The Power of the Black Cube (5)
After the successful raid on the Light Shield Guild, Yeong-sik and his companions split off from the group and headed to Ruberin.
There was a troll habitat nearby that they'd targeted as their next hunting ground. Naturally, Yeong-sik couldn't use the old guild house, so he'd booked an inn on the outskirts of Ruberin, away from it. He figured the kingdom's public security would start their investigation in Ruberin first, making it a bit risky—but Yeong-sik, Gil-su, and A-ra's faces weren't known to anyone. Even if Elnot Kingdom's public security was a top-tier organization, digging up info on them wouldn't be easy.
"Phew. It's been a while since the three of us traveled together like this."
Kim Gil-su said that as he unpacked in the inn room. Strapped to his back was the Radiant Shield that Han Cheol-ho, the Light Shield Guild master, had used.
Yeong-sik chuckled softly and nodded at his words.
"Yeah. We haven't partied up as a trio since joining the guild."
"Kehahaha. Takes me right back to the tutorial days."
Gil-su laughed in a voice tinged with nostalgia. A-ra gave a faint smile and teased him in a playful tone.
"Why are you talking like you've lived through it all, old man?"
"Hey now. I'm still a spry guy in my forties. Treat me like some geezer, and you'll be in trouble."
Gil-su grinned back at her jab. It was a relaxed conversation that would've been hard to imagine back in the tutorial.
"So, we're heading straight out to hunt those trolls?"
A-ra turned to Yeong-sik and asked. He slowly shook his head.
"No. We need some prep first."
"Prep for what?"
A-ra tilted her head. Yeong-sik grinned.
"I'm thinking power leveling this time."
"Power leveling?"
A-ra frowned. She knew what it meant—it just wasn't that simple.
Yeong-sik pulled a black hexahedral object from his inventory. It was the Black Cube from Han Cheol-ho's warehouse.
"Well, it's a bit different from regular levels."
Yeong-sik murmured, staring at the Black Cube in his hand. Unlocking security levels was definitely not the same as normal leveling. But the effects? They were incomparable.
'Hope I get a good weapon this time.'
He recalled the fourth ability he'd gained after Boost: Slow Motion. It maximized dynamic vision for 3 seconds, making time feel slowed. Purely on ability, it was cheat-level. In a frantic battle where every second counted, perceiving the world as frozen for 3 seconds gave overwhelming advantage.
But Slow Motion's cooldown was a whopping 24 hours. Useless except in critical moments. Against stronger summoners or monsters, it'd be a game-changer hidden card. For level grinding, though? Low utility.
What Yeong-sik wanted was a powerful weapon like Blade—something usable daily.
"Rest up today, then."
Yeong-sik said that before retreating to his room and pulling out the Black Cubes. There were 42 from Han Cheol-ho's warehouse. He spread them on the bed and muttered softly.
"Alright, let's get started."
He reached out, touched a Black Cube, and activated Structure Analysis.
Structure analysis of D-rank Memory Cube successful.
Structure Analysis skill proficiency greatly increased.
A clear chime rang in Yeong-sik's mind, followed by a memory flooding in.
A black-skinned Rakkan heaved ragged breaths. Sticky saliva dripped between its sharp fangs. Corpses of countless other Rakkans littered the ground around it.
The black Rakkan glared with burning eyes at the figure that had done this—the hazy, fog-shrouded form. The memory distorted like noisy footage. Once again, the perpetrator's identity remained blurred.
The lone black Rakkan roared ferociously and charged the hazy figure. It flicked a finger casually. Immense pressure slammed the black Rakkan into the ground. Overwhelming—that was the only word.
The hazy figure approached the fallen Rakkan with a short sigh.
"No, I just can't understand why I'm implanting cubes in trash like this. What the hell are they thinking?"
He grumbled, pressing a Black Cube to the black Rakkan's head.
"Kill humans."
With that voice, the Black Cube burrowed into the Rakkan's skull. It writhed, screaming in agony.
"Kugh!"
Yeong-sik clutched his head and collapsed. The Rakkan's vivid terror and pain surged into his mind. His breathing grew ragged.
'Same as before.'
He recalled using Structure Analysis on Lutherak's Black Cube. Identical. Someone artificially implanting Black Cubes into monsters, commanding them to "kill humans."
'Who is it?'
Yeong-sik frowned, replaying the voice. The figure was too hazy, but the voice felt familiar.
'...Is that the Creator?'
He remembered the giant orb of light after the tutorial: "Kill the Creator making monsters in the north."
If using Black Cubes to control monsters meant "making monsters," then this unidentified figure was the summoners' ultimate target—the monsters' Creator.
Before Yeong-sik could dwell further, another chime interrupted.
Stat adjustment from Memory Cube inherited.
Agility stat +3.
"...What the hell?"
Yeong-sik stared at the new message window in surprise—it hadn't appeared before. Checking his stat window confirmed the Agility boost.
'Because it's D-rank?'
That was the only difference from prior Memory Cubes. His eyes sparkled.
'If that's the case... this could be bigger than I thought.'
He grabbed another Memory Cube and used Structure Analysis.
Structure analysis of E-rank Memory Cube successful.
Structure Analysis skill proficiency increased.
The familiar chime brought a blue monster bound in metal restraints—then sharp pain cut the vision short. Nothing new.
"...E-rank doesn't boost stats, huh."
Yeong-sik waited, disappointed as no message appeared. His gaze shifted to the remaining Black Cubes: 40 left. Not all E-rank, so plenty to test.
He reached for the next.
Structure analysis of D-rank Memory Cube successful.
Structure Analysis skill proficiency greatly increased.
Structure Analysis skill level increased to 4.
'Already!'
Yeong-sik's eyes lit up at the messages. Just three Memory Cubes, and Structure Analysis had leveled up.
Stat adjustment from Memory Cube inherited.
Strength stat +2.
'D-rank and up boosts stats.'
Yeong-sik checked his stat window.
Name:Yeong-sik
Level:30/40
Class:Mechanical Engineer (Hidden)
HP:732 | MP:578
Structure Analysis: Lv 4
Decomposition: Lv 2
Extraction: Lv 3
Manufacture: Lv 4
Enhancement: Lv 1
'Tch...'
Yeong-sik grimaced, thinking of his level cap at 45 without overload. He'd hit 33 before, but the cap drop reset levels and stats.
'Strength 44, Agility 47, Toughness 38...'
Bae Han-seong said level +15 was average stats. For level 30, around 45. But that was for main stats—warriors wouldn't have high Intellect.
Yeong-sik's key stat, Dexterity, was above average from mass-producing with Iron Golem corpses. Low Dexterity caused failures or impossibilities, so it was good—but useless in direct combat.
'Strength and Agility average, but Toughness is below.'
For his assassin-like style, he needed Agility, Strength, and Toughness most. He'd seen the despair of stat gaps many times. High levels couldn't always beat numbers—like Salvatore vs. Light Shield.
High-level groups formed impenetrable walls against mid-tier lowbies.
'Stats rising without levels...'
Yeong-sik's eyes sharpened. Summoners obsessed over levels for balanced HP/MP/stat gains. High level with crap stats was just an empty shell.
'This means power beyond my level.'
He grinned. Suddenly, Cheon Tae-hwang's image flashed—terrifying talent making "overwhelming" seem laughable. That unreachable back now felt within grasp.
Yeong-sik methodically analyzed more Black Cubes. Then—
Structure analysis of A-rank Memory Cube failed.
Structure Analysis skill level insufficient.
An A-rank Memory Cube had appeared.