Leveling Up Alone

‘Mana Explosion!’ Han-Yeol activated his latest skill and simultaneously pulled the trigger of his M4A2-001’s grenade launcher. The grenade flew in an arc, speeding accurately toward the Orcs that were rushing at him.

‘It’s over,’ he thought confidently, expecting the Orcs to be destroyed by the grenade.

However…

“Ggueeeeeek!” The Orc in front let out a hideous howl before raising its shabby, tattered shield.

Booom!

The grenade connected with the Orc’s shield, unleashing a terrifying explosion that heated up the whole area.

“Ggueeeeeek!” the Orc roared. The shield it had been using had been blasted to pieces, but the Orc itself was perfectly fine, without a scratch.

‘H-Hey! Is this even legal?!’ Han-Yeol protested inwardly. He aimed his rifle at the Orcs and pulled the trigger.

Ratatatatata!

He fired a whole cartridge this time around, aiming directly at their heads. His bullets rained down on the Orcs, leaving them a bloody mess. Unfortunately, they did not seem to have been left tired or weak from the injuries they sustained.

‘Tsk!’ Han-Yeol clicked his tongue. He realized that attacking from a distance would no longer be of any help at this point, so he put his rifle on his back and stretched out the new chain he had wrapped around his left hand.

***

‘Heok…! I never knew the Orcs were going to be this strong!’ Han-Yeol thought, surprised. After all, the Orc Burrows were not highly-ranked among hunting grounds. ‘As expected, it must be because I’m weak.’

However, Han-Yeol was not the type of person who would easily give up on hunting the Orcs. ‘Eat this, you monsters!’ he thought as he threw the chain on his left hand toward an Orc.

Shhhhwiiik!

The first thing Han-Yeol had done after leaving the Hunter Mall was to visit a workshop owned by someone he knew.

Pukeok!

“Ggueeek!” The Orc roared in agony as it was hit hard by the claw on the end of the chain.

‘This is my newly modified chain!’ Han-Yeol thought to himself.

Attached to the end of the chain was a sturdy claw that was strong enough to be used as a weapon. It was his secret weapon that could smite, cut, and bind a target; it could truly be considered ‘hitting two birds with one stone.’

‘How does it taste?! Haha!’ Han-Yeol exclaimed inwardly.

Ding!

[You have successfully landed a new attack.]

[A new skill has been created—Chain Smite.]

A new skill had been created, but Han-Yeol did not have the luxury to rejoice.

‘Heok!’

“Chwiiiiiik!”

Han-Yeol’s chain cut the Orc’s arm off, causing it to stagger. However, the other two Orcs continued to charge, running directly up the wall of the house to reach the second floor where Han-Yeol was.

Shwwwrrk!

Han-Yeol retracted his chain and threw it once again toward an Orc that was running up to the second floor, using one of his skills. ‘Binding!’

Badum! Thud! Booom!

The orc barely managed to reach the second floor before falling backward after being entangled in Han-Yeol’s Binding skill.

‘Alright!’ Han-Yeol rejoiced. After he got rid of the second Orc, there was only one left, leaving him in a one-on-one standoff.

“Chwwiiiiiik!” The Orc screamed at him before swinging a glaive that resembled a cleaver.

Clang!

‘Keuk!’ Han-Yeol groaned. He had barely managed to block the Orc’s attack by gripping his one-handed sword in both hands. He grumbled to himself, ‘How the hell is it so strong?!’

He had thought that he was quite strong now after diligently raising his stats, but all of his confidence flew out the window with that blow. All he was left with was the shame of having to kneel on the floor after being overpowered by the Orc.

Momentum was definitely on the Orc’s side, but Han-Yeol gripped his sword once again, aiming to land a decisive blow. He gritted his teeth and thought, ‘Here goes nothing!’

He had realized after exchanging one blow that he was never going to win against the Orc in a swordfight, which was why he decided to throw his sword at the monster instead.

Clang!

However, the Orc easily parried the sword flying toward it as if it had already expected that to happen, breaking out into laughter.

Han-Yeol had also predicted that would happen, though. He gritted his teeth again, thinking, ‘Eat this you freak!’

The reason why he had thrown his sword at the Orc was to free up his right hand, as his left hand was still holding onto the chain binding the second Orc down; apart from that, it was also to draw the attention of the Orc in front of him.

Flop!

Han-Yeol did not miss the opening that had presented itself for a second when the Orc deflected his sword. He immediately drew the revolver holstered on his right hip and fired it into the Orc’s face, using his skill. ‘Power Strike!’

Tang! Tang! Tang!

