Volume 2, Episode 26. 2nd Floor, Secret Rooms. Boss (11) [Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: This one is a bit easy.]
[Moon Jae-seong [Alone]: ... I feel like I'm going to die just doing this.]
[Lee Tae-yeon [Alone]: It's easy in a relative sense. It means there's no problem as long as you get the timing just right, like a machine.]
[Kang Jun-hyeok [Alone]: As soon as you enter the room, you shoot three Goblins with Paralysis Arrows, beat them up for 30 seconds, then shoot another three Paralysis Arrows. You have to do this nearly ten times without a single mistake, but, yes. Well, compared to getting Fortitude, it's easy.]
[Forced Duel? How did you know? This is a Skill I've really never seen before.]
“Diligently, and well.”
[That bastard on the 2nd Floor got it by being diligent and doing well? That's funny.]
The Ghost clicked its tongue as if it had been deceived.
[Even the guy who has a Skill like that wouldn't want to reveal it. Where did you get the information?]
The Ghost seemed to think he had heard about Forced Duel from someone. Taesan left that thought alone. If it pressed him for details, he would have had a hard time answering, so he was very grateful that it came to its own misunderstanding.
[But Skills aren't everything. I understand you got a good Skill, but don't get arrogant.]
“You just answer the questions I ask.”
[... Damn it.]
The Ghost trembled. The Ghost, seemingly displeased with Taesan's victory, kept grumbling. Taesan let it go in one ear and out the other as he wandered the Labyrinth.
[Forced Duel seems like a good Skill, but there are tons of Skills in the Labyrinth, you know? Do you know one called Leap?]
“I know it.”
[... You do?]
“But why Leap? You couldn't learn Great Leap?”
[Wh-what's Great Leap?]
“Looks like you couldn't learn it.”
Taesan said indifferently. At his words, the Ghost let out a groan.
[I'll admit it. You know your Skills well. But that's not all there is to the Labyrinth. How you survive and what you discover here are also important, you know? So what are you doing now?]
“What does it look like I'm doing?”
Taesan was examining the bricks in an empty room. The Ghost realized it belatedly.
[Secret Rooms? You're in for some trouble.]
This kind of search for Secret Rooms was a pure Grind. There was no choice but to check every single brick in the room. The ways to shorten it were to increase the number of people, or to have a special Skill.
It was one of the two.
[You had a strong premonition.]
Among the numerous bricks, one caught Taesan's eye. Taesan stared at it blankly for a moment, then walked over. He grabbed the brick and pulled.
Drrrk.
The brick slid in, and a Secret Room revealed itself.
[Huh?]
“As expected, it's good.”
An ability that appeared once the Proficiency for Insight surpassed 20 percent. It would very occasionally inform you of important information. It came to Taesan in the form of a premonition, and in that moment, all the problems he had been wracking his brain over were solved.
It had the effect of letting him skip the trial-and-error sections that were essential for breaking through the Labyrinth in one go. The Ghost, perhaps realizing that Insight had activated, muttered in a flustered voice.
[... You have Insight too? And its Proficiency is over 20%?]
Taesan entered the Secret Room. Inside, a passage covered with numerous Traps was visible.
“Goblin Traps, I see.”
[They're Traps they use when storing things they consider precious. They're installed randomly, so breaking through will be tricky. Giving up and going back might be a good choice.]
Taesan quietly looked at the Traps. The first Trap was an Arrow Trap. The second Trap seemed to be a pitfall Trap where the floor collapses.
And the third and fourth were Traps of the type where the walls move. It's the same as Easy Mode. Taesan walked towards the Trap.
[Hey?]
Piiing!
He strikes away the flying arrow. He kicks off the ground to avoid the trapped floor. With a grinding sound, the walls move, trying to crush Taesan.
Instead of quickly running to escape the moving walls, Taesan clenched his fist. He swung it towards the approaching wall.
Kwaaaang!
The bricks crumbled into sand. Taesan dusted off his hands with an indifferent expression.
“It's the same.”
The moving walls are a Trap for a Trap. If you rush forward breathlessly to escape, dozens of Traps will activate simultaneously. It's not that you can't get through, but you would have quite a hard time.
