Singularity (7)

I extracted the dead sea dragons from the Han River, along with the 6th Grade Monster my party and I had just killed.

…Hmm.

I stared at the system messages floating before my eyes and the monster cores resting in my hand, lost in thought.

Can these monster cores only be obtained from 7th Grade Monsters and above?

There was the Sea Dragon Core I'd gotten from the stomach wall of the Sea Commander after Kim Dokja and I killed it. The Demon-type Core of the Darkness Keeper I'd hunted in the Ground Rat's treasure vault. The 5th Grade Fire Dragon Core of Igniri that I'd taken at Anguk Station. And finally, the 5th Grade Insect King Core I'd extracted from Antinus.

All those cores, and the ones I'd just pulled from the sea dragons called Sea Monsters, shared a single common trait.

Every last one of them had come from creatures ranked 7th Grade or higher.

…But they don't always drop.

Some did, some didn't. Of the 6th Grade monsters my party had hunted just a moment ago, only one had yielded a core. And the White Mad Dog—a 7th Grade Monster we'd taken down earlier—hadn't dropped a core at all.

"Well, I'm just grateful for the ones that do show up."

Clatter!

The moment I forged kunai from the bones of the sea dragon called Sea Serpent, a full thirty of them materialized at once. Probably because the bones themselves were so massive.

"Marking."

Tomorrow, Yoo Joonghyuk would take Lee Hyunsung, Lee Jihye, and Lee Seolhwa west to hunt the Disaster of Ice.

I'd already handed Lee Seolhwa a beacon marked with Hiraishin no Jutsu, but my current teleportation range only covered about one district. That wasn't nearly enough to reach the western region where Yoo Joonghyuk's party would be.

The original Hiraishin no Jutsu had no distance limit. Mine, however, was restricted by its level, which meant my travel range was capped. To loosen that restriction even a little, I needed to raise the skill's level.

I wound the wind of Path of Wind around the kunai resting on my palm and lifted it into the air. Then I sent it flying toward the far bank.

Whoosh!

Boosted by the wind, the kunai streaked across the water at high speed. Watching it go, I muttered,

"Doing this always makes me feel like I've become a telekinetic."

Back when I was a student, the telekinetics in comics, novels, and anime had looked so cool. This wasn't quite the same thing—but performing something so similar to telekinesis left me with a strangely mixed feeling.

A moment later, once ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I confirmed the kunai had landed safely on the opposite shore, I opened my mouth to activate the skill.

"Hiraishin no Jutsu."

The moment I activated it, my vision twisted and the space around me began to warp. In the blink of an eye, I was standing on the far bank.

Every time I used Hiraishin no Jutsu, the same thought crossed my mind: convenient as hell, but the sensation was always a little off. Having your field of view snap and your footing change without warning just felt weird.

Do people with spatial movement skills, items, or stigmas feel the same way?

Anyway, having safely crossed the bridge, I opened the door to My Room and called out,

"I'm on the other side."

A rustling sound came from inside My Room, and then the whole party tumbled out one after another.

"Thanks, Jinwoo. We got across so much faster because of you."

Kim Dokja, the first one out, offered me a small smile. I waved a hand to say it was nothing.

"Dokja."

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna head out for a bit."

"What? Where are you going?"

Her eyes twitched faintly at the corners. Looking at her, I continued,

"I need to train some skills and get a better handle on controlling the power of my holy relic. I'll be back by evening."

Kim Dokja stared at my face for several seconds. Then she let out a quiet sigh and nodded as if she understood.

"Alright. See you this evening, then. Thanks."

With that, I activated Flight Maneuver and left the party behind. As I gained altitude, I got the sense that the people below were looking up and saying something, but this wasn't the time to worry about it.

I left them and flew toward Dongdaemun-gu.

I glanced at Secretive Plotter's indirect message floating in front of me and spoke.

"I'm heading to Dongdaemun-gu to hunt some monsters. Like I said, skill grinding and learning to control the holy relic's power."

And picking up some coins on the side.

"The method I'm about to use is pretty dangerous."

I was planning to use the same item I'd employed before for mass monster slaughter, so I needed some distance from my allies. If something went wrong, they could get caught in the crossfire.

