8. Emergency Subjugation

KANG! KANG! KANG! KANG!

The sound of the pickaxes was deafening. Ko Byeong-gap liked the noise that periodically hit his ear. He brushed off his butt and entered the cave, and the interior was lit with ten lanterns.

The Goblins each held a pickaxe and diligently mined the crystals. One Normal Goblin worked on collecting the crystals dug by the other Goblins and putting them in the crystal slot.

‘Ancient Shop.’ Ko Byeong-gap muttered internally. A window rose before his eyes.

[Ancient Shop]

-Construction

-Techniques

– Miscellaneous Goods

– Others

[Crystals on Hand: 501]

‘We got over 500 crystals.’

“Come on, let’s take a break! Everyone, put down your tools, come out, and eat snacks!”

“Yep!”

The Goblins had stopped working. They put their tools together, turned off the lanterns, and went out.

“Come here. Take a drink and bread.”

Two large ice boxes each contained a sandwich and an ionized beverage. The Goblins took bread and drank one by one according to Ko Byeong-gap’s instructions.

The Goblins sat on the floor and ate their snacks. Ko Byeong-gap smiled and forgot to get a sandwich himself.

As he did so, he looked carefully at the ancient shop.

‘What can I buy with 500 crystals?’

There were four categories in the ancient shop: Construction, Techniques, Miscellaneous goods, etc.

There were only a few items that could be purchased with 500 crystals. In particular, not a single “other” item could be bought, starting with 500,000 crystals at the lowest price.

‘For now, I’ll skip construction and the others.’

He focused on the products in the categories ‘Techniques’ and ‘Miscellaneous.’ Since the goods were limited, his shopping didn’t take long.

[Techniques]

– Ancient Swordsmanship Textbook – Low-grade (320 Crystals)

– Ancient Martial Arts Textbook – Low-grade (320 Crystals)

– Ancient Qi-flow Textbook – Low-grade (350 modifications)

– Ancient Alchemy Textbook – Low-grade (350 Modifications)

[Miscellaneous Goods]

– Warrior’s Potion (300 Crystals)

– Sage’s Potion (300 Crystals)

– Potion of Hardening (300 Crystals)

– Potion of Swiftness (300 crystals)

– Growth Potion (500 Crystals)

That was all he could buy with 500 crystals.

‘Hmm..’

was the growth potion that drew Ko Byeong-gap’s attention. He sighed as he touched his chin.

‘What would it grow? Maybe it raises the level of karma in the body?’

Karma.

It was the unknown energy that was the basis of all awakeners and monsters. The karma level in the body was divided according to levels, and the higher the level of karma, the greater the power.

The lower awakeners, including Ko Byeong-gap, had a karma level of 5 to 11 percent in the body. Thanks to that, they could survive the force field of the cracks and the world behind them, and they were stronger than other ordinary people.

However, that was it. Unlike the top awakeners, it was impossible to strengthen the body using karma or perform a stunt like that of a superpower.

That was why the lower awakeners could never cross the upper wall. In addition, it was the reason why the top awakeners didn’t use firearms like guns.

‘If that really increases karma..’

After a brief consideration, Ko Byeong-gap soon made up his mind and bought a growth potion.

One glass bottle emerged simultaneously as the number of crystals in his possession decreased from 501 to one. He quickly reached out and snatched it.

It wasn’t long before a hologram came to his mind.

[Growth Potion]

– A potion that permanently increases all physical abilities.

‘Boosts all physical abilities? And forever?’

He let out a gentle exclamation.

Ko Byeong-gap opened the palm-sized glass bottle that was full of green liquid and smelled it. It had no scent.

‘What if I get sick after drinking it?’

That was his worry for a while. Ko Byeong-gap poured the growth potion into his mouth.

‘Hmm? It’s worth eating.’

Contrary to its awkward appearance, the taste remained the same. The subtle sweetness spread over his tongue and around his mouth. It felt like a sap.

He got through it all with all his might, and the effect came immediately.

Pound!

His heart started pounding. His breathing was short, and his body began sweating. The muscles of his whole body relaxed and contracted repeatedly.

‘What, what’s this?!’

“Ugh!”

Ko Byeong-gap grabbed his turbulent heart and sat down. The Goblins, who had been laughing while forgetting their sandwiches, ran to him with surprised eyes.

“L-Lord?!”

“Are you okay?”

“Ughhhh! Whoa!”

The Goblins helped him with bewildered faces as Ko Byeong-gap trembled without lifting a finger. His body trembled even more. The Goblins didn’t know what to do and spat out, ‘Lord! Lord!’ over and over again.

‘Damn it, I picked up a piece of shit, and it went like this!’

Did he seriously pick up something he didn’t know and ate it to enjoy some wealth and glory? He sighed for a while. He quickly began to regain his composure.

The turbulence of his heart and the tremors of his body died down like a lie.

“Lord, sir, are you alright?”

“..”

Ko Byeong-gap slowly lifted himself. He then looked down at himself in disbelief. It wasn’t long before he stuttered like a crazy person.

“Wow..”

His body had changed.

* * *

Ko Byeong-gap clenched his fists and felt the force of each finger. He felt a great power that he couldn’t possibly feel like his own. It wasn’t a power obtained by exploding the karma in his body, but the body’s power with 100% purity.

‘Is this my body now?’

After taking the growth potion, he became almost a new person. His physique grew bigger, and his body was full of muscles. Not only that, but his mind was cleared, and his senses of sight and hearing were astonishingly high.

