Sungyoon was taken aback. He had barely felt himself cutting the Mad Dog. The sensation was like cutting soft tofu with a sharp knife. However, he didn’t let the surprise move him into inactivity.
“Oohk!”
He quickly dodged out of range. When the Mad Dog had jumped towards him, he had made a clean cut from top to bottom. But the corpse was still flying toward him. He was in danger of being covered in blood, innards, and flesh.
Chwahhhhhhhk!
The corpse hit the ground as blood splattered all over.
“Hoo-ooh!”
Sungyoon took a deep breath. And raising his halberd, he looked at the corpse.
‘As expected, it is good.’
Even though he had used it before, he once again appreciated how good the weapon was. Compared to this halberd, the mace and the spear he used before felt like weapons from the stone age.
He picked up the moonstone and immediately activated his storage Gem. The moonstone disappeared from his hand as if it were magic.
‘This is so convenient. I like it.’
When he first hunted as a Connector, he used to put the moonstones in his pockets. When the moonstones increased in number, he started carrying around a big bag. Since his strength and stamina had increased as a Connector, the weight of the moonstones didn’t matter much. However, moving around the labyrinth while carrying a bag was very annoying. The storage Gem solved this annoying problem in an instant.
He had equipped the Gem on the vambrace type Device. He tried shaking it a couple of times before walking again.
After covering a short distance, he encountered a Slash Cat. When the monster saw Sungyoon, it extended its claws and ran toward him.
‘Let's try this one.’
Sungyoon activated the magic Gem that enhanced his visual acuity.
In a flash, he felt as if time had slowed down. However, time hadn’t actually slowed down. It was just that his dynamic visual acuity had increased by a lot.
He could see the red-eyed Slash Cat charge toward him. His eyes could see each of its movements.
“Hoohp!”
This time he focused on the spear blade of the halberd, using the long reach of the weapon to his advantage. The spear blade flew towards the Slash Cat. The monster desperately tried to dodge, but the halberd’s spear blade was too fast.
-Kang!
The spear blade embedded itself in its shoulder. However, Sungyoon wasn’t done. A stupid amount of strength empowered his attack, so the spear blade kept moving deeper into the Slash Cat's body. Soon, the ax-blade started cutting the monster open.
Too-hwahhhhhhk!
The Slash Cat’s side was split wide open, and blood and internal organs fell out. It was obviously a critical wound. The monster died before it could even swing its sharp claws.
‘The spear blade is great too.’
Owing to his experience, he was able to use the spear blade of the halberd with a practiced hand. However, the blunt Indigo spear couldn’t be compared to the halberd.
‘Moreover, the support magic is quite useful.’
Due to the increase in his visual acuity, he almost felt as if time had slowed. So, he thought it would be great to use this Gem when assessing a battlefield in danger. It would be very useful when he was trying to make an opportunity for himself.
‘Moreover, I can use it quite a lot of times.’
Even if it was an Orange rank Gem, it could strengthen his visual acuity 12 consecutive times. Moreover, the cooldown was only six hours. It was really short. However, the short duration might be a special characteristic of all support magic Gems.
Sungyoon put away the moonstone and started moving through the labyrinth once again.
This time he found a Fang Boar.
‘Should I test out different battle tactics?’
He licked his lips. As expected, the Fang Boar charged straight towards Sungyoon as soon as it discovered him. Its sharp tusks headed towards him.
Ssssk!
He changed his weapon. The halberd disappeared. In its place, he now held a large shield and a battle-ax.
-Gweeeeeek!
The Fang Boar let out a cry, and its tusks shone. One could not mistake its dangerous and indomitable appearance. However, Sungyoon had no fear as he put his shield forward.
Tuhng!
The sound of a large collision rang out. As expected of a high-rank shield, the monster couldn’t even leave a scratch on it. Sungyoon was able to deflect the treacherous tusks.
-Gwehhhhk!
The boar became unsteady on its feet as it screamed. In a flash, Sungyoon unsummoned his ax and shield, and the halberd reappeared. He immediately placed the halberd between the monster's front legs. He used the hook on the other side of the ax blade and hooked the Fang Boar’s leg.
Hweek!
Next, he pulled his halberd and lifted it.
Hwee-chung!
One of its legs rose into the air, and the monster's enormous body swayed. Shock appeared in its red eyes.
When it started to lose its balance, Sungyoon immediately stabbed it with his spear blade.
Poo-oohk!
The spear blade penetrated the monster's underbelly. Instead of putting more strength behind the halberd in order to push the blade deeper, Sungyoon unsummoned it and moved closer to the Fang Boar.
Sssssk!
The battle-ax once again appeared in his hands. He didn't even think and brought down the ax toward the Fang Boar.
Kwah-jee-jeek!
-Ggwee-eeeeek!
The large ax blade struck the Fang Boar’s back and side. It cut through the monster's tough hide, muscles, and even the spine. The cut was so deep that one of the ax blades disappeared into the monster's body.
Choo-oohk!
The Fang Boar slumped. It had instantly died. However, the ax was still deeply embedded in its body, which couldn't fall on the floor because it was being propped up.
‘Mmm. Did that go well?’
He put his foot on the Fang Boar and extracted the ax.
The halberd, the ax, and the shield were equipment similar in quality. He wondered if he could use a combination of the three by taking advantage of his ability to quickly activate the Gems. Sungyoon tilted his head in thought after the experiment had come to an end.
