Levelling Up In An Exclusive Dungeon

It seemed she had been waiting at the entrance, as there were countless candy wrappers scattered beneath her feet.

Sucking on a lollipop of indeterminate number, Lucia approached Kang Jin-hyuk.

“What’s all the commotion outside?”

“Commotion?”

“Playing dumb won’t help. The magic circles you set up at your house have all been smashed.”

“When did that happen…?”

“It’s only fair to have a grasp of the situation since it would be inconvenient for you to suddenly die.”

All the alarm magic circles had been destroyed through brute force.

The fact that everything installed around the house had been shattered indicated that something serious had occurred at home.

Lucia had been anxious, worrying that Kang Jin-hyuk hadn’t entered the dungeon for quite some time after such an incident.

“Were you actually worried about me?”

“Can’t you tell?”

Kang Jin-hyuk was taken aback when Lucia answered directly to what had been half a jest.

“Uh… really?”

“Yeah, I told you. If you were to suddenly die, it would be a problem. Who would buy me candy then?”

Lucia waved a newly unwrapped candy in front of Kang Jin-hyuk’s eyes.

Seeing this, Kang Jin-hyuk let out a resigned laugh laced with a hint of relief.

“Of course.”

It was foolish to expect a girl-like sentimentality from Lucia.

Shaking his head slightly, Kang Jin-hyuk headed down to the lower levels.

His destination, of course, was the ‘Dragon’s Temple.’

On the way there, he explained to Lucia what had happened outside.

And, with a faint hope, he also requested her help, but…

“No, I’m not interested. It would be a complete bore.”

“Just as I expected.”

Lucia had no interest in the conflict arising from petty selfishness.

Still holding on to a sliver of hope, Kang Jin-hyuk felt a twinge of disappointment.

“I thought we had grown somewhat closer, but maybe it was just me.”

Perhaps she genuinely saw him only as a temporary shuttle service.

As this thought crossed his mind, an unexpected wave of gloom washed over Kang Jin-hyuk.

“What’s wrong? Why do you look so glum? Is it because I won’t help you?”

“Yeah.”

“Geez… you can’t be that stingy as a man, can you?”

After making a remark that could be seen as sexist, Lucia gave Kang Jin-hyuk’s shoulder a few light taps as if to comfort him.

“Still, I will go along with you.”

“Really?”

“Of course. If you die, I have to at least get revenge. That’s the least I can do to honor our bond.”

“…I’m extremely grateful.”

Kang Jin-hyuk took Lucia’s words lightheartedly, thinking they were a mere joke.

He didn’t pick up on the fact that that was Lucia’s way of showing her friendship in her own manner.

“Ugh…”

If Kang Jin-hyuk were to die, Lucia would never come back to the dungeon again.

She would lose all hope of returning to her original world.

Even if she were to spend the rest of her life in a world tainted with pollution, she expressed a desire to take revenge on the one who killed him.

Such words held significant implications.

“You really can’t say anything to a fool, can you?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Just take it at face value.”

With that, Lucia, still sulking, dashed ahead.

Kang Jin-hyuk was left there, bewildered.

“What’s with her all of a sudden?”

Though they had reached the entrance of the Dragon’s Temple, Lucia still wore a glum expression.

No matter how hard he tried to think about it, Kang Jin-hyuk couldn’t discern the reason, so he decided to give up.

“Whatever it is, just cheer up, will you? Should I buy you more candy?”

“Just go on in. You said you needed strength to not die.”

Luring in the Tyrant to strike down the Titan was the plan.

The most critical part of this scheme was pitting the Titan’s Kang Jun-tae against the Tyrant’s Jo Won-cheol.

Ideally, they would meet their end together, but the world hardly ever unfolds as intended.

If, by any chance, Kang Jun-tae survived, it would fall to Kang Jin-hyuk to finish the job.

He couldn’t leave Seo Sang-ho, who would awaken from his coma in two weeks, to deal with the aftermath.

“I need to be much stronger than I am now.”

Though Kang Jin-hyuk had the Alraune’s spirit, leveling up a day or two meant little.

Even doubling his strength wouldn’t bring him close to being an S-rank hunter.

Since he had already engaged in battle with S-rank hunters, he knew firsthand how exhausting it was, yet it didn’t guarantee victory.

A cornered rat will bite back; a tiger trapped in a corner would be no different.

Facing this kind of adversary with mediocre power and resolve would lead to catastrophic failure.

“What happens if you fail?”

At Lucia’s question, Kang Jin-hyuk only smiled.

“I’ll think about that when the time comes. What can I do?”

At the moment, there was no other option than to go ahead with this.

He didn’t want to dwell on what would happen if he failed.

“Somehow, it’ll work out.”

He wasn’t going to recklessly charge in without preparation.

Kang Jin-hyuk had thoroughly prepared under the given circumstances.

So even in the event of failure, he wouldn’t regret it.

Taking a deep breath to alleviate his tension, Kang Jin-hyuk clenched his fists and pounded on the temple doors.

“It’s past midnight! Open the door!”

When he first entered, the door had swung open, but now he was met with a different response.

His feet were bathed in bright light, and before he knew it, he stood in the very spot where he had once met the old man within the temple.

It wasn’t only the location.

The old man’s appearance was unchanged as he sat there waiting for him in the same chair.

“I can see anxiety etched on your face. Is there something troubling you?”

