Thumbs Up, Level Up

Chapter 25

Ji-Cheok hacked at the second lizardman’s spear shaft, then shoved his sword into its screaming mouth. The blade instantly penetrated the lizardman’s esophagus and airway. He then slashed his White Night sword at the back of its head, and the blade cleanly came out of the opening of its jaw. The monster had met its death.

In a matter of seconds, Ji-Cheok had slain two lizardmen. He then purposely shot his telekinetic arrows towards the ceiling instead of their heads.

Kaboom!

In most cases, people would have called Ji-Cheok insane, but he was up against the lizardmen.

Because these monsters had the ability to detect vibrations, the suddenly shaking ceiling became a huge distraction to them.

As he had done before, Ji-Cheok went ahead and stabbed his sword into the necks of the third and fourth lizardmen. The Dark Night sword gently cut through their first layer of skin like a knife slicing butter and tore their fascia.

The lizardmen couldn’t scream even if they wanted to, as their vocal cords were detached, and the sound of wind passing through their throat was the only thing that Ji-Cheok could hear. The last remaining monster lost its will to fight and tried to run away, but Ji-Cheok threw his White Night sword and it split the lizardman’s spine.

Slaaaam!

The combat was over, and it looked like Ji-Cheok had gotten all the lizardmen around him after he killed the last one.

“...”

The twins looked at Ji-Cheok, speechless.

[The two beginner Hunters are slightly scared of you. But on the other hand, they cannot take their eyes off your precise swordplay.]

[You have received 6 Likes.]

‘Ah, thank you very much.’

Ji-Cheok had noticed a while ago that the twins were fairly emotional people.

‘They told me they would be useless, but in fact, they’ve been a tremendous help to me so far.’

Long story short, they were delivery guys who gave him Likes.

‘If all goes well, maybe I will reach 100 Likes?’

It was expected that over time people’s emotions would numb over time, but the twins remained consistent.

Ji-Cheok took a dagger out of his inner jacket pocket. He had taken it from one of the lizardmen he had fought earlier.

“Let’s sort out the bodies.”

“Yes, yes!”

“Oh, alrighty!’

It was only then that the two pulled out their daggers in surprise. Every time Ji-Cheok had killed a lizardman, and it carried a dagger, he had passed the knife on to the twins. Spears were actually the lizardmen’s principal weapons, but the daggers had proven quite useful. The blades were forged from the scales on the lizardmen’s backs. A dagger wasn’t that effective when killing monsters because of its low attack power, but it was lighter than metal and curved, so it was still enough to butcher the lizardmen.

‘I’ve always wanted this ever since I became a Hunter Assistant.’

With how expensive these daggers were, it had only been a dream to him. Ji-Cheok did not expect to come to possess one now.

It was going to be impossible to completely dismember all these lizardman bodies in such a short period, but extracting the magic stones and collecting the scales and blood was doable.

[☆★◇◆Scrooge’s Alchemy◇◆☆★]

[Class: Unique (Upgradable, Rank F)

Penny @Pinchers! ? The Alchemy of the Incarnation, Kim Scrooge’s Vision.

Ingredients are cheap and the production scale is huge!

You too can be rich! Low investment ? High value◆ Opportunity to spend!

A Grand Opening ? Discount? has been applied to the cost and you will receive a Special Limited↗Edition↗gift?too!!!

*This item is non-refundable.]

‘What an insane alchemy skill, and there’s also the special limited edition gift!’

It was about time for him to finally use this skill.

“Activate skill, Scrooge’s Alchemy Survival Camp,” Ji-Cheok ordered.

An alchemy pot on top of a controlled flame popped up on the floor.

[☆★◇◆Scrooge’s Alchemist Survival Camp◇◆☆★]

[Class: Unique (Upgradable, Rank F)

You can use ★ alchemy wherever ? you are, even the outdoors. You can use↗ the special limited edition ↗gift anytime ? after you register it with the skill.

50 Clear Potion Bottles and 30 neutralizers are supplied for free!

Low ? investment, High ? value opportunity!

You too ↗can↗ be rich!]

‘Who the hell is this Scrooge…?’

The twins stared at Ji-Cheok with their mouths wide open.

“What the heck is this…?” They asked.

“We don’t have much time, let’s finish this quickly.” Ji-Cheok stood in front of the alchemy pot and promptly triggered the [Scrooge’s Alchemy] skill.

“Search for all the potions that I can make with the ingredients that I have now.”

