Leveling Up With Skills - Chapter 197: Earth Before the Apocalypse (Part 2)
“It’s hard to put into words… but something’s different,” Lee Taeyeon murmured with a puzzled expression.
Lee Taeyeon had conquered Solo Mode. Her observational and judgment skills were top-notch. She scrutinized Taesan with a sharp gaze.
“Taesan, show me your status window.”
“Sorry, but I can’t.”
“Why not?”
Lee Taeyeon was flustered. Taesan had no reason to hide his status window.
“I have my reasons.”
But Taesan, with his vastly changed stats, couldn’t show her.
“It’s not that important, is it? It won’t harm you, so don’t worry.”
Lee Taeyeon quietly stared at Taesan, various emotions flickering in her eyes.
“…Alright.”
“That’s how it is.”
“Fine. Then let’s get to the point.”
She spoke calmly.
“The next wave is about to start.”
Taesan nodded.
Waves of monster attacks occurred every time they returned to Earth. After their last return, humanity lost Seoul in the first wave.
In the second wave, half of the Hard Mode players died.
In the third wave, humanity could only defend a few small towns.
Now, it was the fourth wave. And this time, humanity was annihilated.
Taesan recalled what he had said back then.
“How many are there?”
“Two S-ranks. Dozens of A-ranks. Hundreds of B-ranks. And an apostle.”
Lee Taeyeon spoke calmly.
Indeed, it was enough to declare the end. In his previous life, they couldn’t defeat the apostle and everyone died.
Defeat was practically certain.
But Taesan had no intention of letting them be defeated.
“I’ll handle the two S-ranks. Just hold off the apostle for a bit. I’ll deal with it quickly and come help.”
Lee Taeyeon’s eyes wavered.
“What do you mean? Not just one, but two S-ranks. Even for you…”
“There’s no one else, right?”
Lee Taeyeon fell silent at Taesan’s words.
He was right. Two S-ranks and an apostle. Only Taesan and herself could handle such monsters. So, one had to handle the apostle or the two S-ranks. It was inevitable.
That was why she had called Taesan, but she couldn’t help being taken aback.
“…You accepted it quite easily.”
Taesan had always grumbled and complained about every choice. While he had never outright refused, she had expected him to grumble this time too.
“There’s no point in complaining now.”
Taesan shrugged. Lee Taeyeon gave him a curious look.
“You really have changed.”
“Really?”
Taesan sat down with a smile.
“Then let’s chat for a while. It’s been a while.”
“…Chat?”
“Just about random things. Like how you settled in Solo Mode.”
In his previous life, Lee Taeyeon had told him about Solo Mode. What was on each floor, what items she had obtained.
Back then, Taesan was an Easy Mode player, so he listened half-heartedly.
But now, he was in Solo Mode. He planned to sort through the information again.
Lee Taeyeon smiled.
“You used to get annoyed and refused to listen. What’s with the change of heart?”
“Now that things are coming to an end, I might as well listen.”
“Sounds good. I’ve been feeling frustrated with no one to talk to.”
She began to talk about Solo Mode. It had been a while since she had someone to share with, and her expression was bright.
“And the 45th floor. The secret room there is a bit special.”
“Special?”
“Yes. There’s something you can’t get through normal methods. So there…”
As she prattled on, Taesan stored the information in a corner of his mind.
“And in Solo Mode, the difficulty spikes suddenly at certain floors. Did you experience that too?”
“Even in Easy Mode, there were spikes. The 51st floor, for instance, had a noticeable difficulty change.”
“Exactly. But in Solo Mode, it was much more severe.”
Lee Taeyeon shuddered.
“I nearly died. And the 51st floor was particularly unique; passing through it felt like a life-or-death challenge. But it had a hidden room with some excellent rewards.”
He absorbed the information about what lay ahead and what could be obtained.
They continued chatting about various topics. Lee Taeyeon marveled.
“It’s like we finally understand each other. We never did before. It’s strange.”
Taesan also felt the same. He was in Solo Mode alongside her, but she didn’t know that. He smiled silently.
They talked for a long while.
Eventually, the time came.
“Well, it’s time…”
Lee Taeyeon clenched her fist, her body trembling slightly.
Taesan looked at her and spoke.
“You… why didn’t you return to the past? Why did you die with that in your grasp?”
He wanted to ask, but Taesan shook his head.
“Let’s survive.”
Now wasn’t the time for questions. He would ask once everything was over.
“Yes.”
Lee Taeyeon smiled faintly.
“Damn.”
Joonggeun looked over the barrier with a bitter expression.
“I knew this day would come, but it feels so awful.”
Destruction was practically certain. Inside the city, shouts and cries echoed.
He saw Lee Changchun in his line of sight.
His face was pale, but he held his weapon firmly.
