Leveling Up Alone

[Han-Yeol-nim, is everyone ready?] Mariam asked.

[Yes, we are all set to go,] Han-Yeol replied.

[Wow…! That’s quick…] Mariam exclaimed.

[Haha! It’s unexpectedly fast after I used some of my abilities,] Han-Yeol explained.

The process of dismantling the base camp and packing everything into the truck had been quite efficient, and without much hassle, thanks to Han-Yeol’s Psychokinesis skill.

“Ugh… It's so cold.”

“You still have gunk in your eyes.”

“Kiyaak!”

“I didn’t even get to poop properly today.”

The Mulan film crew was quite tired as they had stayed up all night chatting with each other. However, that was unavoidable. They had been feeling uneasy and had difficulty sleeping in a new and unfamiliar environment. As a result, every single one of them looked quite haggard and their hair was disheveled. They did not even manage to wash their faces before moving out.

“Gosh! I’m so relieved we only have women in our crew.”

“Exactly, we can skip the hassle of putting on heavy makeup every day.”

“Can you imagine if there were some men among us? Although it would be nice if a few handsome ones join… it would definitely add to our stress, having to keep up with our appearances.”

“Ugh… Just imagining it already drains me out...”

The women in the Mulan film crew were very pleased with their current working situation. The film industry was a very small one where rumors spread quite quickly, so they knew that the others in the same industry were suffering at their jobs.

The top issue that most film crews faced was the fact that the raid parties or guilds they were hired by would meddle in their work quite a lot. They would blabber on and on about what they thought the broadcast concept should be, nag about the speed of the editing work, or ask the film crew to increase their personal air time.

There was nothing wrong with asking if they asked nicely, but most Hunters, if not all, were known to force their way to get what they wanted by ‘threatening’ people.

That was why almost everyone in the film industry suffered quite a lot as they were caught between a rock and a hard place. After all, they could not simply disregard the requests of the Hunters. Unfortunately, by not doing so, the quality of their final product would be significantly affected.

‘These girls probably have no idea how ridiculously fortunate they are,’ Su-In thought.

She considered herself to be a very fortunate person because she knew very well and had experienced firsthand the horrors of the film industry.

First and foremost, her employer, Han-Yeol, gave her complete control over the creative aspect of their broadcasts and had not even once interfered with her work. At times, she would even wonder if he was interested in their broadcasts at all.

But of course, Su-In knew that Han-Yeol was interested in the work. He would give a thumbs-up and scratch his head in embarrassment while looking happy whenever she approached him first to give a report.

Just like now.

“Han-Yeol Hunter-nim!”

Unlike the normal crew members who were too lazy to put on makeup, the three youngest crew members were already fully dressed as they flocked toward Han-Yeol, who was still yawning. When they started to talk about the broadcast like baby birds chirping, Han-Yeol simply looked embarrassed and scratched his head the entire time.

‘Han-Yeol Hunter-nim is definitely not an easy person to comprehend,’ Su-In thought.

Han-Yeol was like a Yaksha or an unforgiving berserker during battles, but he would suddenly turn into a friendly and docile person when dealing with other people. Su-In, who frequently filmed and saw Han-Yeol on-screen, had always found him to be a strange and peculiar person.

[Alright, if everyone is ready to go, let’s move out!] Mariam ordered.

“We are moving out soon!” one of the crew members announced.

Mariam’s instruction was conveyed by one of the Mulan film crew members, who was fluent in Arabic.

The crew would often hear Mariam’s telepathic messages ringing in their heads, but they were unable to comprehend them as they could not understand what she was saying. When they found out that one of them was proficient in Arabic, they asked her to translate the messages for them.

When the hunt resumed early in the morning, the Egyptian Hunters gathered once again. This time, Han-Yeol stood in the middle of the group of Hunters.

[The monsters we are going to be hunting today are called Trappers,] Han-Yeol said, then went on to explain in fluent Arabic.

Everyone was taken aback when Han-Yeol, who used to need an interpreter, suddenly started speaking Arabic fluently. However, they were all convinced when Mariam revealed that it was due to one of Han-Yeol’s abilities.

With their confusion over Han-Yeol’s sudden proficiency resolved, it was now his words that bothered them.

[Trapper?]

Everyone tilted their heads in confusion at the unfamiliar monster's name.

Most of the countless hunting grounds across the globe had similar monsters inhabiting them. This was one of the reasons why it was not really necessary for Hunters to travel abroad to hunt unless a special circumstance called for it since most of the monsters were similar in rank anyway.

However, the Egyptian Hunters had never encountered a hunting ground such as the Paradise Field, and that was why the potential to encounter a new unique monster was one that intrigued them. It was similar to how the Korean Hunters would react whenever they heard about the mummy-type monsters that inhabited the pyramids, which were now converted into hunting grounds in Egypt.

[They are literally trappers, just as their name suggests. If the Banshee's skill is teleportation, then the Trapper’s skill is setting up traps. They do not respond to a Hunter’s presence, and they are known to only wait patiently in their territories and let their prey come and fall into their traps.

