039. 7th floor (4)
bang!
From the moment I noticed it, I started running straight without end.
Obviously, if I’m not mistaken, this race is an application of the 6th floor ordeal.
An environment covered with water that reduces stats just by touching it is threatening enough.
If all the scaffolding falls at this rate, hitting the water is unavoidable…
If so, all stats, including agility, will fall below the level.
After that, it was clear that he would die from not being able to run faster.
‘Damn, it’s hard to have three trials…’
The problem is that all of the trials are carried out in this way with a drastically raised level of difficulty.
It is not an exaggeration to say that both the mind and body have reached their limits through the series of trials.
but….
There was a way to break through this endless hellish difficulty if you were to go through it one by one.
「The Assassin’s Cloak (D) exclusive effect is activated.」
「Movement speed +15%」
「Remaining duration – 00:00:59」
Wow!
In an instant, both legs stepping on the tile gain strength, and the body jumps forward.
‘Okay, if I do this much, at least I won’t catch up…’
It was then.
Chaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!
The stream of water on both sides parted, and suddenly the streams rushed like blades.
‘What is this again…!’
Originally, I would have avoided it by slightly bending my knees, but now I can’t perform such feats.
The speed that I raised as much as I could increase was not formidable enough to take such an action.
As a result, there was only one way to avoid this stream of water.
“Suck!”
The moment I threw my body into the tile without lowering my momentum.
Boom!
There was a loud roar as water crashed behind it.
It was easy to guess how powerful it was just from the sound alone.
‘If I had been hit, if I hadn’t survived at least a concussion, my head might have exploded…’
Goosebumps ran down his spine and all his senses went up.
I was able to recognize it right away because I had been through trials and tribulations so far.
In this third ordeal, if you lose concentration even for a moment, you will die.
Kwa Dang Tang.
“Hee hee hee hee.”
I hurriedly reached for the tile with both hands and raised my body from the fall.
The gap between the tiles collapsing has not caught up with me yet.
There is still a chance to make up for mistakes.
‘You can’t hesitate any longer, you have to get your body together and move quickly…’
with a splash.
“…?”
The moment I looked down my head at the cool and refreshing feeling in my hands.
I could confirm that the tile I was holding with both hands had slipped down before I knew it.
「The skill ‘Eye of Truth’ is activated.」
I activated the Eye of Truth skill, hoping that what I touched wasn’t what I imagined…
“Water of Trial”
「Grade: A」
「If you touch it with water that has a penalty effect in the Tower of Trials, your physical ability will decrease.」
「As long as you do not make direct contact, your abilities will not decrease.」
“However, you cannot take this water anywhere other than the 6th floor stage.”
Reality told me that it was a trap, as if mocking my cry coldly.
“I have touched the waters of trials.”
「Temporarily decreases strength by 10.」
“Agility is temporarily reduced by 10.”
“Temporarily decreases your HP by 10.”
「Remaining penalty duration – 2 minutes 59 seconds」
The three stats directly related to the strength of the body decreased in an instant.
‘why…!’
For a moment, I was overcome with anger that seemed to roll my eyes.
No, I obviously avoided the blade of water and touched the ground.
Even so, these dog-like traps eventually reduced their abilities.
‘How the hell am I supposed to pass this ordeal!’
I felt like crying somewhere, but I couldn’t stay still.
「Remaining duration – 00:00:29」
The assassin’s cloak-only effect is about to end soon.
I hurriedly pulled my hand out of the water of the ordeal, and then I stood up again and started running.
However, it did not come out at the same speed as before.
If it was natural, it was natural.
What kind of speed can I achieve when all of my body stats are reduced by 10?
Originally, I was going to achieve a stable breakthrough with the assassin’s cloak-only effect…
If this continues, the gap will widen, and rather than a stable breakthrough, it will soon catch up.
‘…will I have no choice but to use it after all?’
I wondered if I had no choice but to bring out the skill I had been saving for instantaneous acceleration.
The newly acquired ‘soft iron pendant’ is not very helpful either.
If I had to increase the speed more, it was worth worrying because the only answer left was instantaneous acceleration.
The only problem was that he had less than 10% of his magic power left, and he didn’t know where the end of this road would lead.
If you pull out all your strength and run, but you can’t see the end…
At that time, I would have no choice but to die without an answer.
however.
‘There’s no such thing as a choice.’
It wasn’t me who chose that, it was this situation.
If you don’t speed up further, it’s clear that your feet will be tied to the trap and you will fall into the water as it is.
