Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Emergency Production (2)
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Hyun-soo nocked a small arrow, a faint smile on his lips.
This was an opportunity not easily found.
‘Offering a level 13 user a reward of 20 gold per kill…’
Most users would offer around 2 silver.
That's how little the knight commander, Kal, valued him as an opponent.
As Kal walked away, the centurion, Render, who had been watching cautiously, approached.
“You, why did you accept that? Don't be so reckless. Ghouls are difficult for someone at your level…!”
Render cared for the volunteers.
After all, wasn't this man someone who had come from the outside to help this failing territory!?
“The undead don't die easily unless you use a weapon imbued with holy power. You have to inflict an absurd amount of damage to kill them… You'd be better off pleading with the knight commander…”
Just then, Hyun-soo released the bowstring he was holding.
*Fwoosh-!*
“…?”
Render had never heard an arrow whistle through the air like that in his entire life.
The arrow precisely pierced a ghoul that was climbing the wall.
*Thwump-!*
Then it skewered the ghoul behind it as well.
“…?”
[You have hunted a ghoul.]
[You have leveled up.]
‘Just as I thought.’
Hyun-soo's prediction was correct.
No matter how strong they were, Hyun-soo had hunted a level 50 orc warrior before. And one wearing incredibly tough armor, at that—in a single blow.
“Grrrroooaaaar.”
“Kraaaaaaw!”
The ghouls let out even more monstrous cries as they scrambled up the fortress wall.
‘The numbers are a bit high, though…?’
Hyun-soo glanced around.
Everyone except Render was struggling to fight the undead elsewhere.
‘Ah, so I'm supposed to handle this with just Render?’
Hyun-soo realized how this territory battle worked.
Even though many people were participating, when you received a quest or a mission, only one NPC would fight alongside you.
Just then, another ghoul that had climbed up unnoticed came into view.
“Kuhuuuugh!”
Hyun-soo shot the creature standing on the wall in the chest.
*Thwack-!*
Pierced by the small arrow, the ghoul was literally sent flying about two meters before crashing to the ground.
‘Can an arrow with that much destructive power even exist…?’
At that moment, another ghoul lunged at the distracted Render. Render's mind went blank.
To lose focus on the battlefield.
He cursed his foolishness. And then he realized.
‘That stranger can't help me…!’
It seemed to take the stranger a considerable amount of time to nock and fire an arrow.
Considering that, his neck would be torn out before the stranger could loose another shot…
[Swift Blade]
[For 1 second, your attack speed momentarily increases by 1.7 times.]
Hyun-soo quickly swapped his weapon.
At that moment, the passive skill activated like a miracle.
The ghoul's head flew off in a single strike.
*Splurch-*
“I-in one hit…?”
Even Render couldn't dispatch a ghoul in a single blow.
And the answer lay in Hyun-soo's Gwangmyeong.
The high attack power of Gwangmyeong.
And Hyun-soo's abnormally high stats for his level.
On top of that, Hyun-soo possessed Sword Mastery Beginner Lv. 1.
Simply having this Sword Mastery significantly boosted his attack power.
As Hyun-soo swiftly dealt with the ghouls on the wall, an alert sounded.
[You have hunted many ghouls of a much higher level than yourself in a short amount of time.]
[A new, unseen episode is about to begin.]
[If you complete the new episode successfully, you will receive a special reward from Knight Commander Kal.]
‘Huh…?’
This notification.
It was a notification Hyun-soo was all too familiar with.
Because after this notification had appeared, the orc warrior had shown up.
One thing was certain.
After hearing this notification, he had received a special reward from Subjugation Captain Hans.
Perhaps the same would happen here.
The problem was this.
‘A "new episode" isn't necessarily a good thing.’
And just as he thought.
[More ghouls have begun their advance.]
“Groooaaaar!”
“Graaaaaaaagh!”
A far greater number of ghouls than before began to pour in.
[Please descend from the wall and defend it from below.]
“…?”
Hyun-soo's face twisted.
