Leveling Up By Surviving Alone - L.U.B.S.A Chapter 101

 

Pii, pii—

Piiiiiiiiii!

Geumjjoki, the prince of the Snowfield Rabbit Dynasty, was letting out a desperate scream.

Her grandfather was dying.

The other adult rabbits were dying too…!

As heartbreaking as it was, what tormented Geumjjoki even more was something else entirely.

It was the fact that all of this was happening because of her own reckless actions.

That truth was tearing the young rabbit’s heart into a thousand pieces.

Pii…

If she hadn’t stubbornly gone out to search for food, if she hadn’t run into the pseudo-monkey in the first place, none of this would have happened.

Piiii…!

No—if she hadn’t chased after the fleeing pseudo-monkey, or at the very least, if she hadn’t run away from the pseudo-monkey, she wouldn’t have encountered the Frost Deer Bear, and things wouldn’t have escalated this far.

Piiiiiiik!

And now, right before her eyes, every rabbit she knew was about to die.

She was the one who had caused this situation, yet there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Piiieeeeeeeek!

The young rabbit’s cries continued.

She wished—prayed—that someone, anyone, would come to their aid.

If only someone would save them, she swore she would devote her entire life to serving them as her savior. Over and over, she begged the ancient rabbit deity.

But of course, it was just the desperate wish of a naive child.

That wish never reached the heavens.

Because the salvation the rabbits needed wasn’t in the sky—it was somewhere else entirely.

Sssshhhh—EEEEK!

In that instant, something bathed in moonlight shot forward like a meteor.

The Frost Deer Bear, which had been sneering just moments ago, widened its eyes in shock.

What the hell is that?!

Whatever it was, it carried terrifying force.

There was no dodging it.

In fact, realizing it before impact was nothing short of a miracle.

The Frost Deer Bear hastily raised its front paws in defense.

But it was as futile as a child trying to push back a falling boulder.

KWA—ANG!

THUD. CRUNCH!

The ground beneath the bear caved in violently.

Its front legs bent backward as the Jawsbar slammed straight into its body.

GRRRAAAAAAH…!

A dying roar erupted.

The Frost Deer Bear’s massive frame was driven into the earth.

KWA—AAAAANG…!

Its enormous body slumped lifelessly.

No trace of vitality remained in its shattered form.

……

An abrupt silence fell.

Then, the Jawsbar—bouncing off the bear before clattering to the ground—shattered that silence.

KWAANG!

Pii, piiiiik!

Everyone stood frozen in shock at the sudden turn of events—everyone except Geumjjoki, who was staring intently in one direction.

Her nose twitched incessantly, trying to pinpoint the scent of someone approaching.

But she didn’t need to.

Because a single flying squirrel was already soaring toward them.

Swoooosh~

“Ugh… That melodrama was hard to sit through.”

Just moments ago, Ji Yeonwoo had chosen to chase after Jung Yaong.

His goal was to find a good hiding spot.

Yeonwoo had his trusty “Perfect Accuracy” and the returning Jawsbar.

Engaging in close combat was too risky, but sniping from a distance? That was manageable. If he could kill it from afar, great. Even if he couldn’t, he might still be able to help the rabbits somehow.

That was why he had chosen to wait—though it meant parting ways with Jung Yaong.

It couldn’t be helped.

It was a shame, but he had already realized that Jung Yaong was no ordinary cat. Besides, he couldn’t exactly bring the cub back to his beachside home anyway, so this was as good a farewell as any.

Not that he considered it a farewell in the first place.

Thanks to the “First Jung Yaong (…)”, Yeonwoo had learned one thing: cats could never truly belong to anyone.

They just lived their lives, and if you happened to cross paths again someday, you’d greet each other warmly—like old friends reuniting after a decade.

And so, Jung Yaong left.

Yeonwoo settled into a good vantage point and watched the battle between the bear and the rabbits unfold.

But the bear’s actions were downright despicable.

Yeonwoo wasn’t some self-righteous hero who couldn’t stand injustice, but seeing what the Frost Deer Bear was doing would make anyone’s blood boil.

So he didn’t hold back.

He hadn’t been hiding just to watch, anyway.

And so, things unfolded the way they did.

Killing it was the right call.

Of course, there was one thing that puzzled him.

‘It’s dead, but I didn’t get a Rift Coin?’

That guy…

‘Maybe he was just a lot weaker than I thought?’

Yeonwoo’s gaze shifted to the bear’s corpse, slumped lifelessly into the ground.

There was no trace of vitality left. Blood pooled beneath its face, forming a small puddle.

“Ugh, yeah. Definitely dead.”

Having confirmed the bear’s demise, Yeonwoo walked over to the elder rabbit.

The old rabbit, with one leg completely crushed, was cradled in Yeonwoo’s arms like a princess.

“You. You’re kinda cool, you know?”

Pii, piiik…!

