Chapter 29: Level Up & Light Up

He was a contestant with a strong impression.

He looked to be nearly 190 centimeters tall, and beneath his thick eyebrows, his sharp eyes seemed to radiate a fierce light.

“I’m twenty years old.”

Kangchul, who locked eyes with Roy, was the first to state his age.

One by one, the others followed, announcing theirs.

Overall, their ages were all pretty similar.

Roy was the oldest, and Lee Hajun was the youngest.

“Nineteen.”

An overwhelming presence radiated from Roy.

Lee Hajun, who had been standing beside him, flinched.

It was the first time he had seen this side of Roy.

It was obvious at a glance that Roy harbored unpleasant feelings toward Lee Chulhun.

The same could be said for Chulhun.

Even during their handshake, Chulhun had deliberately gripped Roy’s hand tightly.

Just as the camera zoomed in, he timed it perfectly to yank his hand away.

Hajun stepped slightly forward, as if to shield Roy.

Kangchul did the same, standing in front of Hajun like Chulhun’s bodyguard.

A tense atmosphere buzzed between the four of them.

“Everyone, please come this way to get your dinner! We’re handing out lunchboxes today!”

If not for the timely call from a staff member, things might have escalated into a full-blown confrontation.

“Hajun, let’s go. Time to eat.”

Hajun was still in a growth phase.

And because he often skipped meals, claiming he needed to diet, Roy had naturally started looking after his meals like an older brother.

“Hyung, that guy really gives me a bad feeling…”

Hajun quietly murmured, sticking close to Roy.

Before speaking, he even made sure to point out the mic attached to both their shirts.

“There’s no benefit in getting close to someone like that. But don’t do anything reckless like earlier. Got it?”

“But still…”

“I’ll take care of it.”

Roy gently ran his hand over Hajun’s hair.

It had grown a bit since they first met, now reaching just under his eyebrows.

“You look taller. Am I right?”

“Huh? How did you know? I grew 1.2 centimeters! Isn’t that amazing?”

Hajun’s attention quickly shifted.

Truthfully, ever since he met the older boys, he had been dying to brag about his height.

But instead of saying it outright, he had been waiting for someone to notice.

When Roy was the first to point it out, a bright smile lit up Hajun’s face.

“If you want strong bones, you’ve got to eat well.”

“Okay!”

Motivated by Roy’s words, Hajun finished his lunchbox down to the last grain of rice.

Roy also carefully chewed and swallowed his food.

He had a feeling they were going to need a lot of strength for the next mission.

***

“How can it be this dark?”

“Watch your step.”

Just as expected, the next mission was a blend of courage training and hunter skill enhancement.

[Mission: Hunt monsters until all team members reach Level 10. Once completed, fire the provided signal flare into the sky.]

Following behind another team, Roy and his teammates stepped into a pitch-black space as if diving into a void.

Again, the only thing the production crew had given them were beginner daggers.

[You may use any items dropped by the monsters immediately!]

If even that had been restricted, the contestants might have forgotten they were on a show and staged a collective protest.

The darkness was so absolute that it was impossible to tell whether one’s eyes were open or closed.

With their current weapons, reaching Level 10 felt impossible.

Roy cautiously took one step at a time.

Suddenly, he was shoved from behind by a large figure and stumbled forward.

“Ah, sorry. I couldn’t see anything and didn’t realize someone was in front of me.”

That was a lie.

Roy had just been whispering with Hajun.

There was no way the other person hadn’t heard his voice from that close.

A cold smile tugged at the corners of Roy’s lips as he kept his head down.

Then, casually, he stretched his leg backward.

Thud. Someone crashed to the ground behind him.

“My legs gave out. Are you hurt badly?”

Roy turned around with a falsely sweet voice.

He knew the crew was nearby.

He’d seen them wearing specially made night-vision goggles.

To them, the contestants must have looked like blind people stumbling around.

“H-Hyung…”

Even though neither Roy nor Chulhun could see each other, they stared in each other’s direction with intensity.

Just then, Hajun reached out in the dark and clung to Roy’s arm.

“Ahh! Over there…”

Lee Siwoo, who had been quietly moving, let out a panicked gasp.

Kangchul also tapped Chulhun’s shoulder lightly.

“What the hell are you guys so—”

Chulhun had been ready to throw down with Roy regardless of the cameras.

But now his eyes trembled like a leaf.

Something alien had entered the pitch-black space.

“Kihihihik—!”

Realizing the humans had noticed it, the monster let out a chilling screech.

It was a Level 3 monster called Madhead, shaped like a disembodied head draped in a white sheet.

Despite its creepy appearance, its low level made it a common choice for Halloween-style events.

***

After the first Madhead appeared, more followed—at least a handful—suddenly swarming the area.

“Everyone, grab your weapons.”

The area was still shrouded in darkness, but the faint glow emitted by the Madheads made their outlines clearly visible.

Roy swallowed dryly and shook his half-dazed teammates back to their senses.

Lee Chulhun also seemed to understand the seriousness of the situation, because instead of arguing, he just tightened his grip on his weapon.

[Hero! You need to defeat monsters and level up before you can summon spirits!]

His heart was beating faster than usual.