[Search ↗ in ↗ progress ?.]

A book appeared out of thin air and magically opened up with the pages fluttering. It finally stopped at a certain part of the book.

[1 search result.]

[Lizardman Godly ★ Energy ☆ Tonic!]

[Would you like to brew this potion?]

“Yes,” Ji-Cheok said.

[Your alchemy level is low, which significantly decreases your success rate.]

[Success rate is 30%.]

[Brewing begins now.]

His hands began to move and Ji-Cheok poured the lizardmen's blood into the pot. He then added the scales and threw in a bit of the monster flesh. He continued to stir, and the liquid inside the pot slowly turned into a dark hue.

[You have failed.]

[The used ingredients in this pot will be destroyed.]

[Would you like to try again?]

“Yes,” Ji-Cheok responded.

‘30%, that means I can be successful three out of ten times.’

Ji-Cheok had killed fifteen lizardmen, which meant he had fifteen tries to create this potion as each run required ingredients from one lizardman.

[You have succeeded!]

The pot finally glowed.

Without time to celebrate, Ji-Cheok threw his next batch of ingredients in the pot and repeated the process.

[Alchemy skill proficiency has increased!]

[Your intelligence, mana, and stamina have all slightly increased!]

[Your alchemy success rate has increased!]

“Oh, this is pretty good!”

He was able to make a total of 5 bottles.

[Lizardman Godly ★ Energy ☆ Tonic!]

[Class: B-

It’s an ancient hidden tonic created by the parts of a lizardman. This highly concentrated stamina potion continuously heals the mind and body while increasing agility.

Duration of Effect: 6 hours.]

‘I just struck gold! If I put this out on the market, I’ll probably be able to get several hundred thousand won for one.’

It was, in fact, a low ? investment and high ? value return!

Who would have thought that this unreputable advertisement’s words were true?

‘Seeing how this skill really works, I wonder what I can make with other ingredients… Maybe if I offer them this potion, I can ask them to help me take apart more of the lizardmen? This level of potion would be a great help in getting out of here…’

The twins shook their heads as they listened to Ji-Cheok’s request.

“We don’t need the potions as payment to help you dissect the bodies,” one said.

“You don’t have to do this…” the other added.

”Mr. Um, you’ve killed all these monsters yourself. They are yours. It’s been a cakewalk for us because all we’ve had to do was sit down and twiddle our thumbs. “

“Yes, the fact that we’re still alive is all thanks to you. Helping you dismantle these lizardmen is the least we could do to repay you.”

‘...these people are genuinely kind.’

These twins differed greatly from the ruthless Hunters he had met.

‘I still have to give them a potion. It would be a shame to just die here.”

Ji-Cheok worried that he would get horrifying nightmares if he ever let the twins get their necks impaled by the lizardmen, so he gave each twin a bottle just in case.

“No, you don’t have to. This potion is so scarce…”

“We’re actually fine…”

Tears pooled in their eyes.

[The two Hunters are truly grateful for your kind deeds.]

[You have received 6 Likes!]

‘... Damn. This is some pretty emotional stuff. If I just put my mind to it, I think I’ll be able to finish the bonus quest.’

Ji-Cheok stopped to rest and took the time to restore some of his stamina and mana. He didn’t know how close he was to reaching the end of the dungeon, so he had to be prepared. The banging sound of La-Du casting his flames gradually faded.

‘Is he getting tired? Or did he figure something out? He probably figured something out.’

If La-Du was on the verge of dying, he would have probably used a huge, forceful blow as a last-ditch effort, but that hadn’t happened. Additionally, Ji-Cheok had killed a few lizardmen that were running toward La-Du, which meant La-Du would have to deal with fewer.

Meanwhile, the twins were diligent in taking apart and collecting more lizardman claws, bones, belly hide, scales, and tendons.

‘They both seem to have strong stomachs.’

Butchering these lizardmen was nothing else than cutting up a dead animal, and it required quite a bit of mental toughness. Slaughtering a cow and retrieving its hide, muscles, fat, and bones was mentally exhausting for the average person. The muscles of a freshly cut cow would still squirm, and the skin would be so soft that it would feel like the cow was still alive. Although lizardmen differed from humans, it was still harder to dissect them than cows, as the lizardmen had humanoid limbs.

‘They might be auxiliaries, it looks like they have the basic butchering skills. That’s a relief.’

After they finished, Jin-Ah and Jin-Woo walked up to Ji-Cheok.

