Morgan’s disbelief wasn’t without reason.
Every hunter understood that leveling up wasn’t as simple as killing monsters forever.
There were walls.
Invisible barriers that every awakened individual would eventually encounter.
Among hunters, they were commonly referred to as the Minor Challenges and the Great Challenges.
The first fifty levels after awakening were relatively straightforward.
At that stage, the growth rate between hunters didn’t differ too drastically. As long as one continuously farm Rifts and survived, leveling up wasn’t particularly difficult. Talent certainly mattered, but its effects weren’t obvious enough to create an overwhelming gap.
Everything changed once a hunter reached level fifty.
That was the first Minor Challenge.
From that point onward, the amount of experience required for each level increased dramatically, while the experience earned from killing monsters began to decrease.
This was where a hunter’s true potential started revealing itself.
Those with poor talent found themselves gaining less and less experience from each hunt, forcing them to spend increasingly longer periods inside Rifts just to advance a single level.
Those blessed with exceptional potential were affected far less.
The difference that had once been barely noticeable suddenly widened into a chasm.
Talented hunters surged ahead with astonishing speed.
Ordinary hunters could only watch as the distance between them continued growing.
Then came level one hundred.
The first Great Challenge.
Unlike the Minor Challenge, which merely slowed progression, the Great Challenge was a genuine wall.
Countless hunters who had painstakingly struggled through the previous fifty levels found themselves completely unable to move forward.
Even geniuses began feeling the pressure.
Growth became slower.
Every level demanded greater effort than the last.
Then level one hundred and fifty arrived.
Another Minor Challenge.
Level two hundred...
Another Great Challenge.
One obstacle after another stacked endlessly upon a hunter’s path, until eventually the majority simply stopped advancing altogether.
Some remained trapped below level one hundred for decades.
Others spent their entire lives trying to break through level two hundred without success.
That was why A-rank hunters were so respected.
Reaching that realm wasn’t merely a matter of talent.
It required years of accumulation.
Years of risking one’s life inside Rifts.
Years of overcoming obstacle after obstacle.
Even the captain of the Dark Viper Guild had only reached A-rank twelve years after awakening.
That achievement alone had earned him the title of genius throughout the Third District.
Yet now...
Ferris was telling Morgan that the young man before him had already reached that same level.
Not only that, he was preparing to challenge S-rank.
No matter how he looked at it, it sounded utterly absurd.
Suppressing the shock in his heart, Morgan slowly looked toward Kael.
A smile gradually returned to his face.
"If you’re truly an A-rank hunter..."
He cracked his neck before rolling his shoulders.
"...then I’m curious."
"I’m already standing at the peak of B+ rank myself."
"How about we exchange a few pointers?"
"A simple spar."
"It’ll be a good learning experience for both of us."
His tone sounded friendly.
But everyone present understood the hidden meaning behind those words.
He wanted to verify whether Ferris had been telling the truth.
Kael merely glanced at him.
The look lasted less than a second.
Then he calmly replied.
"Not interested."
There wasn’t the slightest hint of hesitation in his voice.
Nor was there contempt.
It was simply a complete lack of interest.
As though Morgan Howell, didn’t deserve his time.
Kael shifted his gaze toward Ferris.
"I’ll be going now."
With that, he turned around and calmly walked toward the exit.
"..."
Morgan stood rooted to the spot.
For several seconds, his mind went completely blank.
He had just been ignored?
In front of everyone?
The smile on his face gradually stiffened before slowly disappearing altogether.
An ugly flush spread across his face.
Embarrassment.
Then anger.
Before Morgan himself could react, one of the tattooed men standing behind him stepped forward.
He moved directly into Kael’s path, blocking the exit.
His expression was filled with hostility.
"The vice captain is talking to you."
He stared directly at Kael.
"The least you can do is show some respect."
Kael stopped walking.
He slowly lifted his eyes.
The warmth that had been present moments ago disappeared completely.
The atmosphere changed.
And an instant later, a terrifying killing intent burst from Kael’s body.
It wasn’t loud.
There was no explosion.
No visible shockwave.
Yet everyone present felt it.
The tattooed man standing directly before Kael received the full force of it.
His pupils contracted violently.
His entire body froze where it stood.
Every instinct within him screamed.
Death.
It was as though an invisible executioner’s blade had already been placed against his neck.
All he had to do was move.
And his head would separate from his shoulders.
His legs began trembling uncontrollably.
Cold sweat poured down his face.
He couldn’t breathe.
He couldn’t blink.
He couldn’t even think.
Morgan’s expression changed instantly.
Ferris’ pupils also shrank.
A heartbeat later...
The overwhelming killing intent washed over them as well.
Although far weaker than what the tattooed man experienced, it still caused both men to stiffen.
For a brief moment...
Even they felt their hearts skip a beat.
It wasn’t just killing intent.
There was something mixed within it.
Something neither of them could properly describe.
It felt sharp
As though countless invisible blades surrounded them from every direction.
One wrong move.
One careless action.
And they would be cut down where they stood.
Even the hunters scattered throughout the lobby felt the pressure.
Kael hadn’t directed his aura toward them.
Even so, the mere aftereffects were enough to make many people’s breathing become difficult.
Several unconsciously stumbled backward.
Others felt goosebumps spread across their bodies without understanding why.
Fortunately...
The terrifying pressure vanished almost as quickly as it had appeared.
Kael withdrew his aura.
The oppressive feeling disappeared without a trace.
The tattooed man blocking Kael’s path was the first to react.
His legs suddenly gave out beneath him.
Thud!
His body collapsed heavily onto the floor.
Violent spasms spread through his limbs as his eyes rolled backward.
He had already lost consciousness.
The surrounding lobby fell completely silent.
Everyone stared at the collapsed man with expressions of disbelief.
"W... what happened?"
"Did he just use a skill?"
"I didn’t see him activate anything."
"But that guy suddenly collapsed."
"What kind of ability was that?"
Confused voices spread throughout the crowd.
Most of the hunters present were simply too weak to understand what had actually occurred.
They only knew Kael had done something.
Something that made their bodies instinctively feel uncomfortable before causing the tattooed man to collapse.
Another hunter frowned.
"Using a skill inside the Association building?"
"Isn’t that against the rules?"
The surrounding hunters nodded.
Everyone knew unauthorized combat and the use of offensive skills inside an Association branch were punishable offenses.
From their perspective...
Kael had openly violated Association regulations.
Only Ferris and Morgan knew the truth.
It hadn’t been a skill.
It was aura.
Pure killing intent.
Yet even that explanation didn’t fully satisfy them.
Neither of them had ever encountered killing intent quite like this before.
Kael paid no attention to the surrounding whispers.
His cold gaze settled on Morgan.
When he spoke, his voice carried no anger.
Only indifference.
"Keep your dogs on a leash."
He held Morgan’s gaze for a brief moment.
"If this happens again..."
"I won’t be so merciful."
Without waiting for a response, Kael walked past the unconscious man lying on the floor and continued toward the Association’s exit, leaving behind a lobby that had fallen into complete silence.
# #
Hey guys 👋
We’ve already locked in this month’s mass release event, now let’s talk about NEXT month 👀
From now till the end of this month, if we hit 5 or more Super Gifts total, I’ll do 3 Chapters daily for the ENTIRE next month too.
Let’s make it happen. What do you guys say?