Leveling Up Alone

Chapter 237: A New Monster (3)

Han-Yeol learned that it was possible for him to have a second awakening, but there was a big problem.

‘Ugh… I don’t have a clue how to accomplish that…’

[I apologize…]

Karvis felt bad that she couldn't be of much help to Han-Yeol, but he knew that this matter was not something she could do anything about. How could he scold her for being born that way in the first place?

‘Well, I guess there’s nothing we can do about it…’

“Hyung-nim?”

“Yes, Mujahid?”

“What are you thinking about right now?”

“Nothing much.”

“Hmm…”

Mujahid seemed to have noticed that Han-Yeol was troubled about something but decided to put the matter to rest.

He was quite the curious type but didn't want to pry into Han-Yeol's secrets. Why? What was important to him right now was to hunt alongside Han-Yeol instead of satisfying his own curiosity at the expense of offending him.

"Oh, right!"

"Huh?"

"I have a fertilized egg! I need to go hatch it!"

"Oh! Can I watch, hyung-nim?"

"Sure."

It didn't matter since the ownership of the monster was automatically set to Han-Yeol, regardless of whether there were other people around or not.

"Alright!" Mujahid exclaimed with joy after being allowed to watch.

The prince always found joy in spending time with Han-Yeol, as the things he did were quite interesting. That's why he persistently tried to follow him around.

The Gurkhas that Han-Yeol brought along with him saluted the moment he approached them.

“Keep up the good work.”

“Yes, sir!”

Creak…!

Han-Yeol opened the door and entered the hastily prepared incubation room. President Phaophator had instructed him to request anything he needed from the palace manager, and he immediately asked for an incubation room to be set up for his monster egg.

"Hmm?" Han-Yeol noticed some sounds coming from the egg as soon as he stepped into the room.

"Wow, hyung-nim! This one looks feisty even before it's born!"

"Y-Yeah, I think you're right."

The demon egg from the demon world differed significantly from the monster eggs Han-Yeol had hatched until now. While the monster eggs remained dormant during incubation, the demon egg was slightly moving and emitting black smoke.

The room gradually filled with dark smoke since it wasn't being ventilated, so Han-Yeol opened the vents to air it out.[1]

"Wow! This is quite the strange egg you have here, hyung-nim!" Mujahid exclaimed, appearing excited.

Life had been mundane and boring for him, given that he received everything he desired as royalty. Hunting was one of the few activities he enjoyed, but even that had slowly started to feel mundane with repeated outings.

He longed to learn and experience new things to add some excitement to his life, and being around Han-Yeol accomplished just that. Han-Yeol always seemed to have something new happening to him, and Mujahid couldn't help but be instinctively drawn to him.

Han-Yeol awkwardly scratched his cheek and said, "T-This is a bit surprising…"

His reaction was the complete opposite of Mujahid's. While Mujahid might be the type who loved the unexpected, Han-Yeol was not a huge fan of surprises. He preferred new things to happen within the bounds of his expectations, as he disliked being taken by surprise.

‘Ugh…’

His instincts were remarkably accurate to the extent that he often had premonitions about events that were going to happen. This was why he had started to rely on them a bit too much, finding it difficult to react when unexpected things occurred.

‘Well, I doubt anything big is going to happen,’?Han-Yeol thought and shrugged it off.

He became much more laidback after becoming a Master Rank Hunter, and he was confident that he could resolve any problem that arose if they ever did.

“Hyung-nim!” Mujahid exclaimed with sparkles in his eyes.

Han-Yeol understood what the prince’s sparkling eyes meant and replied, “Alright… I’ll get started.”

“Yes!” Mujahid exclaimed triumphantly after getting what he wanted.

Han-Yeol approached the demon egg, which was still emitting smoke, and gently placed his hand on it.

Badump! Badump! Badump! Badump!

His heart started to beat wildly as his expectations soared.

'Mavros was born when I was an S Rank... I wonder what's going to emerge now that I'm a Master Rank Hunter?'?

