Author: Xerenity

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74. Level Up for You and Me

We entered the dungeon after cleaning up the mess of alcohol in the cart.

Ho Jin naturally followed into the dungeon at my request.

Jong Ho had his eyes half open in a drunken stupor.

“Ho Jin hyung! Why did we go to the dungeon for our second round of drinking! And it’s not been long since we just finished hunting…. Hic!”

“Woah… I think we’ll have to put Jong Ho hyung to sleep first?”

“Hoho. I think he’s pretty drunk. But Min-Cheol, why did we come to the dungeon?”

“Ah.”

I handed the ring on my finger to Ho Jin and spoke.

Instead of explaining with words, it would be faster if he saw it firsthand.

“This. This is the solution to our problem.”

“Huh? This ring is?”

“What? Me too! I want to put the ring on too!”

“Do you have tranquilizer gun? If not, maybe with brute force… But I’m not sure if I can control my strength.”

“Oh no. That would be very bad. You can just lend him the Titan Boots that you are wearing for a bit. Since being drunk also counts as a status effect.”

“Oh… So there was such a method. Then shall we try it?”

I took off the Titan Boots and had Jong Ho wear them.

Suddenly, Jong Ho snapped out of his stupor almost as if he had never been drunk in the first place.

I spoke to him, who was looking around confusedly as if he had come back from time traveling.

“Are you okay now?”

“Oh. When did Min-Cheol arrive? Isn’t this the level 14 dungeon? I’m sure that I was in the middle of drinking with Ho Jin hyung…”

“That’s not important right now. You can look for the lost films of your memory later. First, take a look at this.”

“What’s so important?”

“Mister, you have the Piercing Sword, right?”

“Yes, I do have it.”

“I’ll draw a few succubi over here, so will you cast it for me? It’ll help in understanding the ability of the ring.”

Finishing my explanation, I cast Mass Stealth Jutsu on Jong Ho and Ho Jin, and then charged at the succubi.

I saw a decently sized group.

Using Explosion, I pulled their aggro.

Despite how Explosion shouldn’t disappear until the target was burnt into nothingness, it must feel like an annoying fly due to their 100% magic resistance.

I received the attacks with my Mana Shield until I got to the entrance.

I spoke to the stealthed Ho Jin.

“Mister. Try using Piercing Sword.”

“Yes. Will do.”

Since it was a skill that only hit the selected targets of the wielder, Ho Jin prepared to cast Piercing Sword without much hesitation.

I wouldn’t be targeted after all.

Even if it hit me, I wouldn’t receive any major damage.

Roughly a hundred Banwol Jincheons floated behind Ho Jin and flew towards the succubi.

With the attack, Ho Jin’s stealth broke and the succubi screamed out pain as they bled.

“You have to at least leave one!”

“Yes.”

“Mister. What’s your skill level right now?”

“32. Thanks to the recent leveling and Banwol Jincheon, they die in about two hits.”

“Hm… The mana cost is roughly 10% of max mana, right?”

“That’s correct.”

I stepped on the corpses of the dead succubi lying around, and it didn’t take long for them to turn into Revival Succubi.

To take out the revived succubi, a total of 50% mana was used, in other words, 5 Piercing Swords were cast.

Even if they both spent all their mana, it was be too much for Jong Ho and Ho Jin to defeat the incubus in one go, since that boss would revive all the succubi in the dungeon.

“Now, try wearing the ring I gave you.”

Jong Ho, who was looking at the entire situation quietly, spoke up in a whining manner.

Since the situation was being dragged away from drinking into the dungeon with Ho Jin, after all.

“Hey. Are you here to spy on our hunting?”

“No way. I’m here to solve your worries.”

“I’ve equipped it.”

It was a ring without any patterns or indentations, half transparent and green.

“Is there any change in your stat window?”

“No. Is it a ring with stats? It feels like I’ve just put on a grandma’s garakji ring? Hoho…..” “Now, please hold onto Banwol Jincheon with the hand that has the ring equipped and wait a bit. I’ll be pulling the succubi again.”

“Yes… I’ll do that.”

Ho Jin’s face was filled with questions as he answered me.

I pulled hundreds of succubi within the dungeon.

Flapping their wings, they chased in a line without end.

Confirming my actions, Jong Ho and Ho Jin couldn’t hide their nervous looks as they clenched their swords.

The monsters neared as they simultaneously poured their attacks on me.

I spoke towards the very nervous looking Ho Jin.

“Mister. Focus as hard as you can on the ring and cast Piercing Sword.”

“Focus on the ring?”

“Yes. You have to continue focusing on it.”

“Min-Cheol, please take the Banwol Jincheon. Ho Jin hyung is almost out of mana, so it’s probably better that you take care of them?”

“Observe carefully, hyung-nim.”

Summoned around Ho Jin was a sword aura that couldn’t even be compared to the previous one.

On top of that, the red smoke that was coming off made it impossible to not notice the destructive force behind it.

It was because a level 200 Awakened Piercing Sword was summoned on standby to annihilate the enemy.

“Wha… What is this!”

“… I’m not sure of it either.”

“Try attacking now, with the goal of leaving roughly two of them alive.”

-SLICE!

Only the sound of the air splitting apart was heard.

However, all the succubi in the vicinity were annihilated before they could even utter a scream.

It was the same with the ones that regenerated.

There was no point to them rising up, as they met the cold floor once more.

“Im… Impossible.”

“How did this happen? Isn’t this an Awakened Piercing Sword?”

The name of the ring was called Balrok’s Treasure Storage.

It wasn’t a ring with an ability that raised any defensive or offensive stats.

It had a far more powerful ability.

It allowed one to save skills into the ring, including the level of the skill.

There was no limit as to how many you could store.

You’re probably wondering how I found out the ability of the ring, since there was no information out there regarding the ring that drops from the level 34 hidden dungeon boss.

It was thanks to the Eye of Insight.

After the skill went through a second Awakening via the defective Awakening Essence, the skill gained the ability to identify objects on top of the original effect of seeing through stealth and identifying weak points.

Just by casting the skill and looking at objects, I would be able to discover the ability of the object and how to use it.

Thus, I would be able to identify all the loot I get from now on with this.

I was trying to Awaken a skill that wasn’t all that important to hunting, but I scored a pretty powerful ability in the process.

“What about your mana?”

“Seems I have 50% left… It didn’t go down at all except for what I used before.”

“What? Your mana wasn’t consumed?”

“How about that? Guess your worries are solved now, hyung?”

“It’s a ring that allows me to use Awakened Piercing Sword?”

“No. It allows me to store any skill I can use.”

