Solo Leveling, Vol. 1, page 24
He heard the usual notification chime.
Ping!
[You learned Skill: Stealth.]
[You may now use Skill: Stealth.]
Nice!
Jinwoo had successfully obtained the skill. He had been nervous because it was the first time he’d be acquiring a skill via a rune stone, but it went faster and easier than he’d expected.
Can I start using the Stealth skill?
His heart was beating faster from the achievement of learning a rare skill.
Didn’t people say it was better to experience something rather than just read about it?
Jinwoo activated the skill immediately.
Stealth.
As soon as he thought the word, his body gradually disappeared. He became invisible from head to toe. He felt weird because he couldn’t see his hand when he held it up in front of his face.
What happens if I do this?
He called up his dagger. Jinwoo felt something in his grip. Strangely, he couldn’t see it, but he felt its shape and weight.
That’s what I figured……
Stealth applied to Kasaka’s Venom Fang like it had with Taesik’s knife. There was nothing special about the knife itself.
What else can the Stealth skill be applied to?
He picked up a stone from the ground, and it became invisible right away.
Can I do this, too?
He placed his hand on the shoulder of a dead hobgoblin, but nothing happened. It looked like there was a limit to the application of the skill. It definitely worked on the clothes he was wearing and things he could hold in his hands. Just then…
[Skill: Stealth was deactivated due to a lack of mana.]
“What?”
Stealth suddenly stopped working.
It was only a few seconds, but it drained all my mana?
Taken aback, Jinwoo quickly checked the information for the skill, as he’d only been experimenting with it by moving his body around.
[Skills]
Passive skill: (Unknown) Lv.Max, Willpower Lv.1
Active skill: Dash Lv.1, Murderous Intent Lv.1, Stealth Lv.1
He wanted more information about the Stealth skill. More text appeared before his eyes.
Ping!
[SKILL: STEALTH LV.1]
Active skill.
200 mana required.
For a time, the user will be invisible, and their presence cannot be detected. Stealth consumes 10 mana per second while in use.
Activation takes 200 mana and then 10 mana for every second?
“Ahhh……”
No wonder his mana had depleted so quickly.
[MP: 7/548]
His gauge looked pathetic with only 7 mana left.
It really emptied it out.
The maximum mana Jinwoo could currently possess was around 550. Each use of the Stealth skill would last about thirty-five seconds. If he used mana for another skill, he wouldn’t be able to use Stealth for the full thirty-five seconds.
If I think about it, Taesik also only used the Stealth skill for a few seconds.
Now Jinwoo understood why. Taesik hadn’t had enough magic power to use it for any longer. If this was the case for a high-rank hunter like Taesik, it would be pointless for a low-rank hunter to even learn the skill.
“Mana’s the problem.”
He’d invested ability points on every stat except intelligence, but his mana had never increased. That meant he’d have to increase his intelligence stat in order to increase his mana levels……
Should I start increasing intelligence, then?
However, it felt like a waste to use ability points on noncombat stats just because he wanted to use a skill a little longer.
Intelligence is too ineffective compared to other stats.
Strength, stamina, agility, and perception. He’d experienced firsthand how efficient all these were. He got noticeably stronger as the stats went up.
But he couldn’t tell if anything changed when his intelligence stat increased.
Even though it’s already four times as much as the base stat when I was level 1…
The only change seemed to be that his mana reserves rose. That was it. It didn’t feel like it was worth actively investing points into.
Seems like a waste…
Other stats manifested in his actual flesh and blood. He concluded that he should keep leveling up until he had enough mana. He’d spend his ability points on better stats.
Speaking of ability points……
He still had five from the urgent quest. He debated using them for intelligence but eventually distributed three points to strength and two points to stamina.
[Stats]
Strength: 75
Stamina: 45
Agility: 82
Intelligence: 39
Perception: 69
(Available ability points: 0)
Physical Damage Decrease: 20 percent
It definitely looks cleaner when these numbers are multiples of five.
Jinwoo was smiling in satisfaction when…
RRRUMBLE.
The quakes were getting stronger, and he couldn’t ignore them anymore.
Has it been an hour already?
There was no time to lose. Jinwoo closed the stat screen. He’d purposefully waited until the gate was about to close, but he’d be stuck inside the dungeon forever if he waited any longer.
He took one last look around the boss’s lair before exiting.
I already grabbed the essence stones……
He hadn’t forgotten anything. Once he confirmed this, Jinwoo quickly made his way to the entrance.
RRRRRUMBLE.
The dungeon was shaking even harder than earlier, as if warning him that it was about to close.
His timing was impeccable. Members of the Surveillance Team had just arrived.
When they saw Jinwoo strolling out of the gate, their eyes widened.
“S-sir! Are there any other survivors?”
“No.”
“Oof…” Their faces looked somber.
