Category: I Never Run Out of Mana

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22. Noblesse Guild (3)

As I finished my conversation with Sangmin-hyung, a call came.

“Yes. Hyung.”

“Uh. What’s up Min-Cheol?”

“Hyung, I’ve only been here for an hour. Hyung, perhaps you like me?”

“I just had a bad feeling. If there is nothing wrong, that’s fine. Please let hyung know if you become suspicious or notice something strange. Talk to you later then.”

‘What the? Boring. Only talking about himself and ending the call.’

After the call ended, master Park Hyun spoke towards the where the guild members grouped up.

“Everyone, thank you for your hard work. I reserved a BBQ rib place in front of here, so I’ll see all there.”

“Yes!”

“Understood!”

I had given up a day that could have been used for hunting, but it was a time where I could gather a lot of information.

With this much, it should more than make up for the lost time, right?

I left the west section association branch and leisurely headed toward the restaurant.

To make sure that all 500 members could be hosted, she must have selected a restaurant where the entire building was dedicated for use of the restaurant.

From the beginning of the guild war to the end of it, and even when we were moving toward the restaurant, he warily kept an eye, avoiding me as best as he could.

‘There walks my bento.’

“Hey! Hwang Jae Hyuk!”

“…..”

“What happened to the days you used to beat me up for not responding? Why are you doing it yourself?”

“Get lost. I don’t want to even speak with you.”

“Pff! You must have grown stronger since, huh?”

“You little piece of shit! You only got strong using money!”

I guess you could misinterpret my growth like that. But I was not going to be nice and explain to him that he had misunderstood.

I quietly went next to Jae Hyuk and put my hand on his shoulder.

Then.

“Do you not understand your situation? You’re going to die at this rate.”

“Urk.”

Putting a lot of strength in my hands, I squeezed his shoulder.

He could only groan pathetically at the incomparable strength since last time.

“You still think you’re the best huh?”

“G-guh. Let me go you piece of shit.”

“I told you last time? That there is no way I’m forgiving trash like you so easily. I hope you don’t ever change!”

“…..”

“Guess you don’t remember being hit last time? It was really sad to see how much pain you were in before.”

I raised my hand and move it towards his face, making him flinch and close his eyes.

Then.

“Please stop! We’re going to be one big family, so we shouldn’t fight you know?”

Guild master Park Hyun had headed toward us.

“Ma….master.”

Soon as Jae Hyuk saw Park Hyun, he ran toward her.

‘Bullying bitch….. He must do really well at work. ¹ But becoming a family? Aren’t we just guild members?’

“Mr. Min-Cheol. Let’s stop and go up to eat. Mr. Jae Hyuk should also stop this and go.”

In that short period, I felt something strange in the way Park Hyun looked at me.

Perhaps it was due to Jong Ho-hyung telling me about the rumors. It could be just me being biased.

But my guts told me that she was hiding something.

After eating out, it was 11 at night.

Since my mother was staying at home, I decided not to hunt till morning and instead head home.

While I was shaking my hand to catch a taxi on the side of the road, someone called out to me.

“Mr. Min-Cheol.”

“Yes.”

“Did you hear?”

“What…?”

“Ah, I guess you didn’t hear. All new guild members are to have an interview with me. So I asked a message to be sent asking if you had time tomorrow, but I guess it hasn’t arrived.”

“Ah, then let’s see each other tomorrow.”

“Let’s. Please come to the office at 7 in the evening.”

We said our goodbyes and I went toward home.

But during the entire way, couldn’t help but be suspicious.

‘Do guild masters really talk this often with their members like this?’

I knew that there were several new members who joined as well.

But Park Hyun did not even give them a glance towards them.

The more I thought about it, the more I became suspicious of her.

* * *

Next day, 7 in the evening.

For the interview with Park Hyun, I arrived at the guild building.

I went to Park Hyun’s room and knocked on the door.

“Yes, come on in.”

As I opened the door and went in, Park Hyun greeted me as if happy to see me.

“Ah, Mr. Min-Cheol. Welcome. I was just about to contact you. There was no difficulty coming, right?”

“Yes, thanks to you. Thank you.”

“Haha, I see. So, it was the first time you’ve seen a guild war, right? How was it? Wasn’t it fun?”

“Yes. It was very exciting.”

“Guild war is like true sports. The strong and superior become the winners, and the weak and inferior become the losers…..”

As she spoke, her face looked passionate and as if reminiscing about something.

But what I saw was a slight childlike madness.

“If a winner and loser is decided, I guess that would make it similar to sports.”

After that.

Many insignificant questions and answers continued.

Then.

“Ah, when Mr. Min-Cheol was younger, is it true your father passed away?”

‘What? Did she check my background? Since it’s something you can learn about just by looking up my life history record, should I be worried?’ ²

“Yes, that’s right. At the age of 12.”

“Rumors say that it was due to debt.”

“Yes.”

“How was it for you?”

“Well, I have no emotions toward it.”

“Hm, did you not get along with your father?”

“…..”

“Ah, I’m sorry. Since I’m interested in Mr. Min-Cheol, I have lots of questions about you. My apologies if I was rude.”

“Ah, it’s fine.”

“Thank you. I also kind of feel bad for your father. But if the weak owes the strong, and is unable to pay the debt, they should take responsibility. I find this world ruled by the law of the jungle. From that point of view, I guess I could see your dad as a sacrifice. Don’t you agree?”

“…..”

Hearing her question, I asked while closing my past.

“Sorry but, what are you trying to get at?”

“Ah, I became to serious. Sorry. I just wanted to know how you were doing, but I went off track.”

“School and hunting, I do not do either excessively or with negligence.”

“I see. Then we’ll end the interview here. Please come to the guild often, I have great expectations of you.”

“Yes. Then I’ll be going.”

After the conversation, Park Hyun had the intern secretary escort me home safely.

On the ride back, there was no conversation, but perhaps due to the feats performed yesterday, I felt a silent pressure.

I’ve felt it before, but he really did stay emotionless without an expression. Due to the sunglasses he always wore, I could never tell what he was thinking.

* * *

“I’m back.”

“Ah. For what reason has my son returned home so early?”

“We haven’t had a day together after you quit work. I came so we could spend time together.”

Even while talking, she went to the kitchen to grab a metal pot and rice cooker, and asked.

“That’s my son. Did you eat yet? You should eat.”

“No, I already ate. What did you do today? What’s that in the living room?”

“Ah, that? Staying at home all day made me bored so I took some small jobs near here.”

“Ah, I told you to get some rest instead of doing that. Your son earns well!”

My mother couldn’t help but laugh with happiness at my complaints.

“Just hearing that from you makes me feel strong! I’m doing it because I’m bored so don’t you worry and go take a shower.”

“Don’t do work like that but do something fun that you want to do. Like the mothers that you see on TV that draw or do flower arranging. I’ll take a quick shower and come back out.”

* * *

After checking that my mother went to her room, I went into my room and laid on the bed.

The words Park Hyun said.

What objective in mind did she say those words with.

It wasn’t an interest you showed toward a new guild member, and it caused me great distress.

Jong Ho’s words that Noblesse has connections with radical groups came to mind again.

The part that really stuck in my mind was how she said the weak being crushed was the natural course of things.

Perhaps she plans to drag me into the radical group?

Is that why she offered those ridiculously beneficial conditions for me when asking me to join?

Does that mean she knows my ability? How much of it?

Perhaps that’s how all the guild members are, or perhaps there is a different reason. I needed more detailed and credible information.

Jae Hyuk would be coming to school tomorrow. Since he missed any more days, he would not be able to meet the required days to attend and possibly have his Awakened license be revoked.

“If I interrogate him, perhaps something will come out?”

Despite Jae Hyuk not being in the guild for a long time, but I thought I could get at least a little bit of information out of him.

Ending my thoughts, I left a text for Jong Ho.

‘Hyung, I need you to help me. I have a question about something you told me yesterday.

Please pick me up after school. There’s something I need to tell you.’

Honestly, I didn’t completely trust Jong Ho.

But I was relying on him because there was no one else in this situation who had that much information and connections.

Of course there were Sangmin and his party, but they were part of the Noblesse guild.

If I asked information from them and they had the same views as Park Hyun, I could be in deep trouble. They were my ‘enemies’ for now.

For tomorrow’s hunting, I tended to my uneasy heart and fell asleep.

---

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21. Noblesse Guild (2)

An underground area was prepared by the Association.

This is where the guild battles will take place.

The participating Awakened moved to the center, and the ground slowly sank down, bringing us towards the underground space.

Those not participating from both guilds, such as myself, could see from the floor above.

The floor that was made of glass became transparent enough to see through, revealing a guild war zone the size of half a soccer field.

The building was constructed of refined blood stone so that it would not collapse under most magic spells and attack skills.

It was a material hastily developed after the terrorism 6 years ago at the ‘central plant center’ and was used as construction material currently for important government structures.

Each side consisted of 27 members.

Each guild’s composition showed their differences clearly.

Noblesse <<8 tanks, 4 healers, 1 bard, 4 magicians, 10 warriors>>

A defensive composition.

Empire <<4 tanks, 4 healers, 1 bard, 3 assassin, 6 magicians, 8 warriors, 1 ranger>>

On the other hand, an offensive composition.

