Level Up Chance (1)

“Kyaaak! M-monster!”

“R-run away!”

A sudden monster commotion in the middle of the shopping district instantly turned the surrounding area chaotic.

Katarina and Isabel, who were returning to the city entrance with me, also pointed in the direction of the screams, expressing their own sense of crisis.

“M-monster?! What is it?!”

“Kyaaak! L-Lilith! Over there…!”

“……”

…Right, it’s definitely a monster.

And one that’s a bit too much for an ordinary person to handle.

‘Kweeeeeeek…!’

A monster that looked like a wild boar with stiff, straight bristles, crying out with the voice of an enraged pig.

If my memories from my past life were correct, that was undoubtedly a beast-type monster called a Hookfang.

Its appropriate hunting level was around 10. For the protagonist, it was a level they would roughly reach after progressing through the early part of the story, so in the actual game, it wasn’t a particularly threatening monster.

Of course, that only applied to special professions like ‘Academy applicants,’ and for ordinary people, the feeling would be distinctly different.

“S-save me!”

“Security Force! Call the Security Force!”

No matter how vast the Blackwood Territory was or how high the knights’ skill levels were, that only applied to the knights protecting the Blackwood Territory.

For the citizens of the Blackwood Territory, who lived within thoroughly defended city walls and rarely saw monsters other than Slimes, a Level 10 Hookfang was quite a threatening monster.

The same went for Lilith, who was only Level 2 and whose only usable magic was Clean.

‘But how, exactly?’

This wasn’t some frontier or an outlying village; the very presence of a Hookfang rampaging inside the city walls was highly unusual.

The only monsters that could typically appear inside the city walls were, at most, Slimes that naturally spawned the day after it rained.

Even those rarely appeared in mountainous areas or forests.

The old paper scroll lying near the Hookfang naturally resolved the question that had popped into my head.

‘A Monster Sealing Scroll…!’

In this world, scrolls were typically items used as a means of storage.

They couldn’t be used to seal physical objects; they were mostly used to seal magic or special skills.

However, there was one exception: scrolls that sealed wild monsters did not follow that rule.

‘Wasn’t it a technique developed by an Academy professor preparing for practical, realistic training?’

Among scrolls, the only one capable of sealing physical objects was that ‘Monster Sealing Scroll.’

It seemed one of them had been unsealed in the middle of the city, summoning the monster that had been trapped inside.

Whether the seal had weakened due to age, or it had accidentally torn during transport.

‘…Perhaps, this could be an opportunity.’

A heaven-sent opportunity to finally escape this damned Level 2 phase and leap to the next stage.

Ideally, the proper way would be to gradually raise my level by dealing with smaller monsters like Slimes or Shell Beetles, but that only applied to ordinary people who could freely roam outside.

For Lilith, who needed permission just to leave the mansion, let alone go to a hunting ground, this opportunity was more than welcome in many ways.

‘Moreover, if it’s a monster that was trapped in a scroll, it’ll be much easier to deal with.’

To trap a monster in a ‘Monster Sealing Scroll,’ the first thing one had to do was weaken the monster.

A Level 10 monster that was at least at half health, or perhaps even near death.

Simply by level alone, it was a monster five times stronger than Lilith, so facing it would be insane, but the fact that it popped out of a scroll meant its health was also below half, and its condition was poor.

In many ways, the conditions were too perfect to simply avoid this battle.

‘Kweeeeeeek…!’

“U-ugh, a-a monster…. Wh-what do we do….”

“L-Lilith! Let’s run away quickly! We need to call the Security Force first!”

“…Isabel, you go ahead with Katarina-seonbae.”

“……Huh?”

“…I have something I need to do for a moment.”

“W-wait! Where are you going, Lilith…!”

The Hookfang, having been released from the scroll, began thrashing around the middle of the shopping district with loud noises.

And the residents, startled by the sudden appearance of a Level 10 monster, scattered in panic.

I quickly and unhesitatingly moved towards the monster.

“…I’ll pay later.”

“Oh, oh?! Young lady, it’s dangerous!”