Both last time and this time, the new episodes always seemed to push him toward something dangerous.
[If you do not undertake the new episode, you cannot receive the special reward.]
And that pushed him forward.
Hyun-soo sighed.
‘Ah, I'm a blacksmith…!’
He was neither a swordsman nor an archer. He was just a blacksmith.
But because of that, an unknown confidence filled him.
It was a confidence born from the artifacts he himself had created.
“W-what are you doing?”
“You should follow me, quickly.”
Render wondered if this stranger was insane. He was tying a rope tightly around his body.
Then, he jumped from the top of the wall.
“You said you were a blacksmith!”
Render's vision went dark as he watched the reckless and absurd stranger.
Was another volunteer about to meet their end like this?
Rushing to the edge of the wall, Render soon saw it.
The moment the rope went taut, the stranger named Hyun-soo rolled across the ground.
‘What can a blacksmith possibly do in front of dozens of ghouls…?’
But soon, Render's eyes widened.
The stranger, Hyun-soo, quickly got to his feet.
“Fwoooo.”
An aura of swordsmanship was shimmering from his body like a heat haze.
‘What… what is that?’
Render was a centurion.
Centurions typically learned common, standard-issue swordsmanship or spearmanship.
The blacksmith stranger, calmly breathing as he faced the oncoming ghouls!
But the swordsmanship stance he took.
Watching him, Render's pupils trembled.
‘It's noble… and dignified.’
Render wondered about the identity of that swordsmanship.
***
“Fwoooo.”
For over twenty days.
While with Bans, the lord of the beginner zone, Hyun-soo had learned a great deal. He hadn't simply passed on a skill.
The lord, from a rather renowned family of swordsmen, had helped him grow day by day.
‘That's not how you swing it!’
‘More! More! More!’
‘You can't swing a sword just by putting force into it!’
He would sometimes get angry, and sometimes he would look at Hyun-soo with an expression of disbelief.
One day, two days, three days.
While making the horn bow, he had never once neglected his swordsmanship training. Was it near the end?
‘…Do you know why I get angry?’
‘You said it was tough love?’
‘…That was just a joke. You're strange. Usually, a person who is good at something is one of two things. Either they're simply talented, or they're a hard worker.’
Bans looked at him and gave a bitter smile.
‘And we usually call a person who has both of those things this.’
‘…?’
‘A genius. You're a genius who has a knack for the sword and works hard. You'll improve by leaps and bounds. That's why I get angry.’
He had seen an unreadable, bitter smile on Bans' face.
And now, Hyun-soo looked at the swarming ghouls.
‘This is the first time I'm really letting it loose.’
He had used Wild Dance before.
But this was the first time he was manifesting the power Bans had taught him. He relaxed his grip on the sword, holding it lightly in the stance he'd been taught.
[The Unyielding One]
[For 1 minute, Physical Attack +13%, Cutting Power +7%, and Critical Hit Damage Chance +20%.]
The situation was a perfect fit.
The new story demanded recklessness, so Hyun-soo would not back down.
A faint haze shimmered from Hyun-soo's body.
‘Let's do this.’
Just as he had been taught.
In that instant, Hyun-soo kicked off the ground. He charged, watching the ghouls drooling filthily.
“H-hey!”
He ignored the voice of Centurion Render from behind him.
[Vital Strike]
[Identifies the enemy's vital spots. A successful attack on a vital spot inflicts 45% additional damage.]
[15% chance to apply 60% damage.]
He activated the skill on a ghoul rushing to bite him. In that moment, five vital spots were marked with blue dots.
The instant he struck one of those spots precisely.
*Shunk-!*
[60% damage has been applied.]
*Splat-*
From the maximized destructive power of the sword, the ghoul literally shattered into pieces.
*Cra-crack-!*
He then began swinging his sword at high speed, cutting down the ghouls one by one.
[You have hunted 8 ghouls.]
[You have hunted 9 ghouls.]
[You have leveled up.]
