The Only Enhancer - Chapter 17

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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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Episode 17
Episode 17 – Long-Term Raid (1)
0.
A week had passed since I’d enhanced Blessing of the Sea to +3.
I’d been confidently enhancing countless items.
And now I could reach a conclusion.
“This damn house has terrible feng shui.”
How was it possible that not a single +3 item had succeeded in an entire week?
A full week.
Seven days.
I hadn’t gone on a single raid, just stayed home enhancing, yet I couldn’t attach even one +3 item?
It made no sense.
There was only one solution.
“I need to move.”
I’d long forgotten that I’d once completed three +3 items in my memory.
Maybe I’d exhausted all my luck in this house.
If I thought about it rationally, I could calm down, but I wasn’t in a state to do that right now.
There was no way I could make rational judgments after wasting an entire week.
Of course, I hadn’t completely wasted the week.
‘I did manage to get all items to +2.’
The wand, robe, and one ring were already +3, and I’d raised the rest—dagger, necklace, breastplate, arm guard, boots, gloves, second ring, badge, first bracelet, and second bracelet—all to +2.
Even that hadn’t been easy, but after that, I hadn’t succeeded at +3 even once.
I hadn’t been reckless enough to attempt +4 out of frustration.
‘The destruction rate is 30%. How could I possibly risk that?’
What if I made a mistake and the +3 item I’d worked so hard to create shattered?
I couldn’t bear it.
“Phew.”
After taking a deep breath, my mind cleared a little.
Still, the fact that this place had bad luck didn’t change.
I had to move.
The problem was, I didn’t have enough money.
‘100 million won feels insufficient.’
I was renting now, but I didn’t want to move to another rental.
If I didn’t have money, that would be one thing, but since I could earn money easily, there was no reason not to buy property.
Besides.
‘I need to raise this pathetic level quickly. Then the probability will increase or whatever.’
Raising my level would increase both the probability and my mana pool.
Enhancement would become far easier.
If I only thought about money, I could just buy unenhanced items at the Hunter Market.
Money would multiply even if I only enhanced them to +1 and sold them.
But I need to raise my level too.
My goal isn’t just to earn money and live off it.
Originally, I’d sworn to go full equipment at +3 enhancement, but that vow was destined to break.
Now isn’t the time for that.
Besides, isn’t my current gear already more than enough?
Honestly, even without full +3 equipment, I can excel in any raid.
What more when all my other gear is set to +2?
I’m already a royal-tier healer, and my standing is almost beyond imagination.
But that’s one thing, and this is another.
Failing to create full +3 equipment left me with considerable regret.
‘It’s all because my luck with drops has been terrible.’
I should run raids extensively.
The reasoning was somewhat unconventional, but it was quite sound.
1.
A café located in Ilsan, Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.
Despite the early morning hour, the café was quite crowded.
It seemed to be popular.
The interior was well-designed, and being a large establishment, it remained pleasantly comfortable even with the crowd.
I looked around, then pulled out my phone to check Hunter Net.
Why had I, living in Gimpo, come here?
Simple.
‘Where in the café was it again?’
To find a party, nothing more.
I’d considered teaming up with Choi Jung-min again, but I wanted to experience a new party as well.
So I came here to find one this time.
‘I do have Han Tae-jun’s business card, but it feels a bit awkward.’
He’s from Changgong Guild, one of the five major guilds.
Since he mentioned having a proper meal together, if I brought it up, I might be able to raid with hunters from Changgong Guild.
But it’s too early for that.
‘Until I raise my level, I should only go with temporary parties.’
That was actually safer.
Suddenly carrying around enhanced equipment could raise suspicion if I stayed in one place too long.
While Choi Jung-min’s party was comfortable, these were the reasons I was seeking a new one.
Of course, experiencing different parties also gave me a chance to broaden my horizons.
That’s why I came here.
Instead of leaving a message on a recruitment post, they said to come here for an interview.
It was refreshing enough to draw me in.
First, the party leader’s specs were quite impressive.
A Level 2 tank from Mirinae Guild, a major guild—her name was Kang Na-gyeong, if I recall correctly.
After checking the profile she posted on Hunter Net, I looked around to see if there was someone matching her description.
I didn’t see anyone on the first floor, so I climbed to the second level and spotted several people lined up in a queue.
There she is. Predictable.
‘There’s no reason to line up like this in a café.’
I was certain, and as I approached, I was right.
At the end of the line stood Kang Na-gyeong, whom I’d confirmed from the photo.