[Not only that, but they also spend the majority of their time in hibernation, which conceals their mana from most detection skills and devices. They are quite tricky to deal with. I am going to tell you now that just because you do not see or sense anything does not mean that you can let your guard down and carelessly take a step forward,] Han-Yeol briefed the Egyptian Hunters.

One of the Egyptian Hunters had a question. He eagerly raised his hand as soon as Han-Yeol finished speaking.

[Yes?]

[Are there any special ways to deal with the traps?] the Egyptian Hunter asked.

For every problem, there was bound to be a solution.

The Horus raid party was bound to end up in a very precarious and dangerous position if the Hunters were to trigger a trap by accident.

[The traps they install are high-level traps, so you won’t be able to detect its mana. The only way to avoid falling into the trap is to be cautious with where you step,] Han-Yeol explained.

[Won’t that be too dangerous then?] the Egyptian Hunter said.

Under such conditions with unavoidable traps, it seemed like hunting would be nearly impossible.

[Ah, I think you are misunderstanding something. I told you that the traps are undetectable, but that does not mean that they are invisible. In fact, there’s nothing special about their traps… It’s more like a snare that just snaps your ankle into two. They also tend to be quite sloppy when setting up their traps, so you will be able to notice the ground being raised unevenly if you look close enough,] Han-Yeol clarified.

Han-Yeol then handed over a stack of paper to Yoo-Bi, who began distributing it among the Hunters. On each piece of paper was a picture resembling a small grave.

[What is this?] the Egyptian Hunter asked.

[As you can see from the picture, these are the traps set up by one of the Trappers. The Trappers have a unique ability to target Hunters using these traps. Fortunately, they are not very intelligent, and the traps they set up are quite noticeable. They are physically similar to the Banshees, but they don’t have the ability to Blink, so these monsters shouldn’t be a threat as long as you watch out for their traps,] Han-Yeol explained.

[Hmm… I see…]

The Egyptian Hunters nodded in understanding as they carefully studied the Trappers’ information that was provided to them on the A4-sized paper handed out by Yoo-Bi.

[Alright then, let’s move right away,] Han-Yeol said.

[Roger!] the Egyptian Hunters responded.

The members of the Horus raid party all got into their vehicles and drove toward the Trappers’ territory.

They pulled over at a safe distance from their destination and continued on foot, since the Trappers’ territory was fixed and they did not tend to move around much. But of course, all of them proceeded with utmost caution as soon as they stepped inside the territory.

They moved cautiously through the field and carefully dismantled every trap they came across as they slowly advanced toward their destination. They had chosen to proceed by foot instead of using their vehicles as the Trapper’s snares could possibly explode when triggered by a vehicle and harm the passengers in it.

Click… Clack!

Han-Yeol had just successfully disarmed the ankle trap. While dismantling it, he thought, ‘This is annoying.’

He could not detect the traps with his Demon Eyes since they did not possess any mana. This made it quite tedious and time-consuming for him to spot the traps as he had to look for them only using his naked eye.

Booom!

“Arrrgh!”

“Hakim!”

The process of disabling and dismantling a trap was a rather difficult and sensitive task. After all, there was always the risk of the trap exploding or triggering if someone who was not familiar with handling one carelessly touched it.

One of these traps was capable of triggering a devastating blast that could severely wound or even kill a Hunter despite it not harboring any mana within it.

“Tsk, I told you to be careful,” Han-Yeol grumbled.

He quickly approached the wounded man, then extended his hand toward him to heal him with his Restore ability.

[Argh…!]

[I told you to be careful, these are sensitive explosives,] Han-Yeol grumbled in Arabic.

[I-I apologize,] Hakim apologized while grimacing in pain.

The Egyptian Hunters were not that fond of Han-Yeol yet, since he was a foreigner to them, but they had to reluctantly recognize his abilities in moments like this when they were injured and had to turn to him for help.

Han-Yeol’s healing skills, after all, could be considered to be quite potent, and that was why it was inevitable for the Egyptian Hunters to acknowledge his abilities.

Han-Yeol immediately went over to Mariam after tending to Hakim’s injuries. He said, [Mariam-nim, the explosion from the trap should have alerted the nearby Trappers. They are going to come rushing to this place. We must quickly disarm the remaining traps and prepare ourselves for battle.]

[Yes, I understand,] Mariam replied in agreement with Han-Yeol’s suggestion. She proceeded to use her telepathic abilities to relay her commands to the entire raiding party to quickly disarm the remaining traps and ready themselves for battle.

Han-Yeol then quickly approached his party and instructed them to prepare themselves for the upcoming conflict.

The broadcast had not started yet, because Han-Yeol concluded that it was too early to start the broadcast as they had not dealt with the Trappers yet. He decided it would be better to turn on the broadcast after a test run to ensure a higher-quality broadcast.

‘Now that I think about it… I think he does care a lot about the broadcast,’ Su-In thought.

Han-Yeol might have come across as a bit too indifferent and slightly disinterested in the broadcast, but he showed remarkable dedication and judgment in ensuring a high-quality product whenever they started filming. He might have rarely interfered, if at all, in any matters related to the broadcast, but his talent for creating breathtaking and captivating scenes had to be acknowledged.

