Chapter 113: Floor 24. The Guide of Sin (2)
What just happened?
That was the first thought that crossed Horion’s mind as he lay sprawled on the ground. He barely managed to lift his head, feeling a throbbing sensation across his face.
“You, you…”
As Horion struggled to his feet, Taesan was already charging towards him. Horion, in panic, raised his sword. Taesan swung two swords at him.
Crack!
Contrary to Taesan’s expectation of overwhelming Horion, their stats turned out to be nearly equal.
The fact that Horion, who had not received significant boosts in HP from Spirit Enhancements, could match Taesan in strength and speed meant his equipment must be bridging the gap.
After all, as an adventurer of the 30th floor, Horion would have access to better materials and equipment available in shops. It was expected.
Clang!
The swords clashed and recoiled. Both stepped back, maintaining a similar distance, disbelief written all over Horion’s face.
“This, this…”
He wasn’t just an ordinary adventurer of the 30th floor as Taesan had anticipated.
Like the Guide of Sin from the 20th floor, Horion was an adventurer who had stagnated at the 30th floor. He had maxed out his level, purchased all the equipment available in shops, and completed all possible refinements with the blacksmith.
He was strong enough to easily overpower a typical adventurer of the 30th floor. Even if two came at him, he could manage to hold his own by exploiting weaknesses.
Yet, he was being pushed back by Taesan, an adventurer of the 24th floor.
Crack.
As Horion’s sword was pushed back, it slashed across his thigh.
[225 damage to Horion.]
“Why such damage!”
Horion couldn’t believe it. The gap in equipment between the 24th and 30th floors was supposed to be absolute.
Moreover, Horion was at the peak of his power.
It was practically assumed that no damage would penetrate.
But the damage from Taesan was unbelievably high.
“I’m a special case.”
Aura. As long as Taesan had skills that could penetrate physical defenses, no matter how superior Horion’s equipment was, it was as good as non-existent.
Not even the ghost knew about such power, let alone a Guide of Sin from the third tier. Grinding his teeth, Horion charged.
“Yikes!”
[Horion has activated Counter.]
[You have activated Lightning Strike.]
Counter was a skill to evade and retaliate against avoidable attacks. It was useless against unavoidable skills. That was Counter’s weakness.
Taesan thrust his sword into Horion’s chest. Trusting in Counter and charging without proper defense left Horion vulnerable to the piercing blow.
[67 damage to Horion.]
“This, this…”
As Horion staggered back, clutching his chest, Taesan didn’t stop.
[You have activated Acceleration.]
It was a one-sided battle.
Horion, as a third-tier adventurer, was considerably stronger than those from the second tier. But Taesan had already defeated a third-tier Guide in the lower floors.
Moreover, having grown stronger on his descent through the dungeon, Horion stood no chance. Despite Horion’s attempts to resist and then to flee, he was obstructed by Taesan’s dark magic and spells.
“Argh!”
Soon, Horion was sprawled on the ground.
Taesan pointed his sword at Horion’s forehead.
“I’m curious about something. Answer me, and I’ll let you die easily.”
“You…”
Horion gritted his teeth.
“Who are you! I’ve never heard of someone like you!”
A Guide of Sin from the second tier overpowering a third-tier? Impossible. If such a person existed, they would have been granted passage to the deeper levels by the headquarters.
Taesan poked Horion’s forehead as he replied.
“Remember your friend who went up recently? And then died?”
“…”
Horion’s pupils quivered. The Guide of Sin from the third tier, Jazan, flashed through his mind.
“But… they said he died with you.”
“That was a blatant lie.”
Horion chuckled bitterly.
An adventurer capable of defeating those from the 30th floor, growing stronger as they descended. Horion never stood a chance.
His spirit broken, Taesan asked without needing to prove further.
“What is the headquarters doing now?”
With no more secrets to keep, the death of third-tier adventurers would inevitably reach the headquarters. Their move was only a matter of time.
Answering Taesan’s question, Horion spoke in a defeated tone.
“They can’t come up right now.”
“What?”
