Chapter 4

Leveling Up Alone: Ragnarok - Chapter 3 (4/176)

Leveling Up Alone: Ragnarok Chapter 3

Erosion is a phenomenon where blue mist flows out from a gate and pollutes the surroundings.

Areas contaminated by the mana of the other world become environments suitable for monsters to live in.

If the area beyond the gate is called a 'dungeon,' then the contaminated area around the gate is called a 'field-type dungeon.'

Once a place is contaminated like this, it becomes no different from a dungeon, and considering that, the current art museum of the Korean University is no different from a land of death.

"Looks like that student... "

The hunter trailed off.

But everyone could guess what he meant.

* * *

Meanwhile, Seong Suho...

'Is this... the real thing?'

An unbelievable event had occurred.

Floating letters in the air.

The leveling-up system he had only seen in dreams long ago had appeared in reality.

'Oh my God. Could this be another dream?'

No.

This time, it was definitely not a dream!

The vivid reality he felt on his skin proved it.

Moreover, the moment the leveling-up message appeared, all the accumulated fatigue vanished.

Even the minor burns caused by the Mist Burn were completely healed.

But what was this?

The leveling-up system he had experienced in his dreams only showed the level, and there were no such messages.

It felt more substantial.

As Suho looked at the message, the message box automatically unfolded.

'In reality... a player?'

He first checked the first message.

You have gained experience in an unawakened state and proven your worth.

You have awakened from level 0 to level 1, and your status window is now accessible.

This system supports the growth of 'players.'

This is not 'tutorial mode.' In reality, you only have one life, so be careful.

'Tutorial mode? Could it be talking about that dream?'

Suho instinctively realized.

The dreams he had during his teenage years were all practice games, and this was the main game.

And as befitting the main game, features that were not supported in the tutorial were added.

For example, this 'status window.'

Name: Seong Suho

Level: 1

Job: None

Title: None

HP: 100/100

MP: 10/10

Strength: 10

Endurance: 10

Agility: 10

Intelligence: 10

Senses: 10

(Available stat points: 0)

Passive Skills: None

Active Skills: Dominance Power Lv.1

The status window briefly displayed information about Suho.

Just like in a game.

Suho immediately checked the next message.

There are people nearby waiting for your rescue.

Rescue as many as possible.

The reward varies depending on the number of people rescued.

-Current number of survivors: 52

-Current number rescued: 0

The second message was a quest window.

This quest system was also something he had never experienced in his dreams.

'The reward varies depending on the number rescued?'

This made it feel like a real game.

But this was a harsh reality.

People were dying in real-time at this very moment.

Seeing this status board, Suho snapped back to his senses.

That's when it happened.

'Oh no!'

He must have been too focused on the status window.

A Mist Burn had approached him and was about to attack.

"Ah!"

Suho swung his arm instinctively.

Punch!

But something incredible happened.

The Mist Burn that was hit by Suho's fist was thrown back, writhing in pain.

"…Huh?"

Suho was more surprised and looked at his hand.

He had hit the burning blue smoke with his bare hands, but it didn't feel hot.

Then another Mist Burn attacked from behind.

Suho immediately punched without hesitation.

Punch!

The same thing happened.

The Mist Burn was thrown back by Suho's ordinary punch.

By this point, the Mist Burn seemed confused.

This human looked ordinary, but hitting him was extremely painful.

But the Mist Burn was a creature that moved purely by instinct.

The scream of the Mist Burn drew all the nearby Mist Burns to Suho.

But Suho was not shaken by the threatening scene.

He had realized something.

The current him was not threatened by these creatures.

Now was the time to counterattack.

Swish!

Suho immediately charged at them.

Punch! Punch! Punch! Punch!

The situation was completely different from a typical raid.

Normally, they would calmly assess the monster's strength, with a tank blocking the front and a damage dealer attacking.

But Suho ignored all that and was fighting the monsters with his bare fists.

Still, it was effective.

...

Suho continued to move, defeating the creatures one by one.

Meanwhile, the number of survivors kept decreasing.

This meant that the number of Mist Burns was increasing.

'The more of them there are, the faster people will die.'

He had to hurry.

Suho searched the art museum thoroughly and found the survivors.

"Quick, get out!"