Those that entered in the guild pvp were the top 5% of the Awakened, so necromancers, witch doctors, voodoo users’ debuff could not affect them very much and was not found in either guilds as participants.

Everyone wore the vest prepared by association.

It was a vest that showed your vitality, allowing the association to monitor you just in case you were about to die. A vest that only the association was allowed to use.

Guild wars were not allowed to start without the vests, since any Awakened could be treated as long as they were still alive with the skill ‘Status Negation’.

Also the association forbade murder, so if anyone did perish, the guild was given a massive penalty. Guild pvp was a fight without the loss of life, but a fight for pride.

Separating to the east and west, everyone hastily cast buffs and began discussing strategies.

The bards’ music echoed throughout the underground, highlighting the difference between each guild.

‘Guardian’s Armor’ was used by the Noblesse guild to raise their defense, while Empire used ‘Horn of the Advance Party’ to attack swiftly, both had amazing momentum with their own strategies.

To obtain greater information, I went next to Sangmin and his party.

“Hello hyung.”

“Ah, hasn’t it been awhile, Min-Cheol? Aren’t you very busy nowadays?”

“Yeah, I’m dying trying to both hunt and go to school.”

“Take it easy, since our bodies are our fortune.”

After the short greeting, the announcement for the guild pvp began, and the guild war started.

“Test, test. ‘Noblesse’ vs ‘Empire’ guild pvp will begin.

5. 4. 3. 2. 1. Start!”

“Hyung, what’s the average level of the participants?”

“Hm….. Despite both our guilds being a mid-tier guild, only 150~170-ish.”

‘What, their levels don’t seem that high? I was able to hit level 79 in a little over two months…..’

Of course I was leveling at a speed tens of times faster than others, but I was kind of disappointed at how the levels aren’t that high if Awakenees have been around for 40 years.

“Why are the levels so low if monsters have appeared since 40 years ago?”

“It’s because our guild isn’t that big. High ranking guilds have 300~350, some beyond that.”

“Ah, do you know the level of our guild master then?”

“Master? If I recall, wasn’t she level 210? Why do you ask?”

“Just curious is all…..”

I couldn’t help but be concerned about Park Hyun. For the unknown, just in case…..

From underground, great roars of destruction echoed.

I couldn’t help but be glued to the scene below.

At the west, the Noblesse tanks covered the magicians and healers, while at the east, the Empire’s assassins and ranger looked for gaps in between.

Each of the guild’s warriors was in fierce combat at the front, and the most noticeable was Park Hyun’s secretary who delivered the sword to my house.

With outstanding moves, the enemies’ shields were easily knocked off.

“That’s ‘Whirlwind,’ a rank A warrior skill!”

Sangmin-hyung who was next to me explained with excitement akin to a child looking at cotton candy.

With incredible rotational force, the shields of the enemies were mowed down, and then was followed up with Piercing Sword.

“That’s something even I know. Piercing Sword, right?”

“Yes. But that’s not your regular Piercing Sword. An awakened Piercing Sword.”

“Awakened? Is there something that changes when a skill is awakened?”

“Of course! When a skill level becomes 100, the skill can be awakened.”

“What, is there another separate skill book?”

“No. You have to obtain ‘awakening essence’ in order for it to be possible. You can raise your awakened skill to level 100 again. All you have to do is consume the essence and choose the skill you want to use it on, but while it is easy to say, to get an awakening essence is like catching a star in the sky…..”

‘Oho…..’

I understood the basics about awakening skills, but I thought I had obtained some good information.

Focusing again, I looked back at the guild pvp and noticed each magician used weak attacks against another.

The magician did not use any AoE spells but used single target instead.

Since they were high ranking Awakened of their guilds, I was thinking that I would see spells like ‘Meteor Call’ or ‘Magma Pool’ levels of magic I heard about from Jong Ho-hyung.

“Aren’t the magicians kind of weak?”

“They’re keeping an eye on each other.”

“Keeping an eye on each other?”

“A magician is limited in how much mana they have, right? Due to that, the usage of their skill is greatly limited. That’s why they wait until the tanks and healers run out of mana, when all the buffs and shields fall off. It’s obvious since they use all their mana in one go, right?”

“Aha…..”

It was then.

“So it begins. To think that they started off with a meteor strike.”

Looking at where Sangmin pointed, I saw how Empire, who had the greater number of mages, had casted ‘Meteor Call’ first.

From the roof of the underground, or beneath my feet, a massive comet was forming, bellowing red flames.

At the same time, all tankers and healers near the mage began to form up a defense.

I couldn’t tell the exact amount of time that was required to cast, but it looked like it took some time.

Seeing this, a magician of Noblesse also casted a spell.

“If a meteor was used, ‘Ice Bug’ should come out.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s an ice spell that counters Meteor Call. If both skill levels are similar, both spells cancel each other out. Looking at the Awakened of each side, the level difference would be 10 at best? It’s a spell that uses up pretty much all your mana, so there’s no way it isn’t a high ranking skill, right? Both are A ranking spells and polar opposites of one another.”

Soon as he finished explaining, a 3m ice spike came out from the ground.

The casting was timed to hit the meteor at the center perfectly as the meteor descended.

With massive amounts of steam forming, both spells disappeared as if not existing in the first place.

‘Each skill has a counter. But with awakening the skill and enough levels, seems you can win? Good to know.’

After 10 minutes, you could tell who won and loss on the battlefield.

Both sides had magicians, healers, and tanks still alive. However, Empire had lost all warriors and assassins, as they were deemed unable to continue by the referee and was summoned outside.

The person responsible for this situation was Park Hyun’s intern secretary.

Wearing black sunglasses and with an emotionless expression, the secretary had completely annihilated the opponents.

It seemed both sides acknowledged who the winner and loser was, as they began to take of the vests and began to walk to the center.

“Seems it’s over now, so let go out to eat!”

“Going out to eat? Do I have to go?”

“Maybe not on other days, but you have to come if it’s after a guild war.”

‘Damn it! My precious time! As soon as I pay off the gratitude for the sword, I’m quitting.’ was the thought filling my head.

But by attending to the guild war today, I’ve learned information I haven’t even thought about.

Skill awakening, the essence needed to do so, and skill counters. Learning about these three made it so that giving up a day for hunting didn’t seem so wasteful.

“Ah….. All right, I’ll go.”

With a sudden vibration, I looked at my phone.

---

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20. Noblesse Guild

Like usual, I continued my growth by hunting after school.

If there is one thing different, my mother would be there to warmly welcome me when I returned home?

With all the money I’ve saved up till now, I was able to afford a house that we could live in.

I was finally able to leave the house that looked as though it would collapse soon.

For now, all we had was a small apartment, but it was not a place we would be staying for long.

It was only the first step towards the ‘happiness’ I wanted so much.

I met with Jong Ho near dawn after hunting.

It was to have a simple meal and to ask questions about some decent skills.

I could obtain the information on the skill encyclopedia app, but I asked in order to learn about their price to effectiveness ratio.

“Hyung, out of all the magician skills, which are the best?”

“Ones you could use at your level?”

“No. Out of the whole.”

“‘Glacial Field’, ‘Meteor Call’, and ‘Magma Pool’ are the high ranking magic skills I think?”

I knew the three spells Jong Ho mentioned were all A+ ranking from the encyclopedia.

“Are those three the most used?”

“Magician rankers use them the most, but the costs are enormous. Why, are you planning to buy them?”

“How much is the cost?”

“Out of the three, the cheapest one is the ‘Magma Pool’ and probably is about 15 billion won?”

’15 billion won? Why is this hyung like this every time he talks about money!’ Since he wasn’t the type of person to lie, I continued on my question.

“If hyung was a magician and had around 2 billion won. What would you learn?”

“2 billion… You could learn a B rank skill. Let’s see…..”

The Piercing Sword skill that’s a B rank had the price of 120 million won, but seeing that a skill of the same B rank for magician costs 2 billion won, I recognized there was a massive difference between classes.

While I was thinking, Jong Ho continued talking.

“If you are like me, I’d pretend to be insane and learn ‘Gravity Laser’!

Before he could even finish talking, I searched the encyclopedia for the skill.

It was a skill that continuously attacked anything within 1~100m range until all enemy life perished.

It was a skill that had increasing mana cost the further away the target was and the longer you casted the skill due to stronger enemies. However due to the skill being a channeled spell, it did not have a cooldown but instead was an on/off type.

‘Oho? Seems pretty decent? The one thing that disappoints me is that it cannot choose its target like Piercing Sword does.’

“It is an A rank skill, but due to the fact that it is an attack that damages over time and the massive amount of mana cost makes it that so unless you are top high ranker, most do not bother with it, you see? That’s why the cost is similar to a B rank, and the hyungs I used to take care of as a manager obtained this skill no one used, even trying to awaken the skill, making it a trend in the past.”

Before he could continue his confident speech, I cut in to ask questions.

“It’s at the market, right?”

“Are you joking with me? Have you seen a flea market sell a 2 billion won cow calf cuts?” ¹

“They sell items costing 120 million though. So where can I get it then?”

“You have to go to the association!”

“Ah… The association gives me a headache.”

A message arrived while I was riled up about a new skill I was going to learn.

