Chapter 85: Gigant - (1)
//s_win
//win_h 「Sage's Leather Belt」
■ Artifact Grade: Diamond
■ Artifact Description: The sage Nekas, who studied the mysteries of mana for a long time, discovered a formula that amplifies special mysteries.
The amplification of mysteries is not immediate, but it stabilizes and allows for future potential.
■ Mana +100
■ Special Skill - Sage's Whisper
//e_win
‘Since I already have the Epic-grade Ascending Current Belt, I can’t wear both. I’ll have to eat it.’
It was an artifact belt with stat options that he liked.
Since it was a diamond-grade artifact, the absorption rate reached 50%, meaning a potential increase of 50 mana.
On top of that, he would automatically acquire the special skill, Sage’s Whisper!
“Jiyeon, make sure to collect the magic stones carefully. These look like five high-grade magic stones, which means we’ve secured 500 million won right away, right?”
“Hoho, that’s right. As promised, I’ll only take the magic stones! I won’t even glance at the artifacts!”
Ham Jiyeon carefully picked up the magic stones and placed them into her backpack with a happy expression.
True to her word, she deliberately looked away from the artifacts Sanghyun had obtained.
It was her way of being considerate, preventing him from feeling pressured by unnecessary gazes.
Thanks to informing him about the gate, she had earned 500 million won.
Meanwhile, Sanghyun had fought hard and earned an even greater reward.
A diamond-grade artifact was worth at least 5 billion won! This was an overwhelmingly profitable deal.
“No matter how much I think about it, I couldn’t come up with a strategy against that mage monster. But that wasn’t the case for you, Sanghyun.”
“In the end, the only way to create an opening against a mage is to get up close.”
“Everyone knows the correct answer. But actually executing the strategy is what’s difficult, right?”
“That’s true.”
“It feels like you have a plan for everything from start to finish, and that’s what’s scary. Though, since we’re allies, it’s incredibly reassuring right now.”
“Let’s keep working together.”
“Hoho! We absolutely should! Thanks to you, Sanghyun, I even got the luxury of taking down a mid-boss monster.”
“If you hadn’t applied the freezing skill to the barrier, we would’ve struggled a lot from the beginning.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Have confidence in yourself. You should know when to be appropriately shameless.”
Sanghyun said with a smile.
It wasn’t a lie.
Defending against Nekas’ fire blasts with defensive maneuvers alone had been quite challenging.
But thanks to her, he had gained enough time, and Nekas didn’t repeat the same method.
Appearing to handle it easily had forced Nekas to abandon one of his troublesome attack methods.
Since it was a strategic victory, Sanghyun wanted to share the credit with Ham Jiyeon. It wasn’t all his doing.
“I’ve worked with many mercenaries, but I’ve never seen a player like you, Sanghyun. You’re amazing.”
She made a cute reaction by giving him a double thumbs-up.
People who worked with him always said that he made things easier and more convenient for them.
Sanghyun loved hearing that.
It made him feel like he was reliable and helpful to someone. Or perhaps, like he was becoming someone they looked up to.
“I’ll secure our visibility first.”
Ham Jiyeon moved swiftly.
Since Sanghyun had consumed a lot of stamina in the battle, she took on tasks that required quick action, showing her keen sense of role division.
Meanwhile.
While she was looking elsewhere, Sanghyun quickly devoured the Sage’s Leather Belt.
The belt, taking the form of a beef stew, was one of the most peaceful meals he had ever had.
Was this the favorite meal of Sage Nekas? Since the man was long dead, there was no way to know.
His mana immediately increased by 50.
Mana stat: 397!
For a swordsman, this was an exceptionally high stat, yet Sanghyun’s expression remained calm.
‘For named players, four-digit stats are the norm. I still have a long way to go.’
The higher he looked, the more he could feel the gap.
Named Players.
For them, three-digit stats only appeared in fields they hadn’t heavily invested in.
In other words, their primary stats always had to be in the four-digit range.
But Sanghyun’s highest stat, Strength, was only 584.
At this rate, he could confidently say it was less than half of Jo Jinho’s Strength stat.
Of course, stats weren’t everything.
But in fundamental combat, stat differences were absolute.
If both players were unable to use skills, the difference in raw destructive power would be determined by stats.
Before his thoughts got too complicated.
Sanghyun examined the skill he had acquired from the belt: Sage’s Whisper.
//s_win
//win_h 『Sage’s Whisper』
■ Skill Level: Stage 1 (0.0%)
■ Skill Description: You can double the damage of your next offensive skill or basic attack.
//e_win
Alternatively, you can double the defensive ability of a defensive skill-formed structure.
However, to activate the enhancement, the respective skill must first be used, and it consumes 100 mana.
Cooldown: 10 minutes.
‘A conditional enhancement skill.’
He liked the contents of the skill.
During his battle with Nekas, there were moments when the skill damage had felt stronger than expected, making him suspicious.
Now, he realized the reason was Sage’s Whisper.
Considering the cooldown, it seemed best to use it for a decisive strike like Weak Point Enhancement 5th Hit.
After executing the fourth hit of Weak Point Enhancement.
Then layering Sage’s Whisper on top.
And finally delivering the 5th hit with Crushing Blade.
If he executed it perfectly, he could unleash a Crushing Blade with an incredible 2,600% damage potential.
At this level, even a named player like Jo Jinho might be killed in a single blow, according to Sanghyun’s calculations.
Of course, he had to assume that he couldn't dodge and had to take the hit unconditionally.