His curiosity was intense. The creature about to hatch from this egg would become his lifelong companion, fighting alongside him for the rest of his life.

“Haa…”?Han-Yeol exhaled before concentrating on the demon egg.

Woooong!

‘Keuk! It’s strong…!’

He could sense that the demon egg possessed much stronger mana compared to a monster egg. The demon egg was absorbing every bit of mana flowing from his hand, creating the sensation of a vacuum trying to draw out every drop of mana in his body.

At this rate, he was going to be in danger, whether he was a Master Rank Hunter or not. However, Han-Yeol had one ability that could address this perilous situation.

“Mujahid, mana stone.”

“Yes, hyung-nim!”

Whoosh! Tak!

Mujahid tossed a mana stone from a distance and then stepped away from Han-Yeol and the demon egg, just in case.

Han-Yeol caught the mana stone with his other hand and immediately activated Enhance.

Crack!

‘Enhance!’

The mana stone cracked and enhanced his mana.

‘Oh!’

The demon egg started reacting even more after the Master Rank Hunter's mana was enhanced.

‘I wonder what kind of monster is going to emerge from this egg after absorbing the enhanced mana of a Master Rank Hunter?’ he wondered.

Woooong! C-Crack...!

The demon egg's shell began to crack, and it sucked even more of Han-Yeol's mana as the cracks spread.

Seuk...!

Just as the situation was about to reach its peak, the demon egg suddenly stopped spewing out smoke. Silence followed.

Chwaaaaak!

As if the demon egg had feigned stillness for a moment, it abruptly released even more smoke, completely obscuring Han-Yeol and Mujahid's vision.

The sudden surge of smoke forced Han-Yeol to cease supplying his mana to the demon egg.

"Did it work?"

He wasn't sure if it was a success or not, as his vision was entirely obstructed by the smoke. Although he could have used Demon Eyes to check the result, he chose to wait instead, feeling no urgency.

Clack... Clack...

Something within the room started making noises.

‘Finally?’

Han-Yeol realized that the noises were not originating from him or Mujahid, judging by their source. The only other entity capable of producing such sounds was the creature that had hatched from the egg.

‘I wonder what kind of monster it is…?’

“Hohoho!”

“Huh?”

“Hmm?”

Han-Yeol and Mujahid were both taken aback by the sudden laughter.

‘What the heck? Should I use Demon Eyes?’?Han-Yeol wondered.

He had already expended a significant amount of his mana during the hatching process, so he preferred to avoid using Demon Eyes, which required a considerable amount of mana to activate.

“Mujahid, can you do something about this smoke?” Han-Yeol asked.

“Leave it to me, hyung-nim!” Mujahid replied.

Then, he lowered his stance before throwing a punch into the air.

“Hap!”

Whoosh! Tak!

The wind pressure from his punch pushed the smoke into the vents.

For an S Rank Hunter, manipulating the air like this using mana was a piece of cake. Han-Yeol could have easily done it himself, but after expending so much of his mana just now, he couldn't be bothered. Besides, Mujahid was right beside him, so he thought it was better to leave such a hassle to him.

"Heok!"

"H-Hyung-nim...!"

Both of them were shocked by what they saw in front of them once the smoke cleared.

“Hmm… Not bad?”

Slurp!

A stunning woman with short blonde hair and striking red eyes stood before them, sensually licking her lips in a manner that could easily ensnare any man.

‘I didn't even notice when she's this close?!’

What shocked Han-Yeol even more than her beauty was the fact that her face had been right under his nose without him realizing it.

Even though Han-Yeol's senses had become sharper since he became a Master Rank Hunter, he had only detected the woman's presence after seeing her face.

Gulp...!

He nervously contemplated, ‘What if this were a real battle?’

He was certain that he would have lost his life before even realizing what had happened.

Well, it was highly unlikely to occur if he had been using Demon Eyes, but that was merely an excuse, as he had indeed let his guard down just now.

