[Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Mr. Taesan, how do you plan to fight the Big Rat?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: Observe its muscle movents and anticipate where to strike.] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: Isn't that telling to respond to its movents?] [Kang Taesan[Solo]: No. I said anticipate, right?] [Lee Taeyeon[Solo]: ...... How am I supposed to observe the muscles of a rat?]
“Squeak!”
The Big Rat squealed threateningly. Taesan quietly observed the Big Rat.
Responding to its movents was impossible.
But the Big Rat was a creature that breathed and used its muscles to move. Anyone would be able to confirm the body’s movents when it was about to do sothing.
Suddenly, the Big Rat’s legs contracted. Its vibrating chest puffed out.
This was the mont.
Taesan struck with his sword.
Clang!
“Squeak!”
The Big Rat, which was about to rush in, reflexively retreated.
This was the concept of anticipation.
Every creature had so sort of prelude when they were about to attack. If one paid close attention, blocking in advance wasn’t difficult.
It was the sa as professional boxers who did not dodge punches by watching the fist but by observing the movents of the shoulder and moving in advance.
The opponent wasn’t human, but a rodent, yet the theory was the sa.
Now, the real ga began from here.
Taesan extended his arm that wasn’t holding the sword.
The Big Rat hesitated, then attempted to charge once more.
However, it was again thwarted by Taesan’s attack.
“Sque-squeak.”
[The Big Rat is intimidated by you.] [Its decision-making process is slowed.]
Uncertainty clouded the rat’s tiny red eyes, sothing that was visible even to Taesan. In the rat’s mind, the ankle had beco a place it could no longer attack.
Then, it would aim for the next easiest place to attack.
His arm was extended quite invitingly.
Its decision was swift.
The Big Rat charged and threw itself to bite his arm.
“Squeak?”
Surprise flashed in the Big Rat’s eyes. The sensation of its bite was strange. It felt like it was biting sothing hard instead of flesh.
It attempted to flee belatedly, but the Big Rat’s body was suspended in mid-air. Its nimble movents were sealed.
“You’ve lost.”
Taesan smashed the arm that the Big Rat had bitten into the ground.
Thud!
“Squeeeeeak!”
Pinned by the arm, the Big Rat scread. It squird as it tried to escape, but the basic difference in strength was significant.
Taesan did not miss the opportunity and stabbed his sword into its chest. An unpleasant sensation ran up his arm.
[You have attacked.] [The Big Rat is incapacitated. It takes more damage.] [The Big Rat takes 4 damage.] [The Big Rat takes 5 damage.]
“Squea...k...”
The vitality faded from those red eyes.
“Hoo!”
As the Big Rat’s movent ceased, Taesan finally relaxed his strength.
“That was rather tough.”
The rat, whose movents were too quick for human reflexes to counter, was rely the first monster.
But Taesan calmly summarized the situation.
He had won.
It was now ti to receive the rewards.
[You have defeated the Big Rat.] [You have received a large amount of experience points.] [Your Health has been restored by 5.] [You have obtained 43 gold.] [You have obtained the Big Rat's hide.] [You have obtained the Big Rat's at.]
Taesan brushed over these ssages nonchalantly. He had no intention of fussing over those basic rewards.
[You have attacked.] [You have single-handedly defeated a challenging enemy.] [Your Agility has permanently increased by 1.]
“Ho.”
Taesan smiled in satisfaction. In the labyrinth, stats held an unchanging value. An increase was always a good thing.
But the system ssages did not stop there.
[Your Heroic Blow has been activated. Your Agility permanently increases by 1.] [You have obtained the basic skill: Swordsmanship.] [You have seized victory in battle by utilizing a wide field of vision. You have obtained the special constant activation skill: Vision Enhancent.] [You have seized victory in battle by identifying the enemy's weakness. You have obtained the special constant activation skill: Insight.] [You faced your opponent without faltering in your first battle. You have obtained the special constant activation skill: Composure.]
“Huh?”
Taesan was taken aback. This was beyond his expectation.
But the system ssages kept coming.
[You have won against a monster for the first ti.] [You have obtained 100 gold.] [You have obtained the title: The Brave One.]
“They’re giving so much just for defeating one small monster?”
They wouldn’t even give half this many rewards for defeating a boss monster in Easy Mode.
