Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 397 – Survival of The Fittest (6)

One of the buildings nearby crumbled, signaling the start of the fight.

Woo Han-Jong’s retainers were the first to make a move.

The middle-aged man who had shouted at Han-Yeol earlier stood at the forefront. Behind him were a large dark-skinned man and an Asian woman at least one hundred eighty centimeters tall, who seemed Chinese judging by the qipao[1] she was wearing.

These three were the Master-Rank Hunters serving Woo Han-Jong.

“Hmm? I heard the South Korean Master-Rank Hunters have all decided to stay neutral in this. Those cowards are probably hiding in their houses trembling in fear... but who are you people?” the middle-aged man asked.

“...”

The Egyptian trio looked at each other and whispered.

[I think we have to fight them. What do you think?]

[Yeah, I think we have no other choice, noonim.]

[Exposing our identities is definitely a concern, but I can alter their memories if we spare some of them. That should take care of the problem.]

[Oh? That’s a great idea! I think that settles it, noonim!]

[I guess we don’t have a choice...]

Their main purpose of coming along was to advise Han-Yeol during the negotiations and formation of the new government. They did not plan to partake in any fights, but they were unfortunately forced to change their plans.

Their opponents were not a bunch of S-Rank Hunters, but Master-Rank Hunters, and they were the only ones aside from Han-Yeol who could stop them. Also, they could instinctively sense that their opponents were extremely strong, and this would not be an easy battle.

[Let’s go.]

[Yes, Tayarana-nim.]

[Okay, noonim!]

Unfortunately, the trio were forced to fight with a handicap and would not be able to exert one hundred percent of their powers. They had not intended to participate in any battles this time, and so they had left all of their main weapons back at the mansion.

They only brought a few basic weapons, which meant that they were as good as unarmed.

[But we don’t have our weapons, noonim.]

[Yeah, that’s indeed a problem.]

[Hmm...]

[What should we do, Tayarana-nim?]

[We don’t have a choice, so fight with everything you got.]

[Yes, I understand...]

Of course, just because they were unarmed did not mean they could not live up to their titles as Master-Rank Hunters. Yes, they might not be as powerful as they were with their main weapons, but they possessed Master-Rank Hunter stats and skills.

“Oh? One of them is a swordsman?”

“One of them seems to be a brawler.”

“Hmm... That girl behind them. Judging by how underdeveloped her muscles are, I don’t think she’s a melee fighter.”

The retainers easily distinguished who they were going to fight from their appearances alone.

[Tayarana-nim. Prince Mujahid.]

[Yes, Mariam.]

Then, Mariam switched to communicating telepathically.

[It seems they are planning to fight us one-on-one.]

[Yeah, I noticed.]

Tayarana could easily notice something like this even if Mariam did not point it out, but what she wanted to say next was the key part.

[We might be Master-Rank Hunters, but we cannot use our full strength without our main weapons. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for our opponents. It would be best if we fight together with my telepathic abilities rather than be split up.]

[Alright.]

[Oh! How long has it been since we fought together?]

Tayarana and Mujahid were only half-siblings, but they started training together ever since they first awakened. Their training included fighting in group battles with Mariam’s telepathic abilities.

Mariam was just a B-Rank Hunter at that time, but Egypt valued her skills highly. Now, she had become a Master-Rank Hunter thanks to Han-Yeol, and she could now use much more powerful telepathic abilities.

That was why Mujahid was looking forward to fighting together with her.

Wooooong!

Their mana might not be as powerful as Woo Han-Jong and Han-Yeol’s, but it was still enough to shake the nearby buildings as if an earthquake was occurring.

Considering that a clash between Transcendent Master-Rank Hunters was ongoing right beside them, they did not look as strong in comparison, but a battle between two Master-Rank Hunters could just as well destroy an entire city.

There were six Master-Rank Hunters here, and that meant they could theoretically destroy three cities if they clashed.

“Hap!”

Tak!

The middle-aged swordsman made the first move by swinging his katana at Tayarana. Then, the dark-skinned man and the Chinese lady attacked Mujahid and Mariam respectively.

[As expected, they are trying to split us up, and we cannot let them do what they want. We will switch positions to confuse them.]

[Okay.]

[Sounds good!]

Mariam could transmit images into other peoples' heads. She had been able to relay every single order even when she was a B-Rank Hunter, but the ability to project images in other people’s minds was a huge improvement.

‘Wow! This is amazing! We’re definitely going to win with this!’ Mujahid exclaimed excitedly after seeing the formation Mariam projected in his mind. He moved according to the formation in his mind, and the result was already visible from the start.

“...!”

“H-How?!”

The retainers ended up bumping into each other and missed the appropriate timing to attack.

‘As expected!’ Mujahid exclaimed once again.

He had spent his entire life in Egypt, and most of his memories there were bad ones unless they were related to his unrequited love for Mariam, but it was quite the opposite when he came to South Korea.

He had plenty of good memories here thanks to Han-Yeol, and Han-Yeol positively influenced his life in many ways.

Because of this, Mujahid got into the habit of thinking in Korean, and he exclaimed in Korean after being in awe of Mariam’s enhanced telepathic abilities.

