Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: The Thrill of the Hunt
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Bong Joo-hyuk, John Kosak, and Savage Meat Shield—a cooperative climb of three.
Following yesterday's 16th floor, today was the 17th.
"Whoa!"
Power flooded in.
Muscles bulged, mana surged, and senses sharpened.
If level 17 felt like this, what would it be like past level 30?
After stretching in the safe zone, he pulled the Adamantite Mace from his Tower-exclusive inventory, activated his zzing! energy shield, and made sure a healing potion was handy in his pocket.
"Mr. Kosak, Mr. Gobang, let's move."
"Yessir!"
"Gobang go."
The 17th floor was for clearing out Goblin Warriors.
Monsters armed with swords, shields, and armor, capable of tactical maneuvers—intelligent types.
As they ventured deeper inside...
17th Floor Mission
🎯 Objective: Defeat 30 Goblin Warriors.
A mission appeared. The number to hunt was 30.
Right at that moment.
Thump thump, clack clack clack!
From the front, right, and left—three directions—a troop of Goblin Warriors appeared, perfectly in formation.
Thirty from each direction, ninety in total. Almost a full company.
They were orderly.
Equipped with swords, shields, rattan armor, and helmets, they reeked of elite soldiers.
How had other players cleared this?
Typically, as soon as the Goblin Warrior company appeared, you'd retreat to the safe zone.
Wait a bit, then go back. The company would have dispersed, leaving Goblin Warriors patrolling in groups of three. Lure a group of three and defeat them. Success.
This process was very difficult.
If you lured six instead of three, you had to immediately declare mission abandonment.
For ranged players, it was somewhat easier. They could use skills from a distance to pick off one or two, then flee to the safe zone.
But Summoner Joo-hyuk...
"Mr. Gobang!"
"Summoner called me."
"Can you handle them?"
"Kill them all."
"Sweep them clean."
With just that instruction...
"KUWAAAAAH!!!"
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!
The barbarian warrior Gobang charged into the Goblin Warrior company.
A Goblin Warrior's height was less than 1.5 meters.
In contrast, Savage Gobang was over 3 meters tall.
His entire body was muscle, thick and solid.
Moreover, he possessed monstrous strength capable of ripping off a Super Hydra's head.
CRACK! SMASH! SPLAT!
Goblin Warriors turned into bloody paste, flying into the air.
Weapons?
They didn't even pierce his flesh.
Armor?
Shredded to pieces.
"Wow, that brainless Gobang bastard... leaves me speechless."
"..."
It was no different from a K2 Black Panther main battle tank crushing ninety bicycles.
Strategy? Tactics?
They only work against comparable foes.
Assassin Kosak joined in.
They pressed on.
Next was the 18th-floor clear.
The 18th floor had Goblin Assassins.
Surprisingly, they were monsters that used stealth.
A very low-level stealth skill; if you concentrated, you could vaguely see their moving forms.
In a way, it was manageable. If you could see through the stealth, they were nothing.
But it was by no means easy.
Assassins were cunning.
They often used tactics where one Goblin Assassin pretended to be revealed to lure the player, while another lying in ambush would strike from behind.
On the 18th floor, Kosak shined.
He was a master assassin.
"You must have suffered watching that brainless Gobang's crude clear, sir. Allow me to show you what a dignified clear looks like."
Lowly Goblin Assassins? He could kill them with his eyes closed.
John Kosak demonstrated what true stealth was.
Fwoosh!
"Assassin gone. Cowardly. Bad guy."
"...He's not that bad of a person."
"I understand. Assassin good. I go help."
THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP.
Gobang charged forward but could only scratch his head.
He couldn't do anything. He couldn't see them.
Still, he wildly swung his arms everywhere.
THWACK!
A Goblin Assassin unluckily caught by his hand turned into bloody paste.
"GACK!"
Meanwhile.
Shwick, shwick-shwick-shwick!
The sound of Kosak's blade slashed rapidly.
The kill count rose rapidly.
[Completion Condition: Goblin Assassins 7/30]
It was fast and silent.
The 17th floor was Savage Gobang's show.
The 18th floor was Kosak's show.
'What about me?'
