Chapter 49

Leveling Up Alone: Ragnarok Chapter 48

"Where do you think you're going!"

Randolph, who was not about to let Shuhu slip away quietly, ordered his subordinates to chase after him with a menacing voice.

"Kraaaah!"

Kuwa-kwa-kwa-kwa...!

At his command, the Scavenger guild members charged at Shuhu like rhinoceroses.

[These guys, dare to?]

Berga's eyes flared with anger.

In contrast, Shuhu calmly observed them as they charged towards him.

'Really just tanks, huh?'

He had thought there might be some variety when he saw that all the Scavenger hunters guarding the entrance were tanks, but it turned out that everyone here was a tank.

Generally, a raid party is composed of a balanced mix of damage dealers, tanks, and healers.

However, it wasn't necessarily essential.

For example, if the tanks had enough offensive power to also fulfill the role of damage dealers, it wouldn't be a problem.

But.

When the balance is off, weaknesses inevitably become apparent.

"Rise up!"

[Kururururur!]

Swish.

A giant shadow spider emerged from Shuhu's shadow and began to move according to his will.

Swoosh!

Black spider webs were cast throughout the narrow maze.

Sticky!

"What, what is this!"

The Scavenger guild members, who had been charging confidently, found their feet and clothes stuck to the spider webs, slowing them down.

At that moment, Shuhu and Esil also moved.

Whoosh!

"Summoner? So you're just a guy who uses cheap tricks!"

Randolph sneered and gathered mana throughout his body.

It was only natural for the Scavenger guild, which revered strength, to mock summoners.

'Summoners are just cowards who hide behind their summons and follow them around!'

In the end, all they had to do was ignore the summons and kill the hunter behind them.

Crack!

His overwhelming strength tore the spider webs apart.

However, Arachne's spider webs were a type of skill made of mana.

He could easily produce more.

And the spider webs had a particularly annoying characteristic.

[Arachne uses 'Skill: Puppet Show'.]

"Huh?"

One of the Scavenger guild members, who had been leading the charge, swung his massive arm and knocked down a fellow member.

Thud!

"Ouch! Is this guy crazy!"

The guild member, who had been hit and had blood gushing from his nose, roared in anger.

But then his leg suddenly bent at an odd angle.

"Huh?"

He tripped another member who was passing by.

Crash!

"What are you doing!"

The Scavenger guild members, who had been charging confidently, tumbled and rolled on the ground.

The chaotic scene made Randolph's face turn beet red.

"How dare you!"

Bang!

Enraged, he stomped his foot, causing the ground to crack as if an earthquake had struck.

If he had been defeated by overwhelming strength, it would have been one thing, but to be toyed with by such cheap tricks!

"Snap out of it! Catch that guy immediately!"

"Yes, sir!"

Randolph's stern command snapped the Scavenger guild members back to their senses.

This time, they cautiously surrounded Shuhu.

"Did you forget about me?"

At that moment, Esil, who had silently moved to the side, lunged at them with her spear.

Swoosh! Boom!

"Huh!"

In the narrow space, it was difficult to dodge the straight-flying javelin.

Esil's javelin caused an explosion of mana.

Even if they narrowly avoided the attack, the wall behind them exploded and collapsed onto the Scavenger guild members.

"Hehe."

The spear returned to Esil's hand, and she continued to pressure them by throwing more spears.

Meanwhile, Shuhu.

'Aim for the leader!'

Thud!

Randolph's eyebrows twitched as he saw Shuhu charging at him from the front.

"Hah. Daring to target me first? Do I look that foolish to you?"

Randolph sneered and faced Shuhu, his aura rising.

Kuwaang!

Randolph's attack, infused with immense mana, flew towards Shuhu.

At that moment.

'Dominion's Power!'

Shuhu leaped into the air, performing a mid-air acrobatic move to land behind him.

"Huh?"

"Then, we'll pass by."

Shuhu, with a grin, raised his hand towards Randolph.

The smile made Randolph's eyes flash with anger.

"How dare this guy!"

'This type is easily provoked.'

Shuhu's eyes sparkled.

He already knew that Randolph was an A-rank hunter through his perception stat.

A level of strength that he currently couldn't match.

But if his personality was as simple and brutish as it appeared, there were countless ways to deal with him.

'First, get under his skin.'

Shuhu used Dominion's Power to lift a brick near Randolph.

And then, he smacked it on the back of his head.

"…This kid is really something."

There was no way Randolph would take damage from a brick that flew in from behind.

But the effect was excellent.

"I'll kill that kid myself."

He ignored his subordinates and charged at Shuhu.

Despite the fierce momentum, Shuhu only grinned.

'This is it!'

[Arachne uses 'Skill: Puppet Show'.]

At that moment.

Kuwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!

"…Huh?"

The ceiling above them exploded.