Nine people had gone in, but only three had come out alive. This was a disaster. They had to be in a difficult position as employees of the association with multiple incidents happening in this area.
They wanted to search for more survivors, but that was a no-go because the gate had already closed. Jinwoo had purposefully waited inside until the gate was almost shut for this very reason.
I couldn’t let them find out there were survivors.
The only evidence was the testimony of the three who had made it out alive.
The employee who’d already been on the scene sounded torn as she spoke. “The Surveillance Team received a phone confession from the president of Geumgang Industries just now.”
Chiyul took one step forward. “The president of Geumgang Industries?”
“His daughter was the victim of one of the prisoners, and he hired Taesik Kang to murder the offender.”
“Ah……”
When the president of Geumgang Industries had heard that Taesik had succeeded in killing the offender, he’d simply confessed to everything.
The truth is I killed that prisoner, though……
The police had tracked down the president, and the association had come here.
Jinwoo, who’d been quiet until now, asked a question. “Then there’s no problem, is there?”
The employee looked like Jinwoo had put her on the spot. “Yes, that’s right.”
There was clear evidence of Taesik’s crime, and the three hunters had fought against him to live. This wasn’t a problem, as Jinwoo said.
However, one thing was bothering the employee.
“Who killed Taesik Kang, a B-rank hunter?”
The Surveillance Team members hadn’t heard the full story yet, as they’d just arrived.
Well, the headquarters of the association is quite a distance from here, but they did arrive just before the gate closed.
They’d rushed to the scene as soon as they’d received notice. The Surveillance Team members all showed signs of fatigue on their faces.
Before he confessed, Jinwoo thought about Jinho.
It’s too bad, but I guess I won’t be able to help him with any raids.
If Jinwoo went with the story that he had reawakened and got his rank reevaluated, he wouldn’t be able to help Jinho. Jinho needed a low-rank hunter with incredibly good skills. All his plans would go down the drain once Jinwoo’s rank went up.
But then why was he feeling this way? Rather than feel guilty, he wanted to laugh when he pictured Jinho’s sulking expression.
It was too bad he’d lose that building he was supposed to get as compensation.
Well, can’t do much about that.
Jinwoo was going to open his mouth and confess when…
“I did it.” Jinwoo’s head turned in the direction of the voice.
Joohee was there, staring at Chiyul in surprise.
“Mr. Song……?”
Chiyul took a step toward the employee before Jinwoo could ask what he was doing.
“I’m the one who killed Taesik Kang.”
The employee had a look of disbelief on her face. “You really defeated Hunter Taesik Kang, Hunter Chiyul Song?”
Her reaction was understandable because not only was Chiyul a C-rank hunter, but he was also missing his left arm. Meanwhile, Taesik had been a B-rank hunter, which was classified as a high rank.
A high-rank hunter’s power was beyond imagination. It was commonly known that the difference between a B rank and a C rank wasn’t even comparable to the gap between C and D.
Chiyul chuckled. “Don’t you see who was with me?”
“Oh!”
Everyone’s eyes turned to Joohee, who flushed and looked down.
Joohee was a B-rank hunter. They hadn’t considered her because she wasn’t a combat hunter, but she was the same B rank as Taesik.
There was no reason a C-rank hunter wouldn’t be able to defeat a B ranker with the support of another B ranker.
The Surveillance Team members nodded in understanding.
Jinwoo quietly drew closer to Chiyul while the others were distracted.
“Why did you lie to them?”
Chiyul also lowered his voice. “I thought you were hiding your abilities for a reason. Was I being too nosy?”
Of course he hadn’t been. Thanks to Chiyul, Jinwoo was avoiding a lot of trouble. This was why years of experience shouldn’t be dismissed.
“Never, sir.”
“Considering how much you’ve helped me, I’m glad to be of help to you.”
One of the Surveillance Team members approached them. “Mr. Song, please come with us. We need your help with the report, if that’s okay with you.”
“Right.”
It was only Jinwoo and Joohee at the scene after Chiyul and the Surveillance Team left.
The sun had already set a while ago.
Joohee felt awkward because Jinwoo seemed quite different from before. After hesitating for a bit, she carefully approached him.
“Would you like to go for a walk?”
Does she want to talk about dinner?
He was hungry after all that physical activity. Jinwoo gladly accepted.
“Sure.”
They walked quietly under the streetlights. Without getting ahead of each other, they simply strolled side by side as if they’d practiced this.
“……”
Joohee kept her eyes on her shoes. Any time she raised her head, her gaze was automatically drawn to Jinwoo. She tried not to be self-conscious about it, but she couldn’t help it.
She’d felt comfortable around Jinwoo before, but now he gave off a powerful energy. It made it difficult for her to talk to him.
What happened to him……?