“Ggueeeek!” The Orc roared in agony as three bullets hit it in the face.

Han-Yeol immediately ran toward the Orc while it was still stumbling in agony, firing a bullet right between its eyes at point-blank range and thinking, ‘Goodbye! Mana Explosion!’

Tang…! Booom!

The bullet pierced into the Orc’s head and exploded inside its skull. The explosion left behind empty space, and the headless Orc fell backward.

“Hooo…” Han-Yeol finally let out a breath.

He did not even have the luxury to reload his revolver. Instead, he grabbed his sword and went downstairs. There, he found that the second Orc had managed to free itself from his chains. The enraged Orc huffed and puffed, rapidly charging at Han-Yeol as soon as he went down from the second floor.

Shwwwrk!

‘Chain Smite,’ Han-Yeol thought after he calmly pulled his chain back, sending it out again to strike the Orc’s heel. The Orc lost its balance from the sudden attack and fell flat onto the floor.

Bam! Thud!

Han-Yeol jumped at the Orc as soon as it fell to the ground and stabbed his sword down toward its chest. However, the Orc had no intention of making things easy for him.

Clang!

The Orc swung its sword and flung Han-Yeol backward.

‘Tsk… So you don’t have any plans to let me win easily,’ Han-Yeol thought, clicking his tongue. He infused his mana into his sword and used a skill. ‘Power Strike!’

He threw his sword at the Orc once again.

Clang!

“Ggreuk!” The orc groaned.

Han-Yeol had infused the sword he threw with Power Strike this time, unlike the first time. The mana-infused sword knocked the orc back as soon as it tried to guard against the strike.

Then, he drew his revolver once again and fired it, just like a scene out of a wild west movie. ‘Power Strike!’

Taaang!

The Orc that had previously lost one of its arms to Han-Yeol’s chain attack had recovered and tried to hit him with a sneak attack using its glaive, but the round he fired out of his revolver hit it dead center between the eyes.

Thud…!

The bullet pierced through the Orc’s head and penetrated its brain, and it fell backward and collapsed onto the floor.

Ding!

[Your excellent marksmanship has allowed you to hit your targets accurately.]

[A new skill has been created—Marksmanship.]

Another new skill had been created once again.

‘One has to always watch out for any attacks from behind,’ Han-Yeol thought with a proud smirk.

“Gwuuooooh!” The Orc that had been knocked back by Han-Yeol’s mana-infused sword let out an enraged roar.

However…

Ratatata!

Han-Yeol had already aimed his rifle at the Orc, and he the trigger. The Orc did not even have time to defend itself, as the bullets that flooded out of the M4A2-001 rifle riddled its body with bullet holes.

“Cough! Cough! Greeuk!” The Orc was left kneeling on the floor, exhausted and out of strength. After being filled with more than thirty bullets, it started to vomit out blue blood.

Han-Yeol slung his rifle onto his back and picked up his sword from the floor, then he slowly walked toward the orc.

“Grrrrr…” The Orc growled at him, but anyone could see by then that it had lost the fight. However, each Orc was born with a warrior’s spirit. It refused to accept its defeat as it extended its neck and snarled at Han-Yeol.

“…”

Han-Yeol quietly stared at the Orc, but that lasted only for a moment before he swung his sword and cleanly cut its head off of its neck.

Sukeok! Thud…

The Orc’s head fell down and rolled across the floor.

Ding!

[Your level has risen.]

Han-Yeol had gained a level as the finale of the fierce battle. He had almost lost his life in the fight, but the reward was well worth the risk he had taken. After all, he had gained a total of two new skills and a level in a single battle.

‘Status,’ he thought, summoning his status screen.

Name: Lee Han-Yeol

Level: 16

Points: 5

STR: 49

VIT: 46

AGI: 40

MAG: 45

LCK: 10

Skills: Dismember (E), Sword Mastery (E), Walking (E), Mana Control (E), Mana Mastery (F), Power Strike (E), Mana Shield (E), Sixth Sense (E), Restrain (D), Body Strengthening (F), Mana Eyes (F), Heal (A), Jumping (F), Stab (F), Dagger Mastery (F), Chain Mastery (E), Infinite Library (M), Shield Bash (E), Fire Attribute (F), Mana Explosion (F), Chain Smite (F), Marksmanship (F).

[Chain Smite (F)]

Type: Active

Description: A skill that allows you to launch an accurate attack at your target with a chain. It increases the damage of your chain attacks and allows you to slightly control the trajectory of the chain mid-flight.

[Marksmanship (F)]

Type: Passive

Description: The damage of all attacks using firearms will increase. This skill will assist you in aiming and hitting your targets.

