About 10 minutes had passed.
Focused on observing the changes in Gloria and the surrounding environment, Kang-hoo finally broke his silence.
Worried about distracting Kang-hoo, Ma Jinho, who had been waiting quietly by his side, cautiously spoke up.
“The instant-kill zone is a place where emergency responses are impossible. I believe you are well aware of that.”
“Yes, I am aware. That’s why I took the time to examine it more closely.”
“…Yes?”
“It seems like I have some calculations figured out. May I try to tackle it alone?”
At Kang-hoo’s question, Ma Jinho cocked his head. No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t understand Kang-hoo’s intentions.
“Do you intend to face Gloria alone? It was designed to be impossible to do so.”
“The usual method is to continuously attack from a distance with skills, slowly killing it, right?”“That’s correct.”
“But it seems that Gloria itself is quite weak. It’s the surrounding defense mechanisms that are the problem.”
“That’s also correct.”
“So, it seems like a problem that could be solved simply by approaching.”
“That’s why the usual method is…”
“Please just tell me yes or no. Can I attempt it alone? Or not?”
There was determination in Kang-hoo’s words, while Ma Jinho’s mind was filled with question marks.
However, the actual challenger seemed to have an exclamation mark firmly embedded in his thoughts. What could he be seeing?
“We are still in the maintenance period, so there is plenty of time left…”
“Then may I go ahead?”
“Yes. There is no problem.”
Snap!
No sooner had Ma Jinho finished speaking than five shadows centered around Kang-hoo split the space.
Swoosh!
One of the shadows was hopelessly dispersed after being hit by a killing beam.
Ma Jinho nodded his head as if to say, “I thought so.” The fate of the other shadows was likely no different.
More importantly, since Kang-hoo hadn’t moved from his spot, it seemed like he was just putting on an act.
If he had any intentions, he would have moved himself long ago. It must be fear that made him send the shadows instead.
But just then—
Snap!
Kang-hoo vanished from sight.
In that moment, Kang-hoo had seamlessly moved to where the nearest shadow had been.
Ssss!
Then, a killing beam shot indiscriminately from all directions into the area, but it failed to touch the pre-positioned shadow or Kang-hoo’s actual body.
And then—
Snap!
Once again, Kang-hoo relocated to the next shadow’s position.
Immediately afterward, another killing beam swept over the spot Kang-hoo had just vacated. It was a momentary lapse.
“Is he positioning himself 10m, 20m at a time, matching the pattern like that?”
Ma Jinho’s mouth, previously tightly closed, dropped open. Kang-hoo had already halved the distance.
Meanwhile, the remaining shadows diligently moved, skillfully evading several killing beams.
Not only that, but Kang-hoo himself was never in the same spot at a dangerous timing.
Actually, the killing beam was a problem, but the damp and moist ground also posed a challenge to movement.
Even if he chose a path to move, it was impossible to proceed cleanly.
Either his foot would sink deeply, or he could slip unexpectedly.
And if a killing beam were to pass through in such a situation? It would be a direct ticket to the afterlife.
However, Kang-hoo effortlessly navigated such a troublesome process with a shadow shift.
“What’s going on, suddenly?”
“Captain, what’s happening?”
The team members were equally astonished by the sight of Kang-hoo crossing about 100 meters straight to Gloria.
At first, they thought they had seen it wrong, but upon closer inspection, Kang-hoo was indeed drawing closer to Gloria.
“What’s happening? It’s unfolding just as you see.”
“Just a graze from the killing beam would kill him!”
“I’ve told you all about it. He went anyway.”
“No, can that really… work?”
Everyone’s fists were tightly clenched as they remembered the fate of their colleagues who had been sacrificed to the killing beams.
There were hunters who had bravely crossed before, confident they wouldn’t die, only to be killed while screaming.
They died without leaving a will. The bodies? Not a trace was left to retrieve.
Just then.
Snap! Snap!
Kang-hoo, seizing the optimal timing, arrived in front of Gloria in an instant with two uses of shadows.
Wearing an eye patch and standing as if in meditation, Gloria did not move at all.
It seemed she was designed as such a boss monster. Guarding the place, but an eternally sleeping entity.
But it’s the surrounding guardian realm that makes her untouchable.
When Kang-hoo looked back, he saw Ma Jinho’s jaw cartoonishly drop.
Until now, the struggle to capture Gloria, who had been so easily breached, was unimaginable.
He had thought about it several times.
It would be really easy to capture her if approached. But turning thought into reality was extremely difficult.
Yet, Kang-hoo made the seemingly impossible imagination a reality! Easily, with his own skill.
Leaping with all his might, Kang-hoo climbed onto Gloria’s shoulder and gripped a dagger.
Although completely defenseless, just in case Gloria made an unpredictable move.
And then.
Whoosh!