-Emergency Summons-

Hello ‘Noblesse’ guild members.

On Friday 16th of August, 2015, the situation with the guild ‘Empire’ has worsened and at 18:00, there will be a guild pvp occurring. All guild members are to participate please.

Guild master Park Hyun will provide compensation.

“What the, shit!”

“What kind of a text is making you say that?”

“It’s hyung’s fashion. I can’t bear to look at it.”

“Hyung’s clothing selections are all so wonderful that whatever I wear becomes fashionable, I can’t be bothered to pay attention.”

“Pff! It’s a joke. What it actually was a summon from my guild.”

“What, you had a guild? You look like the type that can’t get along with anyone though?”

“Hyung, do you want to be cut in half like a succubus?”

“Cough… Can’t I even make a joke? That’s right! Since we’re on the topic about the succubus. What kind of a passive did you have to be able to fight off all of them?”

“My cooldown for mana regen is pretty quick.”

“Still, to be able to recklessly spam Piercing Sword? A magician at that? Min-Cheol, I was at the bottom in this gig for 9 years. Who do you think you’re trying to fool!?”

“I’ll tell you later. Hyung, I don’t trust people very much. I’m still in the process of developing trust for you. So later! Okay? While we’re at this topic, do you want to be my manager, hyung?”

“Hey you! Hyung was born a man! I’ve Awakened too! I have dreams you know!”

Jong Ho-hyung put his arm around me and looked up, then jokingly told me.

“Well, as a hyung I could at least give you advice.”

“If you want to.”

“We’ve known each other for over two weeks but I still don’t know your level, don’t I?”

“79. I’ve leveled up since yesterday.”

“I thought you were around that when I saw you fighting against the succubus. Seems you were awakened early, huh?

‘At that time I was level 61. Awakened two months ago…..’

It seemed like something he didn’t need to know, so I kept it to myself.

“Sure. Ah, I don’t want to go. Precious time that I feel like it’s a waste even to use it on hunting! They’ve not called me once, but the moment I try to learn a skill do they call.”

“What’s your guild?”

“Noblesse.”

“Noblesse?”

“Yes. Do you know about it?”

When Jong Ho heard the name ‘Noblesse’, his face looked uneasy.

“… How long has it been since you joined?”

“One month? A little over one month.”

“Was there anything strange when you entered?”

“I’ve checked the paperwork and recorded everything, but it seemed there was nothing wrong? Why do you ask?”

“Maybe it’s because hyung has worked at the bottom for a long time, but recently I heard some bad rumors about that guild.”

‘Rumors are only rumors! I shouldn’t trust any shady information’ was my thought, but I decided to hear Jong Ho out. The condition I’ve accepted didn’t make sense ², and it wouldn’t be bad to be prepared just in case.

“What’s the rumor?”

“I don’t know the details, but I heard a fair amount of Noblesse guild members have connections with radicals. There isn’t much credibility and the rumor could be utter nonsense, but just be aware.”

“Well… for now, I’ll keep it in mind.”

* * *

“Noblesse guild of 542 save for 1. Due to outside circumstances, one was not able to show.”

“Empire guild of 740, none absent. That is all.”

At 6 in the afternoon, ‘Seocho-gu Awakened Association’s’ orders have brought these guild members together.

A fight that occurred while hunting became heated, and since both guild masters could not solve it with diplomacy, they decided to settle it with a guild battle.

Level 21 dungeon, Awakened members from ‘Noblesse’ and ‘Empire’ formed a party to go in, but one of them had stolen the drops.

There always had been small arguments and disagreements with the Empire guild, but since they were hunting before dawn, there was a lack of people to group with. Thus they joined another to form a party despite the bad blood between the two, and this had occurred.

‘If you can’t solve with words, use force…’ was the solution that the government had come up with.

Using rivalry to raise stronger Awakened.

There was no way to avoid collision between the guilds, but it was instead used to make each other compete, and to win, growth would be fostered.

It was one of the reasons why people wanted to join bigger and more powerful guilds.

In the end, power decide right or wrong, and the guild that lost had to accept the terms and conditions of the winners.

In this case, it would be a money prize multiple times the value of the drops from the level 21 dungeon.

There was no need for government or politics. I gazed at our guild master Park Hyun.

It wasn’t due to the warning I heard from Jong Ho early morning weighing on my mind.

Behind Park Hyun, I saw many familiar faces.

Sangmin hyung, In-Ah noona, Yong-Hyun hyung, Chang-Hyuk uncle too…..

“Oho. Isn’t my bento there? Hey!”

Jae-Hyuk sent a wink at me.

“…..”

Without a word and a frown, I just kept staring at the ground.

“Adorable cutie. We should go together after this, right? Hm?” ³

“Now, we’ll be starting. Matching the smaller guild’s 5% out of the total members, the participants will consist of 27. The location will be underground from this current location. If the Awakened becomes unable to fight, the referee on standby will judge you unfit to continue and you will be removed from combat. Guild masters, please let us know when you are ready.”

Guild pvp was to promote the growth of the Awakened for portal explosions or warfare, so personnel loss was to be avoided at all costs.

That’s why when a guild pvp occurs, the association’s high ranking healers are dispatched to summon out incapacitated fighters and immediately heal them.

‘It wouldn’t be bad to see what kinds of skills are used and how they will be used.’

Thus, I was able to see my first guild war.

---

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19. Start

After the portal explosion incident, I was frequently contacting Jong Ho.

To be honest, it was because I could obtain vast amounts of information from hyung.

Friendship to information ratio was about 3:7?

Jong Ho said that he became an Awakened while he was working as a manager for the Awakened. It was like debuting to be an idol while working as the manager for one.

Of course there was information from the guild, but since I had nearly no chances of meeting high ranking guild members, the information from the ranker manager felt much sweeter. ¹

After my first combat with succubi, I continued to run the level 13 dungeons to level up.

The succubi allowed me to level up greatly.

The method was like this.

Kill all but one or two out of a 200 succubi group.

Then step on a succubus’ corpse. Just recklessly stomp on them!

Even in this situation, I could not forget to continuously cast Piercing Sword.

Casting it with each hand, even if it was a skill without cooldowns, small gaps would be created in between repeated casts.

So I cast the spell on each of my hand with 3~5 seconds of delay after another.

The fallen that were stepped on had red bloodsucking lights pierce the surviving succubi since the lights could not reach me due to being blocked by my Heugdo.

Thus, 200 revival succubi would be created.

After that, the boss incubus would appear and revive them again.

‘Like boiling bone soup, boil again. Boil again. Boil again.’

The experience I earned from succubi was 16 million, and through the revival succubi I was able to earn 30 million twice. In one clear, including the boss, the experience I earned was around 80 million!

Unlike others that avoided the corpses while hunting, I recklessly stepped on them.

Even the stone rank was C.

When my luck was good, even B ranks dropped, and since the boss was a C ranked with the rise of a level for the dungeon, I was obtaining rewards that couldn’t be even compared with the previous lower level dungeons.

As my level rose and the money pooled, I thought of my mother.

Next to the bed lay a rainbow paper box.

In there was 500 million. After visiting the association, I also received 260 million.

To show my mother, I had saved it up and brought it all here.

Ha… It was a moment that I was waiting for… It was a success that I dreamed about, but only today did I realize how difficult it was to tell her.

So today! I decided to bring my mother with me.

I wanted to surprise her.

While riding the car back, I made the necessary preparations to convince her and to fulfill my filial duty for the first time in 18 years.

* * *

“Driver, please take me in front of the market.”

“Yes. To the market.”

As the taxi meter clicks, I was looking outside the window and saw there were many destroyed buildings being rebuilt.

Even now, many suffer, die, and fight.

Thanks to the ones who cause harm, I am earning money.

Someone’s pain, becoming my dream and hopes…..

If you thought about it, it was very double sided and ironic.

There must have been damages from the rebellion, but civilian areas like the heart of the city, unlike the government areas, were all due to the monsters.

“It’s 13,000 won.”

“Yes, thank you for your hard work. Drive safely.”

After handing the money and a light greeting, I left the taxi.

There it is.

A small Guk-su-jib located near the entrance to the marketplace.

It was a place my mother worked for 7 years now.

Through the entrance made of glass, I saw my mother.

I took a deep breath and headed towards there.

As soon as I opened the door to the restaurant, I heard angry yelling.

“This bitch, are you joking with me! You brought this for me to eat?”

The plates were then smashed.

“Oh no, I apologize.” ²

A heavily drunk man was holding a chair and threatening my mother.

The noodle soup was thrown to the ground and the bowl was broken, just like my mother’s dignity.

I saw how my mother continued to apologize.

They say people become tunnel vision when angry, and I only saw him, that bastard in my field of vision.

Instantly, I smashed open the store’s door and grabbed him by the collar.

It was a situation that made my fists clench and teeth grind without realization.

I glared at him as if to kill without a word.

“Uh! Uh? Who is this bastard.”

“Min, Min-Cheol-ah…..”

With my mother’s short words, I felt surprise and shame.

But I heard a little bit of relief mixed in. That was enough.

She was a person who didn’t complain once during my elementary years when a person called father beat her to near death.

I wished that she’d rely on me now.

To a mother like that, happening again in front of me!

