Chapter 3

Siyoon possessed a cheat-like skill, but.

His base stats were close to that of an ordinary person.

It was only natural, considering he had Awakened not long ago.

In contrast, the magic beast that attacked him was Elite-Rank.

One of the stronger ones in this forest.

He had only managed to block its attack purely through his equipment.

‘I need to end this in one blow.’

But how?

Calmly, coldly, he thought.

He had to figure it out. To survive.

Soon, Siyoon’s eyes flashed.

‘I’ll apply Enhancement to the BB gun bullets too.’

Siyoon had enhanced three items so far.

The BB Gun, the Book Shield, and the Leather Jacket.

And each piece of equipment had been enhanced according to its distinct characteristics.

The bullets would likely follow the same principle.

Pak!

He shoved the magic beast pinning him down with the shield.

Squeezing every ounce of strength from his body.

Having already reached his limit, he had to settle this now.

Siyoon immediately put his plan into action.

[ Using ‘Skill: Enhancement’ to enhance the loaded ‘BB Gun Bullets’! ]

Saaat…

A bright light seeped inside the BB gun.

Simultaneously, an information window flashed open.

+

【 BB Gun Bullet +1 】

Rank: Normal

▶ Damage dealt upon attack is amplified.

+

As expected, a simple description stating that damage would be amplified.

But like the other enhanced items, the effect would be beyond doubt.

And it was exactly the direction of enhancement Siyoon had been hoping for.

‘I don’t have many chances.’

What Siyoon had enhanced was the already-loaded BB gun bullet.

Since he hadn’t reloaded, he only had three bullets remaining.

He hadn’t even had time to reload in the first place.

‘I’ll end this within three shots.’

Taang―!!

The moment he pulled the trigger, his arm shot upward.

A recoil unlike anything he had ever felt before.

Siyoon barely managed to keep his balance as his body was thrown backward.

Even with the ‘Leather Jacket’s’ effects, the impact was brutal.

“Ugh…!”

A single shot.

That alone made his wrist, arm, and shoulder throb as if they were being ripped from their sockets.

The recoil from the enhanced bullet was on an entirely different level than before.

But the power was undeniable.

Kwaaang!

A massive shockwave shook the surrounding area.

Starting from the point of impact, trees and earth were instantly annihilated.

A small crater formed in the previously flat terrain in the blink of an eye.

An absolutely devastating display of power.

-Grrr…

Through the billowing cloud of dust, the magic beast appeared unscathed.

“Tch.”

Unfortunately, the first shot had missed.

However, it had clearly sensed the danger and put considerable distance between them.

Siyoon calmly took aim and pulled the trigger once more.

The second shot.

Twut―

A gunshot erupted alongside a flash of light intense enough to make his vision flicker.

Perhaps due to his heavily depleted stamina.

This time, his aim wavered.

‘Damn it…!’

The unsteadily wavering muzzle pointed toward the sky.

It was in the magic beast’s direction, but slightly too high.

Jjeoeoeok!

The bullet ultimately struck the upper portion of a tree.

Annihilating branches and leaves in an instant, it punched straight through into the sky.

The Magic Beast twisted its body and narrowly evaded it.

The second shot had failed as well.

Siyoon’s face contorted greatly.

‘This is dangerous.’

Now only the last shot remained.

If this one missed too, it would be over.

He had enhanced the bullet to finish things in one hit.

If he used them all up, he would be put at a severe disadvantage.

‘I could enhance more bullets… but the problem is time.’

Unless the magic beast was a fool, it wouldn’t wait for him to reload.

Indeed, it was watching the muzzle’s direction, staying on guard.

It had clearly recognized the danger of the BB gun.

But it was too swift to hit from a distance.

‘I need to create a situation where I can land a perfect shot.’

Siyoon’s mind began racing.

For it to attack, it needed to close the distance.

And the closer it got, the higher his accuracy would be.

But if he was too obvious about it, the beast would notice and dodge.

The key was to naturally bait its attack.

‘Can I pull this off?’

No. I have to.

Siyoon bit his lip hard and his eyes flashed with resolve.

* * *

The gist of the plan was simple.

Draw the magic beast into close range, then finish it off with the gun.

The dual Enhancement had provided more than enough power—he just needed to hit it.

‘The problem is that I’ll have to fight it in close combat’

Being an Elite Magic Beast, its attack power was ferocious.

If he couldn’t finish it in one shot at close range.

With his stamina depleted, Siyoon would most likely die.

But…

‘Now is the time to take a gamble.’

Tat!

Siyoon’s body spun backward.

He turned his back to the magic beast and ran.

An action that would make anyone gasp and question his sanity.

It would stimulate the magic beast’s attack instincts.

Sure enough.

-Kwooooh!!

A roar erupted from behind, accompanied by a thick wave of killing intent.

At that moment, he spun back around and raised the Book Shield.

Kwajik―

[ The durability of ‘Book Shield +1’ has significantly decreased due to a massive impact. ]

Perfect timing.

The Magic Beast’s fangs, having closed to point-blank range, were blocked by the Book Shield.

Kudangtang!

“Ugh…!”

Siyoon was crushed to the ground by the weight-bearing attack.

It hurt. He had fallen on his back rather than his head, but the impact still left him aching.

Even so, he couldn’t let his arms go slack.

-Grk, kark!

Huuk. Huuk.

The Magic Beast’s rough breath washed over his face, its snout mere inches away.

