The fist moves.
Slowly. But surely.
[Your Line of Death has been activated.]
The System Window announced a warning. Even without it, there was no way he couldn't know. That fist possessed the power to kill him.
His body was faster than his mind. Taesan raised his shield. He crouched, preparing for the impact.
Kwoong.
The shield and the fist connect. Taesan is horrified by the force he feels through it.
'This is.'
It wasn't simply a matter of strong force. It was heavy. It felt as if a mountain itself was crushing down on him.
Taesan grits his teeth. He bulks up his muscles to their limit. He forcibly twists the direction of the force.
Ggakak.
With a rough sound, he moves the shield. He diverts the point of impact of the fist, changing the direction of the force.
[You have received the power of a mountain. Your Strength permanently increases by 1.] [You have deflected the mountain's power. You have obtained the Special Active Skill [Deflection].]
"Hoh?"
Admiration appears on Ainzhar's face.
"Then how about this?"
The fist aims in a straight line. It pulverizes the shield's movement that was trying to deflect the force and heads straight for Taesan. Taesan quickly came to a conclusion.
He couldn't block that. Technique or whatever, the difference in power was too great. Then he wouldn't block.
He crouches.
As Taesan's posture lowers, the fist's trajectory naturally follows downwards. The tilted shield and the fist align. Taesan lets go of the shield.
He kicks off the ground backwards with all his might.
Kwaaaang!
[You have received 35,211 damage.]
[Activation of a non-lethal attack. The damage has been nullified.]
"Keok!"
His body, along with the shield, crashes into the wall. The hard stone wall of the Labyrinth crumbles, revealing what's beyond. Confirming this with the sensation on his back, Taesan let out a dry laugh.
'What the hell is this?' Breaking the Labyrinth's wall in a single blow. He had never heard of or seen such a thing.
A feat that no Player or Monster he had ever met could accomplish, the old man before him did it so simply. And the damage. Even though he did his best to throw his body away to reduce the damage, it was still thirty thousand.
He could tell from this one blow alone. This old man was incomparably stronger than Lee Tae-yeon. 'What in the world?'
The Gatekeeper was one, and now this. They were all just Monsters. Even his past self would have a hard time guaranteeing a win.
"Hoh!"
But the old man was looking at Taesan with an admiring expression.
"I thought it would be a hundred thousand, but to think it was only thirty thousand! Amazing!"
"I can't just stand by and get hit, can I?"
"That's true."
The old man laughed heartily and asked Taesan.
"Who are you?"
"Is there any reason for me to tell you that?"
Taesan said in a sharp tone. The old man laughed heartily.
"That's why I used a non-lethal attack. I have no intention of killing someone I've just met. Besides, even if I had attacked with all my might, you have Fortitude. I judged there would be no problem."
"... You saw it?"
"Mmm!"
The old man clenched his fist and nodded.
"That sight of you stepping into death's door just to survive! It was truly astonishing! And your skills are actually outstanding! To divert my attack with such meager Stats!"
The old man spat with great vigor. Taesan frowned as he listened to the old man's words. 'He knows about Skills?'
NPCs with self-awareness only exist in Alone Mode. But Lee Tae-yeon had never mentioned that they knew about Skills. There were two possibilities.
Either she didn't tell him, or she didn't know either.
"Honestly, I was worried you might be a weakling, but it was a meaningless worry! You pass with flying colors!"
The old man's face as he looked at Taesan was endlessly satisfied.
"Adventurer. What is your name?"
"I am Kang Taesan."
"Taesan! A very glorious meeting!"
The old man. Ainzhar smiled brightly.
"Blessings upon this miracle! I am one who seeks God. My name is Ainzhar!"
Ainzhar seemed to have no intention of doing anything more to him. Taesan first tended to his body. Although there was no damage due to the non-lethal attack, the numbing shock hadn't gone anywhere.
As he settled his body, he checked the Skill.
[Special Active Skill: Deflection] [Mana Cost: 5] [Proficiency: 24%] [Diverts the center of an attack to reduce damage. It seems it can divert attacks from all weapons.]
Taesan let out a dry laugh after checking the Proficiency. The Proficiency was already 24%. It meant blocking that one strike was worth that much.
On top of that, his Strength had increased by 1. It was very rare for a Stat to increase without any conditions. It was a result that showed just how powerful Ainzhar's strike had been.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"It's nothing."
"If you have any questions, ask away! I shall answer!"
The old man shouted magnanimously. Taesan, observing his appearance, narrowed his eyes. 'He really is different.'
Lee Tae-yeon had also met Ainzhar at the Fountain of Life on the First Floor. And she said she, like Taesan, had been tested with a single strike. But she couldn't react at all.
Just when she had finally reached the Safe Zone and was feeling relieved, an old man suddenly appeared and threw a punch. And it was an attack with enough power to kill her. There was no way she, who was just starting to adapt, could have reacted.
Towards Lee Tae-yeon, who was staring blankly at the fist, Ainzhar clicked his tongue.
[What a weak coward.]
With those words, Ainzhar left. He turned his back on the fountain, sending a look of contempt her way. And Lee Tae-yeon said she never saw Ainzhar again.
If her words were true, then his attitude towards Lee Tae-yeon and Taesan was completely different. After all, Ainzhar was looking at Taesan with a pleased gaze.
"May I ask one thing?"
