Infinite Evolution Hunter - Chapter 12

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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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12
I had no intention of resting until the subjugation operation the following week. I continuously cleared F-rank Gates to level up my stats, raising my level to 8.
With my Awakener level and stats increasing, goblins no longer posed a threat to me, which unfortunately meant my skill levels and bonus stats weren’t improving.
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Name: Lee Ji-seok
Occupation: Unemployed
Level: 8
Strength 28, Stamina 27, Agility 23, Intelligence 13, Health 270, Mana 100
Skills: Regeneration E, Sturdy Body F, Indomitable Spirit E, Poison Resistance E
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I felt proud of reaching this level in just over a month and a half, but I still had a long way to go.
When I arrived at the Resort prepared for Hunters to stay in during the subjugation period, people who had already arrived were gathered in the plaza in front of the temporary lodging. Besides Hunters, there were also people from the Management Bureau and those who came for support—it looked like there would be hundreds of them.
This Resort had been a famous tourist destination, but after the Gate incident, travelers stopped coming and it was closed. The Management Bureau purchased it. After the Gate Break, humanity’s range of activity became extremely limited.
“Oh? Hello!”
Yang Sang-heon acknowledged me when he saw me.
“Are you participating in this subjugation too?”
“Yes, I need the money and I want to get promoted.”
Yang Sang-heon scratched his head as he answered.
“Same here.”
“By the way, you can drop the formalities now.”
“Is that so?”
As I was chatting with Sang-heon, someone climbed onto the platform.
“I offer my sincere gratitude to all the Hunters participating in today’s subjugation operation. I am Baek Young-shin, Division Chief of the Awakened Subjugation Division of the Awakener Management Bureau, overseeing this operation. This Hellhound hunt will proceed for seven days starting today.”
A map showing habitual outbreak zones appeared on the massive screen behind Baek Young-shin.
“The mountain is dangerous at night, so unless you have special skills, please rest today and begin hunting from tomorrow morning. The habitual outbreak zones and characteristics of Hellhounds have been uploaded to the Hunter App, so please refer to them.”
The screen changed to a scoreboard. There were name and score columns, with all scores currently at zero.
“There are also prizes for the Hunter with the most kills. Well then, please prioritize safety while maximizing your results.”
After the brief greeting and briefing ended, the Hunters moved to receive their room assignments.
“Would you like to hunt together?”
Yang Sang-heon called out to me.
“No, I’ll go alone. Let’s grab a meal together once it’s all over.”
While this subjugation was for my promotion, that wasn’t my only objective. I wanted to raise the skill levels and stats I couldn’t increase in the Goblin Gate. And my method of raising skill levels was so crude that it wasn’t something I could show to others.
“Understood, see you later then.”
Yang Sang-heon didn’t ask twice and cleanly turned away, conversing with people to form a party. He really was a sociable fellow.
While others rested for tomorrow, I received my room assignment at the Resort, dropped off my belongings, and immediately rushed into the mountain.
With my Stamina and Agility stats well over 20, I climbed the mountain at a rapid pace.
I receive several times more stat increases per level than ordinary Hunters, and I gain bonuses beyond just leveling up. Looking at stats alone, I’m already at the level of an E-rank Hunter.
After twenty minutes of sprinting up the mountain, my breathing began to grow labored.
Entering the dense forest at night where few people ever ventured, fresh air washed over my body like a cleansing wave.
The sun had completely set, making it quite dark. Only the faint moonlight filtering through the clouds allowed me to dimly make out my surroundings.
I checked the map on my phone’s GPS and entered the predicted spawn area. Focusing all my senses, I searched for traces of the Hellhounds. My senses weren’t as sharp as they had been in my previous life, which was frustrating.
A rustling sound came from behind, followed by the crunch of leaves underfoot. I spun around to find a gaping maw lined with razor-sharp teeth inches from my face.
I yelped in surprise and reflexively thrust my arm forward, only to have the Hellhound clamp its jaws around it.
Gritting my teeth, I clenched my fist and drove a punch into the head of the Hellhound dangling from my arm.
The impact produced a sharp crack, and the creature yelped before bouncing away. Given its canine appearance, the sound it made upon impact was remarkably similar to that of a large dog.
My awkward stance prevented me from finishing it in one blow. As I approached the fallen creature to finish it off, several more Hellhounds emerged.
Blood trickled down my arm. The wound wasn’t deep, but the fact that those teeth had pierced my sturdy body proved these creatures possessed a bite force incomparable to ordinary large dogs.
Hellhounds had lower intelligence than goblins, but their formidable bite force and mobility made them difficult opponents in mountainous terrain. Moreover, their excellent night vision meant hunters typically avoided hunting them at night.
But I had come deliberately at night to acquire a skill. There was a skill I could obtain by concentrating in dark environments.
I took a deep breath and unleashed a roar forward to draw their attention. Soon, the creatures converged on me from all directions.
I clenched my fists while tracking the rapidly moving Hellhounds through the darkness with my eyes.
My eyes hadn’t yet adapted to the darkness and the Hellhounds’ swift movements. I found myself repeatedly bitten before I could even counterattack, only to have them slip away.
I couldn’t determine their exact number, but at least a dozen seemed to be circling me.
When I tore away the one biting my arm, two more were already latched onto my calves.
I punched each creature clinging to my body one by one, but my awkward posture prevented me from delivering serious damage.
Abandoning the punching approach, I grabbed the head of the one attached to my side and twisted its neck, killing it.
Once the first one died, the others became more cautious, scurrying away whenever I tried to approach them.
In the mountainous terrain, I couldn’t match their mobility.
From the brief skirmish, I’d only managed to kill one, yet the Hellhounds had multiplied—now roughly twenty circled around me.
They abandoned direct biting and instead circled me, waiting for openings to rake their blade-like claws across my legs or snap at my back before retreating.
The night was far from over.
* * *
By the time dawn broke, I had spent the entire night grappling with the pack of Hellhounds.
[Your level has increased.]
[You have acquired the skill: Keen Senses (C).]
I had deliberately ventured out on this dangerous night and spent the entire evening being bitten by these creatures just to obtain this skill. My constant regeneration meant I suffered almost no physical fatigue or damage, but the mental exhaustion lingered. Yet the sense of accomplishment from acquiring Keen Senses swept it all away in an instant.
My newly acquired Keen Senses skill not only sharpened all five senses but also heightened my sixth sense, allowing me to perceive not just dangerous situations in combat but also any hostility directed toward me.
In my previous life, this had been one of the core skills that allowed me to survive until the very end.
I had intended to begin serious hunting, but as dawn broke—whether because of the light or because the Hellhounds sensed my changed movements—they began to distance themselves from me.
Deciding I needed a meal and rest, I tied up the three Hellhounds I’d caught with rope and headed back to the Dormitory.
It would be convenient to just extract the magic stones and leave, but monster corpses carry toxins and can attract other creatures, so collection is necessary.
Some Hunters apparently bring porters or collection specialists, but I prefer working alone and haven’t considered hiring anyone yet.

