I Became a Mythical Hunter After Killing the Golden Goblin - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 15. The Ruin Where the Sun Sleeps, Most Radiant (2)
〚You have discovered 【Hidden Stage: Ruin Where the Sun Sleeps, Most Radiant】 for the first time across all dimensions!〛
〚You receive a Black Coin×1 as a reward!〛
〚You receive a 300% experience buff and 300% monster defeat reward buff within the ruin!〛
My vision shifted abruptly, accompanied by that strange sensation I’d felt once before—my body forcibly pulled into a vortex.
The world that had glowed brilliantly beneath a radiant sun, warm and luminous, vanished. In its place emerged a ruin bathed entirely in darkness, as though the sun itself had lost its light and crumbled into ruin.
Whoosh!
Another figure tumbled from the portal. Seo Mi-na glanced down at herself, then hastily turned away from me, desperately brushing sand from her clothes as it scattered everywhere.
Even in a four-dimensional space, it seemed she was too embarrassed to expose her skin to a man she barely knew. Well, it was far too dark to see anything anyway.
Tsk.
As I clicked my tongue in disappointment, something brushed against my senses for a fleeting moment before vanishing.
As if something had made an entrance only to make a swift exit. The presence I’d felt before the portal dissipated in an instant.
‘So I wasn’t mistaken after all.’
I recalled the trace of someone I’d sensed just once before, when I was excavating deeper into the Desert.
I focused my senses and searched again for a long moment, but finding no further sign of that presence, I eventually gave up the search.
‘I think I already know who it is anyway.’
I was planning to deal with them regardless, so how convenient that they’ve handed me the justification on a silver platter.
I smiled bitterly to myself while outwardly tilting my head as if I knew nothing.
〚A relentless, meticulous, and thorough malice smiles bitterly, foreshadowing your demise!〛
“So it’s begun, as expected.”
I knew it would come to this. I nodded at the ominous message that surfaced. Truth be told, it’s hardly surprising anymore. I’d already anticipated this about ninety percent, and I’ve prepared as much as I could. Let’s give it a try.
Whether you win or I do.
‘And I’ll use them well to awaken Seo Mi-na in the process.’
Awakening Seo Mi-na was a delicate matter, so I was hesitant to do it myself. This works out perfectly.
‘But still….’
I gazed at the single black coin clutched in my hand, my expression becoming enigmatic.
“I actually obtained a Black Coin.”
It’s a special coin obtainable only through an extremely rare probability when leaving a massive footprint in the Abyss.
Black and White Coins. They’re certainly surprising and rare….
“But my inventory is full of them.”
Unlike the rainbow-colored coins, they weren’t infinite in supply, but I had quite a substantial amount sleeping in my inventory.
After all, coins can only be actively used after entering the Abyss and meeting a merchant. Coins are essentially nothing more than the universal currency of the Abyss.
‘My early-stage plan includes hidden pieces that utilize Black and White Coins.’
I’ll use them then!
I organized the information in my mind, then flicked the coin into my inventory and drew my sword.
After some time passed, my eyes gradually adapted to the darkness. I retrieved the headlamp I’d prepared beforehand, put it on, and illuminated the path ahead.
“Let’s go. From now on, I’ll take the front and you’ll cover the rear. If you sense anything and spot enemies we might have missed, you handle them.”
I handed her a headlamp as well and briefly explained the strategy.
The reason I brought her along as insurance, even while sharing information about this ruin and splitting experience, goes beyond just her awakening.
‘All the monsters in this place are vulnerable to light and fire attributes.’
Even if the one who conquered this place before the regression was considered a promising prospect, could they have conquered a Hidden Stage with difficulty surpassing the Tutorial without a single mishap?
No matter how much elixir they drank, what weapons they received, or how much training they completed, real combat and practice are different beasts. Could some madman who got excited after catching a few Tutorial monsters and decided to kill all the underground monsters by digging around actually conquer a Hidden Stage without a single scratch?
It was all because that person had awakened a unique ability of the light attribute.
From an interview I heard later, they mentioned that the moment they unleashed their light attribute mana, all the monsters fled.
‘Not just the light attribute, but all abilities possessing both light and fire attributes are feared!’
And the lightning attribute is a superior attribute combining both fire and light attributes!
In other words, she was nothing more than an auxiliary device that would make this Hidden Stage slightly easier and safer as an excellent partner.
‘Let me try grinding for experience points here!’
Since I could monopolize the rewards anyway, I chose safety over a bit of experience. Actually, it’s strange to even think of it as a sacrifice.
Even if it’s a Hidden Stage, it’s ultimately within the Tutorial. I can’t level up more than 10 levels, so it’ll just take a bit longer, but the experience she and I will gain is more than enough—it’s overflowing!
