Leveling Up With Skills - Chapter 247: 56th Floor (1)

It’s not the first time I’ve seen a skill with a question mark.

But it was the first time I saw a message suggesting I should contact the labyrinth administrator due to a system error.

“Balbabamba.”

Taesan opened his mouth. A moment later, the ground collapsed, and bricks rose up.

[It’s you again?]

A voice echoed, filled with weariness and irritation.

[You’re the first to call me so frequently in such a short period of time. What do you want this time?]

“It says to call you.”

[What are you talking about?]

“How should I show this to you?”

Taesan opened his skill window and showed it to Balbabamba.

“Does this work?”

[A skill? That’s no reason to call me…]

Balbabamba fell silent.

After a long pause, he finally spoke.

[What… is that?]

“I was wondering the same.”

There were a few skills the labyrinth couldn’t explain.

One was a conceptual skill I acquired in the world of the blacksmith Haphran. As I increased my proficiency, the details were gradually being revealed.

The other was the black skill I got from the God of Sin. It was written in strange characters, as if it couldn’t be explained at all.

But neither had instructed me to summon an administrator.

Balbabamba groaned.

[…There are a few cases where the labyrinth can’t explain a skill. The first is when the skill’s rank is far higher than the user’s power. In that case, as your proficiency or power increases, the explanation will appear. You likely have such a skill.]

A conceptual skill.

He seemed to be referring to that.

[The second case is when we know of the power but can’t fully comprehend it, like the powers of the Old Gods.]

That must be referring to the power of the Old Gods.

[The last case is when the power is entirely unknown, and its effects are a mystery. In such cases, the message will instruct you to summon me.]

“So, that’s what this is.”

[What is it?]

Balbabamba’s voice was filled with confusion.

[This is the labyrinth, created by mages and gods. Even the power of an Old God, while its effects might be unknown, we can at least discern what kind of power it is. But with what you have… we know nothing.]

A power that neither mages nor gods could comprehend.

That was the boundary.

[We’ll have to check it. Try using it once.]

“It’s difficult to predict what will happen. Even I can’t control it. Can you stop it?”

[You can’t control it? Even with your abilities?]

Balbabamba murmured in bewilderment.

[…Has anyone seen you use that power?]

“The God of Despair watched me.”

[Aphrodia…]

Balbabamba was silent for a moment before speaking.

[I’ll have to ask Aphrodia directly. Until then, this matter is postponed.]

Rumble!

Balbabamba’s body collapsed, merging with the ground.

Varkaza muttered in an amused tone.

[Is that the labyrinth administrator? He’s strong. At least within the labyrinth, no one could rival him.]

There was no problem with the skill I had obtained. That was confirmed. Now, it was time to check the rest.

[Special Activation Skill: Inner World]

[Mana Cost: 1000]

[Proficiency: 1%]

[It expands your strength and rank into a domain.]

“Is it like a barrier?”

[You have activated Inner World.]

Taesan’s presence expanded.

His rank and power surged outward, beginning to engulf the space.

Clang! Clang!

Like pieces of a puzzle fitting together, the surroundings were enveloped in Taesan’s strength. A few seconds later, the room he was in became his domain.

[It’s not a suppression type… is it a skill that forces combat?]

[The area itself has become a kind of domain. Unless one possesses considerable power, it would be difficult to escape.]

“Not bad.”

Taesan knocked on the edge of the domain. While the power had weakened slightly as it spread, it was still strong enough that anyone not of an equal level wouldn’t be able to break free. If he used **Apostle’s Transformation** or the **King’s Vessel**, the domain would become even sturdier.

It was a skill that could force one-sided battles, like a forced duel. It was definitely useful.

Next, it was time to check the skill Aphrodia had evolved.

[Special Activation Skill: Branch of Despair]

[Mana Cost: 50]

[Proficiency: 1%]

[It plants the branch of despair inside the target. The target experiences a storm of horrifying emotions.]

“A skill meant for one-on-one combat.”

It seemed to be a skill that influenced emotions by interfering with them.

In the case of emotion manipulation skills, if the target’s rank was too high, they could become entirely ineffective.

But this was an emotion manipulation skill given directly by the God of Despair.

Even a strong opponent, possibly even those in leadership positions, would likely be affected. If that were truly the case, the skill’s value was incredibly high.

I finished confirming the skills I had obtained.

Now, it was time to use my points.

“What should I do?”

Taesan sat on the ground, contemplating.

I had 2830 points. When converted to skill proficiency, the ratio was 1:10, meaning I had 283%.

However, none of the skills I currently possessed could fully utilize such a large amount of proficiency.

Each one was of such high value that the cost to improve them was enormous.

‘Conceptual skills, transcendence skills, and magic are impossible.’

Skills that were too high-level couldn’t accept points at all. I had to invest in skills that were a tier lower.

‘Even intermediate magic has terrible efficiency.’

I considered increasing the proficiency of **Star Arrow**, but it consumed 100 points for just a 1% increase.

Even if I invested all my points, I could only raise it by 28%.

Of course, the skill was powerful enough that even that would be strong, but it was still frustrating.

Taesan clicked his tongue. In his previous life, he hadn’t acquired skills of this caliber, so he hadn’t thought about such drawbacks.

