Chapter 7
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: Otaku Hunter Takes Defense Seriously
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How long has it been?
One hour before encountering the goblin pack.
I had barely managed to evade the school bullies and reach the dungeon. I used the Golden Key to teleport inside.
“Haa. Haa. That was close. I almost got caught.”
I carefully tucked the Golden Key into my pocket. It smoothly vanished, and a message appeared: Golden Key has been stored in Inventory.
“Inventory... What’s the principle behind this? Like Doraemon’s 4D pocket?”
I had discovered the Inventory function last night at home while pondering how to store the Golden Key.
When you put an item into Inventory, the real-world object disappears, and it gets stored in this virtual storage space called Inventory.
I didn’t know if all Awakeners had this ability or if it was exclusive to Dungeon Masters like me.
But for someone like me who absolutely couldn’t let anyone find out about the Golden Key, it was an essential power.
“Inventory.”
I opened the Inventory window. There were three slots, matching my level.
Inside were the Golden Key, my smartphone, and my wallet. I’d stashed my valuables there in advance, just in case the bullies tried to take them.
“Thanks to that, I dodged the crisis... but what if they come at me in a group again?”
Beating Kim Cheol-min was great, but I still had plenty of shortcomings.
For starters, I’d run from the bullies, and midway through my escape, my stamina gave out, leaving me gasping for breath.
Honestly, right now, I was only a bit stronger than a regular person.
‘This won’t do.’
If I were the old me, I probably would’ve made excuses and ignored the problem.
I’d have holed up in my room, watching anime.
But things were different now. I had changed. I wasn’t that old me anymore.
Now I knew. I had potential. If I put in the effort, I could get stronger.
“Those who don’t believe in themselves... aren’t worth the effort.”
I nodded, reciting Guy Sensei’s famous line. Yeah. I’d get stronger. Strong enough that no one could bully me.
To do that, I needed to level up first. And to level up, obviously...
“I need to hunt monsters. Moemoe-kyun!”
“Yes, Master.”
Moemoe-kyun emerged smoothly from the floor and knelt down.
“Did you fare well?”
“Yes. Aside from there being no intruders overnight, everything was fine.”
“Hm? Why’s that a problem? No intruders sounds good, right?”
“Of course, if an overwhelming enemy invaded, that would be trouble. But intruders of moderate strength are actually helpful. We can defeat them and absorb their mana.”
“Absorb mana?”
“Yes. Accumulating mana like that makes us stronger over time.”
In simple terms, mana was like experience points, and filling up your EXP led to leveling up. It was interesting, but right now, there was a more pressing issue.
“Anyway, no intruders overnight?”
“Yes, Master. It was completely quiet.”
“No lost goblins or slimes wandering in?”
“No. It seems because we used up all the mana. The Dungeon Crystal is only emitting a faint trace of mana now, unlike before.”
I had used up all the mana summoning Moemoe-kyun and Goblin A as minions and learning skills.
Back then, I’d squeezed every last drop to block intruders, but now that I had, there were too few coming in, which was a problem.
‘What to do? I was planning to gang up on any goblin that wandered in.’
Waiting inside the dungeon like this was pointless.
‘In the end, to hunt monsters, I have to go outside... but is that the right choice?’
Unlike the dungeon, the outside world was vast, and you never knew what monsters lurked where.
Just yesterday, I’d run into goblins unexpectedly and nearly gotten in big trouble.
‘Wait... looking back, the outcome wasn’t bad, right? I leveled up and got a goblin minion. Plus, now I’ve boosted my stats and have two minions, so one goblin should be easy. Maybe even two?’
Okay. Decision made.
“Everyone, grab your tools!”
“Yes, Master!”
“Kruk!”
* * *
“No, three is too much, isn’t it?”
And now, I was facing three goblins in the forest.
Honestly, up to two was within my calculations. While Goblin A tied one down, Moemoe-kyun and I would team up on the other.
But all those plans fell apart. There were three enemies. Even if Goblin A handled one one-on-one and Moemoe-kyun restrained another, one would be left over.
Meaning I’d have to face a goblin one-on-one. Bare-handed.
Meanwhile, the goblin held a dagger. It was rusted and missing chips here and there, but it was still a bladed weapon.
The positive side? The blade had a bluish tint. It was a bronze dagger, heavily oxidized over a long time.
‘In terms of durability, this stone and the bronze dagger aren’t much different.’
I picked up a stone and assumed a stance. It was a pathetic excuse for a weapon—just an ordinary rock—but better than bare fists.
Still, I was at a disadvantage. Range, for one. They had a 20cm dagger; I had something like a primitive hand-axe.
‘Should I throw it instead?’
I considered it briefly, but throwing from afar would lack accuracy. The greater the distance, the higher the chance the goblin dodged.
Closing in to throw was too risky. If I missed, I’d be stuck in close quarters bare-handed.
‘If only Moemoe-kyun could cast Illusion on it, I could take it down easily...’
That’s when it hit me.
‘Wait, I can use Illusion too, right? And I’m pretty good at it.’
