Levelling Up In An Exclusive Dungeon - Chapter 8

The ‘Cleric’ was a rare specialty.

Many hunters felt the importance of being a healer so they sought to change their specialty to a Cleric, but just pretending to be religious for show didn’t help at all.

Only a hunter who shows strong faith and sincere selflessness becomes Clerics.

Just having his specialty to be a Cleric meant that he’d get jobs and transactions without companies asking for anything more.

It was like a guaranteed check not only for parties but also for individual transactions.

Clerics are well respected and trusted among the hunter community, and a lot of them are able to trade just by showing what their specialty was.

“I didn’t know one could get this specialty just by breaking skeletons.”

He’s never heard of such an occurrence before. 

Maybe it’s due to the fact that not a lot of skeleton monsters are encountered in the outside world.

“Going through all that resulted in some good things, I see…”

However, being a cleric wouldn’t be very helpful for solo work inside a dungeon.

They may have useful assistive and defense skills, but they’re not very capable of fast hunting. 

“Looks like I’d have to rely on this bat for the time being.”

Because he can’t attack a large number of monsters with his current skills, he has to continue beating them up one by one just as he had been doing until now.

Fortunately, the power of his baseball bat was superior to any other item.

If it had been an ordinary weapon, it couldn’t have handled more than a hundred skeletons. 

“Heal.”

When Jinhyuk tested his skill, he felt a sense of relief.

Just as it says, the heal skill had an effect of relieving fatigue aside from healing physical damage.

Kang Jinhyuk regained his energy and walked further into the labyrinth.

Maybe monsters no longer appeared because he caught a lot of the skeletons.

Kang Jinhyuk, who was looking around with a newfound confidence, soon discovered a silver-white mineral that emits a subtle blue light.

There were clear traces of someone digging for something, which was the Mithril.

“I can’t believe such minerals are embedded in this kind of a stone wall. Heh, it’s such an odd place.”

Kang Jinhyuk took out the pickaxe that the dwarf gave him.

“One, two!”

The minerals rolled up when he hit it with the pickaxe as hard as he could.

“Is the Mithril a metal that breaks this easily?”

Whether it was because of Jinhyuk’s strength or the Mithril was just a soft metal, there’s no knowing for sure.

No more minerals were seen around when JInhyuk finished digging up an armful of the Mithril.

As a test, he dug more of the surrounding wall with his pickaxe, but only ordinary soil came out.

Maybe this was all the Mithril that the dwarf left.

“Well… maybe this much is enough.”

Jinhyuk kept the mined Mithril in his inventory and proceeded to walk back. 

* * *

After the black stone wall, Jinhyuk quickly arrived at the gate that lead to the first floor. He reached the dwarf’s blacksmith house in no time.

When the dwarf, who was sitting around and resting, saw Jinhyuk’s face, he stood up immediately. 

“Seems like you’re not tired at all?”

“Is that something you say to people who clearly look exhausted?”

“Don’t you know what a joke is, kid?”

The dwarf chuckled loudly as he stuck out his hand towards Jinhyuk.

“Give it to me. I made you something amazing since you brought this for me.”

Jinhyuk’s hand stopped for a while after handing over the Mithril that he had mined.

He gave only two-thirds of the Mithril to the dwarf.

“Here you go.”

“This is all that’s left back there?

“I dug around for a bit, but I didn’t find anything more.”

“Tch, so supplies are running out in that labyrinth as well.”

The dwarf didn’t suspect at all and just took the Mithril.

Before melting the Mithril in the furnace, the dwarf asked Jinhyuk a question.

“Alright. Then, I should go ahead and make some equipment…”

“Well, is there any specific skill you want to put?”

“Hmmm… 

“That’s easy enough.”

As the dwarf started the fire in the furnace, a tremendous heat took over the blacksmith house.

It felt warmer than a regular sauna, so Jinhyuk naturally fell farther away as he’s unable to withstand the heat.

It’s only been a few moments but his whole body was already soaked in sweat.

“How is that ahjussi working in this condition?”

Given the dwarf’s naturally hairy body, the fact that he can endure working with the furnace without even taking off his top was remarkable.

Jinhyuk went out of the labyrinth for a moment because he thought this task would take a considerable amount of time.

It was already late, so he wanted to take sleep first.

“I think I can get about six hours of sleep.

After setting up his alarm, he lay on top of the bed and closed his eyes shut.

He thought of washing up before sleeping, but he just fell asleep in the end.

When he opened his eyes again.

On his bedside was his smartphone vibrating with a loud ringtone.

“It’s been a while since I slept that well.”

He can’t believe he slept for six straight hours without waking up midway.

It’s his first time since he turned 23.

“Did I move my body too much in a long time?”

The heal skill relieved his physical fatigue, but his mind still seemed to be exhausted.

After hurriedly washing his face and changing his clothes, Jinhyuk immediately went into the attic.

He felt the intense heat as soon as he entered the labyrinth.

It was because of the heat emitted from the blacksmith’s house.

“It completely turned into a steamer…”

Even the goblins were struggling with the heat.

Jinhyuk headed to the blacksmith house after hunting the poor goblins.

He arrived just after the dwarf finished his work.

The dwarf discovered Jinhyuk’s presence and waved his hand.

“Where’ve you been and what’d you do?”

“W-well, I had to attend to some business.”

He couldn’t tell the truth because he knew that the dwarf would say more things if he knew that Jinhyuk had fallen asleep.

Kang Jinhyuk, who was trying to avoid the dwarf’s gaze, saw an object on top of the table.