I didn't answer the Constellations any further. Quietly, I pulled the Horn of Provocation out of My Room.

"This isn't a consumable item. I can keep using it until I lose it or it breaks."

And don't worry. This time I won't collapse any buildings—I'm fighting them head-on.

The Constellations who heard me started making a fuss.

I activated Flight Maneuver and spent a leisurely few dozen minutes soaring through the sky until I reached Dongdaemun-gu. After scanning the area with Clairvoyance, it seemed there were no other wanderers nearby.

"Hmm. Without a megaphone, how far does the provocation range go?"

The only way to know for sure was to try it.

I brought the Horn of Provocation to my lips and blew.

Boooooooo—!!

The tone that poured from the horn rode the surrounding air currents and spread outward. Before long, I heard the sound of a great many somethings charging toward me from the distance, accompanied by savage howls.

Grrrk…! Kiiik… kiiik…!

Gwaaaah…! King…! King…!

Hearing those sounds, I pulled out Gleipnir and Samryunhwan for the first time in a while.

If someone watching me right now asked why I was going this far, I'd answer like this:

Real combat is the best teacher.

Beyond that, there were four reasons I was doing this.

First: to max out my skill levels.

Second: to farm coins.

Third: to build real combat experience.

And fourth—most importantly—to avoid hindering my companions' growth.

That last reason mattered most. Earlier, my party had asked me to help them cross the Han River. Because of that, they'd missed the group of wanderers they were originally supposed to meet. And thanks to my presence, my power, and the sheer variety of my skills, they were starting to lean on me for the hard stuff.

That wouldn't do. This story wasn't one that could be resolved just by me getting stronger alone.

Thinking about how much they'll have to struggle is a little painful… but this is for their own good.

I snapped out of my thoughts just as the monster horde came into view, practically on top of me.

The usual Ground Rats, Grolls, wolf-type monsters, Werewolves, White Mad Dogs, Blue Lizardmen—plus ghost-types, horses, tentacles, rhinos, and giant cockroaches.

…Wait. Giant cockroaches?

For a second I thought I'd misseen it and rolled my eyes over the scene again. Nope. I hadn't. Giant cockroaches were charging straight at me. Multiple of them.

Judging by that presence and bulk… at least 7th Grade, maybe 6th?

Pretty high rank for a damn cockroach. I started charging mana into Samryunhwan.

Ziiing—!

As I poured mana in, the red gem set in the center of Samryunhwan began to glow brightly, radiating a crimson aurora.

"Kill."

The instant the word left my mouth, circular blades of red mana launched from Samryunhwan toward the monster horde.

Shraaak—!

The first Ground Rat the blade touched was split clean in two like a block of tofu. Then the Groll behind it, then the Ground Rat behind that—the blade kept cutting through monsters until its mana ran dry.

But eventually, having spent most of its power, the circular blade shattered to pieces against the thick carapace of a giant cockroach.

Kiiiiiik…!

Finding its sturdy shell unharmed even by the circular blade, the giant cockroach let out a cry that almost sounded like a taunt.

I looked at it with a flat expression.

"Whether a cockroach has the intelligence to provoke a person is another question entirely."

Ziiing—!

I poured mana into Samryunhwan on a completely different scale from the first shot. No—I dumped nearly ninety percent of everything I had into it.

The red gem that served as Samryunhwan's core began to tremble violently.

Clink!

I topped off the shortfall with intermediate mana recovery potions from the Dokkaebi Bag, then fixed my gaze on the monsters staring at me in a daze and continued,

"Until now I've been injecting mana into Samryunhwan, firing, injecting, firing, over and over. But something occurred to me. What if—just hypothetically…"

What if I dumped almost all my mana into it and made it fire until every last drop was gone? Wouldn't that be basically a machine gun?

A cold smile spread across my face as I gave the order.

"Samryunhwan. Pour it out until your mana is completely empty. Annihilate every monster in front of you."

Shraaak—! Shraaak—! Shraaak—! Shraaak—! Shraaak—! Shraaak—!

At my command, countless circular blades of mana fired from Samryunhwan toward the monsters—too many to count.

Watching them fly, I called out one more name.

"King of Elation. Get to work. Play however you like."

The moment the words left my mouth, a red clown mask appeared above my head.

