n

n

nChapter 35 5th Floor b 1}

n「3.」

nThe countdown started. Yet even without the ability of b Merchant of Death}, it wasn’t a waste of time. It was a precious opportunity to measure his opponent before the duel began.

n「2.」

nThe opponent of this battle was the same as the green monster he’d met in his first battle in the Tower. In other words, it was an Orc. However, it was much larger than the one he met at that time and covered with intimidating tattoos. Most importantly, this Orc wasn’t confused. The Orc Warrior that’d been dragged here and went through several matches observed Yoon-seok calmly. Just like Yoon-seok observed him.

n「1.」

nThe Orc Warrior was equipped with a breastplate and armed with a dual-edged ax in each hand. He also wore a bracer on his right arm that he’d seen before in the store: the Great Warrior’s Bracer. It was a magical item that temporarily increased your abilities when you shout.

n「START!」

nAs soon as it started, the Orc Warrior roared and immediately sprinted toward Yoon-seok. He was worried that it might be as strong as Kerixis. Shortly, however, Yoon-seok was relieved.

n‘Is it because I’m dealing with a monster?’

n

n

nNot that it was a weak opponent as the Orc Warrior’s rush carried a strong momentum. But it was far from comparable to the tank-like man. Yoon-seok used his right sword to knock the Orc Warrior’s ax to the side. Then, he filled the sword in his left hand with vigor. Soon, a bluish hue was formed as he swung it.

n“…!”

nSensing something unusual, the Orc picked up his ax with a distressed face and blocked it, but…

nSlash!

nThe sword sliced through the ax like tofu. Neither {Weapon Enhancement} nor b Flash} enhanced it; only the energy of vigor coated the sword. Even Yoon-seok was surprised by the unexpected effect.

n“Snuff”!

nThe Orc Warrior, who came attacking with great force, seemed like it wanted nothing more than to put distance between them. If he had swung his sword immediately, he could’ve cut one of its arms off, but Yoon-seok held back. He could confirm it through the fight: this Orc was weaker than him.

nHe would have to wait and see if it were to the extent that he could knock it out.

n“H, huff! Oi human, why can you use Aura?!”

nThe Orc shouted as if it couldn’t believe it.

nAura? Was it calling this thing on the sword “Aura”? If so, it meant Yoon-seok had manifested a skill swordsmen of other worlds used. He was surprised that he could hone something otherworldly through training, but most importantly, what was shocking was how it broke the rule of how skills should be invoked by command. Though strictly speaking, it was an extended effect of b Heavenly Body}.

n“Whatever, is that all? What, you don’t have any hidden skills?”

nYoon-seok exchanged blows with the Orc Warrior several more times. Then, realizing it was no more than empty threats, he knocked out the Orc. It was a bonus to take his bracer and destroy his weapon.

n“Huff! W-what are you trying to do to me?”

nHe didn’t feel very good because the Orc would wake up and make strange misunderstandings, but Yoon-seok just kept knocking him out.

nA newly acquired skill, Sword Aura. Too obscure to call it a skill or technique, even a full day spent in the waiting room wasn’t enough to get used to the feeling.

n‘Would it have been different if I had acquired this first?’

nWhile he was thinking hard about the Aura, he thought Kerixis ignored all his magic techniques. However, this vigor energy was slightly different from magic, so he wasn’t sure if it would work. Thanks to this, he became more disappointed about his defeat. Pushing it from his mind, he thought of how he would come to know the effects of the energy someday.

n‘Just don’t repeat the same mistake.’

nYoon-seok felt like he should manage his time more efficiently. Then, he felt a wave of regret wash over him about his past achievements. He was convinced that he trained as much as he could in the arena when time stopped but did he give his best? For example, the duel with Lee Chang-hoon and the duel with Ragna. At that time, Yoon-seok prioritized things other than training. That’s why he couldn’t manage his time in the arena to his fullest.

n‘If I hadn’t done that…maybe things would be different.’

nIt may be pointless now, but Yoon-seok couldn’t shake off the lingering feelings of regret. If he had become at one with his sword earlier by finding out what the energy was and used Aura, he wouldn’t have experienced defeat.

n-You’re still…lacking, nameless swordsman.

nAs he said, he was lacking. There was a lack of will, not talent.

n-Crash and break. Then it melts into the mold and crashes! It is the nature of steel.

nEven though there was a way to grow firmer by clashing, at this point, a part of him wondered if he could win again next time. The reason for his last defeat was that.

n‘I have to work harder.’

nYoon-seok clenched his teeth. He didn’t want to lose ever again.

nUnlike on the lower floors, the Orc Warrior lasted as long as eight days, perhaps because of his high level of physical strength. Unlike the polite berserker, who begged him to end his life, there was a clear determination in its eyes until the end. Thanks to that, Yoon-seok was able to realize once again that he wasn’t wrong. This was where only those who desperately want to go up could proceed.

