71 Chapter 70 (2/2)

Besides, the System said that demons with more souls existed on upper floors as well. He concluded that, for both his experience points and to clear the quest, it could be more advantageous to get to higher floors as quickly as possible.

'Fine.'

Let's go up, then.

Jin-Woo spoke up.

”Second floor.”

[You need the entry permit.]

Jin-Woo summoned the scroll as per the instruction. As soon as it appeared, it dissolved into the light.

[The second floor of the Demon's Castle has been unlocked.]

[You are transferring to the second floor.]

Buzz…..

An even stronger ray of light began rising up from the magic circle. At the same time, Jin-Woo realised something.

'Ah…. So that's how it works.'

As it turned out, this whole thing was just an elevator.

The moment he realised what this pillar of light actually was, Jin-Woo was immediately transferred to the second floor, along with the blinding explosion of light.

Second floor, third, fourth…. and eventually, the 27th floor. That was the result of grinding for two days straight.

He told Jin-Ah, his little sister, that he'd be on a week-long trip.

'I have five more days.'

Considering his gradually-increasing clearing speed, he began to think that it might be doable to get to what he assumed to be the last floor, the 100th floor, within the next five days. Maybe even sooner than that.

Jin-Woo took a look at his surroundings. It was still a ruined city.

'I can't tell which city this floor is based on anymore.'

Every floor was modelled off on a different city.

However, the higher he climbed, the state of destruction the city was in got worse and worse, and on this 27th floor, he found it hard to tell whether this place used to be a city or not.

Would a city look like this after having experienced a concentrated carpet bombing?

Jin-Woo quickly threw away useless thoughts and shook his head.

'I shouldn't be wasting time like this.'

He checked the time with his wristwatch, and it was already 11 in the evening.

There was no daytime or night inside this dungeon. So he needed to rely on his watch to keep time. 11 would be a good time to get some shut-eye if he wanted to continue clearing this dungeon tomorrow with a refreshed body and mind.

But before that….

'Should I check the result of my hard work first?'

Jin-Woo shifted his gaze over to the quest progress window.

[Collected souls of demons: 2,116/10,000]

'Over 2,100, is it….'

Meaning, he had hunted down over a thousand demons in a day.

He had killed quite a lot during the last two days, that's for sure.

It was still a long way off from the goal of ten thousand souls, but he was betting on the demons of the upper floors that allegedly possessed multiple souls.

'Right, getting to higher floors should remain as my priority.'

Next up, his level.

”Heok!!”

Jin-Woo's eyes opened wider.

[Level: 67]

His level had climbed to 67 even before he had noticed it.

He'd been hunting Low-Ranked Demons worth 100 EXP for a while, but then, his levelling up speed exploded upwards after he began hunting Mid-Ranked Demons that gave out 300 EXP each.

'My level is climbing up real nicely, too.'

Lots of monsters, rich experience points, and the perfect level of difficulty.

The Demon's Castle was the best level-up zone one could ever hope for.

His level wasn't the only thing experiencing a rise, either. Jin-Woo's proficiency with his various skills was also rising up, as well.

Currently, the 'Knight Killer' was floating above Jin-Woo's palm. He was using the skill 'Ruler's Reach'. The power that allowed him to physically manipulate objects without actually touching them.

Even when he was doing nothing, like right now, he devoted himself to increasing his proficiency with the skill.

'Well, this Ruler's Reach skill doesn't require any Mana, to begin with.'

It was a bit tiring mentally because he had to constantly focus on the skill, but compared to the potential uses this skill had, a small little headache was a cheap price to pay.

With a nice timing, a good piece of news arrived before his eyes.

[The level of the skill, 'Ruler's Reach' has increased!]

'Nice!'

Jin-Woo grinned brightly and leaned against a wall. He felt safer and more content as he became stronger bit by bit. His eyelids slowly closed.

'Now that I think about it, the Guild Master licence must've been issued by now.'

Was Yu Jin-Ho doing well?

Perhaps because it had been a while since he acted alone, he couldn't help but recall the mug of Yu Jin-Ho who used to follow him around.

The successful first-born who had become an excellent entrepreneur, and the second born with the qualification to become a Master, but who was still a university student. The fight between them would not be easy.

'Do your best, Yu Jin-Ho.'

After cheering Yu Jin-Ho on in his mind, Jin-Woo slowly drifted off to a deep slumber.

Yu Jin-Ho entered a luxurious traditional Korean restaurant with a determined face. He chose this place after taking into account his father's taste.

”Has the Chairman arrived yet?”

”Yes, he's waiting for you.”

Yu Jin-Ho swallowed his saliva after hearing the maître d'hôtel.

”Please, this way.”

He was guided to the private room where his father, Yu Myung-Han, was waiting for him.

The traditional sliding paper door was opened and immediately, Yu Jin-Ho's nervousness increased by several folds after seeing his father's face.

He wondered if he was getting weak-kneed again, but Yu Jin-Ho hardened his resolve and settled down on the opposite side of his father.

”What's the occasion? You even called me first for this meeting.”

”Father, before I begin, I'd like you to take a look at this first.”

”And this is….?”

”This is my Guild Master licence, as well as the records of the raids I've been in so far.”

”Your Master…. licence? Yours?”

When Yu Myung-Han formed a disbelieving face, Yu Jin-Ho nodded his head with a smile.

”Yes, Father.”

Yu Myung-Han wordlessly took a look at the documents his son had handed over. And then, a certain light began gleaming in his eyes.

”…..”

While his father maintained a weighty silence, Yu Jin-Ho's heart was beating so madly that he found it hard to even breathe properly.

”And so….”

Yu Myung-Han carefully placed the documents on the table and continued on.

”….You wish to run the Yujin Guild, is that right?”

”That's correct.”

”H-mm….”

It was at this point that a hint of a dilemma, alongside the emotion of shock, appeared on Yu Myung-Han's face.

'To think that father is pondering between me and my older brother….'

Yu Jin-Ho was genuinely moved inside. The fact that his father was thinking about this matter was a big win for Yu Jin-Ho.

If it was in the past, he'd be satisfied with this much. However, he had no desire whatsoever to back off now.

”As you know already, Father, giving the position of the Guild Master to an outsider carries too much risk….”

”Enough.”

Yu Myung-Han raised his hand.

At the same time, Yu Jin-Ho's mouth stopped moving.

Father's 'Enough' was one of the most absolute commands that no one in the Yu household could go against.

”There is someone I want you to meet.”

”Pardon me?”

Yu Jin-Ho's eyes went round at that. He was the one who called and asked for this meeting, yet, his father wanted to introduce him to someone?

Who could it be?

Just as Yu Jin-Ho's curiosity peaked, the door opposite to the one he used to enter the room slid open.

”Ah…. Hello, there.”

Was he in the late twenties? Or early thirties? A man around that age group awkwardly greeted Yu Jin-Ho as he entered the room.

Who was this man?

Yu Jin-Ho couldn't recognise this man at all.

When Yu Myung-Han signalled with his chin, this unknown man settled down next to him.

”This here is… Hunter Goh Myung-Hwan.”

'Goh Myung-Hwan?'

Yu Jin-Ho tilted his head.

He had never heard of this name before.

Father nodded his head as if he had expected this already, and continued on.

”He is one of the survivors from the White Tiger Guild's Red Gate incident, the one that's been making so much noise lately.