“W-Who might you be?”

“Omo~ Why so formal when I’m just a creature birthed by you~?”

“Huh…?”

“Hohoho!”

Clack…! Clack…! Clack…!?

“H-Hyung-nim…!”

“What?”

Mujahid appeared to be shocked about something completely different.

"T-That monster is…!"

"What?!"

It was only then that Han-Yeol finally realized why Mujahid was so shocked and why there was a clacking noise in the room.

"A-Arachnid?!"

"Hohoho! Bingo~"

The woman was no ordinary creature. Her upper body resembled that of a sexy woman, but her lower body had eight spider-like legs. In other words, she was a monster known as an Arachnid.

"H-How can this be? Why would... from a demon egg...?"

"Omo~ Why are you so flustered~?"

"U-Ugh…"

It's important to note that Han-Yeol was extremely susceptible to the charms of assertive women. He liked Scarlett because she took the initiative while being gentle and meek like a cat, but this Arachnid was on a whole different level compared to her. In fact, the way she touched him was more than enough to send chills down his spine...

Seuk…

“Hiiik!”

She began touching Han-Yeol with her hands as if she were determined to explore every nook and cranny of his body.

"Hmm… You smell quite good, master."

"R-Really?"

"Oh right, you're correct that my race is called Arachnid, but I'd be sad if you keep calling me Arachnid, you know? Why don't you give me a proper name, master?"

He was completely caught up in her pace. Most of the monsters he had hatched were still in their infancy, but this Arachnid was already in her adolescent stage the moment she was born.

"T-Tia?" Han-Yeol muttered in response. Tia meant 'charm' in Greek[2], and it was the only thing he could come up with in his mind right now.

"Omo~ That's a cute name, but I don't think it really suits me. Whatever, as long as it sounds cute~ Hoho!"

Ding!

[You have contracted Tia from the Arachnid race found in legends.]

[Your Charisma stat has increased by 10.]

[Tia (Arachnid)]

Level: 55

Traits: Darkness, Poison, Charm

Innate Ability: Spider Web

Stats:

STR: 200

AGI: 200

VIT: 200

EP[3]: 200

Charm: 200

Skills: Restrain (B), Spider Bomb (B), Scarecrow of Death (C), Poison Web (A), Killing Strike (D)

‘Heok! What the hell is this?! Are these really the stats of a newborn creature?’ Han-Yeol was shocked once again after reading her stats.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Mavros had started at Level 1 when he was born, but the Arachnid, Tia, began at a staggering Level 55, and it was hard to believe she was a newborn creature.

“Hoho! Are you surprised after seeing my abilities~ So cute~!”

“H-How did you know?”

“Hmm? Ah~ It’s really cute to see such an innocent master! You’re making me want to tie you down with my webs and tease you all night long~”

Gulp…!

“T-Thanks?”

"I was born from your mana, so it's only obvious that I obtained some of your power and memories while being born. Although, I could've simply sucked all of your mana before devouring you as soon as I was born, but that was only possible if you were a bit weaker than you currently are. Hoho!" Tia said before baring her fangs at him.

"H-Hiiik!" Han-Yeol shrieked, feeling chills run all over his body.

"Hoho! But don't worry, you're much stronger than me, and I fell in love with you at first sight!"

'S-She's quite the handful, and it's going to be uncomfortable from now on,' Han-Yeol thought as his sensitive instincts kicked in.

His instincts were telling him to say goodbye to his peaceful days, and they were also telling him that it was one hundred percent certain right now.

"Sigh..."

"Hohoho! I'll be in your care from now on, master~"

In the end, the whole fiasco was over, and things were settling down... or were they?

Bam!

[Your Highness! Han-Yeol Hunter-nim!]

1. Ventilation is crucial when incubating eggs, but maybe not in this world. ????

2. I don’t think that’s what it means in Greek, but I had to stick with what author-nim wrote. ????

3. Elemental Power. ????