In other words, it also meant that a true one-hit kill was possible. Something like an ultimate move?
‘Skill combination research is essential.’
Sanghyun thought as he recalled his steadily increasing number of skills.
If he didn’t research ways to maximize the power of each skill in advance, he wouldn’t be able to use them effectively in battle.
The progress afterward was smoother than Sanghyun and Ham Jiyeon had initially feared.
The problem wasn’t the monsters but the terrain.
There were many areas where eruptions occurred shortly after a brief warning sign, forcing them to keep moving without rest.
However, one thing was different from before—experience points increased the further north they moved.
Since they had entered the section leading to the boss monster after killing Nekas, even movement itself provided experience points.
Out of curiosity, he tried moving backward and forward to exploit a loophole, but naturally, it didn’t work.
There were moments when they nearly got caught in sudden gusts of wind or eruptions.
But each time, Sanghyun swiftly avoided them by grabbing Ham Jiyeon and executing a quick backstep.
Thanks to that, they avoided injuries or dangerous situations that would have harmed most players.
‘I’m going to develop bad habits at this rate.’
Ham Jiyeon tapped herself on the head, scolding herself as she thought.
Sanghyun took the lead in managing the situation, making everything incredibly easy for her.
Moreover, he had contingency plans for most unexpected events, so she didn’t feel much fear.
Should she say that she was reaping the immense benefits of having Sanghyun as an ally? It was an almost addictive level of comfort.
Half a day later.
Covered in sweat from the heat of the volcano, they arrived at the final location where the boss monster stood.
He had reached level 113! He had gained a whole three levels just from this gate raid.
And the boss monster hadn't even been defeated yet. If he succeeded in clearing it, his level would rise even more.
‘If only I could raid a gate like this every day, I’d have no other wishes.’
If such explosive leveling-up opportunities existed daily, catching up to a named player like Do Kyungsoo would be easy!
But it was unfortunate that not many gates offered a one-time-only special reward upon first clearance.
Kuuung! Kuuung!
A strong vibration that shook the ground sent a tremor through Sanghyun’s feet.
“Is that the boss monster...?”
“It’s the complete opposite of what we fought before.”
The final stage of this gate!
Sanghyun bit his lower lip as he confirmed the boss monster’s appearance and concept.
If the mid-boss monster Nekas had been an intelligent, magic-type creature—
[Boss Monster]
[Gigant]
The monster they now had to face was a three-meter-tall giant.
Moreover, its entire body was covered in muscles.
It looked like the world’s top bodybuilder had been enlarged to three meters tall.
‘That thing is 100% a charge-type monster.’
A body with such exaggerated muscles wouldn’t be optimized for agility.
It was highly likely that its primary combat method involved tanking most attacks with its body and charging at its enemies to crush them.
Of course, this was just speculation.
This was Sanghyun’s first time encountering a monster called Gigant.
He judged based on similar cases, but he wouldn’t know for sure until he actually fought it.
“Monsters like that have a surefire weakness!”
Ham Jiyeon stepped forward first.
Her assumption was reasonable.
Charge-type monsters often had high physical defense but were weak against magic-based skills.
Shaaa!
Ham Jiyeon unleashed a skill with a complete freezing effect, enveloping Gigant in ice.
It was her own calculated gamble—using a near-finishing move right from the start.
Crrrrack!
“As expected!”
As Gigant’s entire body instantly froze solid, a bright smile spread across Ham Jiyeon’s face.
She had been relying on Sanghyun for most of this gate raid, but now she finally contributed something meaningful.
‘Damn it.’
Sanghyun almost smiled with her, but his expression immediately darkened.
Fwoooosh!
Gigant’s frozen body suddenly turned red-hot, instantly melting all the ice that had encased it.
It took less than a second for its normal body to become superheated.
“Then try blocking this!”
This time, Ham Jiyeon used a complete combustion skill.
While not as effective as freezing, it was still capable of dealing significant damage.
It consumed 90% of her mana, placing it in the same category as Sanghyun’s skill, Crushing Blade—a finishing move.
She was going all in.
Fwoooosh!
Gigant’s body caught fire.
But there wasn’t a single scream, and then something happened that shocked both Sanghyun and Ham Jiyeon.
Crrrrrack.
This time, Gigant’s body froze in reverse, completely swallowing the flames of combustion in an instant.
“What the hell is that...?”
Just like Gigant’s body, Ham Jiyeon’s face also froze in disbelief. The frustration of having her ultimate move completely nullified was immense.
“Support my attacks or defenses with your elemental magic, just like before!”
Sanghyun launched himself forward as he shouted to Ham Jiyeon.
His voice rang so loud that it shook her skull, snapping her out of her daze.
『Over Psychedelic』
Sanghyun immediately entered an awakened state. Since this was the final boss monster, there was no reason to hold back.
“Krrr!”
Gigant showed no intention of running. Instead, it revealed its yellowed teeth, drooling heavily.
Despite having a human-like form, its gaze and expression were more akin to those of a beast.
『Demon Bash』
『Demon Bash』
Closing the distance in an instant, Sanghyun unleashed a rapid barrage of Demon Bash strikes.
His aggressive approach aimed to preemptively subdue the enemy with status effects.
However, when he checked the information screen that had just activated for Gigant, his expression darkened.
//s_win
//win_h ◎ Stiffness, Absolute Immunity!
◎ Stiffness, Absolute Immunity!
//e_win
“This is fucked.”
Gigant!
This thing was a monster that was completely immune to all status effects.