abcnovels
Chapter 8
Chapter 8
Chapter 8 – The Unyielding (3)
As soon as Kang A-hyun woke up and opened the door, she was about to faint.
“What are you doing?! You crazy bastard!”
Kang Hyeon was swinging a kitchen knife around in the air, wearing only his underwear.
“I’m practicing.”
“If you want to do that, go to your own house. You crazy lunatic!”
Kang A-hyun quickly snatched the kitchen knife and pushed Kang Hyeon into the room.
“But I don’t have a home…”
“Shut up!”
-Kang Hyeon stared blankly at the closed door.
“I should exercise.”
Kang Hyeon nodded in resignation and started exercising in earnest.
“whoop, whoop!”
After exercising for a while,
“Gulp, gulp!”
When lunchtime came, he ate his meal frantically.
“whoop, whoop!”
After the meal, he exercised again,
“Gulp, gulp!”
When dinnertime came, he ate his meal frantically again.
Kang A-hyun watched Kang Hyeon with a subtle expression.
“Hey…”
“Huh?”
Kang A-hyun averted her eyes from Kang Hyeon’s innocent gaze.
“Never mind. Eat your meal.”
‘That worm of a guy…’
Swallowing the words that almost reached the tip of her chin, Kang A-hyun turned on the TV.
The news was in progress, and the well-groomed anchor was speaking in an agitated voice about something.
-The world’s first person to clear a dungeon has emerged from the United States. Mr. William Bryan…
“Slurp, slurp, so someone has already cleared a dungeon?”
Kang Hyeon said while shoving food into his mouth.
“Indeed. As expected, the Americans will always be Americans. Anyway, it’s a relief.”
However, the anchor’s continued words made their expressions turn cold.
-It appears that only 3 out of the 10 people who entered the dungeon have survived, and the details…
3 out of 10.
Even with simple calculation, it was a terrifying mortality rate of 70%.
“Damn…”
“The internet must be going crazy again.”
Kang Hyeon quickly checked the news article on his smartphone. As expected, numerous people were engaged in heated debates in the comments.
-If the mortality rate is 70% from the very beginning, it’s a done deal, isn’t it?
-The people who went in there are just anime otakus. It would be different if normal people went.
-The ones who passed the tutorial are otakus or hikikomori. One of them even cleared the second stage. I checked their Haysbook.
Sifting -It’s been officially reported that one of the three survivors is the one who cleared the second stage.
through the information from various websites, the gist was as follows:
Only those with special abilities can enter the dungeon.
Entering and exiting the dungeon is free.
The way to clear the dungeon is to destroy the Core located within.
Although it was still very early, and the sample size was small, Kang Hyeon decided to just take note of the most reliable information.
“You’re not going to enter the dungeon, are you?”
Kang Hyeon asked Kang A-hyun while watching the news.
“Are you kidding me? Even if I had extra lives, I wouldn’t go near that place.”
“I see. I was just wondering.”
Relieved by her answer, Kang Hyeon started cleaning up his dishes.
Just as he was about to go to his room after neatly finishing his share of the dishes, Kang A-hyun called out to him.
“Hey. Are you going to sleep now?”
“I’ll take a shower and go to bed soon.”
“Then let’s go to the market together. I don’t want to go alone…”
Kang A-hyun said while gazing off into the distance. Though she was trying to appear calm, the withdrawn tone in her voice revealed her inner turmoil.
“Are you scared? Hehehe. Seeing my face also makes every other person run away…Ow! It hurts!”
In the end, the siblings, with the brother hastily wearing a cap, went out of the villa.
It was Kang Hyeon’s first time going out since the tutorial had started.
“Well, even though the news is causing a ruckus, it seems relatively quiet here?”
“Ugh, you hikikomori. That’s the problem. It’s the weekend today, you know.”
On a typical weekend evening at 8 pm, the streets would be bustling with people. Songs would be pouring out from the streets, and bars would be filled with people trying to relieve their weekly stress.
But now, it was eerily quiet.
“Ah… Now that you mention it, there are even soldiers roaming around.”
Kang Hyeon, nodding his head, followed Kang A-hyun as they entered the market.
“Hmm, the things we need to buy…”
In the midst of their shopping, a youthful voice could be heard nearby.
“Hey, you know my brother passed the second stage of the tutorial, right?”
Kang Hyeon turned his head to see two middle school boys in uniform talking.
“Your brother went into the dungeon with his friends who cleared the tutorial, and he came back, right?”
