Anyway, that guy Nam Yong-seok was not going to be any help in this already difficult world.
There were over five thousand direct victims, and considering the damage suffered by their families, this villain had devastated a population comparable to that of a small town.
What surprised me, though, was that this guy was linked to a group that produced blue-eyed or evolution stones.
‘Seriously…’
I couldn’t help but snicker. I had no clue how many pieces of trash were tangled up with those two groups.
‘I have two small problems here.’
One was that Nam Yong-seok’s current abilities had already reached the mid-level C rank.
Of course, the moment he failed to recognize that I was approaching the ceiling, the situation tilted in my favor, but I had no idea what level of abilities or hidden skills that guy might possess, so I needed to be cautious.
And the second problem was how to deal with the remaining twenty-two people.
According to the mini-map, those people enchanted by Nam Yong-seok were classified as shady groups…
‘But those people aren’t at fault, right?’
Sure, I could blame their weak mental strength, but killing them felt a bit… worrisome. Of course, the stat gains from defeating them were tempting, but if I killed Nam Yong-seok, their consciousness would return.
‘Hmm… this is tricky. I should approach first. It doesn’t seem like they’re well-prepared.’
From the sensations I was feeling, none of the twenty-three present would be able to detect me.
Swoosh- swoosh-
I carefully scooped up the remaining floor to widen the hole enough to get down.
[Adhesion]
Then, slowly slipping down through the hole, I clung to the ceiling of the space where they were, instantaneously hit by an unknown disgusting smell that made my head spin.
‘Ah! This bastard. Is his ability transmitted through the sense of smell? I really feel like throwing up.’
I had condensed my senses, but I was now left with a stench that clung to me.
Fortunately, such an attack didn’t have a significant effect on me, so that was a relief. If it were any other hunter, they might have been stripping off their clothes while approaching without realizing it.
Either way, with an ability like this, it made sense why he would go through the trouble of creating an underground space.
Swish- chop-
I attempted to approach the guy, who was flailing about in ecstasy, slowly.
Did he have the ability to resist my ambush? From what I remember, he had grown into a powerful close-combat warrior by absorbing physical stats like strength, agility, and health. But this world might be different.
I looked at Nam Yong-seok, buried among the people for a moment.
‘How should I separate him? He’ll definitely try to throw others aside and escape.’
Absorbing others’ stats was a tremendous ability, but it alone wouldn’t make him a legendary villain.
He would always try to avoid conflict when he could, using his subordinates like sacrifices to escape, severing connections like a lizard’s tail.
But what if the opponent was someone like me, well below his rank? Would he still run?
If he came at me directly, I would be confident I could win, but I wasn’t sure I could catch someone who was determined to flee.
[Contaminated Breath]
Since the environment was perfect for using contaminated breath, the instant I made the hole, the skill was activated.
A 30-pyeong (approx. 1,000 sq ft) enclosed space. If I stayed for about five minutes, it would be enough to paralyze those clinging to him.
But the problem was when the poison accumulated to a level that would alert him.
If the poison message pops up and he ran away immediately, that would be exhausting.
I pulled out my dagger, closed my eyes, and gathered my focus. Using a bomb in a residential area had its restrictions, so I aimed for a lethal strike to his vital spot. It would be nice to kill him with one blow, but that might be pushing it.
‘Hah… let’s recall the time I split an orc in half in the dungeon… Just focus on the sword…’
– Growl! Uh! Ugh~! Hm!
‘I… can do this. Since I’ve done it once, if I focus, I can reclaim that amazing power from then…’
– Aaaah~ ha!
‘F-Focus…’
– Master! It’s so good…! Ah! I-I can’t do that there…!
‘…… Damn it, screw this. I’m not doing it!’
In the end, I failed to summon that sensation from back then.
I wasn’t sure if it was the strange scent spread by Nam Yong-seok or what, but I felt my mind becoming muddled.
And it wasn’t easy to immerse myself in my own space while surrounded by those debauched people. No matter how much I had [Calm], this was beyond my limits.
[Contaminated Breath]
And so, three agonizing minutes passed. They were still lost in ecstasy, panting like animals, and none of them seemed to notice my presence.
Moreover, everyone except for Nam Yong-seok was just an ordinary person.
But I couldn’t let my guard down. The moment they became Nam Yong-seok’s minions, they would turn into warriors with stats far surpassing those of a typical low-rank hunter.
None of them were individually threatening, but just like how I couldn’t haphazardly kill those people now, they would become a tricky opponent as time passed.
“Sniff sniff-! Huh?! Poisoned?! Wh-What!!”
Finally, the poison message popped up for him.
As Nam Yong-seok shot up in shock, all the naked people assumed a defensive posture, raising their fingers in front.
It looked like a wild cat standing on its hind legs, and I could see their eyes had already turned red and were deeply captivated by Nam Yong-seok.
