“Ugh… How many bottles did I drink last night…”

His throat was a desert. Byeonggap didn’t feel the thirst fade until he’d drained an entire 1.5-liter bottle of water.

He flopped onto the bed and replayed the night before. He remembered tipping back bottles, dancing shoulder-to-shoulder with the goblins. Damn liquor was always the problem.

“God, my head.”

His skull throbbed. He had a mountain of things to do, no time to be laid up with a hangover. He sat cross-legged and steadied his breathing.

‘Ancient Breathing Circulation.’

He executed the breathing method described in the Ancient Breathing Circulation Manual. Soon, a hot current surged from his lower dantian and spread through his entire body.

His sour stomach felt fresh, and the headache faded. Byeonggap was back in peak condition in moments.

‘That’s incredible.’

With techniques this good, why had the ancient kingdom fallen? What the hell did they do to draw a god’s wrath?

Go Byeonggap lingered in thought for a few seconds before pushing himself upright. It nagged at him, sure, but agonizing over it now wouldn’t yield answers.

“Let’s get ready.”

He’d be away from home for the next three or four days. Maybe even a week or more.

Which meant a lot to prepare.

He started with his toiletries bag. Nothing fancy in it—toothpaste, toothbrush, soap. For a man, those three were all you really needed.

Into the clothes bag went spare underwear, casual wear, and work clothes, all neatly packed. He tossed in a few towels too.

Then he filled a big plastic bag with cup noodles, bottled water, and instant rice—enough to last a solid week.

“Hmm… this should do? If I need anything else, I can just buy it on the go.”

Gathering everything into one pile, he hauled it all over to Asvillam.

The quiet rocky mountain was thick with the scent of morning dew. The grass was damp and glistening; beyond the forest, the gentle murmur of water drifted in.

-Chirp! Chirp!

And the sound of birds singing, too…

‘Huh? Birds?’

Byeonggap whipped his head around instinctively. A few small birds were flying low across the sky. He stared, mesmerized, until they vanished over the rocky ridge.

Birds flying was natural enough, but somehow it felt strange—almost wondrous.

‘So there’s life here besides me and the goblins. Come to think of it, there were fish in the river, right? Guess I shouldn’t be so surprised. But still… what’s beyond that cliff face? I should climb up there sometime.’

«My Lord. You have arrived.»

«Yeah. Gobung-gobung Gobungi. Up early?»

«We. Rise. With. The sun.»

«Is that so.»

The goblins had already started their work early. On a scale of diligence, they’d score a hundred out of ten.

«My Lord. Did you. Sleep well?»

«We greet. The Lord.»

«Lord. Morning.»

«Yeah, yeah. Hard at work since dawn.»

The goblins heading toward the cave spotted Byeonggap and bowed politely in greeting.

«But you. Came out. Early. Today?»

«Just dropping by. I need to stash my stuff, and I’ve got things to take care of.»

«Stuff. You say?»

«Yeah. I’ll be staying here for a while myself.»

When Byeonggap had set up the bivouac yesterday, there was one thing he’d paid special attention to: his own personal tent.

He’d pushed two sofas together to make a bed and dragged in a desk with one leg broken. For the record, that desk was strictly ornamental.

«Gobungi.»

«Yes. My Lord.»

«Go fetch Turka and Kiriyan for me.»

«Turka. And Kiriyan. Understood.»

Gobungi headed toward the cave. Looked like both Turka and Kiriyan were in there.

Go Byeonggap shouted at Gobungi’s back.

«You know my personal tent? I’ll be there. Bring them to me.»

«Understood!»

Byeonggap gathered all his gear and headed for his personal tent.

The tent stood a little apart from the goblins’ camp — right in the middle of the forest, with a clear view of the river. He’d chosen the spot for the scenery, and the view was killer.

He dropped his gear inside the tent, then settled into the rocking chair he kept outside.

‘Ancient Shop.’

[Ancient Shop]

– Construction

– Technique

– Sundries

– Other

[Crystals Held: 5,998]

‘Almost six thousand. They’re digging pretty fast, aren’t they?’

Well, of course. Most of the goblin workforce was down in the crystal cave. Even if each one only pulled twenty crystals a day, that’d be 2,840 a day, right?

Besides, the last few days they’d been busy with odd jobs and couldn’t focus on mining. Considering that, production was bound to go up even more from here.

‘Feels like yesterday I was sweating it out with just thirty guys.’

Byeonggap’s goal was to fill five hundred goblins before breaking through the Mist Zone.

Lost in a brief moment of reflection, he focused on the shop window.

‘Buy this, buy that…’

He bought a mix of items from the Ancient Shop.

