Chapter 4

4. Crystal Mining

Rank.

That was the method of classifying the ranks of Awakeners or monsters. It consisted of nine stages from SS to G.

The deviation between each class wasn’t very large, but there were three sections where overwhelming walls existed.

The section from class C to class B.

The section from class A to class S.

Lastly, it was the section from S to SS.

So people grouped each section together: Class C or lower. A and B were higher. Class S was referred to as the highest level.

The SS class was nicknamed “outside the standards,” which was rarely used. That was because there were only two Awakeners outside the standard in South Korea and not more than 70 worldwide.

As explained above, ranks grouped in the same unit didn’t have a large lower ranks. Therefore, what mattered in their fight was the number of heads rather than the individual skills and capabilities.

“Kerreuk!”

“Kieeek! Kegege!”

There were at most 15 Ground Ghosts. The Goblins, on the other hand, were more than twice that. In addition, a Normal Goblin was F-class, so overall, they ranked higher than Ground Ghosts.

The Goblins swung their axes and clubs, moving swiftly to not be bitten by the Ground Ghosts.

Whenever a Ground Ghost would fall, they would rush in herds and tore the body. There was no way the Ground Ghost would survive.

Fifteen Ground Ghosts were quickly wiped out. The Goblins let out a victory cry, and a rather savage scene followed. They began to ravenously eat the corpses of the Ground Ghosts.

A Goblin’s sharp teeth were perfect for eating raw meat.

‘They’re eating well.’

After watching the Goblin’s meal time for a bit, Ko Byeong-gap soon averted his eyes. That was because his stomach grew upset. He had been a hunter for the past three years, and he had seen everything, but that was too much.

He glanced around for a moment. It was to check if there were any monsters that he hadn’t spotted. Fortunately, there was no particular thing to note.

“Lo… Lord…”

A Goblin came behind his back. Ko Byeong-gap turned around in surprise.

One Hob Goblin was holding out the hind legs of a Ground Ghost with his hands.

“What? What am I supposed to do?”

“Together. Eat…”

“Ha! What the…”

Ko Byeong-gap giggled. Still, it wasn’t very desirable, he thought.

“It’s alright. You guys should eat a lot.”

“Lord, sir, if you don’t eat, you’ll be hungry.”

Ko Byeong-gap bit a cigarette in his mouth and patted the Hob Goblin on the shoulder. He smiled pretentiously.

“I’m full just by looking at you guys eating, so be sure to chew and eat a lot.”

“Lord sir…” The Hob Goblin looked at Ko Byeong-gap with a wistful eye. He must’ve been moved.

Ko Byeong-gap stared at the Hob Goblin. Come to think of it, that Hob Goblin always spoke to him on behalf of the other Goblins.

“What’s your name?”

“Name. What do you mean?”

“Okay, don’t you guys have names too?”

Ko Byeong-gap had always guessed, so he asked. The answer he received was quite different from his expectations.

“I don’t have a name. Only Goblin. The others have a name.”

The Hob Goblin pointed its finger at someone. It was the Giant Goblin, who was chewing an entire Ground Ghost.

“That Goblin. Name. This is Turka.”

“Why don’t you have a name?”

“Weak Goblin. No name. Strong Goblin. There is a name.”

“Oh, what a cold society. If you’re weak, you don’t even have a name.”

Ko Byeong-gap unconsciously exhaled cigarette smoke toward the Hob Goblin. The Hob Goblin coughed and coughed.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“Cough! It’s okay.”

“Don’t you smoke?”

“Cigarettes? I don’t know.”

“Oh, yeah.”

Ko Byeong-gap shook off the butt, which was the cigarette’s end, then he said with a big smile, “Shall I give you a name?”

“Well, are you sure?”

“It’s not that difficult. I’ll give you a special name because you’re a jerk. What would be good?”

“Oh!”

The Hob Goblin looked at Ko Byeong-gap with a look of anticipation. After a couple of seconds of contemplation, he shouted with a flick of his fingers.

“Hey, what do you think of dog poop?”

“…”

“Are you serious?”

“Well, I’m serious. I’m not kidding!”

“Don’t you like it? Then how about Gobung?”

“Gobung?”

The Hob Goblin said, “Go-bung? Gobung?” Then that time, he nodded and liked it.

“Alright!”

“Yeah, go ahead with you.”

