CHAPTER 80

SKIRMISH (3)

'Byeong-ho, nice!'

So far, I had received countless daily quest rewards, but skill points? Including this time, only twice.

'It was Byeong-ho back then too.'

Once a lucky charm, always a lucky charm?

After gaining the Invisibility skill through the Bond of Subjugation, even my presence had become transparent, but who knew I'd get to appeal my charm like this?

As I grinned at the thought of spending the free skill point I got thanks to Moon Byeong-ho, Seo Ye-jin tilted her head and asked curiously.

"What's up, oppa? Something good happen?"

"Hmm. I hit the lottery."

"Lottery?"

I ruffled Seo Ye-jin's hair as she looked at me seriously and tilted her head again.

"It just means something that good happened."

The one remaining skill point had been reserved for upgrading the Shop skill.

Judging by how fast my level was increasing, I figured I'd fill all the shop slots before hitting level 30.

So, I hadn't really considered where else to invest the skill point.

I looked at the skill window and thought.

'The safe choice is definitely the Dignity Maintenance skill…'

Retainer registration, summoned spirits, divine item draws, etc.

All the fancy features came from the Dignity Maintenance skill.

I was looking forward to what kind of new function might be added this time.

'Should I level up the Warehouse skill?'

Lately, even the 200kg capacity was starting to feel too small.

Because of the "State Preservation" feature that maintained kinetic energy at the moment of storage, I was actually using it more often in combat than as simple storage.

In the recent battle with the high-rank vampire, I had summoned a stored projectile right in front of its eyes and blinded it.

'It's helped a lot more than I expected.'

The next candidate, along with the Warehouse skill, was the one I used the most — the Eye of the Absolute.

'It's indispensable now.'

There probably wasn't another skill with such diverse applications.

I had gotten used to multi-vision, easily handling three or four viewpoints at once. I could extend my view up to seven angles now.

'But I don't really feel the need to upgrade it.'

Leveling it up might unlock some cool new feature, but I was already plenty satisfied with its current capabilities.

Next, what caught my eye was "Health of the Homebound Absolute."

Would leveling it reduce the pain from leveling up?

I was momentarily tempted, but quickly shook my head to regain reason.

'Too much of a gamble.'

If it just increased something basic like "regeneration rate," it would be a waste.

I already had the Overlord's skill, "Primal Vitality."

It was a skill I got when the Overlord's trust hit 100, drastically increasing regeneration whenever I got injured.

'And I've got the Fairy's ability too.'

The summoned spirit stationed at my family home where the World Tree was — it greatly enhanced natural healing within its domain every time I leveled up.

The fairy was already level 9, delivering a 900% boost in efficiency.

Small wounds were practically healing in real time.

And beyond all that—

'I don't get hurt.'

I literally couldn't leave the safe home zone.

Even if something like a vampire or monster accidentally entered my area, like with Jegal Seong-gyu, it wouldn't matter.

The moment they harbored hostility toward me, their heads would pop and it'd all be over.

'Even if the skill point was free, I can't afford to waste it like this.'

After that, I reviewed the rest of my skills — Invisible Hand, Homebound Restoration, Door of the Absolute.

I carefully reconsidered the functions of every skill, wondering where to invest the point.

And the conclusion I came to was—

'Safe and steady wins the race.'

[Would you really like to level up the "Dignity Maintenance" skill of the Homebound Absolute?]

"Yeah."

Vwooom!

The skill window pulsed with golden light.

[The "Dignity Maintenance" skill of the Homebound Absolute has been upgraded to Lv. 6.]

With that, a new feature was added.

"…Huh?"

I blinked at the name of the new feature.

'…Is this for real?'

***

In Room 2902, Ha Dong-geon's party, Seo Ye-jin, and my dad were gathered.

I was the first to speak.

"Considering its movements, it's possible the vampires' base is in Ulsan."

After a short pause, I continued.

"In the worst-case scenario, the entire city of Ulsan might be under vampire control."

"!!"

Everyone who understood what I meant immediately went pale.

Ulsan was an industrial city with over a million residents.

If the vampires had used all those people as nourishment…

"Of course, that would mean even more high-rank vampires. And if we remember what the last one said, there's likely something — someone — even higher than them."

It was certain. That high-rank vampire had used the honorific "That One" with deep reverence — someone far above them.

Though the high-rank vampire we hunted didn't say much, in the end, it had said:

"Those bastards… No, if only I'd brought one more, the ones dying would have been you."

If there had only been three or four high-ranking vampires in the organization, he wouldn't have dared to say such a thing.

The fact that a high-ranking vampire like him had come all the way here was already a considerable stretch.

But the guy spoke as if he could summon three high-ranking vampires anytime he wanted, as long as he set his mind to it.

He asked Ha Dong-geon's party:

"If… more than two high-ranking vampires appear, do you think you could handle them?"

After a moment of silence, Ha Dong-geon replied:

"It won't be easy."

"I see."

It wasn't like there were no possible options.

