Chapter 63 – Glossy Tiger Hide Armor

Min Do-jun and his team returned to Blue Dragon Guild after three hours of dungeon clearing.

“Are you really okay with not getting a ride home?”

“Yes, a manager is coming to pick me up.”

As he prepared to leave after declining the manager’s offer, Kim Jin-woo’s group approached to bid farewell.

“Mr. Do-jun, you worked hard in the dungeon.”

“No, it’s nothing.”

“Thanks to you, we can now sleep soundly.”

“Thank you for saving our lives.”

“We won’t forget this favor.”

For an experienced hunter like Min Do-jun, the sight of proud hunters bowing their heads was unprecedented.

Especially since level 1,600 hunters were indebted to a level 1,000 hunter – something unheard of.

‘I wasn’t really trying to save them.’

Min Do-jun felt awkward receiving gratitude, as he had only rushed over worried about the boss getting hurt.

So he simply nodded and turned away.

“Then, I’ll be going…”

“Oh, wait a moment!”

Kim Jin-woo urgently called him back, seemingly having more to say.

“Do you happen to have a fixed party?”

“No.”

“Then would you be interested in continuing to party with us? After all, you need a party to clear A-grade dungeons.”

Min Do-jun didn’t even hesitate to respond.

“I prefer being alone.”

“But matching solo is practically impossible…”

Min Do-jun was well aware that soloing became difficult from A-grade dungeons with high player traffic.

Nevertheless, he reiterated his refusal.

“I dislike being tied down anywhere. Then, goodbye.”

“Ah…”

Kim Jin-woo’s group watched his departing back with disappointment.

“It was really comfortable partying with Mr. Do-jun… even if we earned less experience.”

“Safety comes before experience.”

“I’m now scared to enter dungeons…”

“I agree.”

After experiencing a near-death crisis, dungeons that once seemed manageable now appeared dangerous.

It became a moment of realizing dungeons were never playgrounds.

‘Come to think of it…’

As Min Do-jun boarded the manager’s car, Kim Jin-woo recalled the moment of the boss battle.

‘What was that skill?’

The skill Min Do-jun used when cornered at the end.

‘No matter how I look, it seemed like a lion’s roar…’

Based on appearance, it was clearly the F-grade skill “Lion’s Roar”.

He had briefly learned it during low-level training to become a tank, so he was familiar with it.

Though he had since switched to better provocation skills.

‘Lion’s Roar should only have provocation effect, right?’

He had clearly witnessed the tigers stopping attacks temporarily after hearing the roar.

‘It’s not a mistake. It happened twice.’

The coincidence felt too suspicious.

‘Maybe I should have just asked Mr. Do-jun?’

Avoiding asking seemed impolite, leaving him with numerous questions.

‘I’ll have to test it sometime.’

Kim Jin-woo’s eyes sparkled with curiosity about the true nature of the Lion’s Roar skill.

* * *

Inside the silent car, Park Dong-yun spoke with trepidation.

“Hunter-nim… was the hunt satisfactory?”

“Yes, very satisfactory.”

“…”

Park Dong-yun’s mouth clamped shut at Min Do-jun’s response.

‘I’m doomed…’

He hadn’t expected such satisfaction.

Blue Dragon Guild’s plan to offer the A-grade dungeon as a bribe seemed to have worked perfectly.

‘Sigh… he’ll probably move to Blue Dragon Guild now.’

Park Dong-yun’s shoulders slumped.

“Manager, why do you look so down?”

“Well… I thought you might move to Blue Dragon Guild…”

“There seems to be a misunderstanding. My statement about not joining a guild is still valid.”

“…!”

Instantly, life returned to Park Dong-yun’s face.

“Are you not going to Blue Dragon Guild?”

“Of course not.”

“But you just said it was satisfactory…”

“While the dungeon was satisfactory, it was only because I obtained rewards. Come to think of it, I didn’t tell you what happened inside.”

Min Do-jun briefly explained the events.

“Wow… You defeated the boss alone? No, more surprisingly, there was even a boss?”

By now, hearing that he defeated the boss alone wasn’t shocking anymore.

“Phew, I thought you were satisfied because you matched well with the guild members.”

“It’s not easy to synchronize with people you’re meeting for the first time.”

In fact, it would have been impossible for the lower-level Min Do-jun to match their rhythm.

“So you have no plans to move to Blue Dragon Guild?”

“For now… but who knows what might happen?”

“…”

Park Dong-yun tensed up at the ambiguous statement.

Min Do-jun secretly smiled to himself.

He had absolutely no intention of joining Blue Dragon Guild, but deliberately made a statement to create tension.

‘This way, they’ll give me one more gift.’

Human psychology dictates that if they think they’ve caught a valuable fish, they’ll try harder to keep it.

If they know he could leave anytime, wouldn’t they try to offer more incentives to keep him?

‘Now that there are no prying eyes, let me check the rewards.’

Min Do-jun, who had postponed checking rewards for comfort, opened his inventory.

He had obtained three items from the boss.

‘One A-grade Magic Stone and a mid-grade random box…’

This was somewhat acceptable, but.

‘A glossy tiger hide armor…’

He was about to laugh at an item beyond imagination.