“The leaders are stuck on a certain floor for a long time. I heard they’ve been absent trying to break through. They won’t show up for a while.”
“…Hmm.”
The ghost hinted at understanding something.
“Know something?”
“It’s nothing major, but even when I was alive, they were stuck making futile attempts. Are they still unable to break through? That’s pitiful.”
“Stuck?”
“As you descend deeper, illogical floors appear.”
“For example?”
“Pass through a planet in an hour, fight three enemies of equal strength at once, defeat a dragon with basic equipment… those kinds of floors?”
“That’s… illogical.”
Taesan had seen dragons in Bekweseta. He had witnessed their strength and caliber firsthand.
To defeat one with nothing but chainmail and a rusty sword was laughable.
“While normal floors allow you to descend without defeating the boss, those places require you to meet the condition to proceed. They’re probably stuck there.”
Lee Taeyeon had mentioned similarly absurd floors. She almost died trying to break through.
At the time, Taesan had dismissed it as her usual whining, but it seemed there truly were such unreasonable floors.
Belatedly recognizing the Warrior, Horion groaned.
“The Warrior…”
“Hello? I don’t remember, but we’ve met, right?”
The ghost chuckled.
“You’re just a spectator, so I don’t mind. But let me ask you one thing.”
“…What do you want to know?”
“Is Societh Gardentia still alive?”
Realizing the significance of the question, Horion nodded with a bitter smile.
“No news of his death. He must be alive.”
“That’s enough for me. You’re too insignificant to know more, so I’m done here.”
“…Then, I hope for a peaceful death.”
“I don’t plan to break my promise.”
Taesan’s sword pierced Horion’s heart.
[Your level has increased.]
[Your Spirit Enhancement has been activated. Your strength has permanently increased by 26, agility by 24, intelligence by 22, health by 120, and mana by 22.]
[Counter proficiency increased by 5%.]
He grew stronger instantly.
“Always worth it.”
Spirit Enhancement proved to be an exceptional skill against monsters, but its true value shone against other adventurers.
Stealing everything they possessed led to significant stat increases and skill proficiency gains or new skills.
“And the health boost is a nice touch. Let’s check the status.”
[Kang Taesan]
[Level: 56]
[Shield: 292/292]
[Health: 3460/3460]
[Mana: 652/652]
[Magic: 41/41]
[Strength: 1145]
[Intelligence: 812]
[Agility: 984]
[Attack + 145]
[Defense + 172]
[The target is in prime condition.”]]
“These stats are ridiculous.”
“Still a long way to go.”
Catching up to Lee Taeyeon seemed distant. At Taesan’s words, the ghost was astonished.
“Do you think these stats and health are reasonable at level 56? If you don’t die descending to the depths, it’ll be quite the sight.”
The dungeon has an acceleration effect, exploding when reaching the deep levels. Lee Taeyeon’s absurd stats were mostly achieved upon reaching the depths.
“Let’s head down for now.”
It was a distant tale.
Yet, at the same time, a destination within reach.
Taesan cleared the corpse and broke through the dungeon.
The managers overseeing adventurers of each tier held life stones given by the headquarters, linked to the lives of the Guides of Sin. They could immediately know if one of them died or suffered severe injuries.
Therefore, they knew Horion had died.
“He’s dead?”
“What are you babbling about all of a sudden?”
“Horion said he’d go up for a bit, remember?”
“Why him?”
The man lounging on a plush sofa flicked his chin. Those stuck at the 30th floor had indulged in all kinds of luxuries, having nowhere else to spend their amassed wealth after reaching their peak strength.
“He’s dead.”
A slender youth held a gem, its light now extinguished.
The man on the sofa furrowed his brows.
“…Dead?”
“Look. It’s gone out.”
“Could it be wrong?”
“A gem connected to life itself mistaken? It’s more likely he’s really dead.”
“Hmm.”
The man reluctantly stood up.
“Call the others. Let’s discuss this.”
Soon, eight Guides of Sin gathered. A lethargic woman yawned.
“Why did you call busy people here?”
“Busy sleeping? Sleep is precious, you know.”
