Levelling Up In An Exclusive Dungeon

Chapter 44

After securing the elixir, Kang Jin-hyuk took out the remaining scrolls from his inventory and attached them to the floor one by one.

He attached them in a straight line all the way to the exit so that a chain reaction could occur properly. A considerable number of scrolls were used.

“Just how many scrolls am I using today?”

Including the ones he gave to Jeong Dae-yoon, he had used up 40 scrolls, each costing 150,000 won.

It was painful to see over 5 million won disappear. However, Kang Jin-hyuk obtained something precious in return, something that couldn’t be bought with money.

Kang Jin-hyuk swallowed his regret, thinking he was sacrificing a cow for the sake of the generation.

After setting a separate activation time for the last scroll.

Kang Jin-hyuk hurriedly exited.

When he had reached a certain distance, a small earthquake occurred along with the sound of an explosion from underground.

“Yikes.”

For this level of shock to leak out from the basement surrounded by thick walls.

It was clear that the facilities there had turned to dust along with the bodies of their creators.

“Now that Alraune is dealt with, there will be no more elixirs.”

To create the elixir, honey and pollen from Alraune’s flower were essential.

Moreover, according to Lucia, Alraune only bloomed once every five years.

If they missed this opportunity, it would be as if Tyrant had no future.

Because they wouldn’t have the chance to find a new Alraune and raise it.

Kang Jin-hyuk ran to the location Jeong Dae-yoon had told him about and found Alraune curled up, its body covered with leaves.

Sensing his presence, Alraune slightly raised its head and looked in the direction of the sound.

Alraune, who had the appearance of a young woman, revealed its true monstrous form the moment it spotted Kang Jin-hyuk.

“Shaaaaa!”

Numerous vines that shot out from its head, which split left and right, rushed towards Kang Jin-hyuk’s limbs.

Despite the situation where vines capable of piercing even steel armor were attacking from all directions, Kang Jin-hyuk did not lose his composure.

Kang Jin-hyuk aimed his bat at Alraune, and the image he conjured in his mind was that of lightning.

Crackle!

The lightning, flashing with a blue light, stretched out and instantly turned Alraune’s vines into ashes.

“Shhh?!”

Alraune showed signs of panic when its most trusted weapon was burned by lightning.

Until now, the only humans Alraune had encountered were either friendly or those offered as sacrifices.

Had there been another human who approached it with such clear hostility?

Alraune suddenly remembered Jeong Dae-yoon who had tried to burn it.

“Shhhhhhh!!”

Thinking it could just call other humans to stop him like that time, Alraune let out a loud cry.

But now, no matter how much it screamed, no one came to Alraune’s aid.

While it was wasting time with useless actions, Kang Jin-hyuk closed the distance.

“Whatever trick you’re trying to pull, you’d better give up.”

The moment he was within range, Kang Jin-hyuk dropped the bat he had raised above his head vertically.

Alraune tried to stop the falling bat by piling up layers of vines.

However, it showed a durability no better than cardboard against the baseball bat wrapped in a red aura.

In the end, Alraune, with more than half of its body crushed along with the vines, screamed a terrible scream.

“Kyaaaaaak!!!”

Kang Jin-hyuk’s face automatically frowned at the splitting scream.

The way it screamed like a human despite being a flower that fed on humans was utterly disgusting.

Kang Jin-hyuk swung his baseball bat while simultaneously emitting lightning to stop Alraune from screaming any further.

There was no way Alraune, who had grown up gracefully without ever hunting, could withstand being crushed and burned by lightning.

Alraune, burning black, went limp after a small moan.

“…….”

Kang Jin-hyuk discovered something shining from Alraune’s corpse.

『You have obtained a material item.』

The item Kang Jin-hyuk picked up was a metallic object about the size of a handball.

Even after checking the information through appraisal, all the information was displayed as ‘???’, making it impossible to identify.

“Looks like I need a more professional appraisal skill.”

Among material items, there were cases where information couldn’t be confirmed with just ordinary appraisal skills.

To identify these items, blacksmiths, alchemists, or other individuals with production-specialized professions were needed.

Kang Jin-hyuk thought it would be better to entrust it to a dwarf since it looked like a metal material from the outside.

“It’s a good thing, I need a gift for the old man anyway.”

After securing the item and putting it in his inventory, Kang Jin-hyuk turned his gaze to the empty air.

At first glance, it seemed like everything was over.

But Kang Jin-hyuk still didn’t let his guard down.

This was because the ‘Presence Detection’ ability enchanted onto his baseball bat by the dwarf warned him of a hidden presence.

Pointing the end of the bat in the direction his gaze was drawn to, Kang Jin-hyuk threatened.

“If you don’t want to be roasted like this monster, you’d better come out slowly.”

To others, it would only look like he was trembling alone.

But there was definitely someone in the place Kang Jin-hyuk was looking at.

“Tsk.”

Clicking his tongue lightly, Yoon Song-ho revealed himself, removing his stealth skill and his face covered with a black mask.

The person who had been hiding with the stealth skill until Kang Jin-hyuk caught Alraune.

His identity was the assassin who had attacked Kang Jin-hyuk in front of his house.

“When did you notice?”

“Since you followed me through the barrier.”

“Then it seems it wasn’t a coincidence that I made eye contact with that archer girl back then.”

Yoon Song-ho only now realized that Lucia’s inaction had been intentional.

But it didn’t matter.

He had intended to reveal himself now anyway.

No matter what Kang Jin-hyuk’s intentions were, if he took his life now, it would all be irrelevant.

“I wanted to kill you before you noticed, but it can’t be helped.”

Yoon Song-ho continued, saying that only the process had changed slightly, but the result would be the same.