If that’s the case, at least you have to do it.
Immediately, he raised his whole body’s mana and murmured softly.
“Instantaneous acceleration.”
Acceleration was activated the moment he had just grown into a D+-class skill.
「The skill ‘Instantaneous Acceleration’ is activated.」
Whoa!
My body feels lighter and I feel a momentary increase in speed.
Even if the three physical stats decreased by 10, the power of the skill did not decrease.
Of course, it would be difficult to maintain this speed and avoid traps, but…
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-!
It was enough that I didn’t have to make every move to avoid the trap anymore.
It was because I was no longer there from the moment the trap was triggered.
‘It seems that a trap will be triggered if you cross a certain area…’
The trap is useless if you break through the section faster than the time it is activated.
Bang bang bang!
‘It’s okay, I can pass…!’
He only had about 7% of his mana left, but it was still worth trying.
In this way, even if you drag the time little by little, you can soon regain the ability that was reduced by the penalty.
And when you regain that ability, you can activate Necromancy right away.
『Basic effect-Absorbs the soul of the dead to strengthen and supplement something such as ability or magical power.』
The changed basic effect of necromancy can also supplement ‘magic’.
In the second ordeal, as much as he had absorbed the commander, he should have been able to recover that much magic.
Then, if the amount of mana consumed for instantaneous acceleration was further increased, the clearing was confirmed.
「Assassin’s Cloak (D) exclusive effect is disabled.」
The duration of the exclusive effect ended before I knew it, and the speed decreased, but…
That also meant that the remaining time of the penalty was also reduced.
however.
「Remaining penalty duration – 1 minute 57 seconds」
The penalty showed no signs of ending, even while hitting all the mana in the momentary acceleration.
If this continues, the trial will eventually fail because of the reduced speed.
then….
“Use the Orc Hunter’s Spirit to replenish magic power.”
For now, it was important to buy more time by replenishing mana.
Surprisingly, the magic power has increased considerably, so the speed is similar to before the exclusive effect was deactivated.
‘At this rate, I’ll be able to safely endure until the penalty ends…’
That was the moment.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
Unlike the traps that have been triggered so far, the tiles under your feet sway noisily and soar upward.
“…!!”
It was only for a while that he was embarrassed that his body was rich with Tile.
‘What is this again…’
My eyes widened at the shocking sight I saw in the moment of soaring through the air.
Dozens of tiles floated into the sky by the water stream.
Even dozens of tiles were changing in height by the water flow every moment.
The tiles were perfectly balanced in the water stream, as if some special device had been put in place.
As if it was designed to go over all these tiles…
Took.
The moment I landed on the original tile in the air, I smiled.
“under….”
Now I am tired of being astonished and angry at each one.
Plop plop plop…!
In the back, a tile is submerged in the sea, and in the front, a tile is floating in the air.
It’s a dilemma itself, but the penalty is still not over.
Maybe it wasn’t designed to let the time remaining on the penalty run out.
I’ve been through many trials since entering the Tower of Trials, but…
I thought that an ordeal as crazy as this 7th floor ordeal would be unprecedented.
Boom!
He kicked the tile on the spot without further discussion.
If you analyze the pattern of the tile height controlled by the water stream, you might be able to pass through it stably.
‘This isn’t the time to be arguing about things like that…!’
There is also a condition that the 7th floor ordeal must be cleared within 40 minutes.
The speed at which the tile behind it is gradually submerged in the sea is also increasing.
The action had to be fast as it was an absurdly short amount of time to analyze something.
thud-!
“Kuk.”
The height of the tile suddenly lowered, and the landing was followed by a huge shock, and my eyes were frowned.
Necromancy’s shield wasn’t at the level of activation, but even so, it was quite a shock.
But there was no time to complain of pain.
Kwaaaaang!
This is because the tile rose upward again with the great impact.
I did feel a bit of shaking when going over tiles before, but…
It wasn’t that serious.
It was such a powerful shock that the body jumped up and flew into the air.
If you’re not careful, you can fall off the tile and fall into the sea at any time.
‘If I stay on this tile any longer, there will be no answers…!’
Tiles that change in height in real time in the air are daunting just to endure.
fault!
The moment I jumped off the tile again, I was able to reach the next tile.
The impact wasn’t great this time, but the tile in front of it is quite low.
However, even if it looks like this, it is a body that was once trained in various ways of fighting as an aspiring hunter.
Whoa…!
