Category: I Never Run Out of Mana

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132. The Demon King

“KUHUK!”

“I asked if you are human.”

“KUHUH!”

“Such an obvious weakness. Due to this single organ, you are in this much pain and on the brink of death.”

“KUHACK!”

Jong Ho’s eyes and face was turning red like blood.

Due to the severe pain he was feeling, he could not breathe in or out.

A fresh stream of blood was pouring out from his mouth.

As Jong Ho had tried to enter the Warp, Jamon had closed the distance between the two of them.

He didn’t even have the time to think about avoiding the demon king’s attack.

Not only was Jong Ho unable to see the attack, but he didn’t even feel the demon king’s presence.

Jamon’s hand had pierced the left side of Jong Ho’s chest.

A flawless singular strike.

Despite not having any interactions with humans before, it was a fierce attack that seemed to aim straight for the heart, a weak spot of the human body.

Due to never having received such a severe injury, Jong Ho’s consciousness began to fade.

The demon king did not stop there, as he lifted up Jong Ho while his body was still pierced by his hand.

Blood spilled down his arm that was smooth like pottery.

In his grasp was Jong Ho’s heart, beating madly to stay alive.

Almost as if enjoying this, he slowly increased the pressure of his grip, observing Jong Ho’s face that was twisted in pain.

Despite Jong Ho not having enough time to react to put up his shield spells, he had massive amounts of stamina points due to his armor.

However, before the demon king’s strength, those stats seemed like pointless numbers.

A flood of emotions overwhelmed Jong Ho.

‘This is the strength of the demon king, who rules all of the demonic realm? I’m going to die. There’s not even a chance that I could defeat him. To think that he literally holds my life in his grasp. It’s so pathetic that I can’t help but find it funny.’

“……. here?”

‘If Min-Cheol returns here right now, it’ll be a huge problem. He won’t be able avoid a dog’s death. Please…. Don’t come back. Please…..’

“……. is here?”

‘I can’t even feel the pain anymore. My body feels warm, and I feel drowsy. Is this what death is like……’

The demon king kept talking, but Jong Ho could no longer hear anything.

Instead, he was silently accepting his death.

His senses slowly dulled, and he could no longer feel the pain that was driving him mad.

Before him, the demon king was still asking questions.

“How can such a weak race stand to face demonkind…. How disappointing, seeing that he has already arrived near death’s door.”

“…..”

Suddenly, Jamon lessened his grip.

The heart that was in his grasp began to beat weakly once more.

The demon king’s face hardened, seeming as though he had lost interest, and then he tossed Jong Ho to the floor.

“Kuwu….. Kuhuh! Huhuh……. Huhuh…..”

“…….”

“Kuhuhuh! Kuwu…..”

Sprawled out on the floor, Jong Ho began to breathe once more, his breath labored.

This meant that he was on the path to recovery instead of death.

Since he had an insane amount of stamina stat points, that meant that his recovery speed was incredibly high as well.

After all, despite the hole in his chest and the vessels near his heart being severely damaged, he regained consciousness, and his wounds were sealing back up.

No longer interested in Jong Ho, the demon king had turned his attention on the Warp.

“A Gate that the humans made….. Does this lead to the place that Zekill headed for, the dimension called Earth.”

The demon king moved his hand into the Warp.

However, since the caster was Jong Ho and not the demon king, it denied him completely.

When Jamon’s blood coated hand touched the Warp, it began to tremble fiercely, similar to rough waves.

“Amusing. So you’re saying that you have an owner. I am the demon king. I can take anything I want as mine.”

The demon king hurled his fist without a single change in his expression.

His movement stopped, followed by the Warp quaking before a massive shockwave from the resulting blow.

It was difficult to believe in the speed and force behind the attack.

However, the Warp still did not dissipate and did not allow the demon king entry.

Instead of getting angry, the demon king smiled and shook his head.

“Incredible stubbornness. Ha ha ha. Amusing. Amusing.”

“Ha……. Ha……..”

“Oho? Quite the resilience. Just moments ago, your life was flickering as if it’d be extinguished any second.”

“Hhuuu… “

Covering his bleeding wound with his hands, Jong Ho was in deep thought.

Over there.

He could survive as long as he went through that Warp.

Despite the hellish pain, Jong Ho did not let his gaze wander away from the demon king.

He looked at the very same demon king that could not enter through the Warp that he had spawned.

However, was it possible to do so?

It was true that Jong Ho was outmatched in both speed and destructive force by far.

The fight was already impossible with his opponent being the demon king.

On top of that, there was another monster that was guarding the demon king to boot.

Jong Ho could guess that the other monster next to the demon king was Ladin.

It happened as Jong Ho finally began to get his breathing under control.

“Humans are actually quite amazing.”
“……..”

“I’ll ask again. Do not count on being spared a second time.”

“Kuwuu…..”

“Why did a pathetic human like you come to the demonic realm?”

“Nothing that important.”

“Hm?”

“What do you think the reason is? It’s to kill some demon king or something.”

“Pfft. Is that so? You’ve come to the demonic realm to kill me? However, even if you take my life, there is nothing you’d gain from doing so. Guess you don’t really have much a reason to do so.”

“…….”

“Then….. Where is the other one.”

“…….”

“I do not sense the magical energies of Zekill and Berdan from you. This means that another human has killed them.”

“……..”

“This will be the last question I ask of you. If you want to taste hell again, I shall gladly oblige.”

“My motto is safety first.”

“……”
“But do you really think that I’d sell out my own sibling? Don’t you think so? You’re just balding!” ¹

“It seems that humans take their lives lightly. As you wish.”

“…….”

“Ah! That’s right, Ladin.”

“Yes, great demon king.”

“You should try out your newly obtained magical energies.”

“But…….”

“You haven’t met any worth opponents to test out your newfound strength yet, right?”

“It is as you said, great demon king.”

“Kuhu…. Perfect. Rip apart this so called human. Tear out his organs and feel the difference between our temperatures. Bathe in his crimson blood, a color vastly different from ours. I shall allow you to have the magical energy that he possesses.”

“B…… But…….”

“Do not hesitate. Zekill and Berdan are dead. Out of the 4 demonic race leaders, two have perished. Your growth is for the demonic realm and demonic race.”

“I am touched by your words.”

“Toss his corpse into that Gate. It’ll be a gift to whoever is left on the other side of the Gate. Kuhuha.”

“Yes, almighty demon king.”

While the two of them conversed, Jong Ho looked for an opening.

He was looking for a chance to enter through the Warp and escape.

Exerting as much force as possible, Jong Ho kicked the ground and shot out toward the Warp like a bullet.

However, as if he had expected this, Ladin acted accordingly.

Despite being behind him moments ago, Ladin was blocking the path towards the Warp in a split second.

His attack came immediately after.

“Ku…… uu…..”

Jong Ho’s body went limp.

His heart beat no more, and the air he took in no longer served a purpose.

He had breathed his last from a single attack by Ladin.

Ignoring Jong Ho’s corpse, the demon king gave an amused smile as he turned his gaze towards Ladin.

He then opened his mouth.

“Hm?”

“……”

“Strange. He definitely lost his life. The magical energy he possessed should naturally be absorbed by you……”

“Is it perhaps because humans cannot use magical energy?”

“So they can take, but cannot be taken from……”

“Looking at our current situation, that can be the only conclusion……”

“Tsk! I was hopeful for no reason.”

“…….”

“This means that we won’t be able to obtain the massive amount of magical energy that human who is still left in the demonic realm.”

“Yes……”

“My mood has turned sour.”

“Demon king, what of the goblin who is hiding here……”

“Leave him be. He is a weak existence that pleaded for his life with the humans. It won’t take long before he will lose his life to the natural cycle of the demonic realm.”

****

I had used the Warp near Ladin’s castle.

I had arrived back to the starting point.

Warp only allowed a one way travel.