“I don’t think my karma increased.”

There was no change in the karma flowing through his body. It just felt like the muscles, bones, blood, and all other cells that made up his body had undergone a metamorphosis.

A stone came into Ko Byeong-gap’s sight. He picked it up with an unbearable curiosity.

‘Will it work?’

He tightened his grip, and the stone broke so helplessly.

In fact, he could crush stones before. He was an awakener, after all. However, it wasn’t something that could be done as easily as crushing tofu.

‘This is crazy..’

Ko Byeong-gap jumped to his feet and went into the cave. The Goblins’ crystal mining work was in full swing.

“Lord, sir, you need to rest a little longer..”

“Alright, give me a pickaxe.”

He took away the pickaxe regardless of Gobung’s retort. The thick iron-headed pickaxe felt too light.

He swung the pickaxe with only one hand.

Flick!

Stone shards bounced in all directions with a loud noise. One more swing and a lump of crystal fell out without a hitch.

Last time, he needed to do it several times to get a crystal.

“Come on, use your pickaxes.”

“Ah, yes!”

“I’ll be out for a while, so take it easy.”

“Okay, sir.

Ko Byeong-gap escaped Ashvilam. A shabby, six-pyeong room welcomed him.

He headed straight for the veranda. There was a pile of supplies that were used to suppress cracks. He picked up a dusty longsword from one corner.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.’

Longsword. When he first started his job as a hunter, he bought it because he needed it as a secondary, but it was just a nuisance to put on.

It was common knowledge to prepare for when their ammunition would run out or when their gun would break down, but in fact, the right answer was to just run away within 36 seconds.

A lower awakener could never win in a sword match against a higher awakener. historical

He pulled out his cell phone and searched for cracks.

Originally, he was going to rest that day, but he couldn’t stay still due to the urge to test his changed body.

“Well, there’s one nearby.”

There was a crack near Sillim Station. The phrase “emergency” was written next to the crack on the map.

Emergency subjugation.

Cracks in the city center were dangerous. That was because monsters might not pop out, but the force field created by the crack could cause casualties.

Therefore, the association would bring together hunters to carry out an emergency subjugation.

It was a subjugation method that aimed first to destroy the crack by defeating the boss monster, rather than the usual subjugation of collecting magic stones to loot around the back world.

‘Time of occurrence.. Nine minutes ago?’

The rank of the crack was only E. Without any hesitation, Ko Byeong-gap packed his longsword, rifle, and 90 rounds of ammunition and headed to Sillim Station.

The emergency subjugation paid considerably just for participation. If he was lucky, he could receive a reward just to dip his body in and out of the crack.

Sillim Station was a 15-minute walk from Ko Byeong-gap’s room. It would take about 5-7 minutes if he ran. It would’ve been the case if he was normal.

‘I feel so light!’

He felt light, as if he was flying. In addition, the thrust of his lower body muscles was explosive.

He arrived at Sillim Station in less than three minutes. Employees dispatched from the association were occupying the crack with no trespassing signs.

The staff wore special protective clothing that blocked the crack’s force field, yet they struggled in a cold sweat.

Ko Byeong-gap approached the crack, ignoring the no trespassing signs. Lee Seung-heon, a member of the association, approached him.

“Are you a hunter?”

“Yes, I came to see the emergency subjugation notification.”

“I see.”

“Has anyone already entered?”

“Two people came in before you.”

Lee Seung-heon glanced at Ko Byeong-gap up and down. Armed with a gun, he thought he wasn’t a top hunter.

“Can you tell me your hunter number?”

“It’s 447095.”

“Oh, four-fourths. Are you Hunter Ko Byeong-gap?”

“That’s right. How much is the reward?”

“It’s a million won.”

“I see.”

It wasn’t a bad price. Actually, he had to sell all the magic stones he could get from E-class cracks to get about 1 million won.

“As you know, the association isn’t responsible for any accidents that occur in the crack—”

“Yes, I know. I will go in.”

“.. I wish you good luck.”

Ko Byeong-gap left the staff behind and immersed himself in the crack. As soon as he entered the back world, everyone around him disappeared.

Only the gloomy sky and heavy air welcomed him.

As soon as he entered, what he saw was an F-class monster. A bizarre creature with the body of a fish and the legs of a wild beast.

It jumped around like a grasshopper, and it was a pesky monster with sharp teeth. Above all, it was disgusting.

“Kegigi geek!”

The Squid jumped up and thrust its teeth into Ko Byeong-gap, but he quickly drew his sword and swung it.

The blade bisected the body of the Squid too easily. Its red blood spurted out and soaked the air.

‘Huh.’

The monster’s movements seemed so slow. Ko Byeong-gap ran without cutting out the magic stone from the dead Squid.

The main goal of an emergency subjugation was to destroy the back world as quickly as possible.

Tadadadadadang!

Gunfire rang out in the basement. Was the boss monster over there? He didn’t know, but he headed there.

Even as he went down the stairs, the Squids came for him. With his rifle in his back, Ko Byeong-gap swung his sword and threw them all away. The shredded corpse of the Squids fell to the floor.

As he entered the station, he saw two people. One was a middle-aged man, and the other was a woman the age of Ko Byeong-gap, and both were armed with guns.

Inside the station, a colony of monsters roamed around. There were 50 or 60 Squids over at the ticket gate, and the two of them were shooting random bullets towards them.

Ko Byeong-gap also held his rifle while holding his sword. It wasn’t long before his gun let out its shots.