[Rakiratas proposes an Apostle’s Contract to you.]
“Huh?”
Taesan was bewildered.
“An Apostle’s Contract? What is this?”
Taesan stared blankly at the window. But no matter how long he waited, no explanation appeared.
“I guess the choice is up to me.”
Taesan sat down and stroked his chin.
Apostle’s Contract.
Lee Tae-yeon had fled, so she hadn't received the offer. He had no information on what kind of contract this was. Taesan recalled the System Window.
[Rakiratas's domain of interference has been reduced.]
This appeared before the Apostle’s Contract proposal window. Seeing as a System Window stating that the domain of interference had been reduced also appeared when the Servant of Rakiratas was enhanced, it seemed even a god had to pay a penalty to exert influence. It seemed Rakiratas was willing to accept such a penalty to make him an Apostle.
It was closer to goodwill than hostility, but Taesan felt a sense of unease. His opponent was a god. Lee Tae-yeon had said they were whimsical, and Taesan had felt it keenly as well.
To enhance the Trial midway through. Had he been even a little weaker, it would have been dangerous. Would an offer given with goodwill from such a being truly be beneficial to him?
It was hard to guarantee that a god's favor would align with his goals. There was a very real possibility that he could end up living as a slave, like the Servant of Rakiratas. Taesan made his decision.
“I will not accept.”
[You have rejected Rakiratas's offer. The Apostle’s Contract is put on hold.]
Rakiratas did not burst into anger at the refusal. Taesan didn't know if all gods were merciful to those they acknowledged, or if it was just Rakiratas, but the contract was put on hold, as if to say he could choose anytime. It was a relief.
This meant there would be no sulking and withholding of rewards.
[Rakiratas gives you a reward. You have received [Rakiratas's Ceremonial Blade].]
A mist gathered, and soon a blood-red longsword appeared before Taesan. It was untarnished by rust and exceedingly sharp. Taesan's eyes gleamed at the sight of the impressive-looking weapon.
[Rakiratas's Ceremonial Blade] [Attack Power + 5] [Recovers 5 Health upon killing a target.]
[A blade used by those who serve Rakiratas. It is stained red with the blood of sacrifices.]
Taesan’s eyes froze for a moment. He rubbed his eyes and checked again to see if he had misread it.
“It's real.”
Seeing the unchanged description, Taesan let out a dry laugh.
“What is this? Are they really allowed to give something like this?”
An Attack Power of 5. This wasn't an item one could obtain on the 2nd Floor. His current Attack Power was 4. If he changed his weapon, it would become 7. If he dual-wielded them, it would be 9. In terms of Attack Power alone, it was nearly a twofold increase.
In terms of damage, he had become about 30% stronger. And it even had a special effect. Recovering 5 Health per kill.
It was a minor but very noticeable effect.
“Nice.”
It was a reward worthy of the hell he went through. Taesan was quite satisfied, but the rewards weren't over yet.
[You have cleared the Enhanced Trial. An additional reward follows.]
[You have obtained the Special Passive Skill [Proof of Struggle].]
It was a skill he didn't know. If the first reward was a sword with +5 Attack Power, the skill would surely be quite good as well. Taesan checked it with anticipation.
[Special Passive Skill: Proof of Struggle] [Proficiency: 1%] [You have proven your struggle. The more you fight and overcome enemies, the stronger you become.]
“An acceleration skill?”
A skill that increases speed and stats. Such skills were called acceleration skills. Many Players had used them effectively as a type of buff.
Proof of Struggle seemed to be that kind of skill. He would have to use it to know its exact performance, but since it was a reward given directly by a god, it couldn't be bad. Rakiratas didn't stop there.
[Sub Quest begins] [Rakiratas wishes to give another trial to you, who has brilliantly completed his trial.]
[Condition: Kill the enemies on the 2nd and 3rd Floors and return.]
[Reward: To be determined by Rakiratas based on your performance.]
Taesan looked at the Quest Window with a sour expression. Rakiratas had already changed the content of the Trial once, so he was reluctant to accept. Taesan made his decision.
“I won't accept.”
Someone who stabs you in the back once can do it again anytime. Taesan refused the quest.
[You have refused the Sub Quest.]
Then, another window appeared.
[Sub Quest begins] [Rakiratas wishes to give another trial to you, who has brilliantly completed his trial.]
[Condition: Kill the enemies on the 2nd and 3rd Floors and return.]