I could not stop my rage.  I grabbed his collar roughly again.

He flailed about, growling.

“What is this… Is this your son? Ha, you and your mother are both are nonsensical. Son of a bitch, why don’t you let me go?”

“Shut the fuck up…..”

“What? You piece of shit!”

He struggled free of my grasp and threw the chair, missing my mother’s forehead by a hair’s breadth.

My mother’s forehead was cut, and deep red blood spilled down her cheek.

My temper lost, I threw him.

With a smash, he went into the table.

The table broke apart instantly, and he rolled about the floor with the dishware.

“Ugh… This piece of shit, you have a death wi-…..”

I didn’t listen to the rest of his cursing.

Because my left hand was grabbing his head already.

I roughly lifted him up.

“Ugh! Let me go! Why aren’t you letting me go?!”

“…..”

Instead of answering, I gathered lightening in my right hand.

Today I will kill this man and go to hell.

Even in hell, I will chew him up so much that no one can ever find nor remember him.

I promised to protect, and I felt that it was a promise I can keep now.

But that promise broke apart now, and I felt rage and lament as though a person who lost everything.

As I moved my right hand hold condensed magic towards him…! I heard my mother’s voice as she grabbed onto my arm.

As I heard those words, I regained my sanity.

“Min-Cheol-ah… That’s enough. You can stop now…..”

I saw my mother shaking her head.

Letting him go, I released the condensed power in my right arm.

Despite being drunk, he must have felt my killing intent as his pants was soaked.

Before long, the police arrived.

Receiving the report from the police, a group of ‘Awakened incident cleanup crew” was dispatched.

One of the police officers took my mother to the hospital, and after that, I told them about the incident.

The incident was explained as him glancing my mother with a chair.

Even if it was his fault, since an Awakened got involved, the cases were separated into two, one between him and my mother, and one between him and me.

I was interrogated for an hour at a local ‘association investigation station’.

Unfortunately or thankfully, I was able to leave without any worries as the man I tried to kill was only lightly injured.

After leaving, I went back to the noodle soup restaurant.

I came with the thought to pay for the broken items and disrupting business.

It was a place my mother had worked for 7 years, and the owner bowed his head in apology that he couldn’t stop it first.

I had asked what the cost of damage would to the cops beforehand, and gave the amount with a little extra to the owner.

With the words to hire someone else to replace my mother.

After solving the incident, I went to the hospital.

Opening the patient room’s door, I saw my mother.

As soon as she found me, she raised her injured body and spoke.

“Son. Have you eaten? If only I spoke better and turned him away without incident…..”

“Are you okay?”

“Of course! Mother is fine! I’ve gone through combat on the ground, water, in the air, and even battles involving bombardment. You think I’d lose to someone like that?”

“Miss Bak, when did you become so tough?” ³

I had to hit my vocal cords and stop the sudden urge to cry. ⁴

“Mom, you don’t have to work at the restaurant anymore. You saw right? That your son is super strong?”

“…..”

“I’ll take of everything now, so please don’t suffer anymore mother.”

“Son, don’t you remember what mother said? That I can live without money but I can’t live without my son? The debt can be canceled after I die you know?”

“Don’t say that! Why would you have to die? I’ll take care of the debt myself. You don’t have to worry anymore…!”

She stopped my words and looked directly into my eyes.

“Isn’t hunter work dangerous? I saw a lot of it on the news. What kind of a parent would send their child to a tiger’s den to make money!” ⁵

40 years ago, born in the age where the monsters arose, she was illiterate and uneducated yet valued her own son so much that she endured all the suffering to make sure that her son would not share the same fate.

I understood my mother’s feelings of flatly denying it.

However I had to take this opportunity that did not visit just anyone.

I told her about my ability.

“There is no way that I will get hurt or die, mother.”

“Is that true?”

“I’m telling you that it’s true?”

“If you get hurt or die, I’m going to die on the spot too so promise me!”

“I understand, promise.”

Convincing her continued for a long time, and finally did my mother give me permission to begin after taking my fingerprint as signature on my promise.

Finally I could give her an easy and comfortable life.

‘Now we begin.’

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18. To Higher Places (5)

 

[Gained 800 exp.]

[Gained 800 exp.]

 

After the whirling of blades, what once was an endless stream was noticeably reduced.

When I turned around, the 12 Awakened were giving their all to protect the rear.

Even the fashion terrorist, squeezing out all the strength he had left, fought against the remaining 3 revival succubi.

I couldn’t bear to look at the fashion, but his skill seemed passable.

And that’s a how a little bit of time passed by.

“Is it over?”

No more monsters came out of the portal.

Only those three were left.

I advanced towards them, casting Piercing Sword ceaselessly.

Piercing Sword’s attack did not go towards the surrounding Awakened.

The attacks only went towards those I determined as enemies.

[Gained 1500 exp.]

.

.

It didn’t take long for them to meet the ground.

Even after 20 minutes had passed, not even shadows of the association’s hunters were found.

The surviving Awakened cursed the association, wheezing and heavily breathing.

“Ha… Ha…..”

“Those bastard association hunters!”

It only lasted a moment. Everyone hurriedly started to leave.

That’s right. The portal still wasn’t closed. It meant there were more to come.

“Quickly, get in the car! Hurry up!”

From afar, the fashion terrorist shouted at me while urgently starting the ignition to the car.

Everyone else had left long ago.

It was time for the boss I came for to appear.

It was then.

Somewhere I heard a terrifying laughter.

When I turned towards where the noise came from, I saw a creature similar to a succubus near the portal.

The one who came out of the portal was an ‘incubus’.

The floor was drenched in blood, and corpses disfigured to the point where it was nearly unrecognizable were strewn about.

The hands that held the sword and halberd tightened.

Besides me, a loud horn and yelling continued, but I had no plans of running.

“I only came here to see your face, but now I have to kill you.”

Finishing my words, I was determined.

Because I knew what would happen immediately after.

Without a doubt, as the incubus raised his hand to the sky, all 200 fallen succubi and revival succubi arose at once.

The shitty situation was repeating again.

But there was no need to be surprised since I knew already.

The boss had no combat abilities. His only role was to use all his mana to revive all his subordinates.

“Zombie like bastards.”

The succubi let out a piercing scream and flooded towards me, but in front of the powerful skill, they were like paper being ripped to shreds.

If a warrior class cast Piercing Sword, the limit would be 10 times, but since I did not have that limit, I was able to maintain both offense and defense by casting it continuously.

And the destructive power doubled since I was able to cast it separately from each hand.

All swords and halberds that slain the succubi flew towards the incubus simultaneously.

It had no offensive ability, but had high defensive ability like that of a boss.

So I poured my attacks without respite.

And then.

Helplessly allowing all the attacks to hit, with a scream, he swiftly fell, pierced all over.

My body was covered in blood.

And as if the make that blood brighter, the blood stones from the mobs floated.

Seems the drops only came out after the boss was defeated.

All combat ended when the glowing hue became a blinding light cover the area.

Watching from afar, the man came running out of the car asking questions.

“Wha… what the? How did you do it?”

“…..”

Collecting all the stones, I threw the weapons on the floor and headed to the car.

If the night hunting and morning portal defense wasn’t enough, the pain and exhaustion from seeing people dying came all at once.

‘Ah… I have to go to school…..’

To me who was keeping silent, the man continued to talk without stopping.

“How did you do it? You said you were a magician but what was that skill, and why did it continuously cast? Answer me!”

“Ah, whatever! What’s your name hyung?”

“Uh? Uh. My name is Yi Jong Ho. So answer me. How did you do it!”

“Jong Ho-hyung, why did you keep watching me?”

“When? When the succubus came out? I was looking to see if you were dead or alive.”

“When they revived and also when the boss came out… it was you who told me to run, right?”

“Well it would be a waste to have someone so young die. That’s all there is to it.”

It seemed he was an okay guy.

Just like SangMin and his party, this man too. His strange first impression was already forgotten.

But it seems I’m still far from looking at his clothing style.

Seems though that the power and money weren’t the only things I earned.

I wasn’t trying to get something as pathetic as networking through dangerous combat like this.

But ‘earning extra while doing the same thing’ idea isn’t so bad, isn’t it?

“When are the association guys arriving? I need to get the money quickly and leave for school, and change my clothes as well.”

“So you really won’t say? My words were too harsh, wasn’t it? Sorry.”

It was then, as he was about to continue to harass me, a car rolled up and stopped nearby.

“Everyone, report the damages of the situation.”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

Seems those association bastards finally arrived.

‘It’s like asking for chopsticks after I’ve cooked the ramen for them?’

Ten of those who seemed to be hunters from the association went towards the scene, while a cleanly dressed association employee was taking account of the situation.

Since there was no one other than the two of us near the portal, the association members that were sent out walked towards us.

“Hail! Thank you for your hard work. We were watching from 10 minutes ago via drone, but please do explain in detail.”

Due to the corpses lying about, it was possible the situation could be misunderstood as the Awakened fighting for drops, so these association bastards were watching via drone ahead of time.

They were expecting an exhausted person to explain to the situation after arriving late.

I did not want to speak with them at all.

I looked at Jong Ho with eyes that said ‘the most tired person ever’ and spoke.

“Jong Ho-hyung, go.”

