An Ogre with a Metal Club, Gonz with a Black Steel Axe

“Breaking through the level 15 wall.” Put into words, it sounds simple enough, but the act itself carries many different meanings.

It’s said that 70–80% of all adventurers smolder out without ever breaking past the Level 15 wall.

People from the smaller nations become adventurers for all sorts of reasons, but the one goal they all share is to surpass that Level 15 wall.

If you contribute to the Adventurer’s Guild and manage to reach Level 20, you can become a Rank 5 Adventurer. This was a rank achieved by only a select few.

From rank 5 and onward, you’re considered a true adventurer and gain status, honor, and wealth.

Some aspire to become adventurers because they admired the heroes they read about as children. Some were driven out of their villages as extra mouths to feed and swore to rise to the top fueled by vengeance. Some are born as the third sons of noble families and, blessed with a favorable upbringing, seek success and prestige as adventurers.

Every adventurer has their own story. Everyone dreams of becoming an adventurer, but most are crushed by reality and remain stuck at level 15, thinking, “This isn’t how it was supposed to be… I could have done more… If only that person hadn’t betrayed me.”

Adventurers weighed down by such thoughts all still feel, deep inside, that they can’t stay like this forever, that they must break past the wall.

And now, in the party of Gonz and the others, the feelings that had long smoldered deep in their hearts have flared back to life.

The embers that had lain dormant are now burning fiercely, fueled by hope.

Since they decided to break through the level wall, Gonz and the others had changed. They started training, moderating their drinking and womanizing, and rapidly completing quests.

As veterans, they weren’t just recklessly pushing themselves but were going about it with a sense of composure and stability.

Al, while handling quests, never stopped gathering information on the level 4 monsters they were targeting.

Kimon, as always, remained quiet and at his own pace, but you could tell he was focused.

I, too, worked hard to sharpen my skills so I wouldn’t be left behind.

I kept my Presence Detection and Concealment skills active at all times, practiced with the shuriken sticks, and, while watching my shoulder, honed my karate techniques.

The one who changed the most among the group was Gonz. He had excellent base stats but had stagnated at level 15.

Before meeting Al, Gonz had been deceived by many people, his strength exploited, hurt, and jaded. But now, he had become a completely different person, more serious than ever.

Lately, instead of just hacking through his prey with an axe, he’d carefully break their necks to avoid damaging the fur, thinking of the most profitable way to kill and acting on it.

The troublesome, irritable Gonz had disappeared, and in his place was a serious, clumsy man, trying to figure out what the best course of action was, despite his lack of smarts.

I thought, “Maybe this is the way Gonz was in the past.” The Gonz who was not very smart and clumsy may have been deceived over and over again, losing trust in people, and becoming aggressive.

Now, I’ve decided to call the current Gonz in my mind Gonz the Movie Version.

One month had passed since we decided to break through the level wall. By carefully budgeting, we completed quests at a fast pace, and with my money added, we were finally able to buy Gonz’ axe.

We didn’t just immediately go after monsters to break through the level wall. There was also Gonz’s weapon practice and the purchase of a skinning knife to consider.

The skinning knife was also made of black steel, so it was expensive. It looked like I’d be earning money for a while longer.

Even though it’s called a “skinning knife,” it isn’t some small blade but a hefty hunting knife, thick and heavy so it can slice through tough hide and break apart joints and bones.

I thought, “This might take a while,” but thanks to Gonz and his black steel axe, I was able to make money at a pretty fast pace.

Among Class-3 monsters, there is one said to be the strongest, known as the Crazy Bear.

Because of its overwhelming defense and ferocity, it is feared as an “adventurer killer.” Its thick fur and dense muscles stop blades entirely; an average adventurer can’t even scratch it.

And as its name suggests, it is utterly savage.

If it sees something move, it attacks and eats it. Simple as that. And it will attack even when it isn’t hungry, almost as if it hates every living thing.