“I’ve never heard of a ring that has that ability.”

“Same here.”

“I’ve put in roughly 100 Piercing Swords in there. Now, you just have to take out a Piercing Sword from the ring each time you hunt.”

“…..”

“…..”

They couldn’t help but stare at me blankly, absolutely speechless.

I couldn’t help but laugh, since they looked so funny.

“Ah. I’ll put in Meteor or Iceberg, as well as the whole lot in there, so once you level up enough to have the defensive capabilities, go enter the dungeons that require magic attacks. The wearer can check how many spells are left for each type, so get some refills from me time to time. It would be great if it could store shields as well, but seems it can’t.”

“S-Sure…”

“Yes… I understand…”

“Since the two of you hunt together, I think one will be enough. But if another drops, I’ll give it to you. And that’s the end of the new product showcasing. Let’s go!”

****

Just like that, the explanation of Balrok’s Treasure Storage ring was completed.

Even during the drive back home with the completely sober Jong Ho, I continued to save Piercing Sword into the ring.

Even if they entered the dungeon to the point where the coating of the IDs were coming off, it should be plenty for a couple days’ worth of use.

That’s how the meet up with the hyungs ended, and I arrived home.

Normally I would be so tired that I would just shower and fall asleep, but I couldn’t do that today.

Since I had the Eye of Insight, I could find out about the transparent marble, as well as the condition required to equip the twin blades Joker used.

Taking into consideration that mother had sensitive ears at night, I headed quietly into my room.

On top of my desk were the twin blades and marble.

It’s been a week of transferring them back and forth from the table to my pocket in order to find out what they really were.

Holding the transparent marble in my hand, I began to scan it with the Eye of Insight.

-Pae Wang’s Marble- ¹

*Can be obtained by defeating Alloss in the Unknown Dungeon.

*Recovers all health and mana upon use.

*Body becomes immortal for 1 minute upon use.

*Become twice as powerful for 1 minute upon use.

“This isn’t a joke.”

This item called Pae Wang’s Marble surprised me a lot with its ability.

I suspected that it had recovery properties, since Joker was looking for it desperately when he was nearing his death.

But to think that it was this powerful…

Recovering all of your health and mana, along with cheat-like buffs.

If Joker had consumed this, the tide of battle would have changed in a split second.

But there was one thing that bothered me, the ‘Unknown Dungeon.’

Far as I knew, the dungeons formed were based on the number of growth rings on the portal.

The number of rings indicated the level of the dungeon.

Thus the dungeons were categorized separately depending on their level.

There are exceptions where words such as manticore or succubus can be added to the dungeon name due to the special types of monsters appearing within.

There is a possibility that there is a monster with the name Unknown, but it was more likely that it literally meant of a dungeon that cannot be known.

“Is it a dungeon beyond level 34? Something you could obtain from there… It would be easily plausible with Joker’s offensive and evasion capabilities.”

I questioned it for a bit, then let my gaze rest on the table to check the twin swords he left behind.

-Asura’s Twin Blades-

*Can be obtained from the Unknown Dungeon by defeating Kawuro.

*Strength increased by 600~700. (15% of total strength increased)

*Dexterity increased by 200~300. (15% of total dexterity increased)

*(Seal) Cannot be used by anyone except the one who originally obtained it.

“He blew himself in front of me while holding a weapon like this?”

The weapon I used, Banwol Jincheon, increased my strength by 400 and 10% of my total strength on top of that.

A M/A ranked sword. It’s an A ranking weapon that only monsters drop.

Only a few would have this, and weapons beyond that ranking would be extremely difficult to see.

But this Asura’s Twin Blades had the 600 strength increase, and the bonus percentage stats to boot.

Sadly, this weapon that I suspected to require a special condition to be met in order to be used would not allow anyone but Joker to use it.

I finally understood why there was no change when Jong Ho, Ho Jin, and I held it.

I felt that I could trust the Eye of Insight a bit more now.

Rather than leveling up to increase my stamina stat, it would probably help more in increasing my combat capabilities by obtaining a better weapon, accessories, and armor.

My curiosity and expectation for the Unknown Dungeon increased.

“The marble and even the weapon. Seems this Unknown Dungeon sounds really enticing?”

---

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73. It Is Slowly Being Solved

The hunt with Jong Ho and Ho Jin allowed them to hit level 110 in a single day.

Despite the giant leap in growth, they decided not to graduate from the succubus dungeon, but instead clear it as a duo since they would receive a far greater amount of experience from the level 14 succubus dungeon with its numerous monsters rather than the level 15 dungeon.

They continued to grow stronger in preparation for the level 19 dungeon they would be going to later.

They were in the same boat as me.

With Banwol Jincheon’s in each hand, they looked energetic as they entered the dungeon.

It’s been two days since I headed for the level 34 dungeon.

As usual, I casted Warp to head to the desolate region.

Since I hunted for over 12 hours, the cooldown of Warp wasn’t important.

The Warp skill had levels and experience, but one would wonder why because despite the levels increasing, the cooldown didn’t decrease and nothing changed.

A dungeon that did not require anything for entry.

And a difficulty that was so high, it couldn’t be cleared by anyone but me.

You could say it was a dungeon just for me.

I mean, the monsters replicate the same attack it receives.

On top of that, it takes 10 A+ ranking attack skills to destroy them.

Of course, other Awakened magicians could attack, but it would be impossible for them to receive the replicated counter attack.

If I did not have infinite mana and Mana Shield, it would be impossible for me as well.

I didn’t let the feeling of superiority stay for long.

Suddenly, I felt a sense of dread.

What if level 34 portals that may exist all over the place suddenly explode?

Just like how the first level 29 portal exploded recently, it wouldn’t end easily.

It would cause chaos and destruction far greater than when the portals first began forming 40 years ago.

Shaking off the heavy feeling in my heart that I didn’t know why I felt, I focused on hunting.

The only item that dropped in this dungeon were bloodstones.

Since no bosses appeared after each clear, I assumed that there was a hidden boss.

The encounter rate would be probably the same as the ones I’ve met so far.

So 5 days of hunting wouldn’t be enough.

It wouldn’t appear that easily.

Only the reverberation from Meteor Call could be heard in the dungeon.

All the Meteor Calls I cast plus 30 monsters casting them back.

The force of impact and flames were enough to deform the dungeon’s interior.

It didn’t take 5 minutes to turn the snow white dungeon into a demolished field.

I thought to use Iceberg to try preventing their counterattacks, but since it could serve as obstacles for me if they do succeed in returning them, I avoided doing so.

“My Mana Shield is shaking so much that I can barely see in front of me.”

