Chapter 04 - Solo Awakening as an Ex-Rank-Munchkin
Korean Awakened Association meeting room.
Association President Kang Cheol-man watched Vice President Kim In-ho, who was reporting via video.
“So, you’re saying the gate upgraded to Grade 2 after that man was the last one to clear it?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“And did you find out who he is?”
“He’s a rookie Hunter who Awakened today. His name is Na Dan-sik, age 30, and his class was unusual.”
“An unusual class, you say?”
“Yes, his class was Munchkin.”
“Munchkin? Surely not the ‘munchkin’ I’m thinking of?”
“I don’t know the details, but that’s what was listed in his basic information.”
Hunters had various classes.
Warrior, Mage, Summoner, Archer, Assassin, and so on.
Beyond these, rare classes existed, and they possessed powerful skills.
America’s Saintess Elise was one such example.
Having Awakened to the unique class of Saintess, she possessed healing and various buff-type skills.
Unique class Hunters existed not only in America but also in China and Japan. Unfortunately, South Korea had none.
Even the nation’s strongest S-rank Hunter, Choi Kang-in, did not have a unique class.
“Hmm.”
“Is something the matter?”
“We’ll have to keep an eye on this man.”
“Is there a reason…?”
“The time between his entry and exit is too short.”
Looking closely, the time between when he entered and when he came out was indeed remarkably short.
“It’s less than an hour.”
“Is it possible for a rookie Hunter to clear a Slime Gate in under an hour?”
“That… I don’t think there’s a single Hunter in the country with a record like that.”
“Do you know the record of South Korea’s top Hunter, Choi Kang-in?”
Kim In-ho operated his tablet and checked Choi Kang-in’s record.
“Even Choi Kang-in’s record for clearing a Grade 1 Gate is one hour.”
“We don’t know what this Munchkin Class is, but isn’t there a possibility he could become as strong as Choi Kang-in?”
“I see.”
“Who’s going to investigate the gate that upgraded to Grade 2?”
“Hunter Kang Hyeon-ah volunteered, saying she wanted to go.”
“Hyeon-a?”
“Yes.”
Kang Hyeon-ah was Kang Cheol-man’s only daughter, a rookie Hunter who had Awakened just a week ago. She was a promising talent who had Awakened with an S-rank skill, no less.
However, she still lacked experience.
Kang Cheol-man spoke with a worried expression.
“That kid, she didn’t say she was going alone, did she?”
“She did, but I told her she couldn’t.”
“Good. Don’t ever let her go alone. That kid has a reckless streak. Make sure she gets proper rookie Hunter training.”
“Yes, Association President.”
Kang Hyeon-ah had a tendency to ignore even his words, despite him being the Association President. She was hot-headed and had a reckless streak.
Ever since she was young, she had a strong sense of curiosity and inquiry, a personality that couldn’t stand not knowing something.
***
Early in the morning, Na Dan-sik left his house.
He was heading to the magic stone exchange.
He also planned to buy some weapons.
“Welcome.”
“I’d like to make a sale.”
He poured the magic stones out of his bag.
“20 low-grade magic stones and 4 Intermediate Magic Stones. You know the market price, right?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Please enter your account number here.”
He entered his account number on the tablet.
The exchange employee then operated the tablet and deposited the money immediately.
8,000,000 won was deposited into his account.
He had earned three months’ salary from clearing the Slime Gate.
But that was only because Na Dan-sik was a special case.
The number of magic stones obtainable from a Grade 1 Slime Gate was less than ten. The boss dropped three, and the rest were random.
It was said that sometimes, aside from the boss, none would drop at all.
“Thank you.”
After confirming the deposit, he went straight to the item shop run by the Association.
After wondering what to buy, he bought a longsword and a dagger.
Just those two cost him 2,000,000 won.
Even for beginner equipment, the items were expensive.
Na Dan-sik headed to a Grade 1 Certified Gate in Suwon, which was close to Yongin.
He showed his license to the gate administrator.
“Are you alone?”
“Yes.”
“Solo play is dangerous, so you must stop before the boss room.”
“Understood.”
Once again, the administrator handed him a watch.
Na Dan-sik put on the watch and entered the Gate.
The Gate was an abandoned mine.
He went inside the abandoned mine.
[Grade 1] Goblin Extermination
This time, he held the longsword instead of the dagger.
Just then, three goblins holding pickaxes walked out in front of him.
“Kiek?”
The three goblins that spotted Na Dan-sik charged at him simultaneously. In Na Dan-sik’s eyes, the goblins’ vital points were visible.
Na Dan-sik thrust the longsword forward, aiming for a vital point.
The goblin, stabbed in the chest by the longsword, collapsed.
[You have learned Beginner Thrust.]
He attacked consecutively with thrusts of his longsword.
Stab! Stab! Stab!
The thrusts hit their mark.
The goblins fell.
[You have defeated 1 Goblin Worker.]
[You have defeated 1 Goblin Worker.]
[You have defeated 1 Goblin Worker.]
[You have acquired 1 Low-grade Magic Stone.]
Na Dan-sik continued forward.
The goblins weren’t much of a threat either.
He tried using the dagger, his fists, everything.
They were all one-hit kills.
Instantly, all the goblins inside the abandoned mine were dead.
He had also gathered 30 low-grade magic stones.
Na Dan-sik stared at the boss room in front of him.
Suddenly, he recalled clearing the Slime Gate.
The message that had appeared after defeating the Slime boss.
“Will it happen again this time?”