Without much thought, I took my place at the end of the queue and waited.
It might take a while, but I could browse Hunter Net in the meantime.
As I fiddled with my phone and looked around a bit.
The line was shrinking rapidly.
‘It won’t take that long after all.’
It seemed many applicants didn’t meet the criteria.
Well, raids are no joke, and being selective about recruitment is good.
From what I could see, most of them appeared to be damage dealers.
“Phew, don’t be nervous. Don’t be nervous.”
“Huff! Be confident!”
“Phew, but I have quite a bit of raid experience, so I should get picked, right?”
“I need to make a good impression.”
The people in line muttered to themselves, each making their own mental affirmations.
Seeing this, I thought damage dealers really had it tough.
The competition was fierce, yet they weren’t treated particularly well in return.
Pondering these thoughts while browsing Hunter Net, my turn approached.
When it became my turn.
I sat down in front of Kang Na-gyeong.
At my natural demeanor, she looked at me with a momentary expression of surprise.
Until now, she’d seen dealers who merely pretended to be natural or tried to appear composed, but never anyone quite this genuinely at ease.
She was quite surprised, but an interview was an interview nonetheless.
She’d deliberately decided to judge only through the interview itself, not through applications or notes.
Still, some had sent notes with their experience beforehand, but many had come for the interview without sending notes as the recruitment post instructed.
Kang Na-gyeong assessed me this way.
This man was clearly from the latter group.
‘If they don’t meet the criteria anyway, they fail.’
Kang Na-gyeong’s pickiness had been legendary since her time at Mirinae Guild.
With so few people in the guild to her liking, she’d come out here to run a temporary party instead.
She didn’t conduct interviews like this every time.
After conducting interviews, she’d remember personnel who seemed decent, and if not for this raid, she’d invite them to the next one.
It was quite an efficient method.
Among those seeking to form temporary parties, Kang Na-gyeong was quite a famous figure.
If she took a liking to you, you could become semi-permanent.
There were even cases where Mirinae Guild had taken notice and signed people she’d recruited.
Above all, the fact that not a single accident had ever occurred during her raids was quite significant.
Whether I like it or not, accidents happen fairly often in raids.
Most of the incidents I’ve seen involve the tank losing control of the monster.
It’s an accident that occurs when the tank isn’t experienced enough.
But Kang Na-gyeong had been famous as a tank without such accidents even back when she was Level 1.
Quite skilled.
So there’s no reason not to have high expectations, right?
Yet Min-jun showed no sign of that at all.
‘This part deserves quite a few bonus points….’
A participant who wasn’t nervous in front of her.
It was quite refreshing, but ultimately specs are what matter.
Usually people like that are skilled, but I wonder about this guy.
While Kang Na-gyeong was lost in thought, Min-jun broke the silence and spoke.
“Kim Min-jun, healer.”
“Ah!”
At those words, Kang Na-gyeong immediately stood up from her seat and bowed respectfully as she spoke.
“I look forward to working with you.”
“….”
Kang Na-gyeong bowing so readily.
Isn’t that something a party member usually says?
2.
Seven different people gathered in the conference room.
They had come together for one purpose alone.
“Nice to meet you all. I’m Kang Na-gyeong. We’ll now begin the pre-raid briefing.”
They had gathered for a briefing before heading out on the raid.
Temporary parties usually conduct briefings briefly at the entrance to the Disaster Zone, if at all.
It was rare for a party to reserve a conference room and conduct one this formally.
It was a clear reflection of the party leader’s character.
While it takes time, there’s no more efficient way to ensure safety.
Everyone gathered here understood that.
Whether they liked it or not, these were people who would have to work together in the raid.
Without information about each other, things easily fall apart, and in a raid where lives hang in the balance in a single moment, that’s unacceptable.
Kang Na-gyeong understood this importance well, which is why she had arranged this meeting.
“Let’s begin the briefing with introductions. I’ll start by introducing myself.”
Mirinae Guild, Level 2 Tank, Kang Na-gyeong.
Mirinae Guild, Level 1 Tank, Kang Na-jin.
Mirinae Guild, Level 1 Swordsman Dealer, Jung Da-un.
Unaffiliated, Level 1 Archer Dealer, Kim Chang-heon.
Unaffiliated, Level 1 Magic-type Dealer, Lee Min-woo.
Unaffiliated, Level 1 Magic-type Dealer, Choi Jung-pal.
And finally, the last remaining man introduced himself.