“Alright everyone, even though we won’t be broadcasting live, we’re still going to be recording. Let's all take a moment to check our equipment and make sure everything is functioning properly,” Su-In instructed the team.

“Yes, Team Leader-nim!” the film crew enthusiastically responded.

The Mulan film crew did not do things half-heartedly just because they were currently not live. Their jobs demanded them to always give their best as they received a substantial salary, but of course, most of their pay was due to the high risk and dangerous nature of their work. Well, to be fair, their salaries could be considered to be a bit on the higher end of the pay scale compared to other film crews working the same risky jobs.

When the film crew finished their preparation to start filming…

[Here they come!]

[Trappers!]

[Prepare for battle!]

The Horus raid party could no longer afford to waste time on dismantling the traps even though there were still quite a few remaining. The Trappers were already right around the corner charging toward them.

“Kihihih!”

The Trappers shrieked out a burst of eerie laughter as they charged toward the Hunters, and their eerie laughter echoed throughout the field.

[What is this noise?] Mariam asked while seemingly taken aback.

Han-Yeol, Mariam, and Tayarana were standing together at the front when they heard the Trappers’ eerie laughter.

[It is the Trappers’ laughter. It does not have any special abilities and does not cause negative effects, but the sound of their laughter is unsettling enough to confuse the Hunters who are encountering them for the first time,] Han-Yeol explained.

The hunting ground had an ominous aura, and as a result, people often misunderstood the Trapper’s laughter as possessing some kind of effect capable of causing visual or even auditory hallucinations.

The Trapper’s laughter itself was not a threat, but it would prove to be quite effective when combined with the ominous and sinister aura of the hunting ground. In other words, the Trappers were monsters that fully knew how to maximize their territorial advantage against the invaders.

Ratatata!

The Porters unleashed a barrage of bullets at the approaching Trappers.

The Trappers did not look much different from the Banshees as they were also three meters tall with blood smears all over their bodies, and they also wore white creepy masks that covered their faces. Well, their overall appearance kind of made them look like walking egg ghosts in some way…

“Kihihihi!”

[Stay focused! Their laughter has no actual power, so do not be afraid and fight bravely!] Mariam encouraged the members of the raid party.

[Yes, ma’am!] the members replied in unison.

The Trappers were not the only ones trying to plunge the Horus raid party into confusion and chaos as the Paradise Field itself unleashed numerous waves of psychological attacks against them. Fortunately, none of the psychological warfare they used proved to be effective.

The main reason the Horus raid party members were able to remain steadfast without being affected by the mental attacks was all thanks to Mariam, who was a talented psychic and was recognized as an expert in the field of mental affairs.

Mariam was holding the entire raid party together and preventing them from plunging into chaos. In short, she was skilled enough to be able to block any psychological attacks targeting the raid party members, and in return, all of them had complete faith in her.

[The goddess is with us!]

[For the glory of Tayarana!]

[For the glory of Egypt!]

The Hunters in the Horus raid party may not be the strongest or most skilled, as mentioned earlier, but they were all warriors who had undergone intense education and training. Each and every one of them was also deeply patriotic toward Egypt. Most importantly, they held unwavering loyalty to their goddess, Tayarana, and that was why these kinds of underhanded and petty psychological tactics had no effect on them.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The Horus raid party engaged in combat with the Trappers.

The Trappers attacked the Hunters with massive swords in both hands, hacking and slashing away. However, they were relatively easier to deal with compared to the Banshees that had used Blink every thirty seconds to move around the battlefield. After all, it was not that the Horus raid party would lose in a battle of strength in the first place; the Banshee’s mobility was the thing that made them difficult to fight against.

Clang! Clang! Kwachik!

“Kieeeeek!”

After being struck in the face by a mace, one of the Trappers was in intense pain.

Han-Yeol and Tayarana did not have any room to showcase their skills this time around. Most Hunters usually found it more difficult to deal with the Trappers compared to the Banshees due to various complex reasons, but the Horus raid party found it easier to handle the Trappers thanks to having dismantled their pesky tarps earlier on.

[What’s going on? Aren’t they just a complete joke?]

[Why are they so weak?]

[Eliminate them all!]

[Hiyaaaaah!]

“D-Damn it…!” Han-Yeol exclaimed after being caught off guard…

…by how easily the Egyptian Hunters were overpowering the Trappers unlike when they had fought the Banshees.

Han-Yeol needed to land at least a single strike on the monsters to be able to obtain an Angel Shard, so he quickly grabbed his sword and chain as he rushed into the battle.

On the other hand, Tayarana did not take part in the battle this time around.

[Tayarana-nim, are you not going to participate in the fight?] Mariam asked.

[Yeah, these Trappers are too boring for me. I’d rather just observe how much the boys have improved,] Tayarana replied.

[Ah…] Mariam said.

Tayarana was not someone who loved to fight all the time. She did enjoy fighting, but she also had a keen eye for judgment and was able to distinguish between when it was appropriate for her to fight and when it was not. That was why she had decided to leave Egypt and come to Korea for the future of Egypt when most Hunters had stayed put in their countries.