“You’ve secured the elixir and eliminated Alraune, so you’re no longer useful.”

“Securing the elixir? I’m keeping it safe.”

“It’ll be mine if I kill you, so it’s the same thing.”

“That’s quite the gangster logic.”

Yoon Song-ho didn’t make any move until Kang Jin-hyuk took his stance.

It was unexpected that he had noticed the stealth, but for an assassin, this was just a minor incident.

‘He’s not an ordinary C-rank Hunter, but…….’

Yoon Song-ho didn’t forget the actions Kang Jin-hyuk had shown in front of his house.

Despite having a cleric as his profession, which wasn’t strong in combat, Kang Jin-hyuk’s actions were surprisingly quick and threatening.

‘Still, a flea is just a flea.’

Among the Hunters Yoon Song-ho had killed so far, there were those who possessed exceptional skills that didn’t match their rank, just like Kang Jin-hyuk.

Those guys were only a pain in the neck at the beginning.

The moment their true colors were revealed, they became no different from the others.

Yoon Song-ho, determined to make Kang Jin-hyuk feel the difference in experience, secretly prepared a move.

“I’m different from the guys you’ve fought so far.”

“Ah, yes, yes. I’m sure you are.”

Yoon Song-ho felt a bit irritated when Kang Jin-hyuk dismissed it as nonsense, even pretending to pick his ear.

“What are you so cocky about when you’re not even with that damn archer?”

“Find out for yourself.”

Kang Jin-hyuk beckoned with his finger, provoking the assassin’s attack.

It was a cliché provocation, but it was quite effective.

“……If you want to die that badly, I’ll grant your wish.”

Yoon Song-ho’s lighthearted attitude, which until just a moment ago had been convinced of his victory, changed 180 degrees.

His gaze, scanning Kang Jin-hyuk with cold eyes, was like a snake targeting its prey.

Yoon Song-ho instantly vanished, hiding his fangs, ready to bite and kill his opponent, in both hands.

Kang Jin-hyuk immediately realized that Yoon Song-ho’s disappearance from his sight wasn’t due to a stealth skill.

The violent dust rising from where Yoon Song-ho had just been standing.

It was proof that Yoon Song-ho had moved at a speed his eyes couldn’t follow.

His approach of quickly moving while aiming for blind spots created an illusion of disappearing from the opponent’s perspective.

‘He’s worthy of his boasting.’

If it weren’t for the Presence Detection ability, Kang Jin-hyuk would have been beheaded like countless other Hunters.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

Kang Jin-hyuk swung his baseball bat towards Yoon Song-ho, who was aiming for his side.

Sparks flew in all directions as the bat, drawing a half-moon horizontally, collided with Yoon Song-ho’s dagger.

“Ugh!”

Yoon Song-ho, pushed back by the force, gave up his approach and jumped back to create distance.

“This can’t be happening……!”

Yoon Song-ho was surprised not only because Kang Jin-hyuk had blocked his attack.

The fact that his sword was broken by a mere baseball bat was the reason for Yoon Song-ho’s shock.

There had been Hunters who had blocked his attacks, but no one had ever broken or damaged his sword.

“How did he do that with such a crappy weapon?”

The dagger Yoon Song-ho used was an item directly bestowed upon him by the organization for his accumulated trust and achievements.

It was a top-grade rare item enchanted with ‘Durability B’.

A baseball bat made of aluminum should have been sliced like tofu by this sword.

“What are you muttering about? Aren’t you going to attack?”

Kang Jin-hyuk, not wanting to waste time, moved first when Yoon Song-ho didn’t rush in again.

“Huh?”

Yoon Song-ho let out a dumbfounded sound involuntarily when Kang Jin-hyuk closed the distance of over 15 meters in an instant.

“You arrogant bastard!”

However, Yoon Song-ho, like the seasoned assassin he was, quickly regained his composure and pulled out a new dagger.

And once again, he clashed his sword with the bat.

Along with the sound of metal clashing, it was Yoon Song-ho’s sword fragments that soared into the air.

Moreover, this time, the baseball bat didn’t stop at the sword but aimed for his side as well.

‘Fine, I’ll give you my side!’

In a split second, Yoon Song-ho planned to give up his side while simultaneously aiming for Kang Jin-hyuk’s neck.

He thought it would be bearable to get hit by the baseball bat once since it wasn’t a vital point.

But that thought changed instantly when he was actually hit.

Crack.

The ribs that the bat touched shattered without fulfilling their role of protecting the internal organs.

And Yoon Song-ho’s body, unable to withstand the incoming shock, flew to the building wall in an instant.

There was no time to aim for the neck in that merciless blow.

Crash!

Yoon Song-ho, slammed into the wall, no longer breathed.

Kang Jin-hyuk cautiously approached, wondering if the opponent might be using a trick befitting an assassin.

When he poked him with the end of the baseball bat, Yoon Song-ho’s body collapsed limply to the floor.

The process of him falling face-first was too realistic to be an act.

“It ended more easily than I thought.”

Kang Jin-hyuk didn’t feel much guilt even though he had killed more people than he could count on both hands today alone.

Was it because he knew the opponent was a bad person thanks to the visible Karma score?

It was a completely different feeling from when he first killed someone.

“Is everything difficult only the first time…….”

The fact that he was getting used to something had never been so unsettling.

But considering the behavior of large guilds and Hunters, it was clearly a necessary experience.

He couldn’t keep hesitating and faltering, wondering if he would have to go through a similar experience again in the future.

“Now that it’s over, I should make a call.”

Kang Jin-hyuk realized it wasn’t the time to be lost in thought and took out a communication item from his inventory.

When he activated the small crystal-shaped item, a signal was immediately sent to Lucia outside.