To get back to where Jong Ho and Karin was, I’d have to be diligent and keep moving.

The area around the Gate wasn’t that bad.

I did see a few monsters scattered about, but the number had definitely shrunk.

4 summoned creatures still guarded the Gate.

Just from their appearances, I could tell that the fight was brutal.

Their bodies were covered in wounds without exception.

“KURUUH!”

“My, my. Good job holding on. You’ve done well.”

“KUWUH!”

“However, since the cooldowns are quite long….. I know it’s difficult, but I need you all to hold out a little longer.”

“KWUH! KWUH!”

The Avatars seemed confident, beating their chests with their weapons and letting out a Fear roar skill.

King Suwoo was in the same condition.

The elegant armor had become ragged.

It would be nice if I could cast recovery spells on them, but that was impossible.

Recovery skills only worked on the Awakened, and normal civilians, monsters, and summoned creatures were not affected by them.

However, King Suwoo was acting strange.

His sword that was big as a house glowed blue, and he pulled in that sword with both hands in a meditative pose.

“What are you doing?”

“……..”

“KUWUHUNG!”

“KUWUH!”

“Jackpot?”

His movements were for the purpose of recovery.

Not only did it heal him, but he had healed the summoned creatures around him.

And he had did this without me commanding him so, on his own will.

The exhausted summoned creatures became lively once more.

Since this was the case, it seemed that I didn’t need to return here each time Warp went off cooldown.

My amazement at my summoned creatures didn’t last long.

I saw that a Warp had formed near in my field of vision.

Jong Ho must have casted it.

Other than him, there probably wasn’t anyone else who would be capable of using Warp.

“That’s strange? I said that there was no need for him to come….”

Stranger still was that despite the Warp forming here, I did not see Jong Ho.

There was a possibility that he had used it earlier than when he planned to enter in order to start the cooldown timer.

Without much concern, I shifted my focus solely on taking care of the monsters nearby.

Due to the number of monsters being reduced already, it didn’t take long for me to finish the job.

With the situation taken care of, it happened as I prepared myself to return back to Ladin’s castle.

“Hyung-nim, you’ve arrived?”

---

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131. Demonic Realm Guide Karin

“Kerut.”

Out of the 6 duffel bags that were filled with beef, Karin had eaten one of them completely.

It made me wonder how he was able to shove in so much food into his small little body.

Patting his belly, he wore a satisfied expression.

“Whew. I feel alive again.”

“Keru. The steak was good.”

“How were you able to eat all that?”

“Keru keru. Human, there is nothing that is impossible. I am not a goblin that gives up easily.”

“Don’t get so fired up on something like that!”

“Kel kel! Human, I am curious about something.”

“What’s up?”

“I know that you, my human master, is named Min-Cheol.”

“Yep.”

“Then what is the name of that human that you are raising….?”

The single grain of rice that was left in Jong Ho’s bowl flew from his fingertips, hitting Karin on his forehead dead center.

In a single moment, the well cooked grain of rice had transformed into a weapon.

Being hit by that, Karin let out a scream of pain and froze with his mouth agape.

I was thankful that he didn’t die from that.

To be hit with such force, anyone would be wearing an expression like that.

“Kehk!”

“Hyung-nim! Control your own strength. Our food storage….. I mean, Karin could implode from that.”

“Don’t worry about it. I know that much at least. However, I need to make sure that he learns who’s in charge.”

“What is the meaning of this! You lowly…..”

Karin could not finish his sentence.

It was because his eyes met with Jong Ho’s fierce glare.

Lowering his gaze immediately, he croaked out an apology.

“Ahem! Keruru…… I’m sorry.”

“My name is Jong Ho. Lee Jong Ho. Remember it well. I’ll be quizzing you on it later.”

“Keruru. I understand. I won’t forget……”

“That’s right! Anyways, Min-Cheol. What of the Gate? Did you take care of the monsters near it?”

“Yes. I took care of all that I could find as a cautionary measure, but it probably won’t be long until they come back. There are a lot of monsters after all.”

“Keru. That’s right. The amount of magical energy the Gate is giving off is massive. It’s enough to entice most lesser monsters nearby into a frenzied charge towards the Gate.”

“Hm….. Seems we’ll have to find a way to deal with it?”

“I have some summoned creatures guarding it as a temporary measure for now, but this won’t serve as a permanent solution.”

“It’s still better than nothing. But as you said, they won’t last long.”

“Yes. Karin, can the demon king and the leader of the remaining demon tribe able to sense the magical energy of the Gate that leads to Earth?”

“Keru. Not for now at least.”

“What do you for now?”

“Kel! Unless you get close to the Gate, you won’t be able to sense the magical energy of the Gate, even if the one trying to detect it was the demon king. Other than the magical energy of the two of you, he wouldn’t be able to sense anything else.”

“Does that mean that he’s able to pinpoint our exact location?”

“Keru. He can’t do that either. All he would know is that you two are somewhere in the demonic realm.”

“Hm….  That’s not too bad. I guess there are things that this omnipotent demon king can’t do?”

“Kel! However, we should keep moving! He probably doesn’t know about the existence of the Gate yet, but he should have noticed that Berdan’s magical energy signature has vanished. Currently, I’m able to detect both Zekill and Berdan’s magical energies within you. If I’m able to sense your powerful magical energy flowing within you, then there is no way that the demon king has missed it. He will definitely come here to investigate.”

“……”

“Guess that means we gotta provoke him.”

“Taunting him?”

“Yes. If the demon king did come here, he will learn of the location Gate, since it isn’t far from where we are right now. The whole point of us coming here was to minimize the damage that Earth takes from this ordeal, right?”

“Of course.”

“This means that making sure the Gate isn’t discovered has become our top priority. If he does cross over to Earth…….”

“It would be over for Earth. To taunt him…….  What do you have in mind? It’s not like you’re saying that we should charge headfirst into fighting against him.”

“Of course, that’s not it. Karin.”

“Kel? Speak, Min-Cheol.”

“We are going to the leader of the remaining demonic tribe. Let’s head for his territory.”

“Keruk! We’re going to where Ladin is?”

“Yep. The demon king can sense his magical energy as well.”

“That’s obvious.”

“If Ladin perishes, he can easily tell that I’ve moved locations, right?”

“That’s true……”

“Why? Even after seeing this, you can’t trust us?”

I cracked my neck.

In the castle where we finished our meal, the place had become ruin.

On top of that, the monsters that had filled this enormous castle had become nothing more than unrecognizable corpses.

Looking around his surroundings, Karin swallowed his spit before speaking.

“That’s not it….. However, Ladin has become incredibly strong as of now.”

“That’s different from what you told me before though? You said that the demon king Jamon is number one, while Berdan was second, followed by Ladin as the third?”

“Keruu…. That was the case up to just a few days ago. However, that’s not the case anymore.”

“…….”

“The demon king gave greater powers to Ladin. He has given both Berdan’s land and subjects to Ladin.”

“This has become quite a pain. I was hoping to take down one of the remaining demon leaders easily.”

“Kel….. Min-Cheol, if you were able to use magical energies, not only will Ladin not be able to face you, but even the demon king wouldn’t be able to hold himself against you. It’s a shame.”

“Well, we don’t have time to waste on something that we can’t use. Either way, Ladin will be weaker than the demon king, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then let’s go! Does anyone oppose? Perhaps the goblin?”

“H……”

“Well……”

“Done. We’ll be going now. To Ladin. Karin, lead the way.”

“Kel?”

****

With Karin, our guide for the demonic realm, leading the way, we headed for Ladin’s territory.

According to Karin, he said that it wasn’t far from here.

I heard that the demonic realm was huge, so I was quite thankful.

I even wondered that I had been scared unnecessarily and brought too much food.

After much time passed, I asked Karin.

“Karin, how much further?”

“Kehek! Kehek! We’re nearly there.”

And like that, far more time passed by.

