Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Just as I Suspected
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We woke up, had a light breakfast, and set off walking along the beach again.
The sunlight was mild and pleasant since it was still early in the day.
"How far should we go today? If we start this early, we could probably venture pretty far."
Hilde, holding her spear, turned around and asked.
"Nah, we're not going too far today. We have to think about stamina too."
"Hmmm... Says the man who was so rough with me last night?"
"Ahem! Ahem!"
I had nothing to say back.
I was the one who'd gone at it until Hilde passed out yesterday, after all.
But what could I do?
Hilde in a swimsuit was just too damn tempting.
On top of that, my recently boosted stamina was overflowing to the point of being a problem.
Even after going all out yesterday, my dick was still ready to go strong.
"Doing it like that every day... What kind of life did you live before coming to this island?"
"Just an ordinary one. Took the college entrance exam like everyone else, got into university, served in the military, somehow landed a job. Spent my days scrambling not to fall behind the other employees."
Ah, talking about it pisses me off all over again.
In some ways, this life might actually be more comfortable.
Survival has its fun at least.
Office life had no dreams, no hope, no fun, no thrills.
"Someone as impressive as Master got pushed around by other humans?"
"My company had a lot of talented women."
My peer Yoo Hye-jeong and the other bitches were all top-notch in ability.
Our team leader Shin Seom-hwa was even being eyed for the next director position.
Can you imagine how much blood and sweat I shed trying to keep up in that crowd?
"It just so happened another guy quit midway, leaving me as the only man. So yeah, I had it rough."
"Surrounded by women—wouldn't that be a happy life?"
"Maybe if I were someone impressive."
If you ask me, I'm just average.
The only advantages I had in life were being decent and hardworking.
To keep up with others—no, just to match them—I had to put in several times the effort.
And with everyone around me being so damn talented, I just built up this constant inferiority complex.
Tsk, so that's why my office life was such hell?
If this were the Conan universe, I'd have gone dark side and ended up in prison by now.
I'm proud of myself for growing this strong on a deserted island instead.
"Anyway, the reason I can live this happily on a deserted island is all thanks to you, Hilde."
"...Saying that while groping my thigh—does that mean you'll go easy on me today?"
Tch, busted. Still, she didn't say she wouldn't give it up.
True to the saying: there's no such thing as sex withdrawal, only sex hiatus.
She'll probably cave and come to me first if I tease her bit by bit.
If Hilde really hadn't been here, survival would've been seriously tough.
I'd have gotten so lonely I'd end up making friends with a volleyball just to cope.
But here I am, scouting around every day with a beauty like this. How lucky can a guy get?
We kept chatting like that as we walked, just like yesterday.
How far had we gone along the beach?
"Master, hold on a second."
Hilde stopped me as I was checking the map.
She stood staring at one spot, spear at the ready.
I followed her gaze, and there it was—some kind of red object.
"A crab?"
"A crab... right?"
But not your ordinary crab.
For starters, the crabs I knew weren't human-sized, and their claws didn't look like they could cleave logs.
Appraisal.
I ducked slightly behind cover nearby and activated it.
Luckily, no special skills or powers.
But as the description said, that size was definitely intimidating.
The bigger the body, the stronger the power, after all.
"What should we do?"
Hilde asked with a serious expression, spear poised to strike at any moment.
"It hasn't noticed us yet. We could just go around."
"......"
The old me definitely would've chosen to run.
But things had changed.
"No, let's take it out here. It'd be riskier if we run into it properly later."
You never know when or where you'd encounter a monster like that again.
Dodging it now doesn't mean it won't ambush us later.
No reason to take that risk.
We had to eliminate it for sure, even if it meant pushing ourselves here.
"Plus, I like crab. It's pretty tasty."
"Is that the real reason?"
"Well... more food is always better."
A creature that size—one leg alone would feed us plenty.
Like with the goblins, monsters turned out to be surprisingly valuable food sources.
"Then I'll take the lead. We'll attack together."
"No, Hilde, you rest."
As I spoke, I pulled Adol from my inventory.
This was the perfect chance to test my newfound power.
"I'll handle it solo this time."
"But......"
"It's fine. Mind lending me your spear?"
Hilde handed over the Valkyrie Spear Replica with a slightly worried look.
Adol's a great weapon, but for penetration, a spear's way superior.
I gripped the spear and infused it with telekinesis.
A weapon enhanced by telekinesis could exceed its normal power.
Combine that with my boosted strength, and I could unleash destructive force beyond what my body alone could dream of.
Go!
I hurled the spear with all my might.
It tore through the air with a whoosh and pierced straight through the Giant Crab.
Kwachik!
The spear embedded in its body, shattering the thick shell with a resounding crack.
Confirming the hit landed true, I charged in with Adol raised.