Not only had he been able to defeat the B-rank hunter, but he’d changed completely. Joohee had no intention of prying because it was clear Jinwoo wanted to keep things secret, but she couldn’t help thinking about how much he had changed.
I wish he’d start the conversation at times like this.
She felt for a second that Jinwoo’s silence came across as almost heartless.
Eventually, she stopped walking and started talking. “Ummm…… Actually, I don’t think I’ll be able to eat anything today, so I’ll return this to you.”
Jinwoo took the essence stone she was offering him. It was the same one Jinwoo had given her in the underground temple. Joohee’s hand was shaking as she passed him the essence stone.
That incident wasn’t all that long ago…… And she witnessed yet another one today.
Joohee was a person full of fear. Jinwoo understood why she wouldn’t want to go to dinner right now.
“Well, today isn’t the only day. You don’t have to return this to me now.”
Joohee shook her head. “I’m going back to my hometown next week.”
It looked as though she was moving away on top of quitting her work as a hunter.
Jinwoo would be sorry to see her go.
“Is it because of the incident?”
“That’s not the only reason, but……” Joohee’s face darkened as she recalled that day.
Jinwoo quickly changed the subject. “So where’s home anyway?”
“Busan. So…Jinwoo.” Her expression turned serious.
“Yes?” Jinwoo removed the smile from his face when he sensed the change in Joohee’s mood.
She gazed at him.
His two eyes showed a strong will to live. Only his had been on fire, full of strength, when everyone else had been trembling in despair inside the underground temple. She’d seen them close up.
He has the eyes of a survivor.
Those two eyes that never lost sight of hope had saved several people, including herself. No one else could’ve done that.
Ba-dump, ba-dump.
Her heart started racing as she remembered that day.
No……
Joohee had no regrets about quitting. This job wasn’t right for her. But she was sad that she wouldn’t be able to see Jinwoo regularly.
Would he think I’m weird if I asked to see him again?
There were things she had to let go of. It would hurt her if she dwelled on them.
Joohee smiled brightly and shook her head. “It’s nothing. If you happen to be in Busan, please give me a call. I’ll treat you to some good sashimi.”
“Sounds good.”
As Jinwoo smiled at her, she returned his grin. Without telling him what she really wanted to say, she said good-bye and turned away.
……
The road home had never felt so long.
Jinwoo headed to his apartment after saying good-bye to Joohee. He could see the old apartment building in the distance. His place was on the ninth floor.
He passed some parked cars and was about to head in, but an old man’s voice stopped him.
“Young man, unit 902.” It was the security guard.
Since Jinwoo had known him for a long time, he struck up a friendly conversation.
“Haven’t you gone home yet, sir?”
“I’m on night duty today.”
Jinwoo nodded in understanding.
The guard brought out a package from his office. “This has your name on it, boy.”
“Oh, thank you.”
It was from the Hunter’s Association.
Was that today?
Was today the day the phone from the association was supposed to arrive? Jinwoo took a phone out from the box. It was shiny and new.
He remembered seeing on the news that more and more people were becoming a little too interested in hunters and trying to get their hands on the hunter-exclusive phones.
Never mind the people trying to buy them—what kind of scumbag sneaks around selling black-market phones?
He’d heard someone say once that it wasn’t that the country was poor, it was just that there were too many thieves. Whether it was the Hunter’s Association or the military, there was corruption anywhere with enough people. When an organization was corrupt and money was wasted, there would be less support for those who needed it, and with less support, the situation would worsen. Eventually, the people who needed benefits the most would be the ones hit the hardest.
That’s why I was worried, but……
It didn’t look like there were any problems with the delivery.
Jinwoo had nothing to do while waiting for the elevator, so he turned on the phone. He had a ton of notifications.
When am I going to have time to check all these?
Two numbers in particular caught his eye. Neither looked familiar. One had called him many times, and the other had texted a lot.
I don’t know anyone who would try this hard to reach me.
Jinwoo cocked his head and checked the texts first.
_Hello. I’m the one from the hospital……
_If you have time this week……
_Am I bugging you too much? I just wanted to talk……
He wondered who this person was at first but eventually realized it must be the young nurse to whom he’d given his number.
What was her name, Yura Choi?
He couldn’t say that she was “bugging” him per se, but he had a strong feeling that things would get annoying if he texted her back.
Let’s just move on for now……
Should he check who’d called him so many times? Jinwoo pressed the Call button. The latest pop song blared from the phone speakers. He could guess who it was.
The call connected quickly.
“Hello?”
Jinwoo was right. He chuckled a little bit at how predictable this guy was.
“It’s me. You can call this number from now on.”
“Oh, you finally got your cell, boss!”
It was Jinho. Jinwoo had written down Jinho’s number, but he hadn’t recognized it because he never called first.
Jinho sounded excited.
“I was about to call you, boss. I have all the squad members now, so I’ll pick you up tomorrow!”
