Leveling Up Alone

Plop… Plop… Plop… Plop… Plop…! Shwaaaaaak…!

The mushrooms on the monster’s back spewed clouds of spores into the air.

“W-What the hell are those…?”

The spores spread out into the area and flew toward the civilians who were running away from the monster. They clung to the civilians’ bodies, then slowly started to poison their newfound hosts. Red spots grew all over the bodies of the spores’ victims; they started to collapse one by one, and it was impossible to tell if they were dead or alive.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

“Help me!”

The city had fallen into utter chaos, as people frantically ran for their lives after the appearance of the new threat.

‘Is something like that even possible?!’ Han-Yeol thought in shock. He had worked as a Porter for years and had seen various kinds of monsters, but even he was bewildered by what the monster in front of him was doing. However, he did not have the luxury of just sitting around and watching. He looked around at the destruction in his surroundings, before his eyes darted toward a fallen signboard.

‘It might be possible if it’s that…’ Han-Yeol thought. He threw the chain on his left hand toward the signboard, thinking, ‘Restrain!’

Han-Yeol’s chain wrapped itself around the signboard. “Grrraaah!” he roared, squeezing out every bit of his strength to fling the signboard toward the monster.

Of course, he did not forget to use his skill before throwing the signboard, exclaiming inwardly, ‘Power Strike!’ His mana flowed into the signboard through the chains, and it was greatly strengthened by Power Strike. The signboard, which had become extremely hard due to the effects of Han-Yeol’s skill, slammed into the lobster-like monster.

Baaaam!

“Kieek!” The monster let out a shriek, as the signboard seemed to have inflicted some damage through its tough exoskeleton, unlike when Han-Yeol had first fired a steel shot at it.

‘It worked!’ Han-Yeol rejoiced.

However…

“Kieeeeeek!” The monster let out a shriek that was more akin to a roar.

‘Eh…? Huh…?’ Han-Yeol thought, perplexed.

The truth of the matter was that the monster had not been damaged by Han-Yeol’s attack just then. In fact, all it had done was redirect the monster’s aggro away from the fleeing people to him.

Boom… Boom… Boom…! Boom…! Boom…!

The lobster monster slowly began to move, before gradually picking up speed and charging at Han-Yeol.

‘Eh? Waaaaah!’ Han-Yeol’s eyes opened wide in surprise as he screamed inwardly.

His morale had been sky-high after he landed a blow against the monster, but he had soon realized something not long after. The reality was that his chances of winning against the monster were next to zero, and that realization came crashing down on him as the humongous monster drew nearer and nearer. That was why Han-Yeol had decided to at least buy time for Hunters to arrive by running away and luring the monster.

‘I don’t care if it’s a rescue team or the Special Forces. Hurry up, you bastards!’ Han-Yeol cursed and hoped that help would arrive while running as fast as he could.

Boom…! Boom…! Boom…!

“Everyone! Run away! It’s a monster!” Han-Yeol shouted at the top of his lungs.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

Han-Yeol shouted to alert others to run away, even while running as fast as he could. In truth, however, it did not really matter whether he shouted or not; everyone else had already run away after hearing the booming footsteps of the monster chasing after him.

“Eat this!” Han-Yeol shouted.

He did not only run away; rather, he frequently flung signboards toward the monster just in case, to prevent it from redirecting its aggro toward someone else. Thanks to Han-Yeol’s heroic actions, numerous innocent signboards were destroyed.

Baaam!

“Kieeeeek!” the monster shrieked in rage.

“Aaah! My 800 million won Lamborghini!” someone screamed.

‘Heok!’ Han-Yeol was taken aback for a moment.

He had been throwing signboards left and right at the monster while running away, and had not had the luxury to check the cars parked on the side of the road. Thanks to his heroic actions, a very expensive luxury vehicle was destroyed.

‘Sorry… The government will pay you back… I think?’ Han-Yeol apologized inwardly before sprinting away.

The city was already in tatters due to the sudden appearance of the monster, and the car owner could only pray that his vehicle would be covered by insurance.

‘What the hell are those Hunters doing?!’ Han-Yeol cursed inwardly. It had already been twenty minutes since the chaos ensued, but the Hunters were still nowhere to be seen.

‘Huh? Hunters!’ He suddenly rejoiced. Right as he was cursing the Hunters, he saw a group of Hunters he had followed around in his Porter days.

‘I’m saved!’ he thought, suddenly feeling relieved.

He was certain that the Hunters would take care of the lobster monster that was chasing after him. That was their job, and prior to receiving their Hunter Licenses, they had been taught to help in these kinds of situations. Han-Yeol was not yet a Hunter, but he had always aspired to be one. That was why he, who had a knack for gathering information, knew about that fact.