No, I bought this Adamantite Mace for 2 million won, and I haven't even swung it once.
The 16th floor, the 17th floor, and now the 18th floor they were clearing...
He didn't necessarily need to fight, but...
'Should I give it a try?'
Trusting his energy shield.
And his Shadow Step skill too.
The more he used it, the more fun it was.
Joo-hyuk moved in the opposite direction from Kosak.
While walking slowly...
Swish!
'Huh?'
Tzweet!
A Goblin revealed itself from behind, stabbing a dagger toward his back.
"Huh! Shit!"
A crisis. He had to dodge.
Swat! Swat-swat!
The moment he willed it, his body moved on its own.
Shadow Step.
But he didn't just run away.
He came here to swing his mace at least once.
What was the most effective counter?
A path drew itself in his mind.
Swat! Swa-wa-wa-wat!
Before he knew it, he was behind the Goblin Assassin.
With his sturdy Adamantite Mace...
WHAM!
CRUNCH-SQUELCH!
Like pottery shattering.
"G-grk?"
The Goblin hit in a vital spot flattened like a pancake.
Simultaneously, the kill count rose.
'...I, I killed it?'
Killed it? With a mace?
'...Hmm.'
It was his first experience, so he was dazed, but...
Only upon reaching the 18th floor had he finally succeeded in killing a monster himself.
A monumental event.
This wasn't the time.
Another Goblin Assassin that had appeared unnoticed.
"Kikik!"
Pounce!
The roughly 1.5-meter-tall Goblin Assassin leaped up, aiming for Joo-hyuk's neck.
'...You little shit.'
Swat! Swat! Swat!
Like mist, Joo-hyuk vanished and reappeared.
His new form swirled around the Goblin, disorienting it completely, then...
WHAM!
CRUNCH!
Pottery shatter!
"Ghk!"
Another kill.
'Ah.'
His hands trembled slightly.
His heart pounded.
Adrenaline surged.
It was strange. Surprisingly, it wasn't bad.
'One more?'
A Goblin Assassin appeared without fail.
Swat! Swat-swat!
His body reacted first.
Ah!
The world slowed down.
The Goblin's blade strikes seemed like the were moving in slow motion.
Swat!
He got behind it.
Pottery shatter!
CRACK!
"Grk...?"
It didn't die in one hit? Probably because he lacked a proper attack skill.
Then,
WHAM!
CRUNCH-SQUELCH!
Another blow.
Next?
None left?
However.
It seemed he had landed the finishing blow.
He had completed the mission himself.
'...This is...'
Way better than I thought?
'How on earth...'
He couldn't believe what he had done, even though he was the one who did it.
When he tried to get behind the Goblin Assassin using Shadow Step, he followed the exact path he had visualized in his mind.
He lowered his posture, infiltrated the blind spot, rotated his body, and naturally ended up behind the creature.
Dark shadows lingering with each change of direction.
Smooth and fluid movements.
How long had he been practicing Shadow Step?
'Did I really do that?'
The sight of Savage Gobang and Kosak standing dumbfounded in the distance caught his eye.
One was just staring blankly at him, and the other was shaking his head and letting out a deep sigh.
Chief Park Kyung-su's office, Hannam-dong, Seoul.
Player and Awakening Management Bureau employee, Section Chief Lee Min-ah, clenched her fist and shouted.
"A public announcement went out! 18th floor, S++ clear success!"
"Excellent!"
"He's unstoppable. He's definitely prepared solidly."
Chief Park Kyung-su's face flushed red with excitement.
"Honestly, part of me wants to just reveal it. That the person who set the consecutive S++ clear record for Korea's 18th floor is this guy!"
"You shouldn't even joke about that, sir. We must support him quietly and secretly so he can climb to the 60s."
"That's how proud I am."
Now, Bong Joo-hyuk was no longer just a regular contractor.
He was a super-special player who needed more meticulous care than even the elite teams.
"Tomorrow is the 19th floor?"
"That's highly likely, but I hope he takes it a bit slower. The pace is too fast."
"Hmm, that's true."
It wasn't just the Management Bureau.
All of South Korea was buzzing.
The public announcement sent to players affiliated with the Korean Black Tower spread quickly to the general public.