I couldn’t see their forms, but I was targeting the red dots that I could see from Eye of Insight with Meteors.

Between the red dots, I could see something floating.

Almost like a zebra stuck in a crowd of oxen.

It was only after the 30 monsters perishing and the Meteor attacks to finish before I could see it.

“Awakened Essence?”

Amongst the bloodstones was an Awakened Essence.

I wasn’t very excited because I had already gathered plenty using the Lizardman Gauntlets.

If there is one thing that was surprising, it was that the essence that you can only get from bosses dropped from a regular monster, I guess?

However, you could tell it was shaped differently from regular essences if you looked up close.

A regular essence would was roughly the size of a thumb with the colors of the rainbow, and the surface was smooth like a pebble.

However, the item in my hand had a different shape.

Despite that, I still believed it to be an Awakened Essence.

“The once smooth surface is rough…. But I’m pretty sure it’s still an Awakened Essence.”

It was a pointless thought, but I had doubts that this could possibly be a defective item.

Probably because the shape was different.

“For now, let’s try using it.”

It wasn’t that dangerous because Awakened Essences weren’t orally consumed, but used like skill books where you put it on your chest and confirm after you hear the sound from the system.

How nice would it be if the transparent marble I got from Joker worked the same way.

I held the essence to my chest.

[Please select the skill to Awaken]

“Hm… guess this is an essence.”

I did hear the narration to pick the skill I want to Awaken.

The shape was different, but I was sure that it was an Awakened Essence.

Since I didn’t think of a skill ahead to Awaken, I chose the Frost Orb that I did not Awaken even after hitting level 100 on it, and held the essence on my chest once more.

[Ineligible skill for Awakening]

“Huh?”

Frost Orb had definitely hit level 100.

Despite the skill ranking being so low, it should be possible to Awaken.

But almost as if the essence was picky of the ranks, it refused.

“So it is defective. Maybe I should smash it with Meteor.”

[Will you Awaken Meteor Call?]

“…. What is it saying? I already Awakened Meteor a long time ago.”

Before I threw the Awakened Essence to the ground in frustration, I stopped for a second.

And looking at the defective stone held in my hand, I thought for a bit.

This is the level 34 dungeon, something that humankind hadn’t been able to approach.

Other than the bloodstones, information on the items that drop here isn’t found anywhere.

You could tell just from the monsters shaped like portals, because they aren’t named.

And this was the essence I obtained from a place like this.

Everyone knew that the max level of the skill was level 200.

But what if there are levels beyond that?

Perhaps it was possible to raise the level of a skill beyond 200 with this essence.

“Like the transparent marble, with each passing day, more questions crop up.”

It would be impossible to get information on this from anyone.

It was something only I could solve on my own.

I could level up the skills without much difficulty due to my infinite mana.

If it’s a skill without cooldowns, I could master it in about four to five days at the most.

But I can’t let this get in the way of hunting I need right now.

“A skill that’s level 200 but doesn’t affect my hunting much. And since it could fail, a skill with no cooldowns so I can level it up quickly would be best.”

Looking at the skill menu, I made my choice.

“I’ll pick Eye of Insight.”

What if this defective essence really allows for a skill to Awaken another time?

You could say that I’ve made a huge mistake, since I used it on a support skill rather than on an attack skill.

But instead of having something yet being unable to use it due to not knowing how it works, it would be better to at least experiment like this.

I had no regrets with my choice.

[Will you Awaken Eye of Insight?]

I heard the narration and agreed without any hesitation.

The stone gave off bright light and immediately dissipated.

Opening the skill menu again, I was surprised.

-Eye of Insight ** Lv. 1 [0%]

“That’s crazy. Two stars….”

****

“Hyung. Shall we call it a day?”

Jong Ho spoke to Ho Jin while wiping the blood off his sword and armor.

Hunting with Min-Cheol had allowed him to hit level 110, which made him very satisfied of his growth.

It was a growth that would normally take a year, but he had achieved it in a single day.

It was the same with Ho Jin.

Ho Jin answered Jong Ho after confirming that he finished wiping the blood off his wristwatch.

“Should we?”

“Since the weekend starts tomorrow, do you want to have some soju someplace?”

“Hoho. If my wife knew, I’d be in a lot of trouble…”

“Then you want to head in early?”

“It’ll probably be okay if I just take a small sip?”

“Of course! Let’s go, hyung-nim!”

Both of them headed for the small food cart next to the dungeon.

Since it was already late, many Awakened were taking their fill after finishing their hunt.

The two sat at a corner, ordering soju and a light meal. While they waited, they continued the conversation.

Jong Ho spoke as if whispering first.

“What about the surveillance?”

He was probably talking about the surveillance that stuck to him daily after he quit the association.

Probably heard about it in the car when Min-Cheol left to fight with Joker.

Ho Jin spoke as he chewed on a cucumber in front of him.

“There’s none today.”

“Since it’s Friday, they must’ve left work early?”

“Hohoho! Could be. Right. Isn’t Min-Cheol just about done with hunting? Why don’t you give him a call?”

“Eh. Unless I contact him first, he usually doesn’t call.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. He must be very busy.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“He said he needs to go to school soon, so he’s doing his best.”

“Hm? School?”

“Yes. He says he can’t do anything about it because it’s mandatory.”

“Oho. I’ll take care of that myself. In this situation, school isn’t that important, right?”

“Ah! I think Min-Cheol will be very happy. First, take a glass, hyung-nim.”

That started the road down both of them becoming very drunk.

The bottles of soju were already increasing from 4 to 5.

Slurring his speech, Jong Ho asked Ho Jin.

“Hyung.”

“Hm?”

“Where do we go from here?”

“Where we go? What?”

“Well. While our little sibling who is much younger than us is fighting tooth and nail, can we afford to just stand idly by like this. That’s what I mean.”

“Hm… Why are you helping Min-Cheol?”

“I feel bad for him. He’s so young. Thanks to all those greedy bastards around trying to use him for their greed…. Sometimes he’s scary, but he’s a lot younger than we think.”

“……”

“Radical faction? Government? I don’t care about all that. It’s because he’s like a little sibling to me.”

“The only thing we can do for him is provide information. No matter how much we try to grow, we can’t match those bastards.”

“True. Information. But even that marble. No matter how much we search, there’s nothing. Even looking through books resulted in nothing. It feels like we can’t even provide that help for him anymore.”

“….”

“But I feel bad just hunting together with him. What should we do, hyung-nim?”

Drinking the soju in his glass, Ho Jin was about to continue talking.

But then.

“Aigo. What occasion is it that you’re having alcohol?”

