After the Gate
The park's chilled air hit them as the gate sealed behind them with a quiet ripple. The openness felt sharp after Karutenon Temple's stone walls. Jin-Woo's hunter's outfit was stained stiff with wolf blood and Rasaka's dark ichor. Takahiro flexed a cut on his forearm, flakes of scale dust falling away.
They arranged their haul on cracked pavement: fifty wolf carcasses in neat rows, Rasaka's coiled body beside them. Bronze-tinted scales caught pale sunlight in glints like scattered coins. Vapor rose from puncture wounds in ribbons that vanished in the cold.
Jin-Woo knelt at a wolf's flank and pressed his palm to its chest.
[Harvest Mana Stone?]
[Yes / No]
He selected Yes. A soft glow pulsed under his hand. Bone parted with surgical neatness, and a faceted crystal rose into his palm. He slipped it into his pouch and moved on in a relentless rhythm of harvest.
Takahiro's Codex overlaid golden seams on each carcass, tracing optimal cut lines. Pelts slid off intact; claws and fangs bundled themselves under System prompts. At Rasaka's belly, Takahiro lifted micro-shelves of pavement so scale plates peeled whole. He harvested the serpent's massive mana stone and coiled bronze plates into tidy loops.
When they finished, the pavement held:
- Wolf Mana Stone ×50
- Wolf Pelt ×50
- Wolf Claw ×50
- Wolf Fang ×50
- Rasaka Mana Stone ×1
- Rasaka Scale (Bronze-Tinted) ×42
- Rasaka's Fang ×1
Jin-Woo rose and opened his Inventory:
[Inventory – Sung Jin-Woo]
- Weapons: Steel Dagger; Rasaka's Fang (Dagger); Broken Iron Sword
- Armor/Clothing: Basic Hunter's Outfit (Worn); Spare Shirt; Reinforced Gloves
- Consumables: Lesser Healing Potion ×2; Stamina Recovery Potion ×1
- Materials (newly added):
• Wolf Mana Stone ×50
• Wolf Pelt ×50
• Wolf Claw ×50
• Wolf Fang ×50
• Rasaka Mana Stone ×1
• Rasaka Scale ×42
- Miscellaneous: Rusted Key (Unidentified)
[Inventory Capacity: 13%]
He transferred every new material. The piles dissolved from sight as if reclaimed by the world. Footprints and cold stone remained.
---
The Break Begins
They struck off toward the Hunter's Market by a quiet side street. No traffic jam yet—only the wind in empty windows. Sirens cut the calm. Association vans roared past on the next block. A Hunter in flak armor sprinted from an alley and shouted:
"Dungeon Break! Stone Golem in Sector 12! Evacuate now!"
Takahiro's vision shifted:
[Target Acquisition]
[Path Prediction: Northeast via Service Alleys]
[Structural Scan: Active]
A golden arrow pinned itself in his sight, marking backstreets and hidden passages. Jin-Woo's System chimed:
[Emergency Quest: Eliminate the Escaped Monster]
[Target: Stone Golem – Level 15]
[Time Limit: 00:20:00]
[Reward: EXP + Bonus Item]
Jin-Woo nodded once. They slipped into a shadowed alley. No windows, no witnesses.
---
The Hunt
They moved through deserted lanes, every footstep silent. Takahiro's Codex bent light and sound—shadows thickening, distant shouts muffled. The world narrowed to pairs of feet and breathing.
Ahead, they emerged onto a half-built plaza. The Stone Golem loomed between steel girders: three meters of jagged granite, veins of blue light at its joints. Moss draped its shoulders. Each step shattered loose concrete beneath.
Two D-Rank hunters tried crossbow volleys. Bolts sparked off rock plating. A C-Rank rammed a longspear; it glanced away with a hollow ring. Mana glowed weak.
Takahiro whispered: "Core just behind the left eye socket. I'll distract it—wait for my cue."
Jin-Woo crouched behind a pillar's shadow. His hand brushed the hilt of the Broken Iron Sword at his belt—rusted, splintered wood wrapped in worn leather. Balance still true from every trial.
Takahiro pressed his palm to the ground.
[Environmental Shift: Dust Cloud Deployment]
A fine haze rose around the golem's feet, swirling into its unarmored joints. It roared, steps faltering as grit ground into its seams.
Jin-Woo slid from cover. He wrapped his left hand around the sword's haft, muscles coiling. The golem's gaze tracked the D-Ranks' crossbow bolts. In that half-second, he sprang.
[Skill: Stealth Stance – Activate]
His form blurred into shadow. The pillar's darkness swallowed him as he vaulted forward, feet whisper-quiet on reconfigured tiles.
Time slowed. The sword arced through dust and dim light, blade pointed ahead. He aimed for the left eye socket—a narrow gap beneath a jutting plate.
It struck true. Metal buried into granite with a wrenching crack. Rock splintered outward. Blue veins flickered and died. The golem roared, staggering as dust rained from its shattered skull.
A D-Rank lunged with a hunting dagger; another hammered a short spear into the ragged hole. The beast convulsed, arms pinwheeling, then collapsed in a storm of rubble.
Jin-Woo melted back into shadow. Takahiro dispelled the dust. The hunters finished the crumbling colossus. Not one witnessed Jin-Woo's presence.
---
The Kill and Rewards
[EXP Gained: 2,500]
[Level Up]
[Current Level: 14]
Strength: 31 → 33
Agility: 27 → 28
Vitality: 26 → 27
[Bonus Item Acquired: Hardened Stone Fragment]
Takahiro's Codex pulsed:
[Synchronization: 12.8%]
[Environmental Control Efficiency: +6% (Transient)]
They slipped away through back alleys, leaving no trace but cracked concrete and whispered rumors.
---
Market and Testing
Moments later, they entered the Hunter's Market. Hidden behind frosted glass, appraisers inspected:
[Inventory – Sung Jin-Woo]
• Materials (newly added):
– Stone Golem Core Fragment ×1
– Hardened Stone Fragment ×1
[Inventory Capacity: 14%]
Jin-Woo transferred loot remotely. Coins and notes manifested in his balance.
[Funds Acquired: 3,800,000₩]
They found a quiet courtyard to test skills:
[Skill: Sprint – Activate]
He blurred between lampposts, each step weightless, ground bending to his stride.
[Skill: Vital Points Strike – Activate]
He struck a Codex-shaped earthen dummy's glowing mark; clay split perfectly.
---
Hospital Visit
Late afternoon, they reached the hospital. The lobby's hush felt fragile under humming lights. Jin-Woo paused outside his mother's room, hand on glass. Monitors pulsed green.
"I'm stronger now," he whispered. "I'll keep going until you wake."
Takahiro stood at the door, Codex runes dimmed in silence.
They met Jin-Ah in the corridor. She saw bandages on his hands and the envelope he offered.
"You've been pushing yourself again."
"For tuition. And more," he said. She opened it, breath catching, then closed her hand over the cash.
"Promise you'll come home early?"
He nodded.
They walked into dusk, city lights stirring on the boulevard. Gates would open again. Shadows would shift. He carried every promise in his pocket and in the silent space between footsteps.