Ascension Through Skills

Root-La peacefully accepted his death. Not only that, but he even gave his own weapon to Taesan.

Just like the Orc, the monsters did not harbor resentment or burst out in anger at Taesan.

Taesan checked the makeshift spear.

[Makeshift Spear] [Attack Power +10] [It's a hastily made spear. It's incredibly sharp but will break easily if not handled carefully.]

The attack power was 10. That was quite high. Even though it needed careful handling and it was a two-handed weapon, it was definitely worth the switch.

[There are also movements for the spear in the Storm Scar. You probably have them in your head, right?]

“I kind of do.”

The knowledge had been accumulated. It was a bit awkward now, but a few physical movements would fix the dissonance.

And then there was the 10th-floor clear reward.

[Boots of Swiftness] [Defense + 7] [Dexterity +5] [Movement Speed +10%] [Action Speed +5%] [Light and sturdy boots. Optimized for quick movements.]

The stats fit well with the item’s name and description. Dexterity, movement speed, and even action speed were included. Taesan swapped his boots.

And he also checked the secret reward.

[You have acquired the Frostbite Sword.]

“Ah.”

It was a sword. It had about the same length as the one he was currently using. He felt like he could finally switch his weapon.

[Frostbite Sword] [Attack Power +11] [A sword that once held the cold of the underworld. It has lost its power now, but the blade still seems to gleam with the light of frost.]

Its attack power was high at 11. Taesan laughed joyfully and drew the splendid sword. When he opened his status window, the stats were nicely aligned.

[Attack Power +30] [Defense +40]

It didn’t hold much significance, but it personally made him feel good.

And after quite a long time, he also received a title.

[Title: One Who is Cursed by Goblins] [The one who killed their master.] [All stats of the Goblins that confront you increase.] [All rewards received for defeating Goblins increase.]

The title made his opponents stronger, but the rewards also improved. He didn’t know when Goblins would appear again, but the title effect activated just by having it, so it was not bad to have it.

[Title: King Slayer] [The one who killed a king.] [Your stats increase, and rewards are enhanced when confronting a race's Lord, King, Sovereign, etc.]

He didn’t acquire this title in his previous life because he had never faced a Lord-like existence.

Stat increase and reward enhancement. The title offered the best possible effects one could have.

After finishing the check, Taesan turned back before proceeding to the next floor. He helped Lillis, who was grumbling while carrying items, back to the safety zone.

“Phew! Thanks! I need to buy even this little space from the store.”

He gave his staff to the wheezing girl, who seemed exhausted and offered a sacrifice.

[You have learned the Cloak of Concealment.] [Basic Magic: Cloak of Concealment] [Mana Consumption: 4] [Proficiency: 1%] [It hides the presence of your body.]

With this, he had learned all the magic spells, excluding invisibility. After confirming this, Taesan spoke.

“I’ll be away from here for a while.”

“Ah? Going outside?”

“Approximately for one or two months.”

“Ah… it’s tiring to be stuck here all the time. It makes sense to take a change of pace.”

Lillis nodded with an understanding face.

“Take a break and come back!”

“See you later.”

Taesan headed toward the descending stairs once again.

As always, a system window appeared.

[10th floor quest starts.] [Defeat the boss of the 10th floor and pass.] [Reward: Ogre Ring] [Secret Reward: ???]

“It’s almost over.”

The ghost spoke. It was a calm tone, devoid of emotions.

“Right.”

Taesan met the dwarf. This time, he did not go down immediately as before but looked around the shop.

He purchased a lot of things. Arrows. Potions for health and mana recovery. Apart from those, he also bought potions for agility, rage, and so on. Numerous potions.

Each item was slowly placed into the inventory. The amount was surprising enough for the dwarf who was watching.

“How much are you buying?”

“The more, the better.”

In the past, he had suffered quite a bit for not preparing potions in advance. Although his current stats meant that this next quest wouldn’t pose a problem, there was nothing wrong with preparing beforehand.

After selling some of the materials he had and using the proceeds, he spent half of his total gold on buying potions. The goods in the shop noticeably decreased.

