Chapter 8: Golden Pond

After cheering several times, Lee Tae-sung calmed his mind and looked at the manual again.

[Thunder Fist (Rare)]

– Rank: Rank 3 Hybrid Magic Fist Art

Hybrids, which combine martial arts and magic, are divided into Ranks 1 through 9.

From the lowest Rank 1 to the highest level, Rank 9.

Even within the same rank, the skill’s level is subdivided into Normal, Rare, Unique, and Legendary.

Naturally, Unique or Legendary skills were far superior in power compared to Normal skills.

Thunder Fist was a Rank 3 hybrid, one rank higher than the Flame Flower Sword Style, and it was even a Rare grade.

‘It makes sense that an executive-level person was using it.’

Since it was only a day ago, the memory was still vivid.

The sight of the enemy executive pouring out fists while lightning flashed from his hands.

‘Now it means I can learn it too.’

Lee Tae-sung placed his hand on the Thunder Fist manual.

– Ding!

[Would you like to learn Thunder Fist (Rare)?]

[Requires 4 Skill Points]

The Skill Points required for a Rank 3 hybrid were 4.

He had plenty of points to spare.

He started with 10 from the beginning and received an additional one every time he leveled up.

He didn’t know what it would be like when he obtained truly high-rank skills later, but he could learn several skills like Thunder Fist.

“I’ll learn it.”

Then, the notification he was anticipating rang out.

– Ding!

[You have acquired a new skill.]

Manager Song Sang-yeop was able to laugh happily now that all his worries were resolved.

“Hahaha. The second mission is usually similar to the first. They say it’s almost the same difficulty up to the third mission, which is considered an adjustment period. If it’s you, Hunter Lee Tae-sung, clearing it won’t be a problem at all.”

“I see.”

A difficulty similar to the first.

Unless he was truly unlucky, it meant he would succeed even if he just put in a moderate effort.

Of course, Lee Tae-sung had no intention of doing it half-heartedly.

Just as Lee Tae-sung was about to log out.

“Lee Tae-sung, are you awake?”

The voice of a servant could be heard from outside.

“Yes, I’m up.”

“I see. The Chief Manager asked me to contact him as soon as you woke up. He said he would come see you immediately, so could you please wait for a moment?”

The Chief Manager?

“I will do that.”

Lee Tae-sung nodded.

A short while later, the Chief Manager entered the room.

“You… your body looks fine.”

The Chief Manager looked over Lee Tae-sung and spoke as if surprised.

“I’ve seen it a few times, but it’s truly mysterious every time I see it. That power of an Outlander to be resurrected in a single day even after death!”

The Chief Manager shrugged and handed over a bronze plaque.

“Take this.”

“What is this?”

“A promotion. As of today, you are a second-class disciple of our Flying Dragon Sect. This is the identification plaque that proves it.”

– Ding!

[You have completed the quest.]

[You receive 1 silver coin, 10 copper coins, and a large amount of experience as a reward.]

[Level Up!]

He had only received coins before, but this time the reward was large enough to include a silver coin, and it was enough experience to level up once.

However, a question arose before the reward.

He succeeded in the quest?

‘Not a failure?’

Regardless of the result, Lee Tae-sung had died.

The ceasefire negotiations had also gone up in smoke as they fought to the death.

How did the quest succeed?

He recalled the previous quest again.

[Quest: Accompaniment with the Elder]

– Content: Friction between the Flying Dragon Sect and the Crimson Brotherhood is intensifying as time passes.

Since it is detrimental to both groups, the Flying Dragon Sect intends to negotiate a ceasefire.

Finish the negotiations along with Elder Dam Ho-pung.

That was it.

Nowhere in the quest did it say to lead the ceasefire negotiations to a successful conclusion!

It only said to follow the Elder and finish the negotiations!

‘Right… it did finish.’

Since a failed negotiation was still a finished one.

It was absurd, but since he was being given an unexpected reward, Lee Tae-sung performed a fist-and-palm salute.

“Thank you, Chief Manager.”

“It’s nothing. Please continue to work harder for the benefit of this sect in the future.”

“Yes.”

Perhaps he was busy, as the Chief Manager only said what was necessary and left quickly.

