Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 48: Solo Raid

A month had passed, and Han-Yeol spent most of his time sweeping through Ant Hell and hunting down every single one of the ants in sight with the Shadow Demon. Thanks to that, the Shadow Demon gained quite a lot of weight that it was nearly unrecognizable to how it had been a month ago.

Pukeok!

A Soldier Ant’s head popped as it plopped dead to the ground.

Ding!

[The Shadow Demon’s level has risen.]

[Shadow Demon]

Level: 30

Rating: Lowest

Experience: 1/32,119

Skill: Devour, Shadow Taunt, Overwhelming Strength

‘It’s finally Level 30,’?Han-Yeol thought.

When the Shadow Demon reached Level 30, a message suddenly popped up.

Ding!

[The Shadow Demon has reached the minimum prerequisite level to evolve.]

‘It reached the minimum prerequisite level?’?Han-Yeol wondered while reading the message.

[The Shadow Demon may evolve or transform into another demon.]

[1. Lesser Shadow Demon (Evolution)]

[2. Lowest Void Demon (Transformation)]

[3. Lowest Void Devil (Transformation)]

When he was presented with three choices, Han-Yeol thought, ‘Ah… I hate complicated things like this…’?

He was someone who preferred to have fewer choices to work with so that he did not have to think so much, and that was why he always preferred to simply make a choice and get it over with.

‘I have a low appetite for risk. I should just continue nurturing this Shadow Demon I’ve already invested my time in instead of turning it into another demon and causing more headaches. It’s not like anyone else is going to take responsibility for it, right?’?Han-Yeol thought. He then chose the first option, which was a Lesser Shadow Demon.

Ding!

[You have chosen the Lesser Shadow Demon.]

[The Lowest Shadow Demon has evolved into a Lesser Shadow Demon.]

[The Shadow Demon may now learn up to five skills instead of three.]

‘Shadow Demon’s status window,’?Han-Yeol muttered inwardly.

[Shadow Demon]

Level: 30

Rating: Lesser

Experience: 1/32,119

Skill: Devour, Shadow Taunt, Overwhelming Strength

There were no visible changes in the Shadow Demon’s stats, but the skills it could possess had now increased from three to five which made the demon even more of a cheat. The simple fact that this immaterial demon, which was immune to physical attacks, could now possess up to five skills was sure to be the worst nightmare of most monsters at the hunting grounds.

‘I wonder what kind of skills it will be getting,’?Han-Yeol thought while snickering like a villain. Just as he turned around after checking the newly evolved Shadow Demon’s stats…

“…”

“…”

The two victims of Han-Yeol’s month-long exploitation were looking at him with their out-of-focus eyes and their dark circles that drooped all the way down to their chin seemed to silently cry out for their survival.

‘Oh… was I too harsh on them…?’?Han-Yeol wondered. He had been so engrossed in nurturing the Shadow Demon that he completely forgot about everything else, and Yoo-Bi and Sung-Hwan had been severely exploited during this time.

‘Should I have made them work on rotation…?’?Han-Yeol thought.

The month-long hunting they did this time was supposed to be a crash course for Yoo-Bi and Sung-Hwan, so Han-Yeol did not really need them both with him at all times. Han-Yeol deeply repented for his lack of consideration. With an awkward smile, he said, “Great work you guys. We will stop our hunt here, and I’m sorry by the way. It was planned to be a fifteen-day trip… but it turned out to be longer than expected.”

“Ah… please do not mind it…” Sung-Hwan replied. He was concerned that he would touch a nerve and annoy Han-Yeol, who was a Hunter, if he were to complain or grumble. That was the reason why he stayed silent and pretended to be alright despite being severely exhausted and overworked.

‘He doesn’t look alright to me…’?Han-Yeol thought.

That was how their long hunting trip at Ant Hell ended, and Han-Yeol paid them a massive sum totaling to a month’s worth of labor. The two previously received sixty million won for four days worth of work, so it was quite normal for them to doubt their eyes when they received their pay after working for thirty consecutive days this time.

Sung-Hwan was the first to go home after receiving his pay, and Yoo-Bi and Han-Yeol were left all alone now.

“I-Is it really alright for us to receive this much money?” Yoo-Bi asked.

“Of course, Yoo-Bi, you worked really hard to earn your keep this time. It’s all yours, and you can use it as you want,” Han-Yeol replied.

Yoo-Bi was severely disoriented as she could not differentiate if this was fantasy or reality. In the end, tears started welling up in her eyes when it finally hit her.

Han-Yeol silently comforted the high school girl, who buried her face in her bankbook while crying.

Actually, it was not true that Han-Yeol had only focused on the Shadow Demon and had forgotten about the two of them for an entire month. He was interested in Yoo-Bi so he had devised this plan to pretend that he was financially looking after the two of them while trying to get closer to her.

He had quite a good relationship with Yoo-Bi after saving her from the rapist, but they did not really know each other very well, so there was a hint of awkwardness between them. Fortunately, they have managed to get a lot closer during this month that they had spent together hunting.

