Absolute Dweller-Chapter 210

“Hoo.”

After handling the urgent matters, the first thing I checked was Lee Joon-hyuk, who was still working hard in Jeju.

‘His Star Power increased, right?’

With the level-up expansions and the influx of new citizens, I hadn’t had the time to properly check this.

I first looked at the Star Power effects, but they remained the same.

[☆☆☆]

All stats increased by 300%50% additional experience gained50% additional settlement money gained

‘Then…’

Could it be that, just as he had overcome his level cap, his maximum Star Power enhancement had also increased?

To test my theory, I attempted to enhance Lee Joon-hyuk’s Star Power.

And—

[Would you like to use 3,000,000,000 won to enhance Citizen Lee Joon-hyuk’s Star Power?]

[Success Rate: 45%]

As expected, he could now be upgraded to 4 stars.

The cost was a hefty 3 billion won, but Star Power enhancements were always worth the investment.

Even in the case of failure, accumulated Starlight Dust increased the success rate for future attempts.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

‘So, the Star Power enhancement cap was lifted.’

There was no reason to hesitate.

‘Enhance.’

[Citizen Lee Joon-hyuk’s Star Power has been enhanced.]

Surprisingly, it succeeded on the first try.

[☆☆☆☆]

All stats increased by 400%100% additional experience gained100% additional settlement money gained

However, 4 stars didn’t bring any fundamental changes—just numerical boosts.

‘Even so, this alone is significant.’

Star Power wasn’t just for retainers.

It applied to all citizens.

And since the Crown of the Absolute doubled all effects,

Lee Joon-hyuk’s total experience and settlement money gain from hunting monsters now reached 1500%.

At this point, if a high-level monster needed to be finished off, it had to be done using Lee Joon-hyuk’s power.

‘He has a 300% advantage over the other retainers.’

Still, something felt lacking.

With a name like Limit Break, it should have been more than just a stat boost.

‘Can I enhance it again?’

Out of curiosity, I attempted another enhancement.

[Would you like to use 10,000,000,000 won to enhance Citizen Lee Joon-hyuk’s Star Power?]

[Success Rate: 35%]

‘It works!’

Even though each attempt cost 10 billion won, the benefits of strengthening a retainer made this cost trivial.

‘At 5 stars, there has to be something different.’

Thud!

[Enhancement failed.]

[Citizen Lee Joon-hyuk has accumulated Starlight Dust.]

Unlike regular enhancements, failures here still provided Starlight Dust, increasing the success rate.

[Would you like to use 10,000,000,000 won to enhance Citizen Lee Joon-hyuk’s Star Power?]

[Accumulated Starlight Dust (10%) increases success rate.]

[Success Rate: 41.5%]

A much kinder system compared to standard equipment enhancements, where the success rate never improved.

‘Enhance.’

After three failures, the notification I had been waiting for finally appeared.

[Citizen Lee Joon-hyuk’s Star Power has been enhanced.]

And then—

[☆☆☆☆☆]

All stats increased by 500%100% additional experience gained100% additional settlement money gainedNew Trait: [Blooming] acquired

The change I had anticipated had finally arrived.

‘[Blooming?]’

The description was simple.

A trait that temporarily unlocked the target’s latent potential, significantly enhancing all abilities.

I was about to call Lee Joon-hyuk immediately—

But.

Wuuuuuung!

He was already using his newfound power.

It seemed the timing aligned perfectly with his battle against the black insects.

Even though the scale was smaller than that of the Avatar, generating an artificial tsunami still required an enormous amount of concentration.

Swooooooosh—

At the center of the swirling sea, Lee Joon-hyuk’s entire body turned black.

Fwoosh!

‘Hmm?’

What surprised me was that he had ignited the black flames himself—before I had even enhanced him.

A more refined, controlled black flame radiated from his entire being.

‘I see.’

I quickly understood what was happening.

I had encountered a similar case before.

‘This is just like when I first used the Subjugation Contract.’

Before the Noble Title System had been unlocked, I had unintentionally bestowed titles like Baron and Viscount upon my retainers through the Subjugation Contract.

At the time, the ability I had inherited from my mother, Subjugation Contract, had drawn out the system’s latent potential.

And now, the same phenomenon was occurring again.

‘Originally, he should have needed to reach 5-star Star Power and acquire [Blooming] to use the black flames.’

But thanks to my enhancements, he had skipped the prerequisite process and gained immediate results.

In short—this was a bug.

A bugged method had allowed me to use black flames before, but Lee Joon-hyuk’s [Blooming] was the real deal.

Updated from freewёbnoνel.com.

‘It’s definitely much more efficient than my forced enhancement.’

Which meant—

‘What happens if I enhance him while he’s in this state?’

As if skipping through the process and bringing only the results wasn't enough, what would happen if I enhanced Lee Joon-hyuk again while he was properly going through the right steps?

For reference, the nobility ranks he gained through the Subjugation Contract remained intact.

With some anticipation, I used my power on Lee Joon-hyuk while he was in the state of [Blooming].

