Chapter 276: Type-V (1)
The discussion did not take long.
Since they had nothing else to do, both Emilia and Yu Cheonghwa gladly approved Kang-hoo’s participation.
Takashi was beyond thrilled.
It was already exciting enough to move around with just Kang-hoo, but now two of his close friends were joining as well.
He was so happy that he even started cleaning his room—something he hadn’t done even once in the past few weeks.
Before embarking on an exhilarating challenge, he wanted to tidy up his space to properly control his doppelganger! It was an expression of his happiness.
Meanwhile, inside the dungeon, Kang-hoo decided to test himself against a regular monster while simultaneously scouting the area.
After the fight.
Having subdued the creature, he arrived at a simple conclusion—it was a downgraded version of the Swarm Queen.
In other words, while he could handle one of them, fighting two or three at once would be extremely difficult.Regardless, thanks to landing the finishing blow in his scouting battle, his level had increased to 271.
For a status check, Kang-hoo opened his stats window for the first time in a while.
【Shin Kang-hoo Lv. 271】
【Class: Assassin】
【Innate Talents: Quite a Remarkable Main Skill / Exceptionally Superior Dynamic Vision / Versatile】
【Strength 1263】【Agility 1439】
【Stamina 965】【Magic 31】
【Magic Resistance 660】【Durability 834】
【Dark Energy 455】【Divine Power 100】
“Durability… 166 left.”
He was close to reaching 1,000 durability.
Once he reached 1,000.
According to system adjustments, damage from basic attacks and skills used by hunters or monsters below level 100 would be reduced by 90%.
The so-called ‘trash mobs’ in dungeons generally had very low levels.
That’s why trash mobs usually appeared in large groups to offset their individual weakness.
However, if his durability surpassed 1,000 and their attacks barely affected him…
It wouldn’t matter if they swarmed him in groups or even as an entire legion.
A 90% reduction sounded significant, but when combined with active and passive defensive skills, the damage he received would be negligible—barely even a scratch.
That meant unless the opponent was a formidable monster, he wouldn’t even need to invest skills into dealing with ordinary mobs.
He could simply approach, take a few insignificant hits, and sever their necks—or pierce through their chests.
With such a simple combat method, reaching 1,000 durability was one of Kang-hoo’s key objectives.
Of course, for an assassin, setting such a goal was utterly absurd.
It was as unbalanced as a mage prioritizing strength over magic or a swordsman favoring agility over strength.
However, for Kang-hoo, who insisted on tanking in large-scale battles against mobs, it was an essential attribute.
“First, I need to obtain a breastplate. Then, I’ll use the defense option from my current armor to push for the middle boss.”
With his plan decided, Kang-hoo started searching for the Corrupt Set breastplate.
The navigation system, which functioned like GPS, was active, making it easy to locate hidden areas.
But the location was odd.
The route to it was absurdly complex and had no connection to the dungeon’s main path.
There was absolutely no reason for a hunter to go there.
Moreover, it wasn’t even a place where one might obtain extra rewards, such as an area teeming with monsters.
Simply put, it was a Garbage Area within the dungeon—there was no reason to go there.
In fact, the terrain included steep slopes and cliffs, meaning that anyone venturing there out of curiosity might end up losing their life.
Kieeek—.
Meanwhile, the Corrupt Ghost Kang-hoo had deployed in advance was diligently performing its duty.
It had been instructed to return whenever it detected a monster up ahead, but so far, there had been no response.
In other words, there were no threats nearby, allowing Kang-hoo to increase his speed.
‘Being able to acquire a set item so precisely without any obstacles is a huge advantage.’
The process of a monster obtaining a set item worked like this:
Dungeon monsters were constantly being hunted by hunters. Over time, as the dungeon reset, it would reach a state of stability.
For monsters, stability meant becoming creatures that simply respawned and died repeatedly without any variables.
However, if a monster was left undefeated for a prolonged period, its variable value would accumulate during each dungeon reset.
Once this variable value exceeded a certain threshold, the monster would become a special entity that provided unique rewards.
Of course, this didn’t happen to every monster—only 0.01% of monsters that had reached the highest variable value would drop rare items.
The monster Kang-hoo was about to face, which held the Corrupt Series Breastplate, was one such rare entity.
Not only did the variable value have to reach its limit, but the 0.01% probability also had to be overcome.
This meant that nobody else but Kang-hoo could anticipate and track set items like this.
‘Right. Even when writing regression-themed novels, I always emphasized the importance of future knowledge.’
A faint memory of his past life surfaced—back when he was furiously typing away on a keyboard.
Back then, as both a writer and a reader, he had often thought about it.
How much of an advantage it was to possess knowledge that others lacked and to leverage it for profit.
And now, he was living proof of that idea.
About an hour had passed since entering the dungeon.
Although he had traversed steep slopes and cliffs along the way, he had reached his destination without major issues.
Finally, he was nearing the location indicated by the GPS. The target was now within 500 meters.
“Hmm…”
As he emerged from an area cluttered with rocks and rotting trees, he finally spotted his opponent.
It was a lone monster wandering aimlessly through the area—so out of place that he wondered how it had even ended up there.