Perhaps excited at the thought of devouring its prey, the blood vessels in its eyes were prominently visible.

‘Hah.’

A scoff escaped Siyoon at the crushing pressure bearing down through the Book Shield.

He felt stupid for having been so confident just moments ago.

What?

He thought he could block it one more time?

Bullshit.

His arms felt like they were about to be torn off at any second.

The fangs had sunk so deeply into the Book Shield that they were lodged in place.

-Grrrrlak…!

Viscous saliva dripped down the surface of the Book Shield.

At the same time, the crushing force intensified.

It must have realized Siyoon wasn’t strong and was trying to pin him down completely.

A disadvantageous situation by any measure.

“I was worried, but it doesn’t seem to have that high of an intelligence after all.”

But that was actually a relief.

Siyoon sneered.

Then he picked up the BB gun he had placed just out of the beast’s line of sight.

The moment the magic beast saw the BB gun, its eyes flinched violently.

“Goodbye.”

Taang!!

He didn’t hesitate.

He fed the third bullet to the beast at point-blank range.

This time it didn’t miss—it burrowed into the creature’s torso.

-Kyaaaaaaah!

It pierced through hide, shattered bone, and tore through its innards.

He hadn’t had the strength to aim for its head.

But a direct hit to the torso was more than enough.

Kung!

The Magic Beast let out an agonizing scream before collapsing.

Pushing it aside, he saw that its belly had been completely blown open.

At the same time.

Ttiring!

[ ‘Book Shield +1’ has been completely destroyed. ]

[ You have successfully hunted an Elite Magic Beast solo for the first time! ]

[ A spectacular victory achieved through bold tactics and keen insight! ]

[ Intelligence has increased by 1 point. ]

[ Stamina increases by 1 point. ]

[ Strength increases by 2 points. ]

[ Willpower increases by 2 points. ]

“Hah…”

Siyoon exhaled as he read the messages.

Looking at the fallen magic beast, he felt something hot surging within him.

“I really did it. I killed an Elite Magic Beast.”

A fierce battle, the polar opposite of the ordinary life he had lived.

A victory seized at the end of a razor-thin fight.

An experience the old Siyoon could never have had.

Dugeun, dugeun.

Was he infected by the heat of battle?

His heart had never pounded with such exhilaration before.

“Haa… Let’s… go home now.”

The recent battle had left him completely exhausted.

It was still broad daylight, but all he wanted was to stretch out and collapse.

* * *

The moment he got home, Siyoon collapsed.

He literally washed up, and the moment he lay down on his bed, he fell asleep.

When he opened his eyes again, it was 7:00 AM.

“I must have been really exhausted.”

He had gotten home around 6:00 PM.

Considering that, he had slept for quite a long time.

Thanks to that, his fatigue had cleared and his head felt much lighter.

The muscle soreness lingering throughout his body was unavoidable, though.

Still, there had been gains.

“The Enhancement skill was far more powerful than I thought.”

An F-Rank hunter, commonly called a rookie.

Among them, a hunter capable of this level of destructive power was rare.

A freshly Awoken body and a skill at only level 1.

Being weak was only natural.

In contrast, Siyoon’s ‘Enhancement’ was markedly different.

The exceptional attack power from enhancing both the BB gun and its bullets.

The strong defensive capability that withstood an Elite Magic Beast’s attacks.

“Nobody would believe me if I told them.”

A newly Awakened hunter soloing an Elite?

People would be curious about Siyoon’s skill rank.

And it could be exposed in the process.

That was not a good scenario.

“The risk is too great.”

Only a tiny fraction of rankers possessed Singular-Rank skills.

Conflicts often broke out over recruiting high-ranking hunters.

That was how important hunters were as resources and talent.

Siyoon had no desire to get entangled in unnecessary conflicts of interest.

“Alright.”

He had made his decision.

“I’m really doing this. Becoming a hunter.”

Not that there was much to deliberate, having already killed a magic beast.

But for Lee Siyoon, an ordinary citizen, this was a major life decision.

Siyoon slowly unclenched his tightly balled fist.

Uksin.

“…First, I need some rest.”

And with that, he flopped back onto the bed.

Siyoon didn’t wake up again until late afternoon.

* * *

After waking up, Siyoon ate a meal and went back to sleep.

It was the longest he had ever slept in his life.

But thanks to that, the muscle soreness and such had fully recovered.

“Phew, I’m finally alive again.”

Wajak, wajak.

He casually ate cereal soaked in milk, soothing his empty stomach.

After nearly two days of doing nothing but eating and resting, energy surged back into his body.

“Magic Beast hunting was definitely tough.”

His first hunt.

Thinking back on it now, there had been many hair-raising moments.

Thankfully, he had responded calmly.

Otherwise, he would have been dead long ago.

It had been reckless, but there were definite gains.

“No need to go test the skill anymore.”

The ‘Enhancement’ skill had been far more powerful than he had imagined. Especially the ‘dual Enhancement’ of simultaneously enhancing both the gun and bullets—its power was extraordinary.

Now that he understood the skill’s capabilities, there was only one thing left to do.

It was time to register with the Hunter Association.

“Since there’s no way to know a skill’s rank or effects unless the Awakened themselves disclose it, it should be fine.”

Siyoon had been scouring the internet to gather information.

Since hunters were already a common profession, quite a lot of information was available.

And this was something multiple hunters had commonly stated.