Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 278: Tamra and Gurkha (1)

-N Website-

[Incredible! He invested a whopping thirty trillion won from his own pocket?]

[So it's a group, but only one person owns all of its stocks?]

[Well, it's not that surprising, given that his assets exceed eighty trillion won, as estimated.]

[He's essentially the conglomerate himself...]

[I'm so envious...]

[But, aren't the industries he's entering a bit of a surprise?]

[Yeah, I suppose so.]

The people in the business world were closely monitoring Han-Yeol's decision to start his own business.

It wasn't unusual for a Hunter to embark on an entrepreneurial journey, as many had done so before him. While most of the Hunters who started businesses were non-combat types, there were also combat-oriented Hunters who owned their own enterprises. After all, Hunters earned exorbitant amounts of money, enabling them to invest in one or more businesses.

However, Han-Yeol was the first Hunter to invest such an astronomical sum right from the beginning to kickstart his business, and the industries he chose to venture into were what garnered the most attention.

"What's this?"

"Does he possess technology related to all of these fields?"

"It seems impossible!"

The so-called expert analysts were left astonished upon learning about the industries Han-Yeol intended to enter: Weaponry, Raid Party, Monster Pet, Security, Energy, and Automobiles. While the expectation was that he would be involved in the raid party, monster pet, and security businesses, no one foresaw his expansion into weaponry, energy, and automobiles.

"Hmm... It's expected since I've kept Yoo-Bi under wraps," Han-Yeol muttered with a smile as he watched the news on his seventy-two-inch TV.

These people had no idea just how revolutionary his secret weapon, Yoo-Bi, would be for these industries.

Additionally, they probably had no idea that Han-Yeol was not as directly involved as they assumed. He was primarily providing the funding for the entire business. After all, Yoo-Bi would be responsible for developing the products, while Jason Kim would handle all the business-related matters.

‘Should I promote him to Chairman Kim?’ Han-Yeol pondered.

Han-Yeol himself had no strong attachment to such titles, and the only outcome of having such a title would be dealing with cumbersome paperwork. That was certainly not the kind of lifestyle he desired, as he considered himself a free spirit.

Chwak!

Purva entered the living room, saluting before he said, "Han-Yeol-nim."

Han-Yeol looked at him and smirked before responding, "Hey, CEO Purva~ You're looking good today."

"I am embarrassed by such a title, Han-Yeol-nim..." Purva replied without moving an inch.

As mentioned earlier, the newly-established HY Group was venturing into the security business through its subsidiary, HY Security, and Han-Yeol had appointed Purva as its CEO. No formal meeting was required for Purva's appointment, as Han-Yeol owned one hundred percent of the company and could appoint whomever he wished.

It's also worth noting that the Gurkhas had been transferred to HY Security, so there wasn't much change in the organization's structure. However, if there were any changes, it was likely in the number of Gurkhas employed.

"How many can we bring from Nepal?"

"President Vidya is actively cooperating with us, so we will be able to bring all the Gurkhas we require."

"That's great news."

Han-Yeol only received periodic reports and didn't involve himself in the day-to-day operation of the company. There had been a few instances when he had actively participated in the decision-making process at the outset to showcase his leadership, but now, he preferred to take a more passive role and solely receive progress reports.

There were too many businesses for him to manage individually, and he preferred to entrust them to his subordinates. But more importantly, something else held higher importance for him than the security company.

"Oh right, Purva."

"Yes, Han-Yeol-nim?"

"What's the progress on gathering the elite Gurkhas?"

"Ah, we have sent the candidates through a rigorous three-day course to further assess them. We should have the results by tomorrow."

"Okay, then assemble them here by noon tomorrow."

"Yes, sir!"

Chwak!

Purva saluted once again before leaving the living room. Han-Yeol never required him to salute every time they met, but Purva always did so out of reverence.

***

The next day at noon, Purva gathered thirty Gurkhas and assembled them at the mansion's training ground, just as Han-Yeol had requested.

“Attention!”

Chwak!

All of them were Nepalese, but they understood Korean due to their exposure to Korean culture. The recent surge in job opportunities for Gurkhas in South Korea had made it almost mandatory for them to study the language beforehand.

"At ease!"

Chwak!

They had no trouble communicating in Korean now, having undergone language classes in Korea.

Thud...

Han-Yeol ascended the podium that had been set up in the training ground.

“…”

He scrutinized the faces of the Gurkhas lined up in front of him. 'Good. I like the expressions on their faces.'

His initial impression of them was quite positive.

"I congratulate each and every one of you for successfully completing the rigorous training you endured. As you might have heard, all thirty of you will be part of the Gurkha raid party I'm assembling, and you will have the opportunity to awaken as Hunters."

Chwak!

“Thank you, sir!”

The Gurkhas saluted once more and expressed their gratitude to Han-Yeol, and their synchronized movements were quite impressive. Although they numbered only thirty at this moment, these Gurkhas felt privileged to be chosen for this historic opportunity.

'I learned a lot from Egypt's system.'

Han-Yeol had observed that Egypt was highly systematic in managing their Hunters, a stark contrast to how South Korea handled them. The South Korean system allowed regular individuals to exercise their free will, endure the challenges as Porters, and attempt to awaken. In contrast, the Egyptian system carefully selected elite candidates from their military and rigorously trained them to awaken.

Of course, the Egyptian system came with its share of risks. There were numerous cases of soldiers awakening as Hunters, serving their mandatory period, and then going independent. Yet, this wasn't a significant loss since they still contributed to Egypt's overall Hunter manpower.

