Chapter 11: Memories of the Past Life （2）
After parting ways with Jeong Min-hyeok, Kang San didn’t go straight home.
In preparation for the upcoming dungeon hunt, he visited a scroll store located in a bustling downtown area.
Clang.
“Welcome.”
The scenery of the scroll store was no different from an ordinary store.
The first thing that caught his eye was a glass display case, inside which magic scrolls in the form of rolls were neatly displayed. High-priced items costing at least one million won each. Kang San always bought one or two in case of emergency, but this time, unlike before, thorough preparation was necessary.
As Kang San approached, the owner with a generous impression spoke.
“Are you looking for anything in particular?”
“Yes. Please show me some scrolls made by Roman. Grade intermediate or lower.”
“All right.”
Roman.
It is the name of the scroll maker Kang San mainly uses.
His full name is Roman Bednar, an A-rank Mage, and he gained considerable fame for his excellent crafting skills. According to what is currently known, he has retired from active raiding and is running a company specializing in the production of magic scrolls. Thanks to this, Kang San was able to use Roman’s scrolls even in a distant foreign country.
“Here it is.”
Swoosh.
He unfolded the magic scrolls in front of him.
Kang San picked out a few that he liked.
‘Sharpness scroll, Shield scroll, and Fire Burst scroll should be enough. Fire Burst is an intermediate item, so the price is a bit high, but it’s better to spend money than d*e in a dungeon.’
“I’ll take all of these.”
“You have chosen two lower grades and one intermediate grade. The price is five million won.”
Five million.
It was a jaw-dropping price.
Magic scrolls are very difficult to make, so the finished products have a considerable premium. In particular, Roman Bednar is a scroll maker whose name itself has become a brand. It was a considerable amount of money, considering that it was simply a price set based on labor costs, but it was a necessary expense when considering the value of life.
The shopping was over quickly.
The balance, which had been aiming for 200 million won just a while ago, was now bottomed out due to the Kim Chun-sik incident and the recent shopping spree.
‘Now I only have 10 million won left.’
A sigh escaped his lips.
Six years of Hunter life.
It was the money he had barely earned after going through all sorts of dirty work, and it was a little disheartening to think that it had all disappeared.
But what could he do?
It was a necessary choice for the future.
And, at least, the fact that the money was used for a good cause rather than being thrown away on the ground gave him some comfort.
‘……I wonder if Grandma’s surgery went well.’
He heard the news briefly.
Thanks to Kang San’s donation, the surgery cost was covered, and she underwent surgery soon after.
Suddenly, he was curious about the results.
If one life was saved in exchange for his poverty, it seemed that he would be able to completely let go of his attachment to money.
‘Let’s call the hospital.’
He made a call right away.
When he inquired about Kim Chun-sik’s grandmother’s condition at the hospital administration, he heard a rather bright voice over the phone.
『Ah, you’re the one who donated for Park Mi-seon’s grandmother’s surgery. The surgery went really well. She’ll need ongoing treatment, but she’s overcome the dangerous hurdle. Oh, and Kim Chun-sik, the guardian of Park Mi-seon’s grandmother, asks for your contact information every day. How about it, should I give it to him? He’s lobbying me so hard that I can’t ignore him.』
“That’s a relief. And don’t give him my contact information. I think it’s best to end this matter here.”
『Is that so? Then I can’t help it.』
After a brief conversation, he hung up the phone.
Laughter came out.
Still, his money saved a life.
Kim Chun-sik was just a passing acquaintance, but Kang San wished him a happy life.
‘Please live well. Don’t do anything dangerous to earn money for surgery. Now that your grandmother is healthy, you have to live long, don’t you?’
Words that cannot be conveyed directly.
Kang San swallowed his thoughts like that and completely erased the thoughts about Kim Chun-sik from his mind.
✦✦✦✦✦✦
A week later.
As soon as the cooldown for Guardian’s Will was over, Kang San headed straight to Gangwon-do.
‘Fortunately, it’s still the same.’
The dungeon was no different from a week ago.
He was worried that it might be discovered before then, but fortunately, it was safe because it was a place where people did not visit.
First, he dug the ground.