Bringing a chair between the two to sit was Min-Cheol.

This situation was awkward no matter how you looked at it, so Min-Cheol turned to look at Jong Ho and Ho Jin back and forth.

His face flushing bright red, Jong Ho spoke.

“Oh! Bro, what’s up?”

“Yo. Bro what’s up.”

“Bro. What does hyung do now?”

“Why ask?”

“This hyung isn’t useful to you anymore.”

“Mister. Did Jong Ho-hyung drink a lot?”

“Hoho. I didn’t make him drink.”

Min-Cheol heard what Jong Ho said from Ho Jin.

All the worry and how apologetic Jong Ho felt.

Listening to whole story, Min-Cheol spoke.

“Hyung. Should I get you to snap out of your drunkenness?”

“Ah! Are you trying to hit hyung or something!”

Min-Cheol laughed for a bit at the funny face Jong Ho was making before pulling something out of his pocket and spoke.

“From what I heard, I understand why Jong Ho-hyung is being like this. I think I found the solution just now?”

“What are you saying?”

“Should we go tomorrow morning after you snap out of your drunkenness? Or should we go now?”

“What! Let’s go now! Second round let’s go!”

“Hoho. Let’s go now then. But where…?”
“There it is. The level 14 dungeon.”

“Huh? Why the dungeon that we’ve been hunting in until now…”

“You’ll know when you go.”

-beep. beep. beep.

Just like that, the three of them entered the dungeon.

---

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72. The Land Where None Have Stepped On (2)

The dungeon I entered was like a track field covered in a layer of snow.

The walls and ceiling too. It was almost as if someone painted everything in pure white.

It was to the point where it was hard to believe that any monsters were in here.

I couldn’t even tell where it ended.

Since the walls and floor wasn’t distinctly separated, I wouldn’t be able to tell that this was the entrance without touching the wall behind me.

-CRASH!

-BOOM! BOOM!

I spammed fire attribute magic such as Explosion and Meteor around the entrance.

It served the same purpose as the bread crumbs in Hansel and Gretel.

Soot and blackened dirt were left at the entrance because I really did think I could possibly lose my way in this dungeon.

The current situation was that I had zero intel on this level 34 portal.

Firstly, I headed towards the 9 o’clock bearing relative to the entrance in order to check the strength of the monsters.

Since it was highly dangerous to run forward recklessly and aggro a bunch of monsters to herd them before taking them down without a plan, I planned to check the strength of the monsters before coming up with a course of action.

Casting the instant cast Explosion around me, I continued forward.

It was also to confirm one end of this dungeon, where a wall would be.

-BOOM!

“Hm? Did I already reach it?”

It didn’t even take 3 minutes before Explosion is burning on the wall in front of me.

Despite being only a short distance and time, I wondered how come I didn’t see a single monster.

I guess the level 18 dungeon was similar with the griffon and poison naga, only 20 monsters or so appearing inside the dungeon.

My suspicion lasted only a moment, and I continued to head deeper into the dungeon.

****

Towards 12 o’clock. Then turning to 3 o’clock.

Like that, I went full circle back to the marked entrance after covering a square piece of the dungeon.

Despite going in a circle for 15 minutes, not only did I not see a single monster, but I couldn’t even hear their howling either.

I felt like something was off.

“Perhaps…..”

The worry I felt made me wonder if it was possible for the monsters to be stealthed.

Because of that, I’ve been casting single fire magic continuously until now.

All the stealth skills used by the Awakened become undone when hit by attacks or the duration runs out.

The monsters up to now haven’t used any stealth skills, but I didn’t know what could happen here.

I casted Eye of Insight.

“I had my doubts, but it’s true.”

The center of the dungeon.

A lot of red dots were there.

Eye of Insight showed stealthed targets, but when used on monsters, it also showed their weaknesses.

All those red spots that I could see must be their weaknesses displayed to me.

And since they were stealthed, their form would become visible to me as well.

I ran forward to the center where they were gathered.

In the center, monsters were moving in pairs of 2 to 3.

They didn’t move in any predictable patterns, resembling feathers swaying in the wind.

I looked at them carefully.

“What should I call them…?”

Keeping a sufficient amount of distance, the form I gazed upon was something so vague that it was hard to describe with words.

It didn’t have a solid form, and it was hard to call it a lifeform of any kind.

If I have to put it into words, something that looks similar to the oval portal I’ve entered through?

Yeah. They looked like sky blue pastel colored portals, floating in the air.

I couldn’t feel any threatening pressure from them.

On top of that, they seemed to go along with the dungeon’s background so well that I felt like they were ornaments.

The red dots were on the center of their bodies.

It was the weakness that the Eye of Insight was showing me.

If I focused my attacks on that location, I should be able to take them down faster.

“Shall I see how well you fight?”

I casted Lightning Spray towards 3 monsters separated from the main group.

-ZAAP!

Lightning Spray hit dead center.

The enormous amount of electricity not only hit them, but was flowing through them.

However, it didn’t seem that it took much damage.

Afterwards, they began to head towards me.

However, they moved at speeds far slower than what anyone could have imagined.

They flew towards me at the speed of a trolley.

Every time they moved, they gave off a static like sound that would get on one’s nerves.

Looking at how they moved, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’m not sure who made you, but they must’ve dozed off when they did.”

They had finally arrived near me.

Then.

-ZAAP!

“What the!”

My Mana Shield shook violently.

A massive amount of electricity had poured towards me.

It was the exact same Lightning Spray that I had casted moments ago.

Also, its form was that of a level 200 Lightning Spray.

“It copies the attack it receives?”

Unless they copied an attack that was beyond ranking, it wouldn’t go through Mana Shield.

To understand more about them, I began to follow up with stronger attack skills.

I used Explosion and Holy Missile once each on them.

-BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

 

The result was the same.

They fired back the attack they received.

“You passed up to A ranking single fire attacks. How about this one?”

The surround area was covered in a transparent fire.

Perfect for disposing corpses… I mean, a high damage spell called Fire Shock.

The egotistical lizardmen that possessed immunity towards physical damage and even a little magical resistance had received massive amounts of damage by Fire Shock.

However, not only did they received it with their whole body, but they were absorbing it, making some kind of screeching scream.

“KEERIIICK!”

“Oho? Looks like this one hurt? And their size shrunk a bit.”

Their height, which was similar to mine, seemed to shrink by a bit.

It seemed that the more damage they took, the smaller they became.

“So they aren’t able to reflect attacks beyond A ranking AoE attack ski-…”

-WOOSH!

As if making fun of me and ignoring my words, massive amounts of fire poured down on me.

