Gangwoo settled into his seat, examining each new item one by one.

[DLC – Inventory Upgrade]

Grade: E

Description: The newly released Inventory Upgrade DLC is here!! Enjoy your adventure with even more convenient features~!

Effects

– Adds 5 Inventory slots.

– Adds Load / Store functionality.

Quantity: 1

Purchase Price: 500,000 Gold

[DLC – Auction House VIP Pass]

Grade: E

Description: The Auction House VIP Pass has been released!! Enjoy the privileges of a VIP to buy and sell a variety of items!!

Effects

-Added 2 inventory slots.

-Exempted from selling fees.

-Added Pre-order Purchase function.

-Added sorting function.

Quantity: 1

Purchase Price: 1,000,000 Gold

[DLC – Lucky Pouch of Crisis]

Grade: ???

Description: A DLC released to commemorate the day of crisis!! A lucky pouch that reveals its true effect in moments of crisis.

Quantity: 10

Purchase Price: 10,000 Gold

Ha Gangwoo stroked his chin as he scanned the items. A grin crept across his face.

‘Every single one’s expensive.’

The shop’s goods were costly. But the contents were satisfying.

First up, [DLC – Inventory Upgrade].

A whopping five Inventory slots—now that hit the spot.

His current Inventory was already stretched thin, and the price was just right.

If there was a downside, it seemed far from combat-ready.

But what the hell were the Load and Store functions?

‘No way…’

Did this mean he could deposit and withdraw items without even opening the Inventory?

If so, this DLC would be absurdly useful—even in battle.

A function to pull any item from the Inventory into his hand at will. Just imagining it, didn’t it sound ridiculously convenient?

And then the second item.

[DLC – Auction House VIP Pass] was equally broken.

The Auction House system wasn’t open yet, so it wasn’t needed right now, but the moment it launched, this thing would be a godsend.

The price was 1 million Gold. Steep, sure, but the effect far outweighed the cost.

Especially the fee exemption—it patched up the Auction House’s biggest flaw, didn’t it? And the Pre-order Purchase on top of that.

If he played those features right, he might even corner the market.

But the most satisfying item of all was the [DLC – Lucky Pouch of Crisis].

‘Never thought I’d see something I could buy.’

It wasn’t what he’d wanted, but it was buyable right now.

His ammo was running low too—if this wasn’t a crisis, what was?

A thin smile played on Ha Gangwoo’s lips.

‘Buy it.’

With the decision made, Gangwoo immediately purchased the lucky pouches.

Ding-

[Acquired DLC – Lucky Pouch of Crisis x5.]

50,000 Gold vanished in an instant. In Korean won, that was a cool 500,000.

But a grin still tugged at Gangwoo’s lips. Lady Luck was on his side today, wasn’t she? A vague thrill stirred in his chest at the thought of a random-item gamble.

The moment the purchase went through, five pouches popped out.

They were the size of a palm, wrapped in red cloth that bulged faintly with something inside.

‘What’s in there?’

Gangwoo untied the drawstring on one of the pouches.

Ding-

[Used DLC – Lucky Pouch of Crisis.]

The pouch opened with a *puff*, and a small Catalog materialized.

*Thump-thump— Thump-thump—*

The moment he saw the Catalog, his heart hammered wild.

“A Catalog?!”

Hadn’t Lee Ayeon said a D-rank Catalog cost 1 million Gold?

“Even if I pulled the lowest F-grade Catalog, it’d still be worth over 10,000 Gold!”

No matter what grade showed up, it was a guaranteed profit.

The corner of Ha Gangwoo’s mouth curled up.

‘Lucky!!’

Ha Gangwoo silently cheered inside as he checked the Catalog.

[Inventory Expansion Ticket]

Grade: E

Description: A Catalog that expands your Inventory slots.

Effect

– Increases Inventory by 1 slot.

‘……’

“Did tickets like this even exist?”

Maybe he’d gotten his hopes up too high. It was a bit disappointing.

‘But still, where else could I get this? Expanding Inventory by one slot for a mere 10,000 Gold — that’s more than fair, isn’t it?’

Ha Gangwoo forced himself to be comforted and used the ticket.

[You have used the Inventory Expansion Ticket.]

[Lowest-Grade HP Potion x2][Crude Dagger][-][-][-]

What had been a cramped two-slot Inventory was now a spacious five. Not that he was hurting for room right now — his Bullets and MP Potions were all spent from hunting Monsters — but he knew he’d run short soon enough.

‘Let’s just open everything.’

With a satisfied expression, Ha Gangwoo started tearing into the lucky pouches.

*Pop— pop— pop—*

After opening three Lucky Pouches, Ha Gangwoo stopped.