‘Who knew I'd hit the jackpot after just one hunt?’ Han-Yeol thought. He was glad that the new skills had come just in time to help him deal with the Orcs much more easily.

‘But one thing’s for sure… I won’t be able to survive just by increasing my MAG all the time,’ he thought.

He had managed to supplement his lacking mana by investing all twenty bonus stat points he had gained while hunting Giant Ants into MAG. However, he realized this time around that investing all of his bonus stat points into MAG was definitely not the right way forward. This battle had made him realize the importance of his STR, AGI, and even his VIT stats if he wanted to hunt further, and especially if he wanted to operate as a solo Hunter.

‘I should go back and call it a day,’ he thought.

It was dangerous to hunt continuously, as the odds of him falling into danger would increase by the minute. That was why Han-Yeol decided to be satisfied with what he had already gotten and call it a day, dismembering the Orcs before leaving the hunting grounds.

After receiving the payment for the three Orcs and their mana stones, he dropped by the supermarket before heading home.

“I am back,” he said as he returned home.

“Welcome back,” his father greeted him. He was on a stationary bike while watching TV.

‘Heh. Father always took very good care of his health,’ Han-Yeol thought.

Han-Yeol’s father had always taken care of his health until he fell sick; that was why he had become even more concerned about his health after experiencing a severe illness.

Han-Yeol could not help but smile after seeing his father try to get in shape. He placed the groceries he had bought from the supermarket into the fridge, then brought a can of beer to his room and sat down at the computer.

Psssshh…!

He went to the Hunter’s Association’s website after opening the can, thinking, ‘What I need to do right now is to research and investigate Orcs.’

Gulp…!

He took a swig of beer.

‘I would have died if there were four orcs instead of three,’ he thought. He might have won against three Orcs, but he knew that three was the most he could handle at once.

He had found out through an online monster database that three was the most basic group size Orcs gathered together in. That meant there would have been a possibility for him to run into a group of more than three Orcs if he had been greedy and tried to hunt one more time.

He felt a chill down his spine the moment he realized that things could have quickly gone wrong. He thought, ‘Never. Earning money and all that is good, but I have to survive first and foremost. I need to collect as much information on the Orcs’ patterns and habits as I can.’

He scoured the Hunter’s Association website for any information on the Orcs. Eventually, he learned through the website that most Orcs loved hand-to-hand combat, and their combat style involved using their swords and shields to get as close as possible to their enemy.

‘It’s simple, but the problem is their numbers… It’s already scary to think of not three, but four of them, ganging up and charging toward me,’ he thought.

It would be impossible even for Han-Yeol, who possessed a plethora of skills, to take on four Orcs at the same time because of their monstrous strength.

‘Maybe it’s a stretch to hunt them solo…?’ he wondered. It had only been a while since he had resolved to hunt solo, but that same resolve was now starting to crumble.

‘Well… the fact that only a few Hunters actually hunt solo is proof of how hard solo hunting can be,’ he thought to himself, trying to justify his shaky conviction.

However, the fact that Han-Yeol was a bit different from other Hunters was a silver lining. A normal Hunter would awaken to their full potential from the get-go, and their overall strength would not increase significantly over the course of their life. Of course, it could improve with some training and practice, but the innate strength they had awakened with would not change much.

‘Companions and all are pretty handy, but what I need right now isn’t companions—it’s more levels. I have to monopolize all of the experience points if I want to power level. Of course, I’ll need to have my own companions one day, but it would be a stretch to find some immediately,’ he mused, deep in thought. He then shifted to trying to figure out how to fight against four orcs at the same time. ‘First off, I have to hire a Porter before anything else. It’s getting bothersome for me to do everything alone at this point.’

He did not feel the need for a companion at the moment, but he definitely felt the need for a Porter. He had realized that trying to save money by doing all the menial labor by himself was just stupid at this point.

Click… Click…

Han-Yeol opened the list of Porters registered and approved by the Hunter’s Association and clicked through it. Most of the Porters who were not affiliated with any parties usually uploaded their profiles to the website.

He immediately got to work filtering the countless profiles uploaded by Porters to try and promote themselves. Of course, there were no other Hunters who would be as skilled as Han-Yeol when it came to filtering out Porters.

‘There won’t be many Porters out there who can fool the eyes of this Hunter. I’m someone who personally worked as a Porter for over four years, after all,’ he thought as he scanned through the profiles, so intensely that it was as if lasers were shooting out of his eyes.

This was probably the first time his eyes had shone so brightly in his entire life.