“Uh? Uh uhm okay.”

Jong Ho left the car and explained the situation.

Since I was holding onto all the drops, after the conversation finished, the association member walked towards me.

“I’ve heard the full story. Please show me your ‘Awakened ID’.”

It was something I looked forward to more than lunch – the time to collect the money.

After passing my ID, I was trying to estimate how much I earned.

‘A C rank stone and 13 D rank stone is mine, and I wonder how much will they pay out?’

Next to the car, while the association member was busy looking for something, I asked Jong Ho quietly as to not be overheard.

“How much do they give out in cases like this, hyung?”

“Hm… Since it’s a level 13 gate, 260 million won?”

“Hey, stop joking around and tell me.”

“260 million! I’m telling you that it’s correct?”

‘100 million isn’t like the casual name of your neighbor, you shouldn’t just go around saying it because you’re bored! Are they really giving me this much money for getting one?’

However since it did not look like Jong Ho was joking, I continued.

“Then if I received the money, how much should I give you?”

“To me? Why?”

When he received my question, his eyes became wide with a childlike expression.

“It’s something we all worked hard to get. Since you were the only one still here, at least I should give some to hyung.”

“Ah, no need. Why would someone who hid in a corner deserve anything else than embarrassment? Hyung may be without money, but he still has a conscience. When I grow stronger, I’ll be hunting it solo and receiving the money with pride.”

“But…..”

It was then the association personnel handed me the terminal device and spoke.

“Here it is. Please confirm the 260 million won.”

“Yes? Okay…..”

“Please sign here as well.”

“Yes.”

“You probably know already but this is only fake money. We’ll give you the actual money when you visit the association and confirm your identity. However, you have to visit within a month.”

“……”

When a portal explodes, you are able to prevent a ridiculous amount of damage if you stop the situation from getting out of hand.

Because of that, the association determined the reward with the level of the portal, and paid out appropriately.

After buying the skill book and ring, I found out my Awakened credit balance was nil.

But with the amount the association gave me, the balance showed 260 million won being added next to my 3 million won.

Hearing his explanation though, it seemed that I could not use that 260 million won currently.

Ah, these are good people…..

In a single moment, the ‘bastard association members’ became ‘association members that I thank and owe my gratitude’.

“Thank you for your hard work. Then, we’ll be going.”

Since the Awakened balance panel did not include my class, the association member spoke without any doubts.

After finishing the conversation and walking away, he suddenly turned back around.

“Ah, are you perhaps the Awakened known for clearing level 12 dungeons solo within just a couple days of becoming Awakened? Your name is the same. The association told me to take special care of that person…..”

How should I answer, do I need to tell the truth? If I did so I’d lose time and of course, my ability would be exposed.

It wasn’t that bad to have my ability exposed, but I would probably be offered to be the protector of justice or something.

While I was deep in thought, it was then.

“Eh, you aren’t him, right? Since he was a magician class, there would be no reason for him to be here. Well, thank you for your hard work.”

I was thankful at the association member who answered himself so gleefully.

I wondered how he was able to be a government worker with that kind of a head on his shoulders.

It seems as though entering dungeons are tracked via terminal, and records are kept by the association.

‘This could become annoying. For now, let’s rest.’

After finishing my thoughts, I spoke to Jong Ho who silently observed the situation.

“Hyung, I’m sorry but could you take me home?”

“Yes! Yes! Let’s go! We need to go! Let’s talk while we go. If you’re going back for clothes, should I lend you hyung’s?”

‘…..’

I was struck from fear greater than meeting the incubus.

‘Ah goose bumps! I don’t think I could even go takeout food waste and trash in these clothes’ was what I wanted to reply with, but I did not since I liked Jong Ho.

“Ah, haha. No it’s fine. It’s really, really fine. Haha…”

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17. To Higher Places (4)

Around the portal lit by purple lights, there were already 30 Awakened members.

The intensity of the vibrations coming from the portal’s markers was 13! Thus it was a level 13 portal.

Most of them were warrior class, holding swords and spears, axes and spears, and a few were healers holding one hand staffs and shields.

They should be people who were hunting from the level 12^th dungeon, probably level 45-60 Awakened.

Instead of running in, I decided to observe the situation.

I had information, but I needed to be careful as this was my first real combat.

It was then.

-Lewd laughing.-

A sharp female’s laughter rang, nearly giving me goose bumps.

Thankfully I didn’t arrive late.

The source of the laughter was a ‘succubus’.

From what I found out, a succubus is a doll-like monster that looks like a female with two small horns on their head, wings on her back, and a tail.

As the laughter ended, succubi started to pour out from the portal.

The Awakened around the portal gripped onto their weapons tightly and prepared to fight.

“Let’s not mess with the corpses!!”¹

-Generic combat yell from expendable background character.-

“Let’s do well.”

Several Awakened surrounded the portal entrance, swinging their weapons toward the stream of succubi pouring out.

-Slicing/chopping.-

Did they become aware of me? From time to time, I felt as if I was being watched.

Easily, the succubi were spilling red blood and being ripped apart.

As they fell one by one, without even being able to move past 5m they all started to fall apart.

There was no surprise, since these are veteran hunters who ran the level 12 dungeons as if eating rice.²

With many years of combat experience, they should be able to perform such prowess.

However not everyone was a veteran.

A few hunters came without any experience, following the promise of money.

I could tell just by looking at them that a few of them were useless like that.

-Somewhat generic footsteps.-

In a single moment, the Awakened moved forward.

But then.

-Generic stepping.-

A few idiotic-looking people stepped on the succubi’s corpses.

As soon as the noise was made, the hunters in the front turned around and glared at them.

And then…

“Who was the nincompoop who stepped on the succubus!”

“Ah shit. We’re doomed!”

“Why would you come here without even knowing about succubi!”

Everyone looked at the succubus’ corpse, freaking out as if they’ve messed with something of great importance.

Following their gazes, I also looked at the succubus’ corpse.

It was at that moment.³

From the rag-like collapsed bodies of the succubi, a red light began to spin around it.

The light shot out towards those who’ve stepped on the corpse.

-Stabbing.-

-Generic character screaming in pain and regretting being born as an extra.-

Witnessing this, the fashion terrorist yelled.

“Turned into a shit show! Everyone wake the fuck up!”

Others who heard the screams used skills and struck with their weapons at the red light embedded in the backs of the fallen.

According to the strategic information for level 13^th dungeons, one could block the charging lights but ordinary strength could not cut or slice through them.

The lights embedded connected to the bodies of the other fallen succubi like a hose, and the bodies of the Awakened that fell from the attack began to deteriorate.

It seemed that blood was being sucked from the Awakened to recover.

-More generic panicking sounds.-

The nearby healers used recovery magic to no avail.

It was like putting water on poison.

Unlike the fallen Awakened who continuously shrank, the fallen succubi rose up, looking bigger than before.

Only one or two corpses were stepped on, yet all fallen succubi were affected.

“Retards! Thanks to the newbies, we’re all going to die! It’s a ‘revival succubus’! Prepare yourselves!”

Taking account of the succubi’s speed, escape was impossible. We could only fight them.

Those who lost their lives and came back are twice as strong.

It was a phenomenon that occurred when the fallen were subjected to any physical force.

I was able to witness the succubus’ ‘bloodsucking revival’ that I learned only in text.

In the strategies for clearing level 13^th dungeons, not touching the corpses of the succubi was a crucial rule.

While it rendered one immobile in the midst of aggro’ed mobs, it was much better being sitting ducks than meeting a revival succubus.

What I got to witness personally wasn’t just the bloodsucking resurrection.

-Another generic scream of pain.-

“Pl-please, let me live…!”

People were pathetically dying in front of me.

Not monsters, but people like me were dying.

I’ve committed genocide against countless monsters, but it was my first time seeing people dying.

-Puking.-

Looking at the situation, I threw up without realizing.

I could only look at the cruel scene hopelessly.

Behind were revived succubi, while from the front came a stream of succubi from the portal.

With a single mistake, this place became a living hell.

The revived spun quickly, shredding apart the Awakened with their tails and wings.

-Ripping and slicing.-

Thanks to the mistake of the Awakened who simply followed the promise of money, the entire group was being slaughtered.

Within minutes, the situation had reversed.

Everyone struggled against them.

Not for money, but for their lives.

Since the situation escalated like this, the dispatched members from the association only waited.

The man who came with me swore, stabbing at the succubi.

His shout woke me up from the daze of having to look at human corpses.

It was a shout directly aimed at me.

“You pieces of shit! Die! Die! Kid! Don’t just watch and run out of here!”

Recovering from my momentary hesitation, I put on my skull ring from my pocket and ran crazily towards the portal.

‘Frozen Shield!’

While running, I cast Frozen Shield.

I ran towards the Awakened who were pinned due to the attacks of the revived succubi.

Then I grabbed an owner-less sword and halberd from the corpses, equipping one on each hand and blocking the portal entrance.

If I used ‘Eye of the Storm’, the Awakened with low magic resist could be pulled in, so I only cast ‘Piercing Sword’. Well, even if people weren’t around me, these succubi wouldn’t be affected by a magic skill anyways.

Suddenly, a ridiculous amount of swords and halberds dispersed in a stream.