‘Enhance.’

At that moment—

Wuuuuung—

A halo appeared above Lee Joon-hyuk’s head.

And then—

‘…Wings?’

A pair of black, radiant wings unfolded from his back.

The black flames that had once enveloped his body now transformed into an aura that rippled through him like a living force.

As soon as his half-closed eyes fully opened—

Swooooooosh!

A drastic transformation took place.

Towering water pillars resembling a hurricane spiraled around him.

At first, they were merely thin, thread-like streams of water, but they soon merged, thickening and twisting into an enormous vortex.

Swoooooosh—

As the water hurricane expanded, massive raindrops of seawater poured down violently.

Some of it crashed down onto Jeju Island like a torrential downpour.

Zzzzt—

[You have slain Black Insect (Lv. 20).]

[You have slain Black Insect (Lv. 20).]

[You have slain Black Insect (Lv. 21).]

……

……

The black insects caught in the downpour died in droves.

But that was merely the beginning.

The true catastrophe was yet to arrive.

A high-tier water spirit was now leading an immense, hundreds-of-meters-wide water column toward Jeju Island.

A hurricane, but made entirely of seawater instead of wind.

To the black insects, it was no different from the apocalypse itself.

Swooooosh—

By the time the water column landed on Jeju’s shores, the destruction had spread far and wide.

Zzzzt!

Hundreds. No, thousands of black insects were being wiped out in real-time.

Those directly struck by the water column died instantly, but tens of times more perished just from the widespread seawater splashing across the land.

The result—

[Your skill level has increased.]

Not long after his last level-up, his experience skyrocketed again.

[Clear Mirror, Still Water has been activated.]

Even though my territory expansion had begun due to my own level-up, I couldn't take my eyes off Jeju.

By the time the torrential waves finally settled, nearly 30% of the entire island had been drenched in seawater.

The death toll of the black insects was unprecedented.

This single attack had wiped out several times more than what my Avatar and Lee Joon-hyuk had eliminated combined until now.

Having exhausted all his strength, Lee Joon-hyuk floated unconscious atop the ocean.

‘Is this… the next stage of [Blooming]?’

Before unlocking Blooming, Lee Joon-hyuk struggled to even imitate my Avatar.

But now?

At least in water manipulation, he was unquestionably the strongest.

Which naturally led to one big question.

‘What exactly are the conditions for a Limit Break?’

I didn’t have much time to dwell on it.

With the territory expansion, new citizens were pouring in by the thousands, keeping me too busy managing them all.

Distributing relief supplies, checking on the newcomers’ health, issuing safety measures—I was completely occupied.

And then—

[The total citizen population has reached 3,000,000.]

[With the population reaching a certain threshold, the Party System has been unlocked.]

A new system had been unlocked as my citizens surpassed 3 million.

***

Meanwhile—

Chae Soo-bin lay sprawled across her couch, grinning ear to ear.

Ever since awakening her crystal-creation ability at the Shooting Range, her life had taken a complete turn for the better.

She could create one crystal every 24 hours and had sold each one for 30 million won.

‘Hehe. 30 million a day…’

That was over 100 billion won per year.

And tax-free.

She had practically become a millionaire overnight.

‘Ugh, maybe I should’ve asked for more? He agreed way too easily.’

She had set the price herself.

Even though she knew nothing about gem valuation, she wasn’t stupid.

The fact that someone had rushed to recruit her the moment she awakened her ability meant her crystals had value.

She had actually expected rejection when she asked for 30 million won per crystal.

Yet, to her surprise—

He had agreed immediately.

Not only that, but Kim Jae-hyun had paid her 10 billion won upfront as a signing bonus for her first batch of crystals.

And now, she was living in the very same apartment complex as him.

The most coveted place to live in all of Korea.

An apartment rumored to cost over 10 billion won, one that only the chosen ones could enter.

‘Honestly, though, isn’t it just like any other modern apartment?’

She had once visited a friend’s house that was much bigger and fancier.

‘Though, that place got destroyed…’

Other than the fact that Kim Jae-hyun lived there, the place wasn’t particularly special.

But.

‘Actually, that alone is everything.’

The fact that Kim Jae-hyun lived there.

Most of Korea’s land had now become safe zones, but no one knew when monsters might return.

And when that happened…

Where would the safest place be?

‘Right here.’

The 10 billion price tag wasn’t just for a home.

It was the cost of survival.

With a satisfied smile, Chae Soo-bin checked the crystals in her inventory.

‘One, two, three, raccoon, squid, spicy ramen, turkey!’

Seven crystals.

Which meant 2.1 billion won just sitting there.

‘Wait…’

Usually, her crystals sold out within days.

But now, they had been piling up for a whole week.

‘…Did something happen?’

Just as she began to wonder—

[Chae Soo-bin.]

The saying speak of the devil and he shall appear never felt more accurate.

Because Kim Jae-hyun’s voice suddenly echoed inside her head.

“Uh, yes?”

[Are you free for a moment?]