novelraw Chapter 31 : Chapter 31
Chapter 31 : Chapter 31
Chapter 31: Waryong's Dungeon (2)
"It is... quite a peculiar sight, to say the least."
I entered Waryong's Dungeon with a firm resolve.
The atmosphere was completely at odds with what one would expect from a dungeon.
Brightly colored flowers and trees adorned the surroundings.
A small stream trickled by, providing water for the flora.
It looked like a scene staged for a picnic.
However, I could not let myself be fooled.
'In the end, it is still just a Gate.'
Gates are places where accidents happen even when you are on high alert and prepared to risk your life.
If I let my guard down while admiring the scenery, there would be no solution.
Therefore, I kept a tight grip on myself and slowly moved forward.
After walking for a long time without encountering any monsters, I finally found the first one.
'It is a ghost-type monster.'
Standing before me was a zombie, a creature classified as a ghost-type.
'I suppose that makes sense, given that the rewards were said to be no different from an E-Rank Gate despite it being C-Rank.'
Ghost-type monsters are famous for having meager rewards compared to the difficulty of facing them.
Moreover, many of them look quite grotesque.
Because of that, most people avoid them, but I was ready to face them with a smile.
Among ghost-types, zombies are the least troublesome. Plus, I already know the reward is equivalent to an A-Rank, even if I do not know exactly what it is.
That was more than enough reason to smile.
'But it will probably be difficult to clash with it without a talent, right?'
I had dismissed it, but it was still a monster from a C-Rank Gate.
I opened my Status Window.
[Physical Abilities]
[Vitality: D]
[Strength: D]
[Agility: C-]
[Mana Affinity: E]
[Remaining Points: 0]
Held Influence Points: 20,700P
Held Talents: [Swordsmanship (D)], [Heterogeneous Gear (SSS)], [Embodiment of Admiration (EX)], [Persistence (F)]
"...Hmm."
Looking at the Status Window made me feel gloomy for no reason.
It was clear at a glance that I had gained a lot of points through the Yu-hyeon incident.
Aside from the Yu-hyeon incident, which was a main episode, I had accumulated a total of 20,700 points, including the additional points gained from the attention of those around me.
There was plenty of good news, yet my gloom showed no sign of fading.
'I really have nothing to show for myself except my talents.'
My gaze was fixed not on the talents or points, but on my innate stats.
No matter how many times I looked, these were not the stats of someone who should be in a C-Rank Gate.
Yet, the talents I possessed were SSS-Class and EX-Rank.
If someone saw my stats and then called me a guy who acts tough solely because of his talents, I would not have a single word to say in rebuttal.
'But what can I do?'
It is only natural that I have nothing to show but my talents, considering I was dragged into this world and became a Player overnight.
In fact, it was a relief to have even this much.
Besides...
'I have to rely on my talents, and I can now somewhat compensate for the drawback of strong penalties, so it is fine.'
With that thought, I opened one of my talents to check it.
[Persistence (F)]
You! The one who stubbornly holds on even when you know it is futile! This talent is prepared for someone just like you. ★
Ability: Mental fortitude and focus slightly increase in extreme situations.
Actually, looking at the ability itself, it was indeed a cheat-level talent.
Increasing mental fortitude and focus in extreme situations was incredibly significant.
However, just as "Embodiment of Admiration" had given me trouble, this talent also had its issues.
'The problem is that it is an F-Rank talent.'
Because the rank of the talent was so low, it felt like there was only a very slight increase.
What is even sadder is that the pain is felt exactly as it is, without any reduction...
If the rank had been just a bit higher, it would have been much better. It was truly a shame.
'Still, I should be grateful for this much.'
Even though it is F-Rank, it plays a major role in preventing the danger of losing consciousness.
Excessive greed usually leads to great misfortune.
Therefore, I had no choice but to be thankful that I was given a talent like this, even if it was F-Rank.
"But it is not perfect yet."
I had benefited from this talent before, but I could not just be happy about it.
This was because I had repeatedly lost and regained consciousness.
Back then, I was lucky that the fanatic found it interesting, but if things continued like that, there would be no answer.
That is why it was important to find out exactly how much the 'Persistence' talent could help me endure.
One might ask: could I not have just tested it through training before entering the dungeon?
"There is a limit to what you can find out through training."
As stated in the ability description, it triggers in extreme situations.
But could I really put myself in an extreme situation during training rather than a real battle?
I thought it would be difficult.
Humans are creatures that only cling desperately to life when faced with an actual situation, not an artificial one.
That is why I came to the dungeon, even at the risk of something going wrong.
There are countless dangers left to overcome.
I could not afford to spend all my time in the training ground just because I was scared of this much.
"Then I should test it right away."
As soon as I made the decision, I immediately used Im Seong-cheol's talent.
I chose Im Seong-cheol's talent because of his identity: Blue Flame.
Since it was a ghost-type, I judged it would be better than the talents of Shin Yu-hwan or Do Gang-ho.
And the reason I chose 'only the talent' of Im Seong-cheol was that I had more to experiment with.
'Is it possible to receive the pain in installments?'
Whenever I used a talent until now, I always received the penalty all at once at the end.
I thought it might be a consideration from the system, knowing that if I received the penalty during battle, the pain would make it hard to focus.
'But this kind of combat is hard to handle afterward.'
Is receiving one unit of damage a hundred times not different from receiving a hundred units of damage all at once?
That was the logic I was talking about.
