Thanks to the Combat Suit, I remembered my original purpose, which I'd completely forgotten in the heat of the moment.
I pulled the box containing mana stones out of the safe.
Inside the box were F-rank mana stones emitting a faint blue glow.
I picked one up.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Would you like to absorb the mana stone?]
Instead of a text message, Suni's voice rang out.
I wondered if this was the effect of the synchronization.
'Absorb it.'
The mana stone was absorbed in the familiar manner.
Just like the black mana stone I'd picked up in the gate, it melted into my hand and vanished.
I flinched for a moment at the sight.
But the cool, refreshing energy flowing in felt different from the painful burning sensation from before, so I felt a little relieved.
"..."
There were no particular changes.
'Is this... experience points going up?'
Then Suni's voice spoke.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[If you absorb 37 more mana stones similar to this one, you can level up, according to my calculations.]
"..."
I hadn't expected to level up from just one.
'37...'
It was more than I'd anticipated.
One F-rank mana stone was worth around a million won.
In cash, that was nearly 40 million won.
It meant I'd have to pour in almost all the mana stones I'd saved up during my hunter career.
This was the level up from Level 1 to Level 2.
And it required this many stones.
If this were a game, leveling up would only get harder as you progressed.
But this wasn't a game—it was an awakening ability—so I couldn't hold out hope that it would be any different.
It was an awfully expensive power.
Should I do it or not?
I hesitated a bit.
But I also thought it was pointless worrying.
It didn't make sense for an awakener to fret over money like this.
I'd unconsciously been thinking from a regular person's perspective.
"What do you think?"
I asked Suni without thinking.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[I recommend leveling up.]
"Why?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[To obtain information.]
"Information?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Leveling up now is expected to provide information crucial to determining the direction of Master's future growth, alongside the system's own development.]
Suni wasn't saying anything wrong, but my mind was already made up before that.
Now that I'd awakened, I didn't need to worry about money like this.
There were other ways to level up besides this, but they would take time.
It was hard to hold back when I could level up right now.
I started absorbing the mana stones from the box.
The mana stones were absorbed and vanished one by one.
I'd only awakened recently.
The mindset of a non-awakened hunter hadn't fully faded yet, so it pained me to see all the stones I'd saved up disappearing.
I absorbed 37 of them.
"...."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[...]
An awkward silence flowed.
No level up.
Only 5 stones remained from the pile.
And naturally, I now knew how many I'd had in total.
'43...'
Sensing my silent discomfort, Suni hurriedly spoke.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[There was a margin of error due to variations in mana content per stone. I believe one or two more should allow you to level up.]
'This guy's panicking.'
"You sure?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Yes... I'm certain.]
Suni sounded deflated.
There was an enormous sunk cost already.
At this point, even if it meant dumping all five remaining stones, I had no choice but to go through with it.
And after absorbing not one, but two more, Suni's relieved voice finally came.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Your level has increased.]⚔ STATUS ⚔
Park Un-ho Level 2
Skills • Body Strengthening Lv 1 • Login Lv 1 • Inventory Lv 1 • Combat Suit Lv 1
Skill Points: 1
'One skill point.'
That was the only change.
Leveling up didn't bring any special transformations.
Is this the only way to get stronger?
I'd thought it'd give at least one point per skill—four in total—but it was stingier than expected.
'Way too few...'
I tried to think positively, maybe it'd give more as levels increase, but I doubted it.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Information has been updated.]
"What information?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Effects of upgrading your skills. Is it okay to display them as messages?]
"Show me."
⚔ SKILL UPGRADES ⚔Body Strengthening Lv 2: Strengthens the body. Login Lv 2: Adds one save point. Inventory Lv 2: Doubles storage space. Combat Suit Lv 2: Strengthens the Combat Suit.
The Inventory skill was tempting.
Doubling the storage space—that was a huge upgrade for skill enhancements.
But for now, I prioritized boosting my combat ability.
Inventory was mostly for convenience, so it fell lower on the priority list despite the appeal.
Body Strengthening or Combat Suit.
"Which should I upgrade first?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[I recommend Body Strengthening.]
"Why?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Body Strengthening directly ties to Master's safety. It also affects the Combat Suit.]
"The Combat Suit too?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Yes. Master is one of the Combat Suit's power sources. Upgrading the Combat Suit skill will require more power, so enhancing physical abilities is the better choice.]
"I'm the power source, not mana stones?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Yes. The Combat Suit is Master's awakening skill. It can be charged with mana stones, but charging through Master is most efficient.]
I called up the Combat Suit's energy status with a thought.
⚔ STATUS ⚔Combat Suit Energy Remaining: 78%
The energy remaining was higher than I'd thought.
"Is the suit charged?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[It charged while on standby before you equipped it.]
"It auto-charges?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[From 0% to 100% full charge takes 10 hours by default. If the suit is damaged, that time increases exponentially.]
No need to charge it with mana stones.
That meant no maintenance costs.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[It can also rapidly charge by absorbing Master's mana.]
"Charge from me? Is it charging now?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[It's currently absorbing ambient mana to charge. Unless otherwise instructed, it steadily absorbs surrounding mana for charging.]
Absorbing ambient mana? That was absurd.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[If just worn without activity, the charge rate slightly exceeds energy consumption.]
"So it charges just by wearing it?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Yes. But it takes about 1 hour per 1%, so I recommend unequipping it to charge.]
Even just wearing it provided a tiny charge.
That alone made it ridiculously overpowered.
Currently at 78%.
I wondered what would happen if I charged the remaining 22% myself.
Suddenly curious, I asked.
"How long to charge 20% from me?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[2 seconds.]
Much faster than I'd imagined.
About 10% per second.
"Charge 20%."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Executing 20% rapid charge.]
I felt energy draining from my body.
It didn't feel great.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[20% charge complete.]
I felt a slight fatigue, but nothing burdensome.
'Good for emergencies.'
Upgrading Body Strengthening would naturally increase my body's mana capacity.
Of course—if it wasn't mana, there'd be no reason for such dramatic physical changes.
Definitely better to prioritize Body Strengthening over the suit.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Would you like to use a skill point on Body Strengthening Lv 1?]
"Do it."
⚔ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚔
Body Strengthening Lv 2: The body is strengthened.
In an instant, my vision went pure white.
A mild dizziness hit.
-Crunch crunch.
I heard sounds like bones breaking.
There was no pain.
Blink.
As I blinked, my vision returned.
Looking in the mirror, my height and build had grown larger.
"Whoa..."
After awakening, I'd been over 180 cm, but now I looked to have surpassed 190 cm.
Despite the significant height increase, there was no muscle loss—the imposing, perfectly sculpted muscles visible over the suit were incredible.
'Upgrading the skill makes me taller and bulkier? Is this normal?'
If it grew every time I upgraded, that would be problematic.
I clenched my fist.
It felt like I could crush anything.
Undeniably greater power than before surged through me.
My senses had sharpened too.
"How much stronger am I now?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Insufficient data for comparison, but your current skin toughness matches the Combat Suit's protective strength.]
"My skin matches the Combat Suit's shield in strength?"
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[Compared to pre-awakening suit, it's at least twice as strong.]
The Combat Suit had been upgraded too.
So its efficiency was about double what it was before.
And my skin now matched that strength.