“How much further?”

“We’ll be there soon.”

“Min-Cheol, haven’t we been running for 3 hours already?”

“He said that we’re nearly there.”

“Hey, Karin.”

“Kehek! Speak, Jong Ho.”

“Just how many more hours before we’re there?”

“Kehem…. Probably half a month.”

“Ah, half a month.”

“We just have to go for half a month.”

Both Jong Ho and I stopped at the same time.

We then proceeded to question if our hearing was still ok.

Jong Ho then gave a hollow smile while looking at me.

“I must have heard wrong, right?”

“Of course. What did you hear?”

“Half a month. Hey, no way that’s the case. Right?”

“You little shit…. Karin!”

“Kehk! Why are you doing that human!”

“Come here, you little shit! It’s my fault for trusting you!”

“Min-Cheol….. Why….. Why are you doing this. In the demonic realm, that pretty close by. You can’t compare this place with your tiny Earth’s standards.”

“Ha……”

I wanted to smash him into the ground right this moment.

This stupid goblin was ranting on about how it would take half a month.

I was so flabbergasted that I was about to let out a soulless laugh.

If he didn’t carry our food supply in his pocket dimension and wasn’t intelligent to deliver information on the demonic realm, he would be buddies with the ferryman of the River Styx by now.

Barely able to contain my boiling anger, I spoke.

“Whew…. Get on.”

“Kemuruk…..”

“I’m not angry, so get on.”

“Okay.”

“Hyung-nim, I know it’s gross, but hurry up and hold onto me.”

“Again?”

“Can’t help it. Karin, I’m not expecting much. Just make sure you’re giving me the correct directions. If you tell me that we’ve gone in the wrong direction halfway through traveling or some nonsense along the lines of this being the wrong place, you best be prepared to die, okay?”

“Kerut….. Min-Cheol, are you sure that you aren’t mad?”

“Oh! Not at all! Not in the slightest!”

“Alright! I know the demonic realm like the back of my hand. Don’t worry!”

“I really hope that’s the case.

****

“That’s the place?”

“Yes. That castle in the distance is Ladin’s castle.”

“We should’ve done this in the first place….. Whatever. For now, let’s use this spot that’s far away from the castle as our base camp.”

“Why? Aren’t we going there right away?”

“Yes. I have to first set up a Warp to the Gate. I need to make sure that my summoned creatures are holding the line properly.”

“Then should I go?”

“No. Since the Warp cooldown is 12 hours long, we have to rotate cooldowns between us to get to the Gate. I’ll go first.”

“Okay. I’ll be scouting the area nearby.”

“Yes. Don’t overdo it.”

“Of course. Safety first!”

Min-Cheol moved into the Warp.

Now Jong Ho and Karin were the only ones left here. It was just the two them.

Perhaps still feeling the shock from Jong Ho’s rice grain attack, Karin only glanced at him time to time in silence.

The one to break the silence was Jong Ho.

“Are you upset?”

“No.”

“Hey, you are upset. I’m sorry for before.You know, hitting with that grain of rice.”

“……”

“You wanna eat some steak?”

“I don’t need it. I’ll eat it when Min-Cheol returns.”

“Hm……”

Jong Ho tried to get Karin to stop pouting, burning time in doing so.

It was then.

Jong Ho sensed a presence from nearby.

However, he didn’t pay much heed to it.

After all, countless monsters roamed the fields of the demonic realm.

He thought that it was just a wandering monster or something.

The owner of the sound was a monster alright.

However, with a single word from Karin, the mood changed in an instant.

“Keh! D….. Demon king!”

“Hush!”

Jong Ho pressed down Karin’s head and laid low on the ground.

He then asked in a whisper.

“Where? Where is the demon king?”

“Kel…. I cannot see him. However, I can sense it. The demon king’s magical energy!”

“Damn it…. This means that he would’ve sensed our magical energies as well……”

“He shouldn’t have been able to sense my magical energy, since there are plenty of monsters nearby. However, Jong Ho, you on the other hand…..”

“Is he getting close?”

“Kuhuk! He’s not alone!”

“……”

“Ladin… Ladin is with him!”

“Damn it…….”

“Jong Ho! We have to run away immediately.”

“I understand, so be quiet for now.”

“What will you do?”

Jong Ho was briefly lost in thought.

Since he could cast Warp right now, it wasn’t that difficult to escape this place.

However, it was obvious that Karin wouldn’t be able to follow.

After all, only the caster could go through the Warp.

However, he wasn’t in a situation where he could just abandon Karin and run away by himself.

Karin had absolutely no combat capabilities.

Many violent monsters nearby were glaring at him, eyeing him with aggression.

‘The only solution here would be Mass Stealth Jutsu…..’

The conclusion that Jong Ho came to was to use Mass Stealth Jutsu.

The Balrock ring could store all spells with the exception of shields and recovery magic.

The stealth spell should be stored inside the ring somewhere.

Jong Ho spoke in a whisper to Karin once more.

“I’ll bring him here, so stay quiet as a dead rat.”

“Kel? Jong Ho….. Are you leaving me by myself?”

“At this rate, the two of us will die. This is the only way where we can both stay alive.”

“Keruwu…..”

Jong Ho hid Karin’s form completely and then casted Warp.

It was then.

“A….. Aaaaa!”

“Human? So you are the so called human race…..”

---

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130. A Dog Who Lost His Owner

“Kerut! Keruk! Hu-human…. How…..”

There was surprise in Karin’s eyes, the same eyes that gazed at Jong Ho and I.

Almost as if he had seen something he shouldn’t have seen, the wrinkles near his eyes flattened out.

On top of that, he was hiccuping.

Jong Ho spoke to Karin, who had turned still like stone.

“Karin, why are you acting as if you’ve seen a ghost?”

“Keheh… Human…..”

“Pfft. We’re nothing different from ghosts. He was absolutely positive that Berdan would win, but here are the two of us standing right before him. He must be quite shocked.”

“Aha. I guess so.”

“Hyung-nim, especially time times like these, we should help him face reality, right?”

“Keruu….”

“Hm… That’s true.”

Jong Ho put on his most earnest face.

Putting his hand on Karin’s shoulder, he spoke.

“Your owner Berdan is dead. Even pulling out his horns, he resisted. However, all his limbs were cut off and he was butchered pathetically before being turned to ash! You can’t even recognize him by his remains!”

“KEHEH!”

“Hey, are you insane! Is there something wrong, hyung? Why are you being so graphic!”

“Why I told him the reality of the situation immediately and accurately. I’ve met all of the requirements…..”

“Whew….. You’re being quite the handful. Look how scared he is. What are you going to do about his expression?”

“Was it too much?”

“You realized that now?”

“Keru….. What happened! Human! Where is sir Berdan?”

“Berdan is dead. We won.”

“…….”

Looking at us, his eyes were filled with loss.

Other than the demon king Jamon, he had thought that Berdan was without equal, so it must be difficult for him to accept this.

However, this was the truth.

For a long while, he lowered his head and was lost in thought.

It was then.

“KUWUH!”

“Keh! Keruut!”

One of the monsters standing nearby had tried to charge in an attempt to attack Karin.

I grabbed onto its neck and blew it up in a single hit.

Perhaps being severely frightened, he was holding onto me tightly while trembling.

When we headed for Berdan’s castle, all the monsters quaked in fear when they looked at us.

Forget attacking like this, they were too afraid even make eye contact with us.

This included not only Jong Ho and I, but Karin as well.

But a sudden attack from the monster just happened.

Latching himself onto my trousers, Karin murmured to himself.

“Kel. Berdan’s Authority has disappeared…. My magical energy…. Kehel….”

“……”

“I’m going to die now. Keruu….. Sir Berdan……”

That was right.

The Authority that Berdan had given to Karin was the only reason why the monsters of the demonic realm weren’t attacking Karin.