“Aren’t they a taunting bunch? I don’t think I’ll be satisfied until I crush them. Time to stop playing around. It’s time for total annihilation!”

-CRASH!

-BOOM!

My strongest attack skill, Meteor Call. I spammed it down on them.

The pure white dungeon was covered in black flames.

Everywhere, chunks of the intense flames were scattered about.

“KE-KE-KEERICK.”

Once again, they emitted a sound similar to that of mice.

Around 6 to 7 Meteors later, their sizes shrunk to that of peas.

My guess was that the next Meteor would be the last one I needed to cast before they were annihilated.

-CRASH!

Just as I predicted, they returned 3 times the amount of presents I gave them.

My Mana Shield shook more than any attack I’ve received with it so far.

Mana Shield depleted mana instead of health equivalent to the damage taken.

It was okay because my mana was infinite, but if it wasn’t, even Yoon Jong-sun would be annihilated on the spot if he was to receive this kind of attack.

The damage from the level 200 Meteor Call that hasn’t existed in this world before was absolutely insane after all.

Then.

[Experience 2,000,000 obtained.]

[Experience 2,000,000 obtained.]

[Experience 2,000,000 obtained.]

“Wait. Why are there so many zeroes? One, ten, a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand……. Millions?”

“Wait a min. How many are there?”

Roughly 30 red dots were present.

Each gave out 2,000,000 experience?

60,000,000 experience if I get all the monsters in the dungeon?

I remembered the saying ‘The dungeon is large and the experience is amazing.’

Currently my level was 315.

Like a snowball rolled atop of a hill adding up as it went down, the experience pool I required to level had reached to the point of requiring 230,000,000.

However, each time I defeat all the monsters in here, I gain 60,000,000.

Thus, I would be able to level up once by clearing this dungeon 4 times.

“Guess I’m not sleeping today.”

****

I defeated all the monsters inside and exited.

All of them were gathered in the center.

When I cleared the dungeon, an exit had appeared in the center of the dungeon.

I saw Jong Ho and Ho Jin sitting in front of the portal, letting out smoke from their cigars.

Seeing me appear, Jong Ho fanned away the smoke with his hand and spoke.

“Came out faster than I expected.”

“What. Why do you sound like you weren’t worried at all?”

“Huh! What are you saying. I was definitely worried.”

“Doesn’t sound like it.”

“Hey! I was very worried for the monsters inside. The monster butcherer had entered, so how could I not be worried for them?”

“Hohoho. I was also hoping that you wouldn’t be covered in too much blood as well when you came out.”

“I didn’t do that. Not at all! Also, the dungeon here is a lot cleaner than I thought.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Not a drop of blood even after hitting the monsters until they are annihilated. And of course, they still drop bloodstones.”

“Oho… How are the monsters? Do you think they’ve become a lot stronger?”

“Hm… I think it’ll be best if you two come in first and see for yourselves.”

Taking a step backwards, Ho Jin spoke.

“… Do I have to go as well?”

“Of course mister, you have to come as well!”

“Then… let me make one phone call to someone at home… Ahh!”

I pulled Jong Ho and Ho Jin by their hands.

Since the portal was cleared already, the shape was changed to that of a dungeon entrance.

However, I could enter it right away since there was no intercom or a fingerprint scanner I’d have to go through.

It was equivalent to a theme park that didn’t require an entry ticket.

Just like that, the three of us entered.

****

“Is this okay like this?”

“My words…..”

“Did you level up a lot?”

“After 27 years, I have reached level 100.”

“Oh! I just hit level 100 as well.”

In just 3 hours, both mid-level 80s had reached level 100.

Despite the experience being split between three people, each clear gave 20,000,000.

20,000,000 experience every 10 min. It was an amount that was hard to believe even for me, so I was wondering how these two felt.

Looking at how these two were staring blankly into space as if they had lost all awareness, I had a feeling that I understood a little bit.

“Hey. Min-Cheol. You told us to stay put so I’m doing that but I have to ask. I only see the explosive Meteors and I don’t see anything, but why are we obtaining a ridiculous amount of experience?”

“Same here. I can’t see the monsters.”

“The monsters here are stealthed. Even if I use Eye of Insight, hyung and mister aren’t able to see them.”

“A monster that uses stealth? But it looks like you’re the only one attacking. Aren’t these monsters weak?”

“Ah, that’s probably because you can only see the Meteor. They perfectly copy the skills I use and return the attack. Even the skill level is copied.”

“Wow… If I get closer to spectate, I don’t think I could stand up due to my fear.”

“Right. Mister! You said that you would call your wife?”

“Ah. Nope. No news is good news.”

“Pfft. Since you already came out all the way here with me, collect some rewards before you go.”

“I’m always thankful. But Min-Cheol, I don’t think I can pass this up.”

“I-I will also be in your care for a bit.”

“Now you two sound like real people! Let’s go!”

Just like that, a crazy leveling spree unlike anything in the world began.

---

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71. The Land Where None Have Stepped On

-yawn~

-CRASH!

-CRACK!

“KWAAAKK!”

The continued clears of the level 28 dungeon made me yawn.

The anxiety I had before was nowhere to be found.

It was a sad story for the lizardmen that were being annihilated without a trace before me, but it was at the point where it was annoying me.

They were being evaporated instantly by the constant barrage of level 200 Meteors.

With just Mana Shield, I didn’t even need to think about defending.

It was as if I went back to the past to solve math problems at elementary school.

I was obtaining sufficient amounts of experience, but I wasn’t satisfied with just this.

Humans are a type of animal that constantly seeks new and thrilling experiences.

And soon, I’d have to return to school.

My time for hunting would decrease.

That was why I felt greed for something beyond the level 28 dungeon.

Despite the time required to hunt decreasing, I was searching for something that would let me grow even faster.

After I finished hunting, I was planning to head to the succubi dungeon where Jong Ho and Ho Jin were waiting.

There was something I wanted to ask the two of them.

Recently, I had visited the level 30 dungeon.

I already knew that physical attacks do not affect monsters in the level 28 to level 30 dungeons.

Mankind had made it to the level 30 dungeon where magical attacks still worked.

Perhaps my hopes were too high, but it was a huge letdown.

The number of monsters, drops, and even experience were all less than the level 28 dungeon despite the monsters being bigger and stronger.

I learned the reason why magician rankers preferred the level 28 dungeon.

Thus I planned to go to dungeons level 31 and beyond.

If possible, a dungeon level 34 and above where magic attacks worked!

Humankind had set up dungeons up to level 32, so there was a lot of information regarding the monsters and drops for them.

