Chapter 5
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nTranslator : Ekdud
nChapter 5 – Gangnam Station (1)
nKaaak!
nA beastly sound was heard from below as green blood spluttered out.
nTaesoon who had seen this was scared out of his wits.
n“What is it!”
n‘Green Worm’
nThis place looked like Gangnam Train Station but it was not anymore.
nIt copied the looks of the Gangnam Train Station but one could look at it as a dungeon.
nAnd Green Worms were one of the most widely spread mobs of the Tutorial area.
nThey don’t like sunlight so they stay underground and they come out after feeling the vibrations above ground.
nIf someone were to be bitten by that somewhat lacking mouth, chunks of flesh getting ripped off was a given.
n‘Well, they still give runes.’
nFrom one point of view, it is very dangerous.
nIf you get bitten once and fall down you will die without being able to do anything.
nBut there was an easy way to deal with these guys.
nHansoo ruthlessly hacked down on the heads as he spoke:
n“If you aren’t confident then walk on the unbroken granite. If you see somewhere that’s broken and earth is exposed, stab it with your sword. Oh and be careful of your hand when you stab.”
nRight below the granite was soil, confirming that this place just copied the looks of Gangnam Train Station.
n“… How do you know all of this?”
nAs Taesoon asked with a suspicious look, Hansoo replied very simply.
n“Psychic powers.”
n“…”
nAt those words the seven who had been eyeing Hansoo with a terrified face carefully walked on the granite as they stabbed the areas with exposed soil.
nKiiieeeeek!
nHansoo shook his head at the way they stabbed the earth ruthlessly.
n‘Four of them are useful. Three aren’t quite there yet.’
nSurprisingly the females were leading.
nMihee and Jisun were stabbing the earth with clenched teeth and Taesoon and Jisun’s boyfriend were also stabbing the earth zealously.
nBut the remaining three were perhaps afraid of the green worms who came out screaming, they were just watching quietly from the back.
nHansoo didn’t really care about those three.
nThere was no reason to get upset because they didn’t join in on the fight. Because the work will eventually fall onto him anyway.
nSoon there were tiny runes shining everywhere.
nHansoo was picking the runes that came out from his killings then turned around and asked with a weird look:
n“…Why aren’t you picking them up?”
nThen Taesoon laughed awkwardly.
n“No, It’s nothing much but… isn’t it better for you to take them all? Even in games we do something where we give everything to one person.”
nEveryone nodded a little bit.
nJust because someone assimilated runes, it didn’t mean they would become strong like superman.
nBut if at the moment they were to get caught by those beastly things and get tetanus or something then they would just die.
nIf they gave all these runes to Hansoo and his protection offers safety, it’s a better option.
nHansoo shook his head at those words.
n“The things you kill, you take.”
nThis was not his thoughts.
nIf they were going to become enemies from the start it wouldn’t really matter but if they are going to travel together they at least needed some rules.
nAnd this was the most basic rule that they followed in order to stay together for decades when roaming around the abyss.
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n‘As I expected due to it being the start…’
nThinking that they will protect you because they eat the runes is a very flawed idea.
nWhy would they since we’re friends. Thoughts like if i’m this nice to them they will reward me with something.
nWhen a situation where one’s life is on the line comes along, a relationship built on each other’s likes disappear like bubbles.
nSo far reality is still in check but soon after they will realize it.
nA situation where one’s life is in danger isn’t far off in this place.
nIn conclusion the only thing you can trust is your own ability.
nIf you are useless you will get thrown off immediately.
nThey will realize it eventually and once they do they will zealously go for runes and become red eyed.
nThe above rule was created because of that.
n‘I’m not their babysitter, they’ve got to handle things themselves.’
nAt that moment Taesoon mumbled softly in the corner.
n“Hey look over here. There’s a special rune here.”
nAt those words everyone gathered around.
nEveryone saw it for the first time but from instinct they knew what use this rune had.
n“If one takes this then they can use skills huh.”
nTaesoon mumbled as he stole glances at Hansoo.
nThe object gives rise to the desire.
nBefore, Hansoo coolly said that they should distribute the runes but if his eyes turn at the sight of these new runes and he says that he will take it, Taesoon had no way of stopping him.
n“Can I really take this?”
nThen Hansoo nodded his head.
nHansoo even knew the identity of that rune.
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n‘It’s a pretty good rune at the start’
nA rune that made your skin hard and increased regeneration.
nA rune which increases both defense and regeneration in the beginning where survival is important.
nAnd that rune was almost like a passive where learning had no restrictions and didn’t take mana.
nYou get more gluttonous but for the benefit you get, it’s worth it.
nFood can be stolen once you get stronger and won’t be a problem.
nBut Hansoo shook his head.
n‘I cannot learn skills freely.’
nUsually one learned a few tens of skills.
nIt’s not erasable but there isn’t really anything you need to give up to learn the skill.
nThe strength of the skill changes according to proficiency and rank but since there’s no risk of learning there’s no harm in learning it.
nSomeone with a good sense and a lot of mana sometimes has over a hundred and Keldian had over a thousand.
nAnd since he was able to use all those skills properly he was one of the strongest four.
nKangtae was the strongest but if they actually fought Keldian was not a joke either.
nBut he could not be like that.
