Chapter 54: S-rank Gate Hunt (3)
[Graaaahhhh!!!]
Echidna's angry roar spread throughout the S-rank Gate.
Riiing.
[Your summoned beast has defeated the A-rank common monster Wyvern.]
[Your level has risen.]
"Kiieekk!!"
The screams of Wyverns filled the air as the black scythes, fire, and thorns that Echidna created rained down on them.
Riiing.
[Your summoned beast has defeated the A-rank common monster Wyvern.]
[Your level has risen.]
'Nice job!'
Kang-Woo clenched his fists upon seeing Echidna's great performance.
More Wyvern reinforcements arrived after having sensed their kin in danger, but they were powerless against Echidna, who was currently enraged.
'Yes! Kill them all!'
Kang-Woo smiled as he watched Echidna kill the Wyverns with a strength that exceeded his expectations. Every time she killed a Wyvern, a blue message appeared in front of him, notifying him that his level had risen. Kang-Woo was leveling up at an incredible speed.
"Yeah! This is what a summoned beast is all about!"
Kang-Woo felt like a trophy husband who lived without doing anything.
What about the Buer and the Cerberus? They didn't matter. Echidna was incomparably stronger than those two demonic beasts that he had thought of summoning.
'Although, she does consume a lot of demonic energy.'
Kang-Woo was a bit disappointed as he felt his demonic energy was depleting.
At first, he was surprised to see Echidna annihilate a group of Wyverns. She was so strong that Kang-Woo couldn't believe she had lost against Reynald's party. However, that doubt was quickly explained by the enormous amount of demonic energy that was sucked out of him every time Echidna moved.
'So, she became stronger after receiving my power.'
Kang-Woo finally understood what Echidna had been referring to about having made a connection with him. Just like how a Familiar was connected to its master, his and Echidna's souls were also connected.
'It's a bit different from Kim Si-Hun's case.'
Kim Si-Hun's main source of strength wasn't demonic energy but his unique stat Qi, whereas Echidna's main source of strength was demonic energy. Even though they were both connected to Kang-Woo's soul, he could give more to Echidna than to Kim Si-Hun.
[Grraaaahhhh!!!!]
Crack! Crunch!
'Whatever the case, it isn't a bad thing.'
Kang-Woo's eyes lit up when he saw that Echidna had eliminated most of the Wyverns.
If he had summoned a Buer or a Cerberus, it was likely that neither of them would have become as strong as Echidna even if they had taken in his demonic energy.
'There's a huge gap in their potential, after all.'
It didn't matter how strong an ant became; it was still an ant. Every species had a hard cap on how much strength they could obtain. Of course, it could be said that that law didn't apply in the world of Players, but there was no way it didn't have any influence at all.
'In that sense, Echidna is amazing.'
Echidna displayed so much power that Kang-Woo wondered if she was stronger than him. Based on what he had seen so far, she seemed to possess greater power than he had expected.
'And...'
The fact that Echidna could use his power to become so strong meant that his growth affected Echidna.
'The stronger I get, the stronger Echidna will get too.'
Kang-Woo was getting stronger at a very fast rate, so being able to affect Echidna's growth was a huge plus. It was like wearing clothes that grew with you as you grew.
Riiing.
[Your summoned beast has defeated the A-rank common monster Wyvern.]
[Your level has risen.]
Kang-Woo heard the clear chime of a bell. Then silence fell on his surroundings.
[Huff, huff...]
The destruction was finally over. After massacring the Wyverns, Echidna was panting. She returned to her small size after being covered with a blue light again.
"Sniff..." Echidna teared up while looking at her dress, which had been ripped by a Wyvern's claws.
Kang-Woo patted her head. "It's okay. We can always buy more clothes."
"But..."
"Don't worry. I'm sure anything would look good on you."
Echidna finally stopped crying after Kang-Woo consoled her.
Kang-Woo then continued with a slightly reproachful tone, "But I'd appreciate it if you didn't do something like this again."
"Ngh..."
"I don't like people who can't control their anger and just lose their minds."
Despite what Kang-Woo said, it wasn't simply a matter of whether he liked people who behaved irrationally. The issue was that becoming irrational out of rage was a fatal error that could lead to death.
"I-I'm sorry..." Echidna lowered her head with a sad expression.
Kang-Woo felt bad about scolding her, but this was something that he couldn't just gloss over with laughter.
'If I don't make it clear, she might do it again.'
It was good news that Echidna was strong. Kang-Woo had cheered for her earlier when she returned to her original form and wiped out the group of Wyverns. However, it would be a problem if she thought that what she did was okay because of that. Just because the result was fine didn't mean there wasn't any issue with the process.
"Just don't do it again. Okay?" Kang-Woo said.
"Okay. I won't get angry again." Echidna anxiously nodded because she didn't want Kang-Woo to hate her because of what had just happened.