However, there was no information regarding all the dungeons beyond that, no, even on the portals beyond that.

I was taking the first step into uncharted territory that no one has been to before.

****

I poured the blood stones that filled my backpack into the counter machine.

In just a single day, I had gathered this much.

To avoid suspicion, I went through many different stores.

By the time I returned to the first store I visited, I could tell that a month had passed.

While selling Awakened essences, something of interest occurred.

“Guess it’s bothersome to visit every day?”

“Yes. It’s a lot more convenient to sell a month’s worth in one go.”

“A lot of people do that. Here. The statement of accounts.”

“Thank you. By the way, do you sell anything similar to a marble?”

“A marble….”

I was trying to obtain information regarding the transparent marble.

Even Ho Jin, who had been in the association for a long time, could not obtain information regarding it.

With the help of his ex-subordinate, he said that he was continuing to look through the files.

After a long period of thinking, the store owner opened his mouth.

“Are you talking about the stat resetting marble?”

“Oh? Can you show it to me?”

“Whew. Despite running this shop here for 22 years, I have never seen it myself. It does exist, but it’s so rare that it might as well not exist.”

‘Is it like a girlfriend or something?’

Immediately I searched for stat resetting marble on my smartphone.

However, I was disappointed by the few images that appeared.

From the search result, all it showed was a marble with a deep shade of purple.

“Ah… is there anything else than this?”

“Yes. From what I know, there isn’t anything else like it.”

“I understand. Farewell then.”

“Yes. Come back soon.”

While I was heading to the succubi dungeon, I was fumbling with the marble in my pocket.

I had even thought about just consuming it.

However, it could be something that Joker planned to use to suicide so he could avoid interrogation by torture.

My bet was that it was for some kind of recovery buff, but until I had reliable information, I couldn’t just put it in my mouth.

On top of that, it could be something that you don’t eat.

“Today’s a dead end too.”

While taking in the fresh night air, I arrived at the dungeon.

Despite how late it was, many warrior class Awakened were gathered.

Of course, a few of the royalty tanker and healer classes were there too. ²

Far away, I could spot Jong Ho and Ho Jin walking together towards me.

“What’s up!”

“Yo! Hyung! Hello mister.”

“You’ve arrived.”

“Yes. Shall we go to a deserted location first?”

“Yes. Let’s do that.”

“Hey, do you not even wear armor while you hunt now?”

Looking around my surroundings, I answered with a whisper.

“I don’t even need to in the level 28 dungeon. Does hyung or mister want to wear it instead?”

“Aigo, no way. You’ll be going to places beyond that soon.”

“I’ll pass as well.”

I found myself thinking that these two are similar to the point of being scary.

It was almost like a union of the sweet potatoes.

One good thing out of this was that it seemed neither of them would get tired of each other’s personalities.

We headed for what has now become our base of operations, the midget’s office.

****

“Dark Lady……”

The radical faction’s overboss, Zekill.

He spoke as he pressed firmly on his temples.

In front of him stood Dark Lady, who had taken the first place in the radical faction in the struggle for dominance with the success of the portal explosion experiment.

At Zekill’s call was the immediately reply of Dark Lady.

“Yes!”

“Have you not found Joker’s whereabouts yet?”

“Yes. He left on a personal errand and has not established contact as of yet. It’s been that way for a while.”

“What’s the chance that Joker has been done in by someone?”

“Highly unlikely. For someone like Joker who has that much power, it would take a majority of the association’s ranker hunters to take him down. Without that much manpower being deployed, it would be too difficult to fight against him. But from what I learned, the association has not made any moves.”

“Are you absolutely sure?”

“Yes. The association’s president himself has reported to me.”

“I see.”

“There is one thing I am suspicious of…..”

“What is it?”

“I’ve been using Necklace of Searching that I own every three hours in an attempt to locate Joker.”

“…..”

“However, Joker was not found. Even until now, after I’ve used up all the Necklace of Searching, not once was he found.”

Necklace of Searching.

It was a single use equipment that when worn, it would locate the Awakened that the user thought of on a map.

With a ridiculously low drop rate and a onetime use restriction on it, it was an item with an enormous value.

There was a skill in the executioner class that gave off the same effect, but the class was incredibly rare and the mana expenditure was incredibly high, so it was rarely used.

As if annoyed by her talks that danced around the main point, Zekill raised his voice and asked.

“So what are you trying to say!”

“As I have told you, the chance that Joker was done in by someone is zero. The only possibility left would be…”

“Are you saying that he went in there?”

“Yes. That’s correct. Looking at the current situation so far, there is no other explanation.”

A dungeon and portal that’s completely in another world.

If he was in another world, it was impossible for any skill or item to pinpoint his location.

Restraining his boiling temper, Zekill quietly muttered to himself.

“What were you thinking, Joker…..”

“…..”

“Did he tell you that he was heading there?”

“No. I’ve heard no such thing.”

“Damn… I’ll order Ghost to supply you with more Necklaces of Searching. Continue so that you can locate his position.”

“Yes, Lord Zekill!”

“Despite the additional task, do not stray away from the current project at hand.”

“Of course.”

“Dark Lady… Soon, the world will change. To the new world that’s approaching, I will not forget your accomplishments towards it.”

Finishing the conversation, Zekill headed for the Warp that was formed in the corner of Dark Lady’s home office.

Until Zekill’s form completely disappeared, Dark Lady did not raise her head and continued to pay her respects.

‘Joker… You fool. Was all you could think to do was to go in there?’

****

At last, we arrived at the midget’s office.

It seemed that there was not a better place to talk in secret than here.

Three men were laid back in a relaxed manner on the sofa.

After taking a rare break, I spoke first.

“A level 34 would be difficult, right?”

“Yikes! Why are you saying that suddenly?”

“Well, I’m trying to find a location that would help me grow stronger faster than the level 28 dungeon.”

“But why are you trying to suddenly skip all the way to a level 34 dungeon?”

“I own way more magic skills than physical attack skills. Also the area of effect is far larger, and the damage is superior.”

“Even so, there are only dungeons up to level 32. Isn’t that true, mister?”

“Ah… That’s right. Humankind has only set up dungeons up to level 32 portals.”

“I already know that. But there has to be portals even if there are no dungeons. Doesn’t it work out if I clear those portals and turn them into dungeons?”

“Whew. You’re a scary one. You’re right, but it’s probably going to be very difficult to find such a portal. There’s no way that portals that hid for 34 years are common.”

“Hm… Unless it’s in the abyss of the sea or deep in the mountains, it would be difficult to find, right?”

“With all that you’ve done, now you want to dive and hike to hunt?”