n「Victory.」

n「256,000 APs will be given as a reward.」

n「Unique Skill b Predation} is activated.」

n「Acquire one of your opponent’s skills at random.」

n「Acquired Ax Mastery {Rank D}.」

n「Looting one of your opponent’s equipment at random.」

n「Looted Great Warrior’s Bracer {Rank D}.」

n「Absorb some of your opponent’s highest stats.」

n「Absorb endurance.」

n「1 coin will be paid as a reward for the promotion.」

n「Go to the waiting room on the fifth floor.」

n「The achievement category has been unlocked.」

n「Please prepare for the next duel.」

nFinally, the fifth floor. Yoon-seok felt a sense of joy. He was halfway there since his goal was to reach there and buy a full return ticket.

n‘An achievement category?’

nAmong the six total columns of Information, Skill, Miscellaneous, Convenience and Chat, a new column Achievement appeared.

n「List of Past Achievements」

n-Veteran (Achieved over 700 hours of duel time) 700LP

n-Versatile (Achieved 5 Unique Skills) 100 LP

n-Revolution (Win a Duel with a Self-Assessed SSS-rated Challenger) 1200LP

n-Super Rookie (Achieved Self-Evaluation of S-rate with upgrade adjustments) 200LP

n-Novice Hunter (Disposed of 1 Dimension Invader) 15LP

n-Consecutive Wins (5 consecutive wins) 30LP

n-Beginner (Achieved 5th floor) 30LP

nA list of records of everything Yoon-seok achieved unknowingly.

nHe did this? He could recall some of the achievements that caught his eye, but he was convinced after skimming through each of them.

n‘I think I achieved Revolution during my duel with the Heavenly Devil, and the Dimension Invader mentioned in Novice Hunter is probably referring to the monster I saw in the real world.’

nAfter, Yoon-seok frowned. In addition to the combined score, he learned that there was a separate evaluation given to challengers. It was obvious that the candidates were divided into livestock-like grades for convenience. With the achievement of Super Rookie, he now knew that he had a minimum S rating, but what did they rate him at first?

n‘It’s not like I’m a prisoner who brags about the sparkle of his shackles…’

nYoon-seok decided to turn his attention elsewhere. It wasn’t the achievement that mattered. What value did these LP (legend points) have? Fortunately, when he turned the tab to the side while searching, the things he could do with LP were displayed.

n‘There’s a lot of unique stuff…’

nYoon-seok’s eyes glistened as he browsed the list. The achievement category was selling extraordinary things that couldn’t be found in the ordinary store.

n*Initialization Ticket – Initializes all figures, including skill, equipment, and stats, and returns an amount of AP back equal to the combined score. Price: 100LP

n*Party Formation – Register one Challenger as a fellow. You can invite your colleagues to the waiting room at any time if both parties agree. Price: 100LP

n*Dimensional Registration – One of the dimensions of Seheranbad, Kilian, Moorim, or Earth will be registered additionally. You can choose which one to go to when you use a return ticket. Price: 500LP

n*Mission Statement – You may be challenged with a mission possessing a rate of difficulty corresponding to the floors. Rewards other than promotion can be obtained. Price: 500LP

nWas this possible? Every item was a series of surprises that rocked his perception of this place. Of course, it wasn’t just utilitarian items, but there were also many combat-related items.

n*Salos’s Talons – Permanently raises agility levels by one and reshapes the body. Price: 60LP

n*Giant’s Sword – The size of the sword changes according to the strength of the owner. Price: 250LP

n*Berserker’s Leap – During usage, no pain is felt, and fear disappears permanently. Price: 70LP

n*Elixir – Perfect healing of all abnormalities, such as limb amputation, disease, and curses, and permanently increases life expectancy when taken. Price: 800LP

nHowever, these kinds of items generally had similar values as AP.

n‘It means you can grow more powerful by using LPs, but I don’t think the system was designed for this purpose.’

nYoon-seok then checked his LP. 2,275 LP. It was enough to buy anything and everything he wanted.

n‘Is this how everyone does it?’

nYoon-seok shook his head. He didn’t know how many achievements there were, but average Challengers wouldn’t have had this much LP. When the achievement category was unlocked, they most likely had a max of 100 LP from achievements such as “Consecutive Wins” or “Beginner.” Yoon-seok wouldn’t have earned more than 300LP if it weren’t for Veteran, Resolution, and Super Rookie.

nEntering the chat room on the 5th floor

n

n

nCurrent participants 686

/778

nFirst of all, Yoon-seok opened the chat room to see what others were up to. There were over 30,000 people on the first floor, and now only 778 people were left. However, the number of current participants was overwhelming.

n-Little Tree: I’d like to buy initialized tickets because the others have bad compatibility, so please release some effective skills on this test!

n-Marquis Countess: It’s ridiculous. I don’t know if this is made to win…

n-Dagger is faster than light: those who gave up climbing and bought a full return ticket are the winners. I shouldn’t have insisted and gone back.

n-Warrior A: I am a warrior who has 47 experience in dealing with large monsters. Unfortunately, I lost this time, but I will share the information I felt during the fight. Let’s cheer up!

nHe read the fast-renewing chat from the top before logging off. In general, many people were complaining about the difficulty level. Thanks to this, Yoon-seok was able to realize something naturally. The fifth-floor duel opponents weren’t challengers. If it has been an evaluation related to luck on their opponents’ selection until now, should he say it would be a strict evaluation from now on?

n‘Are you trying to filter out once and for all…?’

nFrom now on, only qualified people would be able to climb up.

n