Chapter 11
Chapter 11
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Guardian of the Third Tutorial (2)
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Kang Hyun-soo and Song Hana continued hunting monsters as they made their way toward the center, where the boss monster awaited.
‘It’ll be over in about a week.’
A satisfied smile bloomed on Kang Hyun-soo’s lips.
His achievements were stacking up nicely.
On top of that, unlike the first and second tutorials where level-ups had stalled out quickly, levels were climbing steadily in the third tutorial.
‘Wonder if I can hit level 30 in the tutorial?’
As far as Kang Hyun-soo knew, no player had ever reached level 30 during a tutorial.
‘They might even hand out extra achievements.’
Kang Hyun-soo resolved to throw himself even more into the hunt.
To make the most of Hwang So-wook’s unique skill copied via Replica, it was best to max out his levels first.
Rustle!
At that moment, the bushes parted, revealing a group of players.
‘Again.’
He was running into other players more and more often.
‘Only natural.’
The barrier around the forest outskirts was shrinking bit by bit as time passed.
Players had no choice but to converge on the center.
“What the? It’s just two of them?”
“No kidding.”
“Hey, you two all there is?”
The new group consisted of nine players total.
But something seemed off.
Only six of them were properly equipped.
The other three didn’t even have basic weapons or armor.
‘Slaves?’
Slaves to forage for food and set up sleeping spots.
When danger struck, they doubled as bait, drawing monsters’ attention while their masters fled.
‘It’s getting more twisted by the day.’
As time wore on, the modern sensibilities players brought with them warped and eroded.
Of course, there was a slim chance the six strong ones were actually protecting the three weaklings.
“Hey, why aren’t these punks saying shit? Scared stiff?”
“Looks like it.”
“Oho, that chick’s pretty hot.”
“Yeah. Kill the guy, capture the girl.”
But the second they opened their mouths, that chance evaporated.
Clang!
The players drew their weapons and encircled Kang Hyun-soo and Song Hana.
The three who looked like slaves squeezed their eyes shut and bowed their heads low.
They’d apparently given up on even running away.
‘The murderer groups are on the rise.’
Most of the players he ran into lately were murderers.
People like him and Song Hana, who stuck to a reasonable line, were few and far between.
“Let’s wrap this up quick and move on.”
“Yes.”
Song Hana gave a short reply to Kang Hyun-soo’s words.
“Ha! These idiots lost their damn minds?”
“What can two do?”
“They’ve just been lucky till now. That ends here.”
While the murderer players blabbered on.
Kang Hyun-soo and Song Hana drew their swords in unison.
Whoosh!
A faint whistle of wind rang out.
Splash!
The murderer players encircling them split cleanly in two, torsos severed from legs.
The slave-treated players, eyes still shut tight, cracked them open at the sudden silence.
“Eek!”
They could only recoil in terror.
All the players who’d lorded over them as masters lay dead.
The slave-treated players’ bodies shook uncontrollably.
They harbored no hope that Kang Hyun-soo and Song Hana would set them free.
The slave-treated players had abandoned hope long ago.
The master-pretenders who’d just died weren’t their first.
‘Another owner swap?’
‘I hope this one’s got a decent personality.’
‘At least feed us well.’
The slave-treated players didn’t welcome the changing of the guard.
One misstep, and they’d lose their lives in the shuffle.
Or end up in an even worse hell than before.
“Hey.”
“Yes!”
“You called, sir!”
The slave-treated players, wound tight as springs, bellowed their responses to Kang Hyun-soo’s call.
“Take these.”
Kang Hyun-soo handed over some of the items from the dead players.
“Huh?”
The slave-treated players wore deeply confused expressions at the abrupt turn.
“Survive with those however you can.”
“You’re... letting us go?”
One slave-treated player ventured the question, eyes wide with shock.
“Yeah.”
“Thank you! Thank you!”
“Thank you! We’re gonna live!”
Two of the slave-treated players lit up with joy.
The third did not.
“W-Wait, I don’t need stuff like this. Please, just keep me with you. I’ll scrounge food, prep beds—whatever! I’m begging you.”
The other two darkened at the words of the lone holdout slave-treated player.
They’d been herded to the forest center with nowhere else to go.
Clashed with murderer players, lost, and wound up as slaves.
Now they had items in hand.
A shot at getting stronger.
But fear gripped them.
What if they ran into murderer players again?
They’d have to fight.
Lose, and it was back to slavery.