A giant spider emerged from the hole.

"Kyaaaaaah!"

"Huh?!"

"What, what is this?!"

Everyone present was shocked.

[Venomous Sand Spider]

The bizarre and repulsive giant monster, which should have been in the red desert, had suddenly appeared!

"Why is that thing here!"

"Isn't it supposed to not be able to come this close?!"

Everyone's gaze immediately turned to Shuhu.

Coincidentally, he was a summoner.

And not just any summoner, but one who summoned spider-like insects!

"Could it be?"

But now wasn't the time for such speculation.

"Kyaaaaaah!"

"Ah! Run!"

The hunters, startled by the sand spider's roar as it tried to enter the maze, began to scatter.

Esil approached Shuhu and asked,

"Shuhu, did you do this?"

"What are you doing? Aren't you going to run?"

"…."

* * *

Meanwhile, chaos erupted in the village.

The sand spiders had suddenly attacked.

"Are these things suddenly crazy!"

What was bound to happen eventually did.

The sand spiders, which had been lurking around the village, finally invaded.

However, their attention was solely focused on the pyramid, not the village's hunters.

"The spiders are heading for the pyramid!"

"Get out of their way!"

"We're not their target!"

The quick-witted hunters quickly retreated, clearing a path for the spiders.

They knew they couldn't handle these monsters.

The sand spiders clung to the pyramid, gnawing at the stone walls to enter.

"What is going on…"

The hunters were speechless at the bizarre scene.

"Looks like there's really something in there."

"But before that…"

"The hunters inside are as good as dead."

The hunters, who had been unable to enter the pyramid due to the Scavenger guild, felt a mix of relief and satisfaction.

At the same time, a good idea came to mind.

'Let's watch for now.'

And once the situation is resolved and the Scavenger guild members are dead, they would enter the pyramid.

The Kamura hunters' eyes gleamed with anticipation.

* * *

The sudden appearance of the sand spiders threw the situation into chaos.

Shuhu and Esil retreated in the opposite direction from the Scavenger guild.

As they moved, they naturally encountered others.

It was the Asura guild.

"Hmm?"

"Eh."

At a crossroads, Shuhu and Rio Sing met.

Rio Sing asked Shuhu,

"I am Rio Sing of the Asura guild. Which guild do you belong to?"

"What?"

Shuhu looked at Esil the interpreter.

Esil sighed softly and answered for him.

"Independent. We're from Korea."

"Korea? I see. Given the situation, would you like to cooperate temporarily?"

Rio Sing tried to read Shuhu's demeanor with a sharp gaze.

'He didn't reveal his affiliation, but he must be a promising member of a famous guild.'

Rio Sing had observed Shuhu's performance against Randolph.

His quick judgment and combat sense were on par with his own.

Shuhu had no reason to refuse Rio Sing's offer.

With the sand spiders appearing, it wasn't a time for humans to fight each other.

"Sure, why not."

Seeing Shuhu nod, Rio Sing breathed a sigh of relief.

'Perfect. I had many questions.'

Shuhu, through Esil's translation, asked,

"What happened in there?"

While avoiding the sand spiders, Rio Sing explained to Shuhu.

"This pyramid wants us to prove our worth."

"Worth?"

The familiar phrase made Shuhu and Berga's eyes light up simultaneously.

'Hmm.'

Seeing Shuhu's interested expression, Rio Sing was impressed.

Normally, when told to prove their worth in a dungeon, people would worry about their lives first.

Of course, that was understandable.

The great upheaval that occurred two years ago.

Despite many scientists questioning the phenomenon, no one had yet uncovered its true nature.

The unknown often brings fear.

But Shuhu's reaction was different.

'He's smiling? This young man is genuinely enjoying this challenge. He has the innate qualities of an Asura.'

Of course, this was just Rio Sing's misconception.

"Is this it?"

[It seems so.]

What they recalled was naturally the test of worth from the Maquok Field.

The test to prove the worth of a king was happening here as well.

'If this is a test…'

There was only one way to prove it.

To delve deeper.

But the problem was the obstacles blocking the path.

'To move forward, we need to deal with the Scavenger guys first.'

Shuhu stared intently at the path the Scavenger guild members had taken to escape the sand spiders.

That direction was likely the heart of the maze.

They would continue exploring there to prove their worth.

"Shuhu, what do you think?"

Esil, sensing Shuhu's thoughts, asked.

"It might be difficult for us to handle them all on our own."

"Hmm."

Shuhu agreed.

It seemed one Arachne wouldn't be enough.

'More soldiers would increase our chances…'

But these soldiers needed to be at least as strong as Arachne.

Kyaaaaaah!

"There they are."

Hearing the distant roar of the sand spiders, Shuhu's eyes sparkled.

In an open desert, it would be different, but in this isolated space, they could deal with the enemies one by one, couldn't they?