However…

‘Eh? Huh…?’ Han-Yeol was perplexed. He was certain that the Hunters had locked eyes with him, but they all seemed to turn a blind eye toward the monster.

“Hey, hey, shouldn’t we help him out?” one of the Hunters asked.

“Are you crazy? Can’t you tell that monster is way out of our league? Do you have a death wish or something?” another Hunter retorted.

“B-But…” the first Hunter said.

“Shh! Shut up and ignore it!” The second Hunter hushed him.

“A-Alright…” The Hunter obediently closed his mouth.

These were Hunters who had been taught the obligations of a Hunter, but they quickly pretended to be ordinary civilians when they sensed that they would be no match for the monster in front of them.

‘T-Those assholes!’ Han-Yeol threw all sorts of curses toward them inwardly.

These were the Hunters who had looked down on him just because he was a Porter while bragging about how great they were just because they were Hunters. Han-Yeol still clearly remembered the arrogant words they had spat out that day.

But those same fools who had wanted to bask in and enjoy the glory that came with being a Hunter were now running away when it was time for them to fulfill their obligations.

‘W-What should I do…?’ Han-Yeol despaired, as he slowly felt his stamina running out.

Ding!

[Your continuous walking has increased your skill level.]

[The rank of ‘Walking’ has risen from (F) to (E).]

‘That’s not what’s important right now!’ Han-Yeol screamed inwardly.

“Waaah! Mommy!”

Suddenly, while Han-Yeol was busy running for his life, he saw a little girl crying on the street while holding her bloodied leg.

‘What the hell is it this time?’ he thought in despair. He looked around frantically, but he could not find another escape route. However, the child would be in danger if he kept running toward her.

‘Someone come help! Damn it!’ Han-Yeol pleaded and cursed in his mind. The child was injured and crying on the street, but nobody seemed to even care about her, as they were all busy saving themselves.

‘Fuuuuuuuck!’ Han-Yeol cursed inwardly. He had no choice but to stop running before he reached the spot where the little girl was.

‘Here goes nothing!’ he screamed in his mind before infusing as much mana as he could into the chain.

“Grrraaah!” he shouted. He swung his chain as hard as he could and launched an attack with the help of the ‘Chain Mastery’ skill he had recently obtained.

Boooom!

“Kuheok!” Han-Yeol groaned in pain as he was flung backward by the impact of his chain colliding with the monster, landing in front of the little girl.

“Ahjussi! Waaaah!” the little girl cried after seeing Han-Yeol collapse in front of her.

“Hey, kiddo. I’m not an ahjussi,” Han-Yeol joked despite the dire situation they were in.

The lobster monster was only a step away from him, and it raised its large pincer.

‘Is this the end?’ Han-Yeol lamented. He dragged his aching body over to cover the child.

Booom!

A loud sound reverberated across the city, and the place where Han-Yeol was standing was covered in a cloud of dust.

***

“Cough! Cough!” Dust covered the surroundings, and Han-Yeol could not help but cough as he inhaled it through his nose and mouth.

‘W-What happened?’ Han-Yeol thought, perplexed.

He was certain that something had sparkled right before the monster slammed its large pincer down toward him, and that sparkling light had turned into an immensely powerful shockwave that swallowed the lobster monster. That thing had also caused the cloud of dust.

Step… Step…

‘Huh…?’ Han-Yeol looked around. He could not see clearly because of the cloud of dust, but he was certain that someone was walking toward him. He wondered, ‘Who’s that…?’

The silhouette behind the cloud of dust slowly got closer. Only when the person was standing right in front of Han-Yeol did he finally recognize the person’s identity.

‘Eh…? Huh? What?!’ Han-Yeol was shocked. It was someone he knew very well.

‘M-Master Hee-Yun?!’ he exclaimed inwardly. Hee-Yun was one of the six Master-ranked Hunters in Korea; the Master rank was the pinnacle among hunters.

“Are you alright?” the expressionless Hee-Yun asked Han-Yeol in a worried tone.

Han-Yeol only realized he was still alive when the Hunter called out to him. “Hooo… T-Thank you. This child and I only survived thanks to you,” he said while looking at the unconscious child in his arms. Thankfully, it seemed the child had only passed out from excess shock due to the turn of events.

“It is a relief I was not late,” Hee-Yun said.

“Haha, that is a huge relief,” Han-Yeol replied with a weak laugh. However, he thought to himself, ‘I almost shat myself…!’

