The Shrine of Job Advancement (1)
‘Is it really here? The Shrine of Job Advancement?’ I was heading to the place Jin-hwan had pointed out, but the guy was not exactly trustworthy.
Whenever I saw what White Dragon did, I wondered if he was lying to fool me.
But since it’s White Dragon, I’ll believe him with that one shred of faith and head to the place he guided us to, along with Elena.
‘They seem to be growing well…’ Jin-hwan had contacted me through the slime, telling me he was leveling up nicely after encountering a decent monster pack in Daegu. Since we were still under the Christmas blessing effect, he had decided to stay there until it wore off.
Our parents were doing the same. Dad was out leveling with the kids, and Mom seemed to be enjoying the lively atmosphere. They had said they’d stay in Daegu thinking of their younger sibling, but I couldn’t shake the worry.
If only they were at the shelter, I’d feel much better. But they insisted on staying at home. Dad was strong enough that normal monsters wouldn’t be a problem, yet I still worried.
‘I’ll have to talk to them about it later.’ No matter what, worrying was worrying.
“Why is the Shrine of Job Advancement hidden away in a place like this mountain?” “I don’t know.”
We had been hiking for about thirty minutes.
This deep, remote valley.
The Shrine of Job Advancement perched on a high peak near Busan.
Why exactly at the summit?
I was climbing higher, thinking White Dragon was probably trying to trick me, when the mountain’s atmosphere suddenly changed.
‘What’s this?’
The familiar mountain from moments ago.
Yet there was something beside it.
A wall that looked quite high.
The scenery around it seemed to block anyone from approaching.
‘This is the place everyone in South Korea has been to at least once.’
‘Thinking about it, this is the military base, right?’ Yes, it was.
This familiar sight.
I had been here before as a reservist and remembered it clearly.
‘Wait, the military base?!’
I had seen it on the bulletin board.
The board had warned that dangerous things existed on the military side.
Monsters of unimaginable power lurked there.
“Surely that’s not inside?”
“No, it’s not normal here.” “Haha, right?”
If White Dragon had tried to enter that base, I would have punched him without hesitation.
What exactly was inside that place?
From a distance it looked like an ordinary military base with nothing strange about it.
According to the bulletin board, it was supposed to be hell just to look at it from nearby, yet it gave off no such vibe.
‘What is it that’s inside?’ Honestly, I was a little curious, but I didn’t take even one step inside.
If a dungeon had formed, I would be trapped and unable to escape.
That would be as good as being dead.
No matter how strong I was now, that was among humans.
Hadn’t I seen a Megalodon?
If monsters of that caliber existed here, I might not even make a sound before dying.
So I ignored the military base and kept climbing the mountain. Elena suddenly shouted that she had found something.
“Look! There’s something else over there!”
When I looked where she pointed, a temple stood where it definitely should not have been.
A temple that looked similar to those in Greek and Roman myths.
I was momentarily stunned.
“That’s what you meant?”
“Yes! That’s the Shrine of Job Advancement.”
“Really?”
It looked like the perfect place for advancement.
The thought crossed my mind that if I advanced here, I might become a priest or something even worse.
Why would that be a problem?
I had already advanced, and in some cases advancement made you look even uglier than before.
Normally that didn’t happen, but you never knew.
Honestly, my current job was already at the very top tier.
Was there any chance advancement could make it even better?
Now that I had reached the Shrine of Job Advancement, countless thoughts flooded my mind.
But other people would grow stronger through advancement, and more powerful monsters would appear.
So I had to keep up too.
That was the only way to survive in this world.
We walked a little farther and a message appeared before the temple.
-Only beings of Level 30 or higher may enter this place.
-Those who do not qualify, please return.
It was clearly a Shrine of Job Advancement designed so only those who had reached the appropriate level could enter.
That was probably why no one else knew about this place.
If you didn’t meet the level requirement, you couldn’t even approach it, so anyone who came nearby would assume it was off-limits.
Seeing that message, I took one more step forward and felt as if I had passed through an invisible blue veil.
Along with it, a new message appeared.
-Welcome to the Shrine of Job Advancement.
-You have reached the level required to advance.
-Enter the temple and meet the Goddess of Job Advancement.
A path leading into the temple was marked.
Following that path, a question suddenly arose in my mind.
