Chapter 121 – Level 2,000

‘What, it’s already dead?’

With a single strike, the Tiger-Eye Tiger’s head fell.

I thought it would last a bit longer since it nullifies damage below a certain threshold…

‘This isn’t even a warm-up.’

In the face of overwhelming damage, it was just a big cat.

[You have defeated the Tiger-Eye Tiger!]

[Experience +240,000]

[You have obtained an A-grade Magic Stone.]

[You have obtained an A-grade Magic Stone.]

[You have obtained the Tiger-Eye’s Glowing Eye.]

[Achievement unlocked!]

I didn’t expect much from the items since I had already defeated this boss before.

‘But the Glowing Eye dropped.’

A decent item had come into my hands.

[Tiger-Eye’s Glowing Eye]

-Classification: Accessory

-Grade: A

-Effect: Allows you to see as clearly as daylight in the dark.

-Durability: 999/999

-Usage Restriction: Level 1 or higher (Bound)

-Description: An eyeball infused with magic. Just having it grants you its power. Don’t worry, it’s not a real eye.

The ability itself was simple, but it would be essential for the S-rank dungeons I planned to enter.

Since it worked just by being in my inventory, like a lucky charm, it wasn’t a burden.

‘By the way, was there an achievement for me?’

Curious, I opened the achievement window.

[Achievement – Solo A-rank Boss Hunt!]

-Condition: Solo an A-rank boss.

-Reward: Experience +1,000,000

‘So that’s what the achievement was for.’

I had previously defeated the Tiger-Eye Tiger and the Black Centipede King, both A-rank bosses.

But back then, my party members had chipped in a bit, so this was the first time I had soloed a boss.

‘That’s a lot of experience.’

It shows how difficult it is to solo a boss.

But for the current Min Do-jun, nothing could be easier.

‘Maybe I need an S-rank boss to make it challenging.’

After receiving the achievement reward and leveling up, Min Do-jun leisurely left the boss’s lair.

‘Now, speed is what I need.’

I just had to hunt as many tigers as possible to level up within the remaining time.

‘Let’s go, buddy.’

[Woof!]

Min Do-jun began to roam the dungeon.

***

The objective of the Tiger-Eye Dungeon was to survive for 24 hours.

But for an expert like Min Do-jun, survival wasn’t a concern.

In fact, the tigers were the ones who should be worried about extinction.

‘Magnum Burst.’

Boom!

The tigers gathered by Howling were instantly turned into experience points.

[Level up!]

After allocating points to magic, I resumed hunting.

Since the duration reset every time I killed a tiger, the Battlefield Spirit buff was always at full stacks.

With Berserk Mode active, I was truly a battlefield god.

[Raid successful!]

[Dungeon break time reset to 120 hours!]

‘What, it’s over?’

Just as I had turned five tigers into smoke with a single strike, I clicked my tongue in disappointment.

24 hours had already passed.

‘Only 10 levels gained.’

A statement that would sound absurd to anyone.

After all, even the best Hunters with good traits can only gain 2-3 levels a day.

‘I must be fast.’

With 27 traits, including the 2x experience trait, it was impossible to level up slowly.

‘I want to hunt more, but I’ll save it for next time.’

The dungeon isn’t going anywhere.

Besides, it was my personal dungeon, so I could come back whenever I wanted.

‘For now, I’ll focus on hunting here.’

Even though I had long outgrown the Tiger-Eye Dungeon, hunting alone was much faster than hunting with a party.

‘Other dungeons are crowded, so I have to party up. Soloing is better.’

Once again, I realized the benefits of soloing as I left the dungeon.

Kim Jae-won, who had been dozing at the entrance, jumped up in surprise.

“Y-you’re back, Boss? Huh?”

Seeing him come out alone, Kim Jae-won looked around the entrance.

But the portal had turned blue, indicating no one else was coming out.

“What about the guild members who went in with you?”

“Don’t know. They must be dead.”

“Huh?”

Min Do-jun casually added an explanation.

“They went off on their own from the start. Since they didn’t come out after the raid, they must be dead.”

“Ah…”

It was natural for them to hunt separately since their levels didn’t match.

‘But for all three to die…’

Kim Jae-won sighed, not out of grief for his comrades.

‘They lost all the equipment we lent them.’

With contract killings on hold, the guild was already tight on budget, and now they had lost billions worth of equipment.

If he had known this would happen, he would have convinced the boss to let him go in instead.

Just then, Min Do-jun issued a warning.

“Tell the others that from now on, only I will enter the dungeon.”

“Huh? Ah… Are you worried about the members getting hurt…?”

“Yes. If something like this happens again, it will be a loss in many ways.”

Kim Jae-won nodded in understanding.

‘The boss may seem cold-blooded, but he truly cares for his subordinates.’

Unaware of Kim Jae-won’s misunderstanding, Min Do-jun moved.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, Boss.”

He wanted to go back in immediately, but there was a 12-hour cooldown for re-entry.

‘I’ll just sleep and wait, then go again.’

Min Do-jun’s steps were light as he left the cabin.

***

Min Do-jun disliked dungeon breaks.

That’s why he didn’t like people who hoarded unregistered dungeons.

If something went wrong, the raid could fail, leading to a dungeon break.

‘If that happens, I’d rather report the dungeon and claim the reward.’

If he found an unregistered dungeon, he would gladly do so.

That’s what he thought a month and a half ago.

But now that he owned an unregistered dungeon, his perspective had changed.