Just as I was about to head straight into the entrance before me, I caught sight of Seo Mi-na hesitating in confusion, and only then did I realize what the problem was.
“You still can’t detect presence?”
“Not yet… That’s too advanced a technique. I need to spread minute currents around to detect, but….”
I understood. I had expected too much. She couldn’t even properly control the electrical discharge emanating from her own body since she hadn’t awakened her ability yet, and here I was asking her to detect presence.
Because I could read presence through my expanded senses thanks to my Limitless stat, I had naturally assumed everyone else could too.
“Since I can do it, I’ll signal you when enemies appear.”
We warmed up our bodies and walked into the entrance that stood before us, welcoming us in.
***
〚Hidden Stage: Sleeping Sun Pyramid Floor 1 – Gatekeeper’s Floor〛
The moment I entered through the entrance, the message that appeared left me bewildered.
‘This Hidden Stage was in tower form?’
There had been no mention of that. Since it was something that happened in the Tutorial where I practically lived, I had investigated it in detail out of curiosity, so I couldn’t have missed something or made a mistake like pure gold.
The promising prospect had only said they easily cleared the Hidden Stage and received a sacred relic.
That meant they had only cleared the first floor!
‘But that doesn’t change anything.’
If that’s the case, it was actually a good choice that we both came.
Due to the nature of Hidden Stages, once you escape, you can’t enter again, so you need to conquer as many floors as possible, and with two of us, we can climb more floors than alone.
That’s when the monsters, having discovered prey entering on their own feet after a long time, began to reveal themselves. They walked through the darkness and began to surround us.
I pointed to the locations my senses indicated and quietly opened my mouth to explain the situation to her.
“We’re surrounded. Eight total, and their form is… dog-type!”
I brought my sword down toward the monster that rushed at me first.
Slash!
The creature that leaped forward to bite my neck received a large wound across its face and fell to the ground with a cry of pain.
‘Too bad. If the sword’s effect had triggered, it would’ve been one hit.’
As I lowered my head, the creature lying there glowed harshly in the headlamp’s light as if it were dying.
“Die.”
Thrust!
I readily pierced its throat with my sword and granted it its final rest.
〚Normal-Rank [F-] LV 7 Monster – Dark Dog Defeated〛
〚Contribution Rate 100%〛
〚Reward: Purple Coin×3, F- Magic Stone×3〛
〚Experience: 30〛
With rewards and experience tripled, my experience bar climbs at an astonishing rate.
-Grrrrr! Screech!
-Screech! Screech! Screech!
-Howl! Howl! Howl!
The remaining seven monsters, witnessing their companion’s pathetic death, roared in fury and crouched low as if ready to pounce at any moment, their savage cries tearing through the air.
“Come on then! Seo Mi-na, get ready! These creatures are weak to light, so your attacks will be devastating!”
“Got it!”
The moment Seo Mi-na answered, seven monsters charged at us simultaneously. Four toward me, three toward her.
Hah!
I held my breath, sensing the approaching creatures through my heightened awareness, and channeled the formidable power of my body into my right arm as I swung my blade with all my strength.
Waiting for the perfect moment when these simple-minded fools leaped from the ground and opened their jaws toward me, I drew the sword I’d held to my left across in a single devastating stroke.
Left to right. Clear and simple, yet destructive and overwhelming—a single, perfect slash!
Splurch! Splurch! Splurch! Splurch!
The four Dark Dogs charging at me from the front had their necks severed clean; their headless bodies crashed to the ground and spilled black blood across the stone.
〚Common-Rank [F-] LV 9 Monster – Dark Dog Defeated〛
〚Contribution: 100%〛
〚Reward: Purple Coin×3, F- Magic Stone×3〛
〚Experience: 30〛
.
.
.
〚LEVEL UP!〛
〚Gained 1 Stat Point〛
〚LEVEL UP!〛
〚Gained 1 Stat Point〛
With experience tripled across four monsters, my level surged upward by two, and I gained two additional stat points.
‘I’m investing all of this into Limitless.’
I immediately allocated three stat points to Limitless, and vitality surged through my body, washing away the tension from the battle moments before.
“Status window.”
『Status Window
Name: Shin Ju-ha
Title: X
LV 3 (0%)
Stats
Misfortune (Legendary) F- (42/100)
Fortune (Mythic) F- (41/100)
Limitless (Mythic) F- (28/100)
Unbreakable (Legendary) F- (1/100)
Remaining Points: 0
Authority
[Golden Tower LV1][Heavenly Fortune LV1]
Unique Ability
[Curse of Misfortune (Legendary) LV1(MAX)][Equivalent Exchange (Primordial) LV1][Boundless Celestial Meridian (Mythic) LV1][Supreme Soul (Mythic) LV1]
Skill
[Heart of the Colossal (Legendary) LV0(Level restricted due to partial sealing)][First Wing of Pride (Mythic) LV1]』
In the mere week since my regression, I had achieved growth that was nothing short of astounding.
