Chapter 25

Chapter 24: Frozen Tears

[The 'Master of the Corrupted Corridor' is looking at you.]

This!

Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.

No doubt about it.

It's an indirect message from the boss monster.

"Look, look at this? It's on the status window right now..."

Teresa also exclaimed in surprise.

"Yes, I saw it too."

But there's no need to worry about being attacked immediately.

The indirect message from an intelligent boss monster is merely an expression of feelings or intentions.

It can't physically threaten you.

Still.

'This guy never showed interest in players before...'

The Master of the Corridor was always locked in his room.

He would naturally deal with intruders, but otherwise, he completely cut off contact with the outside world.

For him to show interest like this...

...it's intriguing.

The reason and intention behind it.

"Is it a boss monster? What does it mean to look at us?"

"Put positively, it sees us as interesting opponents. Put negatively, it means it won't let us leave alive. Something like that."

"Do you think it's acknowledging us?"

"It means it's acknowledging me. Not you."

Trying to lump us together so subtly.

It's obvious he's showing the indirect message because of me.

"..."

Teresa looked at Jinhyuk with a speechless expression.

A player who is a renowned ranker and porter in Europe.

If you asked 100 people, all 100 would side with Teresa.

And yet.

What is the source of this man's confidence?

At this point, it's almost admirable in multiple ways.

There was a lot to say, but Teresa shook her head in resignation.

"When you first told me, you said you knew all the traps, right?"

"Yes. It's been a while, but my body remembers."

It's been a while since we came to the first floor.

Especially, it's been over six years since the last time we entered the ruins.

But there's no problem.

The saying 'form may fade, but class is eternal' isn't just a saying.

"Then, what should I do?"

"Just draw the attention of the undead monsters. I'll handle the rest."

By dividing roles like this, we can level up and obtain the desired items without leveling up.

Jinhyuk held his dagger in reverse and got ready to descend into the pit.

"I'm ready."

"Then, let's start."

Teresa gathered her mana.

Then.

Rumble!

[Teresa activates Lv5 'Song of Battle'!]

A brilliant light and a warm aura filled her body.

[All stats increase by +3 for 10 minutes!]

A wide-area buff skill.

A cheat skill that affects all stats.

'Hmm. This is quite useful.'

Jinhyuk let out a small exclamation of admiration.

If it weren't for Teresa's unique ability 'Blessing of the Stars' that allows her to resurrect upon death, he would have wanted to copy this skill.

Boom!

Meanwhile, Teresa leaped into the midst of the undead monsters.

"Grrr..."

"Kieeee!"

Ghouls and skeletons reacted immediately.

They emitted corpse poison and swung crude swords and axes.

But...

Crack!

Such weapons couldn't even scratch Teresa's armor.

Of course not.

Among 100 players, Teresa is evaluated as the most stable attacker.

Moreover, she is equipped with the 'Armor of Joan of Arc,' even if it's a replica version.

Mass-produced monsters, no matter how many, couldn't stand a chance against her.

"Keh!"

"Keeeh!"

Her shield moved with precision.

Bang! Boom!

The heads of the ghouls were crushed in one blow.

That's almost the power of a siege hammer.

Swish!

Every time her sword drew an arc, a skeleton's body was cut in half.

Fast and accurate attacks.

The walls surrounding her crumbled.

A path opened.

...Now!

Thud!

Jinhyuk pushed off the ground.

Lightly.

And quickly.

Maintaining his speed, he moved through the monsters with minimal movements.

Most of the aggro was drawn by Teresa, but due to the large number, some targeted Jinhyuk.

A ghoul, with its claws extended, lunged at Jinhyuk's neck.

"Kieeee!"

Dealing with each one individually would be endless.

Poke!

Aiming for the joints to throw off the center of gravity.

"Keh?"

The ghoul's body swayed violently.

It was clearly confused.

Suddenly, its body wouldn't listen to it.

Jinhyuk used the same method to deal with the ghouls and skeletons, pushing deeper inside.

Then, as the fog thickened a bit more.

Zzzt.

A black spark flew like lightning.

"!"

Dangerous.

Jinhyuk instinctively changed direction.

Boom!

A massive crater appeared where he had been standing just a second ago.

Indeed.

A chilling destructive power.

'If it's not this level, it's not a ruin.'

Jinhyuk's eyes moved quickly.

To the left.

Precisely, between the rocks on the left.

There, a lich was chanting a spell.

A bone mage with no flesh.

However, the blue light in its eyes seemed to see through everything.

"This place is not for mere humans."

A grating voice emerged.

Anyway, with that line.

So, it's a suitable place for corpses to come out at night?

Jinhyuk brushed off the lich's threats, which were filled with all sorts of assumptions.

'With five dura-hans as guards...'

He wanted to avoid a direct fight if possible. But there was no choice.

He had to deal with them all.

Ignoring them like the ghouls and skeletons would risk being caught from behind.

"Go back. If you take one more step, I'll turn you into ashes."

The lich created a black lightning bolt on the palm of its hand.

It looked like at least a 5th circle spell.

Jinhyuk took a step forward.

"Oops. Mistake."

"Finally..."

The lich nodded at the dura-hans.

"Krooo!"

"Kraaa!"

The five dura-hans roared fiercely.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

With a ground-shaking roar, the dura-hans closed the distance in an instant.

Surprisingly, they even formed a包围圈.

At the same time.

The lightning in the lich's hand disappeared.

"Die regretting, human!"

Fast.

But when the black streak reached Jinhyuk's heart.

Whoosh!

A fierce flame erupted.

The lightning shattered against the fire shield.