However, since Berdan had disappeared, the Authority bestowed upon Karin had disappeared as well.

That was why Karin, who was the lowest ranking monster called Puppet Goblin, was nothing more than a snack to the monsters.

Losing his owner meant that he did not have anyone to rely on at this moment.

I spoke to Karin, who was shaking in fear.

“Are you scared?”

“Keru……”

“Berdan, who had been your shade this entire time, is no more.”

“Kel.”

“What will you do?”

“……”

“Do you want to become a meal for the monsters while you guard Berdan’s castle? Or will you serve me and live longer?”

“……..”

It seemed that he wasn’t able to come to a decision easily.

That was expected, as he had been serving him for hundreds of years.

Due to the situation completely changing in a single moment, he must be in quite a shock.

However, it didn’t take long.

Wobbling about, Karin hurriedly ran into the castle.

There was panic behind his footsteps.

It seemed that it was difficult to accept Berdan’s death.

I followed in after Karin.

Lowering his body before the giant throne, Karin was murmuring.

“Oh great Berdan……”

“Hm….. If it goes on like this, food supply will be an issue.”

“I am having a hard time accepting this situation.”

“……”

“How could this happen…. It’s such a tragedy.”

“It was expected that it’ll be difficult to get him to switch sides….”

“However, doesn’t the living have to go on? Keruk.”

“Huh?”

“Keruu. Thank you for taking care of me all this time. I’ll be going then…….”

“Why is he so quick at changing sides?”

After dogeza-ing before the throne, he quickly ran over to me.

I was flabbergasted at how he was acting as if this was normal.

Staring at me, he cleared his throat and spoke.

“Kerut. Ahem! Great Min-……”

“Hey hey! No need. Just go on as normal.”

“Kel kel. Are you sure that’s ok?”

“I guess you were waiting for me to say that?”

“Keruru. Human, is it ok for me to follow you?”

“Yep. I’ll protect you. In return, provide me with information about the demonic realm and take care of the food inside your pocket dimension, okay?”

“Kerut. I got it. You can count on me.”

“Firstly, I’m going to go take care of the monsters near the Gate.”

“Kel? Ok. I shall guide you!”

“I’m not bad with directions, so I can at least remember where I’ve been. You should help with Jong Ho hyung to make dinner.”

“Kel! I got it.”

“Yeah. Also ask hyung-nim to melt the frozen beef for you.”

“Kel kel. You really are a good human.”

“How can you be so weak against steak….”

Jong Ho entered the castle after us.

I picked up my weapons and was preparing to go towards the Gate.

Looking at me, Jong Ho spoke.

“What happened with Karin? And you said you wanted to eat, so where are you going?”

“Please prepare the meal, hyung-nim. I already gave Karin instructions. I think I need to get to the Gate.”

“The Gate?”

“Yes. I have to clean up the surrounding area around the Gate.”

“Hm… Ok, got it. Take care.”

“Yes.”

I was going to head for the Gate in a bit.

If any of the idiotic monsters of this demonic realm entered through the Gate, they would immediately be teleported to Earth.

Despite Berdan’s death and his Authority vanishing, this wasn’t made from his own strength.

Using Karin to relay his commands, this portal was made by sacrificing countless monsters, so it wouldn’t have expired.

The whole reason to have come through the portal willingly was to stop the chaos and destruction that would occur if Earth was to become a battlefield.

To accomplish our original objective, I had to defend the Gate from entry.

****

It didn’t take long to arrive at the Gate.

As expected, many monsters were gathering near the Gate due to it exuding power magical energies.

Perhaps some had entered already.

However, on the other side of this Gate stood the combined might of the commander and Awakened from all over the world.

There wasn’t much of a reason to be concerned.

They would be able to stop them without much trouble.

“KUWUHHH!”

“KAAAA!”

At my arrival, the monsters became restless.

Each of them let out fierce Fear howls, but how they acted after was pathetic.

All of them were lowering their tails and slowly falling back.

It was to be expected.

I had taken down 2 of the 4 leaders of the demonic realm.

The amount of magical energy within me would be beyond their wildest imaginations.

“How obnoxiously loud.”

“KARU!”

“Hush! Hey! Who do you think you are to dare challenge me!”

“……”

“You die if you try to go through here.”

“……”

“Whew. I guess you don’t understand?”

It was then.

A herd of monsters were charging at full speed towards the Gate.

Looking with my Eye of Insight, I was able to see that these monsters were called Butcher.

At their appearance, the air became putrid with their rotting scent.

“Ugh! Are they friends with the Ragged? Smells quite terrible.”

“Kuruk!”

Leaping up, I blocked the entrance towards the Gate in a split moment.

Following that up, I casted In Storm to cover the area with electricity.

The moment that they arrived here from their running, they would become fried.

The many Butchers that charged fiercely as if they had been hypnotized finally arrived in the range of my In Storm.

“KUWHECK!”

“KWECK!”

It didn’t take even a few seconds for them to burn like a lump of charcoal.

Those that could still move continued to fiercely charge forward.

Their corpses burned, making popping noises from the sparks from the inferno.

They soon became ash and settled on the ground around me.

The monsters nearby spectated the entire scene.

As expected, due to their lack of intelligence, they looked on without a care.

Since this was the case, there would definitely be some monsters that would try to enter when I left this place.

“I killed them to make an example out of them, but none of you are scared? Guess that means that I have to kill you all.”

****

I took out all the monsters in my field of vision.

No matter how far I searched around the areas near the Gate, I could not see a single monster.

However, I knew that there were more monsters in the demonic realm than I could ever imagine.

That’s why it would probably only take a few hours or minutes before monsters would roam near here.

I wasn’t able to just stand here and guard though.

“Hm…. I guess the only ones I can rely on are them.”

“KUWAAG!:”

“KUWUHHH!”

“KUWUH!”

“Loud, huge, and good at combat.”

In front of the Gate appeared three Devil Avatars.

They understood and followed my commands to the letter.

While I explored the demonic realm, I would keep this place on my mind, but these creatures would be an immense help while I wasn’t here.

On top of that, I summoned one more.

It was King Suwoo, a creature summoned from an S+ ranking summon skill.

This was a creature that was summoned by Ghost during our fight before.

I already knew how useful summoner skills were.

That’s why I couldn’t help but be sold at King Suwoo’s destructive and endurance capabilities.

The Devil Avatars had strong magical attacks, while King Suwoo had powerful physical attacks.

Of course, I had to make sure that these monsters would be able to handle the situation in the case of enemies with magical resistances appearing.

The top 1% of the monsters in Berdan’s territory had already all perished.

Gathering in Berdan’s castle, they met their terrible fate at my hands.

Even so, I was positive that these summoned creatures could not kill all the monsters here.

After all, compared to here, the monsters of the Hidden Dungeon were child’s play.

There would be different results depending on the monster’s ranking, but if they charged in small numbers like what just happened now, these creatures should able to stop them.

I spoke to the summoned creatures that now guarded the Gate.

“Prevent them from entering. No living creatures are allowed to enter through this Gate, okay?”

“KUWANG!”

“Good. If any of you perish, I will sense it and come running. Do not forget that I am always watching over you, and halt them with all your might! No matter what it takes, okay?”

“KUWUH!”

“They sure are dependable.”

***

Demon king Jamon was staring into space with a serious expression.

Several days had passed since he had met with Berdan.

Berating him for his complacency, he had commanded Berdan to surrender his territory and monsters under him to Ladin.

The demon king spoke to himself.

“I cannot sense Berdan’s magical energy…… And what is that new magical energy…. Zekill? Berdan? No, whoever it is, they have both their magical energies.”

Due to Berdan’s death, the shroud that was used to hide Min-Cheol’s magical energy had become undone.

However, the demon king already knew of Min-Cheol’s existence even before the shroud became undone.

He is the demon king, after all.

It didn’t even take any effort for him to sense anyone with massive amounts of magical energies.