[Type-V: Master of Dual Pistols]
The name was long.
To abbreviate, he could just call it V.
V was a humanoid Gunner-type monster that wielded magic-infused dual pistols.
Since it used magic-infused bullets, V did not need to reload its magazines.
In other words, it could fire almost infinitely, making it an incredibly difficult opponent to face.
There was no downtime for reloading. The only slight gap was the time needed to gather magic power.
Compared to the standard monsters he had encountered so far, V was definitely unique.
It wouldn’t have been strange if it had been classified as a Mid Boss or even a Main Boss.
However, V was categorized as a regular monster, despite being difficult to handle.
‘Honestly, in the world of high-ranking hunters, this is just the norm. Nothing to be surprised about.’
Crack. Crack.
Kang-hoo loosened his wrists.
Facing monsters of this level as standard enemies would become more common for him now.
Even just considering the dungeon he would enter with Takashi, it would be nothing like low-tier dungeons swarming with weak monsters.
“If I were to estimate its level purely in numerical terms, it should be around 550. A gunner-type monster wielding dual pistols appearing at this stage…”
Based on the original setting, V’s level was estimated to be nearly double Kang-hoo’s.
This wouldn’t be an easy fight.
Crunch.
Kang-hoo immediately chewed on a Mad Solarkium. Now, only nine remained.
【Stealth】
【Wall of Purity】
He activated Wall of Purity while remaining in stealth mode.
Since this was an open-field area, both sides were equally exposed, making the battle risky.
That’s why he didn’t make the mistake of over-relying on stealth. He had to assume that the enemy could detect him.
And, as expected—
Tatang!
V’s dual pistols flared, precisely striking the spot where Kang-hoo had been standing.
Thunk! Thunk!
“As expected.”
Kang-hoo’s position was revealed as he blocked V’s magic-infused bullets.
He had considered the possibility, and as he suspected, regular stealth alone wasn’t enough to fool this monster’s vision.
It likely had infrared detection or some other special ability to pinpoint its target.
Kang-hoo quickly retreated to a position behind a tree, where he deployed his first skill.
【Veil of Finesse】
He then layered it with Stealth and Wall of Purity before stepping out into open view again.
“…….”
This time, V showed no reaction. It seemed unable to locate Kang-hoo in this state.
Ssssh. Ssssh.
Seizing the opportunity, Kang-hoo coated his dagger with Poison Blood.
Inflicting a wound on his own finger every time was annoying, but it wasn’t too much trouble.
Just then—
Tatang! Tatang! Tatang! Tatang!
V suddenly started spinning 360 degrees, wildly firing magic bullets in every direction.
Thwoom! Thwoom!
As a result, some bullets struck the Wall of Purity, once again revealing Kang-hoo’s location.
“Looks like I have to take this head-on.”
Kang-hoo nodded.
Bullet barrages—this was a fundamental technique for any gunner using magic-infused ammunition.
As long as their magic reserves were sufficient, it was also the most effective form of suppressive fire.
With this method, sneaking up on a gunner using stealth or teleportation became incredibly difficult.
Unless someone could completely block the magic bullets, they would be forced into a defensive position.
If they miscalculated, they wouldn’t be the one landing a headshot—it would be them getting shot in the head.
Moreover, no matter how advanced stealth was, it wouldn’t allow someone to dodge bullets.
In a way, gunners had the most straightforward method to counter assassins.
Tump! Tump!
Kang-hoo took large strides forward, fully activating Wall of Purity to block direct attacks.
Tang! Tang!
V extended both arms forward, continuously pulling the triggers to keep firing at Kang-hoo.
Each time the gunfire erupted, two magic bullets struck Kang-hoo’s barrier with precise accuracy.
‘This much…’
It was manageable.
As he moved, he replenished the barrier’s durability using magic.
Additionally, the amount of durability he was losing was less than expected, meaning he could buy himself more time.
However, since V wouldn’t stick to just basic attacks, it was only a matter of time before it unleashed a high-powered skill.
“…….”
Kang-hoo looked down at the ground.
Soft dirt. The terrain was going to be useful in this fight.
With that in mind—
【Acceleration】
【Leap】
He chained his skills together to instantly close the gap between himself and V.
Even after he got closer, V didn’t immediately reposition itself.
From that, Kang-hoo judged that V likely had a skill that could help it create distance again.
And then—
“Heh.”
V let out a scoff.
At the same time, Kang-hoo activated the skill that would become the biggest variable in this battle.
【Collapse】
The ground beneath V’s feet—
He intended to trigger an unexpected terrain shift.
If V tried to jump high to avoid the collapsing ground, that would make it an amateur.
If it jumped while keeping an eye on Kang-hoo, that would make it intermediate-level.
If it simply rolled sideways or moved to avoid the danger without overreacting, that would make it a high-level fighter.
And in this situation—
“Yeah. No gunner can resist a ‘grasshopper jump.’”
V had chosen the worst possible evasion method within Kang-hoo’s expected range.
Any hunter or monster with a jump-related skill couldn’t help but instinctively leap away.
Even if there was a simpler way to dodge, they never took it—falling into the classic “Jump Bug” pattern.