"Y-You, a mere human, how!"

It was a full-power attack.

Yet, to block it so easily.

The lich, who was confident that his magic was unmatched by any human.

But that confidence was completely shattered.

Right at this moment.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Thousands of fragments of fire.

In the midst of it.

"Time is short, so I'll end this quickly."

Jinhyuk, who had briefly declared, aimed at the dura-han in front.

Thud.

Stepping on the thigh.

Thrust!

Then, stepping on the shoulder and leaping high.

Had he risen about 5 meters from the ground?

Jinhyuk pulled his shoulder back.

"My attack isn't as fast as lightning, but..."

One thing I can guarantee.

"You can't block it with your shield."

A 10th-grade dagger infused with mana, with gap stats and adaptive abilities stacked.

A 5th circle shield wouldn't stand a chance.

At least a shield two levels higher would be needed.

This time, the dagger in Jinhyuk's hand disappeared.

A red flash.

A straight beam of light shot towards the lich.

"Grgh!?"

[5th Circle 'Energy Shield' activated!]

Reflexively, the lich summoned mana.

The shield unfolded, enveloping the lich in a transparent barrier.

But.

Crack!

The shield shattered like glass.

Naturally, the lich behind it also had holes in its body.

"Ku... ku..."

The lich looked at its wound and Jinhyuk in disbelief.

But only for a moment.

The glowing blue eyes gradually lost their light.

Due to the massive impact, all the mana it had gathered was lost.

Of course, with a Life Force Vessel, it wouldn't be destroyed.

It would just be unable to move for a while.

'With this, the cleanup is done.'

Jinhyuk retrieved the dagger embedded in the ground.

"Grgh..."

"Keh."

The dura-hans, under the lich's command, slowly retreated.

Probably due to the loss of morale.

Jinhyuk didn't chase them.

After all, the purpose of coming here was not to level up but to secure items.

"Huff."

Jinhyuk caught his breath.

From now on, he had to be a bit more tense.

He had to pass through a large number of traps.

***

"What... what kind of porter is this?"

Teresa muttered weakly.

Her heart was pounding when she joined after clearing the undead.

She could confidently speak to the opponent who kept ignoring her.

I'm this strong.

But the moment she saw Jinhyuk's battle, her shoulders, which had been raised, dropped to the ground.

'It's true.'

The words that he had dealt with four dura-hans alone.

She had doubted it, but it was true.

And that wasn't even his full power.

He had completely toyed with a lich, which was a much higher-level enemy.

'No wonder he's so confident.'

Being that strong, he couldn't help but be at ease.

However.

The surprise didn't end there.

The moment they entered the trap zone.

Teresa lost her words.

"Ah..."

Her small lips opened in a daze.

***

Thud!

Jinhyuk dodged the spikes that shot up from the ground.

Almost simultaneously.

Fifteen arrows flew from the front.

They were threatening, but this was a feint.

The real threat was the transparently coated wire.

'With the fog, I need to be even more careful.'

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Jinhyuk deflected the arrows with his dagger while constantly checking his footing.

Then.

[Your vision is distorted.]

An uncomfortable prickling sensation hit his retina.

'From now on, the distance will be about 32 cm off.'

It means any attack will feel much faster than it actually is.

This is the main reason this trap section is so challenging.

He adjusted the timing he had memorized by one level.

...Let's go.

Jinhyuk moved forward again.

Swish.

Something brushed against the ground.

This time, from behind.

A snake-like rope tried to catch his ankle.

Jinhyuk lunged forward.

Click! Click!

Traps were triggered one after another as he moved.

Of course, everything here is a trigger for the traps.

'Here, three steps... and then two steps to the right.'

He kept moving.

There was no other way but to choose the slightly less dangerous path.

Relatively easy were the physical traps.

The challenging ones were the mental traps.

The latter had to be avoided at all costs.

They caused instant death upon activation.

Just a little more.

Just a little more...

Now, there were about 100 meters left to the goal.

[Your hearing is dulled.]

[Your sense of touch is numbed.]

The closer he got, the more his senses dulled.

An environment that even nullified the advantage of excellent reflexes.

Studying the rules.

Trying to figure out the patterns.

None of it mattered.

This section is where everything loses its meaning.

The only way to break through this trap is to die thousands, tens of thousands of times and memorize the entire sequence.

Boom!

Jinhyuk deflected the trajectory of a short spear with his dagger.

Despite his senses going haywire, he didn't lose consciousness until the end.

Bang!

He deflected it.

Boom!

Again.

Bang! Bang! Boom!

One more time.

'This... is the end!'

Whoosh!

Jinhyuk caught the short spear rushing towards his heart with his bare hands.

Then, he threw it to the ground.

[All senses return.]

[The fog in the pit clears.]

[The undead enter rest.]

Looking at the status windows that appeared, Jinhyuk groaned.

"Doing this after a long time, my muscles are aching."

Really.

My right wrist and shoulder are stiff. If I were three months younger, it would have been easy.

'But seeing this, it seems to have gone away...'

Jinhyuk looked at the items on the rock.

The first thing that caught his eye was a long parchment with ancient Latin.

The 'Pact of Peter' that Teresa wanted.

And.

'Yeah. It's nice to see it again.'

A crystal that emitted a blinding blue light.

'Frozen Tears.'

Finally, I've got it.

'First, I'll collect the subspace inventory combination book and the magic core, and then I'll call Teresa to neutralize the poison and cold in the Frozen Tears.'

Touching it with bare hands would cause severe frostbite.

But just as he was about to call Teresa.

"Put... that down. Slowly."

A low, deep voice came from behind Jinhyuk.