Taesan continued to ponder.

And then he made a decision.

“I’ll use it on the spirits.”

[Spirit Skill: Spirit Contract]

[Proficiency: 2%]

[Contract with a spirit to draw out their power and summon them. You have not yet fully harnessed the power of the spirit.]

Varkaza and Minerva were strong. Taesan had yet to fully draw out their power.

Taesan invested his points into **Spirit Contract**.

As proficiency increased significantly, the consumption of points also rose, and the proficiency of the contracts with Varkaza and Minerva began to climb. Varkaza, who had been watching, gasped in admiration.

[Oh, oh?]

Suddenly, his power was increasing. The total amount of power he could handle was expanding, and he was able to wield it more smoothly.

[What is this?]

Varkaza was astonished.

His power was increasing even though he had done nothing. It was an experience he had never had before.

Having used all his points, Taesan checked the changes.

[Spirit Skill: Spirit Contract]

[Proficiency: 40%]

[Contract with a spirit to draw out their power and summon them. You can now handle the spirit’s power freely and utilize a considerable portion of it.]

Taesan waved his hand. Wind and light swirled together in his palm.

Handling the power felt much easier. Once he became more accustomed to it, he felt he might even be able to summon a true storm without consuming any mana.

[Spirit Contract: Highest-ranked Spirit of Varied Colors, Varkaza]

[Proficiency: 20%]

[Mana Cost to Summon: 30]

[You have contracted with Varkaza. You can summon Varkaza and give him orders. You can also draw out more of his power.]

[Spirit Contract: Wind Spirit King, Minerva]

[Proficiency: 26%]

[Mana Cost to Summon: 100]

[You have contracted with Minerva. You can draw out more of Minerva’s power, but due to the terms of the contract, you cannot summon Minerva.]

There wasn’t much change in the details of the **Spirit Contract**.

But the spirits seemed to feel the changes significantly. Varkaza was stammering in shock.

[What in the world is this…]

“You can definitely feel it.”

[…Is this the labyrinth?]

Varkaza groaned.

The labyrinth.

A system created by beings who had transcended.

Varkaza had finally realized the significance of that.

“Not bad.”

He had definitely grown stronger. The same likely applied to Minerva. Now, she could probably take down the monster that had given her so much trouble on Earth.

“The community is… still a mess.”

Though it had slowed down a bit compared to before, it was still difficult to have a conversation.

Kim Hwiyeon and the leaders of other countries were trying hard to control things, but people weren’t listening easily.

Among the names, a familiar one caught Taesan’s eye.

[Amelia Aerin (Solo): Shut up already before I kill you! Let’s talk!]

It was easy to tell what kind of person she was from her message.

Taesan chuckled.

“She’s alive, as expected.”

Taesan turned off the community.

It should calm down by tomorrow. He planned to talk then.

Now it was time to descend the labyrinth.

Taesan took a step forward.

The monster on the 56th floor was a Pegasus.

The winged horse thrust its horn forward as it flew through the air.

Taesan struck it down.

The Pegasus crashed to the ground, vomiting blood.

“It feels strange.”

To kill a mystical creature, like something from a fairy tale, in such a brutal manner—it was quite a strange feeling.

Taesan quickly cleared the 56th floor.

All the rewards from the secret room, the clear reward, and the secret reward were related to black magic, so Taesan offered them to the Demon God.

Unlike before, the Demon God didn’t appear. He merely collected the offerings with black energy.

Taesan assumed the Demon God was busy and proceeded to the 57th floor.

[57th Floor Quest Started.]

[Defeat the boss of the 57th floor and proceed.]

[Reward: A Radiantly Shining Golden Necklace.]

[Secret Reward: ???]

“I should start getting new things soon.”

[What new things?]

“A new skill.”

The ghost was bewildered.

[What more could you want?]

Taesan had gained a lot. Much more than the ghost, and the value of each skill was incredibly high.

Other adventurers would be grateful to have just one of these skills for a lifetime.

But Taesan still felt it wasn’t enough.

“I haven’t obtained the skill I really want.”

The skills he had gained from **Solo Mode** were all excellent.

But they weren’t the skills he truly desired.

“My core lies elsewhere.”

Taesan had grown strong here. If things continued this way, he could easily defeat the version of himself from his previous life.

But he was still missing the most important thing.

**Addition**, **Multiplication**, **Replication**, **Simple Time Stop**, **Absolute Judgment**, and so on.

These were the skills that had made him comparable to Lee Taeyeon even in **Easy Mode**. Skills he had acquired purely through his own effort and analysis.

They were, quite literally, everything to him.

And he still hadn’t recovered even half of them.

“Some are things I can’t obtain right now, but…”

Skills like **Simple Time Stop** and **Multiplication** required such unique conditions that even the Taesan of his previous life would have difficulty acquiring them again.

But there were a few he could obtain right now.

Taesan entered the 57th floor.

As he passed through the corridor, the monster of the 57th floor appeared.

The first thing he noticed was the different air.

From the massive flower-shaped monster, an intangible energy was emanating.

“I’ve found it.”

Taesan drew his sword.

[The Formless Rafflesia has appeared.]