It was an amount that could block out the portal perfectly.

-Flying weapon sound.-

“Don’t worry about the portal and cover the rear!”

“You’re crazy! I told you to run, but did you come here to die? Run kid!”

“…..”

Maybe he sensed something from my eyes as I looked at him silently, since he stopped talking and pointed his sword at the rear.

Looking at us with the thoughts of ‘I must survive’, other Awakened pointed their swords and spears towards the enemies at the rear.

The survivor count was only 12! I was holding my ground casting Piercing Sword continuously, so there was no chance another could make the mistake of stepping on a corpse.

Despite our differences, they were people like me.

Most would have a family and something they want to take responsibility for or protect.

I had no thoughts of being a man of justice.

But at least for today…

 

“I’ll rip you to shreds and kill you!”

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16. To Higher Places (3)

Ending the ‘cooking time with rose knives manticore edition,’ it was time to return the knives to the kitchen.

Within just one day, Piercing Sword’s skill became 21.

Since countless knives hit the monsters multiple times with each hit equaling 1 point of skill exp, it was possible to level this skill much faster than other skills.

When I finished my last hunting, the time was 4:30 A.M.

Around the dungeon, only food stores serving through dawn had their lights on.

Dungeons were around areas of low populace, yet these stores went out of their way to establish here.

Those inside protecting their spots, most of them probably are Awakened.

“Should I take a bowl of rice soup before I go?”

I was about to go into a store because I was hungry.

However, nearly everyone within the store was receiving a phone call and was readying up to leave.

“What the? Did the store close?”

-Phone ringing sound.-

I had a bad feeling about this.

People who received the phone call were moving with haste… And following that, a phone call for me.

“Hello?”

“Are you Min-Cheol?”

“Who is this?”

“It’s the ‘Korea Awakened Association’.”

“What’s the occasion?”

“Using GPS, we’ve detected symptoms of a portal’s explosion within 5km of you. From the vibration’s intensity, it is predicted to be a level 13^th to 15^th portal’s explosion. Until the association arrives, we’re asking assistance from any nearby Awakened. Perhaps could you go as well?”

“Sorry but since this is the first time I’ve experienced something like this, do I have to go? And how did you find out my location?”

“No. You don’t have to… but we’ll reward you depending on how much you’ve helped. The location was pinpointed using your Awakened ID.”

‘Does the ID have a location tracker? Terrifying, but was a reward mentioned?’

“What’s the reward?”

Within less than one minute since the call began, everyone within the store had left.

“Yes, out of the monsters pouring out of the portal, the one who kills the boss monster will receive an award matching the difficulty of the boss.”

“A lot people will gather to fight that boss. How will you know who killed it?”

“Unlike the dungeon, monsters that come out of the portal give the rights to the drops to the one who does the most damage. That’s how we’ll determine it.”

‘Oho… Seems pretty good.’

The bad feeling I had when the call came changed to an opportunity for me.

I always obtained the dungeon information ahead of time, preparing the necessary weapons and stats, but I have never actually fought against a real monster.

If what this call told me was true, it would be a good opportunity to obtain real combat experience as well as a reward.

As I thought for a bit, I heard the association employee’s voice again.

“Ah, I apologize. Min-Cheol is a magician class. There must have been some kind of error. My apologies. Then I’ll be off.”

“Wait! I’ll go. If anything like this happens again, please contact me!”

“Eh? Well if you say so, I’ll send the GPS information for now.”

“Yes, thank you very much!”

If it is a monster from level 13^th to 15^th, magic attacks would not work so there was no need for the association to contact me.

But I’m not a magician! A warrior? Since I was closest to a spellsword, I could not be unhappy about this call.

‘5km… My chance increases the faster I get there….’

My heart raced as I looked at the information on the GPS.

At that time, I noticed a man pulling out his car from the restaurant’s parking lot and stepping on the pedal.

‘Okay. That’s it.’

To make sure he saw me, I blocked the way and waved.

-Honking sounds and sly comment about a certain webcomic.-

The man honked the horn and yelled with urgency.

“Move out of the way! I’m in a hurry!!!”

As soon as the car stopped dead in front of me, I hastily approached the car.

“If you received the call from the association and heading over, can I come with?”

“Shit! Warrior? Assassin? Without a weapon, where do you think you’re going! I’m busy so get out of my way!”

“…”

The man yelled at me with greater urgency after seeing me hanging onto the window without a word.

“Damn it! I have no luck at all. Time is wasting, so hurry up and get in! Quickly, get in!”

It was good that I got a free ride, but I could not look to my side.

The first thing I saw as soon as I got in was… to simplify, was fashion terrorism.

He wore a white hat, V-neck t-shirt, blue jeans with chain shackles, a skull shaped necklace, and to add onto the fire, white heels.

Just looking at him once, I felt my eyesight deteriorate.

I almost wanted to say, ‘Perhaps, an Awakened who is a curse user?’

‘Where do they sell clothes like this? Perhaps he bought it with money? Did he steal from a used clothing store?’

5km was a close distance, but since it was a road up the mountain, I had to wait for a long time.

After a period of silence, the man who wanted to leave in a hurry spoke first.

“You an Awakened? Your age?”

‘Speaking without honorifics? Should I give him a taste of my Lightning Spray for desert?’

From fashion to the way he spoke, I could not find anything likable.

“18, magician.”

“A student? Why would a magician go near the portal’s explosion?”

“To go sightseeing. Also to get some real combat experience.”

“If you go there to help, make sure you don’t beg for your life. I’ll drop you off right now, so why don’t you go home?”

“There’s no need for that.”

“What’s your level? Are you 40 yet?”

“How about you, uncle?”

“Hey! Uncle?!? Call me hyung, hyung! Don’t be too jealous of me, I’m sure if you work hard you could be an amazing person like hyung. Come with and learn from how hyung does it.”¹

I felt annoyed but shut my mouth thinking I just needed to endure for a bit.

Soon, we arrived at the location the GPS indicated.

“There it is. Looks like the military already fired off flares.”

He stopped the car and started to equip his sword and armor pieces from the backseat.

I realized that, like Sangmin, he used a two-handed weapon.

Even though he put on his equipment, it didn’t do much as I could tell it was low tier.

The one positive thing was that by wearing his equipment, I could not see his disgusting clothes anymore. I was at peace again.

Especially that white T-shirt reflecting the… black raisins or something so revolting I could hardly describe it.

After equipping his boots from the trunk, he stepped forward.

“If you follow me, you really could die you know!?”

“I’ll just watch quietly.”

“Fine. Don’t regret it when you get hurt or die.”

-Mocking laughter.-

With a smile, he fumbled a cigarette between his thumb and index finger, walking ahead of me.

I spoke as to mock the man who was moving further away from me.

“That reward is mine! Now, shall I go make some money?”

---

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15. To Higher Places (2)

-Piercing Sword-

Class: Warrior, a person of great strength, Assassin (If another class obtains it, mana cost increases tenfold.)

Mana Cost: 10% of total mana (Mana cost does not increase even if skill level rises.)

Skill Introduction:

-Equipped weapon radiates from the body and pierces all enemies within 5 meters.

-As skill level rises, range and power increases.

-Only hits target the caster considers hostile.

Cooldown: None.

Duration: 10 seconds.

Skill Rank: B

Additional Explanation: None.

Skill Book Cost: 120,000,000 won

It was the information of a 120,000,000 won skill.

It was a skill that consumed 10% of your mana, which was suited for warriors.

For other classes, 10 times that cost would be 100%.

So even if you had 1000~2000 mana stat, you could only use it once.

However, does it matter?

It was now time to graduate from the level 12^th dungeon.

There was also a reason why I placed all my points into strength and received a sword for warriors.

After level 12^th dungeon, magic attacks would not be effective between level 13^th to level 15^th dungeon.

The monsters have magic resistance.

It was a ridiculous situation since all magician classes would have to receive assistance from the guild or pay money and beg.

To get that amount of money, they would have to farm the level 12^th dungeon and waste an enormous amount of time doing so.

Since it was impossible to grow stronger and it was also impossible to go on to the higher level dungeons.

However, there was nothing to be upset about, because from level 16^th to level 18^th, physical attacks do not work.

‘It was better to get punished first’ or something other?

Dungeons after that, there was magic and physical resistance rotating every 3 levels.

You had to continue begging and you had to continue receiving favors.

However, I’m going to do it all by myself.

That’s why I got the stats and skills.

At first, I was surprised at the level requirement difference between level 6^th and 12^th dungeon.

However, compared to the dungeons that I’m going to be clearing, it was nothing.

The level 12^th dungeon requirement was 5 people level 45 or higher. For the level 13^th dungeon requirement, it was 5 people level 65 or higher.

Just with the increase of a single level for the dungeon, each Awakened had to increase their level by 20.

If you add them up together, it was an increase of 100 levels.

If what I learned is correct, each year, there is another portal. With that portal, are stronger monsters to match it and a dungeon to prevent the portal from exploding. This has continued on for 40 years.

Each year, the monsters grew an incredible amount in strength.

And to cover up that gap in power, there must have been countless Awakened that were sacrificed to prevent the portals from exploding.

***

Before I went to the dungeon, I headed home.

