strong, but isn’t his swordsmanship pretty bad?
└ Shut up and cheer for him! Strength is all that matters!
└ Plenty of Hunters are strong despite having ugly fighting forms. Stop talking ignorant shit and just watch the stream.
- Oooooh! He almost killed three at once! The last one wasn’t cut all the way through. So close!
It happened at that moment.
The people watching the livestream tilted their heads in confusion.
They had witnessed a sudden change.
- What was that? His sword lit up. Did anyone else see that flash just now?
└ I saw it too! It lit up for a second! Huh? Everyone, look at his sword! Doesn’t it look less worn-out than before?
- The sword’s appearance definitely changed. It went from a really fucking worn-out sword to a somewhat less fucking worn-out sword.
└ LOL, so it’s still an old sword either way.
- Can a sword’s appearance change like that? I’ve never seen an Item like that.
└ I’m an active Hunter, and I’ve never seen anything like it either.
Then...
They were soon left dumbfounded.
- Wait! What the hell is with that guy?! Why did he suddenly get stronger? Did you see that? He cut down three Kiraks at once!!!!
- What happened……? Did his stats increase? But he seems far too much stronger for it to be just a stat increase……?
- Holy shit! He’s killing Kiraks even faster!
- How can someone suddenly become stronger……? Was he hiding his strength……?
- No way! His movements are completely different now!
***