[You have acquired a Fortune Coin [Advent].]

[You have acquired a Lowest-Grade MP Potion.]

[You have acquired a Rupicel Mineral.]

‘……’

Don’t they call it a Lucky Pouch of Crisis? Wasn’t this a crisis? Every single item that came out was trash.

The first one:

[Fortune Coin][Advent]

Grade: ???

Description: A coin of fortune. The effect triggers the moment you flick it with your finger. (The coin disappears upon activation.)

Effect

28% (3↑) chance to gain the ‘Flame God’ effect.

28% (3↑) chance to gain the ‘Lightning God’ effect.

44% (6↓) chance of failure.

This was the only item that looked halfway decent.

A small coin — flame and lightning on the front, a skull on the back.

‘Flame God and Lightning God?’

Ha Gangwoo picked up the coin between his index finger and thumb. It reminded him of a 100-won coin.

‘It’s a probability item.’

A fifty-fifty shot at some kind of effect, otherwise you got nothing.

Sure, his Luck Stat tilted the odds in his favor, but if it failed, the item was worthless.

Still, for a 10,000 Gold item, it looked solid. Just the names ‘Lightning God’ and ‘Flame God’ screamed effectiveness.

Ha Gangwoo tucked the coin into his Inventory and picked up the next item.

A glass bottle sloshing with blue liquid.

[Lowest-Grade MP Potion]

Grade: F

Description: Restores 10 MP.

A Lowest-Grade Potion.

‘This one wouldn’t even go for 10,000 Gold…’

He didn’t know the exact market price, but it sure as hell wasn’t worth 10,000 Gold.

“A dud.”

Ha Gangwoo checked the next item.

[Rupicel Mineral]

Grade: F

Description: A mineral chipped off Rupicel ore. It is highly dense and difficult to smelt.

‘……’

Even as an F-Grade item, it looked pathetically plain.

A fist-sized rock. That was the item’s appearance. So nondescript you couldn’t tell it apart from the stones littering the ground.

“Haah… So that Inventory Catalog actually worked…”

Everything but the Inventory Catalog had been mediocre.

Looked like the Lucky Pouch wasn’t such a great item after all. Then again, hoping for something good from a random-chance item was probably just wishful thinking.

Ha Gangwoo stuffed all the junk from the pouch into his Inventory.

[Lowest-Grade HP Potion x2][Crude Dagger][Rupicel Mineral][Fortune Coin [Advent] x1][Lowest-Grade MP Potion x1]

His Inventory, which had been roomy a moment ago, was now packed tight.

He saved the one remaining Lucky Pouch for an emergency. Who knew? Maybe in a moment of crisis, it’d come in handy?

Ha Gangwoo tucked the Lucky Pouch into his pocket and checked the time left.

[Time Until Demon Summon: 51:26]

Kang Seongbin had given them fifty-one minutes for prep time. Only twenty-six seconds were left.

‘What? It’s almost up? Where is everyone…’

He flinched—!

The moment Ha Gangwoo lifted his head to look for the other party members, he sensed someone right beside him.

“Whatcha doing~??”

A chill ran down Ha Gangwoo’s spine. Was he so absorbed in the items that he missed Lee Ayeon creeping right up next to him?

“…”

Flustered, Ha Gangwoo stared at her. Lee Ayeon squatted beside him, tilting her head.

‘…Come to think of it…’

Now that he noticed, he couldn’t sense Lee Ayeon’s presence at all.

Back in the third floor, when they first met, he’d felt a stronger mana from her than from Choi Jangbok. Now he felt nothing.

Why? Did she have a skill to conceal her mana? It probably had something to do with her Trait.

‘Troubling.’

Ha Gangwoo ignored her question and stood up.

As he faced forward, Kang Seongbin emerged from the woods, a greatsword in hand, perfectly on cue.

“I’m starting the clearing briefing. Gather up.”

Kang Seongbin drove the greatsword into the ground with a thud, crossed his arms, and leaned against the blade.

Chae Seohyun, Ha Gangwoo, and Lee Ayeon approached him.

*Clatter— clatter—*

“??”

A familiar clattering sound reached his ears.

Ha Gangwoo turned his gaze and saw something he recognized well.

‘Skeletons…’

There were over a dozen skeletons behind Lee Ayeon.

‘So that’s where she went.’

He’d wondered where she’d gone during the prep time. She must’ve gathered skeletons from the monsters Kang Seongbin had taken down.

‘As expected from an elite party, I guess.’

They said they’d take the time to prepare—and they’d definitely made solid preparations.

At first, he wondered if he’d made a mistake coming in here, but these people definitely had something to teach him.