Securing the entrance was the priority.
When he dug about 2 meters into the ground, the entrance of the dungeon was revealed, and Kang San installed a fence at the entrance in case of any unexpected situations. The magic fence serves to prevent monsters from going outside. The problem is that it takes time to deactivate the magic fence, so he could be in danger as well, but he was willing to take that risk.
The preparations were complete.
Kang San took a deep breath, turned on the magic light, and entered the dungeon.
Click.
‘It’s gloomy.’
The dungeon was formed in the shape of an underground tunnel.
The humidity that made his body sticky wrapped around him, and every time he took a step, the sound spread around him.
He held the shield close to his body.
In a situation where monsters could appear at any time.
An unknown enemy was a very dangerous factor, so he didn’t let go of the tension for a moment.
How much time has passed?
When he thought he had entered about 50 meters inside, Kang San discovered a black shadow flickering in front of him.
‘……Skeleton?’
Close range.
A skeletal human with no flesh was approaching Kang San.
The number was five.
Although they were F-rank monsters, it was a number that Kang San had to be careful of.
However, unlike the tense situation, Kang San’s expression was bright.
‘Nice.’
Skeletons are dark-type monsters.
Unlike other monsters, they tend to be weak against divine power, and Kang San possessed that divine power.
The effect of divine power was immediately demonstrated.
『Divine power exerts its power.』
『Attack power and defense power increase by 10% each against Skeletons.』
The value of the buff is determined by the divine power and the opponent’s ability.
Kang San’s divine power was still low, so he only received a 10% buff, but it was still a significant achievement.
‘It won’t be difficult.’
His mind was at ease.
If it was a den of dark-type monsters, it was a very advantageous situation for Kang San.
It was then.
The skeletons started to rush in earnest.
Crack!
Dada-dada-dak!
The bones made a loud noise as they collided.
But their movements were not fast.
The reason why skeletons are dangerous is because they always move in groups, and because they don’t feel pain, they rush in without thinking about the consequences. And those strengths were all useless in the face of divine power.
Just like now.
Crack!
Kang San slashed one of the rushing skeletons.
Its right arm shattered.
An ordinary skeleton would have ignored the broken arm and bared its teeth, but the effect of divine power produced a different result.
Kieeeeek!
The skeleton screamed.
Smoke rose from the area where it had just been cut, as if it had been burned by fire, and the skeleton retreated, staggering backward. The characteristic of divine power is that it inflicts pain and annihilation on dark-type monsters. At least against skeletons, there was no reason for Kang San to back down.
Tap.
Kang San kicked the ground.
The situation was quickly resolved.
The skeletons tried to bite Kang San somehow, but Kang San responded to their attacks by appropriately choosing between dodging and attacking. It didn’t take long to deal with them. After about 3 minutes, the skeletons, which had been intact until just now, were shattered into pieces of bone.
“Whew.”
He took a light breath.
It was a moment when he felt a sense of the passage of time for no reason.
When he didn’t have any skills, he had a hard time even against skeletons, but now five were no problem at all. He was definitely improving. In the past, when he wasn’t allowed even a little talent, he had been an F-rank human shield, but now that he was given the opportunity to grow, Kang San rapidly developed his talent.
‘If it’s like this, I can clear it alone.’
The first battle is important.
If he had judged that this battle was too much for him, Kang San would have taken the risk of information leakage and brought his colleagues.
However, if it was a dark-type dungeon, it was a different story.
This mission is not a trial.
Thinking that luck had finally found him, Kang San took a sufficient rest and moved inside.
And before long.
Kang San realized once again how unlucky he was.
✦✦✦✦✦✦
At first, it went very smoothly.
There were only skeletons in the dungeon, and he had the power to deal with them alone even if fifteen of them attacked.
The problem was the last one.
In a huge space formed at the very end, a monstrous creature that made Kang San doubt his own eyes was waiting.
“F*ck, a Dullahan?”
His expression hardened.
What kind of monster is a Dullahan?