‘Better off under those guys than dying to murderers or getting enslaved again, right?’
‘They’re insanely strong—no way we’d die.’
‘Don’t seem like bad people.’
The slave-treated players turned it over in their heads.
But they didn’t need to agonize over the trade-offs.
“No.”
Kang Hyun-soo shut it down cold.
“Why not?”
“We’re pros at grunt work, even if we don’t look it!”
“Yeah! Just try us for a day!”
The slave-treated players launched into a desperate sales pitch.
“Told you no.”
The slave-treated players clamped their mouths shut at Kang Hyun-soo’s icy, killing intent-laced words.
But silence didn’t make their feelings unreadable to Kang Hyun-soo.
Their faces brimmed with raw injustice.
‘What the hell do they have to feel wronged about?’
Kang Hyun-soo was baffled.
He’d freed them from slavery.
Hadn’t killed or chained them.
Even tossed them F-Rank items for free.
Well, not exactly a sacrifice on his part.
He’d just handed off junk he planned to ditch anyway.
‘That’s plenty of goodwill.’
If the Gluttony Sword hadn’t recently hit D-Rank and gotten too finicky for F-Rank scraps?
He wouldn’t have bothered.
They were lucky in that regard.
Out of slavery.
Lives intact.
Items to boot.
Yet they couldn’t leave well enough alone.
They wanted Kang Hyun-soo—their damn benefactor—
To guarantee their futures too.
‘Humans gonna human.’
That greed could forge strength.
But this flavor,
The kind Kang Hyun-soo despised most,
Pulling you from the drink then demanding your wallet?
‘Helps no one, least of all themselves.’
His mood soured.
Keep up that attitude?
They’d wash out of the third tutorial and die.
‘Maybe put ’em out of their misery quick?’
The thought hit him: mercy-kill them before they even clocked it.
“Let’s go.”
Song Hana spoke up then.
“Alright.”
Kang Hyun-soo gave a curt nod and stepped off.
The slave-treated players watched the pair go with resentful glares.
Too cowed for any move.
* * *
Kang Hyun-soo and Song Hana powered up fast.
Mopped up achievements for stat boosts.
Slew monsters and murderers to rank up jobs, skills, and levels.
‘She’s adapting quick.’
Song Hana had mastered tutorial life in just a hair over three months.
At this pace,
She’d adjust smooth to player life post-tutorial.
‘Nearing the end.’
They’d squeezed every gain from the third tutorial.
Evolved the One-Man Squad job to One-Man Platoon for achievements.
Hit level 30 before the “Third Tutorial Limit Reached” achievement, netting extras to boot.
Desired rewards plus bonuses.
Boss monster was all that remained.
Solo?
He’d have smoked it instantly.
But Song Hana’s growth wasn’t capped yet.
‘Few days won’t hurt.’
Plan: boss hunt after her achievements and level 30.
No loafing in the interim, though.
‘Could be hidden pieces I missed.’
Kang Hyun-soo opted to roam solo from Song Hana during daylight.
She’d bloomed into a monster herself—no need to tag-team hunts.
Solo runs netted more.
He combed the forest tirelessly.
No real breakthroughs.
Just a murderer bloodbath.
But his rampage paid dividends for non-murderer player groups.
Fewer murderer clashes meant survival odds soared.
Especially for early panic cases who lagged behind.
The breather he carved let them rally late: levels up, gear gathered, strength to push back murderer packs.
And that grind
[You have achieved an astonishing feat.]
[Title: Guardian of the Third Tutorial A-Rank granted.]
Bounced back as massive payback for Kang Hyun-soo.
‘What’s this?’
Kang Hyun-soo pulled up Guardian of the Third Tutorial details, brow furrowed.
[Title – Guardian of the Third Tutorial A-Rank]
-All stats +30.
“Ha!”
Straight A-Rank.
All stats juiced by 30.
‘Huge score.’
His face split in a grin at the windfall.
‘Knew waiting was smart.’
Boss rush pre-Song Hana finish?
Would’ve blown this luck.
‘Growable, maybe?’
One-Strike Kill started B-Rank, now A.
Time investment could push it to EX.
‘Same potential here?’
Title stat bumps scale by fives.
F: +5, E: +10, D: +15, etc.
A-Rank +30 across the board now, but EX Guardian?
+50 easy.
‘Doable.’
So far: culled murderers, spared normals.
‘Keep the streak.’
Might just rank up the Guardian title yet.