Lee Tae-sung hung the identification plaque signifying his status as a second-class disciple at his waist and was about to log out again.

It was at that moment.

“Lee Tae-sung.”

The servant called him again from outside.

“What is it?”

“Elder Dam Ho-pung has come to see you.”

“What?”

Before the surprised Lee Tae-sung could ask anything more, the door slid open.

The person who entered was Elder Dam Ho-pung, with a face and eyes like a tiger.

He looked at Lee Tae-sung with sharp eyes, and Lee Tae-sung immediately performed a fist-and-palm salute.

“Second-class disciple Lee Tae-sung greets the Elder.”

Lee Tae-sung was someone who had shown respect even to first-class disciples and the Chief Manager.

If it was an Elder, he naturally had to be even more polite!

Furthermore, one of the purposes of participating in the quest was to build a relationship with the Elder.

Naturally, he was fully prepared to be humble.

“Your body looks fine.”

“Yes. Since I am an Outlander, I am resurrected in a day even if I die.”

“That is a relief.”

“……”

“……”

Elder Dam Ho-pung scanned Lee Tae-sung’s entire body for a while without a word.

Why is this man acting like this?

Lee Tae-sung stayed still for the time being.

Elder Dam Ho-pung rested his chin on his hand and spoke.

“Your physical constitution is ordinary. You don’t seem particularly talented either. Except for the fact that you’re an Outlander, you’re exactly at a second-rate level.”

“Haha….”

“Come find me later. In any case, you saved my life. I, Dam Ho-pung, do not forget a debt of gratitude. I will reward you.”

“Excuse me?”

A reward from the Elder?

And for the price of his life?

“It seems you have so many needs that it will be easy to reward you. I’ve finished what I came for, so rest more. I should rest as well. Come later.”

Lee Tae-sung wanted to ask exactly what kind of reward he was planning to give, but Elder Dam Ho-pung only said what he wanted to say and then vanished like the wind using a lightness art.

Looking at the lightness art that made him disappear instantaneously, Lee Tae-sung gulped.

A gift given by such a great person…. What could it be?

***

Lee Tae-sung logged out after that.

Elder Dam Ho-pung had told him to come the next day, and he wanted to perform one more Hunter mission today.

‘I need to make money.’

The studio apartment he had lived in for a long time.

It wasn’t because he liked it here.

If he could, he wanted to move to a larger and better place.

However, before performing the mission, he called Manager Song Sang-yeop.

He intended to double-check everything one last time.

– Ring~

Before the dial tone even rang twice, Manager Song Sang-yeop answered the phone.

“Yes, Hunter Lee Tae-sung. This is Manager Song Sang-yeop.”

“Manager. I have something to ask. I’m thinking of going on one more mission soon. What is the difficulty like starting from the second mission?”

“Oh! You’re planning to participate again already?”

He could feel the welcome in his voice.

Lee Tae-sung didn’t know, but it was actually natural.

Rumors about Lee Tae-sung had already spread throughout the National Hunter Association.

A hunter who awakened combat-type skills.

He was already a prospect from that point on, but he had earned a score of as much as 6,000 points in his first mission.

That meant he didn’t just succeed in the mission, but perfectly accomplished everything that could be done within the mission site.

It meant a perfect success.

Among talented hunters, they occasionally hit a perfect success, but it was extremely rare to do so from the very first mission.

Even the Association President, who had been in the industry for nearly 30 years, had only heard stories and said he had never seen it with his own eyes!

Such a prospect grows up to be a pillar that supports the nation.

However, the concern was what Lee Tae-sung’s personality was like.

– What if he’s afraid of missions?

– We’ll take care of him as much as possible… but we don’t know yet.

These were the worried words of the association staff.

No matter how much he had awakened, he was originally an ordinary person living in modern society.

If he was suddenly dropped into a war-like mission where people kill and die, his mind might not be able to handle it even if he possessed supernatural powers.

No matter how talented he was, what would be the point?

If the hunter himself said he wouldn’t participate in missions, the association would have no way to deal with it.

They couldn’t force him to go against his will.

But Lee Tae-sung was already planning to participate in the next mission!

Manager Song Sang-yeop was able to laugh happily now that all his worries were resolved.