[Reward: To be determined mercifully by Rakiratas based on your performance.]
The word 'mercifully' had been added. Taesan, letting out a hollow laugh, accepted it this time. It wasn't a quest where something new would appear like in the Trial, but one to eliminate what already existed in the Labyrinth.
It would be impossible to pull any tricks. Seeing the changed Quest Window, it seemed Rakiratas had no intention of doing anything funny, so he judged it would be fine to accept.
[Sub Quest begins] [Rakiratas is pleased with your choice.]
If he was going to kill them, he might as well kill them all. If it was all the enemies on the 2nd and 3rd Floors, he would be spending quite some time here. He planned to make some preparations beforehand.
Taesan returned to the shop.
“Why are you back so soon?”
“There's something I need to buy. Potions are 200 Gold, right?”
“200 Gold... you're buying them already?”
“I think I might need some.”
Normally, he had no intention of using them on the lower floors, but seeing the enhancement of the Trial changed his mind. There must be more than one place like the Altar of Rakiratas. He didn't know when or where something might ambush him.
In such times, having a recovery potion would allow him to overcome it without much trouble. Even this time, if he had just had a potion, clearing it would have been much easier. The total Gold Taesan had was 650 Gold.
He planned to sell his unused equipment as well. Taesan took out the Rusted Sword and the Crude Bow.
“How much will you buy these for?”
“Those two? I'll give you 100 Gold each.”
850 Gold.
He could buy four.
“Do you sell Mana potions too?”
“I have them, but they're more expensive. 250 Gold.”
“Then give me one of those and three recovery potions.”
“Here you go.”
The Dwarf quickly traded the Gold and potions. Three red potions. One blue potion came into Taesan's possession.
[Health Recovery Potion] [Recovers 50% of Health.]
[Mana Recovery Potion] [Recovers 50% of Mana.]
The basic preparations were complete. Taesan put the potions into his Inventory. The Dwarf, who had been staring blankly at Taesan, suddenly frowned.
“... That sword.”
The Dwarf's gaze was on Rakiratas's Ceremonial Blade.
“Rakiratas. Did you get that from that pervert?”
“A pervert?”
“What else do you call a guy who gets off on watching others fight?”
The Dwarf, with a scrunched-up face, said as if he didn't like Rakiratas very much.
“Seeing that you received that, you must have passed the Trial. It's a bit too much of an item for you right now... but I can't just take what you were given.”
As expected, the Dwarf didn't seem pleased that Taesan had received the weapon. God and NPC. He wasn't sure what the difference was yet, but they didn't seem to be on friendly terms.
“Still, I expected it. Someone like you would have been able to clear it.”
“I almost died, though?”
“Huh? Almost died?”
The Dwarf's face stiffened. He asked in a serious tone.
“Don't tell me the Trial was suddenly enhanced?”
Taesan nodded.
The Dwarf's face contorted.
“That crazy god still hasn't fixed his bad habits.”
“Was he always like that?”
“He's always done that to anyone he takes a liking to. I don't know what he's thinking, chipping away at his own domain. I'd understand if he was scouting talent, but he just gets them all killed. What's the point?”
The Dwarf looked at Taesan with a sense of wonder.
“Everyone else has died until now, but you endured it and survived. That pervert must have been ecstatic.”
The Dwarf seemed to know a lot about Rakiratas.
Taesan asked.
“May I ask one thing? What is the Apostle’s Contract?”
“Hmm?”
A look of surprise appeared on the Dwarf's face.
“Rakiratas proposed it to you?”
“Yes. There was no explanation, so I put it on hold for now.”
“A wise decision. It's not a matter to be decided lightly. That guy, a contract... How long has it been?”
After pondering for a long while, the Dwarf opened his mouth with a frown.
“Sorry, but I can't answer that.”
“... I see.”
After all that hemming and hawing, the Dwarf said he couldn't answer. Taesan gave him a strange look. The Dwarf spoke as if making an excuse.
“I can't help it. What I can do for you all is my role as the Shopkeeper. I can't do more than that. That's the condition of the contract.”
“A contract?”
“It's the reason I'm tied to this place, what else?”
The Dwarf snorted in annoyance. He waved his hand with a look that said he didn't want to talk anymore.
“You bought everything you needed, right? Scram.”
He didn't seem like he would answer even if Taesan stuck around. Taesan asked one more thing.
“Before that, could you show me the items you showed me last time?”
