Chapter 4
Chapter 4
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: National Power-level (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
What the hell is this bullshit?
The moment the question crossed his mind, a flood of memories poured into Kang-hyuk's head.
"..."
Kang-hyuk slowly rose to his feet, letting out a hollow chuckle.
"Did I really reincarnate?"
His eyes gradually took on a reddish hue.
He then shot a casual glare at the Dullahan approaching him.
-...!
The Dullahan flinched.
"Status."
"Stats and skill levels are intact."
The issue was the number of summonable homunculi.
He could summon up to 100 million, but 82 million were already summoned, leaving only about 18 million available.
Right now, Earth was connected to multiple dimensions.
That meant his previous world was just one of many dimensions.
His life before that on Earth must have been the same.
Kang-hyuk slowly stood up.
"...My internal injuries are severe."
On top of that, his left arm was gone.
Kikik!
Before he knew it, Dullahans had gathered around him.
"Get lost."
Kuwoong—!
The Dullahans, Liches, and even the Death Knight stared at Kang-hyuk in terror at the massive surge of magic power he unleashed.
Kang-hyuk seized the momentary pause to snatch up a fallen sword from the ground.
"I'm heading out now. If you let me go quietly, I won't kill you."
-Ugh... Don't make me laugh! A mere human like you...!
"...Human?"
It's been over 10,000 years since I stopped being human...
Kang-hyuk smirked and closed the distance to the Death Knight in an instant.
Srck—!
"Then you die."
-...!
The Death Knight froze as Kang-hyuk appeared right in front of it.
When did he get here?
As the Death Knight's fingers twitched...
Its vision began to spin.
-What the...
Kang-hyuk looked down at the Death Knight with a cold expression.
"You could've just let me go quietly..."
Kang-hyuk sighed and turned his head.
And...
Flash!
He vanished from the spot, beginning to tear through the Dullahans and Liches.
Pak! Papapapak!
The undeads' heads soared into the air.
The survivors watching could only gape in horror.
The guy who'd just been a mere porter was annihilating high-rank undead.
Sung-ho, who'd lost a leg, stared in disbelief.
"N-No way... How the hell is that guy...!"
He gnashed his teeth, more shocked by Kang-hyuk's power than his own survival.
Yu-jin, minus both arms, and Ji-hye, missing one, watched him through tears.
He was their savior, the one who'd pulled them from hellish torment.
At the same time, some hunters grew suspicious.
Why had someone with that kind of power pretended to be a porter?
And why hadn't he revealed it sooner?
After wiping out all the Dullahans and Liches, Kang-hyuk paused and slowly approached Su-chan.
"..."
Jeong Su-chan, who'd worked as a porter alongside him, lay sprawled as a cold corpse.
Kang-hyuk quietly closed his eyes in silent tribute.
"W-We survived."
"H-Haha..."
Six hunters and three porters—including Kang-hyuk—had made it.
"Why... Why did you hide your power?! If you'd used it just a bit sooner...!"
Sung-ho's shout drew nods from the other hunters.
Ji-hye and Yu-jin, who'd gazed at him like a messiah, shifted their looks.
"Y-Yeah! If you'd taken down the Death Knight right away, we could've saved more lives...!"
"Wh-Why hide your power...!"
Kang-hyuk narrowed his eyes in irritation, glaring at the survivors.
"I never hid anything. Re-awakening... that's the right term. And I joined as a porter from the start. I had no obligation to fight your magic beasts with you."
"Th-That's..."
"As you can see, I lost my left arm too. I have no intention of listening to your bullshit anymore, so handle the rest yourselves."
Kang-hyuk summoned a single skeleton to gather Su-chan's remains.
The skeleton cradled the body in its bony hands.
"Oh, right."
He approached the Death Knight's corpse and extracted its magic stone.
Then he harvested stones from the surrounding Dullahans and Liches before heading for the exit.
The hunters and porters stared at him in confusion.
"Wh-Where are you going?!"
"You have to take us too...!"
"You planning to leave us to die?!"
Ignoring Sung-ho and the hunters' cries, Kang-hyuk exited the boss room.
With the boss Death Knight down, they had 24 hours to escape the dungeon.
The moment he left the boss room, Kang-hyuk hurried through the cave with the skeleton.
'The map's useless. Structure's changed.'
He'd just have to follow whatever path presented itself.
Along the way, he recovered his abandoned backpack and rations.
Kwang!
The skeletons were obliterated in an instant.
As he traversed the cave, Kang-hyuk began sorting through his past life's memories again.
