Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 105: Balrog the Fire Shield (2)

“Ready?!” shouted A-Reum, the youngest of the Mulan crew, as she prepared to close the slate while surrounded by all sorts of highly advanced technical equipment.

Closing this black-and-white object was like the symbol of the film industry, so it would not be replaced no matter how much technology had improved. The slate had always been used to signal the start of filming.

“Action!”

Tak!

The slate let out its distinct sound as it was closed, signaling the start of the livestream broadcast.

Then, Yoo-Bi, who was the main MC of Level Up TV, spoke into her microphone with her bubbly tone and stole the hearts of her viewers. “Hello, everyone! I am your host, Han Yoo-Bi, and welcome to Level Up TV!”

The alarm started ringing like crazy as viewers flooded into the live stream. The viewer counter went up so fast that it was impossible to keep track of it with their eyes. In fact, the counter rose so rapidly that it was clear that the main channel’s traffic was going to be full soon and the late entrants would be sent to the sub-channel.

[Yes! I got into the main channel!]

[Hohoho! The main channel is the most prestigious spot for a poor person like me!]

[I’m really jealous of those who can afford a V Ticket… ??]

[Hehehe!]

[It’s alright as long as I get to see Yoo-Bi.]

[Hi, Yoo-Bi!]

The chat was on fire, just as expected, and Yoo-Bi smiled into the camera as if she was repaying the viewers for their passion. She said, “Thank you, everyone, for showing so much love to our live stream! I love you all!”

Yoo-Bi had gotten so used to broadcasting that she now had the leisure to do all sorts of ‘fan service’ to the viewers, and she was sincerely having so much fun right now.

When Soo-In gave a signal to him that the broadcast was live, Han-Yeol nodded in response and activated Demon Eyes.

[It’s here! Those red eyes!]

[So cool!]

[I’m really curious… I wonder what that skill’s effect is…?]

[It should be a unique skill with an awesome effect, right?]

The viewers suspected that Han-Yeol’s eyes turning red was related to an observation skill, but none of them knew what its actual effect was. In fact, nobody was going to find out its true effect as long as Han-Yeol kept his mouth shut.

The only people in this world who probably knew what Demon Eyes did were Han-Yeol and his Ego system, Karvis.

Han-Yeol was using a gun after a long time. He pointed it up in the air at a forty-five degrees angle and pulled the trigger. ‘Mana Explosion!’

Puk… Whiiiiing…

The grenade he shot flew in an arc before landing on the ground.

Kaboom!

Then, a powerful explosion occurred right where it landed.

Ding!

[The rank of ‘Mana Explosion’ has risen from (B) to (A).]

‘Excellent,’?Han-Yeol thought after checking the notification informing him that ‘Mana Explosion’ had reached ‘A’. All that was left was for the skill to reach M Rank before it could evolve or produce a sub-skill.

Also, the explosion triggered by the skill seemed to have grown even more powerful after leveling up.

[W-What was that?!]

[That’s not an ordinary explosion!]

[That’s a ranged explosion skill!]

[He had more skills?!]

[Wow! Awesome!]

Han-Yeol frequently used skills when using a gun, but this was the first time he was showing it on stream.

Of course, the viewers were in awe after finding out that Han-Yeol had another skill hidden under his sleeve, and they instinctively felt that this solo hunt was going to be a historic one.

The explosion sent a powerful shockwave to its surroundings, kicking up a dust storm. However, Han-Yeol did not shoot his gun there because he was stupid or perhaps he wanted to show off.

“Kieeeeek!”

A ferocious shriek resounded from where the explosion had occurred before the surrounding temperature drastically dropped.

“Euk…!”

The Mulan crew and Yoo-Bi covered their ears and groaned in agony. They were affected by the negative effect despite wearing their protective bracelets, and the reason for that was because the Horus raid party’s Hunters were absent this time around.

Previously, the concentration of Hunters around them had emitted mana from their bodies, which overlapped with each other, and had formed a natural mana barrier that protected them from the negative effect.