It was an armor, connected with a dense chain, which had a subtle blue shine similar to the Mithril he mined.

“Perhaps, is this…”

“That’s right. It’s an armor just for you. I at least made it comfortable to wear inside.”

When Jinhyuk picked up the chain armor, a notification immediately appeared in front of him.

[Unique item acquired.]

A unique item, one rank greater than a rare one!

Kang Jinhyuk barely contained his excitement.

[Mithril Chain Armor]

Rank: Unique

Explanation: Chain armor created by a dwarf with all his might. It is light and durable.

[Distinct Effect]

Decrease physical damage by 50 percent.

Decrease magic damage by 50 percent.

After checking the item’s information, Jinhyuk was able to understand why the item was ranked unique.

The highest damage decrease rate for rare items was 20 percent. 

The armor that the dwarf made can decrease it by 50 percent.

It also has the effect of decreasing both physical and magic damage.

His suspicions of the Mithril, which he thought was just a common metal like the oriharukon, completely disappeared.

“Wow…”

The custom-made chain armor fit perfectly for him.

On top of that, it wasn’t very heavy. He could easily wear normal clothes on the outside to hide the armor.

Kang Jinhyuk wondered where else he could get such a great item this easily.

“Thank you so much, ahjussi!”

“Forget it, just take this with you.”

The dwarf took out a large barrel with several strange devices attached to it.

“What is this?”

“Can’t you tell? It’s a drinking bottle.”

“A drinking bottle? Perhaps… is it the drinking bottle that you were gonna make?”

“That’s right. I tried to incorporate the mithril that you brought.”

“Aren’t you going to use this to drink alcohol?”

“No, you take it. I already quit drinking.”

Jinhyuk snooped around when he heard those words.

“You drank some yesterday though.”

“You brought it for me so I just gave it a little taste.”

“Then why did you make this?”

“Why do you think? I just wanted to make it so I made it.”

“…..”

Jinhyuk doesn’t understand well, but dwarves are originally that kind of species.

Creating whatever they like.

They find joy in the process of creating things.

“Even if you give this to me, I’m not really someone who knows how to make alcohol…”

“I know, bastard. How can a man who brings such a disgusting drink know how to make a good alcohol.”

The dwarf still feels like vomiting at the thought of the taste.

It seems like he really despised it.

“Just put any kind of drink in there and the flavor will come alive.”

“Eh? Is that possible?”

“Try drinking from it once if you don’t believe me.”

The dwarf already put in it the soju that Jinhyuk brought yesterday.

Jinhyuk took a sip half-heartedly but almost dropped the bottle in surprise.

“W-what is this? Is this really soju?”

The taste was so good that he could understand why the dwarf cringed when he tasted the original soju that he brought.

Living your life while drinking this kind of amazing thing just makes it natural for the dwarf to have the reaction that he had when he tasted the alcohol from outside.

“Hehehehe, now do you know what great alcohol tastes like?”

It was truly extraordinary.

The unique-rank armor was also amazing, but he didn’t expect the dwarf to make such an amazing taste-changing bottle.

For Kang Jinhyuk, the dwarf seemed like a futuristic robot with a 4-dimensional pocket.

“Will any alcohol also be enhanced when put in here?”

“No, only the transparent alcohol that you brought would be a good choice.”

After hearing those words, Jinhyuk thought of a plan.

* * *

Jinhyuk had a strong confidence after drinking from the bottle that the dwarf gave him.

‘I can sell this one!’

He can’t do the same for his bat and his armor, but this alcoholic drink was different.

He can make the tasty alcohol as long as he had this bottle with him, so it’s worth expecting a big profit from this.

He contacted Lee Juncheol as soon as he left the attic.

<Hi, Kang Jinhyuk-ssi. What’s the matter?>

“I called because I want to sell some things.”

<What kind of monster corpse is it this time?>

“Kobold corpses and… alcohol.”

<Eh? Alcohol?>

Lee Juncheol doubted what he heard.

Alcohol? It was completely unrelated to monsters.

<What brand is it?>

“I made it myself.”

<…Alright, I’ll be waiting at my office.>

Lee Juncheol wrapped his hands around his forehead.

He has to please Jinhyuk because he’s a valuable customer, but he had doubts about the homemade alcohol.

Maybe this was why people said it’s not easy to build a business.

However, his mind changed when Jinhyuk arrived at the office.

The alcohol that Jinhyuk brought in a bottle seemed like an ordinary beer.

But right when he opened the lid, a rich scent that wasn’t present in ordinary beer stimulated Lee Juncheol’s sense of smell.

“You… made this yourself?”

Instead of answering, Jinhyuk just nodded his head.

Juncheol poured some of it on a glass and investigated it.

The color is undeniably similar to a beer, but the scent is completely different.

After thinking for a bit, Juncheol braced himself and carefully put the glass to his lips.

And just like when Jinhyuk first tasted the alcohol, Juncheol was met with a great surprise.

“How is it? Can we sell it?”

Juncheol answered with no hesitation.

“Let’s sell it. We should definitely sell this.”

Lee Juncheol was confident in his knowledge of alcoholic drinks as he had a lot of experience drinking while working in the organization.

The alcohol brought by Kang Jinhyuk had a deeper flavor and aroma than anything else he had ever drunk.

If they use this and promote it as a high-ended brand, it will definitely soar high in the market.

“How much will you sell this for?”

“You decide the price. I just want shares from the profit.”

“…Then, 70-30?”

Jinhyuk shook his head and held up eight fingers.

There was no need to ask what it meant.