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nA nickname given by Eres after seeing his peculiar characteristic.
nA characteristic that allowed him to catch up to Kangtae, Keldian, Eres and stand shoulder to shoulder with them despite starting 20 years late.
nAnd the characteristic that was the deciding factor that made the others send him to the past instead of themselves.
n……………………………………
nThe time he realized his characteristics was when he first learned a skill.
nThe first skill he learned was
nBut as soon as the rune was implemented to his body he knew he made a mistake which could not be changed.
n<…the amount of skills I can learn is exactly seven.>
nTo be specific the amount of runes that was allowed for him was seven.
nEres always lamented.
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nThe limit of seven was a huge disadvantage.
nBut more so than that there’s a huge advantage to it.
nThe speed at which the proficiency of the skill rises is surprisingly fast.
nAt an incredible speed.
nAnd the skill even breaks the limit and keeps on evolving afterwards.
nThe skill he learned, Dororo Lizard’s Essence which basically just gave fast regeneration evolved to the point where it was comparable to his immortal technique he learned.
nEventually the Dororo Lizard’s Essence was like that.
nThe scrubby skills which he learned as a final resort in order to survive eventually strengthened as he struggled.
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nIn the abyss where a strong skill was important, this was a talent of blessing.
nAnd for that Eres firmly told him before he came back to the fast.
nMake sure to carefully select before deciding on the seven skills.
nAnd he was thinking of doing that if all went according to his plans.
n‘According to my plans… there’s nothing before exiting the tutorial area.’
n“Then I’m going to learn it?”
nThe surrounding friends stared jealously at Taesoon who was very happy.
nAnd soon when Taesoon absorbed the rune a change occurred.
nWriggle
nTaesoon’s skin temporarily showed a bit of green then returned.
nThere wasn’t much change but Taesoon knew the second he learned what kind of change happened to his body.
nThe tired body started to have miniscule amounts of vitality flowing into it and the skin which had been grazed by the teeth of the green worm started to heal.
nAnd a newly appeared stat.
n‘A stat called physical resistance appeared’
nTaesoon touched his ears.
nPark Taesoon Strength: 11.1
nAgility: 10.1
nStamina: 12.5( 1.5
nperception:10.3
nPhysical Resistance: 10.7( 0.7
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n-Ekrol Troll Tribe’s Essence (Proficiency 1.0%)
n‘Good’
nThe proficiency was only at 1% but quite a lot of stats went up
nDumbass, giving me something like this.
nIf it was him he would never have given it.
nHierarchy should be taken advantage of when it is applicable.
n‘I will catch up to you’
nTaesoon, who had counted the number of runes, watched Hansoo with a confident smile.
nWhile Taesoon was doing that Hansoo checked his stats.
nKang Hansoo Strength: 15.3
nAgility: 12.1
nStamina: 12.1
nPerception:13.2
n‘It’s not bad.’
nThe level where it was not bad but rather it was extremely fast-paced compared to the past.
nHansoo shook his head as he continued forward.
nBut at that moment Taesoon came next to Hansoo as he spoke:
n“It’ll be dangerous from now on so let’s go together.”
nAnd as Hansoo saw Taesoon steal a glance at Mihee he shook his head.
n‘…There’s no way that he’s seeing me as a competitor.’
nActually this much was cute.
nIn the future one won’t know how it will change.
n‘Whatever happens it isn’t bad.’
nEven if they split the runes the speed was fast so the rate at which the runes increased was faster compared to when he hunted alone.
nHe was worried that Taesoon might be in the way but he was at least working enough for one person.
nWith the two as the lead, the eight kept on going forwards.
nThankfully a little bit of light came through half broken down roofs so there wasn’t much issue in going forward.
nThough it was a little hard to see.
nKuaduduk
nMaybe it was because they got greedy after seeing a skill, everyone was greedily slashing down upon green worms but they could still not compare to Taesoon and Hansoo’s speed.
n‘Anyways… that guy doesn’t even have a skill but he’s so much faster than me.’
nTaesoon looked at Hansoo with a slightly jealous look.
nDue to the new skill he could dash in with a little less fear.
nThat was the reason why his hunting speed rose.
nBut that guy ruthlessly dove between green worms as if he was invincible and slashed down on heads.
n‘…No. I will win.’
nTaesoon, who could not accept that a guy who was quietly stuck in a corner was much better than him, was slashing down on green worms even more zealously than before as he advanced slowly.
nMihee cautiously trailed behind and asked Hansoo.
n“…But why are we going downwards?”
nHansoo replied to those words:
n“To ride the subway.”
n“…The subway?”
nAs Taesoon looked at the collapsing train station with no electricity, he looked at Hansoo with suspicion.
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