‘I thought it worked out pretty well…’
However, he had faced just a Fang Boar. That monster wasn’t a good barometer as to whether this was a useful strategy or not. He’d have to go deeper and test it out against the stronger monsters.
‘Still, they are all good weapons.’
He had zero complaints about his equipment. With the weapons he possessed, he'd be able to kill any monster that he had encountered in the Beginner’s Labyrinth.
‘Shall I use these on the next one?’
Sungyoon touched the Gems equipped on his Device, and his hand went toward the attack magic Gems.
‘Gravity and Earth.’
He had experienced the gravity magic before. It had increased his weight, and his movements had slowed down. It had been a really annoying magic spell. Of course, the only reason why it was just an annoyance to Sungyoon was the fact that his strength-enhancement Gems had been active. A normal human wouldn’t be able to move. The massive increase in gravity might also cause damage to the body.
However, he would be the one using this Gem now. This thought deeply moved him.
As for the Earth magic Gem, he had never seen or experienced one before.
Sungyoon wandered around the labyrinth in order to find a new sacrifice. It didn’t take him too long. A Big Rat was roaming on the floor.
He extended his hand.
‘Activate!’
Hoo-oong!
As he had that thought, the Gravity magic Gem let out a light.
-Geeeeeeek!
The Big Rat had been about to turn its head towards Sungyoon, but it crashed to the ground. A mournful cry escaped its mouth. It struggled on the ground, but its weight had increased eightfold, and it could only move a little bit.
Sungyoon walked toward the monster in a leisurely manner. He stabbed it with his halberd.
Poo-ook!
The spear blade left a deep wound, and whatever small movements were happening ceased to exist.
‘This is pretty good.’
The spell was well suited to seal the movements of his enemy, and it would work better if the monster had more mass. It was a great way to attack a monster. He could use the spell six times, and the cooldown was 13 hours. Sungyoon was very satisfied and started to move again. This time he would test out the Earth magic.
He once again found a Fang Boar.
It acted exactly like a boar that could only charge forward. And when the monster's charge begun, Sungyoon activated the Earth magic. A light flashed from his Gem.
Puh-uhk!
A sharp earthen spike appeared right below the Fang Boar. It looked like a spear blade roughly carved from the earth. The stalagmite rose to a height of about 3m. Moreover, it wasn’t just one or two spikes.
Puh-uhk! Puh-uhk!
The sharp stalagmites covered everything in a 10-meter radius. The Fang Boar was within that sphere of influence. It didn’t even have the chance to scream before its body was ruthlessly stabbed by multiple stalagmites. The monster was hung in the air, and red blood flowed down the stalagmites.
‘… amazing.’
This was his first time seeing a magic spell with a massive area of effect. He barely stopped his mouth from falling open. The only two magic he had seen were gravity magic and flame magic. If he considered the electric outcome of this spell, the other two spells looked like a child's play that was only slightly dangerous.
‘I guess the magic spells rise to this level when the Gems become Orange rank.’
He could use this spell six times, and the cooldown was 17 hours. He couldn’t be reckless in its use. But from what he had seen just now, it would be a strong addition to his arsenal.
Sungyoon lightly tapped at his Device.
‘I’ve used all the Gems I’ve acquired for the most part.’
He just needed experience so that these Gems would truly become his.
Sungyoon headed deeper into the labyrinth.
* * *
Before the promised time to meet Tim, Sungyoon diligently went around the labyrinth. His efforts paid off. He successfully mapped the entire 2nd floor of the labyrinth.
‘It wasn’t that hard.’
There was no way this could be called a map. The paper was filled with crooked lines. He looked a bit embarrassed about his work as he reflected back on his experience in clearing the 2nd floor.
The monsters here on the 2nd floor were the monsters from the 3rd to 7th floor in the Beginner’s Labyrinth. However, they couldn’t contend with Sungyoon, who was armed with high-rank Gems. He was an irresistible force as he swept through the second floor. Finally, he was able to mark all the forks in the tunnels to point towards the exit. He was able to discern the entire layout of the 2nd floor.
Sungyoon weighed the dates.
‘It’ll be fine if I leave tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.’
The meeting with Tim wasn't too far away. Since he had to think about the time needed to travel from his labyrinth to Armstrong, he should start thinking about leaving for Armstrong.
However, he wasn't in a hurry. He didn’t need to immediately leave.
‘Should I check it out once before I leave?’
He had located the tunnel to the 3rd floor early on and cleared it of all monsters. He came to a decision and then headed down the tunnel. Even though he had gone down a floor, his surrounding looked the same. It continued to look like a labyrinth.
In this familiar surrounding, he immediately faced off against a monster.
As soon as he arrived on the 3rd floor, he saw a pair of red eyes. He became tense once again.
‘Blue Mane Lion.’
It was a monster with a majestic blue mane. It was commonly referred to as one of the end bosses of the Beginner’s Labyrinth. It glared at Sungyoon.
The man took out his halberd and firmly rooted himself to the floor. The tension he felt right now couldn’t be compared to before.
He had killed many Blue Mane Lions before, and one of them even when he had joined a temporary party.
However, this was the first time he was hunting this monster by himself. It was the strongest monster within the Beginner’s Labyrinth, and due to this truth, he kept his guard up.
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