This was his haul:

Ancient Martial Arts Manual — Low-Grade, one copy.

Ancient Sorcery Manual — Low-Grade, one copy.

Ancient Breathing Circulation Manual — Low-Grade, two copies.

Ancient Physical Forging Technique — Low-Grade Manual, three copies.

Potion of Growth, three bottles.

And finally, Ancient Swordsmanship Manual — Mid-Grade, one copy.

Total cost: 5,930 crystals.

[Crystals Held: 68]

‘Blew through it in an instant. Flat broke.’

Nearly six thousand crystals gone in one go — it stung. Still, he decided not to dwell on it. These were crystals he had to spend anyway, and they’d pile up again.

Byeonggap set his purchases at his feet and picked up just one manual.

The Ancient Swordsmanship Manual — Mid-Grade. A pricey item at a whole 1,500 crystals.

‘Even the low-grade manual was something else. How strong will I get if I learn the mid-grade?’

Heart thumping, he opened the manual. A hologram immediately appeared before his eyes.

[Would you like to imprint the ‘Ancient Swordsmanship Manual — Mid-Grade’?]

‘Duh.’

Of course he would!

Byeonggap mentally agreed at once. But then something unexpected happened. The manual wasn’t absorbed into him.

[Due to the low mastery rate of ‘Ancient Swordsmanship Manual — Low-Grade,’ the imprint of ‘Ancient Swordsmanship Manual — Mid-Grade’ has failed.]

[Current ‘Ancient Swordsmanship Manual — Low-Grade’ Mastery Rate: 2.21%]

“What?”

Byeonggap groaned, the words escaping his mouth.

The hologram’s point was perfectly fair.

It meant his skill wasn’t deep enough to step up from low-grade to mid-grade. What complaint could he possibly have with that?

Even so, he hadn’t been mentally prepared for it, so the disappointment caught him off guard.

‘‘Well. Mastering a whole manual just from swinging a sword once would’ve been too much of a cheat.’’

Go Byeonggap was let down, but conversely, he also felt a thrill.

The fact that his achievement was a mere 2.21% meant he could still get stronger by the remaining 97.79%.

He smiled wryly and carefully placed the manual on the desk inside the tent, treating it like a treasure.

«My Lord. We. Brought them.»

In the meantime, Gobungi had arrived with Turka and Kiriyan. Go Byeonggap first handed each of them an elixir of Growth.

«Here. Grab one each and down it in one go.»

«My Lord?»

«Are you telling us to drink it?»

«Yeah. Chug it.»

The three goblins exchanged glances, sizing each other up.

«Is it really alright for us to drink this?»

Kiriyan asked on their behalf. Go Byeonggap crossed his arms and nodded readily.

«From now on, Kiriyan and Turka are going to be dedicated combat agents, hunting alongside me. For that, you need to be stronger than you are now.»

«Ah…»

«Gobungi’s the work crew chief, and since I’ll be piling a lot of tasks on you, you’ll need more stamina than the others. So drink up, quick.»

The goblins’ mouths hung open, stammering. Go Byeonggap narrowed his brow slightly.

«What are you standing there gawking for? I said drink up!»

«Ah, understood!»

Gobungi drank the elixir of Growth first. Kiriyan and Turka followed right after.

Watching them, Go Byeonggap let out a snicker.

«It’s going to sting a bit.»

«Krrrgh…!»

«Ugh!»

The effect came immediately.

The three goblins clutched their chests, cold sweat pouring down in rivulets. As they say, drastic change always comes with pain.

Go Byeonggap waited patiently until they steadied themselves.

By the time five minutes passed, then ten, the three goblins had returned to a normal state.

«How is it? Feel any different?»

«Ama… amazing.»

«I’m overflowing with power!»

Muscles bulged across the goblins’ bodies, and their frames grew larger. The change was especially pronounced in Turka, the giant goblin.

‘‘Looks like he could stack three more heads on those shoulders without a problem.’’

Go Byeonggap nodded in satisfaction. Next, he handed out the manuals he’d stockpiled, dividing them among the three.

To Gobungi, he gave only the physical training manual.

To Kiriyan, he gave the manuals for sorcery, physical training, and breathing circulation.

To Turka, he gave the manuals for martial combat, physical training, and breathing circulation.

«Alright, everyone, open the manuals in your hands.»

«Ah, understood.»

«Do you see something pop up in front of your eyes?»

«Yes, we do.»

«Yeah. Accept it.»

Go Byeonggap taught them the method for imprinting the manual. The goblins followed his instructions without a hitch.

A moment later, each manual began to be absorbed into the goblins.

