Chapter 16

016. The Trial of Competition (5)

To Seonghoon, the tower represented a new opportunity.

Once a promising star, Seonghoon was now no different from a bird with broken wings.

While others saw the present, Seonghoon always looked back to the past.

A time when, with his high-grade unique trait, he could aspire to become an A-class Hunter.

If there was a golden age in Seonghoon's otherwise unremarkable life, it was then.

But that was a few months ago; Seonghoon's growth as a D-class Hunter had stagnated.

Of course, even as a D-class Hunter, he still earned several times the average person's salary...

However, for someone who had become arrogant from the privileges of being called a promising star, it was a bolt from the blue.

His rare unique trait of magic resistance and his specialization in close combat were a powerful combination.

However, his innate combat skills were so poor that they had dragged him down to the depths.

One day, a hologram appeared in the middle of the night and invited him to the Tower of Trials.

"The Tower of Trials has deemed you a suitable candidate."

"Please choose your difficulty level."

It was said that the tower would reset everyone's abilities and put them through trials.

What appealed to Seonghoon the most was that it would not only reset his abilities but also those of everyone else, and the rewards from the trials were enticing.

If he combined his initial awakened abilities with the rewards from the Tower of Trials...

Yes, he could regain his broken wings and grow even more than before.

Even reaching the 5th floor, or even the 8th floor, could allow him to return to Earth completely.

Choosing the hardest difficulty, the trials were arduous, but his growth was equally steep.

When the 4th floor's trial was announced to be about competition, he believed he would be the strongest.

But...

"..."

What was this situation?

Seonghoon clenched his lips as he looked at the man in front of him.

Fear, inferiority, anger, and shame—various emotions swirled within him.

'F*ck, just a Hunter aspirant...!'

But despite the rising flames of anger inside, Seonghoon could do nothing.

It was only natural.

While Seonghoon struggled to handle even two goblins, the man had killed eight.

And he did so without receiving any support magic from I-hyeon, who was in the back.

He had overwhelmed the goblins with pure physical ability and skill.

Fully armed goblins were exceptional beings, ranging from E-class to D-class.

Seonghoon had struggled and managed to kill two after a fierce battle.

But the man had killed four times as many, and he casually told Seonghoon, who was denying reality, that if he couldn't handle it, he would kill him and proceed with the trial.

However, even with such threats, Seonghoon couldn't bring himself to speak.

"Then, let's cooperate well for the remaining time."

To speak as if he were just a Hunter aspirant, Seonghoon had seen too much.

***

Seonghoon was a fool, but he wasn't completely clueless.

The more brazen he acted, the more he would suffer.

Asking for help from I-hyeon, who was standing beside him, was also impossible.

After all, I-hyeon was on no one's side.

'From the way he tried to mediate earlier, it's obvious.'

Indeed, I-hyeon was standing back, alternating his gaze between Seonghoon and me.

This meant that no matter what happened, I-hyeon would deal with it separately.

And it was clear that things wouldn't go in Seonghoon's favor.

"..."

Seonghoon didn't act any more stubbornly.

He just closed his mouth, stiffened his expression, and stepped back.

'Well, there's nothing to refute, really.'

He was the one who started the trouble, and he showed complacency during the trial.

When they should have worked together to face the competition, he tried to waste time.

So, there was nothing to refute.

Of course, as a Hunter with a strong sense of self, he might have thought about using force.

But Seonghoon stepped back obediently, as if to show that such thoughts were just worries.

'At least he's not that stupid, which is fortunate.'

A trial with a time limit; there was no point in causing more conflict.

Especially when it was a trial that required risking one's life.

Seonghoon also judged that wasting time was dangerous and decided to step back.

Of course, if he could take the lead, he might have acted differently.

But realistically, after showing such a gap, there was no reason to argue further.

Even Seonghoon, who had been causing discord, stepped back, so there was no need to hesitate.

If he had taken the lead, he should have used it.

"Then, I'll take care of the monsters, and Mr. Seonghoon, just protect Hunter I-hyeon."

At these words, Seonghoon, who had been silent, clenched his lips and spoke.

"...Understood. Is there anything else I need to do?"

Perhaps it was a matter of maintaining his last bit of pride, but he continued to use informal speech. However, it didn't matter much.

After all, they wouldn't meet again after passing this 4th floor.

"Nothing else. Just do that, and there's no need to be overly tense. Hunter I-hyeon..."

"Just call me I-hyeon."

"Understood. I-hyeon, just guide the way and provide support from the back, as before."

"Ah, yes. Then, let's resume the exploration."

Hmm, I-hyeon, who had not expected this, seemed to be on edge.

Perhaps it was because he had been threatened with the possibility of being killed by Seonghoon.

Of course, it was just a threat, so he was still somewhat cooperative.

At least his vigilance had increased.

'I didn't intend to be so forceful.'

It left a bitter taste.

Of course, apart from that, I had no regrets about what I had done.

If I had held back, the situation might have worsened.

Regardless of Seonghoon's arrogance, the pace at which he couldn't even kill goblins was a problem.

While the whereabouts of other competitors were unknown, they wouldn't be as weak.

There was no need to put themselves at a disadvantage, so I had no regrets.

At that moment, I-hyeon, who had been fidgeting with his fingers while looking at the sky, spoke cautiously.

"I just used my exploration ability, and it seems the boss is inside the city."

"...You already know where the boss is?"