[Glossy Tiger Hide Armor]

– Category: Armor

– Grade: A

– Defense: 11,000

– Current Stack: 0/100

– Effect: Berserk Mode

– Durability: 15,000/15,000

– Usage Limit: Level 1,000 and above (Soulbound)

– Description: Gain 1 stack when attacking or dodging enemies. When 100 stacks are collected, can activate Berserk Mode. Berserk Mode increases strength and agility by 1.5 times for 3 minutes.

Although it lacks basic stat options.

‘Berserk Mode increases strength and agility by 1.5 times.’

The special function of Berserk Mode alone made the item worthwhile.

No, it was more than worthwhile – it was almost game-breaking.

Increasing stats by 1.5 times was an enormous boost.

‘My current strength and agility are around 1,000, so it would increase by about 500.’

Temporarily, he would become incredibly powerful.

‘However, it requires collecting stacks and has a short duration of only 3 minutes.’

Even so, the 1.5 times increase was an absolutely invaluable feature.

‘Conveniently, I needed a new armor.’

The Ancient Armor he was wearing was now ready to be discarded.

Its durability had nearly depleted during the boss fight.

Since it was soulbound and couldn’t be sold, Min Do-jun stored it in his inventory and spoke to Park Dong-yun.

“I’d like to reserve an A-grade dungeon.”

“Oh, are you going to the Stone Lizard Dungeon?”

This was because only the Cat-eyed Tiger and Stone Lizard dungeons were accessible at level 1,000.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I’ve already reserved it to match your expected exit time.”

“Really?”

“Yes! You can enter in 3 hours if you’d like, or we can postpone.”

Satisfied with the work efficiency, Min Do-jun nodded.

“Good job. I’ll enter today. But first, I’ll stop by the Hunter Wholesale Market.”

“Yes, understood.”

Park Dong-yun smiled, pleased with the praise.

* * *

“Thank you for the ride.”

“Not at all, Hunter-nim. I’ll wait here, so please take your time shopping.”

“Are you sure? It might take a while.”

“I can rest in the car. Don’t worry and go ahead.”

“Yes, then.”

As Min Do-jun entered the market, Park Dong-yun made a phone call somewhere.

-Oh, yes. Manager Park.

“Director Go, do you have a moment?”

-Yes, I’m free now. Min Do-jun Hunter must have come out today?

“Yes, I just picked him up and asked.”

-How was it?

“For now, he says he has no plans to go to Blue Dragon Guild, but that’s not the issue.”

-What’s the problem?

Park Dong-yun sighed deeply and explained Min Do-jun’s achievements.

-Huh, he defeated the boss alone again? He’s truly remarkable.

“The problem is that this further proves the Hunter’s value. Blue Dragon Guild will absolutely not let him go.”

-Indeed, if Blue Dragon Guild launches a gift offensive, we’ll be at a disadvantage with our limited resources.

“Moreover, if word spreads that he solo-killed an A-grade boss, other guilds will also take notice.”

-That won’t happen. If Blue Dragon Guild is smart, they’ll control information to prevent it from spreading. They won’t want to create more competitors.

“I hope so, but we still have to compete with Blue Dragon Guild. What if we lose him?”

-Don’t worry. I’ve already thought of something.

“Do you have a good method?”

-Give Min Do-jun what he wants.

“What he wants?”

-Min Do-jun is about to enter A-grade dungeons.

“Yes.”

-Doesn’t he still want to solo?

“Ah…!”

Park Dong-yun realized what the director was suggesting.

“Use priority rights so he can solo?”

-Exactly.

A-grade dungeons are so crowded that reservations are necessary.

But with priority rights, he can rent the entire dungeon and solo it.

-We have priority rights like Blue Dragon Guild, so we’ll use them for Min Do-jun.

“That’s still only once a year, just like Blue Dragon Guild.”

-Five times.

“What?”

-The center director has already agreed to transfer priority rights from other branches to our side.

“Really?”

-Yes. There were some expenses involved, but it shows how much the center director expects from Min Do-jun.

He never expected the center director to support him so comprehensively.

“Hunter-nim will be pleased. Hehe.”

With five priority rights secured, they won’t need to worry about Min Do-jun leaving for another guild for a while.

* * *

At the same moment Park Dong-yun was talking to Director Go, Min Do-jun was shopping.

“With so many good things available, why are you buying this?”

“I need it. How much?”

“I’d be happy to sell. Three together are 600,000 won.”

Min Do-jun paid and received skill books from the merchant.

Lion’s Roar, which would skyrocket to 200 million won in six months.

‘Six months? It might surge in just a month, so I need to stockpile as soon as possible.’

Min Do-jun anticipated the Lion’s Roar price surge would happen earlier.

The reason was none other than Kim Jin-woo’s group.

‘Since I showed them using Lion’s Roar, it could be revealed at any time.’

If it becomes known that Lion’s Roar is effective against specific monsters, prices will surge dramatically.

He needed to secure his position before that happens.

‘Is this enough?’

After touring all markets, he’d collected over 50 Lion’s Roar skill books.

Adding the 100 he’d previously bought, that’s 150 total.

At 200 million won each, that’s 30 billion won secured.

Having achieved his goal, Min Do-jun searched for another skill book store.

He needed to learn a skill before entering the Stone Lizard Dungeon.

Scanning the displayed skill books, his eyes lit up.

‘Here it is.’