Taesan made a sarcastic thought, but considering the characteristics of the labyrinth, it was a perfectly reasonable occurrence.
The labyrinth didn’t just consider the result of victory.
It took into account how the process went, how perfectly victory was achieved, and the thod used to achieve the result.
Taesan’s battle was close to perfect. Moreover, he was a Solo player. The labyrinth was rely giving him the rewards he deserved.
But Taesan, who didn’t know this, was both delighted and bewildered.
Still, a reward is a reward.
“Skill window.”
[Basic Skill: Swordsmanship] [Proficiency: 1%] [You seem to be able to swing a sword.]
It was the most basic skill. For Taesan, who had been pushing the edge with his skills, it was a skill he hadn’t needed to use until the end.
Taesan brushed it off and checked the next skill.
[Special Constant Activation Skill: Vision Enhancent] [Proficiency: 5%] [You can obtain a wide field of vision, but it still falls within the range of human vision.]
Vision Enhancent. A good skill. The human vision would blur outside of its focus area. Still, with Vision Enhancent, one would be able to see countless things simultaneously.
This was quite an advantage. During battles, one’s field of vision tended to narrow. Therefore, it beca hard to react when unexpected variables ca into play. If this skill was available, the occurrence of that would decrease significantly.
It was a skill he had acquired only after passing through the 20th floor on Easy Mode.
And the next skill.
[Special Constant Activation Skill: Composure] [Proficiency: 12%] [A calm mind that doesn't get flustered. You won't get flustered as long as no entity that surpasses human cognition appears. You gain a correction on judgnt.]
Composure was also a highly useful skill that allowed resistance against all sorts of judgnts.
[Special Constant Activation Skill: Insight] [Proficiency: 5%] [You can perceive many things. It seems like, for now, you can only discern the weaknesses of creatures.]
“I’m getting this already.”
Insight. It was a succinct explanation, but it was a skill that Taesan had used until the end.
When proficiency reached 100%, the skill evolved. When Insight evolved through several stages, it would beco a skill that allowed total discernnt of everything around him. It would beco Total Reconnaissance.
Taesan had obtained Insight only after reaching the 40th floor. Even that was quick. Hard Mode players had barely been able to acquire Insight by the 50th floor.
He got all of these on just the 1st floor.
“Damn, what a disparity.”
He knew there would be differences, but he didn’t expect them to be this big. He clicked his tongue for a mont and then checked the skill again.
[Soul Skill: Soul Strike Increase] [Proficiency: 100%] [Your soul has seen a world a step higher. Your high-dinsional soul takes away the power of the opponent each ti you win.]
“What’s this?”
It certainly wasn’t a skill he had acquired in this world. As Taesan paused to rember, it ca to him.
“...When I was fighting with the S-class.”
It was when he had cleanly reduced 1.25 million hit points.
At that last mont, a system window appeared. He had casually dismissed the system window because he was too tired.
‘It definitely appeared then.’
[You have entered a state of mindless imrsion. Your body and mind beco one.] [A miracle-like power is engraved on your soul. You have gained the Soul Skill [Soul Strike Increase].] [You are in a state of having left the labyrinth, so you couldn't acquire the skill. [Soul Strike Increase] has been sealed.]
Yes, it was sealed. This skill could only be obtained within the labyrinth.
Now that he had entered the labyrinth, the seal had been released.
‘So the skill remains even if ti is rewound?’
Perhaps because it’s a Soul Skill, it was a skill that was engraved onto the soul itself. After briefly pondering it, Taesan shook his head.
“Let’s not think too deeply about it.”
It wasn’t a problem he could imdiately solve anyway. He had obtained a good skill. That was enough.
To take sothing away each ti he killed an opponent. It was practically the sa as saying he could beco infinitely powerful depending on the conditions. It would be hard to find a better skill than this.
Taesan closed the skill window with a satisfied expression.
“As for the title... nothing special.”
[Title: The Brave One] [You have proven that you have courage, not recklessness.] [NPCs feel favorably towards you.]
Another favorability title. Without a word, Taesan closed the title window.
The shop owner had told him to co back alive, and he had survived. He should then open the shop for him.
There was one thing he wanted to sell. Taesan turned back and headed towards the shop while holding the skin and at.
The dwarf, seeing Taesan’s return, dropped his pipe.
“...You survived?”
“Did you wish for my death?”