“Whew! We’re all done!”

“We should have tidied up more, but it was pretty hard since it was my first time doing it…”

“No, no. Thank you very much,” Ji-Cheok replied

He then proceeded to use Scrooge’s Alchemy a few more times.

[Lizardman★Emergency☆Bandage]

[Class: C

This is a powerful bandage made from flexible leather. It can save you in numerous emergencies, including bleeding out, paralysis, and fainting. Using it with other recovery skills will double its effects.]

[Lizardman? Berserker↗Medicine]

[Class: B-

It will greatly increase all abilities while heavily using up stamina. Overusing this substance will cause death.

Duration of effect: 30 seconds.]

They both looked worth using. The emergency bandage was a powerful recovery item that could save someone’s life. Ji-Cheok would use a healing skill himself if nobody in his team had one, and if a teammate did have such a skill, it would be even better as the bandage’s effect would double.

Then there was the Berserker medicine. Ji-Cheok wasn’t sure about the best time to use it, but it seemed to be useful when dealing with enemies that were difficult to deal with using his current abilities. Also, if any of these two were put up for auction, they would make him a lot of money.

Ji-Cheok decided to hand out one emergency bandage to each twin and then held on to the Berserker medicine himself. For the two non-combatant twins to drink this Berserker medicine, the group would probably have to be on the verge of death. Ji-Cheok thought it would be better for them to just have the bandages.

He poured in the remaining bits of ingredients and created every miscellaneous item he could make, then closed the camp.

“Time to go.”

They had had enough rest, and even though they didn’t know what lay ahead, they had to keep moving on.

* * *

They killed every lizardman in sight, and the Bang twins promptly took apart each monster’s body, turning them into multiple useful items.

‘Let’s not go there in a hurry. If we rush things, we’ll probably end up dying.’

They moved forward, stopping to recover from time to time.

Meanwhile, the Likes continued to steadily come in.

[You have successfully collected 100 Likes.]

[Extra Bonus Quest has been successfully completed.]

[Would you like to receive your extra rewards right now?]

Ji-Cheok hadn’t cleared the main quest yet, but he was able to receive his bonus right now.

“I’d like to receive it now.”

[As a reward, your Likes system will be updated.]

[3]

[2…]

[Update complete.]

[From now on, you will be able to receive Likes from your enemies as well.]

‘What the hell is this talking about?’

Keuuuureuk!

Not a moment too soon, another group of lizardmen showed up in the corner, and they were startled as they made eye contact with Ji-Cheok.

His title [Lizardmen Challenger]’s effect was active.

Without hesitation, Ji-Cheok leapt in an open space among the group of lizardmen and wielded his Black Night sword.

Slice!

With his newly improved muscle strength, Ji-Cheok had cut through all the lizardmen necks in one single blow. The monsters were all horrified as they died.

[Lizardman No.1 is terrified of your strike.]

[You have received 1 Like!]

[Lizardman No.2 is very humiliated by your attack.]

[You have received 1 Like!]

‘What the hell… this is also how I can get Likes now? Even from enemies(or should we change this to monsters?)?

* * *

How far had they gone?

The road ahead of them was cut off, and there was a gigantic stone gate at the end.

“Mr. Um! Look at that! Did we finally clear the dungeon?”

‘No, I don’t think so.’

At the end of every dungeon, there would always be a boss monster. Perhaps that boss monster was behind this stone gate, so Ji-Cheok asked the twins to take a step back while he spoke to them about his concerns.

“Boss… Boss Monster… I knew it,” one of them responded.

“It’ll be fine,” Ji-Cheok tried to reassure them and the two just nodded.

“Yes, I only trust you Mr. Um.”

‘Whew, take a deep breath!’?Ji-Cheok nervously told himself.

Ji-Cheok opened the stone door, and it made a loud and heavy creaking noise.

Waiting in front of them was a giant scaly demon.

[Make an offering.]

That was what the demon said, but it stayed still like a stone statue.

[Two people.]

There were several weapons hanging on the walls of the stone room.

Then, there was a sudden roar coming from behind Ji-Cheok.

Slaaaam!

“Fuck me! Did we reach the end?”

It was La-Du.

‘God, this fucker’s still alive.’

Ji-Cheok saw other familiar Hunters. It seemed like La-Du had joined another team mid-way.

1. Thin layer of fibrous tissue that surrounds the muscle. Author is emphasizing how easily the blade cut into the lizardman