This was a factor that Han-Yeol had to acknowledge. As a private organization, there was little he could do if the Hunters chose to depart later, which would undoubtedly result in a substantial loss for him.

'I will be able to build a potent force if the Gurkhas awaken as Hunters, and I can mitigate the risks, given the Nepalese people's stronger sense of loyalty.'

Han-Yeol had heard a great deal about the importance of loyalty in Nepalese culture, which gave him confidence in his ability to safeguard against the risks associated with this plan by choosing the Gurkhas.

However, this wasn't the sole reason behind his decision.

'South Korea's stringent immigration laws won't afford them the opportunity to remain here if they leave the raid party anyway, so I'm confident they won't depart.'

Moreover, Han-Yeol was a celebrity in Nepal, lauded as a savior, and the honor of working alongside him would undoubtedly deter the Gurkhas from leaving.

While others might perceive Han-Yeol's choice as foolish, it appeared that he had already devised numerous measures before proceeding with this plan.

“Move out!”

Chwak!

“Hah!”

The Gurkhas let out a powerful shout before heading straight for the hunting ground.

This marked the historic beginning of the newly established Gurkha raid party, even though it only had one Hunter at the moment.

***

Han-Yeol was going to oversee the Gurkha raid party for the time being until it could operate independently.

“Is everyone ready?”

“Hah!”

Chwak!

The Gurkhas let out their trademark shout as they raised their UB-001 rifles in unison.

It was evident from the name of the rifle alone who had crafted it. Although Han-Yeol might have instructed Yoo-Bi to focus on the mana battery, she was more interested in weapon development and spent most of her time working on it. The outcome of her efforts was the UB-001 rifle.

However, it was challenging to label this rifle as a successful invention, as it was too burdensome for ordinary Porters to use. Why? The reason was that the rifle required a mana stone to be consumed before using it. The size of the required mana stone was not large, but no Hunter in this world would willingly use a mana stone for a Porter.

‘Except for me,’ Han-Yeol thought.

He had already moved beyond the stage of making money from mana stones, and his primary focus now was to expand his faction in preparation for the time Earth would enter the second dimension.

‘I'm certainly not the strongest in the second dimension, and I need to build a formidable faction to contend with other dimensions later on.’

This was not something achievable in a short timeframe, but there wasn't much time left before Earth transitioned to the second dimension. Nevertheless, it was a necessary task, regardless of the limited time available, and Han-Yeol was doing his best to expedite matters.

Initially, he had planned to set his plans into motion earlier than this, but unfortunately, several delays occurred after his Master Rank Hunter test, which held him back.

‘Well, it's not a big issue, since I've now had my second awakening.’

Han-Yeol had acquired the powers of the second dimension. While they might not be overwhelmingly powerful yet, he believed that having his second awakening alone provided him with more than enough time to make his preparations.

“Enter!”

“Hah!”

The Gurkha raid party entered the lowest-tier hunting ground, with Han-Yeol at the forefront.

The hunting ground they entered was the Insect Field located in Gangwon Do, mainly inhabited by Volaxes. This was a hunting ground with which Han-Yeol was quite familiar.

***

Ratatatata!

The sound of gunfire echoed through the Insect Field, a rare occurrence.

This place wasn't particularly well-known, and thus, not many Hunters frequented it. The Volaxes were low-tier monsters that yielded low-quality mana stones, and this hunting ground lacked a boss monster. Furthermore, the Volaxes weren't particularly challenging but rather annoying to deal with, which discouraged most Hunters from visiting.

However, all the factors that deterred other Hunters made this hunting ground a perfect fit for Han-Yeol and the Gurkhas.

"Kieeeek! Kieeeeek!"

"Don't be frightened by the monsters; stay focused on your aim!"

"Yes, sir! Second group, open fire!"

Ratatatata!

“Kieeeek! Kieeeek!”

The thirty Gurkhas were divided into three groups, and they took turns showering the Volaxes with bullets.

'Hmm…'

Han-Yeol didn't bother getting directly involved in the hunt, considering that they were only dealing with Volaxes.

Volaxes were one of the weakest monsters and were individually so feeble that they often roamed in groups to compensate for their weakness. By this point, he could probably dispatch hundreds of them with a single flick of his finger, so he saw no reason to intervene.

“Reload!”

“Retreat to the rear!”

.

Ratatatata!

“Kieeeek! Kieeek!”

Surprisingly, a sight that most people would find hard to believe unfolded before the Gurkhas' eyes. The Volaxes, pelted by bullets from the Gurkhas, were actually sustaining damage bit by bit until they staggered and fell to the ground.

'Wow? Is this the true power of the UB rifle?' Han-Yeol was genuinely impressed by the rifle developed by Yoo-Bi, the UB-001.

Initially, Han-Yeol had dismissed the rifle as mere junk when he learned that it required bullets and mana stones for use. Why? Because that indicated it was not designed for Hunters but rather for Porters. However, he came to realize that he had been greatly mistaken about the rifle's true worth after witnessing the Gurkhas in action.

“Aim for their legs!”

“Shoot them down!”

“Hah!”

Each group of Gurkhas had one assigned captain, and these captains were highly skilled in war tactics. They adeptly guided the Gurkhas to overwhelm the Volaxes.

It was quite surprising to witness ordinary individuals overpowering monsters, but this was mainly due to the early stage of the hunt, with the monsters being in low numbers.