I jumped off the tile and took the fall method at the same time to minimize the impact of the fall.
Of course, the pain followed one after another, but it didn’t matter.
There is also a high-speed regeneration skill, and above all, this body is not so weak that it collapses at that level.
empty empty!
Instinctively, he calculated the height of the tile in an instant and crossed the tile in succession.
Of course, traps such as holes in the tiles and water gushing out were triggered, but…
swish
Even in this crazy ordeal, I was able to avoid it without a big deal.
and.
Whoa!
Then, when I reached the last remaining tile, I finally saw what I was looking for.
Whoa…!
On the other side of the sea, a portal was trembling on a red tile.
Instinctively, I knew it was the exit, but I couldn’t move right away.
“…”
Unlike the areas with tiles I’ve seen so far, there were no tiles in this front.
A situation where there is no foothold to run or do something else.
In other words, you should be able to jump right into the portal from this distance…
“…I can’t be hesitant.”
I sighed as I watched the tiles falling from behind me.
It seems that they won’t even give me time to think about it.
‘Yes, it wasn’t a matter of whether or not I could do it from the beginning.’
Making a decision in an instant, I quickly bent my knees like a spring and rushed forward.
Wow…!
The remaining magic power was also hit by instant acceleration, and the speed was not lacking as it was a leap, but…
The question was whether I could land correctly on the portal on the red tile.
No, even if it did, it was questionable whether it would be fine.
It was a height where the whole body could be fractured, so I was a little afraid, but I couldn’t help it.
‘I have no choice but to believe in the unique characteristics…!’
If the amount of damage was unreceived, the only thing to do was to receive it with the Necromancy’s shield.
Of course, the minimum safety device was activated before that.
「The Soft Iron Pendant (B) exclusive effect ‘Steel Protection’ is activated.」
「The property of absorbing 10% of all physical damage dwells in the skin.」
Then, the moment he fell in a parabolic arc through the red tiled portal.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
“You have proven that you have overcome your hesitation.”
“The third trial is over.”
The message of the end of the ordeal he wanted came to mind, and at the same time, black smoke gushed out from his entire body.
Fuhuaaaaaaaaaaaa!
“The spirit has absorbed the damage inflicted on the user.”
“The Orc Hunter’s spirit has disappeared.”
“The Orc Hunter’s spirit has disappeared.”
“The Orc Hunter’s spirit has disappeared.”
「Current number of Commanders – 12/30」
“…heh heh heh heh.”
What was feared became a reality.
The surroundings returned to the dark hallway, but the impact of the jump was still the same.
Even if he passed the ordeal, if he was a normal person, it wouldn’t be strange if he died like this.
“It’s like a crazy ordeal…”
But what is certain is that I overcame such an ordeal.
fluff.
「The Soft Iron Pendant (B) exclusive effect ‘Steel Protection’ is disabled.」
Sitting on the floor and gasping for breath, I realized more strongly that I was alive.
‘…If the level of Necromancy hadn’t gone up, he might have died.’
Also, if it weren’t for the all-rounder’s tendencies, it would definitely have died here.
‘It would have been terrible if there hadn’t even been a necromancy shield in a situation where there was no magic and no stamina.’
However, it is not the time to get wet with such emotions just yet.
I forced my stiff body up and started running down the dark hallway again.
With 40 minutes remaining, there was nothing strange about the ordeal ending soon, so I couldn’t rest.
and.
“Congratulations, you have broken through the 7th floor of the Tower of Trials.”
“You acquired the skill ‘Grace of Wind (A-)’ as a breakthrough reward.”
「You have acquired ‘15000 points’ as a breakthrough reward.」
「As an additional breakthrough reward, ‘Speedy Boots (C+)’ will be sent to your inventory.」
“Go to the waiting room.”
At some point, such phrases suddenly came to my mind, and soon a portal was created in front of my eyes.
Whoa…!
“Is this dreadful ordeal over?”
Contrary to my expectations, I almost died without any variables such as intrusion into the hierarchy, but…
After all, standing in front of the portal alive like this made me feel something new.
But now was the time to face the end of this ordeal.
“Go to the waiting room.”
The moment I went through the portal, a message I had never seen before appeared in front of me.
“The number of people who have broken through the 7th floor ordeal has exceeded 1000.”
“The system expansion will begin.”
yet….
“You are a challenger who was designated as a ‘pioneer’ in all previous floors.”
“You can choose a halo.”
Full-scale system expansion has begun.