The level-ups were nonstop.
Do you know the feeling?
The feeling of getting stronger and stronger with every few swings of the sword.
It was what happened when you leveled up at such a rapid pace.
*Ting!*
[You have acquired the title: The Fast Grower.]
(The Fast Grower)
Multiple Title
Grade: B
Special Ability:
· When leveling up rapidly in a short amount of time, experience gain is increased by 10% for 15 minutes.
[The Fast Grower title has been applied.]
*Shing-*
The ghouls' filthy teeth, hands, and feet threatened Hyun-soo. But it was useless.
He was wearing the Armor of the Mad Lord, which boasted an absurdly high defense for its level requirement.
Furthermore, the ghouls that attacked him took damage from the damage reflection skill and shrieked in pain.
‘These things are definitely persistent.’
If you didn't kill them in one blow, they would keep coming at you no matter how many times you cut them.
That is, unless you took off their heads or landed a precise strike that depleted their HP instantly.
And before he knew it, a pack of more than a dozen ghouls had surrounded Hyun-soo.
[HP has fallen below 60%.]
[HP has fallen below 50%.]
[You have been afflicted with the Bleed status effect.]
[Movement is slowed and HP will continue to decrease.]
Surrounded by a dozen ghouls, Hyun-soo looked to be in a critical situation.
Even as his HP continued to drop, Hyun-soo waited.
For more ghouls to surround him.
Finally.
When fifteen ghouls had latched onto Hyun-soo's body, piling up like something out of a zombie movie.
[Wild Dance]
[Unleashes an indiscriminate attack on all enemies identified within a 10m radius.]
[Upon activation, Attack Speed +70%, Physical Attack +30%.]
His sword began to furiously hack the ghouls to pieces.
A 70% increase in attack speed, 30% in physical attack power. And on top of that, the sword he wielded was Gwangmyeong.
*Sh-sh-sh-sh-shlack-!*
The ghouls clinging to Hyun-soo were mercilessly butchered. Their arms and legs were dismembered.
No matter how tenacious their undead life force was, they couldn't withstand the Wild Dance unleashed at point-blank range.
[You have leveled up.]
A look of ecstasy appeared on Hyun-soo's face.
[Sudden Quest: Hunt 10 Ghouls - Complete.]
In truth, this notification had sounded a while ago.
[You have now hunted 33 ghouls.]
A whopping 660 gold. That was 660,000 won.
Hyun-soo smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the now-thinned ranks of the ghouls.
This was satisfying enough.
‘Should I go back and check on the Bell of Ramas now?’
Just as he was about to turn.
[A new story begins.]
“…”
Hyun-soo's expression hardened.
The start of the new story wasn't over yet.
Come to think of it, back then, the "new story begins" alert had been followed by the appearance of two orc warriors instead of the usual one.
[A Giant Ghoul appears.]
“Kwooooaaar!”
A gap in the ghouls visible in the distance.
A single giant ghoul was charging toward Hyun-soo, trampling the other ghouls underfoot.
It stood about 2 meters and 60 centimeters tall.
And the giant ghoul looked as hard and massive as a golem.
Hyun-soo was stunned when he checked its level.
[Giant Ghoul Lv. 79]
Hyun-soo hesitated for a moment.
‘Should I run…?’
But the notification didn't let him back down.
[Sudden Quest: Hunt the Giant Ghoul has been generated.]
[Sudden Quest: Hunt the Giant Ghoul]
Grade: A
Requirement: One who is proceeding with the new story.
Reward: Payment equivalent to hunting 50 ghouls.
Failure Penalty: You will never be able to participate in a territory battle again.
Description: You have excellently fulfilled Knight Commander Kal's proposal. Hunt the giant ghoul and receive an even greater reward.
Looking at the reward, Hyun-soo had no choice but to reconsider.
‘Payment equivalent to hunting 50 ghouls…?’
In other words, the reward for hunting the giant ghoul was 1,000 gold. It was too tempting a reward to run away from.