“Level 1 Healer, Kim Min-jun. I look forward to working with you all.”
As I introduced myself, the atmosphere naturally grew lively.
The two members from Mirinae Guild, like Kang Na-gyeong, reacted the same way.
“A, a Healer?!”
“Gasp! I’ve heard Kang Na-gyeong the tank was promising, but I didn’t expect it to be this good.”
“A Healer, what an honor.”
“Huh, sister? You didn’t tell us there was a Healer?”
“Sigh, that’s one of Kang Na-gyeong’s bad habits.”
“Hehe, I knew you’d be surprised.”
The sub-tank Kang Na-jin and the main tank and party leader Kang Na-gyeong appeared to be sisters.
Everyone was astonished by my presence.
It was extremely rare for a temporary party to have a Healer join them.
“With the party leader being Kang Na-gyeong the tank and a Healer here, this should be very safe.”
“You’re right.”
“Sigh! This is making me more nervous. I came here already anxious about being in a party with a famous party leader, but now there’s a Healer too…”
The three unaffiliated members, excluding the Mirinae Guild members, couldn’t hide their excitement and anticipation.
Kang Na-gyeong understood their feelings perfectly, so after waiting a moment, she clapped her hands to draw everyone’s attention.
Clap!
“Now that we’ve all introduced ourselves briefly, let’s begin the briefing.”
Her tone shifted back to business-like as she turned on the large monitor in front of the conference room.
She opened a PowerPoint file that had been prepared quite thoroughly.
“The area we’ll be raiding is Jingang Mountain on Ganghwa Island.”
As Kang Na-gyeong spoke, the page switched to show information about Jingang Mountain.
Detailed information was laid out.
It was clear from the materials how thoroughly she had researched.
“As you can see on the screen, our target, Jingang Mountain, is a Disaster Zone 1 that boasts a wide radius.”
As shown in the materials, not just Jingang Mountain but also Deokgang Mountain beside it meant the mountainous terrain spread quite extensively.
Just looking at it, the terrain seemed exhausting.
Perhaps Kang Na-gyeong knew this well.
“We’re planning to hunt in this area for at least 10 hours or more.”
“W, what did you say?”
“Well, I’m fine with it, but…”
“Well, since the terrain isn’t easy to navigate, it would be good to hunt for as long as possible, but…”
Everyone trailed off and gauged my reaction.
The party leader naturally has the most influence in a party.
That is, if there’s no Healer.
That’s why everyone was watching my reaction.
The two from Mirinae Guild like Kang Na-gyeong were no exception.
But there was no need to worry about their reactions.
I had already agreed to this.
“I’ve already received permission from Kim Min-jun, our healer, so there’s no need to worry.”
Everyone exhaled in relief at those words.
Hunting for extended periods and conducting as many raids as possible was certainly profitable, but it came with proportional danger.
In other words, the presence or absence of a healer was critically important, and since one was confirmed to be joining, the risk had been mitigated.
But the shocking announcement wasn’t over yet.
“Multiple monsters appear in Jingang Mountain, but the creature we’re targeting is this one.”
Kang Na-gyeong spoke as she passed around the materials, and the creature that appeared next was one I already knew well.
It was the most notoriously durable among Disaster Level 1 Zone creatures, and the previous owner of the item I’d recently acquired.
The Black-scaled Pit Viper.
A creature with a body so dense and massive it was difficult to believe it was merely Disaster Level 1.
Considerably challenging prey.
It was known to be more difficult than mediocre Disaster Level 2 creatures.
Perhaps that’s why.
The three remaining members—excluding the two from Mirinae Guild and myself—stared at the screen in surprise.
But they voiced no complaints or objections.
‘Everyone’s just staring at me.’
All eyes converged on me without exception.
Kang Na-gyeong?
Of course, no one was unaware that she was an excellent tank.
But no matter how capable she was, she couldn’t surpass the status of a healer.
“I had prepared materials in advance to ease everyone’s concerns, but I’ll skip over them.”
Everyone knew.
That with just the healer’s buffs, everything would be fine.
And that the Black-scaled Pit Viper was a creature that paid quite handsomely.
I already knew this information from hearing about it beforehand, but I smiled again as I looked at the photograph of the Black-scaled Pit Viper.
It was a creature that offered decent experience and substantial rewards for a Disaster Level 1 Zone.
There was no reason for me, who needed both money and experience more than anyone, to refuse.
‘I’ll make a fortune.’
I’ll earn enough to move to a better place.

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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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