“Wow, awesome! So what happened? Did any crazy monsters show up or something?”
Intrigued, Kang Hyeon slowly approached the students to listen more closely.
He was leaning towards them in a very conspicuous and suspicious manner.
“What are you doing?”
“Shh!”
Kang A-hyun was watching with a pitiful expression.
Kang Hyeon frowned at her and put his index finger to his nose.
“You idiot.”
Kang Hyeon leaned in again to focus on the conversation.
“They said a horde of like ten goblins showed up and they almost died.”
“What? Goblins?”
“Yeah! One of the guys in the group had fought goblins in a dream, and he ran away as soon as he saw them, and that’s how they barely survived.”
“Tch, how strong can goblins be that they had to run away after seeing them? They’re probably just lying about going into the dungeon.”
Kang Hyeon suddenly smacked the back of the student’s head.
-Thwack!
“Ow!”
The student, grabbing his head in annoyance, turned around with a scowl.
“Hey, who was that?!”
Turning back, he saw a man glaring at him with a fierce gaze.
“Wh-who are you…?”
Intimidated by the intense look, the student stammered.
“Never underestimate goblins again.”
“Huh?”
“If you underestimate goblins one more time, you’re dead.”
“You crazy bastard! What are you doing?!”
In the end, Kang Hyeon was also smacked on the back of the head by Kang A-hyun.
***
Ippotranslation
***
“Come at me, you bastards!”
“Kurruk, kuruuk!”
[Roar of the Enraged Lion is activated]
[The morale and abilities of all enemies have decreased]
As soon as Kang Hyeon entered the tutorial, he activated his skill and rushed in without hesitation.
“Kurrrurk!”
“Get lost!”
A few Kurkas stood in his way, but most of them were flustered and in disarray. Kang Hyeon mercilessly cut down those guys and quickly reached the chieftain’s tent.
“Kuruuk!”
A Kurka warrior guarding the tent. Seeing Kang Hyeon, he swung his axe with all his might.
‘That’s nothing!’
Kang Hyeon evaded the attack fluidly and thrust his sword into the Kurka’s neck.
The Kurka, having his vital point struck, fell down pathetically, and Kang Hyeon stepped over the body and entered the tent.
“Kururk! Kururuk!”
[Caught in the Low-rank Magic Binding skill]
As soon as Kang Hyeon entered the tent, a magic spell came flying.
Seeing the magic binding, the chieftain hastily tried to get out of the tent.
“Where do you think you’re going, you bastard?!”
[Roar of the Enraged Lionis activated]
[The Low-rank Magic Binding is released]
“Kuruuk?!”
Kang Hyeon’s sword swiftly beheaded the chieftain.
The chieftain’s eyes, fallen to the ground, were wide open in disbelief.
[Congratulations. You have cleared Stage 3.]
[As a clear reward, you receive ‘Intermediate Bodily Regeneration (B)’]
[Level up!]
[You have cleared the Tutorial Stage 3 in the shortest time! You have set a new record. As an additional reward, you have acquired the temporary title ‘One Who Does Not Hold Back’]
“Yesss, I did it!”
Kang Hyeon joyfully ran around celebrating.
“Whew, it was tough. But still better than the goblin one.”
Nevertheless, he felt that he had achieved another growth through this tutorial.
“First, let’s check the rewards.”
Kang Hyeon checked the title first.
One Who Does Not Hold Back: A title given to a stubborn frog who has cleared the patience and perseverance-testing Tutorial Stage 3 the fastest. If the record is broken, the ownership of the title will also pass on.
Effect: All stats +1
“Oh, that’s nice? Since the tutorial is over for everyone now, there won’t be a need to pass on the ownership. No, wait, I don’t know that for sure yet.”
Everyone automatically enters the tutorial when they turn 18.
He had seen a post saying that new tutorial entrants are increasing every day, so he was certain of that.
“But this record won’t be easily broken, though.”
He cleared Stage 3 in less than 3 minutes. It’s a record that the first-time tutorial students would not be able to easily surpass.
“Next is the skill, I guess?”
Intermediate Bodily Regeneration (B)
Ability: Uses Magic to regenerate and restore physical damage.
Explanation: It automatically recovers any injury, be it amputation, burn, or frostbite, using Magic. Intermediate-level Bodily Regeneration can even restore shattered bones within a day, a miraculous feat.
Seeing the explanation, Kang Hyeon’s jaw dropped wide open.
“Amazing… Are they really allowed to give such an incredible thing this early?”
He had only cleared Tutorial Stage 3, but he received a B-rank skill as a reward.