“Why don’t you move to a nice apartment and live with your mother from now on? I think you deserve to live comfortably,” Han-Yeol said.

Yoo-Bi had earned four hundred million won for the long hunt they had gone on this time.

Frankly speaking, Yoo-Bi and Sung-Hwan did not do much work that warranted them to be paid such a huge sum of money, but Han-Yeol was investing in them for the future right now. No, to be precise, he was investing in Yoo-Bi.

“Heuk… Heuk…”?Yoo-Bi cried again and again, as if she had a lot of sorrow pent up in her heart all this while.

Han-Yeol silently stayed by Yoo-Bi’s side.

Yoo-Bi stopped crying after a while and calmed down, then Han-Yeol accompanied her all the way until she reached home.

“Oppa, thank you for your hard work. Thank you for taking care of a newbie Porter like me…and for treating me so well too…” Yoo-Bi said. She was not stupid and neither was she an immature child who did not know how the world worked. She had already noticed that Han-Yeol was treating them too well despite what he said. However, she could not muster the courage to say anything whenever she saw the large sum of money deposited into her bank account.

“I’m telling you that it’s really fine. Hmm… if it really bothers you… then can you grant me a favor?” Han-Yeol asked.

“Y-Yes! I will do whatever you ask of me!” Yoo-Bi enthusiastically replied with eager sparkling eyes. The burden in her heart would be slightly reduced if she was able to do something for Han-Yeol in return.

“Will you sign an exclusive contract with me?” Han-Yeol asked.

“H-Huh?” Yoo-Bi muttered in surprise. She was taken aback by Han-Yeol’s suggestion.

‘E-Exclusive contract…?’?she thought. She was well aware of what an exclusive contract was. She might be weak when it came to practical things that required physical labor, but she had graduated with quite high marks when it came to theoretical things.

“B-But… A Hunter like you, Han-Yeol oppa, will be able to find far better Porters than me… Why are you choosing me of all people…?” Yoo-Bi muttered.

However, contrary to her words, she was secretly hoping deep inside that Han-Yeol was going to sign an exclusive contract with her, and this was solely because he was someone that she could trust and not because he was a strong Hunter.

She had read about quite a lot of cases where a female Porter had been mercilessly raped and murdered by a Hunter, and sexual harassment was a normal thing that a female porter had to go through. Indeed, it was quite difficult for a woman to work as a Porter in this twisted world.

“Well, a good Porter or a veteran Porter, these sound nice and all, but what I need is not those kinds of Porters but the kind that I can always depend on and trust. In addition, I also prefer to hire a Porter who will stay with me even after they awaken,” Han-Yeol replied.

“Someone who will stay with you even after they awaken…?” Yoo-Bi muttered while tilting her head in confusion.

“Yes. Ah, but it doesn’t matter even if you don’t awaken. What’s important is trust, after all. I have seen a lot of Porters that secretly lined their pockets away from the Hunters’ eyes, and I have also lined my own pockets sometimes as well,” Han-Yeol replied.

Wink!

Han-Yeol gave Yoo-Bi a cringey wink.

He was half joking, but it was true that he had lined his own pockets a few times before. However, in his defense, he did not do it out of malice or ill intentions. He tried to maintain his integrity whenever he worked, but he had fallen sick that month and he had to skip a few days of work. Thanks to that, he had calculated that his salary was not going to be enough to pay for his father’s medical bills, and he had been left with no choice but to do it twice.

‘Well, I just did it twice and didn’t do it after that,’?Han-Yeol thought as he justified his own actions.

It was possible for a Porter to earn a lot if they lined their own pocket, and that amount was going to be double or even triple the wages they would earn. Most Porters started off by stealing bit by bit before failing to keep their greed in check and ending up getting caught. Then, they usually ended up regretting it after getting severely punished and sued by the Hunters’ Association. The law punishing and locking up Porters that dared to steal from the Hunters was quite unforgiving in this country, after all.

Han-Yeol frequently saw cases where Porters would end up in jail because of their greed, and that was why he had stolen just enough to cover his losses and pay for his father’s hospital bills.

Anyway, Yoo-Bi ended up nodding to what Han-Yeol had said.

“I see,” she muttered. She was convinced, after listening to his words, and she had already decided that she wanted to sign an exclusive contract with him anyway.

“So what do you think? Do you want to sign a contract with me?” Han-Yeol asked.

He was not simply proposing to sign an exclusive contract with Yoo-Bi out of affection or for old times’ sake. It was true that he was attracted to her, but all he had to do was ensure that she was financially taken care of and that was it.

What Han-Yeol really needed right now was a Porter who listened to his commands and trusted him above anything else. In short, he needed a Porter so that he could establish a relationship built on trust, and Yoo-Bi was undoubtedly the perfect partner for him in that case.