“This honorable sword that has been passed down through generations! I will now receive it!!! Dun dun dun!”

I grabbed the sword with both hands, kneeling down on the ground while playing a BGM.

All those levels I gained and with the assistance of the skull ring, I was able to hit strength 200.

A sword that used to not budge no matter how hard I tried, now moves as if it was as light as a blade of grass.

A sword as dark as night, although in my room there was light, however, there was no outline or reflection on the sword.

I put the sword on my hand and it seemed to measure about 7cm wide.

It was as if the sword was eroding away the surrounding color, as if to say I will absorb all the light in the world.

The sword was over one meter long and it looked to be a traditional Korean sword.¹

Out of all the choices the advisor grandpa showed me, this one was the one I picked.

The weapons and armors that the blacksmith could make, there were many options, shapes, and types.

On the handle, a jewel was embedded.

If the weapon was obtained from a boss or a hidden monster, it would have a name.

However, this weapon that I received from the grandpa did not have a name.

Since it was going to be the ticket to my wealth for a while, it needed a name.

“Hm. Black… big and beautiful… No, not like this, it can’t be!”

I had to get rid of the thought of a giant monster in my head and name my sword.

“Yes, I’ll just name it Heugdo!”²

The moment I held the sword, my strength stat changed.

With the skull ring, I was able to reach 200 points in strength, then I gained 30 points of strength from the jewel as well as 10% of the 200 strength I originally had from the Special Attribute of the sword.

The advisor grandpa said that this was one of the highest traits that you could earn from a half A sword using a blacksmith’s crafting skill.

With a godlike 200 points in strength, I was instantly able to go over double that.³

‘Ha…Amateurs are all about equipment, my shoulders are getting heavy?’

***

While carrying the sword, I left the house.

The place I arrived at was not the 13^th level dungeon but the level 12^th dungeon.

-Entering dungeon sound.-

As I entered the dungeon, I raised my sword and shouted.

“A multicolored rose shines its light!”

I pulled out my two rose knives within the wind wall as if pulling out Excalibur.

The Heugdo that was supposed to be in my hands was nowhere to be seen, but instead I had two rose kitchen knives.

The reason for that was to raise my skill before entering the level 13^th dungeon.

No matter how much you raise the mana stats, it does not affect a skill’s destructive power.

However, strength raises the destructive power of physical skills.

With weak strength that would not kill the monster, I had to use Piercing Sword as many times as possible to get the most experience.

While others were trying to become stronger, I was aiming to be weaker.

The reason was not because I was trying to cover up for the missing 20 strength from the skull ring.

My base stat was 180 strength. With this much, it was not very low.

However, looking at the manticore’s defense ability, it seemed that before level 10 with Piercing Sword, it could receive at least 5 times of the attack.

I ran about and aggro’d 200 manticores.

Out of habit, I almost used Eye of the Storm.

The Eye of the Storm duration became 6 seconds since it rose over level 20.

However, the new skill, Piercing Sword, was 10 seconds longer.

It wasn’t very effective to use if I wanted to avoid the manticore’s attacks.

“Wait, did I just think that I was going to avoid their attacks? Shudders.”

I went towards the center of the gathering manticores.

Grr, grr!

I casted Frozen Shield and waited until they came closer to me.

The ones in my immediate vicinity, the front line, were swinging their sharp claws.

The sound of the shattering of the Frozen Shield almost caused me to tremble.

Now!

-Sword piercing enemies sounds.-

The rose knives that received my 180 strength were able to defend against all manticore attacks.

At the same time, all manticores within 5m, the rose knives were able to repeatedly go through them.

‘Ah! How could I forget? Since I’m a magician, I could use it with both my hands.’

From within my body, rose knives started to pour out. Of course, twice the amount a warrior class would be able to use.

-Stabbing sounds.-

It seems as though a B rank skill that was not affected by the type of weapon that was used.

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14. To Higher Places

-Coin dropping on table.-

The 500 won that Jae-Hyuk threw was spinning on top of the table.

He looked pathetic.

“Do you want to get beaten up again? What kind of look is that, asshole!”

It seemed that nothing has changed.

‘…I forgot to bring my nail clipper today! It was a mistake that would leave a great regret in my life. There was one that I received from the advisor grandpa…’

It was then.

-Punch.-

Jae-Hyuk’s fist flew and hit me right in the chest.

“Aren’t you out of it?”

With his cursing and punching, it got everyone’s attention.

I quietly shook my head.

Fainted? No, it didn’t hurt at all! Actually, it felt rather pleasant.

All the things that waste did, all of it came back to me one by one.

Firstly, with his one punch, I was sure, that this person’s level is roughly about 40 since it has only been a year since he Awakened.

Even if he was a warrior class Awakened, he could not raise only his strength in the beginning.

It seemed that, in the beginning he raised his stamina and only after spring break started to put points into strength.

If that was the case, then it shouldn’t even be 50 points.

If a normal person was hit with it, they would most likely instantly die on the spot.

But this trash, he threw his punch really well. ¹

I was actually thankful, the thought of giving him a bit of mercy just went poof.

‘This waste is now dead meat! Kuku, bastard, you better start asking for forgiveness!’

I turned my head and looked at him without being noticed by everyone else.

Out of my 18 years of life, this is the first time that I smiled a little.

The moment he saw that, he continued cursing and throwing another punch at me.

Then.

-Hand grabbing fist sound.-

With minimum effort, I easily grabbed the punch.

“Wha-what the? Let me go! Bastard! Shit!”

It seemed as though he was extremely shocked that his right hand was caught. He was giving it his all to try to regain his hand.

Those who were only spectating all had expressions of confusion.

Other than the trash Hwang Jae-Hyuk, I did not rage or lament at the rest of my classmates.

If I was in their shoes, I would only be a spectator as well.

‘Yes, it seems for today, I need to be a blue pen teacher for this guy.’²

As I finished my thought, I laughed, looking straight into Jae-Hyuk’s eyes.

-Evilly smiling sound effect.-

Then.

-Punch.-

“Ka.”

-Ruckus from tables falling over.-

While letting go of Jae-Hyuk’s hand, I threw my fist into his chest.

Then, he instantly fell over.

“To the weak, you are strong, but to the strong, you are weak.”

I spoke while sitting atop of Jae-Hyuk.

“Those.”

-Punch.-

“Waste of people.”

-Punch.-

“Is why this world is shitty. Asshole.”

-Punch.-

I threw another punch into his chest.

The sudden rage towards him overlapped with the rage I had against the debt collectors.

-Panting from pain.-

I had placed 160 points into strength.

Every time I punched Jae-Hyuk, he screamed at the top of his lungs.

Despite that, he seem to have his pride, and looked towards the crowd.

My rage that was released, it was as if a dam had burst opened.

“It hurts, doesn’t it? But you won’t die quickly, and you won’t bleed. Why? Because your stamina is great, isn’t it?”

-Slap.-

Now I flattened out my hand and struck his cheek.

One more.

-Slap.-

“Ugh! This bastard!!!!! I will kill you!!!”

It seemed that after being struck in the face, he felt embarrassment, and thus he tried to struggle with all his might.

However.

To make sure that he could not move, I was pinning both his arms with my legs and he could only flail about uselessly.

“I guess you could take more hits? That’s right, that way I don’t feel guilty as I hit you. Please, struggle more!”

-More punching and slapping.-

Other than his cheeks, I hit him on the body where it wouldn’t show.

After that, he raised his upper body and slowly tried to talk.

“Pant. Pant. You bastard. You’re not going to get away with this.”

‘This guy, only his mouth is still alive.’

Even though he was a person who was still alive, a scent of rotting decay emanated from him.

I did not want to hear a single word from this waste.

Finishing my thought, I took another step towards the talking man.

-Foot steps.-

“Do you know who I am? I am a Noblesse guild member… Shit, shit, don’t come closer!”

As I came closer, he stopped talking and trembled.

Oho? A Noblesse guild member? ‘Welcome, my brother!’

Then.

-Lightning flash.-

I raised my hand.

“Ee-eek! Do-don’t come closer!”

As I raised my hand, he violently trembled.

Looking at him, I started to laugh.

And then, I lowered my hand and gently stroke his head.

“Class is going to start. Today’s not the only day we can settle this, right? Jae-Hyuk?”

Hearing my words, Jae-Hyuk shook with rage before running away out of the classroom.

The classmates around me, all looked at me with worry, thinking, ‘Is this a new devil that has appeared?’

To them, I said.

“I don’t blame any of you! I would have done the same thing you guys did. But did you know? That the scariest thing in the world is not trash like Jae-Hyuk, but those who are silent!?”

‘Wow, I’m really cool! This is why all the girls fall for me! Tonight, if I do really well in bed, I feel like this would be the best moment in my life!’³

It was a line that I was proud of. I hope I don’t remember this in the future…

-Bell ringing.-

The bell that signified the first class after summer break rang.

As soon as the teacher entered, I raised my hand and said.

“Teacher, Jae-Hyuk went to the restroom!”

***

After that, Jae-Hyuk did not return to school for over a week. He must have been very embarrassed…

Oh well, it didn’t matter. I could hear how he’s doing through master Park Hyun.

He was working hard learning strategies about the level 12^th dungeon.

Any time that I wanted to bully him, I could simply go over and bully him.