"It seems so. The Goblin King is in the center of the castle city. Other bosses are also inside the city."

"Is it possible that our path to the Goblin King will overlap with other competitors targeting other bosses?"

"Hmm, the bosses are quite far apart, so it's unlikely to overlap that much."

That meant if they met other competitors, they would be competitors.

The Tower of Trials always gave trials and rewards in a straightforward manner, and this time was no different.

'Kill all the visible monsters and all the competitors you meet.'

It couldn't be any simpler or clearer.

The only problem was that the straightforward trial content was an order to kill.

"Is it impossible to know the locations of other competitors?"

"My unique trait is still weak, so I can't find the locations of other competitors. I also lack the mana."

"Then, it's impossible to avoid meeting other competitors and hunting the Goblin King."

"Yes, at least with my abilities... it seems difficult."

In the end, they couldn't avoid killing, and I-hyeon's face darkened.

Seonghoon wasn't as tense, but he looked a bit troubled.

It wasn't a normal reaction.

Whatever he had done before entering the tower, Seonghoon might have experience with killing.

It was said that Hunters sometimes killed each other inside dungeons.

Just because the law couldn't reach there, it didn't mean they wouldn't be punished.

If my guess was correct, Seonghoon might need to be a bit cautious.

'Just in case, he might stab me in the back.'

On the other hand, I-hyeon could be considered safe from betrayal.

He was a magician with almost no close combat ability, and Seonghoon had already proven to be unreliable.

If he didn't want to die, he wouldn't betray them.

While organizing his thoughts, a system message appeared.

"The monsters inside the castle city have started to move."

"Dispose of the trial target as quickly as possible."

The system message urged them to hurry, as if it wouldn't wait any longer.

It was time to properly carry out the trial, as if they had just made up their minds.

"..."

He didn't want to kill, but it was just a hope.

He might have to kill with his own hands, as he had resolved.

The true competition had begun.

But he didn't intend to just tremble here.

"Let's start moving deeper into the city."

Since they were risking their lives and the reality was that if they didn't kill, they would be killed.

However, there was something he needed to do before that.

"Then, let's reorganize our formation and move in..."

Suddenly, I-hyeon, who was about to continue speaking, tilted his head as he looked at me.

It was understandable.

Approaching the goblin corpses, which offered no rewards, must have seemed strange.

"Hmm, Mr. Han Seonghoon, if you're trying to collect mana stones, you won't get them from the tower's monsters."

I-hyeon spoke with a troubled tone, tilting his head.

I didn't intend to collect mana stones, even though I knew it wouldn't work.

Since they couldn't leave the tower, mana stones wouldn't be very useful.

But just as completing a trial earned a reward, I needed to gain something after a fight.

"Wait a moment. I have something to do. It won't take long."

「Absorbing all the commands of the Goblin Ranger.」

「Current number of commands held – 8/15」

「Proficiency increased by 11%.」

Pretending to collect the dagger the goblin was carrying, I absorbed all their commands.

The goblins Seonghoon had killed didn't show any signs of being absorbable...

'Well, if I could absorb the souls of monsters killed by others, that would be strange.'

Since it was such an efficient trait, I just accepted it.

I checked all the commands of the Goblin Rangers in my list and immediately tried to absorb them.

After a short wait, the message I had hoped for appeared.

「Absorbing one of the skills possessed by the Goblin Ranger.」

「Using all held commands to permanently increase stats.」

「Strength increased by 3.」

「Agility increased by 4.」

「Health increased by 2.」

「Endurance increased by 7.」

'Skill absorption, as expected, the more I absorb, the better it works.'

Absorbing the same Goblin Rangers at once seemed to have increased my physical abilities and granted me a new skill.

「Acquiring skill ‘Ranger’s Discipline (F)’.」

Ranger’s Discipline, it didn’t give a clear feeling, but...

Even if the skill was low-level, it would be useful.

And that guess became reality when the description window opened.

『Skill – Ranger’s Discipline (F)』

『Proficiency – 0%』

『Effect – Wider field of vision and easier to detect others approaching.』

It was a simple effect, but it was quite useful.

I could immediately tell that my field of vision had widened.

‘Is this what it feels like to have a wider field of vision?’

Everything in my sight was clear, and my focus wasn’t fixed on one point.

It felt like my overall field of vision had expanded...

At least it wasn’t difficult to adapt, which was fortunate.

After collecting the spare dagger the goblin was carrying, I stood up and approached I-hyeon.

"Here, take it. The quality isn’t great, but it can be used as a throwing dagger."

Only then did I-hyeon understand why I had searched the goblin’s body.

"Ah... I appreciate it, but Mr. Han Seonghoon would be better off using it. I’m not very good at throwing."

"No, I can’t throw either. I don’t need it. But you’ll have to fight alongside Mr. Seonghoon, right?"

In short, he was suggesting that I-hyeon keep it for self-defense.

Hearing this, I-hyeon didn’t refuse.

"Thank you, I’ll use it well."

"Don’t mention it, it’s not mine anyway."

Of course, since I had killed the goblin, it was technically mine, but it was better to say it this way.

A support magician in the back was valuable.

If he died pointlessly, it would complicate the situation, so this was necessary.

And he had helped me before by giving advice.

If he needed throwing daggers, he could buy them from the shop.

After finishing the preparations, I organized the formation and gave instructions.

"Then, let’s move again."

With the battle rewards secured, it was time to proceed with the trial.