I had no proper weapon. The same went for usable skills.

So, I grabbed three metal skewers from a nearby grilled skewer stall that caught my eye.

And I drew the attention of the Hookfang, which was still rampaging without understanding the situation, with a shout.

“Hey!! You ugly fat pig bastard!!!”

My sudden shout instantly drew the attention of everyone around.

I didn’t have the luxury to care about those gazes. What was important right now was to divert the monster’s attention towards me more than anything else.

I had to start and finish the battle as quickly as possible.

…Somehow, before the Territory Guard heard the news and arrived.

“You fat pig bastard!! Over here!!!”

‘Kweek?!’

As soon as I provoked it by waving the fragrant skewers, the Hookfang immediately showed interest in me.

Indeed, a loud voice and food are the best for drawing a simple monster’s attention.

With its gaze drawn by my voice and the skewers, the creature immediately charged towards me.

I watched its movements from my spot until it was right in front of me.

“Lilith! It’s dangerous!”

Isabel shouted my name urgently from behind me.

I told her to go ahead, so why was she staying in such a dangerous place?

It was a situation that naturally made me a bit worried, but right now, I had to focus on the battle.

Just before the Hookfang’s protruding tusks were about to pierce my body, I quickly threw myself to the left, evading its first attack.

-Whoosh!

The large monster brushed past me with a fierce whoosh of wind.

The moment its head grazed past me, I plunged one of the three metal skewers in my hand into its neck.

With about half the length of the skewer embedded in its neck, the monster screamed like a pig being slaughtered.

‘Kweeeeeeek!!’

I had accurately stabbed its weak point, so it must have taken some damage, no matter the level difference.

It was a bit regrettable that I couldn’t push it all the way in, but given the current circumstances, that single strike was quite an excellent attack.

Even with nearly 300 Mana, I had no proper attack skills, and it was still true that one hit would put me on the verge of death.

Since fighting while taking hits was impossible, securing my safety was the priority. Landing effective hits would come after that.

‘Kweeeeeeek…!!’

Perhaps due to the pain of being stabbed in the neck after being lured by food, the monster charged at me again with an enraged cry.

Still, thanks to the damage I inflicted with the first attack, its speed had definitely slowed down a bit.

Since it was a monster that had been trapped in a scroll from the start, its condition probably wasn’t great to begin with.

“Agh.”

I brought one of the two remaining skewers to my mouth and swallowed about half of it.

It wasn’t because I was hungry; it was to embed the second strike deeper.

To stab it as deeply as possible with a momentary strike, I needed to reduce any elements that might hinder friction.

As the slightly slowed monster approached me, I once again rolled on the ground, evading its second body slam.

And as the staggering creature passed by me, I twisted the second skewer into its flank, pushing it in as deep as I could.

‘Kweeeeeeek…!!’

Fuck. It’s really goddamn noisy.

Anyway, judging by the volume of its screams and its significantly slowed movements, the situation was practically over.

If I could just land one more attack on its neck or face, I could definitely finish it-.

“…Young lady! Get out of there quickly!”

Ah, goddammit.

Why is the public security in Blackwood Territory so good?

The soldiers of the Territory Guard appeared to subjugate the monster less than five minutes after it showed up.

Someone who appeared to be the highest-ranking among them shouted at me to retreat.

“The rest will be handled by our Security Force, so young lady, please retreat quickly, hurry!”

‘……What?’

The rest will be handled by *your* Security Force?

This monster, on the verge of death with just one more hit?

This one, which I managed to attack twice, even risking my life?

I rolled on the ground twice and barely got it to a near-death state, and these motherfuckers are trying to steal my last hit?

“Young lady! If you don’t retreat quickly, it’s dangerous-!”

“Just get lost, all of you!”

“Oh….”

“I’m going to finish this bastard no matter what! Just try taking one more step closer…!!”

This is a level-up opportunity that came after so long, and I’m supposed to yield it to these Territory Guard bastards?

Even if a knife were put to my throat, I would never allow that.

…Because I had to protect this level-up chance, which might be my last, no matter what happened.