Chapter 27
Chapter 27 – Celebrity (1)
“Are you going to the dungeon again?”
“Yeah.”
Kang Hyeon, wearing Ronald’s armor, picked up his backpack.
“You haven’t rested for even a day…”
“It’s fine.”
Kang A-hyun spoke worriedly, but Kang Hyeon answered coldly without looking back.
“It’s not your fault! Why are you so alone…”
-Bang!
He didn’t want to hear anymore.
Kang Hyeon pushed the front door violently and went outside.
***
Ippotranslation
***
-The Dangun Guild has set out to hunt the boss of the D-rank dungeon ‘Hiji’s Plains’. Guild leader Han Se-yeon…
-Choi Dong-woo, who has taken the position of chairman of the Ability Users Union, will focus on peace and…
-A newly emerged C-rank dungeon. How difficult will the dungeon be…
Wherever he went, stories about dungeons and ability users could be heard.
There have been many changes over the past two months.
-Chairman Ahn Moo-seok has officially announced that he will enter the dungeon industry. Various…
Dungeons have now fully established themselves as an industry.
Monsters were no longer threatening beings, but geese that lay golden eggs.
At the same time, numerous guilds sprouted up, led by Han Se-yeon, who founded the Dangun Guild.
They all claimed to stand up for peace, but everyone knew that they were only after ‘money’.
“Status window.”
In this situation, the biggest change was in Kang Hyeon himself.
▫Name: Kang Hyeon
▫Title: Tutorial Graduate and 1 other
▫Level: 47
▫Detailed Stats:
Strength 26 (+2.5)(+2)
Agility 24 (+2.5)
Stamina 25 (+2.5)(+2)
Magic Power 26 (+2.5)(+2)
Additional Stats: –
▫Unique Ability: Resurrection
▫Abilities: Intermediate Swordsmanship(D), Lower-Grade Shield Techniques(E), Lowest-Grade Crossbow Skills(F), Lower-Grade Martial Arts(E)
▫Skills: Roar of the Enraged Lion (C), Advanced Bodily Regeneration(A), Bisection(E), Giant’s Strength(B), Magic Explosion(E), Wayne’s Secret Technique(E)
Noticeably improved stats and skills.
Plus, he was wearing strength ring, stamina ring, and magic power ring.
A total of 3 rings were being worn.
Each ring increased the stat by 2.
It was truly a remarkable development compared to before, but it still wasn’t enough in Kang Hyeon’s eyes.
‘More, I need to get stronger.’
Since that day, Kang Hyeon had been practically living in dungeons.
The fight that started as soon as he opened his eyes continued until he fell asleep.
He had died five times while recklessly hunting bosses alone.
During that time, his bank balance exceeded 500 million won, but he wasn’t particularly happy about it.
‘So that I never have regrets again…’
That day, his father lost an arm and his mother became in a vegetative state.
If only he had tried a little harder, it wouldn’t have happened.
“Hey. Isn’t that person over there that guy?”
“Who?”
“You know, the one they say solo clears dungeon bosses…”
“Wasn’t that just an urban legend?”
As he parked his car in front of the dungeon entrance, he could hear some people talking about him.
In the past, it would have been a situation to feel quite proud of, but not anymore.
***
Ippotranslation
***
“Great! Level up!”
It was a level up after a whole ten days.
With this, Choi Tae-sik reached level 33.
At this level, any guild would welcome him with open arms.
However, his ambition was not just that.
The first and best guild in Korea, where the top 0.1% gather.
‘Dangun’ was his goal.
And this month, Dangun’s entry requirement is level 35.
‘If I try a little harder, I might be able to challenge next month.’
“Wow! Did you level up? Congratulations.”
“Hey, congratulations.”
Choi Tae-sik smiled awkwardly at the congratulations from his surrounding colleagues.
‘Hmph. I won’t have to mingle with losers like you for much longer.’
He is a talent who passed the tutorial up to stage 5. He’s fundamentally different from those who died at stages 3 or 4.
He’s still with them out of necessity, but once he enters the Dangun Guild, he won’t have to face them anymore.
“If you guys try hard, you can level up quickly too.”
Choi Tae-sik uttered insincere words.
“What’s that?”
“A person…?”
That’s when it happened.
At the sudden words of his party members, Choi Tae-sik’s head naturally turned.