“You don't have any money, do you?”
“Because I'm thinking of buying later.”
“Hmm... wait a moment.”
The Dwarf showed him the items.
Numerous items.
There were also things like earrings and rings. Among them, one item caught Taesan's eye.
[Iron Cross Necklace] [Attack Power +1] [A necklace worn by those who served the God of War. It is useless, but they believed it would protect them.]
[600G] 'It's here.'
Having confirmed it, Taesan turned away.
“Then I'll come again next time.”
“Let's see each other on the next floor, if possible.”
'That might be difficult.' He planned to visit the shop often.
NPC. And God.
In Taesan's judgment, they were the important ones in Alone Mode. Taesan opened the community forums.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: You there?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Ah. Hyung. Hello.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Ah. It's Taesan-ssi. Hello.]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: Met the Holy Knight?]
It was about time they met the Holy Knight. He planned to check what kind of relationship they had formed with Ainzhar.
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: We did meet him.]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: What happened?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: ... Hyung. It's different from what you said?]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: What are you talking about all of a sudden?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: The Holy Knight. He just spat once and left?]
Taesan paused.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: You couldn't block it?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: Can you even block that? Even knowing it was coming, my body wouldn't move? I just got hit with a pressure status and it was over.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: I met the Holy Knight too, and it was the same. I couldn't move no matter how I tried.]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: It was like that for you too?]
Knowing about the attack and being able to respond to it are two different things. Ainzhar's strike was one that oppressed you by its very nature. That was why Taesan had no choice but to block it, even though it was an incredibly slow strike.
Still, he thought that if someone like Lee Tae-yeon or Kang Jun-hyeok knew about it beforehand, they would be able to react, but it seemed that was impossible.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: So what happened? Did you stick to him?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: I stuck to him. But he spat and told me to get lost. Said we had no value.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: That's so different from what you said, Taesan-ssi.]
Taesan tapped his chin. One thing became clear. Ainzhar only considered those who could react to his strike as valuable and treated them accordingly.
Come to think of it, the Dwarf was similar. Lee Tae-yeon had said the Dwarf was rude and acted very reluctant whenever he had to do something for them. But to him, he had been very kind.
Rakiratas was probably no different. He might even be worse than the Dwarf or Ainzhar. As a being who gave definite rewards based on performance, there was a high chance he would despise and mock those who did not accept his trial.
After organizing his thoughts for a moment, Taesan posted.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: Where are you two at right now?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: I'm hunting Big Rats right now.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Same for me. I want to level up a bit before going down.]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: What about the others?]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: A few people have started hunting Big Rats. But it'll probably take a bit more time?]
The Players were still in the adaptation phase. It took time to get past the First Floor. 'I can tell them later.'
Taesan organized the priority of the information. What he needed to teach them now was information about the Boss.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: When you go down to the 2nd Floor, there's a boss mob, okay? It's called a Giant Rat, an enhanced version of the Big Rat. Its Health is over 200, and you take damage even if you block, so be careful.]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: ... How are we supposed to kill something like that?]
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: Think about it. I can't tell you the method too.]
He intended to guide the way, not to lead them by the hand. If he told them everything, they would rely on him and lose the ability to clear the Labyrinth on their own. That would be a loss for both sides.
Lee Tae-yeon had already killed a Giant Rat on her own. She and Kang Jun-hyeok were more than capable.
[Kang Taesan [Alone]: If you think a little, you'll find a way. Tell the other players not to carelessly enter the red door and die.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: Yes. Thank you.]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: I'll do my best.]
Taesan closed the community forums. Those two would be able to make it down to the 2nd Floor without any problems.
“Now, I need to save up some money.”
He had Airak Martial Arts. It was an absurd skill that applied to any piece of Attack Power equipment, no matter where it was worn. But he wasn't able to make good use of it yet.
A ring and the Fighter's Gauntlets. He had only raised his Attack Power by a total of 2. So, he planned to buy them from the shop. The Dwarf had shown him numerous pieces of equipment.
Among them were necklaces, earrings, rings, and the like.
“I have to kill them all anyway, so this works out well.”
Rakiratas's Quest.
He had to kill all the monsters on the 2nd Floor. He would earn a decent amount of Gold. He would pour all his Gold into the shop.
Necklaces, rings, earrings, and numerous other accessories. Even with just the basic items, he would easily surpass 10. And then, he would descend to the 3rd Floor. That was his current goal.