A Short Train Ride
The train rattled gently beneath us. For the time being, it seems I have no choice but to raise my stats… Increasing my speed feels like the most efficient path.
Using debuffs to control opponents came with too many variables because of their resistance. Making my body faster was simpler and far more versatile. To do that, though, I needed to hunt down a lot of those sinister bastards. And for that, I needed to be able to operate alone. I couldn’t drag Yeon-hee into the kind of danger I’d faced last time when I raided that building full of “teeth.” If I fell into a crisis by myself, I could simply self-destruct and return. Easy.
Hmm… How can I leave Yeon-hee behind without worrying her?
What if I left other allies at home? ……No. Yeon-hee would never agree to that. Just suggesting it might earn me her resentment. Bring a man into our house?! Rejected. Bring a woman into our house?! Also rejected. In the end, it came down to making the summons stronger.
Isn’t it about time to use that summoning scroll?
When she decided to use it was up to Yeon-hee, but I could only hope a truly powerful one would appear so I could move a little more freely.
The next day, with No Hayun and Yeom Tae-seok gone, our party felt strangely empty as we waited in front of the dungeon gate for it to open.
“It does feel a bit lonely without them, huh?”
“Right~”
It wasn’t just me. After spending an entire week together in that dark, deadly place, it made sense that we’d formed a bond as strong as parties who’d spent a year together.
“Um… she said she’d join us again…”
“What? What did you say, unnie?”
“…Never mind…”
“She said she’d join us~”
“Hayun did? Eun-yeong unnie, did you hear that directly from her?”
“…Yes… that’s right… She said… she’d come back somehow…”
Somehow, huh…
I hadn’t understood why she joined our party last time, but after everything she gained from it, her desire to come back made perfect sense. The sudden news about No Hayun delivered through Ham Eun-yeong left everyone blinking in surprise. Were those two close? While Bae Jua and Baek A-rin exchanged meaningful glances, dozens of dungeon management staff poured out from the gate.
“Yes—we’ve confirmed it. There were no major anomalies, but as expected, the difficulty has increased significantly.”
The highest-ranking official among them took the microphone and briefed us on the dungeon’s current state.
“Only those who have cleared at least the first floor of the Dungeon of Nargul should enter! The combat power inside has risen sharply. Anyone who came thinking it would be like the old Orc dungeon should just go home and rest.”
The man repeatedly emphasized that there wasn’t a single lie in his words, practically scaring people into only entering if they were truly confident.
“…Should we go?”
“Let’s go. What’s with all the scare tactics? Do hunters really turn back just because of that guy?”
Despite the warning, we stepped straight into the gate without much thought. Contrary to Bae Jua’s expectations, however, less than seventy percent of the hunters waiting in front of the gate actually entered. Thirty percent really went home.
Everyone’s playing it safe, huh… That’s not good.
Having only one life made their caution understandable. The dungeon’s sudden drastic change was enough to make any hunter hesitate. But if this kind of timidity continued, the forces that should stand against the incoming Orcs would only grow weaker. That was the real worry.
Sigh. For now, we just have to get stronger. What else can we do?
“Ugh! Whatever, let’s go first!”
Bae Jua, who clearly hadn’t expected so many people to actually leave, squeezed her eyes shut and led the charge.
Four hours after entering the dungeon.
“What? This is nothing.”
“I know, right? I was so nervous at first…”
“Haha~ Thanks to that scary uncle, we’re enjoying a nice, comfortable dungeon, you know~”
Contrary to our fears, the Orcs’ combat strength wasn’t at a level that could threaten us. They’re getting stopped at the lizard unit line?
We weren’t the only ones who had grown stronger over the past week. The summons had also become much more powerful through experience and level-ups. Unless they were variants, most regular monsters could be suppressed by the summons alone. The round shield we’d received from the smithy was doing its job nicely, and the armor Yeon-hee had crafted with her mysterious substance continued to improve in performance. As long as the Orcs didn’t land a direct blow to the head, we barely took damage.
“Thud…”
Ttungi seemed a little upset that the shield I’d given him wasn’t seeing any use, but if he was that frustrated, he just needed to bring back better equipment. Like that undead-exclusive club we’d picked up in the hidden dungeon, for example.
We pushed forward to the boss area without any major issues. There was only one problem.
“The experience points are disgustingly slow.”
“Jua, what level are you?”
“59. You?”
“Same, 59… Yeon-hee, what about you?”
“I’m at 58.”
“…I’m also 58…”
Everyone was struggling at the threshold of those cursed eighth and ninth numbers. It really is because Yeon-hee and Eun-yeong have unique classes. Their experience gain is so slow that Jua’s even catching up.
At this rate, the others would reach level 60 first. We used to be so far ahead.
“I don’t feel even the slightest spark of electricity.”
Even without the system messages, you could usually sense how much experience you’d gained from the feeling that came with each kill. The complete absence of that sensation meant the experience was truly pathetic.
Well, this is technically normal…
Grinding for at least a month to earn money, upgrade gear, and build experience was the standard hunter routine. But we don’t have that kind of time.