Once it marks you as prey, it will pursue you relentlessly.

There’s even a tale of a village that took in an adventurer fleeing from a Crazy Bear, only for the monster to track him there and wipe out the entire settlement. That’s how terrifying it is.

And despite all that, or rather, because of all that, the Crazy Bear is worth a lot of money.

Its fur is highly prized among nobles and is traded at a high price. Its internal organs are also valuable as medicinal ingredients and alchemy materials, which also fetch a good price.

Though a level 3 monster, it’s a target for rank 5 and higher adventurers who have broken through the level 15 wall.

It’s still easier to defeat than a level 4 monster, so many adventurers seeking a quick fortune challenge it, only to lose their lives one after another.

Our party headed toward the mountains to hunt the Crazy Bear.

We concealed our scent, searched for traces, and soon discovered the Crazy Bear. Just to be safe, I approached from downwind and threw a stone toward its face.

The Crazy Bear went into a rage, its bloodshot eyes glaring as it howled and charged at us. I ran for my life.

The plan was simple. I would lead it, and Gonz and the others would take it down. The monster’s habit of relentlessly pursuing its prey made it perfect for this strategy.

But… it was terrifying.

While it wasn’t as ridiculously large as an Earth bear, the bloodshot eyes were terrifying. It was a clear reminder that this was a monster.

You could see the massive muscles beneath its fur. Its fangs were huge and vicious, far more menacing than an Earth bear’s. It was truly terrifying.

I pushed through my fear and kept running.

As I approached the ambush point, I deliberately slowed down. By reducing my speed, I lured the Crazy Bear closer.

Just when I was about to be caught, I suddenly made a sharp turn. The path ahead was a steep downhill. Bears have short front legs, so they struggle with downhill slopes.

In stories, otherworldly bears are often depicted with six arms or bizarre, impossible shapes. Fortunately, the Crazy Bear was somewhat intimidating but still resembled an Earth bear.

Thanks to that, I could apply knowledge from my past life to devise a strategy.

Surprised by the sudden downhill, the Crazy Bear couldn’t maintain its balance and tumbled over, rolling down.

If it were a cub, it might have been cute, but with the Crazy Bear, even falling over was terrifying. With a loud roar, it crashed to the ground and, unfortunately for it, exposed a vulnerability right in front of Gonz.

“Haaahhh!”

With Gonz’ battle cry, the black steel axe came down. The sound of the strike was deafening, and the ground shook, so much so that I could almost imagine my body lifting off the ground from the sheer force of the blow.

Known for its incredible defensive abilities, the Crazy Bear was said to be impervious to regular attacks, but Gonz’s strike cleaved through its neck in one hit.

I had always known Gonz’ base stats were high, but this was unreal.

With a joyful laugh, Gonz exclaimed, “This weapon doesn’t break, even when I give it my all! It’s amazing!”

Gonz’s axe was large, sturdy, and looked incredibly tough. It turned out that Gonz had been holding back when using it before.

Gonz, you’re on another level.

The Crazy Bear, which is notoriously tough and difficult to harm, had its fur mostly intact due to Gonz’ clean kill. Its internal organs were still intact as well.

We sold the Crazy Bear for a staggering amount. Rank 5 adventurers are said to make significantly more money, and I got a glimpse of that level of earnings.

Like giving a loaded gun to an already dangerous man1, with Gonz and his black steel axe, we quickly amassed a fortune by taking down valuable monsters. We easily bought the black steel skinning knife.

The black steel knife was given to me. While Kimon would also help with the skinning, it was primarily my job. The razor-sharp black steel knife made the skinning process incredibly efficient.

Hehe, I’ve finally got myself a black steel weapon.

Excited by my new gear, I suddenly realized the potential risk of theft. In an instant, everyone around me seemed like a potential thief.

While I was happily celebrating my new equipment, the paranoid side of me was anxious about theft.