Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 268: Horus (2)

[Let’s see… I probably should…]

Seuk…

Han-Yeol took out a dagger crafted from the highest-quality materials and walked toward the hyena's remains.

Seuk…!

“Ugh…! That stinks…!”

The body, detached from the head, emitted a repulsive stench as its vile mana leaked from the wound on its neck. Of course, fixing this was quite simple for Han-Yeol, at least.

‘Restore!’

Woooong!

[Y-You damn human!]

The hyena cried out upon witnessing its body purified right before its eyes. It despaired because it was now impossible to reattach its head to its body after the dark mana within it had been purified.

The hyena was now stuck as just a head, and the only way it could obtain a body was to create a makeshift one. Of course, a lot of preparation was required before it could attach itself to a body, but preparing one was nearly impossible now since it couldn't do anything as just a single head.

[Shut it, head.]

Pukeok!

“Arf!”

Mujahid had no idea what the hyena was saying, but he smacked it nonetheless since he found it annoying. Although he smacked it quite lightly, it appeared to have inflicted significant damage, given his current status as a Master Rank Hunter and the lingering animosity from the grueling boss fight a while ago.

The hyena winced like a dog before falling silent.

[Wow? Did you just bark like a dog?]

[Shu… Shut it, human! I’ll have your head on a stake one day!]

Unfortunately, the hyena was helpless in its current situation unless someone came to its aid.

While the hyena and Mujahid were occupied filming their sitcom, Han-Yeol finished purifying the body. It was now time to dismember the creature's remains.

As he removed the robe and equipment the hyena had been wearing, he wondered, 'How long has it been since I dismembered a monster's corpse?'

‘Oh? These are going to fetch quite the price,’ he thought, eyeing the valuable items.

The hyena might have been a sorcerer, but Han-Yeol was certain that the robe and items would fetch a pretty penny if he sold them to magician-type Hunters.

Puuuk!

With a swift motion, he stabbed the dagger deep into the hyena's left chest while Demon Eyes painted his eyes red.

Seuk…! Seuk…! Seuk…! Seuk…!

He carefully cut through the hyena's chest muscles until he reached its rib cage, employing extremely delicate and precise movements.

[…] Tayarana observed his actions closely, remaining silent.

Chwak!

After sweating for three minutes, Han-Yeol was finally able to extract the mana stone from the hyena's chest.

"It's finally out! Item Appraisal!"

He immediately used his skill to examine the mana stone's details.

Ding!

[Purified Heart of Hyena Sorcerer]

Type: Mana Stone, Jewel

Description: A Hyena Sorcerer's heart, purified by Light Mana. It once harbored extremely evil and sinister mana, but now it contains potent, purified mana. Possessing this jewel alone will bestow blessings upon the user, but a skilled craftsman can unlock its full potential.

*All stats +5%

*10% additional damage against corrupted creatures

*Resistance to low-ranking sorcerer’s corruption skills

*5% resistance against mind-control spells

*Additional effects will be unlocked once crafted or attached to an item

‘Wow… It's already this good just by having it in my possession...?’ Han-Yeol marveled at the jewel's effects.

He couldn't imagine how much better the effects would be once it had been processed, considering how impressive it was in its raw form. Some might underestimate this jewel for having only five effects, but the fact that it increased the owner's stats by five percent simply by possessing it was more than enough to deem it overpowered.

With Han-Yeol already receiving numerous buffs to his stats thanks to Mavros, adding this jewel would grant him a total of a thirty percent increase in his stats. He had become the worst nightmare of his enemies.

‘Dimensional Storage.’

Wooong!

Han-Yeol summoned his dimensional storage and carefully placed the jewel inside. He didn't forget to stow away the hyena's item in his storage as well.

[Han-Yeol.]

[Yes, Tara?]

[Are you done?]

[Yeah, I’m done.]

[I see…]

She finally let out a sigh of relief after confirming that it was all over.

[Good job, Tara.]

Han-Yeol walked over to Tayarana and gently grasped her shoulder.

Badump! Badump! Badump! Badump!

His heart began to race the moment he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. However, he remained focused on comforting Tayarana and feeling relieved that she was safe and unharmed.

‘It's a relief that nothing happened to her,’ he thought to himself.

He couldn't fathom what he would have done if something had befallen her, or worse, if she had lost her life.

Seuk…

Tayarana hugged him.

[T-Tara?!]

[Let’s stay like this for a while… Just a while…]

[A-Alright…]

Han-Yeol was not complaining. The cold and hard Horus Suit Tayarana was wearing stood between them, but he didn't mind it at all. The fact that he was embracing the world's most beautiful woman was more than enough for him, and he didn't mind the cold, hard armor because it was a part of the woman he loved.

Of course, there was bound to be someone who would disrupt such an atmosphere.

[Hyung-nim! How long do I have to hold onto this stinky, noisy head?!]

[Shut it, you filthy human! Just kill me already!]

The mood was perfect, but Mujahid and the hyena head just had to destroy it with their ruckus.

Kwachik!

A cross-shaped nerve bulged on Han-Yeol's forehead.

‘The mood was perfect, but you had to ruin it... Mujahid…!’

Han-Yeol could feel his anger welling up inside him, but he had no choice but to suppress it. After all, getting mad at Mujahid at this time would be rather comical.

[Tara.]

[Yes?]

Tayarana had no choice but to leave Han-Yeol’s embrace.

‘Tsk… Such a shame…’ Han-Yeol clicked his tongue and grumbled inwardly.