“Then, take care.”

“Oh, my.”

Leaving behind the dwarf with a wry smile, he headed to the 10th floor.

“Kuaaaa!”

[An Ogre has appeared.]

Gigantic muscles were visible. Its massive size almost reached the labyrinth’s ceiling, making it something that would strike fear in most players.

The ogre. The people called this monster the muscle monster.

In terms of strength, it was a non-standard monster, corresponding to a deep-layer boss. It was hard to find as an opponent in Normal Mode, and in Easy Mode, it was represented in the final stages.

“Kuaaa!”

The ogre swung down with its swollen muscular arm. The pressure that would immobilize a weak player fell upon Taesan.

Taesan extended his arm leisurely.

Kooong!

The wind exploded. Taesan did not retreat even a single step.

“Kua?”

He grabbed the flustered ogre’s arm and threw it. The giant’s body flew across the narrow room.

The ogre was bewildered.

Why am I flying?

Why is this tiny thing throwing me?

The ogre realized that something had gone wrong, but it didn’t have the intelligence to deduce what it was.

With its shallow intellect, the ogre charged again with a roar.

“Kuaaaa!”

Taesan swung his fist. His hand became momentarily blurry and crushed the ogre’s chest like a crumpled piece of metal.

“Kuaaaa!”

The ogre was thrown away like a baseball.

After that, the same pattern repeated. The ogre would shake its head, regain its senses, and rush in again, and Taesan would knock it down.

[You have defeated the ogre.]

He defeated it just by punching, without a single cut from a sword. Taesan’s face became nostalgic.

“I can’t believe I’ve taken it down like this.”

He, too, had faced the ogre before. It had monstrous strength and skin so tough that a sword could barely cut it. Before obtaining higher-level skills, he had to risk his life in battle. Even after obtaining skills, it was quite a troublesome monster until he acquired multiplication.

Now he was knocking down that monster just by punching.

He thought back to the times when he would be elated or devastated over a single stat increase. Of course, he didn’t miss those times.

Taesan leisurely cleared the 10th floor. Unlike the 9th floor, he took his time, moving at a yawning pace.

He used methods like defeating monsters only with his fist without using a weapon or vice versa, using only a weapon to target vital points.

The ghost, who had been watching, asked in a curious tone.

[Why are you going so slow?]

“I need to time it right.”

[Time? What do you mean?]

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

He wondered how it would turn out.

Even Taesan didn’t know.

After that, he found a secret room while hunting monsters. His movements were incredibly leisurely again. He disarmed all the traps and opened the chest.

[Blue Ring] [Mana + 10] [There is a very tiny fragment of mana inside. It seems that only debris is left now.]

He changed his equipment and moved again.

Leisurely and slowly.

But he also very surely cleared the labyrinth.

A day passed like this, and Taesan arrived at the boss room.

[This is the place.]

The ghost spoke in a subdued tone.

[He is beyond this point. After defeating the Ogre Warrior and finding the second room behind it, you'll find a big guy in there. Kill him, and it's over.]

The ghost’s quest was to kill the boss of the 10th floor. That was why it was sticking with Taesan.

When the quest was cleared, the remnants usually disappeared.

[Thank you.]

“For what?”

[I could leave a trace of my existence because of you.]

The ghost spoke calmly.

[My world has perished, and I am dead too. We're done. My role is to leave at least that remnant.]

The ghost appeared to be somewhat relieved.

[If it's you, you'll be able to descend to the depths. If you don't let your guard down and keep going as you are now... You might be able to conquer this place someday. I've taught a man like that the sword. That should be satisfactory.]

A voice filled with a light regret echoed.

[I regret not being able to teach you the second sword... but you will get there someday. Maybe you'll even get to the very end. If it's you, it's possible.]

A small laughter echoed.

[Hahaha... it was fun in its own way.]

The ghost bade its farewell, and Taesan silently opened his inventory.

He applied an inscription scroll to the Frostbite Sword. He also used it with the Runes of Marnius.

