Solo Leveling, Vol. 1, page 20
[ITEM: KASAKA’S VENOM FANG]
Acquisition Difficulty: C
Category: Dagger
Attack Power +25
A dagger made from a kasaka’s venom fang. It contains kasaka venom and causes paralysis and drain debuffs when used to attack. You may keep it in your inventory or sell it in the shop.
Debuff: Paralysis: Opponent cannot move for a set time.
Debuff: Drain: Opponent’s HP will decrease by 1 percent every second for a set time.
Its attack power wasn’t very high, but the debuffs had proven invaluable in actual battles.
It’d be great if I could easily defeat it with paralysis.
Jinwoo slowly tiptoed as quietly as he could toward the creature.
He couldn’t evade the monster’s sense of smell, though. It sniffed the air and got to its feet.
Tsk.
Jinwoo clicked his tongue.
The creature’s three heads swiveled toward Jinwoo.
[Hell’s Gatekeeper Cerberus]
A huge dog with three heads. Jinwoo noted that the creature’s name was written in red letters. It was proof the monster’s level was high.
Is this monster the same level as the centipedes from the penalty zone, since its name is in red?
He’d been preoccupied with running away from the centipedes back then. He’d only been level 1.
But I’m different now.
He’d leveled up quickly in a short period of time.
The monster was definitely strong, but he didn’t feel intimidated. His keen senses told him that he could take it.
He hadn’t increased his perception stat for nothing. He’d continuously invested points in it so he’d be able to determine whether he should fight enemies or run away.
GRRRROWL!
Cerberus started threatening its perceived antagonist by gnashing its teeth.
Jinwoo sneaked a peek at the monster’s tail. It was long like a whip and had a fiery tip.
Jinwoo’s eyes gleamed.
Teeth and a tail. This one has at least two attack patterns.
He swallowed nervously.
The approaching Cerberus stopped short and seemed to examine Jinwoo.
Is it……looking for my weak spot?
As Jinwoo was wondering about it…Cerberus rushed at him.
RRRRFFF!
Jinwoo looked rattled.
It’s fast!
Cerberus jumped at Jinwoo, but he escaped the dog’s sharp teeth by quickly sliding under it. Cerberus turned as soon as it landed, and its three mouths went after him.
ROWRRR! ROWRRR!
Its sharp teeth gleamed in its mouths.
Ping!
[The buff for Title: Wolf Assassin has now been activated.]
[TITLE: WOLF ASSASSIN]
A title given to those skilled at hunting wolves. When battling an animal-type monster, all abilities will increase by 40 percent.
Jinwoo felt his body get lighter.
Great!
He kept retreating while swinging the dagger as Cerberus attempted to knock him down.
Shwp, shwp, shwiiip, shwp!
Clang! C-clang! Clang!
The sound of the dagger and teeth striking echoed loudly. The dagger was moving so fast, it was hard to see, but Jinwoo could barely block Cerberus’s attacks.
Even with the buff, this is all I can do!
The monster was a lot more agile than Jinwoo had expected.
He used the Murderous Intent skill in the hopes of turning the tide.
[Skill: Murderous Intent has been activated.]
[The debuff has been canceled out by the opponent’s high resistance level.]
Jinwoo was startled.
It didn’t work?
Cerberus’s long tail cracked down like a whip.
Chaaaaak!
Jinwoo escaped the attack by ducking instinctively, but this meant his feet had stopped moving.
Cerberus took advantage of this opening. One of its heads bit down on Jinwoo’s left shoulder.
“Aaargh!”
He stuck the dagger between the creature’s eyes with all his might.
Shhhk!
[Debuff: Paralysis has been activated.]
[The debuff has been canceled out by the opponent’s high resistance level.]
[Debuff: Drain has been activated.]
[The debuff has been canceled out by the opponent’s high resistance level.]
Yip! Cerberus yelped as it released Jinwoo.
Luckily, he was able to escape before the other heads joined in, minimizing the damage. However, his left shoulder was all torn up. Cerberus’s bite was incredibly strong. Jinwoo tried to flex his left arm but couldn’t move it.
He grimaced. He’d dealt a bit of damage to his opponent, but the damage he’d sustained was much worse by comparison.
If Paralysis and Drain had worked, things would be different……
Jinwoo gritted his teeth as he glared at Cerberus.
At that moment…
Huh?
Cerberus’s eyes started glowing red.
Grrrrrr.
Jinwoo felt a sudden chill.
What is this?
[Hell’s Gatekeeper Cerberus has used Skill: Rage.]
[It will be in a state of rage for 3 minutes.]
[All of Cerberus’s abilities will be increased by 2 times.]
[Cerberus will not feel pain.]
Jinwoo cried out, “What?!”
A monster could use a skill?!
Cerberus came charging at Jinwoo.
Shit!
Cerberus was in front of him before he could react. Jinwoo hastily swung the dagger but could only graze its head.
All three of its mouths went after him simultaneously.
Chomp!
“Ahhhh!”