“He looks surprisingly fine. I thought he’d be a wreck. Well, I should accept it too. Considering we’ve lived so long in this death-bound situation, we’ve had a long run. It’s a good ending.”
“Is there a good death?”
Muttering the words he had once said, Taesan waited.
Then the monsters’ cries were heard.
The wave had begun.
“Wow, this is crazy. Hyung, what are you dealing with again?”
“Two S-ranks.”
“…See you in the afterlife. You’ll probably get there first. Wait for me.”
“Don’t worry.”
Taesan dismissed him with a wave and braced himself.
“I’m not planning on going.”
Boom!
His body accelerated.
Unlike his previous life, there were no large leaps or full reconnaissance to determine their positions. But it didn’t matter. He remembered precisely where the monsters had been.
He ran towards where the monsters awaited.
[Monster 5 has appeared.]
[Monster 7 has appeared.]
“Hello.”
A massive jellyfish-like monster and an octopus-like monster floating in the air with tentacles greeted him.
“This feels strange. Really.”
To meet the monsters he had once fought to the death again.
The monsters focused on Taesan.
**[Monster 5 sees you as an enemy.]**
**[Monster 7 sees you as an enemy.]**
**[You have witnessed something horrifying.]**
**[Judgment beginning.]**
**[Mental breakdown judgment… success.]**
**[Confusion judgment… success.]**
**[Fear judgment… success.]**
**[Instant death judgment… success.]**
**[All judgments successful!]**
**[You have activated Reconnaissance.]**
**[Monster 7]**
**[Health: 325,842/325,842]**
**[Monster 5]**
**[Health: 105,212/105,212]**
Taesan’s eyes narrowed.
The monsters were much weaker than in his previous life.
The reason was clear. Aphrodia had been flustered when the enhanced trial was issued. As if something unexpected had occurred.
Perhaps Aphrodia hadn’t anticipated interference from the ancient gods.
Monsters were beings born from the power of the ancient gods. It was likely that Aphrodia couldn’t fully manifest them with her power.
“That’s good.”
Taesan’s lips curled into a smile. The monsters were weakened to a level similar to his current strength. This would clearly highlight the differences between his previous and current selves.
The monster’s tentacles moved. Taesan stomped his foot, dodging the green beams.
Rumble…
The beams melted the horizon.
Taesan analyzed calmly.
‘I can dodge it.’
Even without accelerated time, he could evade the monster’s attack effortlessly.
Taesan charged at the monster. Tentacles moved, green beams targeting him.
Taesan watched the incoming beams and kicked off the ground.
Screech!
The beams narrowly missed him.
In his previous life, dodging the beams was impossible. He had to read the signs and preemptively avoid them.
But now, he could dodge even after seeing the beams fired. His enhanced stats made it possible.
Tap.
Taesan arrived right in front of the monster.
He hadn’t used any attack nullification yet.
Boom!
Monster 7, a defense-specialized creature, shielded itself. Taesan raised his sword and pointed at Monster 5.
**[You have activated Forced Duel. For 12 seconds, only Monster 5 can deal damage to you.]**
Ignoring the defense-specialized monster, he attacked the offense-specialized one first.
In his previous life, he barely had enough mana to use Forced Duel once, needing to ensure he killed one on the first attempt.
But not now. He could use Forced Duel multiple times without any mana issues, so there was no need to deal with the defense monster first.
Screech!
He dodged the beams and thrust his sword.
**[Dealt 3043 damage to Monster 5.]**
No multipliers. No copying or designated skill resets.
But he had his increased base attack power. Whittling down the monster’s hundred thousand health wasn’t difficult.
**[You have activated White Rune Shield.]**
A small rune shield floated around him. The tentacle beams were blocked by the shield. It didn’t last long, but it gave him enough time to dodge.
Taesan couldn’t help but laugh.
He had known things were different, but fighting the same monsters made it clear.
In his previous life, the battle involved using attack nullification to get close and then using multipliers and copying. If he defeated the enemy, he won.
If not, he was at a significant disadvantage—a high-wire act.
Now, it was much more stable.
With his increased stats, he could dodge attacks easily and slowly, but surely, wear them down.
**[You have activated Frost Arrow.]**
Arrows pierced the monster.
He used his skills freely, without worrying about mana.
Screech!
Ignoring the beams with attack nullification, he continued stabbing his sword. Eventually, all attack nullifications were used up.
**[You took 18,543 damage.]**
Over ten thousand damage.
But Survival didn’t activate. His health exceeded twenty thousand. He still had thousands of health left.
Taesan quickly withdrew, gulped down a health potion, fully restored, and charged again.
He wasn’t as strong as back then.
His previous life’s self was likely stronger than his current self.
But he had gained strength in a different direction.
And if he could reclaim his past strength here, he would become truly perfect.
Taesan relentlessly pressed the attack on the monster.