“Thank you! Thank you!”

“Good, good.”

Ko Byeong-gap sent Gobung back. Gobung jumped up and down with joy and returned to the Goblin pack.

The Goblins and their meal were soon over. They even packed up some leftover meat and prepared to bring them back.

The crack attack wasn’t over yet. Ko Byeong-gap led the Goblins and broke through the world behind them.

What stood in their way continued to be Ground Ghosts. No matter how weak the Ground Ghosts were, some Goblins were still injured during the battle.

Ko Byeong-gap healed the injured with the potions he had brought beforehand. It was a waste, to be honest.

After about an hour of progress, the boss of the crack appeared. It was an F-class monster named ‘Ground Goblin.’ It looked almost like a Ground Ghost, with brown fur, and was a little larger.

“Get out of the way.”

Ko Byeong-gap pushed the Goblins back and fired rifle bullets at the Ground Goblin. No matter how tough its fur was, it couldn’t withstand the bullet. The Ground Goblin collapsed in vain and died.

“Ku-kung!”

When the crack boss died, the world began to collapse. An escape portal rose over the body of the Ground Goblin.

“Come on, get on quickly!”

“Yes, Lord sir!”

The Goblins rushed to collect the dead monster’s body. Some of them filtered out the magic stones and gathered them together at the order of Ko Byeong-gap.

When Ko Byeong-gap opened the door to Ashvilam, the prepared Goblins passed one by one. After packing up the last one, Ko Byeong-gap came out of the Back World with a backpack full of magic stones.

* * *

“It had been priced at 520,000 won. Would you like some cash? Or…”

“Please transfer it to my account.”

“Yes, it will be deposited into your linked account within the next day.”

Ko Byeong-gap came back to Seoul after finishing in Gapyeong-gun. He stopped by the association and sold the magic stones he got that day, and went outside. The sky was already getting dark.

“Good luck!”

His body would’ve been heavy at any given time, but that day was different since he didn’t do anything.

The Goblins handled the fight, and all Ko Byeong-gap did was finish the boss monster. As a result, there was little ammunition consumption. He used some potions, but he didn’t spend much more than usual. In short, his net profit was enormous.

‘I thought I was involved in something weird as the Goblin Lord or something, but this is good, right?’

That day, Ko Byeong-gap stopped by a butcher’s shop and thought he should buy some meat. He strolled through the market with a light walk, and then, there was a shop that caught his eye.

– Damoa Hardware Store & Farm Equipment

“Oh, right. I have to buy a pickaxe.” He went in quickly before the store closed.

The owner of the store, who appeared to be in his 50s, was watching TV with the expression that everything in the world was annoying.

As Ko Byeong-gap came in, he quickly stood up and smiled at the seller. He had to sell something because his business hadn’t been doing well lately.

“Oh, welcome. What are you looking for?”

“I’d like to buy a pickaxe.”

“Oh, the pickaxe is all over here.” The owner of the store guided him.

“How much does this cost?”

“There’s 10,000 won, 100,000 won. There are What are you going to use it for?”

“Oh… I’m going to dig up some land. Is this 10,000 won?”

“Oh, you can’t use this for land. It’s for digging herbs. You can start at 30,000 won.”

Certainly, the 10,000 won pickaxe was made of plastic and didn’t look durable. The shop owner guided Ko Byeong-gap to the 30,000 won line.

A pickaxe with a thick wooden sack and a cast iron head caught his eye.

“How much is this?”

“40,000 won with a card and 35,000 won with cash.”

‘Oh… I don’t have cash.’

Ko Byeong-gap was lost in thought, stroking the pickaxe.

“This one… No, wait.”

“Take your time…”

“I’d like 10 of these, please.”

“Ten? Oh, thank you.”

The store owner was excited and handed out the pickaxe in a sack.

“Can I transfer it with my account?”

“Oh, of course, you can!”

He paid 350,000 won to buy ten pickaxes.

The portion he bought yesterday was 450,000 won, and the pickaxes were 350,000 won. He also spent 200,000 won for the ammunition he ordered, so he spent 1 million won today.

Ko Byeong-gap sighed as he watched the bankbook that was running out of money. But it was okay. He could dig up the crystals in Ashvilam and sell it or something!

‘Wouldn’t I turn out cram-rich?’