Jinwoo gritted his teeth as Cerberus bit down on his neck, side, and thigh all at once. It dashed and slammed Jinwoo against the castle’s door.
Wham!
Jinwoo’s HP dropped almost to nothing in an instant.
“Argh!”
[HP: 411/3,602]
Ping!
[Skill: Willpower has been activated, as your HP is below 30 percent.]
[Your damage will decrease by 50 percent.]
Luckily, Jinwoo avoided an instakill due to the decrease of physical damage and the passive Willpower skill.
“Gkkk……”
He endured the pain coursing through his body because he knew he had only one chance.
If he lost focus, it’d be over.
……Hundred seventy-eight, hundred seventy-nine, hundred eighty!
Jinwoo had been waiting for the three minutes of Cerberus’s skill to expire. He finally played his last card.
Accept reward one!
He accepted reward one, which he’d saved instead of accepting right after the daily quest.
[Reward 1. Full Recovery applied.]
Shwoooo!
His body was engulfed in blue light, and his HP recovered.
[HP: 3,602/3,602]
His wounded shoulder immediately healed.
It’s now or never!
Jinwoo’s eyes flashed.
No matter how agile his opponent was, it wouldn’t be able to avoid attacks at this distance.
Jinwoo wrapped his left arm around Cerberus’s neck and stabbed Kasaka’s Venom Fang straight into the middle of its throat.
Shhhk! Shhhk! Shhhk!
Its rage state appeared to have expired, and it started struggling to escape Jinwoo’s hold.
Yiiiip! Yip-yip! Yip! Yip!
But Jinwoo held it in a death grip. He tightened his hold the more Cerberus struggled. He stabbed the neck countless times.
Shhhk, shhhk, shhhk!
Yiiiip, yip! Hnn! Hnnnnn!
In a last-ditch effort, Cerberus bit Jinwoo, but the victor had already been decided.
Shhhk! Shhhk!
Yiiiip! Yip!
Kasaka’s Venom Fang cut into Cerberus’s neck and sliced down to its chest.
Shhhk! Shhhk! Shhhk!
Cerberus stopped flailing as much.
Hnnnn……
Finally, its head dropped to the side.
Ping!
[You have defeated Hell’s Gatekeeper Cerberus.]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have leveled up!]
Jinwoo’s level went up by four all at once. The battle had been that difficult.
Jinwoo let go of Cerberus’s neck only after seeing its body go limp. The creature’s lifeless form dropped to the ground.
Whump.
Jinwoo put his hands on his knees.
“Phew.” He exhaled a big sigh of relief.
A monster that could use a skill. If he hadn’t had his secret weapon, there was no doubt he would’ve been killed.
He got chills just thinking about it.
Oh, right…… Items.
Would they be worth all the effort Jinwoo had gone through?
After catching his breath, Jinwoo extended his hand to Cerberus.
Ping!
[You have discovered Item: Warden’s Collar. Would you like to acquire it?]
[You have discovered Item: Castle Door Key. Would you like to acquire it?]
[You have discovered Item: Cerberus’s Fangs. Would you like to acquire it?]
Acquire all.
The steel collar that was around Cerberus’s neck, a gray key, and three fangs appeared on the ground.
[ITEM: WARDEN’S COLLAR]
Acquisition Difficulty: A
Category: Collar
Agility +20, Perception +20
[ITEM: CASTLE DOOR KEY]
Acquisition Difficulty: A
Category: Key
This key unlocks the door to the Demon’s Castle. You can acquire this only when you kill the gatekeeper.
[ITEM: CERBERUS’S FANGS]
Acquisition Difficulty: None
Category: Miscellaneous
“Ooooh.” Jinwoo’s eyes lit up.
The collar will increase the stats of agility and perception by twenty points?
The collar was an amazing item. The acquisition difficulty was A rank. That was the highest level among all the items he’d acquired thus far.
Well, killing the dog wasn’t easy, so……
There was no way it would be a low acquisition difficulty.
But Jinwoo hesitated to put on the collar. It was a dog collar consisting of a metal band with spikes on it.
“Hmm……” He closed his eyes and debated whether to wear it, before deciding he should at least try it on. As he held it up to his neck to put it on, a message popped up.
Ping!
[Would you like to put on Item: Warden’s Collar?]
After pondering it some more, Jinwoo responded rather unenthusiastically. “……Sure.”
The choker slowly vanished.
[You have put on Item: Warden’s Collar.]
“Huh?”
Jinwoo quickly called up the stat screen.
[Stats]
Strength: 60
Stamina: 39
Agility: 80
Intelligence: 37
Perception: 67
(Available ability points: 0)
Physical damage reduced by: 20 percent
“Whoa!”
Agility and perception had actually gone up by twenty points. The boost had been applied immediately.
It looked like the item wasn’t visible when it was worn. Jinwoo was relieved he didn’t have to walk around with a dog collar around his neck.
Next, the fangs.
Jinwoo pulled up the shop.
Cerberus’s fangs, which were miscellaneous items, sold for 15,000 gold each. He had three fangs, so he’d made 45,000 gold.