“Guess I have to go all the way to Yangpyeong to search….”

It was then. I saw a crafty look in Ho Jin’s eyes.

It was definitely a look that said that he knew something.

I faced towards Ho Jin and gave him the expression of a child looking at cotton candy.

“Mister! You do know something, right?”

“Aigo, guess I wasn’t able to hide my facial expression.”

“Do you know? Where a level 34 portal would be?”

“Hoho. Just as you’ve guessed, I do know the location of a level 34 portal. I’ve seen it reported in a classified document that can be only accessed by department heads and above.”

“Oho. Where would that be?”

“The place you mentioned before, in Yangpyeong.”

“As expected. That’s why the citizens were evacuated and the association building was put out of commission?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”
“Hyung, do you have a lot of fuel in the car?”

“Hey! I’m aging because of you. Alright, let’s get going.”

“I’ll go home real quick to equip my gear and come back.”

****

“Is this the place?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

We’ve arrived at Yangpyeong. In front of us was an abandoned mine shaft.

The entrance of the mine was completely blocked off by someone’s previous efforts.

Without any hesitation, I pried open the entrance.

-CREEEAK!

It was an incredibly thick sheet of sturdy metal, but for me, it was as difficult as folding paper.

Since I needed to repair it later as to not leave any traces, I pried it just enough to get through.

Jong Ho’s car was covered with a black sheet as to hide it, and we continued forward.

“Let’s go!”

“Yep. Come back soon.”

“Hoho……”

“Huh? Please accompany me at least to the interior of the mine. It’s dark and scary.”

“Ah. Alright. We can do that.”

“Mister, hyung, let’s go.”

“Yes. Let’s do so.”

The moment Ho Jin and Jong Ho entered the mine shaft…

-CREEEAK!

“Hey! Why are you closing that!”

“Kuku. Since we all came here already, the three of us should go together.”

“This is crazy. Really.”

It didn’t take long after entering the abandoned mine shaft to find the portal.

An oval shaped purple portal. There were exactly 34 growth rings. Thus, it was definitely a level 34 portal.

Lastly, I opened up my status window to check on my equipment.

“I’ll go in first. Since we don’t have any information, it could be dangerous.”

“Isn’t it dangerous for you too?”

“I’ll probably be fine?”
“Well, I admit you probably would be. Be careful though.”

“Yes.”

-whoosh

“Oho…. Looks like it’ll be a good time?”

---

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70. Loot from Joker Hunting(?)

Ending the call with Jong ho, I took a moment to re-organize my thoughts.

I had arrived at Yangpyeong’s association building late at night.

After the battle with Joker, it had already become dusk.

A cloudless greyish blue sky.

It wasn’t quite winter yet, slightly making my breath foggy.

“Shall I get going?”

I casted Warp to the midget’s office.

The Warp skill was very useful, connecting any place the caster has been to.

Other than the fact that you can’t go back and forth with one cast, this skill could be considered one of the best skills.

Jong Ho should have arrived there already.

Even during the call with me, it sounded as though he was getting ready to leave.

Picking up the loot that I got from Joker, I jumped into the warp spell.

****

I always conjure the warp gate in a small storage room next to the bathroom.

The feeling I get as I step through the gate is like this.

It’s that feeling you get when you put your foot out, thinking that there is another step to the stairs you are climbing.

It’s a strange and dizzy feeling that’s hard to describe.

And then my view changes to where I wanted to go.

The midget felt my presence and spoke to Jong Ho.

“Looks like he’s here?”

“Is that the room?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

-click

Jong Ho couldn’t wait and opened the door.

The sight before him wasn’t the same as when I left for Yangpyeong.

Places where my armor didn’t cover my body were covered in terrible scars.

I treated the wounds with the low ranking Heal, but it wasn’t possible to completely recover.

On top of that, the Lich King armor set that was originally black was glowing red as if someone stamped me with a red seal.

Probably due to the blood that spilled out from Joker and the avatars hardening on me.

I already cleaned off most of the blood on my face and body.

However, Jong Ho’s eyes were filled with regret and sadness as he looked at me.

Jong Ho couldn’t meet my eyes.

Covering his eyes with his hands, he spoke quietly.

“Holy shit… You’ve been through a lot.”

“Why? Don’t I look okay?”

“No… You look okay. Very okay. Did you finish tending to your wounds?”

“Yes. There’s no bleeding or pain. But…..”

I pulled the gauntlet off my left hand.

Guess the blood didn’t harden properly, because it was pretty sticky.

The hand came out with a sickening sticky sound.

The thumb was cut off, and the index finger was missing entirely.

On top of that, the back of the hand was dug in like a crater, almost to the point where the bones and muscles were showing. A new bright pink flesh was barely covering it.

When I stabbed the sword in Joker and pushed him away, the hand that was closest must’ve blown off.

Showing my left hand to Jong Ho, I gave an awkward smile.

“Somehow it became like this?”

“…..”

“So what happened to the Status Negation ³ skill I asked for?”

“Don’t worry, Seokgyu just went out to get it.”

“Aha. It’s been only 10 minutes since I asked for it, I guess?”

“Just in case we can’t get it, I told him that money isn’t the issue and instead get a healer who can cast it, so let’s wait for a bit longer.”

“Thanks, hyung.”

“Whew. I can’t look at you. Since there’s hot water here, you should go wash off. While you do that, I’ll go call them.”

“Yes.”

****

“What kind of an office has a shower?”

While grumbling to myself, I cleaned off my body.

The armor that I wore, as well as Joker’s armor and twin swords were taken in.

I wasn’t expecting much from them since Joker had taken my Formless Sword Aura with his body.

The condition of the armor should be its worst state possible especially since it was stabbed and cut through countless times.

However, as if to prove my expectations wrong, the armor didn’t even have a single scratch on it.

Almost as if the armor repaired itself.

I put the armor and the swords in the corner of the shower room.

After changing into the clothes that Jong Ho brought to me, I headed back into the office.

“Are you done cleaning off?”

“Yes. I feel alive now.”

-Yo! Drop the beat. Shake shake~

“Wait a minute.”

To fill the space that Jong Ho left as he went to take the call, the midget asked me.

“Where did you get a severe wound like this?”

“Ah. While I was hunting, I ran out of mana.”

“Oho.. That could’ve been really bad.”

“Yes.. That’s right.”

“No matter how fast your regen in, you have to be careful.”

“Yes, yes.”

After giving half-baked answers, I ended the conversation with the midget.

Jong Ho was continuing to talk on the phone next to me.

“Yes. Yes. You can come up now.”

