TL: Hayath
Chapter 18
Episode 3. The Inevitable Battle (1)
“Whew, it’s finally over.”
Inside the dimly lit cave, I looked at the remains of the boss monster on my Volcano Sword and then gazed into the air.
Several notifications popped up before me.
[You have defeated the One-Eyed Troll (D).]
[The Lord’s Trait, Solitude, is activated.]
[You have gained 10 times the experience points.]
[Level up!]
[You have reached level 50.]
[All stats increased by +1.]
Thanks to the Solitude trait, reaching level 50 wasn’t difficult.
Upon reaching level 50, I completed the prerequisite condition for a hidden quest and unlocked the fourth achievement.
[Prerequisite – Reach Level 50 (50/50)]
[You have completed the prerequisite.]
[As a reward for completing the prerequisite, you gain +1 to health.]
[The fourth achievement is unlocked.]
[Fourth Achievement – Clear a C-rank dungeon (0/1)]
[Hidden Quest: Achievements of the Lord (3/10)]
[Complete all achievements to earn a hidden reward.]
How long I had awaited this moment.
To fulfill this prerequisite, I had tackled every dungeon I could at the Seoul Station Hunting Ground.
Whether D-rank or F-rank, I entered and cleared any dungeon I could bid on.
It was a grueling schedule, to the point where I worried my body might break down, but even my character acknowledged it.
“You’ve worked hard, Lord! You’ve become really strong in such a short time! And so have I!”
My second summoned character, Jejangi, jumped up and down beside me, giving a thumbs-up.
Jejangi had indeed grown significantly stronger since I first summoned him.
Level 67.
Just a short while ago, he was at level 10, but in a week, he had gained over 50 levels.
Although it’s quite a high level, I still wasn’t completely satisfied. It was fast leveling because it was early on.
If I had focused on just one character as before, it would have surpassed level 300.
Current Hayer offers many benefits, including experience events for low-level users, and I have a lot of nurturing know-how.
But now, unlike the days when I only ate and played games, I also work as a hunter and have to raise other max-level characters, so this was the best I could do.
In the limited time I had, I tried to find maximum efficiency.
Even during the intense dungeon runs, called the Infinite Raid, I reduced my sleep time and played Hayer in the remaining time.
Summoning Jejangi instead of Taeseng GilgeoI was also for efficiency.
Summoning Taeseng GilgeoI sped up the raid, but it consumed too much mana.
On the other hand, Jejangi’s mana consumption was less than one-tenth of Taeseng GilgeoI’s, and I could level up the character.
Unlike Taeseng GilgeoI, who was max level, both the character and I gained experience points when monsters were defeated.
Although it was much slower than leveling up in Hayer, Jejangi gained three levels in the week-long dungeon runs.
And crucially, my hunting speed was no longer significantly behind Taeseng GilgeoI.
The monsters in low-level dungeons were weak, and combined with the use of new weapons, leveling up, and Jejangi’s buff effects, I could now take down F-rank and E-rank monsters in one hit.
I had become noticeably stronger compared to before.
“It’s time to graduate from here.”
Though I had grown attached to the Seoul Station Hunting Ground, it only had D-rank to F-rank dungeons.
I needed to clear a C-rank dungeon for my next achievement, and the efficiency here was dropping, so it seemed best to find another hunting ground.
After putting the boss monster’s dropped items into Jejangi’s inventory, I prepared to leave the dungeon.
“You worked hard, Jejangi. See you next time.”
“Yes! Thank you, Lord! Please call me again next time!”
It was time to settle after the raid.
I unsummoned Jejangi and headed out of the dungeon towards the item exchange.
Then, I spotted a familiar face.
The dungeon sentry.
Despite several raid runs, he looked at me indifferently, just like the first time, while playing his game.
For some reason, his demeanor reminded me of my past self, so I took out a recovery potion and handed it to the sentry.
“Thank you for everything. This is a gift.”
“What…? Th-thank you. I’ll use it well.”
The dungeon sentry gave me a puzzled look and bowed in gratitude.
Usually, hunters, even when in a good mood, don’t give items as gifts.
But it wasn’t entirely unheard of.