The corners of his mouth ascended by themselves. With the shopkeeper’s help, the pickaxes were moved to his car, and Ko Byeong-gap headed home. His foot on the accelerator pedal was very light.

He would’ve loved to pack the pickaxes that time and move on to Ashvilam, but it was already too late by then, considering the night had already dawned upon both places.

He fell asleep early with a pounding heart.

Next day.

Saturday was bright. As a free hunter, the weekend didn’t mean much to the cash-strapped Ko Byeong-gap, but that day was an exception.

He decided to give himself a holiday, but a different kind of holiday. He went over to Ashvilam with the pickaxes and a sackcloth wrapped around him.

“Lord, sir!”

Ko Byeong-gap met the 33 Goblins. He guessed that they had eaten and slept well yesterday, but their faces were dripping with oil.

Either way, Ko Byeong-gap cried out to the pack.

“Hey! Hurry up and get this!”

“Yes, yes!”

The Goblins rushed in and moved Ko Byeong-gap’s luggage. They looked at the pickaxes in the sack with a question mark in their eyes.

“What is this?”

“Uh. It’s yours. It’s yours.”

“Ours?”

“You have to pay for your meal. Alright, everybody, follow me!”

Ko Byeong-gap led 33 limbs and headed in front of the cave.

“Hmm… You, and you, and you.”

Ko Byeong-gap pointed to those who looked like they could use their strength.

Except for the Giant Goblin that was still in rehab, there were 10 Hob Goblins.

“Gobung is resting, and the rest of you, come in with me.”

“Yes, Lord sir!”

Ko Byeong-gap took the lead by illuminating the cave with a high-performance lantern. The reddish crystals shone brightly in the light of the lantern.

At a glance, that amount was quite the number.

The Goblins also opened their mouths when they saw the crystals.

“Pretty…”

“Kereuk, isn’t it pretty?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty!”

“Oh, so hurry up and dig.”

“What?”

“What do you mean yes? Dig with the pickaxe.”

Ko Byeong-gap gave them a signal. The 10 Hob Goblins looked at each other with their pickaxes in an awkward posture.

“What are you staring at? I told you to hurry up.”

“Oh, I see!”

The Goblins scuttled off and started to dig.

Gang! Gang! Gang! Gang!

The sound of the pickaxes rang out in the wide and deep cave. Ko Byeong-gap stood on his legs and watched the Goblins speared their pickaxes.

“Huh, haha? Whoops! Whoops!”

His eyebrows went up and down. He didn’t like how they handled the pickaxes. Why were they so clumsy?

“Oh, damn! Hey, give it to me!”

Ko Byeong-gap grabbed a pickaxe in his hand.

“Look, that’s not how you do it… Like this!”

GANG!

“Like this! With all the strength you have, you hit, huh? Wait for the recoil, huh? Like this! You have to hit it! Oh? My back doesn’t hurt either! I’m gaining a lot of strength! Yeah, don’t you think so?”

“Oh!”

“That’s right!”

“Lord, sir, that’s great!”

“Ha, you bastards. What’s so hard about this, huh?”

The Hob Goblins clapped their hands while looking at Ko Byeong-gap. He felt proud of himself when he was applauded. He went on to dig with great excitement.

Kang! Kang! Kang! Kang!

‘Wait, this isn’t it.’

He then came to his senses. Why was he digging by himself?

“Now you do it!”

The player was replaced again. The Hob Goblins tried to do the demonstration, which Ko Byeong-gap showed, yet still used the pickaxes just as clumsy as they did before.

Ko Byeong-gap just gave up, but it was okay. Wouldn’t they follow wherever he went, anyway?

The pickaxe that was hitting the ground with heat finally pulled out a crystal.

“Stop! Stop!”

At the direction of Ko Byeong-gap, a Hob Goblin stretched his back and breathed out. He picked up the crystal that fell to the ground.

A smooth and glossy red crystal. Ko Byeong-gap even searched up crystals before going to bed yesterday.

“I heard rubies are the ones with the red light. Is this ruby?’

Whether it was a ruby or a third mineral, there was no way such a pretty jewel wouldn’t be worth a lot. That was what he thought.

Another hologram came before him.

[You have succeeded in collecting crystals.]

[The ‘Ancient Shop’ has been opened.]

[Use crystals to purchase necessary materials.]