Of course, there was a chance of failure. A high one. This would be my first time using it in real combat. But I had to try something.
‘Not trying means zero percent chance!’
I immediately activated Illusion, targeting the goblin and pondering what vision to show it.
Something vivid and familiar would be easier to make convincing. A character popped into mind.
“My sword is yours.”
Meister Lee appeared. The one from Rollta 2. I’d played over a thousand games with him.
My tier was still Bronze, but my mastery and love for the champ were unmatched.
‘Wait, with my improved dynamic vision and reflexes, maybe I’ll get better at the game too? Oh! Ranked after this. Nice! All those Bronzes are dead. Silver incoming!’
While I got lost in thought, the goblin was swinging its dagger furiously at Meister Lee.
But each time, Meister Lee dodged with afterimage-speed movements.
‘Good. If I attack now...’
Like last time, I considered circling behind to smash its head, but then another idea struck.
Was this optimal? Could I use Illusion more effectively? Like luring it toward the other goblins...
‘If I play it right, I could make them fight each other?’
I instantly shifted Meister Lee’s illusion toward the other goblin—the one flailing at Moemoe-kyun’s illusion in midair.
“Master?”
“Let’s use Illusion to make them fight each other.”
“Ah! Understood, Master!”
Moemoe-kyun caught on and responded. We cast Illusions on the goblins, making them perceive each other as enemies, and they actually started fighting.
“Kieak!”
“Krurruk!”
After endless misses, a solid hit landed, and they went berserk, stabbing with blades and biting with teeth in a total frenzy.
“Krack...”
One eventually won, but the victor was gravely wounded, gasping for breath.
It was so exhausted that when I approached with a rock, it couldn’t even twitch a finger. Easy pickings.
Thwack!
[Level Up!]
[Cha In-hyeok. Lv 4. (3.0%)] [Mana 1/4]
[Strength 12, Agility 12, Vitality 7, Intelligence 20]
[Unallocated Stat Points: 8]
After killing all three goblins, the level-up message chimed.
I allocated the new points to shore up my lacking Vitality first, then split the rest between Strength and Agility.
[Cha In-hyeok. Lv 4. (3.0%)] [Mana 1/4]
[Strength 14, Agility 14, Vitality 11, Intelligence 20]
“Hmm. How strong does this make me? Think I could take on the bullies now?”
As I tilted my head, Moemoe-kyun approached in admiration.
“Truly impressive, Master. Using Illusion to make them fight each other—what a devious tactic.”
“That’s a compliment, right?”
“Of course. In the end, no one got hurt, and we took down three goblins. Thanks to you, I leveled up, and so did Goblin A.”
“Kruk!”
The constant praise made my shoulders rise involuntarily.
It was a tactic I recalled from Romance of the Three Kingdoms games, toying with Zhang Fei or Lu Bu with schemes. I hadn’t expected it to work this well.
“By the way, you both leveled up? Let me see.”
I opened the management window, revealing Moemoe-kyun and Goblin A’s stats.
[Moemoe Kyun. Lv 2.] [Succubus(★)]
[Strength 0, Agility 0, Vitality 0, Intelligence 16]
[Goblin A. Lv 2.] [Goblin(★)]
[Strength 8, Agility 12, Vitality 6, Intelligence 1]
Moemoe-kyun’s Intelligence rose by 1, and Goblin A’s Agility went up by 1 to 12. Seemed like they gained points in their specialties.
“Level 1 gives one stat point... Growth isn’t huge, huh? Because they’re 1-star?”
“I’m sorry for being so pathetic, Master.”
“Kiiing.”
I muttered in slight disappointment, and they overheard, slumping over with drooping ears beside me.
Surprisingly, it was kinda cute. Moemoe-kyun, sure, but a goblin too? Unexpected.
‘I really am a potential addict... no, wait!’
If anything, it was like the mindset of people raising fierce-looking pit bull terriers.
They didn’t look cute at all, but their actions revealed some moe hidden beneath the rough exterior.
Anyway, that wasn’t the point now. I immediately rebutted Moemoe-kyun.
“I didn’t say you were pathetic! And so what if you are? Honestly, I’m still pretty pathetic myself. I just barely got my first decent weapon.”
I picked up the bronze dagger dropped by the dead goblin and grinned. Feeling better, Moemoe-kyun and Goblin A grinned back.
“Haha. How long has it been since someone smiled at me?”
“Master... what kind of life have you been living?”
“Quiet. Don’t ruin my moment.”
I brushed off Moemoe-kyun’s jab and sank back into emotion. Yeah. How long had it been?
It felt so unfamiliar after so long. Excluding Dad, O Deok-hun was the only one I could really open up to. Even he didn’t smile much, thanks to the bullies.
It’d been ages since I laughed freely with friends. Sure, they were monsters, which was ironic, but it didn’t feel bad.
What was it? A bond like comrades who’d shared life and death?
As we burst into laughter, two system messages popped up in succession.
[Acquired new equipment.]
[You can acquire a new skill.]