Ironically, unbeknownst to Han-Yeol, Mujahid was snickering inside. ‘I want things to work out between you and noonim, but I can't let you have it easy when things aren't working out between me and Mariam, hyung-nim. Hehehe!’

As it turned out, Mujahid had intentionally disrupted the mood between the two. It was impossible for him not to have read the atmosphere between them, especially since he was now a Master Rank Hunter sensitive to mana and emotions.

[Mujahid.]

[Yes, noonim!]

Tayarana walked over to Mujahid before saying, [I’ll leave cleaning this place up to you.]

[Yes, just leave it to me, noonim!]

‘Haha! Noonim can be quite adorable when she's upset.’ Mujahid simply laughed, fully aware that his sister was trying to get back at him by making him clean up.

He had always been on the receiving end of Tayarana's criticism, so this was nothing new, but somehow, it felt like he had struck a blow this time.

‘Hmm... This isn't that bad. I might develop a habit of disturbing them... Hahaha!’ he thought while snickering inwardly.

The whole situation eventually came to an end, and the three Master Rank Hunters joined the other Hunters and Tia, who were waiting nearby.

[My prince!]

[Princess!]

[Are you alright?!]

[I am glad both of you are safe!]

They were all Mujahid's subordinates, but they were still veteran soldiers who had sworn allegiance to their motherland. This meant that they were slightly more concerned about Tayarana, as she was the future of Egypt.

“Hoho~ Good job, master~” Tia said.

“Kyu!”

Mavros was no longer in combat mode, so he was resting on Han-Yeol’s shoulders.

“Haha~ Okay~ Good job to you too, senior-nim~”

“Kyu! Kyu!” Mavros cried out in joy when he was recognized.

“Hoho~” Tia covered her mouth and laughed.

“Good job to you too, Tia,” Han-Yeol said.

“Hoho~ I didn’t do that much, master~”

“Still.”

“Hoho~”

***

There was nothing else for them to do now that the boss monster had been defeated, except to leave the hunting ground together with the hostages they had rescued.

Fortunately, the underground hunting ground did not collapse or become blocked after the boss monster's defeat. Things seemed to be proceeding quite smoothly, but troubles often arose from the most unexpected places.

"Ah! It's finally over!" Han-Yeol exclaimed as he stretched after exiting the hunting ground.

It had taken them an entire day to navigate the underground hunting ground because they had lost the map during the battle against the boss monster, so they had to rely on their memory to find their way.

It was at the moment when they finally sat down to rest after leaving the hunting ground that...

Boom! Boom! Boom!

"W-What was that?!" Han-Yeol jumped up upon hearing the sounds of the explosions.

[W-What?!]

[That came from the direction of Cairo!]

[What's going on?!]

Everything had been fine when they entered the dungeon, so what were these sounds of explosions? The entire party was thrown into chaos by the sudden unexpected turn of events, but Han-Yeol kept his cool. He immediately headed straight for the car they had hidden and switched on his mobile phone to make a call.

Ring…! Ring…! Ring…! Ring…!

[H-Han-Yeol Hunter-nim?!]

“Vidya, what’s going on right now?!”

[W-We are in a state of emergency, Hunter-nim! The terrorists have struck not only Cairo but the entirety of Egypt simultaneously! The entire country has been mobilized to fight against the insurgents!]

"What?!" Han-Yeol felt a sharp migraine upon learning that a terrorist attack was underway in the country.

He had thought that the terrorist threat had subsided with Shabab, but it turned out that it was not the end, as numerous terrorist groups had simultaneously attacked Egypt.

"What's the situation with the Egyptian military?"

[They are doing their best, but the terrorists are attacking multiple places at once and launching guerrilla warfare, making it difficult for them to push the insurgents back. Even the Hunters have been deployed, but there are some extremist Hunters who have sided with the terrorists and are wreaking havoc in the country!]

“Damn it!”

The prospect of this 'holy war' had always loomed on the horizon since the country shifted its religious alignment during modernization. The decision to move away from religion and embrace secularism, with the Ancient Egyptian gods making a return, had enraged many extremists.

Initially, these extremists had not caused much trouble, as the country's secular stance allowed everyone to practice their religion freely.

However, the recent terrorist attack acted as a signal for every disgruntled extremist in the country to take up arms.

It was at this moment that Mujahid approached Han-Yeol and asked in Korean, “What about father, hyung-nim?”

“Hold on. Hey, Vidya.”

[Yes, sir!]

“Any news regarding President Phaophator?”

[I believe he is still in the command center. I heard that he tried to go to the front lines out of anger a few hours ago, but the officers managed to stop him.]

Han-Yeol looked at Mujahid after Vidya finished speaking.

“You heard him, right?”

“Haa… Yes, that’s a relief…”

There was nobody stronger than President Phaophator in Egypt, but Mujahid couldn't help but worry about his father, being a son after all.

"What are the Gurkhas doing?"

[They are on standby, but they are ready to deploy at any given moment while patrolling the presidential palace.]

“Good job.”

[Thank you, sir!]

“Alright, I’ll see you later.”

[Yes, sir! Also, please stay safe until you return, sir!]

“Okay, thanks.”

Beep!

Han-Yeol ended the call.

[Don't we have to go to the presidential palace, hyung-nim?]

[Haa... Yeah, I think that's best for now. We can't tell those people to go back home in this situation, and the palace will be the safest place for them.]

[I understand.]

Tayarana seemed to agree as she simply nodded in response.

The party made their way back to the palace. A few terrorists ambushed them on their way, but there was no way they could do anything against a party composed of three Master Rank Hunters and dozens of S Rank Hunters. It would be impossible for the terrorists to stop this party, even if a whole brigade of them came.