The easiest way to clear it is to break the walls. Unlike the walls of the Labyrinth, the moving walls were made by Goblins. Their durability wasn't very high, so they could be broken with a fist.
Taesan calmly walked down the passage, disarming the Traps one by one.
[...]
The Ghost shut its mouth and followed quietly. The passage ended, and a small Treasure Chest was visible. Taesan pulled a lever, breaking all the Traps, and checked it.
[Ring Containing a Spring] [Mana + 5] [A ring that was soaked in a hidden spring in a deep place. It faintly exudes a clear and elegant fragrance.]
“A Mana ring?”
A pleasant surprise mixed on Taesan's face. An increase in Mana was always good. Moreover, it wasn't any other Accessory, but a ring.
Unlike necklaces or earrings, you could wear them on all your fingers, making them the best type of Accessory to obtain.
“This is great.”
Taesan equipped the ring and cheerfully exited the Secret Room. The Ghost, which had been silent, spoke.
[What are you?]
“Will you understand if I say this is my second time?”
[Second time?]
It didn't seem to understand. From the Ghost's reaction, Taesan confirmed one fact. 'It seems the stomach stone of a god that Ouroboros spits out can only be obtained after passing the 80th Floor.'
Since Lee Tae-yeon hadn't said anything, he didn't know how to get it either. If things went well, he might get another chance, so he had planned to look for it. In any case, that was a story for after entering The Depths.
Taesan walked through the Labyrinth and arrived in front of a Red Door. Taesan went inside. Surprised by his unhesitating attitude, the Ghost asked.
[Aren't you going to ask me?]
Due to its contract with him, the Ghost had to tell him everything it knew. As an NPC who had descended to the 80th Floor, it would surely know who the Boss of the 2nd Floor was and how to defeat it.
“No need.”
Taesan already knew who the Boss of the 2nd Floor was. The bet he made with the Ghost was for the purpose of asking something else.
“Kek?”
Inside the Boss Room, there were two Goblins. One was an ordinary Goblin, but the other was different. Unlike the Goblins so far, it was wearing high-quality cloth clothes.
It wore a long pointed hat and held a dark wooden Magic Staff in its hand.
[A Magic Staff-Wielding Goblin has appeared.]
[A Guarding Goblin has appeared.]
“Ke-ek!”
The Goblin swung its Magic Staff. The power of magic began to gather at its tip. The Goblin that looked like a guard protected it.
The Boss of the 2nd Floor was the Magic Staff-Wielding Goblin. It used magic. It was the first enemy to use magic seen in Alone Mode.
In Easy Mode, it was a Monster that only appeared after the 40th Floor.
“Ki-ek!”
While the magic was materializing, the guarding Goblin rushed at Taesan. Taesan stared at it blankly and raised his sword.
Jjeo-eong!
“Keok, Ka-ak!”
The Goblin was smashed into the ground. Taesan stabbed its back. After about three stabs, the guard died and disappeared.
[You have won against the Guarding Goblin.]
In the meantime, the magic was completed. Taesan watched calmly. Normally, this was the wrong way to do it.
Low-Level Players have no way to block magic. The correct answer is to ignore the guard or shoot a Paralysis Arrow and immediately deal with the mage. Lee Tae-yeon didn't know that and had suffered quite a bit.
But Taesan deliberately left the mage alone. The Ghost let out a frustrated groan.
[Aigoo. This isn't how you do it. It seems you know Skills but not the strategy.]
In its eyes, it must have looked like Taesan was using the wrong method. But for Taesan, this was the right way.
“Ka-ak!”
The Magic Staff shone.
[The Magic Staff-Wielding Goblin has activated Confusion.]
[Judgment begins.]
[Confusion Judgement in progress....]
His mind wavers. Something from the outside tries to invade through his brain. All sorts of images are drawn and erased, over and over. ...
The Judgment for confusion magic is extremely strict. If you make even a small mistake or your mind is shaken, you fail. You lose yourself and go berserk.
“Get lost.”
Taesan shook his head. The rushing chaos was flung away.
[Judgment successful!]
[You have endured with an Indomitable Spirit!]
[All Stats have increased.]
“Ki-ek!”
The Goblin uses magic again. Taesan waited quietly.
[The Magic Staff-Wielding Goblin has activated Madness.]