"If we splurge like crazy, it might be doable."

Since those registered as retainers could be artificially leveled up with enough money.

If Ha Dong-geon's party could be leveled up to 50 — the same level as high-ranking vampires — they'd have a decent chance.

"The problem is it would cost billions."

From level 45 onwards, it cost a staggering 10 billion won just to gain one level.

Fortunately, thanks to a month of hunting, their levels had gone up by one or two. But it still required an astronomical amount of money.

At that moment, the father raised his hand and said:

"Son, I think I can handle three or so of them on my own. If your mom comes too, maybe even more."

His words were not an exaggeration.

When he was with her, his physical stats were enhanced thanks to a synergy effect — and one of her skills, "Blessing of the King," made him even stronger.

And if Kim Dajeong's blessing were added on top of that, he might genuinely be able to wipe out all the high-ranking vampires by himself.

"But…"

Could even he handle the one that the high-ranking vampires reverently referred to as "that person"?

"There's just not enough intel."

At that moment—

"I'll go scout Ulsan."

It was Kim Geon.

"You will?"

"Yes. With my abilities, I can get to Ulsan and back in no time."

In his merged state with Kkamang (the black creature), Kim Geon could fly at over 100 km/h.

The distance from here to Ulsan was about 50 km, so if he flew with purpose, he could arrive in under thirty minutes.

The problem was, if that place turned out to be a vampire nest — as suspected — Kim Geon could be in danger.

Even so—

"Then…"

It was something that had to be done.

"I'll keep watching. If it gets dangerous, just buy me a few seconds. That's all I need."

"Understood."

If he could buy just a few seconds, he could summon a retainer to save him.

"I'm counting on you."

Seo Nuri, following that person's orders, prepared to head to Busan.

"What kind of monster is down there, anyway?"

Two high-ranking vampires had died.

Though they were both considered eccentric, they weren't weak.

In fact, they were among the stronger ones even within the ranks of high-ranking vampires.

"I need to be careful."

That person had entrusted the scouting mission to Seo Nuri, who was weaker than the two that died — because of the unique nature of her ability.

The True Vampires who had received power directly from that person each possessed a unique blood-based ability.

Splat.

As she stood on a rooftop, crimson blood spurted from her back and wove together.

It slowly formed a pair of membranous wings.

Flap.

After testing them a few times, Seo Nuri boldly leapt off the rooftop.

She spread her wings and soared into the sky.

The buildings beneath her quickly shrank away, and soon the entire cityscape of Ulsan lay below her.

The ability to fly.

It was a power perfectly suited for reconnaissance.

"Let's check things quickly and return."

A while later, after entering the skies above Busan, she began with a wide aerial sweep.

That was because she didn't know exactly where Jung Young-hoon and Ko In-seok had died.

Her plan was to scan broadly from above and then look closer if nothing stood out.

But then—

"What… is that?"

Seo Nuri couldn't believe her eyes.

Near the coastline, in a small village—

An enormous tree was growing.

"How can something be that big?'"

A tree, utterly ignoring the laws of perspective, stood boldly in the middle of the city.

What was even stranger was that, in the surrounding area, not a single monster—normally so common—could be seen.

Seonuri instinctively understood.

"That tree… both of them must have died because of that tree."

At a glance, it was clear the tree was no ordinary thing.

But then—

"Hm?"

There were a few more strange things.

"…Humans?"

Right near that tree, there were humans walking around.

The sun was starting to set, and here and there, lights began to appear.

At first, Seonuri thought they had simply lit fires.

But upon closer inspection, that wasn't the case.

"Electricity…? They're using electricity??"

The lights illuminating their homes were LED bulbs.

"I need to get a closer look."

As she carefully flew downward, hiding in the darkness—

Tap

"Hm?"

Something transparent blocked her path.

[Access Denied.]

A strange holographic screen appeared before her.

"…What is this?"

While Seonuri was still flustered by the sudden situation—

[Would you like to obtain citizenship?]

[Yes / No]

A new window popped up.

"Now what is this?"

From the context, it seemed that in order to pass through the transparent wall, she needed to obtain citizenship.

The moment she understood that, chills ran down her spine.

"It recognized me!"

Suddenly, the memory struck her—two powerful high-ranking vampires had been helplessly killed here in Busan.

"I—I have to get out of here!"

Realizing that continuing her reconnaissance was too dangerous, Seonuri flapped her wings desperately.

Her body quickly soared back into the sky.

Terrified, she fled toward her base in Ulsan.

Then—

"What is that now?"

There was a place in the city that was glowing with light.

It almost looked as if that area alone had escaped destruction.

The lights pouring out of the apartment buildings looked like starlight. Cars were even driving along the roads.

"What in the world is this?"

Seonuri felt an inexplicable fear at the sight, and beat her wings again, quickly fleeing the scene.

[T/L: Read extra chapters on my ko-fi page "Pokemon1920" : https://ko-fi.com/pokemon1920 ]