The thought that rose in my mind was simple: hunting villains. Remembering how my level had skyrocketed after killing Nam Yong-seok, I knew it would be effective. I had searched for information on the “Mad Judge” while Yeon-hee was sleeping and found it far more easily than expected.
Has his growth accelerated too? He’s already pretty famous.
My memories of Cha Jin-hyeok were limited to what I’d read in articles, so I couldn’t be entirely sure. The article I remembered said he rose to prominence only after reaching A-grade, but unique abilities tended to draw attention no matter where they appeared. Still, while reading the comments, I noticed that although his ability was highly praised, people often criticized his appearance, which left me with mixed feelings.
It’s better to be handsome, sure, but isn’t it a bit much to criticize someone just for being ugly?
I wanted to leave a comment as a keyboard warrior, but since it was Yeon-hee’s account, I couldn’t. He only reached B-grade less than a month ago…
B-grade. It simply meant he was stronger than the “teeth.” I wasn’t sure if I could take him. Maybe it would be better to roam around and raid more “teeth” instead? But when I remembered the A-grade hunters who had chased us before, targeting Cha Jin-hyeok—who had open information—seemed like the smarter choice. Better to go after a known target than an uncertain one.
“Kwaaaaaaaaah—!”
“Whoa, nice vocal cords.”
“Their voices really have gotten louder, huh~”
“But… I feel like we can finish this pretty quickly… Am I judging this wrong?”
Yeon-hee tilted her head as she asked, and Baek A-rin answered.
“No, I feel the same. They don’t seem as scary as before.”
“We’ve grown stronger than those guys have.”
And we felt that difference clearly the moment we entered the boss room.
Slice—!
“Hek—Hek—Waaaa! Take this—!”
Baek A-rin had defeated a slightly exhausted boss monster in single combat. Oh. Lightning Step has become much more powerful. I learned a new application.
A-rin was now focusing on using Lightning Step to instantly sever the enemy’s windpipe, and it was proving very effective. She’s still so fast…
I had killed several Orc intermediate warriors that were boss-level, but the experience gain was still labeled as a “small amount” in the message. This won’t work.
At this rate, reaching level 60 with these tiny amounts of experience would take at least a month. It was time to change direction drastically.
We cleared the Orc dungeon in record time and headed to a café.
“Ehh?! Y-you’re not abandoning us, right?”
“What did we do wrong?!”
“Ah, no… It’s not like that…”
I had already discussed the plan with Yeon-hee that morning in preparation for this moment. While we went to hunt villains, our party members needed to reach level 60 too. The plan was to temporarily place them in the party No Hayun belonged to. Of course, I had already explained everything about Cha Jin-hyeok to Yeon-hee as well.
As always, Yeon-hee didn’t question my words much.
“But would a party that No Hayun runs even accept us?”
“Training with people like that would be good experience, though…”
It was a natural concern, but I was confident that if I asked No Hayun, she would agree. Unexpectedly, Ham Eun-yeong, who had been quietly listening, offered to ask her herself.
“Oh… Unnie, you’ve gotten pretty close with No Hayun, huh?”
“Eh? Uh… Y-yeah… It’s just… you know…”
“If Eun-yeong unnie asks… it should be easy.”
We had already witnessed the dignity of Ham Eun-yeong’s grandmother. While joining the party wouldn’t require her grandmother’s direct help, if No Hayun subtly passed on the message, we might be able to ride the bus for about a week.
“W-well, if that’s the case…”
“I understand. But at least tell us what you’re leaving for, okay?”
I was wondering when someone would ask.
“We just want to rest for a few days.”
“…Okay.”
There was no need to explain in detail. Bae Jua seemed a little upset by Yeon-hee’s vague answer and pouted her lips. I can’t exactly say we’re going to catch a guy who’ll become a villain in the future, can I?
No one besides Yeon-hee could know about my Mimicry ability yet. Asking them to sign a contract would be ridiculous, so I could only wait for her mood to improve on its own.
The next day, we took a train to a new city an hour away. Yeon-hee seemed incredibly excited just to be riding a train somewhere. Even “Ran,” perched on her shoulder, was completely absorbed in the scenery passing by the window. Ran actually looks smaller now…?
Ran’s growth had been completely stalled since being summoned, but after the Dungeon of Nargul, things had started to change. The frequent shedding of feathers suggested it was preparing for some kind of transformation.
If Ran’s Acceleration grows, it should definitely help with landing Flame Slash more accurately.
Yeon-hee pressed her face to the window beside Ran, flashing a bright smile that lit up the world. Last night, after we had made love, I had given her additional details about the evil deeds the villain we were going to face had committed. Even while exhausted, she had listened with great interest before suddenly asking me a question.
“But if that villain hasn’t done anything bad yet, couldn’t we change his future too?”
……The words Yeon-hee had said yesterday kept echoing in my head. Because I had already changed her fate, I couldn’t help wondering if the person we were going to see might become a hero instead of a villain if I could steer him in a different direction.
Ah… This is getting complicated.