The original him had died young on Earth and reincarnated into another world.
In that fantasy realm, he'd built a nation-sized organization called the Heavenly Demon God Cult, subjugated the Demon King and dragons to rise as an absolute being, and ultimately been revered as the Heavenly Demon God.
After fathering nearly 30 children with his 13 wives—known as the Divine Consorts—he'd watched over countless descendants for over 10,000 years before meeting his end.
The semi-demon elixir that turned people into half-demons.
And the dragonkin elixir that made them dragonkin.
Having consumed both and elevated his realm to the pinnacle of Grand Master...
His lifespan had stretched beyond 10,000 years.
'I never imagined I'd live that long...'
All his wives had predeceased him.
The image of his first Divine Consort, Alice—with her black hair and red eyes—and his third, Hwa-ryeon, who stayed with him almost to the end, still lingered vividly.
"Haa..."
After living precisely 10,000 years, he'd cleared the hidden quest 'Reincarnation'.
He'd seen the message about reviving in a new dimension after death, but...
To think it actually happened.
On Earth, no less.
"Not the Earth I knew, though..."
The Earth from his previous previous life had no hunters or magic beasts.
'Modern fantasy this time.'
Should he rebuild the Heavenly Demon God Cult?
'No...'
A criminal syndicate in China was already using the name.
Various guilds there were operating under names from wuxia novels too.
"First things first, make some money."
He'd enjoyed everything in his past life, so no lingering attachments.
But in this life, he had plenty of shortcomings.
His parents ran a hardware store in what used to be a designated danger zone.
His little sister was about to start university.
He needed to improve his family's life first.
"...Back here again."
Kang-hyuk marked each passage with an X.
Returning to the start, he took another path in search of the gate.
He had to get out before the dungeon reshuffled.
"If the structure changes again, I'll have to start over."
Kang-hyuk clicked his tongue at his severed left arm.
His internal organs were badly damaged too.
"The potions piled up in the Heavenly Demon God Palace basement felt like a given back then..."
Right now, he desperately wanted just one.
To regenerate his arm, he'd need a highest-grade potion.
'Soon as I get out, update my rank and make money.'
Highest-grade potions hit auctions periodically.
From 10 billion to 80 billion won.
Average around 30 to 40 billion.
An E-rank Hunter like Park Kang-hyuk could never afford it in a lifetime.
But as the Heavenly Demon God Cain? Piece of cake.
He could scrape together hundreds of billions in a month if he hustled.
Kwang!
-...
A Dullahan slammed into the wall.
Kang-hyuk pocketed its magic stone in his backpack.
Even the Heavenly Demon God couldn't live here forever.
What would he eat surrounded by undead?
He needed at least basic rations.
'No way it's really impossible to get out...'
The rising anxiety soon dissipated.
"Ah..."
A gate shimmered into view.
Flash!
Kang-hyuk bolted toward it.
Throwing himself through, his surroundings flipped in an instant.
A vast clearing appeared before him, ringed by tall concrete walls.
"Haa..."
Finally back.
Kang-hyuk let out a quiet sigh of relief, patting his chest.
Moments later, the gate manager spotted him on CCTV and came rushing over.
"Y-You're already back?"
Kang-hyuk gravely shook his head.
"Just me made it out."
"Huh? What do you mean..."
Kang-hyuk explained the situation inside the dungeon.
The manager reeled at the news of S2-rank Hunter Yoo Chan-seok's death.
A Death Knight—an S-rank magic beast—in a B-grade dungeon?!
"I-I'll contact Teynen Guild and the Association right away! Please wait just a moment!"
"Sorry, but... could I get a potion?"
"Ah...!"
Only then did the manager take in Kang-hyuk's state.
He looked like a total wreck.
"We have some spare lowest-grade potions..."
"Yes, even that would help."
The manager nodded and hurried off.
After calling Teynen Guild and the Hunter Association, he rushed back with a lowest-grade potion.
Kang-hyuk downed it immediately.
Gulp.
The lowest-grade potion could only manage minor bleeding control.
Internal recovery was out of the question.
Still, it provided basic first aid.
As Kang-hyuk sat resting on the ground, the skeleton gently laid Su-chan's remains down.
Soon after, Teynen Guild staff and hunters swarmed in.
"Wh-What the hell happened?! Is it true Yoo Chan-seok is dead?!"
Lee Soo-jin, the black-haired S2-rank Hunter from Teynen Guild, got her answer when the gate manager pointed at Kang-hyuk.
"Hear the details from him..."
Soo-jin nodded and dashed toward Kang-hyuk.