Chapter 109
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 108
Chapter Title: Level 5 Solo
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In the Solo world, reaching Level 5 carried a wealth of implications.
First, it meant they had broken through the wall of at least Rank 2.
Second, they moved by their own convictions rather than money.
(Of course, there are exceptions.)
Third, they couldn't be found with a simple search on the Solo intranet. (Only when they enabled the feature.)
Fourth, for the reasons above, their whereabouts started becoming shrouded in mystery.
(Of course, there are exceptions.)
Put it all together, and well...
Yeah, "mysterious" was the perfect word for it.
And so, Level 5 Solos were objects of envy among fellow Solos and treasured prizes that Linkers desperately wanted to claim.
That iconic moment of promotion had now arrived for Jin, too.
Along with some unexpected experience points.
"Ugh..."
For a moment, he squeezed his eyes shut and jittered his legs irritably.
Then Jin slowly opened his eyes, regaining his composure.
He checked his terminal again—
Even now, the blinking alarm light indirectly signaled that new requests were pouring in.
The problem was the visible count: (+999). No telling how many messages were buried inside.
With the heart of Pandora opening Pitfall's box, half-worried and half-curious, Jin tapped the alarm.
And sure enough.
A flood of text overwhelmed his vision like it had been waiting.
Insane.
Jin unwittingly rubbed his forehead.
Looking back...
His unprecedented growth rate had made him in high demand from the start.
But with only one body to go around, before stepping away for a rotation, he'd thrown in a short line in his profile as a makeshift alternative.
[R&D Ambassador. Hard to check DMs.]
Now, it had long since become meaningless.
Think about it.
How often do you expect a reply when messaging a celebrity? You send it anyway. One-way information dump, they call it.
The issue was that lurking beneath was the thought, "Will they even read my message?"—leading to plenty of unhinged content.
Maid android marriage, need society to witness?
Why send a meatball spaghetti recipe??
Great job bribing the opponent in the quarterfinals???
Jin's face twisted through expressions as he flicked through messages with a thumbs-down.
This was exactly why Level 5+ Solos got the privilege of opting out of searches. Leave it on, and you'd drown in anonymous message terrorism.
More pragmatic than you'd think.
But that's just how people are.
"Damn it."
Fumbling through menus and settings, Jin activated the no-search feature.
The alarm went eerily silent.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Jin immediately dialed somewhere.
[Jin.]
"Kalifa, I leveled up. You knew?"
[We just checked. Wow, quick on the draw?]
"Just now? I've got over a thousand messages piled up."
A faint laugh filtered through the terminal.
[I told you a few days ago. Your name's worth skyrocketed after that rotation aired. And forgot? You're the guy who stopped Elina's rampage— that's been all over the mass comms forever. So this attention was inevitable. Even without the promotion.]
Jin scratched the back of his head at Kalifa's words.
"So the actual level-up was just now?"
[Precisely 13 minutes ago. Was gonna call, but Poh insisted you might be sleeping on the train. Anyway, congrats, Jin.]
"Aw, it's all thanks to a great Linker. Though I'm pretty great too. Heh."
True to his future Solo King vibes, Jin deployed a flawless "What's humility?"
No lie in crediting his Linker, though.
Grinning, he added,
"Need anything? I'll grab it on the way."
[Nah. Can't ask for gifts when you're already coming. Just bring yourself. No one to eat cookies with without you.]
Oh, man.
Kalifa cookies.
Right, those exist.
Jin's eyes lit up as he gazed at the scenery flashing by outside.
"Probably three days. Took that long coming. But since I've done the route once, might get there sooner if I don't get lost?"
So take good care of Manticore till then, he appended mentally.
As Jin wrapped up the call—
[Jin.]
"Yeah?"
[Do you know why Solos' trails go dark as their levels rise?]
"...Outta nowhere?"
He blinked at the sudden question.
"Mystery sells?"
Jin's best guess.
Kalifa didn't laugh.
Just calmly affirmed it.
[That's true too. The right amount of mystery boosts value. But there's a bigger reason.]
At some point, the scenery outside shifted.
How long since leaving Primus Zone?
Instead of neat grids, a coldly refined gray cityscape filled the view. The train had become a single bullet piercing the chaotic world of Lost City.
Kalifa's voice continued amid it.
[Grudges. No matter how clean a fixer you are, you can't escape them. It's a chain you can never shake while alive.]
Jin leaned back, adjusting his grip on the terminal, saying nothing. His eyes, fixed on the transformed landscape, glowed blue.
[So be careful, Jin. Saying this because you've grown so fast it's hard to find precedents. You've been tangled in big stuff, so grudges you don't even know about have piled up.]
"Got it."
That was Jin's reply.
Sword Saint yesterday, Kalifa today.
Plenty of people looking out for him.
Of course, it didn't feel like nagging.
All well-wishes.
So with a laughing 'See you soon. Don't worry too much,' Jin hung up.
He had no idea then.
How soon those grudges Kalifa mentioned would come knocking.
Jin sensed something off around arrival at the station.
Crossing the platform on the escalator, a weird gaze made him turn—locking eyes with a guy flicking earwax off his pinky.