He sent them out of the museum as soon as he found them.

* * *

"What? How are they all escaping?"

The hunters outside the museum were surprised.

They were just about to check their equipment and enter, but people kept coming out on their own.

"Someone inside is helping us."

"A student is saving us!"

The hunters were even more surprised upon hearing this.

"Someone is fighting the monsters inside?"

"Is there already another hunter inside?"

Upon hearing this, Assistant Im shook her head.

"That's unlikely. There are no hunters among the students, and no other hunters have arrived yet."

Daehyun, who was listening, said hopefully.

"Could it be Suho?"

"Suho?"

The hunters and Assistant Im exchanged glances.

The chances of a civilian surviving in a field-type dungeon were extremely rare. But they couldn't tell Daehyun that his friend was probably dead.

However, one of the survivors who had just escaped knew Suho.

"That's right! Senior Suho saved us!"

"What?!"

"Suho? How?"

"He was punching the monsters with his bare hands."

"…Bare hands?"

The hunters looked sympathetic.

The survivors must have been so scared that they saw something wrong.

Fighting Mist Burns with bare hands was extremely dangerous.

'Their hands must be burned.'

'It's suicidal.'

Unless a hunter could channel mana into their fists, they needed to protect their hands with gauntlets to avoid burns.

In any case, it seemed certain that a student named Suho was alive and saving people.

The hunters muttered seriously.

"Perhaps that student... has awakened."

"Suho has awakened?"

Assistant Im's gaze returned to the museum.

Survivors were still coming out, saved by Suho.

The hunters had just finished preparing to enter the museum.

"Team leader, the mana measurement is complete. It seems to be a D-class dungeon."

"Understood. We need to hurry."

The mention of a D-class dungeon made the hunters' eyes shine with determination.

A D-class dungeon would have much stronger monsters than Mist Burns.

Even if Suho had just awakened, as a novice with no dungeon experience, no one could guarantee how long he could survive inside.

* * *

Squish...

Suho, who had defeated all the visible Mist Burns, panted heavily.

'Almost done.'

He was extremely tired, but his mind was clear.

But then it happened.

Ding!

Suho's body was enveloped in a transparent light, and vitality surged through him.

'With this, I can keep going!'

Just as Suho was about to move to find the remaining people,

Boom!

"…!"

The ceiling above him suddenly exploded.

Debris and rocks scattered in all directions.

Suho rolled to avoid it but couldn't dodge completely.

Red blood trickled down his forehead, which had just healed after reaching level 2.

But that wasn't the problem.

A giant wolf descended from the hole in the ceiling.

Woof!

Seeing its immense presence, Suho's mind snapped to attention.

'I can't win this.'

He realized it immediately.

The survival instinct that all living beings possess.

He felt an instinctive fear that was on a different level from the Mist Burns.

The giant wolf looked down at Suho arrogantly.

The eyes of a predator looking at a wounded prey with no place to run.

At the same time, an overwhelming pressure bore down on Suho.

"Grgh."

Suho gritted his teeth.

He wasn't going to be crushed by fear after coming this far.

He would just take the best action possible.

'If I can't run, I'll attack first!'

Swish!

Suho picked up a rock and threw it at the creature.

But the giant wolf contemptuously swatted the attack away with its paw.

'This is my chance!'

Suho lunged at the creature.

He swung the fist that had killed dozens of Mist Burns.

But it was no match.

Crunch!

The giant wolf's jaws clamped down on Suho's shoulder.

"Ugh!"

Suho gritted his teeth and pounded the wolf's head while being bitten.

But it was no match.

Crash!

Suho was thrown to the ground and crushed by the wolf's massive paw.

It was a fight he couldn't win from the start.

The wolf, knowing this, savored its victory as if it were a given.

Just as the wolf's vicious fangs were about to tear Suho's throat,

That's when it happened.

A miracle.

Squish!

From the distant universe.

From the vast sky, a bolt of black lightning suddenly struck vertically.

Boom!

The ceiling exploded, and the space between the giant wolf and Suho split in two.

As the dust cleared, a figure appeared, enveloped in black steam.

Arch-Enemy Level

Berg stood with one hand pressing down on the wolf's jaws, looking down at Suho with a dignified gaze.