When I used to work as a dungeon sentry, I had occasionally received potions as a token of appreciation for my hard work.
Since items are expensive, cheaper potions are given as tips.
Though the sentry seemed not to recognize who I was or why I was giving him this, I liked that he didn’t make a fuss.
Thanks to his indifference, I could raid comfortably.
I responded to his thanks with a slight nod and moved on to thank another person.
He welcomed me warmly as always.
“Welcome, hunter. I see you cleared D-rank No. 177 dungeon today. It’s impressive how you handle everything from F-rank to D-rank.”
The staff at the Seoul Station Item Exchange correctly guessed the dungeon I had entered.
I responded with a faint smile.
“I didn’t do much. My friend did most of the work.”
“Haha, you should treat your friend well.”
“I already do. I make sure to treat them every day.”
I wasn’t lying.
Every day, I spent a portion of the money earned from raids on Taeseng GilgeoI or Jejangi, among other game characters.
Although it’s technically microtransactions, it’s still spending money.
The staff, smiling kindly, spoke again.
“As usual, should I process the items?”
“Yes, please handle them as usual.”
“Alright, I’ll auction the high-performance items and handle the rest at the standard prices. It will take about five minutes.”
The transaction proceeded quickly.
He was kind but also concise, making the process comfortable.
Though he might have had suspicions about my dungeon clearing speed or new items, the staff here never inquired about such things.
Knowing this was out of consideration, I handed the staff a potion before leaving.
“Here’s something small for you, for a coffee later. Thank you as always.”
“Oh! That’s very generous of you… Thank you, hunter.”
“No problem, I’ll be off then.”
After giving the staff a gift, I left the Seoul Station Hunting Ground to head home.
“Should I have a beer when I get home?”
Though I had reached level 50 and achieved my goal, I felt a sense of longing that made me think of drinking because I was leaving a familiar place.
I thought about what I should eat with it.
Chicken, pizza, bossam, jokbal…
With more money now, I didn’t worry about the cost.
I wasn’t yet earning enough to buy high-end items, houses, or cars, but I no longer had to worry about meal expenses.
Of course, a significant portion of my earnings went towards maintaining [Character Summon] with mana potions, along with microtransactions in Hayer, so I couldn’t splurge, but still.
“Let’s have some chicken and do some more crafting in Hayer for the end-game items.”
But just as I was planning my solo drinking session.
Buzz-!
Suddenly, my phone buzzed with a message.
It seemed my return home would have to wait a bit longer.
“So, what you’re asking is if I can participate in a C-rank dangerous dungeon raid with the same Hunter Agency team as before and three hunters from the Asin Guild, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
At a cafe near Seoul Station, Shin Daehun nodded as I summarized the request I had just heard.
A dangerous dungeon.
A term used for dungeons with high hunter casualty rates, and C-rank No. 223 dungeon, where over ten people had gone missing or died in the past year, was one such place.
It was a snowy, icy fortress where we had to defeat the monsters, nicknamed the Ice Fortress.
“Here is the information about the Ice Fortress.”
Shin Daehun handed me a file from his briefcase.
The file contained information about the monsters and the boss monster in the Ice Fortress.
I read through the details about the Snow Field Knights, the mobs, and the Frost Mage, the boss monster who controlled the mobs.
The overall difficulty was classified as mid-tier C-rank, similar to the Hell Gargoyle.
I could see why Shin Daehun was making this request to me.
But it was a bit concerning that such a dungeon had become a dangerous one.
“Not bad. I’ll discuss it with my friend.”
Though it was a dangerous dungeon, there was no reason to refuse. I needed to clear a C-rank dungeon anyway.
If possible, I could even consider going in with just Taeseng GilgeoI to maximize the Solitude effect.
Though I had mana potions, if I kept consuming one every few minutes to maintain the summon, it might raise suspicions.
After all, what they primarily wanted was Taeseng GilgeoI’s strength, so adjusting the team should be possible.
However,
“No, this request is specifically for you, Hunter Han Sangwoo. Your friend doesn’t need to join this raid.”
Shin Daehun seemed to want me, not Taeseng GilgeoI.