If it escapes to the sea, it'll be a hassle. Finish it in one go.
I poured my full sprint momentum into kicking the spear deeper.
Puk! The spear tore the wound wide open.
Then I swung Adol wildly at its body.
Dull thuds echoed as bodily fluids sprayed everywhere.
As the Giant Crab collapsed, the points rolled in.
Looks like you get points for defeating new monsters too.
But the messages didn't end there.
+ Stat Points +5
+ Bonus Points +[x]
Name: Kim Jin-woo Level: 2 Strength: 4 Agility: 1 Endurance: 1 Magic Power: 1 Vitality: 1
(Stat Points: 5)
Traits: Golden Finger (A), Tool Crafting (E), Dissection (F), Axe Mastery (E) Skills: Gacha, Appraisal, Telekinesis
'Leveled up?'
I'd been skeptical when I first saw the game-like status window.
But it really was structured around gaining XP from killing monsters?
'And stat points too......'
I opened the status window to check.
[Status window already above]
Yep, level up confirmed, along with stat points.
'I knew these were separate from regular points, but I didn't expect actual monster kills to level me up.'
It really felt like I'd become a game character.
Getting stronger? No complaints there.
The power from stat points had just been proven against that Giant Crab.
Better to dump them in if I can.
'Strength again, huh.'
I was tempted to experiment with agility or magic power.
But messing up could turn me into a jack-of-all-trades nobody.
I invested all points back into strength.
Name: Kim Jin-woo Level: 2 Strength: 9 Agility: 1 Endurance: 1 Magic Power: 1 Vitality: 1
(Stat Points: 0)
Traits: Golden Finger (A), Tool Crafting (E), Dissection (F), Axe Mastery (E) Skills: Gacha, Appraisal, Telekinesis
'No noticeable change yet.'
A bit disappointing, but I'm only level 2 now.
Hit level 10, and I'll be way stronger.
'Regular goblins were around level 1. So normal people are probably similar.'
Anyway, the status window definitely tracks growth.
The issue? Not many monsters to hunt on this island.
The only ones we've seen are goblins and this Giant Crab.
If I want serious leveling, there's just not enough.
'But stable living comes first. Better to avoid monsters if possible.'
This isn't some game map with level-scaled hunting grounds.
A level 100 giant squid could pop up out of nowhere.
So I'd treat level-ups as a bonus, not obsess over them.
"Wow, Master! You're amazing! Taking down that huge crab in one shot!"
Hilde came over while I was checking stats, full of admiration.
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at the Giant Crab.
"At this rate, you could solo all those goblins from before!"
"Nah, I don't think I'm there yet."
Just brute strength for now—no skills or swordsmanship.
Without the surprise attack, it wouldn't have been this easy.
"Combat's all about striking first, after all."
"Still, your newfound strength made the ambush work. Oh! What about the crab?"
"Hmm, tough to dissect it right here."
We're in a rocky area, not the sandy beach.
Lots of hard rocks, waves crashing right below—bad spot for prepping food.
"Too bad, but should we head back?"
"Yeah, probably."
We'd secured food and mapped more beach—decent progress on initial goals.
Above all, learning monsters appear on the beach was huge intel.
I'd come here with a casual fishing mindset. But if monsters show up, that's different.
Monsters on this island aren't just goblins.
Might run into one while fishing.
Time to prep for combat at minimum.
Want to save more points for big gacha pulls, but it's not handing them out easy like early on.
Wonder if it's because I cleared the first survival quest.
Maybe it's time for some changes.
"Hm? Master...... Check this spot too for a sec?"
Hilde urgently called as I stuffed the Giant Crab into inventory.
"What's up? Find something else?"
"Well... a rare beauty's here......"
What? Suddenly feeling self-complimentary?
Some joke from Hilde? As I pondered, something caught my eye.
I couldn't help but chuckle.
"This...... I wondered if I'd ever see it again, and here it is."
Just as Hilde said, it was a beauty.
Silky black hair contrasting with snow-white skin.
A sharp, blade-like face.
Even the plain combo of dress shirt and black skirt looked alluring on her.
I'd never noticed before, but damn, what a voluptuous figure.
Her soaked blouse revealed a bra clinging to some impressively large breasts.
Never thought I'd see her collapsed like this.
Even at company MTs or heated battles, she always stood tall and aloof.
I used to admire it.
Later, I gave up, figuring she'd never even glance at a nobody like me.
Even unconscious and collapsed, did that air of cold confidence emanating from her face come from my bias?
"Someone you know?"
Hilde picked up on my reaction and asked.
I nodded.
"She was my boss back in society."
A beauty sprawled wet on the rocks, swept in by the waves.
She was an A-Grade Awakened, our team leader—Shin Seom-hwa.