“You have been spending two-thirds of your day asleep and saying that?”
Their banter lacked passion and motivation.
Stuck on the 30th floor for a long time, they had used every means to become stronger. And this was their endpoint.
With no enemies to confront and only occasional sparring amongst themselves, they had lived decades in stagnation.
‘Better off dead.’
The third-tier manager smirked bitterly. Once passionate adventurers, they had chosen the path of Guides to Sin out of fear of death, leading to their current state.
‘Maybe they should have died back then.’
When they were still adventurers, dreaming of conquering the dungeon. Maintaining their purity might have been possible.
But that was a thing of the past. They had made their choice, and this was the result.
The manager spoke up.
“Horion is dead.”
The room fell silent. A young boy with white hair looked confused.
“Him?”
“Was he trying to cross to the 31st floor and got killed by the fourth-tier Guides?”
“No. Horion died on the 24th floor. That’s why I called you.”
The manager spoke softly.
“If one of us dies, we’re the most likely culprits.”
An adventurer gains levels by killing another adventurer. For them, stuck without growth, it’s the only way to become stronger.
But they showed disgust.
“Who would do such a thing?”
“Level changes are noticeable, and trying to descend would lead to death. Even if not, we’d kill them. Either way, it’s a stupid act leading to death.”
“I know.”
A Guide of Sin killing a comrade would be instantly targeted for elimination. A level increase of 1 or 2 wouldn’t make them significantly stronger, so resisting was futile. Their reasoning made sense.
“But Horion is dead. Second-tier adventurers couldn’t possibly kill him. That’s why I brought it up.”
It was the difference in equipment. A group of second-tier adventurers could overwhelm Horion but not kill him. The damage inflicted would be minimal, allowing him to escape.
“Hmm…”
Neither the second-tier Guides nor the third-tier ones like them. After some thought, someone spoke up.
“Could it be him?”
“Who?”
“The one who killed Jazan a while ago. The one with the ghost of the Warrior.”
“Ah.”
They belatedly realized Taesan’s existence.
“Jazan, that idiot, really died, right? Annoying, but he is not weak.”
They disliked Jazan. He embodied the arrogance of demons, believing the weak deserved to be trampled. Even among the third tier, he was ostracized.
Still, Jazan wasn’t weak. His demon-specific dark magic was tricky to counter, placing him mid-tier among the third tier.
The manager sighed.
“Right. He went up to the 20th floor and died. But wasn’t he supposed to have died too?”
Jazan and the adventurer with the ghost of the Warrior were believed to have died together. That was their information.
“What if that was a lie?”
“The second-tier adventurers lied?”
“It’s possible. They might have thought resisting someone who defeated Jazan was futile, so they tried to survive as long as possible.”
“There’s a possibility…”
The manager’s eyes darkened. Regardless, they had to verify it.
“Let’s go up together.”
“Just to catch one guy?”
“He beat Jazan from the second tier. He’s likely gotten stronger on his descent. We can’t be careless.”
“Do we all need to go?”
They showed reluctance.
“It’s just a 24th-floor adventurer. Even if he beat Jazan and Horion, that was 1-on-1. With two or more, it’s a sure win, right?”
“Right. At most, three of us should suffice, right?”
“Is that so?”
The manager muttered.
“Then four will go up. If things go south, run immediately.”
“There won’t be a need to run.”
“We’ll finish quickly and return. I need more sleep.”
Four Guides of Sin ascended the dungeon. The rest waited leisurely.
Had they been their former selves, they wouldn’t have made such a decision.
The enemy’s strength was an unknown, and they were assuredly stronger than any of them individually. The correct answer was for everyone to go up and suppress the threat together.
But they had been stagnant on the 30th floor for decades.
The futile passage of time had steeped them in lethargy.
Their judgment was clouded, and a bloated confidence emerged to prevent their egos from being consumed by powerlessness.
If the second-tier Guides had gained arrogance and recklessness over time, the third tier had acquired lethargy and a sense of helplessness.
The second-tier Guides had paid the price.
It was time for the third tier to face theirs.