After that incident, I became a super star at school.

Out of the 1000 students, only 3 became Awakened, and one of those was me.

And I had an incredible growth rate during the summer break, taking the highest ranking for myself.

I used to look down upon Jae-Hyuk who slept in school all day, but I became just like him.

If it wasn’t education that was required by the nation, I would have escape and go hunt in the hunting zones.

From 5PM to 5AM, I stayed in the hunting zones.

I could not give up my 12 hours of hunting a day.

Because I did not have any down time, I was able to hunt 3-4 hours more than the average Awakened.

And because of that, yesterday, I reached level 61.

With all the money that I earned, I was able to purchase a skull ring, a skill book and was now leaving the market.

After waiting for four days since I ordered, I was finally able to receive the ring.

It was a very popular ring.

This ring had strength +20.

The 20 strength was nearly 25,000,000 won. ⁴

Of course, if I counted it in levels, it was a 4 levels difference.

However, something more surprising than that, was the cost of the skill book.

Even though it was only a warrior class skill book, it was 120,000,000 won. ⁵

A ridiculous price if I say so myself.

To get to the higher level dungeons, it was a choice I had to make.

Two days ago, to make sure the debt collectors couldn’t say a thing, I gave them 100,000,000 won.

It was a warning to not bother us for the time being.

If I kept growing at this rate, then I guess I would have to worry about if I should dip the anchovy in soy sauce or hot sauce. ⁶

I had no thoughts of paying off the rest of the debt, maybe the cost for reparation after I crush them.

With that thought, I also thought that I needed to convince my mother…

---

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13. Temptation’s Reach (3)

‘Damn! He said that it was a staff for magicians?’

With the excuse that I have to use the bathroom, I went to the old man as fast as I could.

“Advisor… no, Advisor, is it possible that you could make not just staffs but weapons for warriors?”¹

“If I could make white rice, don’t you think I could make black rice, too?”²

While talking, the old man’s hammering did not stop.

Hearing the old man’s words, I wanted to say ‘Hurray for the black smith!’

While hiding my excitement, I continued the conversation.

“Then, could you possibly make a sword instead of a staff?”

Hearing my words, the old man stopped his hammering and looked at me with an exasperated expression.

“What kind of nonsense are you talking about? Aren’t you a Magician? Why do you want something that you can’t even use? If I make something wrong for you, I’d get in trouble with the young leader!”

“Please. I’ll take responsibility for it, make it into a sword!”

Even while repeatedly rejecting my request, I kept asking the old man.

Maybe becoming tired of my constant pestering, he spoke without strength in his voice.

“A greenhorn like you, why so stubborn? Alright, fine, but don’t regret it!”

“Thank you. Thank you. Also, this…”

I gave the blood stone that I earned from the kelvecore to the old man.

“You want to embed this into the sword?”

“Yes. Please!”

“Don’t you have one more? The sword I’m making will have two embedded in.”

“I only have one, if I get another one, I’ll ask again.”

“You’re an annoying one huh. Alright, go away!”

“Yes, thank you very much!”

To the advisor grandpa, I requested something like ‘a hot cold Americano.’

I found out that the jewel I gave him was a Strength +30 stone that was used for weapons.

I didn’t know about the cost or the rank, but it was something that I risked my life for. So I wanted to use it for myself.

I was told that the weapon would take roughly one month’s time.

I returned to Park Hyun’s office on the 60^th floor.

I carefully read the guild’s request form for I was suspicious of how for someone that was recently Awakened to be treated like this.

For the parts that I didn’t understand, Park Hyun explained them to me.

As we continued, of course, I recorded everything.

After finishing the guild registration, I said that I will return in a month’s time to receive the staff and then proceeded to return home.

***

-Skills sound effects.-

 

[Gained 600 exp.]

[Gained 600 exp.]

.

.

Only in 10 minutes, I was able to clear the level 12^th dungeon by myself.

It was only possible due to the combination of ‘Eye of the Storm’ and ‘Lightning Spray.’

Of course, due to the ‘Eye of the Storm’ cooldown time, I needed to take 5 minutes breaks.

Using that break time, I continued to sell the drops.

I felt bad for Sangmin-hyung whom I hunted with. But there was no reason to suffer losses and hunt together.

Because now I wasn’t just looking at the level 12^th dungeons but rather dungeons beyond it.

Before I knew it, time passed and it was nearly August.

Tomorrow, I return to school.

During the long but short summer break, I was able to grow at a rate that no one could imagine.

Level: 57

Exp: [19,254,800/22,884,590] 84%

Class: Magician

Special Attribute: Infinite Mana

Strength: 160

Mana: ∞

Agility: 10

Stamina: 140

Points to distribute: 0

Learned skills

Frost Orb: Lv. 21 [16,244/180,000]

Lightning Spray: Lv. 38 [128,456/350,000]

Eye of the Storm: Lv.20 [88,243/170,000]

Frozen Shield: Lv. 17 [338/140,000]

Hunting more than 12 hours a day, my level finally became 57.

For a normal Awakened, no matter how fast you went, it was a result that would require over a year.

And the difference would only increase the higher I go.

After level 20, the experience required to level up rose by 1 million per level.

However, after level 30, the rate of the increase became ridiculous.

It was almost like it was meant to weed out the weak-willed.

Despite this misfortune, at least the experience required to level up your skill didn’t increase dramatically.

If that was the case, then the time one would be stuck in one place would be much longer.

Even if, compared to other people, it would have been much quicker for me.

For offensive type skills, leveling the skill wasn’t that difficult.

For shield skills, one needed to be hit to receive experience, so it was very difficult.

If I had lots of money, I would have continuously used a variety of shields on rotation to increase my skill experience, but for now, it was too difficult.

I didn’t concentrate on the debt I owed but saved all my money to obtain skill books.

The skill I was trying to purchase was a ridiculous one.

Level 12? No, I was preparing for something beyond level 13.

15 days after visiting the Noblesse guild, I received word from the advisor grandpa.

With confidence, I went into the 15^th floor of the guild to receive my sword.

However, the one who brought the sword to my house was not Park Hyun but a trainee secretary.³

Although weapons had S~F rank attached to it, the weapon’s rank was not only determined by the blood stone’s level.

The ranking was also determined by the Awakened’s ability.

To use the weapon that was crafted, you needed to meet the stats requirements for it.

Depending on the rank of the stone that was used, the required stats would be determined.

The stats that were implemented on a weapon or armor was not done by strength, mana, agility, or stamina specific stones, but made with a blood stone.⁴

Hence, the required stats to use the equipment will be changed based on the grade of the stone embedded in the equipment.⁵

The warrior class sword that I received was a half A rank, which required 200 points in strength to use.

Because I did not have enough strength stats, no matter how hard I tried, I could not lift the light looking sword.

Thus, without any choice, I had to request Park Hyun’s secretary to help me bring it home.

Thankfully, nothing was said about how it was not a staff but a sword.

Sword or staff, it was something that I requested for.

In front of me, there is a sword that I can’t even use.

It was one of the mid to high ranking sword mankind could craft, yet it was like a rice cake in a picture.

After receiving the sword, I put all my level up points into strength because there was a reason to use that sword.

***

-Ringing sound.-

“Uwa…”

The day began with an energetic morning call.

However, for hunting, a depressing morning began different from waking up.

After washing, I ate the breakfast that my mother made.

If I could, I would quit school and live solely in the hunting zones.

The chance which one can Awaken was highest between the age of 15~19.

In a regular school, the Awakened and the Non-Awakened with the possibility of being Awakened were taught in the same classes.

The goal of the school was to teach both the Awakened and Non-Awakened together.

For our modern day society, the danger of monster invasions and exploding portals were important, but at the same time, they also felt a threat from the Awakened.

Once it is determined that the student is an Awakened, it is reported to the Council as well.

Thus one becomes a special case.

You were an asset to the nation but were also capable of becoming a criminal at the same time.

If an Awakened causes issues in school or society, the punishment they received were far greater than normal people.

However, for increasing your social skill and attending normal school without any issues, upon graduating, you’d receive a guild recommendation and a waiver for education cost.

For the Awakened, the cost of education was nothing.

But, the guild recommendation was an award that would excite the eyes of the Awakened.

The Awakened had complaints about the current society.

What they wanted was the strong devour the weak, that the Awakened is superior to the Non-Awakened.

And that the lower Non-Awakened should be controlled by the Awakened.

Simply put, they wanted a caste system.

They didn’t group up to rally or fought over power, and they were not in sight, but they were everywhere.

However, incidents that occurred once in a while gave fear to the Non-Awakened about the Awakened.

One of the incidents involved terrorist attack on the Central Plants Center.

Six years ago, it wasn’t an exaggeration to call the Plant that they blew up the place that sustained all of humanity.

Due to the importance of the Plants, there were many Awakened guards.

However, it was caused by one person.

“Oh shit! Terrorism or not, I’m going to be late!”

***

Nothing seemed to have changed when I arrived back at the school.

The school entrance, the hill side roads, the classes, everything was the same.

With many thoughts in mind, I entered the classroom, and suddenly.

“Hey, pip squeak! Did you spend your days well? Go get me some sausage bread and soda.”

-Coin dropping on table sound.-

---

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