Level Up Machine

Chapter 26 Unexpected Jackpot (3)

‘Where… am I?’

A Lizardman, who was about three meters tall, opened his eyes.

His name was Ruderek.

He was a brave Lizardman warrior. He stared blankly into space, as if intoxicated. A faint, broken voice slipped from his mouth.

– Are the preparations complete?

– Yes. Now we just need to insert it.

– Sigh. I can’t believe it’s this hard to create just one of these things.

– There’s no helping it. Right now, we are…

A conversation from beyond his hazy vision trickled into Ruderek’s ears.

In a daze, Ruderek looked around. He realized his body was bound to a solid metal device.

– From now on, this is what you must do.

One of the two beings conversing approached him. The being held a small black hexagonal object, not even a fraction of the size of his fist, and brought it to his head.

– Kill the humans, Ruderek.

With those words, excruciating pain tore through his entire body.

“Grrr!”

The vision in Yeong-sik’s mind abruptly ended. A sharp headache swept through his head.

His companions, who were walking ahead, turned toward him.

“Yeong-sik, are you feeling unwell?”

“Are you okay?”

Gil-soo and Ara approached Yeong-sik with worried expressions.

Yeong-sik clutched his forehead with one hand and replied.

“I’m fine. I just have a headache for a moment…”

“Hmm. It could be from fatigue.”

Bae Han-seong, who had approached Yeong-sik, extended his hand toward him.

“Cure.”

A short skill name slipped from his lips, and a pure white light flowed into Yeong-sik’s head.

In an instant, Yeong-sik felt the lingering headache disappear and a sense of clarity wash over him.

“I’ve cast a healing spell. I’ll take care of the Lizardmen we encounter, so go inside and rest.”

“…Thank you.”

Yeong-sik bowed deeply to Han-seong. He genuinely felt grateful to him.

Regardless of the current state of the Salvator Guild, they had once been a mighty guild that made their mark on the eastern continent. For a guild member to treat him, a mere level 25 engineer with an obscure crafting class, this well was incomprehensible.

This act signified that Han-seong saw him as a guild member, a family, beyond just a matter of interest.

Yeong-sik wasn’t like Han-seong. He was cold and calculating. He wasn’t a scumbag who would betray his allies for his own gain, but he wasn’t one to abandon profit due to emotions either.

To someone like him, a person like Han-seong seemed dazzling.

“Haha. It’s nothing. From now on… there will be many things we need to overcome together.”

Han-seong said with a bittersweet smile.

He turned and headed towards Ruberin.

Upon returning to the guild, Yeong-sik was greeted warmly by Tiria and bombarded with questions.

Did you eat well? Are you hurt anywhere? Are you tired?

Her questions flowed more like those of a concerned mother than a guild leader.

“Nothing happened. Please don’t worry.”

“Hmm. But your level is still low, so I’m worried. You must be very confused, having suddenly come to this world…” Tiria looked at Yeong-sik’s group with a worried expression.

Yeong-sik chuckled at Tiria’s anxious demeanor over something that wasn’t her own concern.

He began to understand why the Salvator Guild members, who were originally from Earth, revered Tiria, a native of this world, as their guild leader.

‘It is a bit worrying.’

Her kindness was very much appreciated in the current situation.

However, if she hesitated to make decisions because of her good nature, as she had during the fall of the Salvator Guild, a great disaster could befall them.

With this thought in mind, Yeong-sik spoke to Tiria.

“But, Guild Leader…”

“Please just call me Tiria.”

“Alright. Tiria, do…”

“You don’t need to add ‘-nim’ either.”

Yeong-sik made an awkward expression at her words.

He had only been in the Salvator Guild for about a day. Such excessive kindness was somewhat burdensome.

“I’ll do that later.”

“Hmm. Alright.”

Tiria looked slightly dejected as she noticed Yeong-sik keeping his distance. Seeing this, Yeong-sik sighed deeply and continued speaking.

“But didn’t the native inhabitants here experience great confusion when the first summoners arrived?”

“Of course. The entire kingdom was in turmoil because of it.”

She spoke with a bitter expression.

“And… there were many people who harbored ill intentions.”

Yeong-sik nodded at her words.

Thousands of people had suddenly appeared one day. It was impossible for there not to be those who tried to exploit them.

“Still, thanks to the summoners, we were able to stop the advance of the northern monsters. No matter how much gratitude we express, it’s never enough.”

She said this with a gentle smile.

Yeong-sik nodded with a slight smile.

“We are also very grateful for providing us with a place to stay and support.”

“Hehe. It’s nothing. You must be very tired today, so please go in and rest.”

Tiria said this as she stood up.

Yeong-sik wanted to ask her a few more questions but decided to do it later and headed to the room assigned to him yesterday.

“Then, we’re planning to go hunting again tomorrow, so please be ready in the morning.”

“Got it. Rest well.”

“See you tomorrow.”

Gil-soo and Ara greeted Yeong-sik and entered their rooms.

Left alone, Yeong-sik also opened his door and went inside.

“Phew.”