There was only one way to find out.
Na Dan-sik opened the door to the boss room.
On a high altar stood a Goblin Lord holding a staff. With its red eyes, blood-soaked cloak, and a necklace of skulls, it exuded a sinister aura.
“Kuaaaargh!”
The Goblin Lord raised its staff and slammed it on the floor, summoning a dozen Goblin Warriors.
“Human, kill.”
The Goblin Warriors charged toward Na Dan-sik.
“Is it too much to ask to wipe them out all at once?”
How great would it be to have an area-of-effect skill right now.
The Goblin Warriors were clad in armor, wielding shields and axes.
It was like seeing a systematic army.
As they all rushed him at once, even Na Dan-sik was flustered.
Suddenly, he recalled a mock battle scene of Choi Kang-in he had seen in a You-Tube video.
It was a scene of Choi Kang-in performing his swordsmanship against holograms in a training facility.
“Can’t I learn it?”
He took the stance just as he remembered it.
Focusing all his strength into the tip of his sword, he swung it horizontally with great speed.
A massive, crescent-shaped wave of sword aura flew out, following the trajectory of the blade.
“Huh?”
SHWAAAAAAK!
“It actually worked?”
He was bewildered, but also thrilled.
Just then.
Tiring.
[You have learned Horizontal Slash.]
[You have learned Sword Aura.]
He had learned two skills.
And the charging goblins were decapitated by the sword aura.
[You have defeated a summoned Goblin Warrior.]
[You have defeated a summoned Goblin Warrior.]
[You have defeated a summoned Goblin Warrior.]
[······.]
[You have acquired 1 Low-grade Magic Stone.]
[You have acquired 1 Low-grade Magic Stone.]
He killed the Goblin Warriors and obtained 10 low-grade magic stones.
The Goblin Lord, horrified, raised its staff.
A new summoning circle appeared, calling forth Goblin Mages. The Goblin Mages’ ranged attacks rained down on Na Dan-sik.
Amazingly, Na Dan-sik’s body moved on its own, guided by the skills he had learned.
He leaped into the air to dodge, weaved in a zigzag pattern, and swung his longsword.
With every swing of his sword, the Goblin Mages’ heads flew off.
After defeating all the Goblin Mages, he obtained an additional 5 low-grade magic stones.
Next, the skill Charge activated, and he swiftly approached the Goblin Lord and swung his sword.
Tiring.
[You have defeated the boss, Goblin Lord.]
[As a reward, 3 Low-grade Magic Stones have been provided.]
[Congratulations! You have completed the clear in a record-breaking time.]
[As an additional reward, 10 Low-grade Magic Stones have been provided.]
[As an additional reward, the Bloody Goblin Lord’s Cloak has been provided.]
As expected, the messages didn’t end there.
[Hidden condition has been met.]
[Due to the effect of Power Inflation, the hidden stage, Goblin Den, will now open.]
Just as before, a hidden stage appeared.
[Entering the Goblin Den.]
As if to say it had no intention of listening to Na Dan-sik’s opinion, a door was forcibly opened.
[Welcome to the hidden stage, the Goblin Den.]
[You will now be given a hidden mission.]
[Mission: Eradicate the Goblin Den]
A moment later, in a vast cavern, hundreds of fully armed goblins appeared like an army.
Among them were several goblins that looked like captains. It felt like watching a well-trained army.
And yet, they didn’t feel that threatening.
He gripped his longsword and took a step forward.
A goblin captain raised a large axe and led the soldier goblins in a charge against Na Dan-sik.
He thrust, slashed, and swung his longsword.
“I’d like to try using other weapons.”
He wanted to try fighting with various weapons, not just daggers, but also spears, bows, and axes.
[You have defeated 1 Goblin Soldier.]
[You have defeated 1 Goblin Warrior.]
[You have defeated 1 Goblin Mage.]
[You have acquired 1 Low-grade Magic Stone.]
[You have acquired 1 Low-grade Magic Stone.]
[You have acquired 1 Low-grade Magic Stone.]
He got one magic stone per goblin.
He took down 30 soldiers, 10 warriors, and 5 mages. And yet, he wasn’t tired at all.
Na Dan-sik’s gaze turned forward.
A message appeared.
[The hidden stage boss, the Goblin King, appears.]
After he had defeated all the goblins, the final boss appeared.
Ta-da.
With a loud noise, a door materialized in mid-air.
The door opened, revealing the Goblin King, leading its goblins.
Worker goblins were holding up the throne on which the Goblin King sat.
The goblin on the throne was unlike the others.
It had purplish skin, black eyes swirling with demonic energy, and two horns sprouting from its head.
The Goblin King looked at Na Dan-sik and raised its massive body. It was two to three times larger than the other goblins.
When the Goblin King held out its hand, worker goblins brought and presented it with a massive greatsword.
THUMP!
Gripping the greatsword, the Goblin King slammed it onto the floor. The worker goblins who had been holding up the throne then set it down.
Na Dan-sik watched the scene with an unfazed expression.
The Goblin King stepped down from its throne and pointed the greatsword at Na Dan-sik.
“Grrrr, human. Kill.”
“Kieeeek!”
At the Goblin King's command, all the goblins charged at Na Dan-sik.
Na Dan-sik swung his longsword.
[Linear Slash has been activated.]
The goblins were instantly sliced apart by the Linear Slash.
ROOOOAR!
“Human!”
Enraged, the Goblin King raised its greatsword.
Na Dan-sik also leaped toward the Goblin King.
End
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