Shelter

The horn of a car speeding past on the road outside rang ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out, echoing into the room.

I sat on the bed, looking around the surroundings.

"......"

The feeling of being stuffy. I hadn't noticed any major changes in the room, so it was just the status window finally appearing. That was all.

At first glance, the Shelter seemed to be operating based on my 6-pyeong studio apartment.

"What kind of effect does it have?"

Of course, I was expecting 'my safety'. It was the first goal after awakening... If that alone could be fulfilled, I could become a top-tier hunter. The name Shelter also fit—concept of refuge or bomb shelter.

'I suppose it's worth a little hope.'

Carrying that hope with me, I checked the detailed content of the Shelter status window.

The most striking thing was that the Shelter's level was 11.

'It seems to be scaling with my level.'

And

"Ugh... please..."

Tears welled up.

[Shield 1,100 / 1,100]

It meant a precious shield had appeared around my sweet house.

I didn't know exactly what it meant, but after a quick search in the Hunter Universe, I learned that a shield concept grants 100 HP per unit.

Without the head to calculate the numbers precisely, and knowing that thinking too much would drive me crazy, I found a monster with comparable durability.

'It can block one full-power punch from a Stone Golem.'

That was the durability at this point.

"Haaah."

That was enough to call it a success. There was no law that said I had to die.

I no longer had to worry about something flying in from outside and dying suddenly, and I had built a first line of defense to protect my studio from possible invaders.

But there was still one part I hadn't solved yet...

'What about danger from inside?'

Was I now allowed to relieve myself freely?

That was the key.

I believed that as a human being, one should be able to relieve bodily functions without worry.

But I couldn't test it.

With only 1 HP, one hit would kill me, so I couldn't try it.

'Next time.'

Honestly, even if I thought about it a little, the appearance of the 'shield' meant that, with no additional explanations added, the dominant meaning was that I had to figure things out on my own inside.

But was there no hope at all?

'Huu. No.'

The part that caught my eye was the 'Unique Function' section.

'Let me check it out.'

Just like when I gained the 'Penetration' skill upon reaching LV 11, I might be able to gain something here too.

Hope lay here.

'[Function Improvement].'

When I entered the Function Improvement menu in the Shelter, I was surprised.

'Oh!'

There were two skills I could learn.

Skills corresponding to LV 5 and LV 10.

Thump. Thump.

Since this was the Shelter's core function, I checked the skill list with a hopeful glow in my heart.

The skills for LV 5 and 10 were

【Air Purification】 and 【Temperature and Humidity Control】.

"......"

- Weeeing······

After learning the skills, a sound came from somewhere.

"Hic..."

Tears came again.

"These are... really good functions for my survival...?"

The room temperature, which had been slightly chilly, warmed up, the moisture inside the room became pleasant, and the prickly dust in the air disappeared...

***

I was the ultra-weak sniper with 1 HP.

Not to mention, my destructive power was nearly god-like, so I would grow by pouring out savage attacks on the world, live without conscience by only taking profits, and ultimately aim for survival...

No risk, high return.

No conscience, yes profit.

That was my hunter life slogan, Kim Yu-hee.

So I was very busy right now.

"Kueung······"

Because I was touching and fiddling with the only hope, the [Shelter], to achieve 'complete safety'...

For now, there were four functions I could press.

When I entered Shelter Reinforcement, there were two options.

Because the level was 11, there were 10 stat points.

Here I discovered an incredibly surprising phenomenon.

Experimentally, I invested one stat point into 'area'.

- Kugugugugung······!

"Aaaah!"

I was so startled by the sudden roar that I hid under the blanket and trembled for a long time.

After a while, when it calmed down, I looked around.

'What?'

The area between the few pieces of furniture had expanded.

My studio apartment's area had increased.

Since I didn't know anything, I roughly estimated it to be about 1 pyeong's effect.

"The world."

Was this possible?

At the very least, the idea that a building could expand was absurd.

To understand the situation, I had made a huge decision, which was

'Wait, let me check the corridor outside my room.'

I had decided to confirm whether my [Shelter] was randomly expanding and destroying the building.

I watched down the corridor through the door gap for a long time, confirmed that no one was there, then wrapped myself in the blanket like an airbag all over my body, came out into the corridor, and checked my room.

'This can't be.'

Nothing had changed on the outside.

Clearly, the wall of the neighboring room should have been smashed, my space should have taken over or the expanded room should have protruded into the corridor in a bizarre way, but from the outside, it looked exactly the same.

'Is this possible?'

My room had become a mysterious concept called [Shelter], a space that was slightly different from the world's physical laws.

"......This is amazing. I admit it."

Additionally, since I had come out, I gathered courage and tried one more experiment.

"Huuu."

I hit my room door with the butt of the practice sniper rifle hidden in my pocket!

- Kaaang!

"!!!"

After that, I returned to the room faster than anyone else.

The sound was much louder than I thought. It wasn't just hitting the door; it felt like I had hit some alien barrier, and the shockwave rang out.

After closing the door and entering my sweet-shelter (now not a studio but a Shelter) again, what I checked immediately was

[Shield 1,099 / 1,100]

'Wow. I hit it really hard, but it only lost one.'