‘So this is why people don’t report unregistered dungeons.’

Having a personal dungeon was a huge advantage.

No need to waste time waiting, the ability to monopolize the dungeon, and avoiding party conflicts.

The benefits were endless.

‘Thanks to this, I reached level 2,000 in a month and a half.’

As levels increased, the required experience grew, so it took some time, but it was still fast.

‘If I had hunted in parties in other dungeons, it would have taken longer.’

It’s hard to show your full strength in front of others.

Someone like Kim Ji-hoon from the Emperor Guild might bother me again.

‘Well, thanks to him, I got the Black Centipede King.’

But I didn’t feel indebted.

After all, I had saved Kim Ji-hoon’s life, hadn’t I?

‘Status window.’

-Name: Min Do-jun (Born in 2000)

-Level: 2,000

-Grade: A

-Combat Power: 1,004,171

-National Ranking: 226th

-Global Ranking: 9,282nd

-Strength: 1,726 Stamina: 2,025

-Agility: 1,953 Magic Power: 2,927

-Unallocated Stats: 0

-Traits: Vengeance (S), Hunter Slayer (EX), Magic Swordsman (S), Indomitable Will (B), Rapid Growth (S), Weakness Detection (S), Sturdy Body (D), Weapon Mastery (D), Fire Resistance (D), Durable Equipment (C), First Strike (B), Weapon Mastery (S), Vitality Recovery (S), Strong Mind (A), Battlefield Spirit (S), Reflexes (S), Low Resistance (F), Presence Detection (C), Intermediate Stealth (C), Intermediate Resistance (C), Iron Will (A), Agility Boost (B), Slightly Faster Growth (B), Parasite (S), Quick Steps (C), Regeneration (C), Durability Enhancement (C)

-Skills: Enchant Sword (A), Mana Sword (A), Fire Blast (A), Summon Ghost Wolf (A), Invisibility (A), Gust Blade (A), Magnum Burst (A)

‘My magic power is almost 3,000.’

Other stats are also close to 2,000, which is nothing to scoff at.

‘With the Battlefield Spirit buff, it easily goes up to 4,000.’

Normally, it’s just a 50% increase, but with the Magic Swordsman trait, the magic power gets amplified even further, effectively doubling the effect.

‘That’s why my combat power is so high.’

It had already surpassed 1,000,000.

‘This is a level of combat power usually seen at around level 4,000.’

For someone at level 2,000, this was supposed to be impossible.

But Min Do-jun had done it.

And in just one year since his Awakening.

‘I won’t lose to Shin Kyung-min now.’

Shin Kyung-min, the top-ranked S-rank Hunter in the country, was at level 3,200.

On paper, Min Do-jun was at a disadvantage, but strength isn’t measured by level alone.

‘If rankings were based on combat power instead of level, I might have been number one.’

That’s how confident Min Do-jun was.

But only when the buffs were active.

Without them, he couldn’t guarantee a win against Shin Kyung-min.

‘I can’t afford to make mistakes. It’s not time to face him yet.’

I wanted to crush his skull right now, but it wouldn’t be too late to do so after getting stronger.

Holding back my anger and reaching level 2,000 had another purpose.

To enter S-rank dungeons and become even stronger.

‘The second S-rank dungeon will appear soon.’

Four months ago, Shin Kyung-min became the first S-rank Hunter in the country, and the first S-rank dungeon appeared.

Because of this, relatives who had invested in real estate were buried in debt, but that was none of my concern.

‘I just need to prepare to enter the second S-rank dungeon.’

To do so, I had reached the minimum entry level of 2,000.

‘I have an S-rank dungeon entry ticket, but I don’t need to use it now.’

I’ll save the ticket for a higher-level S-rank dungeon and focus on preparing for the second S-rank dungeon.

‘I need attribute resistance elixirs for preparation.’

From killing Lee Se-yoon, I had the Essence of Fire and Essence of Water.

These were materials for making attribute resistance elixirs.

‘With two drops of Tough Tree Sap, I can make elixirs for each attribute.’

Tough Tree Sap is an item from an A-rank dungeon accessible at level 2,000.

That’s why Min Do-jun plans to use his priority pass to enter an A-rank dungeon today.

“Manager.”

-Ah! Long time no see, Hunter!

Park Dong-yoon’s voice brightened upon receiving Min Do-jun’s call.

It seemed he had been eagerly waiting for the call.

-What have you been up to? It’s been almost two months since your last call…

“Just some personal matters.”

Disguise, infiltration, stalking, kidnapping, coercion, murder, etc.

The circumstances were too spectacular to explain truthfully.

-I saw that you leveled up without me. You’ve already reached level 2,000…

“This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. You’re not upset, are you?”

-Ah, upset? Not at all. It’s common for high-level guild Hunters to prefer soloing without a manager. Oh, not that I’m saying you should leave me out! Supporting you is my life’s joy. Just calling me like this is enough!

Whether it was flattery or sincerity, Min Do-jun appreciated one thing about Park Dong-yoon.

He no longer questioned Min Do-jun’s leveling speed.

“I’m planning to enter the Swamp Crocodile Dungeon.”

-Ah! Using your priority pass?

His quick understanding was also satisfying.

“Yes. Since it’s 2021, the priority pass should have reset, right?”

-Of course. But there’s one problem…

“A problem?”

-Um, let’s discuss it in person.

The awkward tone on the other end made Min Do-jun tilt his head.

‘What’s going on?’