It is one of the representative monsters of the dark type, carrying its severed head and dangling it around in human form. The grade is the same as the Blood Orc he fought last time, but the Dullahan is classified as a higher rank in D-rank. For Kang San, who had barely defeated the Blood Orc with the cooperation of his colleagues, it was a powerful opponent that he could never defeat alone.
A warning sound rang in his head.
His instincts strongly told him to run away from the Dullahan, but there was no way out once he set foot in this place.
Kroaaaaaaaak!
“S*it!”
The Dullahan spotted Kang San.
It rushed at him and swung its steel-like head hard before Kang San could even dodge.
Thud!
“Ugh.”
A groan was swallowed involuntarily.
He felt like his insides were twisting from the pain that was transmitted through the shield.
However, Kang San gritted his teeth and quickly took a back step. The enraged Dullahan, whose attack had failed, immediately attempted a follow-up attack. The Dullahan’s head cut through the wind and passed right in front of his eyes. The moment his eyes met the Dullahan’s, Kang San got goosebumps all over his body.
‘This is really f*cked up.’
Curses rose to his throat.
To be honest, when he was dealing with the skeletons, he thought that Azmoon was finally being considerate.
Look at the trials so far.
Choices that either risked his life or required him to give up everything he had.
Unlike other times, he thought the fourth trial was a little easy, but it turned out to be just a trick.
The true fourth trial.
It was the Dullahan.
Azmoon wasn’t being considerate of Kang San; he knew that Kang San would end up in this situation anyway.
‘You’re really something.’
Rip.
He tore the Sharpness scroll.
Then a white light surrounded the sword, and Kang San, who had dodged the Dullahan’s attack, cut its body.
Clang!
‘……?!’
It didn’t work.
Even though he used the Sharpness magic, which enhances cutting power, the Dullahan’s hard outer skin didn’t even get a scratch. The Dullahan immediately counterattacked. Kang San hurriedly retreated and also used the ‘Fire Burst’ scroll. The flames that erupted blazed towards the Dullahan. He hoped that it would fall this time.
But.
Poof!
Krrrrrrr.
The Dullahan appeared through the flames.
Fire Burst is a 3rd circle magic.
Even though it was the highest level of magic used by D-rank Mages, the Dullahan didn’t suffer enough damage to fall.
‘It’s a real monster!’
Thump!
Kang San was knocked back by the Dullahan’s attack as it rushed at him. Even Kang San’s specialty, dodging by reading the timing, was difficult against the Dullahan. Because the Dullahan is a corpse, its muscle movements are different from those of ordinary monsters. Still, he managed to block the attack with his quick reflexes, but the impact transmitted through the shield was not insignificant.
“Ugh.”
Something disgusting came up.
Kang San struggled to get up and wiped the blood from his mouth.
‘I’m going to d*e like this.’
This trial.
Azmoon really intended to k*ll Kang San.
The Dullahan, classified as a higher rank even among D-ranks, is incomparable to the Blood Orc, and the divine power buff cannot b*idge the gap.
In the end, a gamble was needed.
Kang San made an extreme choice.
‘It’s just a theory, but it’s better than dying.’
Healing Aura.
White light healed Kang San’s wounds.
And he immediately activated Berserker.
‘I’ll invest all but 1% of my health in Berserker.’
The effect of Berserker.
It increases attack power and speed by the amount of health consumed.
He felt dizzy and suffocated as a large amount of health was consumed at once, but Kang San laughed instead.
『Attack power and speed increased by 85% due to the Berserker effect.』
『Guardian’s Will has been activated.』
『Health is fully recovered, and defense power is temporarily doubled.』
‘I did it.’
Health surged at once.
The aura of death disappeared.
He could breathe freely, and Kang San’s complexion brightened.
Krrrrrrr!
Thump! Thump!
He could see the Dullahan rushing at him.
Kang San grabbed his sword and stared at his opponent with sharp eyes.
‘The duration of Berserker and Guardian’s Will is 10 minutes. Within that time, I will somehow take the Dullahan’s life.’
Luca Bellino said.
Trials are always given at a level that can be overcome.
Kang San prayed that it was true.
If he gave it his all and it didn’t work.
‘I’ll d*e today.’
Dungeon.
This underground tunnel will become Kang San’s grave.