Moreover,

Before five seconds passed, the shield returned to normal.

[Shield 1,100 / 1,100]

"Huu..."

I roughly understood. You, you bastard...

Another interesting thing I figured out was

Creak—

I opened the window and extended my hand.

Actually, I was lying when I said I extended my hand; I extended the rifle's muzzle a little.

Ziiing—

With a slightly unpleasant sensation as if passing through an invisible barrier

'Free from inside to outside,'

The barrel protruded outside the window.

There was also a feeling that a very faint blue-like thing was surrounding the studio.

From what I understood so far,

1. Free to go in and out from inside to outside.

2. From outside to inside, the shield acts.

3. The Shelter has authority over me, and

4. The space called Shelter had become a mysterious concept that defied the world's logic. It had research value.

That was enough.

Looking at the Shelter menu again,

[Agent Hiring] didn't even enter.

[Player level is too low.]

[Player level is too low.]

[Player level is too low.]

Every time ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I pressed it, this warning message appeared.

It seemed like it meant I could hire 'agents' from the Shelter, meaning summoning someone who would help with sniper activities.

'It could be the core reason I need to level up.'

I had a hunch that a good supporter who would take responsibility for my safety might come out.

Other than that, the [Function Improvement] menu.

It was a button I had pressed before.

At LV 11 now, it was only [Air Purification] and [Temperature and Humidity Control], but

Weeeing······

"......It's incredibly clean."

The funny part was that I didn't know what function ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I would get when leveling up, and it said [No permission to view].

Whether it meant to level up directly to gain the function or something else, I would have to experience it with my body in the future.

Last, [New Establishment].

I was about to press this button.

"Huuu."

How many hours had passed?

According to news that a gate was likely to open in Seoul, it seemed about 1 to 2 hours left.

'No time to hesitate. I need to quickly master my abilities.'

So when I pressed [New Establishment], two buttons appeared.

"!!!"

The fact that I could establish an additional Shelter was an amazing discovery.

'So I can have multiple Shelters in the future?'

Since the required level was still 100, it was a distant future event, but it was definitely meaningful.

I would have to plan how to utilize it specifically, but

'Well, I guess it's not too late to think after surviving to level 100?'

When I asked that self-deprecating question, my mood suddenly felt like a dog.

Still, I had one last card.

Right, the 'Training Ground.'

It meant ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I could establish additional facilities, and when I pressed it,

[Do you want to establish the Training Ground?]

A button appeared in front of me.

Attached to the bottom as a reference note was

[Establishment cost = 30,000,000G]

It cost 30 million gold.

"Damn, it's worrying."

Since I hadn't entered the [Sniper Shop] yet, I hesitated to buy urgently.

The Training Ground,

Of course, it was a place I needed.

For someone like me who had no skill in sniping itself, wasn't this the most necessary facility? This facility had to be established no matter what.

The only thing that bothered me was that I still hadn't even browsed the [Sniper Shop].

"Huu."

I stepped back for a moment, sat on the bed, and looked around my slightly expanded sweet-shelter.

'I've been racking my brain for a long time.'

To survive, I had been researching a lot in this narrow space.

My head hadn't sorted everything yet, and I had roughly reviewed the various functions?

Still, my head was throbbing.

Did the brain also have 1 HP applied?

While swallowing the rising suspicion, I recalled one grateful point.

'First of all, because there are so many golds, options have appeared.'

Indeed...

I was grateful to the organizations that sponsored me, including the Hunter Bureau.

Thanks to them sending gold out of the blue, I could have this much leeway, right?

Right away, I could sell the gold and convert it to won, solving my studio food problem,

enter the Sniper Shop and do shopping first,

and establish the Training Ground immediately without delay,

'I can't thank them immediately, but I'm really grateful.'

I hadn't forgotten and wanted to definitely repay it in some way.

Of course, if they sent more donations, I might remember it more clearly.

"Kuhm."

Mails were still coming, and there were more than ten contract requests, but the donations were only about 2 to 3 small amounts.

'Probably because there's still some ambiguity about me.'

I was definitely not a villain.

I was just moving for my survival.

Still, I hoped it would be in a helpful direction

and reaffirmed my vow to shoot only viciously with the gun.

So I pressed the [Sniper Shop].

Before establishing the Training Ground,

Because I wanted to judge whether that choice was 'the most efficient'.

"Focus."

Because it was for my survival.

Let's make the most appropriate consumption.

It was the minimum repayment for the hearts of those who gratefully sponsored me...

***

Unknown Region

Hong Maehwa

"This is the first time something like this has happened..."

World Rank 27

Korea 3rd

Rank 1 in Assassin Category

Hong Maehwa Guild Leader 'Seol' felt a mysterious sensation.

ID: Unregistered (Contract Request in Progress)······

It was rare for Hong Maehwa to be the first to send a contract.

Among them, the guild leader personally directing it was the first time, and even sent donations.

The result was no response.

"Wow······."

It could happen like this.

I didn't know how to describe it...

It was absurd, so I couldn't say anything.