He had sensed the magical energy of Zekill, who had expended all of it while traveling to another dimension.

On top of that, he sensed the magical energy that had been Berdan’s on this new person.

Unsettled, Jamon whispered to himself.

“Who would it be…….”

---

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129. Didn’t You Learn That You Die If You Pull Out Your Horns in the Demonic Realm?

“KUAAHHHHHH!”

Berdan screamed as he twisted his own horns.

The two horns on his head broke off, and his giant form rapidly shrunk as if his body was deflating like a balloon.

Purple liquid sprayed out like a fountain from where he broke off his horns.

However, that wasn’t the blood of a monster, even though the color was the same.

We would soon learn that this was magical energy.

The purple liquid that left his body wiggled and swirled around for a bit before being absorbed by his body once more.

Berdan had only a shoddy piece of cloth covering him before.

However, a single moment, his body was covered in armor.

The armor made him look barbaric, but it covered his entire body without leaving any gaps.

It was as if he had used his magical energy to strengthen his body.

Maybe that was why he wasn’t taking any additional damage from the In Storm electric magic in the slightest.

Also.

“Urgh…….”

“…….”

Finishing his transformation, he let out a mighty wave of explosive force from his body.

The various metal ornaments around him were instantly blown apart.

His body looked like an athlete’s, who had worked out far too much.

On top of that, he had armor covering up his whole body.

His body had shrunk, but his ability and his shape remained the same as before breaking off his horns.

After letting out an attack that wasn’t even meant to be an actual attack, Berdan stood still without a word.

The Eye of Insight that had told me before that his weak spots were his entire body now only pointed towards his heart.

Jong Ho, who had been near him to attack, made distance and came to me to talk.

“Doesn’t he seem really pissed off?”

“Seems so. Even so, do you think he’ll be anything to worry about?”

“Hm……”

“How much mana do you have left?”

“Plenty. Due to Mana Drain activating nonstop, I don’t feel starved for mana. It’s enough to make me feel like I have infinite mana like you.”

“That’s good. Don’t get too complacent though and make sure to keep checking how much you have left.”

“Of course. How long do you think I was starving for mana before.”

“Yes, but….. It was risky how you suddenly sprinted forward before. Thank goodness that the results were good…..”

“Ah. You mean baiting them in?”

“Yes. I know what you were thinking when you did that, but…..”

“Pfft. Yeah, I was out of my mind. I’m not even sure why I did that. Don’t know what I was thinking…. My body moved on its own, and I felt a surge of confidence without reason.”

“I guess you felt sure and confident.”

“Is that so? I guess I can say that I instinctively felt that I could take him down.”

“Well, it already happened. Either way, good job. I was quite surprised too.”

“Hey, should we really wait for him while he does that? It’s like how the main protagonists of an anime gives the enemy robot to finish transforming or something.”

“Haha. Almost forgot cause he has no presence. You should finish this up.”

“Me? I should?”

“Since you started it, you should see to its end.”

“Okay.”

I gave all the buff skills I had to Jong Ho, then proceeded to become a spectator once more.

Despite the transformation Berdan went through, since there was a huge difference in combat capabilities before, I wasn’t that worried.

I was absolutely positive that Jong Ho would win.

Holding magician class weapons, the staff and wand, he got closer to him.

It was then.

“Kurururu…..”

“……”

“Kuru……”

“He’s almost a magician at this point. A magician.”

“KUWUHHHHH!”

From his mouth came the sound that monsters without intelligence would make.

Every time he let out his breath, a huff of frosty chill came out, but unlike his breath, his body was giving off searing steam and smoke.

Jong Ho’s attack started.

A fierce blizzard came forth.

It was Glacial Field, a spell that dealt frost damage in a large area.

On top of that, Iceberg rose up from the ground.

He had casted two frost spells that prevented his opponent from moving.

It would be unlikelu for a monster at Berdan’s level to be completely frozen and shatter, but it was definitely enough to prevent his movements.

Glacial Field covered a huge area, but it didn’t do much damage.

Really the skill was to apply status effects.

However, Iceberg was plenty enough to fill the lack of damage.

It boasted enough damage to not lose to any other skill.

Jong Ho’s use of the skill displayed that he did not lack any sense in his decision making.

Delivering hits at the right time with precision, he hit dead center.

The Balrock ring was on his finger.

Within the ring were countless spells.

For being a warrior class, it would have taken a lot of effort for Jong Ho to obtain mastery over skills like these.

I was thankful once more that Jong Ho was person that I could follow and trust.

“Kuru….”

“Are you cold?”

“KUHUNG!”

Frozen stiff inside Iceberg like a stuffed display at a museum, his black eyes stared intensely at Jong Ho.

No matter how much steam he was letting out from his body, it would be incredibly difficult for him to escape the Iceberg spell that had hit level 300.

However….

-CRACK!

“KUWUHHHHH! KAHAA!”

“Does frost magic not work on him?”

“…….”

Letting out another powerful wave of pressure, the Iceberg was shattered into pieces at the impact.

On top of that, Berdan, who had been standing still, began to move.

However, his movement wasn’t slowed in the slightest.

Taking this situation into account, the only explanation was that he was either completely resistant to frost magic, or even magic damage itself.

That meant that this was an opponent that Jong Ho could not win against.

Despite Jong Ho being a warrior class and me being a magician class, our roles had completely flipped since the moment we had decided to head for the demonic realm.

However, unlike Jong Ho, I was without flaw in both my physical and magical offensive capabilities.

Just looking at the weapons Jong Ho was holding, it was obvious.

Both Jong Ho’s face and mine had surprised written all over them.

However, it wasn’t the expression of defeat.

It was just a small shock at his change in form and incredibly high resistances he obtained.

It was then.

“KURUK!”

Berdan sped up at speeds difficult to imagine and struck his abdomen.

The spell shield that didn’t take any damage before was instantly shattered.

On top of that, it dealt damage directly to his body.

My body that had completely relaxed from spectating immediately tensed up.

Despite the sudden attack, Jong Ho did not panic.

Casting his main defensive skill Otherworldly Skin, he avoided additional attacks that ensued and was looking for a chance to strike back.

His speed was unlike anything before.

It also looked like his attacks had increased in damage in multiples.

Avoiding his charge gracefully, Jong Ho attacked with flame magic this time.

Casting Explosion and Fire Shock, he finished off his combo with the main damage skill Meteor.

Predicting Berdan’s pathing, he landed a direct hit.

“A direct hit…..”

However, that didn’t work either.

Jong Ho followed up with Holy Shock and the spell that did self damage, Chain Explosion.

Even with Chain Explosion, which delivered various types of damages, he could not deal damage to Berdan.

I was absolutely sure of it now.

Due to letting out magical energies in order to obtain that armor, he had obtained a 100% resistance to magic.

It was made even more apparent from the fact that Berdan merely swatted away the intense flames that blocked his vision before walking out of the inferno.

In a split moment, I blocked Jong Ho’s path.

Quietly I whispered.

“Hyung-nim, it looks like you’re struggling a lot.”

“Magic resistance, right?”

“Yes, it seems so.”

“I was wondering why he was taking no damage. If I was alone, I would have been helpless against him.”

“Agreed. It can’t be helped, since you don’t do that much physical damage despite being a warrior class.”

“Yeah. Even though I received his attacks after he became stronger and faster, it wasn’t something that I couldn’t handle. It’s just that I can’t deal any damage to him. His transformation isn’t the deciding factor between victory and defeat.”

“Yes, I understand. May I take it from here?”

“Yes, please do.”

“Ok.”

“KUWUHHH!”

A single strike.

“KUWEHHH!

The sight of one of his arms falling to the ground was pleasing.

I merely swung my sword with massive force while leaping forward.

To put it simply, all it had taken was a leap and a single swing.

However, the results were devastating.

A nasty wound was left behind through his armor and on his body.

“KUWUHHH!”

