The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 311: Hell Tree (7)

...Pow!

The last of Cerberus' heads exploded.

kung-

As the monster's massive body fell to the floor of the ruins, a slight earthquake occurred.

The sulfur and blood that spewed from Cerberus' bursting belly swept away the perfume and ginkgo scent from the floor of the shop.

-Ding!

['Level 1 Warrior' Vikir has successfully hunted the 'A+ Ranked Monster Cerberus' for the first time!]

[Rewards are given for 'awesome' achievements!]

A loud beeping sound erupts.

"...Huu."

Vikir sat down with a tired expression.

Catching Cerberus with a body that was 100 times weaker was definitely hard work.

Then Grenouille, who was beside him, said with a tired expression.

"You're usually called persistent, aren't you?"

"No. I've never heard of it."

Vikir turned his head toward Grenouille and continued.

"I killed them all before they could say that."

Grenouille felt a shiver run down his spine.

Just then.

[Ehhh? Did you cat ch th is on e ? ]

The fairy who had appeared out of nowhere began to fuss.

[Huh la la? Is th is yo ur fir st ti me pass ing li ke th is ? ]

The fairy's attitude is that it didn't expect Vikir to actually complete the mission.

That's why the fairy seemed to be quite flustered.

[Wh at sho uld I do? In the begin ning, the rew ards th at can be giv en are limit ed? ]

Then Vikir spoke up eagerly.

"Do you happen to have any artifacts or items that you can give away? I don't mind if they're consumables."

[ Mm mm mm mm mm mm ? ]

It looks like it isn't there.

Vikir opened his mouth as if there was nothing else to do.

"Oh well, it's not a mission I'm supposed to complete, so I guess they didn't think of a proper reward, just a way to make fun of the people trapped in the tower."

Then Vikir spoke up, sounding very offended.

"But you know what? A craftsman who could create such an elaborate system would be very particular about his output. He must have selected only masterpieces for each floor."

[ Mmmm mmmm mmmm ? ]

"But isn't it a little strange that such an error occurs from the very beginning of such a result? Could it be that the one just now was an extra-standard mission that someone did for fun? He exercised his authority purely out of his own power...."

At those words, the fairy looked extremely hot.

It was trying to look calm and avert its gaze, but you could see the heart pounding furiously in its cleft stomach.

Vikir cut in.

"You don't need any rewards for this bonus stage. Instead, I will file a claim against the tower's administrators when I see them later. I'm going to complain, and I'm going to complain loud and clear."

Then the fairy cried out urgently.

[ Is the re a rew ard? Are you rea dy for yo ur rewa rd ? ]

It was only at the mention of a reward that Vikir smiled.

"Then give it to me. Reward."

[But the rew ard th at can be giv en in the begin ning is limit ed ? ]

Vikir knew very well that the only reward a fairy could give in the beginning was a strange candy.

So Vikir was able to say firmly.

"I'm quantity over quality."

[You do n't hesit ate to say th at ? ]

"That's right. As long as you don't mind the quantity."

Before Vikir could nod, the fairy opened its mouth so wide that the corners of both mouths were torn open and blood gushed out.

[ Bweh ee eek ? ]

Then, the fairy began to spit out a huge amount of candy from its mouth.

Red, green, and blue candies poured out of her mouth.

Grenouille's eyes widened at the number of candies, which must have been hundreds.

"Oh my God! Look at all these stats! If I eat all these, I'll be strong in no time!"

But Vikir just shook his head as he picked up the candies.

'... Not even close.'

The color of the falling candy is random, but red candies are the most common, followed by blue, and then green.

This means that strength stats are the most common, stamina stats are common, and agility stats are rare.

In fact, most of the candy the fairy spit out was red and blue, and not much green.

Just then.

"...!"

Vikir's eyes widened.

Vikir quickly reached out and grabbed a candy that was stuck at the bottom of the pile.

It was the only other color among the red, green, and blue candies.

'I can't believe I got this here!'

Vikir exclaimed inwardly, examining the candy with a nonchalant expression.

-<Strange Candy> / Physical Resistance / Black

A candy that increases Physical Resistance by 1.

Tastes spicy.

+1 Physical Resistance

Black, like a concentrated form of darkness. At first glance, it doesn't look like any other stat candy.

Vikir regained the knowledge he had gained before his regression.

'According to the Memoirs of the Great Heroes, there are six types of stats that can be raised inside the tower: Strength, Agility, and Stamina, which can be raised early on, but the other three stats can only be raised later in the stage. The drop rate of candy is extremely low to begin with, so it's possible that you won't get any at all on your way to the top.'

Six stats. Three of which are Strength, Agility, and Stamina. They were 'ultra-rare talents' that even the most heroic of heroes had never managed to blossom on their way out of the tower.

And one of them, Vikir had already gained.

'Physical Resistance. A stat that reduces the damage taken by an attack.'

Without thinking twice, Vikir ate the black candy.

Gulp!

As he passed the candy down his throat, he felt a pungent flavor that burned his tongue and throat.

-Ding!

The status window changed.

<Vikir>.

-LV: 1 (%)

-Title: 'Gutter Rat Hunter', 'Hell's Dog' (NEW)

-Stats.

Power: 230

?Agility: 219

?Stamina: 244

?Physical Resistance: 0 (+1) = 1

??: (Locked)

??: (Locked)

Unlike the base stats, which are above a certain number from the start, the special stat, Physical Resistance, starts at 0.