‘Good call.’

Ha Gangwoo watched Kang Seongbin with a faint smile.

Kang Seongbin set the golden-lustered armament down in front of him and continued.

“Everyone’s done gearing up, right? I’ll keep the briefing short. First, open your quest window.”

Ha Gangwoo followed Kang Seongbin’s instruction and opened his quest window.

[Summon of Annihilation][S]

Grade: D

Description: The dark mage ‘Beiron’ is summoning a Great Demon. Join forces with your party members to stop Beiron’s summoning and protect the peace of Sky Land!!!

And so, Kang Seongbin’s briefing began.

***

Ding-

[You have equipped the Lance Imbued with Sacred Light.]

After Kang Seongbin’s entire briefing, Ha Gangwoo accepted the armament—the lance.

Kang Seongbin locked eyes with Ha Gangwoo and said,

“I hope the skill you showed during the test wasn’t just luck.”

Then he slipped the remaining armament—the shield—onto his left hand and walked away.

Ha Gangwoo looked at the lance blazing intensely in his hand.

[Lance Imbued with Sacred Light]

Grade: C

Durability: 50/50

Attack Power: 89

Strength: +61

Agility: +36

Description: The lance of Reins, Imperial Guard Captain of Sky Land. Its powerful sacred energy makes it effective against dark-attribute enemies. (Dungeon-exclusive item. Disappears the moment the dungeon is cleared.)

Effects

– Increases damage dealt to demon-kind by 1,000%.

*Set Effect (1/2)

– Bestows the Judgment of Destruction effect upon the weapon.

“Hoooh…”

Ha Gangwoo steadied his breath. He was a little, just a little, on edge.

The ‘Undead Knight Commander’ guarding the armament had been on a completely different level from regular monsters.

Lee Ayeon’s thirty-plus Skeletons couldn’t touch it, and even her Debuffs didn’t stick. To top it off, it had shrugged off Explosive Rounds—a monster among monsters.

So what kind of being would the Boss monster be? A vague dread crept over him.

But a subtle smile found its way to Ha Gangwoo’s lips.

It was because of this item—so different from back then.

A Grade-C item that, though limited to demons, boosted damage by a full 1,000%.

Plus 61 Strength and 36 Agility, with 89 Attack Power. In a word, insane stats.

“Just how much stronger am I now?”

Was this what they meant by being Gear-carried? Just equipping a single item had jacked up his numbers so high they casually dwarfed all the stats he’d built up so far.

And that made him even more curious.

Just how strong had he become? At these numbers, could he take down something like the ‘Undead Knight Commander’ in one hit? The thought crept in.

Vwoom-

[The Sacred Blessing’s effect settles into your body.]

In an instant, a golden radiance softly wrapped around Ha Gangwoo’s body.

‘What th—??’

As Ha Gangwoo turned his gaze, he saw Chae Seohyun standing there, the Angel Ring floating idly above her head.

“Please take good care of me. My skill has a range limit—if you get too far away, it breaks, so be careful.”

Chae Seohyun gave a polite bow and walked over to Kang Seongbin.

“A buff???”

Ha Gangwoo checked the skill she’d cast on him.

[Sacred Blessing]

Caster: Chae Seohyun

Duration: 59 minutes 58 seconds

Description: The power of potent light has taken root in your body!!

Effects:

-All Stats increased by 30%

-Attacks gain Holy effect.

-Sacred energy shields you. (200/200)

“Holy shit.”

It was the buff skill Chae Seohyun had just cast. A genuinely insane buff. No surprise she was an S-Rank Trait holder—the effect was outright broken.

Gangwoo immediately opened his own Status Window.

His stats were already insane. How much had they gone up?

[Ha Gangwoo]

Level: 18

HP: 960/960

MP: 75/75

Strength: 80(+95)

Agility: 50(+75)

Vitality: 51(+45)

Mana: 50(+25)

Sense: 40(+22)

Luck: 50(+25)

“……”

He’d thought his stats were already plenty, but now nearly every one of them had been inflated by nearly double.

He clenched his fist, the leather of his gauntlets creaking.

*Crack.*

‘I want to test this out.’

He wanted to swing at even that rotted tree trunk he could see. How strong would he feel now?

But he didn’t have time to indulge the curiosity.

Kang Seongbin stepped forward with a *clank*, resting a massive greatsword over his shoulder.

“Let’s start right now. Everyone, brace tight!!”

Seongbin’s shout kicked things off.

[Time Until Demon Summoning: 45:59]

About fifty minutes left.

Ha Gangwoo’s S-Rank Dungeon — the boss clearing had begun.