Someone could be seen running at an incredible speed from the direction of the dungeon entrance.
“Hey!”
Choi Tae-sik called out to the man who approached right in front of them in an instant, but the man passed by without even seeming to hear.
“It’s dangerous ahead!”
Ahead is the room with the core.
Because of this, there are an enormous number of monsters gathered, and if one enters alone, they will certainly die.
“What should we do?”
“Damn! Let’s follow him. We can’t just leave him to die.”
Choi Tae-sik and his colleagues hurriedly packed their things and followed the man.
-Bang!
The man who was running at a terrifying speed had already reached where the core was, as the sound of battle could already be heard.
“Kyaak!”
At the same time, as the scream of an Entria was heard, Choi Tae-sik hesitated.
‘It’s too risky to break through the room with the core with this number of people…’
They might end up getting wiped out themselves instead of saving the man if they weren’t careful.
“Tae-sik, aren’t you going?”
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
‘If the situation gets bad, I’ll have to escape alone.’
With the thought of abandoning his colleagues, Choi Tae-sik moved forward with the group.
-Kwang, Bang!
“We’ve arrived!”
Soon after, the group was able to reach the core room.
“What the…?”
However, what was happening there was completely different from what Choi Tae-sik had expected.
-Kwang!
“Kyaaaak!”
The man was rampaging madly among the giant Entrias.
Every time an Entria with tough outer shells was caught by the man’s hands, it mercilessly burst apart.
-Pung!
Whether he used a skill or not, with a shock, an Entria flew and crashed next to Choi Tae-sik.
“Keueeee…”
The one with a hole as big as his face in its body let out a pitiful scream before dying.
“What is this…”
***
Ippotranslation
***
E-rank dungeon, Entria’s Lair.
Even the strongest ability user would be called crazy if they tried to tackle an E-rank boss alone.
However, Kang Hyeon thought it would be possible enough with the skill he obtained last time.
Wayne’s Secret Technique (E)
Ability: When activated, all stats except magic power increase by 40%. The body breaks down as time passes.
Description: Wayne, a madman who lived only for battle and devoted his life to combat. Wayne, who always sought more intense battles throughout his life, finally succeeded in drawing out extreme power even at the cost of destroying his own body.
After obtaining the skill, Kang Hyeon always activated it until his magic power was depleted.
When using the skill, all abilities increased, and pain like his entire body was being torn apart rose.
Originally, it was a skill that would cause blood vessels and muscles throughout the body to burst within 30 minutes.
However, Kang Hyeon had a skill to counteract that.
Advanced Bodily Regeneration (A)
Ability: Uses magic power to regenerate and quickly recover damage inflicted on the body.
Description: Recovers without dying unless the head is cut off or the brain or heart is destroyed.
By using ‘Wayne’s Secret Technique’ every day like this, Kang Hyeon was finally able to raise the grade of both skills.
-Crack!
The head of the Entria hit by Kang Hyeon’s fist shattered like a ripe watermelon.
“Kyaaah!”
Dozens of Entrias in the form of giant ants rushed in, but Kang Hyeon didn’t panic.
‘I still have enough magic power.’
He dodges if he can dodge, and takes the hit if he can’t.
Kang Hyeon’s stamina while using Wayne’s Secret Technique was nearly 40.
In this state, even decent swords couldn’t penetrate Kang Hyeon’s skin.
Therefore, Kang Hyeon focused all his attention on killing the enemy.
Just as Wayne had done in his lifetime.
-Thud!
“Huff…”
Kang Hyeon, who crushed the head of the last Entria squirming on the ground, caught his breath.
‘My magic power has dropped a lot.’
If he continued to maintain the skill, it would hinder future battles.
Kang Hyeon had no choice but to cancel ‘Wayne’s Secret Technique’.
“Excuse me.”
A voice coming from the side.
Kang Hyeon, sitting on the corpses of Entrias, turned his head.
“What is it?”
“Um… Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
The man who spoke fumbled, not knowing what to do when Kang Hyeon actually answered.
“What do you want?”
“Are you perhaps a member of the Dangun Guild?”
“No, I’m not.”
Kang Hyeon answered indifferently to the man’s words and stood up.
“Oh, are you just leaving?”
It hadn’t even been 10 minutes since the battle ended. The man, flustered, tried to stop Kang Hyeon from leaving.
“Do you have business with me?”
