Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Hunting the Black Rock Tuna
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“Will that really do the trick?”
The request Jae-hyeok had chosen was way off from Jang Yeon-ju’s expectations.
It was a task to hunt a single F-rank sea monster, the black rock tuna.
Not only was the reward meager, it offered no additional benefits like experience points or networking opportunities. It was the lowest of the low.
“You see the dust on those papers? This request came in five months ago.”
It was more like a personal plea from a self-employed owner of a small restaurant.
A waste of time for a million won reward.
Not even worth assigning to a first-year as busywork.
The biggest issue was having to deal with a sea monster.
A beast that inhabited the ocean.
Even at a low rank, they were tricky to hunt.
You had to lure it painstakingly like fishing or dive into the dangerous waters.
“A higher-rank monster hunt would’ve had tons of applicants…”
Higher-rank monsters offered more experience and items.
That meant the risk was worth it.
Jae-hyeok spoke nonchalantly to Yeon-ju, who shook her head.
“I can’t just ignore someone who obviously needs help.”
“Huh…?”
Her eyes widened as she straightened up, knees together.
She’d suddenly remembered he was nobility, beyond just being a junior. She felt self-conscious about her sloppy posture.
Jae-hyeok smiled at her sudden discomfort.
“It’s just my perspective. I’m not trying to force my values on anyone, so don’t misunderstand.”
“…Should I help?”
“It’s just one tuna. What help?”
“You’re not planning to dive in alone, right? You’ll fish for it. Black rock tuna are super wary, hard to lure with bait. You might wait all weekend and catch nothing. Won’t it be boring alone?”
“Perfect timing. I need some alone time.”
Jae-hyeok had grown rapidly after taking down the senior instructor and the troll lord.
He’d leveled up five times to 29, plus stacked on remarkable and miraculous achievements, boosting his stats massively.
He needed to closely gauge his enhanced body and adjust his senses.
“Planning some meditation, huh? Good idea.”
Yeon-ju nodded, grasping his intent.
She saw Kang Jae-hyeok as an excellent ‘archer’.
She could easily picture him meditating until the fish bit.
‘I should take a page from him and meditate more.’
The girl dreamed of becoming a Bow Saint like her grandfather.
Jang Yeon-ju made Jae-hyeok her role model.
She vowed to watch and learn everything about him up close.
***
Unaware of his disheveled hair, the boy focused solely on archery.
His intense gaze pierced through his fluttering red locks.
It was as if his eyes alone could skewer the target.
Finally, he released the bowstring.
Twang-!
The arrow shot forward powerfully but veered far off into the empty air.
“What the fuck…”
No Jun-yeop couldn’t hold back his curse.
He felt dizzy.
It was maddening knowing Baek Do-jin was genuinely serious about archery.
“What the hell are you doing?”
The start was always solid.
Thanks to No Jun-yeop’s hands-on corrections, Do-jin’s draw posture and breathing were decent.
But every release tensed his shoulders excessively.
The perfect form crumbled, throwing off his aim.
No matter how many times he pointed it out, it didn’t improve. It felt like yelling at a wall.
“…….”
Do-jin clamped his mouth shut and averted his eyes.
The Baek Do-jin who’d snarled at Manager Gu for raising his voice—even slightly—was gone after just two days.
“You need to control your emotions.”
A familiar voice seeped into the ear of the sullen boy.
“Kang Jae-hyeok!”
Like a puppy spotting its owner.
At Jae-hyeok’s appearance, the defiance etched on Do-jin’s face melted away.
No Jun-yeop was dumbfounded.
‘The guy who’d bark even getting thrashed in the rain.’
Baek Do-jin’s nickname ‘Mad Dog’ wasn’t for nothing.
In over a year at Lion’s Castle, no one had tamed him.
“Erase Loren from your mind.”
After asking the amazed Jun-yeop to step aside, Jae-hyeok advised Do-jin.
“Erase him? How?”
Do-jin ground his teeth at Loren’s name. Pure reflex.
“That bastard’s [view] inside…”
His face crumpled, unable to continue.
Killing intent surged uncontrollably, prickling Jae-hyeok’s skin.
“…I have to kill him.”
Kill.
He’d stake his body and soul to kill Loren, no matter what.
Since losing his parents, Baek Do-jin had vowed it hundreds of times a day.
Every arrow projected Loren onto the target. He couldn’t stop it.
Jae-hyeok’s expression grew pained as he watched him.
He’d vaguely pieced together Do-jin’s story.
“You couldn’t kill him even if you died and came back right now, right?”
So he spoke more firmly.
“Drop the pointless killing intent and focus on what you need to do now. If you can’t control your emotions even when you obviously should, you’ll never improve and the gap with Loren will stay forever out of reach.”