But half of them were staggering and collapsing. My skill had paralyzed their lower bodies, preventing them from moving freely. It wouldn’t be easy for them to adapt quickly.
‘Perfect.’
Nam Yong-seok did not immediately flee.
This was the scene I had anticipated, and because of that, I was prepared. I was floating with my cloak spread above his head.
[High-speed Flight]
Activating the skill, I fell down, and Nam Yong-seok’s head filled my vision.
He quickly turned his head sideways, showing some reflexes, but that was all.
[Flame Cut]
Fwoosh―!
“Ugh!!”
With precision, my dagger severed the artery in Nam Yong-seok’s neck and burrowed deep.
A massive amount of blood spurted out, drenching me, causing my [Stealth] to naturally break.
“Wahh— what?!”
He swung his arms wildly, trying to counterattack with incredibly fast movements.
Boom――!
‘Damn…!’
I used the thorns on my body to block his attack, but the massive impact sent me flying for a while.
‘What kind of neck is that thick?!’
It felt like I was trying to cut through a log filled with water. I let out a curse. It was definitely a serious injury, but it wasn’t enough.
“Guhhh! W-What?! Huh?! This is… bleeding?!”
‘That’s right. He’s afflicted with a status ailment.’
Rough Claw Lv.1
– When using body parts to inflict bleeding on the enemy, there is a 25% chance for the status ailment [Bleeding] to occur.
– Bleeding: Health decreases by 0.01% of maximum health per second. In combat while bleeding, effects increase twofold.
‘Haha, I’m lucky. I’m able to reposition the thorns on my body, and though it hasn’t been long since I started using them in combat, [Rough Claw] is truly a useful ability. The bleeding status would become a significant chain for him trying to flee.’
As I watched the staggering guy, I thought his resistance was less than I had expected. Was I overly cautious because of his notorious past?
‘If so, then no need to waste time here.’
I leaped into the air like a spring to deliver a follow-up attack.
“Uuhhhh—!!”
“Aaarrrgh!!”
But the minions with twisted joints charged at me like zombies.
‘Hmph!’
Their strength and speed were pathetic.
I easily swatted them aside, smashing them against the wall.
Nam Yong-seok’s abilities weren’t fully developed yet, so it seemed the stats of those turned into his minions weren’t high either.
If that was the case, did that ability grow as well? Why did all those good skills always end up with bad guys? Or did those skills lead them down a dark path? It was a mystery.
As I knocked down each of the twenty or so people, Nam Yong-seok’s advancing speed significantly decreased.
“Cough—! What the…! A skeleton mask? What the hell are you doing?! Ugh…”
He looked at me, clearly not understanding what was happening, but his judgment was quick.
Clutching his gushing neck, he was already retreating towards the exit. Even in this slightly altered world, his basic instincts hadn’t changed.
“Ugh—! Open! Open, I say!! Darn it…”
Unfortunately for him, as he tried to escape, Nam Yong-seok couldn’t get out of the basement. The structure led upward through a ladder, but whether due to panic or his injuries, he couldn’t manage to open the door properly.
‘That’s odd. At least he should be able to lift it with ease…’
Curiously, I focused my senses on him, noticing one by one, the connections with his minions were snapping.
And with each connection broken, his stats were steadily decreasing.
‘Interesting ability. Not only does it permanently drain stats, but is there also a structure where the number of minions or the sum of their abilities creates a buff?’
The people whom I knocked down lay unconscious on the ground, thus unable to share their strength with him.
Now he had dropped to the same level as me. Defeating him would be a piece of cake.
Clunk!
“I… I did it! Gah… ugh!”
He managed to open the door and tried to crawl out, but as I pulled one of his legs, he bumped his face against the ladder and slid down.
“Please… spare me!”
Along with his plea for mercy, he vomited a bowlful of dark red blood. But I didn’t care and started with a solid punch to his gut.
Thwack-!
“Cough… urgh…”
Deeply sliced neck, poisoning, bleeding, paralysis, confusion, and abdominal pain.
These were the elements affecting him now. It would be a miracle for him to speak coherently. No doubt he was a scumbag.
“I’ll… I’ll explain everything. Let’s, let’s talk. At the police station or the administration, if you want to arrest me, go ahead! Just… please help me first… I… I feel like I’m going to die soon…”
*Clap! Clap! Clap!*
“Haa! Wait! My mouth is stuck… surely… Could it be a real monster…?”
*Clap! Clap! Clap!*
“W-What the hell…?”
For an instant, he wore a smile, then quickly shifted to a pained expression—his face showed a range of emotions. Maybe he briefly thought, could this be a dream… to believe it so?
‘That was surprisingly easy to catch. Normally, this guy would have faced multiple S-rank hunters and upper-rank hunters from organizations trying to subdue him.’
By unforeseen chance, I had greatly contributed to the peace of our country, but in the end, I just needed to kill this guy and gain a single stat.
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