‘It’s all because of the Golden Tower.’
The Curse of Misfortune—inflicted by some bastard—had nearly consumed my unique ability, Heavenly Fortune, but the Golden Tower had evolved it into an Authority using primordial spring water. Through Nectar, I had obtained three absurdly broken unique abilities.
Even my stats had awakened four times. Though admittedly, one of those four was a trap.
‘I didn’t even raise my stats, yet Heavenly Fortune rose on its own and dragged everything else up with it.’
It was absurd. I clicked my tongue and closed the status window, then turned to look behind me.
Crackle crackle crackle!!!
Seo Mi-na’s battle with the Black Dog was equally one-sided. Before his electricity, monsters born in darkness and sustained by darkness were far too fragile an opponent.
Screeeech!
As the creature’s death cry faded and it breathed its last, she too seemed to have leveled up, opening her status window to check her stats.
“Easy, right?”
“My power seems to be the natural counter to these creatures. I didn’t even need to draw my spear.”
She tapped the folding spear at her waist with her fingers as she spoke, and I nodded in agreement.
“Then from now on, we eliminate every monster we see. Let’s squeeze everything we can out of this place.”
Crackle crackle crackle!
Instead of answering, Seo Mi-na drew her spear and wrapped electricity around her entire body. Together, we continued deeper into the labyrinth of the ruin, overwhelming the monsters with our superior power.
***
Splurt!
〚Common-Rank [F-] LV 9 Monster – Dark Dog defeated〛
〚Contribution: 100%〛
〚Reward: Purple Coin×3, F- Magic Stone×3〛
〚Experience: 30〛
〚LEVEL UP!〛
〚You have obtained 1 Free Point.〛
As I experienced my fourth level-up since entering the Ruin Where the Sun Sleeps, I invested the free point into my Limitless stat to bring it to 30, then caught my breath while wiping the black blood from my blade.
“Should we rest for a bit?”
“Good idea. I’ve exhausted my mana and I’m struggling.”
Since her stats were still low, her mana had depleted moments ago. As a result, her monster-hunting pace had slowed considerably, and I found myself handling more of the creatures.
Without her overwhelming counter ability—lightning mana—she couldn’t even face two Dark Dogs alone; she had become that fragile.
That said, it wasn’t that she couldn’t fight. Nor was I bothered by the tedium of hunting more monsters for experience.
I hadn’t expected more from her in the first place, and considering it’s only the second day in the Abyss, her abilities remain remarkable.
“Right, let’s rest here for a moment, then we’ll head to the boss.”
I immediately sat down, steadied my breathing, and lowered my blade to the ground.
‘Is this because of my cursed luck?’
The sword’s effect, which should have triggered at a 20% probability, never activated once during combat.
It made the monster hunting more tedious, but rising five levels made it hard to complain.
‘Before regression, it took at least a month to reach level five.’
I can barely remember how many horned rabbits I hunted, each giving a single experience point.
Of course, the level cap in the Tutorial is 10, so I can’t exceed that.
‘So I’ll reach level 10 in this Hidden Stage.’
Dark Dogs give the same experience as goblins—naturally, they’re equally strong, but that’s not a significant problem for me.
‘If there’s a first floor, there must be higher floors too.’
There seemed no reason to stay here. I didn’t know what monsters would appear on the second or third floors and beyond, but they would certainly grant more experience than the first floor.
Just as I was about to modify my plan from before entering the Hidden Stage and actually rest—
Crack!
BOOM!!!
The ground trembled and a deafening roar echoed as the upper portion of the wall we’d been leaning against shattered from impact.
“Ugh!”
“Kyaaah!”
My reflexes were sharp. The moment I felt a faint vibration through the wall, I grabbed my blade and Seo Mi-na, hurling us both to the side.
Thanks to that, we avoided being buried under the collapsing debris. However…
-A deafening roar erupted!
-Another monstrous cry followed!
The moment I saw the creature that appeared before us alongside those massive roars, I couldn’t help but tense.
After all, it was the ruler and administrator of this floor—the boss.
〚Rare-Rank [F] LV 21, Stage-1 Boss: Two-Headed Hound Shrouded in Darkness〛
〚The Boss has escaped the Boss Room for unknown reasons!〛
〚The raid will now commence forcibly!〛

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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