Allowing me to attack without any resistance, now he was grabbing his severed arm and howling in pain.

However, that didn’t last long.

When I moved in to swing my sword at him again, he had dodged with incredible speed.

One could think of this as a simple dodge.

However, he had dodged and charged towards where Jong Ho stood.

His severed arm hadn’t completely recovered yet, but claws had formed there and they were sharp as a sword.

He was able to deal damage to Jong Ho before from just swinging his fists.

Now, what if he used that kind of weaponry, and if he attacked while losing his sanity and struck in a last ditch effort when he was cornered like a rat?

Noticing Berdan’ s intentions, Jong Ho hurriedly prepared his defenses.

However, I wasn’t just going to stand there idly and watch.

Casting Mass Stealth Jutsu, I hid both Jong Ho and my form.

However, he did not stop charging towards where Jong Ho had stood a moment ago.

Realizing that he was hidden from view, he quickly moved away from his previous location like a true pro.

His charge stopped only when he ran into the walls of the castle, and there I was, standing next to him.

No matter how much he struggled, he was merely a slow moving turtle before me.

“KUHUK! KUK!”

Berdan had taken his last breath.

I had stabbed his heart with Butcher’s Sword, the one weak spot that Eye of Insight had shown me.

His eyes that were pitch dark lost its color, and his body hung limp on my blade like clothes that were hung to dry.

As soon as I pulled out my sword, massive amounts of magical energy that he had absorbed poured out from him.

As the sword freed itself from his body, he turned into a pile of ash.

This was something that you could not see on Earth.

After all, this was the first time that we could see magical energy.

The magical energy that left his body swirled around me, unsettling me.

Following that, it was absorbed by my body as if it was natural.

“I don’t feel so good about it entering my body without permission…..”

“Is that so?”

“Well, I won’t be able to use it anyways. It shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”

“You’re probably right. It’s something that only monsters need.”

“Whew….. We took down Berdan on the first day of arriving in the demonic realm.”

“It’s not a bad start.”

“I agree. Aren’t you hungry?”

“Hey, from running dungeons without a reason to be tense to focusing properly for the first time in awhile, it really does work up an appetite.”

“Pfft. I thought so. Our food storage should be outside.”

“Right, Karin. Let’s go outside for now. And let us rest here for the night while we’re at it.”

“Yes. I wonder what material this castle is made of in order to be this sturdy? To be able to receive Transcended spells without any issues…..”

“Dunno…. I didn’t have the luxury to think about it.”

“I think we have to bring some with us when we return to Earth.”

“Why? You have something to make?”

“I’m planning to make a house out of it for you when you get married.”

“Oh….. But by the time that happens, the monsters would cease existing on Earth.”

“Nope. This is for you and your wife to be able to have your lover’s quarrels without worry.”

“Shit!”

“Karin.”

“…….”

“Hey, Karin!”

“Keru… Yes! Great Berd-…… Keruk! Hu… Hu…. Human!”

---

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---

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Taken from Light Novel Bastion. All credits goes to the original translator and editor.

9. The Taste of Money! Manticore (4)

My current level was 25.

I achieved this feat within the first 10 days of the school holidays.

Other people had to form parties of 5-6 people to clear particular dungeons, but I could just clear them by myself.

On the surface, it looked like I had a growth rate of 5-6 times faster than normal Awakened, but, in reality, it was at least 10 times faster.

Why? Because I skipped low level dungeons, and went to the high level ones.

Having an ability that eliminates wasting time on mana maintenance is really handy.

Right now I’m doing something that only rich Awakened can do.

On Friday, after I had finished hunting, Sang-Min invited me to join his guild: “Nobless”.

According to searches it seemed to be a so-so guild.

It wasn’t a large guild, at most it was a middle sized one; one that didn’t have any relations to history or tradition.

However, joining a guild like this would only be a dream to others with my level.

Adding in the factor of the amount of time I’ve been an Awakened, it became more outrageous.

Using the guild as a stepping stone to get higher didn’t sound like a bad idea.

Joining gave a lot of perks, such as better hunting grounds, loot, items, and information.

But there were 2 rules I was uncomfortable with.

The first was money.

Every week, I had to pay 10% of my income to the guild.

Being sensitive about money, this was the biggest obstacle.

The second, although rarely occurring, was if ever a situation in which the guild had to fight against another one, I would have to join in.

Well, even if I did join the battle, only the top 5% would be fighting.

I still had to think about this.

****

Ttumttap-ttumttumttap
Good morning~ Good morning~

It’s been a long time since I’ve woken up to the morning call.

For some reason Sang-Min hadn’t called.

“What? Is he sleeping in?”

I called Sang-Min.

After a few rings, he picked up.

“Min-Cheol, what’s going on?”

It wasn’t a voice that belonged to a person who had just woken up.

I told Sang-Min and his party to talk to me normally.

In-Ah and Yong-Hyun were 23, Sang-Min was 25, and lastly Chang-Hyuk was 30.

“Hello, Hyung. Are we not hunting today?”

“What? Today? Today’s Saturday. On Saturdays you should rest.”

An uproar. Was he an official?

I wonder so I ask.

“So you don’t go hunting on the weekends? None of your party does?”

“Of course we don’t. We only need to work for 5 days to earn enough money. .. But this guy~~ You’re totally addicted to money now, aren’t you?”

“Haha, it’s not that… Anyway, okay. Have a good rest, Hyung.~”

After ending the call, I realized that what he said made sense.

“Huh, being an Awakened is an occupation too. Except it is rather exclusive.”

Maybe the me who didn’t even think ‘If I have this much money, of course I should rest.’ is an idiot.

Ttak ttak ttak ttak

I felt a presence from the kitchen.

I nervously gathered electricity in one hand, and carefully opened the door.

Through the tiny gap I saw my Mother.

After Grade 2 of Primary School, Mother never stayed home on the weekends.

Weekends, holidays, the dog must’ve bitten it all off.

A smile unconsciously formed on my face.

“Mother…”

“Did you wake up, son?”

I sometimes saw Mother, at the crack of dawn, making breakfast.

But this time, she was unhurriedly making breakfast, looking peaceful.

I wondered if this was true happiness.

The restaurant’s kitchen was being remodeled, so she got a two day holiday.

I wanted to skip out on today’s hunting, and just eat breakfast and spend time with her.

Suddenly…

BANGBANGBANGBANG!

Are they trying to knock the door down?

It was probably the loan sharks…

They usually came when Mother was at work. Why did they come today?

“Park Se-Ran ssi! Park Se-Ran ssi!!”

They usually came once a month.

I had given them 3 million twice in 10 days, and, having smelt money, they kept coming as if one day was really far away.

Of course, it wasn’t enough to pay back the interest.

Even though I found this quite natural, Mother was surprised.

I heard the men talking outside.

I didn’t hear what they were saying, but as soon as they finished conversing.

Kugung!

3 men broke down the front door and came into the house.

“My, my, my. If a visitor comes you should open the door! You know, you can’t make your debt go away just by avoiding it, right?

The guy in the front said, while sticking his head up.

I couldn’t help but compare him to a dried-up anchovy.

I’ve seen this guy a couple of times before, when I was home alone.

He’s that bastard who kept on swearing and complaining about how there’s too much interest backed up.

Usually, after complaining, he would leave soon after.

He didn’t look like an Awakened, but the two men behind him did.

They probably destroyed the door.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’ll pay back the interest no matter what.”

“Hey, Park Se-Ran Ssi! It looks like you’ve found a way to get money.  If you have, then you should pay back the interest first. Isn’t that right?”

After seeing that bastard tapping on my Mother’s shoulders and head with his finger, anger started clouding my brain.

I prepared to shove that fucker away, but…

“G…gah.”

The two Awakened behind him suddenly started grabbing my arms and body.

My limbs were firmly restrained. I couldn’t get free no matter how hard I struggled.

