Unexpected Jackpot (2)
-Splurt!
“Kieeeek!”
The massive Lizardman, towering three meters tall, was cleaved clean in half.
The young man who had bisected it—Cheon Tae-hwang—panted heavily, using the sword gripped in his hand to prop himself up.
Clap, clap, clap.
“Well done. Worth shelling out for that pricey item.”
Kang Ha-rin, who had watched from behind as Cheon Tae-hwang soloed the hulking Lizardman, applauded with a grin.
At her feet lay the remnants of a torn scroll.
A scroll used to locate groups of monsters that are rare in number but offer high rewards.
Ordinary Monster Search Scrolls could only detect regular monsters. But the one she had used was a high-grade version capable of finding even boss monsters under level 30.
In truth, such items were rarely used. The reason was simple: they were filthily expensive.
A Monster Search Scroll that could detect boss monsters cost nearly 50 gold each—an outrageous sum.
And its search radius was a mere three kilometers, meaning bad luck could leave you wandering forever without spotting a boss.
Even the best-case scenario from a level 30 or lower boss wouldn't net you 50 gold or more. You'd always come out at a loss.
Yet Kang Ha-rin had burned through three of them. All to let Cheon Tae-hwang hunt boss monsters and accelerate his growth.
Something only possible with the backing of a top guild like the Big Three.
“What's your level now?”
“Level 17, ma'am.”
Cheon Tae-hwang answered her question in a calm, steady voice.
Kang Ha-rin nodded with a sly grin.
“Good. Time to move to the next hunting ground.”
“Is there a boss monster there too?”
Cheon Tae-hwang asked, the thrill of his battle with Luderak flashing in his mind. His eyes burned with hunger for a worthy fight.
“You're hopeless,” Kang Ha-rin chuckled, shaking her head.
His battle lust bordered on the bizarre.
'But that's what makes him so damn appealing.'
She licked her lips seductively, eyeing him like a tasty morsel, then shrugged.
“Bosses haven't been spawning much lately, so no guarantees. But we've got a prime dungeon under guild management. Plenty of tough bastards there to keep you busy.”
“Understood.”
Cheon Tae-hwang nodded, a flicker of disappointment in his eyes.
Kang Ha-rin flashed him a wicked smile.
“Heh. Hit level 60, and I'll ship you up to the Northern Borderline. You'll get a whole new world of pain up there.”
“...How long to reach level 60?”
Cheon Tae-hwang's eyes sparkled as he pressed her.
The Northern Borderline. A brutal frontline where continent-shaking monsters clashed with humanity's best. Even Rankers risked death there.
Just thinking about it sent his heart pounding.
Kang Ha-rin sighed deeply, eyeing him like a lost cause.
“With your talent? Piece of cake. Two months tops. Focus on elite mobs in dungeons, and you'll fly up.”
Two months to 60. Absurd words that would make any other summoner snort in disbelief.
Regular summoners grinded weak mobs for every last scrap of EXP—safety first, but mostly because mid- or high-level hunts cost too much and risked too much.
But Cheon Tae-hwang was Leviathan material. One of the Big Three guilds in the East. A summoner with Ranker potential past level 100.
Of course they'd pour resources into him.
“Hm...?”
Then Kang Ha-rin heard footsteps approaching.
Human steps, not monster. She turned warily.
“Oh, you guys again.”
She smirked at Yeong-sik's party approaching, waving lazily.
“If you're here for the boss? We already bagged it. Sorry.”
She didn't sound sorry at all.
A shadow of regret crossed Yeong-sik's group's faces.
Quest Failed.
A blue message window popped up before Yeong-sik's eyes, announcing the quest failure.
'Tch...'
Yeong-sik sighed at the hovering window.
His plan to level up Manufacture and Structure Analysis with the gold from this quest? Shot to hell.
'How the hell did they find the boss before us?'
He stared at Cheon Tae-hwang and Kang Ha-rin in bewilderment.
Bae Han-seong caught his look and explained with a heavy sigh.
“They used a Monster Search scroll—a magic scroll for locating monsters.”