“You say that like it’s easy, when it’s not your—”
What I went through defies imagination.
No one in the world can understand my pain.
Do-jin had always believed that.
He despised and hated others’ hasty empathy, embracing solitude.
He thought Jae-hyeok’s advice was overstepping.
But as he started yelling, something hit him.
Kang Jae-hyeok’s life.
He could glimpse it indirectly through the Kang Family history listed online.
Was his life better than mine?
Not at all.
Kang Jae-hyeok had lost his parents in an accident too.
No, not an accident.
Events orchestrated by someone, not chance.
And Jae-hyeok had been abandoned by his siblings.
Unlike Do-jin, isolated against his will.
Locked in that mansion surrounded by protesters for eight long years.
Maybe Jae-hyeok was his one true kindred spirit.
But Do-jin couldn’t be Jae-hyeok’s.
Jae-hyeok’s future looked far bleaker.
Do-jin had one target for revenge: Loren.
Jae-hyeok’s enemies were the nation and its people.
How could he be so calm?
Staring mesmerized into Jae-hyeok’s pitch-black eyes, Do-jin snapped out of it and bowed his head.
“…Sorry. I got worked up.”
“I spoke harshly first, so you had every right to get mad. I should apologize.”
As Do-jin predicted.
Jae-hyeok understood him.
That’s why he was so firm.
“But I’m not taking back my advice.”
Jae-hyeok took Do-jin’s bow and arrow.
He drew the string in a relaxed stance.
Straight back, steady breath, aligning bow and gaze, reading the wind.
He ignored every tip No Jun-yeop had drilled into Do-jin’s head.
“Do-jin, right now your distraction is just giving your enemy more time to live. People like us have to remember that.”
Pew!
Releasing the string, the arrow flew straight and hit the bullseye perfectly.
He hadn’t even steadied his breath—shot while talking—and nailed it.
Do-jin gaped in shock beyond admiration.
“When you can control your emotions, anger becomes a weapon.”
The secret to Jae-hyeok summoning peak focus on demand.
Surprisingly, he harnessed revenge.
Turning rage into concentration.
Fueling his burning desire for vengeance.
Jae-hyeok handed the bow back.
“For now, get used to suppressing your emotions. Keep Loren’s face out of your head for a while. You can revel in that ugly mug later, right?”
“…Yeah!”
Do-jin answered energetically.
The reason he started archery.
To hone the focus needed to control the mana exploding with Shunpo.
Right, he had a clear goal in front of him.
If Loren interfered, shelving him was the answer.
Bang!
The boy walking an even tougher path ahead.
Do-jin etched Jae-hyeok’s precious advice deep in his heart and released the string.
[3 points.]
The arrow hit the target dead on.
“I did it! Thanks to you, Jae-hyeok, I…!”
Overjoyed, Do-jin’s eyes sparkled as he bounced around.
Jae-hyeok kicked him away before the hug and muttered, tongue clicking.
“Is he just talentless…?”
“…….”
***
“Tough day.”
Back at the dorm after classes, Jae-hyeok headed straight for the bathroom.
Soaking in warm water eased his weary body and mind.
‘I’ve got a long way to go.’
Just a few hectic days, and he was fatigued.
At this rate, how long until he could tackle those top-tier gates taking weeks to clear? He worried already.
He was endlessly strict with himself.
Targeted by mystery assailants with Je-kyung Pharma staff, flipping the Archery Club upside down, fighting the senior instructor then the troll lord, chased by Deodor, pouring mental effort to avoid suspicion from the Martial Force and student council.
The past few days were enough to exhaust anyone.
If he were ordinary, he’d suspect the world was out to get him after so many crises.
But Jae-hyeok’s life had been brutal.
He didn’t even register it as hardship, accepting it as normal.
‘Time to increase my sleep.’
Judging himself weak, he found a solution after thought.
Since his father’s incident.
Jae-hyeok had driven himself mercilessly every day.
Skimping sleep to focus solely on training.
It honed his body to the limit, but post-awakening, physical training lost meaning.
Player bodies grew via levels and stats.
Better to sleep more and prevent fatigue buildup.
“Hmm…”
Setting his phone alarm two hours later felt weird.
Six hours of sleep left only 18 hours awake—like an orc, lazy.
The massive deviation made him anxious.
‘Calm down, Kang Jae-hyeok. More sleep is right for now.’
Deep breaths dispelled the unease as he logged into the community.
To find an item to change the appearance of his wind spirit boots.
[Welcome, Player ‘Kang Jae-hyeok.’]
[A new message has arrived. View it?]
“?”