[Balance: 562,362 gold]
Why is this miscellaneous item worth so much?
It was a good way to estimate the difficulty level of the dungeon. This meant that the level of the Demon’s Castle was just that high.
However, that wasn’t particularly bad news for him. He’d made four times more money from killing one monster here versus the instance dungeon at Hapjeong Station, where he’d grinded all day. If he kept saving gold at this rate, it wouldn’t be long before he could purchase some of the more expensive items in the shop.
If I can clear this dungeon……
Jinwoo looked up at the flaming tower.
FWWWOOOOM!
The top part was covered in fog. He wouldn’t know what was inside until he actually went in.
He shook his head.
Not yet.
He’d barely defeated the gatekeeper using a quest reward coupled with the buff from his title. He couldn’t even guess what dangers awaited him behind the door. He would withdraw for today.
Still, one thing was for sure. As the description said, the Castle Door Key was definitely what he wanted. It truly was a blessed mystery box.
Leveling up, items, and gold. This place provided everything he could hope for. When the time was right, he would acquire them all. But that time wasn’t today.
He was a little disappointed, but he put the gray key into his inventory.
I’ll be back.
He’d be back soon, for sure.
Jinwoo walked away with a smile on his face.
A few days passed quietly.
Jinho called Jinwoo once a day to report his progress. He’d called exactly three times since their last meeting.
“Boss! It’s me, Jinho.”
“Get to the point.”
“Yessir.”
It looked like Jinho had been able to recruit people with no problem. He kept asking Jinwoo to wait just a little longer because the squad was almost ready.
I guess he’s worried I might ditch him.
But Jinwoo couldn’t just wait around and do nothing, so he visited the hunters’ website today as well. He kept searching for strike squads, but none wanted an E-rank hunter. He’d gotten lucky on that first day.
Dongsuk’s ulterior motive aside, he’d enabled Jinwoo to join a strike squad for the first time.
Because of what he did, I was able to make money, level up, and obtain a new skill.
Should Jinwoo be thankful to him? Jinwoo snickered.
At this point, he didn’t care if he came across more lizard-esque scam hunters. He couldn’t find a freelance job, the association wasn’t calling him, and there were no more instance dungeon keys.
All he was doing now was passing the time.
Grrrrumble.
Is it already time to eat?
Jinwoo stopped his online search and went to the kitchen to fill his empty stomach.
Pwwwp.
The fridge was empty.
……
He’d been so preoccupied with everything that had happened in the past few days that he’d forgotten to go grocery shopping. He should probably get that done today.
He yawned as he closed the fridge door.
One of the very few good things about his apartment building was that it was near a large supermarket.
Jinwoo left home in comfortable clothes. It was a ten-minute walk. He soon arrived at the store.
As he entered, he scanned the whole place. It wasn’t as busy as he’d expected, though that was most likely due to the lack of sales at the time.
He grabbed a basket and slowly went around the store. Jinwoo had gotten used to doing household chores, including grocery shopping, after he became the head of the family when his mother was hospitalized.
There’s not much worth buying today.
He stared at some items on display and debated what to make for dinner.
“Sung! How’re you doing?”
Jinwoo turned toward the friendly voice.
Who could that be?
He’d detected a hunter in the vicinity thanks to his high perception stat, but he hadn’t paid any attention to it because lots of people, including hunters, shopped there.
He didn’t expect said hunter to talk to him. Moreover, he didn’t expect said hunter to know him.
“Mr. Song?” Jinwoo was delighted to see him.
Mr. Song, Chiyul Song, looked at Jinwoo, half-surprised and half-welcoming.
“I heard a rumor that you were fine, but I still can’t believe I’m looking at you right now.” Chiyul seemed thrilled to see him, too.
The way he looked at Jinwoo made him feel bashful, and Jinwoo rubbed the back of his neck.
“I should’ve visited you earlier, but those jerks from the association wouldn’t say a word, so I had no idea what was going on. No idea what they were thinking. Did you know Miss Joohee is dying to hear from you, too?”
“She is?”
“Yes, she came on a raid last week hoping to see you, even though she said she planned to quit being a hunter.”
“Last week……?”
According to Chiyul, the raid organized by the association had happened the same day Jinwoo joined Dongsuk’s squad.
No wonder there hasn’t been a peep from the association in the past few days.
It wasn’t that they hadn’t called—he just hadn’t been there to receive it. In that instant, one of his questions was finally answered.
Chiyul continued staring at Jinwoo incredulously.
Has Sung always been this tall? Especially now, after losing that leg……
His eyes moved down. And then they grew large.
“Your leg……?”
Jinwoo remained composed. “My leg was fine when I woke up. I’m not sure how that happened.”
Chiyul nodded in understanding.
Since the first gate had appeared a decade ago, many inexplicable things had happened. The awakened beings known as hunters were one of them.
It was said that an S-rank healer could restore a patient with a shattered body as long as they were still breathing. Perhaps a high-rank healer had treated Jinwoo while he was unconscious? If so, reattaching Jinwoo’s severed leg didn’t seem so impossible.