Shrashrashrashrashra———!!

Thanks to that insane attribute of mine, Samryunhwan's circular blades took on every color of the rainbow as they tore into the monsters.

Kuaaargh…! Kiiik…! Kik…!

Kiiiiiik…! Kuoook…!

Monsters struck by the color-shifting blades died in every way imaginable.

Some had their severed bodies burst into flame. Others froze solid and died. Some were purified by sacred light. Others drowned in darkness. Bodies were cleanly bisected by razor-compressed wind, fried by lightning, blown to pieces by explosions, and finally melted away by blades of deadly poison.

I watched the monsters die miserably with cold eyes. Or more precisely, I glared at the giant cockroaches being cut down by blades of every attribute.

"Fuck… of all bugs, I hate cockroaches, bees, and mosquitoes the most."

You want me to fight those things in melee? Hell no.

I'd originally planned to have Samryunhwan support while I went in close with Gleipnir for the first time in a while. But watching those giant cockroaches get fried by lightning blades and melt under poison blades right in front of me changed my mind.

Of the three insects I hated most, the ugliest one was not something I felt like getting up close and personal with.

I'd worked so hard not to show it whenever Lee Gilyoung controlled cockroaches… but Lee Gilyoung wasn't here right now, so there was no reason to hold ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠back. I poured on the attacks with the full intention of driving those giant cockroaches to extinction.

A short while later, the first wave of monsters was completely dead.

"Hmm… so the range of the Horn of Provocation without a megaphone is roughly two kilometers?"

Looking at the smaller horde compared to when I'd used the area-exclusive megaphone, I wore a lukewarm expression.

I glanced at the system message, then bought another intermediate mana recovery potion from the Dokkaebi Bag.

Gulp! Gulp!

Clink!

"Hooo…"

I wiped the potion that had dribbled from the corner of my mouth with my sleeve and activated Flight Maneuver again. Every monster within the two-kilometer radius of where I stood had been cleared, so I needed to relocate and use the Horn of Provocation again.

"Today I'm properly earning the titles of Whale Spender and Monster Slaughterer."

With that, I climbed higher and moved to a new position. Then I blew the Horn of Provocation once more.

Boooooo—!

I watched another horde of monsters come charging in. Thankfully, there were no giant cockroaches this time. I breathed a sigh of relief, stowed Samryunhwan in My Room, and gripped Barisada and Gleipnir for close combat.

Shing.

Clatter.

"Marking."

After marking the chain tip of Gleipnir with Hiraishin, I poured mana into it.

"Extend, Gleipnir."

Clatterrrrrr—!

Watching the chain rapidly lengthen as mana flowed into it, I immediately launched it toward the monster horde.

Bang—!!

Like a fencing thrust, Gleipnir shot straight toward the monsters. It was so fast that a sonic boom erupted in its wake a beat later.

The moment Gleipnir reached the foremost monster, I spoke.

"Hiraishin no Jutsu."

Activating Hiraishin no Jutsu and watching the skill level rise felt good, but I tore my eyes away from the system messages for now.

Because a Groll's face was right in front of my nose.

Slash!

I took the head off the Groll that had frozen in shock at the sight of me with Barisada. Then I stomped on its body, jumped, and landed right in the middle of the monster pack.

I glared at the monsters staring blankly at the human who'd just dropped into their midst and taunted them.

"What are you looking at? Never seen a human charge first before?"

Kwaaaah!

From behind, a Groll roared and charged, trying to impale me on the horn growing from its forehead. I watched it calmly and activated Acceleration.

The moment Acceleration activated, the monsters' movements turned sluggish, as if time itself had slowed. I sprinted toward the charging Groll and took its head off in a single stroke. Then, in the same motion, I severed the necks of the Ground Rat and White Mad Dog standing dazed behind it.

Slash! Shhk! Slash!

Heads hit the ground, and blood fountains erupted from the headless bodies. The spray splashed across the surrounding monsters and me, and that became the signal—every monster charged at once.

Kraaaah! Guoooooh! Keng! Keng!

Feeling the murderous, frenzied gazes of monsters lunging to bite me, tear me apart, and devour me, I slowly swung Barisada and Gleipnir toward them.

Clatter! Slash!