She desperately lacked affection from others, so Kang-Woo had become an irreplaceable person to her.
Kang-Woo patted her head and replied, "Okay. I'll trust you."
"Yeah. I'll work even harder and become more helpful to you, Kang-Woo."
Echidna clenched her fists and began walking energetically in search of the next target.
At that moment, she stumbled as she stepped forward. "Ah!"
"Are you okay?" Kang-Woo asked hurriedly.
Fortunately, he caught Echidna before she fell to the ground. He noticed that Echidna was breathing heavily, and beads of sweat were streaming down her forehead.
'She overdid herself.'
Echidna was paying the price for using Kang-Woo's power and exerting more power than she originally had.
"I-I'm okay. I still can move a b—"
"That's enough for today. Stay here and rest for a bit."
"But..."
"Stay here and rest," Kang-Woo said firmly.
Echidna flinched a bit, but she then nodded in agreement.
Kang-Woo laid her down on top of a nearby rock and stood up.
"Just lie here," he told Echidna.
"What about you, Kang-Woo?"
"I have to take care of a few things."
After saying that, Kang-Woo walked toward the forest.
"Fuu," Kang-Woo let out a sigh.
He could hear loud steps coming from inside the forest.
"There are around five, I assume," he remarked.
There was no way that the other monsters in the Gate hadn't noticed a twenty-meter-long dragon wreaking havoc.
Kang-Woo began warming up after sensing five Giant Ogres coming his way.
'It isn't going to be easy.'
Kang-Woo felt a bit burdened at the thought of fighting five Giant Ogres without Echidna's help.
"Well, I guess I could push myself a little once in a while."
Leeching from the experience points that his summoned beast gained from hunting was good and all, but Kang-Woo also needed to do things himself from time to time. Just like how a knife needed to be sharpened for it to cut properly, a person needed to keep fighting to maintain their battle sense.
Fwoosh!
The Authority of Hellfire set ablaze both of Kang-Woo's hands. A smile appeared on his face, and strong bloodlust flowed out of him. After being completely covered in demonic energy, Kang-Woo no longer seemed like a human.
Rumble!!!
The predator of predators bared his sharp teeth.
* * *
"I've leveled up quite a lot."
Once he was done hunting, Kang-Woo opened his status window and checked his achievements for the day. His current level was 49. This meant he was about to reach Level 50 and achieve his Sixth Awakening.
Thanks to hunting in an S-rank Gate, his level had risen from 41 to 49 in a single day. His leveling-up speed was completely unprecedented. It was so fast that if he were to tell someone, that person would probably think that he had gone crazy.
'In the first place, there probably isn't any Player who can hunt in an S-rank Gate with a level that's in the forties range.'
It was all thanks to Kang-Woo's absurd stats and abilities that didn't match his level.
'My demonic energy also rose.'
Kang-Woo smiled when he noticed that his demonic energy had increased significantly compared to before. The monsters in this Gate didn't give as much demonic energy as demonic beasts, but Kang-Woo had still managed to accumulate quite a lot because of the monsters' high rank.
"I guess I can call it a day."
Kang-Woo wanted to achieve his Sixth Awakening since it was just around the corner, but he was starting to feel the effects of having pushed himself a bit too hard.
'There's always tomorrow.'
After all, the speed at which he had leveled up today was inconceivable for other Players.
"Echidna, are you feeling okay?"
"I'm still a bit tired, but I'm fine after resting a bit."
After taking a break on the rock, Echidna rejoined Kang-Woo and helped him to hunt, but she seemed far more exhausted than she had let on.
Kang-Woo gently patted her head and said, "Let's call it a day."
"I'm still good to go."
"I'm tired too, so let's end it here."
"Okay… Then let's go home."
Echidna's expression showed that she was relieved. She didn't say it out loud, but it seemed like she had been overexerting herself.
After stroking Echidna's head a bit more, Kang-Woo turned toward the Gate's exit.
"Right. Let's buy you some new clothes on the way home," he said.
Echidna was currently wearing Kang-Woo's outerwear instead of the ripped dress.
She nodded with bright eyes. "I'm okay with anything that you choose for me, Kang-Woo."
"Okay."
Echidna walked beside Kang-Woo while gripping his clothes. As they exited the Gate, they were greeted by the chilly night air.
Kang-Woo searched for clothing stores around the area. However, they were standing by a Gate, so there were no clothing stores nearby.
Kang-Woo walked toward the closest clothing store by using the shortest path that was displayed on the map on his phone. The pair then found themselves in front of a deserted alleyway.
'If we go through here and walk about three hundred meters...'
Kang-Woo looked down at the map while continuing to walk.
"Kang-Woo."
At that moment, Echidna, who was following behind Kang-Woo, pulled on his clothes. He tilted his head as he turned to face her.
Echidna said with a stiff expression, "I smell blood."
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