Even the 9 o'clock network news reported it.
Regular and elite players were also greatly inspired.
South Korea's magic stone production had suddenly increased dramatically.
Regular players who were considering giving up on climbing had started clearing again, and those complacent on lower floors were attempting climbs to new ones.
Elite team players were no different.
Jealousy, competitive spirit, and pride.
We're the elite team receiving the nation's full support, so why can't we do it?
Internet forums heated up.
Nothing but S++ talk.
Player BJs broadcasting on YouTube joined in.
They were usually level 30-ish regular contractors who show their faces and stream.
- "Alright, this is the 18th floor. The floor where the most recent S++ record was set. See that faint shape passing by the tree over there? Yes, an assassin. Let me try to take one down."
The response was explosive.
Now, people's interest was focused on one thing.
What about the notoriously tricky 19th floor?
The 20th floor, nicknamed the first talent detector?
Could they really clear these notoriously difficult sections with an S++ record?
Meanwhile,
The atmosphere in Joo-hyuk's studio apartment wasn't great.
Assassin John Kosak with a distant look in his eyes.
"Hoo-woo-woo..."
He sighed as if wishing the ground would swallow him.
"Haaa..."
Why was he like this?
'Did I do something wrong?'
Whether Kosak sighed or not,
Savage Gobang was peeling open the boxes of 10 large pizzas like unwrapping candy, tossing them into his mouth one by one.
"Tell me, what exactly did I do wrong?"
"Uhm, ah, well, it's..."
Kosak hesitated, wavering between speaking and staying silent, before finally opening his mouth.
"...You're too fast, sir."
"What is?"
"The speed at which you're realizing your talent, sir."
"Huh?"
Did he hear wrong?
What nonsense.
"Realizing talent? Who? Don't tell me... me?"
"If not Summoner Bong, then who, sir?"
It was absurd.
"I... have talent?"
"Yes, sir."
A timid ordinary guy?
"Ah, come on, you're joking!"
"If Summoner Bong has no talent, then who does, sir?"
"Th-that's a misunderstanding, I think..."
"You felt it too when you used your skill earlier, didn't you, sir? It was a beautiful Shadow Walker—no, Shadow Step—that even I would find difficult to perform, sir."
Was it that good?
It was hard to accept.
But even the Great Plains' savage Gobang chimed in.
"Our Summoner, shiny shiny, hit good."
Even with the support from the side, it still didn't feel real.
Kosak continued with a pitiful voice.
"If you realize your talent this early on the lower floors, it's problematic, sir. You'll gradually become engrossed in combat, sir. Gain confidence, sir. And the danger level increases proportionally, sir. Courage leads to danger, sir."
"Th-that, I know that too..."
"If you had started wrapped in ten special privileges, maybe, but haaa, this is too fast, sir."
"..."
"We made a promise from the start, didn't we, sir? Safety first, self-preservation foremost!"
That's right.
We did.
But why did I do that?
A direction completely different from his initial mindset.
He must have lost his mind.
However,
'Talent.'
The memory was still vivid.
The thrill of a successful skill.
The feel of his first hunt.
'It's strange.'
Kosak had always insisted.
A brave Summoner is poison.
He understood and agreed fully.
That's why he had been as cautious as possible.
'But...'
Now his thoughts had changed a bit.
The pleasure of Tower climbing that had already sprouted.
If he had never tasted it, it would be one thing.
'But having seen it now...'
John Kosak opened his mouth with an anxious look.
"Summoner Bong, from now on, don't move a muscle and stay behind Gobang or me, sir. Promise me, sir."
"..."
"Your level will go up even if you stay still, sir. Just wait until you receive ten special privileges, sir."
"..."
"Huh? Why, why aren't you answering, sir?"
"..."
"An, answer me?"
"..."
"Oh no, oh no! Wha, what do we do? You've gotten a taste for it. You've gotten a taste, sir. This is a big problem, sir."
Savage Gobang chuckled.
"Assassin, cry. Look stupid."
"Shut up! You meathead who can't even tell heaven from earth!! I'll boil you alive in a pot!"
His head was a mess.
Let's rest tomorrow.
I need to think about this first.