Power Leveling (5)
Ding.
You have defeated 10 trolls.
33,710 experience and 15 gold have been distributed according to contribution.
LEVEL UP!
LEVEL UP!
LEVEL UP!
LEVEL UP!
33,710 experience. 15 gold.
Yeong-sik gazed at the message window floating before his eyes and flashed a sly grin. The experience from killing four Rakans had been 1,000. In an instant, he'd gained over thirty times that amount.
Four levels at once.
Satisfaction bloomed across Yeong-sik's face as he checked his status window at 3/30. His level was now 33. The drop from the previous level cap reduction had been more than recovered in this single hunt.
And this gold... Yeong-sik nodded at the hefty sum of 15 gold. It didn't feel like much after carelessly blowing 1,000 gold recently, but stepping back, earning the equivalent of 15 million won in one hunt was extraordinary.
And trolls aren't the end here.
Yeong-sik's eyes sparkled as he looked at the troll corpses strewn across the ground. Troll blood was a key ingredient for recovery potions and in high demand as a magical material.
"Incredible..."
"Two levels in one go."
Kim Gil-su let out a short exclamation at the message window before him. Compared to Yeong-sik's massive contribution, Gil-su and A-ra's were lower, so they earned less experience and gold—but even that was tremendous.
"Then let's start extracting the troll blood right away. Every bit of this is money."
"Got it."
Before leaving for troll hunting, Yeong-sik had packed blood-drawing tools. He jabbed one into a troll's body. Magical light glowed from the device as blood began filling a transparent flask.
"Hmm. But it's coming out less than I expected?"
A-ra, who had been steeling herself against the disgust of drawing blood, spoke up.
Yeong-sik swallowed a grunt and replied, "Too much blood spilled on the ground."
The trolls caught in Yeong-sik's mines or Gatling Gun fire were shredded beyond recognition—little more than rags. It was a shame, but unavoidable. Adjusting his power output to preserve more blood while killing monsters was impractical.
"Now we dig a pit and bury the bodies."
"Bury the bodies?"
A-ra's puzzled question earned a nod from Yeong-sik.
"If we don't clean up, we can't use the same method again."
"Ah."
A short realization escaped A-ra. The troll herding hunt worked because Yeong-sik's mines had ambushed them, followed by relentless area attacks. Leaving corpses at the lure site could alert more trolls, putting the party at risk.
To prevent that, Yeong-sik dug a pit and dumped the drained troll bodies inside.
"Now just burn 'em."
Gil-su muttered as he wiped sweat from his brow.
"Let me see... the flint's around here somewhere..."
Gil-su rummaged through his inventory for the flint.
"No need for flint."
Yeong-sik stepped forward. A red glow emanated from his eyes.
Whirr.
"No way..."
A-ra, who had seen his eyes glow red before, stared in disbelief.
Yeong-sik precisely modulated the laser's power—just enough to ignite. Whoosh!Fwoosh!
The laser from his eyes set the troll corpses ablaze. Though it was his first real use of the laser, Yeong-sik smiled in satisfaction at how smoothly he'd controlled it.
Gil-su and A-ra watched with complicated expressions.
Starting a fire with eye lasers? It defied their common sense.
"New weapon you got?"
"Oh?"
"Huh?"
Yeong-sik nodded and explained how the black cube from Han Cheol-ho's warehouse had granted him great power.
"...Insane."
"So that's why you were even stronger than usual."
Gil-su recalled Yeong-sik one-shotting trolls despite their toughness.
Considering Yeong-sik's current stats nearing level 50, it was no surprise.
"Wait till the smell clears, then hunt again."
"Ugh... we're repeating this?"
A-ra's face twisted, recalling the trolls' ferocious charge.
Yeong-sik nodded. "Not much time left."
"But at this rate, we could hit the level cap in under a month, not three."
A-ra glanced at her own level 35.
"No, this method won't work in high-level zones."