By listening in for a bit, I could tell that someone had arrived near here.

‘Has Seokgyu already returned?’

My question didn’t last long.

From the hallway, I could hear urgent footsteps.

The door opened, and in came Ho Jin.

Looking at his face, I felt that I had talent for meeting good people.

Jong Ho and Ho Jin. These two should know what the weapon and armor Joker wore do, shouldn’t they.

There was a high chance that these two would also have information on this transparent pearl.

Well, I could find out about the sword and armor by wearing them myself.

What I was really curious about was the pearl that Joker tried to find desperately.

It was obvious that it had something extraordinary about it.

After he came in, I gave him the look before he could talk to me.

And I guess he could read the situation, because he confirmed that the midget and the employees here were present.

Coming near me and sitting on the sofa, Ho Jin spoke.

“Did the hunt go well?”

“Yes. It was clean. A full clear, and I brought back all the loot.”

“Looking at your wounds, I’m guessing that it wasn’t an easy dungeon.”

“Yes. I was surprised that I made it out alive.”

“You’ve suffered a lot.”

“Yes. Now I think I’m ready to receive it with pride.”

“Ah! The ID, right?”

“Yes. Did you bring it with you?”

“Of course!”

Ho Jin pulled out the ID from his inside pocket.

And with a smile that could brighten up the world, he handed it to me.

“Here.”

“I’m glad that I’m able to receive this.”

“Hoho! You’ve accomplished something very big.”

“I only cleared a dungeon. It’s whatever.”

-click

While in the midst of my conversation with Ho Jin was taking place, Seokgyu, who had left to get the Status Negation, had returned.

It looked as though he wasn’t able to get the skill book.

A man was being guided in.

The man looked to be blind.

Even while holding onto Seokgyu’s hand, he was using the other hand to fumble around with the wall.

“Due to today being a market day⁴, there isn’t any items on the market. So I brought someone who can cast it instead.”

“Sorry to call you past midnight. It must be hard on you.”

“Oh. It’s nothing, don’t worry.”

The healer Seokgyu came in together with spoke.

“Who will be the one receiving treatment?”

“Ah! That would be me.”

“How long since the injury?”

“Hm… Around 4 hours ago.”

“As you can tell, I cannot see, so it is difficult for me to revert special injuries. Because of that, I’ll be casting Status Negation to the time before you received the injury. Is that okay?”

“Yes. Doesn’t matter to me.”

“Then…..”

****

Status Negation could be used once every 24 hours.

Matching the long cool down, the effect was satisfying.

Just like how I received treatment from Park Hyun before, my body recovered to its state 4 hours ago.

Noticing how their duty was fulfilled, the midgets and the employees left the office while handing me the keys.

The midget had quite the good sense to have everyone leave with him, noticing that the others still had more to talk about.

The office now only had Jong Ho, Ho Jin and me in it.

I put the weapon and armor that I took from Joker on the table with a clatter.

It was expected that they would be very surprised when they’re explaining the items to me.

But.

“What is this? Armor?”

“Is this what you got from Joker?”

‘Huh? This isn’t what I was expecting?’

They were asking me with eyes that told me they’ve never seen these items before.

“Is this the first time you two are seeing something like this?”

“Yep.”

“Yes.”

“Well, I can find out by wearing these. What about this?”

I put the marble on the table. ⁵

Looking at it again from a brightly lit area, it really was a very transparent marble, almost to the point where you couldn’t recognize its shape unless the light reflected off of it.

Both their gazes shifted to the marble.

However, neither of them was talking.

“This as well… Is it the first time you’re seeing this?”

“I think they sell a lot of them at the stationery store.”

“Hoho. I used to fight a lot with this when I was young. The fond memories are coming back to me”

‘No! You people, I didn’t bring this here so you can relive your fond memories!’

“Hyung. You don’t know? And you too, mister?”

Jong Ho flung the marble while speaking.

“It’s just a marble.”

“Same here. It looks just like that, nothing more.”

It appeared that I wouldn’t be getting any information.

I stood up and put on the armor as I explained.

“This is a marble that I took from Joker. He used it when he was about to die… Woah!”

“What? Why are you suddenly doing that?”

“What is this!”

“What’s the matter?”

Wearing the armor, I couldn’t help but be astonished.

It was because of the armor’s ability.

I couldn’t help but stare at my status window blankly for a while.

 

Level: 301

Exp: [11%]

Class: Magician

Special Trait: Mana does not run out.

Strength: 610+300

Mana: ∞

Dexterity: 10+300

Stamina: 910+300

All damage taken reduced by 40%.

“N-No way.”

Look at this crazy armor.

Not only did it raise all stats by 300, but it also reduced all damage taken by 40%.

It wasn’t as if I was wearing a full armor set, but this was happening all from a single piece of armor.

Even during Fire Shock’s intense flames, this armor survived while everything else was disintegrated into oblivion.

Still, to be this good.

It had the capability of wearing the full Lich King armor set, which included the helm and a full suit of armor.

‘If this armor piece was part of a set, I had to obtain them no matter what.’

If I put this unknown Joker’s armor with Lich King set’s helm, and then add the Lizardman Gauntlet?

It would be 60% physical resistance with 80% magic resistance.

The reason Joker was able to last so long despite putting all his points into strength was probably due to this armor’s amazing capabilities.

Calming down, I spoke.

“Hyung. Mister.”

“What? What’s up?”

“Did the recovery not go as planned?”

“This armor gives 300 points to all stats and has a 40% damage reduction.”

“Hey. This guy is joking around the moment he comes back to life. You goofball!”

“Despite working for the association for 20 years, I never heard of such powerful defensive equipment.”

“It’s hard for me to believe too, but it’s the truth.”

****

Since they didn’t believe till the end, I ended up lending the armor for them to wear.

Only after that did Jong Ho and Ho Jin had their mouths opened in awe.

Due to the expectations from the armor piece set, I excitedly held the twin sword.

But despite holding onto Joker’s twin sword, no stat points rose.

It wasn’t just for me, but the same case for these two sitting next to me.

It was just like when I tried to learn the skill beyond ranking and it didn’t respond.

I asked Jong Ho and Ho Jin to find information regarding the twin sword and marble.

If it’s these two, they should be able to ask around to find something at least similar to these.

I got lucky killing Joker and now I had this armor in my possession.

As I promised myself before when I steeled my resolve, I was going to get stronger to the point where it I can beat luck itself.

I had just barely gone over this mountain called Joker just now.

With this ID that would let me in anywhere and the fly that was bothering me gone, I was going to focus only on hunting.

“From tomorrow on, it’s hunting time!”

---

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