“No, not that.”
The dwarf hastily picked up his pipe while looking at Taesan with a peculiar gaze.
“Don’t tell you didn’t encounter any monsters?”
“I did encounter them.”
“Ah... then you must have run away. It would’ve been hard to even flee from a rat. Wonder how you managed.”
When you turned your back, a Big Rat would even chase you to the safe zone to kill you. However, since the monster’s base damage wasn’t too high, there was a chance of survival if you ran away quickly.
The dwarf thought that Taesan had made such a decision. He was scrutinizing Taesan’s face, and his eyebrows twitched.
“Don’t you have fear?”
“Pardon?”
“No, never mind.”
Despite a situation full of despair, Taesan didn’t waver. He was barely worth becoming a trading partner at this point.
Taesan opened his inventory and said.
“I caught it.”
The dwarf dropped his pipe again.
“...You caught it?”
Taesan pulled out the Big Rat’s skin and at from his inventory.
“You buy things in your shop, right? How much can you give for these?”
“Mister?”
The dwarf, stunned, opened his mouth.
“You really caught it?”
“Would it be fake?”
“...How?”
The dwarf was noticeably flustered. Taesan looked at him with a face that said the dwarf was surprised over nothing.
“If you catch it, you catch it. What’s there to be so surprised about?”
“You...”
The dwarf lost his words. He barely managed to regain his composure and hesitantly reached out his hand.
“Le-let see.”
Taesan calmly handed over the skin and at.
[Big Rat's at] [Quality: 96%] [It's the at of a Big Rat. You can eat it if you want.] [Big Rat's Skin] [Quality: 95%] [It's the skin of a Big Rat. It seems reasonably warm.]
The dwarf’s pupils dilated.
It was real. And of the highest quality. It ant it had been perfectly caught without causing any ss.
“How...”
The Big Rat was strong. Even his proud soldiers couldn’t catch it easily due to its fast speed. It was not a monster that a newcor to the labyrinth would be able to catch.
However, the item did not lie. The dwarf looked at Taesan with disbelieving eyes and then belatedly regained his composure.
“...Alright. Since you have t my condition, I’ll open the shop.”
His role was to be a shop owner. If the other party had passed his condition, it was ti to perform his role.
“What do you need?”
“What do you sell?”
“I sell everything. Just tell .”
In that case, what Taesan needed to buy was decided.
“Do you have a Tower Shield?”
“A Tower Shield? The big one?”
“Yes. Sothing of a size that you would have to hold with both hands.”
“Why do you want to buy it?”
“I’m planning to smack it down. Completely.”
“... That’s the correct answer.”
The dwarf let out a sigh of admiration. After looking at Taesan with a look of wonder for a mont, he reached into thin air.
“Golden Gate.”
Rustle.
The dwarf, rummaging through the split space, pulled out a Tower Shield. It was large enough to cover a person’s body and seed quite sturdy.
“How about this?”
Taesan took the shield and checked it.
[Heavy Tower Shield] [Attack 1] [Defense 5] [It seems quite sturdy and should be able to block many attacks.]
Taesan was surprised. It was not just at a decent level. This kind of equipnt could only be obtained on the 7th floor of Easy Mode.
“How much is it?”
“500 gold.”
It was a reasonable price. Taesan quickly checked his gold. With only 243 gold, he was short half the value.
‘I’ll have to co back later.’
The increase in stats would make catching Big Rats much easier. He only needed to catch about seven more.
As Taesan was about to leave the shield behind, the dwarf stopped him.
“Where are you going?”
“I don’t have enough gold.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll give it to you for free.”
Taesan, who was headed towards the labyrinth, paused.
“For free?”
“Yes.”
As if to prove it wasn’t a lie, the dwarf tossed the shield.
[You’ve received a Heavy Tower Shield.]
‘He’s giving it for free?’
This was not like a shopkeeper. But the dwarf didn’t stop there.
“You have about 250 gold right now, right? There should be sothing you can buy with that. Wait.”
The dwarf kept pulling out sothing from his space. Taesan was taken aback.
‘What’s happening?’
Lee Taeyeon had always said that the dwarf was always cranky and never spread out his goods for display. He seed extrely reluctant to give her anything. It was as if he was giving her sothing that didn’t fit her class.
But right now, the dwarf was showering him with items as if he was an easy mark.
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