Throughout the Mountain, there were checkpoints for supplies and handing over monster corpses, but they weren’t operated at night. In the end, I dragged the Hellhound all the way to the Dormitory and turned it over to the Gate Management Official.
Seeing my blood-soaked and tattered clothes, the Gate Management Official tried to call for a Healer, but I let him know the blood wasn’t from my wounds and left.
Back in my room, I showered and changed clothes, only to find they didn’t fit again. I’d bought new clothes after awakening when my body grew, but apparently I’d grown even larger.
For a while, as I regenerate, my body will continue to grow in proportion to my muscle strength. In my previous life, before death, my shoulders were far broader than now, and my entire body had been equipped with compressed muscle rather than just bulky mass.
I put on tight-fitting clothes and headed to the Resort’s breakfast buffet. Since Hunters had previously been reluctant to come, we’d paid careful attention to both the Dormitory and meal quality.
In the early days, we’d housed the Hunters coming for subjugation in tents and fed them combat rations that even soldiers disliked, so for a while the Hunters completely ignored subjugation missions. Well, I should’ve done it right from the start.
As I began eating with food piled high on several plates, Sang-heon approached.
“Hyung, are you eating all of that by yourself?”
Sang-heon, looking slightly disgusted at what I was consuming, spoke.
“Yeah. I’m hungry. Did you find a party?”
“Yes. There were so many people looking for parties that it wasn’t difficult.”
Sang-heon pulled up a chair in front of me and told me about the party he’d met today, while I shared what I’d learned and precautions to take while hunting Hellhounds through the night.
“You went out alone at night? Isn’t that dangerous?”
“With my skills, it’s manageable. But you shouldn’t do it.”
F-rank or E-rank Hunters without skills like Tough Skin or Chu Kang-min’s Enhancement would die instantly the moment their necks were bitten.
While chatting with Sang-heon, I never stopped shoving food into my mouth, consuming ten times more food than what he’d brought, and finishing it faster than him. My digestive ability had transcended normal human limits—I could swallow without much chewing and digest everything in an instant.
“I’m going to rest now, so take care.”
After finishing my meal, I stood up and said goodbye to Sang-heon.
“Huh? Aren’t you hunting anymore?”
“I’ve been at it all night. I’ll rest and head out again at night.”
“It would be nice if you could go with me during the day, but I understand. See you later.”
Leaving the disappointed Sang-heon behind, I returned to my room, put on an eye mask, and sought sleep.
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I woke as the sun was setting and headed downstairs to the first floor to eat.
The Cafeteria was nearly empty. As I filled an entire table with food for myself, Hunters who’d returned from hunting soon began arriving.
“Did that guy not go out?”
“He just came to eat.”
I heard whispering from behind, and glancing back, I saw several people staring at me with openly hostile expressions.
“Since they give support funds just for participating, guys like that show up.”
The voice was thick with disdain. Thanks to my keen sensory skill, my hearing had improved considerably—I could hear whispers as clearly as if they were spoken right beside me.
“I heard the Management Bureau guy hunted last night? He came back covered in blood.”
“He only caught three? He probably went off to play somewhere and just got blood smeared all over him. He doesn’t even have a single wound.”
I didn’t feel it was worth responding to, so I quietly continued eating. Once the seven-day subjugation ended, their perception would change anyway. Just like at the Academy.

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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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