Her telepathic abilities made it more efficient for her allies to fight together under her command, and her ability was further enhanced after she became a Master-Rank Hunter.

[Prince Mujahid.]

‘Leave it to me!’

The vanguard was none other than Mujahid, who was a Brawler.

Tak!

He kicked off the ground and charged at the Chinese lady just as Mariam instructed.

“Argh!”

Woo Han-Jong’s retainers could not react in time to the Egyptian trio's synergistic movements, which came as a great surprise to them. Each one of them was a powerhouse recognized by the greatest person in the world, Woo Han-Jong, so they were confident in fighting one-on-one battles.

However, their opponents stuck together and kept avoiding individual combat.

Why would a bunch of Master-Rank Hunters refuse to fight one-on-one? And why were these three so good at fighting together?

The answer to these questions was a bit complicated.

Egypt beating Japan and Germany to cement itself as one of the top three powerhouses in the world had come as a shock to many. However, there was one crucial reason they were able to do so, and that reason was the way they systematically managed their Hunters.

Egypt focused on nurturing their Hunters like soldiers, while the other countries treated them like nobles, which meant that Egyptian Hunters were just higher-ranked soldiers.

Also, anyone who awakened had to undergo an intensive twelve-week training camp specially designed by the state, and even royalty was not exempt from this. In fact, while the ordinary Hunters had to undergo a twelve-week program, Tayarana and Mujahid were forced to endure study and training for four whole years at the military academy.

Mujahid attacked the Chinese lady.

‘Goblin Hammer!’

Although the Egyptian trio’s strategy was extremely effective in defense, the same could not be said for their offense due to their lack of firepower.

“No you don’t!” The dark-skinned man threw a punch while Mujahid was attacking.

[Pull back, my prince.]

‘Tsk...’

Tak! ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ɴovᴇl(F)ɪre.ɴet

Mujahid instantly jumped back. He was not happy about being asked to disengage, but he did not say anything as Mariam was the commander of this battle.

Bam!

The dark-skinned man’s fist hit the ground Mujahid was standing on a while ago.

“Ha! What a slippery rat!”

Kwachik!

A vein bulged on Mujahid’s forehead when he heard the dark-skinned man taunt him.

‘That damned guy...!’ Mujahid clenched his fist in anger, but he did not do anything aside from that.

The reason he could continue to follow Mariam’s commands even while his emotions were running high was the education and training he had received back at the military academy.

‘If only Furion was here...!’ Mujahid gritted his teeth.

He could not help but feel frustrated by the fact that he did not have his full gear with him and was forced to fight in a group under Mariam’s command. He would have beaten them one by one if only Furion was with him right now.

The dark-skinned man pulled his fist out from the asphalt and looked at the trio.

‘Hmm... There’s something familiar about their movements... Where have I seen them before?’ he wondered while staring at them.

Unfortunately, the harsh training Woo Han-Jong had subjected him to caused severe mental trauma that tampered with his memories so badly that he even ended up forgetting his own name.

He had definitely seen the trio’s movement somewhere, but he was unable to recall where he had seen it as he had lost most of his memories.

He was lost in his thoughts, but he soon snapped out of it when he heard the middle-aged man’s voice.

“Ha! I admit your teamwork is quite admirable, but that’s nothing but petty tricks against us! If that’s how you want to play, then we’re going to play with you!”

The middle-aged man readied his katana and prepared to attack.

[It is our turn to attack now, Tayarana-nim.]

‘Alright.’

Tak!

“What?!” the middle-aged man was surprised.

He thought their opponents were just going to defend all day long, so he did not expect them to go on the offensive.

Heh.

Of course, the retainers smirked when they saw their opponents suddenly switching from defense to offense.

‘Fools! They really fell for such provocation?’

The middle-aged man could not help but laugh at his young opponents. They were wearing masks, so it was hard to identify them, but he could tell from their rough appearance and temper that they were still young. Only kids would fall for such a cheap trick.

“I’ll behead you kids and take a good look at you!”

Wooong!

The group battle between the Master-Rank Hunters finally started for real.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The Blue House was destroyed without a trace, and even the school, church, and apartments nearby were destroyed as well. This would have resulted in hundreds of civilian casualties if it was not for the mysterious clown’s barrier.

However, the destruction was not the end of the surprises.

“Hmm...”

“Tsk!”

“...”

The middle-aged swordsman, the Chinese lady, and the dark-skinned man were taken aback. The reason behind their reaction was that their opponent did not suffer a single scratch despite their surroundings being absolutely destroyed.

Pat...! Pat...! Pat...!

By contrast, the middle-aged swordsman was bleeding from the gash he suffered from Tayarana’s sword.

“I believe we have underestimated our opponents.”

“Yes, they are not fighting as a group because they are weaker than us. They seem to be Master-Rank Hunters specialized in group combat. Their individual strength is almost equal to ours, but we are at a severe disadvantage because we lack experience fighting as a group.”

“Hey, can you men stop grumbling and come up with a solution? It’s going to look bad for us the longer this goes on, you know?”

“Ugh... I’m not grumbling because I want to, okay? Not only is this my first time fighting three-on-three with other Master-Rank Hunters—no, why would Master-Rank Hunters fight together in the first place?!”

1. Chinese pencil dress, also known as cheongsam. ?