"Anything!"
"Why did you suddenly attack me? Is it to bully the weak?"
This is only the First Floor. There's no one who can face someone like Ainzhar. In a way, he was a bugged NPC.
"That's not it. I may not look it, but I am a Holy Knight. There's no way I'd persecute the weak!"
The golden Knight spoke with a confident face.
"I am here to evaluate those who visit this place."
"Evaluate'?"
"Whether they are worthy of surviving in this place. Whether they are worthy of my acknowledgment. There's no one more troublesome than those who don't understand themselves."
Ainzhar grinned.
"In that sense, you pass. Absolutely brilliant!"
"Ah, yes. Thank you."
Taesan replied awkwardly to Ainzhar, who was giving him a thumbs-up. It was so different from the image he had heard about that he felt somewhat bewildered. But thanks to this, he had managed to sort things out to some extent.
Acknowledgment of worth. That was Ainzhar's evaluation criterion. Lee Tae-yeon failed to pass, while Taesan must have passed.
That would be the reason for the different attitudes. In other words, there would be no reason to be hostile towards him. If anything, he would be treated with goodwill.
Having confirmed this, Taesan asked.
"You said your name is Ainzhar?"
Lee Tae-yeon couldn't even speak to Ainzhar. Taesan also didn't know what kind of person Ainzhar was, or what his purpose was. He had to obtain the information himself.
"That's right! It's the name I received from my glorious father!"
"You said you were seeking a God."
There were many gods in the Labyrinth. But most Players didn't pay them much mind. The reason was simple.
It was because they only existed in Alone Mode. Lee Tae-yeon had said that all sorts of gods tested Players and gave out Rewards. And she had also frequently complained about how terrible and filthy they were.
Since the target of her complaints was usually Taesan, he knew of many gods. Even information about them.
"May I ask which God it is?"
"Of course! The more people who know of our God, the better!"
Ainzhar said cheerfully.
"The God I serve is the beloved goddess. Revinenof!"
Hearing the name, Taesan flinched.
"Revinenof. Is that correct?"
"Yes! There's no way I'd mistake her name! All of us served Lady Revinenof!"
Ainzhar looked up at the ceiling with dazed eyes.
"We would call her name at the beginning and end of each day. She was a magnificent goddess who would bring loved ones together. In my world, there was no goddess as beloved as she."
Ainzhar shrugged his shoulders.
"Unfortunately, my world was destroyed, so I am the only one who remembers her."
"... Did you come here to find her?"
"That's right. But I haven't found even a fragment yet..."
Ainzhar lowered his head. Looking at the dejected man, Taesan thought.
'Revinenof.'
Taesan knew of her too. She was a goddess Lee Tae-yeon had told him about. He also knew which floor she was on.
But there was one problem. 'She said she was dead.' The beautiful goddess had been horribly torn apart.
Taesan remembered it because Lee Tae-yeon had spammed the community forums with posts about how grotesque it was. For Lee Tae-yeon, who had overcome so many hardships, to say that, it must have been a truly horrific sight. As Taesan was contemplating the truth, Ainzhar's eyes sparkled.
"Taesan. May I ask you a question?"
"What is it?"
"Are you, by any chance, in a hurry to descend the Labyrinth?"
"No. That is not the case."
His goal was not to clear the Labyrinth, but to understand and conquer it. He had no intention of leaving until he had obtained every Reward. Ainzhar clapped his hands.
"That's great then. Taesan. By any chance, would you be interested in learning Revinenof's techniques from me?"
"I accept."
Taesan answered immediately. Ainzhar, on the other hand, stammered at the response that had not a hint of hesitation.
"No hesitation. I thought you might think about it a little."
"There's no reason to refuse."
Ainzhar is strong. He is so powerful that it's impossible to understand why an NPC in the Labyrinth possesses this much strength. If he had been outside, Taesan might not have died.
A reason to refuse an offer of a Skill from such a person. It didn't exist.
"What is the price?"
"Of course there is none. This is a due apology."
"An apology?"
"For suddenly attacking you."
Ainzhar lowered his head with an ashamed look.
"Even if it was for a test, I used violence on you, someone I just met. As a Holy Knight, this is something I must deeply repent."
Seeing his genuinely apologetic face, Taesan let out a dry laugh.
"Then you shouldn't have attacked in the first place."
"That's a different story."
Ainzhar said with a shameless face.
"The reason I'm apologizing to you is because you are a person worthy of it. If you weren't, I would have just spat and left."
Ainzhar had actually done that to Lee Tae-yeon. He had left her with only a look of contempt. 'He's a madman, alright.'
But for him, it was a madness that worked in his favor.
"A mere verbal apology is worthless. I figured that you, also an Adventurer, would want a valuable Skill, so I decided on this. Is that alright?"
"Of course, it's fine."
One Skill for one non-lethal attack. Compared to risking his life to obtain a Skill, this was an incredibly easy task. Taesan was willing to do it hundreds of times.
Ainzhar swept his chest as if relieved.
"That's a huge relief. I almost did something that would have brought shame upon my God."
His face showed genuine relief. Judging by his actions, it seemed like he could get more if he complained, but Taesan was satisfied with this. Unlike Lee Tae-yeon, there was a high chance he would continue to meet Ainzhar.
He judged that it was more beneficial to maintain a proper line rather than to get greedy and ruin the relationship.