This is because this stat is an innate talent that cannot be raised in the real world.

It can only be raised in this tower.

'Once you've eaten the candy and unlocked it, your stats will naturally increase as you level up. If you leave it alone, it will grow with your level.'

To be able to bloom and grow this stat so early on was an incredible stroke of luck.

Plus, it gave us a new title: The Hell's Dog.

-New Title: Hell's Dog

? Deal massive additional damage to creatures in dog form.

Taunt, Confuse, Blind, Bleed, Burn, Poison, and other status abnormalities last slightly longer.

'Title perks aside, unlocking the Physical Resistance stat early on is a huge opportunity.'

In fact, the whole point of trying to get to the bottom of the tower is to complete the big six stats.

While leveling up is important, it's actually more important to complete these six stats.

Six types of stats that you can take with you outside the tower. But collecting them all was a feat that none of the great heroes before the Regression had ever accomplished.

Then.

A fairy spoke to Vikir, who was sitting still and lost in thought.

[Ov er the re ov er the re? Do you by any chan ce ne ed a can dy sto re ? ]

After speaking, the fairy stretched out a finger and brought up a status window.

-<Fairy's Candy Store>

Selling and buying unused candy!

-Strange candy (golden color): Can be exchanged for 300 candies of any color.

The fairy stuck out its tongue and showed the golden candy that was sold in this shop.

-<Strange Candy> / Level / Golden

A candy that raises your level by 1.

Tastes sweet.

-Level +1

A golden candy with a brilliant glow.

Grenouille looks at it longingly.

"Oh my. It's going to level me up? Each one of those will restore 1% of my real-world strength, so if I eat 100 of them, I'll have 100% of my strength back! And when I leave the tower, those stats will be added to my original strength! This is the best candy ever!"

For survivors weakened by a hundred times, this is the candy they need most of all.

But it's too expensive. You can get it in any color, but it costs 300 pieces, making it a rare commodity that's hard to find in the early stages.

...This, of course, doesn't apply to Vikir, who had a bunch of hellhounds on the last stage.

"Hmm."

When Vikir looked troubled, the fairy encouraged him even more subtly.

[ Won't any one be ab le to use the can dy sto re, and if you rai se yo ur le vel, yo ur sta ts will natu rally go up as well ? ].

Literally. Leveling up will give you back some of your strength outside of the tower, so it makes sense to try to level up quickly in the beginning.

...But Vikir shakes his head.

'Leveling up is still taboo.'

Vikir stared at the number 1 on the level marker for a while.

A younger chick would be all-in on collecting stat candy and turning it into level candy, but not Vikir.

Vikir hadn't been leveling for a while, for quite some time.

'This tower favors lower levels.'

According to the memoirs of great heroes, there are some rules about rewards within this tower.

If a strong person does a great deed, they get a modest reward.

If a weak person performs a small feat, they receive a modest reward.

When a strong person performs a small feat, they receive almost no reward.

... But.

When a weak person does something great.

In these cases, the reward is something that goes far beyond the common sense.

Vikir noted the notification he had heard earlier.

['Level 1 warrior' Vikir is part of the 'leveling system'... ... ]

[Vikir, 'Warrior at Level 1', has killed the first F-ranked monster in the Tutorial Zone...]

['Rare' achievement rewards...]

[Vikir, a 'Level 1 Warrior', killed the first B+ ranked monster in the Tutorial Zone...]

[Reward for 'Difficult' achievements...]

[Vikir, a 'Level 1 Warrior', kills his first B+ ranked monster... group...]

['Great' achievement...]

[Vikir, a 'Level 1 Warrior', successfully hunted the first 'A+ Ranked Monster Cerberus'...]

['Awesome'...]

As part of the leveling system, Vikir is considered an 'underdog'.

Even if his stats are superior to those of others, he is still considered to be of the same class.

'If a 'Level 1 Warrior' continues to clear difficult missions, the rewards will get better and better.'

Vikir was stronger than the other students, and even at level 1, he was able to make up for his shortcomings with his stats.

'So it's better to stay low in the beginning and take on the harder missions to maximize the rewards.'

This was a very different strategy from the typical survivor.

And Vikir knows one more reason not to level up.

'There will come a point in time when all those levels won't matter. I don't know exactly when that will be, but... I think it's better to save my candy levels until then.

The uneaten stat candies (red, green, and blue) could be exchanged for level candies (golden) at the candy store later, so there was no reason to rush to level up.

After organizing his thoughts, Vikir stopped trading with the fairy.

[Ah hing ang eh? Ah shhhh? ]

When Vikir did not give in to fairy coaxing, the fairy let out a strange, meaningless groan and closed the trading window.

And that moment.

Cuddleddleddled...

A strong earthquake occurred, and the ground in this area began to sink.

"What! 108 minutes must have passed already!"

Grenouille was right.

-Ding!

<Mission over> – Number of survivors: 69 people.

The same status window popped up in front of Vikir and Grenouille.

Probably all 69 survivors of hellhounds' attack.

Kuoooooo!

A black, swirl-shaped gate opened, sucking in everyone who fell below.

-Ding!

[Leaving Underground Level 2 'Familiar Ground']

[Entering Underground Level 3 'Familiar Ground (2)']

It looked like all the survivors of the second floor were going to fall to the same place.