«Ugh… My Lord! My, my head! Feels like it’s… cracking!»

«Don’t worry, you idiot. You’re not dying.»

«Urk!»

Sure, they struggled. But they gritted their teeth and pushed through it all.

When about ten minutes had passed, the goblins had finished absorbing even the last manual. Though they were completely drained, sagging with exhaustion.

‘Perfect. Asvillam’s first elite force is born.’

The aura they gave off now was worlds apart from just a few dozen minutes ago.

But this was only the beginning. Byeonggap’s ultimate goal was to elite-ify every single goblin.

«Rest up for the whole morning. You two especially—Kiriyan, Turka—be ready to come out whenever I call.»

«Yes, yessir! Understood!»

«Right. See you later, then.»

«Leaving… already, My Lord?»

«Yeah. Got work to do. What else would I do, loaf around?»

Seeing the three goblins off, Byeonggap returned to his rented room.

He immediately changed into his work clothes and grabbed his gear. Then he slipped out of the apartment and locked the front door securely behind him.

‘Guess I’ll just tell myself I’m going on a trip for a few days.’

His steps were light as he descended the stairs.

* * *

-Zeep! Zeep! Zeep!

Even though it was only the start of July, the cicadas were already raising hell. Byeonggap sat in a coin laundry, listening to their mournful mating songs.

“Maybe I should try wailing like that too.”

It pissed him off that he hadn’t had a single decent relationship in twenty-five years. Thinking back, there were always good people around. The problem was that shitty situations always followed him like a shadow.

-Ding!

The dryer chimed, signaling it was done. Byeonggap fished out the clothes, stuffed them into a plastic bag, and left the coin laundry.

As soon as he got in the car, he checked his phone. The screen displayed a nationwide rift status map.

“A D-rank in Yimok-ri, Cheongju. About thirty minutes away.”

Having locked onto his target, Byeonggap immediately hit the road.

‘Already three days in.’

Three days had passed since he left home.

What had Byeonggap been doing these past three days? Goblin hunting.

At least three or four spots a day, sometimes up to five or six rifts—he’d roam around, chasing traces of goblins. When the night grew deep, he’d park the car anywhere and head into Asvillam to sleep.

He wasn’t subjugating them. Most of the time, he’d just enter a rift, check for goblins, and walk back out if there were none.

After all, the goal of this journey wasn’t hunting—it was capturing goblins.

The short-term goal was to fill Asvillam with three hundred goblins. But as they say, even dog shit is hard to find when you need it for medicine. In these three days, all he had to show for it were forty-seven normal goblins and a single hob goblin.

‘Maybe I should push my search range up to C-rank. If I’m only scouting, it shouldn’t be that dangerous.’

He reached the rift he’d targeted while chewing over the question.

No one had claimed it. Byeonggap hurriedly grabbed his gear and stepped in.

Thwump!

“Son of a bitch. Gabri again?.”

The goblins I need won’t show, but this always does…

Horses with mouths split four ways greeted him.

He almost turned around. Then he changed his mind.

‘Did I say the kids were out of meat? Might as well stretch my legs.’

He drew his longsword. The blade—fashioned from a claw wolf’s tail—gleamed with a razor-sharp edge.

«Kiriyan! Turka! Get out here!»

He tore open the gate to Asvillam and shouted. As if they’d been waiting, the two goblins appeared.

«Yes, My Lord!»

«I said we were low on meat, right? Tonight, it’s horse.»

«Excellent!»

“Heeee-yaaah!”

The herd of Gabri charged, battle-fury blazing.

«They’re throwing a feast in their own honor. Turka, Kiriyan—show me what you’ve got.»

«Yep!»

«Woooooorgh!»

Turka clenched both fists and burst forward.

In a flash, he snatched two Gabri by their necks and slammed them into the ground. Their necks snapped; they were dead before they hit.

«Hah!»

Kiriyan channeled lightning into his harpoon. Five bolts of electric arrows shot out.

Each arrow punched clean through a Gabri’s skull.

‘Maybe I’ll rack up some proficiency too.’

Byeonggap tapped the ash off his cigarette, stubbed it out, and squared into a stance. Three Gabri lunged at him, maws gaping wide.

‘The left one first!’

Byeonggap kicked off the ground. Almost at the same moment, one Gabri’s head flew from its shoulders. His follow-up slash cleaved the middle one clean in two.

“Heee-yaaah—kuk!”

For the last Gabri, he thrust the blade straight into its open mouth. It twitched so enthusiastically that its limbs kept flailing even in death.

‘E-rank monsters aren’t even a problem anymore. I could take on C-rank.’

He smiled grimly and butchered the rest of the Gabri herd.