Yeonwoo handed the elder over to the other rabbits.

At first, the rabbits had been growling warily, but when Yeonwoo extended the elder toward them, they accepted him respectfully.

Then, Yeonwoo turned to Geumjjoki.

The young rabbit, who had already been staring at him, flinched in surprise.

“So, what was the rush? Look what your recklessness caused.”

Piiiii…!

There was no way she could understand his words.

But the tone of his voice alone was enough to convey his meaning.

Tears welled up in Geumjjoki’s eyes.

She was grateful. And she was sorry.

But she couldn’t express either of those emotions to Yeonwoo.

Because at that very moment, a massive shadow rose up behind him—and lunged.

PIIIIIIIIII!

—

“……!”

Yeonwoo whirled around.

The razor-sharp claws of the Frost Deer Bear were already descending toward his back—inches away from crushing him.

‘Did it activate its domain?’

But it was too late.

He couldn’t dodge. He couldn’t even block in time.

At this speed, the claws would tear into him in half a second.

In that split second, Yeonwoo considered his options—and acted.

[Elasticity Control]

KWA—AAAAANG!

A massive cloud of dust erupted.

The snowfield rabbits shielded their eyes with their forelegs.

Piii…!

Geumjjoki, the prince of the Snowfield Rabbits, stared wide-eyed at the outcome.

The Frost Deer Bear’s enormous, blade-like claws—

—were now buried deep into the back of the pseudo-monkey.

Every single claw had impaled him completely.

His body had been pierced.

Which meant he was either already dead… or about to be.

PIIIIIIIIII!

A mournful scream echoed.

While everyone else grieved, only one being felt something different—rage.

GRRROOOOOOAR!

The Frost Deer Bear trembled with fury.

It had been toying with the snowfield rabbits.

Playing with the tiny creatures had brought it immense joy.

For the Frost Deer Bear, tormenting its prey was the greatest entertainment of all.

And now, that entertainment had been ruined.

Not only that—it had nearly been killed!

If it hadn’t reacted in time, it would be the one lying dead right now, not this damn monkey!

It could have died—not just failed to evolve, but been wiped out—by some random attack from some random creature it hadn’t even sensed!

Its icy-blue eyes burned with crimson fury.

All of that rage was now directed at the monkey impaled on its claws.

GRRRROOOOOOOOAR!

BAM! BAM! BAM!

KWA—AAAAANG!

The bear slammed, stabbed, flung, and crushed the pseudo-monkey’s body over and over.

The thought that this tiny, insignificant creature had nearly killed it made its blood boil. Its rage only grew as it vented, and the snowfield rabbits’ eyes, too, burned with fury.

The pseudo-monkey had saved their king.

To them, he was already their savior.

The prince’s and the elders’ bloody noses were long forgotten.

Now, all they felt was pure, unadulterated rage—watching their savior being brutalized right before their eyes.

And the Frost Deer Bear sensed that rage.

Its fury began to give way to cunning.

So it tormented the already-dead monkey even more.

Punished it further.

BAM! BAM! It slammed the body into the ground, tossed it around, treated it with increasing cruelty.

Finally, it grabbed the monkey’s arms and legs with both paws—and pulled in opposite directions.

If it could tear the limbs off, spill the guts—dealing with the enraged rabbits would be much easier.

But the moment it stretched the limbs—

Sssssstretch…!

The body elongated instead of tearing…?

GRR…?

It let go of one side—and the limb snapped back into place with a SPROING!

Come to think of it… no matter how small this thing was, how could it possibly be this light?

GRRROOO?

Confused, the Frost Deer Bear lifted the corpse to inspect it closely.

The monkey’s head hung limp, just as it had been before the ambush. No—only the back of its head was visible.

It needed to see the face.

So it lifted the head up.

And the front of the face was—

Hollow?

GRRROK?

What the—?

As the bewildered bear tilted its head—

SHWAAAAAK!

Something slammed into its back.

CRUNCH!

The Frost Deer Bear turned around just in time to see—

The pseudo-monkey.

No—Ji Yeonwoo, mid-leap, swinging the Jawsbar with both hands.

And Yeonwoo, in that moment, was—

Completely naked except for his underwear.

[Shark Bite]

[Tenacious Jaw Strength]

“DIE, YOU BEAR-SPAWN FUUUUUCK!”

CRRRRRUNCH!

SHWAAAAK!

The Frost Deer Bear’s claws lashed out in a desperate counter.

But this time, it wasn’t fast enough.

The blade was going to hit before it could block.

If it couldn’t stop this attack—

Then what?

It opened its mouth.

The Frost Deer Bear’s massive, razor-sharp fangs clamped down on the incoming Jawsbar.

CRUNCH!

It didn’t get sliced—but the sheer force of the impact sent its head plummeting downward.

The moment Yeonwoo’s feet touched the ground, he put all his strength into slamming the bear’s head down.