[Judgment begins.]
[Madness Judgment in progress...]
“I said, get lost.”
[Judgment successful!]
[You have endured with an Indomitable Spirit!]
[Your action speed has increased.]
[Well, what do you know.]
At this point, the Ghost also realized.
[You're just enduring it, aren't you?]
[The Magic Staff-Wielding Goblin has activated Curse.]
[Judgment unnecessary! You have shaken it off with an Indomitable Spirit.]
Taesan indifferently watched the panting Goblin. He had never failed a mental Judgment, even in his previous world. The Ghost muttered as if it were flabbergasted.
[I've never seen someone endure mental magic with just Mental Strength, without any Skills or Items. Even I couldn't do that.]
[Judgment unnecessary! You have endured it with an Indomitable Spirit.]
[You have experienced magic related to the mind multiple times. You have obtained the Special Passive Skill [Mental Resistance].]
A Skill that helps endure all kinds of mental attacks. And for Taesan, it was also a rather useless Skill. Taesan shook off the confusion and checked the Skill.
[Special Passive Skill: Mental Resistance] [Proficiency: 100%] [Succeed in all mental Judgments with a very high probability.]
“This one carries over, I see.”
[Huh.]
The Ghost let out a hollow laugh.
[This is truly absurd.]
Even after obtaining Mental Resistance, Taesan didn't beat up the Goblin and just stood still. The Ghost also, instead of rushing him, lay down on the floor as if annoyed.
[Damn it. I was going to teach this and that to a guy who knows nothing and make him move as I please, but this guy was a bigger madman than I imagined. I never imagined it would go so boringly.]
“Kek, kek.”
The Goblin, sweating profusely, manifests its magic. The Ghost, watching blankly, opens its mouth.
[Using magic, too. The Goblins here are really fascinating.]
“Did they not use it in your world?”
[Even mages were rare, so how could they? I don't know what the creator of the Labyrinth did, but they all got stronger overall. Even Goblins' average strength is on par with Orcs. And Orcs are stronger than Lizardmen.]
As expected, the Monsters of the Labyrinth seemed stronger than those from other places.
[What were the Goblins in your world like?]
The Ghost asked, as if curious. It seemed to have roughly figured out what kind of person Taesan was and was now just trying to satisfy its own curiosity.
“They didn't exist.”
[... No Goblins? Then what about Orcs or Ogres?]
At the names of such common monsters, Taesan let out a wry laugh.
“Why would things like that exist?”
[Then what do you have?]
“Nothing. At most, there were just beasts.”
[That's a pretty comfortable world.]
The Ghost muttered as if it was strange.
[Why is a guy from a world like that so good?]
Another Confusion Judgement came in. Succeeding this time as well, Taesan was able to obtain the Skill he wanted.
[You have been hit by magic several times. You have obtained the Special Passive Skill [Magic Resistance].]
Magic Resistance.
It was a Skill that provided damage reduction and resistance to all magic. It was also a Skill that one absolutely had to acquire to break through the Labyrinth. Taesan continued to take hits to raise his Magic Resistance as well.
Only after reaching the limit did he swing his sword. The Goblin, which had been panting and manifesting magic, died just like that.
[You have won against the Magic Staff-Wielding Goblin.]
[You have received a large amount of Experience.]
[Health has been restored by 10.] [You have acquired 453 Gold.]
[You have acquired a Random Staff of the Mind.]
“Oh. A Magic Staff?”
The probability was low, yet he got it right away. It was a very lucky thing.
[You have single-handedly won against a difficult enemy. Intelligence permanently increases by 2. Mana permanently increases by 2.] He also obtained the difficult victory Reward.
Magic was not something that originally appeared in the Lower Floors. Taesan won because he was practically immune to mental Judgments; otherwise, he would have struggled while suffering from all sorts of curses and confusion. In fact, Lee Tae-yeon had been on the verge of death here.
[Your Soul Rank Ascension has been activated. Agility permanently increases by 1. Intelligence permanently increases by 2.] [You have defeated the Boss of the 2nd Floor. You have obtained the basic Reward [Beginner Mana Increase Potion].]
[You have identified the Hidden Element of the 2nd Floor. You have obtained the Reward [Uh??].]