It was probably the greatest escape he had ever had in his life, but it was also one he hoped to never repeat ever again. He had honestly thought that he was done for when the lobster monster’s pincer was about to fall onto him.

Dudududududu…

It was only then that the sound of helicopters filled the skies, and sirens blared noisily across the city.

‘Haha. It’s all over. You fucking lazy assholes,’ Han-Yeol cursed inwardly before he finally felt the tension lift from his body.

***

The monster’s appearance in the city caused a huge uproar, and the repercussions were immense. The incident had happened when the thirty-year promise made with the aliens was almost over, and that prompted various media outlets, academics, and conspiracy theorists to throw all sorts of theories out into the open.

[A new dimensional gate? A dimensional hole? What is the government’s response to this new crisis humanity is facing?]

[Will we be safe from the monsters?!]

[Hunters should be more proactive in closing the dimensional gates!]

[Humanity will go extinct!]

The news headlines were so extreme that they sounded like tabloids, which further fueled the fear and insecurity that the general public was feeling.

On the other hand, Han-Yeol could not care less whether the public was scared or not, as he was being dragged to the Hunters Association. Ironically, he had been arrested and charged with ‘hunting without a license’. However, he had his own reasons for having done what he was accused of.

“Hey, I registered for an evaluation with the association on that day. I was on the way to take the test when the monster suddenly appeared, and I had no choice but to fight against it. Should I have just let civilians die just because I lacked a Hunter’s License?!” Han-Yeol argued.

He felt that the arrest was pure injustice and just did not make any sense. Logically, he was supposed to receive accolades for his bravery in standing up against the monster, but all he was getting in return was an investigation? That was a load of bullshit, in his opinion.

“Well, we sent some people to go and check that, so we will find out whether you are telling the truth or not,” an investigator from the Hunters Association said with pure skepticism in her voice. She did not give Han-Yeol an inch, standing by her suspicions.

“Ha, this is driving me nuts,” Han-Yeol grumbled, thumping his chest with his fist in frustration.

A few moments later…

Click… Clack…!

Another investigator came and whispered something into the ear of the investigator in front of Han-Yeol. The first investigator raised a brow in surprise while looking at Han-Yeol.

“See? My name was on the list, wasn’t it?” Han-Yeol asked.

“Correct. Well, you still hunted before receiving your license, so you still committed a crime. I will let you off this time, but do not forget that you have committed a crime. You may go now,” the investigator said haughtily.

‘What the hell? Not even an apology?’ Han-Yeol thought, feeling frustrated. However, he was content with the fact that he would not be charged with anything and the case would be over.

“Oh, right,” he began while getting up.

“What? Do you have anything else to say?” the investigator asked. She had thought that Han-Yeol would just run away with his tail tucked between his legs, but was surprised when he sat back down again.

Han-Yeol had sat back down because there was one important thing he had forgotten to tell the investigator. He suddenly said, “Team Registration Number SW3-5587. The Hunter team, I mean.”

“Yes, what about them?” the investigator asked.

“I am certain that that team was at the scene. They even locked eyes with me, but they did not even help and just ran away. If I am not mistaken, the Hunters have responsibilities to uphold, just as much as the benefits they get from being licensed. Am I right?” Han-Yeol replied seriously.

“…That is right,” the investigator replied.

Han-Yeol felt some of the stress he had received from the interrogation fade when he reported the team that had abandoned him earlier in the day. He said with a smug smile, “Then, I will excuse myself.”

Han-Yeol was about to leave the room when the investigator suddenly said, “The Hunter test is conducted on the floor above.”

“Huh? But the test is already over. Do I not have to apply and come again next time?” Han-Yeol asked, tilting his head in confusion.

The test had been scheduled at five in the afternoon, but it was already 6:03 p.m. The test should have long since concluded.

“Well, you are not mistaken, but since you have already proven your worth as a Hunter, the Hunter’s Association has decided to exempt you from the test and specially acknowledge you as a Hunter,” the investigator said.

“Ahhh…!” Han-Yeol was shocked, but he exclaimed inwardly, ‘That’s a relief…!’

He had been worried that he would have to hunt illegally for a few days since he had missed the test, but the news the investigator gave him was quite the silver lining after the day’s events.

He said goodbye to the investigator and rode the elevator to the upper floor. What greeted him when he got off on the upper floor was a wide, spacious hall, with a room labeled ‘Reception’. He entered the reception room, and saw a group of beautiful receptionists in purple uniforms who were busily going around doing their work.

“Excuse me…” Han-Yeol carefully called out to them.

“Ah, hello. Are you Mr. Lee Han-Yeol, by any chance?” one of the receptionists replied.