Finally alone, Yeong-sik immediately took out the Black Cube from his pocket.

“What is this?”

Yeong-sik looked down at the Black Cube in his hand with a complex expression. He thought about the images that had appeared in his mind when he used the Structural Analysis skill on the Black Cube.

‘That was definitely Ruderek’s memory.’

The Lizardman bound to the massive metal device—it was undoubtedly the boss monster that Cheon Tae-hwang had defeated.

Yeong-sik couldn’t understand why Ruderek’s memories had flowed through the Black Cube.

‘Is it some kind of black box?’

Yeong-sik turned the Black Cube over in his hand, pondering.

The Black Cube and a black box seemed similar in that they stored the memories of a subject.

After thinking for a while, Yeong-sik slowly shook his head.

The words spoken by the mysterious beings who had inserted the Black Cube into Ruderek’s body were unsettling to consider it merely as a recording device.

“It’s more like a control device.”

Yeong-sik muttered, narrowing his eyes.

In a world where magic existed, it wasn’t surprising that there was a device that could turn someone into a puppet. The problem was that this device was a “machine.”

‘Why?’

Yeong-sik furrowed his brow in confusion.

There were no machines in this world, only magical devices that served similar purposes. But a machine found inside a boss monster?

Yeong-sik closed his eyes and fell into thought.

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand why the Black Cube found inside the boss monster was a “machine.”

“Hmmm. Let’s set that problem aside for now.”

Yeong-sik muttered as he opened his status window.

He noticed that the Structural Analysis skill was now displayed as Level 2.

A wide smile spread across Yeong-sik’s face.

“Good.”

Yeong-sik placed his left hand on his right arm and used the Structural Analysis skill. A blue light seeped into his body, and a peculiar warmth enveloped his entire being.

A rigid mechanical sound echoed in his ears.

Chiiiik.

[Interference with the security code has been detected.]

[External interference has attempted to interpret the security code.]

[External interference has successfully interpreted the security code of level 3.]

[The maximum unlockable security level has increased to level 3. Do you wish to unlock the security level?]

Yeong-sik heard the expected mechanical sound in his ears and grinned, nodding.

Click.

A sound like gears meshing came to his ears. A fragment of a forgotten memory surfaced in his mind.

He was walking through a corridor made of cold metal.

With a weary expression, a tired look, and an exasperated face, he walked endlessly through the corridor.

Then, something hit his foot. Looking down, he saw a black hexagonal object rolling on the ground.

“It’s time… to set things right.”

He muttered those words as he stomped on the black hexagonal object.

Crunch.

Fragments, resembling black obsidian, scattered across the corridor.

The memory fragment in his mind then faded.

“Ugh!”

Yeong-sik clutched his head against the piercing headache. Thinking about the vision that had surfaced in his mind, his expression hardened.

‘The Black Cube?’

The object that had rolled on the floor back then was the same Black Cube he held in his hand now.

Yeong-sik understood why he had felt a sense of familiarity when he saw the Black Cube.

He had indeed seen the Black Cube in the past.

Ding.

[Security level 3 has been unlocked.]

[You can now use Boost.]

“…Boost?”

His train of thought was interrupted by the mechanical voice in his ear.

Yeong-sik looked down at his body with a curious expression.

There were no noticeable external changes.

Ding.

[Structural Analysis has been successfully performed.]

[The proficiency of the Structural Analysis skill has increased.]

[You have stepped into a new realm. The level limit has increased.]

A clear chime accompanied by a blue message window appeared.

Yeong-sik’s eyes sparkled as he read the part about the ‘level limit increase.’

‘It increased to 35.’

Yeong-sik opened his status window to check his stats and the new level limit. The level limit had increased by 10, as before, but his stats had risen even more significantly than before.

A wide smile spread across Yeong-sik’s face as he confirmed that the method he chose to grow stronger was correct.

He clenched his fist.

The overwhelming figure of Cheon Tae-hwang, someone incomparable to him, came to mind.

A baseless intuition flashed through his mind that he could catch up to, or even surpass, Cheon Tae-hwang.

“Boost, huh…”

Yeong-sik thought about the new ability he had gained.

“Should I give it a try?”

With eyes full of anticipation, Yeong-sik decided to test his newly acquired ability.

“Boost.”

Shooo!

With his words, jet-like flames burst from his shoulder blades.

Yeong-sik’s body shot forward as if propelled.

“What, what?”

Unable to control his body’s rapid acceleration, Yeong-sik flailed his arms in a panic.

Despite his efforts, he couldn’t stop the momentum once it had started.

Thud!

Yeong-sik’s body crashed into the wall. Propelled like a missile, his body went straight through the wall.

In the next room, Ara was in the middle of changing out of her muddy clothes. The half-dressed Ara and Yeong-sik, who had burst through the wall, locked eyes.

A silence, heavy as death, fell between them.

Yeong-sik felt an extremely ominous premonition and forced an awkward smile. Desperate to resolve the situation, he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“You have a great figure, just like a model…”

“Kyaaaaaa!”

Thwack!

Ara’s fist struck Yeong-sik squarely in the solar plexus.