Fuck! Who the hell are these guys!?’

They were definitely Awakened stronger than me.

“Wow, your son has a really high ambition! Baby, you saw me a lot right? From now on, I’ll be seeing you constantly. So we’ll definitely meet again.

The bastard said this while tapping my cheek.

Even after Awakening, I still felt rage and humiliation, similar to that which I felt towards Jae-Hyuk.

I started to suspect they came just to scare us.

Soon after, dried anchovy goes back.

After he goes out, they stop restraining me.

They follow him out.

I gritted my teeth and vowed to get stronger.

On the day that I repay the debt, you will die by my hands.

Mother stared at the doorway they walked out of and quietly muttered to herself.

“Those fucking bastards…”

“Hm? What did you say?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“…Mother, are you really okay?”

“Of course! I’m fine. Just eat your breakfast. I made the delicious steamed eggs that you like.”

I don’t know whether she’s just acting strong in front of me, or she’s strong because she’s used to this happening.

Whatever her reasons, I can’t waste time like this.

In these circumstances, rest was too extravagant.

I started getting ready to head to the dungeon again.

As I reached the doorway, my Mother spoke to me:

“Son, I can live without money, but I can’t live without you. You have to study hard and become a scientist like that Tyson person. I’ll make something delicious for dinner, so come back safely, okay?”

I wanted to make a joke, and tell her that ‘I was stronger than Tyson right now’, but for some reason I felt bitter and uncomfortable.

Whenever I talked to her, I felt like there was a rock in my stomach.

“Yes, Ms. Park. I’ll be back!”

I acted like I didn’t remember what had just occurred, and made a humorous face.

My mother stared at me, and her face blossomed into the world’s most beautiful smile.

Not long after I arrive at the dungeon, I noticed that the dungeon entrance looks quite relaxed. I guessed that it was because of the weekends.

It looked like everyone had formed teams with their own guild members and were filling up on their mana, or performing maintenance on their items.

“Hmm… Should I go in alone?”

---

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Taken from Light Novel Bastion. All credits goes to the original translator and editor.

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Taken from Light Novel Bastion. All credits goes to the original translator and editor.

1. Obtaining the Power

Behemoths began to appear on earth about 40 years ago.

About 22 years before I was born?

Anyway, you can guess right?

I’m eightee….

No, eighteen years old. ⁷

Your average, fearless, South Korean high school student.

As for my possessions, well, I don’t have shit.

I’m a student, so that’s only obvious.

But even if you don’t consider the fact that I’m a student, I’m still poor as a damn dog.

… I’m a non-Awakened…

What am I talking about?

The world has changed to become extremely unfair. Ah, not that it was fair before the change.

But it’s even more unfair now.

It’s fucked up.

The Awakened kill Behemoths, got praised as the era’s hero and became rich as fuck.

If the non-Awakened want to become rich, they have to suck their thumbs and wait for their weekly lottery ticket, hoping to win.

So I’m just studying hard.

Who knows?

If I do well in my SATs and graduate from a good university, maybe I could join a guild or the Awakened association as an office worker?

If it goes really well, maybe I could even become the manager of an Awakened.

“… So, throughout South Korea’s history…”

Snore~

And my buddy Hwang Jae-Hyuk is sleeping.

He’s even snoring.

Even so, the teacher doesn’t do anything about it.

It’s not because he’s given up.

This guy was told that he is an Awakened during his first year of high school.

Basically, he’s going to live a successful future where everything is secure.

And he’s even in the warrior line of the Awakened.

Just thinking about it, it’s about as fair as a dog’s dick.

Why does that guy get to be born with everything.

And why do I have nothing.

He’s just fulfilling the necessary education that the nation has decreed.

Just think of it as an education system which prevents the Awakened from turning on the nation, a disciplinary system.

At school he sleeps and after school he earns money! So unfair, this fucking world!

Ah, let’s just not even think about it.

I’ll just keep studying.

Because this is all I can do.

And the one reason that I work so earnestly! Family!

The only family member I have left, my mother.

I think of my mother who would be working tirelessly at the restaurant, always saying that she would raise her useless son alone all her life.

Euduek~

Then my molars grind hard against each other.

She only looks at me and dedicates her entire life to me.

When I think of my mother, my heart always hurts.

It can only do that.

A long time ago.

It was around when I was in my 2nd year of elementary school.

The human who called himself my father, addicted to both alcohol and gambling, used to beat my mother a lot.

Even so, my mother never let out a sound.

Because I was in the room.

She didn’t want to show her son that side of her.

Even so, I was fully aware.

We’re a family that lives together in a single house, how could I not know?

The next day, I would see the torn and bruised face of my mother.

I even tried to just look at the knot patterns in the carpet on the floor, but still…..

One day, father died.

Father? No, ‘A man who called himself my father died.’ That should be it.

That’s what it’s like in my mind.

It seemed that he had borrowed money from all sorts of loan sharks to fuel his gambling addiction.

Five days after he was reported to be missing, I was able to meet the man known as my father.

With two hollow eyes, and with a Y-shaped cut which ran from his chest to his belly…

Honestly, I was a bit sad.

But deep inside my heart, I was laughing.

We can be happy now.

Now mother doesn’t have to be hurt anymore.

I laughed because those thoughts were there.

The debt of 2 million Won kept on growing.

Like that, the man known as my “Father” left a debt of 40 million Won and slowly faded away from my memories.

Ding-Dong-Dang-Dong~

Interrupting my fleeting thought, the bell that signals lunchtime rings.

The teacher leaves the room immediately.

And, my buddy Hwang-Jae-Hyuk opens his eyes instantly.

What a scary guy.

How does he rise up, sharp as a knife’s edge, as soon as lunch starts?

It can’t not be some amazing ability.

Of course! Although this probably isn’t an Awakened ability….

“Hey.”

Jae-Hyuk faces me and hands over 500 Won.

Wow, this guy is really nice.

If you thought that, you’d be wrong.

Because this guy… is a delinquent.

“Buy me two chocolate breads and a bottle of coke with this.”

Did he not receive primary school education? He must’ve cooked and eaten his math textbook. ⁸

And with bread, you’re supposed to drink milk you idiot…

“That’s not enough money…”

I replied like that.

And I know exactly what will happen afterwards.

“Ahh. Min-Cheol, do you want to die?”

The bastard stares at me while calling my name.

But I’m trying my best in order to not give in.

Yeah… I’m Jae-Hyuk’s bread shuttle.

Although sad, that’s the reality.

Although the difference between an ordinary person and an Awakened differed with the Awakened’s rank, if you treated the ordinary person’s strength as ‘1’ then the Awakened’s strength would be ‘10’.

Anyway, when it came to do with money I was really sensitive about it.

So, this idiotic order of telling me to go buy 2 chocolate breads and a cola with only 500 Won is something I can’t accept. ⁹

It’s the iron law of the National association of Bread Shuttles… I’m joking.

If Jae-Hyuk handed over 3000 Won, then I would’ve gone.

Although it’s a petty excuse, I can eat lunch and exercise at the same time while going back and forth.

But the disadvantageous demand of using my own money to buy the items, I can’t accept.

I can’t use my own money to buy the items.

I gave the 500 won back to Jae-Hyuk.

“Haah~ Has this bastard gone crazy?”

As he said that, he raises his eyebrows and suddenly stands up from the chair.

Honestly, probably because I’m human, I’m scared.

But I can’t surrender.

Because, the 2000 Won that my mother gave to me this morning, it can’t be used for this piece of shit bastard.

“Do you want to get hit a few times first, or do you wanna just go?”

I don’t reply.

He starts hitting me.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

His punch lands in my pit of the stomach.

I’m winded, and it hurts a lot.

“Keu…Keuhuek….!”

Hurts.

Annoying.

So scary.

If only this fucker disappeared from the world like the guy who called himself my father… That would be good.

And…

In this unfair world.