“Not really, but the magic stones and core are still here…”
Hearing the man’s words, Kang Hyeon approached the core.
-Slash!
Kang Hyeon put the core that fell off with one slash of his knife into his inventory.
20 million won.
It’s money that’s too precious to waste when it can be easily taken.
“Take the rest.”
“Pardon…?”
“Do as you please.”
“Can we really take it?”
The corpses of Entrias fallen here numbered in the dozens. It was a number that would take them all day to kill.
“Yes. I don’t need it, so take it or leave it as you wish.”
The man nodded with a dumbfounded expression at Kang Hyeon’s words.
***
Ippotranslation
***
“Who was that man from earlier?”
At Park Ha-yeon’s words, a party member, Choi Tae-sik’s expression, crumpled.
“What do you mean who? He’s a madman.”
“Why are you frowning like that? Thanks to him, we’ve made a fortune.”
If you combine the magic stones left by Kang Hyeon with the magic stones the group had hunted so far, it would exceed 30 million won.
Even divided among five people, it’s over 6 million won each.
A daily wage of 1.2 million won.
What was once a dream for these ordinary people had become reality.
“By the way, is he going to the boss room alone?”
“How should I know…”
Choi Tae-sik answered grumpily.
In fact, his mind was in complete chaos.
‘Just who is he?’
He’s not Choi Dong woo or Han Se-yeon.
He’s not a member of the Dangun Guild either.
An unknown man single-handedly slaughtered over dozens of Entrias.
“I’ve heard rumors about a man who’s been clearing dungeons alone these days, could it be him?”
Choi Tae-sik had heard that rumor too.
It was an absurd story about a man who was slaughtering F-rank dungeon bosses alone.
Until now, Choi Tae-sik had dismissed it as just a baseless rumor.
“Even if that’s the case, this is an E-rank dungeon. It’s on a completely different level from F-rank.”
Even if he was the man from the rumors, clearing an F-rank and clearing an E-rank are completely different stories.
[The dungeon’s central core has been removed]
[A portal to the outside is opening]
[The dungeon will collapse soon, please exit to the outside]
Sudden messages appeared.
Choi Tae-sik wore a blank expression as he saw the portal opening in front of him.
“It hasn’t even been a day yet…?”
***
Ippotranslation
***
Kang Hyeon, who had plunged his sword into the head of the Queen Entria, collapsed to a sitting position.
“Huff, huff.”
Kang Hyeon was able to take down the boss after a fierce struggle. A crisis came when his magic power ran out midway, but it was a victory achieved after desperately holding on.
[Entria’s Exoskeleton]
Kang Hyeon examined the drop item that fell when the queen died.
Entria’s Exoskeleton (F)
Ability: When activated, it hardens the skin.
Description: Recreates the exoskeleton of Entrias, which have been famous for their hard shells since ancient times, using magic power.
Books related to skills and abilities, no matter how useless they may seem, are worth over 10 million won.
A skill of this level would fetch at least 50 million won.
It might even exceed 100 million.
“It seems like it would be difficult for me to use though.”
Currently, most of Kang Hyeon’s magic power is used to maintain ‘Wayne’s Secret Technique’ and ‘Advanced Bodily Regeneration’.
Therefore, there was no need to learn various skills.
The reason for minimizing the use of miscellaneous attack skills during combat was also for this reason.
[Do you want to learn the skill, Entria’s Exoskeleton?]
“Still, it wouldn’t hurt to learn something like this.”
He’s already earning enough money anyway.
Thinking it would be more helpful to learn it than to sell it, Kang Hyeon used the skill book.
“Hmm.”
This sensation of something else entering his body was not something he could get used to no matter how many times he repeated it.
“Shall we go now?”
After finishing learning the skill and extracting the Queen Entria’s magic stone, Kang Hyeon stood in front of the dungeon’s main core.
-Thump, thump
The main core, in the shape of a sphere about 20cm in diameter, pulsated.
It was as if the veins coming out of the pillar supporting the core were sucking in the core’s magic power.
-Slash
As he cut the pillar, magic power scattered in all directions and simultaneously a portal leading to the outside opened in front of Kang Hyeon.
Kang Hyeon, picking up the core, entered the portal.
-Flash!
As his vision flickered and a familiar floating sensation was felt, when he opened his eyes again, he was outside the dungeon.
“What’s this?”
There were dozens of people waiting for him there.