He gave Yeong-sik's group a quick rundown.
Yeong-sik's face went slack.
Minimum 50 gold a pop. Way more than they'd make off Luderak.
“Phew? Still, nailing it in three tries is lucky. Burning ten would've sucked.”
Kang Ha-rin stretched with a yawn.
Yeong-sik's group gaped harder. Ten? That was 500 gold.
Five billion won. She tossed it out like pocket change.
“C'mon, Tae-hwang. Dinner's on me tonight—something good.”
Kang Ha-rin turned away from Yeong-sik's group like they were air, waving at Bae Han-seong.
“We didn't steal your kill, so no hard feelings? Oh, and take the Black Cube if you want. Useless junk anyway.”
With that, she and Cheon Tae-hwang sauntered off toward the swamp.
A heavy silence blanketed Yeong-sik's party.
“Heh... Capital's power is terrifying.”
Kim Gil-su muttered in defeat. He'd been hyped for a boss fight; now it felt empty.
“Yeah...”
Yeong-sik nodded.
The power of money. This world hammered it home.
The rich got richer; the poor stayed poor. Guilds invested big, reaped bigger.
'Speaking of... soloing a boss like that?'
Yeong-sik pictured Cheon Tae-hwang, panting but victorious over Luderak.
Monster didn't cover it. Freakish talent, backed by the perfect setup.
Worlds apart from Yeong-sik's situation.
'Enough.'
Yeong-sik shook off the boiling thoughts. No point getting antsy or inferior over it.
“Ugh, what a letdown. We even took the quest.”
Bae Han-seong sighed, heading to Luderak's bisected corpse.
Yeong-sik watched, then remembered something.
“What's a Black Cube?”
“Hm. A palm-sized black cube from boss corpses only. Honestly... it's trash. Useless.”
Bae Han-seong rummaged through the bloody remains. Sure enough, a black cube emerged.
“Early on, folks thought it was valuable like a magic stone. But nope. No mana, no use anywhere.”
“Every boss has one?”
Yeong-sik asked, intrigued.
Bae Han-seong nodded.
“Yeah. Now it's just proof you killed a boss. But since they all look identical, even that's pointless. Can't flex low-level vs. high-level kills.”
“Guess we'll aim for the next boss.”
Bae Han-seong tossed the Black Cube aside.
Some collectors hoarded them “just in case,” but most summoners ditched the junk.
Yeong-sik eyed the discarded cube. Plain, no aura.
But...
He recognized it from somewhere.
As if drawn, Yeong-sik approached and picked it up.
Bae Han-seong spoke up.
“Souvenir's fine. Still useless, though.”
He chuckled, seeing Yeong-sik's curiosity. Reminded him of his younger self.
A perfect hexahedron couldn't form naturally. Plenty of summoners chased its secrets—including him.
He'd scoured Elnot Kingdom's libraries after his first boss kill.
Nothing. Baking, boiling, smashing—obsidian shards, that's all.
'Eh, curiosity's part of the ride.'
He knew once hooked, it wouldn't fade till satisfied.
Bae Han-seong looked away from Yeong-sik's entranced stare, picturing his future cube experiments with faint nostalgia.
“Sun's setting. Back to the guild.”
He stepped forward, Kim Gil-su and Seo A-ra following.
“...Yeong-sik?”
A-ra called to him, still fixated on the cube.
Yeong-sik snapped out of it with a light smile.
“Sorry. Be right there—go ahead.”
“Mm. Don't dawdle. Lizardmen could swarm anytime.”
“Got it.”
Yeong-sik waved her off reassuringly. A-ra followed Bae Han-seong.
Yeong-sik trailed slowly, studying the cube.
'Definitely seen it before...'
Impossible. First boss he'd seen since arriving.
His gaze deepened. Instinct kicked in.
“Structure Analysis.”
The Machine Engineer exclusive skill activated. Blue light poured from his hand into the cube.
Structure Analysis of E-Grade Memory Cube successful.
Structure Analysis skill proficiency greatly increased.
Structure Analysis skill leveled up to 2.
A clear chime rang in his mind, an image flashing to life.