If only I could become a millionaire.

I could laugh at these pieces of trash in front of me, and live my own life.

Well, screw the other things, first my mother…

Pow!

My consciousness cuts off.

And before I black out.

Something seems to ring in my head.

.

.

.

[Your body has awakened.]

[‘You have obtained the Frost Orb spell’]

 

Kim Min-Cheol

Level : 1

Exp : [0/100]

Class: Magician

Special Attribute: Mana doesn’t run out.

Strength: 10

Mana: ∞

Agility : 10

Vitality : 10

Unspent Points：０

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Taken from Light Novel Bastion. All credits goes to the original translator and editor.

6. The Taste of Money! Manticore

It’s been a week since I went out to the hunting grounds. In that week I’ve gained 11 levels.

This is actually an amazing growth rate.

Compared to other Awakened, I’m growing many times faster.

To me who never runs out of mana, it’s quite an obvious outcome.

In a normal Awakened’s case, after a party hunt they had to recover their mana and be on guard.

Of course, their recovery rate depends on their mana stat.

But while they had to wait to recover I could spend that time hunting.

I didn’t tell my mother about my Awakening yet.

She’s a person who only looks after me and cares for me, it’s clear that she’s going to stop me from hunting because of such worries.

I’m going to tell her after I can get a steady stream of income.

Until I get that large of an income, every month I’ll send her an amount of cash with sender names like ‘Scholarship Foundation’ or ‘Sharing Love’.

After a day’s hunt is over I disposed of the loot straight away.

However! To avoid suspicion I went to many other different Awakened markets to sell.

About 10 hours or more of hunting and the amount of money I get is 1 million won.

In a week, I get around 5 million won.

But this money so far has to go towards repaying the loan…

It’s a really a bittersweet situation.

After graduating from the level 1 dungeon so easily, I skipped a few levels and went hunting in a level 5 dungeon.

As I learnt the skill ‘Lightning Spray’, it resulted in faster growth.

It was all due to Lightning Spray’s amazing power! And its corresponding huge mana cost! As said, it’s an insane spell.

And I infinitely cast said insane spell.

The level of the dungeon that is best suited for me right now is level 6!

A level 6 dungeon requires at least level 10+ Awakened in a party of at least 5 to clear.

But I guess I’ll once again graduate early.

“Hunting is really easy. You just need to remember 2 simple things. Freezing then electrifying, give me the beat!”

Ttiring

A message came right before entering the dungeon.

‘It’s probably mother right?’ With that thought I check the message.

But this one mail makes me move my feet like I’m on drugs.

The mail’s contents are as follows.

-Urgent Notice!

This is the Awakened association.

Currently due to the lack of ‘Manticore’s Soul Stones’ the ‘Intermediate Plant Center’ is not functioning properly. Therefore the association has decided to directly purchase ‘Manticore’s Soul Stones’ from you Awakened.

If you own this item please come to the association to sell.
1 : 1 billion won.

The Awakened association – what a thick compensation.

8:24 am.

I don’t know what a ‘manticore’ is…
Ah screw it! But if I have one of those I think everything will be fine…

The Intermediate Plant Center.

A place that people made to grow unusual-devouring plants. This was due to the portals’ creation and explosions which resulted in the killing of many people and therefore creating worker losses… simply put, it’s a greenhouse!

But this greenhouse’s plant growth speed is amazing.

Any plant can grow to its best quality as long as it’s been given 24 hours.

If the First Qin Emperor’s elixir of eternal youth existed, humanity living forever probably wouldn’t be a dream. ¹⁰

It seems that the Center uses ‘manticore soul stones’ as its main power source.

I quickly unlock my phone and search about ‘manticores’.

Manticores are monsters that appear at the level 12 dungeon. But I didn’t hesitate.

I quickly move to the level 12 dungeon.

As I near the entrance I see many Awakened that I didn’t see before milling around.

“Looking for one healer-class Awakened!”

“Looking for a tanker. Will reward with lots of loot.”

Money is scary after all.

In less than 10 minutes all these Awakened gathered here…

The me of 10 minutes ago corrupted by money is long forgotten.

Awakened without parties were trying to get party members whose class would be needed for their party.

“Looking for a high-mana magician. If you come we’re departing straight away! There’s one place for a long-range damage dealer!”

‘Min-Cheol ssi come here! Take one million~’ hearing it like that is probably an illusion right?

I quickly move up to the man and ask.

“Is there something like a level limit?”

“Ah, we would prefer a level 45+, and someone who has learnt at least more than one greater magic spell. Our party members are all level 45+ too.

Wait, why is the difference between the level 6 dungeon and the level 12 dungeon so much?

The level limit is insanely high, but I have to go.

“I’m only level 11, but my ‘Mana Regeneration’ skill level is quite high and I also learnt ‘Lightning Spray’. Oh yeah, and I set my items to all mana buffing, is it possible for me to join?”

While looking at the forum posts that have a ton of flaunting and things, I really coveted their equipment.

Of course, 2% of my thoughts were to buy them to hide my passive during party hunts.

At the ‘Awakened Market’ street, I bought a replica rank staff, 4 rings, 2 bracelets, and one necklace all for only 200 thousand won.

Someone said that clothes are wings, due to this my outer appearance looks quite good.

The man scans me quickly and says.

“Your level’s too low… How many times can you cast Lightning Spray? With your mana regeneration.

Talk to a person who lies, for me lying is too hard.

The equipment I bought has mana increasing effects, the rings each increase 50, necklace 100, and bracelets each increasing 5% of my mana.

Ah~ Of course, that would be if they were the real deal.

In the ‘Lich King’s Staff’’s case, it grants 200 more mana and increases your maximum mana by 15%, it’s a mid-high rank weapon for magicians.

If I actually had bought one of any of these items for real, it would’ve cost me a few ten to a few hundred billion won.

‘Addition, multiplication then multiplication again! Add some division too!’ I fully used my brain which was pretty much frozen for the past few days.

It’s because I have to give out a decent lie.

The amount of mana I get from the items and level up points is 3500!

“If I use regeneration as well… I can use it about 8 times.”

As if to say ‘look at this!’, I quickly use lightning spray multiple times with my left hand and then cancel it.
‘Seeing is believing!’

Jjeojeok! Jjeojeok! Jjeojeok!

To me this is nothing. I can do this all day.

But not to that man.

Look at that guy’s expression! And why are you raising your guard?

After he realizes that I wasn’t lying he opens his mouth.

“If…If you can do that much I guess it’s possible.”

Of course it’s possible! Even level 45 magicians with items can only use ‘Lightning Spray’ 2-3 times.

And I already saw you being surprised you idiot!

He continued talking.

“Because you’re a high-mana magician you have to stay inside the healer’s ‘Barrier’.”

“And the tanker will aggro all the monsters and…
.
.
.
“You understand right? Let’s do well.”

The man give me explanations about the plan and the notice. ¹¹

I nod and wait for him to finish talking.

“I understand. Also, how many party members are there?”

This is very important.

Safety is safety but we have to share the 1 billion won’s worth ‘Manticore Soul Stones’ between us.

“With me included there are 4 people.”

20 million per person… If it’s that much it’s an amount of money which I have to hunt for nearly a month for.

Of course it would be more than 12 hours…¹²

Before entering the dungeon I greet the other party members.

The tanker who will attract the monsters Lee Chang-Hyuk. The healer who is in charge of buffs and health Lee In-Ah.

The necromancer who is in charge of secondary buffs and the main source of debuffs Jo Yong-Hyun and the warrior who explained things to me for ages at the entrance who is the secondary tanker and damage dealer Han Sang-Min.

These guys are all in the same guild.

Except for Han Sang-Min the other 3 didn’t talk much, and they seem to be wary of me.

It’s probably because I’m a low-level level 11 and I have all these high-price items on me, they probably are less willing.

“Well then, let’s go!”

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