Kang-hoo’s dagger, filled with the force of a great beheading, pierced through Gloria’s left chest.
Ripping through the heart and fracturing within, the dagger took Gloria’s life all too easily.
【Your level has dramatically increased to 130.】
【Successfully plundered the Resonance View skill from the target.】
“This is it.”
The thrilling pleasure of leveling up made Kang-hoo’s nose twitch.
When he had captured the middle boss monster Edax, the expected final level score was set at a maximum of 120.
But because he monopolized the experience, his level soared beyond that.
Kang-hoo’s contribution was 100%. The other hunters had no noticeable contribution, making it a perfect solo feat.
Explosive leveling ensued.
The plundering of the Resonance View skill was monumental.
But the good news didn’t stop there.
As Gloria, whose breath had ceased and head had dropped, oxidized into a handful of ashes, she left something behind.
“Did a red magistone come out?”
As Ma Jinho recognized and exclaimed, it was indeed half a red magistone and one orange magistone.
A single red magistone has a base price of 100 billion won.
Thus, even half of it has a guaranteed market value of 50 billion won.
‘Having the right to loot first is so reassuring. Thanks to the White War, I’ve broken even.’
The White War had always been a serious concern.
However, due to the mercenary scarcity caused by the White War, the value of bleed dealers also increased.
Because of this, raid teams in need of bleed dealers had to offer loot priority rights.
In fact, even if only one orange magistone had been found, it would have been considered a jackpot.
But the appearance of a red magistone would certainly have Ma Jinho and the Groo Guild writhing in agony.
Of course, they couldn’t break the agreed-upon promise. It’s a matter of honor. In every way, Kang-hoo was the only one who truly benefited.
None but Kang-hoo gained any experience points from Gloria.
After finishing the cleanup, Kang-hoo proceeded with the settlement of the red magistone and the request fee.
After adding up the down payment, the balance, and the magistone settlement, his account balance became 850 billion won.
Before coming to Jeju Island, having even 50 billion won felt precarious; now, it seemed unreal.
Of course, it wasn’t that the Groo Guild made a losing deal.
They had managed to secure one orange magistone that dropped alongside the red magistone.
This was significant because the magistone earnings were substantial in the regular monster clearing sections.
If calculated as the total settlement amount for the entire raid, they had pocketed at least 200 billion won.
Even if the distribution was made equally, it was over 20 billion won per person for half a day’s raid.
This was typically the scale of distribution after a raid.
However, the story changed unexpectedly when Gloria dropped a red magistone.
According to Majin-ho, the number of times Gloria had been captured was over 100, just counting the times he had personally noted.
Including times not properly checked, it would be double that.
He had never seen even a speck of a red magistone, not to mention half a piece.
This time, because Kang-hoo was given priority for loot, it had become ‘as if it never happened’.
Thanks to Majin-ho’s consideration, Kang-hoo had some flexibility as he had finished his own settlement before the team’s total settlement.
Rather than thinking they were robbed of quality loot by Kang-hoo, they seemed satisfied with the quick raid.
Apart from the Gloria case, they had diligently collected experience, so in fact, there wasn’t much to complain about.
While Kang-hoo refreshed his dry throat with cool water and caught his breath, he checked the skill obtained from Gloria.
【Resonance View】
【Skill Proficiency: Lv. Max】
【Even in a state of blindness due to poisoning or skill force, you can still secure vision.】
【Resonance View actively helps the user perceive the world in black and white.】
【Consumes 0.5 mana per second only when in a state of blindness, and the ability is limited if mana is insufficient.】
Although it is detailed, in brief, it meant immunity to blindness.
Even if blind, through resonance, one can perceive the world in black and white.
Apart from losing color, one can maintain a state almost no different from usual.
‘With night vision, no problem even at night. With Resonance View, I can handle being blind…’
One by one, handicaps are being erased, steps taken towards perfection.
Eyes are of paramount importance.
It’s not without reason that hunters with eye injuries experience a significant decline in combat ability.
It would be somewhat fortunate if only combat ability were affected, but it’s common for hunters to meet unexpected deaths in dungeons.
Distorted and limited vision restricts information flow, slowing down responses to unforeseen events.
This is just from injuries alone, not to mention blindness.
If a hunter is completely unprepared, it could lead directly to death from an enemy’s targeting.
‘Feeling pretty proud today.’
Had I not discovered the loophole, I would have remained a mere spectator in the Gloria raid.
Thanks to an efficient camouflage and position-shifting skill called ‘Shadow Step’, I secured a significant advantage.
Once again, I recognized the value of the skills I’ve diligently acquired since being possessed.
Indeed, the more skills, the better.
Collect them, and one day they will prove invaluable.
And today, the Resonance View obtained from Gloria will do just that.
To a future ‘enemy’ who was certain Kang-hoo would be blinded by their attack…
It will deliver the most lethal counterpunch.
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