"...?"
"Hm. Nothing."
That wasn't all.
At a street stall grabbing a bite for his rumbling stomach, in the light rail and bus for transfers, even at the clothing store where he absentmindedly bought underwear—the odd stares trailed his nape relentlessly.
Each time he whipped around, different faces met his.
No discrimination by age or gender.
From white-haired elders to kids clutching parents' hands.
The mismatched eye contacts yielded varied reactions.
Some startled and turned away, others played tough like "What're you looking at?", and one even ran up like "Hey! I know you!" demanding an autograph.
What the hell?
If it were shady types tailing stealthily, he could've smashed them. But this?
Watching the back of the guy who'd snagged his autograph with a sour face, Jin slapped his own cheeks.
Ugh, that stings.
Rubbing his stinging face, he trudged on.
How much time passed?
Checking the sky as sunset crept in, Jin headed to a nearby motel.
He had Elina's VIP card for Gilliat Hotel—the best option—but seeing it was over 30 minutes by cab, he ditched it clean.
After all the weirdness, his spine tingled; better not wander.
Thus, the lobby.
At the counter etched "Information," a middle-aged woman with garish makeup perked up her overly long lashes like a wild animal's ears at his footsteps.
"Stay?"
"Hot water work good?"
"Yup."
"Toilet won't clog?"
"Duh. Think this is Area 40?"
Hot water, no clogs?
Good enough.
Paying up quick, Jin grabbed his room card and turned—
The owner's voice hit his back.
"Hey. No interest in sex toys? Super service-oriented kids. 70k credits half-day. For real skin feel, tack on 50k more. These won't disappoint either. No limits on numbers—call as many as you can handle."
Are you nuts?
That's how many hot dogs?
"Pass."
Dismissing her with that, ignoring the leering eyes, Jin beelined to his room and flopped onto the bed on his back.
"Nyeh—"
Overstimulated, maybe.
Nothing done, yet mentally and physically drained.
All because of those creepy stares.
Tsk tsk. Tonguing a low click, Jin hauled his sluggish body up.
Stripping piecemeal, he shuffled to the bathroom.
Good news: Owner didn't lie.
Hot water came.
Weak as a 90-year-old's dribble, though.
This counts as "good"?
"Ah, seriously."
Everyone who's tried gets it—the inverse pressure-to-temp ratio. Jin fiddled the handle for the golden compromise angle.
Didn't last, of course.
Realized for a proper soak, cold shower was inevitable.
Should've gone to Gilliat!
Late regrets as he cranked the handle right.
Pssshhh!
Screaming instinctively, Jin finished showering in a blink and dried off with a burst of flames.
If naming it: "Jin Style: Triple Fire Meditation" or whatever, but the application was too embarrassingly private for show.
Jin didn't care about others' eyes anyway.
Changed to new undies, snagged two canned drinks from the mini-fridge, sprawled on the bed again.
Wriggling under the thin blanket, flipping channels with the remote—his face looked worlds more relaxed than in the shower.
Dramas, movies, variety, sports, news, etc.
Not lingering on any, skimming like watermelon rind, as eyelids drooped and he yawned hugely—
Knock knock knock.
Sudden knocking.
Jin lifted his nodding head.
Tsk, swallowing pooled spit, wiping his chin with his hand—yep, ears fine. Knock knock knock again.
"Who is it?"
"You called for me."
"...? What? Hot water?"
Saying so, Jin threw on pants and a tee haphazardly. Zipping up, he opened the door to a woman in very revealing clothes staring up.
"Ah."
Her sullen face brightened faintly at his. Vitality seeped in slowly. Clearly, she liked him.
"Sis said come here. Yeah. That's it."
Shy-like, she squirmed a bit.
Obvious ploy.
Sending sex toys pretending mistake to rejected customers. Plenty caved face-to-face.
But Downtown-rolled for over a year-plus months.
Dozens of these plays under his belt.
His response? Masterfully polite rejection!
"Ah, see, I actually prefer guys..."
Simultaneously, the woman stabbed a blade at his gut.
Chillingly natural.
Jin instinctively cupped and blocked the blade hidden in her exhale.
"...?"
Looking back baffled, her eyes had gone unfocused.
Whoosh!
Yanking her blade-hand, he karate-chopped her nape short. Catching her collapsing body, he laid her gently on the floor.
Then the opposite room's door opened.
"Hm?"
Out came a shiny bald dome, scratching his belly. Alternating glances between the floored woman and watchful Jin, he said,
"Too eager, no? Even so, not in the hallway..."
Next instant.
He drew from his bosom and blasted Jin.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
No warning again.
Superhuman dodges evaded the point-blank bullets, but one grazed his cheek long.
"......"
Confirming the man's dazed eyes as he emptied his mag, Jin palm-struck his throat.
Eyes rolled back.
Body slumped to the floor, and a status window popped.
(Sudden!) (Linked) Assassin
📍 Objective: Subdue the assassin.
🎁 Reward: Punk XP 7,000
Assassin?
Jin scowled deeply—
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Every room door flew open at once.