Yeong-sik's expression was firm. Higher levels meant fewer but far stronger monsters.
"And the faster we level, the more time for other things. So we'll push with herding hunts even if it's tough."
Gil-su and A-ra nodded at his calm words.
"My cap's 45, but for you two, I'll give it everything."
Gil-su smiled bitterly. Unlike Yeong-sik and A-ra, his cap was lower. A strange anxiety gnawed at him—the two he'd adventured with since the tutorial were pulling ahead.
"Don't give up just because your cap's low, Gil-su. There are cases where caps rise."
"Haha, got it."
Gil-su chuckled warmly and nodded.
"Levels aren't everything. They're like height differences. Low levels can beat high ones."
In summoner or monster fights, victory wasn't just levels. Skill mastery, items, technique, strategy—all mattered. Bae Han-seong had mentioned summoners beating those 20+ levels higher one-on-one.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Gil-su nodded with resolute eyes. Yeong-sik stood.
"Then let's hunt again."
Gil-su and A-ra nodded vigorously.
To minimize downtime, Yeong-sik's party packed camping gear and hunted nonstop in the troll habitat. Five days of relentless grinding later, all reached level 45.
Fifteen levels in under a week. Other summoners would scoff at the absurdity.
"Energy Blast."
Vrrrrm!
A blue energy orb gathered in Yeong-sik's left hand, targeting a troll's head. The fast-fired projectile exploded it.
Grrr...
You have defeated 14 trolls.
17,920 experience and 19 gold have been distributed according to contribution.
Yeong-sik frowned at the messages.
Way less experience now.
Not zero yet, but far less than at level 30. He rubbed his chin regretfully.
Time to move on?
Hunting trolls alone gave him overwhelming experience for his level—only the top three guilds' elites in elite monster dungeons could match it.
But after tasting true power leveling, this pace felt sluggish.
Where next? Somewhere with monsters easy to herd with drones...
Yeong-sik pondered monsters Bae Han-seong had mentioned.
Then—
"Hm...?"
His right eye displayed drone footage. Something appeared on the camera he'd left hovering for surveillance.
Ogre!
The forest's tyrant, said to prowl troll habitats. Yeong-sik spoke urgently.
"Pack up and evacuate now."
"Huh? Why?"
"No time to explain."
Gil-su saw Yeong-sik's hardened expression and stopped drawing blood without questions.
Escape before the ogre gets here.
Yeong-sik led the retreat.
But his steps halted. The ogre was a level 70 elite. The massive gains tempted him.
Low-level summoners got huge bonus experience from high-level monsters—Yeong-sik knew this best from his troll grinds at 30.
Insane idea.
He shook off the temptation. Ogres required a five-man party of level 70s. At 45, it was suicide.
Yeong-sik calculated risks meticulously, acting only with odds in his favor. No gambling the party's wipe for short-term gain.
"Wait."
A spark ignited in his mind.
If that's possible...
His eyes sharpened. If his idea worked, the ogre wasn't impossible.
Worth trying.
He glanced at the drone—fully charged before the hunt, good for over four hours aloft.
"Everyone, up to the canyon ridge."
Yeong-sik moved uphill. Gil-su and A-ra followed, baffled.
"Wasn't something happening?"
"Something did. Ogre nearby."
"O-Ogre?"
"Th-Then shouldn't we run?!"
A-ra and Gil-su's faces stiffened.
Yeong-sik slowly shook his head. "No. Instead of running, let's try another way."
"Another way...?"
A-ra's expression hardened at the ominous tone. Yeong-sik continued casually.
"Hunt the ogre."
"Wh-What?! Ogres take five level 70 summoners! How?!"
A-ra shouted desperately. Her point was valid. The canyon's geography meant nothing—ten meters was nothing to an ogre.
"I have a good idea."
Yeong-sik observed the ogre via his right eye.
"A good idea...?"
A-ra trailed off worriedly. A thick smile crept across Yeong-sik's lips.
"You'll see."