“A rather complicated matter has arisen.”

“Hmm… It seems your life isn’t the only one at stake.”

“You still possess your fortune-telling skills, I see.”

The old man stroked his beard while chuckling lightly.

“Well, being a fortune-teller is certainly entertaining during dull times.”

Ending his laughter, the old man struck the ground with his staff.

Upon hearing an explosive sound, the temple turned pitch-black as before.

“Then let me read your future.”

In that pitch-black space, only the old man’s voice rang clear.

“Today, you shall consume that spirit.”

The moment the words fell, an eerie sensation crawled around Kang Jin-hyuk’s neck.

“Damn it!”

This time, he wouldn’t just let things happen.

Thanks to his numerous resolutions, Kang Jin-hyuk swiftly dodged.

The blonde young man who had failed to decapitate him stepped back.

“Impressive.”

Although it wasn’t his first time being attacked like this, dodging such an imminent threat required exceptional talent.

“Your response to an ambush is commendable.”

“Does that mean there are more trials yet to come?”

“Your quick understanding is worth commending.”

The young man, having closed the distance again in an instant, swung his sword down vertically.

Seeing no chance to avoid it this time, Kang Jin-hyuk readied his baseball bat to block its path.

A bomb-like sound erupted as metal met wood.

Kang Jin-hyuk realized this was the first time he had heard such a sound from metal colliding together.

“Ugh…!”

Overpowered, he felt one knee slowly bending beneath him.

If he were to falter and fall, he felt certain it would be the end, so he gathered his aura into his legs.

“Hmm.”

As Kang Jin-hyuk rebalanced himself, the young man genuinely admired him.

“You have already awakened your aura at such a young age. Remarkable growth.”

“Stop bragging!”

As he concentrated aura in both fists, the young man immediately withdrew his sword and stepped back.

Kang Jin-hyuk, seizing the opportunity, prepared for a counterattack, licking his lips in anticipation.

“Quick on the uptake, huh?”

“It’s not that I’m sharp; your moves are so predictable.”

“……”

At the young man’s remark, Kang Jin-hyuk recalled his fight with Kang Jun-tae.

“Did you analyze the delivery of my aura to understand my movements?”

“You recognize your weaknesses. However, if you know them yet can’t rectify them, what does it amount to?”

That was akin to not knowing them at all.

The young man’s insight struck home.

“Damn it! This isn’t some comic where I can overcome my weaknesses in a day!”

Swiftly, Kang Jin-hyuk retrieved five small vials from his waist.

As the young man grew perplexed at Kang Jin-hyuk’s unfamiliar term, he helplessly swallowed all the contents.

The potion wasn’t merely a means of restoring MP; it also increased Kang Jin-hyuk’s maximum MP.

It was expensive, but Kang Jin-hyuk felt it was worth it.

He ignored the expenditure, solely focusing on delivering a blow to that cocky face.

“Grrraaah!”

Kang Jin-hyuk unleashed a surge of aura.

Without concentrating it merely on hands or feet, the aura with a vibrant crimson hue overflowed across his entire body.

“Have you boosted your strength with drugs? Can that truly account for your power?”

Kang Jin-hyuk could only chuckle faintly as he listened to the young man’s probing remarks.

“Of course it’s my strength! I bought the potion with my own earnings!”

The young man, with no pang of guilt in sight, erupted into laughter.

“Ha ha ha! That’s absolutely right!”

Gripping the sword tightly with both hands, the young man bent his knees and lowered his body slightly to assume a stance.

“Well then, I’ll get serious now, so prepare yourself.”

In the blink of an eye, the young man lunged forward.

Kang Jin-hyuk didn’t panic; he swung his bat with full force.

However, even before the sword touched him, it had already deflected the baseball bat.

“This trial is about continuous attacks.”

Before Kang Jin-hyuk could recover from the recoil of the deflected baseball bat, the young man’s sword had already targeted Kang Jin-hyuk’s neck.

There were no options left for evasion; every route led to either blocking or counterattacking.

With two choices effectively closed, Kang Jin-hyuk contemplated using the recoil to his advantage.

Spinning in place while maintaining the momentum of the baseball bat, he leveraged its rebound to strike at the young man’s sword.

The impromptu improvisation was impressive enough to earn the young man’s praise.

“Impressive.”

“Who do you think I’m trying to impress?!”

Kang Jin-hyuk completed another turn, preparing to swing the bat towards the young man’s temple.

However, the young man easily blocked the now-faster swing with his bare hands, not even the sword.

“Just what sort of monster are you?”

“The term “monster” is a bit excessive, don’t you think?”

With a wry smile, the young man marveled at the baseball bat’s feel as it came to rest in his hands.

“Orichalcum? Isn’t that a more fitting weapon for someone as small as you?”

“Are you saying I’m weaker than aluminum?!”

Kang Jin-hyuk seized the opportunity and activated the bat’s embedded enchantment skill.

A jolt of electricity, which even S-rank hunter Kang Jun-tae struggled to endure, surged up the young man’s hand and enveloped his body.

After a flash of blinding light, Kang Jin-hyuk anticipated the young man collapsing to the ground in a charred heap.

“Uh… this is a bit uncomfortable.”

Kang Jin-hyuk couldn’t shut his mouth at the sight of the young man merely squinting in mild discomfort.

He never expected to elicit such a reaction from someone else.