'When using two or more talents at once, the penalty comes even if I do not want it to, but that cannot be helped.'
Perhaps the penalty comes immediately because my body cannot handle it.
So, setting that aside, I wanted to find out if installments were possible when using only one person's talent.
Of course, I had no intention of wasting points.
I planned to use the minimum points and borrow abilities centered on the penalty.
"Well then, shall we go?"
It seemed the zombies had discovered me as well.
Since we had made eye contact, battle was now unavoidable.
I immediately wreathed my sword in Blue Flame.
Then, as if sensing a threat, the zombies began to rush toward me.
On TV, zombies are usually slow and sluggish, but these were moving at a speed that would make you believe they were track athletes.
"How romantic."
The blooming flowers and trees adorning the surroundings.
The pack of zombies running across the stream that encompassed the area.
And me, watching them while wreathed in Blue Flame.
Was it not overflowing with romance?
I am really glad this was not made into a movie or a drama.
If it had been, it would have been criticized as a work too far ahead of its time.
"Now then, I hope the experiment ends successfully."
With those words, I ran through the pack of zombies.
To add a coat of blue paint to this romantic picture.
***
SQUELCH.
After a long time of striking down zombies that kept appearing no matter how many I killed.
The battle finally ended when I plunged my sword deep into the head of the last one.
"Phew..."
I collapsed onto the ground the moment the battle was confirmed over.
Because there were so many enemies, it was hard to move my exhausted body.
Even so, I did not let go of my sword while I rested, just in case.
"For now, it was not bad."
To start with the conclusion, the experiment was a success.
It was possible to receive the penalty in installments.
It was also possible to endure it without much trouble using 'Persistence.'
"The problem is that there were downsides too."
Persistence only allows one to endure; it does not make the pain go away.
Because of that, there were no mental issues, but my body struggled to hold on.
I thought there would be no aftereffects for a penalty given as pain, but under repeated penalties, there was no helping it.
In other words, short-term combat would be fine, but sustained combat would be difficult.
"Still, it is a problem that can be fixed, so it is okay."
This problem arose purely because of a lack of physical ability.
Therefore, if I just increased my physical stats, no major problems should occur.
I decided to be satisfied for now with the fact that I had obtained good results immediately.
"Now all that's left is the boss."
I had cleared out all the regular monsters during the experiment.
Only the boss remained.
However, the expression on my face did not improve.
'It will probably be quite strong, right?'
The level of the zombies I just faced was not high.
In terms of level, they were suited for D-Rank or high-difficulty E-Rank Gates.
If so, I could inevitably predict the level of the boss.
Every Gate is bound to have monsters set according to its rank.
"But I cannot avoid it. I should probably get up now."
I had rested for a while after taking down all the zombies.
Staying here any longer would only make my body sluggish; it was no longer meaningful.
Thus, I ended my sweet rest and stood up.
"Let's go."
There was still a bit of lingering pain, but since it did not seem like it would interfere with the battle, I stared straight ahead.
Unlike where I stood now, ahead was a dark forest formed by massive, tangled trees.
The boss was likely in there.
The way it alone gave off a gloomy atmosphere made it look like a place where a boss would definitely be.
Therefore, I moved my feet without hesitation.
As soon as I stepped into the forest, the trees moved and blocked the path I had entered from.
"I guess a C-Rank is still a C-Rank."
In the Gate I entered before, the path I came in through was not blocked.
It was structured so that one could flee, reorganize, and then return.
But this place, a C-Rank Gate, was different.
If you have made a decision, take responsibility for it—the Gate seemed to be saying exactly that.
Just as I was looking back at the blocked path and thinking about what to do.
Uwoooooooo!!!
A loud roar echoed from deep inside the forest.
I immediately wreathed my sword in Blue Flame to brighten my vision.
What appeared then was...
"A Ghoul?"
A monster that had a human shape but was difficult to think of as a human.
It was a Ghoul.
"First zombies, now a Ghoul."
Perhaps it was a natural progression.
It was not strange for a Ghoul to appear after zombies.
'But it does not really fit the name Waryong.'
This was a Gate created by the author based on the narrative of Waryong Zhuge Liang.
The appearance of zombies and ghouls, which felt more suited for a Western zombie movie, felt somewhat awkward.
Why did the author, who was so meticulous in these areas, put in this kind of setting?
However, I could not continue that thought for long.
Uwoooooooo!!!
The monster had no intention of letting me be.
Seeing the Ghoul gradually approach, my tension also rose.
'Just how strong is it?'
It did not look that strong, but judging by appearances was something only a fool would do.
Do martial arts novels not often say to be careful of the elderly and children in the world?
Gates are the same.
If you are fooled by a weak appearance, there is only a future of dying.
That is why I used Do Gang-ho's talent while my sword was wreathed in Blue Flame.
It was a measure to make up for my lack of strength with Do Gang-ho's talent.
'I will know once we clash.'
As soon as I made that decision, I swung my sword toward the Ghoul.
SLASH!
Uwoooooogh!!!
Simultaneously, the Ghoul let out a scream and collapsed.
The Ghoul did not get back up.
Was it pretending to be dead?
As expected of a C-Rank Gate, the intelligence of the monster was also...
[The boss 'Ghoul that lost its memories of life' has been defeated.]
"...Huh?"
[Calculating contribution.]
[Player Choi Yu-seong's contribution is calculated as 100%.]
[Rewards corresponding to the contribution are being distributed.]
"...Huh??"
Standing before the rising notifications, I was left speechless.