Of course, there could be a development where he goes into a dungeon and finds A-rank skills lying around everywhere! But Kang Hyeon hoped that wouldn’t happen, as he had just obtained an F-rank ability after swinging a sword for days.
“Now, it’s just a matter of raising my stats.”
?Name: Kang Hyeon
?Title: One Who Does Not Hold Back
?Level: 4 ? 5 new!
?Detailed Stats:
Strength 13 (+1)
Agility 12 (+1)
Vitality 12 (+1)
Magic 14 (+1)
Additional Stat: 0 ? 1 new!
?Unique Ability: Resurrection
?Abilities: Lowest-rank Swordsmanship (F), Lowest-rank Shield (F), Lowest-rank Crossbow (F)
?Skills: Roar of Enraged Lion (D), Intermediate Bodily Regeneration (B)
Kang Hyeon looked at his now very diverse status window and smiled contentedly.
[Would you like to use the 1 additional stat point on Vitality?]
“Yes.”
-Ding!
Finally, he finished checking all the rewards. But Kang Hyeon had one unresolved question.
“What’s the difference between Abilities and Skills?”
Looking closely, there seemed to be some commonalities. But without a proper explanation, it was difficult to make an accurate judgment.
“They must be related somehow…”
[The wait time has expired. You are being withdrawn from the tutorial.]
Kang Hyeon’s thoughts were cut off by the message.
***
Ippotranslation
***
“You look happy today?”
“Hehehe… let me feel this brother’s arm.”
“Crazy bastard…”
Kang Hyeon kept flexing and extending his arm forcefully, looking agitated.
“Isn’t it a complete rock?”
As Kang Hyeon continued boasting, Kang A-hyun, who was curious, carefully placed her hand on his arm.
“Fuck, the rock is in your head right now.”
“What did I do to you to start a fight?!”
“Your existence itself is a fight!”
After tussling and exchanging punches for a moment, the worn-out Kang A-hyun sat down. Kang Hyeon also lay down on the ground following her.
“By the way, aren’t you going to work?”
“I can still rest a little more.”
“What kind of company keeps telling you to rest every day. Paid vacation?”
Though Kang Hyeon was relieved that he didn’t have to go to work, his sarcastic remark came out differently from his inner thoughts.
“Ugh, you’re also calling this guy brother. These days, try to at least watch the news. Do you know that over 100 people have been confirmed missing after sneaking into the dungeon?”
“Is that so…”
“Plus, the soldiers and police are running around crazily.”
“…”
“Yesterday, some lunatic was going around with a longsword stabbing people, how can you just go to work like nothing happened?”
Listening to Kang A-Hyeon’s words, Kang Hyeon fell into thought.
‘A longsword, huh…’
It seems he used the reward for clearing the 2nd stage. Although he can’t use the inventory right now, if he had normally completed the tutorial, he would have been able to use the inventory and status window.
“Other than that, is there anything else you can talk about?”
“They’re going to deploy the military’s special forces to clear the dungeons, starting from Seoul. Some countries have already begun.”
“What good are special forces against monsters? Did they bring guns to the dungeon?”
“Yeah.”
“Ah, I see…”
Kang Hyeon awkwardly scratched the back of his head.
“All electronic devices are useless inside the dungeon, but the rest is fine.”
“That’s a relief.”
“But for the soldiers, it’s not. The families have already started protesting because it’s dangerous.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s dangerous! In a way, this is like using the soldiers as guinea pigs.”
“Hmm, that does seem a bit problematic.”
There is still no information about the dungeon. Without knowing the dangers involved, the fact that they can use guns doesn’t guarantee any safety.
“They say they’ll only use volunteers, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens.”
Listening to Kang A-Hyeon’s words, Kang Hyeon was newly impressed by her.
‘Right… Ah Hyeon has been thorough and calm since she was young.’
Thanks to her mature personality, Kang Hyeon often relied on her.
“Hey, Kang A-Hyeon.”
“What.”
“Just wait a little. I’ll clear up to the 8th stage soon.”
“…”
“By then, this brother might be the strongest man in the world.”
“You’re just full of bullshit. It’s a relief if you don’t shout in the morning.”
***
Ippotranslation
***
A week later.
“You bastards! Please, just listen to me!”
In front of Kang Hyeon stood 4 men and women, all with disgruntled expressions.
“Please, I’m begging you like this. Huh? Don’t you want to survive?”
Kang Hyeon was still at the 4th stage of the tutorial.
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