‘Can White Dragon and Elena even enter here?’ White Dragon could, being a pet even at Level 1, but what about Elena? Since she was of the same race, was it possible? Or did she need to be over Level 30?
I couldn’t check anything about Elena specifically, but she naturally entered this Shrine of Job Advancement.
Walking while thinking these things, we eventually reached the door of the temple.
Creak…!
The massive doors of the temple automatically opened.
A sign inside the door invited us to enter.
Following that sign, we stepped inside and found a single beautiful person standing there.
A beauty on par with Elena’s.
No, a goddess.
Her appearance was so divine that I immediately understood why she was called a goddess.
“Welcome. We are glad you have come to the Shrine of Job Advancement.”
The goddess greeted us warmly.
At her words, my mouth fell open.
Since I had been watching Elena closely, I had developed some immunity, but if someone who hadn’t seen her had witnessed this, their heart would have stopped.
“Those who wish to advance are you, correct?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“Please come forward for a moment.”
At the goddess’s words, I stepped forward and my feet began to sparkle, soon wrapping around my entire body.
-You have reached Level 30 and are ready to advance.
-Your current job is ‘Predator’.
-There are two possible advancements for a Predator like you.
Two options appeared before me.
-Wild Predator
-Gourmet Predator
‘It still shows options related to my current job.’ Fortunately, it didn’t seem like a complete switch to an entirely different job.
‘Which one is better?’
Didn’t I always agonize over choices when playing games?
Once chosen, you usually couldn’t reverse it, so I had always gathered information and struggled to choose the better job.
But in this situation, I had no way to get information on which was better.
I would simply have to choose one based on intuition.
“Could I see any explanation related to this?” “Of course. Click on the text and you’ll get the related explanation.”
Thank goodness.
At least I didn’t have to choose blindly.
Let’s start with Wild Predator.
I clicked on Wild Predator and the related explanation began to appear.
-Wild Predator.
Those who have walked the path of predation so far. Haven’t you ever eaten monsters crudely with a fork? A Predator who preys on monsters eating them with a fork. That is not true predation. A true Predator would be one who bites and tears into monsters with raw power, wouldn’t they?
-Do you wish to choose the path of true predation, ‘Wild Predator’?
‘Hmm.’
Words full of wildness.
Honestly, with just this text, it was hard to judge exactly what the advancement would be.
I could only get a vague sense.
‘Then what about the other one?’
-Gourmet Predator.
There must have been times when you savored the taste of monsters you ate, right? Actually, monsters are surprisingly good food. With just a little seasoning and skill, there is nothing in the world more delicious than this! To truly be a Predator, you must know how to enjoy the taste, right?
-Do you wish to choose the path of true predation, ‘Gourmet Predator’?
This Gourmet Predator seemed to match some of the skills I already had.
There were cooking-related skills, and since I had grown accustomed to eating monsters, I honestly found the path of Gourmet Predator somewhat appealing.
‘Both claim to be true Predators.’ Which path was right for becoming a true Predator?
But in my heart, I had already chosen one path.
Honestly, anyone would.
If forced to choose between the two, of course it would be the path of Gourmet Predator.
Of course, some might prefer Wild Predator.
Wild Predator might be better for raw power growth.
But what if I ate terrifying monsters in the future and had to eat them without tasting them?
I could never do that.
This wasn’t a game.
I had to keep living.
Without enjoying the food, how could I live?
That was impossible.
‘Yeah. I’ve decided.’
-You have chosen the path of ‘Gourmet Predator’.
With that, a new window appeared before me.
-You have chosen the path of Gourmet Predator!
-A true Gourmet Predator must know what the most delicious monster dish in the world is.
-Ding!
[Quest Title]
📍 Location: Shrine of Job Advancement
🎁 Reward: Gourmet Predator advancement
※ Title: Path of the Gourmet Predator
※ Objective: Satisfy the Goddess of Job Advancement with the most delicious monster dish in the world.
※ Reward: Advancement to Gourmet Predator.
※ Failure: Advancement failed.
The Goddess of Job Advancement has been without delicious food for a while and is tired. Satisfy her with delicious monster dishes. Hidden rewards may exist depending on satisfaction.
The Goddess of Job Advancement has been without delicious food for a while and is tired. Satisfy her with delicious monster dishes. Hidden rewards may exist depending on satisfaction.