[Frostbite Sword] [Attack Power + 11] [A sword that once held the cold of the bottom. Although it has lost its power now, the blade still seems to emit a frosty light.] [It has the attribute of lightning.] [On offset, it has a low probability of inflicting forced slow judgment on the enemy.]

The inscription scroll added a forced slow judgment. An effect that noticeably slowed the movement of those suffering from it. Offset occurred when weapons collided with each other, something that happened dozens of times in a battle, so it was likely to be used frequently.

And the attribute of lightning.

“Not bad.”

This was close to an absolute victory as well.

The attribute applied to the weapon activated when it collided with something.

And both monsters and users alike most frequently used metal weapons.

The lightning attribute ran along the opponent’s weapon, causing a numbing sensation and creating a significant amount of openings during battle.

His preparations were all done. But instead of heading to the boss room, Taesan opened the Community.

[Lee Sang [Solo]: Ah, this feels strange.] [Lee Taeyeon [Solo]: Hmm... I wonder what will happen...] [Kim Taejin [Solo]: Well, we have to think positively. I'm going to tear into some canned food.] [Kang Junhyuk [Solo]: But where will we be teleported to? Will we be summoned back to where we were before we entered the labyrinth?] [Lee Jaeseong [Solo]: It should be, right?]

The Community was noisy. Usually, there was a lot of conversation, but now there were three times as many posts.

Taesan, who had been watching, posted a message.

[Kang Taesan [Solo]: Junhyuk, where do you live?] [Kang Junhyuk [Solo]: Me? I live in Gyeonggi Province. Do you know Annyang?]

That shouldn’t be a problem.

[Kang Taesan [Solo]: Let's meet in a little while.]

Taesan closed the Community. He waited, staring at the boss room.

Unable to contain himself, the ghost spoke.

[What are you doing instead of going in?]

From the ghost’s perspective, it must be puzzling. All that remained was to defeat the boss, yet he was just waiting, not entering.

Without taking his eyes off the door, Taesan asked the ghost.

“Are you part of the Labyrinth?”

[Eh? If we get into specifics, yes?]

Startled by the sudden question, the ghost still obediently answered.

[Well, if I was alive, I don't know, but being dead, I'm tied to the tomb. I was freed because of you, but the essence hasn't changed.]

“That’s the thing. You’re tied to me because of the quest.”

The ghost never strayed from Taesan. It would probably stay by his side until the quest was cleared.

Then, a question appeared.

“If I don’t defeat the boss and descend, will you still be with me?”

[...Probably, yes.]

The ghost spoke in a stiff tone.

[But that wouldn't be good. Descending without taking the reward you rightfully deserve. Comparing the information I have, it would be meaningless to you. You are an adventurer who doesn't need my information. Think about the value properly. Although I appreciate your consideration, it's unnecessary.]

“I don’t plan on doing that.”

Naturally, he planned to defeat the boss and then descend.

What he was aiming for was a different part.

“Anyway, as long as the quest is not cleared, you are tied to me. Then, I wonder which judgment will prevail?”

Would it be the side tied to the Labyrinth?

Or would it be the side progressing with the quest?

Still not understanding, the ghost asked.

[What are you...?]

Suddenly.

At that moment, space split. Beyond the distorted crack, the image of a world appeared.

It was Earth.

The ghost was surprised.

[What is this?]

At the same time, the quest window popped up.

[Starting the Special Quest.] [Prepare for the shock.]

The gap in the split space widened. It expanded as if to swallow up the room. The ghost flustered at the increasingly faint existence of the Labyrinth.

[Wait. Hey. What is this...?]

Taesan closed his eyes.

With the sound of something shattering, he felt the wind.

It was the wind of nature, something he had not felt in the Labyrinth. The scent of grass and asphalt wafted. It was a rich smell he hadn’t recognized in the past.

Taesan opened his eyes.

Buildings were visible.

Massive human structures made of brick and concrete were either crumbling or standing perfectly, decorating the scenery.

He had returned to this place.

Only, he wasn’t alone.

[...What?]

The ghost was horrified.