However, their agony lasted only for a while as Han-Yeol took out a relatively decent-sized mana stone from his pocket. Gripping the mana stone, he cried inwardly, ‘It hurts having to use these like this but… I will have to increase my skill’s level…

‘Enhance!’?he used another skill.

Woooong!

‘Oh?’?Han-Yeol noticed that the mana concentrated in his HSK-447P’s grenade launcher was acting up as if it was going to explode any second now.

The mana started to condense even more as the gun started vibrating, but Han-Yeol calmly aimed his gun toward the sky at an angle once again. He was preparing to shoot another grenade out.

He could not see the Banshees’ mana a while ago even with Demon Eyes as they were lying dormant, but he could see it clearly now after they have become active from the first blast.

Then, he aimed with the help of his skill ‘Marksmanship’ and, without having to calculate anything, he could see the most ideal spot to shoot at to deal the most amount of damage against the monsters.

‘Thirty-three degrees and then…’?Han-Yeol thought as he aimed twelve degrees lower than a while ago. Then, he commanded, ‘Mana Explosion!’

Pfft…!

Han-Yeol had activated his skill, but all he heard was the sound of air passing. His grenade did not launch this time.

‘Huh? What’s going on…?’?he wondered while being perplexed at the sudden unexpected situation.

He waited for a while, just in case, before he finally decided to lower his gun.

Krrr… Krrreuk… Krwaaaaaang!

Just as he was about to lower his HSK-447P, a loud sound thundered from his grenade launcher and ferociously shot a grenade in an arc once again. The force was so powerful that Han-Yeol himself had to plant his feet to the ground. However, he still could not help being slightly pushed back.

Whiiiish…!

‘Euk…! What was that?’?Han-Yeol thought while watching the grenade whistle through the air.

When the grenade finally touched the ground, the land started shaking before a powerful heat wave spread across the surroundings. Then, a mushroom cloud appeared from the distance before sending powerful shockwaves around it.

Crackle… Crackle… Kabooooooom!

“Hiiiik!”?The Mulan crew members shrieked in horror at the powerful force that they had never witnessed before.

Then…

Ding!

[Your level has risen.]

‘Huh? What’s going on…?’?Han-Yeol was confused after seeing the notification that he had leveled up after shooting one grenade.

He decided to scan the area where the explosion had occurred with Demon Eyes. As expected, there were three mana stones and what seemed to be the monsters’ remains littered across the ground. In short, he had one-hit-KO’ed the monsters.

Ding!

[The skill level of ‘Enhance’ has risen from (E) to (D).]

On top of that, his skill had leveled up as well.

‘Status window,’?Han-Yeol called up his stats screen.

Name: Lee Han-Yeol

Level: 121

Points: 5

STR: 197

VIT: 174

AGI: 161

MAG: 300+71

LCK: 10

Invoke: 200

Skills: Dismember (C), [Sword Mastery (M) : Flash Strike (C), Head Cutter (E)], [Walking (M) : Mana Pouch (E)] Mana Control (A), Mana Mastery (A), Six-Sense (B), Restrain (A), Body Strengthening (A), Stab (A), Dagger Mastery (E), Chain Mastery (M), Infinite Library (M), Shield Bash (A), Fire Attribute (A), Mana Explosion (A), Chain Smite (A), Marksmanship (A), Martial Arts (A), Enchant (B), Sword Breathe (B), Restore (C), Healing Bullet (D), Enhance Healing (D), Summon Demon (D), Telepathy (B), Power Meditation (D), Psychokinesis (D), Force Shield (C), Cat Walk (D), Mana Absorption (C), Demon Eye (D), Mana Strengthening (E), Mana Bullet (E), Reflect (F), Enhance (D), Item Appraisal (F), Translation (F).

Han-Yeol shook his head and wondered, ‘Is it because I used an expensive mana stone that I was able to do something like that?’