“Hahaha. The second mission is usually similar to the first. They say it’s almost the same difficulty up to the third mission, which is considered an adjustment period. If it’s you, Hunter Lee Tae-sung, clearing it won’t be a problem at all.”

“I see.”

A difficulty similar to the first.

Unless he was truly unlucky, it meant he would succeed even if he just put in a moderate effort.

Of course, Lee Tae-sung had no intention of doing it half-heartedly.

“Thank you. I’ll contact you again.”

He hung up the phone.

– Ding!

[Would you like to participate in a mission?]

A notification appeared as soon as Lee Tae-sung made up his mind.

When he nodded, his vision flipped in an instant.

***

– Ding!

[You have entered the mission.]

Lee Tae-sung, who had been at home, was moved to the middle of a forest.

It seemed to be the location for this mission.

Having already drawn his sword and completed his battle preparations, he kept his mind sharp.

He didn’t want to fall into a life-threatening crisis because of carelessness.

First, he began to grasp the environment.

‘It’ll be difficult to start a fire like last time.’

He felt humidity in the air.

Seeing that even the grass and trees were damp and showing signs of moisture, it was clear that they wouldn’t catch fire easily.

Even if he worked hard to start one, the fire wouldn’t spread well in a place like this.

– Ding!

[This is the second mission. The difficulty is adjusted to Very Low.]

[Mission: Collect 5 Cloud Mushrooms.]

[You are currently in Silvana Forest. Cloud Mushrooms can be found on tree trunks. Please collect a total of 5. Detailed photos of Cloud Mushrooms are attached.]

[(Photo)]

[The mission time limit is 3 hours. The mission will be judged a success if at least one is collected within the time limit.]

[Mission Reward: 5 SC per Cloud Mushroom.]

The difficulty was Very Low, just like last time.

Cloud Mushrooms.

Lee Tae-sung walked into the forest to start looking for them.

He did not lower his guard, as there might be lizards that shoot their tongues like last time.

However, there were no other living creatures in the forest.

Instead, there was a small pond in the center of the forest.

The pond was so clear that the inside was fully visible, and there were many fish inside.

They weren’t cute fish.

They were about the size of two fists and looked similar to Amazonian piranhas.

The sharp teeth attached to their muzzles looked vicious.

“……”

Lee Tae-sung slowly approached the pond step by step without taking his eyes off them.

Then at some point, when he reached a certain distance.

– Splash!

One of the piranhas jumped out toward Lee Tae-sung as if flying.

It boasted its sharp teeth while clicking its wide-open jaw.

“You brat! I knew you’d do that!”

It was a fairly fast movement, but Lee Tae-sung was already prepared, so he was able to avoid it without much difficulty.

It didn’t have wings and was jumping in a straight line.

The creature failed its surprise attack and fell to the ground, after which it flopped and jumped to try to return to the pond.

At the same time, it even clicked its teeth to try and aim for Lee Tae-sung’s leg.

“You’re going to be like this until the end? Die!”

– Whoosh!

Lee Tae-sung unfolded his Flame Flower Sword Style, scattering flames.

However, the creature moved and flopped even though it was out of the water, avoiding the sword several times.

It was absurd.

Lee Tae-sung’s swordsmanship was by no means easy to deal with.

His skill level had increased and his standard had risen.

Yet the creature twisted its whole body and somehow avoided a direct hit.

But that didn’t last long either.

Even if it avoided the blade, there were flames flowing around it.

Unless it moved far away, the fish would have no choice but to be cooked.

Eventually, unable to withstand the heat, the creature stopped moving.

‘It’s certainly not easy.’

It wasn’t as fast or strong as the Crocas, to the point where it couldn’t be seen properly, but it wasn’t something easily handled either.

Just as Lee Tae-sung was catching his breath.

– Ding!

[You have defeated a Lanyak.]

[You obtain 100 SC.]

A notification appeared.

The score obtained for defeating one was 100 points.

“……”

Lee Tae-sung flinched at the large amount of points.

He turned his gaze.

Inside that pond.

A fairly large number of Lanyaks were swimming in a school.

This one fish gives 100 points?

‘Then what’s the total score if I add all of those up?’

From that moment on, in Lee Tae-sung’s eyes, those creatures were no longer disgusting fish.

They looked like bundles of cash for buying his own home.