‘She won’t be able to easily betray me if ever she decides to, since I saved her from being raped after all,’?Han-Yeol thought.

It was the best-case scenario if he could work with a trustworthy yet skilled Porter, but that was not possible since most of the established Porters out there were either one or the other.

Most Hunters preferred to work with a skilled veteran Porter, but Han-Yeol, who had been a veteran Porter himself, thought that he could simply teach Yoo-Bi how to become a veteran Porter, and that was why he would choose to work with a trustworthy person over a skilled one.

Sung-Hwan was not even a consideration in the first place, since Han-Yeol could clearly see the cowardice and greed in his eyes, but most importantly, he could see the lecherous way Sung-Hwan looked at Yoo-Bi.

It could be a misunderstanding and a misjudgment on his part, but Han-Yeol had no reason to work with someone who made him feel that way. In fact, Han-Yeol was not so benevolent to even consider it in the first place.

“I’ll say this again but, I am not proposing this exclusive contract because of an emotionally-driven reason. I can see that you have the potential to be an excellent Porter, and I can help you reach your potential. Also, I want to propose in advance a partnership in the event that you end up Awakening. In short, this is an investment from my side. Of course, we can mutually terminate the contract any time if we decide that this is not working out so you don’t have to be scared of anything,” Han-Yeol explained.

‘One of the wealthiest?men?in America once said to trust a stock that you have decided to bet on until it gets delisted from the stock market,’?Han-Yeol thought. It was a quote he had read from the wealthy man’s biography when he had been quite into all of these self-help books.

Han-Yeol had already tested Yoo-Bi, who passed his test with flying colors. That was the main reason that he decided to invest in her. Also, it was bound to be difficult for a person to bite the hand that fed them when they were just starting out after all. This was another reason why he found that there was practically no merit for him to invest in an already established Porter.

Also, last but not the least…

‘My instinct is telling me that she will get strong abilities if she awakens as a Hunter,’?Han-Yeol thought of his true intention. He could replace a Porter anytime he wanted to, but it was going to be extremely difficult for him to find a strong Hunter that he could trust and partner with.

Han-Yeol was someone who trusted his instinct 100%.

“Y-Yes! Let’s sign the contract! I might be lacking right now, but I will do my best to live up to oppa’s expectations! Also, I will stay by oppa’s side even if I somehow manage to Awaken. Then, I will be able to proudly walk side by side with you!” Yoo-Bi exclaimed as she steeled her resolve.

“Good!” Han-Yeol exclaimed in response.

“I will never forget your kindness,” Yoo-Bi said.

“Then, shall we sign the contract?” Han-Yeol asked.

“Yes!” Yoo-Bi enthusiastically replied.

“Ah, just for your information. The exclusive contract will be for two years at a time in accordance with the laws that regulate exclusive contracts, and we can terminate the contract whenever one of us wants to terminate it. Also, it will be automatically renewed if neither of us has a comment about it. Are you aware of this?” Han-Yeol asked.

“Of course, I did not doze off during Porter theory classes and I even took down notes, you know?” Yoo-Bi proudly replied.

“You even took notes? Yoo-Bi… I never knew you were a very good student,” Han-Yeol said.

Han-Yeol had worked multiple part-time jobs and had only slept for two hours every day when he had been studying to become a Porter, so he had dozed off during the theoretical classes. He had procrastinated and crammed everything right before the tests, and had somehow managed to pass in the end.

The two came into an agreement and they immediately went to a nearby lawyer’s office.

“Welcome, how may I help you?” a well-dressed lawyer greeted them in the office.

“Ah, hello. This Hunter-nim and I would like to enter into an exclusive contract so we came for your help to legalize things,” Yoo-Bi said. She had learned during her Porter classes that a Porter was supposed to step up and do everything required in place of the Hunters, and that was why she was the first to respond and engage in a conversation with the lawyer.

“Haha, you have come to the right place. I am a lawyer specializing in Hunter affairs. I can help you with whatever you require,” the lawyer replied.

The laws covering everything related to the Hunters were not decided by the congress, but it was rather decided by a panel of one hundred thirty-three Hunters under the Hunters’ Association. The Hunters’ Association would seek advice from these Hunters, who were legal experts as well, and that was why the laws governing the Hunters were quite detailed and complicated.

The complex set of rules paved the way for numerous misunderstandings and disputes, and this became an opportunity for numerous lawyers to earn money. Of course, it was quite difficult to become a lawyer specializing in Hunter law as they had to first pass the bar exam and then further study to become specialized in it.

However, the lawyers that did manage to become specialized in Hunter law would earn quite well. An average legal fee of three million won would instantly turn into thirty million won if it was related to Hunters. There was a legendary news story of a lawyer earning thirty billion won after successfully defending his Hunter client in court.

Thanks to that, there was a boom in lawyers trying to become specialized in Hunter law. The bottom line was, the lawyer that Han-Yeol and Yoo-Bi had come to was a skilled lawyer who knew what he was doing.