Even cutting them down one by one at a deliberate pace, their numbers barely seemed to shrink. Without skills active, a plain sword and Gleipnir alone couldn't thin the herd fast enough.

But I kept swinging without skills. For the skill I was trying to level, it was unavoidable.

Finally leveled up.

Thud!

I cut down an Insect King of the same species as the giant mantis Lee Gilyoung had tamed, then shook the insect slime off my blade.

Kiiik! Kwaaang!

I'd killed dozens of monsters over ten minutes, and dozens more were still left. I activated a skill.

"White Pure Demonic Energy."

The moment I activated it, a pale blue-white radiance shimmered along Barisada and Gleipnir, and pure white-blue energy began to flow.

Clatterrrr!

I swung Gleipnir at the remaining monsters. Bodies that touched the chain split cleanly in two as if cut by a blade.

Slash! Slash! Slash!

Kieeek…!! Keng, keng…!!

Crunch!

I stomped the head of a monster that had unluckily lost only its limbs and was still howling in agony, crushing it, then charged the rest of the remaining pack.

"One."

Shraaak!

"Two."

Clatter!

"Three, four, five."

Shhk!

I kept hunting what was left. With every kill, corpses piled higher on the ground, their thick blood and entrails fouling the earth.

As a result, my own body ended up soaked in monster blood.

I'd killed a lot of monsters, but only scraped together 9,700 coins. Luck wasn't on my side this round.

But there was no time to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be disappointed, no time to rest.

"Marking."

Having finally slaughtered the second monster horde, I marked a kunai so I could move on and massacre the next group.

I tensed my arm and wrist, taking a throwing stance aimed at empty air.

Boost combat power with Blackening to increase throwing force.

Amplify that power further with Amplification so it flies even farther.

Control the surrounding atmosphere with Path of Wind, carving a path so the kunai can travel even farther.

Finally, supplement the throwing speed with Acceleration. Then, wringing every last drop of strength from my body, I hurled the kunai into empty air.

Bang—!!

Ignoring the ambient wind currents, the kunai shot into the empty sky and flew far, far away.

"Dokkaebi Bag. Buy intermediate stamina and mana potions."

Watching the kunai that had flown so far, I downed the potions I'd bought from the Dokkaebi Bag.

I'd promised to rejoin the party by evening, so time was short. More precisely, if I wanted to link up with Yoo Joonghyuk's party for tomorrow's raid on the western Disaster and crash their party, I needed to level Hiraishin and my other skills as fast as possible.

"Hiraishin no Jutsu."

And so I activated the skill again, ready to hunt the next monster horde.

"Hah… hah… hah…"

Slash!

Shlick!

I pulled my sword free from the skull of a 6th Grade Monster, and blood trickled from the small hole carved into its head.

Making no effort to hide my exhaustion, I gasped for air and looked up at the sky. Just before evening, the heavens were painted with sunset.

I glanced over the Constellations' indirect messages, then pulled a towel from My Room and wiped my face.

Squelch.

The towel came away soaked in bright red blood. After roughly scrubbing my face, I tossed the blood-drenched towel carelessly onto the ground.

Ki… kiiiik…

That distinctive insect sound made me turn my head toward its source.

There lay a giant cockroach—every leg severed, head and body separated—still twitching, still somehow alive.

Click.

I immediately drew my holy relic, Der Freischütz, poured mana into it, and gifted the thing a rain of bullets.

Tududududududu—!!

Like a machine gun, a storm of mana bullets poured from Der Freischütz. The creature's head and body finally stopped moving.

I've gotten plenty of practice with Der Freischütz, farmed a ton of coins, and raised a lot of skill levels—mission accomplished.

I rolled my eyes over the message log.

Half a day of continuous combat against monsters, constantly using skills—and the ones with package effects had leveled at blistering speed.

Except for Hiraishin no Jutsu and Der Freischütz, that is.

Still, I raised them a lot. That's the power of packages for you.

Every package I'd bought last time came with proficiency and experience boosts for skill levels. They were clearly worth the money—or rather, the coins. Skills across the board had climbed remarkably fast.

After a moment of reflection and a short breather, my stamina recovered somewhat. Gazing at the sunset spread across the sky, I spoke.

"Time to head back."