It was difficult for an individual to buy a mana stone from the market, so Han-Yeol had invested one of the mana stones that he had obtained from the Paradise Field to activate Enhance. Perhaps it was because he had used a very good mana stone, but the effect of Enhance exceeded his expectations as he had gained three mana stones after using one just now.

However, it could not be said that he had made a profit of two mana stones. After all, he could have easily killed the monsters and obtained three mana stones without having to invest a single mana stone.

Han-Yeol checked his stats before investing five bonus stat points into Invoke to make it 205. Then…

Ding!

[Your Invoke stat has reached 205. You may now summon an additional demon.]

‘Alright! This is what I have been waiting for!’?Han-Yeol balled his fist and exclaimed inwardly in delight.

Then, he turned around toward Yoo-Bi and gave a thumbs-up.

There were two meanings behind the thumbs-up. The first one was that Han-Yeol was in a good mood right now, and the second was to signal the end of the live stream.

“Did you see that just now, everyone? Lee Han-Yeol Hunter-nim annihilated the monsters coming toward him in a single hit!” Yoo-Bi unleashed a bombshell of her own.

[W-What?!]

[Lies!]

[Didn’t he have a hard time hunting here last time?]

[I saw it live! I saw it with my own two eyes!]

[What did we witness just now…? Is this the same Level Up TV I watched last time?]

[I… I think so…?]

[Jesus Christ!]

[I think I’m still half-asleep… But I’m sure mom woke me up a while ago for breakfast…?]

The current viewers were the same ones who had witnessed Han-Yeol hunting with the Horus raid party last time. There were visibly fewer viewers compared to that time, but most of the viewers this time were Han-Yeol’s or Yoo-Bi’s fans. After all, most of the viewers in the last live stream were Tayarana’s fans…

Han-Yeol placed his HSK-477P on his shoulder and walked toward Yoo-Bi with an apologetic look. He said, “I’m sorry, Yoo-Bi. I never imagined that they were going to die in one hit, and I ended up taking away your chance to hunt.”

“Ah, I don’t mind it, oppa. You put on quite a show, so it’s fine,” she coolly replied.

“Ah, thanks. You are a really kind person, Yoo-Bi.”

Han-Yeol was as carefree as he always was, not even realizing what he had done just now.

The viewers, the Mulan crew members, and even Yoo-Bi were currently busy doubting their eyes. They wondered if what they had witnessed just now was even real or not.

“Alright, let’s get moving! We have to go collect our loot!” Han-Yeol nonchalantly said.

“Ah, yes!” Everyone replied in unison.

They were able to finish the hunt without any specific trouble. Yoo-Bi and the others collected the mana stones and monster body parts while Han-Yeol clandestinely moved to collect the Angel Shards with Psychokinesis.

He had collected more than one hundred fragments by now, and he was almost going to reach the two hundred mark. However, there was still no reaction from it or anywhere else.

‘Do I have to summon Astaroth again…?’?Han-Yeol wondered before he decided to give it more time.

When everyone was busy doing their own tasks, Han-Yeol took out a piece of paper from his pocket. Looking at it, he grinned. ‘Hehehe… I scoured through all available demon archives just to find this guy.’

Han-Yeol did not search real books, but rather, had scoured the internet to find clues about this demon. However, he did not search the records available on the Korean web. Instead, he had gone to the source of every demon’s myth, which was Vatican City in Europe.

He scanned through every available data for nearly a month until he finally found the sigil of the demon he was looking for.

Han-Yeol bit the tip of his finger and drew the sigil on the paper on the ground with his blood. Using his blood did not really make the summoning process more efficient, but demon summoning was all about how desperate the summoner was, and using one’s own blood was probably the best way to do it.

Closing his eyes after drawing the sigil, he then chanted the spell while mana flowed out from his mouth, “Lord Satan… Balrog… to manifest… This I respectfully and humbly ask in your name… Lord Satan, may you deem me worthy, Father!”

1. The fan service here does not carry any dirty or lewd meaning. This is akin to when athletes sign jerseys or take selfies with their fans.