If it had been an ordinary monster of the same level, he would’ve already rushed in and driven his weapon through its skull.

“Kkiheeek, kkik—!”

“Kkihyaaah!”

He suddenly remembered the fear he’d felt as a child, listening to his mother’s scary stories and being too afraid to go to the bathroom at night.

“Aaaah!”

Everyone stood frozen, hesitating to charge in.

The first to move—surprisingly—was Choi Jungwoo.

But he hadn’t really had a choice.

Choi Jungwoo was at the front of the group, and one of the Madheads lunged straight at him.

“Ugh…!”

Jungwoo’s class was Tank.

With his natural strength, he slashed his beginner’s dagger upward, the blade cutting across the top of the Madhead’s skull.

“Kkiiieeekk!”

That was the trigger.

The moment Jungwoo screamed, the other Madheads simultaneously rushed toward the group.

Roy found himself facing off against one of them that had lunged straight at him.

Though its face was covered in cloth, Roy could feel the monster’s eyes staring directly at him.

“I will level up… no matter what…!”

Roy was used to fighting alongside spirits.

Disgusting monsters like this—he normally wouldn’t even need to touch them.

The spirits’ abilities alone could handle everything.

With each broken syllable, he bashed his dagger down on the Madhead’s head.

But the blade was so dull, it was more like hitting with a club than slashing with a knife.

“Kkihiiik!”

The Madhead was just as agitated.

Roy’s strikes lacked power and were only mildly irritating.

Then, just as the monster opened its jaw wide and lunged, Roy hurled his beginner’s dagger straight into its mouth.

“Kkiieeek…!”

The Madhead slowly turned to ash and vanished.

At the same time, Roy felt the unmistakable sensation of leveling up.

[Level increased by 10.]

A glowing message appeared in front of his eyes, shining as brightly as the Madhead had.

His shoulders, stiff from extreme tension, finally relaxed.

It was an amazing sensation.

It felt similar to drinking a high-grade recovery potion brewed by elite mages—but even more effective.

[A summonable spirit is available. Would you like to summon it? Yes / No]

This time, the message didn’t disappear.

It blinked insistently in front of his eyes, as if demanding he press either ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’

Without hesitation, Roy selected ‘Yes.’

***

Poof.

“…Ber?”

[At last! I can finally see the Hero’s spirits again!]

A small oval-shaped egg, barely the size of his palm, appeared in the air.

It was surrounded by a halo of flame.

Roy gently stroked the egg with trembling fingers, instinctively sensing the familiar presence within.

“Hyung, the egg… it’s moving!”

Lee Hajun had just finished dealing with a Madhead and rushed to Roy’s side.

He stared at the egg with wide eyes, full of wonder.

Roy’s class was Spirit Summoner.

That meant the egg had to be a spirit.

But since spirit summoners were so rare, very few people had ever actually seen a real spirit in person.

Not only did the egg have a unique flame pattern, but a small part of its shell popped outward and then returned to its original shape.

“Ber… It’s really been a long time.”

Roy bit his lip to suppress the surge of emotion welling up in his chest.

Mulkiber—the Fire Spirit King—had been the last one to stay by Roy’s side before his heart was pierced in the land of Igas.

Mulkiber had also been the first spirit Roy ever summoned, back when he performed the ritual to call the Spirit Kings.

Roy could never forget how deeply moved he’d been at the time.

Since falling into this strange new world, he had often been gripped by the feeling of being completely alone.

But now, reunited with Ber, a torrent of indescribable emotions swelled in his chest.

The feeling didn’t last long.

Though he could sense Ber’s presence inside the egg, the appearance was far too cute to resemble Mulkiber’s true form.

“…How did you end up like this?”

“I think the egg is mad at you, hyung.”

The being that had once had wings so vast they could fill the entire space around them had now reappeared in the form of a tiny egg.

Just as Roy’s powers had been sealed, it seemed the Fire Spirit King’s strength had also been diminished to match.

As Hajun pointed out, the egg wiggled irritably in Roy’s hand.

[Ber! It’s so good to see you again!]

Jigu, the Earth Spirit, cheerfully greeted Mulkiber.

‘Ber’ was Roy’s affectionate nickname for Mulkiber.

[Hmph… I guess Ber doesn’t want to talk to me.]

‘Wait… You can talk to Ber?’

[Yup! I can hear him. But… he still doesn’t have enough power to speak to you yet.]

Even though the form was unexpected, it was still the friend Roy had missed so much.

He gently stroked the egg and tucked it into his arms.

In this state, Ber likely couldn’t use any of his powers.

“An egg… can jump?”

Then something ridiculous happened.

As if throwing a tantrum, the egg in Roy’s arms bounced up and plopped right onto his head.

“Hyung, now you look like—”

“Don’t say it.”

“Okay.”

Hajun’s expression wasn’t clearly visible, but Roy could tell he was trying hard not to laugh.

In response to Roy’s lowered voice, Hajun zipped his lips with a mock gesture.

Roy sighed deeply, feeling the warm presence perched on top of his head.

From a distance, he probably looked like someone with a giant bump on his skull.

Hajun held back his laughter, but someone else—who had clearly been waiting for just such a chance to tease Roy—let out a snort of laughter without restraint.